AT A MEETING of the CABINET of HAMPSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL held at The Castle, Winchester on 23 April 2007.

Chairman:

p Councillor T.K. Thornber, CBE

Councillors:

Also present: Councillors M.F. Cartwright; K.G. Chapman; A.P. Collett; B.D. Dash; Dr R.J. Ellis and Mrs C.A. Leversha.

261. APOLOGIES

All members of the Cabinet were present and accordingly there were no apologies for absence.

262. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Members were mindful that, where they believed they had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should normally at the time of the debate, declare their interest, and, having regard to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed.

263. MINUTES

The minutes of the meeting held on 26 March 2007 were confirmed as a correct record subject to recording that Councillor A.P. Collett had been present at the meeting.

264. CHAIRMAN'S COMMUNICATIONS

(i) Welcomed Paul Chambers, Lead Comprehensive Performance
Assessment (CPA) Inspector from the Audit Commission who
observed the meeting as part of the 2007 Corporate Assessment that
the County Council is subject to.

265. ANNUAL PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT SELF-EVALUATION GRADE AND THE CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE'S PLAN

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Children's Services (Item 5 in the Minute Book) detailing the background to the inspection and assessment of Children's Services in Hampshire during 2007 via the Joint Area Review (JAR) and Annual Performance Assessment (APA) frameworks. The JAR is an inter-agency process which feeds into the overall Corporate Assessment that is currently being carried out by the Audit Commission as part of the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) framework. The APA focuses on the County Council's own services and requires it to undertake a self-evaluation and grade its performance. Accordingly an evaluation of the Hampshire Children and Young People's Plan has been carried out, which is the main evidence being used by the JAR inspectors.

The Director of Children's Services expanded on the inspection frameworks, which are both complex processes and although the comparable information is used to assess children's services, they provide different overall grades. In regard to the proposed self-evaluation grades against the five core outcomes of the Children Act 2004 set out in paragraph 3.8 of the report, the Director expanded on the evidence that had been collected and analysed in support of the grades. In drawing attention to the "staying safe" area of judgement, it was noted that good progress had been made although not as much as had been hoped for. However, there was capacity to continue to improve further and key areas had been identified such as placement stability and education performance for children in care.

In welcoming the report and the information it contained, the Cabinet discussed a number of key areas such as bullying and the success of the Rights, Respect and Responsibility programme; the effects that anti-social behaviour by young people has on the environment and the community; the number of foster carers and the effect this has on placement stability, and the action that was being taken to improve education performance other than in schools. Other areas of importance discussed were parenting and life skills such as money management, the introduction of Children's Centres, development of the 14-19 curriculum, developing a close working relationship with parents of children with disabilities, and the work of the Children's Trust and the valuable partnership with the NHS.

Endorsement by the Cabinet of the evaluation report, the work of the Children and Young People's Partnership in the delivery of services, and the self evaluation grades proposed for the 2007 APA were sought. Accordingly

the Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report. A copy of the decision sheet is attached to these minutes as Appendix 1.

266. AGREEMENT OF THE DRAFT GENDER EQUALITY SCHEME FOR PUBLICATION

The Cabinet considered the report of the Chief Executive (Item 6 in the Minute Book) seeking approval of the draft Gender Equality Scheme to be published for public consultation by 30 April 2007 in line with the statutory requirement. The Gender Equality Scheme outlines how the County Council intends to eliminate discrimination and harassment on the grounds of gender and how it aims to promote equality of opportunity between men and women. Accordingly an Action Plan for the period 2007-2010 had been prepared detailing required actions, by whom and by when. The Equality and Diversity Manager and the Acting Director of Human Resources expanded on the report, in particular the background to how the scheme was developed, service delivery and the impact assessment that identified the need for further work to be carried out to find out more about gender difference in different racial, disability and faith groups.

During the course of the ensuring discussion, the Cabinet noted that as part of the consultation, the draft scheme would be circulated to the Compact network, other public service networks such as the Hampshire Strategic Partnership, and the Equality and Diversity Action Group as a means to cascading to staff. A number of staff focus groups will also be convened in the autumn. The Cabinet highlighted the importance of all Members ensuring they are aware of their role and how they engage with local communities on issues relating to the County Council's duties to promote gender, race and disability equality, particularly through the Hampshire Action Team (HAT) network. With this in mind, the Cabinet requested that a further report be prepared and submitted with an action plan to support Members to carry out their role.

The Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report subject to a revision to decision (b) and a further decision (c) to reflect the views of the Cabinet detailed above. A copy of the substantive decision sheet is attached to these minutes as Appendix 2.

