Meeting documents

1 THE ISSUE

1.1 An introduction to the Council's AMP, produced by the Chief Property Officer

2 RECOMMENDATION

2.1 The Asset Management Plan, incorporating the corresponding action plan and the Property Policy (protocol).

2.2 Authorises the Chief Property Officer, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Resources, to make minor changes to the documents in advance of a formal review at the end of the financial year.

3 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

3.1 The Council's Property Assets contribute to overall financial performance in a number of ways

(1) The programme of capital receipts provides one of the key funding sources for the capital programme.

(2) Non operational assets provide a significant element of net income.

(3) By providing the opportunity to improve utilisation and efficiency in all areas of property occupation.

4 COMMUNITY STRATEGY OUTCOMES

5 CORPORATE IMPROVEMENT PRIORITIES

6 CPA KEY LINES OF ENQUIRY

6.1 It has been a mandatory requirement under the CPA use of resources assessment to have an Asset Management Plan since 2005. The current AMP was approved by the then Executive in July 2006.

6.2 One of the biggest pressures in the coming year will be preparations for the transition from CPA to CAA. The CAA regime moves towards an output based assessment rather than a tick box approach and the introduction of ongoing challenge embodied in the AMP will form the cornerstone of the Council's use of resources insofar as this relates to real property. Such outputs will need to consider corporate priorities and reflect operational and service needs.

7 THE REPORT

7.1 The council's property assets were valued in excess of £500 million in 2007. The effective management of this resource gives rise to significant opportunities to improve performance both in revenue and capital terms and in support of the Council's objectives.

7.2 The use of resources has become a significant aspect of the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOE) and is reflected in the new Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) KLOE. See section 6 above.

7.3 The AMP sits alongside it's sister document, the Property Policy, and collectively these documents aim to

(1) Clarify the roles and responsibilities between staff in the Property Services, who exercise the delegated authority to manage property; occupiers who are responsible for day to day security and management; and other specialists within the council.

(2) Set out in detail individual responsibilities by means of a Service Level Agreement (SLA) or notional lease.

(3) Reinforce the corporate nature of assets and the links to the Council's overall corporate priorities and objectives.

(4) Confirm an allocation of every asset to a service area.

(5) Segment all assets into one of the primary portfolios

(6) Establish a framework for challenge that will contribute to the effective use of resources on an ongoing basis. The outputs from the challenge process include allocation to one of the secondary portfolios.

(7) Introduce structured arrangements for dealing with surplus and underperforming assets.

(8) Provide for proper accountability for the overall cost of occupation of property.

(9) Produce an estates strategy during the current financial year which will show how assets will be developed to meet priorities, operational and service needs and outcomes for local communities.

7.4 Through the stages described above Property Services will be able to demonstrate the best use of resources and additionally put forward a workable framework to contribute to the requirements of the capital programme and financial plan by identifying access to capital funding over the next 5 - 10 years while minimising the impact on income.

7.5 The level and timing of demands on the capital programme depends, in part, on the medium to long term requirements for a Council contribution to public realm and infrastructure development. This access to capital resources presents the Council with a major opportunity to contribute to the Council's overall objectives as reflected within the Community Strategy, Local Strategic Partnership and the Corporate Plan.

7.6 To this end there are complementary changes to the Council's future service and financial planning introduced from 1 April, including:

7.7 As set out above in order to understand the property portfolios and the opportunities that may arise, the entire estate has been segmented initially into either operational or revenue assets. The AMP then introduces a challenge process which identifies whether properties reach acceptable performance criteria depending on the primary portfolio. If performance is acceptable then the asset is retained and reviewed further on a 5 year cycle. If performance fails to achieve standards then assets will be identified for rationalisation, disposal or development.

7.8 This programme will also be considered alongside the service planning process with a view to dovetailing service needs with asset management considerations.

7.9 The AMP is intended initially to cover the current financial year and includes immediate actions but also sets out medium term goals and longer term aspirations. The rationale for Asset Management is constantly evolving and it will be necessary to develop the documents during the financial year. A formal review will be submitted to the Cabinet at the end of the financial year however in the meantime the Chief Property Officer will make any enhancements necessary in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Resources

8 RISK MANAGEMENT

8.1 The report author and Lead Cabinet member have fully reviewed the risk assessment related to the issue and recommendations, in compliance with the Council's decision making risk management guidance.

8.2 The emerging nature of the AMP philosophy means that the assessment of risk is developing and project risk registers for the Council's property assets are currently being developed.

9 RATIONALE

9.1 To set out a framework by which the Council's assets can contribute to the overall vision for the area by

(1) giving access to capital resources

(2) minimising the impact on revenue budgets.

(3) making the best use of Assets.

(4) enhancing governance and improved robust management of Capital and Revenue flows.

10 OTHER OPTIONS CONSIDERED

10.1 None

11 CONSULTATION

11.1 Cabinet members; Section 151 Finance Officer; Chief Executive; Monitoring Officer

11.2 Verbal briefings have been given to all consultees.

12 ISSUES TO CONSIDER IN REACHING THE DECISION

12.1 Customer Focus; Sustainability; Property; Corporate

13 ADVICE SOUGHT

13.1 The Council's Monitoring Officer (Council Solicitor) and Section 151 Officer (Strategic Director - Support Services) have had the opportunity to input to this report and have cleared it for publication.