Agenda and minutes

Venue: Ground Floor Meeting Room GO1A, 160 Tooley Street, London SE1 2QH

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies

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    To receive any apologies for absence.

    Minutes:

    The cabinet noted that Councillor Fiona Colley was on maternity leave and extended their congratulations in respect of the recent birth of her son.

2.

Notification of any items of Business which the Chair Deems Urgent

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    In special circumstances, an item of business may be added to an agenda within five clear working days of the meeting.

    Minutes:

    The chair gave notice that the following items would be considered for reasons of urgency and lateness to be specified in the relevant minutes:

     

    ·  Items 14 (open) and 17 (closed) Customer Services Centre (CSC) Contract with Vangent Ltd.

3.

Disclosure of Interests and Dispensations

    Members to declare any personal interests and dispensation in respect of any item of business to be considered at this meeting.

    Minutes:

    The following disclosures of interests were made:

     

    ·  Councillor Richard Livingstone, personal and non prejudicial, Item 11 - Leathermarket Joint Management Board (JMB) Partial Self Financing of the Housing Revenue Account as a co-opted director of Leathermarket JMB for the period 1998 -2007.

     

    ·  Councillor Veronica Ward, personal and non prejudicial, Item 11 - Leathermarket Joint Management Board (JMB) Partial Self Financing of the Housing Revenue Account as a relative lives within the area.

     

    ·  Councillor Catherine McDonald, personal and non prejudicial, Item 12 - Gateway 2: Contract Award Approval - Southwark Heat Network from South East London Combined Heat and Power Plan (SELCHP) - Additional Services Contract as a Councillor in one of the affected wards (Livesey).

     

    ·  Councillor Richard Livingstone, personal and non prejudicial, Item 12 - Gateway 2: Contract Award Approval - Southwark Heat Network from South East London Combined Heat and Power Plan (SELCHP) - Additional Services Contract as a Councillor in one of the affected wards (Livesey).

4.

Public Question Time (15 Minutes)

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    To receive any questions from members of the public which have been submitted in advance of the meeting in accordance with the cabinet procedure rules.

    Minutes:

    There were no public questions.

5.

Minutes

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    To approve as a correct record the minutes of the open section of the meeting held on 17 April 2012.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    That the minutes of the meeting held on 17 April 2012 be approved as a correct record and signed by the chair.

6.

Deputation Requests

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    To consider any deputation requests.

    Minutes:

    There were no deputation requests.

7.

Amendment to Strategic Management Arrangements

    To consider a proposed new strategic management structure.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    1.  That as at 1 October 2012, the posts of strategic director, health & community services, strategic director of communities, law and governance and deputy chief executive be deleted.

     

    2.  That the existing posts of strategic director, children’s services and finance director be renamed strategic director, children’s & adults’ services and strategic director corporate services respectively. These posts (along with the chief executive) will subsume the majority of services from those departments in recommendation 1 and subsume the relevant statutory roles, other than the monitoring officer.

     

    3.  That as at 1 October 2012, 2 x posts of assistant director of finance be deleted and a new post of head of service for resources be created. 

     

    4.  That the appointments committee is formed to make recommendations to council assembly on new appointments to head of paid service and monitoring officer in accordance with the constitution. Council assembly will be asked to approve the redesignation of the section 151 officer (strategic director corporate services) and monitoring officer (head of legal services).

     

    5.  That it be noted that all chief officer posts are contractually inter-changeable; therefore placement of function and post-holders otherwise be delegated to the head of paid service in accordance with the Council’s policy and procedures. Similarly, the statutory function of the electoral registration officer will be subsumed within one of the chief officer posts, to be determined by the head of paid service.

8.

Gateway 1: Procurement Strategy Approval Aylesbury Regeneration: Development Partnership

9.

Home Care Contract Monitoring Report

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    To note the delivery of the home care contracts over the first six months and the summary of how the transition from previous to new contracting arrangements was approached.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    1.  That it be noted that the delivery of the contracts has met all the quality and performance standards under the contract over the first six months of operation

     

    2.  That the summary of how the transition from previous to new contracting arrangements was approached be noted; that through the support of the dedicated transition team service users were given the choice to remain with their current providers on a personal budget and that far greater numbers than anticipated chose to take up a personal budget. 

