Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

He thanked Her Majesty the Queen for her recent visit to Bath and North East Somerset.

He also reminded people of the Fashion Museum drop-in events that would be taking place at the weekend.  There was a session at the Midsomer Norton summer fayre and one at the Old Post Office in Bath.  He encouraged people to attend and give their views on this exciting project.

The Democratic Services Officer will read out the emergency evacuation procedure as set out in the notes.

The Senior Democratic Services Officer read out the emergency evacuation procedure.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Paul Roper.

At this point in the meeting declarations of interest are received from Members in any of the agenda items under consideration at the meeting. Members are asked to indicate:

(a) The agenda item number in which they have an interest to declare.

(b) The nature of their interest.

(c) Whether their interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest or an other interest, (as defined in Part 4.4 Appendix B of the Code of Conduct and Rules for Registration of Interests)

Any Member who needs to clarify any matters relating to the declaration of interests is recommended to seek advice from the Council’s Monitoring Officeror a member of his staff before the meeting to expedite dealing with the item during the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

There was no urgent business.

Questions submitted before the deadline will receive a reply from an appropriate Cabinet member or an undertaking to respond within 5 working days of the meeting.  Councillors may ask one supplementary question for each question they submit, up to a maximum of two per Councillor.

There were 16 questions from Councillors and 24 questions from members of the public.

[Copies of the questions and responses, including supplementary questions and responses if any, have been placed on the Minute book as Appendix 1 and are available on the Council's website.]

Councillors and members of the public may register their intention to make a statement if they notify the subject matter of their statement before the deadline.  Statements are limited to 3 minutes each.  The speaker may then be asked by Cabinet members to answer factual questions arising out of their statement.

Members of the public and Councillors made statements as follows:

·  Robin Kerr (Chair of Bath Alliance for Transport and Public Realm – Transport Issues

·  Rachael Hushon – Cycle Hanger Provision across the City

(The statements are attached as an appendix to these minutes).

To be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 20^th May 2025 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

This is a standard agenda item, to cover any reports originally placed on the Weekly List for single Member decision making, which have subsequently been the subject of a Cabinet Member requisition to the full Cabinet, under the Council’s procedural rules.

No single member items were requisitioned to Cabinet.

This is a standing agenda item (Constitution rule 3.3.14) for matters referred by Policy Development and Scrutiny bodies.  The Chair of the relevant Policy Development and Scrutiny Panel will have the right to attend and to introduce the Panel’s recommendations to Cabinet.

No matters were referred by Policy Development and Scrutiny Panels.

To note the list of Cabinet Single Member decisions taken and published since the last Cabinet meeting (no debate).

The Cabinet agreed to note the report.

The Local Authority has a statutory duty, in partnership with Health, Police and Probation Services, to produce a Youth Justice Plan.  The Plan sets out how services will be organised and funded and what functions will be carried out to prevent youth offending and re-offending across Bath and North East Somerset.  Once approved, the Plan is submitted to the national Youth Justice Board.

Cllr Paul May, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, introduced the report, moved the officer recommendation and made the following points:

• B&NES is the lead partner for Youth Justice under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.
• The council collaborates with Police, Probation, and health bodies to publish the annual Youth Justice Plan.

• The plan aims to prevent offending and reoffending by children aged 10–17.
• This year’s decision is an update and confirmation of the existing two-year plan.

Youth Justice in B&NES:

• There is a low rate of youth crime, and few children are in the formal justice system.
• Children in the system are often highly vulnerable.
• The service works closely with the Violence Reduction Partnership to address serious violence.

Funding:

• The total budget is £949,744
• The B&NES contribution is £508,581
• Funding is statutory and is supported by the Youth Justice Board for England and Wales.

“Child First” Approach:

• Children are treated as children first, not offenders.
• There is a focus on:
  • Best interests of the child and victims
  • Understanding needs and vulnerabilities
  • Family involvement
  • Reducing reoffending
  • Listening to children, families, and victims

Strategic Priorities (2024–2026):

1. To reduce disproportionality – especially for minority ethnic children and those with special educational needs.
2. To strengthen participation and to amplify the voices of children, parents, and carers.
3. To embed child-first principles through training and new tools for co-creating support plans.
4. To reduce serious violence, with a focus on knife crime intervention.

Progress and Outcomes:

• First-time crime and reoffending rates are much lower than national averages.
• There was only one custodial sentence last year.
• Strong relationships with children and families help build trust and reduce crime.

Inspection Results:

• The HMIP inspection rated the partnership as:
  • “Good with many areas of outstanding”
  • 3 areas were rated “Outstanding”
  • 9 areas were rated “Good”
  • 1 area (“assessments for out of court disposals”) was rated “Requires Improvement”
• The delivery of court disposals and staff performance were rated “Outstanding”.
• The service has effective, evidence-based interventions.

Cllr Alison Born seconded the motion.  She praised the comprehensive report, and the work carried out to deliver the best outcomes for young people, their families and local communities.  She noted the positive outcome of the recent inspection and stated that the key performance indicators and activity data provide assurance that this is a high performing service.  The Service also demonstrates a commitment to reflection and continuous improvement.

RESOLVED (unanimously):

To recommend full Council to approve the Youth Justice Plan.

The report provides information about the Council’s financial performance against its revenue and capital budgets in 2024-25.

Cllr Mark Elliott, Cabinet Member for Resources, introduced the report, moved the officer recommendation and made the following points:

·  The report presents the final financial figures for the council for the year ending April 2025.

·  It distinguishes between:

·  Revenue Budget – for ongoing costs and income.

·  Capital Budget – for one-off income and spending on assets.

Revenue Budget:

·  There was an adverse outturn of just over £200k, this is considered nearly balanced for a budget of over £400m.

·  This represents an improvement of £770k from the Quarter 3 position.

