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Agenda item

Cobtree Manor Estate Financial Position

Minutes:

The Senior Finance Manager (Client) introduced his report summarising the financial position of the Cobtree Manor Estate as at 30 September 2019.  The report covered the activities at the Golf Course, Kent Life, the Manor Park and the Café/Visitor Centre.  The report also included updates on the Service Level Agreement, the car park loan agreement (repayment agreement) and the updated five year cash flow projection.

 

Financial Position

 

The Senior Finance Manager (Client) advised the Committee that:

 

·  The summary totals showed a positive variance of £5,409 for the Charity at the end of September 2019.  The forecast for the year was for an operational surplus of £55,920, compared to a provisional surplus of £35,596 for 2018/19.

 

·  There were no issues to report at this stage in respect of the Cobtree Golf Course and Kent Life.

 

·  In overall terms, the Manor Park was operating within budget but there were some underlying issues:

 

The new Apprentice post was still vacant resulting in an under spend in employee costs.

Expenditure on electricity was under investigation.  It appeared that a meter reading was taken resulting in previous bills being amended to reflect actual usage. 

A significant sum had been spent on replacement play area equipment to ensure that there are sufficient spare parts in place for the summer.

There had been a delay in implementing the new arrangements for locking the gates, resulting in an over spend in controlled running costs.

 

Car park income continued to be high and the profit share element of the café contract had generated more income than was forecast.  These two income streams together with the under spend in employee costs meant that the issues outlined above were covered.

 

·  In terms of residential properties, some works had been undertaken to Stream Cottages which meant that there was currently an over spend against the profiled budget, but assuming there was no further major expenditure the position should be corrected by the end of the year.  The shortfall in rent income appeared to be a system issue.

 

During the discussion on the financial position of the Cobtree Manor Estate, it was suggested and agreed that the Officers should investigate the feasibility of installing solar panels on site to generate energy for the Estate.

 

Service Level Agreement

 

The Senior Finance Manager (Client) said that the draft Service Level Agreement (SLA) presented to the last meeting of the Committee had been amended to take into account comments made by Members.  It had been the intention to bring the final version of the SLA to this meeting but the Officers were continuing to review the document to ensure that it accurately reflects the complex nature of the relationship between the Charity and the various Council departments, particularly the roles of the Leisure Manager and the Cobtree Manager.  It was the aim to report the SLA back to the Committee for approval in January 2020.

 

During the discussion on the SLA, Members indicated that a representative of the Borough Council’s Legal Services Team should be in attendance when the final version of the document is reported back to the Committee for approval.

 

Car Park Loan Agreement (Repayment Agreement)

 

The Senior Finance Manager (Client) said that the draft loan agreement that was presented to the last meeting of the Committee had been amended to take into account comments made by Members.  It should be noted that the loan agreement was now referred to as a repayment agreement as there was no actual loan transaction.  The Council had paid for the works and the Charity was now reimbursing the costs over five years.

 

During the discussion on the repayment agreement it was suggested and agreed that the document be approved and formally adopted subject to it being amended if necessary to reflect the correct name of the Charity.

 

Updated Five Year Cash Flow Projection

 

The Senior Finance Manager (Client) said that the five year cash flow projection had been updated to reflect proposed future capital expenditure.  As and when the works were required further details and updated costs would be reported to the Committee for formal approval.  It should be noted that beyond the five years set out in the projection, the existing play area would need to be either replaced or substantially refurbished, and this was likely to have significant cost implications.

 

During the discussion on the updated five year cash flow projection, the Senior Finance Manager (Client) undertook to look into how depreciation of the capital cost of the play area equipment is accounted for.

 

RESOLVED:

 

1.  That the financial position of the Cobtree Manor Estate as at 30 September 2019 be noted.

 

2.  That the progress to date with the Service Level Agreement between the Borough Council and the Charity be noted.

 

3.  That subject to the document being amended if necessary to reflect the correct name of the Charity, the repayment agreement between the Borough Council and the Charity in relation to the car park works, attached as Appendix 2 to the report of the Senior Finance Manager (Client), be agreed and formally adopted.

 

4.  That the updated five year cash flow projection, attached as Appendix 3 to the report of the Senior Finance Manager (Client), be noted.

 

5.  That the Officers be requested to investigate the feasibility of installing solar panels on site to generate energy for the Estate.

 

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