Decision - General Fund Revenue Budget, Capital & Treasury Management Strategy 2025-26

This report requests approval and recommendation to full Council of the General Fund Capital and Revenue Budget 2025-26 and the Council Tax 2025-26, and the Capital and Treasury Management Strategies 2025-26 including the Capital Investment Programme, Annual Investment Strategy, Borrowing Strategy, Prudential Indicators and MRP Policy.

That Cabinet recommends to Council the following: 1) That Council approves the Administration's proposed General Fund revenue and capital budget and Council Tax increase on the Brighton and Hove element of the council tax for 2025/26, comprising: i) A general Council Tax increase of 2.99%; ii) An Adult Social Care Precept increase of 2.00%; iii) The council's net General Fund budget requirement for 2025/26 of £264.819m; iv) The 2025/26 budget allocations to services as set out in Appendix 1 incorporating budget savings proposals detailed at Appendix 2, subject to the amendment below: Care pathway for sexual dysfunction (female) Proposed withdrawal of funding for this service as this is not a Public Health responsibility. The most significant impact will be experienced by women who are unable to identify or afford a paid-for therapy service. v) The changes to Fees & Charges set out in Appendix 3; vi) The one-off resource allocations as set out in the table at paragraph 6.5. vii) A recommended working balance of £9.000m (approximately 3.4% of the net budget) to be maintained or replenished over the period of the Medium Term Financial Strategy. 2) That Council notes plans to address future projected budget shortfalls set out in the 4-Year Medium Term Financial Strategy at Appendix 4. 3) That Council approves the Capital Strategy for 2025/26 at Appendix 5 comprising: i) Funding for investment in transformation and change, supported by the flexible use of capital receipts as set out in paragraph 10.12; ii) The capital resources and proposed borrowing included at Annex A of the Capital Strategy; iii) The Capital Investment Programme for 2025/26 of £246.946m included at Appendix 5 incorporating allocations to strategic funds. 4) That Council approves the Treasury Management Strategy Statement as set out in Appendix 6 comprising: i) The Annual Investment Strategy; ii) The Prudential and Treasury Indicators; iii) The Minimum Revenue Provision policy; iv) T he authorised borrowing limit for the year commencing 1 April 2025. 5) That Council notes and considers the Equalities Impact Assessments to cover all relevant budget proposals as set out in Appendix 7. 6) That Council further notes that approval of the budget is an indicative resourcing decision to be taken in the context of the explanation given in the Legal Implications in Section 19. 7) That Council notes that supplementary information needed to set the overall council tax, including a detailed Budget Book, will be provided for the Budget Council meeting as listed in paragraph 12.1. 8) That Cabinet agrees that the council's S151 Chief Financial Officer be authorised to make any necessary technical, presentational or consequential amendments to this report before submission to Budget Council. 9) Following the announcement of the Public Health Grant on 7 February 2025 and the higher than anticipated grant announcement, Full Council approve use of these additional resources to: · Reduce the proposed reduction of contribution to the Healthy Child programme from £100,000 to £50,000 shown on Page 340; · Remove the £4,000 proposed saving on YMCA Mental Health Champions (part of proposed savings of £44,000 on Page 340); · Remove the proposed saving of £35,000 for cessation of the Audio Active CYP service (part of proposed savings of £44,000 on Page 340); · Remove the proposed £20,000 saving on Mental Health Support Services on Page 341; · Remove the proposed saving of £45,000 on the Ageing Well service delivered by Impact initiatives on Page 342; · Remove the proposed reduction in contribution of £18,000 to the Academic Library Service (part of proposed savings of £73,000 on Page 342); · Remove the proposed reduction of £10,000 to the TDC Act on Cancer Project screening promotion service (part of proposed savings of £73,000 on Page 342); · Remove the proposal to reduce the contribution to Oral Health promotion by £9,000 (10%) as shown on Page 342, and; · Reduce the proposed staffing saving of £565,000 by £39,000 to £526,000 as shown on Pages 342/343.

This report assesses the equality impacts of multiple proposed 2025/26 budget savings across children’s services, libraries, housing, public health and other council services. The proposals include stopping unauthorised encampment coordination, reducing library provision, changing children’s services staffing and placements, ending or reducing grants and commissioned services, and reducing sexual health and prevention services. The assessments identify potentially disproportionate effects on children, disabled people, homeless people, carers, people experiencing poverty, LGBTQ+ people and other vulnerable groups.