Agenda item

Purpose: to outline the Capital Strategy covering financial years 2024 - 34 and the supporting funding framework, providing a high-level overview of how capital expenditure, capital financing and treasury management activity contribute to the provision of local public services along with an overview of how associated risk is managed and the implications for future financial sustainability.

The Council considered the report (Agenda Item 6) which outlined the Capital Strategy covering the financial years 2024 - 34 and the supporting funding framework. The report provided a high-level overview of how capital expenditure, capital financing and treasury management activity contributed to the provision of local public services along with providing an overview of how associated risk was managed and the implications for future financial sustainability.

Decisions made on capital and treasury management had financial consequences for the Council for many years into the future. Decisions were therefore subject to both a national regulatory framework and a local policy framework.

MOTION: Proposed by Councillor Iain Cottingham and seconded by Councillor Jeff Brooks:

That the Council adopt the following recommendations:

“That the Capital Strategy and supporting Capital Programme for the period 2024 -2034 is approved (Appendix A).

That the Council approves the Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP) statement for 2024/25 and the revised MRP policy for 2023/24 (Appendix C). 

That the Flexible Use of Capital Receipts Policy (Appendix D) is approved.

That the proposed CIL (Community Infrastructure Levy) Bids be approved for inclusion in the Capital Programme (Appendix E).”

Councillor Cottingham was proud to be proposing the first West Berkshire Council Capital Strategy for a Liberal Democrat Administration since 2005.

The Strategy proposed the investment of £330m across the district over the next ten years. The key areas of investment aligned with the Council Strategy and included £123m towards a prosperous and resilient district, £145m for a fairer West Berkshire with opportunities for all, and £28m to help tackle the climate and ecological emergency.

The Strategy would be supported by £140m in Council borrowing which was within prudent limits.

For 2024/25, £53m would be invested across West Berkshire. This included £10.5m in Education, £4m on highways, as well as investment in biodiversity and active travel schemes. The final stage was being entered for the Thatcham Flood Alleviation Scheme and a Bus Service Improvement Plan would be implemented.

Further details would follow from individual Portfolio Holders.

A key element of the Strategy was the flexible use of capital receipts. The Government had advised local authorities to minimise risks with property investments and the strategic approach with the Council’s property advisors was to disinvest in order to deliver best value to residents.

Councillor Cottingham made clear that the disposal of assets, particularly buy to let properties, was not a ‘fire’ sale. This was currently a common approach in the property market. He reiterated that receipts would be reinvested to benefit residents.

Councillor Cottingham concluded by advising of a technical accounting change to the Minimum Revenue Provision that would allow the Council to adjust its process for meeting the costs of borrowing as it was considered overly prudent. This was with the Council’s external auditors for validation.

(Councillor Geoff Mayes joined the meeting remotely at 6.20pm).

AMENDMENT: Proposed by Councillor Carolyne Culver and seconded by Councillor Adrian Abbs:

 

Original text: Falkland Primary School – Classroom replacement budget

Proposed amendment: “Move £2m from 25/26 to 24/25 to enable this essential work to start without further delays.”

 

Original text:

Reference	Project	Amount / £m
109	Corporate Storage Systems & Attached Network	0.15
112	Refresh Multi-Functional Device Fleet	0.17
113	Corporate Database Server Replacement	0.075
124	Digitalisation Infrastructure/ ICT Allocation	0.05
150	Refresh DC A/C & Generator	0.1
216	Provision of full fibre broadband to schools	0.28
35	Expansion of Berkshire Records Office. Reading	2.508
217	A capital budget to purchase items for the West Berkshire Museum Collection	0.01

 

Proposed amendments:

 

2a)  To remove the following items for the capital budget whilst cloud options are investigated (total £0.375m):

 

Lines:

·       109

·       113

·       124

·       150

 

2b) Change MFD procurement to replace on failure (allow for 1-2 machines to fail in 2024-25) - £0.17m

