Agenda item

Following on from the Worcestershire Shared Services Joint Committee meeting on 25th June 2015, where Members approved recommendations to partner authorities for the dissolution and reconstitution of the Joint Committee; Members were provided with an update on the progress of the approval of those recommendations.

The Chairman, Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS) Management Board introduced the report and in doing so informed Members that partner authorities were progressing with the approval of the recommendations, as agreed by the Joint Committee in June 2015.  Bromsgrove District Council, Redditch Borough Council, Wyre Forest District Council and Wychavon District Council have completed the approval process, with the recommendations being resolved.  Malvern Hills District Council will present the recommendations to their Council meeting by the end of October 2015.

Members were further informed that Worcestershire County Council had not yet confirmed a date when the recommendations would be considered by its Cabinet, as it was considering other possible arrangements for provision of their trading standards services.  Worcester City Council (WCC) had made a decision to defer consideration of this matter until the position with WCC was clear.

The WRS Senior Management Team had been appointed and in post as of 28th September 2015.  The Business and Relationship Manager’s position would be advertised externally within the forthcoming weeks.

At this point in the meeting, the Chairman took the opportunity to welcome and congratulate Mr. Simon Wilkes on his new role as Head of WRS.  The Chairman also welcomed the WRS Senior Management Team to the meeting.

The Chairman, (WRS) Management Board responded to the concerns raised by Members with regard to the fact that the reconstitution of the shared services partnership required the unanimous agreement of all current and future partners. 

He informed Members that the rationale behind the dissolution and reconstitution of the Joint Committee was to create an environment whereby licensing and environmental health were sustainable, with WCC having an agreed Service Level Agreement (SLA) for trading standards. It was agreed that delegation would be given to the Head of WRS to agree the terms of reference for this SLA.

As highlighted at the June 2015 Joint Committee meeting, the extant partnership agreement as of 1st June 2010 contained provisions enabling partners to leave the partnership following the required notice period given and the terms of exit agreed by all partners.

The Chairman emphasised that assumptions were being made as to what WCC aspired to and therefore there were currently no specific answers.

Councillor J. Fisher, Redditch Borough Council stated that one of the key drivers for changing the partnership was to enable WCC to become a customer of WRS, with an agreed SLA, there was never any mention of WCC taking trading standards back ‘in house’.

The Chairman, (WRS) Management Board highlighted that the revised working model would give the partnership a means of managing change; more so than the current model.  If one partner authority decided to leave the current partnership, the whole thing would drop.  A partner authority who decided to leave the partnership was required to follow an exit strategy.  There was a requirement that the partner authority would give twelve months exit notice at the annual meeting of the Joint Committee. 

Councillor A. Blagg, WCC, informed the Committee that all partner authorities had voted for the change to the partnership in June 2015.  The changes had highlighted that WCC would not be a partner, but a customer of the service.  WCC wanted the best trading standards service for the County.  No decision had been made and WCC were moving as fast as possible.  The appointment of the new Head of WRS would enable discussions to continue with regard to a SLA. He was not in a position to clarify everything, but with regards to the questions and concerns raised regarding timescales, WCC were looking at their Council meeting cycle.

Councillor M. Johnson, Worcester City Council, stated that Worcester City Council would look to see what WCC would do and at their exit strategy.  Worcester City Council would also look at the SLA, as a council looking to outsource more services.  He would, however, reiterate that they were still part of the current partnership.

RESOLVED:

(a)  that the contents of the report be noted, and

(b)  that the contribution to the success of Worcestershire Regulatory Services  made by Mark Kay, Business Manager and Chris Philips, Trading Standards and Animal Health Manager, be acknowledged.