Archived decisions


	Hampshire County Council
	Executive Member - Environment		Item 3
	24 June 2003
	Environment Policy Review Committee		Item 12
	21 July 2003
	Final Accounts 2002/03
	Report of the County Treasurer and Director of Environment

Contact: Ejner Knudsen, ext 7403

1 Introduction

1.1 This report summarises the Environment service's spending in 2002/03.

1.2 It recommends that the final accounts for 2002/03 be approved and that the overspending on the service's cash limited revenue expenditure be reported to the Cabinet for their consideration.

1.3 Overall there is a net overspending of £256,000 (0.3%) against the 2002/03 revenue cash limit of £77.9m.

1.4 The major variations are:


		£'000	£'000
Waste management contract related services:
-	storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment		+327
-	other waste contract related services		-12
			+315

Highways maintenance		+80
Highways management and support services		-104
Other variations		-35	-59
			+256

1.5 The County Council's policy is that 100% of overspendings should be carried forward into the following year's budget. However, the service's overspending is mainly due to excess expenditure on the waste contract related services, reflecting the extent to which the shortfall in Government support for the storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment could not be fully accommodated from savings elsewhere within the approved budget for the waste contract related services.

1.6 The likelihood of additional expenditure in connection with the storage and disposal of fridges, beyond the level of Government support, had been identified in budget monitoring reports during the year, with the expectation that the Cabinet would consider the implications of any funding shortfall against the additional balances set aside in the 2002/03 budget for this and other pressures. In view of this, it is recommended that the Cabinet consider whether they wish to meet, from central balances, the service's overspending of £256,000 against its 2002/03 cash limit.

1.7 In considering the final outturn position compared with the service's cash limit, variations in expenditure on highways winter maintenance (salting and snow clearance) are excluded. This is because special budgetary arrangements apply whereby any underspendings or overspendings against the winter maintenance budget provision, which is set at a level equivalent to average expenditure during the past four years, are reflected against the County Council's central balances.

1.8 During 2002/03, winter maintenance expenditure totalled £2,024,000, which was £308,000 above the revised budget provision. This higher outturn figure includes expenditure incurred in dealing with two periods of snowfall (on
8 January 2003 and 30 January 2003), together with extensive salting operations during the cold, dry weather conditions experienced during the first two weeks and at the end of January 2003. Altogether, salting operations were carried out on approximately 60 days during the winter period, which was slightly above the average number included in the budget, based on the average during the previous four winters.

1.9 On capital, schemes to the value of £45.3m started in the year and schemes to the value of £2.4m have been approved by the Cabinet to be carried forward to start in 2003/04.

1.10 In total, this exactly matches the overall 2002/03 level of capital programme resources of £47.7m. Additionally, schemes to the value of £5.2m, which are externally funded from developers and other contributions, were also started during the year.

1.11 Further details on the main differences between the actual revenue expenditure and the revised budget for cash limited expenditure are given in Part A below, whilst details of revenue expenditure which is not included in the cash limit are contained in the appendices at the end of the report. Part B deals with capital schemes. Part C explains the basis of the financial control assurance statement included as Appendix 8. Part D deals with the service's Partnership Accounts.

1 Part A - Revenue expenditure under the service's control

1.1 Revenue expenditure under the service's direct control is subject to a cash limit. For 2002/03 the adjusted amount was £77.9m as set out in Appendix 1.

1.2 The final outturn was £256,000 more than the cash limit. The overall position is analysed in Appendices 2 and 3. Appendix 4 includes a more detailed statement of variations from the revised budget.

1.3 The overspending in 2002/03 compares with the outturns achieved in recent years for the Environment services (formerly under the control of the Planning and Transportation Committee and Policy and Resources Committee prior to 2001/02) as set out in the following table:


	Variations from revised budget
	£'000	%
1999/00	-76	-0.1
2000/01	251	0.3
2001/02	-35	-
2002/03	256	0.3

The more significant elements within the total net overspending are explained in the following paragraphs.

Highways and transportation services

1.4 Cash limited revenue expenditure during 2002/03 on the highways and transportation services amounted to £39,649,000, an underspending of £27,000 (-0.1%).

Highways maintenance

1.5 Expenditure on highways maintenance (excluding winter maintenance salting and snow clearance - see paragraphs 1.7 and 1.8 above) totalled £17,247,000, being excess expenditure of £80,000 (+0.5%) compared to the revised budget for this division of service. This represents a very close outturn during the transitional year in which the arrangements for network management in the former district council highways agencies and in other devolved highways units across the county were subject to reorganisation, with the phased implementation of the best value review blueprint for the future.

