Apologies for absence had been received from Councillors Dychton, Rodrigues and Wiliams.

Following the meeting Councillor Bell, opposition group leader, also forwarded apologies.

There were no disclosures of interest.

The minutes of the meeting held on 27 November 2023 to be submitted and signed.

The minutes of the meeting held on 27 November 2023 were submitted and signed.

The Cabinet may wish to consider whether there are any items on which there is general agreement which could be considered now, to enable discussion to focus on those items where the Cabinet sees a need for further debate.

The Mayor stated that the Hertfordshire Development Quality Charter item would be moved to the end of the agenda as Councillor Saffery had been delayed.

Report of the Associate Director of Planning, Infrastructure and Economy

Cabinet received a report of the Associate Director of Planning, Infrastructure and Economy, which provided background and a copy of the Charter.

The Mayor invited Councillor Saffery to introduce the report.

Councillor Saffery informed members that the Hertfordshire Development Quality Charter had been developed by the Hertfordshire Growth Board to promote better development across the county.  He emphasised that Watford already had an up-to-date award winning Local Plan, which committed the council to high standards of design.  He added that signing up to the Charter re-confirmed the council’s commitment.   It showed developers and residents that the council would not accept anything but the best quality.  He was aware the Charter had been signed by St Albans and Dacorum.  He recommended the report to Cabinet.

The Mayor invited the Associate Director of Planning, Infrastructure and Economy to provide any further information.

The Associate Director added that the Charter had been developed in consultation with officers from neighbouring authorities and stakeholders.  It was beneficial to those authorities who had not yet had their Local Plan approved.  For Watford it showed a re-commitment to the high standards within the council’s Local Plan.

The Mayor said that he had chaired the last Hertfordshire Infrastructure and Development Forum and had encouraged all councils to sign up to the Charter.

Councillor Stotesbury noted that retro-fitting was mentioned only briefly.  He asked whether there was any further information about the proposal to explore funding for it.  He had thought the Charter was more about new build properties.

The Executive Director of Place responded that the Growth Board had wider visions regarding housing, one of which was about retro-fitting.  He agreed to keep Councillor Stotesbury informed.

RESOLVED –

that Watford Borough Council becomes a signatory to the Hertfordshire Development Quality Charter.

Report of the Chief Executive 

Cabinet received a report of the Chief Executive which included the Corporate Peer Challenge feedback report and the council’s action plan.

The Mayor thanked all those who had been involved in the Peer Challenge review, those within the council, those from outside and the LGA Peer Challenge team.  He was pleased how the Peer Challenge review had proceeded.  It had highlighted many of the council’s strengths.  He referred members to paragraph 1.4 of the report which included an extract from the Peer Challenge report.  The Peer Challenge team had submitted seven recommendations within their report which the council fully accepted.  He added that work had already been started to implement the recommendations.  He invited the Chief Executive to add any further comments.

The Chief Executive commented how proud everyone was of the outcome and the positives identified within the report.  A lot had been achieved together which had been identified by the Peer Challenge team.  They had recognised the council’s transformation since the last Peer Challenge review in 2017, which had been driven by a strong leadership and ‘can do’ attitude.   There was a strong focus on place, not just locally, but also regionally and nationally.  There was a strong record of financial stewardship which was important in the current financial context.  There was a clear understanding of the council’s financial position and clear plans in place to address some of the challenges.

The Chief Executive informed members that the Peer Challenge report and action plan would be placed on the council’s website.  It would also be available on the LGA’s website to enable others in the local government community to learn from the council’s example.  She added that the council was already progressing the actions set out in the action plan.  The Peer Challenge team would return in the autumn to review the council’s progress with the recommendations.

Councillor Stotesbury noted the Peer Challenge team’s comments about the council’s relationships with groups and stakeholders across the town.  He thanked the staff and also those from outside the council who had supported the peer review.  The feedback had been welcomed.

Councillor Watkin remarked that the report referred to the council having strong controls over its finances but had identified that there were a few things that could be changed.  He referred to the appointment of an Independent Person to the Audit Committee, which was in progress.  Another recommendation had been the inclusion of the Finance Monitoring report at Cabinet, which was on the agenda for this meeting.  Although, he noted that Portfolio Holders did have regular meetings with the council’s leadership team to monitor the budget; by bringing it to Cabinet provided a formal review.

The Mayor thanked everyone for their comments.

