Purpose

As set out in Appendix C of the 2025/26 Maintenance of Highways Assets approved by Cabinet on 7 March, a budget allocation of £500,000 was approved for Coring and Surveying (PPMS16461) to support pavement design development for the 2026/27 Highways Maintenance Programme.
We are now forecasting an underspend against this allocation. This is due to several factors, most notably a reduction in activity associated with the Local Deterioration Fund (LDF), which has correspondingly reduced the level of coring and survey work required during the current financial year.
Conversely, there has been an increased demand for Geotechnical Investigation and Design (PPMS16464). This pressure is driven by an extensive programme of Special Schemes, many of which involve full pavement reconstruction and require more complex ground investigation work. Several of these schemes have also attracted significant public and political attention, increasing the need for robust geotechnical assessment and design.
The originally approved budget provision for PPMS16464 was £200,000. To support delivery of the 2025/26 programme, this now needs to be increased by £50,000 to £250,000.
It is recommended therefore that the transfer of £50,000 from the coring budget to the Geotechnical Investigation budget is approved.

Decision

John Davies, Head of Highways Network Management, on behalf of Matt Townsend, Director of Highways and Transport, took a decision to approve the recommendation in the report.