The Leader made the following announcements:

(a)  Urgent Business – Scheme and Estimate Report – St Anselm’s College 6^th Form Accommodation

  The report described the work required to refurbish Oakwood House which was on the St Anselm’s College site.  If the recommendations set out in the report were agreed it would mean that the work could be undertaken during school holidays with minimum disruption to the pupils.

(b)  Item No. 19 – Support for Wirral’s Coastal Resort Towns

  The Cabinet would be receiving a petition in respect of this item of business, therefore it would be considered early in the meeting.  Councillor P Glasman would be invited to speak on this.

(c)  Local Government Chronicle Awards 2012

  Wirral Council had won first prize in the Economic Development Category for its Wirral Investment Strategy.  This was a prestigious award and the Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning, Kevin Adderley and his team were congratulated on their achievement by the Cabinet.

  Wirral Council had also been short listed under the Workforce category for its Organisational Change Project.

(d)  Additional Cabinet Meeting

  There was to be an extra Cabinet meeting at 5:30pm on Thursday, 29 March 2012.  The theme of this meeting would be “Delivery”.

(e)  Apologies for Absence from Chief Officers

  The Chief Executive, Jim Wilkie and the Director of Law, HR and Asset Management, Bill Norman were both absent sick and sent their apologies for not being at the meeting.

  The Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance, Ian Coleman was in Darlington and sent his apologies for not being at the meeting.

(f)  Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning

  Kevin Adderley had been successful in his application for the post of Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning.

(g)  Highway and Engineering Service Procurement Exercise (HESPE) Report

  The second draft of the Highways and Engineering Services Procurement Exercise (HESPE) Report had been delivered to the Council.  It was still subject to section 49 of Audit Commission Act 1998 (restriction on disclosure) which meant that the Cabinet was not allowed to see it or know who had seen it, at this stage without the authority of the District Auditor.

  The Leader had asked for details of when the Council would respond to the second draft and the date on which the final report would be available.  He wanted to make sure that the Council met its deadline and that the District Auditor was able to present his final report without delay.

The members of the Cabinet are invited to consider whether they have a personal or prejudicial interest in connection with any of the items on this agenda and, if so, to declare it and state the nature of such interest.

Councillor D Mitchell declared a personal interest in respect of Item No. 16, Streetscene Enforcement Policy Review (Minute No. 342 refers) and Item No. 17, Parking Policy Report on Parking Enforcement (Minute No. 343 refers) by virtue of being a blue badge holder.

The minutes of the last meeting have been printed and published.  Any matters called in will be reported at the meeting.

RECOMMENDATION:  That the minutes be approved and adopted.

RESOLVED:

That the Minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 21 February 2012 be confirmed as a correct record.

The Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning presented a report to the Cabinet further to its meeting 12 January 2012 when Members had deferred the decision for further discussions with the project applicant (Wellington Rd Conservation Area Society), following representations made by Councillor Glasman, on behalf of the project applicants.  (Minute No. 258 refers.)  The report updated Members on the further discussions that had been held in respect of its Tidal Pool proposal (Option 1 – allocation of resources to be used as a contribution towards a feasibility study).

  The report summarised the outcome of the discussions and sought Members’ views on how to proceed.  The Director’s report confirmed that officers remained of the view that the tidal pool project could not be implemented at this time for the reasons that were set out in the previous report.  However, during the course of the further discussions the applicant had requested that the grant money could be used to fund a feasibility study for the Tidal Pool project which would enable the current issues relating to the project to be fully investigated. Members were informed that the applicant had been advised that, whilst funding a feasibility study was possible, from the Government’s coastal grant provided to improve seaside towns in Wirral, it did not deliver a project at this time which would support the economic regeneration of New Brighton; whereas providing funding to the Wallasey Sea Cadets for their Crows Nest project (Option 2) would deliver something immediately for the grant funding.

  The Wallasey Sea Cadets project sought funding for internal building works to create an additional classroom in the current headquarters in St James Hall, Victoria Road, New Brighton.  At the time of the Sea Scouts’ application in March 2011, a sum of £18,576 had been sought.  This had been based on estimates provided by a local contractor who had since gone out of business.  In the meantime, however, they had revisited the costs and been quoted £16,000 - £17,000 to undertake the works.

