Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Cllr Federica Smith-Roberts.

To approve the minutes from the previous meeting.

Resolved that the minutes of the Executive held on the 3^rd February be confirmed as a correct record.

To receive and note any declarations of interests in respect of any matters included on the agenda for consideration at this meeting.

(The other registrable interests of Councillors of Somerset Council, arising from membership of City, Town or Parish Councils and other Local Authorities will automatically be recorded in the minutes: City, Town & Parish Twin Hatters - Somerset Councillors 2023 )

The following declarations of interest were automatically recorded:

Cllr Theo Butt Philip – Wells City Council
Cllr Graham Oakes – Yeovil Town Council / Yeovil Without Parish Council
Cllr Mike Rigby – Bishops Lydeard and Cothelstone Parish Council
Cllr Heather Shearer – Street Parish Council
Cllr Richard Wilkins – Curry Rivel Parish Council

The Chair to advise the Committee of any items on which members of the public have requested to speak and advise those members of the public present of the details of the Council’s public participation scheme.

For those members of the public who have submitted any questions or statements, please note, a three minute time limit applies to each speaker and you will be asked to speak before Councillors debate the issue.

We are now live webcasting most of our committee meetings and you are welcome to view and listen to the discussion. The link to each webcast will be available on the meeting webpage, please see details under ‘click here to join online meeting’.

Public questions were received from Pauline Homeshaw.

Questions and responses are detailed in Annexe A to the minutes.

To note the latest Executive Forward Plan of planned key decisions that have been published on the Council’s website.

Click here to access - Executive Forward Plan

A question was raised about the Parking Policies item and when it was added to the Forward Plan. It was confirmed that it was added on the 6^th February 2025.

The Executive noted the Forward Plan

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices and discussion, the Executive resolved to agree and recommend to Full Council:

1. The advice of the Council’s Interim Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) in their Section 25 report (Appendix A) in relation to the robustness of the Budget estimates and the adequacy of the level of Reserves for 2025/26.
2. The Section 151 Officer’s warning about the critical financial position of the Council, the £101.384m 2026/27 Budget gap increasing to £190.041m over the medium term, inadequate reserves and the lack of financial sustainability over the period 2026/27 to 2029/30.
3. The minimum level of Reserves is set at 10% of the Net Revenue income stream on 1 April 2025 which is £33.254m (excluding the use of EFS to meet the Net Revenue Budget). The appropriate level of General Fund Balance be set at £60.000m for 2025/26.
4. The responsibility of Council Members under Section 31A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, to have regard to this report when making decisions on agreeing the Budget and setting the Council Tax for the financial year 2025/26.

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited the Deputy Leader and the Lead Member for Finance, Procurement, and Performance, Cllr Liz Leyshon, to introduce the report. Cllr Leyshon highlighted that this report followed a receipt of a letter from central government confirming Exceptional Financial Support (EFS), including a second year of capitalisation directive and allowing the option to raise council tax above the referendum limit.

Cllr Leyshon proceeded to hand over to the Interim Chief Finance Officer (S151 Officer), Maria G Christofi, who explained: that there was a requirement to reduce this report on the robustness of budget and reserves; that actions the Council had taken to avoid a Section 114 notice were included in the report; the actions taken to prevent any forecast overspend; that there had been a number of one-offs to set the budget for 24/25; that it would not have been possible to set the budget without EFS; that a number of pressures have been identified within the 24/25 budget that have been reflected in the 25/26 budget; that EFS doesn’t mean any additional grant just permission to do things in a different way such as increasing council tax or using capital receipts or borrowing to fund revenue expenditure; the recommendations from external auditors regarding savings; the increased number of councils receiving EFS; the reserves position including the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG); that if the statutory override ends in 2026 the Council will automatically issue a Section 114 notice as well as a number of other councils across the country; the hard work to set the budget; that higher rates of inflation are baked into the costs; the comparative data included in the report; the reprofiling and reprioritisation of reserves; the MTFP forecast to start replenishing reserves in 2027/28 but the need to no longer be depending on EFS to do so; the budget gap rising to £190m in 2029/30; and the need for a multi-year settlement to have certainty for future years.

