There were no apologies or substitutions.

The Committee asked that their best wishes be conveyed to Julie Fildes, Committee Officer, for a speedy recovery. 

Members are reminded that they must not participate in the discussion or voting on any matter in which they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest and should leave the room prior to the commencement of the debate.

Members were reminded that they must not participate in the discussion or voting on any matter in which they had a disclosable pecuniary interest and should leave the room prior to the commencement of the debate.

To consider the Minutes of the Performance Management Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 16^th March 2016.  Attached, marked 3.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 March 2016 were confirmed as a correct record. 

To receive any questions, statements or petitions from the public of which members of the public have given notice.  Deadline for notification for this meeting is 5.00 p.m. on Friday, 6^th May 2016.

There were no public questions.

To receive any questions of which members of the Council have given notice.  Deadline for notification for this meeting is 5.00 p.m. on Friday, 6^th May 2016.

There were no questions from Members.

Draft Terms of Reference attached, marked 7.

Contact: Tom Dodds (01743 258518)

The Committee considered the proposed terms of reference for the Budget Task and Finish Group (copy attached to signed minutes). 

The role in the Task and Finish Group of the Voluntary and Community Sectors, Town and Parish Councils and other potential partners was discussed. 

It was confirmed that when the Task and Finish Group first met it would identify portfolio holders, officers, directors, communities, groups, partners and providers it needed to hear from.  They would be asked to attend meetings and provide evidence, views and statements and answer questions.   

In response to a query about the timescales set out in the report, the Head of Finance, Governance and Assurance confirmed that the Task and Finish Group would be able to challenge, ask questions and feed into the budget setting process as it progressed.  Reports on the financial strategy and budget would be presented to Council in July and September 2016, with ultimate budget setting taking place at Council in February 2017.   

The Committee approved the draft terms of reference for the Budget Task and Finish Group with the proviso that Scrutiny should be able to feed into Cabinet and Council at the relevant stages, and not just through a final report at the conclusion of the work in January 2017. 

The report of the Director of Commissioning is to follow.

Contact: George Candler (01743 255003)

The Portfolio Holder for Rural Services and Communities introduced the report (copy attached to signed minutes) which highlighted the Shropshire Council projected funding shortfall of £61m by 2018/19 which would result in discretionary services such as leisure, libraries, museums, public open spaces and support for youth activities facing significant cut backs or in the worst case scenario, closure.  This was a serious challenge and it was important to recognise a one size fits all approach would not work.  It was anticipated that local members in their role as community champions would play an important role in supporting and leading at a local level the proposed activity.  She referred to the recommendations in the report and asked the Committee to consider how elected members could best be drawn into these discussions.

In addition, she reported that: identifying statutory duties was proving complex; there was a need to be aware of external funding and contractual obligations; there was an extremely challenging timeline with plans needing to be in place by 30 September 2016; and a need for robust programme management.

The Director of Commissioning and Local Commissioning Manager then gave a presentation (copy attached to the signed minutes) providing detail around:

·                The approach to be taken;

·                Financial implications;

·                Possible alternative funding solutions for local services;

·                Progress so far and examples of communities seeking new solutions;

·                The prospect of decommissioning services and the decommissioning approach to be taken;

·                Roles and responsibilities of officers;

·                Information provided to potential partners;

·                Engagement approaches;

·                Key areas of importance identified so far.

Lead Officers for place and theme had been identified and the role of the Community Enablement Team was key. Discussions had already been started with larger Town and Parish Councils and many organisations had come forward to start conversations with the Council.  Resource packs were made available to those expressing an interest. 

Examples of new solutions found in Pontesbury and Gobowen were shared.  In these cases parish councils and local communities had responded well and had been led by local members.  The Chair suggested that details of these examples be made available on parish websites.

The funding of services in central locations such as market towns was discussed, as these were often used but not funded by residents of surrounding parishes.  It was confirmed that this would be an area considered by the Budget Task and Finish Group. 

A Member said it was absolutely essential that Local Members were involved right from the start when decommissioning was a prospect.  Officers emphasised that although Local Members were not referenced in the presentation slides, the importance of Local Members involvement was writ large throughout the whole approach.

Members emphasised the need for Town and Parish Councils and other potential partners to have access to asset details and statutory obligations.  They also asked about the prospect of potential judicial reviews.  The Director of Commissioning emphasised the need for the process to be robust and the impact of any change or decommissioning decisions clearly identified and understood.

Members asked whether  ...  view the full minutes text for item 58.

To consider the future work programme attached, marked 8.

It was confirmed that matters related to delivery of the Council’s IT Strategy would be considered by the budget task and finish group.