Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Cllr Richard Clewer.

To confirm and sign the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 1 February 2022.

The minutes of the meeting held on 1 February 2022 were presented.

Resolved:

To approve as a correct record and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 1 February 2022.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

The Deputy Leader made an announcement about the Council’s response to the Ukraine crisis and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public. This meeting is open to the public, who may ask a question or make a statement. Questions may also be asked by members of the Council.  Written notice of questions or statements should be given to Stuart Figini of Democratic Services stuart.figini@wiltshire.gov.uk  01225 718221 by 12.00 noon on Wednesday 23 March 2022. Anyone wishing to ask a question or make a statement should contact the officer named above.

General questions were submitted from the following members of public:

·       Mel Boyle – Road closures / landslides / flooding / future Chippenham / traffic lights and roads

·       Andrew Nicolson – future Chippenham

Cllr Laura Mayes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Children’s Services, Education Skills explained that the above questions had received written responses which were published on the Council’s website prior to the meeting in the agenda supplement, which can be accessed here.

Questions were also submitted from Councillors, which received responses on the following topics, which can be accessed here:

·       Cllr Cape – Council investments.

Cllr Cape encouraged Councillors to respond to a consultation from the Department for International Trade on ethical investments.

·       Cllr Martin Smith – Planning applications data.

Cllr Smith commented on the non-determination of planning applications and the potential impact on residents and businesses. He asked if performance figures could be published every three months to demonstrate improvements within the service. Cllr Botterill, Cabinet member for Development Management, Strategic Planning and Climate Change explained that procedures had been updated and improvements made.

In addition, the following comments and questions were raised by Councillors at the meeting:

·       Cllr Ian Thorn

o   Commented on the number of residents and organisations flying the Ukrainian flag demonstrating support for Ukraine. He asked if the Council would also be flying the flag.  Cllr Laura Mayes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Children’s Services, Education Skills explained that officers were concentrating their efforts in undertaking work to help people from Ukraine.

o   Requested an update in relation to housing for Afghan refugees.  A written update would be provided.

o   Requested an update on the Towns Recovery budget. Cllr Laura Mayes agreed that a written update would be provided.

o   Commented on residents’ eligibility for the Council Tax energy rebate for bands A-D. A detailed written response  would be provided.

o   Requested reassurances that applications for Omnicron grants would be settled prior to the deadline of 31 March 2022. The Corporate Director Resources confirmed that the Council were committed to settling grant applications by the deadline detailed above.

·       Cllr Richard Walters 

o   highlighted an issue where holiday accommodation would not be available to house Ukraine refugees due to a planning condition associated with holiday homes preventing this type of use. Cllr Botterill, Cabinet member for Development Management, Strategic Planning and Climate Change, confirmed that the condition would not be enforced in these circumstances.

o   Commented on an asset disposal in his division and subsequent public consultation. He expressed a concern that following 70 responses objecting to the proposals the Council would be approving the proposals. A written response would be provided.  

·       Cllr Brian Mathew – commented on a recent conversation with a GMB union representative and concerns about staff pay and conditions. A written response would be provided.

·       Cllr Jo Trigg – residents receiving care and future access to Lateral Flow Tests. The Director of Public Health confirmed that the Council were waiting for the availability of national strategy and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 28.

      Report of the Chief Executive

Cllr Jane Davies, Cabinet Member for Adult Social care, SEND, Transition and Inclusion presented the report which provided detail about a commissioning and procurement approach to transform how disabled young people, adults and older people access daytime and evening activities which meet their needs and aspirations in life.

The Cabinet received a statement submitted by Helen Dixon in relation to this agenda item. A copy of the statement is available to read in agenda supplement 1 on the Council’s website here. In addition to the statement, Ms Dixon asked if the timeframes could be extended to allow organisations to adjust to the new arrangements. Cllr Davies offered to meet with Ms Dixon and Cllr Bob Jones MBE to discuss the matter further.

Cllr David Vigar also submitted a statement and questions prior to the Cabinet meeting.  Additional comments and questions would be raised later in the meeting. A copy of the statement and questions are available in Supplement 1 on the Council’s website here.

