Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies were received from Mrs C Bell.

No declarations of interest were received

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting on 9 January 2025 were a correct record and that they be signed by the Chair

1.    Mr R Gough, Leader of the Council provided an update on the following:

(a)  At the Scrutiny Committee held on 29^th January 2025, Members considered the call-in of Decision - 24/00093 - Future of Commissioned Services at Seashells and Millmead Family Hubs. At that meeting, Members agreed to refer the decision to full Council. Mr Watts (General Counsel) confirmed that in accordance with s.17.73 and S.74 of the Constitution, that following a decision to refer an item to full Council, it would first be reconsidered by the next meeting of the Cabinet (scheduled to be held on 4^th March 2025). The decision had been made to not refer the item to the meeting of the Cabinet on 30^th January as this would not allow sufficient time for an informed decision to be made. The Leader expressed his thanks to Mrs S Chandler (Cabinet member for Integrated Children’s Services) and the officers involved, in recognition of the challenges presented by the Decision.

(b)  The Leader confirmed that the gifts which were presented to him upon his visit to Ukraine in November 2024, had been received in the UK and had now been declared with the Monitoring Officer.

1.    Mr Watkins, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, provided an update on the following:

(a)  Before Christmas, the Kent Integrated Care Alliance (KICA) and Mr Watkins wrote to the Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock, regarding concerns with the autumn budget. Whilst the Council appreciated the government's recognition of the challenges in social care, especially for care providers, concerns remained high regarding the upcoming changes to employer national insurance contributions and the rise in the national minimum wage in April. These changes could increase staff costs by about 10 to 11 percent, and could have a detrimental impact on care providers, leading to higher wages for some workers and potential staff shortages due to staff finding alternative better-paid roles. Further anticipated impacts included additional pressure on the NHS, with increased A&E visits and delayed hospital discharges; and potential closure of care providers, affecting vulnerable people and straining the local healthcare system. The ask of Government was to exempt the care sector from the national insurance increases, to which a response was yet to be received.

(b)  The One You Kent service campaign continued to encourage people to set healthy lifestyle goals for 2025, through small, achievable goals to help build confidence and adopt healthier behaviours throughout the year. The One You Kent service supported people in getting more active, achieving a healthy weight, making better food choices, reducing alcohol consumption, and quitting smoking. This was set to be achieved through community initiatives such as walking groups and providing nutritious recipes. Mr Watkins asked members to promote the service through social media platforms and to encourage local residents to become Everyday Active Champions.

(c)  New smoke-free spaces were due to launch across Kent, including parks, play areas, high streets, and outside schools to protect  ...  view the full minutes text for item 87.

John Betts (interim Corporate Director Finance) and Joe McKay(Acting Chief Analyst) and Cath Head (Head of Finance) were in attendance for this item

1.  Mr Oakford, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services, introduced the report which set out the revenue and capital budget monitoring position as at November 2024-25 which highlighted a projected overspend of £23.3 million and represented 1.6% of the Council’s total revenue budget. This was a reduction of £3.5 million compared to the end of Q2, however, it remained a significant concern for the Authority. It was essential to take action to reduce the forecast for 2024-25 and limit the need to draw from reserves. Key points included:

-       Savings: The forecast indicated that £80.3 million in savings would be delivered for 2024-25. This was a substantial amount, and thanks were paid to all officers and teams for their efforts. These savings were being closely monitored across different teams, with actions being taken to improve the robustness of savings proposals and their monitoring.

-       Adult Social Care and Health continued to have the largest overspend, projected at £35.4 million. Of this, £26.2 million related to savings that could not be delivered for 2024-25 but were expected to be achieved in future years. The remaining £9.2 million overspend was due to service-related pressures, driven by increases in the price and complexity of new social care placements. These financial challenges were similar to those faced by many upper-tier authorities, with 82% of local authorities with social care responsibilities experiencing similar issues.

-       The Growth Economic and Transport Directorate was projected to overspend by £6.3 million. Unavoidable pressures included £3 million related to the national concessionary travel scheme. Extreme weather had also contributed to overspends in the Highways Department. These pressures would be addressed in the medium-term plan.

-       With regard to Reserves there was a need to draw down an additional £9 million from the corporate ICT reserve over the next two years to fund the update of the Oracle Cloud program. The system, which was over 20 years old, required more development than anticipated to meet business needs without adaptation. Investing in the system now was crucial to avoid future problems and higher costs.

-       The current estimated capital program spend for the year was forecast to be £315.5 million, representing 74% of the approved budget. The capital spend to date was £160.4 million. Directorates were projecting an underspend of £111.6 million against the budget, split between a £12.9 million real variance and £124 million of rephasing. Delaying prudential borrowing would help with short-term revenue savings, but rephasing could result in less funding due to inflationary pressures.

-       Any overspend was a concern for the Authority and remained a risk to the Council's future financial sustainability. Reserves were a one-off solution, and continued use without replenishment was unsustainable. The detailed financial challenges and the actions being taken to mitigate them were crucial for the Council's long-term stability.

