Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence from Members.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Claire Bath, Malcolm Farrell and Ron Parker.

Apologies were also received from Shadow Executive Members, Councillors Philip Broadhead and Nicola Greene.

To receive information on any changes in the membership of the Committee.

Note – where members of the Committee are unable to attend they may nominate a substitute member from the same Shadow Authority group to attend in their absence by contacting the proper officer in writing, prior to the meeting, using the contact details on this agenda.

There were no substitute members for this meeting.

Councillors are required to comply with the requirements of the Localism Act 2011 regarding disclosable pecuniary interests. Declarations received will be reported at the meeting.

For the purpose of transparency Members made the following declarations in relation to Item 6 on the Shadow Executive Committee agenda for 15 January, which set out a recommendation from the Tricuro Executive Shareholder Group:

• Councillor Chris Wakefield reported that he worked for an organisation which provides domiciliary care within Dorset
• Councillor Sue Spittle reported that a family member’s girlfriend worked for Tricuro

Note: A Member raised a question on this recommendation as part of the LGR Programme update at clause 6 below. It was not a specific agenda item for detailed scrutiny at this meeting of the O&S Committee.

a.       To confirm the record of decisions from the meeting held on 10 December 2018, circulated at 4a.

b.       To consider the Committee’s action sheet, circulated at 4b.

a.    The record of decisions of the meeting held on 10 December 2018 was confirmed as an accurate record, subject to the inclusion of the following details in italics:

Minute number 52, page 9: ‘Councillor Anderson put forward a motion….. The proposal was seconded by Councillor Clark, but upon being put to the vote, LOST : 4 votes in favour, 5 votes against, and 3 abstentions.

b.       The Committee’s action sheet was noted and the Chief Executive for the new BCP Council agreed to take on and report back to the Committee on the actions listed under item 40.

To receive any public questions or statements submitted in accordance with the Constitution.  Further information on the requirements for submitting questions and statements is available to view at the following link:-

https://bcpshadowauthority.files.wordpress.com/2018/07/public-participation-e28093-extract-from-the-constitution.pdf

The deadline for the submission of public questions is 10.00 am on Thursday 3 January 2019

The deadline for the submission of a statement is 12.00 noon on Tuesday 8 January 2019. 

There were no public issues raised.

To consider an update from officers on the progress of the LGR Programme.

Note: The Shadow Executive report on this item will be published on 7 January 2019 at the following address: https://moderngov.bcpshadowauthority.com/ieListMeetings.aspx?CId=138&Year=0

The LGR Programme Director introduced the report which provided the Committee with an update on activities within the programme undertaken in the last period. He confirmed that the programme remained consistent with the plan previously agreed by the BCP Joint Committee. The governance structures in place were functioning well with constructive input from elected Members through the Phase 2 Delivery Boards, Task and Finish Groups, and Shadow Overview and Scrutiny (O&S) arrangements.

The LGR Programme Director outlined the progress of individual Task and Finish Groups, as set out in paragraphs 6 – 10 of the report. He also referred to the quarterly Budget Monitoring Statement appended to the report which indicated that the programme remained within budget. It was noted that there were no risks or issues to be escalated at this time.

Officers in attendance responded to questions and comments from Members regarding the following matters arising from the report:

• It had been agreed to reschedule the report on the proposed BCP Constitution to allow sufficient time to consider additional feedback and prepare a final draft version for submission to the Shadow O&S Committee and Shadow Executive Committee in February, prior to adoption by the Shadow Authority.
• It was confirmed that the Civic Functions Task and Finish Group was considering mayoral arrangements and protocols for all three areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and  Poole. There would be an opportunity to consult with Members on the discretionary aspects of future arrangements before the next report to the Shadow Executive Committee in March.
• A Member referred to the budget monitoring position and asked if there were risks associated with the apparent underspend of £405,920 for infrastructure investment for ICT. The LGR Programme Director explained that although there was an element of this work which had to be done by 31 March 2019, the original project timetable, including Phase 2, extended to September 2019. There had never been an intention or commitment to complete all elements in time for April 2019. The actual spend would be drawn down over the next three months as suppliers completed the work which was required before April, and this would appear on the next budget monitoring statement. The Committee was assured that supplier relationships were in place and progressing in accordance with the project plan.
• A Member asked if the £1.5 million figure for redundancy and restructure costs was likely to be over or under assessed. The LGR Programme Director explained that this was the provisional allocation of costs until 31 March 2019 in the budget agreed by the Shadow Executive in October 2018. This was anticipated to cover costs for the initial senior tiers of the organisation. It was not possible to provide a definitive figure for the final cost of restructuring across all levels of the organisation, but it was likely to be more than the provisional figure of £1.5million. This had been highlighted as part of the original business case for LGR.
• A Member asked about the process for recharging redundancy and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 62.