1.6 Final figures for the year show that expenditure exceeded the budget allocations on a number of operational headings including emergency measures to deal with flooding during the autumn, street lighting maintenance and column replacements, and other routine works. Further analysis of the outturn on highways maintenance, in comparison to the final approved works programme, is shown in Appendix 5.

Highways management and support services

1.7 As reported previously in the budget monitoring reports during the year, the highways management and support services budget has been under pressure from the absorption of additional expenditure on staff retention and recruitment, the establishment of the new Environment department, the provision of additional office accommodation in Winchester and the implementation of the network management blueprint review.

1.8 The most recent budget monitoring report made reference to further savings of £38,000 that would still need to be found during the latter stages of the financial year, to avoid an overspending on this division of service. However, in the event, higher savings from continuing staff vacancies, together with additional income, contributed to an underspending of £104,000 (-0.7%).

School crossing patrols

1.9 Substantial progress has been made in implementing the approved improvement plan for the school crossing patrol service throughout the first year following the transfer of this service from the Education department, during which a small overspending of £2,000 (+0.2%) was recorded.

1.10 New systems of site and staff risk assessment have been developed during the year, with urgent findings such as the need for improved uniforms, equipment and training being delivered. The service has also reviewed vacancy management and has initiated new arrangements for advertising and recruiting staff to vacant priority sites. Additionally, a programme of infrastructure maintenance and improvements has commenced across the county, with priority for these works being directed towards the busiest and most needy locations.

Public transport

1.11 The 2002/03 revised budget for public transport support and co-ordination was set at £5,095,000, including an additional sum of £300,000 allocated by the Cabinet in February, to cover the cost of maintaining subsidised bus services. The final outturn figure for this division of service was £5,091,000, an underspending of £4,000.

1.12 During 2002/03, the Government made available Rural Bus Subsidy Grant of £1,307,000 in support of the provision of rural bus services, which was fully consumed in supporting these services during the year.

Planning services

1.13 Expenditure on the planning services during 2002/03 totalled £4,540,000 which was exactly equal to the overall cash limit for this service. However, there were a number of variations to planned expenditure within this overall outturn and the apportionment of net expenditure across the service's functional headings shows higher expenditure on environmental initiatives being mainly offset by savings on planning policy. Further details are shown in Appendices 3 and 4.

Waste management

Waste contract related services

1.14 The final 2002/03 cash limit for the waste management contract related services was £31,421,000, including the full allocation of the central waste management contingency of £2,985,000. Overall contract related expenditure totalled £31,736,000, representing an excess of £315,000 (+1.0%). This outturn included expenditure of £1,290,000 on the storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment which was £327,000 more than the financial support made available by the Government for this function during the year.

1.15 Other than fridges, the outturn for the other waste contract related services, including the main long-term waste disposal contract, recycling credit payments and trade waste income, was £12,000 below the adjusted budget provision. Within this total, household waste volumes were marginally lower than the corresponding levels in the previous year. However, these savings were partially offset by the net loss of trade waste income, following the commercialisation of trade waste rounds by several district councils and higher recycling credits payments. It has also been necessary to include in the final accounts prudent provision for a number of unresolved contractual claims, thus reducing the extent to which savings from lower household waste volumes were available to meet the excess cost of storage and disposal of fridges.

Other waste management budgets

1.16 Expenditure on the other waste management budgets was £22,000 (-1.0%) lower than the revised budget cash limit of £2,226,000, which included the additional allocation of £90,000 approved by the Cabinet in February to cover the anticipated higher cost of disposal of abandoned vehicles.

1.17 In the event, final expenditure on the disposal of abandoned vehicles was £29,000 below the adjusted revised budget, reflecting lower than anticipated final claims from the district councils. Other variations included savings of £24,000 on administration, offset by additional expenditure of £31,000 on the maintenance of landfill sites and household waste recycling facilities.

Carry forward to 2003/04 of overspending

1.18 As mentioned in paragraph 1.5, it is the County Council's policy that 100% of service's overspendings should be carried forward and accommodated within the following year's budget. As previously stated, the Environment service's outturn in 2002/03 on the overall cash limited budget shows an overspending of £256,000. However, this overall outturn figure includes, as an exceptional item, the overspending of £315,000 on the waste contract related budgets, which mainly reflects the extent to which resources made available by the Government for the storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment were insufficient to cover the full cost of providing this service during the year. It has not been possible to fully absorb this excess expenditure on fridges from within the total waste contract related budget, because savings from lower household waste volumes have been largely offset by lower trade waste income, higher recycling credits payments and additional provision for contractual claims.

