Revenue and Capital Budget Monitoring as at 19 June 2026
Renfrewshire Council · 20 August 2026
Back to Education and Children's Services Policy Board — 20 August 2026 and its agenda
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PUBLIC To: Education and Children’s Services Policy Board On: 20 August 2026 Report by: Director of Finance and Resources and Director of Children’s Services Heading: Revenue and Capital Budget Monitoring as at 19 June 2026 1. Summary of Financial Position 1.1. The projected Revenue outturn at 31 March 2027 for Children’s Services is an overspend of £1.496m (0.5%) against the revised budget for the year. 1.2. The projected Capital outturn at 31 March 2027 for Children’s Services is a break-even position. 1.3. This is summarised in the table below and further analysis is provided in the Appendices. Table 1: Revenue Division Revised Annual Budget £m Projected Outturn £m Budget Variance £m Budget Variance % Children’s Services 295.184 296.679 (1.496) (0.5%) Table 2: Capital Division Revised Annual Budget £m Projected Outturn £m Budget Variance £m Budget Variance % Children’s Services 46.867 46.867 0 0% 2. Recommendations Members are requested to: 2.1. Note the projected Revenue outturn position for Children’s Services detailed in Table 1 above; 2.2. Note the projected Capital outturn position for Children’s Services detailed in Table 2 above; and 2.3. Approve the Premises Related budget virements totalling £0.017m set out at section 6.3.
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PUBLIC 3. Revenue Budget Projection - overspend of £1.496m by 31 March 2027 3.1. The Revenue Budget Monitoring report at Appendix 1 identifies a projected annual overspend of £1.496m (0.5% of total budget). 3.2. It should be noted that the projected outturn position reported here is based on the latest information available, which is subject to change during the financial year. Any changes to this projection are updated at each board cycle. Budget holders are obliged to seek mitigating action to minimise significant budget variances. 4. Objective Analysis - Significant Variances 4.1. Early Learning & Childcare - £0.804m overspend Non-teaching employee costs are currently projected to overspend, however savings options continue to be implemented by the service and are expected to reduce the level of this overspend as the year progresses. Transfer Payments are expected to overspend due to projected payments to partner providers. 4.2. Primary Schools - £0.066m overspend Premises costs, Transport costs and Supplies & Services are currently projected to overspend. This overspend is partly offset by an underspend in Employee costs. The projected overspend in Premises costs is due to increased refuse collection charges and janitorial supplies being greater than budget. The projected overspend in Transport costs is due to the SPT school transport contract being greater than available budget. The underspend in Employee costs relates to teaching staffing, and this will be kept under review as the year progresses. 4.3. Secondary Schools - £0.300m overspend Premises costs and Transport costs are currently projected to overspend. This is partly offset by a small underspend in Employee costs. The Premises costs overspend relates to increased refuse collection charges and the Transport costs overspend is due to the SPT school transport contract being greater than available budget. The underspend in Employee costs relates to teaching vacancies, and this will be kept under review as the year progresses. 4.4. ASN Schools - £0.073m overspend Employee costs are currently projected to overspend. This is due to teaching staffing, and will be kept under review as the year progresses. 4.5. Additional Support for Learning - £0.605m overspend Employee costs and Transport costs are currently projected to overspend. The overspend in Employee costs mainly arises from an increase in demand for Additional Support Needs Assistants (ASNAs) within mainstream schools. The overspend in Transport costs is partly due to demand and partly due to increased cost of provision. This is partly offset by a projected underspend in Supplies & Services due to turnover in external placements. This is a
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PUBLIC demand-led service and will be continually reviewed for any movements in the demand for support as the year progresses. 4.6. Facilities Management - £0.155m underspend Employee costs are currently projected to underspend, mainly due to vacancies within the division. 4.7. Children & Families - £0.203m underspend Employee costs and Transfer Payments are currently projected to underspend, and these are partly offset by projected overspends in Premises costs, Transport costs and Supplies & Services. The underspend in Employee costs is mainly due to turnover. The overspend in Premises costs relates to rents payable and increased refuse collection charges. The overspend in Transport costs is mainly related to costs associated with family time arrangements and transport to health, nursery and school for children who are looked after away from home. The Supplies & Services projected overspend occurs across several service areas and will be continually monitored as the year progresses. 