2.    Mr Watkins highlighted that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 88.

John Betts (interim Corporate Director Finance) and Dave Shipton (Head of Finance, Policy, Planning, Strategy) were in attendance for this item

1.    Mr Oakford, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, Corporate and Traded Services introduced the report and acknowledged the immense efforts from officers to produce the budget, particular in light of the challenges posed within the current financial year.  Thanks were therefore expressed to finance colleagues, directorates, staff, and Cabinet Members for their contributions, emphasising that the budget was a collective effort.

The budget for the next financial year included a spending growth of £150 million, with £80 million allocated to Adult Social Care. Despite this, the council faced significant pressures, as over £60 million net in savings/income was still required for 2025-2026, on top of the £90 million saved for 2024-25. Mr Oakford noted that whilst the government's promise of additional funds was welcomed, the net growth in funding received from the government only amounted to £30 million, which was insufficient to cover the spending growth.

To address the shortfall, the council planned to raise council tax by 2.99% and an additional 2% for the social care premium, bringing in £47.3 million. However, this would still leave a substantial gap, which further highlighted the pressure on the council to make further savings. Whilst there was incremental spending in adults and children's services, other areas of the council had seen budget reductions to fund social care.

The government had announced a new recovery grant, however, the council received none of this funding, as it was allocated to areas with high levels of deprivation & lowest relative council tax base, which were not in the south of England. Mr Oakford noted that the growing costs of adult social care were not being adequately addressed by the government, leading to a situation where the council was close to only providing statutory services, with discretionary services disappearing.

Mr Oakford concluded by reiterating the systemic nature of the problem and the need for government intervention as the Council could not rely on reserves to fund the revenue budget; this was unsustainable and would lead to a financial crisis.

2.    The Leader advised that the Council, along with other organisations, such as the County Council Network (CCN) would be making representations to government on the spending review regarding the allocation of funding.

3.    Further to comments and questions from Members it was noted:

·         Members expressed their gratitude to Mr Oakford and his team for their diligent work, emphasising the significant effort required and thanked them for their continued dedication. Further thanks were expressed to the Cabinet Members, along with the officers and staff throughout the whole of the Council for their continued hard work to deliver exceptional services under difficult circumstances.

·         Without a resolution from Government on the funding issues in adult social care, new authorities with devolved powers would face significant challenges from the outset. Therefore, whilst Members were supportive of the devolution programme and the opportunities it presented, a government restructure would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 89.

Sarah Hammond (Corporate Director for Children’s Young People and Education) and Mark Albiston (Director of Adult Social Care) were in attendance for this item

1.    Mrs Chandler (Cabinet member for Integrated Children’s Services) introduced the report on the transfer of statutory functions delivered by the 18-25 section of the Strengthening Independence Service (SIS) from the Children Young People and Education Directorate to the Adult Social Care and Health Directorate from 1 April 2025. The transfer of the service was to align with legal responsibilities, it did not impact on the level of service being provided by to those young people within that cohort. The council recognised the challenges inherent to the transition from  young people’s services to adult services and was working on a larger initiative to ensure the process was more coordinated and supportive. By addressing these needs earlier in the young people's lives, the council aimed to provide a smoother and more beneficial transition, ultimately improving outcomes for these vulnerable individuals and their families.

2.    Mr Watkins (Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care) re-emphasised the importance of the transition from children’s to adults services and whilst children's services focused on protecting the child, adult services prioritised fostering independence. This strategic shift aimed to empower young people to live as independently as possible, giving them greater control over their lives.

3.    Mrs Hammond (Corporate Director for Children’s Young People and Education) elaborated on the responsibilities of the Director of Children's Services for a specific subset of young adults. Out of the total cohort of 920 individuals, 330 had an active Education, Health, and Care Plan (EHCP). These EHCPs would continue to be overseen and managed by the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) service within the Education Division. This ensured that the educational and developmental needs of these young adults were met appropriately. Additionally, there was a smaller group within this cohort who were previously in the care of the local authority as children. These individuals would retain their care-leaver status, which entitled them to continued support, advice, and services from children's services.  Therefore whilst these young adults were to funded by adult social care and were legally the responsibility of the Director of Adult Social Care, the collaboration between children's and adult services was essential. This joint effort aimed to resolve historical challenges in service delivery, ensuring that the transition from children's to adult services was a seamless transition and that the young adults received comprehensive support.

4.    Mr Albiston (Director of Adult Social Care) advised that the transfer was to support better alignment with the new regulatory framework, particularly with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as adult social care was to be included in their inspections. The recent assurance visit in Kent underscored the importance of this alignment. The transfer also acknowledged the fundamental change in the relationship between social care and parents once a young person become an adult, highlighting key legislative changes and assurance arrangements. The immediate focus was on minimising disruption for young adults,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 90.

