Agenda and minutes

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2022 as an accurate record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2022 were agreed as an accurate record.

Members and co-opted Members of the Council are reminded that, in accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct and the statutory provisions of the Localism Act, they are required to consider in advance of each meeting whether they have a disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI), an other registrable interest (ORI) or a non-registrable interest (NRI) in relation to any matter on the agenda.  If advice is needed, Members should contact the Monitoring Officer in good time before the meeting.  

If any Member or co-opted Member of the Council identifies a DPI or ORI which they have not already registered on the Council’s register of interests or which requires updating, they should complete the disclosure form which can be obtained from Democratic Services at any time, copies of which will be available at the meeting for return to the Monitoring Officer.

Members and co-opted Members are required to disclose any DPIs and ORIs at the meeting: -

·     Where the matter relates to a DPI they may not participate in any discussion or vote on the matter and must not stay in the meeting unless granted a dispensation.  

·     Where the matter relates to an ORI they may not vote on the matter unless granted a dispensation.   

·     Where a Member or co-opted Member has an NRI which directly relates to their financial interest or wellbeing, or that of a relative or close associate, they must disclose the interest at the meeting, may not take part in any discussion or vote on the matter and must not stay in the meeting unless granted a dispensation.  Where a matter affects the NRI of a Member or co-opted Member, section 9 of Appendix B of the Code of Conduct sets out the test which must be applied by the Member to decide whether disclosure is required.

The Chair will invite Members to make their disclosure orally at the commencement of Agenda item 3, to be recorded in the minutes.

There were no disclosures of interest declared at the meeting.

To receive notice of any business not on the agenda which in the opinion of the Chair, by reason of special circumstances, be considered as a matter of urgency.

There were no items of urgent business.

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee is asked: -

1.               To note the Cabinet report considered by the Executive Mayor at the meeting on 6 July 2022.

2.               To consider whether there are any concerns not highlighted in the report, that should be highlighted to the Executive Mayor and his Cabinet.

3.               To consider whether there should be any changes required to the Scrutiny Work Programme for 2022-23 as a result of this item.

The Committee considered the ‘Opening the Books – Returning the Council to Financial Stability’ report, the recommendations of which had been agreed by the Executive Mayor at the Cabinet meeting on 6 July 2022. The report set out the rationale for the decision taken by the Executive Mayor to allocate a budget of up to £500,000 to undertake a review of the Council’s finances, including bringing in external consultants. The purpose of the Committee scrutinising this report was to review the proposals as well as taking a wider look at the Council’s finances.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, attended the meeting and introduced the report. It was highlighted that the Council’s finances had received significant attention over the past two years due to both the Council’s own actions and external pressures creating a perfect storm. There had been unforeseen issues that had arisen in the past two years that were still hanging over the Council’s budget including continued uncertainty over the past three year’s accounts, which still needed to be signed off. To continue the financial recovery of the Council, the new Administration had identified the Opening the Books review as a means of discovering any further issues within the Council’s budget to ensure that going forward it was on a firm financial footing.

It was recognised that there was not sufficient capacity within the Council’s existing workforce to deliver this review, therefore it was necessary to bring in additional external resource. As part of the process, Council staff would receive training to ensure they the right skills were in place to manage their respective budgets going forward.

The Council’s Chief Executive, Katherine Kerswell, advised the Committee that the approach would mirror the approach used by the Rapid Review in November 2020. It would also complement the review undertaken by PWC on the Council’s liabilities and companies. A member of the Improvement & Assurance Panel had agreed that any such review should be seen as good practice, as it would increase the Council’s understanding of its balance sheet.

Following the introduction, the Committee was given the opportunity to question the information provided in the report. The first question sought further information on the plan to upskill staff as part of the process. It was confirmed that the external consultancy firm delivering the project was working on a brief for the training based upon a needs analysis. Once this work was complete, a training programme based upon this would be delivered. Training would be provided to all budget managers and finance officers, to ensure that all involved knew what best practice was and understood the expected financial culture. Once this initial training had been completed, an assessment would be provided by the consultant to outline whether further training was required. At this stage, another assessment of the Council’s financial maturity would be made, to judge the progress made since the previous assessment in 2021.

In addition to training, the importance of creating a culture of financial discipline across the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 40/22

The Scrutiny & Overview Committee is asked to review the information gathered from its preliminary meetings with Community Groups and Council officers.

The Committee considered a report set out in both the agenda and the accompanying supplement, summarising the feedback received from two meetings it had held to investigate the impact of the cost of living crisis upon the borough. The first meeting had invited local community leaders and representatives from the community and voluntary sector to share their experience of the impact from the rising cost of living. The second meeting was with council officers whose services had direct contact with residents.

Feedback from the meeting with community and voluntary sector groups found a number of common issues for residents around engaging with the Council, such as digital exclusion financial literacy and general illiteracy. There was also concern from the organisation about their own ability to continue to provide support given rising costs and agreed that a greater level of communication between themselves and the Council was needed to maximise the support provided to residents in the borough. A fully summary of both meetings can be found in the agenda for this meeting.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, agreed that the cost of living crisis was impacting upon everyone and highlighted that it was those with the least options who were being hit hardest. Although the Council had a role to play in supporting residents, particularly through connecting people to support, the scale of the issue was such that further intervention from the national Government was required. The Council needed to ensure it was delivering the best outcomes it could as efficiently as possible.

Members of the Corporate Management Team were also in attendance at the meeting and provided their initial feedback to the findings of the Committee. It was acknowledged that digital exclusion was a big issue, and the contact centre was being reviewed to make it easier for residents to get in contact with the Council. The library service provided free access to computers and printing, with 3,800 hours available per week. Library staff were also able to provide practical support such as help with setting up email addresses, preparing job applications and assisting with other applications. Croydon Adult Learning and Training (CALAT) also worked to promote digital literacy and exclusion including providing laptops for those who were unable to afford them.

It was highlighted that the Council’s website had been updated to ensure that information about the support available was easily located from the frontpage of the site. This page also signposted to other organisations that may be able to provide support. It was agreed that this webpage was both useful and comprehensive.

It was noted that the Household Support Fund was available online, however concern was raised, based on anecdotal reports, about the Council’s use of enforcement to collect Council Tax arrears. Assurance was provided to the Committee that the use of enforcement was on hold, with support provided instead wherever possible.

It was acknowledged that there were always more ways in which the Council could engage with the voluntary sector, and the new  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41/22

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee is asked: -

1.     To note the draft version of the Work Programme that will continue to be developed over the summer period by the Scrutiny Chairs.

2.     Consider whether there are any other items that should be provisionally added to the work programme as a result of the discussions held during the meeting.

The Committee considered a report set out on pages 35 to 42 of the agenda, which set out a range of potential items for consideration by Scrutiny as part of its work programme in the year ahead. It was confirmed that the Scrutiny Chairs would work to refine this list before the next meeting by scoping items for possible scheduling in the work programme.

It was also confirmed that discussions continued about the possibility of splitting the workload of the Streets, Environment & Homes Sub-Committee by setting up a new Homes Sub-Committee. A further update on the outcome of these discussions should be available for the next meeting.

Resolved: That the draft work programme is noted.

The following motion is to be moved and seconded where it is proposed to exclude the press and public from the remainder of a meeting:

“That, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information falling within those paragraphs indicated in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.”

This motion was not required.