  If Members were minded to allocate the £10,650 award to the Crows Nest project it would leave a shortfall in funding for their project.  However, the Sea Scouts proposed that this shortfall would be met through their reserves or fundraising activity during the year or alternatively the project could be delivered in phases.

  Councillor P Glasman was in attendance at the meeting and presented a petition titled “Tidal Pool, New Brighton Beach” containing approximately 950 signatures in support of the project being completed so that the Tidal Pool would be restored and brought back into use.She told the Cabinet that whilst the Cabinet report suggested the level of local support was unclear, 950 signatures was a good indication of how much support there was for this project in the local community.

  Councillor P Glasman addressed the Cabinet and requested that it respond positively.  She informed that more information was now available and that signatures were still being collected in support of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 329.

The Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance presented a report following the agreement of the budget for 2012/2013 at the Budget Council meeting on 1 March 2012 detailing the projected budgets for 2013-2015.

Councillor J Green referred to budget projections for 2013/14 and 2014/15 and the need to get the Strategic Change Programme up and running.  He informed that this would be covered at the additional Cabinet meeting (Minute No. 326 (d) refers) that would focus on delivery.  The last Project Board meeting had been held in October 2011.  It needed to meet regularly on an all party basis, be open and its Minutes be made available.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the budget projections be regularly reviewed, and

(2)  strategic change programme be enhanced.

A report by the Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance informed Members of a variation to the contract with Vodafone for the provision of mobile telephones and data services. It was explained that this variation was accepted under delegated authority and would realise a saving to the Council of £67,500 per annum.

The contract with Vodafone was provided via the Government Procurement Service (GPS) framework contract for the provision of mobile communications to the UK public sector.  These frameworks had been subject to competition within the European Union and as such complied with the requirements of European procurement law for public services.  The Government Procurement Service had been established from the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), with the objective of reducing the cost of goods and services across the UK public sector by aggregating requirements and increasing buying power.

Members were informed that Vodafone had recently reduced its tariffs within the GPS framework and it was this variation to contract that had been accepted under delegation.  Wirral currently had 2,100 active connections, which comprised a mix of mobile telephones, mobile telephones with e-mail provision, mobile broadband devices and data only connections.  The current total annual cost was £218,500, which would reduce to £151,000 under the revised terms.

Work continued on revising the mobile telephone policy and centralising some of the administrative processes, which included the electronic processing of invoices and automatic allocation of costs for each connection to the appropriate cost centre.  The Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance informed that a further report would be submitted to the Cabinet once these changes had been finalised.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  a two year extension to the Vodafone contract making associated savings of £67, 500 per year be agreed; and

(2)  the Officer Team that reviewed the Mobile Telecommunications Contract be thanked for their hard work.

A report by the Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance sought approval to amend the nominated personnel on existing bank mandates.

The Council currently operated bank accounts with:-

• National Westminster, Birkenhead (main accounts)
• Royal Bank of Scotland, Liverpool (Merseyside Pension Fund)
• Santander (income collection through Girobank)
• State Street (Merseyside Pension Fund international transactions).

Transactions on these accounts had to be authorised by an approved signatory, and in the main this was satisfied by cheques bearing the pre-printed signature of the Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance Payments over £10,000 required a second signature on the cheque.  Other instructions to the Banks generally required two signatures.

Copies of the list of bank and cheque signatories were usually required by all

Counter parties to money market transactions and often by counterparties to leasing transactions.

For the National Westminster and Santander accounts approval was requested for two lists of signatories:-

RESOLVED: That

(1)   National Westminster and Santander be authorised to accept cheques and other instructions on behalf of the Council signed in accordance with existing mandates by the following:

  Director of Finance  Ian E. Coleman

  Deputy Director of Finance  David L.H. Taylor-Smith

  Head of Financial Services  Thomas W. Sault

  Head of Benefits, Revenues  Malcolm J. Flanagan

  and Customer Services

  Head of IT Services  Geoffrey W. Paterson

  Chief Accountant  Peter J. Molyneux

  Chief Accountant  Jenny Spick

  and

(2)  the Royal Bank of Scotland and State Street be authorised to accept cheques and other instructions on behalf of the Council signed in accordance with existing mandates by the following:-