 

2c) Remove all purchasing options from museum – instead allow long term loans from interest parties - £0.01m

 

2d) Investigate alternative to Full Fibre in schools - £0.28m

 

2e) Defer extra storage of paper for minimum of 1 year whilst we lobby for digital alternative - £2.508m”

 

Prior to entering the debate, Councillor Abbs requested a small amount of additional time to speak both as seconder to the amendments and as the Ward Member for Falkland Primary School. The Monitoring Officer, Sarah Clarke, responded that Members could only speak once on each debate and the timings had been agreed in advance in consultation with Group Leaders. Councillor Abbs felt that the timing permitted was not sufficient and therefore debate was being restricted.

 

Councillor Culver talked specifically on the Falkland Primary School amendment on Councillor David Marsh’s behalf, she thanked him for his hard work in preparing the amendment.

 

There was an urgent need to bring forward funding as proposed in order to make much needed improvements to the school’s classrooms. Funding that had earlier been promised for a new building (from 2022/23) had sadly been postponed and the situation was worsening. This was a significant concern as the classrooms were cold and damp, resulting in high heating costs.

Some initial progress was made within 2022/23 in terms of assigning a project officer and looking to procure a design, but had not been taken any further forward and the Capital Strategy was proposing that funding and therefore works would be pushed into 2025/26. The only provision for 2024/25 was to allocate a relatively small amount of funding for the design phase only.

This situation was extremely frustrating for all concerned.

The Section 151 Officer’s comments on this particular amendment explained that the bringing forward of funding would have little impact on the 2024/25 finances. Much of the funding was external, meaning that the amount to be borrowed was relatively minimal.

Councillor Abbs concentrated the bulk of his comments on IT related amendments. He explained that he had a strong IT background and had worked in the sector for many years.

On amendment 2a, he felt it would be sensible to remove those proposals and extend existing warranties so that cloud-based alternatives could be considered in order to achieve best value.

Amendment 2b, Councillor Abbs felt the Council could save money by opting to not replace all its Multi-Functional Devices at once.

While the proposal for amendment 2c was small this was a time of financial crisis and so this was a saving that could be made.

Councillor Abbs questioned why full fibre had not been rolled out to schools (amendment 2d) already meaning there would be no need to spend additional public money.

He felt there should be no need to expand the provision for paper storage (amendment 2e). The retention of more recent records should be via digital means. The £2.5m would be far better spent on delivering a school.

Turning to the Falkland Primary School amendment, Councillor Abbs advised that he had been contacted by the very concerned Headteacher on the situation. Funding should be provided earlier as per the amendment, the current poor situation was impacting on the education of pupils.

Councillor Dominic Boeck referred to the high performance of West Berkshire’s schools at the conclusion of the Conservative Administration and the important role the Capital Strategy played in maintaining the education estate, which included two new primary schools and additional provision for children with special education needs. Good quality facilities were needed for the most effective education.

Improvements to Falkland Primary School had been in the Capital Programme since 2021 and the project was due to commence during 2023/24. The delay proposed by the Liberal Democrat Administration to 2025/26 was not acceptable. The school’s classrooms should not be sub-standard porta cabins.

He sought assurance that West Berkshire’s children be put first and questioned why the cheque could not be written and the works allowed to proceed.

Councillor Boeck was pleased to support the amendment. The Council had a duty of care to the children of West Berkshire and should strive to do the best possible for their education. He urged all Members to add their support.

Councillor Heather Codling agreed that West Berkshire’s children should be put first and therefore the classrooms should have already been replaced for Falkland Primary School. She clarified that a feasibility study had been carried out, but a design had not been produced. Unfortunately, during the course of last year, staff members had been lost and it had been difficult to recruit good quality project managers to replace them.

