Present at the meeting:
- Councillor P R C Smith (Executive Leader)
- Councillor K Anderson (Cabinet Champion for Healthier Communities and Older People)
- Councillor J B Baldwin (Cabinet Champion for Lifestyle)
- Councillor K Cunliffe (Cabinet Champion for Neighbourhood)
- Councillor T W Halliwell (Cabinet Champion for Organisational Change)
- Councillor J A O’Neill (Cabinet Champion for Regeneration)
- Councillor C Ready (Cabinet Champion for Equality)
- Councillor Mrs E Smethurst (Cabinet Champion for Improvement)
- Councillor B M Wilson (Cabinet Champion for Children and Young People)
238 Minutes: The minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 29 November 2007 were approved as a correct record.
239 Exclusion of the public - section 100a Local Government Act 1972: Resolved: The public is excluded from the meeting when the Cabinet discusses the following items for the reasons set out below:-
| Agenda Item No. |
Title of report |
Minute No. |
Description of exempt information by reference to the paragraph number in schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 |
| E1 |
Building schools for the future: one school pathfinder |
252 |
3 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council) |
| E2 |
Award of Contract for 24 Hour Support for People with a Learning Disability |
253 |
3 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council) |
| E3 |
Bickershaw Country Park |
254 |
3 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council) |
| E4 |
Council chamber microphone system and webcast facilities |
255 |
3 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council) |
| E5 |
Norfolk Property Services NW Limited half yearly report 2007/08 |
256 |
3 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council) |
| E6 |
Wigan Link update |
257 |
3 and 5 (Information about the financial or business affairs of any person or organisation, including the council, and Information covered by legal professional privilege i.e. legal advice from a qualified legal representative) |
240 Land at Wilding Street, Ince – development brief amendment: This item was withdrawn.
241 Revenue support grant settlement and budget update: The Cabinet considered a report on the three-year provisional formula grant settlement for 2008/09 to 2010/11 inclusive. The Executive Leader reported that the current budget strategy would continue to identify savings for 2008/09, in spite of the fact that the settlement was more favourable to the Council than in previous years, to ensure that front-line services had maximum resources whilst keeping Council Tax to a minimum.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet:-
- welcomes the Government’s proposed changes to the formula grant calculation and the three year settlement;
- thanks the Wigan MPs, the Executive Leader and the Director of Finance and Information Technology for their support in achieving the grant formula now reported in view of its benefit to this Council; and
- delegates power to the Director of Finance and Information Technology, in consultation with the Executive Leader, to prepare a detailed response to the consultation process.
242 Proposals for Orrell Library relocation – an evaluation (see also minute 253): The Cabinet considered a report on an evaluation of the proposals agreed in principle by Cabinet in May 2007 (minute 9 refers) for re-locating Orrell Library. The evaluation was based on a detailed need and demand assessment including a consultation exercise with local residents. The Chief Executive of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust circulated at the meeting a letter from Councillor M W Winstanley setting out his observations on the proposal and a petition objecting to the proposed re-location of the library.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to provide:-
- a service to the greater catchment area;
- a bigger facility for Orrell residents; and
- some service in the Orrell community for those residents who may not be able to use the new library.
Resolved: The Cabinet agrees to:-
- re-locate Orrell Library to the site of the new Abraham Guest High School in Lamberhead Green;
- give a commitment to exploring the feasibility of providing an outreach library service, at a location in Orrell, if minimum levels of service and the criteria outlined in the report can be achieved; and
- establish a working group of Council officers, Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust officers and Orrell community representatives, under the umbrella of the Township Forum, to consider the options for an outreach service and to report back to Cabinet by March 2008.
(Councillors J B Baldwin and Mrs E Smethurst declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because they are Members of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust).
243 Review of polling places: The Cabinet considered a report on alternative locations for polling places identified as necessary during the recent review of polling arrangements (minute 189 refers).
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet recommends the Council to agree the relocation of polling places as follows:-
- St Anne’s Church as the polling place for polling district WDA (Wigan West) in place of Beech Hill Primary School;
- Golborne High School as the polling place for polling district LGC (Golborne and Lowton West) in place of Lowton Road Methodist Church; and
- Heathside Lodge as the polling place for polling district LDE (Leigh West) in place of the site of the former Our Lady of the Rosary RC Primary School.
Also to request the Chief Executive to continue investigations to identify an alternative location for the polling place serving polling district LHB (Leigh East)( 13th Leigh Scout Headquarters.)
244 Approved list of building, mechanical and electrical engineering contractors 2007/08: The Cabinet considered a report on the need for an extension of time to the current approved list of building, mechanical and electrical engineering contractors. The list was due for renewal in March 2008 but a review of alternative methods of contractor selection was underway that would not be completed by March 2008.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to permit the investigation of alternative options and their benefits.
Resolved: The Cabinet grants an extension of time to the review of the Council’s approved list of building, mechanical and electrical engineering contractors until April 2009 to allow time for a full review to be completed.
245 Objections to the advertisement of orders and proposals for pedestrian improvements on Wallgate, Wigan Town Centre: The Cabinet considered a report on objections received to the advertisement of orders to prohibit motor vehicles, except buses and hackney carriages, on Wallgate between King Street and King Street West and orders to prohibit left turn manoeuvres from King Street and King Street West onto Wallgate. These comprised the proposed pedestrian improvements for Wallgate, Wigan town centre and were intended to address the pedestrian collisions occurring in the vicinity.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to be the most appropriate for this area in the town centre
Resolved: The Cabinet agrees to defer consideration of this item to the next meeting to enable the Director of Environmental Services to:-
- make arrangements for the Cabinet to walk the area concerned to see the impact of the proposals; and
- review the scope of the consultation process and the results of the process so far.