1.19 Excluding the waste contract related budgets, the outturn on the remaining part of the Environment service's cash limited revised budget shows an underspending of £59,000. However this underspending needs to be considered in the context of the additional sum of £390,000 which was allocated by the Cabinet in February to cover the anticipated higher expenditure on bus subsidies and the disposal of abandoned vehicles, this increase being subject to future adjustment when the final accounts are reported to Cabinet.

1.20 As mentioned in the introduction to this report, the likelihood of additional expenditure in connection with the storage and disposal of fridges, beyond the level of Government support, had been previously identified in budget monitoring reports during the year. The expectation has been that the Cabinet would consider the implications of any funding shortfall later in the year, against the additional balances set aside in the 2002/03 budget for this and other pressures. It is therefore recommended that the final accounts position showing an overspending of £256,000 on the overall cash limited budgets, be brought to the attention of the Cabinet so that they may determine whether or not to meet this sum from central resources. This would take into the account the excess expenditure on the waste management contract related budgets, and would also reflect the savings of £59,000 on other cash limited budgets within the context of the additional sum of £390,000, for bus subsidies and for the disposal of abandoned vehicles, provided by the Cabinet in February.

2 Part B - Capital expenditure 2002/03

2.1 The outturn for 2002/03 is set out below with details of the total resources and individual schemes started in the year appearing in Appendix 7.

	Locally resourced programme	Supported by Government approvals	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000
Total resources	13,583	34,131	47,714
Value of schemes started in 2002/03	13,583	31,756	45,339
Value of schemes carried forward to 2003/04	-	2,375	2,375
Over/under commitment against the cash limit	-	-	-

2.2 The total starts limit for 2002/03 amounted to £47.7m and schemes to the value of £45.3m were started in the year.

2.3 Schemes with a total value of £2.4m, originally programmed to start in 2002/03, have been approved by the Cabinet to be carried forward to start in 2003/04. These and the reasons for their delay are set out in Appendix 7.

2.4 The combined value of those schemes started and those approved to be carried forward to start in 2003/04 is £47.7m, which is equal to the programme cash limit. In addition, schemes to the value of £5.2m, to be externally funded, were started during the year.

2.5 Total capital payments during 2002/03 amounted to £53.1m, of which £4.2m is to be funded from external resources, including contributions from developers, district and parish councils, and Government and European grants. Payments on those capital programme schemes being funded from local County Council resources totalled £14.0m.

2.6 The balance of the expenditure, £34.9m, is to be funded from basic credit approval (BCA) and supplementary credit approvals (SCA) provided by the Government.

3 Part C - Departmental assurance statement

3.1 A statement of internal financial control will be included in the 2002/03 statement of accounts. As part of the process of enabling the County Treasurer to form a view on the effectiveness of internal financial control, the Chief Internal Auditor has produced an independent assurance statement on the adequacy of the system of internal control in each department. Appendix 8 contains the statement relating to the Environment service and concludes that the Environment department has an effective framework of control which provides reasonable assurance regarding the effective, efficient and economic achievement of the department's objectives. The overall opinion on the County Council's internal financial control arrangements will be reported to the Standards Committee.

4 Part D - Partnership Accounts

4.1 Details are given in Appendix 9 for the Safety Camera and Life 3 partnerships in 2002/03. These are partnerships for which the County Council is the accountable body, but where no report is made to another committee or partnership board including members of the County Council and where the full expenditure and income is not included in the service's accounts.

Recommendation

1 That the report be noted.

Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB the list excludes:

1. Published works.

2. Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

TITLE FILE

Summary of Accounts


Summaries of actual spending 2002/03

Appendix	Contents

1	Construction of the cash limit
2	Summary of revenue expenditure
3	Analysis of cash limited revenue expenditure over services
4	Major variations in cash limited expenditure
5	Summary showing detailed outturn on highways maintenance revenue budget
6	Revenue expenditure 2002/03 not included in the cash limit
7	Capital expenditure 2002/03
8	Departmental assurance statement
9	Partnership accounts

