Agenda, decisions and minutes

To note any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Cllr Tim Harman, (Cabinet Member for Public  Health and Communities), and Cllr Nigel Moor, (Fire, Planning and Infrastructure).

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 29 March 2017 (minutes attached).

The minutes of the meeting held on 29 March 2017 were agreed and signed as an accurate record of that meeting.

Cabinet members are invited to declare any pecuniary or personal interests relating to specific matters on the agenda.

Please see note (a) at the end of the agenda

No declarations of interest were made at the meeting.

Ofsted Inspection of Services for Children in need of Help and Protection, Children Looked After and Care Leavers

Lead Cabinet Member Statement

I know that all members of the Cabinet, and indeed the whole council, will have been saddened and shocked to read the Ofsted report that was published on 13 June 2017.

There can be no matter more important for us than protecting our most vulnerable children and young people and it is now clear that our services have failed to consistently keep children safe and reduce the risks of harm that they face. We cannot tolerate this situation and it is necessary for every part of the council to play its part in putting this right.

The challenges we face are well documented; they are complex and of long standing and time is needed to really understand what has gone wrong and put the right plans in place to improve sustainably over the long term.

The Chief Executive has already taken a number of actions in respect of securing new leadership and reviewing staffing arrangements which I fully support.

As the Lead Cabinet Member, it is my job to work closely with the Director of Children’s Services and offer support and challenge across the whole Children’s Services System. I am determined to look forward and work with our dedicated staff and partners so that our services become good. My personal priorities, which I know the Cabinet will share, are:

Ø  Putting children at the centre of all we do; 

Ø  Investing in social work, especially in child protection work; .

Ø  Developing managers and the workforce to embed changes;

Ø  Listening to front line staff and children, young people and families; 

Ø  Working closely with our partners, especially with the Safeguarding Board, and members across the council.

I also want to recognise that there are good services and positive developments particularly in respect of support for Children in Care. Our Corporate Parenting Group, with cross party membership, has already made a positive contribution and I want to build on that.

Looking to the future we have already put a number of actions in train to improve children’s services including: -

Ø  Immediate action to ensure children at risk identified through the inspection are being effectively supported;

Ø  Myself, the Leader and Senior Officers, meeting with representatives from the DfE regarding improvement planning. 

Ø  Meeting with our LGA Advisor to discuss what help the LGA can offer;

Ø  Attending the CYP Scrutiny Committee to begin the discussion about what role Scrutiny can play;

Ø  Investing more than an additional £9m in children’s social care in this year’s budget;

Ø  Proposing to add £1.2m to the Vulnerable Children’s Reserve in today’s budget monitoring report;

Ø  Asking the Director of Children’s Services to review whether investment is appropriately targeted; 

Ø  Setting up a programme of visits to the frontline, which I have already begun;

Ø  Reviewing the quality of performance information.

I am absolutely committed to improving safeguarding practice and know that we have much to do. We will not improve services without working across the whole system; our local communities, our staff and partners and, crucially, the wider council and all members.

We need to harness our efforts given the challenges we face of rising demand and increased complexity. There is much to do but I am confident we have the right things in place to make the difference.

We are required to produce an improvement plan by Ofsted and the DfE; I will bring that plan back to Cabinet for formal approval and report regularly here as to our progress.

Cllr Richard Boyles

Lead Cabinet Member for Children and Young People

Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, expressed his sorrow that the children and families within the council’s care had suffered unacceptable delays in receiving the care they required.

Cllr Hawthorne stated, ‘everyone at the council should now work together to ensure the weaknesses identified in the Ofsted report published on 13 June 2017 must never occur again’, and expressed his commitment to providing ongoing updates at this meeting.

The Leader of the Council thanked Cllr Richard Boyles, as newly appointed Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, for taking a positive lead in responding to the Ofsted Report.

Up to 30 minutes is allowed for this item.

Written questions

To answer any written questions from a County Councillor, (or any person living or working in the county, or is affected by the work of the County Council), about any matter which relates to any item on the agenda for this meeting.

The closing date for the receipt of written questions was 9.00am on Tuesday 13 June 2017.

Oral questions

To answer any oral questions from members of the public. An oral question may be asked by a member of the public about any item on the agenda for this meeting, provided notice of the question is given by the questioner to the Chief Executive’s representative, at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the meeting.

