Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Surrey Heath House, Knoll Road, Camberley, GU15 3HD. View directions

Contact: Katharine Simpson  Senior Democratic Services Officer

Items
No. Item

21/PF

Minutes of Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 85 KB

To receive, and confirm as being a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee held on 27th November 2019.

Minutes:

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee held on 27th November 2019 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

22/PF

Portfolio Holder Update: Places and Strategy pdf icon PDF 124 KB

To receive an update from Councillor Dan Adams on his work during 2019/20 in his capacity as Portfolio Holder for Places and Strategy.

 

(Note: A more indepth report from Camberley Theatre’s Manager is attached as an Annex to the Portfolio Holder’s report.)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Councillor Dan Adams presented an update on the work carried out to date during the 2019/20 municipal year in his capacity as Executive Portfolio Holder for Places and Strategy.  The portfolio covered four main service areas:

 

·         Recreation and Business

·         Parking Services

·         Commercial and Community Development

·         Camberley Theatre

 

Analysis of theatre ticket sales showed that the majority of those visiting the theatre lived in the GU15 area however a number of recent show from national acts had brought visitors in from further afield.  Whilst efforts were made to ensure that the price of theatre tickets was consistent, ticket prices were set by a visiting act’s agent and there were limited opportunities for more flexible pricing.  Discounts were available for those in receipt of Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payments and the possibility of introducing other discount schemes for example a ‘Pay what you like’ scheme for certain performances was being explored.

 

The Theatre had benefited from the increased resourcing available from the Council’s Communications and Marketing Team which had resulted in a significant reduction in the costs associated with producing high quality promotional materials. 

 

The 2019 Pantomime had been the biggest selling pantomime in the theatre’s history, generating ticket sales of £229,804.90.  Analysis of those attending the pantomime had found that audience members were coming to Camberley Theatre’s pantomime in preference to those performances at larger venues for example Woking.  A new initiative in 2019, was the development of a special performance of the pantomime where sign language was taught to the cast and then fully integrated into the performance.  The feedback from this performance had been overwhelmingly positive and it was hoped to be able to continue these special performances in future years. 

 

Funding for the refurbishment of the theatre’s frontage had been approved and the Council would shortly being going out to tender for a contractor to take this work forward.  It was agreed that the possibility of extending this work to improve the appearance of the landscaping immediately outside the theatre would be explored.

 

It was clarified that the introduction of a new booking system for the Borough’s publically owned tennis courts was part of a scheme to ensure that they became self-financing and sustainable in the future. Pricing had been set so that it was competitive with similar courts in neighbouring areas and the funds raised would be used to supplement the budget available for maintenance.  A rolling programme of maintenance and upgrade work for all the Borough’s public tennis courts was being developed and where courts had been identified as being under used alternative uses were being explored for example converting them for other sports.

 

It was acknowledged that the increase in traffic at Watchetts Recreation Ground had contributed to the breakdown of the access road and a funding request to cover the cost of resurfacing work would be considered by the Executive in the near future.

 

It was noted that it was too early to ascertain the impact that closing the High Street to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22/PF

23/PF

Portfolio Holder Update: Customer Experience and Digital pdf icon PDF 200 KB

To receive an update from Councillor Paul Deach on his work during 2019/20 in his capacity as Portfolio Holder for Customer Experience and Digital.

 

Minutes:

Councillor Paul Deach presented an update on the work carried out to date during the 2019/20 municipal year in his capacity as Portfolio Holder for Customer Experience and Digital.  The Portfolio covered Digital and ICT, Communications and Marketing and the Contact Centre and Post Room and key highlights had included:

 

·         The implementation of a new telephony system.

·         Replacement of computers running Windows 7 with Windows 10.

·         The development of a new CRM system which would be integrated into a number of platforms in use across the Council.

·         The creation of more marketing material in-house

·         The introduction of a new enquiry service for Councillors to help them expedite their ward work more efficiently and effectively.

 

It was agreed that the concerns raised by Councillors over the level of ICT support that they were receiving and the impact this was having on their ability to carry out their role as an elected member including: an inability to access emails offline, an inability to back up files on the IPads to ITunes accounts due to GDPR compliance issues, difficulties in accessing the internet in the Council Chamber, Mod.Gov not retaining annotations and ongoing difficulties with the planning portal would be followed up.