  Director of Finance  Ian E. Coleman

  Deputy Director of Finance  David L.H. Taylor-Smith

  Head of Financial Services  Thomas W. Sault

  Head of Benefits, Revenues  Malcolm J. Flanagan

  And Customer Services 

  Head of IT Services  Geoffrey W. Paterson

  Principal Pensions Officer  Yvonne M. Caddock

  Operations Manager  Guy W. Hayton

  Group Accountant  Donna S. Smith

  Members Services Manager  Margaret M. Rourke

  Members Services Manager  Susan J. Roberts

A report by the Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance sought Members’ approval to extend the existing contract for support of the Oracle e-Business Suite database for a further twelve months at a cost of £48,300.

RESOLVED:

That the extension of the existing Oracle e-Business Suite database support contract for twelve months from 1 April 2012 be approved.

A report by the Chief Executive provided the Cabinet set out the implications of the transfer of part of the current public health system to the local authority in relation to roles and future structures.

The report informed that, whilst not currently a statutory duty, under the Health and Social Care Act, currently making its way through Parliament, local authorities would be statutorily responsible and would be given new statutory duties across the three ‘domains’ of public health.

Councillor J Green informed that as the Chief Executive was not in attendance at the meeting to present his report and answer Members’ questions he proposed to defer it for consideration to a future Cabinet meeting.  However, if there were any decisions required with time constraints they would be agreed so as not to hold up any processes.

Instead of considering the report the Director of Public Health was asked to provide the Cabinet with an update on how the transition plan was proceeding.

The Director of Public Health accordingly made a presentation to the Cabinet which included information on the following:

·  developing a Health and Well Being Board;

·  assurances being sought from the Department of Health; and

·  the need to demonstrate engagement between the Council and Health.

Councillor J Green informed that he had attended the Health and Well Being Board meeting the previous evening and had enjoyed it.  It had considered an interesting agenda and it was a good meeting.  He had been particularly impressed with the work of the Commissioning Groups.  Councillor J Green asked the Director of Public Health to take back to her colleagues in the Public Health arena how keen the Council was to provide clarity on how it saw Public Health fitting in with the work of the Council and of the major benefits that would result.  There had been an unfortunate delay in respect of the transfer but the direction of travel was now clearly set.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the Director of Public Health be thanked for her informative presentation;

(2)   any decisions with time constraints upon them be agreed; and

(3)   the report and issues not covered by (1) above be considered at the next Cabinet meeting.

RESOLVED:

That this report be deferred to a future Cabinet meeting when the Chief Executive is in attendance.

A report by the Acting Director of Children’s Services described Wirral’s contribution to the implementation of the Government’s Troubled Families Policy.  The report included a project proposal (Appendix A) for approval which would be entitled Wirral Intensive Family Intervention Programme. The Cabinet was asked to approve the recommendations as outlined in Section 12 to the report.  Members were advised that the Wirral Intensive Family Intervention (IFIP) would promote the Council’s Corporate Goals.

The programme would support families hoping to move from high levels of need - whereby they required high cost interventions and support- to a position where they were self organising and accessing universal services. Savings would be made (but not immediately) and may well be evidenced in reducing pressures on intensive resources.  The programme was a government priority and it supported the intentions of the Council Corporate Plan.

Councillor S Clarke told the Cabinet that she welcomed the Programme.  It would help the most complex families were there were many failings identified.  It was an excellent piece of work and she looked forward to obtaining good results.

Councillor T Harney welcomed the report and noted the cross party implications.  He hoped that evaluation processes were built in at the beginning of the project rather than at the end.

Councillor J Green informed that he agreed with the approach as some families were in the most chaotic circumstances.  Agencies and their costs were being brought together and investments were being made in the best possible way to ensure success.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the business case as outlined in Appendix A to the report be approved;

(2)  the appointment of a programme Co-ordinator be agreed and this report be referred this to the Employment and Appointments Committee; and

(3)  Cabinet requests a further report outlining the cross departmental implications in implementing this programme.

