Agenda, decisions and minutes

Venue: Committee Room 3, Third Floor - Civic Centre, St Peter's Square, Wolverhampton WV1 1SH

Contact: Dereck Francis  Tel: 01902 555835 or Email: dereck.francis@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for absence

Minutes:

No apologies for absence were received.

2.

Declaration of interests

Minutes:

No declarations of interests were made.

3.

Minutes of the previous meeting - 13 November 2019 pdf icon PDF 303 KB

[For approval]

Minutes:

Resolved:

That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 13 November 2019 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

4.

Matters arising

[To consider any matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting]

Minutes:

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

5.

Revenue Budget Monitoring Quarter Two 2019-2020 pdf icon PDF 570 KB

[To receive a projection of the likely revenue outturn position for the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account compared with the Council’s approved revenue budgets for 2019-2020][Report to follow]

Additional documents:

Decision:

1.       That the use of £40,000 from the Regeneration Reserveto fund feasibility works for regeneration schemes as detailed at paragraph 4.4. of the report be approved.

 

2.       That the use of £462,000 from the Transformation Reserve to fund various transformational work as detailed at paragraph 4.5. of the report be approved.

 

3.       That the use of £303,000 from the Budget Contingency Reserve to fund an endowment with Land Trust to facilitate long term land management at Bilston as detailed at paragraph 4.6. of the report be approved.

 

4.       That the use of £178,000 from the Budget Contingency Reserve to fund increased academy conversion deficit as detailed in paragraph 4.7. of the report be approved.

 

5.       That 31 virements totalling £19.5 million, for transfers within directorates, as detailed in Appendix 4 to the report be approved.

 

6.       That the write off of three Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) debts totalling £26,431.85 as detailed in Appendix 5 to the report be approved.

 

7.       That the write off of three Council Tax debts totalling £19,746.63 as detailed in Appendix 6 to the report be approved.

 

8.       That it be noted that the overall projected outturn for the General Fund for 2019-2020 is forecast to be an overspend in the region of £1.6 million. 

 

9.       That it be noted that at this stage in the financial year it is difficult to forecast redundancy costs.  However, based on recent years it is anticipated that the cost of redundancies can be met from reserves.

 

10.   That it be noted that a £20.7 million surplus on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is projected compared with a budgeted surplus of £20.9 million as shown at Table 18 and in detail at Appendix 3 to the report. The projected reduction to the surplus of £215,000 would reduce redemption of debt by £215,000.

 

11.   That it be noted that 24 sundry debt accounts totalling £47,614.60, as detailed in paragraph 7.3 of the report, have been approved by for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

12.   That it be noted that 564 council tax accounts totalling £276,449.18, as detailed in paragraph 7.5 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

13.   That it be noted that 52 Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) debts totalling £203,067.62, as detailed in paragraph 7.6 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

14.   That it be noted that 69 housing benefit overpayments totalling £25,566.57, as detailed in paragraph 7.10 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

15.   That it be noted that six debts relating to Business Improvement District (BID) totalling £1,703.94, as detailed in paragraph 7.7 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the  ...  view the full decision text for item 5.

Minutes:

Councillor Louise Miles presented the report that included a projection of the likely revenue budget outturn position for the General Fund and Housing Revenue Accounts, compared with the Council’s approved revenue budgets for 2019-2020. The report also set out recommendations for the use of specific reserves, virements and debt write-offs. 

 

Resolved:

  1. That the use of £40,000 from the Regeneration Reserveto fund feasibility works for regeneration schemes as detailed at paragraph 4.4. of the report be approved.

 

  1. That the use of £462,000 from the Transformation Reserve to fund various transformational work as detailed at paragraph 4.5. of the report be approved.

 

  1. That the use of £303,000 from the Budget Contingency Reserve to fund an endowment with Land Trust to facilitate long term land management at Bilston as detailed at paragraph 4.6. of the report be approved.