Councillor Codling had reviewed the Capital Programme for Education with the Executive Director for Children and Family Services shortly after she was appointed and Falkland was at the top of the pile. Provision had been made for the provision of a design statement in the coming year (£40k) and additional funds in the region of £250k also brought forward to help make progress. Councillor Codling stated that further funds would be brought forward within 2024/25 if sufficient progress was made and it became possible to deliver the project.

Councillor Codling provided an assurance that she would be keeping a close eye on the project and was determined that it be delivered as soon as possible.

Councillor Chris Read explained that he had also worked within IT for many years and agreed with the benefits of a move to cloud based services. However, he added that in his experience it was better to invest capital funding up front which would save costs at a later stage. He did not therefore support the delay of IT proposals.

Councillor Marsh was pleased to note support to the Falkland Primary School amendment. He was deeply concerned that the school’s damp and cold classrooms were not fit for purpose. As already described this had been an ongoing situation which was unsustainable.

The parents and carers of the children at Falkland would be within their rights to feel the school was being neglected, particularly when making comparisons to developments at other schools. It had been necessary recently to close the school following flooding and a resultant loss of electricity. He thanked other schools and community groups for their support during that time.

Councillor Marsh asked the Portfolio Holder to commit to ensuring that the school did not have to meet the repair costs following this incident.

He added that the Minority Group would closely monitor the care of the school estate.

As had been stated by Councillor Codling it was possible to bring funding forward and Councillor Marsh therefore urged approval of the amendment.

Councillor Ross Mackinnon agreed the funding should be brought forward which would give an assurance to the school, parents and children. He suggested that a separate vote be undertaken on this particular amendment.

He stated his disappointment at the criticisms made around delays to the Falkland project. It had been ready to go in 2020 but unfortunately was delayed as a result of Covid. However, any delay since May 2023 was a matter for the new Administration.

Councillor Clive Taylor made the point that the borrowing of funds clearly needed to be repaid with interest. The IT savings proposed would reduce borrowing costs and savings could be put to exploring cloud-based options.

Councillor Howard Woollaston supported the investment proposed for the Royal Berkshire Archives which provided an excellent facility. The expansion was needed to ensure that archived documents were stored in the most appropriate environment. He clarified that the £2.5m proposed was shared across the six Berkshire unitary authorities and West Berkshire Council’s costs would be £200k per year over two years. He supported a separate vote on Falkland Primary School.

Councillor Paul Kander noted from previous Council meetings that £1.7m had been found by the Liberal Democrats to fund a new local plan and queried why this sum could not have been put to schools. There had been no progress with Falkland Primary since May 2023.

Councillor Patrick Clark thanked his fellow Ward Members for their comments on Falkland Primary School. This was of high importance and he thanked Councillor Codling for her assurance that funding would be allocated to the project as soon as it was ready for delivery.

Councillor Paul Dick spoke on the Falkland amendment, stating his extensive experience of the Education sector. The district’s children were indeed the Council’s highest priority and the Council should be doing all possible to support and care for them. Project Managers existed and the funding was available, it should therefore be brought forward without further delay.

Councillor Tony Vickers highlighted the importance of securing planning consent for Education projects. He completely acknowledged the concerns raised in relation to Falkland Primary School but considered it more realistic to schedule works to the following year to allow sufficient time to design the scheme, obtain planning permission and then go out to tender for delivery. A project plan needed to be in place, something that had been lacking in previous years.

Councillor Jeff Brooks strongly agreed with many aspects of the argument made for Falkland Primary School and gave a firm assurance that this project would be fast tracked as soon as practically possible. He would be receiving regular updates on the progress being made. As stated by Councillor Codling, the money would be allocated in the coming year if the project could be delivered within 2024/25. Every effort would be made to do so. However, after considering all steps that needed to be taken he felt that delivery was more practicable in 2025/26.

Turning to the IT related amendments, Councillor Brooks stated that staff needed the right tools to perform their roles to the best of their ability.

The Royal Berkshire Archive was indeed a wonderful facility which should be retained and expanded.

