Finance & Sustainability Committee Assurance Report - February 2026
Meeting: Trust Board – Public Meeting
Date: 11 February 2026
Report Title: Finance & Sustainability Committee Assurance Report
Agenda Item: PUB26/02/5.5
Committee Date: 26 November 2025
Meeting Chair: Chris Brook, Non-Executive Director and Committee Chair
Meeting quorate: YES
Purpose: Assurance
| Link to EEAST’s Strategic Missions: | |
|---|---|
| Patient Mission | |
| Partnership Mission | |
| People Mission | |
| Productivity Mission | X |
Summary of Items considered at the meeting:
| Issue | Consideration | Resolution / Outcome | Assurance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financial Update & Integrated Performance Report | The committee reviewed the financial position of the Trust, looking at the drivers of the budget by areas. | The Trust reported a surplus to plan of £7m. Working with the SNEE ICB, it has been agreed to provide £2m of funding to support C2 performance, with the benefits of these initiatives to be tracked through the Performance Committee. | Substantial |
| Sustainability | To review progress on the Sustainability plan | The Trust Board has agreed the Green Plan. There is now active sponsorship of the Sustainability agenda within the plan. Numerous activities are ongoing. | Moderate |
| Transformation | The committee reviewed the latest reports on activities associated with Transformation aligned to this committee | Progress was noted against the core initiatives associated with the committee. Benefit realisation is an ongoing concern for this committee. | Moderate |
| Board Assurance Framework | To review the management of the Core Risks and progress towards the Productivity Goals | The expectation on the Trust is to deliver a balanced budget, and the financial surplus creates a different set of questions but was not jeopardising the financial health of the organisation. Cyber security risks/digital risks were felt to be ‘increasing’ and required plans to be put in place to mitigate those. The lack of movement on the risks status and alignment to activities is a concern for the Committee | Moderate |
Matters for escalation or referral:
| Issue | Resolution | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Update | Performance Committee to track the benefits associated with the provision of £2m to the SNEE ICB. |
