______________________________________
________________________________
To Members of the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee
Notice of Meeting
|
Meeting |
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE SCRUTINY COMMITTEE |
|
Date/Time |
Thursday 8 May 2003 at 10.00 am |
|
Place |
County Hall, Oxford |
|
Contact officer |
Geoff Malcolm |
Chris Impey
Assistant Chief
Executive
April 2003
Membership
Chair –Councillor Sylvia Tompkins
Councillors:
|
Liz Brighouse |
Andrew Crawford |
John Dennis |
Jean Fooks |
|
Ken Harper |
Mrs J. Heathcoat |
Brian Hodgson |
Bob Johnston |
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Brian Law |
Margaret MacKenzie |
Jim Moley |
C. H. Shouler |
|
Roy Tudor Hughes |
David Wilmshurst |
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AGENDA
Addenda
- Election to Chair for the Current Council Year
- Election to Deputy Chair for the Current Council Year
- Apologies for Absence and Temporary Appointments
- Declarations of Interest
- Minutes
- Petitions and Public Address
- Evaluation of Scrutiny
Work Programme
See also Addenda
- consider the attached checklist (at CG7(b)) and agree a suggested criteria for assessing possible future items in the work programme; and
- evaluate its work programme thus far, with particular emphasis on balance of work; percentage of time spent on policy development, relevance to the Oxfordshire Plan and whether the work programme has been cross cutting.
- Oxfordshire Plan 2003/04
See also Addenda
- adopt the arrangements for production of the Oxfordshire Plan 2003/04 set out in the report;
- agree the outline set out in Annex 1 as the Executive’s initial proposals for the Plan;
- invite
the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee to make any
comments on he initial proposals in time for consideration
by the Executive on 27 May 2003.
- Scrutiny Review
- Council Commissioned Scrutiny Reviews
- Scrutiny Committee Commissioned Review: Social Inclusion
- (a) Maximising Our
Resources
See also Addenda
To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 6 March 2003 (CG5) and to receive for information any matters arising therefrom.
10:10 At its meeting on 11 April 2003, the Scrutiny Co-ordinating Group was asked to consider a timetable (attached at CG7(a)) (download as .doc file) to implement development of the Scrutiny Programme in relation to work programmes. The Group agreed the timetable and that each Scrutiny Committee should evaluate their work programmes thus far, with particular emphasis on balance of work; percentage of time spent on policy development; relevance to the Oxfordshire Plan and whether their Work Programmes have been cross cutting.
The Scrutiny Co-ordinating Group was also asked to consider a checklist to help Scrutiny Committees to focus on their work programmes and to determine why items should be included in their programmes. The group agreed that the checklist should be considered by all Scrutiny Committees during their May meetings and that their comments should be brought to the next meeting of the Group on 9 June 2003. The checklist is attached for consideration at CG7(b).
The Committee is asked to:
10:50 (Executive Forward Plan topic 2002/192)
Reason for Item: Consultation by the Executive on initial proposals for the final Plan.
Anticipated Outcome: to identify matters which the Scrutiny Committee wishes the Executive to take into account.
On
29 April the Executive is considering the report by the Director for
Resources (CG8) (Oxfordshire Plan (download
as .pdf file)) which outlines initial proposals for the production
of an Oxfordshire Plan by identifying key aspects and arrangements for
its publication. The draft now presented takes into account new and
amended requirements published by ODPM in March, and includes descriptions
of progress in, and future plans for, delivering local and national
priorities and details of past, current and planned performance against
local and national performance indicators.
The Executive is being recommended to:
The decision of the Executive will be reported at the meeting.
11:10
(i) Local Area Structures
(Councillors Andrew Brown, Bob Johnston and David Wilmshurst)
In April 2002 the Council agreed in principle that a one year pilot be developed in one Oxfordshire District Council to develop area forums of an advisory and consultative nature. The pilot is being run in partnership with South Oxfordshire District Council and meets five times a year. It will conclude in September 2003 and be evaluated in October prior to reporting to both authorities.
