CUSTOMER & SUPPORT SERVICES SCRUTINY COMMITTEE 22nd November 2004
ACTION SHEET
Present
Officers
Apologies
ITEM
Action Sheet from
previous meeting &
matters arising
Forward Plan of key
decisions
The City Council’s
Procurement
Strategy - presented
by Gary Amos
Assistant Director,
Procurement
ITEM No 4
Councillors J Dawson (Chair), K Garrido, B. Lea, Miller, Powell and. Jolley
Russell Bernstein and Peter Kidd – Scrutiny Support.
Councillors Dobbs, Owen, Holt and Compton.
ACTION REQUIRED
At the pre meeting briefing members discussed the agenda items and reiterated
the need to focus on fewer items in the future and concentrate on outcomes as
recommended in professor Leach’s report on Overview and Scrutiny.
Discussions around the role and responsibilities of the Committee following the
review of Governance and the annual workplan were postponed until after the
Scrutiny Conference which takes place later this week.
There were no new items on the forward Plan this month, though it was
commented that items 31 & 32 could affect the Homeless figures in the City. It was
suggested that this was an issue for Environment, Housing and Planning scrutiny
Committee. It was pointed out that there is a Scrutiny Commission due to start
considering the issue of Homelessness.
Reports of the Strategic Director of Customer & Support Services
Alan Westwood and Cllrs. Hinds and Devine were also in attendance
Gary provided a presentation on the City Councils Draft Procurement Strategy, a
copy of which was attached to the agenda. The Strategy went to Directors Team in
September and will go to Cabinet in December and full Council in January.
It is intended to be a flexible, live document, which lays down the broad principles
of the authority’s procurement, and importantly an action plan for the Procurement
Board (PB) and Procurement Officers Group (POG). In tandem with the
Procurement manual (a comprehensive A-Z guide, which is almost complete) the
Strategy sets out the future of procurement incorporating developments with the
National Strategy, the Centre for Procurement Excellence and the Gershon report.
Having identified a Procurement Champion, members of the PB. and the majority
of the POG. The next stage is to progress the action plan putting names and key
milestones in place.
Members were pleased with the progress made so far and recognise the
importance of this area of work and they are keen to monitor developments and will
expect quarterly updates beginning in February.
RESPONSIBLE
MEMBER / OFFICER
TIMESCALE
Russell Bernstein
December
Gary Amos
February
ITEM
Homeworking a
Policy and
Guidance Note –
presented by Mike
Bleese, Head of
Personnel.
Attendance
Management –
presented by Debbie
Brown Assistant
Director
Reward &
Recognition a verbal
update from Debbie
Brown
E-Government
update – an
information Item
Workplan
ACTION REQUIRED
Member requested this item should return to Scrutiny Committee as it was over 12
months since it was last considered and there was little visible indication of
progress. Mike has developed this document, which has links leading to a deal of
information on recognised good practice for homeworking. It also provides detail of
the issues to be considered by individuals and managers when looking at the
potential for a full time permanent employee to work from home.
The potential cost savings combined with the benefits to staff make homeworking
an attractive initiative members agreed that it is timely to refresh the work done in
this area, to encourage managers to consider it as an option and compare
progress in other authorities, with this in mind members requested a further report
to be timetabled into the committee’s work programme.
Debbie brought members up to date with the progress to review arrangements for
attendance management within the City Council. Improvements have been and
continue to be made to the data collection. The unions have been consulted on
policy revisions to strengthen and improve the policy, which will be included in the
Corporate Training Programme. Alongside the policy measures are being taken to
improve the culture of health and wellbeing in the authority. Members recognised
the importance of work in this area and asked for more detail in the action plan
and would like to see targets for the reductions in absences. Directorates do
regularly consider their own statistics however there is a need for someone to
have an overview members agreed that this is a role for Customer and Support
Services Scrutiny, and regular reports will be timetabled into the work programme.
Whilst at the meeting Debbie was able to inform the committee as to
developments in work done in the area of reward and recognition for staff. Various
projects and initiatives have been considered and staff focus groups were brought
together to help inform eventual policy. A piece of work will be taken to Directors
Team in December, emerging ideas will be developed and the committee will be
kept informed of progress.
David Hunter, the E-Government services manager provided a report for the
Committees information. After consideration members raised some concerns
particularly around the progress of the project and the ability to deliver and meet
the targets. It was agreed to call the manager before the committee to investigate
these concerns further.
The workplan was agreed and the additional items will be added.
RESPONSIBLE
MEMBER / OFFICER
TIMESCALE
Mike Bleese
To be
confirmed
Mike Bleese /
Peter Kidd
February /
March
Debbie Brown /
Peter Kidd
February /
March
David Hunter
To be
confirmed
Peter Kidd
Dec 2004
ITEM
AOB
ACTION REQUIRED
RESPONSIBLE
MEMBER / OFFICER
TIMESCALE
Peter Kidd
Dec 2004
Members were reminded the December meeting is at 9.30 am on the 20 th
December in the Centre of Excellence.
Chair
Assistant Director of Scrutiny
Scrutiny Support Officer
Councillor J Dawson
Russell Bernstein
Peter Kidd
0161 793 5014
0161 793 3530
0161 793 3322