Content

That Council:
 
a)    
approves the 2024-25 revenue budget as set out in
the Budget 2024-25 and Medium-Term Financial Plan report, which
includes and sets:
                                                                       
i.      
a budget requirement of £763.773m including a
Dedicated Schools Grant of £388.440m and a net revenue budget
requirement of £375.333m as set out in Appendix
A.
 
ii.     
a total Council Tax requirement for the
Council’s own purposes of £201.599m as contained in
paragraph 5.25.
 
iii.    
An average Band D Council Tax of £1,740.22 for
North Northamptonshire Council, representing a 2.99% increase in
the ‘core’ Council Tax and a further 2% for the Adult
Social Care Precept, and as set out within the separate Council Tax
Resolution Report attached at Appendix K.
 
iv.    
the detailed proposals of savings, pressures and
income generation for 2024-25 as set out within the report and
Appendix B.
 
v.     
the Dedicated Schools Grant budget of
£388.440m for 2024-25, as detailed in Appendix C, and
summarised in paragraphs 5.41 – 5.55.
 
vi.    
the planned use of, contribution to, and movement
in, reserves as identified in paragraph 5.56, section 9 and
Appendix D of this report, subject to the final call on
reserves as a result of the Final Financial Settlement or other
changes.
 
vii.  
the corporate budget requirements as set out in
paragraph 8.1, including a contingency sum of £4.101m as set
out in paragraph 8.2.
 
viii. 
the Treasury Management Strategy for 2024-25 as set
out in Appendix H, including the Authorised Borrowing Limit
of £907m and to note a further update to the Strategy will be
provided once the disaggregation of the former Northamptonshire
County Council’s Balance Sheet has been finalised.
 
ix.    
the recommended Flexible Use of Capital Receipts
Strategy as set out in Section 10 and Appendix J.
 
b)    
delegates authority to the Executive Member for
Finance and Transformation in consultation with the Executive
Director of Finance and Performance (Section 151 Officer) to agree
any necessary variations to the budget prior to 1st April
2024.
 
c)    
delegates authority to the Executive Member for
Finance and Transformation in consultation with the Executive
Director of Finance and Performance (Section 151 Officer) to agree
the use of the following reserves which will provide the
flexibility to manage the overall budget during 2024-25.
•       
Transformation Reserve
•       
Public Health Reserve
•       
Waste Management Reserve
•       
Adult Social Care Reserve
•       
Budget Delivery Reserve
•       
Business Rates Retention Reserve
•
     General Risk
Reserve
 
d)    
notes the forecast financial position for 2025-26 to
2027-28, noting that this will be reviewed as further information
becomes available and updated as part of the budget process for
2025-26 onwards.
 
e)    
notes that the financial position has
been based on the Final Local Government Finance Settlement
announced on 5th February 2024.
 
f)     
considers the consultation feedback as summarised in
the report and attached at Appendix E.
 
g)    
notes the Equality Impact Screening Assessment as at
Appendix F as having been taken into
consideration.
 
h)    
considers the outcome from the Corporate Scrutiny
Committee, as detailed at Appendix G and any separate
representations to Executive.                                                       
 
i)      
considers the Section 25 Report of the Executive
Director of Finance and Performance (Section 151 Officer) as set
out in Section 15, including her review of the robustness of the
estimates and the adequacy of the reserves.
 
j)      
delegates authority to the Executive
Member for Children, Education and Skills and the Executive Member
for Finance and Transformation in consultation with
the Executive Director for Adults, Health
Partnerships and Housing (and Children’s Services –
Interim) and the Executive Director of Finance and Performance
(Section 151 Officer) to approve North
Northamptonshire’s Schools Funding Formula and to finalise
the funding allocation for schools, in line with North
Northamptonshire’s Schools Funding Formula.
 
k)    
delegates authority to the Executive Member for
Finance and Transformation in consultation with the Executive
Director of Finance and Performance (Section 151 Officer) to draft
the recommended budget resolution for Council in accordance with
the necessary legal requirements and to take into account the
decisions of the Executive and any final changes and other
technical adjustments that may be required.
 
Council Tax
Setting
 
l)    
Notes the legal background to setting the budget and
Council tax as set out in Appendix I.
 
m) 
approves the Council Tax Resolution attached as
Appendix K to the report which is based on the budget
proposals, and which:
 
•     
Calculates the Council tax requirement in accordance
with Section 31A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 as
amended by the Localism Act 2011.
 
•     
Calculates a basic amount of Council Tax and an
amount of tax for each valuation band (the Council element) in
accordance with Sections 31B and 36 of the Local Government Finance
Act, 1992, as amended.
 
•     
Sets an amount of Council Tax for each category of
dwellings in each valuation band in accordance with Section 30 of
the Local Government Finance Act, 1992.
 
Reason for Decision:-
 
To ensure that the Council
complies with its Constitution and legislative requirements in
setting the budget for North Northamptonshire Council from
2024-25.
 
Alternative Options Considered:-
 
The
budgets have been subject to a formal budget consultation and
scrutiny and the feedback has been considered as part of this
process.
 
In accordance with the Local
Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations
2014, the names of the councillors voting for the decision, against
the decision or abstaining from voting are as follows:-
 
For the decision:-
(41)
 
Cllr Tim Allebone
Cllr Valerie Anslow
Cllr Paul Bell
Cllr Matt Binley
Cllr Jennie Bone
Cllr David
Brackenbury
Cllr Wendy
Brackenbury
Cllr Cedwien Brown
Cllr Lyn Buckingham
Cllr Lloyd Bunday
Cllr Jon-Paul Carr
Cllr Robin Carter
Cllr Scott Edwards
Cllr Jonathan Ekins
Cllr Clive Hallam
Cllr Larry Henson
Cllr Helen Howell
Cllr Ken Harrington
Cllr David Howes
Cllr Bert Jackson
Cllr Graham Lawman
Cllr Lora Lawman
Cllr Steven North
Cllr Dorothy Maxwell
Cllr Paul Marks
Cllr Andy Mercer
Cllr Gill Mercer
Cllr Macaulay Nichol
Cllr Anup Pandey
Cllr Tom
Partridge-Underwood
Cllr Harriet
Pentland
Cllr Eliot Prentice
Cllr Russell Roberts
Cllr Mark Rowley
Cllr Geoff Shacklock
Cllr Jason Smithers
Cllr Joseph Smyth
Cllr Sarah Tubbs
Cllr Malcolm Ward
Cllr Keli Watts
Cllr Lee Wilkes
 
Against the decision:-
(10)
 
Cllr Jean Addison
Cllr Ross Armour
Cllr Leanne
Buckingham
Cllr William
Colquhoun
Cllr Matt Keane
Cllr Jim Hakewill
Cllr Anne Lee
Cllr John McGhee
Cllr Zoe McGhee
Cllr Mark Pengelly
 
Abstaining from the decision:-
(2)
 
Cllr Dez Dell
Cllr Emily
Fedorowycz