Agenda and draft 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.

38.1     In accordance with the Code of Conduct, the following personal interests were declared: -

·         Cllr Gibson in respect of Item 5, Additional budget allocation for delivery of the new Secondary School at Brookleigh, Burgess Hill as a member of Mid Sussex District Council

·         Cllr Milne in respect of Item 6, Performance and Resources Report - Quarter 3 2023/24 – as Cabinet Member for Planning and Infrastructure at Horsham District Council

The Committee is asked to agree the minutes of the meeting held on 24 January 2024 (cream paper).

39.1     Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting held on 24 January 2024 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.

40.1     The Committee considered the responses to recommendations made at previous meetings and: -

·         Was assured that every opportunity was taken to lobby the government over the Dedicated Schools Grant situation

·         Was concerned that some responses, although completed, needed to stay on the Committee’s radar

40.2     Resolved – That the Committee notes the responses.

The Committee is asked to scrutinise the draft key decision report in relation to additional funding for a new secondary school at Burgess Hill.

The Committee should examine the data and information presented in the report and make any recommendations for action to the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Learning and Skills before the final decision is taken.

41.1     The Committee considered a report by the Director for Children, Young People and Learning and Director of Place Services (copy appended to the signed minutes).

41.2     Summary of responses to committee members’ comments and questions:

·           It was too early to say what extra facilities and staff would be needed at Burgess Hill Academy to temporarily accommodate an additional 120 pupils from September 2026 until the new school opens in May 2027

·           The University of Brighton Academy Trust runs Burgess Hill Academy and will run the new secondary school when it opens. The Trust will decide on the number of temporary staff needed and the staff who will transfer to the new school when it opens

·           Based on current pupil population forecasts a six form entry school is considered large enough to accommodate pupil requirements

·           A separate decision regarding the temporary accommodation at Burgess Hill Academy will be taken and should be presented to the Children & Young People’s Services Scrutiny Committee at the appropriate time

·           There are a number of building challenges on the new school site; woodlands on two sides of the site, a number of trees that cannot be felled and a height difference of nine metres from one end of the site to the other (meaning stairs and lifts will need to be installed and 2,500 lorry loads of topsoil will need to be brought in for levelling as the clay on site is not suitable)

·           The Council has received £12.2m in Section 106 money with a further £6m due on completion of the development – it was possible the Council could request more funding due to the abnormalities of the site but this, if granted, will be received in retrospect of build completion

·           The Council was always aware of the topography of the site and this has been built into the specifications, but when the development initially went to tender the successful contractor said it could deliver the project within budget – a rise in construction costs means this is now not possible

·           A mid-point contingency budget was set based on the mid-point of tenders, this was thought to be the most sensible approach. The contingency budget is in place to cover unforeseen costs and will be carefully managed through the life of the development, it is not for extra facilities

·           The requirement for a Special  Support Centre (SSC) was a late inclusion to the original project specification that was to be  covered by the contingency budget, the Centre is now included in the overall cost and will be built as planned

·           The new school will achieve Passivhaus Accreditation

·           If the extra funding is agreed for this project, it will take priority over other projects in the Capital Programme. A review of Basic Needs projects will be completed to ensure all projects required are  completed

·           It won’t be known until the new tender process ends in the summer whether the extra funds identified for the project will be sufficient or whether the project will be delivered  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41.

A report by the Chief Executive and Director of Finance and Support Services setting out the corporate performance, finance, workforce, risk and capital programme positions as at the end of December 2023.

The Committee is asked to examine the data and supporting commentary for the Performance and Resources report and make any recommendations for action to the relevant Cabinet Member or Scrutiny Committee.

42.1     The Committee considered the Quarter 3 Performance and Resources Report (PRR) by the Director of Finance and Support Services summarising the position on finance, performance, risk and workforce as at the end of December 2023 (copy appended to the signed minutes).

42.2     Summary of responses to committee members’ comments and questions:

·         The problem of the sale of illicit vapes is being dealt with systematically

·         The Council has used money from grant funding and balances which are now exhausted to cover over-spends and unfulfilled savings in Adults’ Services. Work is being undertaken as part of the on-going budget process  to ensure that grant funding would not be relied upon in future, including a two-year improvement programme in Adults’ Services which would lead to savings being made in a realistic timescale

·         The Council works all year round to recover debts and the position will be reported in June’s outturn report, including debts which are irrecoverable

·         Contracts have specific inflation indices built-in and inflation rates are reviewed at a certain date or at a level set by the Office for Budget Responsibility

·         ACTION – the Director of Finance and Support Services to provide information on the implications for the overspend in the Children and Young People, Learning and Skill’s Portfolio if all staff vacancies were filled

·         The Burgess Hill Academy Bulge Class is not affected by the delay to the new secondary school at Brookleigh, Burgess Hill

·         The restructure of the Human Resources Resourcing function is on course to be completed by 1 April 2024 and will be monitored through the PRR

·         The Broadbridge Heath project remains viable with a tender out now with the aim to seek planning permission in April. Officers expect the majority of spending on the project to take place towards the end of the next financial year.

·         The Council always aims for 100% against the KPI on tenders over £500k including the social value criteria (currently at 93%) but the number of tenders each quarter can vary, and numbers are quite small meaning percentages can fluctuate. Officers are confident that 80% is sustainable as there are often around 10 new high value tenders/contracts per quarter. There are some examples where including social value criteria would not be achievable or viable and in such cases we would apply other evaluation criteria for that contract.

·         There was a query about the relationship between the amount of office space in use, the decarbonisation of buildings and the Council’s aspiration to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030

·         Objections raised during the electric vehicle charging consultation were mainly due to a misunderstanding that charging parking bays could only be used for electric vehicles

·         The budget for the recycling contract was set based on the September rate of inflation in line with budget principles but the final cost, agreed with the contractors, is based on indices published in February. The same principle has been applied for the 2024/25 budget but based on our initial assessment we expect the variation to be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

The Committee is asked to review its current draft work programme taking into account the scrutiny checklist (Appendix A) and highlight any further possible items for future scrutiny.

If any member puts forward such an item, 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.

The Committee is also asked to review the Forward Plan of Key Decisions (Appendix B) and consider whether it wishes to enquire about any of the forthcoming decisions within its portfolio.

43.1     The Committee considered an extract of the Forward Plan of Key Decisions and Work Programme (copies appended to the signed minutes).

43.2     Resolved – that the Committee: -

                i.     Notes the Forward Plan of Key Decisions

               ii.     Asks that the Building Maintenance Services contract come to a future meeting of the Committee

             iii.     Requests that the distinction between statutory and discretionary services and any change to Gatwick Airport are added to the Work Programme for monitoring by the Business Planning Group

The next meeting of the Committee will be at 10.30am on 21 June 2024 at County Hall, Chichester. Probable agenda items include: -

·         Performance and Resources Report (PRR) Quarter 4 - End of March 2024

·         Digitisation and IT Strategy

Any member wishing to place an item on the agenda for the meeting must notify the Director of Law and Assurance by 6 June 2024.

44.1     The Committee notes its next meeting will take place on 21 June 2024, commencing at 10.30am.