Issue - meetings

Recommendations:

a)    Note the latest position for the County Council’s 2020/21 Revenue Budget, as summarised in paragraph 2.1.2.

b)    Note the position on the GWB (paragraphs 2.4.1 to 2.4.3)

c)    Note the position on the ‘Strategic Capacity – Unallocated’ reserve (paragraphs 2.4.4 to 2.4.6)

d)    Note the position on the County Council’s Treasury Management activities during the third quarter of 2020/21

e)    Refer this report to the Audit Committee for their consideration as part of the overall monitoring arrangements for Treasury Management.

f)     Extend the secured loan facility of up to £500k to Welcome to Yorkshire to 1 April 2022

g)    If an extension is agreed, delegate authority to the Corporate Director for Strategic Resources and the Assistant Chief Executive (Legal & Democratic Services) to complete the necessary arrangements with Welcome to Yorkshire on existing terms.

h)    Note the updated Q3 2020/21 Capital Plan; and

i)     Note the additional funding requirement for the Kex Gill realignment scheme (paragraph 4.5).

Q3 Performance Monitoring and Budget report including: Revenue Plan; Capital Plan; Treasury Management and Prudential Indicators

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

County Councillor David Chance introduced the Quarter 3 performance report, confirming the Council continued to demonstrate good performance across all four of its ambitions. He provided a brief summary of the strengths and challenges in performance across the four ambitions. In particular, he highlighted:

·          GCSE Results

·          Low repeat referrals for children’s social care

·          The final report arising from the Rural Commission, to be published in Spring

·          The ongoing work of Stronger Communities, working with 23 community organisations around the county, helping an average of 2600 people a week

·          The County Council’s approved plans to become a gateway organisation under the Governments Kickstart scheme, offering 33 placements for young people within the Council, and 205 within 46 partner organisations

·          The number of staff working from home - 3,237 on average weekdays

·          The reduction in mileage costs throughout the Covid period

·          An increase in public satisfaction in Highways and transportation

·          The ongoing challenge of supporting the recovery of local businesses

·          The impact of Covid on voluntary organisations with concern mounting about their future - over a third had needed to use their financial reserves in order to survive

·          56% of permanent placements for older people were currently above the authority’s approved rates (87% in Harrogate)

·          EHC Plans had increased to 3450 (a 13% increase from Qtr3 2020), with 145 new EHC Plans issued in the Quarter

·          An increase in referrals from the Police (1780 in Qtr3 – up by 15%)

County Councillor Carl Les acknowledged the strong performance the County Council continued to deliver, and County Councillor Janet Sanderson introduced the in-depth focus of the performance report on ‘Every child & young person has the best possible start in life’.  She drew particular attention to:

·          The lack of Ofsted inspections and formal exams due to school closures, as part of the Covid-19 lockdown measures

·          The challenge of keeping schools open to ensure all vulnerable children and those with complex needs continued to attend school

·          Good attendance levels (85-90% of those children had attended each day)

·          A rise in elected home education, with the offer of support provided by Early Help

·          Full term and permanent exclusions reduced for a second Qtr running

·          The increase in Police referrals, thought to be due to an increased awareness campaign run by the Police around safeguarding issues

·          The timeliness of assessments

·          Child Protection Plans remained stable with no spikes in demand but there was some concern around the level of second and subsequent Plans

·          The anticipated rise in Looked After Children had not materialised

·          A reduction in the number of dental checks was cause for concern – work would continue to lobby for good health and dental assessments

·          96.2% of Care Leavers were living in suitable accommodation – NYCC being the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 564