Agenda, decisions and minutes

At this point Members are asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interests they may have in the business on this agenda.

Members were invited to declare at this point in the meeting any personal or prejudicial interests they might have in the business on the agenda, in addition to the general personal non-prejudicial interests detailed on the sheet attached to the agenda.

Councillor Funnell declared a general personal non-prejudicial interest as a governor of Burnholme Community College.

Councillor Brooks amended her general personal non-prejudicial interests detailed on the sheet attached to the agenda to reflect that the name of her employer had changed from City College, Manchester to The Manchester College.

Councillor Waudby declared a general personal non-prejudicial interest as a governor of Lakeside Primary School.

To consider excluding the press and public from the meeting during consideration of Annex A of Agenda Item 11 (York High ICT Procurement) on the grounds that it contains information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). This information is classed as exempt under Paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A to Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to information) (Variation) Order 2006.

RESOLVED:That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of Annex A of Agenda Item 11 (York High ICT Procurement) (minute 28 refers) on the grounds that it contained information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). This information was classed as exempt under Paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A to Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to information) (Variation) Order 2006.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 17 July 2008.

Officers confirmed that interim update report on Curriculum Reforms referred to in minute 16 (14-19 Curriculum Reform Update) of the meeting on 17 July 2008 would be brought to the next meeting of the Executive Member and Advisory Panel.

RESOLVED:That the minutes of the last meeting of the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services and Advisory Panel held on 17 July 2008 be approved and signed as a correct record, with an amendment to the end of the first paragraph of minute 11 (Declarations of Interest) to add the following wording, “in addition to the general personal non-prejudicial interests detailed on the sheet attached to the agenda”.

At this point in the meeting members of the public who have registered their wish to speak regarding an item on the agenda or an issue within the Panel’s remit can do so. Anyone who wishes to register or requires further information is requested to contact the Democracy Officer on the contact details listed at the foot of this agenda. The deadline for registering is Wednesday 3 September 2008 at 5pm.

It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.

This report seeks views from the Executive Member for Children & Young People’s Services and Advisory Panel on the priorities for the Children and Young People’s Plan 2009 – 2012.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That it be agreed that the following issues raised in relation to the Children and Young People’s Plan 2009 – 2012 be fed into the consultation process:

a)                       The need to prioritise improving the attainment of children from less advantaged backgrounds;

b)                       The need to increase the number of schools with a good or excellent performance rating;

c)                       The need to remove barriers to young people accessing facilities, including costs, perceptions, accessibility, numbers and geographical spread of facilities;

d)                       The need to provide appropriate innovative and entrepreneurial skills for the job market;

e)                       The need for young people to learn to manage risk;

f)                         That references to “schools” should be changed to “schools and colleges”;

g)                       That questions in the consultation document should be targeted at key issues;

h)                       That the consultation document should be available in a more accessible format and some of the language condensed;

i)                         That consultation could take place through YorCity and the Ward Committees;

j)                          That child obesity was a major concern;

k)                       That there should be an emphasis on supporting disabled children and young people;

l)                          That dealing with the misuse of alcohol should be a priority and that this needed to be seen in the context of the wider binge drinking culture;

m)                     That looked after children should achieve the same educational outcomes as other children and that the consultation document should not ask the question whether lower outcomes were inevitable;

n)                       That the discussion about banning the Mosquito device, which disperses young people by emitting a whining sound that only they can hear, was welcome.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure the new Children and Young People’s Plan reflects the views and priorities of Members.

Members received a report which sought their views on the priorities for the Children and Young People’s Plan 2009 – 2012.

The consultation document on the Plan was attached as Annex 1 of the report.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That it be agreed that the following issues raised in relation to the Children and Young People’s Plan 2009 – 2012 be fed into the consultation process:¹

a)                       The need to prioritise improving the attainment of children from less advantaged backgrounds;

b)                       The need to increase the number of schools with a good or excellent performance rating;

c)                       The need to remove barriers to young people accessing facilities, including costs, perceptions, accessibility, numbers and geographical spread of facilities;

d)                       The need to provide appropriate innovative and entrepreneurial skills for the job market;

e)                       The need for young people to learn to manage risk;

f)                         That references to “schools” should be changed to “schools and colleges”;

g)                       That questions in the consultation document should be targeted at key issues;

h)                       That the consultation document should be available in a more accessible format and some of the language condensed;

i)                         That consultation could take place through YorCity and the Ward Committees;

j)                          That child obesity was a major concern;

k)                       That there should be an emphasis on supporting disabled children and young people;

l)                          That dealing with the misuse of alcohol should be a priority and that this needed to be seen in the context of the wider binge drinking culture;

m)                     That looked after children should achieve the same educational outcomes as other children and that the consultation document should not ask the question whether lower outcomes were inevitable;

n)                       That the discussion about banning the Mosquito device, which disperses young people by emitting a whining sound that only they can hear, was welcome.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure the new Children and Young People’s Plan reflects the views and priorities of Members.

