Agenda and minutes

Venue: Committee Room 4 - Civic Centre. View directions

Contact: Andrew Harvey  01902 552752 or Email: andrew.harvey@wolverhampton.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for absence

Minutes:

Apologies for Absence were received on behalf of Councillor Steve Evans.

2.

Declarations of interest

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

3.

Minutes of the previous meeting pdf icon PDF 86 KB

[To approve the minutes of the previous meeting as a correct record.]

Minutes:

Resolved:

That the minutes of the meeting on 9 September be approved as a correct record.

4.

Matters arising

[To consider any matters arising from the minutes.]

Minutes:

There were no matters arising.

5.

Civil Enforcement of Bus Lanes and Bus Gates pdf icon PDF 3 MB

[To approve the proposals to implement civil enforcement of bus lanes and bus gates within Wolverhampton pursuant to the Transport Act 2000, Traffic Management Act 2004 and all other enabling powers.]

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Peter Bilson moved the report and its recommendations to the panel in the absence of Councillor John Reynolds. The report proposed the implementation of Council run bus lane enforcement, to improve the movement of public transport around the city and set out penalties for those found illegally using bus lanes.

 

Councillor Bilson moved an amendment to recommendation 4. Following consultation with the Department for Transport (DfT) the penalty charge will be £60 (instead of £70). The charge for early payment (within 14 days) will be £30 (£35) and late payment charges will be £90 (£105).

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  To approve the proposals to implement civil enforcement of bus lanes and bus gates within Wolverhampton pursuant to the Transport Act 2000, Traffic Management Act 2004 and all other enabling powers. 

 

(2)  To agree the use of approved devices (cameras) to enforce bus lanes and bus gate contraventions pursuant to the Transport Act 2000.

 

(3)  To grant dispensation from normal competition requirements under the procurement procedure rules and approve the appointment of Systems Engineering and Assessment Ltd to provide the bus lane and bus gate civil enforcement equipment and associated system requirements. This will deliver value for money due to essential compatibility with the parking enforcement system.

 

(4)  To agree the level of penalty charge proposed (£60) in relation to bus lane and bus gate contraventions.  To incentivise prompt payment, an authority must incorporate into their penalty regime a 50% discount for penalty charge notices paid within 21 days of its service (£30).  If the ticket served is not paid before the end of the relevant period (28 days) the local authority may serve a charge certificate and increase the charge by 50% (£90).

 

(5)  To approve the consultation recommendations and publicity proposals.

 

(6)  To appoint the Council’s representative (Parking Services Manager) to become a member of the Bus Lane Adjudication Service Joint Committee.

6.

External Funding Update pdf icon PDF 259 KB

[To agree that the Council act as an accountable body for Growing Places Supporting Employment and Enterprise Development Project, to act as a partner with the University of Wolverhampton in the Environmental Management of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (EMSME) project and to approve spending in relation to these externally funded projects and approve the establishment of separate budget codes for project revenue.]

Minutes:

Councillor Bilson presented the report which sought Cabinet (Resources) Panel approval for the Council to act as an accountable body for the Growing Places Supporting Employment and Enterprise Development project. Moreover the report reaffirmed the need for the Council and its partners to work together to explore barriers to growth for small and medium businesses, details of which were listed in the report.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  To agree that the Council act as an accountable body for Growing Places Supporting Employment and Enterprise Development Project, sign the funding agreement and approve a grant to the named delivery partner Access to Business to deliver the project.

 

(2)  To delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Economic Regeneration and Prosperity, in consultation with the Strategic Director Education and Enterprise and Assistant Director, Finance, to sign the service level agreement relating to the delivery of this project.

 

(3)  To agree to act as a partner with the University of Wolverhampton in the Environmental Management of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (EMSME) project, in order to host a research placement for six months exploring barriers to green growth in small and medium sized enterprises.

 

(4)  To approve spending in relation to these externally funded projects and approve the establishment of separate budget codes for project revenue.

7.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities New Burdens Money pdf icon PDF 76 KB

[To approve the expenditure of £200,000 in 2014/15 and £160,000 in 2015/16 to be funded from the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities implementation Grant to fund the Implementation of the Children and Families Act 2014 in relation to disabled children.]

Minutes:

Councillor Gibson presented the report which outlined why this service has now come under Council control, and referred to the Councils obligation to implement the Children and Families Act 2014. Councillor Gibson informed Councillors that the Department for Education was very impressed with the Councils progress during their visit in January 2014. She also emphasised to the panel that table 3.3 in the report set out details of the expenditure.

