AGENDA
(Addenda)
1. Apologies for Absence
2. Declarations of Interest – see guidance note
3. Minutes
To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 15 April 2008 (CA3) and to receive for information any matters arising therefrom.
4. Petitions and Public
Address
(See Addenda)
The list of draft targets
and levels, so far as is known, is set out in Annex 1. The final outcomes of
the discussions with GOSE will be reported to the Cabinet as part of the
schedule of addenda.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:
The Annual Report is intended to provide an overview
of the previous year highlighting the council’s achievements and successes. The
Annual Report is also designed to fulfil the requirements to produce a Best
Value Performance Plan, which is one of the strategic plans requiring the
approval of Council.
The Annual Report (download as .pdf file) is a
working draft. Additional text and detailed appendices will be added including
outturn performance data for the year as this becomes finalised. The working
draft will be considered by Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee on 29 May 2008. The
Annual report will be submitted to Council for approval on 17 June 2008.
The
Annual Report will contain the following main headings:
· Chief Executive/Leader Foreword
· Achievements in four main thematic
areas:
o World Class economy
o Environment and Climate Change
o Healthy and thriving Communities
o Better public Services
· Annexes (to be added at a later
stage)
o Best Value Performance Indicators
2007/08 outturn
o Local Area Agreement 2007/08
performance outturn
o Progress against Council pledges
o Code of conduct on workforce
matters
o Summary of Accounts
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED, subject to consideration
of any comments from the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee, to approve
the draft Annual Report as the basis for submission to the Council on 17 June
2008 for approval; incorporating the necessary detailed appendices and any
presentational and editorial changes agreed by the Leader of the Council and
the Chief Executive.
Linkages between Traffic and Information Management
and other work helping to deliver the Local Transport Plan have been made in
this report to highlight the important relationship between them all. These
include: Access to Oxford; the Central Oxfordshire Transport Strategy; and the
Network Management Plan.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to adopt the Travel and
Information Management Policy Document.
This report supplements the consultation document on
the Primary Capital Programme - Strategy for Change (PCP-SC) which has been
sent out to stakeholders. The deadline for the return of responses was 9 May 2008. The
feedback obtained from the consultation will be analysed to inform the final
version of the PCP-SC for Cabinet approval by means of a delegated decision on 3 June 2008.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:
(a) note the content of
the consultation document, the questionnaire format for stakeholder responses
and the range of stakeholders contacted for response;
(b) approve the locality
priority list for capital investment, as suggested by the criteria set out in
Annex 3; and
(c) agree to delegate to
the Cabinet Member for School Improvement the decision to approve the final
version of the strategy, which will include the locality priority list for
capital investment, for submission to the DCSF by 16 June 2008.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:
(a) note the
draft Summary Ask Oxfordshire Consultation Strategy 2008/11;
(b) endorse
the approach to consultation and formulation of the full Strategy document,
noting that the Cabinet Member for Change Management will be asked to approve
the final Strategy as a delegated decision on 15 July 2008; and
(c) submit
to the Change Board, for its approval, a Project Initiation Document setting
out how the implementation of the Strategy will be achieved.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the report.
This reports on a major inspection of the contribution
that local services make to the welfare of children, and in particular
vulnerable children. Led by Ofsted, but including inspectors from the Audit
Commission, Healthcare Commission and HM Inspectorate of Probation, the Joint
Area Review involved extensive fieldwork late in 2007.
The report to Cabinet details the recommendations made
by the Joint Area Review and outlines how they are to be responded to. Action
Plans for all recommendations have been drawn up and monitoring arrangements
are proposed.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the Joint Area
Review report
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:
(a) approve the
Corporate Parenting Strategy and the priorities contained therein;
(b) note the information
on outcomes for our Looked After Children and the service performance measures;
(c) approve a change of
name from the Children’s Panel to the Corporate Parenting Panel, so as
explicitly to address this key responsibility; and
(d) approve an
invitation to the Chairman of Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee to join
the Corporate Parenting Panel as an additional member.
The Audit Commission issued the Annual Audit &
Inspection Letter in March 2008. The Letter represents a summary of the
Auditors’ work and key findings relating to the financial year 2006/07. The
Letter was circulated on 15 April 2008 to all Councillors and relevant officers. Members
are asked to bring their copy of the Letter to the meeting. Copies
have also been placed in the Members’ Resource Centre and are on public
deposit.
The Letter was considered by the Audit Committee 23
April 2008. The Committee resolved:
· to receive the Annual Audit &
Inspection Letter and note the comments from the Audit Commission;
· that there were no recommendations
to the Cabinet on 20 May 2008 arising from the Letter;
· to ask Members wishing to refer
sections of the Letter for scrutiny to do so through the Scrutiny Co-ordinating
Group for co-ordination; and
· to refer the Letter to the
Scrutiny Co-ordinating Group to help with work planning for 2008/09.
(In the light of discussion with the Committee the
Audit Commission Relationship Manager undertook to make any necessary minor textual
corrections / clarifications to the Letter.)
Given the important nature of the Commission’s letter
it was felt that Cabinet may wish to comment themselves on its content.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to receive the Annual Audit and Inspection
Letter.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to recommend the Council to
approve the Minimum Revenue Provision Methodology as set out in paragraphs 10
and 11 of the report.
Under Section H of the Constitution, the
Cabinet is responsible for appointments to those outside bodies which have been
identified by the Cabinet as "strategic” and “noted as such on a list of
all relevant offices and bodies from time to time presented to and endorsed by
the Council" (the Democracy & Organisation Committee has
responsibility for appointments to other outside bodies).
The bodies currently designated as
“strategic” are listed in the report. The Cabinet
reviews annually the existing appointments in order to make any changes which
are considered appropriate.
The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:
(a) to make the
revised appointments as shown at Annex 1 and in the light of nominations made
by the date of the meeting; and
(b) (if the Cabinet
supports a consistent strategic approach to the Member Champion role) to ask
the Assistant Head of Legal & Democratic Services to develop for
consideration by the Cabinet at a future meeting draft guidance in relation to
the role of ‘Member Champion’, to include a person specification / role
description and reporting framework.
16. Forward
Plan and Future Business
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 CA16. 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.