OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE. 25 September 2013

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1 OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE Held at Council Chamber, Elizabeth House, Stratford-upon-Avon Meeting commenced: a.m. Meeting ended: a.m. MINUTES Present: Apologies: Councillor Stephen Gray (Chairman), Councillors J E M Fradgley, S Jackson, D Johnston, J Kerridge, Sir W Lawrence Bt and E Payne Councillors R Hamburger, G Matheou, D Pemberton and K Rolfe In attendance: Enterprise, Housing & Revenues Portfolio Holder Technical Services Portfolio Holder Councillor M Howse Councillor L Organ 341. Disclosure of Interest Councillor Jenny Fradgley declared an interest as a Warwickshire County Councillor Minutes of Previous Meeting The Minutes of the meeting held on 31 July 2013 were confirmed and signed Equity Release An update on Equity Release was given by the Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder. A review had taken place in relation to the Council s private sector housing assistance measures and following Member consultation, a revised Private Sector Housing Assistance Policy was to be presented to The Cabinet on 7 October A key issue within Stratford-on-Avon District was that many residents were asset rich but income poor, thus unable to maintain their properties. They could, however, access significant equity locked up in the bricks and mortar of their homes. The majority of discretionary grants were awarded to older homeowners but there would be 37,000 over 65 s within Stratford-on-Avon District by There were two types of Equity Release Schemes suggested: Home Reversion Scheme, which allows the homeowner to sell part or all of their property but remain in situ until they decide to move out or were deceased; and Lifetime Mortgage Scheme, which instead of paying interest each month, the homeowner allows the interest to be accumulated and added to the loan which is only repaid when the home is sold, typically when the last applicant is deceased. It was noted that Cherwell District Council offer an equity release product through a Flexible Home Improvement Loans partnership.

2 The proposal for Stratford-on-Avon District Council would be to use a trusted third party regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The Committee were advised that Stratford-on-Avon District Council had a statutory duty to keep homes from falling into disrepair, but would, however, refer individuals to an independent Financial Advisor to review their options. The Chairman asked if the progress could be monitored and the Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder agreed to look at feedback from Cherwell District Council s existing scheme. It was agreed that the proposal from the Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder should be endorsed to The Cabinet Orbit Tripartite Agreement A progress update on the Orbit Tripartite Arrangement was given by the Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder. Under key points, it was highlighted that there were formal complaints received per annum in relation to the repairs function, and the costs associated with these were cause for concern. The Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder was to attend the next meeting of the Orbit Tripartite Agreement and would feedback to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee (OSC) the discussions from that meeting. It was advised that when Orbit Heart of England (OHE) was setting up the Customer Scrutiny Group, the manager gave a presentation to the OSC meeting. Customer satisfaction was at 72% at that time, but had significantly decreased since then and this needed to be reviewed as a matter of importance. It was suggested that it would be useful to have a breakdown of the complaints and agreed that OHE should be called to account for more detail in so much as what constituted a complaint and what the formula for compensation was. The length of time from commencement to the finish of any works carried out was also an area of concern and the communication around this considered poor. A comparison of the performance of OHE with other providers was suggested. The Chairman requested that the Enterprise, Housing and Revenues Portfolio Holder review the aforementioned issues and, along with OHE in attendance, feedback to the OSC Car parking - a review of on-street enforcement Councillor J Fradgley queried whether she could participate in this part of the meeting, but as it was purely an update and there was no decision to be made, there was no conflict of interest and therefore no need for Councillor J Fradgley to leave the meeting. The Technical Services Portfolio Holder confirmed that twin-hatters would not be included in the decision making process. Overview & Scrutiny Committee