5. Subjective Analysis - Significant Variances 5.1. Employees - £0.044m overspend Underspends are currently projected in teaching staffing in Primary and Secondary Schools, offset by a projected overspend in ASN Schools. Overspends are projected in non-teaching staffing in Additional Support for Learning, due to the demand for Additional Support Needs Assistants, and in Early Learning & Childcare. This is offset by underspends in Children & Families and in Facilities Management, due to turnover. Teaching and non-teaching staffing will be kept under constant review and changes reported as the year progresses. 5.2. Premises Related - £0.264m overspend The overspend in Premises costs is mainly due to increased janitorial costs and refuse collection charges across the school estate. 5.3. Transport Related - £0.755m overspend The overspend in Transport costs is due to SPT contracts for both mainstream school transport and ASN transport being higher than available budget, predominantly caused by price inflation and, to a lesser extent, by an increasing number of children requiring transport. 5.4. Supplies & Services - £0.317m overspend Projected overspends across various budgets in Children & Families are partly offset by underspends in Early Learning & Childcare and Additional Support for Learning.
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PUBLIC 5.5. Third Party Payments - £0.068m underspend This budget covers essential care placements, such as fostering and kinship allowances, external residential care and short breaks. The forecast is highly sensitive to changes in demand, and therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty; it will be kept under review by management throughout the year. Projected underspends within short breaks and within fostering, adoption & kinship are offset by projected overspends on external residential placements and throughcare. 5.6. Transfer Payments - £0.167m overspend The projected overspend in Transfer payments relates to Early Learning & Childcare in relation to payments to partner providers and is offset by projected underspends in Children & Families mainly in relation to Direct Payments which are demand-driven. These will be kept under review throughout the year. 6. Revenue Budget Adjustments 6.1. Under the Council’s financial regulations, Directors and their nominated officers, in consultation with the Director of Finance and Resources, have certain delegated authority to transfer sums between subjective budget headings within a service division to enable budget management throughout the financial year. This is known as ‘budget virement’. 6.2. Transfers between divisions of the same service / department in excess of £100,000 and transfers between services / departments must be authorised by the respective service Director and the Director of Finance and Resources for submission to the relevant policy board for approval. 6.3. The Director now seeks approval from the Board for the following virements: Revenue Budget Adjustments Objective Heading Subjective Heading Amount (£m) Reason Children’s Services Premises Related (0.017) Transfers to Environment, Housing and Infrastructure relating to small repair projects 6.4. The remaining budget adjustments are either within delegation, or in line with the earmarking of funds set aside in the 2026/27 budget motion and the allocation of centrally held budgets already approved. 7. Capital Budget Projection - break-even position by 31 March 2027 7.1. The Capital Investment Programme 2026/27 to 2030/31 was approved by the Council on 26 February 2026. Education and Children’s Services’ revised Capital spend for 2026/27 is £46.867m.
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PUBLIC 7.2. The in-year Capital budget is forecast to break even by 31 March 2027. However, this will be monitored as the projects progress. Further details of the programme can be found in the Capital Monitoring report at Appendix 3. 7.3. Several budget adjustments between years have taken place, to reflect revised programming of some capital projects. Details of these adjustments, which amount to £(4.240)m, are as follows: Project Amount (£m) Budget carried forward from 2025/26 into 2026/27 Early Years Expansion Programme 0.060 Primary Schools Estate Programme (SEMP) 0.080 Paisley Grammar New Campus 0.678 Dargavel Extension (modular units) 0.012 Dargavel Primary School ‘C1’ Drop-off 0.025 Schools Estate (including Early Years) Programme 0.365 Park Mains High School Extension (new build) 0.401 Technology Replacement Strategy (ICT) 0.013 Budget brought forward into 2025/26 from 2026/27 Thistle Primary School (new build) (4.474) Budget reallocation in 2026/27 Paisley Grammar New Campus: committed to Lifecycle Maintenance for pitch upgrades * (1.400) Total (4.240) * Per the budget Motion approved at Council on 26 February 2026, £1.400m has been committed to upgrade existing pitches at Linwood and St Benedict’s High Schools, funded from the potential Paisley Grammar New Campus underspend.