The Area Forum Implementation Group which oversees the project met on 28 January 2003. The arrangements between the partners have been fairly effective, and both organisations have adapted well to a different way of working. The departments have provided excellent support for Area Champions by providing high quality briefing notes and consultation papers for Area Champions to present at forum meetings. Scrutiny is also using area forums as one of the mechanisms to be used in conducting a review and giving feedback on the findings. The Corporate Consultation Officer has supported the pilot by advising departments on the relevance of area forums for particular consultation items resulting in two successful encounters. The County Council is also succeeding in using the forums as a mechanism for disseminating information, and since October 2002 several items have gone to the forums.
Public Engagement: attendance at area forum meetings varies widely with some meetings comprising 50% members of the public and others 1 or 2. Changes have been made to publicity and so far, for the February/March 2003 round, the feedback has been positive, but it will be future rounds which determine whether it has influenced attendance figures.
A further meeting of the Implementation Group on 29 April will review progress.
(ii) Standing Consultative Arrangements
(Councillors Brian Hodgson, Biddy Hudson, Brian Law and Jim Moley)
To consider progress with the ongoing review which is due to report to the Scrutiny Committee in Autumn 2003.
(iii) Support for Members
(Councillors Jean Fooks, Mrs J. Heathcoat, MacKenzie and Sylvia Tompkins)
In April 2002 the Council accepted the Scrutiny Committee’s recommendations in the light of the findings of the Panel for the Support of Members and as part of its decision agreed to review the support provided to members in 18 months, i.e. in Autumn 2003. It is proposed to reconvene the Panel in order to inform the Council’s review in Autumn 2003.
The Councillor Reference Group, an informal meeting comprising the Deputy Leader of the Council and the Chair & Deputy Chair of the Scrutiny Committee, monitors member support and acts as a sounding board for ideas on member development. In order to give greater direction to member development the Reference Group has identified a need for a more co-ordinated approach to member support, including a move towards an annual programme. Democratic Services is therefore currently working with directorates to produce for the Reference Group’s consideration an annual programme to improve the co-ordination and planning of members’ development activities.
As part of the recent review of the new political management arrangements, a questionnaire to members sought their views on support. The picture obtained showed consistency with the findings of the Panel: the priorities for members were the quality of information about the Council and their divisions; of lesser importance were formal support for surgeries or secretarial assistance. (A copy of the findings from this questionnaire will shortly be available in the Members’ Resource Centre.)
(Panel: Councillors Liz Brighouse, Roy Jelf, Bob Johnston and Margaret MacKenzie)
The Group will report progress with the review.
11:20 Executive Forward Plan topic 2003/58)
Reason for Item: Consultation by the Executive on future performance and budget management.
Anticipated Outcome: to identify matters which the Scrutiny Committee wishes the Executive to take into account.
On 29 April the Executive is considering a report by the Leader of the Council and the Deputy Leader of the Council which is issued as a basis for consultation with members. The Scrutiny Committee is particularly invited to respond.
In setting the 2003/04 budget, the Executive has increasingly felt locked into a rigid cycle in which the budget process starts in the Autumn with the previous year’s base budget. The Executive then considers the impact of inflation and financing costs to determine a restated base budget. Directorates then put in estimates of spending pressures for their service areas. Treasurers make a best estimate of the likely Local Government Financial Settlement. When this is announced in December, it is possible to consider various "what-if" scenarios against the likely level of final settlement. The Executive is concerned that this is "too little - too late" and is determined to start the 2004/05 budget review process in April 2003. This paper is a discussion around how such a review might be achieved.
In particular the Executive wishes to see the base budget for each service area "opened up" and an explanation for the service inputs/outputs given and how the Strategic Director and Business Manager can demonstrate cost efficiency and value for money. This will include challenging the need for each service area, the level of resource applied and whether alternative working methods could deliver the service for lower cost.
It is the Executive’s intention to have the initial planning work completed early in 2003/04, with:
- a substantial review of the revenue budget in place for a report to Council in November 2003;
- a property review well under way by the end of 2003/04 and the first realisations achieved;
- a Procurement Strategy in place by November 2003;
- a Human Resources Strategy in place by November 2003;
- an ICT and Corporate Knowledge Strategy similarly in place by November 2003.
As a parallel exercise, proposals for Improving Member Access to Information have been developed and are described in the report.
