brill parish council

agreed Budget 2023/24

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Notes on BPC finance policies & budget 2023/24

Introduction

  1. This document sets out the finance policies and budget for Brill Parish Council for 2023-2024.

  2. The issues in this document were discussed and agreed during the Parish Council meeting on 17th January 2023.

  3. Details of the budget and exact figures are given in the attached spreadsheet.

Revenue

  1. Brill Parish Council receives a precept from Buckinghamshire Council from the council tax paid by parish residents. The precept is around £50k.

  2. The Parish Council’s policy is to request the same percentage increase in the precept as the increase set by Buckinghamshire Council for council tax.

  3. The Parish Council normally also receives a grant from the Rural Payments Agency of around £2.5k. This grant is passed to the Brill Village Community Herd.

  4. Buckinghamshire Council has devolved responsibility for some services to the Brill Parish Council (around £2k).

  5. The Parish Council is also entitled to refunds of VAT. The amount refunded varies; for 2023/2024 it is expected to be around £20k.

Expenditure

  1. The Parish Council will seek to balance the annual cost of maintaining the village infrastructure and administrative costs with the revenue.

  2. The Parish Council’s work is focussed on the safety of residents and visitors, and maintenance of the village amenities.

  3. The budget for maintenance of the village infrastructure for 2023/24 covers the following:
    - Street lighting
    - Public indemnity insurance
    - Grass cutting and maintenance of the equipment needed
    - Support for the Common, including payments to consultants
    - Safety inspections of playground equipment
    - Safety inspections and remedial action for trees
    - Emptying of public waste bins, including dog waste bins (excluding household waste, which is the responsibility of Buckinghamshire Council)
    - Improvements to road safety (excluding maintenance of highways (eg potholes), which is the responsibility of Buckinghamshire Council)

  4. The Parish Council has allocated £6k for grants. Village organisations may apply to the Parish Council for grants to support projects.

  5. Administration costs include the employment of a part-time Village Clerk, who is responsible for placing and overseeing orders for the work needed, amongst other duties. Funds are also used to pay independent financial auditors and for communications including maintenance of the Brill Parish Council website.

  6. Parish Councillors are unpaid and receive no compensation for their work.

Reserves

  1. The policy is to maintain a reserve equivalent to a minimum of 6 months of the annual precept (£25k).

  2. This relatively high level of reserves is maintained due to the responsibility to maintain the Windmill and Brill Common. The aim is to enable the Parish Council to respond quickly to issues such as damage to the historic windmill.

  3. The reserve is currently higher than the policy; the intention is to spend the excess over the next 2-3 years. This will enable the Parish Council to invest in ensuring that the windmill is safe for the long term and to invest in other projects of benefit to the community, such as improvements to road safety.

  4. The Parish Council will continue to leverage value for money, by applying for matching funding from donations or grants from other bodies such as the Community Board.