Agenda item

Report of the BHE & Charities Finance Director, representing the Chamberlain

The Committee received a report of the Managing Director of BHE providing a year to date (April 2021 to January 2022) financial position of CBT and an updated forecast for the financial year ending 31 March 2022. The Managing Director of BHE introduced the report and outlined the key features for the Committee.

In response to a question from a Member regarding the distribution of grant underspend, the Managing Director of BHE advised that the amount anticipated had been estimated during the pandemic, during which spending was more difficult to predict. The Managing Director of BHE added that the focus had been on spreading the spend as far as possible, and forecast the remaining spend across the upcoming years. Consequently this could be considered a deferred spend rather than underspend, with a view to releasing the funding into the sector in a more sustainable way.

The Deputy Chair queried whether there would be a substantive review of the CBT and wider BHE response to Covid-19, either individually or as part of a wider government review. The Managing Director of BHE advised that this had been part of CBT’s group learning, some of which was informing current work such as the Collaborative Action for Recovery (CAR). Further to this, learning was being taken from responses to Covid-19 elsewhere. The Covid-19 response had also been incorporated into the Interim Review of Bridging Divides. The Deputy Chair suggested that the various strands eventually be pulled into one document for future reference.

The Committee then noted that actual spend set against the budget, as well as the assessment pipeline and forecasted grants.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.