·  The £210k deficit will be covered by the Revenue Budget Contingency Reserve.

Children’s Services:

·  There was a notable £6.18m overspend due to high demand and cost pressures.

·  Despite this, the council maintained high standards of care for vulnerable children.

·  Cllr Elliott commended officers for their efforts to increase income and reduce costs.

Savings and Income Generation:

·  The target was £16.42m

·  £12.66m was fully delivered.

·  £2.78m was mitigated through contingency or other income.

·  Only 6% (under £1m) was not delivered in year.

·  This is a strong performance, boosting confidence for future targets.

Direct School Grant:

·  There was a significant overspend.

·  The Government extended the statutory override, so the deficit is not included in council accounts.

·  The Council is working with the DfE to balance this and is awaiting funding for the two new schools on the Culverhay site.

Tax and Rates Accuracy:

·  Council tax and business rate income predictions were highly accurate:

·  There was a 0.04% variance for council tax.

·  There was a 0.3% variance for business rates.

Capital Budget:

·  £53m was spent out of a £70m budget (75% delivery).

·  £16m was requested to be carried forward to 2025/26 for re-phased projects.

·  There was a £1.25m net underspend which was removed from the capital programme.

·  The narrowing gap between budget and spend shows improved capital planning.

·  The council has balanced its budget under challenging conditions and the hard work and diligence of council officers is acknowledged.

Cllr Sarah Warren seconded the motion.  She congratulated the team for achieving a near balanced revenue budget position at year end.  She acknowledged the challenges this entailed at a time when funding provided by government for children’s services, an entirely demand-led service, continues to fall short.  She noted the importance, both in terms of welfare of some of the most vulnerable children and the additional control it will give the council over its budget, of ensuring that many children will no longer have to travel out of county to attend school.

RESOLVED (unanimously):

(1)  To note the revenue budget outturn on budget position for 2024/25, after allowing for carry forwards and transfers to reserves.

(2)  To approve the revenue carry forward proposals listed in the tables in paragraph 3.6 of the report.

(3)  To approve that all other over budgets are written off as an exception to the Budget Management Rules for 2024/25.

(4)  To approve the transfer of £0.21m from corporate earmarked reserves.

(5)  To note the revenue virements for 2024/25 reported for information in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The report presents an overview of services across the Authority with the highest risk of financial pressure or upside for the 2025/26 financial year, using information available up to the end of June 2025.

Cllr Mark Elliott, Cabinet Member for Resources, introduced the report, moved the officer recommendation and made the following points:

·  The report focuses on financial progress since April 2025, based on the first two months of data and aims to identify early risks and enable timely action.

·  Departments used a risk-based assessment due to limited data with an emphasis on identifying services at highest risk of budget variance.

Children’s Services:

·  This is the area identified as the biggest financial risk.

·  8 new residential placements at the end of last year caused a £2.7m pressure.

·  4 more placements since April added £1.5m, with potential for 4 more (£1.5m).

·  This gives a total potential extra pressure of £4m–£8m, on top of an existing £4m budget increase.

Home to School Transport:

·  There is no current additional risk, unlike last year.

·  The full demand for this service is expected to be clearer by the Autumn.

Roman Baths:

·  The Baths are performing well, but visitor numbers may fall short of the 1.1 million target.

·  The national trend shows lower international visitor numbers.

·  The summer period will be critical for final outcomes.

Savings:

·  £10m of the £14m budgeted savings are already showing as delivered.

·  The remaining £4m still poses a material risk at this stage.

Contingency Planning:

·  There is a large contingency fund set aside in anticipation of pressures.

·  The current overall risk exposure is around £1.6m after accounting for contingencies.

Conclusion:

·  The financial outlook remains challenging; this is consistent with national trends.

·  The Council is well-prepared and aims to deliver a balanced budget by April 2026.

Cllr Matt McCabe seconded the motion.  He stated that this administration is fiscally responsible and welcomed the approach to consideration and management of risk.

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1)  To note the 2025/26 revenue budget risk analysis detailed within paragraphs 3.2 to 3.10 of the report (as at the end of June 2025).

(2)  To note and approve where required the revenue virements listed in Appendix 3(i) of the report.

(3)  To note the capital year-end forecast detailed in paragraph 3.23 of the report.

(4)  To the changes in the capital programme including capital schemes that have been agreed for full approval under delegation listed in Appendix 2(i) of the report.

Treasury risk management is conducted within the framework of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy’s Treasury Management in the Public Services: Code of Practice 2021 Edition (the CIPFA Code).  The report sets out details of performance against the Council’s Treasury Management Strategy for 2024/25.

Cllr Mark Elliott, Cabinet Member for Resources, introduced the report, moved the officer recommendation and made the following points:

·  The report reviews the council’s investment and borrowing performance for the last financial year.

·  Treasury management performance was very good, as in previous years due to the professionalism and diligence of the Treasury Management team.

·  Borrowing at year-end was £275.7 million.

·  Investments at year-end were £32.6 million.

·  All figures were within approved limits set in the Treasury Management Strategy.

·  Operational investments showed an average of 4.96% return (just above the benchmark of 4.84%).

·  Strategic investments showed a 4.25% return (which met the budgeted target).

·  Interest rates remained higher for longer than expected.

·  Capital spend reprofiling and interest trends led to £1 million under budget in interest and capital financing costs which helped to ease pressure on the Revenue budget.

·  The work carried out by the Treasury Management Team supports all council activities.

Cllr Manda Rigby seconded the motion and also thanked the team for their excellent work.

RESOLVED (unanimously):

(1)  To note the Treasury Management Report to 31^st March 2025, prepared in accordance with the CIPFA Treasury Code of Practice.

(2)  To note the Treasury Management Indicators to 31^st March 2025.