Agenda item

To receive the Leader’s report on the work of the Executive since the Council meeting held on 13 September 2023.

Council is asked to resolve a recommendation in respect of:

• Waste Collection Vehicle Purchase
• Bridgewell Supported Living

The Leader of the Council, Councillor Temperton, presented her report on the work of the Executive since that reported at the Council meeting on 13 September 2023. The Executive had met three times on 19 September, 17 October and 14 November 2023.

The Leader highlighted the following matters that had been considered:

Environment and Community Cohesion | Waste Collection Vehicle Purchase

·        Existing garden waste collection rounds were over capacity due to a growing borough and increased sign up to the garden waste collection service.

·        The Executive had agreed the purchase of a new 26-tonne waste collection vehicle in 2023 for delivery in 2024, subject to Council approval.

·        A trial of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil had been agreed for this vehicle subject to viability testing.

Adult Services, Health and Housing | Bridgewell Supported Living

·        The Executive had considered the progress on design development, timetable and work to improve sustainability for the new Bridgewell from the design and build contractor who had been appointed in January 2023. 

·        Bridgewell would be a new supported living scheme for adults with learning disabilities, which would provide for vulnerable people whose current accommodation did not meet their needs.

Finance and Business Change | Budget Update

·        The Executive had considered the financial pressures faced by this Council due to inflation and service demand.

·        The predicted financial position for the current year and the medium-term financial prospects were also noted.

·        The Executive agreed the proposed use of Council funding to support delivery of affordable housing as detailed in the report.

Children, Young People & Learning | SEND Written Statement of Action (WOSA) – Implementation

·        The progress on the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Written Statement of Action (WSOA) as noted by the Executive, including most recent feedback from the Department for Education and NHS England from the third review meeting on 10 July 2023. It was noted that there had been a great deal of activity since the last review meeting, and that improvements had moved on at pace.

·        The Executive also noted the Department for Educations invitation to take part in the Safety Vale intervention programme 2024-25, for local authorities with high Designated Schools Grant (DSG) deficits.

Children, Young People & Learning | New SEND School Site

·        The Executive agreed Buckler’s Park as the site for a new Autistic Spectrum Condition school to provide new Special Education Needs and Disabilities school places, reducing the need for pupils to be educated out of the borough.

·        The Executive delegated authority to the Executive Director: People and the Executive Member for Children, Young People and Learning for minor amendments.

Strategies and Policies:

·        The Executive approved and adopted the Bracknell Forest Prevent Strategy 2024-27.

·        The Executive approved the proposed changes to the Housing Allocation Policy, and approved a consultation plan to ensure partners, Councillors and the public could all have an input.

·        The Executive approved the draft All-age Integrated Carers Strategy 2024-2029 for public consultation, and a revised draft would return to a future Executive meeting.

·        The Executive approved the draft Bracknell Forest Economic Strategy 2024- 2034 for public consultation.

Procurements and Contracts:

·       The Executive approved the award of the 0-19 Public Health Nursing Service for a five-year term with two 12-month optional extensions.

·       The Executive approved a two-year direct award to ensure continuity of specialist and integrated Sexual and Reproductive Health services across East Berkshire beyond 30 June 2024.

·       The Executive agreed the proposed re-procurement of Occupational Health service contract for Council staff including school staff.

·       The Executive approved the procurement plan for an Integrated Therapies service, joint with NHS Frimley, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead and Slough Borough Council.

Councillor Barnard asked about the current percentage of Educational Health Care Plans completed within the designated 20-week period. In response, Councillor Bailey commented that while the exact figure was not available at the meeting, he was assured that progress was being made and every effort was being made to progress each EHCP at pace.

Councillor S Forster asked for assurance that the borrowing arrangement for the new waste collection vehicle was the most financially responsible means of purchasing the new vehicle, particularly when compared to choosing to defer the purchase to the next financial year. In response, Councillor Purnell explained that the lead time for a new vehicle was 12 months and the Council would not have to pay for the vehicle until it was delivered in or around December 2024. An interim measure would be to hire a vehicle after April 2024 to cover the period until the new vehicle was delivered, however this would depend on capacity and waste volumes. There would be no expenditure in relation to this decision during the current financial year, and officers had advised that outright purchase was the best option for this service.

As a supplementary question, Councillor S Forster asked for assurances that residents who do not use the garden waste collection service would not be unfairly burdened due to the additional costs and reductions being made to other more general services to achieve the indicated saving.

In response, Councillor Purnell explained that while the new truck would predominantly be used for garden waste collection, it would also be used for general waste and dry recycling collection where required which was normal practice for all 26-tonne waste collection vehicles. Garden waste collection was a non-statutory and subscription service and the recommendation was to increase subscription costs to cover some of the revenue costs of the new vehicle. The remaining revenue cost would be offset by including the £75,000 saving from the waste collection budget as part of the 2024/25 budget.

Councillor T Eberle asked a question about the project costs of Bridgewell’s construction, and asked for assurances that the Council would be adequately protected from further cost increases as the project progresses.

In response, Councillor Temperton advised that the contract for Bridgewell was very tight. The absolute timescale and cost of Bridgewell’s construction could not be guaranteed due to build uncertainties and land characteristics, however a contingency plan was in place for any unexpected eventualities.

The report contained recommendations that the Council was asked to resolve in respect of the following matters.

Additional waste collection vehicle

On the proposition of Councillor Purnell, Executive Member for Environment and Community Cohesion and seconded by Councillor Welch it was RESOLVED that a supplementary capital approval of £0.205m with the associated borrowing costs being accounted for within the figures in section 5.15 of the report, be approved for the purchase of an additional waste collection vehicle.

Bridgewell

On the proposition of Councillor Temperton, Leader and Executive Member for Council Strategy and Climate Change and seconded by Councillor Gillbe it was RESOLVED that the additional cost of works for the new supported living accommodation at Bridgewell of £400k be approved increasing the budget from £7.15m to £7.55m.