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Board Tuesday 16 June 2015 at 5.00pm
Meeting to be held at YHN House, Benton Park Road, Newcastle upon Tyne. Contact: Jill Davison (telephone: 0191 278 8624 email: [email protected])
AGENDA
Introduction items Timing Page No.
1 Reminder to switch off mobile phones 5.00
2 Apologies for absence
3 Declarations of Interest
4 Chair’s Items
Items for Decision
Governance
5 Board membership 5.05 1
6 Governance self-assessment action plan 5.10 4
7 Disaggregation update 5.25 18
Financial
8 Housing Investment Programme 2015/16 – 2018/19
5.35 24
9 Sheltered Programme 5.50 35
Strategic
10 Business Strategy Development 6.00 49
11 Risk Register 6.10 53
Items for approval
12 Minutes of 5 May 2015 6.15 64
Items for Information
13i Procurement Plan 72
13ii Social Value Act update 77
13iii Delegated Decisions 91
13iv Board Forward Plan 28 July
92
Items for Information – continued
13v Committee minutes:
Commercial committee 20 January
Audit Committee 26 February
Customer & Service Delivery Committee 17 March
93
99
106
To exclude the press and public during discussion of agenda item 14-18 because of the likely disclosure of confidential information. The definitions of what is considered confidential are contained within Section 16 of the Company’s Standing Orders.
Protect not for publication – Items for Decision
14 Byker Community Trust contract 6.15 113
15 Walker & Walkergate high rise review 6.25 124
16 Digital by Choice 6.35 133
17 Health & Safety – verbal update 6.50
18 Confidential minutes 5 May 2015 6.55 156
Closed session of the Board 6.55
The Chair wishes to hold a private discussion with Board members only, at the end of the meeting.
.
Board 16 June 2015
Appointment of Board Members Report by Chair
For Decision
1 Introduction
1.1 The Board is made of up 18 Board Members from three constituent groups (six tenant members, six council nominees and six independent members) and an externally appointed independent Chair.
1.2 Council nominees are selected annually by Newcastle City Council (‘NCC’) and tenant and independent members are appointed for a three year term. Tenants and independent members are required to stand down on a rotational basis at the Annual General Meeting (‘AGM’). The Board approves the appointment of both tenant members and independent members and in addition NCC approves the appointment of new independent members too.
2 Background
2.1 The Board received a report in May, and agreed the process for the re-appointment of the independent and tenant board members for 2015.
2.2 Newcastle City Council AGM was held on the 27 May 2015, and we have received formal notification of the Council nominees.
3. Board Membership
Council nominees
3.1 The Council has changed which Councillors represent them on external bodies following Council elections in May. This has resulted in one change to the exiting Council nominees with Councillor John Stokel-Walker no longer representing the Council on YHN Board, and the new representative will be Councillor Jane Streather.
5
Page 1 of 112
Tenant and Independent members
3.2 All three of those Board Members who are required to stand down at the AGM in September 2015 indicated to the Chair that they would like to re-stand for a position on the Board; Phil Dibbs, Lisa Doherty and Tony Moore.
3.3. Following the submission of a written statement from each of the Board members, the applications along with outcomes from the board appraisal, board and committee attendance and their wider contribution were considered by a panel consisting of the Chair and two other Board members.
4 Business Implications
4.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: The work of the Board contributes to all of our strategic objectives
4.2 Value for money/efficiencies: The decision to reappoint Board Members makes efficient use of resources through the avoidance of a renewed recruitment process.
4.3 Resources (financial, property, technological or human): There is a budget allocation to meet Board member payments and the requirements for equipment, training and induction.
4.4 Impact on services/performance: The decision to re-appoint serving board members will result in there being no impact on the performance of the Board and that the Board will have continuity of experience.
4.5 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders: Board Members, the Chair and Vice Chair contribute to decision making to make sure that tenants and leaseholders receive the services they need.
4.6 Risk (reputation, relationship): The decision to re-appoint serving board members will result in strengthening existing relationship and provide stability for the Board.
4.7 Legal: The recruitment and appointment of Board Members, the Chair and Vice Chair are all conducted in accordance with the Articles of Association.
4.8 Equality and Diversity: Board Members standing down have the opportunity to put themselves forward for re-appointment as it is considered that the Board is broadly representative of the community it serves. Periodically, YHN does advertise for Board positions specifically when it requires particular skills or experience or at times when the appointment of someone from a group with protected characteristics would make the Board more representative of the communities it serves.
4.9 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation: None. The requirements for appointing Board Members are set out in the Articles of Association.
Page 2 of 112
5. Conclusion and recommendations
The panel considered the written submissions from those current Board Members due to step down and who indicated a wish to remain on the Board and found them to be of an appropriate standard and demonstrated continuing commitment, to warrant a further term of office.
5.1 Therefore and in accordance with Your Homes Newcastle’s Articles of Association, and for formal adoption at the Annual General Meeting on 22 September 2015, Board is asked to:
approve the re-appointment of Phil Dibbs as an independent member of Your Homes Newcastle Board for a three year term.
approve the re-appointment of Lisa Doherty and Tony Moore, as tenant members of Your Homes Newcastle Board for a three year term.
agree the Council’s nominated representatives on Your Homes Newcastle Board: Councillors Joyce McCarty, Marion Talbot, Veronica Dunn, Doreen Huddart, David Down and Jane Streather.
6. Next Steps
6.1 Prepare all necessary internal administration in preparation for formal agreement of the appointments at the Your Homes Newcastle AGM on 22 September 2015.
6.2 A separate process is underway to recruit to the vacant independent board member position which Board will receive further report on in due course.
Background papers:
Articles of Association
Board Report 5 May 2015.
Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Jill Davison by telephone on 0191 278 8704 or email [email protected]
5
Page 3 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Governance Self-Assessment – Action Plan
Report by Company Secretary
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1
1.2
In November 2014, the Board received a report on the implications of the Homes and
Communities Agency (HCA) revised regulatory standards for governance and
financial viability. The report discussed the regulator’s focus on ensuring housing
providers were well governed and had a robust approach to understanding and
managing risks to their business. These revisions came into focus following the crisis
which occurred at Cosmopolitan Group, and the recommendations from the Altair
report into Cosmopolitan Housing were also discussed.
Board agreed at the November meeting to undertake a number of pieces of work
which would ensure that our business was placed on a robust footing.
The first two of these were a self-assessment and gap analysis against;
a) The HCA’s governance and financial viability standard; and
b) The recommendations for boards from the report on lessons learned from
Cosmopolitan Housing Group.
During the period January to April 2015, these assessments were undertaken by a
working group of officers which included Director of Corporate Services, Head of
Finance, Head of Business Strategy and the Company Secretary. The working group
scrutinised each of the standards and considered the evidence which measured our
current compliance, any gaps and issues which were apparent and proposed actions
to address the gaps. The governance self-assessment document was circulated to
all Board members for review prior to an away day held on 28 April 2015.
1.3
Board away day
The Board away day, held at the Mansion House on 28 April, was focussed on the
importance of strong governance. Fiona Underwood from Altair, the consultancy
which completed the review on the Cosmopolitan Housing crisis, gave some insight
into where business’s focus should be and how to prepare and avoid crisis.
6
Page 4 of 112
Following the presentation Board members were split into groups and asked to
review all the actions proposed in the governance self-assessment document,
confirm if the right actions had been identified, add any more they felt important and
remove any not required. Section two of this report presents the outputs from the
away day.
2. Outputs
2.1
Additional actions
The first task required Board members to review all the proposed actions in the
Governance self-assessment document and decide if these were the appropriate
actions for YHN. Board members could discard actions or include any additional
actions they felt were missing.
The following list presented the additional comments/actions which were presented
by the groups;
Setting and monitoring of a suite of financial covenants
Dashboard of financial indicators
Impact analysis of board discussions to avoid time wasting
Creation of change management policy
Update all on Nolan principles
Training - needs to be done, not just arranged
Committee reports to board should be based on outcomes to be delivered, as
agreed by Board then performance report will be standardised
Board members consulted about which committee is their best fit and receive
training
If a skills gap is identified and is a priority consider co-optees
Papers ‘for information’ at Board sometimes members want to ask questions
Platform for adding to the agenda
Establish short / medium and long term goals – plan
These actions have been incorporated into the improvement plan.
2.2 Timeline
The second task plotted all the actions onto a timeline. This exercise prompted board
members to think about priorities and which actions required attention first. The
timeline spanned two years, and had significant dates (e.g.AGMs) highlighted.
The results from each of the three groups were very similar and signified the majority
of actions needed to be completed before the 2015 AGM in September.
The timelines from each group were photographed and the results have been used in
formulating the improvement plan (appendix 1), to ensure the priority and target date
for completion reflected Board members’ views.
2.3 Importance
For the final task of the exercise members were given five stickers and were asked to
Page 5 of 112
place a sticker on the action or actions they thought were the most important. These
could be allocated over several actions or all five placed on one action to signify its
importance.
Board members identified the following areas as most important;
1. Person specification and role description for Board members
2. Reporting to Board to be improved (including business plans, cash flow
reporting and reviewing ‘For Information’ items)
3. Succession planning for senior managers
4. Committee structure, remit and delegations
5. Appraisal system and training and development plans for board members
6. Governance documents to be made available on intranet
These results have also been reflected in the improvement plan.
3. Governance Improvement Plan
3.1 The outputs from the away day summarised in section two have been collated and
are presented in appendix 1, Governance Improvement Plan, for Board members’
comment, input and approval.
3.2 Board members’ views and input on additional actions, timeline and priorities have all
been incorporated into the plan. The improvement plan is split into sections which
group activities together into sub-headings, the priority tasks are listed first with
activity that can be carried out later, meaning after the AGM 2015, appearing at the
bottom of each section.
3.3 It is clear that the first priority is to review the current skills and experience on the
board in preparation for the recruitment to the independent vacancy, to understand if
there are any skills gaps which need to be filled.
3.4 Benchmarking on the size and skills on the Board of other Housing associations has
been completed, and this research has been utilised to create a skills matrix for the
Board as a whole (appendix 2). This presents the range of skills identified that the
Board requires as a whole to meet its objectives, for Board members’ comment, input
and approval.
Once agreed, the skills matrix will assist the recruitment and selection of new
members, as it will be used to review the existing skills and capabilities of current
Board members and identify any gaps in skills and expertise. Board will be asked to
assess their own individual skills and experience against the matrix, so we can gather
a true picture of the current Board skill set.
3.5 The importance of a revised role description for YHN Board members was also
clearly evident in the discussions at the away day. This is required for the new Board
6
Page 6 of 112
member recruitment campaign, but also to clarify the key roles and responsibilities of
all current Board members. The Company Secretary has completed some
benchmarking with other Housing Associations and reviewed the job description. A
draft for comment, input and approval prior to recruitment commencing is attached as
appendix 3.
These two documents are intended to be used together, with the job description
outlining the key responsibilities, requirements and skills for the individual board
member and the skills matrix covering the range of skills the Board collectively needs.
It was felt these two documents covered the requirements adequately without the
need for a person specification.
4. Additional issues to consider
4.1
4.1.1
YHN Structure following disaggregation
The Board has been receiving regular updates on the disaggregation project currently
being undertaken, involving the transfer of strategic management of the Housing
Revenue Account (HRA) to Newcastle City Council (NCC), and the transfer of non-
core landlord services into YHN.
In February 2015, a report to Board outlined activity to date and presented an
alternative company structure as advised by EY. This structure was suggested to
mitigate the effects of corporation tax, and had implications for the wording of the
management agreement and asset transfers.
At that meeting, Board agreed to receive a further report on options for, and
implications of, an alternative entity structure once legal advice has been obtained.
This update will appear later on the agenda.
This section is to ensure that Board are aware of the relevant linkages between both
these projects, and the co-dependences. The most relevant are;
Board recruitment
The proposed structure with two subsidiaries will require establishment of two
separate boards. Although a number of YHN Board members will be eligible to
sit on the Board, the charitable subsidiary will require independence from the
parent company and therefore will result in recruitment requirements specific
to its role and objects. Until these arrangements are finalised the number of
additional Board members that will be required is not determined, but it is
anticipated the recruitment campaign can run in conjunction with the current
independent board vacancy.
Committee structures
With work on-going on the legal structure of the business, it will be important to
tie this work together. Our current committee structure will need to be revised
to meet future business needs within the new legal entity structure.
Schemes of delegations
Following the work of the structural changes to the company, the scheme of
Page 7 of 112
delegations for Board, subsidiaries and committees will need to be reviewed
as a whole for the “Group” and agreed.
Governance documents to be approved at the AGM
The target date for the new structure to be in place is 1 October 2015, it is
envisaged that all structures, committees and delegations will be complete in
time for approval at the AGM.
5. The Business Implications
5.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: The recommendations in this report are designed
to preserve our ability to achieve our mission and strategic objectives by maintaining
our overall governance standards and compliance and achieve long term
sustainability.
5.2 Value for money/efficiencies: There are no implications as a direct result of this report
as the proposed options for strengthening governance would be delivered within
existing resources.
5.3 Financial Implications: There are no implications as a direct result of this report as the
proposed options for strengthening governance would be delivered within existing
resources.
5.4 Resources (financial, property, technological or human): The disaggregation work has
been led by the Head of Finance and Management Team. The governance self-
assessment has been led by the Director of Corporate Services, and a working group
including the Head of Finance, Head of Business Strategy and the Company
Secretary. As discussed these two projects will come together over the next four
months to finalise all arrangements and recommendations to Board.
Additional capacity has been provided to the governance function to ensure the
projects are sufficiently resourced.
5.5 Impact on services/performance: The implementation of the governance improvement
plan ensures that service provision is protected from unnecessary risk.
5.6 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders: There should be no detrimental impact on
services and performance and the new structure will create opportunities for
improved performance.
5.7 Risk (reputation, relationship): The implementation of the governance improvement
plan ensures that YHN mitigate the risk of poor corporate governance which would, if
not addressed, cause major reputational damage.
5.8 Environmental: None
5.9 Legal: Legal advice is being sought regarding the disaggregation plans, compliance
with statutory and regulatory governance standards are the main focus of the
6
Page 8 of 112
governance improvement plan.
5.10 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion: None
5.11 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation: Board members were consulted with at the
away day.
6. Conclusion and recommendations
Board is requested to;
Approve the Governance improvement plan (appendix 1)
Approve the Board skills matrix (appendix 2)
Approve the role description for board members (appendix 3)
Note the project linkages with the disaggregation/structures project.
Agree to complete a self-assessment against the skills matrix
Continue to receive further updates on the Governance Improvement Plan
activity
7. Implementation
The Company Secretary will complete the following actions;
Make any additional amendments to the documents.
Circulate the skills matrix to all current board members for completion
Collate the results of the skills matrix assessment of current board members
and feed results into the targeted recruitment campaign
Ensure the approved job description and skills matrix is used in the recruitment
campaign
Oversee the completion of the Governance Improvement Plan activity and
present further reports to Board.
Background Papers
Governance Board report 4 November 2014
Governance self-assessment – Board away day 28 April 2015
Contact Officer:
If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the
meeting, you can contact Jill Davison by telephone on 0191 278 8624 or email
Page 9 of 112
GO
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IVIT
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5
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Jo
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on
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ole
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des
responsib
ilities t
o b
e w
ritt
en for
chair/v
ice c
hair/b
oard
m
em
bers
/com
mitte
e c
hairs
“
Skill
s a
nd e
xperience r
eq
uired o
n the
Board
” develo
ped into
a P
ers
on
specific
ation w
hic
h inclu
des r
eq
uired
skill
s a
nd q
ualif
ications, in
clu
din
g
financia
l accounta
bili
ty.
S
kill
gaps identified s
hould
influence
targ
ete
d r
ecru
itm
ent fo
r th
e independent
vacancy w
hic
h w
ill b
e a
vaila
ble
in 2
015.
B
enchm
ark
ing o
f th
e m
ake-u
p o
f B
oard
(s
ize a
nd s
kill
s)
and a
lso r
ecru
itm
ent
pro
cess,
T
he leg
al and f
inancia
l skill
gap
identified
should
influence t
arg
ete
d r
ecru
itm
ent fo
r th
e independent vacancy w
hic
h w
ill b
e
availa
ble
in 2
015.
HIG
H
1.
Benchm
ark
ing o
ther
HA
/ALM
O’s
on B
oard
siz
e,
skill
s,
role
descriptions a
nd r
ecru
itm
ent
pro
cess
2.
Skill
s s
pecific
ation f
or
the b
oard
as a
whole
, S
kill
s M
atr
ix
pro
posed
3.
Revis
ed J
ob d
escription for
Board
mem
bers
, in
clu
de
Nola
n p
rincip
les
4.
Skill
s h
ealth c
heck b
y indiv
idual board
mem
bers
usin
g
Skill
s M
atr
ix
5.
Recru
itm
ent
of In
dependent
Board
mem
ber
to fill
vacancy o
f N
itin
Shukla
influenced b
y g
aps identified in
skill
s h
ealth c
heck
LA
TE
R
Consid
era
tion o
f C
o-o
pte
es if
sig
nific
ant
skill
s g
ap w
hic
h
req
uires im
media
te input
Revis
ed J
ob d
escription for
Chair, V
ice C
hair, and
Com
mitte
e C
hairs
NO
TE
: T
o b
e c
om
ple
ted in c
onju
nction w
ith t
he d
isaggre
gation
pro
ject / gro
up s
tructu
re a
rrang
em
ents
and a
ny n
ew
Board
m
em
ber
req
uirem
ents
.
1.
1 J
une 2
015
2.
16 J
une 2
015
3.
16 J
une 2
015
4.
30 J
une 2
015
5.
22 S
ept 2015
H7
H9
Co
mm
itte
es
Revis
e t
he c
om
mitte
e r
em
it a
nd
schem
e o
f dele
gations f
ollo
win
g
dis
agg
reg
ation
.
Benchm
ark
with o
ther
ALM
O/R
P
com
mitte
e s
tructu
res a
nd t
erm
s o
f re
fere
nce
HIG
H
1.
Benchm
ark
ing o
ther
RP
/ALM
O o
n c
om
mitte
e s
tructu
res
and t
erm
s o
f re
fere
nce
2.
Pro
posed c
om
mitte
e s
tructu
re a
nd r
em
it r
eport
to
28 J
uly
B
oard
, in
clu
din
g o
utc
om
es r
eq
uired a
nd r
eport
ing t
o B
oard
re
quirem
ents
1.
30 J
une 2
015
2.
28 J
uly
2015
6
Page 10 of 112
Board
appro
val of
a c
om
pre
hensiv
e
financia
l fr
am
ew
ork
needs t
o b
e
undert
aken inclu
din
g a
revie
w o
f th
e
schem
e o
f dele
gations a
nd f
inancia
l re
gula
tions.
