Agenda, decisions and minutes

To note any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Cllr Roger Wilson, Cabinet Member: Adult Social Care – Commissioning.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 18 April 2018 (minutes attached).

The minutes of the meeting held on 18 April 2018 were confirmed and signed as a true record of that meeting.

To declare any pecuniary or personal interests relating to specific matters on the agenda.

Please see information note (1) at the end of the agenda.

No declarations of interest were made at the meeting.

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 4.00 pm on Thursday 31 May 2018

Urgent questions

An urgent written question may be asked by a member of the public about any item on the Cabinet agenda for that meeting which the Chairperson considers could not have been reasonably submitted by the deadline for the receipt of written questions, provided he or she gives notice of the question to the Chief Executive by 12 noon the day before the meeting.

A written answer will be provided for each written question and presented to the questioner and to Cabinet Members before the meeting. The questions and answers will be taken as read at the meeting and need not be read out.

At the discretion of the Leader of Council, each questioner in attendance at the meeting will be allowed to ask one supplementary question in response to the answer to the original question.

A copy of all written questions and written answers circulated at the meeting will be attached to the signed copy of the minutes of the meeting.

Public Questions

No public questions were considered at the meeting.

Member Questions

A total of 9 member questions were considered at the meeting.

Please refer to the link below to view the responses to the questions: -

http://192.168.220.171:9071/documents/b14471/Cabinet%20Questions%20and%20Answers%20Wednesday%2006-Jun-2018%2010.00%20Cabinet.pdf?T=9

If unable to access the document at the link above, 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=8899&Ver=4

The Leader of the Council reminded members that questions could only be asked on reports presented by Cabinet members. He explained that some questions had been rejected by officers because they related to scrutiny task group reports prepared by non-executive members for consideration by Cabinet. There had been cross-party representation on the task groups. Cabinet would respond to the reports in due course.  

Cllr Hawthorne reminded members that this administration had introduced the opportunity to ask questions on cabinet reports.

The following supplementary questions were asked at the meeting.

Question 1: Cllr Iain Dobie

Agenda item 10: Commissioning for Residential and Nursing Care Home Provision in Gloucestershire

Cllr Dobie suggested research had shown the turnover rate of the care sector workforce in Gloucestershire was higher than the national or South West regional rates. Cllr Dobie asked the cabinet member to provide a statement on the number of vacancies advertised as a percentage of the workforce, and to confirm if number of vacancies was going up or down?

Response by: Cllr Kathy Williams (Cabinet Member: Adult Social Care – Delivery)

Cllr Williams stated that it would be difficult at this stage to give the detailed figures and would get back to Cllr Dobie with a response after the meeting.

Question 2: Cllr Iain Dobie

Agenda item 10: Commissioning for Residential and Nursing Care Home Provision in Gloucestershire

Cllr Dobie suggested that the failure of care companies was acknowledged as a major issue for the County Council. Cllr Dobie referred to Cllr Roger Wilson’s, (Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care: Commissioning),  professional status of accountant and asked, if a care provider collapsed, did the cabinet member agree it was reasonable for the relevant cabinet member to take personal responsibility for scrutiny of the situation? 

Response by: Cllr Kathy Williams (Cabinet Member: Adult Social Care – Delivery)

No. Cabinet members are selected because of their various skills, not their professional backgrounds.

Question 3: Cllr Lesley Williams

Agenda item 10: Commissioning for Residential and Nursing Care Home Provision in Gloucestershire

Cllr Lesley Williams referred to the care market as ‘financially unstable’ and asked if the cabinet member intended to put in a contingency plan to safeguard against the potential collapse of a care provider.

Response by: Cllr Kathy Williams (Cabinet Member: Adult Social Care – Delivery)

Cllr Kathy Williams confirmed that this had already been done. Producing a contingency plan was the responsibility of this authority. Taking into account the volatility of the market, the council had managed to rise to the situation from its  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Cllr Brian Robinson, Chairman of the Children and Families Overview and Scrutiny Committee, to present the findings of the task group review, (including recommendations), on behalf of Chairman of the Task Group, Cllr Andrew Miller. 

Cllr Brian Robinson, Chairman of the Children and Families Scrutiny Committee, presented the findings of the Permanent Exclusions Task Group on behalf of the Chairman of the Task Group, Cllr Andrew Miller.

Established by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee in September 2017, the task group was set up to address concerns about the level of permanent school exclusions in Gloucestershire, which, in January 2017, had been reported as higher than the county’s statistical neighbours and higher than the national average.

Cllr Robinson confirmed that the report had identified a number of factors that had impacted on this complex area. He informed members that budget pressures and competition between schools had placed more pressure on schools to deliver core subjects with limited pastoral care.

