Issue - meetings

Decision:

1.    That the grant budget for 2023-24 be set at £90,000, subject to final confirmation at budget council in February 2023.

2.    That future years’ budget from 2024-25 be reviewed in consultation with parish councils.

3.    That the parish council requests for grant aid for 2023-24, as set out in Appendix 3 to the report, be approved.

Reason(s):

1.    to assist parish councils with expenditure on concurrent function schemes in 2023-24.

2.    to enable parish councils to take account of financial assistance from Guildford Borough Council when calculating their precept requirements for 2023-24.

Other options considered and rejected by the Executive:

None.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None.

The Executive considered a report on the Council’s concurrent functions grant aid scheme that provided financial assistance to parish councils.  Concurrent functions were services which both the Borough Council and the parish councils were empowered to undertake. The Lead Councillor for Resources introduced the report.

The report was produced in time for the parish councils to put together their budgets for the coming year. The Council had received 28 detailed applications from 14 of the 23 parish councils amounting to a total of £93,663.  A panel of officers had evaluated the bids.  Of those, 4 bids were subsequently withdrawn or rejected. The bids brought forward for approval totalled £67,305, which was £22,695 under the base budget of £90,000. The remaining budget of £22,695 was to be transferred to the Parish Council Urgent Schemes Reserves. Details were set out in the appendices to the report.

The Executive

RESOLVED:

(1)       That the concurrent functions grant budget for 2023-24 be set at £90,000, subject to final confirmation by the Council, at its budget meeting in February 2023.

(2)       That future years’ budget from 2024-25 be reviewed in consultation with parish councils.

(3)       That the parish council requests for grant aid for 2023-24, as set out in Appendix 3 to the report, be approved.

Reason(s):

·       To assist parish councils with expenditure on concurrent function schemes in 2023-24.

·       To enable parish councils to take account of financial assistance from Guildford Borough Council when calculating their precept requirements for 2023-24.