Anjan Ghosh (Director of Public Health) and Mike Gogarty (Interim Strategic Lead for Public Health) were in attendance for this item

1.    Dr Gosh (Director of Public Health) introduced the reportand noted the extensive work undertaken on the Integrated Care Strategy, which began with the formation of the Integrated Care Board in July 2022. The strategy, also served as Kent's Joint Health and Wellbeing strategy, which was first produced in December 2022 and finalised in early 2024 after extensive engagement. The strategy involved a whole council approach, covering various areas such as early years, family hubs, adult social care, and workplace well-being. The strategy would act as the foundation for future work, especially in light of devolution and local government reorganisation.

2.    Dr Gogarty (Interim Strategic Lead for Public Health) emphasised that addressing health issues required a collective effort beyond traditional health services. The action plan, which included contributions from various directorates, aimed to improve health and well-being across Kent. Despite financial challenges, the council was committed to delivering these priorities, at low or no cost. Dr Gogarty highlighted the importance of the council's role as a system leader in health and well-being noted that the strategy was a comprehensive and corporately owned effort.

3.    Further to comments and questions from Members it was noted:

·         Members commented on the approach to children's mental health and emphasised the need for a fundamental review of how those services were addressed. There were potential benefits of local government reorganisation and devolution, particularly in terms of strategic thinking and service integration, which could improve the delivery of outcomes for the likes of children’s mental health services amongst others.

·         Mr Watkins and the Leader were part of the membership for the Integrated Care System Leaders Group meeting. This group, which included leaders from Medway Council and senior members of the Integrated Care Board (ICB), focused on addressing any issues with the indicators in the plan and finding solutions to ensure progress.

·         Low-level interventions at the neighbourhood community level, played an important part in heling to keep people out of hospitals and statutory adult social care, enabling them to live fulfilling lives at home.

·         A proposal from the Government's Working Party suggested council leaders should annually report on the state of the county, not just the council. The broader approach aimed to evaluate the county's performance relative to other regions. Despite current challenges, it was essential that the Council addressed the poor performance. The Delivery Plan and associated work would help resolve the identified issues.

·         The Integrated Care Strategy remained a partnership effort and involved statutory organisations, the voluntary sector, NHS trusts, and individual responsibility. Whilst the various organisations supported healthy behaviours, individuals were expected to also make their own healthy choices. There needed to be a shared responsibility and personal commitment to health.

4.    RESOLVED that Cabinet agree to:

(a)  Adopt the Integrated Care Strategy Delivery Plan on behalf of Kent County Council

(b)  Delegate authority to the Director of Public Health in consultation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 91.

Christine McInnes (Director of Education) and Nick Abrahams (Assistant Director Education, West Kent) were in attendance for this item

1.    Mr Love (Cabinet Member for Education and Skills) introduced the report which set out the Kent Commissioning Plan for Education 2025-2029. It was an annual rolling program which forecasted the number of school places needed across different phases and types of schools in Kent. The forecasts were based on collected data and meetings with local leaders and planners. Kent was noted for its accurate forecasting, with a 1.1% accuracy rate in 2023. A new factor in the latest plan was the monitoring of potential displacements of children from independent schools to the maintained sector due to the Government's decision to tax independent school fees. The plan was a live document. Mr Love expressed his thanks to the Assistant Director of Education, Mr Abrahams, and his officers.

2.    Mr Abrahams (Assistant Director Education) elaborated further and advised that the document also touched upon other areas where the authority had statutory responsibilities, such as the post-16 sector and early years education, though these were not covered in as much detail. The overall trends in the plan reflected a continuation of patterns observed in recent years. Specifically, there was a declining number of children entering primary schools, which was linked to a decrease in birth rates in Kent since 2012. For context, the number of births in Kent peaked at just over 18,000 in 2012 and dropped to 15,000 by 2023. While birth rates significantly impacted the number of children requiring school places, other factors such as migration and house building also played a role. The decline in primary school enrolments was not uniform across the county; some areas had seen more significant drops than others. Projected forecast anticipated that there would not be a significant need for additional primary school places in the next five to ten years, depending on future birth rates. However, areas with substantial house building, particularly rural areas with limited existing school capacity,  would potentially require additional places. In contrast, the secondary sector continued to experience pressures from larger cohorts moving through key stage 2; areas like Sittingbourne and Maidstone faced ongoing demand for year 7 places. Engagement with borough and district councils in developing the commissioning plan remained key. These discussions provide valuable local intelligence and helped align the plan with local strategic activities, such as local plans. Discussions regarding improved sharing and accessibility of the underlying data within the commissioning plan to better inform district and borough councils was ongoing.

3.    Further to comments and questions from Members it was noted:

·         Members commented on the impact of the retrospective VAT on education and the upcoming High Court case by the Independent Schools Council challenging this decision. Forecasts predicted a 3-7% reduction in independent school pupils, potentially exceeding half a million nationwide, with some independent schools potentially requiring closure.

·         Members remarked on the plan's flexibility, noting the need to adapt to unintended consequences, such as accommodating Ukrainian  ...  view the full minutes text for item 92.