The Executive is being recommended to:
- endorse the overall proposals for a substantial review of the revenue budget as set out in the report, together with the implementation plan set out at Annex 1 (download as .doc file) and arrangements for improved member access to budget, performance and planning information set out in Annex 2 (download as .doc file);
- endorse the specific proposals set out in the report for undertaking a property review and developing procurement, human resources and ICT and Corporate Knowledge strategies;
- draw the particular attention of the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee to the proposals set out in the report and annexes, to examine and make any comments they may consider appropriate.
The decision of the Executive will be reported at the meeting.
b. Scrutiny and the Budget
At its meeting on 11 March 2003 the Learning & Culture Scrutiny Committee considered the attached paper ‘Scrutiny and the Budget’ (CG10(b)) (download as .doc file) which was produced by Councillor Andrew Brown. The Scrutiny Committee agreed the recommendations set out in the paper, which was forwarded to the Scrutiny Co-ordinating Group as part of its ongoing consideration of budget scrutiny.
At their meeting on 11 April 2003 the Scrutiny Co-ordinating Group endorsed the general principles within the paper and agreed that:
- the paper should be considered by all Scrutiny Committees at their next meetings;
- the Scrutiny Committees should consider how the principles outlined in the paper could be adopted within their own work programmes for the next year; and
- it would be beneficial for Committees to approach service areas as outlined in the paper.
The Committee is asked to consider how the principles outlined in the paper (CG10(b)) could be adopted within their own work programmes for the next year.
- Monthly Monitoring Report
- District Audit - Annual Audit Letter 2001/02
- receive the Annual Audit Letter and associated Action Plan 2001/2002 and note the comments by the District Auditor;
- review the completed Action Plan for 2000/2001 and endorse proposed officer action;
- refer the section of the Letter on partnership working (R5), in particular the accountability of the Children’s Programme Board, to the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee; and
- refer the section of the letter on financial standing (R6), in particular the restoration of the Council’s balances to £10m by 2007, to the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee as part of its budget scrutiny.
- Treasury Management Strategy
for 2003/04 (Debt Management Strategy)
See also Addenda
11:50 Reason for Item: At their July 2002 meeting the Scrutiny Committee resolved to consider the Executive’s Monthly Monitoring Report.
Anticipated Outcome: to identify any matters arising from the report.
The report by the Head of Finance (CG11) updates the budget monitoring position for 2002/03 to the end of February 2003, showing variations since the last report with potential variations for the rest of the year. The estimated position shows a potential deficit of £2.171m, which comprises a planned overspend on City Schools Reorganisation of £3.276m and an overspend on Social & Health Care of £2.587m, offset by underspending on other programme areas of £3.692m. The overall position on balances shows an estimated £1.876m remains in reserves to meet all other potential and outstanding pressures arising in the year. This represents a movement of £0.744m since last month’s report.
The firefighters pay award is still to be resolved; this is still estimated to be around £0.124m this year. The projected overspending on Social Services within Social &Health Care appears to be fairly stable on the evidence of the last few months, and is well contained within other areas’ underspending.
12:00 Reason for Item: Part of the Letter was referred to the Scrutiny Committee by the Best Value Committee on 26 February 2003 as part of the Committee’s budget scrutiny.
Anticipated Outcome: to identify any matters arising from that part of the Letter.
At their meeting on 26 February 20-03 the Best Value Committee considered a report (CG12).
The District Auditor has issued her Annual Audit Letter and Action Plan for 2001/2002. This Letter represents a summary of the Auditor’s work and key findings relating to the financial year 2001/2002. The report introduces the Letter, outlines the key themes which can be found on pages 2, 3 and 4 of the Letter and sets out a list of the action points raised by the District Auditor in the Letter and action taken.
(The Letter was circulated separately to all County Councillors, relevant officers, is available for public inspection and has been put on the council’s Web Site.)
The Best Value Committee resolved to:
Executive Forward Plan topic 2003/41
12:15
Reason for Item: The report was referred to the Scrutiny Committee by the Executive on 2 April 2003.
Anticipated Outcome: to make recommendations on the Strategy to the June 2003 Council.