267. 2007/08 EFFICIENCY STATEMENT: FORWARD LOOK

The Cabinet considered the report of the County Treasurer (Item 7 in the Minute Book) seeking approval of the efficiency improvements for 2007/08 as part of the Annual Efficiency Statement (AES), including the strategy for securing the improvements and key actions to be taken to ensure the savings are achieved. In summary, £12.4m and £17.9m of efficiencies were achieved in 2004/05 and 2005/06 respectively; a further £15.5m identified for 2006/07, and £16.0m planned for 2007/08 giving an estimated cumulative total of £61.8m by the end of 2007/08 compared with the three-year target of £43.7m. The estimated total of £16.0m (2.7%) in 2007/08 is slightly more than the 2.5% target but allows for any potential underachievement and complies with the higher Comprehensive Performance Assessment ratings which require that the 2.5% target is exceeded. £7.6m of this sum is a cash releasing saving in the budget, representing a 1.3% saving which is comparable with the proposed 3% target in the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) 2007. In order to meet the submission deadline of 12 April 2007 set by the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Leader of the County Council had approved the AES subject to formal ratification by the Cabinet.

In discussing the submission, the Cabinet expressed strong concerns about how the level of efficiency savings can be sustained in the longer term and were of the view that the situation will only get harder as key services are put under more pressure. This will inevitably mean looking to find savings from service areas that are already experiencing difficulties due to low levels of Government funding.

The Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report. A copy of the decision sheet is attached to these minutes as Appendix 3.

268. CLARIFICATION OF DECISION PROCESSES AND UPDATING OF ASSOCIATED FINANCIAL LIMITS

The Cabinet considered the report of the Chief Executive and County Treasurer (Item 8 in the Minute Book) detailing proposed changes to the County Council's decision making processes and delegation, and the updating of associated financial limits in order improve democratic and business processes and to strengthen financial management and internal control. In expanding on the report, the Chief Executive reported on the background to the review that had been undertaken and the need to move away from the reporting of routine matters to the Executive collectively and individually that could be dealt with at Chief Officer level, in favour of streamlined decision-making focussed on high-level strategic matters whilst ensuring that clear, concise information is made publicly available as soon as possible.

In consideration of the report and in particular the proposed changes to financial limits [Appendix 2], the Cabinet agreed a number of amendments as follows:-

· Debt write-off : Chief Officer and County Treasurer limit to be reduced from the proposed level of £10,000 to £5,000; Executive Member approval from £5,000 up to £50,000


· Grants : Officer limit to be raised to £5,000; Executive Member approval required for grants over £5,000 and officers to provide Members with regular updates, including the consultation undertaken with the Local Member


· Tenders : in regard to the EU procurement limit, ensure that Government compliant framework contracts were included in column 1 of the table


In agreeing the above amendments, it was emphasised that this matter would be debated at a meeting of the full Council on 24 May at which all Members would have the opportunity to put forward their views.

The Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report, which will now be submitted for consideration and approval by the full Council. A copy of the decision sheet is attached to these minutes as Appendix 4.

269. ESTABLISHING A TRANSPORT DELIVERY AGENCY FOR SOUTH HAMPSHIRE

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Environment (Item 9 in the Minute Book) setting out proposals to establish a formal Joint Committee - Transport for South Hampshire - involving Hampshire County Council, Southampton City and Portsmouth City Councils to replace the existing voluntary and informal Solent Transport Executive. In expanding on the report, the Deputy Director of Environment reported on the background to the development of this proposal and outlined how the arrangements will work in regard to the County Council's membership.

During the course of a full discussion, the Cabinet supported the proposals which provided a good opportunity to continue partnership working with the County Council's neighbouring unitary authorities, but raised some queries in regard to corporate governance and voting rights. The Chief Executive responded in detail on the voting and quorum arrangements and confirmed that the County Council will lead in terms of the supporting secretariat. He emphasised that the functions of the Executive body would be linked only to those matters to be dealt with at a sub-regional level therefore it would not act, for example, as a highway authority or do anything that would be best delivered locally or county-wide.

The Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report and this matter will be submitted for consideration and approval by the full Council at its meeting on 24 May 2007. A copy of the decision sheet is attached to these minutes Appendix 5.

270. CONTACT CENTRE PROGRAMME - IT SERVICES USE OF CONSULTANTS

The Cabinet considered the report of the Head of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer, County Treasurer and Section 151 Officer (Item 10 in the Minute Book) detailing the findings of a preliminary investigation into the initial letting of consultancy contracts by IT Services in respect of preparatory work for the Contact Centre following a complaint by the Audit Commission. The Head of Corporate and Legal Services and Monitoring Officer outlined the background to the complaint, drew attention to the outcomes of the preliminary investigation identified and reported that prompt, incisive action had been taken following receipt of the complaint. The County Treasurer reported that this had been an isolated incident and drew attention to the previous report on proposed changes to decision making and business processes, which he felt will help to clarify procedures to ensure relevant action is taken to prevent a recurrence of these or similar circumstances in the future.

