Agenda item

To provide an update to the Joint Committee on the 2018/19 Orbis Operating budget, in order for the Joint Committee to recommend the 2018/19 contributions to be made by BHCC, ESCC & SCC.

Declarations of interest:

None

Witnesses:

Sheila Little, Director of Finance, Orbis and Surrey County Council

Kevin Foster, Chief Operating Officer, East Sussex County Council

David Kuenssberg, Executive Director of Finance and Resources, Brighton & Hove City Council

Adrian Stockbridge, Head of Strategy, Performance and Change, Orbis.

Key points raised during the discussion:

1.    Officers introduced the report, highlighting that the inclusion of Brighton & Hove City Council into the Joint Operating Budget took the budget to £66m.

2.    Members noted the proposed contributions of each authority was likely to be: BHCC 21%, ESCC 24%, SCC 55%.

3.    Members noted that the risk ratings attached to various savings in the report were coded as either green or amber.  Officers explained that green meant that the savings were on track to be delivered and there was confidence that these were achievable; whilst amber meant there were some barriers to delivery that needed to be overcome before the savings would be delivered.

4.    Members questioned what the savings related to.  It was explained that as most of the Joint Operating Budget is staffing costs, the savings are all as a result of reduction of headcount.

5.    The Orbis Director of Finance explained that within Finance, the green saving was related to the delivery of centres of expertise to streamline service delivery.  The amber saving was related to the front facing service elements which would need more engagement before changes could be implemented.

6.    Members questioned how the savings were proportioned, and officers explained that savings are proportionate to costs, in line with the agreed contribution ratios.

7.    Officers explained that there were different processes across the three partner authorities which needed to be reviewed to ensure consistency.  An example of this was staff monitoring.  The Orbis Director of Finance explained that in SCC, this is currently done quarterly, whereas in ESCC, this has been reviewed monthly.  It was confirmed that a risk based approach was to be taken across all three authorities to allow consistency and Members noted that this would have some effect on the savings being made.

8.    Members enquired about the management non-staff costs as detailed in the report.  It was explained that this was a pension adjustment.

9.    Officers informed Members that savings were more achievable across the three partner authorities due to economies of scale.  Members noted that having three partners provided more resilience and best practice.

10.  There was some discussion about how overheads were accounted for.  It was explained that this was part of the Managed on Behalf of (MoBo) budget and was sovereign specific.  Officers explained that if a service was to move location as it was cheaper elsewhere, any savings after costs would be returned to the relevant sovereign authority.

11.  Members questioned where the incentives lay to move services to the most economic location.  It was explained that this and all similar financial choices were kept under review.  The level of complexity regarding a specific decision would dictate whether it formed part of ‘business as usual’ or if it needed to be treated as an issue requiring special consideration.

12.  Officers explained that a piece of work on demand management was currently being undertaken to ensure services were being delivered right first time.  Members acknowledged that this was particularly important in Business Operations, where a lot of the work was transactional. 

13.  It was noted that in some areas, the focus on demand management to achieve improved efficiency could feel like a decrease in the level of service being received, particularly as procedural compliance is enforced.  It was explained however, that signposting customers to the correct process would usually reduce failure demand, speed up transactions and allow more focus to be placed on strategic activity.

14.  Members questioned the savings risk rating against the Property service, as £751k was rated as amber.  It was explained that work was ongoing in Property; and it was suggested that the Chief Property Officer could bring an update to the next Joint Committee meeting under the ‘service update’ item.  Members agreed that this would be useful.

RESOLVED:

The Joint Committee agreed the recommended level of 2018/19 contributions to the Orbis Joint Operating Budget for approval by ESCC and SCC Cabinets and BHCC.