     

    3.  That it be noted that while there were challenges that arose during the transfer process that had some impact on the quality and consistency of service delivery, there have also been examples of good practice over the past six months that has ensured the most vulnerable residents in the borough received care with real dignity and sensitivity.

10.

Gateway 1: Procurement Strategy Approval - Communal Lighting and Lightning Protection Contract

11.

Leathermarket Joint Management Board (JMB) - Partial Self Financing of the Housing Revenue Account

    To consider a proposal for the ‘self financing’ of the Leathermarket Joint Management Board (JMB).

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    1.  That the progress made towards the proposal for ‘self financing’ of the Leathermarket  Joint Management Board (JMB) be noted.

     

    2.  That the development of the proposal through shadowing the financial impact of this initiative during 2012/13 as outlined in paragraph 52 of the report and  the future work to be undertaken as outlined in paragraph 53 of the report be agreed.

     

    3.  That officers develop a variation of the current Modular Management Agreement (MMA), specifically to draw up terms to enable the delegation of control of part of the housing revenue account (HRA) to the Joint Management Board (JMB) and to agree robust monitoring mechanisms to ensure that public funds are protected.  Such agreement to be approved by cabinet, the JMB Board of Directors and the Secretary of State.

12.

Gateway 2: Contract Award Approval - Southwark Heat Network from South East London Combined Heat and Power Plan (SELCHP) - Additional Services Contract

    To approve in principle the award of the Southwark Heat Network Contract.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    Decisions of the Cabinet

     

    1.  That approval be given in principal to the award of the Southwark Heat Network Contract to Veolia Environmental Services Southwark Ltd (VESS) on the basis of the heads of terms set out in paragraph 11 of the report and paragraph 9 of the closed report. There is no additional cost to the Council but the contract is for the long-term purchase of heat from VESS (replacing the cost of purchase of gas and boiler maintenance).  There is no capital cost to the Council.  The financial value of the contract is contained in the closed version of the report.

     

    2.  That the contract commence in September 2012 and expire in 2033.

     

    3.  That the supply of heat commence in late 2013.

     

    Decision of the Leader of the Council

     

    4.  That authority be delegated to the cabinet member for transport, environment and recycling to finalise the outstanding points on the heads of terms, on the advice of the finance director and the strategic director for environment and leisure.

     

    5.  That authority be delegated to the cabinet member for transport, environment and recycling to agree the contract, on the advice of the finance director and the strategic director for environment and leisure.

Note:

At this juncture the cabinet noted that this was the last cabinet meeting at which Gill Davies, strategic director of environment and leisure would be attending. They recorded their gratitude and thanks for her hard work in her time at Southwark Council as an indispensable member of the team and her commendable record of delivery and achievements for the benefits of the residents, including the maintenance of the library service, Canada Water library and her work also undertaken in respect of housing. Cabinet expressed their thanks for all her hard work and the positive impact it has made to the Borough and its residents. 

13.

Motions referred from Council Assembly

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    To consider motions referred from council assembly on the following:

     

    ·  Motion on the theme – Older people

    ·  Universal Credit

    ·  Post Offices for Southwark

    ·  South London Line Replacement

    ·  Gay marriage

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    RESOLVED:

     

    Motion on Themed Debate - Older People

     

    That the motion referred from council assembly as a recommendation to cabinet, set out below be noted and agreed.

     

    1.  That council assembly acknowledges that:

     

    ·  10 million people in the UK are over the age of 65 and this will rise to 15.5 million by 2035

    ·  3 million are over the age of 80 and this is set to double in 20 years time.

     

    2.  That council assembly welcomes and celebrates the fact that we are all living longer and pays tribute to the amazing contribution older people make to Southwark’s diverse communities, economy and society as a whole.