The Leader of the Council invited comments from Committee Members and other Members present, with officers providing responses as appropriate. Questions and points raised included: the pressures in Adults Services and Children’s Services and the statutory requirement to provide care to those who need it; the need for a reliable multi-year settlement; that the Council has done everything it can to get into a stronger budget position; the national challenges facing Councils shown by the increase in EFS; loss of grants such as rural services; appreciation of the information shared and the better understanding of the financial position; the nature of EFS in the wider national context; the need for long-term certainty; the impact of increased employers National Insurance contributions on providers; the future savings proposals that aren’t yet robust enough and the impact they will have on the MTFP; the increase in contingency and the reasons behind it; how the council tax increase is reflected in the budget going forward; the importance of the budget assurance statements; the criteria for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.

Note - EIA’s will be updated for proposals following consultation and before changes are implemented. This will specifically consider the potential disproportionate impact on disabled people. Where new proposals are brought forward these will include full consideration of due regard.

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices and discussion, the Executive resolved to:

1)    Support a consistent approach to parking across Somerset, including:

a.    The introduction of parking charges on Sundays, as set out in appendix 2

b.    The introduction of charging in free to use carparks, as set out in appendix 3

c.     The introduction of on-street charging in limited waiting bays as set out in appendix 4

2)    Acknowledge the increase resource requirements to deliver and maintain these changes

3)    Instruct officers to explore options for Capital upgrades to parking machine infrastructure across Somerset so that all machines have Cash, Card & Phone payments options”

4)    Acknowledging the feedback from the scrutiny committee and others, further commits that:

a.    It will not proceed with the implementation of a Somerset-wide overnight parking charge

b.    Prior to a final decision being made, and the implementation of a new Somerset-wide approach to charging for parking being brought in, further work will be done to understand and economic impact of the proposals, and that local communities will be given the ability to have their views taken into account on any proposed changes’

c.     That there will be a further opportunity for Scrutiny to consider the proposed changes

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited the Lead Member for Transport and Waste, Cllr Richard Wilkins, to introduce the report. Cllr Wilkins highlighted that these proposals would be bringing together the inconsistent parking practices from predecessor councils to make them fairer and more consistent and that the proposals had gone to Scrutiny Committee – Corporate and Resources.

Cllr Wilkins invited the Vice-Chair of Scrutiny Committee – Corporate and Resources, Cllr Henry Hobhouse, to speak. Cllr Hobhouse highlighted: the engagement of every member of the Committee on this topic; the improved Equalities Impact Assessment (EIA) following Scrutiny comment on disability; that some car parks are operated by the town or village council to enable continued free parking; and the importance of car parks for people who live in accommodation with no parking.

Cllr Wilkins noted that based on the feedback from the Scrutiny committee and the public there would be an amendment to the recommendations removing the Somerset-wide overnight parking charge, and that there would be further consultation and scrutiny before the changes are implemented. 

Cllr Wilkins proceeded to hand over to Executive Director Community, Place and Economy, Chris Hall, who explained: that charging practices would be standardised; there would be a formal consultation of 6 weeks prior to implementation; that the necessary resource would need to be recruited into the team; there is headroom in the budget for mitigations which covers the changed proposal for overnight charges; and that the final decision on parking orders would come back to Executive.

The Leader of the Council invited comments from Committee Members and other Members present, with officers providing responses as appropriate. Questions and points raised included: whether mitigations would result in charges not being applied uniformly across the county; the impact on local businesses on car park charges; areas of Somerset that have nuisance or antisocial parking and if there will be a different approach; the challenges town centre economies are already facing and the importance of consulting with them; limited waiting charging; possible wider benefits of these changes; that this policy may have wider impacts than shown in the EIA; the particular risk in areas where parking is currently free; if there are alternative funding sources to cover maintaining free parking in some areas; that the option for dialogue with City/Town Councils for funding is still open; clarification on restricted waiting bays; whether the survey on the Economic Development Strategy was included in considering this; what the result would be if the consultation response was wholly negative; the impact on parish council precepts; which changes apply to blue badge holders; the governance route for this decision; the inclusion of it as a saving in the 25/26 budget; the impact of Sunday charges on trade in Taunton; the rationale for policy harmonisation; the risk involved in including this policy in the 25/26 budget; the difficulties traders in Bridgwater are facing due to roadworks and the further detrimental impact on them of this policy; the different standards of public  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices, and discussion, the Executive resolved to agree and recommend to Full Council:

In respect of the Robustness of the Budget  

1. Note the conclusions of the Council’s Interim Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) in their Section 25 report (Appendix A) confirming the robustness of the Budget estimates and the adequacy of the level of reserves for 2025/26 and their warning about the forecast deficits and the lack of Financial Sustainability over the period 2026/27 to 2029/30. 

