Agenda and minutes

No declarations of interest were received.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Callan, Catt, P Gilby, Perkins and Sarvent.

To move “That under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act".

RESOLVED –

That under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

5:05 - 5:30pm

The Transformation Programme Manager attended to provide members with a progress update on the shared Procurement service. The Joint Cabinet and Employment and General Committee resolved in November, 2015 that Chesterfield Borough Council (CBC) join the NHS Procurement consortium for a period of three years at an annual fee of £39,000 with the condition that a comprehensive Service Level Agreement (SLA) be developed. CBC joined the shared service in January, 2016. The Transformation Programme Manager advised Members that in the first 8 months of the partnership, 46 procurements had commenced, 12 procurements had been completed and a total of £54,000 savings had been achieved.

There had been two internal audits of the procurement service since entering into the partnership and though improvements had been made, work was still needed in some areas. The Transformation Programme Manager highlighted the progress on the recommendations by internal audit which included drafting the Procurement strategy and submitting it to CMT for review, arranging essential training to be provided from October, 2016 and incorporating flowcharts and supporting forms into the SLA to address issues raised by the audit.

Through the shared Procurement service CBC was currently achieving £33k savings per annum on service delivery costs. The Transformation Programme Manager informed Members that further savings had been achieved from the Procurement Client role which was currently vacant and under review by the Customer, Commissioning and Change Manager who was investigating an option that could see the Customer, Commissioning and Change team collectively absorbing the work.

The move to the shared service with the NHS had been monitored closely and teething problems had been resolved. The Transformation Programme Manager presented the draft Sustainable Commissioning and Procurement Strategy to Members and highlighted that the performance indicators in section 10 of the strategy focussed on local performance.

Members asked if any of the projects completed so far were considered to be major projects. The Transformation Programme Manager replied that there had been significant projects completed but these were not considered to be major projects. However there were some major projects currently in progress including one for the Operational Services Division.

Members asked if the procurement training could be offered to Scrutiny Members as they felt it would be useful for Members of the Forum to have an understanding of the whole procurement process so that they could carry out procurement scrutiny effectively. The Transformation Programme Manager advised that she would be happy to have a Scrutiny Member attend the officer training however the training would be in depth and consideration was needed as to who would attend. Members were also informed that there would be training for Members which would focus on the procurement strategy. The Transformation Programme Manager advised that for scrutiny to look at a procurement project early on they would need to be involved at the specification stage and the NHS procurement team would be happy to arrange a training session with a small group of Members to explain this process.

Members asked if there was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

To move that after the consideration of an item containing exempt information that the public be re-admitted to the meeting.

RESOLVED –

That the public be readmitted to the meeting.

5:30 – 5:45pm

Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration - Progress report on the implementation of Scrutiny Forum Recommendations regarding Concessions on Fees and Charges

The Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration attended the meeting with the Policy and Communications Manager to update Members on the progress made on the Overview and Performance Scrutiny Forum recommendations regarding Concessions on Fees and Charges.

The Policy and Communications Manager informed Members that following the review by scrutiny which raised concerns over the lack of consistency when awarding concessions, an officer/member working group was established. The aim of the group was to produce a Concessions Policy which had been drafted and was due to go to Cabinet in November, 2016 for approval, allowing time for it to be worked into fees and charges reports from early 2017. The policy addressed the need for a consistent approach when awarding concessions across the Council’s services whilst retaining some flexibility and aligning with the Council Plan 2015-2019. The Policy and Communications Manager noted that the Policy Principles section of the policy had been taken from the scrutiny review. In addition, a table containing the eligibility criteria had been created to improve clarity.

Members asked if information about the concessions would be made publicly available. The Policy and Communications Manager advised that they would not be actively promoted but Officers would have the details readily available.

