Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Neil Fawcett and Andrew Gant.

- guidance note below

To approve the minutes of the meetings held on 23^rd and 30^th January 2024 (CA3) and to receive information arising from them.

The minutes of the meeting held on 23 January 2024 were amended as follows:

“13/24 Freehold Disposal Chilterns End Former Care Home, Henley on Thames

Councillor Levy moved and Councillor Fawcett seconded the recommendations, and they were approved”

and approved and signed as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 30 January were approved and signed as a correct record.

See Annex.

Members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection. 

To facilitate ‘hybrid’ meetings we are asking that requests to speak or present a petition are submitted by no later than 9am four working days before the meeting i.e., 9am on Wednesday 21^st February 2024.  Requests to speak should be sent to chris.reynolds@oxfordshire.gov.uk

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that your views are taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

There were no requests received.

Cabinet noted that the Leader of the Council had appointed Cllrs Andy Graham and Bethia Thomas as joint Water Champions.

Cabinet will receive the following Scrutiny reports:-

Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee on Support for People Leaving Hospital; the Oxfordshire Way

Performance and Corporate Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee on Draft Customer Experience Strategy

In the absence of the Chair and Deputy Chair of the Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Cabinet noted the report and recommendations on Support for People Leaving Hospital; the Oxfordshire Way.

Councillor Brad Baines, Deputy Chair of the Performance and Corporate Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee, presented the report and recommendations on the Draft Customer Experience Strategy and answered a number of questions.

Cabinet received the Scrutiny reports and will respond in due course.

Cabinet Member: Leader of the Council

Forward Plan Ref: 2023/346

Contact: Chloe Taylor, Head of Economy

chloe.taylor@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Corporate Director: Environment & Place (CA7)

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

a)    Note the government announcement on the transfer of Local Enterprise Partnership core functions;

b)    Approve the creation of a County Council controlling interest in the Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP Ltd), subject to agreement by OxLEP Ltd’s board

c)    Consent to a change to OxLEPLtd’s governance to amend the Articles of Association and By-Laws to enable the County Council to take a controlling interest, if agreed by the OxLEP board;

d)    Delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Environment and Place in consultation with the Executive Director of Resources the Leader of the Council and the Executive Member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy to take such operational decisions as are required to conclude the integration process, including concluding the Articles of Association.

(Nigel Tipple, Chief Executive, OxLEP attended the meeting for this item)

Cabinet had before it a report on the transfer of Local Enterprise Partnership core functions to the Council.  The Government had announced that from 31 March 2024, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) would cease to have official recognition and that existing LEP functions would transfer to upper-tier local authorities or combined authorities, where they exist.

Following this announcement, it was important to establish a new governance framework to ensure local arrangements continue to meet government guidance. It was proposed that the County Council create a controlling interest in OxLEP Ltd. To enable this to happen the OxLEP Ltd Board would need to consider and approve a revision its Articles of Association and By-Laws whereby the County Council would become the sole ‘member’ of the company, exercising its membership functions through Cabinet. 

Subsequent to the change of ownership, there would be an opportunity, in conjunction with the LEP and local stakeholders, to revise the local framework of economic planning and partnerships and the system’s capacity and capability requirements for the future.

The Chair introduced the report and explained the background to the proposals which had been considered by the LEP Board and would be developed over a transition period of 6 months.

The Corporate Director: Environment and Place presented the report and explained how the transition proposals would be progressed in liaison with the LEP Board.  Nigel Tipple said that there was a strong commitment by the LEP to work with the Council as a partnership to implement the transition proposals.

During discussion members made the following points:-

·       The ways in which the Council’s environmental policies could be progressed as a result of the integration of the LEP’s functions into the Council

·       The Council’s response to the OXLEP Strategic Economic Plan (SEP) which had not made public previously, was read out at the meeting

·       The opportunity to consider the whole structure of the organisation and reframe the economic functions following integration with the Council.

The Chair moved and Councillor Sudbury seconded the recommendations, and they were approved.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

a)    Note the government announcement on the transfer of Local Enterprise Partnership core functions;

b)    Approve the creation of a County Council controlling interest in the Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP Ltd), subject to agreement by OxLEP Ltd’s board

c)    Consent to a change to OxLEPLtd’s governance to amend the Articles of Association and By-Laws to enable the County Council to take a controlling interest, if agreed by the OxLEP board;

d)    Delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Environment and Place in consultation with the Executive Director of Resources the Leader of the Council and the Executive Member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy to take such operational decisions as are required to conclude the integration process, including concluding the Articles of Association.

Cabinet Member: Community & Corporate Services

Forward Plan Ref: 2024/005

Contact: Michael Fletcher, Head of HR Business Partnering

Michael.fletcher@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by the Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer (CA8)

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the report.

Cabinet had before it a report which provided the workforce profile for quarter 3 2023/24 including an overview of headcount, agency spend, sickness, turnover and other relevant management information and performance indicators (Appendix A). The report also set out some of the actions being taken to address the trends identified.

The Chair presented the report on behalf of the Cabinet Member for Community and Corporate Services.  She referred, in particular, to the actions being taken to address the agency spend and other issues identified in the report.

During discission, members made the following points:-

·       The ongoing success of the Council’s apprenticeship programme

·       The need to investigate and address the amount of sickness absence attributed to stress and mental health

The Chair moved and Councillor Sudbury seconded the recommendation, and it was approved.

RESOLVED to note the report.

Cabinet Member: Finance

Forward Plan Ref: 2023/266

Contact: Natalie Crawford, Capital Programme Manager, natalie.crawford@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by the Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer (CA9)

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)    approve the inclusion of a 3 Form Entry Primary School, located in Didcot, into the Capital Programme with capital budget of £2.19m, to be fully funded from secured S106 contributions.

Cabinet had before it a report which set out changes to the Capital Programme requiring Cabinet approval that would be incorporated into the agreed programme and included in the next update to the Capital Programme in March 2024.

Councillor Dan Levy, Cabinet Member for Finance, presented the report.

During discussion, members commented on the need to ensue that school buildings were built to environmental standards and in accordance the appropriate building regulations.

Councillor Levy moved and Councillor Howson seconded the recommendation, and it was approved.

RESOLVED to approve the inclusion of a 3 Form Entry Primary School, located in Didcot, into the Capital Programme with capital budget of £2.19m, to be fully funded from secured S106 contributions.

Cabinet Member: All

Contact Officer: Colm Ó Caomhánaigh, Committee Officer Tel: 07393 001096

The Cabinet Procedure Rules provide that the business of each meeting at the Cabinet is to include “updating of the Forward Plan and proposals for business to be conducted at the following meeting”.   Items from the Forward Plan for the immediately forthcoming meetings of the Cabinet appear in the Schedule at CA10.  This includes any updated information relating to the business for those meetings that has already been identified for inclusion in the next Forward Plan update.

The Schedule is for noting, but Cabinet Members may also wish to take this opportunity to identify any further changes they would wish to be incorporated in the next Forward Plan update.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the items currently identified for forthcoming meetings.

The Cabinet considered a list of items for the immediately forthcoming meetings of the Cabinet.

RESOLVED to note the items currently identified for forthcoming meetings.

Vision Zero

Cabinet noted the following response to the Scrutiny item:-

Vision Zero