Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Christopher Hill, Deputy Hugh Morris and Ian Seaton.

There were no declarations.

To agree the public minutes of the meeting held on 29^th January 2019.

RESOLVED - That the public minutes of the meeting held on 29^th January 2019 be agreed as an accurate record.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Sub-Committee considered a report of the Town Clerk which set out the work plan for future meetings.

Members stressed that, given it was vital for the Sub-Committee to focus on those departments that were likely to be facing the most acute challenges during the Fundamental Review, officers should update the forward plan in light of the discussions and decisions taken at the Resource Allocation Sub-Committee’s Away Day in July.

RESOLVED – That the Sub-Committee notes the report.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Sub-Committee received a Report of the Head of Corporate Strategy & Performance.

Members thanked the Head of Corporate Strategy & Performance for the update and provided feedback on the high-level summary business plan, most notably;

·         Officers should review the template two-pager to include wording that would better serve to ‘force’ debate at Committees as to what to prioritise. The Chairman added that it was critical that, as pressures on the Corporation’s finances began to intensify due to the large projects coming on stream, Members confronted the need to make choices; any wording needed to express ‘if you do this, this is what you’ll achieve in terms of outcomes’ and offer real choices not “shroud waving”.

The proposed new cycle in 2020, where scrutiny sessions would take place after Policy & Resources’ confirmation of Members’ priorities, would provide time for any final changes to the departmental high-level summary Business Plans to be made ahead of their submission to Committees for approval; this, Members noted, was a positive step, but it needed Chief Officers to be proactive in ensuring that choices about prioritisation were presented for Members consideration. The Deputy Chairman added that the Sub-Committee does not set the Corporation’s priorities, but it does monitor how priorities are being met.

·         Officers needed to more clearly distinguish and separate out areas where debate is needed

·         Highlight changes from the previous year; the business plan needed to be a living document, with its “evolution” transparently presented to officers and Members alike.

·         Members noted that some departments (e.g. CCS) won’t have much room for debate as priority, clearly, follows risk. Others will need to be longer, so a one size-fits-all approach should be avoided.

·         The Deputy Chairman was concerned that reference to the Capital Budget was missing; capital bids needed to be aligned with the business and

There were no questions.

There were no items of urgent business.

MOTION - That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

RESOLVED - That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act.

To agree the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 29^th January 2019.

RESOLVED - That the non-public minutes of the meeting held on 29^th January 2019 be agreed as an accurate record.

Report of the Town Clerk.

The Sub-Committee received a Report of the Town Clerk.

Report of the Chief Grants Officer and Director of CBT.

The Sub-Committee received a Report of the Chief Grants Officer and Director of City Bridge Trust (CBT) concerning Economy, Efficiency and Effectiveness Health Checks for the CBT.

Report of the Director of the Economic Development Office

The Sub-Committee received a Report of the Director of the Economic Development Office (EDO) concerning the Economy, efficiency and effectiveness health check for the EDO.

There were no questions.

There was no other business.