Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any declarations of interest from any Member or Officer in respect of any item of business.

Councillor Richard Dew declared an interest in respect of item 8 on the agenda.

Councillor H. Eifion Jones declared an interest in respect of item 9 on the agenda.

Both Members withdrew from the meeting during the discussion of the respective items.

No urgent matters at the time of dispatch of this agenda.

None received.

To submit the report of the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer setting out the financial performance of the capital budget to the end of December, 2014 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Portfolio Member for Finance reported on an improving situation particularly with regard to incoming capital receipts for the third quarter which totalled £1.986m. The overall expenditure was 51% of the total budget, with many of the larger schemes being weighted towards the year end. The Portfolio Member referred to those projects carrying the greatest level of risk as documented in section 2.3.1 of the report.

The Chair sought clarification of the position with regard to expenditure on the Vibrant and Viable Places Project given that some individual elements of the scheme had yet to commence.

The Director of Sustainability confirmed that funding for the project must be spent within the year and that carry over is not possible. No elements of the scheme are being put in place where there is a risk of slippage.

It was resolved to note progress of expenditure and receipts against the capital budget.

To submit the report of the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer setting out the financial performance of the Council’s services to the end of December, 2014 and the projected position for the year as a whole along with the sources of the main variances was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Portfolio Member for Finance reported that the revenue budget position had improved considerably in Quarter 3 with the overall projected overspend for year end standing at £154k at the end of the Quarter which equates to 0.001% of the Budget compared to the reported projected overspend of £456K at the end of Quarter 2. He referred to the financial performance of individual services and any variances therein as documented under section 3 of the report and confirmed that work to further reduce the projected year end deficit will continue into Quarter 4.

The Executive noted the improvement.

It was resolved –

•  To note the position set out in respect of financial performance to date.

•  To note the projected year end deficit, and

•  To note the actions being taken to address the projected year end deficit.

To submit the report of the Deputy Chief Executive.

The report of the Deputy Chief Executive setting out performance against key indicators at the end of Quarter 3 2014/15 as summarised in the Corporate Scorecard was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Portfolio Member for Performance Transformation, Corporate Plan and Human Resources reported on the areas where the Senior Leadership Team is focussing attention to secure improvements into the future as set out in section 1.1 of the report and he expanded on the actions being taken and their expected outcomes.

The Executive noted the position and the following comments were made –

•  That there needs to be better targeting for next year to enable the Council to meet its sickness absence objective of 10 days per FTE.

•  That a PI measure for conducting Attendance Review meetings when an individual’s level of absence has reached the Authority’s trigger level be included within the Corporate Scorecard for 2015/16.

•  That Professional Development Reviews need to be completed for all the Council’s staff for this year.

•  That as part of the strategy to reduce reliance on agency staff and associated costs the Council needs to consider the feasibility and cost effectiveness of developing a Professional

Traineeship scheme.

It was resolved –

•  To note the contents of the report along with the areas in which the Senior Leadership Team is managing to secure improvements into the future as set out in section 1.1 of the report.

•  To note the mitigation measures associated with areas of concern with the reported out-turn of progress being communicated to the Executive at its scheduled meeting in May, 2015.

(a)  To submit the report of the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer on the Executive’s Final Revenue Budget Proposals for 2015/16 inclusive of consultation outcomes. -TO FOLLOW

(b)  To submit the report of the Corporate Scrutiny Committee on Scrutiny feedback. - TO FOLLOW

(c)  To submit the report of the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer on the final proposals for the 2015/16 Capital Programme.

(a)  The report of the Interim Head of Function and Section 151 Officer in respect of the Medium Term Financial Plan and detailed revenue budget proposals for 2015/16 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Portfolio Member for Finance reported that the Authority received a 3.9% reduction in its Revenue Support Grant for 2015/16 meaning that it was required to identify savings in the region of £4m.That process has been undertaken via service reviews and service challenges involving Member input with all departments working towards a savings target of 10%. Budgets have also been reviewed in terms of housekeeping efficiency. No significant budget reductions in statutory services are proposed and an element of protection is being afforded to schools. The Authority’s approach is also based on eschewing the use of reserves in 2015/16 in anticipation that that cushion may be required in what are expected to be financially  challenging years ahead. The public consultation exercise on the Budget proposals specifically was undertaken through a variety of means and drew 73 responses mainly around the increase in Council Tax and the savings proposal in relation to school breakfasts which is included in the efficiencies schedule subject to consultation and scrutiny. In proposing a 4.5% increase in the Council Tax, the Authority has sought to be reasonable being mindful of the number of low income families on the island; the rate of Council Tax on Anglesey still remains one of the lowest in Wales.