The c
urr
ent fo
rward
pla
n t
o b
e a
dapte
d
into
a s
trate
gic
annual cycle
of
busin
ess f
or
the B
oard
and c
om
mitte
es
wh
ich c
an inte
gra
te a
gendas a
nd
ensure
a f
ocus o
n a
chie
vin
g o
utc
om
es.
3.
Annual cycle
of
busin
ess f
or
Board
to b
e d
evelo
ped a
nd
report
ed to 2
8 J
uly
Board
4.
Schem
e o
f dele
gations r
evis
ed
5.
Fin
ancia
l re
gula
tions r
evis
ed
6.
Confirm
chang
es t
o g
overn
ance a
rrang
em
ents
and
am
ended
docum
enta
tion, to
be a
ppro
ved a
t A
GM
.
7.
Mem
bers
hip
of
com
mitte
es t
o b
e a
ppro
ved a
t A
GM
N
OT
E: T
o b
e c
om
ple
ted in c
onju
nction w
ith t
he d
isaggre
gation
pro
ject / gro
up s
tructu
re a
rrang
em
ents
.
3.
28 J
uly
2015
4.
22 S
ept 2015
5.
22 S
ept 2015
6.
22 S
ept 2015
7.
22 S
ept 2015
H5
H7
H8
A14
A15
Bo
ard
meeti
ng
eff
ecti
ven
ess
Chair t
o intr
oduce r
eport
s a
nd
sum
marise the s
ignific
ance o
f th
e ite
m
and a
ny p
revio
us d
iscussio
n/s
cru
tiny t
o
cle
arly info
rm B
oard
mem
bers
of
the
input
req
uired fro
m them
.
Board
mem
bers
to c
onta
ct
off
icers
with
reg
ard
to d
eta
il in
report
s p
rior
to B
oard
m
eeting
s
Fin
ancia
l and n
on-f
inancia
l perf
orm
ance r
eport
s to b
e b
roug
ht
tog
eth
er
at
Board
.
Benchm
ark
ag
enda c
onte
nt
and r
eport
te
mpla
tes
Cash f
low
report
ing t
o B
oard
fro
m A
pril
2015.
Manag
em
ent te
am
to look a
t str
ength
enin
g b
usin
esses c
ases a
nd
exit s
trate
gie
s w
hen p
resenting
pro
jects
to B
oard
.
Ong
oin
g m
onitoring
info
rmation o
f risk
needs t
o b
e p
rovid
ed t
o the B
oard
by
off
icers
.
ME
DIU
M
1.
Pro
vid
e C
hair w
ith s
um
mary
of
report
s, sig
nific
ance o
f item
, any b
ackg
round to the ite
m i.e
. pre
vio
us
dis
cussio
n/s
cru
tiny a
nd a
cle
ar
indic
ation o
f th
e input
req
uired fro
m B
oard
.
2.
Benchm
ark
ing o
ther
RP
/ALM
O’s
ag
enda c
onte
nt and
report
tem
pla
tes
3.
Report
s t
o B
oard
am
ended t
o r
eflect im
pro
vem
ents
re
quired i.e
. bring
ing t
ogeth
er
financia
l and n
on
-fin
ancia
l in
form
ation, dashboard
of
indic
ato
rs, suite o
f financia
l covenants
, m
onitoring o
f risk info
rmation a
nd
str
ength
enin
g b
usin
ess c
ases a
nd e
xit s
trate
gie
s w
hen
pre
senting
pro
jects
LA
TE
R
Develo
p a
nd p
ilot
a m
echanis
m for
Board
mem
bers
to
have g
reate
r com
munic
ation w
ith o
ffic
ers
on d
eta
il of
item
s p
rior
to B
oard
meeting
.
Impact
analy
sis
of
Board
dis
cussio
ns to a
void
tim
e
wasting
1.
16 J
une 2
015
2.
22 S
ept 2015
3.
22 S
ept 2015
Page 11 of 112
H2
H5
H7
A14
Tra
inin
g
Tra
inin
g r
eq
uirem
ents
whic
h w
ould
str
ength
en u
nders
tandin
g o
f ro
le a
nd
responsib
ilities inclu
din
g f
inancia
l ele
ments
to b
e fed into
annual
Learn
ing &
Develo
pm
ent pla
n.
Tra
inin
g o
n r
ole
s a
nd r
esponsib
ilities
linked to p
ers
on s
pecific
ation t
o b
e
com
ple
ted b
y a
ll B
oard
mem
bers
on
appoin
tment and p
eriodic
ally
on r
e-
appoin
tment.
Rang
e o
f le
arn
ing a
nd d
evelo
pm
ent
options t
o b
e p
roposed to B
oard
(t
rain
ing
, exte
rnal fa
cili
tato
rs &
consultants
)
Str
eng
then the s
kill
s b
ase o
n F
inance
and R
esourc
es C
om
mitte
e,
so B
oard
assure
d s
uff
icie
nt financia
l scru
tiny a
nd
challe
ng
e.
Identify
best
pra
ctice in o
ther
ALM
O/R
P t
o e
nhance learn
ing
ME
DIU
M
1.
Benchm
ark
ing w
ith o
ther
RP
/ALM
O’s
on t
he t
rain
ing a
nd
enhanced learn
ing
off
ere
d t
o b
oard
mem
bers
2.
Tra
inin
g a
nd d
evelo
pm
ent
options p
resente
d t
o B
oard
for
com
ment
3.
Update
annual le
arn
ing a
nd d
evelo
pm
ent
pla
n for
2015/2
016 to inclu
de tra
inin
g o
n s
trength
enin
g f
inancia
l unders
tandin
g a
nd a
bili
ty t
o s
cru
tinis
e a
nd k
ey t
rain
ing
lin
ked to r
ole
description
4.
Report
to B
oard
annually
on learn
ing
and d
evelo
pm
ent
undert
aken inclu
din
g a
ttendance b
y b
oard
mem
bers
, fe
ed into
indiv
iduals
appra
isals
.
1.
28 J
uly
2015
2.
28 J
uly
2015
3.
22 S
ept 2015
4.
Annually
H4
H5
Ap
pra
isal
A r
evis
ed B
oard
appra
isal and
develo
pm
ent
pro
gra
mm
e is r
eq
uired,
wh
ich w
ill b
e lin
ked t
o the r
ole
description a
nd p
ers
on s
pecific
ation.
Board
mem
bers
appra
isals
(lin
ked t
o
pers
on s
pecific
ation)
to feed into
the
annual le
arn
ing a
nd d
evelo
pm
ent
pla
n.
ME
DIU
M
1.
Appra
isal &
Develo
pm
ent
pro
cess r
evis
ed t
o r
eflect jo
b
description a
nd s
kill
s m
atr
ix,
and lin
ked into
learn
ing &
develo
pm
ent
pla
n
1.
31 D
ec 2
015
H2
H3
H4
H13
As
sessm
en
t o
f g
overn
an
ce
Eff
ecti
ven
ess
Assessm
ent
arr
ang
em
ents
inclu
ded in
Inte
rnal A
udit a
nnual pla
n.
Directo
rs r
eport
to inclu
de a
sta
tem
ent
of
com
plia
nce w
ith t
he g
overn
ance
docum
ents
.
All
govern
ance d
ocum
ents
made
ME
DIU
M
1.
Govern
ance r
evie
w inclu
ded in I
nte
rnal A
udit 2
015/1
6
pla
n
2.
Annual re
port
to inclu
de s
tate
ment of
com
plia
nce
3.
Govern
ance p
ag
e o
n intr
anet re
freshed to inclu
de a
ll g
overn
ance d
ocum
ents
1.
22 S
ept 2015
2.
22 S
ept 2015
3.
22 S
ept 2015
6
Page 12 of 112
availa
ble
on t
he intr
anet
Exte
rnal in
dependent re
vie
w t
o b
e
schedule
d f
ollo
win
g A
GM
2016 t
o
assess h
ow
successfu
l th
e n
ew
arr
ang
em
ents
have b
een im
ple
mente
d.
Com
ple
te g
overn
ance r
evie
w a
nnually
and/o
r m
ake s
tate
ment in
annual
report
.
LA
TE
R
Exte
rnal in
dependent re
vie
w t
o b
e s
chedule
d follo
win
g
AG
M 2
016
Com
ple
te g
overn
ance r
evie
w a
nnually
H5
Su
ccessio
n p
lan
nin
g
S
uccessio
n p
lannin
g o
f senio
r executives t
o b
e u
ndert
aken.
LO
W
1.
Successio
n p
lan o
f senio
r executives d
evis
ed
1.
31 D
ec 2
015
H9
Au
dit
A
nnual re
port
of th
e A
udit C
om
mitte
e
Chair t
o B
oard
to b
e e
nhanced
, by
pre
senting
to the B
oard
annually
to g
ive
his
independent
vie
w o
f th
e e
ffectiveness
of
the r
isk fra
mew
ork
and c
om
ment
on
any a
reas o
f str
ength
or
weaknesses o
r concern
s o
n the futu
re d
irection.
LO
W
1.
Annual A
udit C
om
mitte
e r
eport
to the A
GM
to inclu
de
independent
vie
w o
f eff
ectiveness o
f risk fra
mew
ork
in
clu
din
g s
treng
thes/
we
akness/
concern
s
1.
22 S
ept 2015
H11
Co
ntr
acts
C
om
pany S
ecre
tary
to log a
ll are
as o
f th
e b
usin
ess e
nte
ring
into
sale
s
contr
acts
and s
et
up a
centr
al re
gis
ter
within
the g
overn
ance d
epart
ment.
LO
W
1.
Sale
s c
ontr
act re
gis
ter
esta
blis
hed
N
OT
E: T
o b
e c
om
ple
ted in c
onju
nction w
ith t
he d
isaggre
gation
pro
ject / gro
up s
tructu
re a
rrang
em
ents
1.
1 O
ct
2015
H1
Co
de o
f g
overn
an
ce
T
he C
om
pany S
ecre
tary
to c
ontinue to
monitor
code o
f g
overn
ance f
or
any
futu
re c
onsultations o
r re
vis
ions t
o t
he
Go
od
Go
vern
an
ce S
tan
dard
fo
r P
ub
lic
Serv
ices,
and e
nsure
kept
up t
o d
ate
.
LO
W
1.
Ong
oin
g g
overn
ance c
om
plia
nce r
evie
w a
s p
art
of
Com
pany S
ecre
tary
role
and r
esponsib
ilities.
1.
Ong
oin
g
Page 13 of 112
YHN Board Skills Matrix
The composition of the YHN Board should reflect the scope of our business activity,
and the diversity of the customers we serve. We aim to ensure that collectively our
Board has the skills, expertise, and understanding in the areas identified in the matrix
below to meet its objectives.
Experience of social housing or related services as a tenant, leaseholder or customer
Business management including corporate responsibilities
Voluntary and community sector involvement
Commercial acumen
Income generation/fundraising Strategic leadership
Finance and accountancy including formal qualification
Health and safety
Housing management and policy Housing regeneration and investment
Audit / risk Management Equality & diversity
Legal including formal qualification Care and support services
Experience of local authorities or other complex organisations
Governance and regulation
Performance management IT strategy
6
Page 14 of 112
Role: Board member
Reports To: Chair
Purpose of the role: YHN Board members are jointly responsible for;
the overall governance and strategic leadership of the business in accordance with its
Business Strategy,
ensuring YHN’s continuing financial viability and long term sustainability,
safeguarding the interests of the ALMO owners (the Council) and the public,
representing the interests of HRA tenants and residents
Key responsibilities: Working alongside other Board members with guidance from the Chair and Vice Chair, all Board
members play a key role in leading the organisation and the key responsibilities are;
Strategy and Performance
- Defining the statement of purpose, objectives and values of YHN, ensuring they reflect the
company’s obligations to all stakeholders, and ensuring sufficient resources are available.
- Agreeing YHN Business Strategy, annual Delivery Plan and key policies, delegating the
responsibility for implementation to officers.
- Ensuring the organisation has an effective financial and performance management
framework that will monitor, scrutinise and review outcomes against the strategic objectives.
Risk - Ensuring the organisation has a robust risk management framework which identifies,
assesses and manages strategic risks and that it is monitored and reviewed annually for
continuous improvement.
- Ensuring the organisation has a framework of delegation and systems of internal control,
which is reviewed annually.
Governance - Ensuring that YHN complies with all statutory and regulatory obligations, including Health &
Safety.
- Ensuring that YHN’s affairs are conducted lawfully and comply with its rules and good
governance in accordance with the adopted code of governance: The Good Governance
Standard for Public Service.
- Adhere to the Code of Conduct for Board members and operate in accordance with the Nolan Principles of Public Life.
6
Page 15 of 112
Key requirements: As a Board member you will be required to;
Promote the success of YHN for the benefit of tenants
Ensure the Board acts within its powers
Exercise independence of judgement when making decisions
Exercise reasonable care, skill and diligence and to use the general knowledge, skill and
experience that you have for the benefit of YHN
Declare conflicts of interest in accordance with the code of conduct
Follow the Board member code of conduct
Read the agendas and prepare for and attend Board meetings
Undertake training appropriate to the role
Serve on committees and task and finish groups as required
Constructively challenge and contribute to debates at Board meetings
Support the decisions objectives and policies agreed by the Board
Understand importance of handling confidential and sensitive information
Key skills, knowledge and experience: The Chair will ensure that the Board and its committees have the appropriate balance of skills,
experience, independence and knowledge required as set out in the Board skill matrix appended to
this role description. Collectively, the members of the Board should have sufficient skills and
experience to provide effective leadership for the company.
Individual Board members are expected to contribute to the effective delivery of these responsibilities
and demonstrate competency in the skills specified below.
A commitment to social housing and the mission and values of Your Homes Newcastle
Direct knowledge of the needs and aspirations of the communities in Newcastle
Ability to work collaboratively as part of a team
Ability to understand and analyse complex information including financial
Commitment to equality and diversity
Effective communication skills
Time Commitment:
Board members are expected to devote adequate time to preparation for Board meetings,
Committees, visiting projects, undertaking training and development events as appropriate, and attend
and participate in reviews linked to individual performance and that of the whole Board.
Page 16 of 112
All YHN Board members are expected to be flexible within the scope of the role The following 3 areas of competence are generic to all roles within YHN and every board member is expected to demonstrate them.
Your Homes Newcastle’s Core Values are identified by the V symbol
Personal Competence: This area is about yourself as an individual and your responsibilities for the way you operate at work.
Accountability – acts openly and takes responsibility V
Integrity – acts fairly and honestly V
Passion – works positively and with enthusiasm V
Drive for Achievement – actively contributes to achieving personal and organisational targets and objectives
Planning and Organising your work – uses time efficiently and works in a well structured way
People Competence: This area focuses on the responsibilities each person has in dealing with others.
Respect – treats everyone with care and professionalism V
Customer Focus – knows who their customers are and understands their needs and expectations
Communication – communicates accurately and clearly using the most appropriate method
Team Working – supports effective team working in all teams operated within
Business Competence: This area focuses on how each individual contributes to the success of the business.
Change positive – embraces change and supports the effective implementation of changes
Value for Money – recognises the financial implications of decisions and actions
Forward-thinking – proactively seeks improvements and solutions V
6
Page 17 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Disaggregation Update
Report by Assistant Chief Executive and Director of Corporate Services
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1 Board received a report in March outlining advice from EY on the tax implications of disaggregation and the proposed alternative entity structure and agreed to receive further reports once legal advice had been obtained.
This update will set out progress since the last report and presents initial options and governance implications of the new structure which Board are asked to consider and discuss before formal recommendations are brought to the July meeting.
2. Project Progress since March
2.1 Key areas of progress are set out below.
2.2 Legal Advice
Legal advice has been received from Trowers and Hamlins (T&H). They have confirmed the legality of the proposals and recommended:
A trading subsidiary constituted as a company limited by shares so that dividends can be paid to the parent (YHN) and gift aid paid to a charity.
A charitable subsidiary constituted as a Community Benefit Society. This was previously known as an Industrial & Provident Society, is used by many registered housing providers and allows the company to be agreed as charitable for corporation tax purposes with HMRC. It does not require registration with the Charities Commission.
YHN would be the member of both subsidiaries.
T&H have reviewed the proposed activities for the charitable subsidiaries and have agreed they should be acceptable to HMRC as charitable although some further clarification work is required.
They have also confirmed that all staff can remain in YHN with a suitable
7
Page 18 of 112
charge being made to the subsidiaries for their services.
2.3 Constitutions
Trowers and Hamlins are currently drafting the constitutions for the two new entities. Certain governance decisions will need to be agreed by YHN in advance of these being finalised. Many of these issues are set out in section 3 of this report.
2.4 Movement of budgets
Disaggregation is scheduled in three phases:
1a centralises and consolidates some budgets on the HRA. YHN is unaffected. This stage is complete.
1b moves operational budgets from the HRA to YHN along with some income lines. The impact for each organisation is counter-balanced via the management fee. This stage is complete. Service Level Agreements have been kept at the status quo pending discussions with NCC. 1c transfer of trading activities and related assets is scheduled for October.
2.5 Financial modelling
Financial modelling of the new structures has been progressed. The key consideration is that the opening position should leave the HRA no worse off than pre-disaggregation. For the EY proposal to work, the optimal balance of profits in the trading company subsidiary and losses in the charitable subsidiary must be achieved before gift aid payments.
The 15/16 budgets are being allocated to the appropriate entity.
In addition
Intragroup charges are being applied for:
o the corporate core - from YHN to the subsidiaries
o staffing – from YHN to the subsidiaries
o front line services being subcontracted – from the charitable subsidiary to YHN
This work will be complete for the July meeting.
2.6 Trading contracts
A review of trading contracts has been undertaken to confirm what assignments can take place or if new contracts must be entered into with external parties.
Page 19 of 112
3. Initial options and governance implications
3.1 Current Governance Structure:
Possible Governance Structure:
3.2
Following discussions between the disaggregation project team and the legal advisors, the following governance implications and options have presented themselves.
Whilst further detail will be presented to the 28 July Board meeting setting out formal recommendations for Board approval, the issues set out below require input from the Board to help develop these proposals.
3.2.1 Subsidiaries names
To date the two proposed subsidiaries have been labelled “Trading” and “Charity”, in order to progress to the implementation phase a decision on the names to be registered at Companies House will need to be taken.
7
Page 20 of 112
Board are asked to agree that the Chair makes a decision on the name of each of the subsidiaries in order to progress the project. We are able to register an interim name which can be changed after more formal consultation and consideration by Board if required.
3.2.2 Subsidiary Boards
i) Size of the Charitable Board
Following discussions with the legal advisors it is proposed that the Charity subsidiary has a membership of seven. As a charity, there must be a majority of independent members from outside of the current YHN structure. The composition is therefore recommended as;
Four independent members (including an independent Chair)
Three YHN members (one from each constituent group of tenants, Council nominees and independents)
The initial set up and membership will be reviewed after the first year to ensure we have effective arrangements in place and changes can be made if required.
ii) Size of the Trading board
It is recommended that the trading subsidiary has a membership of five, comprising members entirely from the YHN Board membership.
iii) Process to appoint subsidiary board members
Although some of the recruitment process for independent members to the subsidiaries can be carried out in tandem with recruitment to the main board, we will need to be mindful of the different entities including factors such as the degree of independence from the parent company (YHN), any differences to the role and the issue of potential remuneration.
