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Agenda and draft minutes

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Items
No. Item

OS.122

Apologies

To receive any apologies for absence. The quorum for the Overview and Scrutiny Committee is 3 members.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Councillor Tony Slater.

OS.123

Substitute Members

To note details of any substitution arrangements in place for the Meeting.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor David Fowles substituted for Councillor Tony Slater.

OS.124

Declarations of Interest

To receive any declarations of interest from Members and Officers, relating to items to be considered at the meeting.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

OS.125

Minutes pdf icon PDF 547 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 4 November 2024.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Jenkinson suggested that the final bullet point on the waste rezoning item be expanded to read: “It was stated that the reporting process could be improved by the use of quality management tools.

 

Councillor Cunningham proposed accepting the minutes as amended. Councillor Turner seconded this proposal.

 

RESOLVED: To APPROVE the minutes of the meeting held on 4 November 2024.

OS.126

Matters Arising from Minutes of the Previous Meeting

To consider actions outstanding from minutes of previous meetings.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair requested that details of training offered by Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service by be circulated to Members.

 

The Chair commented on the need for residents to be aware which recyclable items go in which recycling bin.

 

The Chair announced that an Overview and Scrutiny work planning meeting would be held before the next Committee meeting on 10 February 2025.

 

OS.127

Chair's Announcements

To receive any announcements from the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair stated that it had been disappointing to find that the financial and service performance reports for quarter 2 had moved into December from January when there wasn’t a scheduled Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting in December. The reports were on the agenda and the Committee could still make comments or recommendations to Cabinet.

 

The Chair highlighted the need for Members to engage with Ubico. An all-Member briefing had been scheduled for 4 February 2025 and would be held on Teams.

 

The Chair drew the Committee’s attention to the government’s plans for local government reorganisation. The Chair commented that such changes would have significant implications for town and parish councils as well as district councils, and that the Council should seek to support town and parish councils through any changes.

 

Councillor Neill arrived during this agenda item.

 

OS.128

Public Questions

A maximum of 15 minutes is allocated for an “open forum” of public questions at committee meetings. No person may ask more than two questions (including supplementary questions) and no more than two such questions may be asked on behalf of one organisation. The maximum length of oral questions or supplementary questions by the public will be two minutes. Questions must relate to the responsibilities of the Committee but questions in this section cannot relate to applications for determination at the meeting.

 

The response may take the form of:

 

a)    A direct oral response (maximum length: 2 minutes);

b)    Where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication; or

c)     Where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Jenkinson asked a question on behalf of residents of Moreton-in-Marsh about the status of the Moreton-in-Marsh Working Group and why it had not met. 

 

The Interim Executive Director clarified that an item would be coming forwards to the next Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting.

 

Councillor Cunningham requested a specific agenda item at the work planning meeting on the make-up of the Moreton-in-Marsh Working Group and for Forward Planning to provide a written response.

 

OS.129

Member Questions

A maximum period of fifteen minutes is allowed for Member questions. Questions must be directed to the Chair and must relate to the remit of the committee but may not relate to applications for determination at the meeting.

 

Questions will be asked in the order notice of them was received, except that the Chair may group together similar questions.

 

The deadline for submitting questions is 5.00pm on the working day before the day of the meeting unless the Chair agrees that the question relates to an urgent matter, in which case the deadline is 9.30am on the day of the meeting.

 

A member may submit no more than two questions. At the meeting the member may ask a supplementary question arising directly from the original question or the reply. The maximum length of a supplementary question is one minute.

 

The response to a question or supplementary question may take the form of:

 

a)    A direct oral response (maximum length: 2 minutes);

b)    Where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication; or

c)     Where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There were no Member questions.

 

OS.130

Climate and Ecological Emergency pdf icon PDF 541 KB

Purpose

For the Committee to receive an update on actions under the Climate Programme.

 

Recommendation

That the Committee notes the actions to-date and the ongoing activity to further embed climate action across all the Council’s activities and agrees any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet.

 

Invited

Councillor Mike McKeown, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability

Olivia McGregor, Climate Change and Carbon Reduction Lead

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The report provided the Overview and Scrutiny Committee with an update on actions undertaken as part of the Council’s Climate Programme.

 

Councillor Mike McKeown, Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Sustainability, introduced the report and highlighted the importance of the issue of climate change and the need for action. The Cabinet Member drew the Committee’s attention to the key points as follows:

  • The Council was aiming to reduce its carbon footprint by 80% by 2045.
  • Solar panels had been installed at the Council’s Trinity Road offices, saving costs and emissions.
  • Ubico had been tasked with creating a decarbonisation programme for its fleet, which was a significant contributor to the Council’s carbon footprint.
  • The local plan provided an opportunity to instigate measures to improve climate emergency standards.
  • Local households who have already installed solar panels would benefit from £450,000 of lifetime energy savings.
  • The South West Net Zero Hub had provided funding for a retrofit home energy efficiency programme.
  • Local electricity suppliers were working on a programme of grid upgrades to deal with additional demands on the grid.
  • There were plans for a community energy solar farm.
  • There was action taking place to reduce emissions across various sectors including farming, business and transport.

