Agenda and minutes

To sign as a correct record the minutes of the following meetings:

The minutes from the following meetings of fthe Performance Monitoring Panel were signed by the Chairman as a correct record:

(a)    8 April 2014 – Performance Monitoring Panel; and

(b)    14 May 2014 – Special meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel.

(Members are no longer required to declare personal of prejudicial interests but are to declare any new Disclosable Pecuniary Interests that are not currently included in their Register of Interests.

Members are reminded that under the Code of Conduct they are not to participate in the whole of an agenda item to which they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest.  In the interests of transparency, members may also wish to declare any other interests that they have, in relation to an agenda item, that supports the Nolan principles detailed within the Code of Conduct.)   

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To consider responses of the Cabinet to reports of the Panel.

There were none.

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To note the current Key Decision Plan, dated 4 June 2014 (copy enclosed)

Consideration was given to the Key Decision Plan issued on 4 June 2014 and members asked for further information and updates to be provided on the following two items:

• Spalding Gypsy and Traveller Site – To award the works contract (subject to Planning Application Approval); and

• Setting up of South Holland Building Consultancy – To seek authorisation to putting in place an arms length company limited by shares, to enable it to operate in the open market to deliver construction related provisions (members requested that the South Holland Building Consultancy be reviewed by the Performance Monitoring Panel prior to any decision being taken):

To provide information to the Panel in order that it may decide whether to invite the Police and Crime Commissioner for Lincolnshire to a future meeting (report of the Community Development Manager to follow).

Consideration was given to the report of the Assistant Director – Commissioning on the Police and Crime Commissioner for Lincolnshire.  The report was to provide information to the Panel in order that it may discuss the context of an invitation to the Police and Crime Commissioner to a future meeting and the areas for consideration. 

Last year at a meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel held on 26 March 2013 members requested that the Police and Crime Commissioner for Lincolnshire attend a future meeting of the Panel to answer members questions.  Alongside this there was to be a discussion on an update that was to be received on community safety, provided by the Portfolio Holder for Localism and Big Society on a six monthly basis. 

The update from the Portfolio Holder took place on 8 April 2014, unfortunately The Police and Crime Commissioner was unable to attend on that occasion. 

The Panel, at that meeting, considered areas that they wished to discuss, which were a mixture of both operational and strategic issues. The issues were as follows:

• What was the role of police officers now?

• If the number of officers were the same, why were they not visible?

• What assistance did the Police require from the Authority and what was required from them?

• What were the proposals to address issues in rural areas?

• What was the role of Police Community Support Officers?

• Communication

• Reported crime

Information had recently been received from the office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Lincolnshire, in the communication the following points were made:

·        The Police and Crime Panel have a statutory role to scrutinise the actions and decisions of the Police and Crime Commissioner and wanted to advise the panel of this in the same way that this had been clarified with Lincolnshire County Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee.

·        The remit of the Commissioner’s role is separate to operational policing which is the preserve of the Chief Constable

·        The Commissioner was keen to approach the meeting from a partnership perspective, in particular with regard to community safety where both he and local authorities shared statutory responsibilities.  Given anticipated future budget settlements, the focus had to be on delivering through partnership where there were shared outcomes.

·        If members had specific questions, it would be helpful to have those in advance. The Commissioner would also have questions for members in respect of their community safety activity, so would welcome an overview of this in advance of any meeting.

In light of the information provided above, the attendance of the Commissioner at a meeting of the Panel had been postponed.  The Panel agreed that they would consider the areas that they would like to discuss with the Commissioner and also have prepared information on Community Safety activity as requested. 

Members felt that it was very important that the Authority engaged with the Police and Crime Commissioner as a key stakeholder.  The Authority has a statutory duty for community safety under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

Dale Robinson to provide an update on the current position (update report on Action Plan and Responses, as considered at the meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel on 28 May 2013, enclosed).

A report of the Action Plan of the Community Interest Company Task Group was provided to members of the Panel at its meeting on 28 May 2013.  The Interim Business and Transformation Manager was in attendance to give members an update on the current situation. 

Members reviewed the action plan and discussed various points which they had concerns over not being actioned or addressed.  They stressed the point that Cabinet had adopted those recommendations and if they were not being followed Cabinet should be advised accordingly. 

The Interim Business and Transformation Manager was aksed to ensure that the actions were being implemented and to liaise with CMT with regard to actions being allocated to relevant officers.