The Portfolio Member for Housing and Social Services referred also to reductions in grant funding to the Authority across a range of services over and above the 3.9% reduction in the RSG and the identification of £4m of savings which that has necessitated. He said that in order to obtain a clear understanding of the full budgetary position the sum total of grant reductions needs to be known. The Interim Head of Resources and Section 151 Officer said that the relevant figures are lodged within the individual directorates, but can be extricated and circulated.

The Chief Executive said that due to the timing of the confirmation of certain grants which can extend into the new financial year, the position in full may not become clear for a few months.

It was resolved -

•  To note the formal consultation meetings on the budget proposals and the resulting feedback as outlined in section 2 of the report and in Appendices 1 and 2.

•  To note the equalities implications summary on the budget proposals in section 10 of the report.

•  To agree that within the proposed budget, schools are given an increase in budget which meets the Welsh Government’s pledge for schools funding as detailed in paragraph 3.2 of the report.

•  To agree the final details of the Council’s proposed budget, investments, pressures and savings as shown in Appendices 3 and 4 to the report.

•  To note the Section 151 Officer’s recommendation that minimum General Fund Balances be maintained at £5m, the confirmation of the robustness  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To submit a report by the Interim Head of Function (Resources) and Section 151 Officer.

The report of the Interim Head of Resources and Section 151 Officer incorporating the Treasury Management Strategy for 2015/16 was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

It was resolved –

•  To note the contents of the covering report.

•  To endorse the contents of, and assumptions and proposals made within the Treasury Management Strategy Statement (including the Prudential and Treasury Management Indictors) for 2015/16 (Appendix A to the report) and

•  To forward the Strategy to the County Council without further comment.

To submit the report of the Head of Adults’ Services.

The report of the Head of Adults’ Services setting out recommendations with regard to charges placed on service users towards the cost of non-residential social care services was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Portfolio Member for Housing and Social Services reported that the proposed increase in charges are in line with the corporate guidance for increasing income by 5% in 2015/16 apart from where Welsh Government statutory guidance directs otherwise.

It was resolved to approve –

•  Home Care charges outlined in paragraph 3.5.2 of the attached report.

•  Charges for meals in day services outlined in paragraph 3.6.2 of the attached report.

•  Charges for Telecare Services as outlined in paragraph 3.8.3 of the attached report.

•  Freezing the rate for Direct Payments at £10.50/hour as outlined in paragraph 3.9.4 of the attached report.

•  Maintaining a charge of £10.00 for the administration in relation to Blue Badge requests and replacements as per paragraph 3.10.4 of the attached report.

•  Increasing the fee for purchasing day care services in independent residential homes to £28.92 per 6 hour session (+£4.82 for each individual hour) with the service user contributing £5.25 in addition to the provider towards the cost of refreshments.

To submit the report of the Head of Adults’ Services.

The report of the Head of Adults’ Services setting out a recommendation for the standard charge for the Authority’s care homes for older people for the 2015/16 financial year was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

It was resolved –

•  That whilst the Council acknowledges the costs incurred within residential care, that the cost of delivery is not reflected in the charge to residents, and

•  That the increase for those contributing towards the cost of care is consistent with the guidance for Council services set at 5% and that a standard charge of £540.26 is set.

To submit a report by the Head of Economic and Community Regeneration.

The report of the Head of Economic and Community Regeneration incorporating the Leisure Function Plan was presented for the Executive’s consideration.

The Head of Economic and Community Regeneration reported that the Leisure Service is facing a number of challenges including a requirement within the Corporate Plan to identify reductions of 60% in running costs over the course of the next three years. The Leisure Function Plan represents a first step in addressing those challenges with the aim of ensuring the continuation of a leisure provision under the County Council and it presents high level, short-term conceptual options for modernising, improving, and safeguarding the provision on Anglesey, which although a non-statutory service, is highly valued and popular. The Leisure Plan is founded on adopting a more commercial approach and culture to underpin modernisation and improvement in leisure provision and identifies five improvement objectives to drive the required critical changes.

It was resolved to support and endorse the Leisure Function Plan: Responding Effectively to the Immediate Efficiency Challenges.