Agenda and minutes

            The Minutes from the meeting held on 4^th September 2018 were taken as read and signed as a correct record.

            The Board was advised that no public questions had been received.

            The Board was presented with the Minutes relating to the Corporate Services Portfolio which had been considered by the Executive Board since the last meeting of the Board.

            RESOLVED: That the minutes be noted.

            This item was deferred until the next meeting.

            The Board considered a report of the Strategic Director Enterprise, Community and Resources which proposed an amendment to the Council Tax Section 13A Discount Policy, in relation to the provision of discretionary council tax discount for Halton Foster Carers who are resident within the Borough. Work was currently being carried out to increase the availability of foster carer placements within the Borough, both for the benefit of children and also to utilise more cost effective placements.

            In order to encourage new Foster Carers and to help retain Halton’s existing Foster Carers within the Borough, it was proposed to amend the Council Tax Section, 13A Discount Policy to provide 100% discretionary council tax discount for all Foster Carers resident within the Borough who foster Halton children directly on behalf of the Council. The discount would not apply to Foster Carers associated with Independent Fostering Agencies.

            Arising from the discussion it was agreed that the following suggestions would be considered prior to the final report being submitted to Executive Board:

·         Grandparents with parental guardianship should have the same rights as Foster Carers;

·         A Foster Carer who has been fostering for three months should be given the discretionary council tax discount for twelve months; and

·         Any appeals should be heard by the Councils Appeals Panel.

            RESOLVED: That the amendment to the Council Tax Section 13A Discount Policy proposed in the report regarding Foster Carers and the updated Policy document presented in the Appendix, be recommended to Executive Board for approval.

The Board was provided with a report from the Strategic Director, Enterprise, Community and Resources, which presented details of corporate accident statistics with associated trends, from 1 April 2017 to 31^st March 2018.

Officers commented that the report highlighted the national and local health and safety information, and together with performance and incident trends, these formed the basis for the recommended actions for 2018/19. In order to be proactive in health and safety management the report also indicated the number of completed risk assessments and training delivered to staff.

            The report highlighted:

·         an increase in complex display screen equipment assessments due to staff suffering upper body injuries and muscloskeletal disorders;

·         The Fire Precautions Log Book had now been implemented in Halton schools;

·         The number of defibrillators had increased in Council buildings with the most recent unit installed in Lowerhouse Lane Depot; and

·         A recent incident at Fairfield Primary School.

            Members discussed the possibility of defibrillator training for Councillors and it was agreed that this would be raised with Councillor J Stockton as part of his Member training role.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

A report was presented to the Board by the Strategic Director, Enterprise, Community and Resources, which informed members of the project delivery of the Local Area Forums for the financial period 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018.

            Members were advised that Local Area Forums (LAF) provided a mechanism for Councillors to respond to community needs and aspirations. Community initiatives and projects were generated which were delivered collaboratively with other partner organisations to help secure funding from a variety of sources.

            It was reported that in 2017/18, £300,000 was allocated to the Area Forums which was allocated on a per capita basis across the seven LAF’s that covered the Borough. Details of each area’s funding, case study information and resident feedback was provided in the report to demonstrate the impact the LAF projects had for Halton’s communities. Projects funded through the LAF’s were categorised into the following key areas:-

·         Children and Youth Facilities;

·         Community Events;

·         Community Initiatives;

·         Community Resources and Equipment;

·         Improved parks;

·         Landscapes;

·         Pedestrian and Highway Improvements; and

·         Community safety.

            It was highlighted that the Area Forum budget had enabled the leverage of other grants and had secured access to funds from other bodies. Overall, an additional amount of £60,427.11 was levered in to support area forum projects providing a total spend of £275,822.59.  It was noted that for a significant part of the reporting period the Community Development Team was operating with a reduced capacity.

            The Board discussed the Section 106 agreement which was part of the previously approved incinerator planning application. It was noted that as part of the Section 106 agreement the Council received a sum of money annually to be spent on environmental schemes. Information on how the Section 106 funds were allocated was submitted to Development Control Committee (DCC). It was agreed that the last report submitted to the DCC on the Section 106 funds would be circulated to the Board for information.

RESOLVED: That the report be received.

The Board received a report from the Strategic Director, Enterprise, Community and Resources, which presented the Performance Monitoring Reports for Quarter 2 of 2018/19.

The reports related to the following functional areas which reported to the Board and detailed progress against service objectives and milestones, and performance targets and provided information relating to key developments and emerging issues that had arisen during the period:

·         Finance;

·         Human Resources and Organisational Development;

·         ICT and Administrative Support;

·         Legal and Democracy;

·         Policy and Performance;

·         Property Services; and

·         Catering, Stadium and Registration Services.

Arising from the discussion the Board commented on the following:

·         The excellent progress made by the Council regarding the new apprenticeships;

·         The progress on the transfer of staff based at Kingsway House to their new base at Halton Stadium;

·         Ongoing financial discussions with Widnes Vikings;

·         An update on the Leisure Centres since they had transferred back to the Council;

·         Delays in recruitment of staff and the actions being taken to improve this; and

·         Widnes Market – a further report would be submitted to a future meeting regarding arrears and the cost of maintenance work on the roof, heating and air conditioning.

            RESOLVED: That the second quarter performance monitoring reports be received and noted.