 

4.    That the use of £178,000 from the Budget Contingency Reserve to fund increased academy conversion deficit as detailed in paragraph 4.7. of the report be approved.

 

  1. That 31 virements totalling £19.5 million, for transfers within directorates, as detailed in Appendix 4 to the report be approved.

 

  1. That the write off of three Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) debts totalling £26,431.85 as detailed in Appendix 5 to the report be approved.

 

  1. That the write off of three Council Tax debts totalling £19,746.63 as detailed in Appendix 6 to the report be approved.

 

8.    That it be noted that the overall projected outturn for the General Fund for 2019-2020 is forecast to be an overspend in the region of £1.6 million. 

 

9.    That it be noted that at this stage in the financial year it is difficult to forecast redundancy costs.  However, based on recent years it is anticipated that the cost of redundancies can be met from reserves.

 

10.That it be noted that a £20.7 million surplus on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) is projected compared with a budgeted surplus of £20.9 million as shown at Table 18 and in detail at Appendix 3 to the report. The projected reduction to the surplus of £215,000 would reduce redemption of debt by £215,000.

 

11.That it be noted that 24 sundry debt accounts totalling £47,614.60, as detailed in paragraph 7.3 of the report, have been approved by for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

12.That it be noted that 564 council tax accounts totalling £276,449.18, as detailed in paragraph 7.5 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

13.That it be noted that 52 Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) debts totalling £203,067.62, as detailed in paragraph 7.6 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance with the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules.

 

14.That it be noted that 69 housing benefit overpayments totalling £25,566.57, as detailed in paragraph 7.10 of the report, have been approved for write off by the Director of Finance in accordance  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

Appointment to the West Midlands Combined Authority Environment Board pdf icon PDF 151 KB

[To approve an appointment to the West Midlands Combined Authority Environment Board]

Decision:

That the appointment of the Councillor Champion for Climate Change to the West Midlands Combined Authority Environment Board to replace the Cabinet Member for City Environment for the remainder of the 2019-2020 Municipal Year be approved.

Minutes:

Councillor Ian Brookfield requested approval to appoint the Councillor Champion for Climate Change to the West Midlands Combined Authority Environment Board to replace the Cabinet Member for City Environment.

Resolved:

That the appointment of the Councillor Champion for Climate Change to the West Midlands Combined Authority Environment Board to replace the Cabinet Member for City Environment for the remainder of the 2019-2020 Municipal Year be approved.

7.

Restructure and Redundancy Policy pdf icon PDF 170 KB

[To approve an updated restructure and redundancy policy for the Council]

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Restructure and Redundancy Policy be approved.

Minutes:

Councillor Louise Miles presented for approval an updated Restructure and Redundancy Policy, and managers’ guidance.  The updated policy and guidance would support the delivery of restructures, to ensure they are managed effectively, fairly and consistently as possible and in a transparent way across the Council.

 

Resolved:

That the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Restructure and Redundancy Policy be approved.

8.

Information Governance Quarter Two Performance Update Report pdf icon PDF 162 KB

[To review and comment on the quarter two performance]

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the quarter two performance update for Information Governance be noted.

Minutes:

Councillor Ian Brookfield presented the report on Information Governance performance for quarter two of 2019-2020. As in previous monitoring reports, good performance continued to be maintained on the Council’s response rates to Freedom of Information and Environmental Information Requests (FOR/EIR) and Data Protection /Subject Access Requests.  

 

Resolved:

That the quarter two performance update for Information Governance be noted.

9.

External Funding Update 2019/2020 pdf icon PDF 350 KB

[To approve an update an update on external funding bids]

Decision:

1.      That the project change request for the AIM for GOLD project extension and contract variation for the Black Country Impact project extension be approved.

 

2.      That the creation of a fully funded revenue budget to support and add value to the Bilston Business Improvement District’s (BID) Christmas activities be approved. The funding to be principally sourced through the West Midlands Combined Authority’s (WMCA) Town Centres Programme.

