Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meetings of the Board held on 12 September and 14 November 2017 and to authorise the Chairman to sign them.

The minutes of the meetings held on 12 September and 14 November 2017 were agreed as correct records and signed by the Chairman.

The report before Members set out the Quarter 2 performance report as requested by the Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committees.

In total performance against 18 indicators had been included in the report, of these 14 had been rated as either green or red.

2 (14%) had a status of green and 12 (86%) had a status of red.

The report also highlighted the measures that were in place to address indicators that were performing below expected levels.

The Board reviewed the performance set out in the report’s appendix and the corrective action that was being taken to improve this where necessary.

The report before Members detailed sickness absence management.

The average number of days absent per employee had continued to reduce from 10.46 in the financial year 15/16 to 9.28 in the 12 month rolling period from October 2016 to September 2017 – an 11% decrease in just over a year.  The overall position for rolling year sickness absence continued to improve with a reduction in days.

Sickness continued to be managed robustly. In 2016, 28 people left the Council due to their sickness absence levels. In 2017 so far there had been 17 dismissals.

Significant work continued to be undertaken, focus needed to be sustained by managers to ensure absence levels continue to decrease which would include:

• Workplace Wellbeing Forum

·       Interactive refresher sessions / Sickness Cases Focussed HR support

·       Data analysing

• Day One absence Pilot
• Implementation of MedigoldOne
• Workplace Wellbeing

Members were advised that a review of the sickness policy had been undertaken and implemented.

Members noted the contents of the report.

The report before Members set out the main activity areas in respect of the property services supplied by oneSource to Havering Council and provided additional information on some key areas relating to commercial property income and property disposals.

The report set out the service’s main areas of activity.

Appended to the report was a summary of the Council’s overall property portfolio as contained in the Council’s Asset Management Plan.

A more detailed and slightly updated record of the Council’s portfolio was published as part of the Government’s transparency agenda and could be found on the Council’s website.

The report detailed the income and occupancy rates that were attributed to the Council’s commercial property portfolio.

The report also highlighted that over the years the Council had pursued a policy of disposing of surplus assets to fund the capital programme.  Recommendations for disposals arose as a result of service reviews, specific projects or more general property reviews carried out by Property Services.

Since 2010, more than £102m had been achieved from the disposal of Council assets. Such assets had ranged from multi-million pound transactions which generated new housing developments to the sale of small areas of surplus land to adjoining owners.

From 2016 to the present date, the sale of the sites had generated receipts in excess of £26m.

Members were also advised that as the Council had pursued a policy of selling surplus sites for many years it had become more difficult to identify new sites for disposal that did not pose challenges, either technically or in terms of planning and especially in respect of objections to disposal that arose in many cases.  A further review of disposal opportunities would be arranged with a new administration.

Members noted the report.

The report before Members gave an overview of Facilities Management within the Council.

Set up in 2012 with the aim to meet statutory compliance obligations the Council as a corporate landlord incorporated 80 buildings including office accommodation, libraries, social care, parks, parks depot, leisure, housing offices (excludes Housing buildings), crematoriums and some of the education buildings. A further proposed 24 buildings were to be added corporate landlord model.

Included in the report was a list of the premises that were currently within the corporate landlord model.

The report also highlighted that five yearly condition surveys were commissioned to forecast and manage the repairs and maintenance budget over a five year term.

The report also detailed the proposed Facilities Management restructure which would deliver a £428k saving towards the overall Asset Management saving of £2.3m rising to £2.5m in 2018/19.

Also included in the report were details of the Facilities Management Procurement Strategy which had been produced to help oneSource achieve savings in the costs of goods, services and works and best use of limited resources in support of the Council’s objectives in delivering consistently high quality services that met users’ needs.

Members noted the report.

The report before Members invited Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee Chairmen to verbally update Board members on the current work of their Sub-Committees and associated topic groups.

Individuals Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee

Members were advised that the Chairman and Vice-Chairman had visited one of the Council’s hostels and were working to secure better facilities for residents.

A topic group had been set up to look at homecare provision and Members had recently attended the Homecare Providers Forum and were planning on visiting providers to see the services that were being provided to residents.

The Sub-Committee had also been briefed on the latest work on the Local Integrated Care Partnership and scrutiny of the annual complaints report for adult social care.

Towns & Communities Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee

Members were advised that the topic group looking at housing repairs had now commenced. A number of site visits were planned to properties that had had recent repairs carried out to ascertain levels of workmanship from contractors.

Health Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee

The Chairman advised that the Sub-Committee had recently considered the winter pressures on BHRUT, the digital roadmap to integrate health and social care, air pollution and scrutiny of performance information with regards to delayed transfers of care and childhood obesity.

Members were advised that the JHOSC had also recently visited Whipps Cross Hospital to look at the wards and maternity care and possible future development of the site.

The JHOSC had also considered the Spending Money Wisely 2 consultation and concerns had been fed back about proposals to restrict cataract surgery.

The JHOSC had also been updated on the BHRUT Improvement Plan and the East London Health and Care Partnership work.

Crime & Disorder Sub-Committee

The Chairman advised that the topic group looking at support given by the criminal justice system to prisoners with mental health issues was continuing.

Members also noted that traveller incursions had reduced across the borough following intervention works from council officers.

Environment Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee

Members were advised that the Sub-Committee had recently received presentations on civil parking enforcement, licensing of houses in multiple occupation, fly tipping and trees and foliage overhanging the highway.

Children’s & Learning Overview & Scrutiny Sub-Committee

The Chairman advised that the Sub-Committee had received a presentation on Power BI.

The Sub-Committee had also scrutinised the annual reports on complaints to Children’s Services and Education Services.

The Sub-Committee had also considered the High Needs & Review Strategy and the Havering school’s results.