Cabinet – 27 January 2020

Chairman:  Councillor R Waltham MBE
Venue:  Conference Room, Church Square House, Scunthorpe
Time:  5pm
E-Mail Address: richard.mell@northlincs.gov.uk

AGENDA

1.  Declarations of Disclosable Pecuniary Interests and Personal or Personal and Prejudicial interests.

2.  To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 23 September 2019.

3.  Budget Review 2019-20 and Medium Term Financial Plan Update – Report of the Director: Governance and Partnerships.

4.  Annual Review of Local Arrangements to Safeguard and Promote the Welfare of Children and Young People 2018/19 – Report of the Director: Children and Community and Resilience.

5.  Local Safeguarding Adults Board Annual Report 2018/19 – Report of the Director: Adults and Community Wellbeing.

6.  The Director of Public Health’s Annual Report (DPHAR)

7.  North Lincolnshire’s Annual Education Report 2018/19 – Report of the Director: Learning, Skills and Culture

8.  Regulation of Investigatory Powers 2000 (RIPA) – Update – Report of the Director: Governance and Partnerships.

9.  Any other items which the Chairman decides are urgent by reason of special circumstances which must be specified.

MINUTES

PRESENT: –  Councillor Waltham MBE in the Chair.

Councillors Hannigan (vice-chair), J Davison, Marper, Poole, Rose and C Sherwood.

Councillors Ali, Bainbridge, A Davison, L Foster, O’Sullivan, Rayner, Swift, Wells, Wilson, Yeadon also attended the meeting.

Denise Hyde, Simon Green, Mick Gibbs, Becky McIntyre, Helen Manderson, Karen Pavey, Penny Spring, Peter Thorpe, Will Bell, Moira Wilson, Chief Superintendent Darren Wildbore and Richard Mell attended the meeting.

The meeting was held at the Church Square, Scunthorpe.

1352   DECLARATIONS OF DISCLOSABLE PECUNIARY INTERESTS AND PERSONAL OR PERSONAL AND PREJUDICIAL INTERESTS – There were no declarations of interest declared.

1353   MINUTES – Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting of Cabinet held on 23 September 2019 having been printed and circulated amongst the members, be taken as read and correctly recorded and be signed by the chairman.

1354 BUDGET REVIEW 2019-20 AND MEDIUM TERM FINANCIAL PLAN UPDATE – The Director: Governance and Partnerships submitted a report informing the Cabinet of (i) current progress in respect of revenue and capital investment against limits set in 2019/20, (ii) of the latest revised revenue and capital budget, amended under delegated powers within the parameters set by Council, (iii) that cash balances and debt were being managed in line with the council’s approved treasury management strategy and (iv) providing cabinet with a Medium Financial Plan 2020/23.

The Director in her report summarised the above performance and information under the following headings with supporting appendices –

  • Budget Adjustments;
  • Capital Investment 2019/20
  • Treasury Management, and
  • 2020/23 Medium Term Financial Planning Process.

Resolved – (a) That the revenue and capital budget monitoring position for  2019/20, as set out in appendix 1 to the report, and action being taken to identify and develop solutions to identified risks be noted; (b) that the revenue budget adjustments approved under delegated powers and revised budget position for 2019/20 summarised in appendix 2 to the report, be noted; (c) that the revised capital investment programme for 2019/22 summarised in appendix 3 to the report, be approved; (d) that the 2020/23 Medium Term Financial Plan update set out in appendix 4 to the report be approved, and (e) that the approved Treasury Management Strategy at appendix 5 of the report be noted.

1355   ANNUAL REVIEW OF LOCAL AARANGEMENTS TO SAFEGUARD AND PROMOTE THE WELFARE OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE 2018/19 – The Director: Children and Community Resilience submitted a report on the publication of the Annual Review of Local Arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people 2018/19, and to consider the review in relation to planning, commissioning and budget setting.  The review demonstrated that the Children’s Multi Agency Resilience and Safeguarding (MARS) Board (formerly the LSCB):

  • Proactively planned for and implemented legislative changes (transitioning from the LSCB to Children’s MARS arrangements);
  • Effectively met its statutory obligations;
  • Benefitted from strong and consistent leadership;
  • Had made good progress against its areas of focus, and
  • Listened and responded to the voices of children and young people.

The report explained that North Lincolnshire was aspirational for children, young people and families in this area and under the auspices of the Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB), there was a long history of working together to improve outcomes.  This continued throughout the transition from the LSCB to the new Children’s MARS arrangements, and as early adopters, local arrangements were published on 31 October 2018.  As part of being an early adopter, there were opportunities to build on already robust arrangements, to test further and develop the local approach and lead the way in developing and implementing new innovations.  Approaches have been developed for scrutiny and assurance resulting in an even more transparent and inclusive approach and the relationship with schools and colleges had been strengthened, building on good levels of engagement through a range of mechanisms. Having listened, learned, reviewed and adapted, the Children’s MARS arrangements have been reviewed and republished in June 2019.

In accordance with Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018, there was a statutory requirement to publish an annual review, which set out what had been done as a result of the local multi agency safeguarding arrangements.  The review had been endorsed by the Children’s MARS Board on behalf of the three safeguarding partners from North Lincolnshire Council, North Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group and Humberside Police.  The review was then required to be distributed through relevant governance routes across the three safeguarding partner organisations and relevant partnership arrangements, to be considered in relation to planning, commissioning and budget setting.

The Director in his report stated that the annual review provided a review of  activity and impacts in respect of Children’s MARS functions, including funding, performance, voice and stakeholder engagement, training, scrutiny and assurance and child safeguarding practice reviews. The full Review document which was attached as an appendix to the report –

  • Outlined developments and progress in relation to five intents;
  • Summarised significant achievements highlighted in the annual review covering April 2018 to June 2019;
  • Summarised significant partnership action pertaining the three areas of focus which had impacted on children, young people and families – Reducing the harm from child exploitation, reducing the harm from domestic abuse and reducing the harm from neglect, and
  • Outlined areas of focus for 2019/20.

Chief Superintendent Darren Wildbore, chair of the MARS attended the meeting and highlighted the above key elements of the Review document.

Members commented on the contents of the report and the annual report and thanked everyone involved for their work.

Resolved – That the Annual Review of Local Arrangements to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people 2018/19 be received, and it be considered where relevant in relation to planning, commissioning and budgets setting processes.

1356  LOCAL SAFEGUARDING ADULTS BOARD (LSAB) – ANNUAL REPORT 2018/19 – The Director: Adults and Community Wellbeing submitted a report requesting Cabinet to note the publication of the Local Safeguarding Adults Board Annual Report 2018/2019, and to consider it in relation to commissioning, planning and budget setting. The Annual Report had also been submitted to the Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable of Humberside Police, Healthwatch and the Health and Wellbeing Board. The Independent Chair of the Board, Moira Wilson, introduced and summarised the annual report. The annual report was attached as an appendix to the Director’s report.

The Local Safeguarding Adults Board (LSAB) had a statutory requirement to publish an annual report which offered assurance that local safeguarding arrangements and partners worked together to help and protect adults with care and support needs in its area. The guidance supporting the Care Act 2014 stated that the LSAB must publish an annual report detailing what it had done during the year to achieve its main objectives and deliver its strategic plan priorities, as well as detailing the findings of any Safeguarding Adult Reviews (SARs) that may have been undertaken.

The Director’s report outlined the progress made in respect of the LSCBs priorities for 2017/18, which were Keeping Adults Safe at Home, Raise Awareness on Keeping People Safe and Keeping Adults Safe in Care and Health Settings. The report also summarised its achievements throughout the year and the success of leading multi-agency safeguarding effectively.

Members commented on the contents of the annual report and thanked everyone involved for their work.

Resolved – That the LSAB Annual Report for 2018/2019 be received and its publication noted, and it be considered in relation to planning, commissioning and budget setting.

1357   THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC HEALTH’S ANNUAL REPORT (DPHAR) – The Director of Public Health submitted a report presenting the Annual Report of the Director of Public Health (DPH). The report was made in video format, primarily to increase accessibility and dissemination and was hosted on the popular video sharing platform and the following link below to it would be shared through a number of means.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4121gHVbsQ0&feature=youtu.be

The annual report showcased the exemplary public health related activity that was taking place across the place of North Lincolnshire in support of promoting the health and wellbeing of local people, and delivering agreed health and wellbeing related priorities. The report also explained that the Director of Public Health (DPH) was an independent advocate for the health of the population of North Lincolnshire, and played a key role in providing system leadership for service improvement, resident health and wellbeing, and health protection. The independence was expressed through the DPH Annual Report – an important document which provided advice and recommendations on population health to both professionals and the public, providing added value over and above local intelligence.

The annual report was the DPH’s professional judgement and statement about the health of local communities. It was intended to be useful for both professionals and the public. Key functions of the report were –

  • to present an annual review of public health outcomes and activities;
  • to identify key issues and trends;
  • to provide a report on progress on our overarching priorities going forward, and
  • to inform stakeholders of priorities and recommended actions to improve and protect the health of local communities.

Resolved – (a) That the Director of Public Health’s Annual Report and its recommendations be noted and welcomed, and (b) that the Annual Report be disseminated widely, emphasising the good practice achieved around key public health priorities across North Lincolnshire.

1358    NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE’S S ANNUAL EDUCTION REPORT 2018/19 – The Director: Learning, Skills and Culture submitted a report requesting cabinet to receive North Lincolnshire’s Annual Education Report and to note its publication.

The Director in his report explained that North Lincolnshire Council had a statutory duty to ensure area-wide standards and educational excellence for all our children. Alongside this was a firm commitment to ensuring that vulnerable children access high quality, inclusive provision in local communities. Through a strategy of partnership working and sector-led improvement, the council and its partners in the education community had set the shared ambition of attaining top-quartile performance measures, reaching the highest standards of provision, and achieving the best outcomes for children and young people.

The Council continued to prioritise education outcomes for all children and young people. The Annual Education Report for 2018/19 provided a position statement on the quality of education in North Lincolnshire, celebrated achievements by children and their schools and settings, and shares developments and successes across the sector that contribute towards children’s and young people’s outcomes. The Annual Education Report which was attached as an appendix, concluded with areas of further focus for the next 12 months.

Resolved – That the publication of the North Lincolnshire Annual Education Report for 2018/19 be noted.

1359  REGULATION OF INVESTIGATORY POWERS ACT 2000 (RIPA) – The Director: Governance and Partnerships submitted a report on the council’s activity relating to surveillance matters under the RIPA regime.

The Director explained that RIPA provided a legislative framework which detailed a system of authorisation which existed to secure the lawfulness of surveillance activities and ensure that they were consistent with obligations under the Human Rights Act 1998. The different types of authorisation included covert surveillance directed at a person(s); the use of a “covert human intelligence source” (CHIS) which involved the establishing of a relationship for the covert purpose of obtaining information and access to communications data such as telephone subscriber details and itemised phone logs.

Between 1st January 2019 and 31st December 2019 one RIPA request was authorised relating to Communications Data.  No authorisations were granted in relation to Directed Surveillance and Covert Human Intelligence Source matters.  Technological advances were enabling officers to locate information legally through open source research reducing the need to use covert operations.

The report also stated that in September 2019 relevant officers attended a training update session relating to the authorisation of Communications Data applications and in particular noted that recent changes dictated that requests for Communication data should be submitted through the Office for Communications Data Authorisations. At this training an update was also provided in relation to the open source research resources publicly available.

Resolved – That the report be noted.