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PUBLIC ___________________________________________________________________ Implications of this report 1. Financial The projected budget outturn position for Children’s Services’ Revenue budget is an overspend of £1.496m. Income and expenditure will continue to be monitored closely for the rest of the financial year and steps will be taken to mitigate any overspend, including virement, applying flexibility within specific grant funding as permitted by the Scottish Government, and potential use of earmarked reserves. The projected outturn position for Children’s Services’ Capital budget is a break-even position. The Capital programme will continue to be monitored closely for the rest of the financial year. 2. HR and Organisational Development While staffing budgets form a significant proportion of the Council’s revenue budgets, there are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 3. Community/Council Planning Community Plan Our Renfrewshire is thriving The Council’s revenue and capital spend ensures that its facilities are fit for purpose and safe for the community, to maximise accessibility. Our Renfrewshire is well Our Renfrewshire is fair Our Renfrewshire is safe Council Plan Reshaping our place, our economy, and our future The Council’s revenue and capital spend ensures that its facilities are fit for purpose and safe for the community, to maximise accessibility. Building strong, safe, and resilient communities Tackling inequality, ensuring opportunities for all Creating a sustainable Renfrewshire for all to enjoy Ongoing revenue and capital budget monitoring is a tool to enable good financial management so that the Council has resources now and in the future for continued service delivery. Working together to improve outcomes 4. Legal There are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report.
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PUBLIC 5. Property/Assets The capital expenditure noted in this report will result in lifecycle maintenance improvements to existing properties and replacement of ICT assets and infrastructure. 6. Information Technology While ICT assets and revenue costs are included within these reported budgets, there are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 7. Equality and Human Rights While new areas of spend may impact on particular groups, any such impact would be assessed prior to the spend being incurred, therefore there are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 8. Health and Safety The capital expenditure noted in this report will result in lifecycle maintenance improvements to existing properties and replacement of ICT assets, which may in some cases improve health and safety arrangements. 9. Procurement While Procurement is an important consideration prior to the Council incurring any revenue or capital spend, there are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 10. Risk The potential risk that the Council will overspend its approved budgets for the year will be managed at a Council-wide level by the Chief Executive and Directors. 11. Privacy Impact There are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 12. Children’s Rights There are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 13. Climate Risk The Council aims to reduce its carbon and other emissions to net zero by 2030, however there are no direct implications arising from the recommendations in this report. 14. CoSLA Policy Position n/a
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PUBLIC _________________________________________________________________ List of Background Papers: • Revenue Budget and Council Tax 2026/27, Council 26 February 2026 • Capital Investment Programme 2026/27 to 2030/31, Council 26 February 2026 Authors: Richard Conway, Finance Business Partner Linsey McGregor, Capital Accountant
