Printed minutes
Argyll and Bute Council · 18 August 2026
Back to Argyll and Bute HSCP Finance and Policy Committee — 18 August 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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MINUTES of MEETING of ARGYLL AND BUTE HSCP FINANCE AND POLICY COMMITTEE held BY MICROSOFT TEAMS on TUESDAY, 18 AUGUST 2026 Present: Graham Bell (Chair) Karen Leach Kenny Matheson Councillor Gary Mulvaney Fiona Thomson Attending: Evan Beswick, Chief Officer, Argyll and Bute HSCP Fiona Broderick, Staffside Lead, Argyll and Bute HSCP (Health) Charlotte Craig, Business Improvement Manager, Argyll and Bute HSCP Nikki Gillespie, Head of Complex Care and Registered Services, Argyll and Bute HSCP Kristin Gillies, Head of Strategic Planning, Performance and Technology, Argyll and Bute HSCP James Gow, Head of Finance, Argyll and Bute HSCP Hazel MacInnes, Senior Committee Officer, Argyll and Bute Council Kevin McIntosh, Staffside Lead, Argyll and Bute HSCP (Council) Malcolm McMillan, Senior Manager Strategic Estates Development and Sustainability Caroline Robertson, Head of Hospitals and Community Care, Argyll and Bute HSCP 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Dougie McFadzean and David Gibson. 2. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST There were no declarations of interest intimated. 3. MINUTES The Minutes of the meeting of the Argyll and Bute HSCP Finance and Policy Committee held on 21 May 2026 were approved as a correct record. 4. FINANCE AND POLICY COMMITTEE ANNUAL REPORT - 2025/26 The Committee gave consideration to a report providing a summary of the work of the Finance and Policy Committee for the year 2025/26 and an evaluation of its effectiveness. Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. approved the draft Committee Annual Report for 2025/26; and 2. requested that the final report be placed on the Agenda for the next meeting of the IJB. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance dated 18 August 2026, submitted)
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Kenny Mathieson advised during the consideration of the following item of Business that he had lost connection to the meeting and was unable to re-join the meeting. 5. UNAUDITED ANNUAL ACCOUNTS 2025/26 The Committee gave consideration to a report providing an opportunity to review the unaudited accounts for the year 2025/26. Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. reviewed the Unaudited Annual Accounts noting that these had been approved by the Audit and Risk Committee and published; and 2. noted that the IJB was reporting a favourable financial outturn and an increase in its reserves. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance dated 18 August 2026, submitted) 6. BUDGET MONITORING - 3 MONTHS TO 30 JUNE 2026 The Committee gave consideration to a report providing a summary of financial performance for quarter 1 of 2026/27. The report provided the year to date position and year end forecast. Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. noted the HSCP was reporting a small year to date overspend of £0.7m; 2. noted that the forecast was currently in line with budget apart from a large forecast £10.2m overspend on the SLA with Greater Glasgow and Clyde; 3. noted the HSCP was not currently progressing actions to mitigate the SLA overspending but is working in partnership within emerging sub-national frameworks; 4. noted financial restrictions remained in place as spend was being financed by use of reserves and the HSCP was not operating on a sustainable basis; 5. noted savings of £2.8m had been delivered, 39% of target; and 6. noted the financial risks associated with the SLA and service provider failure within the care at home service. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance dated 18 August 2026, submitted) 7. BUDGET OUTLOOK AND MEDIUM-TERM FINANCIAL PLANNING: 2027/28 TO 2029/30 The Committee gave consideration to a report providing an updated Budget Outlook for 2027/28 and the following two years taking into account recent Government policy documents and nationally utilised assumptions in respect of funding and inflation uplifts.
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Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. considered the budget outlook for 2027/28 to 2029/30 and noted the risk and uncertainty regarding cost and funding assumptions; 2. noted the forecast budget gap of £34m for 2027/28 including £18m relating to the SLA with NHS GG&C; 3. noted that work on the savings plan and approach to managing the NHS deficit was continuing in partnership with the Council and NHS Highland; 4. considered the strategic implications of the budget gap outlined in the submitted report; 5. endorsed the timeline and process outlined in the submitted report; and 6. noted expenditure control measures continued to be implemented. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance dated 18 August 2026, submitted) 8. FINANCIAL RISKS 2026-27 The Committee gave consideration to a report summarising the perceived financial risks facing the HSCP in the current year. Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. considered the 2026/27 financial risks identified and noted the mitigations; and 2. noted the risk relating to the SLA was a strategic risk and had been included in the financial forecast. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance dated 18 August 2026, submitted) 9. INFRASTRUCTURE UPDATE - JULY 2026 The Committee gave consideration to a report providing an update on progress on key projects since the last update in November 2025; and progress in managing infrastructure risk on the Strategic Risk Register classed as ‘Very High’. Decision The Finance and Policy Committee – 1. noted the contents of the submitted report; 2. noted the progress since the increase of Infrastructure Risk to Very High on the HSCP Strategic Risk Register in June 2024;
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3. noted that actions are on-going to mitigate risk and make improvements where possible but considerable challenges remain; and 4. agreed to recommend that NHS Highland and Argyll and Bute Council ensure infrastructure risks are captured on their Strategic Risk Registers. (Reference: Report by Head of Finance and Senior Manager Strategic Estates Development and Sustainability dated 18 August 2026, submitted) 10. DATE OF NEXT MEETING The date of the next meeting was noted as Tuesday 20 October 2026.