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Agenda and minutes

Venue: remotely - via Microsoft Teams

Contact: Democratic Services 

Note: Note: Please note: Due to the current requirement for social distancing this meeting will not be held at its usual location. This will be a virtual meeting and Council Members and Officers will be attending remotely. The meeting will be recorded for subsequent transmission via the Council’s internet site which will be available as soon as practicable after the meeting. If you have any queries regarding this, please contact cabinet_committee@bridgend.gov.uk or tel. 01656 643147 / 643148. 

Media

Items
No. Item

686.

Declarations of Interest

To receive declarations of personal and prejudicial interest (if any) from Members/Officers in accordance with the provisions of the Members’ Code of Conduct adopted by Council from 1 September 2008.

Minutes:

Councillor N Burnett declared a personal interest in agenda item 10 - Suspension of the Contract Procedure Rules for Home-To-School Transport Minibuses and Taxis as she has co-parenting responsibilities for a child with complex needs going through the transition process.

687.

Approval of Minutes pdf icon PDF 422 KB

To receive for approval the Minutes of 18/05/21 and 22/06/21

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

RESOLVED:            That the minutes of the meeting of Cabinet of 18/05/21 and 22/06/21 be approved as a true and accurate record.

688.

Budget Monitoring 2021-22 Quarter 1 Revenue Forecast pdf icon PDF 638 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported on an update on the Council’s revenue financial position as at 30 June 2021.  She informed Cabinet that Council at its meeting on 24 February 2021 approved a net revenue budget of £298.956m for 2021-22 and she summarised the net revenue budget and projected outturn for 2021-22, which showed a net over spend of £904k on directorates and a beak even projection on council wide budgets. 

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported that the Welsh Government had set up a Covid-19 hardship fund, with the Council successfully claiming £15m in expenditure and over £5.5m in loss of income claims in 2020-21.  She stated that the Council will continue to    from the Hardship fund against the eligible criteria and directorates will continue to capture costs incurred as a result of the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.  Updates will be provided to Cabinet in the quarterly revenue budget monitoring reports. 

 

She informed Cabinet that a Covid -19 Recovery Fund of £1m had been established aimed at boosting recovery that were unlikely to be paid for by the Welsh Government.  She highlighted the claims for Covid-19 expenditure which had been made.  A further claim for loss of income was being made to the Welsh Government for the first quarter on 23 July 2021.  She stated that in addition to the loss of income, the Council is also likely to see a reduction in Council Tax income.  A 1% reduction in the collection rate, could equate to additional pressure to the Council of £1m. 

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported on position of outstanding prior year budget reductions, in that for 2012-22 there is likely to be a shortfall of £310k and she highlighted the proposals still not likely to be achieved.  She highlighted the position of budget reductions in 2021-22, which showed a projected shortfall of £65k, the most significant being the re-location of the Community Recycling Centre from Tythegston to Pyle. 

 

The Cabinet Member Communities referred to the claims on hold and was grateful for the funding made available to support homelessness but noted the tapering of funding.  He questioned what claims are on hold and whether it would impact on homelessness.  The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change informed Cabinet that during lockdown the Council ensured that all homeless people received accommodation, however the Council has a growing number of people in temporary accommodation, with 170 to 200 people per week who present as homeless.  The tapering of funding will cause a pressure on the Council’s budget, where costs are not funded.  The Leader informed Cabinet that the Council is working with its partners on innovative housing solutions and there was a need to increase the pace, due to the increase in homelessness.

 

The Cabinet Member Social Services and Early Help referred to the many underspends contained within the report, which reflects a lack of capacity and is a negative impact on staff.  The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 688.

689.

Capital Programme Outturn 2020-21 and Quarter 1 Update Report 2021-22 pdf icon PDF 456 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change presented a report to comply with the requirement of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy’s (CIPFA) Prudential Code for Capital Finance in Local Authorities; provided an update on the capital outturn for 2020-21; provided an update of the capital position for 2021-22 as at 30 June 2021; sought agreement from Cabinet to present a report to Council for approval a revised capital programme for 2021-22 to 2030-31 and to note the projected Prudential and Other Indicators for 20221-22.

