Agenda and minutes

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests made.

(a)  To agree the minutes from the meetings of Cabinet on 4th and 10^th October 2017

(b)  Matters arising

The minutes of the meetings held on 4^th and 10^th October 2017 were agreed and signed as a true record. There were no matters arising.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (People)

The Cabinet considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (People) that sought agreement for the City Council to become part of a Regional Adoption Agency through a shared service arrangement with Solihull Metropolitan Council, Warwickshire County Council and Worcestershire County Council. The new Regional Adoption Agency to be known as Adoption Central England (ACE).

ACE would deliver the adoption agency functions of the four local authorities including the assessment, training and approval of adopters, the identification of prospective adopters for children who were in need of a new adoptive family and adoption support to adoptive families and some Special Guardianship support services.

Warwickshire County Council would become the host authority to facilitate the operational delivery of the shared service, however governance arrangements would ensure that all four authorities retained strategic responsibility for performance delivery and outcomes.

The matter had also been discussed at the Education and Childrens Services Scrutiny Board (2) at their meeting on 31^st October 2017 (their minute 22/17 referred) and the outcome of their consideration, which recommended that Cabinet accept the approach to a regional adoption agency, was set out in a Briefing Note appended to the report.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet:

1)  Agrees the recommendation from the Education and Childrens Services Scrutiny Board (2), that the approach to a regional adoption agency be accepted.

2)  Notes the outcomes of the engagement and consultation and the resulting equality impact assessment.

3)  Delegates authority to the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) (Legal Services) to finalise, and approve the Partnership and Hosting Agreement.

4)  Subject to recommendation 2 above, delegates authority to the Director of Children’s Services to sign on behalf of the City Council a partnership arrangement alongside Solihull Metropolitan Council, Warwickshire County Council and Worcestershire County Council for ACE to undertake the delivery of the City Council’s adoption service.

5)  Subject to recommendation 2 above, delegates authority to the Director of Children’s Services to sign on behalf of the City Council a partnership arrangement alongside Solihull Metropolitan Council, Warwickshire County Council and Worcestershire County Council for ACE to undertake the delivery of some of the City Council’s Special Guardianship services.

6)  Approves Warwickshire County Council becoming the host authority to facilitate the operational delivery of the adoption service and some Special Guardianship support services on behalf of Coventry City Council.

7)  Agrees the provisional financial proposals as outlined in the financial considerations section of the report below (paragraph 1.12 refers) to fund ACE (as agreed by the ACE Executive Board); and to delegate authority to the Section 151 Officer in consultation with the Director of Children’s Services to agree the final value of the total cash limit.

8)  Delegates authority to Deputy Chief Executive (People) (Human Resources) to progress staffing secondments to Warwickshire County Council as the host authority and to review the status of those agreements within the first twelve months.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (People)

The Cabinet considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (People) that would also be considered at the meeting of the Council on 5^th December 2017, which provided notification that The Coventry Youth Offending Service (CYOS) Youth Justice Plan 2017-2018, a copy of which was attached as an appendix to the report, had been agreed and signed off by its Statutory Partners, and sought Council endorsement of the Plan.

Youth Offending Teams were established under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (CDA). The functions assigned to the YOS included the duty upon the Local Authority under the Children Act 1989 to take all reasonable steps to encourage children not to commit offences. The Act imposed a duty on each Local Authority acting in co-operation with its Statutory Partners (Police, Health and Probation), to ensure that all youth justice services were available in their area to such an extent as it appropriate for the area.

The key tasks of the service were:

·  Assessing and delivering interventions to the out-of-court-disposal cohort

·  Management and delivery of community sentences

·  Management  and delivery of secure estate sentences and resettlement

·  Servicing the Youth Court and Crown Courts (in terms of provision of a court team, bail & health assessments, provision of pre-sentence reports and stand down reports)

·  Victim services

·  Parenting services and management of Parenting Orders

The CDA legislation also imposed a duty to complete and submit a Youth Justice Plan each year. The Plan provided an overview of CYOS achievements against key indicators, plans and targets, and identified the key strategic actions for the next 12 months.

Statutory Partners (Police Health, Probation, and Local Authority, represented by the Director of Children Services) agreed and signed off the Plan at CYOS Statutory Board meeting on 31st July 2017. 

RESOLVED that the Cabinet recommends that the Council endorses the Youth Justice Plan.

Report of the Chief Executive

The Cabinet considered a report of the Chief Executive that would also be considered by the Council at its meeting on 5^th December 2017, which consulted constituent authorities on the now prepared Governance review and scheme for the proposed governance model of the West Midlands Fire Service (under the Mayoral West Midlands Combined Authority) prior to going out for formal public consultation.

The Governance Review, detailed in Appendix A to the report, provided a review of existing governance arrangements and functions, this included the proposed new model under the Mayoral combined authority.

The Scheme, set out in Appendix B to the report, detailed the roles, accountabilities, and powers required by each individual /body in the proposed governance model.

Following constituent authority consultation on the Governance Review and Scheme, the Scheme must enter a formal public consultation in adherence to Section 112 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009.

The Government would use these documents and the results of the consultation to approve the model and create an order to amend existing legislation, in order to confer the necessary powers on the Mayoral West Midland Combined Authority to carry out the functions currently exercised by the West Midlands Fire and Rescue Authority.

The timetable for the proposals, set out in a table in the report, indicated that the WMFRA functions would finally transfer to the WMCA in November/ December 2018. Work was currently underway to implement a Reformed Fire Authority as an interim measure until WMFRA functions were transferred to and assumed by the Mayoral Combined Authority.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet:

1)  Agrees that proposed arrangements for West Midlands Fire Service should include the West Midland Combined Authority Fire Service budget being ring fenced for Fire Service functions.

2)  Approves the prepared governance review and scheme.

3)  Agrees to move forward to public consultation for the scheme and proposed governance model.

4)  Delegates authority as required to the Chief Executive to make minor amendments to the Governance review and Scheme on completion of the Local Authority approval process and prior to public consultation.

5)  Recommends that the Council approves recommendations 2, 3 and 4 above at its Council meeting on 5th December 2017.

6)  Supports/leads on the public consultation in the City of Coventry region on behalf of the West Midlands Combined Authority.

7)  Notes the timeline of governance route to Mayoral West Midlands Combined Authority.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

The Cabinet considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) that contained a list of outstanding issue items that would be submitted to future meetings of the Cabinet and summarised the current position in respect of each item.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet approves the dates for future consideration of matters relating to the outstanding issue items listed in the report.

There were no other items of public business.