Agenda and minutes

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.

42.1     No recordable interests were declared.

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 28 November 2022 (cream paper).

43.1     Resolved – that with correction of a typing error in minute 37, the minutes of the meeting held on 28 November 2022 be approved as a correct record and that they be signed by the Chairman.

The Committee is asked to note the responses to recommendations made at previous meetings of the Committee.

44.1     In response to a query about negotiations with the government over the Dedicated Schools Grant, the Committee was told that the Council could do no more as this was a national issue and awaited the outcome.

44.2     Resolved – That the Committee notes the responses.

The report is presented by the Director of Finance and Support Services. The draft budget for 2023/24 is presented to the Committee for preview and endorsement ahead of the agreement and approval of the Budget at Cabinet on 31 January 2023 and County Council on 17 February 2023. Any issues or concerns raised by the Committee will be considered by the Cabinet ahead of approval at County Council.

The Committee is asked to consider the report and appendices and make any comments to Cabinet to take into account when it considers the draft Revenue Budget 2023/24, draft Capital Strategy 2023/24 to 2026/27, and Treasury Management Strategy Statement 2023/24.

45.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Finance and Support Services (copy appended to the signed minutes).

45.2     Summary of responses to members’ questions and comments: -

·           The target for the number of enterprises to be supported (Key Performance Indicator (KPI) 15) had been increased due to various schemes such as a creative Digital Hub in Bognor Regis, Experience West Sussex, Hothouse with the University of Chichester, Research In Sussex Excellence (RISE) with the University of Brighton and the University of Sussex

·           The target of 7.5km new cycling infrastructure per year (KPI17) was the minimum expected, was being exceeded and would likely be reviewed

·           The target for completion of Education, Health and Care Plans within 20 weeks (KPI56) was low due to a surge in applications and a shortage of educational psychologists – it was noted that the Children & Young People’s Scrutiny Committee had queried how the Council could have a target that was below statutory requirements

·           It was recognised that more work was needed to increase the number of adults using direct payments

·           The target for the aggregated unit cost of the Council’s services compared to its statistical neighbours (KPI50) had gone down from 4^th to 7^th/8^th highest as it is better value for money for residents to have a lower unit service cost

·           Growth deals (KPI24) exist for each district/borough council, these will continue to evolve although the funding method may move from drawing down from a fund to individual funding agreed between the Cabinet Member for Support Services & Economic Development and the Cabinet Member for Finance & Property

·           The Council will work via the integrated care system to influence enhanced joined-up working and the empowering of communities to improve health, possibly through local care networks based on district and borough boundaries

·           All targets will be reviewed throughout the year to ensure they remain relevant

·           £4.5m has been allocated from corporate funding (not highways base budget) to address maintenance and flooding – the Highways Team is scoping how it will be spent and will be presented to the Communities, Highways & Environment Scrutiny Committee in March

·           The Traffic Management & Road Safety Task & Finish Group will look at the possibility of decreasing the threshold for intervention for repairing roads and pavements

·           The Business Rate Pooling arrangement is designed to get the maximum rebate/return which will be spread across the county, this wouldn’t be possible if all district/borough councils were involved – all council leaders are involved in discussions. All districts and boroughs receive a benefit from the pool.

·           The slight decrease in the County Council’s tax base in 2021/22 was due to a combination of factors e.g. the number of homes, level of discount, number of council tax reduction claimants

·           There was inconsistency between the Service Specific Spending Pressures 2023/24 table and individual portfolio tables – ACTION: Director of Finance and Support Services make sure the tables align

·           The Capital Receipts Usable Reserves balance was projected to be less on 31 March 2024  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45.

The Committee is asked to review the report from the Director of Human Resources and Organisational Development which sets out the mitigating actions proposed to address Corporate Risk 11 in relation to recruitment and retention issues.

The Committee is asked to make any comments for Cabinet and officers to consider when taking forward the actions.

46.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director of Human Resources and Organisational Development (copy appended to the signed minutes).

46.2     Summary of responses to Members’ questions and comments: -

·         The Council is receiving external specialist recruitment support for six months and will judge after that whether this support needs to continue  

·         There will be key performance indicators introduced for the external recruitment specialist to measure the time taken to recruit staff from agencies and the number of candidates they provide. The external specialist will be passing on key learning and advice with regard future recruitment techniques to council staff

·         If the Council wished to pay market supplements to staff starting in hard to fill roles, it would also have to pay a market supplement to existing staff in those roles - this would be difficult to maintain and remove

·         Market supplements have on-going cost implications so are not a sustainable position. The salary benchmarking exercise will be important in recognising any problem areas

·         The Council has access to the Integrated Care System’s ‘Staff in Mind’ programme that offers psychological support to staff

·         Sickness due to stress and anxiety is being closely monitored and a number of well-being actions have been undertaken including the introduction of mental health first aiders

·         The Council will offer job sharing, part time/term time and hybrid working as well as using social media, creating a new localised staff benefits package and making use of mentoring to encourage recruitment and incentivise current staff to remain at the council

·         A collective solution is required when different authorities compete for the same workforce

·         The gap between public and private sector pay is likely to decrease, so the Council needs to emphasise what the public sector can offer to make it more attractive

·         Supervision and one to ones between officers and their managers are improving, but more needs to be done on discussing career aspirations and development with staff

·         The Council is monitoring the number of performance/disciplinary cases against time served in the organisation to ensure there are no particular issues with newly appointed staff and that standards and abilities do not drop

·         Social workers employed from overseas will receive a comprehensive induction and will benefit from the support from their peer group

·         The Council will also help them find accommodation and do what it can to encourage them to stay by offering career development opportunities

·         The Council is considering the cost of further overseas recruitment to decide if this is something it wants to do again

·         The staff turnover rate has risen across the Council – priority for recruitment is focussed on social care where there are most vacancies

·         The Council, other local authorities and the Local Government Association would like legislation to prevent agencies from providing project teams instead of individual workers

46.3     Resolved - that

1. Recognises recruitment and retention as a significant risk to the Council and welcomes the work being undertaken to mitigate this
2. Recognises the growing and changing requirements in terms of recruiting  ...  view the full minutes text for item 46.

Extract from the Forward Plan dated 16 January 2023 – 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.

47.1     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.

48.1     Resolved – that the Committee notes the Work Programme.

The next meeting of the Committee will be at 10.30am on 10 March 2023 at County Hall, Chichester. Probable agenda items include: -

·         Quarterly Performance and Resources Report

·         Smarter Working Programme

·         IT Policy

Any member wishing to place an item on the agenda for the meeting must notify the Director of Law and Assurance by 21 February 2023.

49.1     The Committee notes its next meeting will take place on 10 March 2023 commencing at 10.30am.