Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 14 November 2017 were confirmed as correct.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment presented a report on the Council’s revenue budget monitoring position for the 2017/18 financial year as at 31 October 2017.

The General Fund continued to show a projected year-end overspend of £5.883m against the budget of £145.13m and the Cabinet Member confirmed that the position was unlikely to improve to any significant degree by the end of the financial year. 

The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) also showed an unchanged projection from the previous month’s £0.769m deficit position against the budgeted contribution of £39.642m to the HRA Capital Programme, while the reprofiled Capital Programme (excluding HRA-funded projects) was expected to achieve the targeted spend of £166.7m.

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note the forecast outturn position for 2017/18 of the Council’s General Fund revenue budget as detailed in section 2 and Appendix A of the report;

(ii)  Note the new financial risks and the suggested mechanisms for resolving them, as detailed in section 3 of the report; and

(iii)  Note the overview of the HRA for 2017/18, as detailed in section 4 and Appendix B of the report.

Further to Minute 17 (20 June 2017), the Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement presented an update report in respect of the various school expansion projects aimed at addressing the current and future demand for places in the Borough, as well as the latest funding issues.

The Cabinet Member advised that nine new forms of entry had been created during 2017 to accommodate the ongoing rise in pupil numbers in the Borough across both the primary and secondary sectors.  The latest pupil forecast data suggested that primary age pupil numbers (including nursery) would further increase from 28,884 (at May 2017) to 34,012 by the 2027/28 academic year while secondary age pupil numbers (including 6^th form) would increase from 14,546 to 24,210 over the same period.  Responding to the predicted increase, officers had been working closely with School Governing Bodies to draw up a programme of school expansions as well as looking at the areas of the Borough that may need new school provision as regeneration schemes came to fruition.  With regard to the latter, it was noted that funding of £7.0m was proposed to be set aside for new school places in Chadwell Heath should new homes be built on existing industrial sites in the area, although the Cabinet Member pointed out that projects would only be progressed once the need for additional places was confirmed. 

The Cabinet Member also advised on the progress of a number of projects aimed at enhancing facilities and places for children with special educational needs (SEN) and increased Early Years provision.

In response to points raised, the Cabinet Member commented that the Council had a good reputation with the Department for Education (DfE) and the Education Funding Agency for delivering projects on time and on budget, while it was testament to the hard work of officers, school staff and pupils that education attainment levels had been maintained while major expansion projects had been undertaken at many of the Borough’s schools.  The Leader also commented on Barking and Dagenham’s No. 1 ranking in London for offering first choice preferences to pupils for the 2017/18 academic year.

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Approve the Future Planning Programme for Basic Need 2017 to 2027 (revised November 2017) as set out at Appendix 1 to the report;

(ii)  Approve the inclusion in the Capital Programme of the various sums and projects associated with changes to the Programme as detailed in section 5 of the report;

(iii)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director for Service Development and Integration to approve the final procurement strategies for each project following their consideration and endorsement by the Procurement Board, in accordance with the Council’s Contract Rules; and

(iv)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director for Service Development and Integration, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement, the Chief Operating Officer and the Director of Law and Governance, to carry out the procurement and award the respective project contracts.

The Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement presented a report on the latest position regarding the Government’s education funding reforms and the proposed allocation of funding to schools for 2018/19.

The Cabinet Member referred to the provisional allocations for 2018/19 across the four funding areas covering the main allocation to schools (Schools block), central costs for core Local Authority education services (Central block), additional costs for SEN pupils (High Needs block) and childcare and pre-school services (Early Years block).  It was noted that the overall allocation for 2018/19 would represent another real-term cut in education funding in the Borough and Members spoke of their dismay at the Government for its failure to provide a properly funded education system that was open to all. 

The Cabinet Member highlighted the continued under-funding by Government of the High Needs block which had resulted in the local Schools’ Forum agreeing once again to reallocate some funding from the larger Schools block to maintain services to the most vulnerable children.  Cabinet Members expressed their support for a lobbying campaign recently discussed at London Councils aimed at securing extra funding from the Government to support the High Needs block.

The Cabinet Member also commented on the significant cuts to the Central block over recent years which impacted on a number of valued services such as the Trewern Outdoor Education Centre and the Community Music Service, and advised that further reports would be presented to Cabinet on the future funding options for those services.

The Schools’ Forum had been consulted on three funding allocation options for 2018/19 and the preferred option was detailed in Appendix A to the report, although it was acknowledged that some adjustments may be necessary as a result of updated census data used by the DfE to determine final allocations. 