Councillor J Barr, the Lead Member of the Scrutiny Project Group, noted that leisure services concessions in particular had to be reviewed in a different way as there was a need to retain some flexibility. Thanks were given to Democratic Services, especially Committee and Scrutiny Co-ordinator Martin Elliott, for their support and also to Cabinet Members and Service Heads for their cooperation. The Leader added that the scrutiny review and resulting policy was a good example of scrutiny identifying an area that needed looking at and finding a solution to resolve the issue. The Leader also added that Cabinet recognised Scrutiny’s work as a useful input. The Policy and Scrutiny Officer reiterated that some good, collaborative working took place and noted that having corporate leadership and support behind the work and policy ensured it would be followed through to implementation.

Members thanked the Leader and Policy and Communications Manager for attending and providing the update.

RESOLVED –

1)   That the monitoring update on Concessions on Fees and Charges be noted.

2)   That it be noted that Members were pleased with the work to date and looked forward to seeing it finalised.

3)   That the monitoring schedule be approved.

5:45 – 5:50pm

The Forward Plan was considered by the forum. Members drew attention to a decision due to be made by Cabinet in October on the Unreasonable Complaints and Customers Policy. Members commented that they receive complaints regularly and felt that it was important to look at the development of the new policy.

Members asked if an update could be received on the Consultation response to Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Groups 21C Joined up care consultation as a decision was due at Cabinet in October regarding this. The Chair advised that health scrutiny fell under the remit of the Community, Customer and Organisational Scrutiny Committee and he would speak with Councillor P Gilby regarding an update from a meeting she attended.

RESOLVED –

1.)That more information be requested about the decision to be taken regarding the Unreasonable Complaints and Customers Policy.

2.)That consideration be given to the Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Groups 21C Joined up care consultation.

3.)That the Forward Plan be noted.

5:50 – 5:55pm

The Work Programme for the Overview and Performance Scrutiny Forum was considered. The Policy and Scrutiny Officer noted that the item on Constitution Reform had been deferred until March, 2017 unless significant progress was made at which point it could be brought forward.

RESOLVED –

That the work programme be approved.

5:55 - 6:00pm

No issues were raised for Joint Overview and Scrutiny.

6:00 – 6:10pm

The Chair reported that there had been a visit from the External Relations and Engagement Manager for East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), who was seeking to develop a scrutiny contact with the Council and learn about the overview and scrutiny work at Chesterfield. An offer to visit the council and talk to all members about the work of EMAS was made. An offer to visit the call centre to see how it operates was also extended to all Members with Members of the Community, Customer and Organisational Scrutiny Committee taking priority.

The Policy and Scrutiny Officer updated Members on the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee (SCRCA OSC) and advised that a forward plan of key decisions had now been developed by the Combined Authority and the SCRCA OSC was looking to develop its own work programme. Members asked if the other local authorities that were part of the SCRCA had similar scrutiny arrangements to those of Chesterfield. The Policy and Scrutiny Officer advised that it was unlikely that they all operated in a similar way to Chesterfield but would need to investigate further for more information on this.

RESOLVED –

1)   That an invitation be extended to Scrutiny Members to visit the East Midlands Ambulance Service’s call centre and the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing be informed of the approach and offer made by EMAS.

2)   That the update on the Sheffield City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee be noted.

6:10 – 6:15pm

The minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Performance Scrutiny Forum held on 14 June, 2016 were presented. In reference to Minute No. 5, Members raised concerns with the People Directory function on the Council’s intranet. Members had also experienced issues with officer’s remaining on the intranet directory after they had left the Council and their email inboxes remaining open or unmonitored. The issue had been raised with Executive Director, James Drury, in June 2016 however the situation had not been resolved. Members suggested that they should be formally notified of key people’s appointments and new charts detailing management structures, including Corporate Management Team, were needed.

RESOLVED –

1)   That the minutes be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

2)   That the Member’s concerns over the ease of use of the People Directory on the Aspire intranet and need for up to date information on staffing changes be raised with HR and the Communications and Marketing Manager.