In considering the report, the Cabinet recognised the prompt action that had been taken by officers in undertaking an initial investigation. They agreed with the report's recommendation that a full investigation be undertaken into the circumstances surrounding the letting of the consultancy contracts referred to in the report, and in the interests of openness and transparency that the lead role be carried out by an external investigator, in liaison with the County Council's Chief Internal Auditor and the Head of Legal Practice. Furthermore, they requested that Stephen Taylor, the County Council's Relationship Manager from the Audit Commission be appointed as the lead investigator, that the investigation be completed within three months, and a final joint report submitted to the Cabinet for their consideration. Terms of reference for the investigation would be prepared to specifically include reviewing the involvement of any member of staff in regard to any personal or commercial interests in the letting of the contract, and the contractors themselves; to select and review a random sample of comparator contracts to ensure this was an isolated incident; that the final report be considered in public session; and that an indication be given as to the timescale for the Monitoring Officer and Section 151 Officer to bring any such similar reports to the cabinet, should such circumstances arise in the future.

The Cabinet adopted the recommendations set out in the report subject to a revision to decision b) to reflect the lead responsibility for the full investigation. A copy of the substantive decision sheet is attached to these minutes as Appendix 6.

Contact: Felicity Roe, [email protected] or Alison Alexander, 01962-846426 [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 The following decisions are sought:

a) That Cabinet endorses the evaluation report and notes the work of the Children and Young People's Strategic Partnership in the delivery of services.


b) That Cabinet endorses the self evaluation grades proposed by the Children's Service Department for the 2007 Annual Performance Assessment.

2. Reason

2.1 This decision supports the three Hampshire County Council priorities.

· Making Hampshire safer and more secure for all

· Maximising well-being

· Enhancing our quality of place

2.2 The decision supports all the aims of Children Act 2004.

3. Other options considered and rejected - none.

4. Conflicts of interest declared by the decision maker or other Executive Member consulted - none.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - not applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the matter being dealt with if urgent - not applicable.

Approved by: Date:
Councillor T K Thornber, CBE - Chairman

Contact: Jane Goodwin 8 252 8823, [email protected]; Ron Kane 8 335 3917, [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 The following decisions were made:

That Cabinet:

a) Agreed that the actions identified in the Gender Equality Scheme reflect the intention of the County Council to promote Gender Equality and therefore the scheme may be published for public consultation.


b) That all elected Members be made aware of their role in ensuring that the views of their constituents are sought on the proposals described in the scheme, especially through the medium of the Hampshire Action Teams (HATs), so that the final scheme is effective and serves to improve the lives of men and women in Hampshire.


c) That a future report be presented to a future meeting setting out guidance for members with an action plan on how the objectives in (b) above can be achieved.

2. Reason

2.1 Statutory requirement under the Equality Act 2006. A general duty placed on all public bodies to promote gender equality and a specific duty to publish a Gender Equality Scheme which shows how the Council intends to eliminate discrimination and harassment on grounds of gender and promote equality of opportunity.

2.2 This links to each of the Corporate Priorities as it aims to improve the lives of men and women in Hampshire.

3. Other options considered and rejected

3.1 No action would put the authority at risk of legal challenge

4. Conflicts of interest declared by the decision maker or other Executive Member consulted - none.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - not applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the matter being dealt with if urgent - not applicable.

Approved by: Date:
Councillor T.K. Thornber, CBE - Chairman

Contact: Jon Pittam, (01962) 84 7400; [email protected]

1 Summary

1.1 Communities and Local Government required the submission of the 2007/08 Annual Efficiency Statement by 12 April 2007. The Leader agreed the submission which is largely based on efficiency improvements incorporated in the approved 2007/08 budget. The following decision is sought:

· To approve the efficiency improvements for 2007/08 and to ratify the submission of the annual efficiency statement.

2. Reason

2.1 The submission is a statutory requirement, but the County Council would in any event wish to demonstrate its annual efficiency plans.

2.2 The statement supports the corporate strategy, in particular by promoting the outcome of ensuring that Council services offer value for money in the Corporate Management Plan.