 

It was confirmed that the new CRM system would be a bespoke system that would provide greater flexibility and better integration with the range of programmes used across the Council.  The new CRM system would also be more cost effective than the current one and the Council would own the licence for the software when it was completed.

 

The Committee commended the high quality of the art and design work developed by the Council’s Communications and Marketing Team as part of the marketing work for the Town Centre.

 

The Committee thanked Councillor Deach for his update.

 

 

 

 

24/PF

Draft Annual Plan 2020/21 Consultation pdf icon PDF 65 KB

To consider a report setting out the Council’s draft Annual Plan for the 2020/21 municipal year.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report setting out the draft annual plan for 2020/21.  The Annual Plan set out the Council’s key projects and performance indicators for each service area over the 2020/21 financial year.  A list of key projects to be delivered, or progressed, during 2020/21 and a series of key performance indicators was provided for each service area as well as key projects that cut across multiple service areas.

 

Arising from the Committee’s questions and comments the following points were noted:

 

·         It was clarified that the projects listed in the Annual Plan would be underpinned by more specific project plans.

·         Specific milestone dates would be included in the Annual Plan before it was brought to the Executive for approval.

·         It was requested that the development of an Asset Management and Investment Management Strategy be included in the annual plan.

·         The Handyperson Service was currently being promoted through the Meals at Home and Community Transport services.  Once the service had become established and the level of need had been ascertained it would be advertised more widely.

 

It was acknowledged that joined up thinking would enable the Council to make best use of resources and embed practice at an early date.

 

It was requested that any further comments or suggestions be forwarded to Sarah Bainbridge.

25/PF

Economic Development Update pdf icon PDF 77 KB

To consider a report summarising the work of the Council’s Economic Development Team during 2019.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report providing an update on the work of the Council’s Economic Development Team to support and develop Surrey Heath’s economy.

 

It was reported that the Nomis Labour Market report from the Office for National Statistics reflecting the labour market in Surrey Heath in 2018 showed that there had been an increase in the number of jobs in the Borough from 52,000 in 2017 to 62,000.  It was acknowledged that this was a significant increase and work was taking place to ascertain the reasons for the increase. 

 

The Kevin Cantlon Shop Front Improvement Scheme had been reviewed and the conditions updated to ensure that they were not considered onerous by business owners.  Promotion of the scheme was taking place through a range of channels including commercial lettings agents, business newsletters and business support organisations. 

 

To support start up businesses, the Economic Development Team had developed links with regional business development staff in banks and was working with the Surrey Chambers of Commerce to explore the possibility of cross boundary business space.

 

The Committee noted the update.

26/PF

Surrey Pension Fund Update pdf icon PDF 73 KB

To receive a report providing an update on the outcomes of the Surrey Pension Fund’s Annual General Meeting in November 2019.

Minutes:

The Committee received a report providing an update on the performance of the Surrey Pension Fund. 

 

The Fund was managed and administered by Surrey County Council on behalf of all the district councils, the county council and a number of other organisations.  At the end of March 2019, there were 110,195 members in the fund of which 34,292 were active, 25,929 were pensioners and 49,974 were deferred members.  Investments were performing well and as of the 30 September 2019, the fund had approximately £45 billion of assets under its control and the fund was currently fully funded.

 

The Committee noted the report.

 

27/PF

Corporate Risk Register pdf icon PDF 48 KB

To receive a report setting out the Council’s Corporate Risk Register.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report setting out the Council’s Corporate Risk Register.  It was noted that the Risk Register summarised the main risks faced by the Council in relation to achieving the objectives and priorities defined in the corporate plan, set out the mitigating steps currently being taken to reduce the level of risk and identifying any further actions required.  It was clarified that the initial risk rating was the rating that would be associated with the identified risk if no control measures were put in place.

 

The Committee noted the report.

 

 

 

 

28/PF

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 53 KB

To consider a report setting out the proposed work programme for the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee for the remainder of the 2019/20 Municipal Year.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee received and noted a report setting out the draft work programme for the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee for the remainder of the 2019/20 municipal year.

 

29/PF

Date of Next Meeting

The next scheduled meeting of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee will take place on Wednesday 18th March 2020 at 7pm.

Minutes:

It was noted that the next scheduled meeting of the Performance and Finance Scrutiny Committee would take place on Wednesday 18th March 2020 at 7pm.