A report by the Acting Director for Children’s Services outlined the Early Intervention Grant (EIG) Commissioning Plan for 2012-13 and made recommendations for securing the delivery of services for a nine month period from 1 July 2012 – 31 March 2013 through negotiating with existing providers.  

Councillor J Green informed that it was imperative that the service users obtained the outcomes.  It was a sensible approach to bring contracts together and the Council needed to get better at commissioning.  It should apply the learning and best practice of the Children and Young People’s Department and Public Health to commissioning within its other service areas.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  officers be requested to make necessary arrangements to extend, and, where necessary, amend contracts with effect 1 July 2012 to 31 March 2013; and

(2)  officers continue to monitor contract performance and negotiate accordingly.

A report by the Acting Director for Children’s Services provided the Cabinet with information on the potential purchase of eleven vehicles for the Council and updated it on the provision of a vehicle to Wirral Food Bank.  The vehicles would be purchased through the Council’s procurement system to ensure value for money.  It was proposed that the vehicles would be purchased from a capital fund for vehicle purchase held by the Integrated Transport Unit.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the inclusion of £160,000 within the Children and Young People’s Department’s capital programme for the purchase of the required vehicle replacements for community patrol and pest control be agreed; and

(2)  the Acting Director for Children’s Servicesbe requested to prepare a report for consideration at a future Cabinet meeting on proposals for replacing the Mayoral car.

A report by the Deputy Chief Executive/Director of Finance detailed the decision of the North West Libraries Consortium, of which Wirral was a member, to extend a purchasing contract for a period of twelve months up to 31 March 2013.

The Cabinet was informed that Wirral had been a member of the North West Libraries Consortium for a number of years.  There were twenty local authorities in the Consortium which was led by Stockport MBC.  There was also a Yorkshire Consortium made up of a number of Library services.  The main purpose was that by working as a much larger purchaser than any individual service, the Consortium was able to achieve economies of scale when tendering for purchasing contracts and subscriptions with suppliers which an individual local authority could not achieve.

The Consortium offered a joint book purchasing contract, framework agreements for periodicals and magazines, the E-Books service supplied by OverDrive, and the Smart SM software system.  There were also a number of on line resource agreements including Oxford University Press News and Who Else Writes Like service.

The current contract had been awarded for three years from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2012 and had been won by Bertrams a leading supplier to Libraries.  Between the North West and Yorkshire there were 33 local authorities using this service and the Consortia had agreed to extend the contract for one year to 31 March 2013.  The service was expected to go out to tender during 2012 with an award in late 2012 with the new contract in place for 1 April 2013.

The Wirral book budget was £509,000 of which £400,000 would be spent through this contract.  The suppliers had a sophisticated system, Smart SM, which assisted staff in ordering books, taking account of other local authorities’ preferences and purchases as well as Wirral Council’s own previous purchases.

Councillor L Rennie informed that she had visited a number of libraries during the week and spoken to the staff about this proposal.  They seemed happy with it as it allowed flexibility with the budget to purchase locally too.

RESOLVED:

That the extension of the contract be agreed.

A report by the Director of Technical Services advised the Cabinet of his decision, in consultation with the Chief Executive, to purchase second-hand vehicles and equipment valued at £54,549 from Continental Landscapes Limited in accordance with Contract Procedure Rule (CPR) 21 ‘Exceptions to Procurement Procedure’.

The action to procure these second-hand vehicles and equipment from Continental Landscapes Limited, outside of normal procurement procedures had been taken because it had not been possible to undertake a procurement exercise to purchase this specialist equipment in time for service commencement by the Council and also because it represented value-for-money for the Council.

Councillor L Rennie informed that she had seen the re-evaluation process and as far as she was concerned, this procurement exercise was a good deal for the Council.

RESOLVED:

That the decision taken by the Director of Technical Services, in consultation with the Chief Executive, to purchase second-hand vehicles and equipment valued at £54,549 from Continental Landscapes Limited in accordance with Contract Procedure Rule (CPR) 21 ‘Exceptions to Procurement Procedure’ be noted.

A report by the Director of Technical Services set out a comprehensive review of the Council’s approach to managing and maintaining highways and included the draft Highways Asset Management Plan (HAMP) for the Council.