AGREED:

(a)       That the Interim Business and Transformation Manager was aksed to ensure that the actions were being implemented and to liaise with CMT            with regard to actions being allocated to relevant officers; and

(b)       That if actions were not being implemented then Cabinet must be        advised accordignly.

To update the Performance Monitoring Panel on progress made at the CSU (report of the CSU General Manager enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the CSU General Manager to update the Performance Monitoring Panel on progress made at the Construction Services Unit (CSU). 

An overview was provided on the progress made with regard to the purchasing of an asset management software package. 

A capital bid had been submitted for an integrated asset management system.  A number of systems had been investigated and a sum of £105,000 had been requested to purchase the new system.  The Property Services Team had looked at a number of systems available and decided on the requirements of the new system.  The Team were in the early stages of the tendering process and it was anticipated that a system should be appointed in November 2014. 

Members were advised that the system to be implemented was to assist the management of the authority's property within the CSU and to advise the Technical Team accordingly what the customers' issue was so it vould be actioned appropriately.  The system would carry details of each individual property and a full history of jobs back to 2009. 

Members queried whether the system would be used by the Customer Services Centre and their operatives to assist with customer calls.  The CSU General Manager advised that call centre operatives were more 'generic' operatives and not specialist, so therefore it would add very little value allowing call centre operatives access to the system.  It would also mean purchasing extra licences which would mean incurring further costs. 

Members made further comments and queries but were advised that those queries were not able to be answered until a provider had been chosen. 

It was requested that a further update be provided, once a system had been chosen, to the Performance Monitoring Panel in six months time. 

AGREED:

That a further update on the asset management software package be provided to the 27 January 2015 meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel.

(Darren Spillett, CSU General Manager left the meeting at 8.02p.m. after consideration of the above item).

To provide an update on the ICT issues raised at the meeting of the Performance

 Monitoring Panel on 3 December 2013 (report of the ICT and Customer Services

Manager (ICT Client) enclosed).

Members considered the report of the ICT and Customer Services Manager (ICT Client) on an update of the ICT issues raised at the meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel held on 3 December 2013. 

ICT/Compass Point Business Solutions was asked to attend meetings of the Performance Monitoring Panel on a number of occasions, the last time 3 December 2013, to report back on a number of ICT issues being experienced by members.  At the meeting a number of issues were tabled which culminated in a number of considerations which included:

• Current ICT problems; and

• Future ICT rollout (from 2015).

Compass Point Business Solutions were asked to attend to identify potential solutions to existing issues being experienced by members and the Remote Access Point (Rap) was offered to a number of members of the Performance Monitoring Panel.  Since the offer was made 16 members had requested the solution, which had since been deployed. 

The overall feedback of the RAP had been very positive, the solution was very stable and offered significant improvements on previous methods used. 

A software replacement for the RAP was currently being developed and tested, it would further increase the usage and flexibility of the product allowing connectivity to internal resources regardless of location. 

An ICT Working Group for members ICT refresh 2015 had been set-up with early discussions around members IT provision and their general requirements.  The Working Group had been designing a members' survey which would ask for feedback and determine future needs.  The results gathered from the survey would enable CPBS to design and deploy a final solution, whilst giving members an opportunity to provide constructive feedback in the deign of future services. 

Members raised the following questions and concerns:

• When would the results of the survey be available?

• Were there any current outstanding issues on Members' IT?

• Members IT calls were on occasion being answered by the CPBS helpdesk based in Louth, this was not very helpful as issues were only able to be resolved by helpdesk operatives in Spalding.  Was there a reason that was happening and could it be rectified?

• Could clarification be sought on the possibility of Members using their own personal IT provisions to access internal systems?

Mark Starkey (Service Desk Team Leader (CPBS)) was in attendance and responded to members as follows:

• The results of the survey were anticipated to be available from the end of July 2014;

• There were no current outstanding members' IT issues at the time of the meeting;

• There were currently ICT Service Desk staffing issues within Spalding, the desk was currently understaffed therefore meaning calls were being diverted to the Manby desk.  The issue was hoped to be shortly resolved by bolstering staff numbers; and

• It was agreed that the Director of ICT would be approached to discuss the viability of the option of members using their own IT provisions, once clarified members would be notified. 