     

    3.  That council assembly calls on members to recognise this contribution and discuss how more can be made of the opportunities that longer lives bring with particular focus on:

     

    ·  How the council can recognise the role that people in later life often play in their communities, through volunteering, caring and by playing an active role in neighbourhood life

    ·  How people in Southwark can take advantage of the wide variety of sporting, educational and social activities available as they get older

    ·  How the council can promote the greater role that more active grandparents play in their families’ lives

    ·  How the council can work with the NHS and other partners to give older people more choice in the services they receive, enabling them to live healthy lives and stay in their own homes and communities for longer.

     

    4.  That council assembly also recognises the council’s important role in caring for older people who require care and support.

     

    5.  That council assembly notes that £1.3 billion has already been cut from local council budgets for older people's social care and believes the council should strive to create an adult care system that helps older people to find the support they need, enabling them to live healthy, independent lives in their own communities and homes, rather than retaining a long-term dependency on council services, whilst also protecting our most vulnerable older residents.

     

    6.  That council assembly also recognises that many of the groups in Southwark that provide services to older people have lost their funding through government cuts and so welcomes the council’s “innovation fund” which is enabling local organisations to become more self-sustaining going forward.

     

    Universal Credit

     

    RESOLVED:

     

    That the motion referred from council assembly as a recommendation to cabinet, set out below be noted and agreed.

     

    1.  That council assembly notes that, starting in October 2013, universal credit will begin to replace income support, job seekers allowance, employment and support allowance, housing benefit, working tax credit, child tax credit and support for mortgage interest.

     

    2.  That council assembly recognises that universal credit is a household benefit and that the income from universal credit will therefore be critical to the household incomes of thousands of its residents who are both in and out of work.

     

    3.  That council assembly therefore believes that the quality of the universal credit ‘service’ will be important to the lives of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

Note:

At this juncture cabinet noted that this was the last cabinet meeting at which Councillor Abdul Mohamed would be attending as the cabinet member for equalities and community engagement as he takes up different responsibilities following May 2012 council assembly. The cabinet wished to place on record its thanks for all Councillor Mohamed’s hard work undertaken in his time as cabinet member including notable achievements in respect of his work with the voluntary sector.

14.

Customer Services Centre (CSC) Contract with Vangent Ltd

    To consider the Principles for Agreement set out in the closed report for the transition of customer services to council control on 1 June 2013 and steps necessary to implement any variation.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    This item had not been circulated five clear days in advance of the meeting. The chair had agreed to accept this item as urgent as throughout commercially confidential discussions, both parties had committed to act in good faith and reach an outcome that could support the long-term ambitions of both organisations. During discussions both parties had also committed to conclude any agreement by 31 May 2012. In recognition of the commitment to act in good faith, and safeguard the delivery of the services, delegated authority was required as a matter of urgency in order to enable officers to conclude a final agreement with Vangent to this timetable.

     

    RESOLVED:

     

    1.  That the principles for agreement set out in the closed report for the transition of customer services to council control on 1 June 2013 be agreed.

     

    2.  That authority be delegated to the strategic director of housing services to agree the deed of variation, necessary to implement the transition of the services.

     

    3.  That it be noted that the proposal for the council’s future operating model for customer services will bring the service under council management and give the council greater control over the operation of customer services. A model for delivering the services in future will be presented to cabinet in the form of a gateway 1 report in July 2012.

Exclusion of Press and Public

That the press and public be excluded for the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in categories 3 and 5 of paragraph 10.4 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules of the Southwark Constitution.

15.

Minutes

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    To approve as a correct record the minutes of the closed section of the meeting held on 17 April 2012.

    Supporting documents:

    Minutes:

    The minutes of the closed section of the meeting held on 17 April 2012 were approved as a correct record and signed by the chair.

16.

Gateway 2: Contract Award Approval - Southwark Heat Network from South East London Combined Heat and Power Plan (SELCHP) - Additional Services Contract

Minutes:

The cabinet considered the closed information relating to this report. See item 12 for decision.

17.

Customer Services Centre (CSC) Contract with Vangent Ltd

Minutes:

The cabinet considered the closed information relating to this report. See item 14 for decision.