Depending on the nature of the questions, it may not be possible to provide a comprehensive answer at the meeting, in which case a written answer will be provided as soon as reasonably possible after the meeting. Questions received and proposed responses do not accompany this agenda but will be circulated prior to the meeting.

Public Questions

No public questions were submitted for consideration.

Member Questions

A total of 7 member questions were submitted in advance of the meeting.

Please refer to the following link to view the responses to the questions

http://192.168.220.171:9071/documents/s38936/Cabinet%20Questions%20and%20Answers%20-%2019%20Jun%202017.pdf

If you are unable to access the document at the above link, please go to the link below and select the ‘Cabinet Questions and Answers’ PDF document at the top of the web page.

http://192.168.220.171:9071/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=117&MId=8741&Ver=4

The following supplementary questions were asked at the meeting.

Question 1: Cllr Paul Hodgkinson

Agenda Item 7: Strategic Performance Monitoring Report 2016/17 – Quarter 4 (Page 48)

The answer refers to the number of road casualties reported since 2006. The information does not represent recent statistics, where there has been an increase in the number of casualties in Gloucestershire. This increase has resulted in the council missing its own targets in the number of people killed or seriously injured. What is the plan for ensuring the council’s targets are met?

Response: In the absence of the Cabinet Member, Fire, Planning and Infrastructure, Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne responded to the question.

Echoing Cllr Moor’s answer to the question, there has been an improvement in meeting the targets of the number of people killed or seriously injured in Gloucestershire. That said, one person hurt on our roads is one person too many. We need to look carefully at every black spot in the county and how we can make improvements in road safety. I have spent considerable time in my own ward in the past 6 to 12 months, looking at how we can make improvements on the A38. I ask members to work with officers, and as a council, be fully committed to identifying issues in every district. It is only by working within the localities that we can try to make roads safer.

Question 2: Cllr Paul Hodgkinson

Agenda Item 7: Strategic Performance Monitoring Report 2016/17 – Quarter 4 (Page 48)

A number of constituents have raised concerns about the effectiveness of the Road Safety Community Engagement Hub. It is not clear what it does or who they need to speak to about their concerns. What are you going to do about the lack of clarity? Is the Hub working? 

Response: In the absence of the Cabinet Member, Fire, Planning and Infrastructure, Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne responded to the question.

Cllr Moor will provide a written response to your question after the meeting. I can confirm 750 enquiries from members of the public have been dealt with and that we continue to improve the interface of the Hub.  We need to improve the awareness of County Councillors.

Question 3: Cllr Paul Hodgkinson

Agenda Item 5: Revenue and Capital Expenditure 2016/17 (Page 13)

Since last year’s overspend, this budget has been cut by £6million and is to be cut again. How can you manage not to overspend in this area this year?

Response by: Cllr Roger  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

To consider the Council's outturn expenditure for 2016/17 and agree changes to the Capital Programme in 2017/18.

Cllr Ray Theodoulou, Cabinet Member for Finance and Change, presented the Council’s outturn expenditure for 2016/17 and made recommendations on the Capital Programme 201/18.

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to:

1.    Approve the following transfers to reserves and note the balanced revenue budget position for 2016/17.

1.1.£1.25 million to the Adult Social Care reserve to mitigate risk to the service budget arising from large, backdated Ordinary Residence Claims.

1.2.£0.195 million to the Communities & Infrastructure Reserve to fund commitments under the Highways Local scheme in 2017/18 due to slippage

1.3.£0.35 million to the Communities & Infrastructure Reserve for Economic Development (£0.3 million) and Road Safety Partnership for camera replacement (£0.05 million)

1.4.£0.185 million to the Traded Services Reserve to fund potential future commitments and mitigate potential income loss in 2017/18

1.5.£0.012 million to Other Earmarked Reserves for Occupational Health commitments in 2017/18 due to project slippage

1.6.£1.203 million to the Vulnerable Children Reserve to support ongoing budget pressures in 2017/18 

1.7.£0.669 million to the Rates Retention Reserve following declaration of a surplus for the Gloucestershire Rates Retention Pool of which £0.241 million is ring-fenced for the Strategic Economic Development Fund

1.8.other technical reserve movements for 2016/17 as set out in annex 1.

