Here is a summary of the scheduled discussions for the Resource and Finance Scrutiny Committee meeting. The agenda included a review of the committee's work programme, an update on the Improvement and Recovery Plan, and a discussion of the council's performance management report. Also listed was an update on procurement and contract management processes.

Improvement and Recovery Plan

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on the council's Improvement and Recovery Plan (IRP). The IRP was put in place following a section 114 notice¹ and government intervention. It addresses directions from the Secretary of State and aims to help the council discharge its Best Value duty². The plan also incorporates recommendations from an external assurance review of the council's finances, investments and governance.

The IRP contains five themes:

• Financial Recovery
• Commercial
• Governance and Assurance
• Organisation and Service Redesign
• Housing Recovery and Improvement

According to the report pack, the Commissioners have confirmed that they no longer require a separate six-monthly progress report, as they receive regular updates through the monthly Improvement and Recovery Boards. The report for the committee was intended for internal assurance purposes.

The committee was asked to note the progress of the IRP.

Performance Management Report

The committee was scheduled to review the resource and finance sections of the Quarter 1 Performance Management Report. According to the report from Richard Carr, Chief Executive, the council has extended the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that it monitors every quarter from 55 to 67, which includes the introduction of several finance measures.

The report reflects:

The Council's continued interest in monitoring the delivery of its services and understanding what lies behind the statistics.

The report sets out Woking's performance over time, but does not include information from other Surrey authorities to enable comparisons to be made. Work is also being undertaken to review progress of the actions that underpin the Woking For All Strategy (WFAS).

The report also identifies key corporate strategic risks, including:

• Companies have insufficient governance, capacity, and skills in place to deliver required improvements, protect value of assets, and support a smooth exit from current arrangements.
• Risk of inadequate Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG)³.

Procurement and Contract Management

The committee was scheduled to receive an update on the council's procurement and contract management processes. According to the report pack, work has been underway to review and update the council's approach to procurement and contract management arrangements, to ensure that the council is delivering these key functions as effectively as possible and that officers are equipped with the necessary skills to deliver Best Value for the residents of Woking.

The report pack states that Contract Standing Orders (CSOs) are a critical component of the council's governance framework, setting out the rules and procedures for procurement and contract management, and that the current CSOs have been in place for many years and are no longer fit for purpose. A comprehensive review has been undertaken to update the CSOs to reflect best practice, align with the Procurement Act 2023, and support the council's strategic objectives.

Substantial progress has been made in updating and strengthening the Corporate Contract Register (CCR), which now serves as the central repository for data and information related to procurement and contract management activity.

Procurement processes have been embedded into the Financial Control Panel, with a new gateway introduced that requires a contract case file to be created on the CCR for any supplier spend above £5,000.

The council is committed to delivering cashable savings over the next two financial years. A high-level target of £624,000 (recurrent) has been established for this work based on a 4% saving against the council's 2024/25 budgeted spend of £15.6m on supplies/services and contract/agency work.

Discussions are underway with Orbis to use their Procurement Sourcing Solutions Team (funded from a vacant post) to provide lower-value, transactional procurement services for the council, utilising various routes to market based on specific requirements.

All of the progress outlined in this report will culminate in a relaunch of procurement and contract management across the council in October/November 2025.

The committee was asked to note the report.

Work Programme

The committee was scheduled to review its work programme, the draft Executive forward plan, and the recommendations and actions tracker. Councillor John Pearce was listed as the reporting person. Emily Kelly, Scrutiny and Democratic Services Officer, was listed as the contact person.

The work programme covers:

• A forward plan of items to be received at future meetings of the three Scrutiny Committees and the expected meeting at which each item will be received.
• Suggested items for the Forward Plans.
• Any Scrutiny Review Topics proposed by Members of the Council and reviewed by the Chair and Vice-Chair of the respective Committee.
• A tracker of the recommendations and actions made by any of the Committees.
• The draft forward programme for the Executive.
• Details of any current Task and Working Groups set up by any of the Scrutiny Committees.

The committee was asked to note the report.

Finance Working Group Update

Brendan Bradley was scheduled to provide a verbal update on recent meetings of the Finance Working Group.