RESOLVED –

1.         that Cabinet notes Watford Borough Council’s LGA Corporate Peer Challenge final report (Appendix A) and that this is now published on the council’s website.

2.         that the Corporate Peer Challenge team’s findings and the seven recommendations be noted.

3.         that Watford Borough Council’s Corporate Peer  ...  view the full minutes text for item 57.

Report of the Chief Finance Officer

Cabinet received a report of the Chief Finance Officer which set out the financial monitoring position for 2023/24 as at Period 8, 1 April to 30 November 2023. 

The Mayor invited Councillor Watkin to introduce the report.

Councillor Watkin explained that the report provided details of the original budget that had been agreed at Council on 31 January 2023 and the changes agreed by Council on 17 October 2023.  It included information on the pressures on the council, which were clearly explained in the report by the Chief Finance Office.  He highlighted the main variation due to the cost of temporary accommodation due to an increase in demand.  He noted other changes included the re-profiling of some projects, including the Town Hall Quarter and the reduced forecast for Woodside Sports Village.  Helpful notes were included in the officer’s report.  He referred to changes in reserves but these would be kept at a prudent level.

The Chief Finance Officer was invited to add further comments.  She advised members that there had been a slight improvement in the general fund balance since the last report up to the end of period 6.  This showed the budget was moving in the right direction.  She hoped that this would be further improved by the year end.

The Mayor was disappointed that the Chair of Finance Scrutiny Committee was not present as it would have been his opportunity to feed back any comments from scrutiny members.  He asked the Chief Finance Officer if any points had been raised at the meeting.

The Chief Finance Officer responded that the scrutiny committee had mainly focussed on the budget report, which followed. 

RESOLVED –

1.         that the Financial Monitoring Report 2023/24 – Period 8 and both the revenue and capital forecasts for 2023/24 be noted.

2.         that the virement requests to Council as set out in Appendix 7 be noted.

3.         that Cabinet notes Finance Scrutiny Committee received the monitoring report for period 8 and that there were no recommendations.

Report of the Chief Finance Officer

Appendix 10 of Attachment 1 is to follow.

This item is recommended to Full Council for decision and therefore is not eligible for call-in.

Cabinet received a report of the Chief Finance Officer which set out the draft budget for 2024/25 and the Medium Term Financial Strategy to 2026/27.  The report was for Cabinet’s consideration and then forward recommendation to Council.

The Mayor invited Councillor Watkin to introduce the report.

Councillor Watkin explained the report provided a huge amount of detail, including breakdown of expenditure for each department.  He would provide a snapshot, but it would be explained in much more detail at Council.

Councillor Watkin said it had been a tough year for local authorities, with a predicted four out of 10 councils potentially facing bankruptcy.  He stressed this was not the situation for Watford.  Referring to the revenue budget gap he advised that there had been an increase in the Medium Term Financial Strategy.  In the short term the gap had been plugged by using the reserves. It was not an option to do nothing and therefore the council had mitigation measures in place.  He provided some of the details.  He noted that there were some growth items which had been set out in the report.

Councillor Watkin stated that the overall capital expenditure for 2024/25 would be £33 million.  A further £6 million would be taken from the reserves.  However, this would still leave adequate reserves of £25 million.

Councillor Watkin informed members that due to the pressures on the council’s finances the maximum permitted Council Tax increase of 2.99% would be recommended to Council.  He acknowledged that the council was facing great financial pressures and that there would be loyal members of staff leaving.

The Chief Finance Officer had no further comments to add at this stage.

The Mayor reiterated his earlier comment that he was disappointed that no opposition councillors were present for the discussion on the budget.   He referred to the impact on the council from various directions, including high interest rates, the increased pressures on services, for example housing, inflation and the real terms cut in funding.  He noted Grant Thornton’s report that four out of 10 councils were likely to be bankrupt within the next five years.  He asked the Chief Finance Officer if she was aware of the position of the other local authorities within Hertfordshire and if there were any concerns.  The Chief Finance Officer advised that she had no specific information. 

In response to a question about annual spending reviews and whether a more sustained funding agreement would be helpful, the Chief Finance Officer said that the Section 25 statement had partly covered this.  It was recognised the current funding method was very out of date and did not reflect the different needs or resources of local authorities.  It did not provide councils with the ability to fully plan for the future.  However, it was likely that next year would also be a one-year settlement due to the timing of the general election. 

Councillor Stotesbury commented that the country was seeing the worst cost of living crisis which was having an impact  ...  view the full minutes text for item 59.