Consideration of how the current YHN Board members are appointed on to the subsidiary boards is also required. To accommodate two new boards and also to reflect the new emphasis on finance that YHN Board will need as discussed at the away day, it is expected that we will need to reduce the number of Committees of the Board.
The nature of the committees will be proposed to the next board meeting. In the meantime, and based on advice from T&H and benchmarking, board is recommended to agree that;
Audit Committee will remain and this will have the responsibility for the whole group.
The Commercial Committee business will become the responsibility of the new trading subsidiary.
5. The Business Implications
5.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: the move to the new structure of business for YHN will allow it to continue to operate innovatively and meet
Page 21 of 112
its strategic objectives.
5.2 Value for money/efficiencies;
5.3 Financial Implications: It is a key objective that the new arrangements leave the HRA no worse off than it would have been pre disaggregation but gives YHN the opportunity to increase its trading surpluses.
5.4 Other Resources (property, technological or human): Trowers & Hamlins have given a fee quotation of £35,000 for advice and creation of the new companies and their constitutions. Tax consultancy fees have amounted to £3,500 to date.
5.5 Impact on services/performance: There should be no detrimental impact on services and performance and the new structure will create opportunities for improved performance.
5.6 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders: There should be no detrimental impact on services and performance and the new structure will create opportunities for improved performance.
5.7 Risk (reputation, relationship): There is minimal risk to reputation as YHN has been managing the transferred services on behalf of the HRA for 11 years. The relationship between HRA tenants and NCC remains unchanged. Other risks have been detailed in the report to the March meeting.
5.8 Environmental: None
5.9 Legal: see the main body of the report.
5.10 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion: None
5.11 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation: The work to date has been undertaken collaboratively with NCC and their formal approval is required before the transfers take place.
6. Conclusion and recommendations
6.1 Board is asked to:
note the project progress to date;
agree the preferred process of deciding subsidiary names;
agree the size of the subsidiary boards and YHN’s representation on them;
agree to the retention of the Audit Committee
agree that the business of Commercial Committee will pass to the trading subsidiary board
agree to receive a report to the next meeting on the future
7
Page 22 of 112
committee structure and remuneration.
7. Implementation
7.1 Board will be provided with updates at all future meetings prior to the formal request for transfer of trades to the YHN group which is currently targeted for the AGM in September 2015. External legal and financial advice will be provided at that meeting to support the proposals.
Background Papers - Disaggregation Update, March 2015 Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Lisa Forrest by telephone on 0191 278 8616 or email [email protected] or Jill Davison by telephone 0191 278 8624 or email [email protected]
Page 23 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Housing Investment Programme 2014/15 outturn position and the four year plan
Report by Director of Property Services
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1 In December 2012 YHN Board approved the provisional investment programme that detailed the proposed expenditure across a number of budget blocks over a four year period. An update on progress was presented to Board in January 2014. Since then work has progressed on the delivery of the investment programme and the planning of a rolling four year programme.
1.2 This report provides Board with an update on the outturn for the 2014/15 programme. It also details the expenditure blocks and budget required over the next four years to deliver the priorities within our Asset Management Strategy (AMS). The AMS was approved by Board in November 2014 and Cabinet in January 2015.
2. 2014/15 Outturn position
2.1 Overall the financial outturn for the 2014/15 programme was £47.2M. This is detailed in the graph which is attached as appendix one.
The original budget for 2014/15 was £50.181M. This is a variance of £2.908M.
This variance is as a result of:
Procurement savings which amount to £1.5M. This is good news as tenders were returned less than our original estimates for projects such as West Denton multi storey window replacement, Glanton Wynd communal improvements and Ewart, Shafto and Bramwell Court external insulated render. The tender process has ensured we have achieved value for money on these projects.
8
Page 24 of 112
Slippage on regeneration schemes which have required a long consultation lead in. Some of these projects have been the subject of detailed Board reports for example Ferguson Lane bungalow redevelopment and Blakelaw 165 estate remodelling. The learning from these projects in terms of lead in times has been factored into the rolling four year programme to ensure timescales are deliverable.
The outturn for 2014/15 for Repairs and Maintenance is £18.6M.
This provided a total investment in the housing stock of £65.8M during 2014/15.
3. Rolling Four Year Programme
3.1 The Board report in December 2012 outlined the key principles to be applied when allocating budgets within the Investment Programme and the proportion of available finance to be allocated to each of the budgets for a four year period beginning in 2013/14
3.2
The budget blocks and the principles have been used when delivering the programme to date and have been used in planning the programme for the next four years.
It has been necessary to make alterations to the amount of work done under each expenditure block over the last two years to accommodate the spread of schemes that have been identified as highest priority and to allow time for consultation processes associated with large scale regeneration projects. A reassessment of the stock needs has been carried out with Newcastle City Council (NCC) officers to ensure we increase the momentum of the programme to achieve the AMS principles and increase economic activity in the local economy. This has allowed us to grow the programme by £39.3M over the original four year programme. This enables us to maintain a smooth programme and to avoid a stop, start effect in the delivery of schemes and also to take advantage of grant funding opportunities through the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) for new build. Discussions have taken place with NCC finance officers about this and they have confirmed there is no risk to the self-financing/debt repayment model for the HRA and that the overall expenditure is within the borrowing cap.
3.3 The information below details the priorities over the next four years within the budget blocks to underpin the agreed Asset Management Strategy principles. The expenditure is detailed in appendix two.
Page 25 of 112
3.3.1 Lifecycle Programme
During 2014/15 we carried out further detailed survey programmes and analyses of the resultant data.
Our asset management system has been updated as surveys have been completed and reality checks are carried out. This provides us with detailed information on what work is required on which estate in any year. The programme will be managed in the same way as the Modern Homes programme with detailed surveys being carried out prior to any work taking place. This will ensure that only work required will be delivered. The programme will continue to include a provision for voids, one off reactive boiler replacements and a mop up programme for Modern Homes omits. It will also continue to replace internal elements including bathrooms, heating, rewiring and kitchens and external elements such as roofing and doors and windows. The external programme since 2013 has concentrated on roofing which continues to be a priority moving forward. The life cycle programme also ensures we meet out landlord obligations in relation to communal lifecycles for example lift refurbishment, district and group heating and also in relation to Health and Safety such as asbestos removal, fire prevention and fire risk assessment remedial work.
The lifecycle programme does not provide scope for virement of budget as it is required to ensure our stock maintains decency and that we continue to meet our landlords obligations
3.3.2 Standard Housing Investment
Spend to save
Consultation has continued with our Property Maintenance team who have identified the following priorities for this budget:
Wall finishes –spalling render.
Structural works.
Improved ventilation to reduce dampness and condensation.
Canopy replacements.
Fencing replacement through a planned programme.
Tenants Investment Priorities
A small budget has been allocated for each year to pick up any sound insulation problems. Consultation has been carried out with local housing staff but this has not identified a particular property type which is a problem. A process has therefore been established with the City Council’s Public Health team to tackle these on a one off basis where a noise nuisance has been identified. This has led to work at Leazes Court and work is currently being planned for Budle Close.
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Health and Safety
A budget has been allocated to respond to any Health and Safety concerns and also to be able to deliver any new initiatives through our liaison with the Fire and Rescue Service.
Energy Efficiency/Fuel Poverty
Many of the projects currently being delivered are committed into 2016/17 for example the improvements at Cruddas Park House, an ongoing insulation programme as well as a fuel switch programme.
3.3.3 Environmental and Communal Programme
Environmental
The funding available will see a continuation of the Citywide environmental programme. The priorities for this have been identified through site visits with local housing staff and close working with the environmental services team. These priorities are currently being reviewed and will be subject to a report to Customer and Service Delivery Committee in July. A budget provision has been identified up to 2018/19 to enable us to respond to new priorities and identify a programme following agreement of the prioritisation criteria in July.
There are a number of other estates which are committed beyond 2015/16. These include Blakelaw 165 estate remodelling, New Mills environmental improvements and Diamond Row environmental improvements.
Communal Areas
Budget is allocated to continue with the communal programme. A pilot project has been delivered at Iris Steadman House, a sheltered block, and work is underway on a pilot of three storey blocks in Glanton Wynd. Priorities for the pilots have been identified linked with net present value, sustainability analysis and linkage with other internal communal programmes. Future priorities will be agreed by Customer and Service Delivery Committee in July. A budget provision has been identified up to 2018/19 to enable us to respond to new priorities and identify a programme following agreement of the prioritisation criteria in July. A separate budget has been identified to enable the delivery of the remaining Sheltered Programme communal improvements. This is subject to a separate report to this Board meeting.
Participatory Budget
Due to the success and positive response to this budget it has been allocated funding over the next three years. The work delivered will be based on what our tenants tell us is important to them. A review of the process will be carried out this financial year to ensure we maximise the responses from our tenants.
Page 27 of 112
3.3.4 Regeneration
General Needs re-provision
The budget identified covers our two current priorities which are North Kenton five storey blocks and Ferguson Lane bungalows. Future priorities will be identified following the refresh of NPV and sustainability analysis in October. This also links with the timing of the annual lettings review. There has been no additional budget included for Regeneration until 2017/18. This recognises the learning in terms of lead in times for consultation and rehousing.
Sheltered housing
Moor House and Hadrian House sheltered blocks have now been remodelled to provide high quality accommodation. There is a separate report to this Board meeting on the proposed programme for the remaining blocks. Funding has been included in future years to continue with this programme. This budget also includes the funding required to deliver the Central Walker phase one and two projects.
Non housing assets
This programme will continue to deliver garage demolitions and garage refurbishments. It will also deliver any office accommodation improvements. There is also a commitment into 2016/17 for capital improvements for community buildings which helps support the asset transfer process.
A small budget has been identified for HRA shops. Information is currently being gathered on these to understand the capital requirements.
3.3.5 New build and new housing
Budget has been identified in each year up to 2018/19 to deliver the projects identified for HCA funding. There is also a small budget for Right to Buy buybacks.
The Governments revitalised Right to Buy has reduced the period someone is required to live in the property before being able to buy from five years to three. This has led to slight increase in Right to Buy applications although it is too early to gauge what sort of impact this is likely to have over the coming financial year overall. This will have a direct impact on the level of capital receipts we can use for Right to Buy Buyback which will increase accordingly. If the trend continues this will enable us to repurchase more property to bring back into HRA stock although again it is difficult to predict the level of income. An exercise will be carried out towards the end of quarter two to look at the level of sales and associated receipts from April 2015 onwards which will be used to forecast the remainder of the financial year.
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In addition to this Government are opening up the Right to Buy offer to Housing Association tenants. Whilst we await clarification, there is a suggestion that this will be funded by selling off higher value Council stock. The real implications of this remain unknown. Customer Service and Delivery Committee will receive a more detailed paper as the implications transpire.
3.3.6 Improving customer services
The programme includes a continuing budget to improve our services. It should also be noted that this budget may ultimately transfer to YHN as part of the disaggregation exercise to be undertaken during 2015/16.
4. Governance of the four year programme
4.1 Following recommendations from YHN and NCC officers, Cabinet will agree to the capital investment resource envelopes based on what is affordable from the HRA revenue budget and will determine what priorities should be used to allocate these resources. This four year proposal invests between £50M and £60M each year to maintain the quality of existing housing stock and to deliver new developments. YHN also manages spend of around £20M carrying out routine repairs to properties.
This report identifies the emerging priorities to underpin the agreed Asset Management Strategy principles. These will be updated and approved annually by Cabinet.
YHN will be responsible for developing and delivering individual capital projects in line with the capital investment priorities approved by Cabinet.
A forward procurement plan for works will be presented to Cabinet in June. This will enable a four year plan to be approved with the detailed yearly procurement programme agreed at the commencement of each financial year.
4.2 During consultation with NCC officers they have asked that the following areas are investigated:
develop a wheelchair accessible housing programme - which either uses existing units or looks for new build opportunities on small sites for example garage sites or gap land
consider the scope for existing low rise or sheltered accommodation to be used for small scale assisted living schemes or to provide supported accommodation for people experiencing various forms of dementia.
expand the social housing offer in the areas of highest demand (as highlighted by the Annual Lettings Review )
using the HRA to expand the Councils empty homes programme in areas where there is an existing HRA stock base for example Byker Old Town and High Cross ( subject to sustainability)
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put together a series of principles which set out the Council and YHN policy in terms of acceptable space standards, energy efficiency, communal space, disability housing (all subject to cost, viability etc.)
review of social housing offer in neighbourhoods which are adjacent to strategic land sites where there will be a requirement for affordable housing
formally scope the potential development of intermediate housing/market sale in the HRA
YHN will work with officers from NCC to investigate these areas over the Summer and any new priorities will be built into the rolling four year programme and the Asset Management Strategy.
5. The Business Implications
5.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: This report links with our strategic objectives of:
Make the money deliver
Create homes and neighbourhoods we all can be proud of
Work together to realise a brighter future
5.2 Value for money/efficiencies;
The continued drive for efficiency will help to maximise the amount that is available for the priorities outlined. Our approach is contained in the YHN Value for Money Strategy.
5.3 Resources (financial, property, technological or human):
Financial - The programme identified in appendix two is in line with the 30 year model.
Planning the four year programme ensures we are aligning our budgets to underpin the agreed AMS principles and to continue priority programmes such as spend to save, energy efficiency/fuel poverty, sheltered remodelling and general needs re-provision. It also ensures we achieve a smooth programme. This will result in a move away from the financial approvals agreed at Board in December 2012 and will also be a move away from the proportions of funding allocated to each budget head. Discussions have taken place with NCC finance officers about this and they have confirmed there is no risk to the self-financing/debt repayment model for the HRA and that the overall expenditure is within the borrowing cap.
5.4 Impact on services/performance:
The four year programme ensures we deliver projects which are a priority for our tenants and which improve our current stock.
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5.5 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders:
The four year programme will see desirable projects delivered in a planned and prioritised way.
5.6 Risk (reputation, relationship):
Programme delivery risks are monitored during regular capital spend meetings. This will identify any risks at an early stage and ensure actions can be put in place to mitigate against these risks.
5.7 Environmental:
Energy efficiency is specifically referenced in terms of standard housing investment and new build. Wider environmental impacts are inherent in all of the proposals.
5.8 Legal:
There are no legal issues arising directly from this report. Procurement and construction related to the programme will be delivered within the legal parameters.
5.9 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion:
All tenants receive a home visit in advance of any major work being carried out to ensure the investment meets with their individual needs.
5.10 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation:
Regular progress reports on the 2014/15 Investment Programme has been presented to the Customer and Service Delivery Committee, City Council officers and the Tenants Federation. This will continue throughout 2015/16.
Discussions have taken place with City Council staff who have confirmed that the overall expenditure fits within the 30 year model and is within the borrowing cap.
6. Conclusion and recommendations
6.1 The programme has been developed based on decisions which were taken at Board in December 2012. Planning the programme for the next four years, in conjunction with NCC officers, has highlighted the ability to accelerate some of these decisions to enable the programme to be smoothed out and to ensure some key priorities linked with AMS principles are able to be delivered moving forward.
6.2 Board are recommended to :
Note the outturn for the 2014/15 investment programme.
As approved in 2014/15 agree that the virement of resources can be made between budget heads to provide flexibility in the programme to enable us to continue to align with our AMS priorities whilst maximising delivery opportunities.
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Agree that further work will be carried out with NCC officers over the summer on the areas in section 5.1
Approve the four year investment programme as detailed in appendix two and recommend this to NCC’s Cabinet.
7. Implementation
7.1 Continue to deliver the 2015/16 programme and provide quarterly updates to YHN’s Customer and Service Delivery Committee.
Present the four year investment programme to NCC’s Cabinet in September 2015.
Seek approval for the 2016/17 Investment Programme from NCC’s Cabinet in September 2015.
Provide Board with an annual update on the rolling four year programme in June of each year.
Background Papers Investment plan under self-financing Board December 2012 Customer and Service Delivery quarterly update reports on the Investment Programme. Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Jen Vinton, Head of Assets and Regeneration by telephone on 0191 278 8789 or email [email protected]
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Board 16 June 2015
Sheltered Investment Programme
Report by Director of Property Services
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1 YHN manage 23 sheltered schemes, containing 803 individual homes, of which 214 are bedsits. The bedsits are within eight sheltered blocks. The make-up of the sheltered stock is attached as appendix one.
The schemes were built between 1924 and 1975 and for a time the model of bedsits was popular but now the space standards are generally considered to be far from ideal.
1.2
Our Asset Management Strategy approved by Board in November 2014, outlined that we will invest in sheltered housing remodelling to achieve our ultimate aim of having no bedsits. This may inevitably mean we have fewer but better properties for older people.
Net Present Value (NPV) analysis, which is the key measure to understand the financial sustainability of our investments and sustainability analysis, has identified the blocks which contain bedsits as poor performing compared to the sheltered blocks made up of one bedroom properties across the City.
1.3 Our sheltered remodelling programme began in 2014 with two pilot blocks which are Moor House which is located on the New Mills estate and Hadrian House in Throckley, both in the West end of the City. The remodelling has provided a much uplifted product of high quality accommodation with modern space standards which has appealed to both existing and new residents. These pilot projects have enabled us to agree the scope of work and the specifications associated with the remodelling programme. Shield Court, which is located in Shieldfield in the East end of the City, is the next block to be remodelled.
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Rehousing is currently progressing in preparation for the work starting. This block was approved by Board in March 2015 as a scheme to be progressed for Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), Continuous Market Engagement (CME) funding.
1.4 In order to determine the right way forward for the remaining blocks the following considerations have been investigated:
The level of financial impairment for the blocks still to remodel
Opportunities to create additional units by building extensions, or for new build on the sites.
Valuations for these blocks based on different scenarios
Financial modelling based on the scenarios
Opportunities for grant funding.
1.5 This report makes a recommendation for the way forward for each of these blocks and the priority order for remodelling within the investment programme taking into account:
The detail from the work outlined in section 1.3.
The geographic locations of our blocks and how these locations link with other older persons’ accommodation, both existing and planned. This included YHN stock and also that of other providers. This enabled us to assess the risk of other new developments.
Practical issues around re-housing.
1.6 The report also identifies the priority order for the remaining sheltered blocks to receive communal improvements.
2. Blocks with bedsits - considerations
2.1 NPV and Sustainability Analysis
NPV and sustainability analysis was the starting point for the programme proposed in this report.
All of the blocks which contained bedsits scored as poor in terms of NPV. This is based on a calculation of all the income and costs associated with owning and managing stock over a 30 year period.
Eastbourne Court has consistently scored as poor and has been identified as difficult to let by the Sheltered Housing Service who manage this block. There are also concerns that this will become more difficult when the Central Walker redevelopment is built.
