Resources Directorate service plan for 2026 to 2027

Council context

This service plan describes how our directorate is working towards the delivery of the Council Plan goals. It presents the first year of strategic activity.

Our strategic actions focus on achieving the goals within the 3 priorities of the plan and activity on how we will be an ambitious, resilient and sustainable organisation.

Throughout the plan there are cross-cutting principles that will underpin the work that is delivered. More information about these strategies can be found online:

• Equality Scheme
• Bracknell Forest Health and Wellbeing Strategy (PDF, 9.4MB)
• Climate Change Strategy

The full Council Plan 2023 to 2027 is also available online.

Service context​

The Resources Directorate provides a range of internal support functions. These help the council run smoothly and support change and improvement activities.

The directorate also has an external customer focus on local tax collection and the recovery of other sums due for council services and payments to suppliers.

In autumn 2025, the directorate took on responsibility for providing welfare benefits and advice and support to residents.

Through leading the council’s engagement with the Bracknell Forest Cambium Partnership, it will help secure more affordable homes and make Bracknell a thriving town centre.

Current climate

The Workforce Change Programme has successfully reduced the number of agency workers employed across the organisation. This has been achieved through a range of initiatives to attract more permanent staff.

The formal change programme will be stood down, but work on organisational development will continue. This includes embedding the manager behaviour framework, with a focus on making Bracknell Forest a first choice for candidates in a competitive labour market.

While Bracknell Forest is not at risk of a financial breakdown in the immediate future, the need for tight financial controls has never been greater.

An increased focus on driving and tracking delivery of savings through the Business Change Programme will be key to making sure the council has a sustainable financial future.

We intend to seek a transformation partner early in 2026 to 2027. They will provide additional specialist expertise and capacity to help focus and deliver a new operating model. It will have community empowerment and collaboration at its core.

The adoption of the Bracknell Forest Local Plan and masterplans for the Southern Gateway site, including the former High Street car park, provides a clear future focus for the work of the Bracknell Forest Cambium Partnership. Demolition of the former car park will start early in 2026 to 2027 and pave the way for future redevelopment of the site.

Key drivers

Key plans and strategies that support the operational and strategic direction of the directorate include:

• Workforce and Organisational Development Strategy
• Learning and Development Strategy
• Medium Term Financial Plan
• Joint Venture Business Plan
• Business Change Programme

Our services

This information is correct as of May 2026.

The Executive Director for Resources is Stuart McKellar. The directorate provides the following services:

Business change and financial sustainability

The council’s activities on business change and corporate improvement are co-ordinated by the Business Change team in the Resources Directorate.

The council-wide Financial Management Programme, part of corporate improvement, will introduce new financial management tools and standardise financial processes. These will enhance financial reporting, income recovery and supplier payments.

Work on Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) improvements will support development of local SEND reform plans. They will deliver the agreed priority action plan and broader SEND improvement plan following the Ofsted inspection.

Work will continue to deliver the financial and non-financial benefits from the digital efficiency and assets programmes during 2026 to 2027, supporting the Senior Responsible Officers (SRO) and operational teams.

Alongside this, a transformation partner will be procured early in the year to help identify further opportunities to drive transformational change and reduce costs in future years to help secure financial sustainability.

Challenges

There has been some success in the past year in recruiting qualified staff to vacant posts in the directorate.

Looking ahead, we will need to face the challenge of the retirements of long-standing, experienced senior team members.

Our financial context means that we will need to be creative around the future directorate structure, to make sure it remains sustainable.

Budget position

Revenue Budget

The Resources directorate has a gross expenditure cash budget of £9.042 million with -£1.493 million of income, making a planned net spend of £7.549 million. The gross budget includes £6.218 million for staffing.

Savings

The 2026 to 2027 budgets include savings of £0.547 million. The key themes adopted in making the savings were:

• reduction in service budgets where levels of demand have decreased, or service will be reduced - £0.154 million
• reduction in staffing costs - £0.285 million
• capitalisation of costs linked to programme delivery - £0.108 million

Capital Budget

The 2026 to 2027 capital programme does not include any schemes for the Resources directorate.

Pressures

The 2026 to 2027 budget includes pressures of £0.300 million. These pressures can be analysed into the following broad categories:

• support to the most vulnerable households with their Council Tax bills - £0.156 million
• staffing costs, reduction in managed vacancy factor - £0.119 million
• reduction in  income budgets to reflect reduction in demand for services - £0.025 million

Financial risks

The Resources Directorate have identified the followings budgets that can pose a risk to the council's overall position:

Workforce position

Staffing position

For the directorate, as of 1 January 2026, there is an overall headcount of 113 staff made up from: 

• 112 employees
• 1 temporary agency member of staff

Pressures

Staff voluntary turnover, as of 1 January 2026, was 6.4%.

The estimated annual average sickness rate per employee is 8.8 days.

Workforce demographics

Gender:

• male - 21%
• female - 79%

Ethnicity:

• mixed - 2%
• black or black British - 5%
• white - 81%
• not stated - 2%
• information not provided - 4%
• Asian or Asian British - 6%

Disability:

• yes - 6%
• no - 47%
• not known - 47%

Age:

• 24 and under - 3%
• 25 to 35 - 13%
• 36 to 45 - 21%
• 46 to 55 - 32%
• 56 to 65 - 29%
• Over 65 - 3%

Risk

There are no hard to recruit posts.

Procurement activity

Activity set out in this section references above threshold procurement due to take place in the 2026 to 2027 financial year in the Resources Directorate.

For more information visit our Procurement policy page and our Tenders and contracts page.

Priorities