Cabinet Member decisions

Background

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 amended the Local Transport Act 2008 to allow the creation of Sub-national Transport Bodies (STBs). There are now several shadow STBs in England, with Transport for the North becoming the only statutory STB in April 2018.

The South East 7 (SE7 – Kent, Medway, Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, Hampshire, Brighton and Hove) councils proposed the establishment of an STB for the South East. From this, Transport for the South East (TfSE) emerged, which is now a partnership of 16 Local Transport Authorities and five Local Enterprise Partnerships. In addition to the SE7, TfSE includes Southampton, Portsmouth, Isle of Wight, and the Berkshire unitary authorities represented by the Berkshire Local Transport Body (West Berkshire, Wokingham, Windsor and Maidenhead, Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough).

TfSE has sought to formalise its role as the South East’s voice for strategic transport issues by becoming a statutory body. To do this, TfSE has worked with its members to develop a Proposal to Government. This draft proposal was consulted on from May to July 2019. KCC provided a response to the consultation, supporting the powers TfSE proposed. Some of these were supported only conditionally provided that the principle of subsidiarity is applied (i.e. powers are used at the most local level). This was in relation to highways and transport functions that constituent members already hold but TfSE wants to enact concurrently.

Transport for the South East have since revised their Proposal to Government taking account of the comments they received in the consultation. The revised Proposal includes the application of the principle of subsidiarity.

TfSE has also consulted on its draft Transport Strategy for the South East (October 2019 – January 2020). KCC responded positively to this consultation to support the overall aims and aspirations of TfSE. The development of a Transport Strategy is one of the central functions of a STB, and the Department for Transport awarded TfSE funding (in addition to funding from the constituent authorities) to produce one. The Transport Strategy for the South East is being revised now that the public consultation has closed.

TfSE plan to submit the revised Proposal to Government and the Transport Strategy for the South East to the Department for Transport concurrently. This is to present a unified vision for the region alongside the request for powers to achieve it, with the consent of constituent bodies.

Strategic Statement

Transport for the South East is emerging as an important advocate of improved transport in the region, and its own aims closely match the objectives of the Strategic Statement. The vision for the Transport Strategy for the South East is:

By 2050, the South East of England will be a leading global region for net-zero carbon, sustainable economic growth where integrated transport, digital and energy networks have delivered a step-change in connectivity and environmental quality.

A high-quality. reliable, safe and accessible transport network will offer seamless door-to-door journeys enabling our businesses to compete and trade more effectively in the global marketplace and giving our residents and visitors the highest quality of life.

Thus, TfSE is fundamentally focused on improving lives, sustainable economic growth, and supporting all people to make informed transport decisions and have a range of transport choices so that they can benefit from improved quality of life. Consequently, TfSE has the potential to positively contribute towards all of the supporting outcomes identified in the Strategic Statement.

Options

Kent County Council is one of the founding bodies of Transport for the South East. As such, the only other option would be to decline to endorse the Proposal to Government and rescind support for TfSE. This would restrict KCC’s opportunities to progress transport schemes for investment and isolate the county from wider regional discussions about transport in the future. It could potentially see the Council’s influence in lobbying for schemes on the Strategic Road Network and railway network diluted because KCC would be a small area alone, hence not in alignment with the move to regional prioritisation that the Government has promoted to date.

As Leader of the Council, in accordance with Section 19.2 of the Council’s Constitution, I agree to:

1. Consent to Transport for the South East’s Proposal to Government for powers in addition to the general powers of a Sub-national Transport Body and endorse the Transport Strategy for the South East as part of this proposal.
2. Participate in, and cooperate with, Transport for the South East in accordance with the powers requested from Government and those powers operating concurrently with Kent County Council as Highway Authority and Local Transport Authority.

And delegate authority to the Corporate Director of Growth, Environment and Transport, in consultation with the Leader and Monitoring Officer, to enter into relevant legal agreements and take other appropriate actions as necessary to implement the decision.

Background

Subsequent to the previous disposal to the NHS trust for the construction of a medical hub, KCC is to dispose of the remaining balance of its Land South of Four Elms, Sevenoaks. The disposal is by way of Collaboration Agreement with the neighbouring landowner to jointly seek planning consent for residential-led redevelopment, promote, market and sell a combined site in pursuance of best value to a third party.

In respect of Kent County Council owned land South of Four Elms in Sevenoaks to agree to authorise:

1.       the Director of Infrastructure in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services, to enter into a Collaboration Agreement with the neighbouring landowner to promote, market and dispose of the site.

the Director of Infrastructure to enter into the necessary contractual and land agreements required to implement 1 above.

Background:

Kent County Council is seeking to extend the existing Inward Investment Services contract with Locate in Kent for the period 1 August 2020 to 31 July 2021. The current contract with Locate in Kent commenced in August 2016 and runs until 8 August 2020.

The existing contract was originally awarded for 3 years to August 2019 with an option to extend for a further 12 months. That extension has already been taken. The overall value of the current contract to August 2020 is £4,262,488.