The Cabinet was advised that the proposed strategy, and the associated draft HAMP, would contribute to the corporate priorities for ensuring that Wirral had a safe and well-maintained highway network for all users, and to reduce the running costs of the Council by improving the efficiency and value for money of Council services.

The report also informed that in the medium term, the development of an asset management approach would bring about improved investment decision making based on whole life costs for a range of service level options; and result in less reactive maintenance and greater savings for the Council.

The maintenance of highways was a statutory duty for the Council under the Highways Act 1980 (as amended).

The Cabinet was asked to approve the revised strategy and the draft HAMP.

On 3September 2009, the Cabinet had endorsed the implementation of the Highway Asset Management Strategy (Minute No. 92 refers)  At that time government grant funding had been available to assist in delivering the strategy and Members had approved its use for that purpose.

A core part of the proposed strategy, at that time, had been the procurement of a single software package, as part of a new integrated Asset Management ICT system, to store and manage data.  A procurement exercise had been conducted in 2010.  Unfortunately, the cost of the system had proved unaffordable and a purchase had not taken place.

Accordingly, consideration of an alternative approach had required and the report set out an alternative strategy based on utilisation and enhancement of existing, non-integrated systems.

The Cabinet noted that this was a short term measure which would only last for a year.  The Council would need to find a way to manage its assets in a more effective way post 2014 and the Director suggested that a decision be made in respect of this at the same time as it decided to move forward with its highway arrangements post 2014.

Councillor J Green reported that a number of temporary measures had been taken with regard to computer systems by various Council Departments, including Adult Social Services, Children and Young People’s and Finance.  He told the Cabinet that he had not seen a Council software priority list and proposed that this be discussed at the Leader’s Meeting on Friday, 16 March 2012.  A report could then be presented to a future Cabinet meeting on a proposed IT investment plan and priorities for change.

Councillor T Harney was in agreement with Councillor J Green’s proposal informing that he would welcome a radical look at the Council’s IT systems because it was not possible to run a modern organisation without robust IT systems.

The Deputy Director of Finance informed that the Council had an IT Strategy that would be reviewed in the autumn.  He would discuss  ...  view the full minutes text for item 341.

At its meeting on 13 January 2011 a report by the Director of Technical Services had been presented to the Cabinet advising of the Government’s Local Transport Capital Settlement letter, dated 13 December 2010.  (Minute No. 285 refers.)  This letter had announced the level of transport funding that the Merseyside authorities were to receive for 2011/12 and 2012/13, along with indicative figures for 2013/14 and 2014/15.  The report had also presented the background to the development of the third Local Transport Plan (LTP3), which commenced in April 2011, and set out the LTP budget for 2011/12.  The report had presented the budget for 2012/13 in accordance with the 2010 settlement letter, and sought the Cabinet’s approval for the Integrated Transport Block (ITB) programme that was anticipated to be in the region of £1,185,000 (subject to the finalisation of ongoing discussions with the Merseyside Transport Partnership).

The Director, in a further report, now informed that the determination of suitable schemes and projects within the proposed 2012/13 Capital programme and outlined the budget allocation for the ITB which were prioritised in line with the Council’s Corporate Goal to “have a safe and well maintained highway network for all users” and continue to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on the roads in the Borough.  Schemes and projects identified in the report would contribute to the objectives and priorities contained in the current LTP3.

The Cabinet was then advised that the schemes detailed within the report that form the ITB directly addressed the Council’s Statutory Duties as set out in the Highways Act 1980, Road Traffic Regulations Act 1984, Road Traffic Act 1988, Local Government Act 2000 and the Traffic Management Act 2004.

Members were made aware that the Department for Transport (DfT) had significantly reduced the amount of transport funding it had made available since 2010.  Over the last couple of years, Wirral’s allocation of the Merseyside annual ITB equated to a reduction of nearly 50%, from £2,365,000 in 2010/11 to £1,185,000 in 2012/13. This reduction in the Integrated Transport Block funding from the Government was likely to have significant impact on the ability of the Council to continue its recent improvements in road safety.