Appendix 1

Environment

Revenue Expenditure 2002/03

Construction of Cash Limit


1	Revenue expenditure under the service's direct control was subject to a cash limit set by the Cabinet of £75,482,000 (excluding highways winter maintenance), reflecting the recommended revised budget presented as part of the 2003/04 revenue budget report to the Executive Member on 24 January 2003.
2	The report drew attention to the likelihood of additional expenditure, beyond the budget provision, of £300,000 on public transport bus subsidies and £90,000 on the waste management budget for the disposal of abandoned vehicles. In addition, it was assessed that the likely level of expenditure on the storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment might be £400,000 in excess of the available funding.
3	The above position was brought to the attention of the Cabinet at their meeting on 10 February 2003 and it was decided, subject to the overall final outturn on the Environment budget, to allocate an additional sum of £390,000 to the cash limit to cover the anticipated higher expenditure on bus subsidies and abandoned vehicles, although this amount would be adjusted when the final accounts are reported to the Cabinet.
4	With regard to the additional costs of storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment, the Cabinet agreed that these be offset by any savings against the central waste management contingency allocation of £2,985,000, as a result of lower waste volumes. The 2002/03 waste contingency has now been fully allocated to the Environment services, resulting in a further increase of £2,069,000 to the cash limit.
5	When the revised budget was set in January a sum of £77,000 was included towards the management of natural resources, reflecting the allocation of pump priming grant under the Government's Public Service Agreement (PSA) initiative. It has now become clear that when the special grant report was laid before Parliament, one of the conditions was that the allowance was to be paid to local authorities as capital grant. However, as the types of expenditure to be covered by this grant are not restricted to the types of expenditure that can normally be charged to the capital accounts, the County Council has been issued with a capitalisation direction to cover any revenue expenditure to be financed by the grant. In view of this, the revenue budget cash limit has been reduced by £77,000 to reflect the planned recharge of expenditure in connection with this PSA to capital.
6	A further minor cash limit increase of £22,000 has been made in respect of higher business rates on the County Council's own properties, as this sum could not be estimated precisely when the revenue budget was set.
7	No adjustments are required this year in respect of Rural Bus Subsidy Grant as the 2002/03 grant allocation of £1,307,000 has been fully utilised during the accounting period.
8	The net effect of the above changes, which have been incorporated into the adjusted revised budget as shown in column 1 of Appendix 3, are summarised below.
		£'000
	Cash limit approved in the revised budget	75,482
	Additional sum for public transport bus subsidies	300
	Additional sum for abandoned vehicles disposal	90
	Capitalisation of PSA for natural resources management	-77
	Waste Management Contingency Q3	555
	Waste Management Contingency Q4	1,514
	Business Rates - higher actual costs	22
	Adjusted cash limit (excluding winter maintenance)	77,886
	Net Expenditure	78,142
	Net overspending against service's cash limited expenditure	256

Appendix 2

Environment

Final Accounts 2002/03

Summary of Revenue Expenditure


		(1)	(2)	(3)
		Adjusted Revised Estimate	Actual 2002/03	Variation (Col 2-Col 1)
		£'000	£'000	£'000

Cash limited expenditure		77,886	78,142	256

Other expenditure which is the responsibility of the service:
- Winter maintenance		1,716	2,024	308
Sub total		79,602	80,166	564

Trading units (income)/expenditure transferred (to)/from reserves - River Hamble		-112	-137	-25

Capital charges		19,428	19,428	-

Other expenditure which is controlled centrally by Policy and Resources
-	Repairs and maintenance of buildings	5	11	6
-	Central support services	2,118	2,088	-30

Less:
Expenditure controlled by this service recharged to Policy and Resources:
-	Corporate and democratic core	-398	-398	-
-	Unapportionable overheads	-391	-325	66

Flood Protection		5,429	5,429	-

Government grants:
-	Rural bus subsidy grant	-1,307	-1,307	-
-	Disposal of refrigeration equipment	-843	-843	-

Total Net Expenditure		103,531	104,112	581






Reconciliation with total net expenditure in the budget book:

Net expenditure, per page B21 of the budget book		102,760

Adjustments
Variation in capital charges		-1,320
Waste management contract related services		2,069
Business rates variation		22

Total		103,531

Appendix 3

Environment

Revenue Expenditure 2002/03

Analysis of Cash Limited Expenditure over Services

	(1)	(2)	(3)
Division of Service	Adjusted Revised Estimate	Actual 2002/03	Variation (Col 2 - Col 1)
	£'000	£'000	£'000
Highways and Transportation
Highways Maintenance (excluding winter maintenance)	17,167	17,247	80

Road safety education	218	217	-1
School crossing patrols	945	947	2
Traffic surveys	239	239	-
Parking services	-94	-94	-