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported that Council on 26 February 2020, approved a capital programme, which had been further revised and approved by Council during the year.  The most recent programme for 2020-21 of £35.440m approved by Council in February 2021 as part of the Medium Term Financial Strategy, of which £12.419m is met from the Council’s resources, including capital receipts, revenue contributions from earmarked reserves and borrowing, with the remaining £23.021m coming from external resources.  She informed Cabinet of amendments to the capital programme, with new approvals of £3.060m as a result of a new grant schemes from the Welsh Government, which include £2.329m School Maintenance Grant, £0.149m for the East Hub at Brynteg Comprehensive, £0.174m Green Recovery grant and £0.148m Circular Economy grant and £0.318m funding brought back from 2021-22 to reflect updated spend profiles, bringing the revised budget to £38.818m.  

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported on an update on the Council’s capital programme for 2021-22 since the budget was last approved by Council which incorporated any new schemes and grant approvals.  The revised programme for 2021-22 currently totalled  £87.347m, of which £53.067m is met from the Council’s resources,

including capital receipts, revenue contributions from earmarked reserves and borrowing, with the remaining £34.280m coming from external resources, including General Capital Grant. The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change highlighted the position by each Directorate.  She summarised the current funding assumptions for the capital programme for 2020-21 and that capital resources are managed to ensure that maximum financial benefit for the Council is achieved, which may include the realignment of funding to maximise government grants. 

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change reported on a number of amendments made to the capital programme for 2020-21 as follows:

  • 21st Century Schools Band B
  • Bryncethin Depot
  • Bridgend Heat Network
  • Evergreen Hall
  • Maesteg Town Hall
  • Enable Grant
  • Local Government Public Highways Refurbishment Grant
  • Fleet
  • Active Travel Fund
  • Welsh Government Resilient Roads Fund & Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle Transformation Fund Grants
  • Maes yr Haul Solar Panels
  • Cynffig Comprehensive School External Canopy
  • Porthcawl Waterfront Regeneration Scheme

 

The Interim Chief Officer Finance, Performance and Change also reported on the monitoring of Prudential and other indicators for 2021-22 to 2023-24 together with some local indicators.  The Capital Strategy is intended to give an overview of how capital expenditure, capital financing and treasury management activity contribute to the provision of services along with an overview of how associated risk is  ...  view the full minutes text for item 689.

690.

Review of Corporate Plan Targets For 2021-22 Following the Impact of Covid-19 pdf icon PDF 133 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Interim Chief Officer – Finance, Performance and Change presented the report of the Chief Executive which sought Cabinet endorsement of the proposed changes to Corporate Plan targets for 2021-22 prior to submission to Council for approval.

 

The Interim Chief Officer – Finance, Performance and Change reported that the Corporate Plan was refreshed for 2021-22 in February 2021, endorsed by Cabinet and approved by Council in line with the normal statutory requirement to review the Corporate Plan annually.  As part of the approval process for the refreshed Corporate Plan, it was acknowledged that COVID-19 had an impact on the planning cycle, making it more challenging to set targets for 2021-22.  It was agreed by Council that a flexible approach to setting corporate plan targets was necessary to ensure business planning is robust and effective. 

 

The Interim Chief Officer – Finance, Performance and Change informed Cabinet that as part of the COVID-19 recovery planning each directorate had the opportunity to consider targets for 2021-22, based on verified year end data.  She stated that proposed changes to targets had been considered at the Corporate Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on 5 July 2021 to ensure appropriate challenge and transparency.  She set out the proposed target changes, which would be published as an addendum to the current Corporate Plan.  As part of a wider review of performance and governance due to the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021, it was proposed that corporate planning adopts this approach to target setting in future planning cycles, to ensure that the published corporate plan remains up to date with the most recent year end data and avoids the issue of publishing the Corporate Plan without targets due to lack of data.

 

The Cabinet Wellbeing and Future Generations in commending the approach for revised targets for the Corporate Plan referred to the actual performance for the percentage of people presenting as homeless or potentially homeless, being 50.4% as opposed to the target of 10%, being attributed to the expansion of the duty due to the pandemic and the change in categorisation of who the Council owes a duty to.  However, the Cabinet Member reassured Members that the pressure was being dealt with.

