Agenda, decisions and minutes

To approve the minutes of the Cabinet meeting, 22^nd November 2023

The minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday 22 November 2023 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 none.

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.

RESOLVED:

1.1.         Approve the responses and action plans attached to this report as Appendices 1, 2 & 3; and

1.2.         Delegate authority to the officers identified in Appendices 1, 2 & 3 to report back to the Scrutiny and Overview Committee, or relevant Sub-Committee, within the periods specified in the agreed responses and action plans, and on progress made in implementing any action plan.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Scrutiny Stage 2 Responses to Recommendations arising from the Home Sub-Committee meeting which was held on 24 July 2023.

The recommendations covered the Housing Transformation, the Mobilisation of the Responsive Repairs Contract, and the New Housing Strategy, to which the report details.

The Chair of Scrutiny and Overview Committee, Councillor Rowenna Davis, shared with Cabinet that:

-        The Scrutiny Homes Sub-Committee welcomed the Executive Mayors decision to offer Domestic Violence Training to all frontline staff, following the recommendation from Scrutiny Members who recognised staff dealing directly with families in their homes, where training would help identify support to families where required.

-        It was noted that other recommendations were turned down such as the specialist repairs teams for highly vulnerable residents.

-        The Scrutiny and Overview Committee (the Committee) commended the Future Options for Maintained Nursery School report and the responses to the consultation and acknowledged that whilst doing nothing was not an option, the decision to properly explore alternatives were welcomed to improve opportunities for young people; further, a briefing was scheduled with the Committee on the ‘Next Steps’ where they would add best value along the way.

-        The Committee noted that the Council’s finances and the Period 6 Financial Performance report suggested that the council were forecasting a smaller use of the corporate contingency budget at the end of the financial year, due to withdrawing down resources from an alternative backup fund in response to increased homelessness as addressed within the report and would welcome more insight to these pressures.

-        Lastly, the Committee noted the need to increase Asset Disposals to meet the council’s debts and credited the council’s increased pace of sales to date, and emphasised that timely communication to tenants was essential, not least as some treasured organisations would be required to find new homes.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED to:

1.1.         Approve the responses and action plans attached to this report as Appendices 1, 2 & 3; and

1.2.         Delegate authority to the officers identified in Appendices 1, 2 & 3 to report back to the Scrutiny and Overview Committee, or relevant Sub-Committee, within the periods specified in the agreed responses and action plans, and on progress made in implementing any action plan.

RESOLVED:

1.1.          Note the benefits of listening to the community and families, who have responded on the proposal to reduce the number of MNS within the borough, via closure or amalgamation. The responses of which are included in the analysis of the feedback to the informal consultation (Appendix 1).

1.2.         Note that doing nothing is not an option; but request that officers explore and carry out more detailed modelling of other options suggested as part of the consultation process, to determine if any of these are feasible and will make MNS financially viable. This is to be done in collaboration with the MNS within the next 3 months. (Noting that other options may also develop through this process.

1.3.         Note, if after further exploration a sustainable model is not achievable there would be a requirement to return to the proposal within the informal consultation.

1.4.         Implement any actions, that came forward as part of the consultation, that can be delivered immediately, with the MNS that have a financial deficit, so that current deficit does not increase further but reduces.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Future Options for Maintained Nursery Schools – consultation outcomes report which summarised the outcomes of the informal consultation with residents and key partners n the future of Maintained Nursery Schools.

The Executive Mayor acknowledged that some options were received as part of the consultation and working collaboratively with the nurseries to explore the options to address feasibility, would ensure that Maintained Nursery Schools were financially sustainable.

The Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Councillor Maria Gatland spoke to this report thanking those who took part in the consultation on the proposal to reduce the number of maintained nursery schools via closure or amalgamation. She informed Cabinet that the current model was financially unsustainable, and the consultation provided options for feasibility and sustainable model that could be delivered through the funding allocated by government. The report highlighted that doing nothing was not an option and other models were explored collaborating with the maintained nurseries within three months. Further, the recommendations enabled officers to consider the new childcare measures within detailed modelling of other options.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Amy Foster thanked officers for hard work for informal consultation brought into the report. Although she supported the recommendations, she had asked whether the three-month window would not create a destabilised uncertainty for families and staff whether it would be open in September, especially given that recruitment and enrolment processes for September had started.

