Agenda and minutes

Members are reminded that this meeting will be audio-recorded.

Members were reminded that this meeting would be audio recorded.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor D Bailey.

Members are reminded that the Members’ Code of Conduct requires the disclosure of Statutory Disclosable Pecuniary Interests, Non-Statutory Disclosable Pecuniary Interests and Disclosable Non-Pecuniary Interests.

There were no declarations.

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting of the Performance and Overview Committee held on 11^th July 2018.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]       The Minutes of the Performance and Overview Committee meeting held on 11^th July 2018 be confirmed as a correct record.

Consideration was given to a report of the Head of Finance which provided a review of the Service’s forecast financial performance and an update on progress against the 2018-19 capital projects.

Members were advised that that the original budget for 2018-19 approved by the Authority in February 2018 assumed that the Collection Fund position would be broadly neutral.  However, the position relating to the Collection Funds that were managed by the four unitary authorities had now become clearer.  The Authority would receive £0.5m as its share of the surplus on the council tax collection funds and would make a contribution of £28k to a deficit on the business rates collection funds: a net additional £482k available during 2018-19 when compared to the original budget.

The 2018-19 approved budget included one-off items funded from reserves £0.4m together with a contribution to the capital reserves of £0.9m, a net £0.5m funding transferred from reserves. At Quarter 1, the forecast showed a provisional net contribution to reserves of £86k.  This reduction in the use of reserves was due to the surplus on council tax collection funds, which negated the use of reserves as originally envisaged.  A breakdown of the movement from reserves was detailed in Appendix 2 of the report.

At the end of June 2018, the Fire Authority had an approved capital programme of £9.8m. Since then a number of additional schemes had been approved that were detailed at Appendix 3 of the report.

A Member sought clarity as to why capital funding which had been earmarked for the Hazardous Material Unit replacement had not been utilised. An officer confirmed that through station engagement and the HMEPO Officer Group an alternative capability to merge two appliances into one was determined to be a more viable option. This resulted in the Environment Protection Unit and the Hazardous Material Unit capability being stowed on a dedicated pod system based at Powey Lane Fire Station.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]       The forecast outturn position as detailed within the report be noted.

[2]       The movement in reserves as detail in Appendix 2 of the report be approved.

Consideration was given to a report of the Chief Fire Officer and Chief Executive which provided an update on the Service’s 2018-19 Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP) programmes and projects. 

Progress was reported in the form of a quarterly health report to the Service’s Performance and Programme Board (members of Service Management Team). The Service’s Performance and Programme Board was responsible for ensuring the successful delivery of programmes and projects contained in the Authority’s IRMP annual action plans. The health report for the Quarter 1 of 2018-19, was attached at Appendix 1 to the report.

A Member referred to the Blue Light Collaboration Programme and sought confirmation that the programme would be completed by 29th October 2018. In response, the Director of Governance and Commissioning advised that the programme would not complete by this date and that officers were re-planning a major element (the Multi Force Shared Service), which was now expected to complete in 2019. He reassured Members that despite the unwanted delay, the Service was in a reasonably good position because existing contractual arrangements could be extended and were not unduly expensive. An update to Members would be prepared in due course.

A Member sought clarity on the current position of the Cardiac Arrest Response Project. The Chief Fire Officer and Chief Executive advised that there had been no progress with this project as it remained on hold awaiting the outcomes of the national discussions for the wider firefighter role linked to pay and conditions.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      The Quarter 1 Programme Report 2018-19 be noted.

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Protection and Organisational Performance provided an update on the Service’s performance against the key performance indicators (KPIs) for Quarter 1 2018-19. Appendix 1 of the report contained a corporate performance scorecard reflecting the Quarter 1 position against targets set and the year-on-year direction of travel for the Service’s KPIs. Appendix 2 of the report which contained a detailed description of each KPI, including a summary of current performance and any actions taken to improve performance. A Summary Report was included on Halton Helps home safety equipment which advised that by May 2018 a total of 500 home safety checks had taken place for Halton families and of these visits, 416 had led to the installation of safety equipment by the Service.