The Director explained that to compensate for this reduction the Council had approved an additional £650,000 Capital allocation specifically for road safety improvements and transport schemes as part of a Capital Investment Programme.  This additional funding was crucial and also welcomed in light of the reductions in funding by the DfT and would enable schemes to be developed that would make a significant contribution in reducing the number and severity of casualties on Wirral’s roads and improve the existing infrastructure to support safer, sustainable travel for vulnerable road users, including cyclists and pedestrians.  The funding would be invested using a prioritisation process to ensure the greatest benefit in road safety casualty reduction specific schemes were incorporated within the appropriate ITB allocations detailed in the report.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  ...  view the full minutes text for item 342.

A report by the Director of Technical Services detailed a revised Streetscene Enforcement Policy Review and updated the Cabinet on progress made with respect to the Streetscene Enforcement Strategy endorsed by the Cabinet in October 2008.

Members were advised that The Enforcement Policy Review set out the framework of legislation and local policies which would be used to deliver the priorities and actions detailed in current and future Corporate and Departmental plans.

It was noted that the Council had a number of relevant statutory duties and responsibilities including; keeping land and highways clear of litter and waste (Environmental Protection Act 1990), removing abandoned vehicles (Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978) and protecting the rights of the public to the use and enjoyment of the highway (Highways Act 1980).

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report be noted along with the proposed plan and policies, as detailed in the report and Appendix A, which Cabinet agrees be adopted.

A report by the Director of Technical Services reviewed and updated the Council’s Parking Enforcement Policy that was last reported to Cabinet on 13 March 2008 (Minute No. 534 refers).  Parking enforcement within Wirral was undertaken through the provisions of Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA 2004), enacted in March 2008 and which required local highway authorities to produce and publish its policies and strategies on parking and enforcement.

RESOLVED:

That the Cabinet approves the procedures and policy as set out in the report subject to paragraph 2.12.1 of the report being replaced with a new paragraph 2.12.1:

“The observation period begins when the vehicle’s details are entered onto the hand help computer by the civil enforcement officer.  The Penalty Charge Notice cannot be issued until the observation period has elapsed.”

A report by the Director of Technical Services informed the Cabinet, pursuant to Contract Procedure Rule 16.1.2, that the contract to replace the parapets of Bromborough Station Footbridge had been varied for technical reasons, to ensure the successful delivery of the contract, which had by consequence increased the cost of the contract by more than 10%.

Members were informed that the works described in the report promoted the Council’s Corporate Priorities by contributing to the goal to “have a safe and well-maintained highway network for all users”.

The Council had a statutory duty to maintain the highway network.

RESOLVED: That

The contents of this report be noted.

A report by the Director for Regeneration, Housing and Planning informed the Cabinet that In 2011 Mary Portas had been commissioned by the Government to undertake an independent review of high streets.  In December 2011 - The Portas Review had been published with a number of recommendations.  One of which had been to create a series of Town Teams for retail areas.

On 4 February 2012 the Government announced ‘Portas Pilots - Prospectus: an invitation to become a Town Team’ to co-ordinate innovative approaches to the issues raised in the Portas Review.  The Government was inviting bids into a £1 million fund, to become a Town Team, from all areas of the country.  The Government would select twelve pilots with up to £100,000 funding available for each.

The bids had to be submitted, in a partnership approach, between retailers, landlords, local community, Local Authority and partners.  The Local Authority must agree to be the accountable body for the fund and also submit a statement that the project would secure value for money for tax payers.

The Cabinet was advised that the Council had received a number of draft bids from local groups.  A summary of the draft bids was included in the report (Section 2).

The Cabinet was asked to agree the principle of the Local Authority acting as the Accountable Body for any funding which may be granted, if any of the bids were successful, for up to £100,000 per bid.

The Cabinet was then asked to agree that due to the very tight timescale for the bids; that the Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning, in consultation with the Leader of the Council/Portfolio Holder, be authorised to finalise the statements on securing value for money for taxpayers in the use of the grant to accompany final bids for submission to the Government on 30 March 2012.  This was to allow the groups as much time as possible to finalise their bids (including producing a video), within the framework of their draft bids outlined below, before submission to the Government.