3 The Head of Technical Services gave a presentation on the proposed changes to on-street enforcement. The changes have arisen from Warwickshire County Council s (WCC) proposal to outsource the on-street parking agency to a private sector provider. This was a cause for concern for Warwick, Rugby, Nuneaton and Stratford-on-Avon District/Borough Councils who would be affected by the change. In response to representations from the District and Borough Councils affected, WCC set up an Overview and Scrutiny Task and Finish Group Exercise to review the proposals. The main issue appears to be cost. WCC are favouring a model used by Buckingham County Council. The combined Councils have put forward a proposal that generates savings of 320,000 per annum ahead of the target date against the 300,000 per annum saving target set by WCC. This option would also remove procurement and set up costs and, assuming a five year contract, the overall saving would be in the region of 2 million. The benefit of the joint proposal would include: Shared software and some back office functions; Joint future improvements; A flexible service that works across Council boundaries; Local offices that the public could easily visit; and Local knowledge and helpfulness of the Civil Enforcement Officers (CEO), which was seen as promoting the towns they serve. It was noted that the wider implications of a relatively small saving in parking enforcement costs could result in significant financial damage to the wider economy if it discouraged shoppers and visitors. The WCC OSC would put forward a recommendation to WCC Cabinet and the matter may be referred to WCC Council. The Technical Services Portfolio Holder then addressed the meeting. It was stated that at the WCC OSC Task and Finish Group meeting, the spokespersons from each of the Councils spoke as one voice. It was suggested that a private contractor could purely look to increase profits and questions were raised such as how they might handle events such as the Mop Fair or the free Christmas parking. The bottom line could be no savings for the Council Tax payer, and no overall benefit The Cabinet Meeting - 9 September 2013 No comments were made The Cabinet Meeting - 7 October 2013 No comments were made The Cabinet Work Programme It was noted that there was an additional Cabinet meeting to be held on 14 October 2013 to review the Core Strategy. Overview & Scrutiny Committee

4 349. Work Plan No comments were made Urgent Business There was no urgent business. CHAIRMAN Overview & Scrutiny Committee

5 Minute Item 345 Introduction On Street Parking Enforcement Update on WCC Proposal Current Situation with WCC on street parking proposal Update on SDC actions Decision process and Possible timings Q & A Tony Perks Head of Technical Services Background Overview and Scrutiny Exercise WCC are actively looking to outsource on street parking enforcement to a private sector provider Concerns raised by District Councils who will be affected by this change Overview and Scrutiny Exercise commissioned to review proposal District Councils have engaged with the exercise Primary driver appears to be cost Buckinghamshire model WCC confirmed 300K pa saving target Combined District Council offer made offering 320k pa savings ahead of target date Included offer to work with WCC to identify potential for further savings in future The District Council Offer Further Potential Combined Service Stratford Warwick and Rugby/Nuneaton Move to Shared Software (Chipside) Harmonise and Combine some back office functions Improved Vacancy Control Modernise working methods - location working Combine management through pending retirements Partnership service maintains flexibility Savings can be taken as cash or improved service e.g. Decrim in North Warwick Future Pressures can be addressed without contract penalties Local input ensures local service Further improvements can be developed jointly WCC need to engage Page 1 1

6 Summary of what we have done to date? Offered to develop partnership agreements Offered to look at providing a joint Warwickshire service Offered to assist in providing specification and evaluation criteria to assess service Offered our assistance for soft market testing Met to consider if we could provide a joint tender for the On street service Members are engaging politically Timeline for the proposed changes Task and Finish Group present to WCC OSC 27 September 2013 OSC report back to WCC Cabinet with recommendation Cabinet could make decision or could be referred to Full Council Initial target for implementation late 2014 Why does this matter? Front line customer service CEOS are currently ambassadors for the towns Quality delivery is key to business success and visitor experience Local service for residents Where could this potentially leave us? On street enforcement could be delivered by private contractor This would include Patrolling Penalty charge notices and appeals Residents parking permits WCC would retain responsibility for TRO We would retain responsibility for patrolling our car parks and would need to provide a service Conclusions WCC are keen on Buckinghamshire model Still awaiting acceptance of any of our offers Decision time is approaching fast Thank you Any questions? Page 2 2