The Charter Trustees for the City of Durham were scheduled to meet on Wednesday 22 October 2025 to discuss an amendment to standing orders and a forecast of revenue outturn for 2025/26. The meeting was also scheduled to confirm the minutes of meetings held on 11 June, 30 June and 16 July 2025.

Amendment to the Standing Orders

The Charter Trustees were scheduled to consider a report regarding an amendment to the Standing Orders of the Charter Trust relating to quoracy, which is the minimum number of members needed to be present for a meeting to proceed.

The report noted that the standing orders stated that the quorum for a meeting was 10, but that this had caused problems at a meeting on 30 June, which had to be adjourned because only nine trustees were present.

The report stated that requiring 10 members to be present meant that just over two fifths of Charter Trustees were required to be present, and that if the three additional members were no longer to be appointed, it would be very nearly half. It was noted that for comparison, the County Council only requires a quarter of members to be present.

It was proposed that the Charter Trust adopt the same rules regarding quoracy as the County Council, which would mean that the quorum would be reduced to six, based on current numbers.

The report recommended that the wording at Rule 4 of the Standing Orders be changed from:

A quorum shall be ten Charter Trustees and if during any Meeting of the Charter Trustees the Chairman after counting the number of Charter Trustees present declares that there is not a quorum present the Meeting shall stand adjourned.

to:

The quorum of a meeting will be one quarter of the whole number of Charter Trustees and if during any Meeting of the Charter Trustees the Chairman after counting the number of Charter Trustees present declares that there is not a quorum present the Meeting shall stand adjourned.

Forecast of Revenue Outturn for 2025/26

The Charter Trustees were scheduled to receive a report from Rob Davisworth, Treasurer, providing information on the forecast of expenditure to 31 March 2026, compared to the original budget for 2025/26.

The report stated that the projected net expenditure at 31 March 2026 was forecast to be £71,432, which is £127 lower than the original budget of £71,560. It also noted that the sum required to be drawn from reserves to balance the budget was expected to reduce from £12,859 to £11,851.

The report provided a breakdown of the main variances between the budget and the projected outturn:

• Transport: The transport outturn figure at 31 March 2026 was projected to be £17,900, which is an overspend of £1,613 (9%) compared to the annual budget. The projected overspend relates to bus hire.
• Supplies and Services: The supplies and services outturn figure at 31 March 2026 was projected to be £11,240, which is an underspend of £1,848 (14%) compared to the annual budget. The projected underspend is mainly in respect of the Mayor's hospitality budget, and also insurance costs which were prepaid in 2024/25.

The report also provided an update on the general reserve balance, stating that it was £60,952 as at 1 April 2025. It was noted that with a projected underspend of £127 and the £881 variance in the council tax support grant, the amount required to be drawn from reserves would be £11,851, rather than the original budget figure of £12,859. Consequently, the reserve balance would decrease to £49,101 as at 31 March 2026.

The report stated that a report would be presented to the meeting on 10 December 2025 to provide information to enable the Charter Trustees to determine the budget requirement for 2026/27 and the basic level of council tax for the financial years 2026/27 to 2029/30.

The report recommended that the City of Durham Charter Trustees note the forecast of outturn position to 31 March 2026, and that the 2026/27 Budget report will be presented to the meeting on 10 December 2025.

Minutes

The Charter Trustees were also scheduled to approve the minutes of three previous meetings:

• 11 June 2025
• 30 June 2025
• 16 July 2025

The minutes of the meeting on 11 June 2025 include:

• The election of Councillor Gary Hutchinson as Mayor of Durham for the ensuring municipal year 2025/26.
• The appointment of Councillor Amanda Hopgood as Deputy Mayor of Durham for the ensuring municipal year 2025/26.
• The presentation of long service awards to members of the Mayor's Bodyguard.
• The swearing in of new members of the Mayoral Bodyguard.
• The appointment of various officers, including Mr James Lee as Pant Master, Superintendent Andrea Arthur of Durham Constabulary as Billet Master, Mr David Baker as Macebearer, Mr Tom Dixon as Swordbearer, Mr Mac Williams as Recorder, and The Very Reverend Dr Philip Plyming, Dean of Durham, as Mayor's Chaplain.

The minutes of the meeting on 30 June 2025 state that the meeting was adjourned due to a lack of quorum.

The minutes of the meeting on 16 July 2025 include:

• Approval of the Risk Assessment for Governance Arrangements.
• Noting the content of the 2024/25 Annual Governance Statement.
• Noting the revenue outturn position for the year ended 31 March 2025.
• Approval of the Annual Return (Sections 1 and 2) for the financial year ended 31 March 2025.
• Approval of arrangements for dealing with certain honorary appointments.