Funding of Consultative Groups and Lay Visiting Panels

Report: 7
Date: 27 February 2001
By: Treasurer

Summary

This report sets out the proposed process for arriving at recommendations to this Committee on the allocation of funds to PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels for 2001/02 and comments on changes needed to strengthen budget monitoring to support proper accounting practice.

A. Recommendations

1. Members note the process and proposed timetable for consideration by this Committee of the allocation of funds to PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels in 2001/02.
2. Members note the intention to strengthen budget monitoring to support proper accounting practice in the Authority’s accounts.

B. Evaluation of bids for 2001/02

1. The terms of reference of this Committee identify its role ‘to consider and agree the annual bids from Police Community Consultative Groups (PCCGs) and Lay Visiting Panels’. This report sets out the process of evaluation that these bids will be subjected to culminating in the presentation of recommendations on the funding to be provided to each of the PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels in 2001/02 for consideration and agreement by this Committee at its meeting scheduled for 27 March.

2. The total budget available for 2001/02 is £1.215m. This amount is available to support the annual running costs of the PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels, one-off bids from these groups, pan London support and provide for any contingencies.

3. Bids for 2001/02 were requested in November 2000, with an initial closing date for receipt of 26 January 2001. Following an initial review of the documentation received, a further request was made to those groups that had failed to either respond or supply all the supporting information required to analyse their bid, with an extended deadline of 19 February for these groups to comply with the requests that had been made.

4. Now that the bids have been received, the bids for annual running costs are being evaluated taking into account the following criteria:

• existing commitments;
• variances between bids and current costs;
• links between the resources required and plans.

5. In addition there is a limited amount of money to fund one-off bids for specific initiatives. These are being considered in relation to their potential contribution to:

• best practice, locally or on a London wide basis;
• MPA objectives;
• PCCG or Lay Visiting Panel performance.

6. This process will result in a recommended allocation of the available funds to this Committee on 27 March, setting out the reasons for that suggested allocation.

Budget monitoring

7. At present, claims are made against their allocated budget by the PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels on an ad hoc basis. Whilst a number make quarterly claims, others may not claim at all during the relevant financial year. This presents a number of problems, especially since the establishment of the MPA and the consequent transition from cash accounting to a local government accounting regime. In particular:

• it is not possible to match expenditure to the financial year in which it is incurred in the Authority’s accounts;
• budget monitoring during the financial year cannot be effectively undertaken.

8. Consequently, as part of the allocation of funds to the PCCGs and lay visiting panels for 2001/02 it is intended to strengthen the arrangements for monitoring the expenditure of the PCCGs and Lay Visiting Panels to allow:

• the monitoring of expenditure against budget on a regular basis;
• an accrual to be set up at the end of the financial year 2001/02 for expenditure incurred but not yet claimed, as part of the process of closing the Authority’s accounts in preparation for their external audit in line with proper accounting practice.

9. In addition, at the end of this financial year an accrual should be estimated so that amounts unclaimed at the end of the current financial year that relate to the current financial year can be charged against this accrual when they are received. This will ensure that amounts that do not relate to 2001/02 cannot be charged against the 2001/02 budget.

C. Financial implications

There are no direct financial implications in the current financial year.

D. Contact details

The author of this report is Colin Balkman, Deputy Treasurer.

For information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

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