Members will consider the progress in delivering the Council’s Financial Strategy [and therefore the Business Plan] and help inform the refresh and any refocus for 2015/16 onwards.

The Committee will work with the Financial Strategy and the Business Plan as 3 year rolling documents. Members will be given the opportunity to undertake proactive scrutiny by feeding back and sharing issues and thoughts on the areas that may require updating or refocusing in the coming year’s refresh of the Business Plan [as the delivery part of the Financial Strategy] to achieve the required savings.

The following documents are included:

a) Performance report and dashboards relevant to the Committee’s specific remit

b) Quarter 1 performance report and dashboards [from 15 October 2014 Cabinet meeting]

c) Business Plan and Financial Strategy document [from 27 February 2014 Council meeting]

d) Financial Strategy [from 30 July 2014 Cabinet]

The Director of Commissioning stated that the Council was undergoing a period of unprecedented change and had already made significant financial savings and was working to a Business Plan to further reduce spending. 

Referring to the reports despatched with the agenda, the Director of Commissioning stated that the Council was in Year 1 of the current cycle and £40m of savings had been identified.  Some of which had been achieved, some were proving more difficult and Officers were having to look to other areas.  He continued that some of the savings were taking longer to achieve than anticipated and there had to be some flexibility in the Business Plan.

The Commissioning Director identified the areas of interest to the Committee as business growth, public protection, transport and housing.

He continued to outline that the predicted savings for year 1 were in the region of £2.45m, and had been identified as attainable and agreed by Finance as such.  In year 2, it was anticipated that £800,060 would be saved and £1.7m for year 3.  Using the RAG system, savings for Year 2 were categorised as green and amber, but savings for Year 3 were amber and red.  This pattern mirrored what was happening across the Council.

The Commissioning Director continued that the service areas of the Council under the remit of the Committee were undergoing re-design.  It was noted that Members were aware of and involved in the Economic Re-design work, a business plan had been approved by Cabinet to combine Public Protection and business management into a new unit called RABBS which would be transferring to ip&e in April 2015.  The Portfolio Holder for Transport added that transport services were feeding into a wider transport review with a specific area of public transport and the achievement of efficiency savings.  The Commissioning Director continued that CCTV provision had been transferred from Customer Services to Public Health as it was recognised as a community safety issue.

It was noted that within the Housing section £500,000 would be saved in year 1, but savings in the next two years would be more challenging to find and depended on the co-operation of partner organisations.

A Member commented that the committee had received a presentation on the Tourism Economy at a previous meeting and no reference had been made to the £300,000 cuts in funding to be made. The Commissioning Director explained that some of the savings would be made through efficiency savings, others would be achieved through the increased use of commissioning, with other bodies taking on services previously provided by the Council.  The Commissioning Director replied that he was confident that savings could be made without diminishing services.

A Member observed that this report covered a huge area of Council work, which made it difficult to focus on particular items.  She asked the Commissioning Director to comment on outcomes and satisfaction for the people of the County.  She gave the example of Much Wenlock museum where much of the responsibility for its running had been transferred to the Parish Council and Volunteers.  She asked for comment regarding how the repetition of this experience would affect the County’s infrastructure. The Commissioning Director stated that it had been recognised that in some instances services were better co-ordinated and delivered at a local level. Conversations were being held within communities, although it was recognised that some communities were more active than others.

It was noted that the Voluntary Sector had been receiving support and the Council had been building capacity within it to enable it to take on greater responsibility for the provision of services.  Work had been done with the Shropshire Providers Consortium to ensure that they could successfully bid for contracts.  The Business Strategy had identified the importance of ensuring that money spent by the Council remained in Shropshire.

A Member asked how synergy across the Council was being achieved, where an area of reduced spending could prevent the provision of a service in another area.   The Commissioning Director explained that Directors and Cabinet met regularly to review progress, and all sections had checks and balances in place to reduce the risk of this happening.  The Commissioning Director commented that unforeseen circumstances could have a detrimental effect on planned savings, which is why they were not categorised as green until Finance agreed that they had been achieved.

A Member requested information on changes in the business rates system.  The Portfolio Holder for Strategic Planning, Planning, Housing and Commissioning suggested that the Scrutiny Committee may wish to consider this issue as part of its future work programme.

A further question was asked about the increase in planning applications and the department’s capacity to handle this.  The Portfolio Holder for Planning replied that there had been a huge increase in planning applications which was putting pressure on the department additional staff had been recruited to cover the workload.  More efficient working techniques were also being considered and the computer system was being upgraded.

The issue of public concern over the reduction in street lighting was raised.  The Commissioning Director suggested that this scheme had good support across the county but if Town Councils felt that they could better meet the needs of their area, the Council would be happy to negotiate the transfer of lighting to them.

A Member raised concerns about the lack of public consultation for the closure of buildings and services.  She continued to voice concern regarding lack of investment.  A Member replied that he understood that the Administration did not just intend to make savings but also intended to improve services.  He asked for evidence of service improvement and investment.

The Performance and Design Team Leader introduced the Dash Boards that brought together financial and business information.

New Homes:  the number of affordable new homes had reduced whilst the number of households on the Council Tax register had increased.

A Member commented that the average house price was 7.42 times that of the average earnings figure which remained above the West Midlands average, he suggested that this should be considered with the affordable housing figures. The Performance and Design Team Leader replied that when looking at the statistics Members should be aware that those living in the County but working out of it tended to have higher earnings than those living in the County.  There were also issues with social housing and right to buy. 

Jobseekers:  those claiming Jobseekers Allowance had reduced. The Performance and Design Team Leader continued that those claiming Jobseekers allowance pulled most strongly on Council Services, by stimulating opportunities for employment and getting claimants back into work it helped employers, and the local economy.

Qualifications:  there were a high number of people with NVQ level 4 qualifications but no information on whether they were using these.  The dashboard showed that Shropshire had a higher percentage of lower qualified people than the Regional/National average. The Performance and Design Team Leader continued that this may lead to examination of whether pupils leaving school had the right qualifications to promote the economy.

RESOLVED:

                  i.        That it be noted that the areas within the remit of the Enterprise and Growth Scrutiny Committee were green for Year 1 but there could be cause for concern in Years 2 and 3;

                 ii.        That concerns regarding the tourism economy be noted; and

                iii.        That the importance of the economy as a priority within the revised Business Plan for the next 2 years be endorsed.