Agenda and draft minutes

None.

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting held on 5 November 2025.

RESOLVED – that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 5 November 2025 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

To consider the draft budget proposals agreed by Cabinet on 6 January 2026, to consider any alternative budget proposals put forward and to agree items for further scrutiny.

By way of introduction, the Cabinet Member: Finance, Governance & Customer Services introduced the Medium-Term Financial Strategy 2026/27 – 2029/30 (MTFS), emphasising that the proposals set out within the report were far more than a financial plan but expressed the Council’s values and priorities for creating a better borough.

The Cabinet Member highlighted the Council’s sustained record of strong financial management over the past 14 years, noting that despite absorbing more than £195m in funding cuts from central Government, protecting and caring for the most vulnerable residents remained at the heart of all decision-making alongside investment in local services, neighbourhoods and the wider economy to ensure continued growth and resilience.

The Cabinet Member reiterated that every £1 generated locally through council tax collection was invested directly in supporting residents across the borough and thanked officers for their continued commitment and professionalism in managing the Council’s finances during a period of intense national pressure.

The Director: Finance, People & IDT presented the report to the Committee which set out the position of the Council as it approached the end of the 2025/26 financial year, followed by a summary of the main proposals outlined within the budget for 2026/27 and had been agreed by Cabinet for consultation at its meeting on 6 January 2026.

The Director: Finance, People & IDT provided an overview of the budget breakdown explaining that the Council’s net revenue budget for the 2025/26 financial year was £167m, of which, £128m (equivalent to 76% of the budget) was allocated to social care services. When services in Education & Skills were included, this increased to approximately 84% of total spending, leaving limited funding available for other Council functions.

The Committee heard that the Council had continued to face significant financial challenges driven by rising costs and sustained demand for services, particularly in Adult Social Care, Children’s Safeguarding, homelessness and home-to-school transport. Despite these pressures, the Council maintains a strong track record of sound financial management, having delivered a balanced budget for 17 consecutive years.

The base budget for 2026/27 was set at £233.4m with approximately 70% allocated to Adult Social Care and Children’s Social Care services. Pressures arising from population growth, increased demand for complex care and inflation had necessitated further investment including £15.8m of additional funding for Adult Social Care and £2.7m for Children’s Safeguarding. The funding settlement from Government assumed that every local authority would increase Council Tax by the maximum allowed. That being the case, the MTFS proposed a general council tax increase equivalent to £0.72 per week for an average Band B property, alongside an Adult Social Care precept of £0.48 per week, generating £4.7m towards the additional £18.5m investment required for Social Care. Even with these increases, the Council would continue to have the lowest council tax levels in the Midlands for the services it provides.

The Committee noted that the capital investment programme totalled £437m and would fund a wide range of projects including:

• Over £88m for Nuplace and Telford & Wrekin Homes, plus affordable and specialist housing programmes.  ...  view the full minutes text for item BFSC19

To review the updated Work Programme for the Business & Finance Scrutiny Committee.

The Director: Policy & Governance presented the updated work programme. The current focus of the Committee was the budget consultation however future meetings would focus on the items identified in the work programme.

As the Committee works to a rolling two-year work programme, some of items remaining on the work programme would be scheduled for the 2026/27 municipal year.

The Chair expressed an interest in the Committee undertaking a piece of work on the Pride in Place programme, exploring alternative accommodation options within the estates, including the potential repurposing of existing structures into single?person dwellings. The Committee indicated that they would welcome the opportunity for this topic to be brought to a future meeting, with arrangements for doing so to be agreed outside of the meeting.

The Chair thanked Officers and Members for their participation in the meeting and the workshop which was held in the last week. As a decision was reached by the Committee in relation to the budget proposals, it was agreed that the meeting scheduled for Tuesday 20 January would no longer be required.