Agenda and minutes
PDF 178 KBVenue: Committee Room C, County Hall, Kingston upon Thames, Surrey KT1 2DN. View directions
Contact: Bryan Searle, tel: 020 8541 9019 Email: bryans@surreycc.gov.uk
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Apologies for absence
To receive any apologies for absence. Minutes: There were no apologies. |
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Declarations of interest
To receive any declarations of interest. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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Procedural Matters
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Members' Questions
The deadline for Members’ questions is 12pm four working days before the meeting (23 June 2015). Minutes: There were no Members’ questions. |
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Public Questions
The deadline for public questions is seven days before the meeting (22 June 2015). Minutes: There were no public questions.
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JOINT COMMITTEE TERMS OF REFERENCE
On 15 April 2015, East Sussex and Surrey County Councils formally established a joint public sector partnership, ‘Orbis’ to deliver a comprehensive set of integrated business services to both authorities. The Partnership is overseen by the Joint Committee which has the assurance of democratic control and accountability by the partner authorities, with Member direction at the heart of the Partnership.
The Joint Committee is asked to approve its Terms of Reference, and thus formally become established as the governing body for Orbis.
Additional documents: Minutes:
It was noted that the Terms of Reference of the Joint Committee had been drafted to reflect the fact that East Sussex and Surrey County Councils were currently the only members of the Orbis partnership, and revisions would be made if additional partners joined in the future.
Resolved: (a) That the Terms of Reference of the
Orbis Joint Committee, as set out in
the annex to the report, be approved. (b) That the Joint Committee meetings be chaired by the Cabinet Member of the authority hosting the meeting.
Reasons for Decisions:
To formally establish a robust and democratic governing authority for the Orbis Partnership. The Joint Committee will be responsible for providing policy direction for the Partnership and overseeing its performance, to ensure it drives the desired positive transformation across the partnering authorities and delivers savings which will be used to sustain services for residents.
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INITIAL BUSINESS PLAN UPDATE REPORT
This report provides a progress update on the work carried out, since the February Cabinet at Surrey County Council and the March Cabinet at East Sussex County Council, to develop the Business Plan for Orbis and confirm its progress to Cabinet in October 2015.
Additional documents: Minutes: The Chief Operating Officer for Orbis introduced the report and explained that the decision had been taken to develop a fully integrated service to deliver the aims of Orbis, rather than simply making arrangements for closer working within the existing structures of the two councils. This ‘co-creation’ approach was felt to be important in building a strong, efficient and effective partnership. Work was currently under way to develop the business plan for the partnership, and this would be considered by this Joint Committee at its meeting and presented to Cabinet as part of both Councils’ medium-term financial planning. The aim was to achieve processes which were as simple and straightforward as possible.
The recommendations in the report were considered as part of the discussion on item 8 below.
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DATE OF THE NEXT MEETING
The next meeting of the Joint Committee will be held in September 2015 (date and venue to be agreed). Minutes: It was noted that the next meeting of the Joint Committee would be held at the East Sussex County Council offices in September 2015 (actual date to be confirmed). |
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EXCLUSION OF THE PUBLIC
That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information under the relevant paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.
Minutes: RESOLVED that under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information under paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.
PART TWO – IN PRIVATE
THE FOLLOWING ITEMS OF BUSINESS WERE CONSIDERED IN PRIVATE AT THE MEETING. HOWEVER, THE INFORMATION SET OUT BELOW IS NOT CONFIDENTIAL.
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DEVELOPING THE ORBIS PARTNERSHIP
This report provides a progress update on the work carried out, since the February Cabinet at Surrey County Council and the March Cabinet at East Sussex County Council, to develop the Business Plan for Orbis and confirm its progress to Cabinet in October 2015. Minutes: It was noted that the aim in future was to make as much information as possible available in the public domain, but elements of the report remained confidential at this stage while arrangements in the two councils were being aligned.
Significant progress had been made towards integrating systems and processes, although for certain areas, such as IT, there was still much to be done. The approach being taken was to design the functionality of the service to achieve the best outcomes and the devise the IT solution to achieve that, rather than allowing services to be constrained by the need to adapt to existing systems. However, whilst integration was the aim, the importance of retaining organisational sovereignty would also be recognised where appropriate. The Business Plan would seek to future-proof the joint service, and would be considered by the Joint Committee at its next meeting,
It was reported that staff in the two councils were positive about the Orbis brand, and the process had benefitted from the use of existing staff to design the service instead of bringing in external consultants.
The Members of the Joint Committee thanked the senior team for the work they had put in to achieve the progress so far.
Resolved:
(a) That the plans for the future development of the Orbis Partnership be endorsed.
(b) That the next steps proposed to further develop and refine the Business Plan for Orbis be approved.
Reasons for Decisions: Approval of the proposed direction of travel is necessary for the Partnership to continue to work to develop the Business Plan. This will be taken to the Joint Committee in September and then to the October Cabinet meeting of each Council for approval.
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PUBLICITY OF PART 2 ITEMS
To consider whether the item considered under Part 2 of the agenda should be made available to the Press and public.
Minutes:
RESOLVED: That the information considered under Part 2 of the agenda should remain confidential and not be made available to the press and public.
[Meeting closed at 3.55pm]
_________________________ Chairman
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