MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE POLICY AND FINANCE COMMITTEE HELD IN THE PARISH COUNCIL OFFICE ON WEDNESDAY 9TH SEPTEMBER 2009
Present:
Councillor Paul Bicknell Councillor Steven Mountain Councillor Nigel Nunn
(Chairman)
In attendance: Councillor Chris Verrinder Mr Norman Hadley Mr D. Harris
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APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies were received from Councillors Pat Turner and Trish Stephenson. DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS There were no declarations of interests. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES The minutes of the Policy and Finance Committee meeting held on 8th July 2009 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman. COMMUNITY CENTRE PROJECT The Clerk reported that the relevant solicitors were still in discussion regarding the lease and it was well on its way to completion. He also reported that we were awaiting an insurance quote from Allianz. Councillor Steven Mountain reported that the Community Centre was due to be handed over from the contractors on 24th September 2009, if the lease was not complete he felt the Council needed to have a contingency plan in place and requested that this be considered. CLERK’S REPORT ON STAFFING/OFFICE ISSUES. Councillor Nunn said that the Parish had grown considerably over the past few years and staffing requirements had changed therefore is had asked the Clerk to compile a report for the Council. The Clerk said that over the past few weeks he had assessed the office/staffing requirements, he had also taken advice from the Sussex Association of Local Councils. The following were his observations:
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Staffing
The Council’s current establishment was: • The Clerk (25 hours per week plus evening meetings) • Senior Assistant Clerk (20 hours plus evening meetings) • Assistant Clerk (20 hours plus evening meetings). Staff were given time off in lieu or paid overtime for time spent above their basic contractual hours, e.g. for evening meetings, although it had been the practice to give time in lieu. The established staff were dedicated and hard-working. Their working hours coincided with the hours which the Parish Office was open to the public and attendance at meetings. The Assistant Clerk’s contract wass temporary and should be placed on a proper footing. Members should be aware that it was the position which is to be made permanent. The staff had been struggling to manage the workload and to catch up as a result of staff changes and vacancies over the past nine months. When new staff were employed there was always a period of adjustment and familiarisation. Staff were subject to the demands of a constant cycle of agenda preparation, attending meetings, writing minutes and actioning committee instructions. This meant that staff could not be as proactive as would be ideal. Certain tasks were not adequately covered by staff. That was not a criticism but a statement of fact. This had come to pass through insufficient resource in the office but also by an assumption by Members of what should properly be work undertaken by staff, often through Members’ commendable willingness to help and to bring their expertise to bear. Such tasks had included payroll, account preparation, audit papers, VAT returns and contract management. The cyclical tasks over a year needed more organisation on a more effective and efficient basis. There needed to be a greater awareness of and an audit of strategies and policies of the Council and of its assets, contracts and timetables. Constrained resources had meant fire fighting and a less than communicative management style in the past had led to the staff being not aware of and having at their fingertips key documents and materials. An audit of strategies and policies and action to plug any gaps would enable staff and Members to be better acquainted with what the Council was about and allow it to proceed with direction in the future, particularly if the Council had aspirations of becoming a quality council. There was a need for a rebalancing of the respective roles of members and officers. Details of a model member/officer protocol were presented. The desirability of a dedicated resource to monitor and manage the Council’s grounds maintenance responsibilities and contractors was described.
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Meeting Management
The law relating to agenda preparation was described. Good practice on meeting management and the documentation of decisions was to be encouraged.
Calendar of meetings A rebalancing of the respective roles of Members and officers and more rigorous approach to meeting management had led to a reconsideration of the numbers of meetings necessary for the effective discharge of the Council's business. Currently there were around 62 meetings a year. Most councils do not have non-planning meetings in August for the simple expedient that the Summer tends to be a fallow period and attendance at meetings was affected by holiday commitments. Moving to a six weekly cycle for all meetings (other than Planning) and a three weekly cycle for Planning meetings and making more effective use of the Policy and Finance Committee would reduce the number of meetings without affecting the Council's work. Office accommodation and systems The current office working environment was not ideal. The furniture was a mixture of cast offs and not suited to either a professional office or the public face of the Council. Storage arrangements were not adequate. The IT system was antiquated. Although new IT equipment has been procured it has lain uninstalled for months because the Member responsible had, unsurprisingly, many other commitments. There were no office cleaning arrangements. Heating and ventilation left much to be desired Member satisfaction and training The importance of member training and involvement was stressed and proposals outlined. Recommendations to Council
i) ii) iii) iv) v) vi) vii)
viii) ix) x)
to note the engagement of SALC to advise on the recruitment of a new Clerk to agree to the employment of a Clerk for 37 hours per week within the range of SCP 35-38 (£28,947-£31,439) (see Appendix B) to agree to the increase in the Senior Assistant Clerk’s hours from a basic 20 per week to 25 to make the Assistant Clerk’s position permanent to note that a further report regarding the management of grounds maintenance will be brought forward to note the actions taken to bring the administration up to date to ask the new Clerk to undertake an audit of the Council’s strategies, policies, registers of assets and contracts and procedures and to effect wider knowledge, updating and improvement to approve the calendar of meetings for 2010 (Appendix C) to note the actions taken to effect administrative improvements to develop a five-year strategic plan and to ask the new Clerk to undertake the necessary work
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xi) xii) xiii) xiv)
to note the steps taken in connection with the office accommodation to appoint a Member as the champion for Member training to approve a supplementary revenue estimate for £6,618 in respect of the proposed uplift in the new Clerk’s salary to approve a supplementary revenue estimate for £1,311 in respect of the increase in the Senior Assistant Clerk’s hours.
Reasons for recommendations. i) ii) to ensure that the Council is equipped to fulfil its statutory obligations and can carry effectively efficiently and economically it discretionary functions to ensure that the Council is best placed to secure continuous improvement and to position itself for attaining quality status.
Councillor Nunn thanked the Clerk for all the work he had put into the report and proposed the recommendations be accepted. This was seconded by Councillor Mountain and approved by the full Committee. 09/31 SMALL GRANTS The Committee reviewed the request for grants and agreed the grants set out in the attached schedule. YOUTH COUNCIL Councillor Verrinder reported that the issue had been discussed at the Leisure committee meeting and that an article would go out in the next Parish Council newsletter advertising for prospective Youth Councillors. PAYBACK SCHEME The Committee noted the report and asked that Councillor Turner give a fuller report with details of the projects, planning, staffing and costs. ACTIONS TAKEN UNDER DELEGATED AUTHORITY The Clerk said there was nothing further to add as it had been covered in his full report to the Council. 2009/2010 BUDGET The current budget was noted. The Clerk said he would circulate a full balance sheet showing all earmarked funds to all Councillors. The Committee asked that the ‘Kickabout’ area be re-renamed Mayflower Park. 2010/2011 BUDGETS The Clerk reported that the new budgets needed to be presented at the Policy and Finance meeting on 25th November for recommendation to the full Council on 14th December 2009. The Committees needed to have their proposed budgets agreed at their October/November meetings. MATTERS OF URGENCY None.
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…………………………………… Committee Chairman
Date……………………….
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