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2.2 Impairment
There has been a detailed look at impairment which has identified that if the blocks are remodelled and re let at social rents there will be an impairment of £3.9m. The impairment is due to the fact that the value of the asset is going up by less than the cost of the improvement works and associated costs.
As an example the asset value of Margaret Collins House is currently £461,460 in the NCC accounts. If we add to this the capitalised contractor payments (net of grants received) and other associated costs, we are expecting to increase the book value to £1,993,060.
However, the asset is given a valuation based on the NPV of the income and costs associated with owning it (rents, Repairs and Maintenance, lifecycle repairs). The expected value of the new block with its reduced number of units is £1,493,002.
The difference in these figures will cause a loss to the HRA of £500,058.
In view of the impairment, further work has been carried out to review a number of different scenarios to eliminate this. The proposals identified in this report provide a way forward for each block which ensures the overall programme is deliverable, the sheltered offer is improved across the city, and that there is a positive impact on the HRA.
2.3 Opportunities to create additional units or for new build on the sites
Our technical team have visited the sites to identify any opportunities to extend the current blocks and to look at opportunities for new build.
The assessment has identified that:
Bamburgh House may be able to be extended. For the purpose of assessing the financials we have used an extension which would provide six additional units.
Eastbourne Court – there may be a possibility to extend upwards. This has not been progressed further due to the concerns about the long term sustainability of this block.
Coniston Court – there is the possibility to provide a 45 unit new build block on land adjacent to this block.
2.3 Valuations
Valuations have been carried out by Newcastle City Council (NCC) through the Property Services Service Level Agreement. Three scenarios were valued for each block:
Vacant possession of the building and the site.
Cleared site value.
Conversion to an alternative use.
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These valuations have been built into the financial model to assess the best option for each block. This has highlighted that the most financially viable option is to retain the assets.
2.4 Financial modelling
The financial modelling has been a staged process which initially looked at the valuations in 2.3 and the most beneficial outcome for each block. The general outcome was that the blocks were of greater value to the HRA as remodelled units with affordable rents. The valuation of most interest was Dunira, where the building could be of interest to a commercial developer (as a hotel site) and could achieve £1.25m as a conversion project. However, even this large sum could be improved by retaining the building, remodelling and charging affordable rent (even without grant).
It may not be the right solution to convert all blocks to affordable rent as this could impact on demand and would limit choices for our customers. This therefore led to the second stage of this process.
The second stage looked at the overall impact of the impairment based on setting different rents for individual blocks. This took into account:
Location.
Nearby YHN blocks and what the impact of different rents would be on the neighbouring block/s.
Other Registered Social Landlords (RSL’s) in the area and the rent levels that they charge.
Numbers of tenants on housing benefit within each block.
The result of this work is detailed on a block by block basis below.
When the proposals recommended are applied to the financial model the impairment implications have been largely assuaged. Excluding Eastbourne Court, due to the sustainability concerns, from the programme, there is a positive impact on the HRA of £803k. If Eastbourne Court is demolished there is still a surplus but it drops to £111k
Appendix two provides further information on this.
3. Proposals for each bedsit block
3.1
Block
Rent Comments
Moor House Social Remodelling complete
Hadrian House Social Remodelling complete
Bamburgh House Affordable Remodel - Investigate the option of extending to create six additional units
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Apply for CME funding
Coniston Court Affordable New build -The land around this block provides an opportunity to build a new 45 unit block. The existing block can remain while the new block is built.
Apply for CME funding
Conewood House Social Remodel
Belvedere House Social Remodel
Shield Court Affordable Remodel - Agreed by Board in March to apply for CME funding
Dunira Affordable Remodel – Apply to HCA to change rent to affordable (no grant funding)
Milecastle House Affordable Remodel - Apply for CME funding
Margaret Collins House Social Position at the end of the remodelling programme to enable us to understand the impact of Central Walker
Eastbourne Court N/A Consider alternative use, upgrade for extra care or demolition. This block will be helpful for temporary moves from Milecastle House.
Wansbeck House Social Bedsit conversion carried out through Modern Homes Programme. Four bedsits remain.
Block to receive communal upgrade.
3.2 The mix of affordable and social rents ensures the remodelling programme has a positive impact on the HRA. To set all rents as social rents would result in an impairment of £3.9M. The affordable rents built into the financial assessment are cheaper than our competitors in the area and having a mix
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of affordable and social rents will provide our tenants with a choice of offers. It is a condition of any HCA grant that affordable rent is charged.
4. Proposed programme for re-modelling
4.1 The following is the proposed programme for the remodelling:
Phase one 2016/17 - Bamburgh House and Milecastle House.
Phase two 2017/18 – Belvedere House and Conewood House.
Phase three 2018/19 - Dunira
Phase four 2019/20 - Margaret Collins House and Eastbourne Court (subject to reassessment)
This programme has been developed to ensure the rehousing is deliverable.
Delivering Bamburgh and Milecastle first will enable bids to be made to the HCA as these blocks have both been identified for affordable rents. Eastbourne Court can also be used for any temporary decants from Milecastle House which will help speed up the re-housing process. This will be helpful whilst alternative uses are considered.
Dunira is likely to be the most difficult to clear and has therefore been placed towards the end of the programme with a view to stopping allocations early.
4.2 The proposed timetable is as follows:
Block
Stop allocating
start to empty
on site
repopulate Opportunities to decant to:
Shield Court Oct-14 Jan-15
Aug-15
Feb-16 Belvedere House
Bamburgh July-15 Sep-
15 Mar-
16 Sep-16
Coniston Court
Milecastle July-15 Sep-
15 Mar-
16 Sep-16
Eastbourne, Keebledale
Belvedere Apr-16 Aug-
16 Mar-
17 Sep-17
Theresa Russell, Allendale, Margaret Collins, The Spinney
Conewood Apr-16 Aug-
16 Mar-
17 Sep-17
Lea Green Court, Bamburgh House
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Dunira Jun-17 Feb-
18 Sep-
18 Mar-19
The Minories, The Spinney, RSL's
Margaret Collins - subject to further reassessment
Jul-18 Nov-
18 Jun-
19 Dec-19
Theresa Russell, Allendale, Margaret Collins, The Spinney
Eastbourne Court – search for alternative use.
5. Coniston Court
5.1 There is land available around this block which would enable a new 45 unit block to be built. This can be delivered without emptying the existing block. This will provide an opportunity to make a bid for CME funding. This is currently being explored with NCC Planning Officers. The timetable for this will need to be agreed. If CME funding is not available for this new build then this block will need to be re-integrated into the remodelling programme. The advantages of a new build, when it proves affordable, are:
There is not the problem of working around the existing structure-this enables the space and amenities to be maximised.
There will be no need for temporary decants as the new build block can be built on land adjacent to the existing block.
It is easier to incorporate higher environmental specifications.
New build accommodation often generates lots of interest which could lead to increased demand.
6. Communal Improvements
6.1
There are eight blocks which do not require remodelling. It is proposed that these blocks will receive communal improvements to ensure the communal areas are improved to the same standard as the remodelled blocks. The priority order for these blocks is
Block Proposed year for communal upgrade
Comments
Iris Steadman House 2014/15 Work is complete
The Spinney 2015/16 Out to tender
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Allendale House 2016/17
Theresa Russell House 2016/17
The Minories 2017/18
Wansbeck House 2017/18
Dr Ryan House 2018/19
Keebledale House 2019/20
Dr Ryan House and Keebledale House are both in the Walker area. It is proposed these blocks are the last to receive the communal upgrade. This will enable YHN to understand the impact of the new Central Walker development.
The remaining sheltered schemes are made up of bungalow accommodation or two storey flats without communal areas. Any improvements to these properties will be picked up as part of the lifecycle replacement programme.
7. Issues and concerns
7.1 Rent Levels
The proposals in this report recommend five of the blocks have an affordable rent applied. Three of these blocks are identified for bids to the HCA programme for CME funding for remodelling and one for new build. If these bids are successful then affordable rents will have to be applied as this is a condition of the grant funding.
There is one further block, Dunira, which is proposed for an affordable rent. Due to the timescales for CME bids this would be without grant funding. This ensures that the overall remodelling programme is affordable, tenants across the city can benefit from the programme, and there is no impairment to the HRA. The projected weekly rental increase in Dunira will be £50, which will reflect the greatly improved accommodation. When deciding whether to move back into the block after the refurbishment there will be a choice of alternative blocks across the City which are set at a social rent.
77% of our tenants living in the affected sheltered accommodation are on Housing Benefit (HB). Tenants on HB will see no personal financial detriment of moving to Affordable Rent. Any tenants who do not want to return to the remodelled blocks will receive a Home, Loss and disturbance payment
We have benchmarked rents with other providers’ stock in each locality and have found that even with an affordable rent our properties will be cheaper than the norm.
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7.2 HCA funding
The financial appraisal process for remodelling and new build has assumed HCA funding for four of the sheltered blocks at a rate of £20,000 per unit. If the bids are unsuccessful then the overall programme will need to be reviewed.
There will also be a requirement to have the tenants rehoused from the three blocks being remodelled by May 2016 to enable these bids to be made. The HCA will not approve projects where rehousing is still in progress and May 2016 is the cut off for the CME programme as they require certainty that any projects are deliverable by March 2018 for this round.
7.3 Staffing implications
The Sheltered Housing Service is actively considering the current staffing numbers and structure in light of the newly returned remodelled schemes, Moor House and Hadrian House, and the additional extra care and learning disability schemes at Trevelyan Court/Kilbourne House and Harehills. It is not envisaged that there will be changes to staffing in the short term. During the remodelling of Moor House and Hadrian House the Sheltered Housing Officers have continued to work on the second scheme they were responsible for managing, namely Iris Steadman and Bamburgh House. In addition they have been used as an additional resource to cover for absences within the service and helped reduce the expenditure on overtime across Care Services. We are currently reviewing the workloads of both officers following the completion of the Moor House and Hadrian House schemes. As the remodelling work progresses we will continue to utilise the spare capacity of the Sheltered Housing Officers across the service and to consider the alternative options available for managing the service which will include considering the ratio of officers to schemes and alternative management arrangements for the service on completion of the remodelling works. The timing of this will depend on the timetable of the scheme remodelling and it is anticipated there may be a transitional phase of management prior to finalising a structure and service to manage the final number of schemes and units.
The review is essential as the financial appraisals assume an eventual reduction in staffing in proportion to the reduction in the overall units.
8. The Business Implications
8.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: This report links with our strategic objectives to make the money deliver, to create homes and neighbourhoods we can all be proud of and work together to realise a brighter future.
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8.2 Value for money/efficiencies: The remodelling programme and the new build on the Coniston Court site will be procured as a ‘design and build’ contract using the Leazes Homes Developer Framework. This framework ensures we achieve value for money. Establishing a longer term programme will help to achieve value for money as we will be able to procure a number of blocks at the same time which may bring efficiencies.
If the HCA bid is unsuccessful then opportunities will be identified for value management of the programme.
The communal upgrade programme will be delivered through a mix of work to NCC’s Building Commercial Enterprise (BCE) and also competitive tender to ensure the costs can be benchmarked.
8.3 Resources (financial, property, technological or human):
Financial – there is a capital cost to deliver the remodelling work of £11M up to 2019/20. This will be funded from the regeneration envelope within the investment programme. There is a capital cost to deliver Coniston Court new build of £4.5M. This will be funded from the new build and new housing envelope. The cost of these projects will be funded by a mix of HRA and HCA funding if our bids are successful.
The detailed financial business case for remodelling is attached at appendix two.
There is also a capital cost to deliver the communal improvements of £2.7M up to 2019/20. This will be funded by the HRA from the environmentals and communals envelope.
8.4 Impact on services/performance: There will be a positive impact on repairs and maintenance as the remodelled blocks will require significantly less expenditure.
A review of staffing in the Sheltered Housing service will need to be carried out during 2015/16 to reflect the reduction in the number of units in the blocks. This is essential as for one block alone, if the sheltered provision does not change to reflect the reduced number of units, this would take £277,000 of value out of the HRA over the life of the asset.
8.5 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders: The blocks will provide high quality accommodation with modern space standards for our tenants.
The blocks which receive communal improvements will have communal areas of the same quality as those blocks which are remodelled.
8.6 Risk (reputation, relationship): The only risk identified with this project is linked with the HCA bid which is highlighted in section 7.2
8.7 Legal: The only legal implications are those associated with the procurement and construction process.
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8.8 Equality and Diversity: All existing tenants will be offered the opportunity to return to their remodelled block. Any other apartments are allocated via Tyne and Wear Homes to ensure those who have the greatest need for housing have the greatest opportunity to get it. One to one consultation on schemes ensures that individual needs are catered for in the decant, refurbishments and rehousing.
8.9 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation: Consultation is carried out with the local councillors ahead of any remodelling, new build or communal improvement proposals. The proposals are also discussed in a consultation event and individually with the tenants who live in the blocks.
9. Conclusion and recommendations
9.1 The sheltered investment programme provides an opportunity to remodel poor performing stock and improve the communal areas of the stock which is sustainable. The programme will provide homes which are fit for 21st century living.
Board is recommended to receive this report and:
Agree to recommend to Cabinet that the Housing Investment Programme has a capital budget of £11M allocated from the HRA up to 2019/20 to deliver the remodelling programme and a budget of £2.7M allocated from the HRA up to 2019/20 to deliver communal improvements.
Agree that further detailed work is done on the proposal for new build on the Coniston Court site. This will be subject to a further detailed report to Board and Cabinet In Autumn 2015
Agree that there is a bid made to the HCA for a further two blocks to be remodelled (in addition to the previously agreed Shield Court) at Bamburgh House and Milecastle House.
Agree to the proposed way forward for each of the blocks as outlined in section 3 recognising that there will need to be a review concluded for Margaret Collins House and Eastbourne Court by Summer 2016.
Agree to the priority order for the remodelling of blocks as outlined in section 4.1.
Agree to the priority order for the communal upgrade of blocks as outlined in section 6.
9
Page 45 of 112
10. Implementation
10.1 YHN Board Approval – June 2015
Start work on Shield Court – August 2015
Procure the next four blocks – September 2015
Develop detailed proposals for the new build adjacent to the Coniston Court site – Autumn 2015
Review Margaret Collins House and Eastbourne Court and agree way forward by Summer 2016
Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Jen Vinton, Head of Assets and Regeneration by telephone on 0191 278 8789 or email [email protected]
Page 46 of 112
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Page 47 of 112
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9
Page 48 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Review of YHN Business Strategy
Report by Director of Corporate Services and Assistant Chief Executive
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1 In March 2013, the Board approved a revised Business Strategy for 2013 to 2016. This followed a review of the previous Business Strategy based on the challenges to financial viability of the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) and YHN. These challenges were:
1. A reduction in funding sources;
2. Welfare reform; and
3. Self-financing.
The Business Strategy considers these challenges and sets out our direction moving towards 2016. The current Business Strategy sets out YHN’s purpose as ‘Enable positive living for people in our homes and neighbourhoods’.
This is underpinned by our three strategic objectives:
Make the money deliver;
Create homes and neighbourhoods we can all be proud of; and
Work together to realise a brighter future.
The current strategy enabled us to increase focus on financial viability of the HRA, not for its own sake, but in order to continue to achieve our social purpose. This will be even more important for YHN in the future.
2. Issues and concerns
2.1 Our current strategy was intended to expire this financial year on the basis that our current management agreement with Newcastle City Council expires and is being renewed. This means that the strategy needs to be reviewed during this year. In reviewing the strategy, there are a number of key factors to take into account, including: 10
Page 49 of 112
The recent general election, which means we now know we will have a Conservative government for up to five years and must consider the potential impact of their plans;
Our relationship with NCC; a new management agreement will be signed during this year following the review of YHN that NCC has undertaken;
The strategic control of the HRA to NCC and disaggregation of finances between the HRA and YHN, and
A new structure for YHN will be implemented this year.
3. The possibilities
3.1 It is proposed that we undertake a review of the strategy between June and November 2015. The revised strategy will be presented to Board on 1 December for approval. This timetable will enable us to align business and financial planning (the process by which we set our and budget) for 2016-17 to the new Business Strategy.
3.2 As part of the review of the strategy, it is also proposed that we review our core values which set out the essence of our culture and what matters in YHN. The new values will be incorporated in the Business Strategy.
3.3 Following the completion of the new strategy, during the final quarter of the financial year we will implement a change programme for all staff (starting with managers) to launch the strategy and ensure staff understand our circumstances, challenges and goals for the coming years and the part that they will play in its delivery. The programme will also focus on developing a shared set of values and behaviours to support a culture that will enable us to achieve our strategy.
4. The Options / Appraisal
4.1 The review of the strategy is an important issue for the organisation; however it is difficult to dedicate sufficient time for discussion during main Board meetings. On this basis, we would like to propose a Time Limited Committee to oversee the strategy review. The committee would shape the review process and oversee the delivery of the work. The Chair has nominated Phil Dibbs as the Board lead for this committee.
4.2 In addition to the Time Limited Committee, it is proposed that all Board members will be involved in the review in a range of ways including consultation events throughout the review.
5. The Business Implications
5.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives: YHN’s mission and objectives may change as a result of the review of the Business Strategy. One of the purposes of the review is to consider whether these are still fit for purpose.
Page 50 of 112
5.2 Value for money/efficiencies: Board recently approved a revised Value for Money Strategy; this strategy remains valid as it will underpin our activity whatever direction the Business Strategy takes us.
5.3 Financial Implications: YHN’s Finance Strategy will be revised in conjunction with the review of the Business Strategy to ensure we make the right financial decisions about what is affordable in order to deliver the business strategy.
5.4 Resources (financial, property, technological or human): In reviewing the strategy, and assessment of our current position, we will consider our ability to deliver against our strategy and the resources required to deliver our strategic aims.
5.5 Impact on services/performance: The review of the strategy may lead to a different emphasis on services and performance for the organisation. The revised document is an opportunity to set out priorities for individual services and for the organisation as a whole.
5.6 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders: The new strategy will provide clarity about our priorities and confidence that we are prepared to respond to the changing world they live in.
5.7 Risk (reputation, relationship): Assessment of the key risks will be inherent in the process of reviewing the strategy.
5.8 Environmental: An assessment of key environmental factors will be inherent in the process of reviewing the strategy.
5.9 Legal: In reviewing the strategy, consideration of legal requirements and any anticipated legal changes will be inherent in the process.
5.10 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion: The needs and expectations of our customers are changing. The review process will include an assessment of the needs of different customers and potential customers to ensure our strategy is aligned to this.
5.11 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation: A wide range of stakeholders will be involved in the process including Board, customers, staff, Newcastle City Council and other partners. The proposed approach to stakeholder involvement will be shaped by the Time Limited Committee.
6. Conclusion and recommendations
6.1 Board is recommended to:
Approve the proposed approach to lead the Business Strategy review via a Time Limited Committee.
Board members are asked to express interest in joining the Time Limited Committee by 24 June 2015.