3. Other options considered and rejected:

3.1 None.

4. Conflicts of interest declared by the decision maker or other Executive member consulted

4.1 None.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee

5.1 Not applicable

6. Reason(s) for the matter being dealt with if urgent

6.1 Not applicable

Approved by: Date:
Councillor T. K. Thornber CBE - Chairman

Contact: Share D'All, (01962) 846634; [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 The following decisions are sought as recommendations to full Council on 24 May 2007, subject to the amendments detailed in decision b):

a) That the proposed changes to the decision making process set out in Appendix 1 are approved.

b) That the financial limits outlined in the table in Appendix 2 are approved subject to the Chief Officer and County Treasurer limit for debt write-off being revised to £5,000 with Executive Member approval from £5,000 to £50,000; in respect of grants that the officer limit be raised to £5,000 with anything over this amount requiring Executive Member approval (officers to provide Members with regular updates of grants approved); and in respect of tenders, that the text be amended in regard to the EU procurement limit to ensure that Government compliant framework contracts were included in column 1 of the table.

c) That the financial limit for a key decision be raised from £500,000 to £1 million.

2. Reason

2.1 A review of the decision making process has been undertaken in order to improve democratic and business processes and to strengthen financial management and internal control.

2.2 Financial limits are subject to regular reviews but changes in the past have tended to be incremental without any major fundamental review, and some limits have remained unchanged for many years. The recommendations in this report are the result of a fundamental review of limits.

2.3 The decisions support the corporate management plan by achieving better value for money and improving capacity in decision making and more effective use of time.

3. Other options considered and rejected:

a) Not to review.

b) Various specific options for processes and limits were considered within the review. The proposals contained in the recommendations within this paper are considered to be the right blend to streamline processes and improve financial management and control.

4. Conflicts of interest declared by the decision maker or other Executive Member consulted - none.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - not applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the matter being dealt with if urgent - not applicable.

Approved by: Date:
Councillor T.K. Thornber , CBE - Chairman

Contact: Stuart Jarvis, ext 6124 email: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 The following decision is sought:

That the Cabinet commend to the County Council for consideration and approval the establishment of a formal Joint Committee (Transport for South Hampshire) involving Hampshire County, Southampton City and Portsmouth City Councils, to replace the existing voluntary, informal Solent Transport Executive; based on the broad structure and functions described in Section 3 of the report, with approval of the detailed Memorandum of Understanding to be delegated to the Leader and Executive Member for Environment.

2. Reason

2.1 To provide enhanced transport delivery arrangements locally for the South Hampshire area, to maximise investment and infrastructure provision in accordance with the South Hampshire Sub-Regional strategy, building on the success of the Solent Transport Partnership.

3. Other Options Considered and Rejected

3.1 To continue with a voluntary, informal partnership, which would not be eligible or equipped to act as a transport delivery agency, thereby foregoing the opportunity to create a local alternative delivery model to the existing Regional bodies.

4. Conflicts of Interest Declared by the Decision Maker or Other Executive Member Consulted - None.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - None.

6. Reason(s) for the Matter being dealt with if Urgent - None.

Approved by: ..................................... Date: ...................................
Councillor T K Thornber CBE - Chairman

Contact: Jeff Pattison, ext 7321, e-mail: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 The following decisions were made:

a) That the Cabinet notes the contents of the report, and approves the action taken to regularise for the future, the letting of the consultancy contracts for the Contact Centre.

b) That a full investigation be undertaken into the circumstances surrounding the letting of the consultancy contracts referred to in this report, supervised by Stephen Taylor, the County Council's Relationship Manager at the Audit Commission and undertaken by the County Council's Chief Internal Auditor and the Head of Legal Practice, to be completed within three months with a final joint report submitted to the Cabinet for consideration.


c) That the Terms of Reference for the investigation referred to in the report be supplemented by:


(i) consideration of any personal or business relationships between those employees involved in the letting of these contracts and the contractors themselves


(ii) A random review be undertaken of other recently let contracts to assess whether all procurement rules have been complied with


(iii) An indication be given as to the timescale for the Monitoring Officer and Section 151 Officer to bring any such similar reports to the attention of the Cabinet, should similar circumstances arise in the future.

2. Reason

2.1 As a result of a complaint forwarded to the County Council by the Audit Commission, the County Treasurer's Internal Audit have undertaken a preliminary investigation into the initial letting of consultancy contracts by IT Services in respect of preparatory work for the Contact Centre. It appears likely that significant contracts have been entered into with external consultants which have failed to comply, either with the County Council's Contract Standing Orders, or indeed, the European Union's Procurement Rules. This report, therefore, identifies the action that has already been taken to remedy the situation in respect of future activity, and also what further action is required to be undertaken.

3. Other options considered and rejected - Not applicable.

4. Conflicts of interest declared by the decision-maker or other Executive Member consulted - Not applicable.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - Not applicable.

6. Reason for the matter being dealt with if urgent - Not applicable.

Approved by: Date:
Councillor T. K. Thornber, CBE - Chairman