The Executive Mayor highlighted that the three-month window was to access the feasibility to review what worked and did not work and making decisions within a timely manner. The Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Councillor Maria Gatland, added that this was a very sensible recommendation.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED to:

1.1.         Note the benefits of listening to the community and families, who have responded on the proposal to reduce the number of MNS within the borough, via closure or amalgamation. The responses of which are included in the analysis of the feedback to the informal consultation (Appendix 1).

1.2.         Note that doing nothing is not an option; but request that officers explore and carry out more detailed modelling of other options suggested as part of the consultation process, to determine if any of these are feasible and will make MNS financially viable. This is to be done in collaboration with the MNS within the next 3 months. (Noting that other options may also develop through this process.

1.3.         Note, if after further exploration a sustainable model is not achievable there would be a requirement to return to the proposal within the informal consultation.

1.4.         Implement any actions, that came forward as part of the consultation, that can be delivered immediately, with the MNS that have a financial deficit, so that current deficit does not increase further but reduces.

RESOLVED: To

1.1.         Consider:

1.1.1     The feedback received from the Homes Scrutiny Committee held on 23^rd October,

1.1.2     The feedback received on the draft Housing Strategy 2023-2028 from residents and partners via the engagement and consultation process as detailed in Appendix B, and

1.1.3     The Equalities Impact Assessment detailed in Appendix C

1.1.4     The Housing Delivery Plan detailed in Appendix D

1.2.         Delegate authority to Corporate Director to make minor amendments in conjunction with Executive Mayor and Cabinet Member prior to publication.

1.3.         Agree the Housing Strategy 2023- 2028 as detailed in Appendix A; and

1.4.         RECOMMEND the Housing Strategy 2023- 2028 to Full Council for adoption.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Housing Strategy 2023-28 report and highlighted that over the past eighteen months the council had seen improvements in the new housing repairs contractors, a new Residents Charter to ensure residents had a voice in decisions that affected them, the redevelopment plans for Regina Road, and a reshaping of the Housing Directorate to better serve residents.

The Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Lynne Hale spoke to the report and shared with Cabinet that the strategy and delivery plan were important in enabling council to address the increasingly complex and challenging context within which the council delivery the housing services. As such, the strategies which included the Asset Management Strategy, the Resident Engagement Strategy and the Homelessness Prevention and Rough Sleeping Strategy, demonstrated a step-by step, forward thinking and a proactive approach to shaping the future of the Housing services. Positive feedback to the draft priorities and objectives of the housing strategy 2023-28 through consultation were detailed within the report and had been incorporated into the strategy. The co-production to the strategy had involved officers from across the council and key issues for the housing services had been identified, such as: the provision of appropriate accommodation for care experienced young people, older people and the development of the local plan.

The Corporate Director for Housing, Susmita Sen, added that the strategic document would underpin a number of strategies and ambition to protect services for residents with particular focus on the landlord’s function and the regulator of social housing and this also formed part of the voluntary undertaking.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Chrishni Reshekaron welcomed the housing strategy, though noted that the strategy could be stronger in the following areas: improving standards in the private rented sector; tackling antisocial behaviour in all tenures; meeting the net zero commitment; and improving housing options from victims of domestic violence and asked whether these four areas required sufficient attention in the strategy.

The Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Homes, Councillor Lynne Hale responded that though all the areas mentioned were important, the current focus was to have the housing service in order to provide good decent services to residents. The Executive Mayor added that the elements mentioned would be addressed within other areas of the council such as the antisocial behaviour through the community safety plan, and the net zero and carbon area addressed within the local plan, to name a few, highlighting that these elements fall in other areas within the council and not just within housing.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED to:

1.1.         Consider:

1.1.1     the feedback received from the Homes Scrutiny Committee held on 23^rd October,

1.1.2     the feedback received on the draft Housing Strategy 2023-2028 from residents and partners via the engagement and consultation process as detailed in Appendix B, and

1.1.3     the Equalities Impact Assessment detailed in Appendix C

1.1.4     The Housing Delivery Plan detailed in Appendix D

1.2.         Delegate authority to Corporate Director to make minor  ...  view the full minutes text for item 94/23

RESOLVED:

1.1.         To agree the Local Implementation Plan delivery programme for 2024/25 including:

• Central Croydon (£1,800,000)

• Corridors (£1,025,000)

• Neighbourhoods (£375,000)

• School Streets (£250,000)

• Road Safety (£200,000)

• Active Travel (£394,000)

• Bus Priority (£550,000)

• Cycle Parking (£100,000)

• Cycle Training (£130,000)

as set out at in the Appendix A to this report and forming the third year of the Local Implementation Plan Delivery Plan to be submitted to Transport for London to release Local Implementation Plan (LIP) Funding for 2024/25.

1.2.         To agree that the Corporate Director, Sustainable Communities, Regeneration and Economic Recovery (in consultation with the Mayor and the Cabinet Member for Streets and Environment) finalise and approve the Local Implementation Plan 2024/25 delivery programme for submission to Transport for London, making any necessary adjustments to the programme prior to and post submission.

1.3.         To agree the expenditure in 2024/25 set out in this report and Appendix A, subject to funds having been confirmed and allocated by external funders and Council funding agreed by Budget Council.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Transport for London Local Implementation Plan (LIP) Healthy Streets Funding and Programme 2024/25 report which was a refresh to the LIP programme agreed at Cabinet in January 2023. The report noted the changes in investment in Central Croydon, the Corridors, the cycle scheme and the school streets programmes amongst other elements.

The Cabinet Member for Streets and Environment, Councillor Scott Roche, spoke to the report highlighting that the LIP programme was recommended to continue the focus on the regeneration of the town centre, and this was funded through TfL safer and healthy streets. Cabinet heard that not all requests would be met in full, as the programme was ambitious, however, the report itself was to receive comments and approval from TfL. The programme also supported the TfL and the London Transport strategy. The delivery programme focused on the areas highlighted within Appendix A of the report. Further, the recent Love Bid for £18.5 million pound to help transform Croydon town centre was an addition to the proposed LIP programme which would provide the perfect opportunity for a step change in the town centre by bringing significant additional funding for transport and public realm recruitments.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Streets and Environment, Councillor Christopher Herman, welcomed the proposal around the closure of several subways in favour of the service level crossings in the town centre, noting that there were some serious wellbeing concerns with the boroughs most vulnerable people who used the subways for shelter, and asked what the council’s plan was to support them.

The Executive Mayor responded that there were a number of strategies to respond to homelessness and appropriate measures would be taken. The idea of a subway to create shelter was not identified for people and thus the right support for those using subways for protection and shelter would be addressed within the right services.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED:

1.1.         To agree the Local Implementation Plan delivery programme for 2024/25 including:

• Central Croydon (£1,800,000)

• Corridors (£1,025,000)

• Neighbourhoods (£375,000)

• School Streets (£250,000)

• Road Safety (£200,000)

• Active Travel (£394,000)

• Bus Priority (£550,000)

• Cycle Parking (£100,000)

• Cycle Training (£130,000)

as set out at in the Appendix A to this report and forming the third year of the Local Implementation Plan Delivery Plan to be submitted to Transport for London to release Local Implementation Plan (LIP) Funding for 2024/25.

1.2.         To agree that the Corporate Director, Sustainable Communities, Regeneration and Economic Recovery (in consultation with the Mayor and the Cabinet Member for Streets and Environment) finalise and approve the Local Implementation Plan 2024/25 delivery programme for submission to Transport for London, making any necessary adjustments to the programme prior to and post submission.

1.3.         To agree the expenditure in 2024/25 set out in this report and Appendix A, subject to funds having been confirmed and allocated by external funders and Council funding agreed by Budget Council.

