5^th January 2021

Dear Councillor,

This is to inform you that the meeting of the Resources and Policy Committee will be held via Zoom 7.30pm on Wednesday 13^th January 2021, to which you are summoned, for the transaction of the following business. You can join the Zoom Meeting here

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87950526114?pwd=cnY1ai9PZHRLRlo4SndKd05qaENQUT09

Meeting ID: 879 5052 6114

Passcode: 630438

Yours sincerely,

C. A. Lloyd

Town Clerk

AGENDA

1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

To receive apologies for absence, if any.

2. QUESTION TIME

The first fifteen minutes of the Meeting will be given over to questions from members of the public on issues relating to the work of the Committee.

3. DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS BY MEMBERS

Members are reminded to make any declarations of disclosable pecuniary and/or personal interests that they may have in relation to items on this Agenda.

You should declare at this part of the meeting or when it becomes apparent your interest by stating:

(a) the item you have the interest in

(b) whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest and the nature of the interest, whereupon you will not participate in the discussion or vote on that matter, unless dispensation has been requested and granted

(c) whether it is a personal interest and the nature of the interest

Members are also reminded of their obligation to report any amendment to their Register of Interests to the Town Clerk as soon as it becomes apparent.

4. MINUTES

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the Meetings held on 14^th October 2020 (copy attached).

In accordance with Standing Order 12;

a. The draft minutes of a preceding meeting having been served on councillors with the agenda to attend the meeting at which they are due to be approved for accuracy, shall be taken as read.

b. There shall be no discussion about the draft minutes of the preceding meeting except in relation to their accuracy. A motion to correct an inaccuracy in the draft minutes shall be moved in accordance with standing order 10(a)(i).

c. The accuracy of draft minutes, including any amendment(s) made to them, shall be confirmed by resolution and shall be signed by the chairman of the meeting and stand as an accurate record of the meeting to which the minutes relate.

4. If the chairman of the meeting does not consider the minutes to be an accurate record of the meeting to which they relate, they shall sign the minutes and include a paragraph in the following terms or to the same effect:

“The chairman of this meeting does not believe that the minutes of the meeting of the ( ) held on [date] in respect of ( ) were a correct record but their view was not upheld by the meeting and the minutes are confirmed as an accurate record of the proceedings.”

5. ACTIONS FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS

To note the actions report from previous meetings (attached)

6. DRAFT BUDGET 2021/22

To consider the attached draft budgets for 2021/22.

7. DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The date of the next meeting is .

Members: Cllr T. Wiltshire, Cllr Margaret Eames-Petersen, Cllr Brennan, Cllr MacKay, Cllr Percival

Ex-officio voting Members: Cllrs Brandon and Juggins

For Information: All other Members of the Council.

AGENDA ITEM 5

ACTIONS FROM RESOURCES AND POLICY COMMITTEE

DATE OF MEETING	ACTION	BY WHOM
6^th July 2020	Tree planting report (to Sport & Leisure Cttee)	Head of Estates	To next meeting 25^th Nov 2020
20^th August 2020	Call deHavilland Grange Working Group	Cllr Eames-Petersen	Date set for 11^th January 2021
3^rd Sept 2020 & 14^th Oct 2020	Officers to look at Revenue streams and decrease in revenue and bring reports back reports to future meetings	Head of Operations	On-going
14^th Oct 2020	Advice or Training for Cllrs	Head of Ops	5 hours Completed
14^th Oct 2020	Requests for land acquisition – enquirers notified of Committee response	Town Clerk	Actioned

AGENDA ITEM 6

DRAFT BUDGETS 2021/22

1.) Overview of 2020 – 2021 Budget:

