Report - London Borough of Hillingdon

huge benefits of public access and the education opportunities cannot easily be
dismissed.
Corporate Finance Services
25. The capital cost of purchasing The Barn is likely to rise to the £1.6m identified
by the consultants in their condition report in the medium term, with further costs
arising over the long term. In addition, revenue costs of maintaining the site are
projected to rise to £172k by 2015/16. Both of these growth items should be
considered in the context of the severe constraints on both revenue and capital
resources. Additionally, the HIP Asset Management Strategy is attempting to reduce
the authority’s property maintenance backlog of £18m (which excludes the Civic
Centre). Reducing the number of expensive to maintain buildings is a significant part
of this strategy. This purchase without at the same time securing the relevant
external funding would increase both the maintenance backlog and the number of
expensive to maintain buildings. In this context the purchase of the barn would not
appear to be a prudent use of resources. However, this financial case needs to be
weighed against the benefits to the community that might result from its purchase.
26. The report prepared by consultants McCurdy & Co identifies the capital
resources that will be required for a fully resourced programme of repair,
maintenance and conservation. In addition, Corporate Property officers have
identified further capital and revenue costs that are likely to arise if the council takes
ownership. The capital costs are listed in the table in the section above at current
prices. The works would be in four phases: immediate, within 2 years, 5 years and
10 years. The table below illustrates how these costs would fall across financial
years if expenditure were incurred at the end of each of the recommended periods.
Capital Costs 005/06 £ 006/07 £ 007/08 £ 008/09 £ 009/10 £ 2010/11 - Total £
2014/15
£
Year 1 2 3 4 5 - 10 6 - 10
Acquisition 1,501 1,501
Immediate works 118,500 118,500
Works req’d within 2 yrs 180,000 180,000
Works req’d within 5 yrs 133,000 133,000
Works req’d within 10 yrs 1,180,000 1,180,000
Total 120,001 0 180,000 0 133,000 1,180,000 1,613,001
27. No allowance has been made for inflation in the cost profile shown above.
28. The full financial impact of the acquisition does not arise until later years when
the effect of the final stage of the conservation works is implemented. The financial
implications are not therefore limited to the £37k of growth that will be required in the
2006/07 budget, but increase to £172k to maintain the site if the suggested works
are implemented.
29. External funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) may be available to
meet up to 75% of the capital costs. At this stage it is too early to place confidence in
receiving funding from the HLF, so the full cost should be regarded as falling to the
Council. In addition, the Hillingdon Community Trust may be able to provide some
PART 1 – MEMBERS, PUBLIC AND PRESS
Cabinet report 10 th November 2005 Page 279