RESOLVED:

1.1.         To note the General Fund revenue budget outturn is forecast to breakeven at Period 6, after the forecast utilisation of £63m capitalisation directions requested from DLUHC, £3.5m of the corporate risk contingency budget and £2.2m of the corporate economic demand pressures budget. It is not planned to utilise the risk contingency budget and directorates will work to bring the service directorate positions within budget.

1.2.         To approve the movement of £2.2m economic demand pressures budget from Corporate to the Housing directorate as set out in paragraph 4.95. This is a budget transfer within directorates, not a change to overall budget, and is in line with the intended purpose of the £5.5m economic demand pressures budget agreed at full Council in March 2023.

1.3.         To note the progress in MTFS savings achievement as set out in paragraph 4.105.

1.4.         To note the work that has commenced on the Council’s Transformation Programme as set out from paragraph 4.100.

1.5.         To note the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) revenue budget outturn is forecast to overspend by £12.0m.

1.6.         To note the General Fund capital programme 2023-24 forecast underspend of £17.6m against the revised capital budget of £144.7m.

1.7.         To note the HRA capital programme 2023-24 forecast overspend of £5.7m against the revised capital budget of £33.2m.

1.8.         To note the Council’s historic borrowing and debt burden continues to be critical to the sustainability of the Council’s revenue budget. Dialogue with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) continues, and the Council is seeking further financial support from Government in regards to its level of indebtedness and balancing the budget to ensure it can deliver sustainable local government services.

1.9.         To note that the Council continues to operate Spend Control Panels to ensure that tight financial control and assurance oversight are maintained.

1.10.     To note that current forecasts are based on the best available information at the time and will be subject to review and change during the financial year.

The Executive Mayor introduced the 2023-24 Period 6 Financial Performance Report that addressed the current forecast and continued to project a balance budget at the year end, which had been achieved through careful financial monitoring.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings shared with Cabinet that the report was another overall forecast yearend balance position, highlighting that the HRA remained at the £12 million pounds overspend position as previously reported. He informed that the use of the corporate contingency had reduced from £4.1 million pounds to £3.5 million pounds though the aim remained for all departments that were showing overspend positions, to not use the corporate contingency at year end and would seek to bring overspend back within their normal budgets. The adult social care was credited for their improved departmental position within their budget which had reduced from a £1.4 million pounds overspend position down to a £0.2 million pounds position. Housing department had shown a £2.2 million pound pressure relating to emergency accommodation which was a sector wide pressure met using economic demands pressure budget that had been set aside for such events. Both changes were identified as potential movements and had crystallised as anticipated. Lastly, the Local Government finance policy statement was recently published, and it was clear that there was no fundamental change in the local government funding and the assumptions within the MTFS would therefore remain valid.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Callton Young asked a question on the rationale for using the economic demand reserve in particular and in respect of the backlog of 2000 housing cases that had come to light and was there confidence that the external auditors would see that new challenge being rooted in the cost of living crisis. Further, why was the council perceived £5 million pounds from this year’s public health grant into the public health reserve when Croydon residents were in need of improved health care provision now and prefer not to wait until next year for it.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, responded that the use of the economic demand reserve was used purposely for such pressures as it was impossible to predict anything that would happen in each department over the course of the year. The emergency accommodation was particularly impacted due to the asylum-seeking support where there were over 1000 cases which was producing an in-year pressure. The use of the reserve would be for these very reasons. With regards to the public health care, it was noted that all expenditure on public health were reviewed on an on-going basis. The money spent would see the outcomes required which took planning, it would be used in a timely manner for the intended purpose and was different to instant demand pressures. The Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Social Care, Councillor Yvette Hopley, added that the health services were aware of the contingency within the budget and addressed that the money would be spent in a timely manner  ...  view the full minutes text for item 96/23

RESOLVED:

1.1.         Have due regard to the equalities impact assessment in Appendix 2 in making the decisions set out in these recommendations.

1.2.         Approve the fees and charges as set out in Appendix 1 to the extent that they fall within the authority of the Executive to determine.

