Agenda and minutes

The Committee is asked to elect a Chairman for 2022-23 from the committee members listed below:

Cllr Baldwin, Cllr Boram, Cllr Britton, Cllr Burrett, Cllr Condie, Cllr Elkins, Cllr Gibson, Cllr Kerry-Bedell, Cllr Linehan, Cllr McDonald, Cllr Montyn, Cllr Sparkes, Cllr Turley, Cllr Wall.

If the election is contested, a secret ballot will be held in accordance with Standing Order 2.17.

1.1        Cllr Montyn was proposed as Chairman by Cllr Burrett and seconded by Cllr Sparkes – there were no other nominations.

1.2        Resolved – that Cllr Montyn is elected as Chairman of the Committee for the year.

The Committee is asked to elect a Vice-Chairman for 2022-23 from the committee members listed below:

Cllr Baldwin, Cllr Boram, Cllr Britton, Cllr Burrett, Cllr Condie, Cllr Elkins, Cllr Gibson, Cllr Kerry-Bedell, Cllr Linehan, Cllr McDonald, Cllr Montyn, Cllr Sparkes, Cllr Turley, Cllr Wall.

If the election is contested, a secret ballot will be held in accordance with Standing Order 2.17.

2.1        Cllr Burrett was proposed by Cllr Britton and seconded by Cllr Baldwin. Cllr Condie was proposed by Cllr Turley and seconded by Cllr Gibson. A secret ballot was held.

2.2        Resolved – that Cllr Burrett was elected as Vice Chairman by ten votes to four.

The Committee is asked to review the membership of the Business Planning Group in view of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman appointments.

The Group should have five members including the Committee’s Chairman, Vice-Chairman, and two minority group members.

3.1       The Business Planning Group membership was agreed as Cllr Montyn (Chairman), Cllr Burrett (Vice Chairman), Cllr Sparkes, Cllr Condie and Cllr Turley.

Members and officers must declare any pecuniary or personal interest in any business on the agenda.  They should also make declarations at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting.  Consideration should be given to leaving the meeting if the nature of the interest warrants it.  If in doubt please contact Democratic Services before the meeting.

4.1       In accordance with the code of conduct, the following personal interest was declared in respect of item 8, Update on Asset Management Policy and Strategy: -

·         Cllr Condie as Director of Brighton Energy Co-operative

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 11 March 2022 (cream paper).

5.1        It was noted that Cllr Elkins attendance was not reflected in the minutes of the last meeting – this would be rectified.

5.2        Resolved – that the Minutes of the meeting held on 11 March 2022 be updated to reflect the attendance of Cllr Elkins and be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

The Committee is asked to note the responses to recommendations made at the 11 March 2022 meeting.

6.1        Customer Service Centre Function: -

·         There was a query regarding the cost of bringing the service back in house (including pensions) – ACTION: Lee Harris to provide the cost to the Committee

·         Use of technology in the future could include voice recognition and artificial intelligence. Any new targets would come the Committee in the Performance and Resources Report

6.2        Resolved – that the Committee notes the responses.

The Committee is asked to review the draft Asset Management Policy and Strategy 2022/23 - 2025/26 to ensure it meets the objectives in the Our Council Plan and is flexible enough to meet the changing needs and work practices of the County Council.  The Committee is asked to feed any comments for consideration into the review ahead of the Policy and Strategy being finalised.

7.1      The Committee scrutinised a report by the Assistant Director of Property and Assets (copy appended to the signed minutes).

7.2      Summary of responses to Committee members’ questions and comments: -

·       IT assets are managed by the IT department – other assets such as fire and security systems are managed by Facilities Management through contracts or cyclical maintenance - maintenance or replacement will be driven by the asset condition survey

·       The asset condition survey has been enabled by the introduction of the new Concerto database– information from this will guide the need for replacement

·       The Council has struggled to appoint property Estate Surveyors, Contract Managers and Project Managers but will work to fill vacant posts by making the roles more attractive through job re-evaluation and more competitive salaries. The Property Team will continue to work closely with the Mult-Disciplinary Consultant partner

·       The shortage of staff was not affecting quality of advice, but is slowing the process

·       The Committee suggested that the Joint Venture partner should be added to objective 3 of the Strategy – this would be considered

·       When new ways of working are introduced, it could be possible that one or two major Council office hubs would be surplus to requirement as less office space would be needed