He explained that supporting children with additional educational needs or alternative curriculum provision was both expensive and time consuming. In contrast, to exclude a child has little direct cost to the school. Once the child is excluded, the cost of the exclusion is allocated to the Schools High Needs budget administered by the County Council. Cllr Robinson clarified that it was the increased financial pressure on this budget that had become a significant concern, largely because of the rising number of excluded children. 

Cllr Robinson outlined some of the factors that had been identified by the report, including the proposition that excluded children were often subject to poorer outcomes, experienced significant falls in educational attainment and more likely to experience setbacks. In reaching its conclusions, the task group acknowledged that some pupil behavioural problems stemmed from poor home experiences, including domestic violence. This was then often further compounded when the child was excluded from school.

Running parallel with the increased number of exclusions was a notable increase in the number of children receiving home schooling. Cllr Robinson informed members that this particular characteristic had been difficult to investigate but continued to raise concerns in relation to the potential for parents of disruptive children choosing to home educate.

Cllr Robinson stated that, while the majority of exclusions had been at secondary schools, there had also been a notable rise in the number of primary exclusions. He suggested that this may be linked to the number of primary pupils not being “school ready” at the time when they started school. 

Highlighting some of the more positive elements of the report, Cllr Robinson confirmed several examples of good alternative approaches had been undertaken by Gloucestershire schools, including the piloting of a restorative practice approach at Tewksbury School and Moat Primary School, Gloucester. 

Referring to the recommendations set out within the report, Cllr Robinson stated that many of the approaches that had been proposed required leadership and the ability to influence and change the decisions of others. The task group hoped the recommendations would enable Cabinet to take positive action in making a substantial reduction in the number of school exclusions, including zero exclusions in primary schools. 

Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, thanked Cllr Robinson and the task  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Cllr Jeremy Hilton, Chairman of the Air Pollution Task Group, to present the findings of the task group, (including recommendations).  

Cllr Jeremy Hilton, Chairman of the Air Pollution Task Group, presented the findings of a recent scrutiny review following concerns about the impact of air pollution on public health in Gloucestershire. The report included 12 recommendations.

Cllr Hilton informed members that the task group was established in October 2017 following consideration of a report by the Environment and Communities Scrutiny Committee in July 2017 regarding an Air Quality Schools Pilot Project.

Cllr Hilton confirmed that particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide from vehicle emissions was regarded as the most significant primary air pollutant in the UK. A key component of the task group’s work had been to consider the impact of transport emissions on peoples health.

A multi-stakeholder workshop held in January 2018 was well received and attended by 55 delegates. Those in attendance represented a wide range of organisations eager to participate with the evidence gathering stage of the task group’s work. The participating organisations included; Gloucestershire County Council, District Councils, NHS, Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group, Public Health England, and the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust. With no set structure to the workshop agenda, the data from the event focussed on a modelling perspective rather than the need to make improvements.

Thanking officers for their contribution to the outcome report and to the Environment and Communities Scrutiny Committee for its support in submitting the recommendations to this meeting, Cllr Hilton outlined each of the 12 recommendations in detail before seeking Cabinet approval.

It was noted that one of the proposals, (recommendation 3), proposed that the terms of reference and membership for the Gloucestershire Air Quality and Health Partnership be considered by the Environment and Communities Scrutiny Committee.

Recommendations 4 and 5 of the proposals, (proposing that the Partnership develop a strategy from which to address air quality and health in Gloucestershire by June 2019), was aligned with the request for input to the Gloucestershire Health and Wellbeing Board), were also noted.

Outlining the proposal to establish a sub-group of the Partnership to explore opportunities from which to promote the uptake of electric vehicles, (recommendation 10), Cllr Hilton emphasised the need to invest in installing more charging points, especially in urban areas. Cllr Hilton also emphasised the need to encourage the use of cleaner vehicles for public transport purposes and taxi use.

Cllr Hilton reinforced the usefulness of the review and said he hoped Cabinet would view the recommendations as an overarching strategy for the County Council and other public bodies to implement. 

Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne, thanked Cllr Hilton for presenting such a comprehensive report and said that he was pleased consensus had been reached on the recommendations. Cllr Hawthorne also thanked the members of the task group and the Environment and Communities Scrutiny Committee for their involvement in the review process.

Questioning the importance in which District Councils regarded the issue, Cabinet Member for Fire, Planning and Infrastructure, Cllr Nigel Moor, suggested the Environment and Communities Scrutiny Committee look at better ways of engaging with the Districts and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To consider the Council’s outturn expenditure for 2017/18 and changes to the Capital Programme.

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

1.    Approve the following transfers to reserves and note the subsequent minor £0.033 million overspend budget position in 2017/18, which will be balanced by drawing down on General Reserves.

