Issue - meetings

– report by Graham Gibbens: Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health and Andrew Ireland: Corporate Director, Families and Social Care) (Mr David Weiss, Ms Sara Naylor and Ms Andrea Melvin were present for this item)

See record of Decision on page 8.

Ms S Naylor, Project Manager, Mr D Weiss, Head of Business Transformation and Programmes, and Ms A Melvin, Principal Accountant (Projects), were in attendance for this item.

1.         Ms Naylor introduced the report, which set out the history and context of the Excellent Homes for All project, how it relates to the KCC Strategic policy Framework, the process and timetable for awarding the contract and progressing the project and the reason for asking the Cabinet to agree the delegated authorities set out, the use of the designated sites and to approve the required Authority annual contribution. There are currently two shortlisted bidders, and the preferred bidder will be appointed in October 2012.

2.         Ms Naylor, Mr Weiss, Ms Melvin and Mr Ireland answered questions of detail, explaining the following:-           

a)         as the project was already part-way through the procurement process when the Treasury reviewed and reduced the level of PFI credit (a grant payment which covers construction of a project), the changes which could be made to the project were limited, but some small changes were made to the design and use of communal areas;

b)         nomination rights for places are shared by the County Council and its District and Borough Council partners.  The contractor running the sites can express a view but cannot override Councils’ nominations;

c)         the contractor will need to comply with the rents influencing regime when setting rents and service charges.  The KCC will ask for rents and service charges to be fixed at an affordable level;

d)         although the contract term of the PFI scheme is 25 years, the land ‘hand back’ period (ie the period after which the property will be handed back to the KCC) is 99 years; 

e)         PFI is based an outputs and not inputs and it is not possible yet to say how a building contractor will meet environmental concerns (eg in terms of including solar panels, low-flush toilets, etc) but the KCC has specified the need for the buildings to meet the BREEAM ‘Good’ standard, or the Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3; and

 f)         units will be a mixture of single- and double-occupancy, to avoid couples having to be separated when only one partner needs support.  Keeping couples together is vitally important in terms of their mutual support and emotional wellbeing.  If one partner dies, the Housing Association will consult the surviving partner and work with them to decide on whether to stay on in the double-occupancy unit or move to a single-occupancy unit, when one becomes available.  In this respect, the arrangements are the same as those which apply for Local Authority tenants.  

3.         Comments and views expressed by Members included the following:-

a)         the stated cost per unit is very high and does not seem to represent good value for money. The KCC does not seem to be paying a fair or reasonable price.  Officers explained that the unit cost also covers the other facilities provided in a development (such as an on-site shop,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10