·       The rationalisation of the estate is a by-product of new ways of working, it is not a driver, as things would be done more efficiently with more hybrid working

·       All departments had been consulted on their requirements and the best way to deliver their services

·       Consultants had been appointed and their report would be completed soon

·       Those officers who could not work at home during the pandemic, were able to do so from Council offices, this will continue

·       Shared office space could become normal practice between teams

·       There was some concern that the sale or transfer of buildings could be affected if only essential maintenance was carried out – a balance had to be struck between capital and revenue demands

·       Joint Venture projects were moving ahead at pace and an update would come to the Committee in November

·       Special Educational Needs & Disability provision was part of the capital programme, not the Asset Management Strategy

·       The Council is open to discussing the disposal of assets with district/borough councils where feasible and appropriate

·       The Council had to balance its desire to help communities against what buildings it could afford to run and maintain

·       It is a legal requirement for the Council to get the best consideration possible when it grants a lease or disposes of a building

·       Developers do not currently build schools to carbon neutral standards as it is not a Department for Education requirement

·       Carbon reduction is a priority in all Council decisions, but financial viability has to be a consideration when assessing the business cases

7.3      Resolved – that the Committee: -

                   i.        Supports the draft Asset Management Policy and Strategy 2022/23 - 2025/26 and agrees that it meets the objectives in the Our Council Plan and is flexible enough  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Committee is asked to review a report providing an update on the status of the Children and Family Centres affected by the changes to early help provision.

8.1      The Committee scrutinised a report by the Assistant Director of Property and Assets, copy appended to the signed minutes.

8.2      Summary of responses to Committee members’ questions and comments: -

·       The nine locations originally required by Public Health were able to be covered by offering seven centres and part use of two others

·       The Sure Start Grant conditions are set by the government and determine how assets should be used by the Council. These conditions are usually non-negotiable

8.3      Resolved – that the Committee: -

                   i.        Supports the Early Help Asset Plan

                  ii.        Welcomes the update on properties affected and

                 iii.        Recognises the importance of local Member communication

The Committee is asked to review the Scrutiny Annual Report which summarises the main outcomes of scrutiny, best practice, lessons learnt, and any development issues identified during 2021/22.  The report also includes information in relation to the development of an Executive-Scrutiny Protocol for the Committee’s input.

9.1      The Committee scrutinised a report by the Director of Law and Assurance, copy appended to the signed minutes.

9.2      Summary of responses to Committee members’ questions and comments: -

·       Scrutiny chairmen should consider how to incorporate climate change in their committees’ work programmes

·       Committee members should challenge the Policy Alignment and Compliance section of committee reports where they consider the content to be inadequate

·       A Scrutiny Development Action Plan setting out key areas for future action is monitored by scrutiny chairmen. This is not a public document but can be made available to councillors – ACTION: Helen Kenny to circulate the Scrutiny Development Action Plan to members of the Committee

·       Committee members should consider opportunities to interact informally

·       It was agreed that the following wording in the draft Executive-Scrutiny Protocol – ‘The scrutiny process is informed and driven by the political insight of members’ – be changed to read ‘The scrutiny process is informed and driven by members’

9.3      Resolved – that the Committee: -

                     i.        Supports presenting the Scrutiny Annual Report to full Council

                    ii.        Recognises that the Council Plan underpins the work of scrutiny

                   iii.        Welcomes the ability of individual committees to work flexibly

                  iv.        Supports the development of an Executive Scrutiny protocol

Extract from the Forward Plan dated 6 June 2022, attached.

An extract from any Forward Plan published between the date of despatch of the agenda and the date of the meeting will be tabled at the meeting.

The Committee is asked to consider whether it wishes to enquire into any of the forthcoming decisions within its portfolio.

10.1      Resolved – that the Committee notes the Forward Plan of Key Decisions.

The Committee to review its draft work programme taking into consideration the checklist at Appendix A.  If any member proposes an item for inclusion, the Committee’s role at this meeting is to assess, briefly, whether to refer the matter to its Business Planning Group to consider in detail.

11.1      Resolved – that the Committee notes its Work Programme.

The next meeting of the Committee will be held virtually at 10.30am on 13 July 2022.  Probable agenda items include:

·         End of year Performance and Resources Report

·         End of year Treasury Management Report

Any member wishing to place an item on the agenda for the meeting must notify the Director of Law and Assurance by 28 June 2022.

12.1     The Committee notes its next meeting will take place virtually on 13 July 2022 commencing at 10.30am.