In summary, Councillor Brooks advised that the Liberal Democrat Group were not in support of the amendments, but repeated his assurance that the Falkland Primary School works would be undertaken, with funding allocated, as soon as practically possible.

Councillor Culver felt that the Council should take the step of bringing forward and allocating funding for Falkland Primary School in the coming year. It could always be pushed into the following year if necessary. This would send a clear signal to the school community of the Council’s intentions.

She requested separate votes on the amendments.

The Chairman agreed that a separate vote would be taken on the Falkland Primary School amendment. The remaining amendments from the Minority Group would be voted for en bloc.

The Falkland Primary School amendment was put to the vote.

FOR the Amendment:

All Members of the Conservative Group.

All Members of the Minority Group.

AGAINST the Amendment:

All Members of the Liberal Democrat Group.

ABSTAINED: None.

The Falkland Primary School amendment was declared LOST.

Amendments 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d and 2e were put to the vote.

FOR the Amendment:

All Members of the Minority Group.

AGAINST the Amendment:

All Members of the Liberal Democrat Group.

All Members of the Conservative Group.

ABSTAINED: None.

Amendments 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d and 2e were declared LOST.

Debate returned to the substantive Motion:

Councillor Stuart Gourley outlined the significant investment in his portfolio which aligned with the Council’s strategic imperatives of climate action, recycling and bio-diversity. A key project was the Grazeley solar farm with £2.5m allocated in the coming year.

More Council assets would have solar pv installed, including the Padworth Household Waste Recycling Unit.

£17.2m would be invested over the next four years in delivering renewable energy provision and greater infrastructure would be implemented for electric vehicle charging.

Other initiatives would also be explored to help achieve net zero. A micro hydro feasibility study would be undertaken and natural climate change projects would be explored such as large scale tree planting.

Councillor Gourley highlighted the Thatcham Flood Alleviation Scheme. Efforts would be made with partners to secure further funding streams for projects, including for further flood defence schemes.

This was an ambitious plan for the coming year and beyond. Climate action did come at a cost, but a cost worth having. Councillor Gourley looked forward to working with officers to achieve benefits for the district and its residents.

Councillor Abbs was pleased to see these projects coming through. He hoped that the scope of the Grazeley project would retain the potential to be widened to incorporate developing technologies, and that micro hydro initiatives would be taken forward.

Councillor Owen Jeffery warmly welcomed plans for Thatcham as the area had suffered greatly from flooding in the past. It was excellent to see that the final element of long terms plans for flood defences was being reached, preventing homes from further flooding in the future.

Councillor Mackinnon commented that it was a shame that the Falkland amendment was not approved.

He referred back to Councillor Cottingham’s comments on the policy change to MRP and the ability this gave to release funding to revenue. This was on the view that the previous approach was considered too prudent, this conflicted with the points made that the Conservative Administration had not been prudent.

There was much to support in the Capital Strategy, including the 179 items that had rolled forward from the previous Strategy. He was also pleased to note that a ten year strategy was being retained.

Councillor Mackinnon referred to the Manifesto pledge to fix dangerous pot holes in 24 hours and all pot holes fixed on a permanent basis with no temporary measures. However, he noted that the highway improvement plan was due to be cut in 2026/27. Roads needed to continue to be improved in the years ahead including the fixing of pot holes.

Councillor Mackinnon concluded by referring to the Newbury Sports Hub, a project he believed to have been cancelled by the Administration. However, funding of £2.3m was still allocated.

Councillor Tony Vickers highlighted the importance of new residential development. The Council was able to secure capital funding from housing developers in order to ensure that the necessary infrastructure was put in place to offset development, much of this came from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). While the Council had some control over the levy charged, the market was controlled by developers.

He considered the £43m forecast from CIL charging to be a low estimate compared to the level of infrastructure improvements that would be needed. 26 projects due for 2024/25 were totally dependent on CIL. It was therefore necessary to review CIL charging in the years ahead and make efforts to secure higher CIL contributions.