2.    Note the capital budget position for 2016/17.

3.    Approve increases to the Capital Programme totalling £17.361 million for 2017/18 and future years:

   Additional Grant Funding announced since February:

3.1.1 £12.565 million Basic Need Grant to the Children & Families capital programme for 2019/20.

3.1.2 £1.95 million Special Provision Fund Grant to the Children & Families capital programme for 2018/19 to 2020/21.

    Additional Capital Schemes:

3.2.1 £0.376 million scheme for Rissington Primary early years provision, funded by £0.283 million Government Grant, £0.03 million school contribution and £0.064 million from the Early Years capital budget 

3.2.2 £0.330 million scheme for Woodmancote Primary pre-school provision, funded by £0.322 million developer s106 contributions and £0.008 million from the schools capital maintenance programme

3.2.3 £0.200 million scheme for Northleach Primary School, funded by £0.186 million developer s106 contributions and £0.014 million school contribution

3.2.4 £0.159 million budget for the contribution towards St. Mary’s Primary School, funded by developer s106 contributions.

3.2.5 £0.290 million scheme for Bishops Cleeve Primary School, funded by £0.240 million developer contributions and £0.050 million from the schools capital maintenance programme.

3.2.6 £0.360 million addition to the capital programme for Fairford Primary and Brockworth Primary, funded by developer S106 contributions.

    Increases to Existing Capital Schemes:

3.3.1 £0.140 million in Adults for Information Management Storage capital works being carried out as part of the GIS capital scheme, funded from a revenue contribution.

3.3.2 £0.805 million for Highway schemes, funded from additional £0.088 million of developer and external contributions, and revenue contributions of £0.717 million.

3.3.3 £0.035 million for Shire Hall refurbishment works, funded from a revenue contribution.

3.3.4 £0.272 million in Property works before sale, funded from capital receipts.

Cllr Ray Theodoulou, Cabinet Member for Finance and Change, presented the Council’s outturn expenditure for 2016/17 and made recommendations on the Capital Programme 201/18.

Cllr Theodoulou referred to the financial pressures placed on the Adult Social Care Budget and highlighted some of the council’s existing commitments. In noting the difficulties in balancing the revenue budget, Cllr Theodoulou outlined a series of transfers to reserves for the 2016/17 financial year.

Cllr Theodoulou also proposed increases to the Capital Programme totalling £17.361 million for 2017/18 and future years.

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to:

1.    Approve the following transfers to reserves and note the balanced revenue budget position for 2016/17.

1.1.£1.25 million to the Adult Social Care reserve to mitigate risk to the service budget arising from large, backdated Ordinary Residence Claims.

1.2.£0.195 million to the Communities & Infrastructure Reserve to fund commitments under the Highways Local scheme in 2017/18 due to slippage

1.3.£0.35 million to the Communities & Infrastructure Reserve for Economic Development (£0.3 million) and Road Safety Partnership for camera replacement (£0.05 million)

1.4.£0.185 million to the Traded Services Reserve to fund potential future commitments and mitigate potential income loss in 2017/18

1.5.£0.012 million to Other Earmarked Reserves for Occupational Health commitments in 2017/18 due to project slippage

1.6.£1.203 million to the Vulnerable Children Reserve to support ongoing budget pressures in 2017/18 

1.7.£0.669 million to the Rates Retention Reserve following declaration of a surplus for the Gloucestershire Rates Retention Pool of which £0.241 million is ring-fenced for the Strategic Economic Development Fund

1.8.other technical reserve movements for 2016/17 as set out in annex 1.

2.    Note the capital budget position for 2016/17.

3.    Approve increases to the Capital Programme totalling £17.361 million for 2017/18 and future years:

   Additional Grant Funding announced since February:

3.1.1 £12.565 million Basic Need Grant to the Children & Families capital programme for 2019/20.

3.1.2 £1.95 million Special Provision Fund Grant to the Children & Families capital programme for 2018/19 to 2020/21.