 

The Committee asked about the role of the retrofit officer and commented that there was a lack of understanding about the best approaches to retrofitting buildings, so education was important. The Cabinet Member explained that the aim was to retrofit c. 300 homes and that the officer had experience of delivering training and could give independent advice. The officer would have some level of engagement with social housing providers but their core focus would be on the public.

 

A Member commented that the jury remained out on electric vehicles and they arguably weren’t the best solution in rural areas. The Cabinet Member responded that there were some concerns about orchestrated misinformation campaigns against electric vehicles and the Council was helping to myth-bust these. For the 35% of homes did not have off-street parking in the District the Council was installing EV chargers in car parks it owns.

 

In response to a question about government plans to subsidise solar panels, the Cabinet Member stated that solar was a good option for those who could afford it due to the reducing costs of installing solar. The warm homes plan provided funding for low-income households. There was a private members bill in parliament about making solar mandatory on new build properties.

 

In discussion the Committee also noted that:

  • The Council would need to conduct energy audits prior to applying for grants from government, which could include support for solar.
  • The Council was still awaiting a response from Brewery Arts about proposals to install solar on their premises.
  • A primary focus of the Sustainable Transport Officer would be to add their input into the local plan.
  • The Council was speaking to services about embedding climate implications in everything they do. The Council was limited in terms of its resources and needed to  ...  view the full minutes text for item OS.130

OS.131

Publica Transition Update

Purpose

For the Committee to receive a presentation on Phase 1 of the Publica Transition.

 

Recommendation

For the Committee to note the update and agree any recommendations it wishes to submit to Cabinet.

 

Invited

Councillor Joe Harris, Leader of the Council

Robert Weaver, Chief Executive Officer

Andrew Pollard, Programme Director

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chief Executive Officer provided a presentation on the Publica Transition, explaining that there had been an intense period of reviewing services and a number of teams were now directly employed by the Council.

 

In terms of lessons learnt from the Phase 1 transfer of staff, the Chief Executive stated that in hindsight it would have been helpful to have had a dedicated Council-side communications function to get the messages just right. The difficulty of building a financial model for the costs of individual services provided by Publica had also been underestimated.

 

The Chief Executive highlighted the governance arrangements and the positive role of the Officer Transition Board. The Programme Board comprised the chief executives of the partner councils plus the Programme Director. As part of Phase 2 there was a need to continually improve the functioning of the governance model, which had generally worked well.

 

The Chief Executive Officer stated that Phase 1 had been delivered under budget with only minor slippage in the timetable and that staff retention had remained good.

 

A report setting out the detailed transition plan for Phase 2 would come forward to members in March with an implementation date of July 2025. Property, Programme Management and Waste and Recycling were considered to be critical services for inclusion in Phase 2.

 

The implications of the government White Paper on devolution would need to be considered and may have impacts for the timing of the repatriation of other services remaining in Publica post-Phase 2.

 

The Committee considered the implications of local government reorganisation for the programme and questioned whether a cost-benefit analysis of Phase 2 was being undertaken. The Chief Executive agreed that reorganisation was a matter of time and that there was a need to ensure that work undertaken now would not be unpicked in future. Phase 2 remained important, especially in terms of managing the relationship with Ubico, project management, and property but it was unlikely that Phase 2 would extend beyond these three key areas.

 

In response to a question about whether staff were keen to transfer to the Council, the Chief Executive reiterated that it was important to not create an “us and them” culture.

 

In discussion the Committee noted that:

  • Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire were unlikely to look to each other either for forming unitary authorities or combined authorities. The sharing of services with West Oxfordshire District Council would become defunct in a couple of years’ time.
  • Staff included in Phase 1 had had the opportunity to take part in focus groups and a welcome session had been well received. The Council was also working on its emerging People Strategy.
  • A small minority of roles included in Phase 1 were shared roles that could not be split and those roles had been advertised internally.
  • The Chief Executive felt that Phase 1 had led to a new relationship with staff as he no longer had to go through the Publica Executive and could communicate directly.
  • There was no wish amongst the shareholders or  ...  view the full minutes text for item OS.131

OS.132

Financial Performance Report 2024-25 Quarter Two and Update Report pdf icon PDF 974 KB

Purpose

To consider the second budget monitoring position for the 2024/25 financial year (reported to Cabinet on 5 December) and a separate update report on budget monitoring for planning services.

