Agenda item

This report will follow as the Joint Shared Services and Personnel Committee which will make recommendations to Council meets after agenda publication, on 1 February 2022

Report of Chief Executive

Council had before it a report by the Chief Executive Officer regarding the Section 113 agreement with Cherwell District Council.

Councillor Liz Brighouse OBE, Deputy Leader, presented the report.  She referred, in particular, to the benefits of the partnership over a number of years but that it was now recommended that the partnership be discontinued and ongoing joint arrangements be reviewed for a future working relationship and outlined how these arrangements would be progressed.

Councillor Liz Leffman, Leader of the Council, seconded the motion and reserved her right to speak.

A number of members then spoke on the proposals contained in the report,

Some members questioned the  need for the partnership to be dissolved and the cost implications and suggested that this was a politically motivated decision which would not be to the benefit of the residents of the County and employees of the Council.

Councillor Miller, Cabinet Member for Finance, responded to these concerns and assured members of the financial arrangements being put in place within these proposals.

Councillor Leffman praised the partnership between Oxfordshire County Council and Cherwell District Council over the last 3.5 years and added that her understanding was that the administration at Cherwell District Council had decided to sever the agreement, leading to a mutual decision to decouple. She expressed disappointment that opposition group members had refused to second or support the proposals at Council and reiterated that there would be ongoing joint working arrangements to the benefit of both authorities. Councillor Corkin challenged the accuracy of the statement from Councillor Leffman that Cherwell District Council had initiated the severance of the S.113 agreement leading to the mutual decision to decouple stating this to have been initiated by the County Council.

RESOLVED, with 37 voting in favour and 18 abstaining, to:

a. terminate the s.113 partnership with Cherwell District Council;

b. Formally notify Cherwell District Council of Oxfordshire County Council’s decision to give 6 months’ notice of its intention to terminate the s.113 Agreement dated 31 August 2018 regarding joint working between the two authorities;

c. Agree the ongoing role of the Joint Shared Services and Personnel Committee (JSSP) in providing suitable oversight and decision-taking concerning the termination of the s.113 Agreement.

d. Adopt a revised Terms of Reference for the JSSP at Appendix 1 of this report. 

e. Disband the Partnership Working Group and note the conclusion of its business.

f. Instruct the Interim Chief Executive of Oxfordshire County Council subject to Council agreeing Recommendation 1.1 to work alongside Cherwell District Council officers to establish a Joint Officer Transition Working Group

g. Note the responsibility for agreeing the transition plan rests with Cabinet. 

h. Adopt the Financial Principles for the termination of the s.113 Agreement as set out in Section 8.3 of this report.

i. Agree amendments to the existing dispute resolution process set out in section 4.2 of this report

j. Request that the Monitoring Officer undertakes a review of the existing Scheme of Delegation to ensure that decision making is both effective and efficient. 

k. Delegate responsibility to the Monitoring Officer to undertake amendments to the Council’s Constitution to reflect the resolutions arising from this report to Council.

l.  Agree to keep the best interests of its mutual residents at the centre of its decision making, endeavouring to ensure that such actions will not be to their detriment.

Councillor Leffman then expressed thanks, on behalf of the County Council, to Yvonne Rees who had been joint Chief Executive Officer, for her contribution to her work and dedicated public service, much of which had taken place during the pandemic, which had been to the benefit of all residents of the County.