Public transport	5,095	5,091	-4
Rural bus subsidy grant	1,307	1,307	-

Management and support services	14,799	14,695	-104

	39,676	39,649	-27

Planning Services
Development control	1,020	1,015	-5
Planning policy	2,185	2,065	-120
Environment initiatives	967	1,093	126
Economic development	115	110	-5
Community development and other projects	253	257	4
	4,540	4,540	-

Waste Management
Waste contract related services	31,421	31,736	315
Other waste management services	2,226	2,204	-22
	33,647	33,940	293

Other Services
Reservoirs Act 1975	23	13	-10

Total net expenditure (excluding highways winter maintenance)	77,886	78,142	256

Highways winter maintenance	1,716	2,024	308

Total	79,602	80,166	564

Appendix 4

Environment

Revenue Expenditure 2002/03

Major variations in cash limited expenditure - overspending of £256,000

Budget Heading	Variation	Adjusted Revised Budget	Reason
	£'000	£'000
Highways and Transportation
Highways maintenance - county roads and bridges	80	17,167	Additional expenditure on emergency works following flooding (+£30,000), street lighting maintenance and column replacements (+£40,000), and other routine maintenance works (+£10,000).
School crossing patrols	2	945	Additional expenditure on infrastructure maintenance and site improvements.
Public transport	-4	5,095	Lower expenditure on public transport bus subsidies.
Management and support services	-104	14,799	Underspending on staff salaries (-£135,000) reflecting staff turnover and vacancies, and additional income (-£56,000), mainly from transport charges and land search fees. Partially offset by additional expenditure on temporary staff, consultancy support and other minor variations (+£87,000)
Planning Services	-	4,540	Higher expenditure on environmental initiatives (+£126,000) and community development and other projects (+£4,000), offset by savings on planning policy (-£120,000), development control (-£5,000) and economic development (-£5,000).


Waste management

Contract related services	315	31,421	Excess expenditure on storage and disposal of refrigeration equipment (+£327,000), partially offset by savings on other contract related services (-£12,000).
Other waste management services	-22	2,226	Lower expenditure on disposal of abandoned vehicles (-£29,000), savings in administration (-£24,000), partially offset by higher facilities maintenance costs (+£31,000).
Other services

Reservoirs Act 1975	-10	23	Lower expenditure in connection with the inspection of reservoirs.

Appendix 5

Environment

Revenue Expenditure 2002/03

Summary showing detailed outturn on highways maintenance revenue budget

Operational Heading	Final Programme	Outturn 2002/03
	£'000	£'000
Ordinary maintenance
Routine carriageway and footways running repairs	3,065	3,016
Gully emptying	889	875
A321 routine maintenance - payment to Surrey County Council	6	7
Material storage facility at Chesil Tunnel	3	3

Aids to movement	1,242	1,222
Traffic management	427	396
Traffic signal maintenance	259	317
Intelligent transport systems	204	163
Urban traffic control	80	63
Traffic signals modifications	217	207
Remote monitoring of traffic signals	66	65
Rechargeable accident damage	160	86

Grass cutting, trees and shrubs maintenance	1,418	1,695
Hazard clearance (road traffic accidents)	317	312
Weed control	540	531
Arboricultural	334	328
Travellers preventative measures	8	3

District managed grass cutting	477	468

Sub total - ordinary maintenance	9,712	9,757














Street lighting and illuminated signs

Energy - street lights	1,454	1,454
Energy - signs	93	93
Energy - traffic signals	181	181

Maintenance contract - street lights	2,707	2,458
Maintenance contract - signs	1,000	419

Special replacement programme - works	850	1,686
Special replacement programme - scheme design fees	51	85

Sub total - street lighting and illuminated signs	6,336	6,376

Bridges
Routine maintenance	56	54
Subway pumps - maintenance and energy	42	38
Subway grafitti cleaning	160	166
Railtrack charges	68	61
Disused railway bridges	12	4
Weight restriction signing	6	-
Footbridges	59	50
Monitoring of sub-standard bridges	11	4

Sub total - bridges	414	377


Other items
Flooding	35	65
Technical surveys	263	268
Depots maintenance	154	164
Highways maintenance IT system development	443	397

Earmarked reserves - agents irrecoverable accident damage	100	100

Sub total - other items	995	994


Winter maintenance	1,716	2,024






Income
Depots net rentals	-154	-164
Rechargeable works	-130	-89
Private street works interest from frontagers	-6	-4