    Additional Capital Schemes:

3.2.1 £0.376 million scheme for Rissington Primary early years provision, funded by £0.283 million Government Grant, £0.03 million school contribution and £0.064 million from the Early Years capital budget 

3.2.2 £0.330 million scheme for Woodmancote Primary pre-school provision, funded by £0.322 million developer s106 contributions and £0.008 million from the schools capital maintenance programme

3.2.3 £0.200 million scheme for Northleach Primary School, funded by £0.186 million developer s106 contributions and £0.014 million school contribution

3.2.4 £0.159 million budget for the contribution towards St. Mary’s Primary School, funded by developer s106 contributions.

3.2.5 £0.290 million scheme for Bishops Cleeve Primary School, funded by £0.240 million developer contributions and £0.050 million from the schools capital maintenance programme.

3.2.6 £0.360 million addition to the capital programme for Fairford Primary and Brockworth Primary, funded by developer S106 contributions.

    Increases to Existing Capital Schemes:

3.3.1 £0.140 million in Adults for Information Management Storage capital works being carried out as part of the GIS capital scheme, funded from a revenue contribution.

3.3.2  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

To inform Cabinet of the need for a review of the current highways services procurement strategy.

Cllr Vernon Smith, Cabinet Member for Highways and Flood, advised of the intention to review the current highways service strategy. Cllr Smith outlined proposals to engage with members in the development of a revised strategy for the procurement of highway services from April 2019.   

RESOLVED to note the contents of the report  

Cllr Vernon Smith, Cabinet Member for Highways and Flood, referred to the forthcoming review of the current highways service strategy and outlined proposals to engage with members in the development of a revised strategy for the procurement of highway services from April 2019.  

Cllr Smith reaffirmed the cabinet manifesto commitment to invest at least £150m in Gloucestershire’s highway network over the next five years, more than double the amount invested in the annual resurfacing works programme.

Reporting that the current highways contract was due to end on 31 March 2019, Cllr Smith stated this was an exciting opportunity for the council to consider different delivery models and that he remained very open-minded to the options this presented.

The proposed timeline for officers to work with Cllr Smith in researching and developing delivery model options and developing a procurement strategy was outlined as follows:

June/July 2017 – Engaging with members, parishes and community groups through the annual customer satisfaction survey (surveys were published on 12 June 2017)

June/July 2017 – Cabinet member and officer visits to other authorities to look at different delivery models and best practice in the industry

July 2017 – Engagement with Highways England on their Asset Delivery Model to see how the model might work in Gloucestershire

July 2017 – Supplier open day event and soft market testing

September 2017 – Cabinet report on procurement options

October 2017 – the council to go out to tender for the necessary contracts to deliver this major investment.

Cllr Smith confirmed this was just the start of the procurement process, for which he intended to set up a cross party cabinet panel for members and officers to work together on this huge project.

Cabinet welcomed the update and,

RESOLVED to note the contents of the report  

To provide Cabinet with strategic oversight of the Council’s performance during 2016/17.

Leader of Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, presented the Strategic Performance Report, outlining the Council’s performance during Quarter 4 of 2016/17.

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to

Leader of Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, presented the Strategic Performance Report, summarising the Council’s performance during Quarter 4 of 2016/17.

The Leader confirmed this would be the last performance report presented to Cabinet. A new performance reporting process had been put in place for the rest of the year, with a focus on scrutiny leading on performance reporting .

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to

Cabinet to confirm the appointments to outside bodies and partnerships detailed at Appendix A of the report.

Leader of Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, sought approval of Cabinet’s appointments to outside bodies and partnerships from June 2017, (for the duration of council). At the meeting, Cllr Hawthorne advised members of the need to make an additional appointment and proposed the appointment of Cllr Ray Theodoulou as the council’s shareholder representative for UBICO.   

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to make the appointments to the outside bodies and partnerships detailed in Appendix A, (including the appointment to the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee, GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership and Ubico).

Leader of Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, sought approval of Cabinet’s appointments to outside bodies and partnerships from June 2017, (for the duration of this council).

At the meeting, Cllr Hawthorne advised members of the need to make an additional appointment to those outlined in Appendix A and proposed the appointment of Cllr Ray Theodoulou as the council’s shareholder representative for UBICO.  

In noting the report, Cabinet

RESOLVED to make the appointments to the outside bodies and partnerships detailed in Appendix A to the report, (including the appointment to the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee, GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership and Ubico).