The report highlighted the Council spend on commissioned and grant-funded day opportunities, with the service being delivered to about 800 adults with varying needs which should be assessed under the Care Act. The current model of commissioning day opportunities did not fully meet the aspirations of people using the service, and therefore the report sets out a plan of how to modernise the offer and a route to achieve this. 

Cllr Laura Mayes and Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling welcomed the proposals and the widening of choice for users of the service. Cllr Blair-Pilling commented on the help offered by local communities to those in need.

Cllr Johnny Kidney, Chair of the Health Select Committee confirmed that a rapid scrutiny exercise was undertaken on 2 March 2022 at the request of Full Council and in addition the Health Select Committee considered the report at its meeting on 16 March 2022. He explained that the Select Committee has requested that a future update is brought back to Committee later in 2022 detailing the progress made following the launch of the open framework, outlining the take up from the luncheon and friendship clubs and also from the wider market.

Cllr Pip Ridout, Chair of the Financial Planning Task Group, commented on the financial implications section of the report and raised a concern about unintended outcomes of encouraging additional assessments which may increase costs and needs due to loneliness and isolation implications as a consequence of lockdown measures to tackle Covid.

Cllr David Vigar commented on the proposals and felt that the provision is uneven, with some clubs attracting more funding than others and many clubs receiving no funding at all. He explained that in practice it is the end of the current funding arrangement and clubs would need to work to a completely different model should they be successful in bidding to provide for those people assessed as requiring day care. Cllr Vigar asked for the proposals to be suspended for one year and that the Area Board  ...  view the full minutes text for item 29.

      Report of the Chief Executive

Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling Cabinet Member for Public Health and Public Protection, Leisure, Libraries, Facilities Management and Operational Assets presented the report which provided information for Cabinet to decide on the short-term future of Wiltshire’s Public Health Nursing Services (PHNS), currently delivered by HCRG Care group as part of Wiltshire’s Children’s Community Healthcare Services contract.

Cllr Blair-Pilling explained that The HCRG contract is a collaborative commissioning arrangement between the Council and NHS Bath and North-East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group (BSW CCG). The total contract value for 20/21 is £13.3m of which Wiltshire Council contributes 47.4% to fund Public Health Nursing (PHN) Services and 2.5% to fund Speech and Language Therapy services to support children with Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). The five-year contract for WCCHS, awarded to HCRG Care Group (HCRG) in 2016, was extended by two years and expires on 31March 2023.

The report highlighted the impact of Covid in delaying the implementation date for Integrated Care Boards which in turn delayed a long-term model being endorsed . In addition, CCG capacity is affected due to staff being diverted to the Covid response.

Cllr Johnny Kidney, Chair of the Health Select Committee confirmed that he, along with Cllr Gordon King, Vice Chairman of the Health Select Committee, the Cllr Jon Hubbard, Chairman of the Children’s Select Committee and Cllr Threllfall from the Financial Planning Task Group had received a briefing on the report on 24 March 2022. The members recognised the impact of Covid on the commissioning exercise and there were no objections to the proposals in the Cabinet report. Cllr Kidney requested that Overview and Scrutiny continued as an integral part of the process, particularly as the post 2024 specification is developed and taken to market.

Cllr Jon Hubbard, Chairman of the Children’s Select Committee, thanked the Cabinet member and officers for the briefing and highlighted a concern that the targets for contractors were lower than the statutory requirements set for the Council to meet.  Cllr Blair-Pilling noted the concerns and confirmed that the target would be raised when framing the contract.

Cllr Ian Thorn confirmed his support for the contract extension and noted that option 3 would be more challenging than the other options detailed in the report. He asked if the one year contract extension was adequate. Cllr Blair-Pilling confirmed that the contract extension to 31 March 2024 would enable officers to complete due diligence on the options outlined in the report and undertake a full consultation on the proposals.

Resolved:

• Cabinet agrees to the negotiation of a one year contract which is held by the CCG with HCRG Care Group for a further 12 months until 31st March 2024 to enable officers to complete due diligence on the options outlined and undertake a full consultation with children, young people and families as required.

• The decision to award a one year contract is delegated to the Director of Procurement & Commissioning in consultation with the Director of Public Health, Corporate Director-People and Corporate  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.