The Inward Investment Service will deliver, alongside Kent County Council and Medway Council, specific outcomes that contribute to economic development in Kent and Medway. These are:

·         More investment opportunities from overseas markets

·         Increased supply chain benefits for local businesses

·         More inward investment in Kent and Medway

·         Raised profile as a destination for inward and foreign direct investment. 

The purpose of the service will be to promote and raise the profile of Kent and Medway as an attractive business investment location for UK and foreign-owned businesses relocating and expanding within and into the county, and to create jobs from successful company investments.

Since August 2016, the Inward Investment Service has been funded by Kent County Council, Medway Council and the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) Growth Programme, which is administered by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). In March 2020, MHCLG approved an application by Kent County Council for continued ESIF funding to support the Inward Investment Service for Kent and Medway to March 2023. Both KCC and Medway Council have already confirmed funding to March 2023.

A key condition of ESIF funding is that all service contracts are procured in accordance with the requirements of the Public Contracts Regulations (PCR) 2015. This means that the inward investment service would need to be re-procured so that a new contract could commence in August 2020.

The procurement process had already commenced in January 2020 with the publication of the Prior Information Notice. The intended procurement timeline for the new contract is set out below:

 Following the Call for Competition in March 2020, we received three expressions of interest from prospective providers. The Invitation to Tender was due to be issued in the first week of April, However, the Covid19 emergency has meant that KCC’s procurement resources have been diverted towards supporting the procurement of health services and supplies associated with the pandemic. This has resulted in significant delays to the procurement process for the inward investment service, which has yet to resume.

The likelihood that procurement of the inward investment service would not be completed until much later in the year was brought to the attention of MHCLG in March 2020. At the request of MHCLG, the County Council commissioned Invicta Law to provide a legal opinion as to whether an extension to the current contract with Locate in Kent would be consistent with Regulation 72(1) of PCR 2015 and with Procurement Policy Note 1-20 (Response to Covid19) issued by the Cabinet Office in March 2020. Following the advice given by Invicta Law, on 30 April 2020 MHCLG agreed to allow an extension of 12 months to the current contract with Locate in Kent.

The extended inward investment services contract will be to 31 July 2021 and will cost £1,060,000. The contract will be funded by KCC, Medway Council and the ESIF Growth Programme.  

The service will aim to promote and raise the profile of Kent and Medway as a business location with the aim of attracting new investment from Kent, UK and overseas businesses, creating jobs and economic prosperity. Contracted outputs for the period 1 August 2020 to 31 July 2021 will be 1,400 new jobs from SMEs and non-SMEs and 50 successful projects. There will be specific outputs for the ESIF-funded part of the project to provide consultancy support to SMEs and to create new jobs, which are included within the overall 1,400 target. 

Options considered:

Two options were considered in addition to a Do Nothing option:

·         Doing nothing. This would mean having no further external service commission after the cessation of the current contract with Locate in Kent, and no in-house provision within KCC. This would provide significant financial savings to KCC. However, because there is currently no comparable business support service in Kent and Medway, this would result in a failure to capitalise on opportunities for growth in the local economy and job creation. It would also result in loss of funding support from Medway Council and the ESIF Growth Programme.

·         Option 1 – Do minimum. This would mean establishing for the first time a bespoke, outward-facing business support service based in KCC. Although currently KCC does not have the expertise in-house to provide the specialised, face-to-face support that businesses want, this would potentially deliver cost savings to the County Council. However, it is unlikely to attract financial support from Medway Council, the ESIF programme and the private sector. There would also be TUPE implications of transferring staff from the current supplier to KCC.

·         Option 2 – Preferred option. This is to extend the contract for 12 months from 1 August in line with PCR 2015 Regulation 72(1), ceasing the current procurement process until early 2021 and allowing up to six months to re-tender with adequate mobilisation periods should the existing supplier change. Prospective suppliers who have submitted Selection Questionnaires will be formally notified by KCC’s Strategic Commissioning team about the halt in the procurement process due to the Covid19 pandemic. They will be advised as to the revised indicative procurement timescales and contacted when the new advert is published. The award of a new contract for the period August 2021 to March 2023 will require a Key Decision.

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

The project supports KCC’s Strategic Outcome 2 (Kent communities feel the benefits of economic growth by being in work, healthy and enjoying a good quality of life). It also supports the following themes that influence the achievement of Outcome 2 (Planning for Growth, Investing in our Infrastructure, Standing up for Kent and Smart Places).

The project is consistent with the emerging draft of Kent’s Economic Recovery Plan, which recognises the need to support businesses in the return to growth including through focussed efforts on place marketing, sector specific support and supply chain development and support for innovation.

As Cabinet Member for Economic Development, I agree to extending the current inward investment services contract with Locate in Kent for the period 1 August 202 to 31 July 2021

Background:

Kent County Council (KCC) has a long ground lease interest in a site known at Dartford Youth Centre (DYC). The land is located in the Temple Hill area of Dartford. The land upon which DYC is built; is owned by Dartford Borough Council (DBC) who is landlord to the County Council.