Sub total - income	-290	-257


Total highways maintenance programme	18,883	19,271

Appendix 6

Environment

Revenue Expenditure 2002/03 not included in the cash limit

1	Capital charges (£19,428,000)
	Capital charges are made to services for capital assets used in the provision of services. The budgets for capital charges have been reduced by £1,320,000 to reflect the final charges to the Environment services. This variation will have no direct effect upon the overall budget requirements of the County Council as the capital charges are replaced by actual financing costs in the central asset management revenue account.
2	Central support services, repairs and maintenance of buildings (£2,099,000)
	These items are within the control of Policy and Resources. The buildings, Grounds and Contracts Panel control the budget for repairs and maintenance of buildings by the nature of work and where it is most required, rather than by individual service.
3	Corporate and democratic core (recharge £398,000) and unapportionable overheads (recharge £325,000)
	These items cover management and support costs that relate to member support and advice and to pension costs for added years and early retirements. They are within the Executive Member's control and so are charged against Environment service's cash limit. But they are then recharged to Policy and Resources outside of the cash limit as the Best Value Accounting Code of Practice requires these to be excluded from the cost of services.

4	Flood Protection (£5,429,000)
	Flood defence expenditure representing annual levies on the County Council by the Environment Agency.

Appendix 7

Environment

Capital Programme 2002/03

		£'000	£'000	£'000
1	Construction of total resources
	Approved programme limit - local resources		13,077
	Government Credit Approvals (SCA/BCA):
	Original settlement for 2002/03	26,646
	Starts to be supported from future settlements	3,292
			29,938

	Original Starts Programme in Budget Book		43,015

	Adjustments:
	Contaminated land SCA	-221
	Coast Protection Act SCA	141
	Schemes brought forward from 2001/02	4,054
	Subsequent adjustments to starts programme being supported from SCA settlements approved by Executive Member:
	May 2002	4,030
	September 2002	2,750
	January 2003	-9,547
	Subsequent cost variations and programme amendments since January 2003	3,492

	Total Adjustments		4,699

	Total Starts Programme Limit		47,714















2	Schemes started during 2002/03

	SCA Schemes

	Structural Maintenance of Bridges and Roads

	Bridges assessment and strengthening	1,442
	Bridges structural maintenance	1,278
	Principal road structural maintenance	5,713
	Non principal road structural maintenance	1,017
			9,450

	Casualty Reduction Programme

	Low cost safety schemes	968
	Bashley Crossroads, New Milton	292
	B3006 Empshott	15
	Refurbishment of treated sites	121
	A31 Winchester to County boundary - safety fencing	200
			1,596

	Area Strategies

	Andover Area (ATS)
	No starts	-
			-

	Basingstoke (BEST)
	BEST Decriminalised parking	75
	BEST Safer Routes to School	20
			95

	Central Hampshire (CHARTS)
	High Street and The Square, Petersfield	565
	Access in the area of outstanding natural beauty	18
	TAPESTRY	30
			613


	Coastal Towns (CTTS)
	Ashley Road/Spencer Road, New Milton (net)	132
			132



	North East Hampshire (NEHTS)
	A325/A30 Route 1 bus corridor (net)	1,900
	Minley Road cycles (net)	216
	NEHTS Intelligent Transport Systems	80
	NEHTS cycle parking	30
			2,226

	New Forest (NFTS)
	No starts	-
			-

	South West Hampshire (SWHTS)
	Eastleigh safer routes to school	365
	Eastleigh Bus Quality Partnership	125
	Southern Test Valley BQP	50
	Chandlers Ford railway station (net)	2,200
			2,740

	South East Hampshire (SEHTS)
	A3 Corridor Bus Priority, Widley to Purbrook - additional costs	620
	A3 Corridor Bus Priority, Purbrook to Waterlooville - stage 2B	5,300
	A27 Portchester Road, Fareham	680
	Fareham railway station	50
	Fareham bus station	160
	Gosport Bus Station	40
	Harts Farm Way, Broadmarsh	110
	Havant Station Ticket Office	50
	Castle Street, Portchester	25
	Miller Drive, Fareham	60
	Fareham Town Centre signing	150
	Leigh Park to Portsmouth bus corridor	40
			7,285



	Western Hampshire (WHTS)
	No starts	-
			-




	Winchester (WMAP)
	Chesil Street Winchester	260
	Stockbridge Road, Winchester	390
	Winchester Station interchange	930
	WMAP Car Park improvements	50
			1,630

