Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

All Members were present and no apologies were noted

All Members who believe they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting must declare that interest and, having regard to Part 3 Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members’ Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code.  Furthermore all Members with a Personal Interest in a matter being considered at the meeting should consider, having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 4 of the Code, whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, consider whether it is appropriate to leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter considered at the meeting they must declare that interest at the time of the relevant debate and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3, Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Personal interest in a matter being considered at the meeting they considered whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 5 of the Code, considered whether it was appropriate to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting

The minutes of the last meeting were reviewed and agreed

To receive any deputations notified under Standing Order 12.

No requests to make a deputation had ben received.

To receive any announcements the Chairman may wish to make.

The Chairman highlighted the flag raising ceremony that had taken place before the Cabinet meeting and expressed his thanks to Hampshire Music Service for their support. Referencing a recent speech by the Lord Lieutenant, he emphasised the importance of international relationships and of international trade, particularly with the port of Southampton.

It was noted that at a recent meeting with Network Rail the Leader had taken the opportunity to stress the importance of rail links to London.

With regard to ongoing Brexit discussions, it was confirmed that the Hampshire resilience forum had undertaken work to prepare for the use of the A31 as a contingency for any disruption to freight traffic through the port of Portsmouth.

It was announced that having listened to the evidence, the Commission of Inquiry would now move to a new phase to begin formulating recommendations.

The Chairman confirmed that as Executive Member for Policy and Resources he had recently awarded grants to two hospices, one in Havant and one in Winchester.

To consider a report of the Chief Executive regarding Transformation to 2019

Cabinet considered a report of the Chief Executive regarding the Transformation to 2019 Programme.

In introducing the report it was noted that the end period for the Transformation to 2019 (T19) programme was 31 March 2019. It was confirmed that whilst savings remain on target, there would still be some £40m of savings to secure over the following two financial years. This programme overshoot had been planned from the outset of T19 in order to safely land some of the more complex savings in the two Social Care Departments. The programme overshoot was being cashflow funded through reserves approved at the inception of T19.

The ongoing challenges of delivering the programme, particularly with respect to demand and inflationary pressures in Adults’ and Children’s social care were highlighted and recognised. The high cost of supporting looked after children was noted. A number of significant successes were also highlighted, including the onboarding of three London Boroughs to the IBC and the completion of rolling out the SharePoint across the organisation.

Cabinet considered the difficulties of the overlaps between T19 and the successor, T21 programme and were keen to were keen to ensure that a distinction remained between them and they didn’t conflict with each other. It was confirmed that T19 and T21 would be separately monitored by the Corporate Management Team and that Cabinet would continue to be updated on progress with the respective programmes. The Leader emphasised the importance of having discipline in achieving efficiencies across all service areas and then balancing this with support for those areas facing particular pressure.

The recommendations were considered and were agreed with an additional recommendation to note the increased budget for children in care and to acknowledge the importance and priority of providing for children in the Council’s care. The decision record can be found as an appendix to these minutes.

To consider a report of the Director of Children’s Services regarding the attainment of children and young people in Hampshire schools in 2018

Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Children’s Services regarding educational attainment in Hampshire in 2018.

In introducing the report, Hampshire’s strong performance at early years and primary levels both nationally and in comparison with statistical neighbours was highlighted. The demographic basis of comparison was set out. It was reported that secondary performance was also good, being above national average and above the median level of statistical neighbours on a number of measures. It was noted that the complex nature of calculating performance meant that in some cases high achievement wasn’t directly reflected.

Cabinet welcomed the report and noted the work of the school improvement service to add value and achieve results. The high quality of facilities at schools in Hampshire was also welcomed. The strong performance of Hampshire schools in comparison with neighbouring authorities noted and it was acknowledged that the demographic nature of each area was different.

The recommendations in the report were proposed and agreed and the decision record can be found as an appendix to these minutes.

To consider a report of the Director of Culture, Communities and Business Services regarding Country Park Transformation

Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Culture, Communities and Business Services regarding the transformation of Hampshire’s Country Parks.

A presentation was received setting out the opportunity that the transformation programme had given, the focus on self-sustainability, the process of change and key successes around the use of technology and the development of the catering offer.

The report and presentation were welcomed and a number of points discussed. There was support for the commercial opportunities presented in the parks and it was felt that the parking charge was akin to an entry price to the facilities available and should be set accordingly. It was confirmed that following the completion of transformation a long-term business case for the parks, to include maintenance and future investment requirements would be developed.

The recommendations in the report were proposed and agreed and the decision record can be found as an appendix to these minutes.