• 2020 - 2021 Budget was set pre Co-Vid with an expected turnover of £636,732
• Co-Vid has significantly impacted our budget with the restrictions and lock down starting at the beginning of the last financial year.
• If we set aside the grants we received, we have averaged 5k income per month. It would be safe to assume £0 for Nov – Mar. Total £35k for the whole year if this continues.
• The additional grants provided £89,334.00.
• In light of Co-Vid we have reacted fast and made some important decisions to reduce our expenditure. This has included:
• Reviewing the remaining budget in June and reducing the expenditure by (removing all paper copies, Postponing all events etc) (a budgeted saving of £189,513)
• Reviewed the current establishment and made 8 posts redundant reducing expenditure
• Staff savings were £202,031 against budget
• This made a total saving against budget of £391,544
• Taking up the furlough scheme when available saving staffing costs of £27,170. Additional savings will be made in 2021.
• Having just gone into Tier 5 we are struggling to predict the end of this financial year but have furloughed at the beginning of 2021. These savings are not yet known.
• Senior Management have given up annual leave in place of being furloughed if this was not possible. In 2021, further temporary salary savings have been made during furlough.

2.) Where are we now? 

• To the end of Nov 2020 we have used £107,000 reserves to top up the Council’s budget.  We are likely to lose another £68,000 to the end of March 2021.
• We have just moved into full lockdown.
• Our cash reserve is likely to reduce to £382,000 s.106 reserve and £348,000 in the General Reserve.
• This Council has a Policy that minimum recommended level of reserves is 30% of expenditure i.e. £349,907 as of June’s amended budget.

3.) 2021 – 2022 Budget Approach

Having just gone into Lockdown it is difficult to say what the Co-Vid situation will be like in April 2021 but we have prepared for the worst. The Prime Minister’s worst case scenario is that things will not return to normal until 5^th April 2021 i.e. Easter 2021.

1.) We have stripped back our expected income to £232,063.00 (£182k coming from Birchwood).

2.) There is no budget lines for bars at either hall, this will have to be discussed at Committee before reopening and funding from reserves. Viability is necessary to supporting the reopening.

3.) We propose to make staff changes subject to discussion by Establishment Sub Committee:

4.) Event costs have been stripped back as we can’t see when these will be able to be run. The proposal is to pause and review when we know that they can be offered.

5.) There are no budget lines for Repairs and Maintenance to any of our premises, this will have to be brought to Committee for approval out of reserves to keep on top of costs.

6.) The Head of Estates has trimmed work to pitches for the year thus reducing his budgets to assist with funding

7.) There is a significant amount of tree work to be undertaken hence the additional £10,000 in reserves for tree work, this is a matter of health and safety and cannot be delayed.

8.) Howe Dell Hall is still being used by the School for which they are very grateful so will not incur any costs to the Council except for Business Rates.

9.) There is no budget for architect fees, this will need Council approval and to come out of reserves as and when any projects progress.  This will ensure that no expenditure is incurred without prior approval of the council.

What are the three options?

Regardless of reducing our cost base we have seen our reserves reduce and we are unsure what income we will take next year. We are at the minimum expected reserves with no capital reserves at all now.

We have produced three budgets with a 0% increase, 3.5% increase and 8% increase

Note there are no budget lines in any of the options for Repairs and Maintenance to any of our premises. The only difference in the budgets is the amount allocated to our reserve for one off requests. These requests will have to be brought to Committee for approval. This is to control what is being spent (note anything that is not used can be put back into our overall reserve at the end of the financial year and earmarked for capital projects.)

Option 1: 0% provides a £76,000 reserve

• Members will see with a 0% increase that we are unlikely to replace any of our lost reserves and we are relying heavily on Co-Vid restrictions being relaxed by Easter 2021.

Option 2: 3.5% provides £107,000 reserve

• The 3.5% increase will give the Council some security but is still not recommended by Officers as income for 2021/22 is still an unknown, the Council has received very little by way of grant or financial support from the Government despite over 1/3 of its income being generated by the Leisure Centre.

Option 3: 8% provides a £146,00 reserve

• The highest increase is the preferred option but affects the Community worst.  It puts the Council in a more secure financial state and reflects increases seen at other Parish and Town Councils locally. 

