The Cabinet of Doncaster Council is scheduled to consider updates to the Medium-Term Financial Strategy, a winter package to address rough sleeping, and the Local Nature Recovery Strategy. Other topics on the agenda include the Youth Strategy, and an investment in Creative Health initiatives.

Updates to Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS)

The Cabinet is scheduled to review updates to the Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2027/28 to 2029/30. This report details current assumptions regarding income from business rates and council tax, inflation, and service demand pressures. The review identifies significant financial pressures, particularly in Adult Social Care and Children's Social Care, alongside wider economic uncertainty. Based on current assumptions, the MTFS forecasts a budget gap of £10.7 million in 2027/28, reducing to £8.2 million in 2028/29 and increasing to £9.8 million in 2029/30. The report outlines that work is underway across all directorates to identify savings and mitigations to ensure a balanced and sustainable budget. The report notes that while the council aims to continue providing essential services, identified savings might impact citizens if services are delivered in new ways.

Rough Sleeping Programme Winter Package 2026

A report is scheduled for discussion regarding the Rough Sleeping Programme Winter Package 2026. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has allocated £453,990 to South Yorkshire, with a specific amount ringfenced for Doncaster. This funding is intended to ensure that everyone sleeping rough is offered support or accommodation and a route to stable housing during the winter of 2026/27. Key conditions include offering 100% of people sleeping rough a route off the street by 25 December 2026 and ensuring each person has a personalised plan for a route into longer-term accommodation by 31 March 2027. Doncaster's proposed delivery plan will build on existing severe weather and outreach arrangements, enhancing outreach capacity, providing individual plans for a named cohort, and offering specialist mental health support. The intended impact is to identify and engage more people, move them into suitable accommodation, and ensure placements are sustained with fewer returns to rough sleeping.

Local Nature Recovery Strategy

The Cabinet is set to consider the South Yorkshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). This strategy, developed by the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) as the Responsible Authority, with Doncaster Council and other local authorities as Supporting Authorities, aims to describe opportunities and priorities for nature recovery. The strategy is a legal requirement under the 2021 Environment Act and covers Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and Sheffield. It is not a delivery plan and does not impose new restrictions on land use or designate areas for legal protection. Instead, it seeks to improve habitat quality and extent, build climate resilience, foster partnerships, value wildlife, connect people with nature, and recover declining species. The strategy has concluded its public consultation and is moving to final drafting and approval for publication. The report highlights that South Yorkshire's nature is under pressure, with over half of its habitats in poor condition, exacerbated by climate change and development. The strategy aims to restore thriving, connected natural habitats across South Yorkshire to benefit both people and nature.

Youth Strategy 2023-2028 – Updated 2026

An updated Youth Strategy for 2023-2028 is scheduled for review. This refreshed strategy incorporates learning from Doncaster's involvement in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport's Local Youth Transformation Pilot and references the National Youth Strategy, Youth Matters, launched in December 2025. The strategy outlines a vision for a 21st-century youth offer with eight ambitions focused on helping young people develop confidence and resilience, improve their life chances, and engage with their communities. The report details progress made since 2023, including the development of a new youth hub in Wheatley, the successful delivery of the Local Youth Transformation Pilot which secured £565,000 in revenue funding and £75,000 in capital funding, and the enhancement of the digital youth offer. The strategy emphasises partnership working, locality-based delivery, and an early intervention and prevention approach.

Creative Health Investment

The Cabinet is to consider a proposal to invest £2.5 million from the Public Health Ringfenced Grant reserve over five years to establish and develop a sustainable Creative Health sector. This investment aims to support interventions that improve health and wellbeing for residents and reduce demand on services. The report highlights the strong international evidence base for participatory arts, culture, and creative activities in improving physical and mental health, social connection, and overall wellbeing. Public Health will lead a commissioning process to secure a creative health programme for Doncaster residents, with strategic oversight from Doncaster's existing Creative Health Board and the Cultural Portfolio Board. The proposed investment will focus on four core areas: Creative Movement, Creative Start (for early years, children, and young people), Creative Wellbeing (for mental health and emotional resilience), and Creative Connection (to combat social isolation). A portion of the investment will also support innovation, learning, and the development of the necessary infrastructure to embed Creative Health within the wider health and care system.