Agenda item

To inform Cabinet of the Gloucestershire County Council response to Covid-19 and the preparation for recovery.

Cabinet received a presentation on the Council’s response to the Covid-19 Emergency.

Having considered the information, Cabinet

RESOLVED to: - 

To note the report and the actions currently being undertaken in response to Covid-19.

The report included information on:

1. The role of the Council in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic and  lockdown restrictions;

2. A summary of the services that had stopped or reduced across the Council

3. An outline of the initial recovery phase for the Council.

Cabinet received a presentation on the Council’s response to the Covid-19 Emergency. The slide-show presentation presented at the meeting is attached for information.

Chief Executive, Pete Bungard, gave a detailed overview of the work of the County Council in response to the Coronavirus (Covid-19) Emergency and in the endeavour to protect the most vulnerable people across the County, including the homeless and people living in Care Homes.

Commending the work of officers, including employees from the Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service and the invaluable work of volunteer workers who have worked tirelessly to support local communities, the Chief Executive referred to the significant number of changes that had been made to coordinate and deliver council services in response to the Covid-19 Pandemic.

Members noted that, within hours of setting up Gloucestershire Help Hub, the Council had been flooded with offers of help from businesses, organisations and residents, totalling over 3,500 to date. Local communities throughout the County established their own support networks to protect the most vulnerable. Gloucestershire County Council staff rose to the challenge, with many staff changing/adopting new roles to support the Council’s response, and many social services colleagues dramatically increasing hours of work to protect the most vulnerable residents. Volunteers from outside the Council responded to the thousands of calls seeking help and support, including delivering food parcels, collecting prescriptions and combatting isolation and loneliness.

Steve Mawson, Executive Director of Corporate Services, outlined the council’s financial position in relation to the Gloucestershire response to the Covid-19 emergency. Details of expenditure incurred, plus details of the funding awarded by Government were provided.

It was reported that, (at the time of the meeting), the Council had spent £3.4m per month to cover the additional costs to deliver support services, (anticipated to rise to £53m for the full year, of which 63% would be required to providing Adult Social Care Services). For the same period, the Government had awarded £28m emergency funding to Gloucestershire, plus a £7m grant in respect of infection control. This was in addition to £300m (national funding) to fund test and trace. The council continues to provide monthly delta returns to keep the Government informed of anticipated expenditure on key issues. Officers remained confident that the Government was listening to the economic recovery needs of the County and that more funding would be made available.

Advising members of the various stages set out to commence the recovery process, officers confirmed that the County Council continued to encourage employees to work from home, (where possible), and was in the process of preparing the main council buildings to provide a safe (Covid-19) environment.

The County Council would continue to work with its partners, including the GFirst LEP (Local Enterprise Partnership) to progress the Gloucestershire recovery process. The Leader of the Council, Cllr Mark Hawthorne,  stressed the need to work together to achieve this ambition.

Cabinet thanked officers for their work and commended the tremendous effort and work of volunteers, NHS and Care Workers in Gloucestershire. It was acknowledged that the Gloucestershire economy would undoubtedly experience a serious set back from the need to respond to the Covid-19 Pandemic and that the County Council, (working with District Council colleagues), would be required to take a lead in addressing the impact of the anticipated outcomes. Key areas of focus would be protecting jobs/creating jobs for young people, delivering planned infrastructure, (vital to development and employment), and the building of new homes.

Cllr Tim Harman, Cabinet for Public Health and Communities, reaffirmed his appreciation for the work undertaken in response to the Covid-19 emergency. Cllr Harman informed members how impressed he was by the work of officers and that it was a privilege to work with the Director of Public Health, Sarah Scott, and her team in responding to the pandemic.

Cabinet colleagues highlighted the work being undertaken within individual portfolio areas and acknowledged both the challenges and the opportunities that might be anticipated in the years ahead. Whilst the prospect of huge challenges were noted, the Leader reassured members that similar challenges in the past had been dealt with successfully.

Having considered the information, Cabinet

RESOLVED to: - 

To note the report and the actions currently being undertaken in response to Covid-19.

The report included information on:

1.    The role of the Council in responding to the Covid-19 pandemic and  lockdown restrictions;

2.    A summary of the services that had stopped or reduced across the Council

3.    An outline of the initial recovery phase for the Council.