Agenda and minutes

County Councillor Alan Schofield replaced County Councillor Geoff Driver for this meeting.

The Committee agreed that Items 5e and 5f would be taken immediately after Item 4a on the agenda, and that Item 5a was now a Part II item, and would be taken during the Part II section of the meeting.

None.

Members are asked to consider any Pecuniary or Non-pecuniary Interests they may have to disclose to the meeting in relation to matters under consideration on the Agenda.

County Councillor Green declared a non-pecuniary interest in Item 5a as a member of South Ribble Borough Council.

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 4 November 2014 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

The Committee considered the following report to be presented for decision by Cabinet on 6 November 2014:

Karen Murray, Director, Grant Thornton, the Council's External Auditor, attended to present this item.

The Annual Audit Letter for Lancashire County Council for the year ended 31 March 2014 was presented.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to cabinet be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee received a report setting out a proposed investment of just over £5m in three routes to contribute towards the delivery of the Strategic Cycle Network in East Lancashire. It was reported that this scheme was part of the wider East Lancashire Highways and Transport masterplan, and represented the first phase of the cycle network development.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

A report was presented setting out a proposed revised criteria for assessing subsidised bus services. It was reported that the criteria had been developed following a wide and lengthy consultation process. The Committee was advised that the new assessment process would allow the Council to measure subsidised bus services in a more sustainable way and prioritise local community needs within the resources available.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee was advised that, following a detailed review, the County Council had retained its status as an employer that met the Investor in People (IiP) standard.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee received a report providing an update on the Living Wage within Lancashire County Council and requesting approval for the annual uplift of the Living Wage to be applied to all centrally employed staff from 1 April 2015.

It was confirmed that the Council fulfilled all the criteria to become accredited as a Living Wage employer, one of only two shire counties to be thus accredited.

It was confirmed that information and advice had been shared with schools, and the Committee welcomed the positive response to the implementation of the Living Wage from schools.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee received a report further updating Cabinet on the Council’s financial position for 2015/16 - 2017/18, in particular, the areas of risks and uncertainty highlighted to Cabinet in November. It was noted that the Autumn Statement was due the following day, and that any relevant information from that would be reported to Cabinet.

It was confirmed that further service offer information would be presented at Cabinet on 4 December.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

A report was presented setting out Community Safety Agreement for 2014/16. It was noted that the Agreement had been developed by the Lancashire Community Safety Strategy Group (LCSSG) in consultation with local partners.

It was noted that the principle of partnership working and the arrangements in place would ensure that any duplication of work would be addressed.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The committee received a report presenting the annual report of the Lancashire Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) for 2013/14. The Board has a statutory responsibility to ensure the effectiveness of work undertaken by agencies to safeguard children in Lancashire. The annual report set out the work undertaken in this regard in Lancashire for the 2013/14 financial year.

The work of the LSCB was welcomed by the committee, and it was noted that the LSCB and key partners would be attending a meeting of the Scrutyin Committee on Friday 5 December to consider the issues covered in the report in depth.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the cabinet member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee considered the following key decisions due to be taken by individual Cabinet Members.

The committee received a report setting out the strategy for the provision of school places and schools capital investment for 21015/16 to 2017/18. It was noted that eth County Council was responsible for ensuring there were sufficient school places in the area, and that the strategy reflected a general increase in the birth rate, albeit one that was not consistent across the county.

In response to a request form councillors, it was agreed that information on school rolls and capacity would be provided to all councillors annually.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee received a report setting our proposals for the introduction of charges for the disposal of non-household waste at Household Waste Recycling Centres. It was reported that this followed from a report to Cabinet in January 2014 at which the principle of seeking ways to reduce the levels of non-household waste was agreed, and it was confirmed that the aim of the policy was primarily to reduce levels of waste and not to raise income.

It was noted that, due to an administrative error, the appendices had not been included in the agenda papers presented. It was therefore agreed that the Committee would make no recommendation, but that the appendices would be circulated outside of the meeting and all members invited to respond individually to the Cabinet Member with any concerns.

Resolved: That the appendices to the report be circulated to all members of the Committee, and individual member's response be made to the Cabinet Member for consideration.

A report was presented on a proposal for the reconfiguration of Sheltered Housing services. It was reported that the proposals followed the decision of Full Council in February 2014 to reduce the "Supporting People" budget by £4m, which also recommended that a full consultation be undertaken before specific proposals be made.

The consultation was now complete, and the results were now presented to the committee.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the Minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency. Wherever possible, the Chief Executive should be given advance warning of any Member's intention to raise a matter under this heading.

There was no urgent business.

The next meeting of the Executive Scrutiny Committee will be held on Wednesday 7 January 2015 at 2pm at the County Hall, Preston

It was noted that the next meeting of the Committee would be held at 2pm on Wednesday 7 January at County Hall Preston

The Committee is asked to consider whether, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, it considers that the public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraph of Part 1 of schedule 12A to the Local Government act 1972 as indicated against the heading to the item.

Resolved: - That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that there would be a likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the appropriate paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972 and that in all circumstances of the case the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

The Committee received a report concerning the delivery of the Lancashire advanced engineering and Manufacturing Enterprise Zone.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

A report was presented on the development of extra care supported housing development in Fleetwood.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee considered a report on the award of a contract for the provision of fuel cards.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.

The Committee received a report setting out proposals for the transformation of the authority's Highways and Property Asset Management systems.

Resolved: That the recommendations in the report to the Cabinet Member be noted and that no additional comments or suggested alternative recommendations be made.