246 Wigan local development framework - third annual monitoring report: The Cabinet considered a report on the third annual monitoring report for the local development framework, which had to be prepared and submitted to the Secretary of State by the end of December 2007. The Planning Committee and Environment Panel had endorsed the report (minutes 55 and 35 refer respectively).
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet approves the annual monitoring report and authorises the Director of Environmental Services to consult with the Environment and Development Partnership on it.
247 Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) annual performance assessment 2006/07: The Cabinet considered a report on the outcome of the annual performance assessment of the Council’s adult social services. This amounted to 2 stars and indicated that the Council was delivering good outcomes with promising capacity for improvement.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report and congratulates the Director of Adult Services and his staff on their significant achievement.
248 Revenue budget monitoring as at 31 October 2007: (a) Adult services: The Cabinet considered a report on the budget monitoring position for adult services after the first 7 months of 2007/08 and the budgetary issues that need to be addressed during the remainder of the year.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report.
(b) Children’s social care: The Cabinet considered a report on the budget monitoring position for children’s social care services as at 31 October 2007.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report.
249 Outcomes of the annual performance assessment: The Cabinet considered a report on the outcome of the annual performance assessment by Ofsted of the Council’s services for children and young people, which gave an overall grade of three (good).
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report.
250 Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust consultation document on achieving Foundation Trust status: The Cabinet considered a report on issues for the Council arising from the proposal document on the achievement of foundation status for Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet supports Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust’s application for foundation status and agrees to continue to work with the Trust in order to improve the health of the population.
251 Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012: The Cabinet considered a report on an outline of the opportunities arising out of London’s successful bid for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. The report outlined potential opportunities for Wigan and the thinking arising out of the first round of consultation meetings undertaken.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to comply with a key Government priority, as detailed in PSA22, and to take the real opportunities to use the build up to the Games as a vehicle for wider outcomes that the borough wished to achieve.
Resolved: The Cabinet:-
- notes the report;
- supports further consultation work, including with the Wigan Borough Partnership, before a further report detailing programmes is brought back to a future Cabinet meeting; and
- appoints Councillors Mrs E Smethurst and J Moodie and Mr Trevor Barton as Olympic and Paralympic Games Champions.
(Councillors J B Baldwin and Mrs E Smethurst declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because they are Members of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust).
252 Building schools for the future: one school pathfinder (see also minute 243): The Cabinet considered a report and Forms CPR1 on the one school pathfinder project and, in particular, confirmation of the proposed funding package for the scheme.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to avoid the potential loss of government grant; the cost of delaying the rebuilding of the school as a result of building cost inflation; and the reputational risk to the Council of failing to deliver on a high profile project.
Resolved: The Cabinet:-
- approves the proposed funding package for the one school pathfinder project, including the proposal to partly fund the single siting of Lamberhead Green Primary School from the Children and Young People's Services modernisation budget;
- delegates power to the Director of Children and Young People's Services, in consultation with the Cabinet Champion for Children and Young People's Services, to complete the negotiations of the agreed maximum price with the partner constructor within the budget release sum set out below; and
- approves budget release and amendment to the capital programme as detailed in paragraph 3.5 of the report.
(Councillors J B Baldwin and Mrs E Smethurst declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because they are Members of Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust).
253 Award of contract for 24 hour support for people with a learning disability: The Cabinet considered a report on the award of contract for the provision of 24-hour support to people with a learning disability and an assessment of the tenders submitted.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet approves the award of contract to Alternative Futures Group on the terms and conditions set out in the report.
254 Bickershaw Country Park – forward works (minute 160 refers): The Cabinet considered a report and Form CPR1 on proposed arrangements for the first phase works for this project.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet:-
- delegates powers to the Director of Environmental Services, in consultation with the Cabinet Champion for Regeneration, to accept tenders for Bickershaw Country Park forward works within the budget release set out below; and
- approves budget release in the sum of £1,100,000 (English Partnerships funding) and amendment to the capital programme.
255 Council chamber microphone system and webcast facilities: The Cabinet considered a report on options for the upgrading of the public address system in the council chamber at Wigan Town Hall.
The report set out details of the alternative options to be considered. The reason for selecting the one recommended was to give greater flexibility to the Council to extend the functionality of the system.
Resolved: The Cabinet:-
approves the full upgrading of the public address system;
- agrees budget release in the sum of £56,000 (£25,000 from undserspends in 2006/07 £4,750 e-government capital fund in relation to any IT element £26,250 balances) and amendment to the capital programme; and
- approves an exception to the standing orders relating to the public advertisement and invitation of tenders to enable the Assistant Chief Executive to appoint Sound Workshop Limited (the sole supplier) to carry out the work.
256 Norfolk Property Services (NW) Limited half yearly report 2007/08: The Cabinet considered a report on the performance of Norfolk Property Services (NW) Limited over the first and second quarters of 2007/08. The Audit, Governance and Improvement Committee had endorsed the report (minute 57 refers).
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report.
(Councillor K Anderson declared a personal and non prejudicial interest in this item because he is a Director of Norfolk Property Services (NW) Limited).
257 Wigan Link update (minute 269 of November 2006 refers): The Cabinet considered a report on the progress to date in putting the services currently provided by Wigan Link out to tender.
There were no alternative options available for consideration.
Resolved: The Cabinet notes the report; and requests the Director of Adult Services to continue to progress discussions with service users regarding direct payments and to retain the option of tendering the service should resolution not be achieved with Wigan Link.
