Purpose

To provide an overview of the Property
Programme including the savings and capital receipts it is
targeting to achieve, and to seek approval and authorisation to
allocate funding to enable continued activity to achieve these
targets in 23/24.

To seek approval to further property disposals and note the
long-list of potential property disposals across the asset
base.

Content

That Cabinet provided the following collective
approval across the four transformation programmes: Property
Programme, Temporary Accommodation and Homelessness Programme,
Children’s & Education Transformation Programme and Adult
Social Care Transformation Programme to:

1.     
Approved spend of up to £21.4m (for the four corporate
transformation programmes), of which £14.0m will be
designated from within corporate held resources as outlined in the
finance commentary.

2.     
Authorised the Chief Executive in consultation with the Director of
Finance and Deputy Mayor for Finance, Governance and Performance to
take all steps required to procure and award a contract for a
transformation consulting partner (which may be above the key
decision threshold and subject to an urgent decision with a
retrospective report to Cabinet) to provide oversight and assurance
and support delivery across the portfolio of four transformation
programmes.
Cabinet recommendations specific to the
Property Programme:
That Cabinet:

3.     
Noted the Property Programme’s financial objectives include
£36m capital receipts and £4m revenue savings in
23/24.

4.     
Noted the total anticipated costs of the Property Programme for
23/24 of £6.04m of which £0.7m is already funded
through reserves.

5.     
Approves spend of up to £6.04m to support the delivery of the
Property Programme of which £5.34m will be the initial
drawdown from the £14m and £0.7m is contained within
earmarked funding.

6.     
Authorised the Executive Director - Growth & Regeneration in
consultation with the s.151 Officer and Deputy Mayor with
responsibility for Finance, Governance and Performance to take all
steps required to procure and award of contracts (which may be
above the key decision threshold) for refurbishment works at the
retained locality offices on approval of the project’s
business case.

7.     
Authorised the Executive Director - Growth & Regeneration in
consultation with the Council’s s.151 Officer and Deputy
Mayor with responsibility for Finance, Governance and Performance
to take all steps required to procure and award of contracts
including any key decisions for refurbishment works at 100 Temple
Street following on approval of the project’s business
case.

8.     
Noted that commercial lease/s will be agreed for office space
vacated at 100 Temple in accordance with the requirements to secure
best consideration, as defined by S123 of the Local Government Act
1972

9.     
Authorised the Executive Director - Growth and Regeneration in
consultation with the Council’s s.151 Officer and Deputy
Mayor with responsibility for Finance, Governance and Performance
to spend up to the remaining budget to deliver the
programme’s objectives including procuring and awarding
contracts over the key decision threshold, subject to individual
project’s business case approval as outlined in this
report.

10. 
Approved the centralised approach to food/café/catering
provision including virement and centralisation of associated
contracts and budgets.

11. 
Authorised Executive Director – Growth & Regeneration in
consultation with Cabinet member for responsibility for Finance,
Governance & Performance, and the Director of Finance (S151
Officer) to take all steps required to extend (or recontract) for
all/any café/catering/food supplies contracts within the
provision of existing budgets in short term whilst strategic review
and procurement is underway to maintain stability.

12. 
Authorised the Executive Director – Growth & Regeneration
and the Director of Finance (S151 Officer) in consultation with
Cabinet member for responsibility for Finance, Governance &
Performance to approve the business cases related to the catering
contracts and changes to service delivery models.

13. 
Authorised the Executive Director – Growth & Regeneration
consultation with Cabinet member for responsibility for Finance,
Governance & Performance, and Director of Finance (S151
Officer) to take all steps required to implement a centralised
approach to food/café/catering provision including procuring
and awarding contracts over the key decision threshold before end
of the FY 23/24 (subject to presentation and approval of business
case).

14. 
Noted that a further report will be brought back to Cabinet for
information by no later than October 2023 to (a) inform Cabinet of
details of the contracts extended or direct awarded (in relation to
decision 11), and (b) inform Cabinet of the plans and scope of the
proposal (in relation to decision 12 and 13).

15. 
Authorised the Executive Director: Growth & Regeneration , in
consultation with the Deputy Mayor for Finance, Governance and
Performance, Director: Finance and Director: Legal & Democratic
Services to take all steps required to negotiate the terms of and
enter into all necessary legal agreements to move to a partnership
model for the delivery of parks cafes, which may include the
transfer of employees to third party provider(s).