10
Page 51 of 112
7. Implementation
7.1 The first meeting of the Time Limited Committee will be held in July 2015;
The Business Strategy will be reviewed between July and November, and
The revised Business Strategy will be presented to Board on 1 December 2015.
Background Papers YHN Business Strategy 2013-2016 http://www.yhn.org.uk/pdf/YHN%20Business%20Strategy%202013-16.pdf Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Louise Horsefield by telephone on 0191 278 8720 or email [email protected]
Page 52 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Strategic Risk Register 2015-16
Report by Director of Corporate Services and Assistant Chief Executive
For Decision
1. Background information
1.1 Formal risk management is a key part of our well established assurance framework. The assurance framework enables us to check whether we are doing the right things in the right way and to manage any risks that may arise. In addition to risk management the assurance framework also includes audit, performance management, scrutiny, accreditations, service reviews, benchmarking and customer involvement.
Our strategic risk register outlines the most significant risks we face as an organisation. It details the perceived threat level of each key risk, the controls in place to mitigate these risk and the actions required to improve the controls.
1.2
The current approach to the management of strategic risk was agreed by Board in May 2013. The current framework consists of:
Annual review of the strategic risk register approved by Board, and
Quarterly monitoring and assessment of the register reported to Audit Committee.
2. Annual Review of Strategic Risk Register
2.1 The Risk Management Framework outlines a process to formally review the strategic risk register every year.
Since March 2015, we have been considering the environment in which YHN operates and the risks it currently faces and the risks we expect to face in the future. We have carried out extensive internal consultation with:
The Chief Executive and Directors, and
Heads of Service.
11
Page 53 of 112
2.2 Information from the consultation has been used to review the 2014-15 register and develop the strategic risk register for 2015-16 which is attached as appendix one.
The register was considered by Audit Committee on 21 May. The Committee approved it for recommendation to Board.
3. 2015-16 Strategic Risk Register
3.1
The 2015-16 Strategic risk register (appendix one) has been reviewed and amended to take account of the changes to risks YHN is exposed to following the Newcastle City Council (NCC) review of YHN. It also reflects that YHN is no longer responsible for managing the Housing Revenue Account (HRA).
The following list are the most significant changes to the strategic risk register (compared to the 2014-15 Strategic risk register):
Removal of risks related to the HRA;
New risks added to reflect the disaggregation between YHN and NCC;
The increased importance of the income from YHN’s traded services;
The importance of delivering our services within a fixed management fee, and
A reduction in the amount of detail in the controls and improvement actions. This follows a request by Audit Committee to provide more focus on the factors that will directly impact on the risk.
3.2 The strategic risk register has also been updated to ensure that the proposed controls and improvement actions reflect our priorities during this financial year. As the strategic risk register reflects our key strategic risks, the improvement actions are primarily aligned to our:
Strategic targets;
Service Improvement Programme, and
Service plans.
3.3 For each risk, officers have reviewed and updated the:
Current controls;
Improvement actions;
Likelihood and impact score, and
Effectiveness of our current controls to manage the risk.
Page 54 of 112
4. The Business Implications
4.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives:
Effective risk management contributes to all our strategic objectives:
Make the money deliver;
Create homes and neighbourhoods we all can be proud of, and
Work together to realise positive outcomes for all.
4.2 Value for money/efficiencies:
Managing the risks outlined in appendix one will enable us to continue to deliver the actions outlined within YHN’s Value for Money and Income Management Strategies.
4.3 Resources (financial, property, technological or human):
Appendix one outlines risks which pose a threat to YHN’s resources. However, it also outlines the controls we have in place to mitigate them.
4.4 Impact on services/performance:
Appendix one outlines risks which pose a threat to the services YHN delivers. However, it also outlines the controls we have in place to mitigate them.
4.5 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders:
Appendix one outlines risks which pose a threat to the services YHN delivers. However, it also outlines the controls we have in place to mitigate them. Effective management of these risks enables us to continue to provide services to tenants and leaseholders.
4.6 Risk (reputation, relationship):
Managing strategic risk is the primary focus of this report. The risks detailed in appendix one are mitigated by the approach to risk management.
4.7 Environmental:
None in relation to this report. Environmental issues were considered in the creation of the register but not included due to the level of controls in place.
4.8 Legal:
The Strategic risk register and controls help to minimise legal challenges and proceedings.
4.9 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion:
An improved risk management process will place YHN in a better position to manage the risks facing YHN. It will have significant organisational benefits as well as improving YHN’s ability to achieve the priorities in our equality and diversity action plan and mitigate against any relevant risks.
11
Page 55 of 112
4.10 Stakeholder involvement/consultation:
Consultation on the development of the Strategic risk register has been carried out with senior officers across YHN, YHN Management Team, and presented to YHN Audit Committee.
5. Conclusion and Recommendations
5.1 Board is asked to:
Approve the 2015-16 Strategic risk register (subject to any amendments Board requests).
6. Implementation
6.1 All improvement actions are to be completed during 2015-16, and
Quarterly updates will be presented to Audit Committee during 2015-16.
Background Papers
YHN Risk Management Framework. Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Louise Horsefield by telephone on 0191 278 8720 or email [email protected]
Page 56 of 112
A
pp
en
dix
on
e
20
15
-16
Str
ate
gic
Ris
k R
eg
iste
r
Ris
k
No
R
isk
des
cri
pti
on
an
d
da
te r
ais
ed
Ris
k t
yp
e
Ho
w w
ell
d
o w
e
ma
nag
e
this
?
Ke
y c
urr
en
t c
on
tro
ls
Lik
eli
ho
od
s
co
re
Imp
ac
t s
co
re
Cu
rre
nt
ris
k
pri
ori
ty
(RA
G)
Ow
ne
r K
ey i
mp
rove
me
nt
ac
tio
ns
SR
1
(New
R
isk
)
20
16
-17
NC
C
ma
nag
em
en
t fe
e
pa
ym
en
ts a
re n
ot
ag
ree
d a
s e
xp
ec
ted
C
au
se
Prin
cip
les in th
e
ma
na
ge
me
nt fe
e
pro
po
sa
l a
re n
ot
ap
pro
ve
d in t
he
fin
al
ma
na
ge
me
nt a
gre
em
en
t C
on
se
qu
en
ce
Ina
bili
ty t
o p
lan
fo
r re
du
ction
in
m
ana
ge
me
nt fe
e
Gre
ate
r eff
icie
ncy
sa
vin
gs r
equ
ired
th
an
p
lan
ne
d fo
r
Una
ble
to
com
ple
te
bu
dge
t se
ttin
g a
nd
b
usin
ess a
nd
fin
an
cia
l p
lan
nin
g p
roce
ss
Sig
nific
ant
cha
nge
s to
se
rvic
e d
eliv
ery
mo
de
l D
ate
rais
ed
: A
pril 2
015
Fin
an
cia
l P
art
ially
eff
ective
–
Me
diu
m
po
ten
tia
l to
im
pro
ve
Ma
na
ge
me
nt fe
e p
ropo
sa
l a
gre
ed
by Y
HN
an
d N
CC
(w
hic
h w
ill f
orm
pa
rt o
f th
e
ne
w m
ana
ge
men
t a
gre
em
en
t)
se
ts o
ut:
Tim
eta
ble
fo
r agre
ein
g
futu
re m
an
agem
en
t fe
e
se
ttle
me
nts
Fra
me
wo
rk fo
r a
gre
ein
g f
utu
re
ma
na
ge
me
nt fe
es
The
me
diu
m te
rm v
iew
of
the
eff
icie
ncy
sa
vin
gs N
CC
will
e
xp
ect fr
om
the
m
ana
ge
me
nt fe
e
Qu
art
erly m
on
ito
rin
g m
ee
tin
gs
be
twe
en
YH
N a
nd N
CC
off
icers
to r
evie
w t
he
m
ana
ge
me
nt fe
e
Va
lue
fo
r M
one
y S
trate
gy
ap
pro
ve
d b
y B
oa
rd in M
ay
20
15
Rep
ort
fin
an
cia
l a
nd n
on
-fina
ncia
l p
erf
orm
an
ce
in
form
atio
n to
Man
agem
ent
Tea
m o
n a
mon
thly
basis
d
urin
g 2
015
-16
Rep
ort
fin
an
cia
l a
nd n
on
-fina
ncia
l p
erf
orm
an
ce
to
B
oa
rd o
n a
qu
art
erly b
asis
d
urin
g 2
015
-16
2
3
6
Dir
ec
tor
of
Co
rpo
rate
S
erv
ice
s a
nd
A
ss
ista
nt
Ch
ief
Ex
ec
uti
ve
Imp
lem
en
tatio
n o
f a
ctio
n p
lan
fo
llow
ing G
ove
rna
nce
revie
w b
y
31
/12
/20
15
Com
ple
te a
ctio
ns f
rom
th
e V
alu
e f
or
Mo
ne
y S
trate
gy b
y 3
1/0
3/2
01
6
Agre
e d
raft
Ma
na
gem
en
t A
gre
em
ent
an
d fe
e w
ith
Ne
wca
stle
City C
ou
ncil
by 3
1/1
0/2
01
5
Com
ple
te f
ina
ncia
l str
ess t
estin
g t
o
un
de
rsta
nd
ke
y f
inan
cia
l risks t
o
YH
N b
y 3
0/0
9/2
01
5
11
Page 57 of 112
SR
2
(New
R
isk
)
Su
bsta
nti
al
red
ucti
on
in
bu
dg
et
po
sit
ion
of
ex
tern
all
y t
rad
ed
s
erv
ice
s
Cau
se
Red
uced
pro
fit
ma
rgin
in
cu
rre
nt
con
tracts
L
oss o
f con
tracts
In
cre
ased
co
st
of
fulfill
ing c
on
tracts
(e.g
. ru
nn
ing c
osts
, in
flatio
n,
ove
rhe
ad
s)
Co
ns
eq
uen
ce
Red
uction
in
fin
an
cia
l re
so
urc
es a
va
ilab
le t
o
YH
N
Revie
w a
nd
asse
ss
bu
dge
ts fo
r Y
HN
se
rvic
es
Date
rais
ed
: A
pril 2
015
Fin
an
cia
l
P
eo
ple
P
art
ially
eff
ective
Me
diu
m
po
ten
tia
l to
im
pro
ve
Qu
art
erly r
ep
ort
s to
C
om
me
rcia
l C
om
mitte
e o
n
ou
r tr
ade
d s
erv
ices
Rese
rve
le
ve
ls s
et
to m
itig
ate
lo
sse
s
Rep
ort
fin
an
cia
l a
nd n
on
-fina
ncia
l p
erf
orm
an
ce
in
form
atio
n to
Man
agem
ent
Tea
m o
n a
mon
thly
basis
d
urin
g 2
015
-16
2
3
6
Dir
ec
tor
of
Ten
an
cy
Se
rvic
es
Com
ple
te s
erv
ice r
evie
w o
f N
ew
ca
stle
Fu
rnitu
re S
erv
ice (
NF
S)
by 3
1/0
3/2
01
6
Com
ple
te e
va
lua
tio
n o
f th
e
eff
ective
ne
ss o
f w
ork
forc
e
sch
edu
ling b
y 3
1/1
2/2
01
5
Ach
ieve
a 3
% g
row
th in
CC
AS
T
ele
ca
re c
usto
me
rs b
y 3
1/0
3/2
016
Ge
ne
rate
a n
et
£5
m s
urp
lus f
rom
tr
ad
ed s
erv
ices b
y 3
1/0
3/2
01
6
Com
ple
te a
ctio
ns w
ith
in t
he
Va
lue
fo
r M
on
ey S
trate
gy d
urin
g 2
015
-16
Com
ple
te f
ina
ncia
l str
ess t
estin
g t
o
un
de
rsta
nd
ke
y f
inan
cia
l risks t
o
YH
N b
y 3
0/0
9/2
01
5
Page 58 of 112
SR
3
(New
R
isk
)
YH
N s
erv
ice
s u
na
ble
to
me
et
co
ntr
ac
tual
req
uir
em
en
ts w
ith
ou
t s
ub
sta
nti
al
fun
din
g
ab
ove
ag
ree
d b
ud
gets
C
au
se
Failu
re t
o a
ch
ieve
a
sig
nific
an
t n
um
be
r of
pe
rfo
rma
nce
ta
rge
ts s
et
ou
t in
man
agem
en
t a
gre
em
en
ts w
ith
NC
C,
Byke
r C
om
mu
nity T
rust
an
d L
ea
ze
s H
om
es
Sig
nific
ant
cha
nge
in
se
rvic
e d
em
an
ds f
rom
clie
nts
’ cu
sto
me
rs
Costs
in
de
live
rin
g
se
rvic
es r
ise
C
on
se
qu
en
ce
Rep
uta
tio
na
l d
am
age
to
Y
HN
with
clie
nts
an
d
the
ir c
usto
me
rs
Ad
ditio
na
l re
ve
nue
sp
end
ing r
equ
ire
d t
o
me
et
con
tractu
al
requ
ire
me
nts
L
oss o
f con
tracts
S
ign
ific
ant
cha
nge
s in
se
rvic
e d
eliv
ery
mo
de
l D
ate
rais
ed
: A
pril 2
015
Fin
an
cia
l R
ep
uta
tio
n
Pa
rtia
lly
eff
ective
M
ed
ium
p
ote
ntia
l to
im
pro
ve
Rep
ort
ing o
f p
erf
orm
an
ce
in
form
atio
n to
Byke
r C
om
mu
nity T
rust
(BC
T)
an
d
Le
aze
s H
om
es’ B
oa
rds a
nd
NC
C C
ab
ine
t on
a q
uart
erly
ba
sis
R
ep
ort
ing
of
pe
rfo
rman
ce
m
ana
ge
me
nt
info
rma
tio
n to
M
an
age
me
nt T
eam
on a
m
onth
ly b
asis
du
rin
g 2
01
5-1
6
Se
ttin
g o
f a
nn
ua
l ta
rget
with
N
CC
, B
CT
an
d L
ea
ze
s
Hom
es
An
nua
l bu
sin
ess a
nd f
ina
ncia
l p
lan
nin
g p
roce
ss to
alig
n
YH
N r
eso
urc
e t
o m
eet clie
nts
’ n
eed
s
Ma
na
ge
me
nt a
gre
em
en
ts
with
NC
C,
BC
T a
nd L
ea
ze
s
Hom
es
Re
vie
ws a
nd
pro
jects
se
t ou
t in
th
e 2
01
5-1
6 S
erv
ice
Imp
rove
me
nt P
rogra
mm
e
Me
mbe
rs o
f H
ou
sem
ark
to
b
en
ch
ma
rk p
erf
orm
ance
an
d
acce
ss b
est p
ractice g
uid
an
ce
2
4
8
Ch
ief
Ex
ec
uti
ve
Com
ple
te r
evie
w o
f Y
HN
Bu
sin
ess
Str
ate
gy b
y 3
1/0
3/2
016
Com
ple
te r
evie
w o
f Y
HN
Fin
an
ce
S
trate
gy b
y 3
1/0
3/2
016
Com
ple
te a
ctio
ns w
ith
in t
he
Va
lue
fo
r M
on
ey S
trate
gy d
urin
g 2
015
-16
Agre
e n
ew
Man
age
men
t A
gre
em
ent
an
d fe
e w
ith
Ne
wca
stle
City C
ou
ncil
by 3
1/1
0/2
01
5
Com
ple
te a
nnu
al co
re b
en
ch
ma
rkin
g
(with
Ho
use
Ma
rk)
by 3
1/0
7/2
01
5
Com
ple
te a
ll re
vie
ws a
nd
pro
jects
in
20
15
-16
Se
rvic
e I
mp
rove
me
nt
Pro
gra
mm
e
11
Page 59 of 112
SR
4
Sta
ff s
kil
ls a
nd
e
xp
eri
en
ce d
o n
ot
me
et
cu
rre
nt
an
d
futu
re s
erv
ice
de
live
ry
req
uir
em
en
ts
Cau
se:
C
ha
ngin
g e
mp
ha
sis
for
bu
sin
ess a
s a
resu
lt o
f cu
rre
nt
op
era
tin
g
en
viro
nm
ent
In
cre
ased
job
o
ppo
rtun
itie
s in
th
e
ma
rket d
ue
to
econ
om
ic
up
turn
S
taff
tra
inin
g n
ee
ds a
re
no
t b
ein
g m
et
Cha
ngin
g in
wo
rkin
g
pra
ctices n
ot a
dop
ted
by
sig
nific
an
t n
um
be
r of
sta
ff
Co
ns
eq
uen
ce:
Ina
bili
ty o
f se
rvic
es a
nd
, in
tu
rn, o
rga
nis
ation
to
me
et
str
ate
gic
ta
rge
ts
Failu
re t
o r
esp
on
d to
th
e
ch
alle
nge
s o
f ou
r e
nviro
nm
ent
Red
uced
pro
du
ctivity in
w
ork
forc
e
Date
rais
ed
: F
eb
rua
ry
20
13
Pe
op
le,
hu
ma
n
reso
urc
es
Pa
rtia
lly
eff
ective
Lo
w
po
ten
tia
l to
im
pro
ve
Sta
ff t
rain
ing p
rogra
mm
e
revie
we
d a
nd
up
da
ted
to
re
flect
str
ate
gic
ob
jective
s
an
d b
usin
ess n
ee
d
Ava
ilab
ility
of
lea
de
rship
and
m
ana
ge
me
nt tr
ain
ing
Pe
rfo
rma
nce m
ana
ge
me
nt
fram
ew
ork
A
pp
rais
al p
ape
rwo
rk r
evie
we
d
an
d b
riefing d
eliv
ere
d to
m
ana
ge
rs
Cap
ab
ility
Po
licy t
o a
ssis
t m
ana
ge
rs a
nd
sta
ff in
m
eetin
g b
usin
ess
requ
ire
me
nts
S
erv
ice I
mp
rove
me
nt
Pro
gra
mm
e
Use o
f o
nlin
e r
ecru
itm
en
t to
ol
tha
t a
llow
s m
ana
ge
rs to
a
dve
rtis
e p
osts
more
qu
ickly
a
nd
to
a w
ide
r a
ud
ien
ce
3
2
6
Dir
ec
tor
of
Co
rpo
rate
S
erv
ice
s a
nd
A
ss
ista
nt
Ch
ief
Ex
ec
uti
ve
Imp
lem
en
t d
eve
lopm
en
t p
rogra
mm
e
to la
un
ch
th
e r
evis
ed
YH
N B
usin
ess
Str
ate
gy b
y 3
1/0
3/2
016
Com
ple
te a
ctio
ns in
the
Peo
ple
S
trate
gy d
urin
g 2
015
-16
Pilo
t u
se o
f m
ob
ile d
evic
es t
o
ide
ntified
se
rvic
es t
o incre
ase
p
rod
uctivity a
nd
cap
acity w
ith
in
se
rvic
e b
y 3
1/0
7/2
015
Revie
w o
f str
uctu
re o
f Y
HN
to
en
su
re
it m
ee
ts n
eed
s o
f n
ew
op
era
tin
g
en
viro
nm
ent
du
rin
g 2
01
5-1
6
Deve
lop
a u
pd
ate
d s
ucce
ssio
n p
lan
fo
r sen
ior
role
s a
nd
are
as o
f th
e
bu
sin
ess w
ith
ke
y p
ers
on
d
epe
nde
ncie
s b
y 3
1/1
2/2
01
5
Page 60 of 112
SR
5
Sig
nif
ica
nt
dis
rup
tio
n
to c
on
tin
uit
y o
f s
erv
ice
pro
vis
ion
C
au
se:
A
n e
ve
nt th
at m
ean
s a
Y
HN
bu
ildin
g,
sta
ff
reso
urc
e o
r key I
T
syste
m is n
ot a
va
ilab
le
An
in
cid
en
t th
at
requ
ire
s
sig
nific
an
t re
so
urc
e
rea
lloca
tion
Co
ns
eq
uen
ce:
L
oss o
f se
rvic
e
Wid
e r
an
gin
g
co
nse
qu
en
ce
s
de
pe
nd
ing o
n s
eve
rity
of
incid
en
t D
ate
rais
ed
:
Feb
rua
ry 2
013
Pla
nn
ing
an
d
reso
urc
e
Pa
rtia
lly
eff
ective
Lo
w
po
ten
tia
l to
im
pro
ve
IT fo
cu
se
d
IT C
on
tinu
ity P
lan
24
/7 s
yste
ms in
ope
ration
C
ritical syste
ms p
rovid
ed
in
de
pe
nde
ntly o
f N
CC
B
ack u
p s
ite
with
Sun
de
rla
nd
C
ity C
ou
ncil
K
ey s
yste
ms f
ully
rep
lica
ted
an
d c
an
be
‘fa
iled
ove
r’ t
o
giv
e c
on
tin
uo
us s
erv
ice
in
th
e
eve
nt
of
full
da
taba
se
fa
ilure
a
t N
CC
O
ut
of
ho
urs
arr
an
gem
en
ts
are
in
pla
ce
fo
r E
nqu
iry
Cen
tre
Se
rvic
e f
ocu
se
d
Ma
inte
na
nce a
nd
ca
ll o
ut
agre
em
en
ts fo
r E
nqu
iry
Cen
tre
Bu
sin
ess C
on
tinu
ity P
lan
(B
CP
) in
pla
ce
Bu
sin
ess Im
pa
ct
Asse
ssm
en
ts u
pd
ate
d
an
nu
ally
an
d t
rain
ing
de
live
red
to
ke
y s
taff
an
d
se
rvic
e a
rea
s
Agre
em
en
t to
te
st
BC
P p
lan
o
nce
a y
ea
r C
CA
S B
usin
ess C
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CC
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ove
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N s
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t u
se o
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es t
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rate
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ms o
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ite
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201
5
Se
rvic
e
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te a
nnu
al re
vie
ws o
f B
usin
ess C
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act
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ssm
en
t b
y 3
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ple
te r
evie
w o
f Y
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erg
en
cy
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n b
y 3
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01
6
11
Page 61 of 112
SR
6
Fail
ure
to
co
mp
ly w
ith
s
tatu
tory
he
alt
h a
nd
s
afe
ty
(H&
S)
req
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ts
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se:
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en
tal ne
glig
en
ce
(d
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to
in
ad
equ
ate
p
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ce
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d tra
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g f
or
sta
ff)
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era
te a
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y s
taff
n
ot
to fo
llow
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ce
sse
s
or
pro
ced
ure
s
Co
ns
eq
uen
ce:
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rge
of
co
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rate
m
an
sla
ugh
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rie
s t
o s
taff
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d/o
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sto
me
rs
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s o
f o
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ation
al
rela
ted
ill
he
alth
Cost
of
rem
ed
y
Date
rais
ed
: M
ay 2
012
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ga
l co
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nd
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Page 62 of 112
SR
7
Su
bsta
nti
al
dam
ag
e t
o
YH
N’s
re
pu
tati
on
/pu
bli
c
ima
ge
Cau
se:
Org
an
isation
al w
ide
loss
of
confiden
ce
in s
en
ior
ma
na
ge
me
nt
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sio
n/c
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of
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lpra
ctice
by s
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na
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re t
o c
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ply
with
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qu
alit
y le
gis
latio
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re t
o fo
llow
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olic
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d p
