Eastleigh Borough Council Cabinet Meeting

There were no declarations of interest in relation to items of business on the agenda.

RESOLVED -

That the Minutes of the meeting held on 23 January 2023 be agreed as a correct record.

There was no public participation on this occasion.

There were no recommendations from Committees on this occasion.

Issue

It is proposed that this Plan replaces the current Corporate Plan 2015-2025 which has become out of date and no longer properly reflects the priorities, challenges and opportunities for the Borough and the Council. (Paper 6)

Consideration

The Corporate Plan 2023-2026 (the Plan) will become the overarching strategic document for the Council, setting out strategic priorities for external delivery and the internal organisational functions to support delivery.

RESOLVED –

Cabinet noted the proposed new Corporate Plan 2023-26.

Issue

The Budget underpins the Council’s ability to meet Strategic Priorities set out in the Corporate Plan. The Budget aligns the appropriate level of resource that enables services and projects to be delivered to support residents and other stakeholders. The Budget is a vital management mechanism to ensure financial sustainability of the Council and fulfilment of statutory obligations. (Paper 7)

Consideration

The revised Corporate Plan for 2023-2026 has been developed in conjunction with the Medium-Term Financial Plan (MTFP) and reflects the Council’s priorities against the anticipated future levels of resourcing.

RESOLVED –

That Cabinet recommends Council:

(1)  sets the revised net Revenue Budget requirement for 2022/23 at £11,100,000 and note the impact on the Council’s General Fund balance (para 12);

(2)  sets the net Revenue Budget requirement for 2023/24 at £12,156,000 and note the impact on the Council’s General Fund balance (para 12);

(3)  notes the provisional Local Government Finance settlement for 2023/24 (para 45);

(4)  approves budget adjustments for 2022/23 and 2023/24 in line with the MediumTerm Financial Plan (Appendix A & para 15-33);

(5)  approves the increase of £5 for 2023/24 for the average Council Tax for Eastleigh Borough Council (para 46-49);

(6)  approves the Special Expenses for Parished areas (para 50- 52)

(7)  approves the Medium-Term Financial Plan for 2022/23 – 2027/28 (Appendix A)

(8)  notes the successful achievement of Corporate Continuous Improvement requirement in 2022/23 and 2023/24 (para 40-44)

(9)  Approves an additional Fee and Charge for S106 upfront contribution monitoring (para 73).

[NOTE: A Supplementary Budget amendment was submitted to Cabinet for recommendation 6.)

Issue

The Capital, Treasury Management and Investment Strategies set out the long-term context in which capital expenditure decisions are made and gives due consideration to both the risk and reward of these decisions and the impact on the achievement of priority objectives. (Paper 8)

Consideration

These strategies give a high-level overview of how capital expenditure, financing and treasury management activity contribute to the provision of local services along with an overview of how associated risk is managed and the implications for future financial sustainability.

RESOLVED –

That Cabinet recommends Council:

(1)  approves the Capital Strategy at Appendix 1;

(2)  approves the Treasury Management Strategy at Appendix 2;

(3)  approves the Investment Strategy at Appendix 3;

(4)  approves the Flexible Use of Capital Receipts Strategy at Appendix 1C;

(5)  approves the Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) Statement at Appendix 2A;

(6)  approves the Prudential Indicators at Appendix 2B;

(7) approves the Treasury Management Policy Statement at Appendix 2C;

(8) approves the Treasury Management Practices (TMP’s) and Investment Management Practices (IMP’s) at Appendix 2D.

Issue

The purpose of this report is to seek approval to fund additional Housing Programme properties (new homes) in the Borough to enable the objectives of the Local Authority Housing Fund (LAHF) to be met. The Council’s strategic Housing Programme is already delivering new residential schemes to meet wider corporate objectives- including homelessness prevention, town centre regeneration and community infrastructure provision. The objectives of the LAHF provide another driver for the housing programme activity. (Paper 9)

Consideration

The LAHF offers an opportunity to significantly boost the capital funding to make properties available via the Housing Programme, and help the Council grow its stock of rented properties available to meet local housing needs.

RESOLVED –

That Cabinet:

(1)  approved signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities regarding the administration and delivery of the Local Authority Housing Fund (LAHF) 2022- 2024;

(2)  approved expenditure of up to 60% match funding (estimated at £1.5M) to deliver nine properties in the Borough, to be made available to eligible households in accordance with the Local Authority Housing Fund terms, with expenditure funded by borrowing and repaid from the revenue generated from rental income; and

(3)  delegated approval to the Executive Head of Finance & Strategic Housing and the Leader of the Council to finalise the funding and allocation of the LAHF.

Issue

Bampton House is a vacant office building in Chandlers Ford which is being converted into 13 self-contained units to be used as specialist short-term accommodation. Standard assessment procedure (SAP) reports have calculated that the units, once complete, will have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating E. This meets current regulations (2018) however changes to the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards propose that all new tenancies from 2025 and existing tenancies from 2028 will need a minimum EPC rating of C or above. (Paper 10)

Consideration

Eastleigh Borough Council have an opportunity to upgrade the windows and heating system at Bampton House whilst building work is underway to achieve an EPC C rating. This will ensure the building complies with future government legislation, reduces energy costs for vulnerable tenants, improves the energy efficiency of assets and avoids costly retrofitting at a later date whilst the building is occupied.

RESOLVED –

That Cabinet  approved additional funding of £205,000 to upgrade the energy efficiency measures required for the conversion of Bampton House, Chandlers Ford, to be funded from rental income in accordance with the updated business plan.