What do we offer under each of these Budget Heads

Centrally

• Support to councillors in their visions, Policy setting and procedural accuracy.
• All Governance and democratic support for meetings of the Council
• Mayoral support
• Financial Services to the Council
• Management and supervision of Birchwood Leisure Centre and its staff
• Supervision of the Head of Estates and his Team
• Responsibility for Health and Safety
• Responsibility for HR Function
• Liaison with the public in person, on phone, via email and social media
• Liaison with Council’s Webmaster
• Compliance with all statutory requirements
• FunZone management and bookings

Birchwood Leisure Centre and Playing Fields:

The 9.315 hectares of land at Birchwood comprises

Leisure Centre – Open 7 days per week 9am – 8pm

· Sports Hall (4 badminton courts/basketball court/netball court/disability rugby)

· Health & Wellness Suite

· Pilates Studio

· Children’s Indoor Play Area

· Meeting room with wi-fi access which doubles as fitness studio for martial arts/yoga etc

· Wellfield Trust Room (tenant)

· 100 parking spaces

· Depot for grounds Team

· Management bookings for all football, rugby and astro pitches

· Hall and function bookings

Estates Team:

• Support the outdoor sporting communities ensuring the outdoor facilities are available to be used at their best possible condition.

PLAY AREAS IN HATFIELD OWNED AND/OR LOOKED AFTER BY THE TOWN COUNCIL

· Acacia Street (also known as Cherry Tree Way), Hatfield AL10 8SZ

· Birchwood Leisure Centre, Longmead, Hatfield, AL10 0AN

· Roe Hill Hall Briars Lane, Hatfield AL10 8EY

· Coppice Close Play Area, Coppice Close, Hatfield, AL10 9EF

· Newstead Play Area, Newstead, Hatfield AL10 9DH

· Millwards Play Area, Millwards, Hatfield, AL10 8UP

· Newgate Street, Newgate Street Village SG13 8RP

· Lemsford Village Hall, Lemsford AL8 7TT

· Chipmunk Chase Play Area, Chipmunk Chase, Hatfield AL10 10 9GH

· Ellenbrook Play Area, Ellenbrook Lane, Hatfield AL10 9RW

· Sovereign Place Play Area, Princes Gate, Hatfield AL9 5ET

· Queen Bee Court Play Area, Queen Bee Court, Hatfield, AL10 9PR

· Mulberry Mead Play Area, Mulberry Mead, Hatfield AL10 9EH

· Daffodil Close Play Area, Daffodil Close, Hatfield AL10 9FF

· Tigermoth Way Play Area, Tigermoth Way, Hatfield AL10 9LT

· Poppy Walk Play Area, Poppy Walk, Hatfield AL10 9FP

· Gorse Way Play Area, Gorse Way, Hatfield AL10 9GS

· St Albans Rd East Recreation Ground, St Albans Rd East AL10 0NG

• 6 Adult football pitches, 3 Youth football pitches 1 rugby pitch, 1 cricket ourfield and wicket, 2 astrofurf football pitches and 2 tennis courts

· The are open spaces such as deHavilland Grange and Centenary Park and formal gardens such as Horsa Gardens, Cornation Gardens and the War Memorial Gardens, also kept neat and tidy by the Grounds Team.

· The Estates Team manage 4 halls, Howe Dell (currently being used by Howe Dell school, Oxlease House, Lemsford Village Hall and Roe Hill Hall. This entails all health and safety checks, maintenance and cleanliness, as well as opening and locking and showing around potential hirers.

· The Head of Estates oversees both the Grounds and Estates Teams and carries out the Health and Safety risk assessments for the staff and properties as well as ensuring that the licences and certificates are up to date.

Recommendation to Committee

Whilst acknowledging the effect on residents, to maintain a sustainable service, Officers feel that they are obliged to recommend that an 8% increase at Band D be recommended to Council.