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note the latest position on the national Education Funding Reform and the expected implications for Barking and Dagenham as set out in section 2 of the report;

(ii)  Approve the 2018/19 strategy for the Dedicated Schools Budget as set out in section 3 of the report;

(iii)  Agree, in principle, the proposed model for allocating school funding in 2018/19 set out in section 4 and Appendix A of the report; and

(iv)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director for Service Development and Integration, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Educational Attainment and School Improvement, the Chief Operating Officer and the Schools Forum, to approve the final 2018/19 school funding formula submission to the Education Funding Agency.

The Cabinet Member for Economic and Social Development presented a report on the proposed allocation of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding which the Council received from developers as part of the planning approval process.

The CIL could be allocated across two streams, the main element being Strategic CIL which related to major infrastructure projects within the area that the planning application related to while Neighbourhood CIL could be allocated for any type of infrastructure project in the Borough considered to benefit the local community.  The Cabinet Member explained that areas of significant regeneration activity, such as Thames ward, would benefit disproportionally if all CIL funding was allocated to strategic projects so it was therefore proposed that, after administrative costs, 15% of CIL should be allocated for neighbourhood projects with the remaining 85% for strategic projects. 

The Cabinet Member alluded to the proposed internal arrangements for allocating funding to specific projects and it was also confirmed that CIL charges would be reviewed next year as part of the Local Plan preparations.

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Agree the process for determining Strategic CIL spend as set out in paragraph 2.4 of the report;

(ii)  Agree that the entire Borough be defined as the neighbourhood for the purposes of allocating the Neighbourhood CIL; and

(iii)  Agree the process for determining Neighbourhood CIL spend as set out in paragraph 2.10 of the report.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment introduced the corporate performance framework report for the second quarter of the 2017/18 financial year.

The Cabinet Member referred to the Performance Challenge sessions at which portfolio holders and senior managers discussed detailed performance data with the Cabinet Member for Corporate Performance and Delivery and he highlighted several areas of improvement for the latest period, such as staff sickness absence and Members’ Enquiries response rates.  Other issues that arose during the discussions included:

·  That 57% of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) were improving;

·  The workshop sessions held earlier in the year to consider the issue of young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs) had helped the Borough to improve on a national level from the 4^th quartile to the 2^nd quartile;

·  The recent announcement regarding the devolution of health care in London which would help bring about real health improvements locally;

·  That the Environment and Street Scene services were meeting all of their KPIs and Barking and Dagenham was now the second highest recycler in the area covered by the East London Waste Authority (ELWA);

·  That despite the Government’s austerity measures which had taken £130m annual funding from the Council, the residents of Barking and Dagenham continued to receive good quality public services.

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note progress against the Key Accountabilities at 30 September 2017 as detailed in Appendix 1 to the report; and

(ii)  Note performance against the KPIs at 30 September 2017 as detailed in Appendix 2 to the report.

The Cabinet Member for Social Care and Health Integration introduced a report on the procurement of contracts for the supply and delivery of fresh meat, fruit and vegetables via the London Contracts and Supplies Group (LCSG) Framework.

The Cabinet Member confirmed that the procurements had followed legally complaint processes and assurances had been received that the suppliers were fully certificated in relation to the supply of halal meats etc..

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Grant retrospective approval for the procurement of contracts for the supply of fresh meat and fruit and vegetables, as set out in the report; and

(ii)  Delegate authority to the Strategic Director for Service Development and Integration, in consultation with the Director of Law and Governance, to formally call-off from the LCSG Framework and enter into the signed call-off contracts.

The Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment introduced the performance report for the second quarter of the 2017/18 financial year in respect of the debt management function carried out by the Revenues and Benefits Service within Elevate East London.

The Cabinet Member advised that performance levels remained stable despite the significant challenges brought about by the Government’s austerity programme.  In response to the suggestion that the Council could do more to collect recoverable debts, the Cabinet Member commented that he felt that the Council’s current approach struck the right balance as there were arrangements in place to support those that were unable to pay alongside robust collection and enforcement arrangements for those that chose not to pay.  Reference was also made to the Council’s efforts to reduce ‘grime crime’ through effective publicity and enforcement, as well as other positive initiatives such as the Council’s house-building programme aimed at low earners.

The Cabinet resolved to:

(i)  Note the performance of the debt management function carried out by the Revenues and Benefits service operated by Elevate East London, including the performance of enforcement agents; and

(ii)  Note the debt write-offs for the second quarter of 2017/18, as detailed in Appendix A to the report.

The Cabinet Member for Social Care and Health Integration spoke on the Council’s ‘I Care’ campaign which encouraged residents to look out for their elderly neighbours, particularly over the Christmas period.  Further information, including the ‘I Care - 12 Days of Christmas’ video, was available on the Council’s website at www.lbbd.gov.uk/icare.