The centre requires complete refurbishment to bring it into reasonable repair. Most of the property has been occupied by a private gym operator who wishes to take a long lease of the entire property. The present operator wishes to take a long lease to enable it raise funds for refurbishment.

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services agrees to:

-    Sublease the Dartford Youth Centre to Europa Weightlifting Club for a period of 30 years; and

-    Delegate authority to the Director of Infrastructure to take relevant actions, including but not limited to, entering into necessary contracts as required to implement this decision.

Background

The current TFM (Total Facilities Management) contracts with Amey and Skanska expire in October 2021. Prior to March the Council was at the initial market testing stages of finalising the scope and approach for the procurement of new facilities management services when the existing contracts came to an end. To meet this timetable the competition was due to start in June/July, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the wider market and whilst there remains a strong interest from the market, in order to ensure that the Council has the strongest position, it is prudent to delay the start of the re-procurement to allow the market position to stabilise.

Reason for the decision

The decision is needed to ensure that KCC properties continue to receive Facilities Management Services, including for example, maintenance, cleaning, security and statutory compliance. The cost of the extension will exceed £1million and is outside of the original delegated authority envisaged under the original contracts.

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services agrees to a conditional extension for the current Total Facilities Management Service Contracts for East, Mid and West to mitigate the service gap as a result of the COVID-19 delay to the re-procurement of Facilities Management contract – finalisation of terms and authority to enter into relevant contracts and other legal agreements to be delegated to the Director of Infrastructure.

Background Information:

KCC, as the Local Authority (LA), has a statutory duty to ensure sufficient school places are available.  This duty applies to Special Educational Needs (SEN) provision, as well as mainstream settings.  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 KCC’s future plans as Strategic Commissioner of Education Provision across all types and phases of education in Kent.  A copy of the plan can be viewed from this link:

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

The Commissioning Plan highlights the SEN place pressure that Kent has experienced, with the number of Education Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) increasing significantly in recent years.  The most prevalent and fastest growing need type is ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder) and data indicates that 40% of children and young people aged 0-25 years with EHCPs have ASD as their primary need type. 

The demand for ASD places at Broomhill Bank School has increased commensurately, with strong parental preference. Broomhill Bank has a Designated Number of 210, but there is pressure for the school to accept additional pupils to meet demand in both West and North Kent.  The Broomhill Bank Governing Body, with support from KCC, is proposing to increase the school’s Designated Number from 210 to 318 places from September 2020. 

Feasibility work and curriculum analysis has been undertaken across both school sites to ensure the school can meet the needs of the additional number of pupils proposed.  This work indicates that the school will need increased classroom provision, car parking and school access changes; alongside enhancement of existing sports provision at the Broomhill Bank North site at Swanley, and additional sports provision at the West site in Tunbridge Wells. Additional modular accommodation will be required on both the West and North sites as well as internal reconfiguration within existing buildings.

The Cabinet Member for Education and Skills is asked to:

a)    increase the Designated Number of places at Broomhill Bank School, Broomhill Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 0TB from 210 to 318 places from September 2020.

b)    agree to fund the expansion from the CYPE Basic Need Capital Budget.

c)    authorise the expenditure of up to £2m to deliver the additional accommodation required for the first phase of building works, required for the School Year commencing in September 2020.

d)    delegate authority to the Corporate Director for Children, Young People and Education to take necessary actions, including but not limited to entering into necessary contracts or taking other legal actions as required to implement the decision.

Background:

KCC entered into an Enterprise Licensing Agreement with Microsoft via its reseller in June 2018 for three years. Since the contract was awarded Microsoft have made available a discounted licencing arrangement over a new 3 year term. This agreement provides access to a variety of M365 applications, tools and modules which are essential to supporting the Councils business operations. As part of this arrangement the Council will be able to take advantage of enhanced licensing which is critical to support its COVID -19 response including a transition from Skype to Teams and enhancing the security of KCC’s infrastructure.

The Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services agrees to enter into a new Microsoft licensing agreement for 3 years to meet KCC business and Infrastructure licensing requirements – delegation to Director of Infrastructure for the necessary contractual negotiations and authority to enter into any legal agreements.

Background Information:

KCC formalised its Elective Home Education (EHE) Policy in 2015. It is administered by Fair Access in CYPE. Kent children can quickly get the right support to ensure their educational needs are met at the earliest opportunity be that advice and signposting for home educating families or direct action to assist them in securing a school where they have had difficulties with this.  Since 2015 the numbers have grown from 1622 in the 2015/16 academic year to 2690 in the 2018/19 academic year. There is a National trend in growth and Kent has the highest numbers in the country. It is 5 years since the Policy was last reviewed and this updated version reflects the most recent government guidance in this area of work.

The Cabinet Member for Education and Skills is asked to agree the revised County EHE Policy. The revised County EHE Policy reflects the changes made to departmental guidance issued by the Department for Education and prepares the way for any legislative changes which may be introduced in the near future.