 

The Cabinet Wellbeing and Future Generations informed Cabinet that despite the pandemic the Council had managed to bring 2 dwellings back into use and that the Council is committed to bringing further properties back into use.  The Cabinet Member Communities thanked the empty properties team in bringing back properties back into use.  He stated that there are many reasons for empty properties in town centres and which were not owned by the Council.  The Corporate Director Communities confirmed that the majority of properties in town centres were not owned by the Council and that non-food retail had suffered in town centres during the pandemic, however the Council with the Bridgend Town Centre Masterplan would be looking at employment and living opportunities in the town centre with its partners, with opportunities for retail space on  ...  view the full minutes text for item 690.

691.

Re-Commissioning Regulated Care And Support At Home pdf icon PDF 276 KB

Minutes:

The Head of Adult Social Care presented the report of the Corporate Director Social Services and Wellbeing on an update in respect of the recommissioning work being undertaken for Independent Domiciliary Care (IDC) and Short Breaks services. 

 

She reported that Cabinet at its meeting in November 2014, approved the remodelling homecare implementation plan, which set out the Council’s intentions for meeting the increasing demands for internal homecare and external domiciliary care in a sustainable and managed way.  It proposed that a framework agreement be established for the provision of externally commissioned domiciliary care, which allowed the Council to test the current market, strengthen the existing contractual arrangements, and open up the market to new providers, which managed the increased challenges and demands. Cabinet in January 2016, approved the award of a framework agreement to 13 providers for the provision of new packages of domiciliary care for the period 1st April 2016 to 31st March 2018, with an option to extend for a further period of up to 24 months.  Following engagement sessions undertaken with stakeholders and providers, Cabinet in January 2017 approved the final commissioning plan for the independent domiciliary care sector in Bridgend, and approved the invitation of tenders to establish a framework agreement for the provision of all packages of commissioned domiciliary care.  In September 2017, Cabinet approved the award of a framework agreement to 15 providers (13 existing and 2 new providers) for the provision of domiciliary care for the period 1 January 2018 to the 31 December 2019 with an option to extend for a further period of up to 24 months.  The full extension period has subsequently been utilised, with current IDC arrangements ending on 31st December 2021.

 

The Head of Adult Social Care reported that a series of stakeholder engagement and consultation events took place during 2019/20 to co-produce the model for a new short breaks service.  This had resulted in the development of a new pathway for carers’ services in Bridgend.  A key part of that pathway is to provide appropriate short breaks for carers through flexible delivery of replacement care to individuals in need of care and support, that will provide more voice, choice and control for individuals and their carers through an ability to bank weekly assessed hours for flexible use within a 4-week window.  Following a successful tender exercise, approval was granted (via Delegated Powers) to award contracts for the provision of a regulated domiciliary Short Break Service for individuals and their carers in Bridgend.  The duration of contracts entered into was 2 years, commencing in July 2019, with the option to extend for up to a further 24 months.

 

The Head of Adult Social Care reported that safe, flexible and effective care at home services are an essential part of the Council’s strategy to help and support individuals to maintain their independence.  As a consequence of increasing the capacity within care and support at home services, it had enabled the Directorate to manage the volume of placements made into  ...  view the full minutes text for item 691.

692.

Porthcawl Waterfront Regeneration Scheme : Proposed Compulsory Purchase Order pdf icon PDF 479 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Corporate Director Communities sought a formal resolution of the Cabinet to make, advertise, notify and progress confirmation of a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) to acquire land, and to authorise the advertisement of the proposed appropriation of Council owned land to planning purposes to support the Porthcawl Waterfront Regeneration Scheme.

 

The Corporate Director Communities reported on the steps taken and next steps in the making of a CPO to acquire land to enable delivery of this project.  She stated that the Council owns land in the Sandy Bay and Coney Beach area, and in 2011 entered into an agreement with a third party land owner to jointly market and dispose of all of the land to enable the wider Porthcawl Regeneration Area scheme to come forward as a key strategic mixed-use development.  Disposal was proposed to be to either a single developer or to multiple developers.  She stated there are some unoccupied land parcels where title needs to be cleansed or which are in third party ownership and need to be acquired.  She stated that the Council has attempted to acquire the third party land through negotiated agreements, where ownership is known.  However, to date, it had not been possible to acquire the third party land by agreement and it was considered that the Council should seek to use its powers under section 226(1)(a) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to acquire land compulsorily within the red edged boundary in the draft plan, as described in the draft CPO and for the reasons set out in the draft Statement of Reasons. 