 

3.      That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy and the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration and Director of Finance to:

a.      Approve acceptance of the grant funding agreements/variation and the Council entering into such agreements if the projects referred to in recommendation 1 above are successful at project change request stage.

 

b.      Approve necessary budgets in line with the funding agreement/variation if the projects referred to in recommendation 1 above are successful at project change request stage.

 

c.       Approve the use of the indirect costs element of any ERDF grant to cover any additional administrative costs associated with the above EU funded programmes

 

d.      Approve the signing of any necessary funding and other legal agreements with the WMCA and the Bilston BID to support the BID’s events programme

 

4.      That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy and the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration and Director of Finance to:

a.      Approve reimbursement of ERDF grant to delivery partners who are awarded ERDF grant for the AIM for GOLD extension.

 

b.      Approve the payment of grants to businesses who are awarded ERDF grant for AIM for GOLD extension

 

5.      That the acceptance of the Arts Council grant funding and the creation of a fully funded revenue budget of £20,000 for the Cultural Compact project, in line with the funding agreement be approved.

 

6.      That the increase in the post of Enterprise Team Co-ordinator within the AIM for GOLD project from part-time to full-time in light of additional administrative burden from 1 January 2020 until March 2023 and the funding of the additional costs from the AIM for GOLD grant be approved.

 

7.       That the Black Country Executive Joint Committee’s Collaboration Agreement be amended to reflect Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council’s role as single accountable body for all Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership funding.

 

8.       That it be noted that the match funding requirement for the Black Country Impact Extension and AIM for GOLD projects (extension of existing projects) are met via the Wolves at Work budget over the lives of the projects. If these commitments are not met, appropriate match funding from another source will be required or the grant funding will be at risk.

Minutes:

Councillor Louise Miles presented for approval proposals relating to bids and project change requests for external funding and to enable West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) funding to be used to support the Bilston Business Improvement District’s (BID’s) Christmas events programme. Approval was also requested for the Council to enter into a revised Collaboration Agreement in relation to the Black Country (BC) Executive Joint Committee for funds secured by the BC Local Enterprise Partnership.

 

Resolved:

1.   That the project change request for the AIM for GOLD (Advice Invest Market Development for Growth Opportunities Local Delivery) project extension and contract variation for the Black Country Impact project extension be approved.

 

2.   That the creation of a fully funded revenue budget to support and add value to the Bilston BID Christmas activities be approved. The funding to be principally sourced through the West Midlands Combined Authority’s Town Centres Programme.

 

3.   That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy and the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration and Director of Finance to:

a.      Approve acceptance of the grant funding agreements/variation and the Council entering into such agreements if the projects referred to in recommendation 1 above are successful at project change request stage.

 

b.      Approve necessary budgets in line with the funding agreement/variation if the projects referred to in recommendation 1 above are successful at project change request stage.

 

c.      Approve the use of the indirect costs element of any European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) grant to cover any additional administrative costs associated with the above EU funded programmes

 

d.      Approve the signing of any necessary funding and other legal agreements with the WMCA and the Bilston BID to support the BID’s events programme

 

4.   That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy and the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration and Director of Finance to:

a.      Approve reimbursement of ERDF grant to delivery partners who are awarded ERDF grant for the AIM for GOLD extension.

 

b.      Approve the payment of grants to businesses who are awarded ERDF grant for AIM for GOLD extension

 

5.   That the acceptance of the Arts Council grant funding and the creation of a fully funded revenue budget of £20,000 for the Cultural Compact project, in line with the funding agreement be approved.

 

6.   That the increase in the post of Enterprise Team Co-ordinator within the AIM for GOLD project from part-time to full-time in light of additional administrative burden from 1 January 2020 until March 2023 and the funding of the additional costs from the AIM for GOLD grant be approved.