 

Recommendation

That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee:

1.    Reviews and notes the financial position set out in the report and the recommendations detailed in paragraphs 9.3 to 9.9 and 6.2 as approved by Cabinet at its meeting on 5 December 2024.

2.    Notes the update report in respect of Development Management.

3.    Agrees any recommendations to submit to Cabinet.

 

Invited

Councillor Mike Evemy, Cabinet Member for Finance and Transformation

David Stanley – Deputy Chief Executive Officer

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Deputy Chief Executive Officer provided an overview of the Financial Performance Report for 2024/25 Quarter 2 and summarised the key points as follows:

  • The projected year-end surplus was lower at Quarter 2 than it had been at Quarter 1 but there was still a chance to achieve the budgeted surplus of £0.5m due to the reduced pressure on pay following the pay award.
  • The Quarter 2 report took into account the higher than previously expected interest rates, which would bring in additional investment income.
  • The income shortfalls weren’t material on their own but together added up.
  • There was a capital programme underspend in the provision of affordable housing (capital loan to Cottsway), and support to Bromford. An overspend on Disabled Facility Grants had been removed as this had been funded.

 

The Committee questioned the net effect of the update report provided in relation to planning services. The Deputy Chief Executive stated that the initial Quarter 2 revenue variance of £250k had moved down to £220k. The net capital underspend had not changed materially.

 

In discussion the Committee also noted that:

 

  • Recruitment costs were normally met from vacancy savings during the interim period so there was no recruitment budget. The £100k was additional expenditure to ensure that the Council had a robust planning service as quickly as possible. The Deputy Chief Executive Officer committed to providing a detailed breakdown of this spend.
  • Two Communications posts had transferred to the Council in Phase 1 (£70k) but the Council had used an agency to provide ongoing support to ensure an adequate communications function. This had caused a £31k adverse variation but this number was expected to come down in next update.
  • The Council had to use its resources responsibly and it was incumbent on the Deputy Chief Executive as the S151 Officer to ensure that the services passed over to any future unitary authority reflected the resources available.
  • No provision had been made within the Medium Term Financial Strategy for the Phase 2 transfer of staff from Publica to the Council. There was a need to understand whether the cost of services would be higher outside of Publica and any additional cost would need to be justified.

 

The Deputy Chief Executive Officer presented the additional report on planning services. The report provided an update in view of recruitment to various posts. There was £120k of additional income on planning fees which was largely offsetting the additional costs of £150k over and above the budget. There was a need to understand the relationship between spend and income to inform service transformation. Recent appointments would put the service on a better footing and reduce the reliance on agency staff from 1 April 2025.

 

The Committee commented that planning services including planning enforcement were important functions that had been under pressure. The Committee noted concern about vacant posts and hoped that the situation would improve now that the service was delivered directly by the Council rather than through Publica.

 

OS.133

Service Performance Report 2024-25 Quarter Two pdf icon PDF 586 KB

Purpose

To provide an update on progress on the Council’s priorities and service performance (reported to Cabinet on 5 December).

 

Recommendation

That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee notes the report and agrees any recommendations it wishes to submit to Cabinet.

 

Invited

Robert Weaver, Chief Executive Officer

Alison Borrett, Senior Performance Analyst

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chief Executive Officer introduced the Service Performance Report for 2024/25 Quarter Two and highlighted the progress the Council had made in delivering its priorities, as shown by a number of positive indicators across planning services, leisure and customer services. The Chief Executive also highlighted the indicators that were below target such as missed bin collections.

 

In discussion the Committee noted that:

  • While the Council did not build homes, it did have a role in helping to support the delivery of affordable homes.
  • There was no target for the number of complaints against the Council upheld by the Ombudsman.
  • Cabinet had recently approved an Empty Property Strategy.
  • The performance of the planning team in processing major and minor applications was to be commended.
  • The Council’s performance was benchmarked against CIFPA Nearest Neighbours; councils with similar demographics.

 

Cllr Spivey left the meeting during this agenda item.

 

As the length of the meeting had exceeded three hours the Chair announced that the remaining business would fall but that the work plan would be circulated to Members.

 

OS.134

Report back on recommendations

There were no recommendations arising from the previous meeting of the Committee.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

This item was not considered.

 

OS.135

Updates from Gloucestershire County Council Scrutiny Committees

Purpose

To receive any verbal updates on the work of external scrutiny bodies:

 

Gloucestershire Economic Growth Scrutiny Committee – Cllr Angus Jenkinson

Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee – Cllr Dilys Neill

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

This item was not considered.

 

OS.136

Work Plan and Forward Plan pdf icon PDF 523 KB

For the Committee to note and review its work plan and to select Cabinet decisions for pre-decision scrutiny at future committee meetings.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

This item was not considered.