1.1.£0.500 million to the Adult Social Care Reserve to mitigate risk to the service budget arising from large backdated Ordinary Residence Claims. 

1.2.£0.713 million to a new People Services Reserve to mitigate volatility risk to the service budgets within Adult and Children Services.

1.3.£0.825 million transfer to a new reserve for the IRIS project to fund the planned development of this service in future years.

1.4.£0.678 million to the Strategic Waste Reserve to fund the investment in compactors at the Household Recycling Centres.

1.5.£0.648 million to the Strategic Waste Reserve to fund the EFW (Energy From Waste) contractual contribution.

1.6.£0.200 million to the Traded Services Reserve to fund investments in service delivery aimed at generating additional income and mitigating future income loss.

1.7.£1.330 million to the Rates Retention Reserve following declaration of a surplus for the Gloucestershire Rates Retention Pool of which £0.739 million is ring-fenced for the Strategic Economic Development Fund.

1.8.Transfer of £0.350 million to Corporate Insurance Reserves to mitigate against emerging risks facing the Council.

1.9.Other technical reserve movements for 2017/18 as set out in annex 1.

2.    Approve the carry forward of £2.825 million to 2018/19 to complete two year projects funded by the additional 2017/18 “one off” budget allocations.

3.    Approve a draw down of £0.033 million from General Reserves in order to balance the budget for 2017/18

4.    Note the capital budget position for 2017/18 of £95.875 million, giving in year slippage of £15.481 million.

5.    Approve increases to the Capital Programme totalling £4.438 million for 2017/18 and future years:

·         £3.869 million for Highway schemes funded from increased Department for Transport (DfT) grant £0.563 million, an additional £0.010 million of developer contributions, £1.706 million external contributions and GCC revenue contributions of £1.590 million.

·         £0.011 million to the County Offices, Cheltenham refurbishment capital scheme, funded by a revenue contribution.

·         £0.249 million to the Waste capital budget funded by £0.238 million from the Strategic Waste Reserve to fund Household Recycling Centre compactors and £0.011 million from a revenue contribution to fund rubble skips.

·         £0.309 million in property works before sale, funded from capital receipts.

Cllr Ray Theodoulou, Cabinet Member for Finance and Change, gave an overview of the council’s outturn expenditure for 2017/18, including proposed increases to the Capital Programme and transfers to reserves for 2018/19 and future years.

Cllr Theodoulou reported a final year end position as at the end of 2017/18 with a minor overspend of £33,000 on a net revenue budget of over £407 million. Cllr Theodoulou concluded that, as a negligible amount, the overspend could be balanced with a proposed transfer from general reserves.

General reserves totalled £18.520 million at the end of the 2017/18 financial year, (representing 4.5 % of the net revenue budget). Commending the hard work and efforts of the financial team to maintain a balanced budget, Cllr Theodoulou confirmed that the reported position reflected favourably with the council’s financial performance for 2017/18 and was well within the industry accepted target range of between 4 and 6% of the net budget.

Outlining some of the financial pressures impacting on the council, with specific references to highway repairs and gaps in Adults and Children’s services,  Cllr Theodoulou informed members that a new People Services Reserve had been proposed to mitigate against the volatility of these demand led services. Transfers to the waste reserve and to traded services were also proposed. 

Following on from the success of the Gloucestershire Business Rates pooling project, an increase in the Business Rates retention reserve was proposed, along with the transfer of a substantial sum to the Strategic Economic Development Fund.

Cllr Theodoulou also proposed carrying forward some unspent elements of the one and two year adjustments approved during the setting of the 2017/18 budget.

Reporting a year end balance within the adult care budget, Cllr Theodoulou confirmed that this had been achieved from the drawing down of some of the council’s reserves in response to some of the challenges the council was continuing to experience in this service area.

Ending on a positive note, Cllr Theodoulou informed members that, in spite of the challenges ahead, he was optimistic that some of the challenges could be overcome.

Updating members on the capital budget for 2017/18, Cllr Theodoulou reported a £111.356 budget with expenditure of £95.875 million, giving a total in year slippage of £15.481 million. Cllr Theodoulou clarified that the current administration continued to invest in the County’s infrastructure with many of the major schemes for Gloucestershire currently in budget and expected to be completed during 2018/19. 

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

1.    Approve the following transfers to reserves and note the subsequent minor £0.033 million overspend budget position in 2017/18, which will be balanced by drawing down on General Reserves.

1.1.£0.500 million to the Adult Social Care Reserve to mitigate risk to the service budget arising from large backdated Ordinary Residence Claims. 

1.2.£0.713 million to a new People Services Reserve to mitigate volatility risk to the service budgets within Adult and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To approve the Highways Capital Grant Programme 2018/19 and to note the decisions taken by the Director of Communities and Infrastructure to implement individual schemes.  