On 2 April the Executive considered the report by Director for Resources which set out a Treasury Management Strategy for 2003/04 and covers both the Council’s Debt Management and the daily Cashflow. The Strategy may be summarised as follows:
- take up the maximum Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) quota of £45.4 million to finance the capital programme;
- continue to monitor interest rates to ensure that we borrow from the PWLB at the most advantageous rate;
- continue to monitor the performance of Alliance Capital;
- expand our short-term investment options by using new low risk areas available to local authorities, namely Money Market Funds and Debt Management Account;
- implement the revised CIPFA Code of Practice on Treasury Management in the Public Services.
The Executive resolved to:
(a) adopt the key recommendations of CIPFA’s Code of Practice for Treasury Management in the Public Services, as set out in Annex 1 to the report;
- adopt the Treasury Management Policy Statement attached at Annex 2;
- subject to (d) below, endorse the proposals set out in the report:
- refer the report to the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee for comments, particularly in respect of the proposed strategy for the control of the Council’s borrowing, with a view to making a recommendation on the strategy to the June 2003 Council.
(i) to keep the range for fixed interest debt at 75 to 100%;
(ii) to add a Money Market Fund to the approved list of investments with a limit of up to £15 million and to delegate the selection of a Fund to the Head of Finance; and
(iii) to add the Debt Management Account to the approved list of investments with a limit of up to £15 million;
- Review of Education, Cultural Services and Social Services
- Tracking Scrutiny Outcomes
See also Addenda
12:40 At the last meeting the Scrutiny committee agreed to consider at this meeting whether there were any outstanding matters from the review to justify its retention on the agenda.
The relevant Executive Members consider that there are no matters outstanding from the review.
12:45 To inform the Scrutiny committee of the outcome of their advice/recommendations to the Executive/Council:
- Outcome of Best Value Review – Developing Our Staff
- Performance Management (Forward Plan topic 2002/03)
- Forward Plan
See also Addenda
- One Day National Conference: The Future of Local Strategic Partnerships – 12 June 2003
12.50 (a) The Scrutiny Committee has identified the following forward Plan topic:-
County Hall Phase 3
(Ref: 2002/56)
Proposed agreement with the Osborne Group to provide for the refurbishment and future shared use of accommodation in County Hall.
Note: it is anticipated that the topic will not be ready for consideration on 27 May by the Executive.
(b) To identify any Corporate Governance items in the current Forward Plan on which the Committee wishes to have an opportunity to offer advice to the Executive before any decision is taken.
(Members are asked to bring to the meeting the latest copy of the Plan which at the time of writing covered May-August).
12.55 Following
informal consultation the Chair, Deputy Chair and Spokesperson for
the third Political Group propose that Councillor Bob Johnston be
appointed to attend this important conference and report back to the
Scrutiny Committee.
ADDENDA
ITEM
7. Evaluation of Scrutiny
Work Programme
An evaluation
paper is attached.
8. Oxfordshire Plan
2003/04
On 29 April the
Executive adopted the recommendations.
10(a) Maximising Our
Resources
On 29 April the Executive adopted the recommendations.
13 Treasury Management Strategy for 2003/04 (Debt Management Strategy)
Anticipated Outcome: delete the words ‘June 2003 Council’ and substitute ‘Executive’.
On 18 March the Executive considered the staff Review and Action Plans as endorsed by the Best Value Committee, and the comments of the Scrutiny Committee.
Councillor Margaret Godden acknowledged the hard work that had been put into the report by the Best Value Team. She further endorsed the comments of the Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee and stressed the importance of implementing "effective" staff appraisals.
The Executive resolved to:
On 18 March the Executive considered a report on the Quarter 3 (October – December 2002) performance progress against the Oxfordshire Plan 2002 – 2003 key targets and the estimated outturn figures for Best Value Performance Indicators 2002 – 2003.
The Leader of the Council reported that the compliance threshold for Best Value Performance Indicators, presently 85%, would be set at 100% next year. He hoped it would be possible within the requirements of the Audit Commission, to set realistic targets for 2003/04.
The Executive resolved to:
- those areas where targets had not been met as shown in Annex 1 to the report;
- those areas where performance was estimated to fall below 85% of target as shown in Annexes 2–6 to the report; and
- those areas where performance data had not been provided as shown in Annexes 2–6 to the report;
The topic has
been removed from the Executive’s current Forward Plan.
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