Councillor J Green informed that he would like to see local traders getting involved with this initiative.  The Council had allocated £500,000 in its budget for this purpose.  Consequently, he asked officers to contact local traders to try to get them involved in what could be done to bring about improvements to shopping centres etc. as it was the role of the Empty Homes Team to bring buildings back to life.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the Cabinet endorses the submission of the five ‘Portas Pilot’ bids to the Department of Communities and Local Government to Government on 30 March 2012;

(2)   the Cabinet agree to the Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning, in consultation with the Cabinet Portfolio holder to have delegated authority to agree the submission of the final bids to the Government, within the framework of the draft bids summarised in the report (section 2);

(3)   the Cabinet agrees that the Local Authority will be the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 346.

A report by the Director for Regeneration, Housing and Planning  advised the Cabinet that the Council had been successful in attracting Homes and Communities Agency funding to enable 10 long-term empty properties in the Borough to be brought back into use as much needed affordable housing and sold through the Councils HOUSED Programme.  The Funding would be matched by £60,000 New Homes Bonus funding that the Cabinet had agreed in July 2011.  (Minute No. 83 refers.)

The Cabinet was asked to approve the allocation of up to £380,000 funding from the former HMRI programme which Members had previously agreed (Cabinet Report on Housing Market Renewal End of Year Report 13 October 2011 – (Minute No. 163 refers.)) to use for Wallasey based Housing Market Renewal (HMR) projects. This funding would specifically refurbish and bring back into use properties at 85-89 King Street.  These were three long term empty properties which were currently causing blight in the neighbourhood.  The targeted use of the Wallasey funding to 85-89 King Street would provide, upon change of use, nine units of accommodation to help meet housing need in the area.

The Director informed that the Government had launched a fund of £15m to bring empty houses back into use.  He had made a funding application for £1m for Wirral.

Councillor J Green informed that he was pleased that a bid had been made for government funding.  However, he asked the Director to consider what the Council, itself, could do by releasing small amounts of capital to make some big differences.  He proposed that it would be very interesting to explore this further.

RESOLVED:

That the Cabinet notes the award of £218,000 from the HCA and agrees to match this funding with up to £380,000 carried over from HMR which together with £60,000 already approved from New Homes Bonus, will make a total scheme pot of £658,000 to deliver  up to 16 units of accommodation.

A report by the Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning sought the Cabinet’s approval to request the Council to make a virement from the Regeneration ,Housing and Planning budget to the Department of Adult Social Services for supported living services in Birkenhead, West Wirral and Wallasey, for the period July 2011 to March 2012.  The full details of the value of the virement were listed in the appendix to the report.

The Director also recommended that a further report be provided for the Cabinet regarding the options for delivering housing related support and ongoing funding arrangements for learning disabled clients jointly funded by Adult Social Services and Regeneration Housing and Planning.

Councillor J Green raised concerns over what had happened that now meant that money had to be vired between the two Departments and he asked the Chief Internal Auditor to carry out an investigation into the situation the Council now found itself in and report back.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the Cabinet approves referral to the Council for a virement of Budget from Regeneration, Housing and Planning to Adult Social Services;

(2)  the Cabinet endorses the recommendation of the Director of Regeneration, Housing and Planning to conduct a review into options for delivering housing related support and ongoing funding arrangements for services for clients with learning disabilities; and

(3)  the Chief Internal Auditor be asked to carry out an urgent investigation to ascertain what had happened to make virement necessary between the two Council Departments and provide a written report for the Leader of the Council, within one week, of the date of this meeting.

A report by the Chief Executive sought the Cabinet’s approval to award two contracts: Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector Support and General Advice Service.  This followed a full tender process conducted in accordance with European Procurement Legislation.  It was proposed that the contracts should be awarded to the most economically advantageous tender.

Tender details were provided in the Appendix to the report which was not for publication by virtue of paragraph(s) 3 of part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.  (Minute No. 355 (a) refers.)

RESOLVED: That

(1)   the Cabinet approves the award of contracts for Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector Support and General Advice Service to the highest scoring tender; and

(2)  the results of the evaluation as set out in Appendix 1, which is not for publication as it contains commercially sensitive information, be noted.

A report by the Director of Law, HR and Asset Management sought the Cabinet’s approval to a revised method of transferring Noctorum Community Centre to Ridgeway High School as part of the Community Asset Transfer process.