In respect of the General Fund Revenue Budget 2025/26 

2. Having considered the detailed Equalities Impact Assessments Appendix L, approve the Savings and Income generation plans outlined in Appendices B(i) B(ii) and B(iii). 

3. Approve the additional funding for new Growth requirements set out in Appendix C. 

4. Approve the General Fund Net Revenue Budget for 2025/26 of £622.089m and the individual Executive and Service Directorate Budgets for 2025/26 as outlined in Appendix D. 

5. Note the MTFP Movements set out in Appendix E from the report that was presented to Executive in December 2024. 

6. Note the MTFP for the next five years set out in Appendix F and the MTFS 2025/26 – 2029/30 Strategy Document set out in Appendix G. 

7. Approve the changes to the Fees and Charges schedule for 2025/26 set out in Appendix H. 

8. Note the Specific Revenue Grants Schedule 2025/26 set out in Appendix I 

9. Note the Parking Account for 2025/26 set out in Appendix K 

10. Note the MTFP Cumulative Equalities Impact Assessment set out in Appendix L. 

11. Note the 2025/26 Budget Consultation Feedback set out in Appendix M 

12. Note and agree that the 2025/26 Budget has been balanced. The budget includes £43.000m of Exceptional Financial Support from MHCLG in the form of a Capitalisation Direction which enables operational expenditure to capitalised. 

13. Note and accept that conditions will be attached to the Exceptional Financial Support Capitalisation Direction that Somerset Council will need to accept and fulfil. 

In respect of the Dedicated Schools Grant 

14. Note that the forecast spending on the Dedicated Schools Grant, set out in Appendix J(i) is forecast to exceed the funding provided by government by £33.914m in 2025/26 and is projected to reach a cumulative deficit of £99.125m by 31 March 2026. 

15. Note the overall Dedicated Schools Grant allocation of £481.393m for 2025/26 and breakdown by block set out in Appendix J(ii). 

In Respect of the Earmarked Reserves 

16. Note that the level of General Reserves is maintained within the risk-based assessment range of £31.104m minimum to £62.208m maximum level. 

17. Note the Earmarked Reserves reprofiling as set out in Appendix N. 

18. Note the overall estimated position of Earmarked Reserves outlined in Table 17 and the proposed use of reserves detailed in Appendix N which includes the estimated use of Earmarked Reserves during the year. 

In respect of the General Fund Capital 

19. Consider and approve the Capital Investment Strategy for 2025/26 to 2029/30 set out in Appendix O 

20. Approve the £235.103m new Capital proposals 2025/26 to 2029/30  ...  view the full decision text for item 32.

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited the Deputy Leader and the Lead Member for Finance, Procurement, and Performance, Cllr Liz Leyshon, to introduce the report. Cllr Leyshon explained: that in previous years there were separate budget papers for Revenue, Capital, and Treasury Management, but in this year all the papers were combined into one report to focus on the bigger picture; that Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) was needed for the second year in a row and a large amount of work was required to enable this; that the statutory recommendations from auditors were debated within Audit Committee and Full Council and there was a need for savings plans to be delivered at pace; the conclusions of the National Audit Office report on the sustainability of local government; the financial challenges for this Council are linked to the national situation; the reduction in core spending power due to six years of Council Tax freeze; that the Executive Leadership Team has been restructured; the ongoing local devolution work and thanks to ambitious and capable Parish, Town and City Councils taking on services and assets; the savings already agreed in the budget; the increase in National Living Wage and National Insurance Contributions and the impact of that on care providers; that EFS has become less and less exceptional as more Councils apply for it; the provision for risk and increased corporate contingency; the work ahead to make the Dedicated Schools Grant deficit affordable; that Somerset Council Tax is lower than neighbouring councils and that even after the increase above 4.99% it would still be below average; that there is an exceptional hardship fund and council tax reduction schemes; that a further capitalisation directive is necessary to propose a robust budget; the hope to protect reserves and reduce draw on the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) reserves; the inclusion of the capital programme in the budget and the pressure capital borrowing puts on the revenue budget; and the importance of Section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy funds and the new Local Plan.

Cllr Leyshon proceeded to hand over to Chief Finance Officer (S151 Officer) Maria G Christofi, who added: that all pressures and risks identified have been included in the report for transparency; the assumptions included in the Medium Term Financial Strategy; that there is support and help for residents who find themselves in financial difficulty and hardship; that all of the grants the Council receives and their purpose is included in the report; and that the Council will need additional income otherwise further EFS will be required.

