Agenda item

2017-18 Year End Position Statement on Finance, Performance and Risk

Minutes:

The Policy and Performance Manager presented the report which provided an update on the Council’s financial position and performance for the 2017-2018 year end. He explained that the Strategic Risk Register was under review.

 

The Deputy Leader of the Council was present and informed the committee that the new administration would be reviewing the Corporate Plan and the measures against which the Council’s performance was measured.

 

The Committee discussed the report:

·         Concern was raised regarding the tone of the report which focussed on successes rather than problems. More in depth analysis of areas of concern was requested, focussing on actions to improve performance.

·         Information was requested regarding whether the new housing and homelessness officers referred to in the report had been appointed and what the Council had been doing to help ensure a smooth implementation of Universal Credit. Information about the skill mix of these staff was also requested. The committee was informed that the Council was very aware of the risk of the implementation of Universal Credit, which was due to be implemented in October 2018.

·         With reference to the number of unfilled vacancies and sickness levels, concern was raised that economic savings were being made by the Council at the expense of staff, staffing levels and the performance of the Council. In response to this the committee was informed that the Council had struggled to recruit to a number of service areas, such as Planning. Despite this the Council had continued to deliver a service. The skills shortage in Planning was a nationwide issue. The committee was assured that the Council did not have a policy to not fill vacancies in order to make financial savings and that staff sickness levels were not worsening.

·         In response to a query regarding the reasons for being unable to recruit planning officers, the committee was informed that the high cost of living in South Cambridgeshire was a contributing factor, as was the general shortage of planning officers across the country. The Council was continuing to find ways to recruit planning officers.

·         The committee was informed that all staff leaving the organisation were given the opportunity for an exit interview.

·         It was suggested that the committee could look at recruitment challenges as part of its work programme.

·         The scoring of risks in the Strategic Risk Register was discussed. Concern was raised that the net score of risks could be masking significant problems, with some risks rated as amber when there was clearly a problem. In response to this the committee was informed that the net score took into account the actions taken to mitigate the risk. The committee was assured that the amber rating reflected that the risk was significant.

·         Regarding mitigations in relation to recruitment and retention, the committee was informed that all mitigating factors had either been implemented or were in the process of being implemented, but the Council was still struggling to recruit.

·         The committee was informed that staff turnover was at a healthy level; around 10%. Turnover did not relate directly to underspends arising from ongoing staff vacancies, as in most cases the Council was able to successfully recruit to positions.

·         The committee was informed that the £8.7 million allocated to improving public transport links between Cambourne, Cambridge and nearby villages as referred to in the Corporate Plan, was from Section106 contributions.

·         Regarding reference made in the Corporate Plan to the A14 and A428, committee members raised concern regarding the Girton Interchange remaining a single lane. The Deputy Leader informed the committee that this was part of the wider discussions with Highways England on the A428, which the Leader of the Council had been working on.

·         In response to a suggestion that a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) be added regarding enforcement in relation to Travellers, the committee was informed that KPI ES406 measured the percentage of major non-compliances resolved.

·         Concern was raised that the provision of electric vehicle charging points was not a requirement for new homes. In response to this the Deputy Leader advised that there was no mechanism to oblige developers to provide electric vehicle charging points, but the next Local Plan would start to be developed next year and the inclusion of issues such as this could be considered.

·         The vacancy figures across the whole of the Planning Shared Service were requested. The committee was informed that some vacancies in the Planning service were filled by consultants.

·         The demand on bailiff and legal services in dealing with illegal Traveller encampments was suggested as a potential future area of work for the committee.

·         Regarding the underspend in ICT Development detailed in Appendix C of the report, members queried whether spending more on improved ICT could have helped with the staffing issues if staff had been struggling to do carry out their jobs due to ICT issues. An update on the short term plans for improvements to ICT was suggested as an item for the next committee meeting. Regarding underspend, the Deputy Leader clarified that any rollovers were due to projects that were ongoing so any underspend was likely to be spent as the project progressed.

 

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee NOTED the report.

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