Agenda and minutes

Venue: The Shoreham Centre

Contact: Neil Terry
Democratic Services Lead
01903 221073  Email: neil.terry@adur-worthing.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

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Declarations of Interests

Members and officers must declare any disclosable pecuniary interests in relation to any business on the agenda.  Declarations should also be made at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. 

 

If in doubt contact the Legal or Democratic Services representative for this meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

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Minutes

To approve the minutes of the Joint Strategic Committee meeting held on 6th December 2022, copies of which have been previously circulated.

Minutes:

Resolved that the minutes from the Joint Strategic Committee meeting held on Tuesday 6 December 2022, were approved as an accurate record and signed by the Chairman.

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Public Question Time

To receive any questions from members of the public.

 

Questions should be submitted by noon on Thursday 2nd February 2023 to Democratic Services, democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk   

 

 (Note: Public Question Time will operate for a maximum of 30 minutes)

Minutes:

There were no questions from the public.

 

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Members Questions

Pre-submitted Members questions are pursuant to rule 12 of the Council & Committee Procedure Rules. 

 

Questions should be submitted by noon on Thursday 2nd February 2023 to  Democratic Services, democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk   

 

(Note: Member Question Time will operate for a maximum of 30 minutes)

 

Minutes:

There were no pre submitted questions from Members.

 

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Items Raised under Urgency Provisions

To consider any items the Chairman of the meeting considers to be urgent.

Minutes:

 

There were no items raised under urgency provisions.

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Council Tax Support Fund in respect of 2023/24 pdf icon PDF 167 KB

To consider a report from the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, a copy is attached as item 6.

Minutes:

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 6.

 

Following the provisional Local Government Finance Settlement for 2023/24, on 23 December 2023 the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities wrote to local authorities and issued guidance in respect of the Council Tax Support Fund.

 

Each council would be provided with funding to award a maximum of £25.00 additional Council Tax Support to both working age and pensioner households in respect of 2023/24. Councils could utilise their remaining funding allocation as they saw fit to support vulnerable households with Council Tax bills. The Committee was told that further funding opportunities would allow the maximum of £25 to be raised to £80

 

This report recommended the criteria to be adopted by Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council in respect of the Council Tax Support Fund.

 

The Committee agreed the recommendations in the report

 

Decision

 

The Joint Strategic Committee

 

      i.        Noted the content of this report;

 

     ii.        Recommended to the respective Full Councils that the criteria to be adopted in respect of Council Tax Support Fund for 2023/24 should be those detailed in paragraph 4.8 and in accordance with the government guidelines, subject to an increased payment of £80;

 

    iii.        Approved a budget virement in 2023/24 of £94,900 for Adur District Council and £146,400 for Worthing Borough Council to create the budgets required to implement this new scheme;

 

   iv.        In the event that the Government amends the scheme, delegated authority to the Head of Revenues and Benefits to make minor and non-consequential adjustments to the scheme in consultation with the Leaders.

 

Call In:

 

The call-in deadline for the decision will be 5.00pm on 17 February 2022.

 

Recommendation i) is not subject to call-in as it is a recommendation to Council

 

 

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Final Revenue Budget Estimates for 2023/24 pdf icon PDF 253 KB

To consider a report from the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, a copy is attached as item 7.

Minutes:

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability and Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 7.

 

The report before Members was the final budget report of the year, the culmination of the annual budgeting exercise, and asked members to note:

 

·         The final revenue estimates for 2023/24; and

·         An updated outline 5-year forecast;

 

The budgets reflected the decisions taken by members to date in relation to agreed savings proposals and any committed growth. The budgets were still to be adjusted for the proposals to invest in services detailed in Appendix 2 which were considered by the Cabinets previously.

 

The budget was analysed by the Directorates. In addition, the draft estimates for 2023/24 had been prepared, as always, in accordance with the requirements of the Service Reporting Code of Practice for Local Authorities (except in relation to pension cost adjustments that did not impact either on the Budget Requirement or the Council Tax Requirement).

 

The respective Adur and Worthing 2023/24 Estimates and Council Tax setting reports had already been considered by the Worthing Cabinet on 1st February 2023 and the Adur Cabinet on 2nd February 2023. Both the estimates for Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council included their respective share of the cost of the Joint Strategic Committee.    

 

Members agreed the recommendations within the report 

 

Decision 

 

That the Joint Strategic Committee

 

a)  Noted the proposals to invest in services outlined in Appendix 2 which were considered at the Cabinet meetings in early February;

 

b)  Noted the proposed 2023/24 budget detailed in Appendix 3, the respective Council shares, having been approved by the Adur and Worthing Cabinets. The budget would be adjusted for any changes to the Investment in Service proposals agreed by Cabinet.

 

Call In:

 

The call-in deadline for the decision will be 5.00pm on 17 February 2022.

 

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Joint Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy 2023/24 to 2025/26 for Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council pdf icon PDF 618 KB

To consider a report from the Director for Digital, Sustainability & Resources, a copy is attached as item 8.

Minutes:

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital, Sustainability and Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 8.

 

The report asked Members to approve and adopt the contents of the Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy for 2023/24 to 2025/26 for Adur and Worthing Councils, as required by regulations issued under the Local Government Act 2003.

 

Members discussed the addition of new liability benchmarks and the change to reporting requirements

 

Decision

 

The Joint Strategic Committee

 

      i.        Approved and adopted the Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy for 2023/24 to 2025/26, incorporating the Prudential Indicators and Limits, and MRP Statements;

 

     ii.        Recommended the Prudential Indicators and Limits, and MRP Statements for approval by Worthing Council at its meeting on 21 February 2023, and by Adur Council at its meeting on 23 February 2023.

 

Call In:

 

The call-in deadline for the decision will be 5.00pm on the 17 February 2023

 

There is no call in for recommendation ii) as it is a recommendation to Council