Agenda item

The Commission considered a revised report of the Director of Corporate Resources which provided information on the proposed 2019/20 to 2022/23 Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) as it related to the Corporate Resources Department.  A copy of the report is filed with these minutes.

Arising from discussion and questions the following points were raised:-

Revenue Budget

(i)          The Department was expected to receive £32.9 million from traded services in 2019/20.  This included commercial services such as the School Food service.  The County Council had been successful in providing food for a number of schools in Leicester City and had also submitted tenders for contracts in neighbouring counties.  However, the profit margins were tight as it was a competitive market.

Growth

(ii)         The increase in cost of the Microsoft Enterprise Agreement was the subject of wider discussions with the Local Government Association, although a successful outcome was not anticipated.  It was expected that the roll out to Windows 10 would make the Council’s IT systems easier to manage.  Microsoft had no plans to supersede Windows 10 with a new operating system; the intention was for it to evolve with regular updates.

Savings

(iii)       In response to a query regarding the purchasing of assets outside of Leicestershire, the Commission was advised that the vast majority of property investments were made in the county.  The few that were not were solely focused on income generation to support other council services and provided a good rate of return.  They were close to the county border to ensure that they could be managed effectively.  The property in Nottingham was fully let.  There was a small vacancy in the property in Lichfield but this was not having an adverse financial impact on the Council.  The Commission was assured that the County Council took a very prudent approach to property investment.  No borrowing had been undertaken to fund asset investment.  The financial risk was therefore limited to rental income.

(iv)       The efficiency and productivity programme had the biggest savings target in the MTFS.  It had arisen from a review undertaken by Newton Europe of the adult social care Target Operating Model.  A number of efficiency savings had been identified and there was confidence that they could be delivered.  This approach could also be applied to other departments, especially where services had not been reviewed for a few years.  It was therefore intended to roll the programme out across the whole council.

(v)        The agile working pilots in the Workplace Strategy were at a very early stage.  Further information on the outcome of the pilots would be made available in due course.

 Capital Programme

(vi)       It was queried whether the East of Lutterworth Strategic Development Area (SDA) included land to the east of Junction 2 of the M69.  The Commission was advised that, although the bid to the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) due to be submitted by 22 March included both areas, the East of Lutterworth SDA referred to in the Capital Programme related to land which the County Council had assembled and the associated development scheme which was included in the Harborough Local Plan.  It was expected that this development would generate a significant capital receipt for the County Council in due course.  The HIF bid was an aspirational bid which focused on providing transport infrastructure in the south of the county before any housing development took place.

(vii)     In response to a concern expressed, the Commission was advised that the Stoney Stanton SDA was listed in the Capital Programme as a future development subject to further detail and an approved business case.  Although an outdated diagrammatic illustration of possible development sites in this area had been included in the Cabinet report regarding the HIF bid, no specific plans for development currently existed.  Officers undertook to clarify whether an updated diagram would be included in the final submission of the HIF bid and it was also noted that, if the bid was successful, a report outlining the next steps would be submitted to the Cabinet.  The Commission was further advised that any proposal for development in the Stoney Stanton area, whether it included County Council land or not, would first need to be included in the Blaby Local Plan.  This was due to be revised and would be the subject of public consultation.

(viii)    The ongoing revenue costs for the County Council’s country parks were small.  There were no plans to open any new country parks or to change the management arrangements for the existing ones.

(ix)       The inclusion of funds in the Capital Programme for the redevelopment of Snibston Country Park was welcomed and it was suggested that the county and district councils could work together to develop walkways and cycleways to join up various leisure facilities and open spaces in that area.

RESOLVED:

(a)  That the Comments now made be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration at its meeting on 8 February;

(b)  That officers be requested to provide clarity on the status of any diagrams or plans for development to be included in the HIF Bid relating to transport infrastructure in the south of the county.