Agenda item

(Report of The Leader of the Council)

The Chair welcomed the Leader of the Council and Officers to introduce the report of the Leader of the Council to provide the Committee with an overview of Council performance for the second quarter of the 2024/25 financial year (July to September 2024). It reports the council’s position in relation to progress with strategic corporate plan projects and updates on the financial position, corporate risks, audits, information governance, compliments, comments, complaints and health & safety. Cabinet will consider the report on 12 December 2024.

The Leader of the Council introduced the report highlighting the following on the dashboard before inviting questions –

Ø  Tamworth Castle had been awarded a Welcome Accolade

Ø  The Council had been awarded the Silver Armed Forces Employer Recognition Award

Ø  Beauchamp Park had been updated

Ø  The animal licensing services had achieved the RSPCE Bronze award for animal welfare

The Committee made the following comments/observations and asked the following questions:

1.     The Committee were pleased to see funeral directors in Tamworth were compliant however would welcome a national register where they would to be regulated and licensed.

2.     Page 26 - Clarification around how market traders and shopkeepers were being kept updated around the ongoing works around St Edithas Square.

It was confirmed by the Leader that signage had been due to go up today, but this has been delayed until tomorrow due to the snow. Officers were going out and speaking to traders and shopkeepers and it was hoped that the contractors would also be doing this. The Portfolio Holder and Members were also talking to them when in the town. The Leader was using their weekly piece in the Herald to highlight that the shops are open as usual.

3.     Page 28 - In relation to unfavourable variances, when we are employing temporary/agency staff do we employ them directly or do with go through an agency which can increase costs?

It was confirmed that sometimes temporary staff were employed directly and sometimes through an agency, however the Council always try to negotiate the best deal and better exit payments if the person were taken on permanently. Where they can they do try and recruit themselves however for cleaners, specialised roles, bespoke pieces of work or where the roles are only for a certain amount of time they would look at the best avenue and value for money.

4.     Page 28 –With regards to the unfavourable variance what specific strategies are we implementing to address these income shortfalls and overspending and how are we adjusting our financial plans to ensure we meet our year and targets while maintaining the quality of our services?

Officers confirmed that where budgets are overspent managers are being asked to look at compensatory savings or to try and mitigate the overspends. A piece of work is being undertaken around the Assembly Rooms to look at how more income could be generated, review the budget and ensure that targets are realistic. A meeting is scheduled with the accountant at Lichfield District Council around the  Joint Waste Service to understand the additional costs and action can be taken to improve the position moving forward.

5.     Considering the projected reduction of balances by £360,000 and the re-profiling of £4.778 million in capital expenditures into 2025/26,

Are there opportunities to optimise underperforming revenue streams, such as exploring new initiatives to boost car park usage or revitalising events to increase ticket and catering sales?

Officers confirmed that these were on the radar and were being looked at in terms of the current year budget and the budget process moving forward. It was confirmed that a number of pieces of work were going on to look at starting from a zero-base budget and how we build up from their around current projects and work was being done to look at how the Council balance the MTFS.

The Committee expressed concerns over the figures for the general fund variance and the increase in the outturn and balances and in particular the impact of the Assembly Rooms and Joint Waste Service.

6.     Whether the Assembly rooms was meant to be a self-funding enterprise or that the expectation was that the Council would always support this?

It was acknowledged that the Council has always provided a large subsidy for the Assembly Rooms and if that vision is going to change then it would need to be run in a very different way. Officers confirmed that a piece of work was being undertaken to look at the Assembly rooms which is a non-statutory service. The Council are now able to identify what is spent on every single event as they understand the questions and challenges in this area. The ongoing reports would look at a range of options, costs and delivery models.

The committee acknowledged that to be profitable the business would need to be privatised but expressed concern at losing the building from the public sector. The Council needed to be clear about what its ambitions were for the building, which may be for it to break even whilst providing a service to Tamworth residents but needed to be careful before investing large amounts of money in to it. To look at how they can better improve and utilize the building to make it more profitable. It was important that they see the loss reducing year on year,

A motion was moved that an update on the recovery proposals for the key items that we need budgetary control over are bought to the next Scrutiny meeting.

7.     Page 56  - The Committee expressed concerns in the upward trend in rent arrears and asked what specific strategy is are we implementing to effectively reduce the rising total rent arrears particularly focusing on higher value arrears and long-term debts, and how are we balancing enforcement actions with support for tenants facing financial difficulties to ensure both the financial sustainability of our housing services and the well-being of our residents?

