Decision details

Decision Maker: Corporate Policy and Resources Committee

Decision status: Recommendations Approved

Is Key decision?: Yes

Is subject to call in?: No

Purpose:

To approve the Reserves Strategy and proposed removal and creation of new reserves

Decisions:

Members considered a report on the proposals informed through the annual review of the reserves process.

 

Statutory requirements included mitigating risk, preparing for investment and replacement programmes in terms of capital assets.

 

This was an ongoing process, being brought to committee in advance of setting next year’s budget. The proposals within the report were:

 

·         £0.323m to be returned to the General Fund Working Balance from Earmarked Reserves;

·         Transfer £0.050m to the Finance Risk Reserve;

·         Transfer £15,000 to the Investment for Growth reserve;

·         Amalgamate the Business Improvement and Transformation Reserve, Invest to Earn Reserve and Invest to Save Reserve into one reserve named ‘Project Investment Reserve’;

·         The General Fund Working Balance be increased from £1.5m to £2m to provide additional resilience for any detrimental impact from the Fairer Funding Review 2020/21;

·         The £200,000 commercial contingency budget be transferred, along with £163,000 of the General Fund Working Balance to the Valuation Volatility Reserve to maintain a 5% risk mitigation based on purchase price for the Council’s Commercial Investment Properties.

 

RESOLVED to approve:

 

(1)  The General Fund minimum working balance of £2m;

 

(2)  The changes as proposed and informed by the

Earmarked Reserves review, including returning £0.323m to the General Fund Working Balance;

           

(3)  That £0.200m be transferred from the Commercial

Contingency Budget to the Valuation Volatility Reserve;

 

(4)  £0.163m of the General Fund Working Balance be

transferred to the Valuation Volatility Reserve.

Report author: Tracey Bircumshaw

Publication date: 06/02/2019

Date of decision: 10/01/2019

Decided at meeting: 10/01/2019 - Corporate Policy and Resources Committee

Accompanying Documents: