Agenda and draft minutes

Scrutiny Board (Strategy and Resources) - Monday, 9th December, 2024 10.15 am

Venue: Civic Hall, Leeds, LS1 1UR. View directions

Contact: Robert Clayton 0113 378 8790  Email: robert.clayton@leeds.gov.uk

Link: to View Meeting Recording

Items
No. Item

47.

Appeals Against Refusal of Inspection of Documents

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 25* of the Access to Information Procedure Rules (in the event of an Appeal the press and public will be excluded).

 

(* In accordance with Procedure Rule 25, notice of an appeal must be received in writing by the Head of Governance Services at least 24 hours before the meeting).

Minutes:

There were no appeals.

48.

Exempt Information - Possible Exclusion of the Press and Public

1  To highlight reports or appendices which officers have identified as containing exempt information, and where officers consider that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, for the reasons outlined in the report.

 

2  To consider whether or not to accept the officers recommendation in respect of the above information.

 

3  If so, to formally pass the following resolution:-

 

RESOLVED – That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following parts of the agenda designated as containing exempt information on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the press and public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information, as follows:

 

  No exempt items have been identified.

Minutes:

There was no exempt information.

49.

Late Items

To identify items which have been admitted to the agenda by the Chair for consideration.

 

(The special circumstances shall be specified in the minutes.)

Minutes:

There were no late items.

50.

Declaration of Interests

To disclose or draw attention to any interests in accordance with Leeds City Council’s ‘Councillor Code of Conduct’.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

51.

Apologies for Absence and Notification of Substitutes

To receive any apologies for absence and notification of substitutes.

Minutes:

Theer were no apologies.

52.

Minutes - 14 October 2024 pdf icon PDF 162 KB

To confirm as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting held on 14 October 2024

Minutes:

Resolved - That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 14th October 2024 be approved as a correct record.

53.

Civic Enterprise Leeds - Catering and Cleaning pdf icon PDF 137 KB

To receive a report from the Interim Assistant Chief Executive Finance, Traded & Resources on Civic Enterprise Leeds (CEL) focussing on catering and cleaning services offered by the Council.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board received a report from the Interim Assistant Chief Executive Finance, Traded & Resources on Civic Enterprise Leeds (CEL) focussing on catering and cleaning services offered by the Council.

 

In attendance for this item were:

 

·  Cllr Debra Coupar, Executive Member for Resources

·  Victoria Bradshaw, Interim Assistant Chief Executive

·  Mandy Snaith, Deputy Chief Officer Civic Enterprise Leeds/Head of Catering and Fleet

·  Richard Jackson, Head of Passengers, Cleaning and Facilities Management

 

A presentation was made in support of the tabled report which covered the following key points:

 

·  An introduction to what each of the three services does – covering schools cleaning, Catering Leeds and Meals at Home.

·  On schools cleaning the service cleans 80 schools in and around Leeds employing 350, locally sourced, frontline staff who access market leading employment terms and conditions.

·  The service operates at a profit with a £274K return projected for the 2024/25 financial year. All work is won in a competitive market with price and productivity bench marking and annual reviews to maintain or increase annual returns.

·  On Catering Leeds, the Board heard that the service offers nutritional meals at 165 primary schools, 2 high schools and 20 early years settings. The service provides 29,000 meals per day and 5.5 million last year. The service responds to special dietary requirements with approximately 2,500 such meals being produced each day.

·  There are 893 staff employed across 194 locations. The service has played a significant role in the Healthy Holidays Programme which has made a real impact in disadvantaged communities.

·  The Meals at Home Service is highly valued by customers, many of them vulnerable, who are able to access the hot meal delivery service 365 days per year. This is a city wide service and also includes a welfare check on those receiving meals which adds significant value to the service in supporting people to live independently at home whilst also offering peace of mind for family and carers.

·  The budget is projected to have a small deficit of £51K in 2024/25 with plans to have a break even budget in 2025/26. Financial performance has improved significantly in the past 3 years.

 

In response to comments and questions from board members the following areas were discussed:

 

·  The Executive Board Member for Resources highlighted that it is a point of pride that Civic Enterprise Leeds (CEL) is operating in the city not just because of the excellent services and the work done but the wider benefits and added value that CEL brings. It was noted that the staff receive the real living wage, enjoy good terms and conditions and can access wider career pathways in the Council. The added value comes in many forms in well-being and fire safety checks, nutritional warm meals provided at schools and the benefits staff get compared to competitors in the same market. The work done by the service during the Covid Pandemic and in support of the healthy holidays programme was also referenced. The Executive Member passed on her thanks to those working  ...  view the full minutes text for item 53.

54.

Leeds City Council People Strategy pdf icon PDF 754 KB

To receive a report from the Interim Deputy Chief Executive Interim Assistant Chief Executive – People, Digital & Change setting out details on the Council’s new People Strategy as an item for pre-decision scrutiny activity.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board received a report from the Interim Assistant Chief Executive – People, Digital & Change setting out details on the Council’s new People Strategy as an item for pre-decision scrutiny activity.

 

In attendance or this item were:

 

·  Cllr Debra Coupar, Executive Member for Resources

·  Andy Dodman, Interim Assistant Chief Executive

·  Rachel Floyd, HR Service Manager

 

The Board received a presentation to support the report which covered the following key areas:

 

·  This is a pre-decision item, and this report provides some initial thinking and evaluation on the People Strategy, the current strategy that will expire in 2025 has been positive which means that a major overhaul is not required with the focus of the next version (running from 2025-2030) more on a refresh with the board asked for their thoughts and steer on it.

·  The positives of the 2020-25 People Strategy in terms of the refreshed council values and EDI policy initiatives, manger training through the Being Your Best Programme, improved approach to recruitment both in terms of the recruitment site and recruitment process, planned new support systems in HR and payroll through Core Business Transformation and support for apprenticeships through the Council and qualifying in the Top 100 Apprenticeships employers.

·  How the Council measures progress on employee matters through staff surveys, workforce data and feedback from appraisals, one to ones and training.

·  The work done to listen to key stakeholders such as Trade Unions, staff networks, the Freedom to Speak Up Guardian and the recent LGA Peer Challenge.

·  Key areas from the existing People Strategy that will be kept including the best place to work vision and employment cycle

·  Strengthen existing areas in the strategy such as the commitment to culture and values, EDI and Well Being, digital skills and transformation and career development and progression

·  New areas in the strategy will focus on a new title which will be the People and Culture Strategy 2025-2030, a focus on workforce planning and organisation design, work on how people work such as hybrid working and a stronger focus on productivity.

 

Following comments and questions from board members the following areas were covered:

 

·  On recruitment processes the board asked for more detail on how residents can access employment opportunities at the Council particularly relating to candidates who applied for a role at the Council but who are not successful. In response the Board heard that a new recruitment system has been in operation since August 2024 which includes the ability for candidates to use CVs. The new recruitment system does have much better functionality which will improve the experience for candidates.

·  The board noted that the recent EDI scrutiny statement would be considered as part of the development of the People and Culture Strategy. The statement and wider work will be used to refresh the five EDI pillars that have been considered by the Board in past years and the authority will have an ongoing commitment to EDI in the new strategy.

·  The Board asked about efforts to increase response rates to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 54.

55.

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 145 KB

To consider the Scrutiny Board’s work programme for the 2024/25 municipal year.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Board considered the Scrutiny Board’s work programme for the 2024/25 municipal year.

 

The Principal Scrutiny Adviser introduced the report setting out the Work Programme at Appendix 1 and the October and November Executive Board minutes at Appendices 2 and 3.

 

In addition, the board noted that an additional item on Health and Saftey has been added to the Work Programme since the Board last considered the Work Programme at the October meeting.

 

Resolved - Members noted the Board’s Work Programme for the 2024/25 municipal year.

 

Before concluding the meeting, the Chair hoped that all who were celebrating would have a Merry Christmas and happy and productive New Year.

 

Meeting closed at 12.15PM

 

56.

Date and Time of Next Meeting

The next public meeting of the Board will take place on 13 January 2025 at 10.30am. There will be a pre-meeting for all board members at 10.00am.

 

Minutes:

The next public meeting of the Board will take place on 13 January 2025, there will be a pre-meeting for all board members at 10.00am and a start time of 10.30AM.