Agenda and draft minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

The Chair drew attention to the emergency evacuation procedure.

Councillor Ian Halsall gave his apologies.

At this point in the meeting declarations of interest are received from Members in any of the agenda items under consideration at the meeting. Members are asked to indicate:

(a) The agenda item number in which they have an interest to declare.

(b) The nature of their interest.

(c) Whether their interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest or an other interest, (as defined in Part 4.4 Appendix B of the Code of Conduct and Rules for Registration of Interests)

Any Member who needs to clarify any matters relating to the declaration of interests is recommended to seek advice from the Council’s Monitoring Officeror a member of his staff before the meeting to expedite dealing with the item during the meeting.

There were none.

There was none.

There were none

Minutes of the previous meetings:

25^th March 2025

8^th July 2025

The Panel confirmed the minutes of the previous meetings as a true record and they were duly signed by the Chair.

The Cabinet Member will update the Panel on any relevant issues. Panel members may ask questions on the update provided.

The Council Leader was present and stated that he would answer any questions under this item and others.

The officer introduced the report.

Panel members made the following points and asked the following questions:

Councillor MacFie asked about the difference in numbers regarding international visitors. The Council Leader explained that the Chinese market had not fully recovered since Covid where the US had bounced back. He stated that this trend is in line with UK inbound and museum numbers. He added that the Roman Baths have received accreditation based on value for money and that the spend per individual is up. He stated that this was a credit to the Heritage Team.

Councillor Heathcote asked for confirmation that the 8 residential placements in Children’s Services (£2.7m) were young people and not asylum seekers. The officer stated that was how he understood it. The Council Leader explained that there could be some policy development work regarding the private sector exploiting Local Government.

Councillor David asked if there is confidence in the level of savings regarding the BOB (Being Our Best) scheme. The officer explained that any savings are delayed due to the delays in the programme – we are currently working through the appeals process.

Councillor David asked if agency costs are a factor. The officer explained that relevant services will be working with HR (Human Resources) colleagues to address this.

Councillor MacFie asked about flexible capital receipts. The officer explained that this was introduced by the Government so capital profit can be used to fund one off revenue costs if certain criteria are met. The Council Leader gave an example of the Englishcombe Lane project where significant revenue savings could be used towards staff costs.

Councillor Blackburn asked about our marketing budget line outside of Visit West which is funded by WECA (West of England Combined Authority). The Council Leader explained that there is a marketing team in Heritage Services and we are aware of the need to push.

Councillor Simon asked that the Panel look at the Council Tax Reduction Scheme again and asked if there was a feel for levels of arrears. The officer explained that he did not have specific figures but thought that collection figures were generally holding up. Regarding Council Tax, the Council Leader added that we are lobbying the Government to take into account the number of students in a city with regard to the Fair Funding Review.

Councillor Treby asked how it is decided which Capital Schemes are paused. The officer explained that Capital Schemes generally would have a project contingency and there is also a corporate contingency.

Councillor Treby asked if there had been any change in the risk environment since the report went to Cabinet in July. The officer explained that the Fair Funding amount is still unclear and we will find out November/December time.

Councillor Moss stated that we have an officer coming to the November meeting of the Panel to talk about the Capital Programme and stated that the outcome of the Fair Funding Review is likely in the week before Christmas. He stated that there will  ...  view the full minutes text for item 167.

The officer introduced the report and gave a presentation, the slides are attached to these minutes.

Panel members made the following points and asked the following questions:

Councillor Simon stated that the ‘social value’ work is appreciated. He asked about member involvement being more proactive in terms of contract vetting. The officer explained that member involvement at the point of design was built in during the Standing Order Review. Councillor Simon explained that he was a member of that group and wanted it to go further. The Council Leader explained that the Cabinet Member for Resources is working with the Resources Director on this. Councillor Simon stated that members could look at scoring/weighting systems. He welcomed the start that had been made.

In response to a question form Councillor Treby, the officer explained that there is no forecast at this stage on how much more would go to local businesses.

Councillor Moss thanked the officer for the report and noted the balance between legal requirements and the outcomes we want. He stated that in the legislation, contracts are not supposed to be broken down in size but the Voluntary Sector have highlighted that smaller contracts are more winnable for SMEs and the Voluntary Sector. He added that larger organisations have bid writing teams. There are concerns about contracts being awarded late. He also stated that with larger integrated care boards, ‘local’ might mean larger than we think and asked whose policy (NHS or Council) takes precedence. The Council Leader stated that it would be the one that pays.

In response to a question from Councillor Blackburn, the officer confirmed that the Council property company is inside the procurement rules.

The Chair thanked the Council Leader and officer. 

This report presents the latest workplan for the Panel. Any suggestions for further items or amendments to the current programme will be logged and scheduled in consultation with the Panel’s Chair and supporting officers.

Panel members noted the workplan with the following items scheduled for future meetings:

November 2025

• Home to School Finance Report
• Council Tax Reduction Scheme Update
• Capital Delivery Project Assurance
• Parish Council Election and by-election recharges

January 2026

·  Library IT

·  Budget discussion

The Panel agreed a new meeting date in February 2026 for the Panel to review feedback from each PDS Panel on the Budget.