Issue - meetings

Recommendations

That the Executive

(i)             Approve the refreshed Capital Plan summarised at paragraph 4.2.3.

(ii)            Approve the proposed committing of £2m of Strategic Capacity reserve to fund any overspend relating to the Selby Transforming Cities scheme and the delegation of the approval to draw upon that £2m to the Corporate Director – Resources in consultation with the Executive Member for Highways and Transportation and the Executive Member for Finance as summarised at paragraph 4.5.2

(iii)           Notes the position on the Council’s Treasury Management activities during the second quarter of 2025/26.

(iv)           Refers this report to the Audit Committee for their consideration as part of the overall monitoring arrangements for Treasury Management.

(v)            Notes the forecast outturn position against the 2025/26 Revenue Budget, as summarised in paragraph 2.2.1.

(vi)           Approve £1,360k funding from the LGR reserve to fund the Customer Engagement Platform in paragraph 2.5.2 and Appendix 1.

Considered – A joint report of the Chief Executive and Corporate Director Resources bringing together key aspects of the Council’s performance on a quarterly basis.

The Executive Member for Corporate Services, Councillor Heather Phillips, introduced the report which covered the period 1 July 2025 to 30 September 2025 and drew Member’s attention to the Housing Landlord Services Performance Supplement which had been produced as an additional report to highlight progress made in the areas of compliance and repairs.  The Executive Member made the following key points:

Key performance highlights:

·       Telephone call answering times had shown significant improvement and were performing below the original target set.

·       Tourism and cultural services were currently performing strongly.

·       Highways customer service requests were being handled more efficiently.

·       Children’s social care referrals had improved.

·       Early help and reablement services were delivering positive outcomes, ensuring timely interventions and improved outcome.

Areas of concern:

·       Benefits processing times were affected by backlogs from system convergence downtime

·       Homelessness remained a concern

·       Issues around Disabled Facilities Grants were now being addressed.

·       Bins and waste services were still adjusting to new systems.

·       Increased use of short-stay care home beds

·       School permanent exclusions rising

The Leader welcomed Members of Scrutiny Board to the meeting.  In response to questions to Executive Members from Scrutiny Chairs and Member Champions the following was confirmed:

Thriving Places and Empowered Communities

The Executive Member for Culture, Arts and Housing reported that homelessness prevention remained challenging as people presented with less time for intervention, though this hadn’t yet led to an increase in temporary accommodation use.  Additional resources were being deployed to clear the backlog of Disabled Facilities Grants.  Cultural attractions had welcomed over 80,000 visitors, with satisfaction ratings exceeding 90%. 

·       Summer reading challenge participation rose by 6%. Libraries would support the 2026 national year of reading with events including an adult reading challenge and a new mobile library would launch in January, visiting an additional 20 rural communities.

·       It was suggested that when providing planning statistics separating applications determined within statutory timeframes from those agreed under extensions would provide clearer reporting. This approach would be considered, though it was noted that extensions were agreed with applicants, often where information was missing, and keeping to statutory timeframes might lead to increased refusal rates or withdrawals.

Sustainable and Connected Places

·       The Allerton Waste Recovery Park had been shut down for 44 days last year for repairs. Options to divert waste during maintenance periods were limited because alternative sites were often fully booked and the priority was to minimize shutdown days and keep the facility operating as many days as possible.

Safe, Healthy and Living Well

The Executive Member for Health and Adult Services noted the positive impact of the occupational therapy assistant role, which had reduced waiting times for council services. The reliance on short-term beds was concerning, with the average stay being nearly 17 weeks. It was noted that this raised welfare concerns and costs exceeded available funding.

·       Whilst timeliness of assessments was above national and statistical neighbour averages,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 793