Agenda and draft minutes

To receive any apologies for absence and temporary appointments.

Apologies were received from Cllr Reeves, substituted by Cllr Fenton, and Cllr Fatemian.

See guidance note on the back page.

There were none.

The Committee is recommended to APPROVE the minutes of the meeting held on 17^th January 2025 and to receive information arising from them.

The minutes for the meeting held on 17^th January 2025 were APRROVED as a true and accurate record.

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 9.00 a.m. on 31^st March 2025.  Requests to speak should be sent to the Scrutiny Officer at scrutiny@oxfordshire.gov.uk.

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you are asked to 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 9.00 a.m. two working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than one A4 sheet.

There were none.

Cllr Judy Roberts, Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy, Cllr Andrew Gant, Cabinet Member for Transport Management, Lorna Baxter, Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer, and Paul Fermer, Director of Environment and Highways, have been invited to present a report on Budget Management Monitoring Report (BMMR).

The Committee is asked to consider the report and raise any questions, and to AGREE any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet arising therefrom.

Cllr Liz Leffman, Leader of the Council, Cllr Dan Levy, Cabinet Member for Finance, Cllr Andrew Gant, Cabinet Member for Transport Management, Cllr Pete Sudbury, Deputy Leader of the Council with responsibility for Climate Change, Environment & Future Generations, Lorna Baxter, Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer, Paul Fermer, Director of Environment and Highways, and Robin Rogers, Director of Economy and Place, attended to present a report on Budget Management Monitoring Report (BMMR).

The Cabinet Member for Finance introduced the BMMR, noting that the Council was heading in the right direction, being run prudently and effectively. 

Moving quickly to questions, the Executive Director of Resources stated that achieving the same level of planned savings next year as this year would be addressed in the forthcoming year's budget. This meant this year's budget should not affect next year's, as any unachievable savings would have been managed during budget planning.

The inquiry about including the metric for household waste reuse, recycling, or composting in the report was addressed by the Director of Environment and Highways. Although managed by districts, this legacy indicator remained as the indicator originally agreed upon through the waste partnership.

Another inquiry questioned whether the limited KPIs for environment and highways suggested missed targets. The Director clarified that the small number of KPIs represented broader monitoring efforts. It was agreed that there may be a need to review and increase KPIs to reflect current priorities like road conditions, gully cleaning, and road safety.

The meeting paused at 10:19 to fix a technical issue, and restarted at 10:27

Concerns were raised about removing the customer satisfaction metric for the customer service centre, especially with the new telephony platform. The Cabinet Member for Finance explained the reason to do so was due to a lack of baseline data. The need to assess customer satisfaction was acknowledged, as well as a plan to refine and reintroduce the metric once baseline data was available. Ensuring the new system provides excellent service remains vital.

Members asked if data on external agency responses, especially from Thames Water, was collected and shareable due to frequent issues. The Director of Highways and Environment stated that while extensive data on FixMyStreet and other inquiries existed, specific metrics on external agency responses were not detailed. Direct reporting to agencies like Thames Water provided immediate feedback, which was not possible through the Council's system. Emphasis was placed on maintaining the feedback loop.

The inquiry into KPIs for section 106 agreements highlighted its importance and noted delays in implementation. Concerns were raised about approximately £250 million of held funds, mostly allocated to education projects. The Director of Economy and Place mentioned that strategic risks were being addressed and would be updated in the risk register. A detailed report was to be presented at the next Place Overview and Scrutiny meeting in April.

Cllr Sudbury left the meeting at 10:50.

Members addressed the importance of delivering Oxfordshire core schemes with public support and how this support was measured to mitigate associated  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13/25

Cllr Judy Roberts, Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Development Strategy, Robin Rogers, Director of Economy and Place, Nigel Tipple, LEP Chief Executive, and Sadie Patamia, Corporate Governance Manager – Oxfordshire LEP, have been invited to present a report on the Local Enterprise Partnership Integration.

