Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors A J Jesson, C L Strange and Mrs C A Talbot and Mr C V Miller, Mrs E J Olivier-Townrow, Mr S C Rudman, Mr P Thompson and Mrs G Wright.

It was noted that the Chief Executive, having received a notice under Regulation 13 of the Local Government (Committees and Political Groups) Regulations 1990, had appointed Councillor R C Kirk as a replacement member of the Committee in place of Councillor P M Dilks, for this meeting only.

No declarations of Members' interests were made at this stage in the proceedings.

During consideration of the minutes of the Committee's meeting held on 27 March 2014, reference was made to the letter to Lincolnshire MPs (Minute 43 refers), and the Committee was advised that this letter had not yet been sent to the MPs as it was unclear as to whether there was an inequity in funding.  It was therefore suggested that this would be clarified with the relevant officers before any letter was sent. 

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee held on 27 March 2014 be confirmed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record. 

(To consider any Call-Ins, should any be received)

No Call-Ins had been received.

(To consider any proposals for Scrutiny Reviews, should any be received)

No proposals for Scrutiny Reviews had been received.

(To receive a report by David Hair (Team Leader Scrutiny and Member Support), which invites the Committee to consider a draft of the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report for 2013 - 2014)

The Committee considered a report by the Team Leader (Scrutiny and Member Support), which provided Members with the opportunity to discuss the contents of the draft Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report for 2013/2014.

It was reported that an Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report was prepared every year for consideration at the County Council’s Annual General Meeting.  This year’s report followed the format of the previous year in highlighting the key aspects of overview and scrutiny work undertaken during 2013/2014.  A copy of the draft document was appended to the report.

The following points were noted during discussion by the Committee: -

• Officers explained that previous reports had been quite detailed and lengthy so this report was purposely written in the style of a summary, highlighting key pieces of work that had been undertaken;
• It was suggested that the section on the Adults Scrutiny Committee could be reorganised with additional reference to the consideration of the development of key strategies;
• The outcomes of previous task and finish groups could be included within the report;
• A section on 'Referrals to the Secretary of State for Health' would be included, detailing any referrals made by the Health Scrutiny Committee for Lincolnshire;
• The section on schools would be expanded upon; and
• Reference would also be made to the wide range of speakers who had attended meetings of scrutiny committees.

In closing, it was noted that the approved Annual Report would be published on the Council’s Website.

RESOLVED

That the Team Leader (Scrutiny and Member Support) be requested to take into consideration the above suggestions prior to submitting the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report for 2013/2014 to the Annual General Meeting of the Council on 16 May 2014.

(To receive a report by David Hair (Team Leader Scrutiny and Member Support), which provides the Committee with an opportunity to consider its work programme and the work programmes for the Council's Scrutiny Committees)

Consideration was given to a report from the Team Leader (Scrutiny and Member Support), which provided the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee with an opportunity to consider its work programme and the work programmes of the Council's other Scrutiny Committees.  Copies of the individual work programmes were appended to the report and the following updates were received:-

i)                     Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee

No alterations were made to the work programme for the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee. 

Members were reminded that the Police and Crime Commissioner and Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police would be attending the Committee's meeting on 30 October 2014.

The Committee was advised that the Chief Information and Commissioning Officer would be attending a future meeting of the Committee to discuss the Council's Commissioning Approach.  Further to this, there was a general discussion about commissioning of contracts, in particular around accountability.  Members were assured that the performance monitoring of the transitional period for back office services would be undertaken by the Value for Money Scrutiny Committee.  The seventeen commissioning strategies were also discussed, where Members were advised that the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee would be required to consider where each one would be best scrutinised.

A discussion took place regarding the Review of the Council's Constitution, when it was suggested that an additional meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee may be required in August 2014.  This would provide the Committee with an opportunity to consider the amendments prior to them being submitted to the meeting of County Council on 26 September 2014, for approval.  Alternatively, it was suggested that the meeting of the Committee scheduled for 24 July 2014 was extended to an all-day meeting.

ii)                    Adults Scrutiny Committee

The Chairman advised that there were no amendments to the Committee's work programme.

However, the Chairman wished to highlight that on the Committee's agenda for 2 May 2014, the item on 'Healthwatch Lincolnshire Adult Care Involvement', would provide the Committee with an understanding of the developing role of Lincolnshire Healthwatch in relation to Adult Care.

Also, the Committee was scheduled to receive a presentation from the Business Manager of the Lincolnshire Carers and Young Carers Partnership at its meeting scheduled for 4 June 2014.  It was noted that support for carers was one of the Council's seventeen commissioning strategies and one of the four which falls within the remit of the Adults Scrutiny Committee.

iii)                   Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee

The Vice-Chairman advised Members that there were no amendments to the Committee's work programme. 

Members were advised that the Frontline Social Workers and Safeguarding Task and Finish Group was nearing the end of the Review.  It was next scheduled to meet on 28 April 2014 and would be speaking to the University of Lincoln regarding its social care degrees and training, and then to the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Board's Independent Chair, Business Manager and Police Protection Representative to discuss joint agency working and safeguarding training.

A question was raised in relation to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 52.