roced
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s
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re t
o m
ee
t H
CA
co
nsum
er
sta
nda
rd
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ns
eq
uen
ce:
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ina
ncia
l o
win
g t
o f
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from
tribu
na
ls/c
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rts
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uta
tio
na
l d
am
age
to
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nis
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fo
llow
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ga
tive
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ia
co
ve
rage
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ega
tive
regu
lato
ry
jud
ge
men
ts
Date
rais
ed
: A
pril 2
013
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op
le,
hu
ma
n
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urc
es
Pa
rtia
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eff
ective
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w
po
ten
tia
l to
im
pro
ve
Em
plo
ye
e C
od
e o
f C
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du
ct
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vid
e a
nnu
al sta
tem
en
t of
assu
ran
ce
to N
CC
E
xte
rna
l a
ud
it o
f Y
HN
a
cco
un
ts
Re
po
rt to
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dit C
om
mitte
e o
n
failu
res in
org
an
isationa
l p
erf
orm
an
ce
aga
inst th
e
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ery
Act
Po
licy
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ud
pre
ve
ntio
n p
olic
ies in
pla
ce
Pro
gra
mm
e o
f re
vie
ws f
or
E
mp
loye
e R
ela
tion
s p
olic
ies
(cap
ab
ility
, d
iscip
lina
ry,
grie
va
nce
, ab
se
nce
m
ana
ge
me
nt)
T
he
YH
N w
his
tle b
low
ing
po
licy
Info
rma
tion
Com
mis
sio
ne
rs
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ice
regis
tration
Info
rma
tion
Go
ve
rna
nce
P
olic
y a
nd
Pro
ce
du
res in
p
lace
YH
N s
taff
un
de
rtake
ma
nd
ato
ry s
afe
gu
ard
ing a
du
lt
an
d c
hild
ren
tra
inin
g
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gle
po
int of
co
nta
ct fo
r co
ord
inatio
n o
f o
rga
nis
ation
s
do
me
stic v
iole
nce
an
d
off
en
de
r m
an
agem
ent ca
se
s
Safe
gu
ard
ing a
nd d
om
estic
ab
use
fo
rum
ch
air
ed b
y H
ea
d
of
Sup
po
rt a
nd
Ca
re
2
3
6
Dir
ec
tor
of
Co
rpo
rate
S
erv
ice
s a
nd
A
ss
ista
nt
Ch
ief
Ex
ec
uti
ve
Com
ple
te r
evie
w o
f Y
HN
ap
pro
ach
to
su
ppo
rt v
ictim
s o
f d
om
estic a
bu
se
by
30
/09
/20
15
Com
ple
te a
ctio
ns w
ith
in B
rib
ery
Act
Actio
n P
lan
by 3
1/0
3/2
01
6
Com
ple
te e
qu
alit
y a
nd
div
ers
ity
train
ing
pro
gra
mm
e for
sta
ff d
urin
g
20
15
-16
11
Page 63 of 112
Board 5 May 2015 (5.00pm to 7.00pm)
Present: O Grant (Chair), P Dibbs, P Dutton, J McCarty, A Mirza, T Moore, L Wilson, J Purvis, J J Reid, N Shukla (until 6.30pm), E Snaith, P Scope (until 6.30pm), L Stephenson, J Stokel-Walker, M Talbot.
In attendance:
John Lee Chief Executive
S Breslin Assistant Chief Executive & Director of Corporate Services
N Scott Director of Tenancy Services
D Langhorne Director of Property Services
J Davison Company Secretary
L Forrest Head of Finance
M Burn Head of Support & Care
J Vinton Head of Assets & Regeneration
J Urwin Head of Housing Options
A Allison Tenancy Services
I Gallagher Head of Property Maintenance
L Horsefield Head of Business Strategy
J Clifford Financial Controller
363 WELCOME
The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and reminded members to turn off their mobile phones.
364 APOLOGIES
Apologies were received from D Down, V Dunn, L Doherty, D Huddart.
365 DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS
There were no declarations of interest arising.
366 CHAIRS ITEMS
The Chair had received a thank you card from Judith Common following her last meeting of the YHN Board and read the contents to the Board members.
The Chair reminded all Board members of the upcoming bus tour on the 19 May and to ensure all those not already confirmed, need to provide their names to Jill Davison.
12
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The Chair notified Board members that the Health and Safety training on Board responsibilities needs to be completed by all members and Jill Davison will email some possible date options to those who have not yet completed the training.
The Chair expressed her thoughts on the away day attended by the Board members last week and thanked those who attended what was an informative day, where she felt everyone learned a lot. The Chair proposed that this is followed up at the June meeting with a follow up report outlining actions from the day. The first priority to address would be the role description for Board members to enable the Board member vacancy to be advertised, and a draft would be circulated. The Chair thanked the Executive team for all the preparation..
The Chair advised Board members that a recent bid was submitted which John Lee will present the detail. John Lee advised Board members that a bid was submitted by the City Council to the European Commission Horizon 2020 programme a few years ago and was unsuccessful, this is now a re-submission. The implications for YHN are improvements to Westgate Hill multi-storey blocks. The total budget for the retrofit work is expected to be in the region of £3million with the bid able to provide up to £2million; HRA will need to meet the gap. There are caveats within the bid that if the technical or financial elements are not in the best interests, there is the ability for YHN to withdraw. John Lee explained the detail would have ideally been presented in a Board report, but this bid involved multiple partners and the bid submission needed to move quickly and be submitted. A full update on the outcome will be brought back to Board, along with any financial elements which require Board approval.
367 FINANCE AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE ANNUAL REPORT
Submitted: Report by the Chair of the Finance and Resources Committee (previously circulated, copy attached to Official Minutes).
Elaine Snaith, Committee Chair, reported that a major issue discussed throughout the year was in relation to the finance element now that the responsibility for the HRA has transferred back to the city council, thus changing the remit of the Committee, in future a lot of the financial items will come to Board.
Elaine Snaith then discussed four main areas of the committee’s work programme. With regard to Finance, the committee looked at the new role and remit for the committee and structure for financial planning going forward and how this will relate to the new mechanism and business at YHN.
With regard to equality & diversity, the committee oversaw the new action plan. A major issue which the committee noted was that our position in the Stonewall index went down, this is something the committee needs to monitor next year.
With regard to HR, the committee was pleased with the quality of information being presented, and welcomed the great analysis and discussions in a time of change. The committee looked at sickness levels, which demonstrated the uncertain times people faced.
The committee also noted the progress in the ICT strategy which is due a refresh next year..
Generally, the committee had been thinking about different ways to deal with
Page 65 of 112
the business in the changing structure and complexities that come with that.
Questions/Comments:
A Board member commented on the structure of the committee reports to the board and the differences between them. Some have been more detailed than others and there didn’t seem to be a set template that covered the workplan, what has been completed and reported outcomes. The Board member suggested there needed to be a consistency in the approach and if we are due to look at a new structure, and committee remits change, we need to review the reporting mechanisms to Board.
Elaine Snaith agreed whatever the new structure, the remits of committees will change as the Board needs to be more informed of financial issues.
The Chair commented that she had been in discussions with the management team to think about the work of committees in a way that Board members can scrutinise, challenge and support the structure without creating additional work. Some items receive a lot of scrutiny elsewhere for example the income management strategy is scrutinised by the management team and performance reported to NCC. The Chair commented that it will be inevitable that all the remits will change and it is unlikely there will be a Finance & Resources committee in the same way in the future, as a lot of financial information will come to Board.
A Board member agreed with regard to consistency and that moving forward we should ensure we clearly articulate the outcomes required, what has been delivered and what has changed as a result.
RESOLVED;
That the Board noted the work of the Finance and Resources committee over the period April 2014 to January 2015.
368 BOARD MEMBERSHIP
Submitted: Report by the Company Secretary (previously circulated, copy attached to Official Minutes).
Jill Davison, explained that following a report to Board in March with regard to the external recruitment process for the independent member vacancy, this report presented the detail with regard to retirement by rotation of tenant and independent members.
The members due to stand for re-election at the AGM were confirmed as Tony Moore, Lisa Doherty and Phil Dibbs. All members have indicated their wish to stand for re-election.
The next steps in relation to the recruitment process was discussed, as it was not the intention to interview the current board members standing for re-election, their applications along with supporting evidence would be assessed by a panel consisting of the Chair and two other Board members.
The Board were informed that the members who volunteered to be involved with the recruitment process following the March Board report were; Lynn Stephenson, Paul Dutton, Lisa Doherty and Phil Dibbs.
Jill Davison explained that due to the conflict of Lisa Doherty and Phil Dibbs standing for re-election, it was proposed that the re-election process be concluded in June prior to the external recruitment taking place in July, to
12
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ensure that they were confirmed in post to avoid any doubt.
Jill Davison proposed that the panels would be formed as follows;
To assess the members standing for re-election would be the Chair, Lynn Stephenson and Paul Dutton.
To consider the independent applicants from the external recruitment campaign would be the Chair, Lynn Stephenson, Lisa Doherty and Phil Dibbs.
The Chair commented that last year there had been planned to have a review of the succession planning arrangements but due to the NCC review this was put on hold. The Chair commented that the business was still in a state of flux, with a review of the whole business, and a review of the role of the board and committees still to be completed during the course of the year. It was hoped to bring back to the Board the entire process, proposals in July to then be agreed at the AGM.
Questions/Comments:
A Board member questioned if the incoming Board member would be assessed in relation to strengthening the skills on the Board due to the disaggregated position which were highlighted at the away day.
The Chair commented that it is proposed to present a revised job description to the June Board which will be used during the external recruitment, and that the re-appointment panel will be mindful of the new requirements.
The Chair confirmed she had received two expressions of interest for the vacant vice chair positions and that she would be considering the positions within the context of the changes to committee structures, and the role of committee chairs.
RESOLVED that the Board;
agreed the re-election process for independent and tenant board members for 2015; and
agreed the composition of the panel for the recruitment of the independent member at 3.4; and
agreed the composition of the selection panel to be involved with the re-election process at 3.5.
369 YHN YEAR END RESULTS
Submitted: Presentation by the Chief Executive (previously circulated, copy attached to Official Minutes).
John Lee presented the year end results commenting that the financial and non-financial performance was being presented together for the first time in an attempt to see the implications. John confirmed that the organisation had re-joined Housemark which would provide benchmark information for YHN to use as a comparator.
John Lee discussed the key headlines in the presentation.
Expenditure presented across four categories shows a reduction in all areas this year, with employee costs still the largest area.
Expenditure costs down by £1.24m on last year due to the hard work
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completed to achieve efficiencies.
Principal areas of reduction came in employee spend due to transfer of Byker Trust staff, large restructure in property services and the concierge service review.
In contrast the income for 2015 was up £774,000 on the previous year, so with costs down it resulted in a healthy position.
The profit made of £2.05m in 2014-15 will be retained by YHN as reserves for the coming year as due to disaggregation and now separate from HRA we need a higher level of reserves than before as do not have the HRA as back up.
YHN now has its own bank account and cash balances held by NCC of £2.75m will be transferred, and YHN staff will take responsibility for YHN cash flow.
Performance highlights: 13 targets green and 7 red, some of these targets completed but missed the target date so reported as red.
Rent collection rate of 99.46% was an excellent result especially with the difficulties faced by tenants and staff.
Newcastle Furniture service, whilst missing the target of 6% additional income, managed 5.5% which was £3.628m additional income.
Overachievement of the efficiency savings, saving £1.23m
For Byker and Leazes key performance indicators whilst we did not achieve the target of 100% success rate, some of the KPI were out of YHN control
Excellent result for the Your Homes Your Jobs scheme, taking into consideration the size and scale of the team
We have overachieved in life cycle improvements delivering 4725 improvements against a target if 4150
John Lee presented the next steps, and explained performance information will come to Board in the future to be scrutinized further instead of at committees.
Questions/Comments:
A Board member queries the calculations on the chart on slide 4, as being incorrect. The figures were checked and confirmed a mistake had been made in the calculation which had incorrectly included the column header.
A Board member commented that in future a financial dashboard would be useful to agree measures and see progress month by month against the measures to see the direction of travel and intervene before any measures hit a minimum required level.
A Board member queried the approach to note the target as red when only missed deadline, could have used amber. John Lee responded that it had been agreed last year not to use amber indicators as we have a firm target and should report on achievement or not.
The Chair summarised by thanking the team, and noted that how we monitor and report performance will be continually reviewed by management team and will change going forward as previously discussed.
12
Page 68 of 112
RESOLVED that the Board;
Received the presentation
370 YHN THE FUTURE
John Lee presented a verbal update to the Board in relation to the NCC review. As Board were aware the renewal of YHN contract had been discussed at programme board and oversight group over a period of months. John Lee reported progress to date had been positive and this was now close to sign off, the output from this would be the revised management agreement. The only remaining project was the enquiry centre, finalising the vision and operating model. There would likely be one more meeting of the oversight group in July, which will be reported to the July board, and then there can be closure.
As the lead for YHN, Sheila Breslin gave a presentation on the process to develop the management agreement and the format it will take to give board the assurance that the process is going the way it should.
The process has been completed jointly with YHN and legal team at NCC, and began by looking at other management agreements of other ALMO’s, and looked at the standard template devised by Trowers and Hamlin. Then completed a cut and paste exercise to adopt standard clauses.
A large piece of work led by Lisa Forrest has also looked at the fee basis and the issue of delivery plans and KPI’s and how these are agreed between YHN and NCC.
The next step will be to look at the finer detail and sit and look at the agreement clause by clause to ensure they suit both organisations. The agreement will then go to oversight group, NCC cabinet and come back to Board, this will not be before the autumn.
The main clauses were presented, and all the headings will appear in the template.
The standard clauses were also presented and most of these will use the same wording as the previous agreement, these protect both parties.
Finally the fee principle was presented, which will be linked to outcomes, this includes financial and non-financial. There will be joint quarterly and annual review meetings. The fee will be paid monthly in advance and be a set amount for recurring services with options to agree variations for one off non-recurring activity.
Questions/Comments
A Board member questioned of the fee is based on outcomes how can this be paid a month in advance. Lisa Forrest responded that the fee would be calculated for the year ahead, would be a fixed fee and then divided into 12 monthly instalments to assist with YHN cash flow.
John Lee added that the quarterly meetings would pick up any performance issues and put remedial action into place.
A Board member involved in the oversight group commented that at the last meeting a discussion had been held regarding communication with tenants. The Chair added that this is an issue to discuss further, tenants may not need to know the detail in the management agreement but need to know the nature of the change and this will need to be discussed further with NCC, possibly
Page 69 of 112
making a joint statement.
Sheila Breslin added that YHN are planning on reconvening group of tenants, who are a well-informed group over the next couple of months and filling them in on the detail.