Further information was provided by the Officers on KPIs that had a red progress status with specific reference being made to working days lost to injury, number of non domestic premises fire safety orders completed, and on-call availability.

Members raised a series of queries and comments regarding ‘On-Call Availability. In response, an officer advised that a number of stations were operating below optimum establishment levels and a project was being developed that would include several work streams including recruitment retention and recognition all with a view to increasing on call availability.

Members were advised that on call firefighters had been used to provide cover in Greater Manchester and at the moorland fires over recent months.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      The Quarter 1 Performance Report and comments raised be noted.

Kevin Lloyd, Assistant Director from Mersey Internal Audit Agency (MIAA) was in attendance at the meeting to present the 2018-19 Internal Audit Progress Report and the consolidated Follow Up Report September 2018 as detailed at Appendix 1 and 2 of the report.

The progress report provided an update in respect of the assurance, key issues and progress against the Interim Audit Plan for 2018-19. It was reported that the following work was in progress and would be reported to the Committee following completion:-

-       Operational Training – Fieldwork Complete and to be submitted to the next meeting on 28^th November 2018;

-       Safe and Well – Terms of Reference in development and to be submitted to the next meeting on 28^th November 2018;

-       National Fraud Initiative – To be submitted to the meeting on 27^th February 2019.

The follow up report showed that some recommendations had not been implemented and there was some narrative to explain the current position.

A Member referred to ‘Recommendation 3 – Fire Cadets’ and sought clarity on when the proposed ‘Corporate Fundraising Policy’ would be approved. In response, the Chief Fire Officer and Chief Executive advised that Policy had now been drafted and was in the process of being reviewed by the Legal Department prior to formal approval and implementation by the end of October 2018.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      The 2018-19 Internal Audit Progress Report and the consolidated Follow Up Report September 2018 be noted.

Consideration was given to a report, which provided an update on the initiatives supported and funded by the Unitary Performance Groups (UPGs) during 2017-18 and Quarter 1 of 2018-19. This report had been produced at the request of the Chair and would be presented to this meeting on an annual basis.

It was reported that the UPG meetings provided an opportunity for local Cheshire Fire Authority Members to engage with officers from Service Delivery, Prevention and Protection to scrutinise performance at a local level.  The UPG also developed initiatives which assisted with improving performance and outcomes for the communities within each unitary area. The UPGs received £25k per year to enable them to consider and approve funding bids for activities within their areas. Information on some of the initiatives supported and funded by the UPGs during 2017-18 and Quarter 1 of 2018-19 were detailed at Appendix 1 of the report.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      That the content of the report and comments raised be noted.

Consideration was given to a report of the Director of Transformation which provided a summary of key issues identified in the Service’s Annual Equality Report 2017-18 which was attached at Appendix 1 of the report.

The report was divided into two sections:  Internal Employment (including recruitment monitoring) and Service Delivery which covered the monitoring and analysis of external service users who either interact with the service in respect of prevention and protection activities or have been affected by community risks and incidents.  Work was already underway to try to ensure that any issues highlighted within the report including challenges and ongoing priorities for 2018-19 were being addressed appropriately.

A Member asked if joint work took place with the Constabulary on equality and diversity. In response, an officer advised that a number of joint training and networking sessions had taken place with the Constabulary which had been a success.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      The Annual Equality and Monitoring Report 2017-18 be noted.

The table includes those items that have been identified/agreed to-date.  Members are asked to agree any additional items at the end of the meeting which need to be added to the programme.

Consideration was given to the Committee’s Forward Work Programme for 2018-19 which identified the reports to be submitted to future meetings of the Committee. Members were requested to agree any additional items to be included in the programme.

RESOLVED: That:

[1]      The content of the Committee’s Forward Work Programme for 2018-19 be noted.