The Committee is asked to consider the report and raise any questions, and to AGREE any recommendations it wishes to make to Cabinet arising therefrom.

Cllr Liz Leffman, Leader of the Council, Cllr Dan Levy, Cabinet Member for Finance, Lorna Baxter, Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer Robin Rogers, Director of Economy and Place, and Nigel Tipple, LEP Chief Executive, attended to present a report on the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Integration.

The Leader of the Council introduced the report on the integration of the LEP into the County Council, noting that an interim business plan for 2025/26 had been approved which aligned with the Councils strategic objectives. The Leader also noted a new board had been formed, inviting former LEP board members to join the Economic Partnership Board. The Leader also informed the committee that the LEP had been renamed Enterprise Oxfordshire (EO) as part of this integration.

The LEP Chief Executive confirmed the transition effective from April 1st, 2025, and assured continued operation under the new name. He highlighted maintaining existing programmes, securing government funding, aligning with Council priorities, and appointing an independent business chair for the EO’s board and formation of the Oxfordshire Economic Partnership Board as the EO’s key areas of activity following its integration.

Concerns were raised about the governance of EOs integration, questioning why the County Council had established a complex governance structure and did not instead simply absorb the EO’s functions. The Leader and LEP Chief Executive explained that establishing EO as a separate company allowed flexibility for commercial activities. They clarified that the new governance structure, including the Shareholder Committee, independent members, and auditors, did not add significant costs but ensured operational flexibility and aligned with strategic objectives.

Members examined the financial liabilities of EO, questioning if the County Council would inherit these liabilities, including staff costs, as the sole shareholder. The LEP Chief Executive clarified that existing funding streams covered most liabilities, but the County Council, as the sole shareholder, would ultimately hold the underlying liability. If the funding from government grants or other sources were to dry up, the County Council might need to provide financial support to ensure the company's viability, but EO had an operating reserve for unforeseen expenses or liquidation.

Members were concerned about the impact of establishing new strategic mayoral authorities on the plans and ongoing activities of EO. The Leader of the Council clarified that Oxfordshire aspired to be a driving force behind any such strategic mayoral authority in the region. The emphasis was placed on formulating a strategic economic plan that would outline Oxfordshire's priorities, which would subsequently inform discussions with the newly elected mayor. This proactive strategy aimed to ensure that Oxfordshire's requirements and goals were explicitly conveyed and incorporated into the overarching regional strategy.

The Committee AGREED to recommendations under following headings:

• suggested that the Audit and Governance Committee should review the governance arrangements of Enterprise Oxfordshire in a year's time, including examples of how decisions were made throughout the year. It also proposed that the Performance and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee should review the performance of the organisation in a year to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14/25

The Committee is recommended to NOTE the progress of previous recommendations and actions arising from previous meetings, having raised any questions on the contents.

This includes recent updates on previously accepted and partially accepted recommendations on the following reports:

·       Capital Asset Disposal Process

·       Draft Customer Experience Strategy

·       Employee Engagement Survey

·       Social Value

The Committee NOTED the action and recommendation tracker, and the updates provided on previous recommendations.

The Committee is recommended to AGREE its work programme for forthcoming meetings, having heard any changes from previous iterations, and taking account of the Cabinet Forward Plan and of the Budget Management Monitoring Report.

The Cabinet Forward Plan can be found here: https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/mgListPlanItems.aspx?PlanId=433&RP=115

The most recent BMMR, submitted to Cabinet is January 2025, can be found here: https://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?AIId=31293

The Committee AGREED the proposed work programme.

Attached are the Cabinet responses to the Performance and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee reports on:

·       Commercial Strategy Update

·       Community Asset Transfer Policy

·       Updated Funding and Budget Proposals 2025/26 – 2027/28

Committee is asked to NOTE the responses.

The Committee NOTED the Cabinet responses to the committee’s recommendations on the following reports:

• Commercial Strategy Update
• Community Asset Transfer Policy
• Updated Funding and Budget Proposals 2025/26 – 2027/28