1.3.         Note that changes to parking charges are linked to the parking policy transformation and separate consultation is taking place on the draft parking policy.

1.4.         Approve delegation for further in-year amendments to fees and charges for the financial year 2024-25, to the relevant Corporate Director following consultation with the relevant Cabinet Member and the Executive Mayor.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Fees and Charges 2024-25 report which contained the annual review of fees and charges for the services across the council.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, shared with Cabinet that the report was a standard update which was restored in the correct place within the annual schedule of financial papers. There were different rules and procedures applied across the list which related to inflation changes, legislation, cost recovery limits, subsidiaries and statutory prices which would affect many of the proposed charges. Further details were addressed within Appendix A of the report.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Callton Young, enquired about the council’s plan to put the careline charges up above inflation where in some cases as high as 15% and asked how a 15% hike would justify on careline users.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings responded that the changes in some of the prices related to a number of requirements where some related directly to inflation and others related to cost of service provision which vary from sector to sector. It was noted that the fees and charges report related to service provision. The Corporate Director for Adults Social Care & Health (DASS & Calidcott Guardian) Annette McPartland, added that in the adult and social care package, people were means tested on their ability to pay, though costs had increased in line with inflation, it was also in line with the costs of the care provided.

The Executive Mayor RESOLVED to:

1.1.         Have due regard to the equalities impact assessment in Appendix 2 in making the decisions set out in these recommendations.

1.2.         Approve the fees and charges as set out in Appendix 1 to the extent that they fall within the authority of the Executive to determine.

1.3.         Note that changes to parking charges are linked to the parking policy transformation and separate consultation is taking place on the draft parking policy.

1.4.         Approve delegation for further in-year amendments to fees and charges for the financial year 2024-25, to the relevant Corporate Director following consultation with the relevant Cabinet Member and the Executive Mayor.

RESOLVED:

1.1.         Approve the Council’s 2023-29 General Fund Capital Programme which includes planned expenditure of £486.53m (including capitalisation directions) across the six years.

1.2.         Approve the Council incurring nil borrowing for 2023-24, with borrowing projected of £28.38m in 2024-25 and £175.17m over the four years after 2024-25. The cost of this borrowing will be factored into the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan for final agreement at Full Council resulting in 2024-25 total interest charge and Minimum Revenue Provision of £72.5m.

1.3.         Approve the Council 2024-25 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Capital Programme with a total investment planned of £57.26m with borrowing of £24.80m.

1.4.         Approve an increase to the 2023-24 HRA capital budget from £33.248m to £37.162m, owing to increased major repairs and improvements, with this £3.914m increase funded by HRA reserves.

1.5.         Approve the Council’s Capital Strategy, as detailed within Appendix A of this report.

1.6.         Note the Council’s historic legacy borrowing and debt burden continues to be critical to the sustainability of the Council’s revenue budget. Dialogue with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) continues, and the Council is seeking further financial support from Government in regards to its level of indebtedness and balancing the budget to ensure it can deliver sustainable local government services.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Capital Programme and Capital Strategy 2023-29 report, which outlined the strategic direction for Croydon’s capital management and investment plans. The programme saw the council make capital investments across the borough to provide improved infrastructure for residents whilst managing the impact of debt. Further, the strategy discusses planned expenditures from 2023 to 2029 and would deliver investment for the public in line with the objective of the Mayor’s business plan.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, in summary shared with Cabinet that the paper detailed the current forecast capital spending borrowing for the council, where debt and its associated costs were significant financial considerations in relation to the council’s sustainability, and therefore it was imperative that the council did all they could to manage capital spend. The forecast still resulted in an increase of the general fund debt due to the continuing need for capitalisation directions, which highlighted the ongoing unsustainable impact of capitalisation as a means of bridging the revenue gap for this council. However, the council had continued to bear down on capital expenditure, and the regular review of all capital expenses and slippage were ongoing.

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Callton Young, enquired on the Mayor’s debt write off negotiation with DLUHC, and asked what progress on the negotiations were being made, and further to provide a high level of indication of the alternative options that were being explored.