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Appendix 1 PUBLIC RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL REVENUE BUDGET MONITORING STATEMENT 2026/27 1 April 2026 to 19 June 2026 POLICY BOARD: EDUCATION & CHILDREN’S SERVICES Objective Summary Approved Annual Budget Budget Adjustments Revised Annual Budget at Period 3 Projected Outturn Budget Variance (Adverse) or Favourable £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 % Directorate 1,484 1 1,485 1,491 (6) (0.4%) Early learning and childcare 40,142 178 40,320 41,124 (804) (2.0%) Primary schools 74,147 (456) 73,691 73,757 (66) (0.1%) Secondary schools 100,827 (213) 100,614 100,914 (300) (0.3%) ASN schools 8,953 11 8,964 9,037 (73) (0.8%) Additional support for learning (ASL) 20,936 896 21,832 22,437 (605) (2.8%) Psychological services 1,128 22 1,150 1,150 0 0.0% Education development 2,247 1 2,248 2,248 0 0.0% Attainment Challenge 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% Facilities management 612 (19) 593 438 155 26.1% Children and families 43,877 410 44,287 44,084 203 0.5% NET EXPENDITURE 294,353 831 295,184 296,680 (1,496) (0.5%)
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Appendix 2 PUBLIC RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL REVENUE BUDGET MONITORING STATEMENT 2026/27 1 April 2026 to 19 June 2026 POLICY BOARD: EDUCATION & CHILDREN’S SERVICES Subjective Summary Approved Annual Budget Budget Adjustments Revised Annual Budget at Period 3 Projected Outturn Budget Variance (Adverse) or Favourable £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 % Employees 204,803 1,081 205,884 205,928 (44) 0.0% Premises Related 12,408 (1) 12,407 12,671 (264) (2.1%) Transport Related 8,096 10 8,106 8,861 (755) (9.3%) Supplies and Services 33,228 665 33,893 34,210 (317) (0.9%) Third Party Payments 19,260 664 19,924 19,856 68 0.3% Transfer Payments 17,916 203 18,119 18,286 (167) (0.9%) Support Services 427 84 511 526 (15) (2.9%) GROSS EXPENDITURE 296,138 2,706 298,844 300,338 (1,494) (0.5%) Income (1,785) (1,875) (3,660) (3,658) (2) (0.1%) NET EXPENDITURE 294,353 831 295,184 296,680 (1,496) (0.5%)
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Appendix 3 PUBLIC Prior Years Approved Budget Revised Projected Total Approved Projected Expenditure Budget Adjustments Budget Outturn Budget Outurn Project Title to 31/03/2026 2026-27 since previous 2026-27 2026-27 to 31-Mar-31 to 31-Mar-31 Board report £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 EDUCATION & CHILDREN SERVICES Total Early Years 1140 Expansion Programme 0 0 60 60 60 0 0% 88 88 0 0% Total Primary Schools Estate Programme(SEMP) 10,544 0 80 80 80 0 0% 10,623 10,623 0 0% Paisley Grammar New Campus 75,903 9,019 (721) 8,298 8,298 0 0% 84,200 84,200 0 0% Learning Estate 332 0 0 0 0 0 0% 98,438 98,438 0 0% Dargavel Extension (Modular Units) 2,237 0 12 12 12 0 0% 2,250 2,250 0 0% Thistle New Build 12,595 25,375 (4,474) 20,901 20,901 0 0% 44,371 44,371 0 0% C1, Dargavel Primary School Drop off 604 0 25 25 25 0 0% 629 629 0 0% Total Schools Estate(inc Early Years) Programme 0 0 365 365 365 0 0% 365 365 0 0% PMHS Extension(New Build) 2,021 15,512 401 15,913 15,913 0 0% 36,894 36,894 0 0% Technology Replacement Strategy ICT 16,349 1,200 13 1,213 1,213 0 0% 21,662 21,662 0 0% PPP Lifecycle 20,829 0 0 0 0 0 0% 20,829 20,829 0 0% TOTAL EDUCATION & CHILDREN'S SERVICES BOARD 141,414 51,106 (4,240) 46,867 46,867 0 0% 320,349 320,349 0 0% CAPITAL INVESTMENT STRATEGY - NON-HOUSING SERVICES Current Year 2026-27 Full Programme - All years Budget Variance (Adverse) or Favourable RENFREWSHIRE COUNCIL 1st April to 19th June 2026 POLICY BOARD: EDUCATION & CHILDEN'S SERVICES Budget Variance (Adverse) or Favourable
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