Agenda item

Mrs A D Allen declared a non-pecuniary interest in this item as she had been involved, as a Dartford Borough Councillor, in the consultation and development of the Dartford Town Centre Project (listed on page B6:7 in the report).

Miss M Goldsmith, Directorate Finance Manager, was in attendance for this and the following item.

(1)     In response to a question, Mr Lynes explained that Brighter Futures, which was centred in West Kent, would be spread to East Kent by means of Partnerships for Older People Projects (POPPs). This would be facilitated by £1.5 m of Government money.

(2)       Mr Lynes emphasised how difficult it was to keep within budget allocations when activity was constantly increasing, and said he would fight for a fair settlement in the budget.  He expressed his frustration that funding for schemes such as Brighter Futures and POPPs was always subject to a bid system which forced local authorities to compete against each other for a small pot of money.  Such funding was also time-limited.

(3)       Mr Mills and Miss Goldsmith introduced the monitoring report – the first one in a new quarterly pattern – and answered Members’ questions on the detail set out in it.  Mr Mills told Members that, since the quarterly report had been prepared, the forecast overspend had risen to £4.18m and management action was in place to reduce this to just below £2m.

(4)       Members welcomed the opportunity to have a regular update on and discussion of budget issues, and asked for a training session to help increase their understanding of budget issues, thus allowing them to get optimum benefit from the quarterly reports.

(5)       In discussion, and in response to Members’ questions, the following points were highlighted:-

(a)       Presenting the budget picture part way through the year was a complex issue, and it was difficult to align gross and income figures.  Variances would settle over time.

(b)       The increased use of Direct Payments meant that a slight reduction in the number of Domiciliary Care hours delivered would show up in the monitoring figures.  Some budget previously allocated to Domiciliary Care had been transferred to Direct Payments.

(c)        The demand for services, the complexity of clients’ needs, and hence the cost of meeting those needs, were all increasing.  Costs of delivering services for people with learning difficulties, for example, was increasing by 6-7% per annum.

(d)              The Government had put in place legislation and funding – the Reimbursement Grant -.to allow local authorities to pay fines to the Acute Trusts for delayed discharges attributable to local authority responsibilities.. In Kent we have (in partnership with the Acute Trusts, and the PCTs) used it to pay for services which enable us to move people from hospital more quickly, and therefore not incur the fines. The value of the grant in 2007/08 is £2.4m.

(6)       RESOLVED that:-

(a)       the content of the monitoring report, and information given in response to Members’ questions, be noted, with thanks; and

(b)       a training session on budget issues be arranged for Members.