The Executive Mayor responded that there were further conversations with DLUHC officials at both civil servant and political level, with various options still under negotiations.

The Executive Mayor in cabinet RESOLVED to approve and to recommend the following to Full Council:

1.1.         Approve the Council’s 2023-29 General Fund Capital Programme which includes planned expenditure of £486.53m (including capitalisation directions) across the six years.

1.2.         Approve the Council incurring nil borrowing for 2023-24, with borrowing projected of £28.38m in 2024-25 and £175.17m over the four years after 2024-25. The cost of this borrowing will be factored into the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan for final agreement at Full Council resulting in 2024-25 total interest charge and Minimum Revenue Provision of £72.5m.

1.3.         Approve the Council 2024-25 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) Capital Programme with a total investment planned of £57.26m with borrowing of £24.80m.

1.4.         Approve an increase to the 2023-24 HRA capital budget from £33.248m to £37.162m, owing to increased major repairs and improvements, with this £3.914m increase funded by HRA reserves.

1.5.         Approve the Council’s Capital Strategy, as detailed within Appendix A of this report.

1.6.         Note the Council’s historic legacy borrowing and debt burden continues to be critical to the sustainability of the Council’s revenue budget. Dialogue with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) continues, and the Council is seeking further financial support from Government in regards to its level of indebtedness and balancing the budget to ensure it can deliver sustainable local government services.

RESOLVED:

1.1.         To approve the update to the Annual Procurement Plan for 2023/24 as set out in Appendix A.

1.2.         To approve the delegated decisions in the revised APP to those Lead Members or Officers as stated in Appendix A that includes the procurement strategy and award decisions, the duration of the contracts and contract values.

1.3.         The delegated decisions shall only be exercised following recommendations from the Contracts & Commissioning Board, which include approval from both the Lead Cabinet Member and the Cabinet Member for Finance.

1.4.         To allow for minor changes to proceed whilst retaining the agreed delegated so long as none of the following thresholds for changes are exceeded:

i.                 Contract value exceeds that proposed in the APP/Quarterly Update Report, by the lesser of £500K or 25%, or the new aggregate value exceeds £1m and it becomes a key decision

ii.                Substantial / material changes to procurement from that defined in the APP/Quarterly Update Report e.g. material risks are identified

(Should either of those thresholds be exceeded, the delegation cannot be exercised, and the decision shall be recommended to the Executive Mayor, unless a further delegation is approved. Where a delegated decision is a Key Decision to Officers, it must be made in consultation with the Lead Cabinet Member).

The Executive Mayor introduced the Quarterly Procurement Plan Update report which continued to streamline and improve the council’s approach to procurement to ensure delivery in a timely and transparent way. The report highlighted the changes to the Annual Procurement Plan as well as the governance processes for the agreement on each of the contracts.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, informed Cabinet that point 4.3 of the report should state: “For this quarterly update, there are 11 additions and 5 amendments to planned procurements with 6 additions and 3 amendment to contracts extensions and variations.”

The Shadow Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Callton Young asked a question on whether it was agreed that the ongoing work by the Constitution Working Group and the General Purposes Committee, where recent revelations had shown that the contracts and procurement work had been snarled up by failure to delegate decision-making appropriately.

The Executive Mayor responded that the scheme of delegation had not snarled within the organisation and worked very effectively, with all delegations listed within the report provided.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED:

1.1.         To approve the update to the Annual Procurement Plan for 2023/24 as set out in Appendix A.

1.2.         To approve the delegated decisions in the revised APP to those Lead Members or Officers as stated in Appendix A that includes the procurement strategy and award decisions, the duration of the contracts and contract values.

1.3.         The delegated decisions shall only be exercised following recommendations from the Contracts & Commissioning Board, which include approval from both the Lead Cabinet Member and the Cabinet Member for Finance.