 

Resolved:

 

To approve the expenditure of £200,000 in 2014/15 and £160,000 in 2015/16 to be funded from the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities implementation Grant to fund the Implementation of the Children and Families Act 2014 in relation to disabled children.

 

 

8.

Funding Transfer from the NHS to Social Care 2014/15 pdf icon PDF 156 KB

[To agree the Council enters into an agreement under Section 256 of the NHS Act 2006 with NHS England to provide the sum of £6.3 million to the Council.]

Minutes:

Councillor Andrew Johnson moved the report in the absence of Councillor Steve Evans. Councillor Johnson moved an amendment to recommendation 2, stating that delegation should go to the Cabinet Member for Adults, not the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing..

Councillors enquired as to whether this was pre-existing money or from a new fund. Tony Ivko informed the panel that this is not new money but is from pre-existing funds. Tony also suggested that the Council can expect more scrutiny than normal but in conjunction with the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), and both will take a joint report to the Health and Wellbeing board, as detailed in the report.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  That the Council enters into an agreement under Section 256 of the NHS Act 2006 with NHS England to provide the sum of £6.3 million to the Council.

 

(2)  To delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing and the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Strategic Director of Community and Assistant Director Finance, to approve the detailed allocation of this funding to services.

 

 

9.

Schedule of Individual Executive Decisions pdf icon PDF 90 KB

[To note the summary of open and exempt individual executive decisions approved by the appropriate Cabinet Members following consultation with the relevant stakeholders.]

Minutes:

Resolved:

 

To note the summary of open and exempt individual executive decision notices approved by the appropriate Cabinet Members following consultation with the relevant designated employees.

10.

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 falling within the paragraphs of Schedule 12A of the Act set out below:]

 

 

Item No.                                 Title                                         Applicable Paragraph

 

11                                Schools Delegated Budgets                           3

                                    Licensed Deficit Scheme                              

 

12                                Public Health Contracting                          3

                                    Strategy                                                        

 

13                                Strategic Procurement: Award                   3

                                    of Contracts for Goods, Services 

                                    and Works

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 items of business as they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information falling within the paragraphs of Schedule 12A of the Act set out below:]

 

Item No.                                 Title                                         Applicable Paragraph

 

11                                Schools Delegated Budgets                           3

                                    Licensed Deficit Scheme                              

 

12                                Public Health Contracting                          3

                                    Strategy                                                        

 

13                                Strategic Procurement: Award                   3

                                    of Contracts for Goods, Services 

                                    and Works

11.

Schools Delegated Budget Licensed Deficit Scheme

[To approve the new applications for the schools in deficit and to agree receipt of future updates on the licensed deficit scheme.]

 

 

 

Minutes:

Councillor Page introduced the report and brought to Councillor’s attention - paragraphs 3.2 and 3.3 which highlighted the money available for schools budget deficits. Councillor Page also highlighted paragraph 3.7 which stated the position of schools that are currently converting to become academies and their deficit status.

 

Councillors insisted that it would be a priority to see how the situation at Carlton Hills School developed.

 

Some Councillors asked how robust the monetary savings were at Carlton Hills School as there appeared to be a big swing from deficit to surplus. Mark Taylor reassured Councillors that the Council works closely with schools to ensure the deficit and budget data is correct and that they will continue to monitor and work closely with the schools in question.

 

Resolved:

 

(1)  To approve the new applications for the schools in deficit.

 

(2)  To agree to receive future updates on the licensed deficit scheme which will be reported to the Panel on a half yearly basis.

 

(3)  Note the assessment of the funding available to support the licensed deficit scheme for 2014/15 and future years.

 

(4)  Note the update regarding schools in an existing deficit position.

 

12.

Public Health - Contracting Strategy

[To approve the Public Health Contracting Strategy.]

Minutes:

Councillor Johnson informed the panel that this report had been withdrawn and would be considered at a future meeting.

13.

Corporate Procurement - Award of Contracts for Works, Goods and Services

[To approve the formalisation of the current arrangements with Royal Wolverhampton Trust in a contract.]

Minutes:

Councillor Johnson presented the report on the award of Contracts for Works, Goods and Services.

Resolved:

(1)  To approve the formalisation of the current arrangements with Royal Wolverhampton Trust in a contract.

 

(2)  To delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for City Services, in consultation with the Assistant Director of Finance to approve the award of a contract for the supply of coated roadstone once the evaluation process is complete. 

 

(3)  To delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Resources, in consultation with the Assistant Director of Finance, to approve the award of contracts for both Lot 1 Core Banking Services and Lot 2 Merchant Acquiring Services.

 

(4)  To authorise the Chief Legal Officer to execute contracts in respect of the above as required.