 

7.   That the Black Country Executive Joint Committee’s Collaboration Agreement be amended to reflect Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council’s role as single accountable body for all Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership funding.

 

8.    That it be noted that the match funding requirement for the Black Country Impact Extension and AIM for GOLD projects (extension of existing projects) are met via the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

Client Relationship Managing Report - Quarter Two, July to September 2019 pdf icon PDF 142 KB

[To review and comment on the quarter two performance]

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the performance in the Client Relationship Managing report for quarter two of 2019 – 2020 be noted.

Minutes:

Councillor Peter Bilson presented the report on an evaluation of the performance of Wolverhampton Homes (WH) and the Tenant Management Organisations (TMOs) in managing and maintaining council owned dwellings during quarter two of 2019-2020.

 

Resolved:

That the performance in the Client Relationship Managing report for quarter two of 2019 – 2020 be noted.

11.

Exclusion of press and public

[To pass the following resolution:

 

That in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business as they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information on the grounds shown below]

Decision:

That in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business as they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information)

 

Minutes:

Resolved:

That in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business as it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information).

Part 2 - exempt items, closed to press and public

12.

Procurement - Award of Contracts for Works, Goods and Services

[To approve the award of contracts]

Decision:

1.       That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration, to approve the award of a contract for Art Gallery Improvement when the evaluation process is complete.

 

2.       That the award of a contract for Design of a New College Building as part of the City Learning Quarter in association with Wolverhampton College to Perfect Circle JV Ltd for the sum of £196,000 be approved.

 

3.       That the extension of the contract with William Gough Limited of Tudor House Moseley Road WV14 6JD for Building Maintenance Building and Repairs for a duration of 24 months from 2 January 2020 to 1 January 2022 with an extension value of £3.3 million be approved

 

4.       That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Environment, in consultation with the Director of City Environment, to approve the award of a contract for Ward Street Play Area when the evaluation process is complete.

 

5.       That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Environment, in consultation with the Director of City Environment, to approve the award of a contract for Waste Disposal Management when the evaluation process is complete.

 

6.       That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Strategy, to approve the award of a contracts for Corporate Disaster Recovery when the evaluation process is complete.

 

7.       That the Chief Legal Services Officer and staff with appropriate delegated authority be authorised to execute contracts in respect of the above as required.

 

8.       That the exemptions to the Contract Procedure Rules approved by the Head of Procurement and Director of Finance from 1 to 31 October 2019 be noted.

 

Minutes:

Councillor Louise Miles presented for approval the report on the award of contracts for works, goods and services.  Councillor Steve Evans asked that the contract referred to at recommendation five in the report be corrected to ‘Waste Disposal Management’.

 

Resolved:

1.    That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Economy, in consultation with the Director of Regeneration, to approve the award of a contract for Art Gallery Improvement when the evaluation process is complete.

 

2.    That the award of a contract for Design of a New College Building as part of the City Learning Quarter in association with Wolverhampton College to Perfect Circle JV Ltd for the sum of £196,000 be approved.

 

3.    That the extension of the contract with William Gough Limited of Tudor House Moseley Road WV14 6JD for Building Maintenance Building and Repairs for a duration of 24 months from 2 January 2020 to 1 January 2022 with an extension value of £3.3 million be approved.

 

4.    That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Environment, in consultation with the Director of City Environment, to approve the award of a contract for Ward Street Play Area when the evaluation process is complete.

 

5.    That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for City Environment, in consultation with the Director of City Environment, to approve the award of a contract for Waste Disposal Management when the evaluation process is complete.

 

6.    That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Director of Strategy, to approve the award of a contracts for Corporate Disaster Recovery when the evaluation process is complete.

 

7.    That the Chief Legal Services Officer and staff with appropriate delegated authority be authorised to execute contracts in respect of the above as required.

 

8.    That the exemptions to the Contract Procedure Rules approved by the Head of Procurement and Director of Finance from 1 to 31 October 2019 be noted.