Scarborough Council predicts £1m budget overspend for current financial year

Despite having “currently uncommitted resources” of more than £7m, the authority has estimated that the current financial year will see a “projected outturn overspend” of £1m.

Scarborough Borough Council, which will cease to exist next April, will transfer “uncommitted reserve balances of at least £8m” to the new North Yorkshire unitary Council at the end of March 2023.

In addition to the above £8m that is held by the council, the authority holds additional, currently uncommitted, resources of £7.28m.

This is made up of £2.2m relating to the 2021/22 revenue budget underspend, £4m in additional capital receipts generated from asset sales, and £1m earmarked for the progression of schemes in the Scarborough and Whitby Blueprint.

The financial outturn updates and monitoring report were approved unanimously at a meeting of the authority’s cabinet on Tuesday, December 13.

Speaking at the meeting, Cllr Janet Jefferson, the cabinet member for corporate resources, said: “The blueprint includes aspirations to deliver a cinema within the borough, and this report puts a marker in the sand regarding our intention to progress the cinema proposal and sets out that monies are being transferred to the new North Yorkshire unitary authority to do so.”

Cllr Jefferson added that as approval of the cinema project would “likely” be made after the local government reorganisation takes place next April, a decision will rest with the new authority.

The cabinet report also set out an extensive list of other projects which the council has started work on or is hoping will be progressed by the new authority.

In addition to the cinema, new and future financial “commitments and aspirations” include plans to allocate £3.5m to manage council properties, a £3m budget allocation to the West Pier project, refurbishment of the Filey chalets, general improvements to Peasholm boat deck, as well as works to Scarborough’s concrete chalets.

Kerry Metcalfe, Scarborough Council’s corporate finance manager, said the authority is “looking to transfer in excess of £15m across to the new North Yorkshire Council”. She added that the sum demonstrated “how prudently and responsibly this council has managed its finances over the years.”

The officer added that the projected £1m overspend was a “very prudent estimate” driven by “exceptional and unavoidable cost pressures”.

According to a council report, this includes “exceptional inflationary cost pressures related to pay, fuel and utilities” which are set to be funded from earmarked reserves in 2022/23.