Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillor Denise Jeffery and Sir Roger Marsh

There were no declaration of pecuniary interests at the meeting.

There were no items that required the exemption of the press and public

Resolved: That the minutes of the meeting held on 8 September be approved.

Members considered a report which provided an update on financial performance in the Combined Authority.

A summary of the 2021/22 revenue spend to the original budget as at August 2021 was attached at appendix 1 to the submitted report.

Members noted that the final accounts 2020/21 had been approved by the Governance and Audit Committee following an unqualified audit opinion from the external auditors. Further work was being undertaken on the value for money opinion with external auditors due to report no later than 31 December 2021.

Members noted that the Treasury had offered a debt cap of £248.326 million for the current financial year. There would be a further process to establish a debt cap for subsequent years.

In response to a request at the previous Committee meeting, a breakdown of projects in the Getting Building Fund were attached at appendix 2 to the submitted report. Members welcomed the confirmation from the Cities and Local Growth Unit that the Combined Authority could use financial freedoms and flexibilities to manage capital expenditure between programmes.

Resolved: That the financial position be noted.

Members considered a report that provided an update on the development of the 2022/23 budget. Since the last meeting of the Committee the Transport budget working group and the Strategy budget working group had met in October and considered a range of information to inform the development of the 2022/23 budget and financial strategy. 

The draft 2022/23 budget was in preparation for the December Combined Authority meeting ahead of the full budget which would be presented in February.

The Combined authority had submitted an ambitious bid as part of the bus service improvement plan. Officers were awaiting the details of funding made available from Government as part of BSIP and how much of it comprised new money as opposed to funding streams already announced. Members supported the submitted BSIP bid and called on government to deliver their ambitions.

Members asked if officers had identified any funds as part of the comprehensive spending review which could provide additional opportunities to address the climate emergency. It was noted that none had been identified but officers awaited announcements around the community renewal fund and the shared prosperity fund. It was also noted that addressing the climate emergency was a key priority for the Combined authority and would be a theme throughout all programmes.

Resolved: That the report be noted.

The Committee considered a report that provided an update on corporate planning and performance activities for the 2021/22 financial year.

Members noted the amendments made to the KPIs and the state of the Region 2021, with an executive summary attached at appendix 2 to the submitted report.

Members praised the ambitions of the Mayoral Combined Authority and asked for partnership with local authorities to be embedded within the document. Members noted that officers would more clearly draw out the partners involved in the KPI tables.

Members asked for clarification on the KPI listed at GR2 and whether the engagement with 180 schools included the additional support to 92 most disadvantaged schools. Members noted that the 92 was a subset of the 180 schools engaged with.

Further clarification was requested around the KPI at CE4 which aimed to support 100 businesses to implement sustainable travel plans and asked if percentages could be used consistently throughout each KPI to enable members to monitor each KPI more accurately. This would be amended for the next iteration of the KPI document.

Members welcomed the state of the region report and requested a disaggregated version to better understand the picture across each local authority area.

Resolved: That the report be noted.

Resolved: That the selected Themes, Outputs and Measures be endorsed and that these are used to measure social value obtained by the Combined Authority in the future.

The Committee considered a report that set out the proposed themes, outputs, and measures (TOMS) selected to measure social value obtained by the Combined Authority in future procurement processes.

Members asked how the social value themes, outputs, and measure would align with the fair work charter. It was noted that the fair work charter was one of the TOMS that had been selected.

Members praised the consistent approach across the Combined Authority and the Local Authority for potential suppliers.

Members stressed the importance of following up with suppliers on the commitments made and measuring performance. Members also asked if there were any differences between the Combined Authority’s approach to TOMS and that of Local Authorities.

It was noted that the heads of procurement across the Combined authority and each Local Authorities met regularly to discuss their approach to TOMS and to ensure it aligned well.

Members asked about the interplay between the KPIs and the selected TOMS and noted that both derived from the Combined Authority’s strategic objectives.

Resolved: That the selected Themes, Outputs and Measures be endorsed and that these are used to measure social value obtained by the Combined Authority in the future.

Resolved:

(i)              That in respect of Fair Work Charter the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)        The Fair Work Charter scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (delivery).

(b)        Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £600,000. The total scheme value is £600,000.

(c)        Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

(i)              That in respect of the Supporting Local Business Pledge Development Programme the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)  The Business Development Fund scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (Delivery).

(b)  Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £500,000. The total scheme value is £500,000.     

(c)   Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

Members considered two schemes for approval: the fair work charter scheme and the Supporting Local Business Pledge Development Programme.

Resolved:

(i)              That in respect of Fair Work Charter the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)        The Fair Work Charter scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (delivery).

(b)        Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £600,000. The total scheme value is £600,000.

(c)        Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

(i)              That in respect of the Supporting Local Business Pledge Development Programme the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)  The Business Development Fund scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (Delivery).

(b)  Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £500,000. The total scheme value is £500,000.     

(c)   Future approvals are made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

Resolved: That in respect of the Supporting Local Business Pledge Development Programme the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)  The Business Development Fund scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (Delivery).

(b)  Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £500,000. The total scheme value is £500,000.     

(c)   Future approvals be made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

Resolved: That in respect of the Supporting Local Business Pledge Development Programme the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)  The Business Development Fund scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (Delivery).

(b)  Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £500,000. The total scheme value is £500,000.     

(c)   Future approvals be made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

Resolved: That in respect of Fair Work Charter the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)        The Fair Work Charter scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (delivery).

(b)        Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £600,000. The total scheme value is £600,000.

(c)        Future approvals be made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.

Resolved: That in respect of Fair Work Charter the Finance, Resources and Corporate Committee approved that:

(a)        The Fair Work Charter scheme proceeds through decision point 2 (Strategic Outline Case) and decision point 4 (Full Business Case) with Approval to Proceed to activity 5 (delivery).

(b)        Approval to the Combined Authority’s contribution of £600,000. The total scheme value is £600,000.

(c)        Future approvals be made in accordance with the assurance pathway and approval route outlined in this report and where required, any change requests are delegated to the Business, Economy, and Innovation Committee. This will be subject to the scheme remaining within the tolerances outline in the report.