Officers confirmed that there are trends in terms of recovery and the Council is following those trends and overall the Council was showing a positive trend and this was just not reflected in the current quarter. Overall rents arrears balances are being reduced annually with a focus on prevention supported by the figure of two evictions in the last period which is only taken as a last resort. Investment is made in Tamworth Advice Centre to provide welfare support.

8. Page 67 – Referring to page 67 and the fact that the local government Association     expects one in four councils to apply for an emergency bailout in the next two years, in light of the ongoing deferral of funding reforms and the difficulty in planning beyond a one-year horizon, how does the Council's Financial Stability Plan and Productivity Plan specifically address the identified risks—such as potential income shortfalls from reduced Council Tax and Housing Rent collections, increased demand for services like homelessness support due to the cost of living crisis, rising supply costs, and the possibility of decreased revenue from attractions and events—to ensure we achieve our target risk score and maintain financial sustainability over the next three years?

Officers highlighted that the Budget and medium-term financial strategy (MTFS) process for the next five years had started with a report going to Cabinet on the 21^st which touches on these issues. It is recognised that there is uncertainty around the local government settlement with an expectation of a one

year settlement for 25/26 hoping that a three year settlement will follow to aid with financial planning. The Council does face a significant shortfall with the general fund balances supporting the MTFS but this will run out and therefore significant savings do need to be made which is being looked at.

9.     Page 76 – It was noted that the risk appears to have got worse in this area so what detail do we have about concrete strategies that the council are implementing hat engages with our diverse Communities and most vulnerable and marginalized to understand their unique issues and needs? How are we measuring the effectiveness of these efforts in strengthening community cohesion and resilience? And how are we collaborating with Key agencies to ensure a coordinated approach to address the challenges?

The Leader of the Council confirmed that this was a priority area for the Council and they had been successful in securing £660k funding from Government to help fund recovery from the events of August 4^th. The Council have commissioned the Belong Network who will be engaging with residents over the next few months to understand their concerns as a starting point for   a piece of work in this area. It was confirmed that physical meetings were being held with Police and Faith Groups and the Tamworth Strategic Partnership was running again and an element of this was looking at Community Cohesion.

10.Page 89 – With increased resources including the new Climate Change Officer have what measurable progress is there on this issue? What specific, actionable measures are we implementing to enhance our borough's resilience against flooding, and are we addressing potential challenges such as staff training gaps, infrastructure development, and financial challenges in this area?

Whilst Officers did not have any specific information it was confirmed that the action plan was being work on and highlight by Members that this was being considered at IS&G Scrutiny in December.

The Leader of the Council confirmed that work was being undertaken with the Environment agency who they were in discussions with about flood defences and where they need to be which Is a large piece of work. Modelling has been done by the environment agency around where they think work should be done before looking at how these would be funded. It was not expected to involve too much work on the Council employees.

11.Page 99 - Know that Cyber security is a risk what specific additional strategies are we implementing to enhance our resilience against emerging cyber threats—such as sophisticated phishing attacks, insider threats from staff, and vulnerabilities with our cloud suppliers—to safeguard our sensitive data and ensure uninterrupted service delivery? The importance of testing was highlighted.

The Leader confirmed that this is a new risk on the matrix and would always be a risk that they would get a full response provided in writing. Officers confirmed that a pen test had recently been carried out and the they would be feeding back on that.

12.Page 104  - A question was asked around the increase in personal data breaches and the Council failure to report these within the 72 hours statutory requirement. It was clarified that the figure appears to be a typing error and that all reports were made within the required 72 hours.

13.Page 103 - There is a backlog of outstanding Audit recommendations – are these being taken seriously?

Officers confirmed that recommendations were taken seriously and that the report that was presented to the Audit and Governance contained more details and that in most cases although they may not be complete action had been taken to address the recommendation. Officers in these areas were being asked to attend future Audit and Governance meetings to advise Members of their plans and details of any actions being undertaken.

14.Page 104 - Given the significant delays in responding to Stage 1 housing complaints—with only 27% addressed within the statutory 10 working days in Quarter 2—what immediate and specific measures are we implementing to enhance our complaint handling processes, ensure compliance with statutory requirements, and restore trust in our commitment to timely and effective resolution of residents' concerns?

Officers confirmed that the Council have recognised a need for improvement following these response times and this being address by reviewing internal processes, increasing communication and collaboration with other departments and contractors including regular meetings to understand where the issues lie and how they can be addressed moving forward.