Cabinet Member decisions

Reason for the decision:

On 1 October 2020, the government wrote to Local Authorities announcing that the Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund (first introduced in May 2020) was being extended until 31 March 2021, with an extra £546m of funding.  This is a new grant with revised conditions from the original Infection Control Fund.

It is expected the grant will be fully spent on infection control measures (as outlined in the grant determination letter) by 31 March 2021. The guidance is clear that ‘spent’ means that expenditure has been incurred on or before 31 March.

The guidance states that local authorities should prioritise passing on the ‘per bed’/’per user’ allocation (as outlined below) to care homes and CQC-regulated community care providers (domiciliary care, extra care and supported living) in their geographical area.  It is expected, where possible, this will take no longer than 20 working days upon receipt of the funding in a local authority, subject to providers meeting the conditions as stated in the local authority circular (October 2020).

It is unclear at this time whether further Infection Control Funding will become available either before or post 31 March 2021, therefore as part of this decision it is proposed that the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, also agrees to accept any future additional Infection Control Funding should it become available which will be allocated in line with the guidance and terms and conditions issued by government.

The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health agrees to:

(i)            ACCEPT the Infection Control Fund: round 2 grant, under the terms set out by the government;

(ii)          ACCEPT any future additional Infection Control Funding (should it become available) to be allocated in line with the guidance and terms and conditions issued by government;

(iii)         DELEGATE authority to the Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Health, after consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health and the Corporate Director for Finance, to finalise the terms of and confirm the amounts of the relevant payments as required; and

(iv)         DELEGATE authority to the Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Health to take other relevant actions, including but not limited to entering into and finalising the terms of relevant contracts or other legal agreements, as necessary to implement the decision.

Reason for the decision:

Kent County Council (KCC) as the Local Authority has a statutory duty to ensure sufficient school places are available. The County Council’s Commissioning Plan for Education Provision in Kent 2020-24 is a five-year rolling plan which is updated annually. It sets out our future plans as Strategic Commissioner of Education Provision across all types and phases of education in Kent. A copy of the plan can be found using this link:

http://www.kent.gov.uk/about-the-council/strategies-and-policies/education-skills-and-employment-policies/education-provision

Background:

Forecasts indicate a growing demand for Year 7 places in Gravesham from the start of the 2020-21 academic year.  The Gravesham and Longfield Selective Planning Group is forecast to have a deficit of 62 places (2FE) for the 2021-22 intake and increases again to 99 places (3.3FE) by 2023/24.

As part of the measures being taken to address the capacity issues illustrated above, KCC is proposing that Mayfield Grammar School increase their PAN to 210 from September 2021.

To expand Mayfield Grammar School, KCC are proposing the removal of the old wooden block and building a new block at the school, together with other infill and enhancement work to social spaces.  This work would be completed before the September 2021 intake.  This build would enable the school to offer 210 Year 7 places for September 2021.

Options:

Mayfield Grammar School is a popular school that was judged Outstanding in every area by Ofsted in 2013. 

The school site lends itself to expansion for a number of reasons including the age and sustainability of existing structures, proximity to local demand and sympathetic leadership and governance.

The school is the only girl’s grammar school in the Gravesham and Longfield Selective Planning Group, so is therefore the only option.

If no action is taken, Kent County Council will find it extremely difficult to provide sufficient local selective secondary school places in Gravesham borough.

How the proposed decision meets the objectives of ‘Increasing Opportunities, Improving Outcomes: Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement (2015-2020)’

The provision of sufficient school places is a statutory duty and contributes to theStrategic Business Plan Priorities to ensure that “Children and Young People in Kent get the best start in life”.

The Cabinet Member for Education and Skills agrees to:

i.       Agree to provide £3.7m from the school’s basic need capital budget to progress the          proposal to expand Mayfield Grammar School, Pelham Road, Gravesend, Kent DA11 0JE from 180 places to 210 places for Year 7 entry in September 2021;

ii.      Authorise the Director of Infrastructure, Strategic and Corporate Services in consultation with the General Counsel and Director of Education to enter into any necessary contracts / agreements on behalf of the County Council;

iii.     Authorise the Director of Infrastructure, Strategic and Corporate Services to be the          nominated  Authority Representative within the relevant agreements and to enter into variations as envisaged under the contracts.