This report provides information about the current position with regard to vacancies for Local Authority (LA) seats on governing bodies, lists current nominations for those vacancies and requests the appointment, or re-appointment, of the listed nominees.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)                 That LA Governors be appointed, or re-appointed, to fill vacant seats as proposed in Annex 1 of the report.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure that local authority places on school governing bodies continue to be effectively filled.

Members received a report which provided information about the current position with regard to vacancies for Local Authority (LA) seats on governing bodies, listed current nominations for those vacancies and requested the appointment, or re-appointment, of the listed nominees.

The report presented the following options for consideration:

·  To appoint/re-appoint and fill the vacancies;

·  Not to appoint/re-appoint and fill the vacancies.

It was reported that the name of the nominee for the Millthorpe vacancy, which had been omitted from the report, was John Barr.

Members thanked all school governors for the time they put in supporting the city’s schools.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)                 That LA Governors be appointed, or re-appointed, to fill vacant seats as proposed in Annex 1 of the report.¹

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure that local authority places on school governing bodies continue to be effectively filled.

This report seeks the Executive Member's approval for proposals to provide children's centre services to all 9,400 children aged under five years and their parents/carers across the City, by revising the reach areas of the eight existing children's centres and establishing a ninth centre in the South Bank/ Knavesmire area, plus a range of outreach settings.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the proposals made in the report for revising and extending the reach areas of the eight existing children’s centres, together with the establishment of a high quality ninth children’s centre in South Bank/Knavesmire area and satellite centres in two areas of the City, subject to them all meeting national standards, being consistent with the level of provision across the city and to a suitable site being identified, be endorsed.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure City of York Council makes timely and well-founded decisions about Phase 3 of the national Children’s Centre Programme.

Members received a report which sought approval for proposals to provide children's centre services to all 9,400 children aged under five years and their parents/carers across the City, by revising the reach areas of the eight existing children's centres and establishing a ninth centre in the South Bank/ Knavesmire area, plus a range of outreach settings.

Some Members expressed concern that the funding available may dictate what was provided for the ninth children’s centre and the satellite centres, and suggested that, when the detailed proposals were developed, it may be necessary to look at a Capital Resource Allocation Model (CRAM) bid to top up funds to ensure that these operated effectively.

Members queried whether there were adequate transport links from the outlying areas to the children’s centres and officers advised that outreach services would be provided at other venues to ensure services could be easily accessed.  Members also queried whether the children’s centres had Green Travel Plans and suggested that these needed to be developed to reflect the extended reach areas.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the proposals made in the report for revising and extending the reach areas of the eight existing children’s centres, together with the establishment of a high quality ninth children’s centre in South Bank/Knavesmire area and satellite centres in two areas of the City, subject to them all meeting national standards, being consistent with the level of provision across the city and to a suitable site being identified, be endorsed.¹

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To ensure City of York Council makes timely and well-founded decisions about Phase 3 of the national Children’s Centre Programme.

This report summarises progress towards preparing a bid, driven by young people and in partnership with the voluntary sector, for “myplace” monies to create world-class youth facilities in central York.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the views of the young people who had been working on the project be noted;

(ii)         That the submission of a bid to secure “myplace” monies to develop centrally-based facilities for young people in York be supported in principle;

(iii)       That the site options available be noted and the young people’s preference for the city centre site be supported;

(iv)    That further officer-led work through the rest of the month be supported, to establish the detailed site and partnership options, so as to enable final appraisal nearer the deadline as to the relative merits of submitting a bid now, or deferring it until a further bidding round;

(v)     That Members be kept informed of progress with this work.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To secure additional investment in youth facilities in the city in line with corporate priorities, and the views of residents and young people themselves.

Members received a report which summarised progress towards preparing a bid, driven by young people and in partnership with the voluntary sector, for “myplace” monies to create world-class youth facilities in central York.

Two young people who had been working on the project attended the meeting to offer their views.  They suggested that facilities should include a café, an outdoor area, places to relax, a hall to host events in and one to one rooms for advice.  They also highlighted the need for the facilities, given the current lack of facilities in the city centre and the size and inaccessibility of other facilities in the city.  Further details of the work on the project were available on a web log at http://www.myplaceyork.blogspot.com/.

Councillor James Alexander, the Children & Young People’s Champion, also addressed the meeting.  He highlighted the need for the bid to go forward, reported the view of young people that membership of the facilities should be free and emphasised the need to consider transport links.

The Assistant Director (Partnerships & Early Intervention) briefed Members on the site options and the young people expressed their preference for the city centre site that was being considered.

Members thanked the young people for their work on the project and for attending the meeting, and officers for their support.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the views of the young people who had been working on the project be noted;

(ii)         That the submission of a bid to secure “myplace” monies to develop centrally-based facilities for young people in York be supported in principle;

(iii)       That the site options available be noted and the young people’s preference for the city centre site be supported;

(iv)    That further officer-led work through the rest of the month be supported, to establish the detailed site and partnership options, so as to enable final appraisal nearer the deadline as to the relative merits of submitting a bid now, or deferring it until a further bidding round;¹

(v)     That Members be kept informed of progress with this work.²

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To secure additional investment in youth facilities in the city in line with corporate priorities, and the views of residents and young people themselves.