1.4.         To allow for minor changes to proceed whilst retaining the agreed delegated so long as none of the following thresholds for changes are exceeded:

1. Contract value exceeds that proposed in the APP/Quarterly Update Report, by the lesser of £500K or 25%, or the new aggregate value exceeds £1m and it becomes a key decision

2. Substantial / material changes to procurement from that defined in the APP/Quarterly Update Report e.g. material risks are identified

(Should either of those thresholds be exceeded, the delegation cannot be exercised, and the decision shall be recommended to the Executive Mayor, unless a further delegation is approved. Where a delegated decision is a Key Decision to Officers, it must be made in consultation with the Lead Cabinet Member).

RESOLVED:

1.1.         To note the progress made on tranche 1 disposals.

1.2.         To approve tranche 2 of sites for disposals as set out in Appendix 1 of this report together with indicative values in Appendix 1 (exempt appendix) of the Part B report.

1.3.         To delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Resources and s151 Officer to agree, in consultation with the Executive Mayor and Cabinet Member for Finance, the terms and final price for each disposal included within tranche 2.

1.4.         The delegations in this report shall only be exercised following:

i.                 sign off of a business case/ financial assessment by the Corporate Management Team (CMT)

ii.                formal Red Book valuation, if required, on a property to be sold; and

iii.              formal marketing unless there is a clear special purchaser or offer made considerably in excess of the market value.

1.5.         To note that the target value for disposals for tranche 2 is £24.8m and that disposals of tranche 2 assets will commence immediately alongside tranche 1 disposals.

1.6.         To seek approval to commence consultation with the Voluntary Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) on the proposed amendments to the Community Asset Transfer (CAT) Policy set out in paragraphs 4.15 to 4.21 and to delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Resources and S151 Officer, in consultation with the Executive Mayor and Cabinet Member for Communities and Culture, to approve a final amended CAT Policy (Draft in Part A Appendix 3) having considered the feedback provided through the consultation with VCFS organisations.

The Executive Mayor introduced the Progress update on tranche 1 asset disposals, seeking approval for tranche 2 of asset for disposal and approval of the update of the Community Asset Transfer Policy - Part A report, which provided an update on the sale of the tranche 1 assets and sought to seek approval for the tranche 2 asset disposals. The report also sought to update and consult on the Community Asset Transfer Policy.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, shared with Cabinet that the report was the second of the three tranche assets, which formed a key part of managing the council’s debt levels and associated costs. He further noted that an asset listed on the disposable programme could have a variety of actual impacts ranging from pre-negotiating of existing lease arrangements to the possibility of also outright sale; this did not automatically follow the occupants of individual assets where they would be required to leave the building of it being sold. Similarly, any existing leases with the council would be considered of tenants of other buildings. Further, each asset was individual and to be handled accordingly. Councillor Jason Cummings was pleased with the progress made thus far and noted that the council needed to continue to with the work to ensure that the forward capital receipt targets were met.   

The Leader of the Opposition, Councillor Stuart King, had asked a few questions, firstly, enquiring on the time frame of tranche 3 that was indicated to commence within twelve months, and asked for a steer on when the tranche would be published and begin; secondly, in relation to tranche 2 and the four properties to be sold, whether the four properties had been recently made vacant or were considered long term vacancies; and lastly, in relation to the Community Asset Transfer (CATs) Policy, was the intention for the publication (of the scheduling of properties that may be eligible for CATS) to occur during as part of the consultation or to follow after the conclusion of the consultation.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Councillor Jason Cummings, responded that with regards to the timescales for tranche 3, the intention was to complete them as quickly as possible due to the impact of reducing external affairs and borrowing and costs that were associated. Though the council had capacity to undertake this work. There was no set time for tranche 3 to be published, but it would be at its reasonable and earliest opportunity. Further, there would be more information with regards to properties that may be more suitable for CAT transfer rather than vacant properties that were present and disposed primarily for capital receipt. The Executive Mayor added that the Community Asset Transfer paper would go out to consultation following oversight at the Scrutiny and Overview Committee (in Part B) before Christmas, with the policy to go to consultation to be approved before the sites would be published in the public domain.

The Executive Mayor in Cabinet RESOLVED to:  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100/23

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 was not required.