Social Value Ideas for Mid Suffolk District Council

Housing repairs and stock condition uplift

In the Housing Revenue Account, officers said they have committed an extra £1 million to repairs, £100,000 more for aids and adaptations, and doubled roofing spend in years two and three. The budget r…

“we have committed an extra million pound to repairs for the next year we've also committed an extra £100,000 for AIDS and adaptations and we've also d…”

Housing Revenue Account strain

The Housing Revenue Account remains structurally unsustainable, with the model forecast to fall below the £1 million minimum reserve in 2028-29. Members heard that the council is refocusing on existin…

“currently the model indicates that we continue in a deficit position going forward and we fall below our 1 million minimum Reserve in 2028 29 so I'm j…”

Housing revenue account under strain

The housing revenue account remains under financial pressure, though the year-end position improved compared with earlier forecasts. Overspends arose in management, service charges and routine mainten…

“The budget set for the 2024 25 year showed a deficit of £969,000 which was to be covered by reserves. The first quarter forecast showed the budget hol…”

HRA budget under pressure

The Housing Revenue Account was approved despite a projected deficit and declining reserves. The plan relies on rent increases, service charge changes, major capital investment in stock condition work…

“we've discussed the 30-year business plan at the previous Council and I think we kicked that around in a fair amount of detail so I'm not planning to …”

Housing revenue account deficit and works

The housing revenue account budget was approved despite a forecast deficit of £96,000, driven by a £1.2 million increase in rent receivable and a £1 million reduction in repairs and maintenance compar…

“"Turning to the budget for the coming year, it's showing an improvement as a reduced deficit as compared to 2526. Major factor in this improvement is …”

Housing revenue account improving

The housing revenue account budget is forecast to move from a £2.1 million deficit this year to a £255,000 deficit next year, with income up by £1.3 million and expenditure down by £915,000. Officers …

“So um the HA budget is forecasting a deficit of 255K for next year. Uh that that is um against a budget deficit of 2.1 million this year. So it's a su…”

HRA outturn and carry-forwards

The Housing Revenue Account ended 2025/26 with a much lower deficit than budgeted, and cabinet approved funding the deficit from reserves, carrying forward capital underspends, and delegating final re…

“The budget set for the year uh 2526 showed a projected deficit of 2.1 million pounds over the past three quarters. However, this has shown some improv…”

Housing rent and service charge policy updated

Cabinet endorsed changes to the rent and service charge policy so the council can recover communal and utility costs more transparently over time. The policy introduces a way to spread the recovery of…

“thank you so this report outlines proposed changes to the rent and service charge policy and a a proposed approach for setting service charges going f…”

Finance team capacity pressure

External auditors identified operational pressures in the finance team during the 2024/25 audit, linked to the new Unit4 system, staffing shortages and delayed audit queries. Officers said recruitment…

“Ernst & Young have issued a statutory recommendation under schedule 7, part two, of section 24 of the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014, followi…”

High reliance on temporary finance staff

The finance department experienced significant staffing pressure during the year, leading to overspend from temporary staff use and weaknesses in month-end controls. In response, management is streaml…

“As you'll see from this report, there's a significant overspend against budget in the finance department for the year. It's £426,000 on which is set o…”

Council tax rise approved

Members debated an amendment to freeze council tax, but the council rejected it and approved the original budget with a 2.99% increase. The debate linked the rise to medium-term financial resilience a…

“"The vote is now in progress. Councelor Richardson, can I take your vote verbally? Yes. Four. Four. Thank you members. That is 46 against 22. That mot…”

Audit action plan and contract management

The council approved the external audit recommendations and the finance action plan, including an additional request for a separate dedicated action plan on contract management weaknesses to come to t…

“Um so, the three recommendations are as follows. 3.1 that the council agrees with the recommendations set out in paragraph 4.7. That the council 3.2 i…”

Five-year licensing policy revision

The committee considered a statutory five-year review of the licensing policy, with the draft combining the Bay and Mid Suffolk policies into a single document and updating it to reflect section 182 g…

“The Licensing Act 2003 requires licensing authorities to publish a written policy setting out how they propose to carry out their licensing functions,…”

New premises licence granted with conditions

The committee granted a new premises licence for the Live Lounge after considering representations and the amended operating schedule. The decision was to approve the application subject to the modifi…

“The hearing is to determine an application for the grant of a new premises license made under section 17 of the licensing act 2003. A copy of the appl…”

Street trading controls deferred

The street trading controls report was deferred to allow a 28-day consultation period, removing the agenda item from this meeting and pushing it to a later council meeting. This is a policy change wit…

“following discussions at licensing and regulatory meetings and legal advice, the report BC 2543 on street trading controls has been deferred to allow …”