The Panel were very keen that a robust and efficient system be put in place so that 'going  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

To providean update of delivery against our 2011-15 Corporate Plan for the

Period 1 January 2014 to 31 March 2014 (report of the Leader of the Council

for Communications, Business Development and Performance and Chief

Executive enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Communications, Business Development and Performance and the Chief Executive of Breckland and South Holland Councils. 

Following the creation of the bespoke data collection system over a period of months, introduction in full was available to relevant officers in December 2013, this then allowed the agreed new templates to be populated. 

Attached at Appendix 1 to the report was the Cabinet Performance Report Quarter 4 2013/14.  It covered delivery against corporate priorities and in addition corporate health indicators of interest to the public. 

Members were requested to consider the Cabinet Performance Report Quarter 4 2013/14 and make any recommendations that they deemed appropriate. 

Concerns were raised over the lack of detail within the report, it was felt that due to certain figures not being included it was difficult to interpret the information and get a realistic view of what was being noted.  The Interim Business and Transformation Manager advised that the performance report was still a 'work in progress' and any comments the Panel made would be taken on board. 

Members were advised that Breckland Council had a new performance system recently put in placed, it was hoped that this would soon be able to be shared with South Holland as part of its joint working arrangement. 

It was noted by members of the Panel who were also members of the Leisure Task Group that information stated on page 12 of the appendix – Overall participation in cultural activity, was information that the Task Group would find very useful. 

AGREED:

That the Cabinet Performance Report Quarter 4 2013/2014 lacked sufficient detail to be useful to the Panel and for this to be addressed prior to further updates being presented to the Panel. 

(Dale Robinson, The Interim Business and Transformation Manager left the meeting at 8.35p.m. after consideration of the above item). 

To set out the Work Programme of the Performance Monitoring Panel (report of the Assistant Director Democratic Services enclosed).

Consideration was given to the report of the Assistant Director – Democratic Services which set out the Work Programme of the Performance Monitoring Panel.  The Work Programme consisted of two separate sections, the first setting out the dates of the future Panel meetings along with proposed items for consideration and the second setting out the Task Groups that had been identified by the Panel. 

The Principal Member Services Officer invited the Panel to consider the following issues:

• Annual inspection of planning files – did members still wish for the review to take place? (detailed within the work programme for 16 September 2014);

• To extend an invitation to Neil Rhodes, Chief Constable, Lincolnshire Police to the 27 January 2014 meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel. Taking into consideration that the Police and Crime Commissioner was to now be invited to the 25 November 2014 meeting of the Panel, which members had agreed would be a one item agenda; and

• Biennial review of implemented planning decisions – did members still wish for the review to take place? (detailed within the work programme 7 April 2015).

Annual inspection of planning files

The Chairman reported to the Panel that the Chief Executive had expressed her opinion that the annual inspection of the planning files was no longer a necessity.  Members agreed that they felt that this was a very important piece of work.  It was noted that the Chief Executive wished to address both the Policy Development and Performance Monitoring Panels regarding their work programmes, and members agreed that this would be an appropriate time to discuss the matter. 

Invitation to Neil Rhodes, Chief Constable, Lincolnshire Police to the 27 January 2014 meeting of the Performance Monitoring Panel.

Members agreed that they still wished to pose questions to Neil Rhodes, Chief Constable on issues of crime and disorder and agreed that it be appropriate to move the invitation to the 27 January 2015 meeting of the Panel.

Biennial review of implemented planning decisions

Members agreed that as with the Annual inspection of planning files this was an important piece of work.  It was noted that the Chief Executive had expressed an opinion that the tour was no longer a necessary.  It was agreed that this was also to be discussed along side the Annual Inspection of Planning files when the Chief Executive addressed the Panel regarding work programmes. 

The Chairman noted to members that the last time the tour had taken place very few members attended and very few sites had been suggested – Should members wish for this to go ahead in the future members would need to put forward suggestions of sites to be visited.  It was agreed that this would be discussed at the 27 January 2015 meeting of the Panel. 

AGREED:

(a)    That the importance of Annual Inspection of Planning Files and Biennial review of implemented planning decisions be discussed with the Chief Executive when she addressed the Panel's on their work programmes;

(b)    That the Biennial review of implemented  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

NOTE:            No other business is permitted unless by reason of special circumstances, which shall be specified in the minutes, the Chairman is of the opinion that the item(s) should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There were none.