	Other Priority Schemes
	Otterbourne traffic calming - stage 2	695
			695

	Minor Works
	Titchfield Road, Stubbington - Pelican crossing	35
	Butts Road, Alton - Toucan crossing	54
	Ramshill, Petersfield - Puffin crossing	35
	Lockswood Road, Locks Heath - Toucan crossing	55
	Fernhill Road (Cove Junior School) - Puffin crossing	36
	Fernhill Road (Cove Manor School) - Puffin crossing	35
	Test Valley Borough decriminalised parking	50
	MIRACLES Project, Winchester - stage 1	240
	Central Intelligent Transport Systems	725
	Community safety initiative	60
	Rural partnership schemes	200
	Minor improvements	200
	Community transport schemes	330
	Passenger transport information	125
	Safer routes to school	100
	Rail stations/interchanges	80
	Air quality and noise monitoring	50
			2,410

	Other
	South Hampshire Rapid Transport - preliminary costs (part)	2,168
	Buriton closed landfill site	49
	Coast Protection Act	141
	Additional costs - 2000/01 and 2001/02 Starts Programmes	526
			2,884

	Total SCA Schemes			31,756




	Locally Funded Schemes

	Structural maintenance of non principal roads	11,286
	Contribution to private street works	60
	New plan printing equipment	50
	South Hampshire Rapid Transit - preliminary costs (part)	188
	Environmental improvements	377
	Regeneration of older urban areas	1,264
	Household waste recycling centres	300
	Closed landfill sites remedial works	58
			13,583

	Total Locally Funded Schemes			13,583


	Total of Schemes Started During the Year			45,339


3	Schemes Carried Forward

Scheme Title		£'000	Reason for Delay

Jacobs Gutter Lane/Bury Road, Marchwood		350	Start delayed to take advantage of lower traffic volumes during school holidays

Waterlooville Centre		25	To co-ordinate with other works in the area

Lymington High Street		40	Need for extensive consultation in environmentally sensitive area

B2177/B3354 Fishers Pond junction		450	Need to avoid summer working in the vicinity of Marwell Zoo

A33 Sherfield-on-Loddon traffic calming		40	Need to fully assess effects of experimental measures

Basingstoke Real Time information		170	Need to co-ordinate with the implementation of the Real Time information central system

A3 Corridor Bus Priority - stage 2A (Purbrook)		1,300	Completion of consultation with local businesses and residents.

		2,375


4	Externally Funded Schemes Started in 2002/03	£'000

Andover Area (ATS)
Floral Way, Andover - traffic calming		120

Basingstoke (BEST)
Basingstoke bus station departure information		300
Hatch Warren to Town Centre cycle route		750
Hanmore Road traffic management		25
Whitchurch pedestrian cycle and bus facilities		75

Central Hampshire (CHARTS)
Westhill Road North, South Wonston		8

Coastal Towns (CTTS)
Ashley Road/Spencer Road, New Milton (contribution)		5

North East Hampshire (NEHTS)
A325/A30 Route 1 bus corridor (contribution)		700
Farnborough Town Centre signs		125
Minley Road cycles (contribution)		120
Blackwater Station pedestrians and cycles		60

New Forest (NFHT)
Bickerley Road, Ringwood		50

South West Hampshire Area (SWHTS)
Fair Oak Road, Fair Oak - cycle scheme (contribution)		150
Wildern School, Hedge End - footways		12
Chalk Hill/West End Road junction		49
St John's Road, Hedge End		8
Hedge End to Botley cycle scheme		200
Tollbar Way/Charles Watts Way, Hedge End		3
Chandlers Ford Railway Station (contribution)		1,200
Templars Way, Chandlers Ford - junction improvements		220

South East Hampshire (SEHTS)
Abshot Road/Warsash Road, Warsash		400
Witherbed Lane footpath		10
Yew Tree Drive local centre, Whiteley		100
Outlands Lane, Curdridge		45
Abshot Road/Hunts Pond Road, Locks Heath		150


Other
Community transport vehicles		303


		5,188

Appendix 8

Environment

Departmental Assurance Statement

1	Introduction
1.1	The Accounts and Audit Regulation 1996 require the County Treasurer to maintain an adequate and effective internal audit.

1.2	The County Treasurer employs an in-house internal audit section to provide an independent and objective appraisal function of reviewing the system of internal control. It examines, evaluates and reports to Chief Officers and the County Treasurer on the adequacy of the internal control as a contribution to the proper economic, efficient and effective use of resources.