 

The Corporate Director Communities reported on a proposal to provide a mixed-use development consisting of the following components in accordance with the acquiring authorities’ strategic plans and policies to create a primary east west vehicular link; a new large open “Griffin Park”;  approximately 912 dwellings on the Sandy Bay/Coney Beach Amusement Park sites and in excess of 328 dwellings on the Salt Lake site;  recreational and leisure opportunities; retail and commercial development; new and improved parks and open spaces a new school or expansion of existing educational facilities. 

 

The Corporate Director Communities informed Cabinet that the current target for the completion of the scheme is the late 2020’s, with the Council seeking to achieve acquisition of the land to be acquired by early 2023 at latest.  It was planned to identify the preferred developer or developers, depending upon whether a single or multiple developers are chosen via open marketing of the first phase of the site in early to mid-2022.  The aim is to secure the requisite planning consents for the first phase by late 2023.  The Council proposes to dispose of the land by tender, once acquisition is complete.  It was considered that that there is a compelling case for compulsory acquisition to secure these remaining small areas of land required to deliver comprehensive redevelopment in advance of resolving all the uncertainties; and there are realistic prospects of the Council subsequently securing the necessary planning permission  ...  view the full minutes text for item 692.

693.

Pencoed Road Bridge and Pencoed Level Crossing pdf icon PDF 214 KB

Minutes:

The Corporate Director Communities reported on the current progress relating to a major capital transport investment to improve multi-modal accessibility within and through Pencoed and provided an update on the recent work undertaken together with background information on the current situation and potential aspiration and sought authorisation to go out to public consultation in due course.  

 

The Corporate Director Communities reported that the transport proposals at Pencoed will facilitate active travel on Hendre Road by removing the requirement for pedestrians and cyclists to wait until a train has passed, through the provision of a dedicated active travel bridge.  It would also seek to enhance active travel infrastructure at Penprysg Bridge through improved pedestrian and cyclist safety, convenience and usability. She stated that a Stage One WelTAG was completed in June 2019 which identified, developed and appraised a long-list of options used to provide solutions to the issues that currently pose a challenge for connectivity between the west and east of Pencoed.  The process identified which of those options from the long-list should be progressed and further investigated at WelTAG Stage Two, which was to examine in greater detail the short-list of options for tackling the problem under consideration, as agreed by the WelTAG Stage One report.  She stated that the recommendation of the WelTAG Stage Two study was for the option containing a combination of new bridge provision and closure of the level crossing to be taken forward to WelTAG Stage Three.  The closure of the level crossing would be anticipated to include provision of a new active travel bridge.  She informed Cabinet that a Steering Group has been set up comprising of representatives from the community, Council, the MP, the constituency MS, the town council, Wales Office, Welsh Government, Network Rail and Transport for Wales.  An addendum to WelTAG Stage 2 s also nearing completion which is focussed on active travel bridge options at Hendre Road.

 

The Corporate Director Communities reported that the next stage is for public consultation on the proposals to formally commence which is critical to the WelTAG process, which will enable some affected landowners to be contacted directly to discuss the concept of the scheme and initial engineering activities required to progress the WelTAG process.  These initial works include requirements for third party land access to facilitate topographical surveys, ground investigations, ecology surveys and equipment access.  The public consultation phase is critical to the design of the scheme and any subsequent public realm enhancement.  She stated engagement had been undertaken and negotiations commenced with Network Rail to facilitate the required access for the initial survey.  She informed Cabinet that following favourable public consultation, the project would be able to proceed to WelTAG Stage Three.

 

The Corporate Director Communities informed Cabinet that the current WelTAG assessments had been funded by the Welsh Government Local Transport Fund which is administered under the Cardiff City Region’s Metro Programme and detailed construction costs will be provided at WelTAG Stage Three.  However, the current estimate is that the preferred option  ...  view the full minutes text for item 693.