UPDATED BY OFFICER RECORD OF DECISION taken on 27 October 2020:

DIRECTION ISSUED UNDER DECISION 20/00105 IS HEREBY REVOKED.

Make a Direction under Regulation 5 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No.3) Regulations 2020 (or any replacement or amended version of these regulations which may be valid and appropriate while this Direction remains in effect).

This Direction comes into force on 23/10/2020

As Cabinet Member for, I agree to:

Make a Direction under Regulation 5 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No.3) Regulations 2020 (or any replacement or amended version of these regulations which may be valid and appropriate while this Direction remains in effect).

This Direction comes into force on 23/10/2020 and further details of the Direction listed in Appendix 1 of this Record of Decision.

-       I delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Growth, Environment and Transport to undertake the review of this direction, required under s2 of the Regulations and the related authority to, subject to consultation with the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health and the Director of Public Health, to revoke this Direction as appropriate and to issue the relevant notices (including notification to all those consulted as part of this Key Decision). This review shall take place a minimum of once every 7 days while the Direction remains in effect, in accordance with s2(2)(a) of the Regulations.

-       I also delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Growth, Environment and Transport, in consultation with the Corporate Director of Finance, the Monitoring Officer and Cabinet Member for Adult Social and Public Health, to take necessary actions, including but not limited to entering into contracts or other legal agreements, as required to implement and enforce this decision.

In making this decision, I confirm that the conditions set out for the making of such a Directions in s2 of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No.3) Regulations 2020 have been met and that this direction is necessary and proportionate. I can also confirm that I have read and considered the KCC Urgent Decision Local Lockdown Guidance.

Background:

Adult Social Care has historic grant arrangements in place with voluntary and community sector providers across the county. These grants provide a contribution towards the costs of services that support older people, people living with dementia, people with a physical disability and people with sensory impairments. Services meet the outcomes of the Council and enable people to remain well and living independently.

There are issues related to use of historic grant arrangements including an inconsistency in the type of support and services funded across the county, lack of correlation between spend and demographic factors, limitations in the ability to monitor the performance of services and therefore to understand the impact that services have on people.

Through the development process for the new contract model, it became clear there is no single solution that can address the needs of all client groups.  Therefore, both universal and specialist services contracts are required.  There is also a need to move to an asset-based approach and outcome-based specifications.

The Community Based Wellbeing Service Procurement Programme was paused in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 crisis.  The procurement is restarting in September 2020 and a revised timetable takes the programme to the end of March 2022.

This decision supports KCC’s Strategic Statement through supporting key providers that deliver services to older and vulnerable residents that will ensure they are safe and supported with choices to live independently.  This decision supports the Strategic Reset programme by implementing Asset Based Commissioning.

PROPOSED Decision

EXTEND all required grant arrangements, as detailed in the recommendation report, to cover Phase 2 procurement until 30 September 2021;

EXTEND the existing grant agreements to Edenbridge Voluntary Transport Service, Sevenoaks Volunteer Transport Group, Hospice in the Weald and Heart of Kent Hospice, for the full duration of the procurement programme (to end March 2022);

EXTEND the Carers Short Breaks contract to Crossroads Care Kent, until 31 March 2022;

DELEGATE authority to the Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Health to take other relevant actions, including but not limited to entering into and finalising the terms of relevant contracts or other legal agreements, as necessary to implement the decision.

Reason for the decision:

To ensure the Council’s Environment Policy is brought in line with the latest environmental priorities for clean growth, clean air and the natural environment as set out in new Strategies and Plans issued by UK Government and at county level (e.g. the Kent and Medway Energy & Low Emissions Strategy and net-zero target commitments).