To consider verbal update reports from named rapporteurs on the strategic activity taking place under Service Delivery Boards and any risks identified.

The Committee considered verbal updates from its appointed rapporteurs on strategic activity taking place under the four Service Delivery Boards, since last reported to the Committee in December:

Adults – Councillors David d’Orton-Gibson and Lisle Smith

Councillor Smith updated the Committee on one of the previously identified areas of risk relating to the transfer of clients into the new IT system, MOSAIC. She reported that all clients affected had been written to and it was hoped that these issues would soon be resolved.

Children’s – Councillors Bobbie Dove and Chris Wakefield

Councillor Wakefield reported that good progress was being made on the handover and transfer arrangements for a range of services, including provisions relating to SEND and SENDIASS, SACRE, elective home education, looked after children, child protection and children in need. In terms of the budget position he was able to confirm that the Shadow Schools Forum had reached an agreement regarding the transfer of funding into the High Needs Block to ensure a balanced budget would be reached. He reported that the appointment process for the Director of Children’s Services position was progressing well. Risks which continued to be monitored and mitigated included the integration of the IT system, MOSAIC, and the recruitment of social workers.

A Member asked whether the Shadow Schools Forum included academies in Christchurch and it was confirmed that it did.

Place/Environment & Economy (E&E) – Councillors Claire Bath, Marion Pope and Sue Spittle

There were no updates or risks to highlight for this meeting.

Corporate – Councillors Ian Clark and Lawrence Williams

Councillor Clark reported that although the Delivery Board had not convened since the last Committee he had met with the Executive Leads, Councillor Anne Filer and Councillor May Haines. He had been assured that the teams continued to work hard to progress the work streams within corporate services.

DECISION MADE:

That the updates from rapporteurs be noted.

The Committee is asked to consider and approve its forward plan – circulated at ‘8’.

In their considerations, Members will also be asked to take account of any additions to the Shadow Executive Forward Plan of Key Decisions, and whether scrutiny is required.  This is available to view at the following link:

https://moderngov.bcpshadowauthority.com/mgListPlans.aspx?RPId=138&RD=0&bcr=1

Members are asked to confirm items for inclusion on the agenda of the next Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 7 February 2019.

The Overview and Scrutiny Specialist referred the Committee to the items listed on its  Forward Plan for consideration at its February meeting.

She gave an update on items added to the Shadow Executive Forward Plan since the last meeting in December. In line with the approach previously taken by the Committee, Members agreed that there was no need to consider those items which would be scrutinised by the preceding authority and/or where the Shadow Executive was acting as a consultative body only, as the risk in this context was low. This included the report on the BCP Local Transport Plan Capital Programme for 2019/20. A Member who chaired one of the preceding authorities’ relevant scrutiny panels supported this view.

The Committee agreed to add the Shadow Executive report on the Dedicated Schools Grant to its February agenda, as this was in keeping with the Committee’s agreed areas of focus on risk and the budget. It was agreed to consider this item alongside reports on the Medium Term Financial Plan and the Housing Revenue Account, as part of a dedicated finance section on the agenda.

The Interim Monitoring Officer explained that the Shadow Executive report on the Community Safety Partnership (CSP) was seeking formal approval of the revised arrangements for the new BCP Council area. The Committee agreed that the CSP was an appropriate item to include on its long list of scrutiny items, and it was noted that there was a statutory requirement to scrutinise this area.

The Committee was advised that Shadow Executive reports due to be considered at its meeting on Thursday 7 February would be published with the Shadow Executive Committee agenda on Monday 4 February. It was noted that these timescales formed part of the Committee’s previously agreed working arrangements and enabled Members to receive the same reports as the Shadow Executive.

The Overview and Scrutiny Specialist highlighted the inclusion of a ‘Scrutiny Headlines’ report on the Committee’s agenda for 6 March. This report would enable preceding authorities to identify scrutiny priorities for consideration by the new BCP Council. As discussed the Committee was developing its own list of items for consideration. Members confirmed that the issue relating to Tricuro be included on this list.

DECISION MADE:

That the Committee’s Forward Plan as set out be agreed, subject to the subject to the inclusion of the Shadow Executive report on the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) on the agenda for the 7 February meeting.

Calendar of meetings                                                                         

To note the calendar of meetings for the Committee as follows:

7 February 2019 – Venue: Christchurch Civic Offices, Council Chamber

6 March 2019 – Venue: Poole Civic Offices, Cattistock Room

The dates and venues of future meetings were noted.

The Vice-Chairman referred to the number of substantial items on the agenda for the next meeting on 7 February and asked Members to be prepared for a longer meeting than usual. A comfort break would be scheduled as necessary.

There was none.