694.

Suspension of the Contract Procedure Rules for Home to School Transport Mini-buses and Taxis pdf icon PDF 284 KB

Minutes:

The Corporate Director Education and Family Support sought Cabinet approval to suspend the relevant parts of the Council’s Contract Procedure Rules in respect of the requirement to re-tender 154 proposed contracts for home-to-school transport services, and that he be authorised to enter into the contracts directly with relevant operators for the autumn term 2021-2022.

 

He reported that Cabinet at its on 20 October 2020 approved a procurement exercise to invite tenders to bid for contracts for multiple home-to-school transport services for a term of five years with the option to extend by two further periods of one year, with an indicative total value for the full term identified as £34.2m.  He informed Cabinet that a procurement exercise was progressed during June and July 2021 for taxis, minibuses, special taxis and special minibuses, comprising of 154 separate routes, expiring at the end of the current 2020-2021 academic year. 

 

He reported that technical issues with the Sell2Wales notice coupled with recent information concerning changes to COVID-19 operational guidance for schools that are likely to be in place for the start of the autumn term in September 2021, have had an impact on the routes, and the capacity of vehicles required to deliver the service which would have required a substantial material change to the published invitation to tender.  Therefore, the Council has found it necessary to abandon the procurement prior to the deadline for tender submissions.  It had been intended that new contracts would be awarded in August 2021 in readiness for the start of the autumn term in September 2021.

 

RESOLVED:            That Cabinet:

 

·         Agreed to suspend the relevant parts of the Council’s contract procedure rules in respect of the requirement to re-tender the contracts listed at Table 1 (at paragraph 4.2) of this report for home-to-school transport services;

 

·         Authorised officers to identify suitable operators for each route referenced in Table 1 (at paragraph 4.2); and

 

Authorised the Corporate Director (Education and Family Support) to enter into the contracts with transport operators from 3 September 2021 until 17 December 2021. 

695.

Human Resources Policies pdf icon PDF 133 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Group Manager Human Resources & Organisational Development sought approval of the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Resolution Policies. 

 

She reported that reviews had been undertaken and completed on the DBS policy and the current Grievance and Dignity at Work policies and that Service managers played a key role in reviewing the Grievance and Dignity at Work policies and developing the new Resolution policy. Full engagement had taken place with Trade Union representatives in the process and support the proposed policies.

 

She informed Cabinet that the DBS policy sets out the requirements for criminal record checking, which is a requirement for certain employees and also applies in a range of other service areas and is integral to the council fulfilling its safeguarding arrangements. The resolution policy is a new policy which brings together the current Grievance and Dignity and Work policies and strengthens the provisions in place which allow employees to raise concerns or dignity at work issues.  It takes account of current legislation and best practice with the aim of resolving matters sensitively and without undue delay and also includes the promotion and use of facilitated discussions in order to optimise the chance of early resolution.

 

The Leader in commending the policies stated that the new policies had been developed to reflect the latest legal and regulatory changes, whilst supporting the needs of the Council and taking into account of best practice.  He thanked colleagues in HR for their work in the delivery of the policies and for its support of frontline services during the pandemic.  He also thanked trade union colleagues for their involvement in the development of the new policies.    

 

RESOLVED:             That Cabinet approved:

 

·         the DBS Policy (at Appendix 1 to the report)

the Resolution Policy (Appendix 2).

696.

Information Report for Noting pdf icon PDF 264 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chief Officer Legal, HR and Regulatory Services presented a report, which informed Cabinet of the following reports which had been submitted for information that had been published since its last scheduled meeting.

 

RESOLVED:            That Cabinet acknowledged the publication of the  documents listed in the report:

 

Title                                                                                    Date Published

 

Monitoring Report – Complaints, Freedom of Information 14 July 2021

and Data Protection

Annual Treasury Management Outturn Report 2020-21    14 July 2021

697.

Urgent Items

To consider any items of business that by reason of special circumstances the chairperson is of the opinion should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency in accordance with paragraph 2.4 (e) of the Cabinet Procedure Rules within the Constitution.

 

Minutes:

There were no urgent items.

 

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