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

1.    Approve the highway capital programme for 2018/19 as set out in paragraphs 2.2 and 2.3 of the decision report, and

2.    Note the Commissioning Director: Community & Infrastructure has approved the implementation of the individual schemes set out in paragraph 2.3 of the report

Cllr Vernon Smith, Cabinet Member for Highways and Flood, gave a detailed summary of the decisions taken to fulfil the Council’s statutory duties in relation to highway maintenance and safety, including an outline of the investment proposals within the Highways Capital Programme.  

Cllr Smith said how pleased he was to update members on the £150 million investment in Gloucestershire’s highways. Other cabinet members shared his enthusiasm, making particular reference to the £23 million plus investment in carriageway resurfacing works and the £2 million plus invested in supporting the programme of major schemes funded by the Gloucestershire (GFirst) Local Enterprise Partnership and Department of Transport. It was noted that a significant amount of national funding had been invested in Gloucestershire in this the first year of a 5 year rolling programme.

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

1.    Approve the highway capital programme for 2018/19 set out in paragraphs 2.2 and 2.3 of the decision report, and

2.    Note the Commissioning Director: Community & Infrastructure had approved the implementation of the individual schemes set out in paragraph 2.3 of the report

To consider entering into an agreement with transport authorities across the South West and the principle of establishing a Sub-National Transport Body in the South West of England.  

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

(1)  Enter into the Memorandum of Understanding and a Heads of Terms agreement with Transport Authorities across the South West to consider the principle of establishing a Sub-National Transport Body in the South West of England in recognition of our mutual and shared interests on terms to be agreed by the Commissioning Director: Communities & Infrastructure, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Economic Growth and Skills, and

(2)  Delegate authority to the Commissioning Director: Communities & Infrastructure in consultation with Cabinet Member for Economic Growth and Skills to represent the County Council during discussions with Transport Authorities across the South West

Cllr Lynden Stowe, Cabinet Member for Economy, Skills and Growth, informed members of the government aspiration to adopt a more strategic approach to national transport investment.

Cllr Stowe believed the proposals presented a sensible approach to the government’s request and clarified that the aim was to improve regional productivity and sustainable economic growth from the establishment of a Sub-National Transport Body for the South West of England. He advised that the proposed arrangement would allow transport authorities to consider and agree mutually shared interests using a more joined up approach. 

Cabinet members welcomed the proposals. Acknowledging Highways England endorsement, Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne thanked officers for the pragmatic response to the government request.

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

(1)  Enter into the Memorandum of Understanding and a Heads of Terms agreement with Transport Authorities across the South West to consider the principle of establishing a Sub-National Transport Body in the South West of England in recognition of our mutual and shared interests on terms to be agreed by the Commissioning Director: Communities & Infrastructure, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Economic Growth and Skills, and

(2)  Delegate authority to the Commissioning Director: Communities & Infrastructure in consultation with Cabinet Member for Economic Growth and Skills to represent the County Council during discussions with Transport Authorities across the South West

To approve the council’s draft strategy for the commissioning of residential and nursing care provision in Gloucestershire.

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

Approve, for consultation, the draft strategy for the commissioning of residential and nursing care provision in Gloucestershire and to delegate authority to the Commissioning Director, Adults and DASS to commence a consultation on the Commissioning Strategy for Care Homes for Older People (Please refer to Appendix A of the decision report)

Cllr Kathy Williams, Cabinet Member for Adult Care (Delivery), outlined the purpose of the report, explaining that it had been the Care Act 2014 that had recommended local authorities to develop a strategy for the commissioning of residential and nursing care home provision.

Cllr Williams informed members that the draft strategy incorporated existing council and NHS health and social care plans, setting out key commissioning priorities and intentions for Older People Care Homes in Gloucestershire.

In considering the proposals, members were advised to take into consideration the impact of the aging population combined with the shortages of specialist accommodation.

Concentrating on commissioning services to promote independence and enabling more people to remain in their own homes, it was noted that this may have resulted in people with complex needs staying within their own communities.

Seeking cabinet approval to support a 3 month consultation period commencing on 18 June 2018, it was agreed that it was important to engage and listen to care home providers, older people and key partners to gain their views on the draft strategy and commissioning intentions.

The council’s 2018/19 budget for Adult Care was reported as £133.2m, 32.2% of the overall Council’s budget.

Having considered all of the information, known proposals, alternative options  and the reasons for the recommendations, Cabinet noted the report and

RESOLVED to: -

Approve, for consultation, the draft strategy for the commissioning of residential and nursing care provision in Gloucestershire and to delegate authority to the Commissioning Director, Adults and DASS to commence a consultation on the Commissioning Strategy for Care Homes for Older People (Please refer to Appendix A of the decision report)