The Leader of the Council invited comments from Committee Members and other Members present, with officers providing responses as appropriate. Questions and points raised included: the total size of the capitalisation directive incorporating the amount carried forward and rates of Council Tax for comparative councils.

The Leader of the Council concluded the discussion and proceeded to a vote on the recommendations, which were agreed unanimously.

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices, and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices, and discussion, the Executive resolved to endorse the following recommendations and recommend them to Full Council for approval:

1. The HRA Annual Revenue Budget for 2025/26 as set out in Section 3 and in Appendix A.  

2. The Capital Programme of £304.638m including new additions of £213.587m and budget deletions of £4.738m as detailed in Section 4 and Appendix B. 

3. Delegate to the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) to approve the final capital financing of the capital programme annual spend. 

4. Delegate to the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) and the Executive Director of Community, Place & Economy, in conjunction with the Deputy Leader of the Council and Lead Member for Finance, Procurement and Performance and the Lead Member for Communities, Housing Revenue Account, Culture and Equalities and Diversity to approve the tenure (social vs affordable rents) of each social housing scheme. 

5. Delegated authority to the Executive Director of Community, Place & Economy and the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer), in conjunction with the Lead Member for Communities, Housing Revenue Account, Culture and Equalities and Diversity, to acquire dwellings in accordance with the HRA Capital Programme for 2025/26 to 2029/30 and updated Business Plan 2025/26. 

6. To approve the minimum balance for the HRA General Reserves at £5.863m, the equivalent of 10% of revenue for 2025/26 and approximately £600 per property. 

7. To note the Medium Term Financial Plan 2025/26 to 2029/30. 

8. To note the updated 30-Year Business Plan in Section 7 and Appendix C. 

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Bill Revans, invited the Deputy Leader and the Lead Member for Finance, Procurement, and Performance, Cllr Liz Leyshon, to introduce the report. Cllr Leyshon explained: that this is a separate budget to the General Fund as it is the tenants money; the capital budget shows work across Somerset; the need to be ambitious to build more homes for social and affordable rent; that the Council continues to look for more grants for building homes; that there is an aim for low carbon homes; and the previously agreed change in name from Homes in Sedgemoor to Homes in Somerset.

Cllr Leyshon proceeded to hand over to Strategic Finance Business Partner – HRA and Resources, Strategy, and Performance, Kerry Prisco, who added: this was a balanced budget for 2025/26 and over the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP); that this was done without using general reserves; that the current level of reserves can be maintained throughout the 30 year business plan; and that this budget, MTFP, and 30 year business plan would be reviewed annually to ensure it is affordable.

The Leader of the Council invited comments from Committee Members and other Members present, with officers providing responses as appropriate. Questions and points raised included: whether there were any issues with cladding, insulation and mould in any Council-owned properties; and the Section 106 agreement for local occupancy housing in North Petherton.

The Leader of the Council concluded the discussion and proceeded to a vote on the recommendations, which were agreed unanimously.

Following consideration of the officer report, appendices, and discussion, the Executive resolved to endorse the following recommendations and recommend them to Full Council for approval:

1. The HRA Annual Revenue Budget for 2025/26 as set out in Section 3 and in Appendix A.  

2. The Capital Programme of £304.638m including new additions of £213.587m and budget deletions of £4.738m as detailed in Section 4 and Appendix B. 

3. Delegate to the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) to approve the final capital financing of the capital programme annual spend. 

4. Delegate to the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer) and the Executive Director of Community, Place & Economy, in conjunction with the Deputy Leader of the Council and Lead Member for Finance, Procurement and Performance and the Lead Member for Communities, Housing Revenue Account, Culture and Equalities and Diversity to approve the tenure (social vs affordable rents) of each social housing scheme. 

5. Delegated authority to the Executive Director of Community, Place & Economy and the Chief Finance Officer (Section 151 Officer), in conjunction with the Lead Member for Communities, Housing Revenue Account, Culture and Equalities and Diversity, to acquire dwellings in accordance with the HRA Capital Programme for 2025/26 to 2029/30 and updated Business Plan 2025/26. 

6. To approve the minimum balance for the HRA General Reserves at £5.863m, the equivalent of 10% of revenue for 2025/26 and approximately £600 per property. 

7. To note the Medium Term Financial Plan 2025/26 to 2029/30. 

8. To note the updated 30-Year Business Plan in Section  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.