Agenda item

The Deputy Chief Executive and Section 151 Officer presented a Budget Monitoring Report for the consideration of the Committee.

The report followed the Executive Committee’s recent consideration of the Medium Term Financial Plan Tranche 1 report 2025/26 to 2027/28, which had included information regarding requests for capital funding that had been received from Rubicon Leisure Limited.  This funding would be used for the following reasons:

·             To upgrade the changing room and toilet facilities at the Abbey Stadium.

·             For a new outdoor kiosk and toilet facilities at Forge Mill Needle Museum.

·             To refurbish the changing facilities and second green at Pitcheroak Golf course.

Additional capital funding would also be helpful to enable upgrading of the roof at the Abbey Stadium and to improve the kitchen facilities at the Arrow Valley Countryside Centre.

Progress had been made, since the previous meeting of the Committee, with preparation and submission of the company’s accounts.  This followed progress with the preparation and submission of the Council’s accounts for three separate financial years from 2020/21 onwards.  The company was on track to submit their accounts to Companies House by the deadline at the end of the calendar year.  The Council’s accounts were likely to receive a disclaimer opinion from the authority’s external auditors and the company’s external auditors would be notified of this situation accordingly.

Members were asked to note that Rubicon Leisure Limited would need to cover significant costs arising in relation to VAT.  However, the Council had previously anticipated this cost and had set aside a reserve of £800,000 to try to cover these costs.  Whilst the final figure remained to be confirmed on the date of the meeting, it was anticipated that the figure would be much lower than this reserve.

The Committee was advised that since the previous meeting, the Government had confirmed that the Council had been unsuccessful in its bid for Levelling Up Cultural Grant funding.  This would have implications for Rubicon Leisure Limited, as it had been one of the organisations that might have benefitted from this funding.  However, there was a Government consultation being undertaken on future culture grant funding and the Council needed to submit a response to this by the deadline of 13^th December 2024. 

Following the presentation of the report, Members discussed a number of points in detail:

·             Progress that had been achieved by the Council in respect of responding to the Government’s consultation on culture funding.  An update was requested for the consideration of Members in respect of this matter.

·             The Levelling Up funding for culture that had been withdrawn by the Government and the fact that the Council had not allocated this funding to any particular initiatives before the withdrawal was announced.  Officers were asked to ensure that this situation was clarified in Council communications moving forward.

·             The figures that had been included in the report in respect of capital funding requested to support Council assets operated by Rubicon Leisure Limited and the basis for these figures.  The Committee was informed that some of these figures had been included in the bid for culture funding whilst other figures were based on information supplied by the company in terms of the level of investment needed in various assets.

·             The need for the changing rooms and toilets at the Abbey Stadium to be upgraded and the feedback received from customers regarding the current condition of these facilities.

·             The need for the toilets at Forge Mill Needle Museum to be upgraded.

·             The information that had been provided by the Council’s Property Services team in quotes relating to many of the figures supplied in the report.

·             The positive impact that an upgrade of the kitchen facilities at the Arrow Valley Countryside Centre might have on income at the venue.

·             The need for capital investment in the car parks at the Arrow Valley Park.

·             The potential for a bid writer to be employed by Rubicon Leisure Limited to apply for grant funding on behalf of the company. 

·             The authority’s plans to employ a bid writer and the potential for expertise to be pooled between the Council and company in order to work on submitting bids.

·             The need for the Council to be able to identify a return on investment for any capital funding allocated to facilities managed by Rubicon Leisure Limited.

·             The potential for a breakdown of expenditure proposed by Rubicon Leisure Limited, based on priority areas of spend, to be provided in reports to the Committee.

RESOLVED to note

the position in terms of:

·             Rubicon related items in Tranche 1 of the 2025/6 Budget.

·             The Closure of the 2023/4 Accounts.

·             VAT.

·             The Culture Fund.

(During consideration of this item, Members discussed matters that necessitated the disclosure of exempt information. It was therefore agreed to move to exclude the press and public prior to any debate on the grounds that information would be revealed which related to the financial and business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information)).