Agenda and minutes

The Chairman announced that the meeting was being recorded for broadcast on the County Council’s website and would be available for repeated viewing.  The press and members of the public were also permitted to film and broadcast this meeting.  Those remaining at the meeting were consenting to being filmed and recorded, and to the possible use of those images and recording for broadcasting purposes.

To receive any apologies for absence received.

Apologies were received from Councillors Mans and Reid.

All Members who believe they have a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting must declare that interest and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3 Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore all Members with a Non-Pecuniary interest in a matter being considered at the meeting should consider whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 2 of the Code, consider whether it is appropriate to leave the meeting while the matter is discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest in any matter considered at the meeting they must declare that interest at the time of the relevant debate and, having regard to the circumstances described in Part 3, Paragraph 1.5 of the County Council's Members' Code of Conduct, leave the meeting while the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with Paragraph 1.6 of the Code. Furthermore Members were mindful that where they believed they had a Non-Pecuniary interest in a matter being considered at the meeting they considered whether such interest should be declared, and having regard to Part 5, Paragraph 2 of the Code, considered whether it was appropriate to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed, save for exercising any right to speak in accordance with the Code.

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting held on 3 February 2017.

The minutes of the meeting held on 3 February 2017 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any deputations notified under Standing Order 12.

No deputation requests had been received. It was confirmed that Councillor Porter would speak at item 9 on the agenda with the agreement of the Chairman.

To receive any announcements the Chairman may wish to make.

The Chairman welcomed Members to the final Cabinet meeting of the current administration prior to the County Council elections in May. He highlighted that the trend of increasing pressures on services such as highways and social care over the past four years followed a pattern that could be seen over the past 100 years. Despite reductions in funding, the Council Tax in the county was the second lowest in the country and although the focus had to be on fulfilling statutory responsibilities, there remained a commitment to maintaining other services. The Chairman paid tribute to the work of the Cultural Trust in Hampshire. He also recorded the congratulations of Cabinet to Councillor Chapman (Chairman of the County Council) on the success of a recent concert which took place at the Anvil in Basingstoke and for his unstinting support for the Hampshire Music Service over many years.

The Chairman emphasised his preference for and commitment to partnership working in Hampshire over any attempt to divide or break up the County Council.

To receive a report of the Director of Transformation and Governance outlining the findings of the recent audit of the County Council by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Transformation and Governance regarding the findings of the Audit Inspection by the Information Commissioner’s Office (Item 6 in the Minute Book).

The report was introduced and the nature of the inspection was outlined. It was heard that there had been a focus on three key areas and an overall assessment rating of “High Assurance”. It was confirmed that this was a particularly high level of recognition achieved by very few organisations and reflected the commitment of staff, the quality of the IT system and the numerous examples of best practice that could be demonstrated. Cabinet welcomed the report and the inspection outcomes.

With an update to recognise the important role of the staff in the outcome of the inspection, the recommendations within the report were proposed and agreed. The decision record is attached.

To receive a report of the Director of Economy, Transport and Environment with an update to the Corporate Sustainability Policy.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Economy, Transport and Environment seeking approval to the Corporate Sustainability Policy be updated and formally adopted (Item 7 in the Minute Book).

The background to the report was set out, in particular the importance of being able to demonstrate sustainable business practices in light of an increase in traded services.

Cabinet recognised that sustainability had been central to County Council policy for many years and was taken into account as part of the decision making processes. It was also noted that this had resulted in a saving of £29 million in reduced energy consumption alongside additional savings that had been achieved by schools in Hampshire. The report demonstrated that true sustainability joined up social, economic and environmental issues. It had further demonstrated the importance of sustainability to the County Council.

The recommendations within the report were proposed and agreed. The decision record is attached.

To receive a report of the Director of Economy, Transport and Environment with proposals for a Cabinet Advisory Sub-committee for Economic Development.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Economy, Transport and Environment giving details of the Cabinet Advisory Sub-Committee and Business Engagement Forum and their respective terms of reference (Item 8 in the Minute Book).

It was explained that this report followed the decision of Cabinet in December 2016 to establish the advisory sub-committee to promote and define the role of the County Council in economic development. In particular this would serve to provide a means of engagement and support with the LEPs and business. The proposed terms of reference were set out.

Cabinet welcomed the report and noted the ability of the County Council to work across the whole of Hampshire and to drive improvement through taking a leadership role on major projects, such as the Whitehill-Bordon development, for which the specific role played by Ian Parker was recognised. The benefits of a co-ordinated approach with regards: infrastructure, school provision, healthcare and skills and training were highlighted.

The recommendations within the report were proposed and agreed. The decision record is attached.

To receive a report of the Director of Children’s Services outlining attainment information for Hampshire Schools.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Director of Children’s Services regarding educational attainment of children and young people in Hampshire in 2015/16 (Item 9 in the Minute Book).

The report was introduced and the respective levels of attainment at each Key Stage in comparison with statistical neighbours and with the national average were detailed. Cabinet heard that in a large number of these measures, Hampshire was leading the way and furthermore were given details of the actions being taken to continue improvement.

Members welcomed the report and the high level of achievement that had been achieved, paying tribute to the school improvement service and agreeing that despite this there should be no complacency.

With the agreement of the Chairman, Councillor Porter addressed Cabinet. She welcomed the good results, noting that they were reflective of Hampshire’s record of achievement. She expressed her support for the continuation of a school improvement service for the benefit and improvement of all schools in the area. Councillor Porter urged Cabinet not to seek funding for grammar schools in the County, highlighting the actions of a cross-Party Parliamentary group to oppose grammar schools. She felt that were these to go ahead, they would increase the overall cost of education and result in insufficient teachers for the number of pupils.

It was confirmed that the County Council had contributed to the LGA response to the government Green Paper regarding grammar schools and that there was not support for academic selection at the age of 11, although the success of selective VI Form education in the area was noted. The real challenge of the provision of sufficient school places in light of inward migration to the County was highlighted and it was acknowledged that this was a result of the consistently high performance of Hampshire schools. Cabinet was committed to continuing to strive for all schools to be judged Good or Outstanding and to supporting every child to achieve their best.

The recommendations within the report were proposed and agreed. The decision record is attached.

To receive a report of the Director of Children’s Services providing an overview of the recent Joint Targeted Area Inspection.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Director of Director of Children’s Services giving an overview of the recent Joint Targeted Area Inspection of the multi-agency response to abuse and neglect in Hampshire and the positive letter of findings (Item 10 in the Minute Book).

Details of the multi-agency inspection focussing on support to young people at risk of domestic abuse were presented to Cabinet. The importance of the safeguarding of young people was recognised by Cabinet, who welcomed the County Council’s ability to co-ordinate partnership working, such as between schools and the health service, to achieve better outcomes.

With an addition to express appreciation to staff in their support for this area of work, the recommendations within the report were proposed and agreed. The decision record is attached.