Agenda item

Councillor Blackmore, the Leader of the Council, and Councillor McLoughlin, the Cabinet Member for Corporate Services, informed the Committee of their priority areas for the 2014/15 Municipal Year.

  Councillor McLoughlin stated that his priorities include improving efficiency, extending current activities and investing in new activities, and made reference to the following issues:

·  Asset Management and the identification of opportunities, however it was stressed that this was separate from the Commercialisation Strategy.

·  The MKIP Shared Services and the establishment of procedures for reporting and monitoring performance levels, to which end meetings had been scheduled to include members at Swale BC, Tunbridge Wells BC and the Mid Kent Services Director, Paul Taylor, and for which dialogue would be on-going.

·  Staff motivation and excellence, with it noted that the staff of the Planning Shared Service had shown exemplary enthusiasm in working hard to overcome recent problems and improve services.

·  The procurement of a public Gypsy and Traveller site which, although not included on the written report, was considered as a priority for strengthening the Council’s position in relation to the planning enforcement of illegal encampments.

In response to questions the Committee heard that;

·  The Cabinet Member for Planning, Transport and Development, Councillor Burton, would be the Member to whom queries regarding the performance of the Planning Shared Service should be addressed, and that the terms of reference of the Committee included scrutinising the financial and customer complaint elements of the service.

·  The Kent County Council Pension Fund Committee had two district council memberships but no vacancies, and that this would be the only direct method of influencing decisions with regard to pensions. There had been discussion within Central Government regarding larger regional pension funds but these were considered to provide less value for money.

·  With regard to the long term plan to vacate Maidstone House, vacating the first floor would be estimated to incur a cost of £300,000 but make a saving of £80,000 per annum. The move would be used as an opportunity to make more efficient use of space across the other floors through implementation of desk and room booking systems. It was explained that there would be no benefit to vacating Maidstone House before 2023 due to contractual obligations.

·  There were no specific timescales built into the separate objectives as some, such as motivation of staff, were not time bound, but an overarching deadline was given as the end of the financial year.

Previous Committee recommendations on asset management were noted, and the Committee suggested that these be circulated to Councillor McLoughlin.

Councillor Blackmore highlighted the following priorities:

·  Representing Maidstone BC at Parish and County level;

·  Forging strong links between the three levels of Local Government and outside organisations with a focus on collaboration.

Councillor Blackmore explained that Cabinet coffee meetings were to be established from September onwards in order to provide an informal meeting place for discussion. Further details would be communicated in due course.

In responses to questions Councillor Blackmore explained that:

·  Achieving a balance of making savings versus providing excellent service was a clear priority, and would be monitored using Key Performance Indicators and cost benefit analysis.

·  A key element of the new Strategic Plan would be to put Maidstone at the forefront of the Kent agenda as its County Town.

·  With regard to the discussion on Kent County Council Pension Fund, Councillor Blackmore would enquire as to when the next vacancy would be advertised for the Superannuation Committee, and the substitution procedure for this, and report back to the Committee.

RESOLVED:

1. That the Priorities set by the Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Corporate Services for the Municipal year 2014/15 be noted;
2. That the details of the next vacancy for district members on the Kent County Council Superannuation Committee and the procedures for substitution be circulated to the Committee by Councillor Blackmore;
3. That the previous SCRAIPS regarding Asset Management be circulated to Councillor McLoughlin.