The Council also held the role of collating CIL on behalf of other bodies including the NHS and Thames Water. They had a legal right to access CIL for their infrastructure needs.

Councillor Martha Vickers gave her support for active travel initiatives. These were very important in helping the health and wellbeing of residents.

She highlighted safer school projects in particular and welcomed the support that would come from the Council via the Capital Strategy in implementing projects that aimed to reduce traffic congestion around schools and encouraging more walking to school.

Councillor Antony Amirtharaj commended the Capital Strategy. Importantly, it focused on achieving the Council’s key priorities as well as business as usual projects. He particularly praised accessibility improvements in Speen.

Councillor Janine Lewis spoke on plans for improving leisure facilities. This included continuing to listen to communities in order to best meet their needs. The Playing Pitch Strategy was to be reviewed to ensure sporting needs were being met.

However, factors such as cost of living and inflation had to be acknowledged. This was being reflected in the costs of materials for projects and this could push some schemes over budget or cause some delays. Project costs were therefore being reviewed.

The funding for new projects would not be agreed until business cases had been approved. Additional funding streams would also be explored with partner organisations.

Councillor Denise Gaines noted that the condition of roads and pavements were observed by residents, both local roads and further afield. £8.5 was in the programme for highway projects, funding for which came from a combination of CIL, Central Government funding and the Council’s capital funds. Highway schemes were of course important from a safety perspective and funds were being invested in helping to reduce accidents, but it was also important to make West Berkshire an attractive place in which to live and work, helping residents feel proud of their district. Funding was therefore set aside for signage and footway improvements, and traffic signal updates.

Funding was allocated to village speed limit schemes and on street electric vehicle charging. Sustainable transport measures were being funded, including cycle lanes and canal paths. Upgrades were being made to the transport fleet.

On the subject of pot holes, 1881 pot holes were reported in January and February, this was ten times the amount reported for the same period last year. Since May 2023, the Council had spent £400k more on pot hole repairs than the amount spent by the previous Administration in the last three years. Dangerous pot holes were being fixed in the promised timescale. She did however acknowledge that temporary fixes had been necessary on some occasions.

Councillor Codling repeated the commitment for Falkland Primary School, but also outlined other education projects. These included the expansion of the Castle School to improve the provision for its children and the expansion of early years provision at Thatcham Park. There were also a number of smaller scale works planned to help foster parents in caring for their families.

Councillor Brooks was delighted to support the very good Capital Programme and thanked Portfolio Holders for their comments. It was important to deliver projects, there had been a trend of projects being slipped and this was something to be improved upon. This was a challenge for both Members and officers.

Councillor Cottingham gave thanks for the robust debate. The Capital Strategy would do much to benefit West Berkshire’s residents whilst also ensuring the Council protected its finances.

In accordance with the provisions outlined in the Constitution, the vote on the Capital Strategy would be recorded. The names of those Members voting for, against and abstaining were read to the Council as follows:

FOR the Motion:

Councillors Antony Amirtharaj, Phil Barnett, Jeff Brooks, Patrick Clark, Heather Codling, Martin Colston, Iain Cottingham, Laura Coyle, Billy Drummond, Nigel Foot, Denise Gaines, Stuart Gourley, Owen Jeffery, Janine Lewis, Alan Macro, Erik Pattenden, Justin Pemberton, Vicky Poole, Christopher Read, Matt Shakespeare, Stephanie Steevenson, Louise Sturgess, Martha Vickers and Tony Vickers.

AGAINST the Motion:

None.

ABSTAINED:

Councillors Adrian Abbs, Dennis Benneyworth, Dominic Boeck, Jeremy Cottam, Carolyne Culver, Paul Dick, Clive Hooker, Paul Kander, Jane Langford, Ross Mackinnon, Richard Somner, Jo Stewart, Clive Taylor and Howard Woollaston.

The Motion was put to the meeting and duly RESOLVED.