This report analyses performance by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all of the services funded through the Children & Young People’s Services budget.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the performance of services within the directorate funded through the Children & Young People’s Services budget be noted;

(ii)         That the budget virements set out at Table 1 be agreed;

(iii)       That the Executive be requested to agree to release the following amounts currently contained within the Corporate Contingency Budget:

·  £80k for Children’s Social Care Fostering;

·  £70k for Children’s Social Care Legal Fees;

·  £72k for increased Legal Fee Charges from the Justice’s Department;

·  £40k for Music Service income shortfall.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:In order to ensure appropriate performance management arrangements are in place for the work of the directorate and that revenue budgets are monitored and controlled effectively.

Members received a report which analysed performance by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all of the services funded through the Children & Young People’s Services budget.

The report showed steady progress in the first period of the year against the service plans.  The original net budget for 2008/09 was set at £29,179k and no changes had been made so far this year.  In total the projected net outturn for 2008/09 was £29,981k, leaving a projected net overspend of £802k (2.7%), of which £173k was from the ring-fenced Dedicated Schools Grant and £629k from the General Fund.

A brief update was provided on key stage test results and also A Level results.  A full presentation of these would be provided at the next meeting of the Executive Member and Advisory Panel.  Members also congratulated York College on their examination results.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the performance of services within the directorate funded through the Children & Young People’s Services budget be noted;

(ii)         That the budget virements set out at Table 1 be agreed;¹

(iii)       That the Executive be requested to agree to release the following amounts currently contained within the Corporate Contingency Budget:²

·  £80k for Children’s Social Care Fostering;

·  £70k for Children’s Social Care Legal Fees;

·  £72k for increased Legal Fee Charges from the Justice’s Department;

·  £40k for Music Service income shortfall.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:In order to ensure appropriate performance management arrangements are in place for the work of the directorate and that revenue budgets are monitored and controlled effectively.

This report informs Members of the likely outturn position of the 2008/09 Capital Programme, advises of changes to existing schemes and reprofiling of expenditure to allow the more effective management and monitoring of the Programme, presents any slippage in budgets between financial years, and details any new schemes and seeks approval for their addition to the 2008/11 Capital Programme.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the capital programme forecast outturn for 2008/09, as shown in Annex A of the report , be noted;

(ii)         That the additions and amendments to the capital programme outlined in the report and summarised in Annex A be approved;

(iii)       That the scheme reprofiling and slippage outlined in the report and summarised in Annex A be approved;

(iv)        That the revised capital programme, as shown in Annex A of the report, be agreed, subject to the approval of the Executive.

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To enable the effective management and monitoring of the capital programme.

Members received a report which informed them of the likely outturn position of the 2008/09 Capital Programme, advised of changes to existing schemes and reprofiling of expenditure to allow the more effective management and monitoring of the Programme, presented any slippage in budgets between financial years, and detailed any new schemes and sought approval for their addition to the 2008/11 Capital Programme.

Annex A provided a scheme-by-scheme update to the 2008/11 programme, detailing predicted variances and the resulting amendments to the programme.

It was reported that there was one new scheme that required adding to the Capital Programme as part of the monitoring report.  Youth Capital Fund allocations had been announced for the period 2008/11.  City of York had been allocated £70k a year for each of the three years.  At present no decisions had been made on the allocation of this funding to projects.

Members congratulated officers on the effective delivery of the capital programme.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the capital programme forecast outturn for 2008/09, as shown in Annex A of the report, be noted;

(ii)         That the additions and amendments to the capital programme outlined in the report and summarised in Annex A be approved;¹

(iii)       That the scheme reprofiling and slippage outlined in the report and summarised in Annex A be approved;²

(iv)        That the revised capital programme, as shown in Annex A of the report, be agreed, subject to the approval of the Executive.³

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:To enable the effective management and monitoring of the capital programme.

This report seeks the Executive Member’s approval for the award of a tender, other than the lowest cost tender, for the provision of ICT at York High School, in accordance with the Council’s Financial Regulations.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the contract for ICT procurement at York High School be awarded to Equanet using the Dell solution (Tender C in Annex A of the report).

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:On the basis that the solution provides the best value for the school.

Members received a report which sought approval for the award of a tender, other than the lowest cost tender, for the provision of ICT at York High School, in accordance with the Council’s Financial Regulations.

The report presented the following options for consideration:

·  Option A – To award the contract to Equanet (Tender C in Annex A of the report);

·  Option B – To accept the lowest priced quote.

Advice of the Advisory Panel

That the Executive Member be advised:

(i)           That the contract for ICT procurement at York High School be awarded to Equanet using the Dell solution (Tender C in Annex A of the report).¹

Decision of the Executive Member

RESOLVED:That the advice of the Advisory Panel be accepted and endorsed.

REASON:On the basis that the solution provides the best value for the school.