Agenda and minutes

Venue: Town Hall, Moorgate Street, Rotherham.

Contact: James McLaughlin, Head of Democratic Services  The webcast can be viewed at http://www.rotherham.public-i.tv

Items
No. Item

94.

Declarations of Interest

 

To receive declarations of interest from Members in respect of items listed on the agenda.

Minutes:

Councillor Sansome declared a personal interest in respect of agenda item 5 (Budget Options 2019/20 and 2020/21) on the basis that a relative was accessing the advocacy service provided by Healthwatch Rotherham.

 

 

95.

Questions from Members of the Public and the Press

 

To receive questions from members of the public or press who are present at the meeting.

Minutes:

A member of the public attended on behalf of Sight and Sound to query the budget proposal that the Board was due to consider at its meeting (ACH1 - Proposed ending of funding for the Sheffield Royal Society for the Blind Sight and Sound service). It was asserted that the information provided to the Board was not correct and there were major concerns in respect of the proposal.

 

In response, the Chair indicated that he was unable to answer the question, but would ensure that the question would be put to the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health later at the meeting.

 

At the appropriate point, the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health Roche expressed his appreciation for the excellent work and service provided by Sheffield Sight and Sound. He indicated that the agreement with the charity was for funding to be provided for two years, after which it would become self-sustaining. However, the proposal was open to consultation and officers would be happy to meet with the Chief Officer of the charity and its trustees to discuss the proposal.

 

In response, Members were advised by the member of the public that there was a difference of opinion on the recollection of what had been agreed previously, however the offer of a meeting was appreciated.

 

 

96.

Exclusion of the Press and Public

 

To consider whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of any part of the agenda.

Minutes:

The Chair reported that there were no items of business on the agenda that would require the exclusion of the press of public from the meeting.

97.

Budget Options 2019/20 and 2020/21 pdf icon PDF 117 KB

 

To receive an update on the overall value of budget reductions necessary over the next two financial years and consider options that have been identified from service areas to address the budget gap across both years

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report which provided an update on the overall value of budget reductions necessary over the next two financial years and presented options that had been identified from service areas to significantly address the budget gap across both years.

 

Members noted that consultation with the public, key partners, trade unions and staff would formally commence on 26 October and close on 30 November 2018. The outcomes from the consultation would be considered when finalising the Budget. It was further reported that the Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement was expected in mid-December 2018, with the Final Settlement expected in early February 2019. This would confirm the Government funding to be received and alongside feedback from the consultation and Overview and Scrutiny Management Board, was planned to enable the budget to be finalised.

 

In terms of governance, Members noted that the final Budget and Council Tax report would be considered by Cabinet on 18 February 2019 and the Cabinet’s recommendations would be referred to Council on 27 February 2019 for approval.

 

The Chair welcomed the Leader of the Council and Chief Executive to the meeting and invited them to deliver a presentation to the set the scene for the budget setting process for the 2019/20 and 2020/21 financial years. A copy of the presentation is appended these minutes.

 

The Leader of the Council reflected on the priorities of the Council which had been set out three years earlier and on the significant shift away from local government being funded from the Revenue Support Grant from government. For nine years, the Government had enforced a period of austerity on public services and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) had been the hardest hit in government, with local government being the hardest hit part of the public sector. By way of illustration of the profound shift in funding of local government, the Leader explained that the grant from government in 2013/14 had been £84.3m, in the current financial year it had been £21m and in the 2019/20 financial year it was expected to be £15m. That represented an 82% reduction in funding and it was expected that the Revenue Support Grant would be phased out altogether.  These reductions in funding had occurred at the same time as the outturn spend on Children and Young People’s Services had increased by 150%.

 

Continuing, the Chief Executive explained that pressure around social care was being felt right across the country, especially by metropolitan councils. Nationally, local authorities were overspent on social care by more than £800m. The Local Government Association had calculated a funding gap of £3.6b across the country. With uncertainty around the future of local government funding, the Chief Executive indicated that she was not able to provide any further information on the funding regime beyond the current period. Whilst there had recently been funding for winter pressures in Adult Social Care, the announcements had been in October and the money does not follow as quickly  ...  view the full minutes text for item 97.

98.

Urgent Business

 

To determine any item which the Chairman is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

The Chair reported that there were no items of business requiring urgent consideration by the Board.

99.

Date and time of next meeting

 

The next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board will be held on Friday 26 October 2018 at 10.00 a.m. in Rotherham Town Hall.

Minutes:

Resolved:-

 

That the next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board be held on Friday 26 October 2018 at 9.00 a.m. in Rotherham Town Hall.