The Cabinet was advised that the transfer was in support of the Council’s goal to reduce its running costs by improving the efficiency and value for money of Council services whilst reducing bureaucracy.

Members were also informed that there would be a small saving in the Council’s budget as a consequence of this proposal and that the grant funding was not a statutory duty.

RESOLVED:

That the Community Centre be included within Ridgeway High School and the budget for the facility be moved from the Department of Law HR and Asset Management to Children and Young People’s Department

The Cabinet is requested to make nominations for the positions of Mayor and Deputy Mayor for the municipal year 2012/2013, which will be submitted to the Annual Meeting of the Council.

The Cabinet was requested to make nominations for the positions of Mayor and Deputy Mayor for the Municipal Year 2012/2013, which would then be submitted to the Annual Meeting of the Council.

RESOLVED:

That the following nominations be made for the Municipal Year 2012/2013 at the Annual Meeting of the Council on 16 May 2011:

·  Councillor G Ellis for the role of Mayor

·  Councillor D Mitchell for the role of Deputy Mayor

A report by the Director of Law, HR and Asset Management sought the Cabinet’s approval to proceed with the procurement tender process decision and renew the Master in Business Administration programme contract with effect from 2012.

By virtue of paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the appendix to this report was exempt as it contained commercially sensitive information.  (Minute No. 355 (b) refers)

RESOLVED: That

(1)   the award of the contract for the duration of the MBA programme (three years) for a single cohort, with the option of an additional two cohorts be agreed; and

(2)   the University of Chester be agreed as the contracted provider on the basis of an objective assessment through the procurement process undertaken between June and November 2011.

A report by the Acting Director of Children’s Services described the scope of work to refurbish Outwood House which was located on the St Anselm’s College site and which had recently been purchased by the Edmund Rice Trust on behalf of the College.  Outwood House would primarily replace the current 6^th form accommodation which had come to the end of its life and was the worst accommodation in the Wirral Secondary School estate.  It would bring a vacant and significant Grade 2 listed building and its land, back into use.  The scheme would cost £1m and had been approved in principle by the Cabinet at its meeting on 17 March 2011.  (Minute No. 361 refers.)  The project would support the Council’s corporate priorities by investing in families, children and young people.  Whilst to undertake the project was not a statutory duty, Planning Permission and Listed Building consent was required.

The Cabinet was asked to consider and approve the proposal.  If the Cabinet was to agree to the proposal the work required would be carried out during the school holiday so keeping disruption to a minimum.

RESOLVED: That

(1)  the Scheme and Estimate, as presented in the report, be accepted;

(2)  the College be authorised to seek tenders for the project; and

(3)  the College be authorised to obtain all necessary statutory approvals for the project.

The following items contain exempt information.

RECOMMENDATION:  That, under section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined by the relevant paragraphs of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to that Act. The Public Interest test has been applied and favours exclusion.

RESOLVED:

That, under section 100 (A) (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined by the relevant paragraphs of Part I of Schedule 12A (as amended) to that Act. The Public Interest test has been applied and favours exclusion.

• Exempt Appendix to agenda item 23

Voluntary Sector Contracts: Voluntary Community Faith Sector Support and General Advice Service

• Exempt Appendix to agenda item 26

Masters in Business Administration (MBA) Qualification

These appendices are exempt by virtue of paragraph 3 as they contain commercially sensitive information.

The Cabinet noted the detail of the exempt appendix to:

(a)  Agenda Item No. 23 on the agenda – Voluntary Sector Contracts: Voluntary Community Faith Sector Support and General Advice Service - that set out tender evaluation scores for the eight tenderers (Minute No. 349 refers); and

(b)  Agenda Item No. 26 on the agenda – Masters in Business Administration (MBA) Qualification (Minute No. 352 refers).

This report is exempt as it contains confidential and commercially sensitive information relating to a contract.

A report by the Director of Technical Services informed the Cabinet, pursuant to Contract Procedure Rule 16.1.2 that the contract to refurbish the Dell Underpass had been varied for technical reasons, to ensure the successful delivery of the contract which had by consequence increased the cost of the contract by more than 10% or £50,000.

RESOLVED:

That the content of the report be noted.