Background:

KCC is the lead partner in delivering the Kent Environment Strategy and the Kent & Medway Energy and Low Emissions Strategy and has had a publicly available Environment Policy since circa 2005. Since April 2009, all KCC services have been certified to the international Standard for Environmental Management ISO14001, which requires the organisation to approve and publish its commitment to prevent pollution and continually improve its environmental performance in the form of a Policy. There has been significant shift in the political and public focus on environmental matters since the last policy was published in 2017.

Options:

A.   Retain existing policy which was last revised and published in March 2017.

B.   Approve a revised policy, which reflects current priorities set out in new Strategies and Plans issued by UK Government and at county level.

The Cabinet Member for the Environment agrees to adopt a revised Environment Policy to be implemented through the Council’s established environmental management system, which is certified to the international Standard for Environmental Management, ISO14001:2015.

Background:

Kent County Council has longstanding memoranda of understanding with the French Hauts-de-France region, the Pas-de-Calais Département, and the Belgian Province of West Flanders. These relationships have led to many joint initiatives over time – often supported by cross-border funding mechanisms - in areas such as trade, tourism, education, social care, transport and the environment.

Over the last three years, meetings between Kent County Council, its continental partners and other continental authorities have shown a desire to continue local-to-local cooperation where it may be of mutual benefit. Kent was encouraged by the UK diplomatic service to formalise this into a new relationship and, on 5^th February 2020, Kent County Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with neighbouring French, Belgian and Dutch local authorities to create the Straits Committee.

The MOU commits the partners to develop a shared, forward-looking vision for the Straits area where cooperation may achieve tangible results. This may be in any area but the partners will pay particular attention to joint work on economic development and fluidity of trade, addressing climate change and clean growth, and supporting young people.

The MOU setting up the Straits Committee commits each authority to designating a cabinet member to take part in a cross-authority working group that will meet up to four times a year. This working group, known as the “Executive Committee”, is supported by officers in each participating authority who will prepare meetings and follow up agreed actions. In addition, the MOU also commits the signatory authorities to holding an annual public conference that will be open widely to stakeholders from across the Straits area and will look at opportunities for the area. The first conference is planned for 2021 and is due to take place in Kent.

Options: 

·   Do nothing: While the MOU does not place any legal requirements on Kent County Council (KCC), the failure to adopt this decision would call into question KCC’s ongoing involvement in the Straits Committee and ability to support joint initiatives, including related spend activity. This would lead to a weakening of relations with KCC’s European partners at a time when the UK is seeking close ties and friendly cooperation with neighbouring countries.

·   Adopt a decision approving Kent’s involvement in the Straits Committee and associated budget (Preferred option): This would align KCC’s participation in the Straits Committee with KCC’s governance and provide a mechanism for supporting joint initiatives with spend activity. 

How the proposed decision meets the objectives of ‘Increasing Opportunities, Improving Outcomes: Kent County Council’s Strategic Statement (2015-2020)’:

The Straits Committee forms an integral part of Kent’s policy response to its neighbourhood following the UK’s exit from the European Union. The creation of this new, member-led committee will help local authorities on both sides of the Dover straits maintain good neighbourly relations, navigate issues arising to help keep our border fluid, support our economies and tackle the grand challenges that we share. 

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development is asked to:

a)    Confirm the participation of Kent County Council in the Straits Committee, a new, voluntary partnership between Kent County Council and neighbouring Belgian, Dutch and French local authorities to pursue lasting good neighbourly relations and create opportunities for mutual benefit for businesses, residents, local stakeholders and communities;

b)    Approve funding of £100,000 from reserves for activities in connection with the Straits Committee. These will include support to joint initiatives on economic development, tackling climate change, supporting young people and any initiatives in other policy areas as agreed within the Straits Committee,  the development of a strategy for the Straits Committee, the hosting of a Straits conference in Kent and the setting up of a small project support scheme; and

c)    Agree delegated authority for management of that funding to the Director of Economic Development.