Simultaneous Cabinet Further Transformation In
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6 SIMULTANEOUS CABINET Monday 13 November 2017 FURTHER TRANSFORMATION IN EAST SUFFOLK (REP1629) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. Suffolk Coastal District Council and Waveney District Council agreed in January 2017 to create a new Council for east Suffolk. This was preceded by an intensive period of public consultation in November 2016, the results of which demonstrated that the majority of residents were in favour of one district Council in east Suffolk. 2. The decision to create a new Council for east Suffolk was both ambitious and ground breaking. A “super district” Council will be formed which will be the largest in England in terms of population. The creation of a new Council follows the successful legacy of both Councils working closely together for many years. Officers of all levels of seniority are shared, a joint Business Plan has been adopted and other key policies such as the Housing Strategy are shared. The Councils already share one website under the “East Suffolk” banner and Councillors from both authorities have attended meetings of each Council’s Cabinets since 2010. Cabinet portfolios are aligned and members have shared representation on various outside bodies. 3. The creation of a new Council will be a model other authorities follow as they decide how best to grapple with the significant challenges facing local government. Councils need to be of a scale large enough to face these challenges by having a loud enough voice, a strong bargaining position, a healthy balance sheet and a resilient workforce, yet small enough to feel connected to their residents. The creation of the new Council for east Suffolk will strike that balance. 4. In February 2017 a request was made to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to authorise the creation of a new Council and a business case in support of that request was provided to him. 5. Since then, a number of high profile matters including Brexit have diverted the government’s attention away from progressing local government issues, which has meant the Secretary of State’s decision has not yet been received. The Councils and local MPs have since been lobbying the Secretary of State and DCLG which led to key meetings being held with them. These meetings have had the desired effect of firmly placing the Councils’ ambition for the creation of a new Council back onto the Secretary of State’s agenda. 107 6. It is now hoped that the Secretary of State will commit to making a “minded to” decision imminently, which will trigger the DCLG in to drafting the Order required to create a new authority. 7. A Member Programme Board comprising of Councillors from both Councils was set up to progress the work around the creation of a new Council. It has so far met on four occasions and has considered a number of key matters, thought to be required for the purposes of the drafting the Order. For instance, the Member Programme Board has given consideration to: the name of the new Council, Council size (i.e. the number of Councillors to be elected to the new Council), ward boundaries and whether to adopt a cabinet or some other model of governance. 8. This report details the findings of the Member Programme Board and makes a number of recommendations to a simultaneous meeting of each authority’s Cabinet. 9. These recommendations will be considered by each Cabinet at their simultaneous meeting, and given the significance and nature of the decisions to be made; their decisions will also be referred to each of the respective authorities’ Full Councils. 10. Should these recommendations be accepted, they will be provided to the Secretary of State (and Local Government Boundary Commission for England) so that Order can be drafted, if he is so minded, to bring this in to effect, and subsequently, the Order will be laid before each House of Parliament, for consent. Is the report Open or Exempt? Open Wards Affected: All Cabinet Members: Councillor Ray Herring - Leader of Suffolk Coastal District Council Councillor Mark Bee - Leader of Waveney District Council Supporting Officer: Nick Khan Strategic Director 01502 523606 [email protected] 108 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 In January 2017, members at Suffolk Coastal District Council (SCDC) and Waveney District Council (WDC) agreed to progress with the creation of a new single authority for the east Suffolk area. 1.2 On 26 January 2017 at the Full Council meeting of Suffolk Coastal District Council, it was resolved: “That following consideration of the Business Case for the proposals previously (in Reports REP1359 and REP1380), and the public engagement conducted by the Councils, the Council of Suffolk Coastal District Council (i) approves the proposal to create a new single Council for East Suffolk as their preferred way forward and (ii) authorises the Chief Executive Officer, in consultation with the Leaders of the Councils, to submit a written request to the Department of the Communities and Local Government to commence the formal process of merger of the Councils, based on the proposal set out in Appendix A to report CL03/17.” 1.3 On 25 January 2017 at the Full Council meeting of Waveney District Council, it was resolved: “That following consideration of the Business Case for the proposals previously (in Reports REP1359 and REP1380), and the public engagement conducted by the Councils, the Council of Waveney District Council: (i) To approve the proposal to create a new single Council for East Suffolk as their preferred way forward and; (ii) To authorise the Chief Executive Officer, in consultation with the Leaders of the Councils, to submit a written request to the Department of the Communities and Local Government to commence the formal process of merger of the Councils, based on the proposal set out in Appendix A to this report.” 1.4 A Business Case for the creation of the new Council was submitted to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on 2 February 2017. The Business Case is available on the East Suffolk website: Creating an East Suffolk Council - full proposal document 2 BACKGROUND 2.1 Suffolk Coastal District Council and Waveney District Council have been working increasingly closely together since first sharing a Chief Executive in 2008. Simultaneous meetings of the Cabinets have taken place since 2010. This strong and successful partnership culminated in the adoption of a new joint Business Plan, designed to integrate the Councils’ business planning approach for east Suffolk. (Adopted by WDC Full Council on 18 November 2015 REP1285 and by SCDC Full Council on 26 November 2015 CL 28/15). 2.2 This unanimously supported positive step adopts a more business-like approach to developing financial self-sufficiency, encouraging growth across east Suffolk and enabling communities to develop from within, to maintain their unique quality of life. 2.3 Working in partnership has already enabled the Councils to save over £16m since 2010. SCDC and WDC are however committed to building further upon this successful shared services partnership to enhance the quality of life for east Suffolk’s residents. Bringing 109 the Business Plans together was an important part of creating such continuous improvement, within this ground-breaking operational and strategic partnership. The new Business Plan contains the Councils’ long-term joint ambitions for east Suffolk, reflecting their determination to push the boundaries of what they can achieve together. A summary of the vast transformational work undertaken as a result of working in partnership can be found at Appendix A of this report. 2.4 This is also vital as the Local Government world is continually changing and the Government is committed to further public sector reform. Both Councils face a number of key challenges, including: The need for investment in growth and infrastructure projects; Addressing increasing housing demand and costs; Growing employment opportunities and wages; Significant reductions in Central Government funding for Councils (both Revenue Support Grant and New Homes Bonus); Devolution of greater powers from Central Government; Double Devolution transfer of functions & responsibilities from Suffolk County Council; Further alignment and integration across the public sector; Improving education and skills; Better use of technology; Further welfare reform. 2.5 Creating a new District for east Suffolk requires the consent of the Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government. The Department for Communities & Local Government (‘DCLG’) has established five broad principles that it has adopted for considering proposals. It should be noted however that these are not statutory tests and nor do they form statutory guidance. As such there are no wider definitions or details for the five principles. The principles, which are equally weighted, are that the proposal would provide: better local/public services; significant cost savings; greater value for money; stronger and more accountable local leadership; and sustainability in the medium to long term 2.6 DCLG has recommended that any proposal for merger by the Councils should be carried out under the powers created by section 15 of the Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 (CLGDA). This section provides the primary legislation by which the Secretary of State may, by regulations, make provision about the governance arrangements of local authorities, and their structural and boundary arrangements. The carrying out of functions under s15 of the CLGDA are executive decisions. The necessary regulations to make such decisions ones that are reserved to full Council have not been made. However, given the structural changes involved, the DCLG have indicated that, as part of the process, they would expect the proposals to have the support of the full Councils. Hence the recommendation at 5), below, that the proposals be approved by each Council.