The Chair summarised the discussion and commented that that the management agreement is helpful in supporting and enabling innovation, and YHN has tried to think ahead on what are tenants needs, not turning reactive or being constrained.
The Chair thanks John Lee and Sheila Breslin for the update.
371 VALUE FOR MONEY
Submitted: Report by the Director of Corporate Services (previously circulated, copy attached to Official Minutes).
Sheila Breslin presented the report which accompanied the Value for Money Strategy, which is the work of James Clifford, Financial Controller. There is an expectation by the regulator of registered providers to have a value for money strategy and whilst we are not required to conform with the standards, this ensures we approach value for money in a healthy and robust way.
The main changes are as a result of changes in the business being; a service provider to multiple clients, the disaggregation of the HRA, and pressure on the service budgets.
Lisa Forrest then gave a presentation which explained further detail on the position we are now, the pressures from tenants, government and partners, the actions taken to understand services and assets, reduce costs and be transparent, leading to a position in the future where we want to be.
Questions/Comments
A Board member commented that the strategy was very good, simple to understand and was pleased to see a balance of real value, that it was not just about money, it also considered social and added value.
RESOLVED that the Board;
Approved the YHN Value for Money Strategy
372 INCOME MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
Submitted: Report by the Director of Tenancy Services (previously circulated, copy attached to Official Minutes).
Neil Scott introduced the report, outlining the new Income Management Strategy based activity on four key themes, the Board were assured that the strategy would be monitored and scrutinised by the service improvement programme board monthly, and updates would be given to Board and Audit committee quarterly.
Questions/Comments
A Board member commented that it was excellent to see financial inclusion a part of the strategy, and thinking about the holistic needs including fuel poverty and this was a realistic approach, and was very impressed.
A Board member commented on the wording on page 58 “mimic” the
12
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experience of receiving a monthly wage, they felt this was not encouraging.
A Board member queried the table on page 66 and asked for clarity on former tenant rent arrears and for how long we seek to recover the rent.
Neil Scott confirmed the table showed accumulated debt, which is regularly review and the debt was chased as long as we can, until agree to write it off if uneconomical to pursue.
A Board member queried the Equality and diversity implications at point 3.9, with over the represented groups. Neil Scott responded that we do know this is the case, we need to find out why and this has formed part of the equality and diversity action plan and will be taken forward with the equality and diversity strategy.
RESOLVED that the Board;
Approved the Income Management Strategy
373 MINUTES OF 24 March 2015
The Board considered the minutes of the meeting held on 24 March 2015, these were amended on page 84 to reflect the change of wording from “had been” to “would be”, and duly signed by the Chair.
374 ITEMS FOR INFORMATION
RESOLVED – That the following items be received for information:
i) Health and Safety update
ii) Delegated Decisions
iii) Petitions
iv) Board Forward Plan 16 June
v) Committee Minutes
vi) Universal Credit update
vii) Digital by Choice
375 EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
RESOLVED – That in accordance with the organisation’s Access to Information provisions, the press and public were excluded from the meeting during the consideration of all further agenda items.
………………………………………..
Mrs O Grant
Chairman
16 June 2015
Page 71 of 112
Board 16 June 2015
Procurement Plan 2015/16 to 2018/19 Report by Chief Executive
For Information
1. Background information
1.1 The purpose of this Procurement Plan is to provide YHN Board with an understanding of the procurements that will be undertaken over the four year period between 2015/16 to 2018/19. The Plan includes procurements that will be undertaken to support YHN activities and procurements that will be undertaken on behalf of Newcastle City Council, both for Housing Revenue Account activities and General Fund activities.
1.2 The requirement for a Procurement Plan was identified as part of the “Disaggregation and Decision Making in the Future” report that went to Board in March 2015. Section 4.14 of the associated Council Cabinet report also detailed the requirement to prepare a 3-4 year Procurement Plan, including goods, works and services, as part of the future management arrangements for the Council’s housing stock, with the detailed yearly procurement programme being agreed and approved in advance of the commencement of each financial year.
1.3 Going forward this will enable business, which is solely under the remit of YHN under the terms of the Management Agreement, to be procured in accordance with YHN’s procurement and governance arrangements.
2. Issues and concerns
2.1 The procurement plan has been prepared on the basis of information known and assumptions made at this point in time. Whilst specific scheme details have been provided for the next financial year. This becomes progressively less detailed for later years and as such will not always become known until nearer the financial year in question.
2.2 Consequently the plan will be refreshed and reported on an annual basis to firm up procurements for the following financial year and as such will become a rolling four year programme.
13i
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3. Approach
3.1 The plan incorporates the value and timing of all new HRA goods, works and services procurements that are anticipated to be undertaken over the next four years, together with any other procurement undertaken by YHN on behalf of the NCC General Fund. This includes one off procurements and recurring contracts, as well as call offs under 3rd party contracts. For completeness this also includes anything awarded directly to the Building and Commercial Enterprise (BCE) Division of NCC. It does not include anything supplied under an existing Service Level Agreement with NCC.
3.2 It should also be noted that the plan currently includes procurements that may ultimately transfer to YHN as part of the disaggregation exercise to be undertaken during 2015/16.
4. The Business Implications
4.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives:
This plan directly contributes to our strategic objectives and ultimately to our Statement of Purpose to “Enable positive living for people in our homes and neighbourhoods”.
4.2 Value for money/efficiencies;
Delivering value for money and efficiencies is a pre requisite of all procurements and is measured against the targets set in the Procurement Strategy action plan. In addition any sub EU threshold work awarded directly to NCC BCE Directorate is subject to a value for money assessment, as approved by Board in November 2013.
4.3 Financial Implications
It is anticipated that the Procurement Plan will help produce savings which will have a positive financial impact on our stakeholders.
4.4 Resources (financial, property, technological or human):
The human resources are currently in place currently to deliver the procurement plan against identified budgets and funding streams.
4.5 Impact on services/performance:
Adoption of the plan will result in improved levels of visibility and planning, which in turn will improve delivery against our expenditure targets and help to identify opportunities for savings and efficiencies.
4.6 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders:
Procurement/efficiency savings can be re-directed to other service areas.
4.7 Risk:
Failure to have a comprehensive Procurement Plan will result in a lack of visibility of future procurements. This in turn could result in failure to
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undertake procurements within the necessary timescales to ensure that delivery and expenditure targets are achieved.
4.8 Environmental:
Procurements will be delivered in accordance with YHN’s strategic approach to environmental sustainability as detailed in the Asset Management Strategy. In addition the Corporate Procurement Strategy recognises our commitment to sustainability by adopting an effective and consistent approach, through our sustainable procurement statement, to ensure that environmental issues are considered at all stages of the procurement process, including actions within the action plan to achieve Level 2 of the Flexible Framework.
4.9 Legal:
Delivery of the Procurement Plan is governed by a number of legislative and regulatory provisions including the Public Contract Regulations 2015. Having an up to date and effective Procurement Plan will help ensure adherence with the statutory timescales in order to deliver the required outcomes whilst minimising the risk of challenge.
4.10 Equality and Diversity:
We utilise the harmonised procurement documents which were produced by the local authorities that are members of NEPO. These documents include provisions to help ensure that we meet our equality and diversity obligations. We have a Equality and Diversity in Procurement Guidance Note for staff to help ensure that equality and diversity considerations are given due consideration in the procurement process and our Contract Management Toolkit covers equality and diversity in the context of contract management.
4.11 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation:
The procurement plan has been developed in conjunction with the Head of Assets and Regeneration and the Technical Services Manager. In terms of capital procurements, as well as ongoing lifecycle, regeneration, environmental/communal and new build contracts, it also reflects any tenant investment and participatory budget priorities following consultation.
5. Conclusion and recommendations
5.1 Board is recommended to :
Receive and note the HRA Procurement Plan 2015/16 to 2018/19 (as detailed in appendix 1).
6. Implementation
6.1 Following Board:-
A report will be prepared for NCC Cabinet seeking endorsement of the plan;
Procurements will be progressed in line with the plan under YHN’s
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procurement and governance arrangements ; and
The Procurement Plan will be reviewed and updated annually.
Appendices Appendix 1 – HRA Procurement Plan 2015/16 to 2018/19 Background Papers Disaggregation and Decision Making in the Future – March 2015 Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Chris Nicholson by telephone on 0191 2788632 or email [email protected]
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Board 16 June 2015
Newcastle City Council’s Social Value Commitment Report by: Chief Executive
For Information
1. Background information
1.1 This report provides details of Newcastle City Council’s Social Value Commitment, which was approved by Cabinet in February 2015. (Appendix 1). This report follows an update to Board in November 2014, which provided an overview of the Social Value Act, what YHN is currently doing to meet its obligations under the Act and our initial response to the Council’s draft Social Value Commitment Report. A further update was provided to Board in February 2015 detailing the Council’s response to the issues raised by Board in November.
2. Newcastle City Councils Social Value Commitment
2.1 The Council’s Social Value Commitment is provided in Appendix 1. In summary the commitment supports the following principles:-
Think, buy, support Newcastle;
Community focused;
Ethical Leadership;
Green and Sustainable; and
Enabling Change.
2.2 The Council expects that the Commitment will ensure that social value outcomes will be delivered on the back of existing third party spend and the approach will secure more benefits for local communities.
2.3 In arriving at their Commitment the Council has incorporated our responses, together with feedback from other key stakeholders and partners.
2.4 Wider consultation is planned in order to develop an implementation plan to embed the principles identified above. This will reflect any limitations that
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may be imposed by the Public Contract Regulation 2015 in relation to the prioritisation of local spend and the existing principles of equality, non-discrimination and transparency.
2.5 Changes to the Council’s internal procedures and Procurement Procedure Rules may be necessary over the next 18 months to reflect the Commitment. If Board adopts the Commitment for YHN then similar changes will need to be made to YHN’s procedures.
3. The Business Implications
3.1 Mission and Strategic Objectives:
The Social Value Act contributes towards creating homes and neighbourhoods we can be proud of and working together to realise a brighter future.
3.2 Value for money/efficiencies:
There is potential for conflict between elements of the Social Value Commitment and the objective of securing value for money. It is proposed that this is considered on a procurement by procurement basis and measures are put in place in specifications, contract terms or other tender documents to minimise any conflict.
3.3 Financial Implications:
It is difficult to quantify the financial implications of adopting the Council’s Social Value Commitment at this stage as the document only outlines higher level principles.. If Board adopt the Council’s Social Value Commitment then it will be reviewed after 12 months and a report will be brought back to Board highlighting any issues along with the benefits that have been gained.
3.4 Resources (financial, property, technological or human):
If YHN adopts the Commitment then the appropriate procurement policies and procedures will need to be reviewed and amended. Resources are in place to undertake these tasks. In addition resources are in place to review the Commitment after it has been in place for 12 months.
3.5 Impact on services/performance:
As with the financial implications, it is difficult to quantify at this moment in time. This will be considered though as part of the 12 month review.
3.6 Outcomes for tenants/leaseholders:
As with the financial implications and impact on services / performance, it is difficult to quantify at this moment in time. This will be considered though as part of the 12 month review.
3.7 Risk (reputation, relationship):
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The main risks are:-
1. Procurement challenges from companies that are not local on the grounds of discrimination; and
2. There may be conflicts with other social value objectives e.g. providing training and employment opportunities and securing value for money for tenants.
In order to mitigate these risks legal advice will be sought when establishing the appropriate procurement mechanisms, in line with the new Public Procurement Regulations 2015. In addition we will ensure that any Social Value obligations complement our existing over riding obligation to deliver value for money by considering whole life cycle requirements where appropriate.
3.8 Environmental:
The Council’s Social Value Commitment has a principle focused on incorporating sustainability considerations into procurement activity. This principle is in accordance with YHN’s Procurement Strategy.
3.9 Legal:
As detailed elsewhere, there are some concerns over whether targeting procurement activity to locally based companies is compatible with the general principle of non-discrimination. The Council does intend to get a legal opinion on this issue.
3.10 Equality and Diversity and Community Cohesion:
As with the financial implications, impact on services / performance and outcomes for tenants / leaseholders it is difficult to quantify at this moment in time.
3.11 Stakeholder Involvement/consultation:
The Council established a working group some time ago with the initial draft Social Value Commitment and Action Plan being sent through to YHN in October 2014.It is our understanding that wider consultation will take place, including with YHN, in order to develop an implementation plan, in order to embed the established principles.
4. Conclusion and recommendations
4.1 It is recommended that Board note the adoption of the Council’s Social Value Commitment to ensure a consistent approach to delivery and review the Commitment after it has been operational for 12 months.
5. Implementation
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5.1 Following Board we will publish the Social Value Commitments on our webpage and work with the Council, as part of the wider consultation process, in order to develop an implementation plan.
Background Papers
- November 2014 - Newcastle City Council Draft Social Value Commitment - February 2015 - Newcastle City Council Social Value Commitment Response
Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Chris Nicholson, Procurement Manager by telephone on 0191 278 8632 or email [email protected]
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Board 16 June 2015
Board Forward Plan
1 Board Forward Plan
1.1 This Board Forward Plan lists the reports known at the present time that will be presented at the Board meeting on 28 July 2015 (or amended date subject to confirmation)
Please note the meeting will be held at St James Park, Newcastle, and tenants will be invited to observe the meeting. Following the Board meeting there will be thank you event for involved tenants.
Board Reports
Annual report and financial statement 2014/15 Non-confidential
Disaggregation update Non-confidential
Management Agreement Non-confidential
Universal Credit Non-confidential
Employability Task & Finish Group report Non-confidential
Quarter one performance and financial report For information
Contact Officer: If you have any questions about this report that you would like clarifying before the meeting, you can contact Jill Davison, Company Secretary by telephone on 0191 278 8624 or email [email protected] 13
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1
Commercial Committee 20 January 2015 (4.05 pm - 5.25 pm) Present:
A Mirza (In the Chair)
P Dibbs, D Huddart, J McCarty and T Moore
In Attendance:
Sheila Breslin - Assistant Chief Executive and Director of Corporate Services, YHN Neil Scott - Director of Tenancy Services, YHN Jen Vinton - Head of Assets and Regeneration, YHN Martyn Burn - Head of Support and Care, YHN James Clifford - Financial Controller, YHN Daniel McGuiness - Lead Communications Officer, YHN Helen Garbutt - Environmental Services Manager, YHN Rob Clark - Care Services Manager, YHN Christine Patterson - Democratic Services Officer, NCC
24 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies for absence were received from Judith Common and Elaine Snaith.
25 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST None
26 MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING HELD ON 18 NOVEMBER 2014 RESOLVED – That the Minutes of the previous meeting held on 18 November 2014 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair. Matters Arising: None
27 ACTION LIST REVIEW Sheila Breslin introduced the report, reminding the Committee that the Care Services Marketing Business Case was originally to be discussed either through a Conference Call or an extraordinary meeting prior to Christmas. This was not possible. The item was included on the agenda for this meeting. She referred to the Committee meeting times and said following receipt of views from absent members
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2
about the future meeting days and times she could confirm that Commercial Committee would continue to be held on Tuesdays at 4.00pm. RESOLVED – That the Action List and the verbal updates were noted.
28 EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC RESOLVED – That the press and public be excluded during discussions of the agenda items 6-10 because of likely disclosure of confidential information. The definitions of what was considered confidential were contained within Section 16 of the Company’s Standing Orders.
29 CONFIDENTIAL MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING HELD ON 18 NOVEMBER 2014 RESOLVED – That the confidential Minutes of the previous meeting held on 18 November 2015 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chair. Matters Arising: None
30 CARE SERVICES BUSINESS PLAN - MARKETING UPDATE Submitted: Report by Head of Support and Care (previously circulated and a copy attached to official minutes), which recommended the way forward in relation to the marketing and branding of Care Services. Martyn Burn introduced the report. During discussions the following comments and points were made:
Queries were raised around the clients using the Telecare System and the proposed marketing plans. It was explained that there were approximately 5,000 clients. Approximately, 2,300 were local authority tenants and 1,400 were in private rented accommodation. 70% of the clients were benefit funded. The system was well known to local authority tenants; however, it was considered further marketing to this client group may prove beneficial. The main marketing was with the private market but a better understanding of the ACORN customer profiling tool was required. Paragraph 3.7 detailed the marketing proposals in more detail. Learning had been gained from the comparative analysis carried out, although further research was necessary. Expectations were that more referrals would be achieved from those supporting older people than from the clients themselves. Further discussions were necessary with Newcastle City Council (NCC) around budget constraints and potential cuts.
A question was asked about whether collaborations with other providers to reduce costs had been explored. It was explained that the system contained an element unique to Newcastle. This was the provision of a response service. Collaborations had previously been explored; albeit some years ago. If taken forward, this would require a sub-contracting arrangement to be introduced. There were some collaborative opportunities but these were considered extremely limited and too risky. Reference was made to current discussions with NCC about merging with the Contact Centre with the Enquiry Centre.
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3
Concern was expressed about the lack of accuracy in the expenditure proposals to be approved in the report. It was explained that the expenditure information that could be provided had been. It was based on previous experience and costs of similar work previously carried out e.g. market research and branding. The expenditure figures were not unrealistic.
Comments were made about not undertaking the marketing if the Business Plan could not be taken forward and about not losing recognition of the YHN brand with any promotional material that was produced. It was explained that YHN were holding discussions with NCC and if the funded Telecare service was not able to grow then officers would review the marketing approach. Research would need to be completed as this would provide the information required to make that decision. The YHN brand was strong in certain sectors. In the City, the Telecare service was not associated with YHN and therefore one of the main issues to be considered was the actual name of the service. A member suggested the name should be ‘Your Care Newcastle’.
Reference was made to the comparative analysis with Gateshead. A comment was made about exploring how Gateshead had been able to deliver their service at a lower charge than that applied in Newcastle. It was explained that a further meeting was to be scheduled with Gateshead to obtain further information. It was known that the service they provided was funded through the HRA and social care budgets. This had resulted in a single charge of £4.20 per week being introduced a few years ago.
The Chair summarised the points raised by Members in terms of the potential collaborative opportunities and avoiding the loss of the social ethos of YHN in moving forward. He sought the Committee’s agreement to the marketing proposals outlined in paragraph 3.7 of the report. He indicated that the Committee would receive regular updates on Care Services income position. ACTION A question was asked about timescales in relation to the revamp of the website and to when promotional leaflets would become available. It was explained that this detail would be circulated to Committee, once available. ACTION RESOLVED – That the marketing proposals as set out in section 3.7 of the report as part of the Care Services Business Plan Action Plan was approved.
31 TENDER AND COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY UPDATE REPORT Submitted: Report by Head of Business Strategy (previously circulated and a copy attached to official minutes), which provided the tender activity and information about income generated from commercial activity for 2014-15 quarter three, covering the period October to December 2014, together with information on the recent changes to the New Business Panel. Sheila Breslin introduced the report updating the Committee on the following tender activity: Tenders in Progress
Stoke on Trent Council Social Fund. Contract was still to be let. Timescales were still to be provided.
