Agenda and draft minutes

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Contact: Christine Rothwell  Tel. 01302 735682

Items
No. Item

7.

Apologies for absence.

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence made.

 

8.

To consider the extent, if any, to which the public and press are to be excluded from the meeting.

Minutes:

A declaration of interest was made by Councillor Jane Kidd by virtue of her being employed by a voluntary sector project undertaking Mental Health evaluation work.

 

9.

Declarations of Interest, if any.

Minutes:

A declaration of interest was made by Councillor Jane Kidd by virtue of her being employed by a voluntary sector project undertaking Mental Health evaluation work.

 

10.

Public Statements.

[A period not exceeding 20 minutes for statements from up

to 5 members of the public on matters within the

Committee’s remit, proposing action(s) which may be

considered or contribute towards the future development of

the Committee’s work programme].

 

Minutes:

There were no public statements made.

 

11.

Overview and Scrutiny Consideration of the Mayor's Budget Proposals 2019/20-2022/23 pdf icon PDF 406 KB

Minutes:

The purpose of this report was for the Committee to consider the Mayor’s draft Budget proposals 2019/2020 and develop a formal response. The Committee’s response will enable the Mayor to take account of these when presenting her proposals to Council on 4th March 2019.

 

Highlights presented to the Committee included;

 

         Additional money into Adults and Social Care to address budget pressures.

         Increased pressures in Children Social Care resulting in £6m additional money provided 2018/19.

         An unbalanced budget for 2020/2021 showing a £13m gap.

 

Clarification was sort around Appendix J ‘Detailed Budget’ on page 144 of the Cabinet report.  It was explained that this had been introduced to provide the breakdown of the budget plan by Heads of Service to demonstrate on an incremental basis what is changing and what the impact would be.

 

Concern was raised around the significant amount of savings to be made in adult social care and children services of around £7 million.  It was continued that although the Council was looking for additional savings in social care, stability was paramount. 

 

It was recognised that the budget in Children’s Services had been rebased in order to reach base position and steps were being taken to ensure that robust plans were in place.  It was recognised that there had been a slight reduction in Looked After Children although this area had the potential to increase over the long term.

 

Concern was raised around the impact of savings on jobs and services provided.  Members were told that there was an aim to deliver high level goals through the Mayor and strategic plans through Doncaster Growing Together (DGT) Doncaster Learning and Doncaster Caring themes

 

Members were informed that the Council was making the best use of resources within Adult Social Care and had made significant investments of around £12m and had an awareness about meeting the wider objectives.  It was commented that more would like to be invested in areas such as direct payments and extra care.

 

It was outlined that budget pressures were being faced in residential places and homecare. It was stated that within homecare there was an opportunity to make use of assistive technology and benefit from a community-based input.  Members were told about a major retendering of RDaSH residential homes, which would be implemented in July 2019 and result in financial and service benefits. 

 

 

Members were reminded of how steps had been taken to develop a more robust transformation plan within adults social care and now there was a revised plan with four different system drivers.  It was added that in terms of customer experiences and demand that further work needed to be undertaken to look at the front door. Concern was raised whether the Council would be able to sustain the services and the vision considering the 5% rise in budget around social care.

 

Peer review from Leeds showed that positive signs of improvement had been made. That quality of children social care was now reported as being good, however, CQC judgement  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

12.

Corporate Plan 2019-20 pdf icon PDF 440 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee considered the updated 2019/20 Corporate Plan.

 

It was explained that the current Corporate Plan runs out at the end of 2018/19 and that an updated 2018/19 Corporate Plan was required to provide clear direction for the work of the Council for the next year. The new Plan brings together in one document agreed priorities that were already shaping how the Council work and summarises:

 

·         The Council’s contribution over the next year to the Doncaster Growing Together (DGT).

 

·         How the Council will ensure it has the capacity to deliver DGT transformational priorities and quality services day in, day out.

 

It was explained that the Corporate Plan was framed around the 4 DGT priority themes (Working, Learning, Living and Caring) and the crosscutting ‘Connected Council’ theme.

 

A brief outline was provided about new additions and changes to the plan.  Members provided their support to the plan and provided the following comments.

 

The Committee stressed the importance of highlighting and promoting the notable successes in the document, achieved from pathways created as a result of the Corporate Plan.  Members were reminded about the purpose of the Annual Report and the efforts being made to communicate those achievements.

The following was raised around the Doncaster Learning theme - How we want to make life better for residents - Pupil attendance and behaviour of disadvantaged young people is improved.

Concern was raised around the progress being made within this area and reference to the term ‘disadvantaged young people’ as part of the above statement.  The Committee was informed that the Council undertook a corporate responsibility for the Looked After Children indicator around the attendance of Children in Need (that included all categories of Children in Need). 

 

Members were informed that although performance in this area had improved, Doncaster currently performed less well in comparison to its statistical neighbours.  Members were reminded about the positive and targeted work being undertaken to monitor, challenge and address this issue.  The Committee acknowledged these positive actions and how those schools were developing and improving as a result.

 

There was a brief discussion around the issue around attendance and inclusion and what was being undertaken to address them.  It was recognised that the Councils limited resources and best endeavours needed to be applied in the right way and that positive outcomes were starting to be seen.

 

The Committee stressed the importance of reaching the objectives in the Corporate Plan in partnership with the voluntary sector and questioned the support available to enable them to have a voice.  Members were informed that this featured within the Five Imperatives (1. Harnessing community strengths, collaboration and assets, particularly to enable more improvements in well-being to be delivered by communities) and that it was set out early in the Plan, as it was considered as a key issue that cross-cut across all areas.

 

Reference was made to the Health Implications as outlined in the Corporate Plan covering report and the importance of how interventions and preventative measures  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.