1.3	From 2002/03 The Code of Practice on Local Authority Accounting in the UK requires that the Chief Internal Auditor provides an independent opinion on the adequacy and effectiveness of the system of internal financial control operating in the County Council. The County Treasurer developed this during 2001/02 in preparation for the full requirement in 2002/03. To enable him to do this, an independent opinion on the adequacy and effectiveness of the system of internal control has been prepared for each department.

2	Responsibilities

2.1	It is a management responsibility to develop and maintain the internal control framework, and to ensure that resources are properly applied in the manner and on the activities intended. It is the responsibility of Internal Audit to form an independent opinion, based on reviews during the year, on the adequacy and effectiveness of the system of internal control.

3	Basis of opinion

3.1	The strategic and annual internal audit plans were prepared by the Chief Internal Auditor to take account of the characteristics and relative risks of the activities involved and were approved by the County Treasurer.

3.2	The internal audit plan has been delivered in accordance with the Auditing Practices Board's Guideline number 308, `Guidance for Internal Auditors'.

3.3	Work has been planned and performed so as to obtain all the information and explanations which were considered necessary in order to provide sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the internal control system is operating effectively. However, this assurance can never be absolute. The most that the internal audit service can do is to provide reasonable assurance that there are no major weaknesses in the system of control.


4	Opinion

4.1	In our opinion the Environment department has an effective framework of control which provides reasonable assurance regarding the effective, efficient and economic achievement of the department's objectives.


	Ejner Knudsen Chief Internal Auditor County Treasurer's Department Hampshire County Council

Appendix 9

Environment

Partnership Accounts 2002/03


1	Safety Camera Partnership

1.1	The Hampshire Safety Camera Partnership aims to improve road safety by using fine income to fund the installation of safety cameras.

1.2	The partnership includes six partners: Hampshire County Council, Magistrates Courts Committee, Southampton City Council, Portsmouth City Council, Isle of Wight Council and Hampshire Police Authority. Hampshire County Council is also the beneficiary of the funding from the Department for Transport.

1.2.1	Project Summary Statement
			£
	Opening balance 1 April 2002		-
	Income		2,383,596
	Expenditure		1,270,485
	Closing balance 31 March 2003		1,113,111

1.3	Income received from the DfT in the year was £2,364,354. Interest of £19,242 was earned on this account in the year.

1.4	Claims received from the partners from 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 totalled £1,270,485.

1.5	The balance on the account of £1,113,111 represents unused DfT funding which will be carried forward to 2003/04 subject to agreement of the audited final claim for 2002/03. It is likely that there will be a need to repay to the DfT part of the excess income received in 2002/03, or that their 2003/04 payments will be adjusted. This was due to scheme slippage, which has now been reflected in the 2003/04 business case.

2	Life 3

2.1	The objective of the Life 3 project is to restore 604 ha of wetland habitat in the New Forest candidate Special Area of Conservation, and ensure their future sustainable management and regeneration.

2.2	The project began on 1 July 2002 and will run for four and a half years until 31 December 2006. The project has a total budget of €4,584,262, 40% of which is funded by the European Union. The remaining funds are sourced from the six partners: Hampshire County Council, Environment Agency, English Nature, Forestry Commission, National Trust and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Hampshire County Council is also the beneficiary for the EU funds, with responsibility for receiving, verifying and paying claims from partners for their share of the EU funding.
2.3	All EU funds are received in Euros and all claims received from partners for their share of the EU funding are paid in Euros.

2.3.1	Project Summary statement
		€		£
	Opening balance 1 April 2002	-		-
	Income	736,114		508,126
	Expenditure	20,786		14,307
	Closing balance 31 March 2003	715,328		493,819

2.3.2	The expenditure represents the claims from all partners for the period 1 July to 30 November 2002 which have been authorised for payment. There are outstanding claims for three partners amounting to €16,762 which have not yet been authorised and therefore are not reflected in the above figures. The claims received for the period 1 December 2002 to 31 March 2003 have also not yet been verified and will therefore be recognised in the accounts in 2003/04.

2.3.3	The first tranche payment from the EU, representing 30% of the total budgeted EU funding, was received in October 2002. Interest earned on the Euro account for the year amounted to €2,632.

2.3.4	The closing balance of €715,328 will be carried forward to 2003/04.

This content is archived

1 Introduction

1 Part A - Revenue expenditure under the service's control

2 Part B - Capital expenditure 2002/03

3 Part C - Departmental assurance statement

4 Part D - Partnership Accounts