Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence. 

None

To adopt and sign as correct records the minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 28 November and 6 December 2013 (previously published). 

RESOLVED: to adopt as correct records the minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 28 November and 6 December 2013 and agree that the chairman signs them. 

To receive any declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests in respect of items on the agenda for this meeting.  

None

To receive notification of any matters which the chairman determines should be considered as urgent business and the special circumstances which have made the matters urgent, and to receive any announcements from the chairman.

None

Any statements, petitions, and questions from the public under standing order 32 will be made or presented at the meeting.

None

To consider the strategic director’s report.  

Cabinet considered the strategic director’s report on office accommodation and noted the exempt appendix.  The report explained the outcome of recent negotiations with Oxfordshire County Council and South Oxfordshire District Council to make better use of the councils’ office buildings. 

The Cabinet member for property reported that the agreement with the county council would bring both county and district services together for Vale residents in one building.  This was a unique arrangement within Oxfordshire.  In addition, the long-term financial savings were significant and in turn, these would benefit all Vale council taxpayers.  The Cabinet member had met with the deputy leader of the county council who had been impressed with the standard of the accommodation to be occupied by the county council’s staff.  He had been impressed with the standard of the building and its location, and welcomed the shared arrangements.  In addition, the Citizens Advice Bureau had confirmed its intention to relocate to The Abbey House in June. 

Some Vale staff had already moved to South Oxfordshire’s offices at Crowmarsh Gifford to enable the county council’s contractors to commence the required accommodation changes.  The remainder of Vale staff who would be permanently located at Crowmarsh would follow shortly. 

Cabinet approved the South-Vale recharge methodology and amount, and recommended approval of the refurbishment virement to the Council.  Cabinet also authorised the variation of the section 113 shared services agreement to reflect these changes. 

RESOLVED: to

(a)               approve a variation to its section 113 shared services agreement with South Oxfordshire District Council, whereby the majority of shared council staff will be based at South Oxfordshire’s Crowmarsh Gifford offices and Vale of White Horse District Council will pay £175,743 service charges annually to South Oxfordshire for five years until the arrangement is reviewed;

(b)               authorise the strategic director and the head of legal and democratic services to complete the variation of the section 113 shared services agreement to reflect these changes;

RECOMMENDED: to Council to

(c)        approve a revenue virement for £170,000 from identified underspending budgets this year to cover the refurbishment cost of Abbey House. 

To consider the head of finance’s report.  

Cabinet considered the head of finance’s report that monitored performance of the council’s treasury management function for the first half of 2013/14. 

RECOMMENDED: to Council to approve the head of finance’s report. 

To consider the head of finance’s report. 

Cabinet considered the head of finance’s report that presented the treasury management and investment strategy for 2014/15.  This recommended:

• raising the authorised limit and operational boundary for borrowing by £20 million in order to enable the council to borrow £20 million for infrastructure works in support of the Science Vale UK Enterprise Zone 
• the council should not borrow more than or in advance of its needs purely to profit by investing the sums borrowed   
• inserting a minimum revenue provision to match repayments and funding from the local enterprise partnership business rate growth to neutralise impact on local taxation

Cabinet supported the changes to the strategy. 

RECOMMENDED: to Council to

(a)               approve the treasury management strategy 2014/15;

(b)               approve the prudential indicators and limits for 2014/15 to 2016/17 as set out in table 2, appendix A to the head of finance’s report; and

(c)               approve the annual investment strategy 2014/15 set out in appendix A and the lending criteria detailed in table 5 to the head of finance’s report. 

To consider the head of finance’s report. 

Cabinet considered the head of finance’s report, which brought together all the information to allow Cabinet to form its budget recommendations to Council. 

Cabinet noted the possible need to take account of small changes to the budget, for example since publication of the report the government had published its final settlement for the council on 5 February 2014.  This amended some of the figures in the draft budget, which would be reported to Council. 

RECOMMENDED: to

(a)               set the revenue budget for 2014/15 as set out in appendix A.1 to the head of finance’s report;

(b)               approve the capital programme for 2014/15 to 2018/19 as set out in appendix D.1 to the head of finance’s report, together with the capital growth bids set out in appendix D.2 of the head of finance’s report;

(c)               set the council’s prudential limits as listed in appendix E to the head of finance’s report;

(d)               approve the medium term financial plan to 2018/19 as set out in appendix F.1 to the head of finance’s report; and

RESOLVED: to

(e)       authorise the leader of the council to make minor adjustments to the head of finance’s report and the prudential indicators, in conjunction with the head of finance, following the publication of the final Local Government settlement and prior to the report’s submission to Council on 19 February 2014. 

None