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4
Places for People White Goods. Bid was unsuccessful as the specifications were not able to be met. The contract was awarded to a ‘white goods’ manufacturer.
Warwick University. The award announcement was still outstanding; however, mattress samples had been provided.
Places for People Furniture. There had been delays in shortlisting; the reasons for this were unknown.
Unsuccessful Tenders
Durham University Mattresses. The feedback would help to improve presentations in the future.
Housing 21 White Goods. Accreditations certificates had not been a requirement previously. It was considered that the certificates would not provide ‘value for money’ e.g. costs and resource implications; however, this would be something to monitor.
A query was raised about the success rate of tender submissions. It was explained that a tally of those won and lost was collated. This was a typical response rate for a quarter’s activity. Learning from the unsuccessful tenders helped with future submissions. A member referred to her recent visit to Palatine Retail Outlet, reporting on her disappointing experience. She indicated that she was aware of the current work to the roof repairs, which would be causing some difficulties; however, considered more should be done to present and sell the beds. It was explained that the retail outlet would be ready by the end of January. The outlet usually operated on par with other retail bed stores in the area but officers would see that could be done during the interim period. ACTION The Chair indicated that he was surprised to hear the member’s comments as the Committee had been impressed with the outlet when they visited as part of one of their meetings early in the summer last year. He suggested that perhaps the Committee should consider holding another meeting there in future. ACTION RESOLVED – That the information was received and the comments noted.
32 CENTRAL WALKER - PROGRESS UPDATE Submitted: Report by Head of Assets and Regeneration and Financial Controller (previously circulated and a copy attached to official minutes), which provided an update on progress in relation to the Central Walker regeneration project. Jen Vinton introduced the report. During discussions the following comments and points were made:
A query was raised about the granting of planning permission. It was explained that Phase 1 of the scheme was approved in December 2014 with work due to start in March 2015. Phase 2 was to be considered by Planning Committee in February/March 2015.
Reference was made to the need for some form of general dealer for the supply of newspapers etc. It was explained that discussions had been held with Aldi but
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5
there were lease restrictions to be adhered to. Further discussions around this aspect were required.
Comments were made about the project being a fantastic opportunity.
Concern was expressed about the commercial element assuming a £40,000 annual income from letting the shop units. A question was asked about a back-up plan being established if this income was not achieved. The Chair explained that similar concerns had been expressed at the previous meeting, referring to some of the issues that were raised to be explored further - opportunities to take an active role in employment and learning; use of the Skills Funding Agency; Newcastle City Learning; other colleges and perhaps the Riverside Learning Trust Training Facility. At this point, he declared an interest as a Governor of the Trust, pointing out that he would be willing to facilitate discussions, if required. It was further explained that the scheme had been discussed at the Investment and Development Group and been through the Financial Business Case Panel. Regular meetings with NCC would support the monitoring of the risks. Further work with Newcastle College was required before the alternative options for the commercial area was progressed.
RESOLVED – That: (i) The report was received. (ii) Progress since the last meeting was noted. (iii) A further report to be received once discussions had concluded with
Newcastle College.
33 SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT (SLA) MONITORING REPORT QUARTER THREE 2014-15 (OCTOBER 1ST TO DECEMBER 31ST) Submitted: Report by Assistant Chief Executive and Director of Corporate Services (previously circulated and a copy attached to official minutes), which outlined the details of the financial and operational performance of the SLA’s with Newcastle City Council. A position statement incorporating comments from the lead officers for each of the SLA’s and a financial update were appended to the report. Sheila Breslin introduced the report, referring to concerns raised at the previous meeting on the Grounds Maintenance SLA. She drew members’ attention to the update on page 45, informing the Committee about the review of management arrangements currently being undertaken by Newcastle City Council (NCC) Internal Audit. A question was asked about whether preventative measures were being introduced to avoid the current issues being repeated. It was explained that regular monthly meetings with NCC colleagues had been introduced so if issues arose, discussions could take place and agreement reached at a senior level about the way forward. In addition, investment in IT systems would result in improvements around the sharing of performance information. A query was raised about the Street Warden vacant post. It was explained that the SLA was operating as required. Discussions were ongoing to establish if the post
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6
was funded from the General Fund or Housing Revenue Account. If the latter was the case, then a reduction would be seen in the YHN charges. RESOLVED – That the report was received and the comments noted.
34 DATE AND TIME OF NEXT MEETING Sheila Breslin informed the Committee that the next scheduled meeting - Tuesday 5 May 2015 conflicted with an YHN Board meeting. She stated that if the Committee were in agreement, the next meeting of Commercial Committee could be re-scheduled to Tuesday 12 May 2015 at 4.00pm. The Committee agreed and asked for the new date to be circulated. ACTION
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1
Audit Committee 26 February 2015 (5.00pm - 6.40 pm) Present: G Clark (In the Chair) D Down L Doherty J Reid P Scope N Shukla Also present: O Grant
IN ATTENDANCE S Breslin Director of Corporate Services and Assistant Chief Executive N Scott Director of Tenancy Services D Langhorne Director of Property Services L Horsefield Head of Business Strategy R Burns Lead Service Quality Officer J Davison J Clifford
Company Secretary and Board Administrator Financial Controller
I Pattison Internal Audit C Mulley Ernst and Young J Miller Democratic Services
13 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from A Mirza and L Stephenson.
14 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST None.
15 MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 20 NOVEMBER 2014 The minutes of the meeting held on 20 November 2014 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
16 ACTION LIST REVIEW RESOLVED – that the action list be noted and updated accordingly.
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17 ANTI- BRIBERY POLICY Submitted: Report by Company Secretary (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) J Davison introduced the report which set out the implementation actions taken over the period December 2013 to January 2015 with regard to the Anti- Bribery and Corruption Policy within YHN; the scope and results of the recent review and she outlined recommendations for further actions. Due to weaknesses highlighted in the review she advised that in future Leazes Homes spend would be included in the contracts register and that spend analysis and declaration forms would be assessed based on the financial year not the calendar year. It was also recommended that a review of sales contracts was undertaken and a central register set up, as currently this was held separately within business areas. The Chair commented that a number of gifts and hospitality forms had been handed in retrospectively, an action was being put in place to ensure this was not the case in future. RESOLVED – that:-
i. The report be noted. ii. The proposed further actions detailed in 5.1.1- 5.1.3 of the report be agreed. iii. The bribery risk be monitored through the strategic risk register. iv. J Davison to liaise with D Down regarding his specific query in relation to gifts
and hospitality.
18 PROPOSAL - 2014-15 YHN YEAR END AUDIT Submitted: Report by external auditor (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) C Mulley introduced the report which provided the committee with a basis to review the external auditor’s proposed audit approach and scope for the 2015 audit and which summarised their assessment of the key issues which drove the development of an effective audit for YHN. She drew members’ attention to the key areas of audit emphasis as detailed in the report. She asked member’s to advise her if there were any areas of concern which they felt should be included in the audit plan. The following issues/ queries were raised during debate:-
Any differences in relation to key account balances would be considered and a resolution agreed.
C Mulley stated that if any issues of concern arose during the undertaking of audit work she would report accordingly and bring them to the attention of the Board.
It was noted that from the following year Ernst and Young would also be the external auditors for Newcastle City Council (NCC). Assurances had been sought that this would not result in a conflict of interests. The Head of Finance had stated that there was not a conflict of interest. C Mulley advised
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on the detailed processes and safeguards which would be in place at Ernst and Young to ensure there were no conflicts on interest.
RESOLVED – that the Audit planning report be received.
19 QUARTER THREE PERFORMANCE Submitted: Report by Head of Business Strategy (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) R Burns introduced the report which provided an overview of how performance was reported; a performance summary report showing performance against the top 20 targets and an explanation of any issues or concerns. He drew members’ attention to the red and amber indicators at the end of quarter three as detailed in the report. The following issues/ queries were raised in debate:
In response to a member’s query, N Scott explained that the aim of the void process review action plan was to make the process quicker, cheaper and to provide consistency of service delivery for the customer. The action to take out the duplication in the IT system in relation to monitoring of voids would make it easier to track performance in future. He advised that each of the actions had detailed implementation plans behind them.
I Pattison advised that there would be a follow up internal audit of the voids system before the year end.
In response to a member’s query regarding the target for evictions, N Scott explained that this target specifically related to evictions for rent arrears and was at its lowest level for the last three years. Whilst the level of rent arrears had increased cases only proceeded to court where it was absolutely necessary.
Where a person was deemed to have made themselves intentionally homeless, the responsibility fell on that individual to find alternative accommodation. In advance of an eviction if a person was classed as vulnerable there would be a multi-agency meeting and those agencies would be in a positon to offer support to that person.
It was not possible at this stage to anticipate the impact of the introduction of Universal Credit on the level of evictions.
A member queried whether it was anticipated that the proposal by NCC to stop the Night Time Noise service would have an impact on the ability to investigate effectively noise complaints. N Scott advised that when the Night Time Noise Service ceased, customers with night time noise complaints would phone in to the YHN enquiry service who would log the details and pass them onto environmental health officers to pick up the following day. It the complaint related to noise from a YHN property, YHN would follow up the complaint with the tenant. In addition tenants could call the police.
Members noted the positive impact of the negotiation training undertaken by the specialist income recovery officers.
RESOLVED – that performance monitoring report be received.
20 STRATEGIC RISK REGISTER - QUARTER THREE 2014-15 'RISK AT A GLANCE ' UPDATE
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Submitted: Report by Head of Business Strategy (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) R Burns introduced the report which provided a ‘risk at a glance’ update on the Strategic Risk Register, to allow the committee to focus in on the risks that were a greater threat and assess what progress had been made in improving the controls that were in place. The following issues/ queries were raised during debate:-
In response to a question D Langhorne explained that the reference in Strategic Risk 1 to ‘approach to demolitions’ related to a situation where there was no demand for a particular type of property which were unaffordable to maintain in the longer term so consideration was given to demolition.
S Breslin explained that the action Strategic Risk 1.13 to ‘review our approach to grant funding during quarter four’ related to the recognition of the need to regularise and take a corporate overview to grant funding rather than to continue with the current piecemeal approach.
RESOLVED – that the report be received.
21 ANNUAL STATEMENT OF ASSURANCE L Horsefield advised the committee that it was proposed to follow the same process as had been used in previous years to produce the annual statement of assurance. A draft statement would be brought to the next meeting for comment. She asked that any member who wished to see a copy of the previous year’s assurance statement to contact her. RESOLVED – that the update be noted.
22 QUARTER THREE INTERNAL AUDIT PROGRESS REPORT Submitted: Report by Head of Internal Audit (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) I Pattison introduced the report which showed Internal Audit activity since the last Audit Committee meeting in November 2014. The report summarised progress against the Annual Audit Plan 2014/15; implementation of audit recommendations and performance indicators. RESOLVED – that:-
i. Progress against the Internal Audit plans for 2014/15 be noted. ii. The changes to reporting around implementation of audit recommendations
be noted.
23 CONSULTATION ON 2015-16 INTERNAL AUDIT PLAN Submitted: Report by Head of Internal Audit (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes)
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I Pattison introduced the report which provided an overview of the process for compiling the Internal Audit Plan and provided an early opportunity for members to feed into the process. He advised that any members who wished to feed issues into the plan should contact Internal Audit. A report on the 2015-16 Internal Audit plan would be brought to the May meeting. In response to a member’s query I Pattison explained there were a number of ways in which issues of concern, could be picked up and fed into the Internal Audit plan. Issues could be flagged up in discussions between Management Team and Directors; picked up from the risk register and via Board and committee members raising issues. When a particular incident arose managers could asked that the audit plan be used to look at general controls around a particular area/ issue. It was noted that there was always an allocation of days in the Internal Audit plan for health and safety. The Chair queried whether there were any issues that a properly constituted scrutiny panel of tenants could look at, which would free up time in the audit plan for more strategic issues. L Horsefield reported that NCC were currently undertaking a review of the strategic independent tenant voice and they could be asked to look at this suggestion as an option. RESOLVED – that:-
i. The report be received. ii. The process for compiling the Internal Audit Plan be noted.
24 DRAFT DELIVERY PLAN 2015-16
Submitted: Report by Head of Business Strategy (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) L Horsefield introduced the report which provided detail on the draft 2015 -16 delivery plan. She explained that the plan was not fully populated at this stage because, YHN had recently decided to re-join Housemark and officers were working through this year’s performance to measure it against the Housemark indicators. She asked members to consider whether they felt the strategic business targets covered the range of areas/issues that members would expect and also whether they felt anything needed to be added to the list of proposed service reviews or there were areas where additional governance was needed. The following issues/ queries were raised during debate:-
A member commented that the descriptions of the targets were too complex. Officers explained that wording reflected the level of detail that officers needed to ensure they provided the information required to measure performance against the target. It was agreed officers would review the wording of the targets with a view to simplify the language used and once a year report the more complex description of the targets detailing what the target was measuring to Committee..
In response to a member’s query it was explained that standard voids were those voids were all the work needed could be categorised as a repair; non – standard voids were voids where the repairs needed were so great that some of them would have to be capitalised.
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A number of the targets for the following year would be different from those for the current year as they were being aligned to Housemark targets to allow comparison with other organisations.
It was noted that in addition to the targets in the Delivery Plan each service had a service plan with targets.
N Scott commented that in setting targets there was a continued focus internally on improvement in the work being measured, seeking to be better year on year.
L Horsefield asked the committee for their views on what they thought the target should be for sickness absence for the following year. She advised that the Finance and Resources Committee, was of the opinion that 7.5 days per full time employee was too challenging a target. The committee discussed the matter in detail, concluding that it would be more appropriate to set a target nearer the median performance for similar organisations; with sub targets for individual services. RESOLVED – that:-
i. The target themes and wording be recommended to YHN Board. ii. The direction of travel for proposed targets be agreed. iii. A note be prepared for Board explaining how the committee had arrived at
the suggestion that the Sickness Absence target should be set nearer the median performance of 8.2; with sub targets set for individual services within that overall target.
iv. The Service Improvement Plan be recommended to YHN Board. v. An email to be sent to members with the detail of the draft target for standard
voids, once it had been agreed by officers.
25 EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC RESOLVED – that the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the confidential minutes of the previous meeting and the Draft delivery Plan 2015-16 restricted targets because of the likely disclosure of confidential information.
26 CONFIDENTIAL MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 20 NOVEMBER 2014 The confidential minutes of the meeting held on 20 November 2014 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
27 DRAFT DELIVERY PLAN 2015 -16 - RESTRICTED TARGETS Submitted: Confidential report by Head of Business Strategy (previously circulated and copy attached to Official Minutes) RESOLVED – that:-
i. The target themes and wording be recommended to Board. ii. The direction of travel for the targets be agreed.
28 DATE AND TIME OF NEXT MEETING
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The next meeting would be held on Thursday 21 May 2015 at 5pm.
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Customer and Service Delivery Committee 17 March 2015 (4.30 - 6.20 pm) Present: P Dutton (Chair) L Middlemiss T Moore J Reid M Talbot In attendance: N Scott - Director of Tenancy Services A Pearce - Assets and Programming Manager A Allison - Head of Income and Tenancy Management H Horan - Lead Customer Involvement Officer J Urwin - Head of Housing Options J Vinton - Head of Assets and Regeneration J Johnson - RTB and Leasehold Manager B Joyce - NCC Democratic Services
12 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies were received from J Purvis and N Shukla.
13 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST IN ANY ITEM TO BE CONSIDERED AT THE MEETING None.
14 MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 10 NOVEMBER 2014
RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting held on 10 November 2014 be agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
15 ACTION LIST AND WORK PLAN Submitted: Report by Neil Scott (Director of Tenancy Services) to provide information on the Customer and Service Delivery Committee workplan and the action list (previously circulated and copy attached to the official minutes).
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(a) Work Plan (March 2015 – September 2015)
A Telecare Service developments presentation had been added to the workplan for the May 2015 meeting. Members were asked to contact N Scott if there were any particular areas they would like to be added to the workplan.
(b) Action List
N Scott introduced the report. It was confirmed that more information, on the link between the main investment work and follow on repairs, and more detail on the difference between the constructor and overall satisfaction rates for a BCE scheme, was circulated by David Langhorne before Christmas.
16 WELFARE REFORM SERVICE REVIEW EVALUATION PRESENTATION Presentation by Allison Allison (Head of Income and Tenancy Management) and John Urwin (Head of Housing Options) on the Welfare Reform Service Review evaluation (previously circulated and copy attached to the official minutes). The Chair asked for the particular objectives of the review to be set out; officers advised that the purpose was to deliver a more focussed service to customers with a more focussed knowledge base of staff, rather than the generic knowledge base previously offered. There were now dedicated teams for income (collection), tenancy management and housing options (to ensure people could successfully sustain tenancies). The review had stemmed from earlier broader work which had looked at welfare reform; the housing management staff had needed to refine and focus their skills and the new structure was part of the business strategy for 2015/16. A Allison advised that the new structure had started on 2 June 2014, and that the evaluation had been of the first six months of operation. The presentation provided information on the purpose of the review, the areas covered, staff impact and culture, areas of good practice, what staff said, questionnaire feedback, staff impact and culture, focus group feedback, roles and responsibilities, workload analysis, customer impact, stakeholder impact including findings and recommendations and financial implications and next steps. Member comments and points raised in discussion
In reply to a question about the evaluation of job roles, A Allison advised that this was done via a technical review and ‘factor traces’. This ensured all aspects of the roles were included in the job description and check the grading of posts. Managers and the trade unions had also been involved.
Feedback had suggested that customers believed they received a better service from YHN staff than NCC (where YHN did not provide the first point of contact). Officers considered that this could be attributed to the hand over
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and transition periods near the start of the review. At the launch of the new service YHN staff had to learn new roles but NCC staff also had to get to grips with the new structures. It was anticipated that this would not be the perception once everything was thoroughly embedded.
A member raised the issue of the difference in the figures from the staff questionnaire feedback ie; 61% agreed the new structure met aims and 39% agreed that it improved services to customers. J Urwin advised that staff perceptions of workloads and roles were reflected in some of the responses and this was likely to be because of the timing of the review.
With regard to waiting times, data was now available to demonstrate that this had now reduced. YHN now had reception staff in all but two outlets.
The issue of interview space was raised by a committee member who had personal experience of using the services. This was currently being looked at and it was acknowledged that private space was required.
Also, the ticketing system needed to be refined as it was not appropriate in all circumstances. J Urwin said that the labelling would be taken back to NCC. A telephone survey had found that the system needed to get better at directing people.
Taking as many services as possible to the customer eg. doing things online or through telephony, would be another way of doing things differently going forward.
N Scott advised this month’s Board agenda included an item setting out the general approach to customer service. A workstream would look at the face-to-face work areas of customer service.
Individual service plans would sit behind the broad recommendations of the review regarding the staff impact and culture.
Committed leave and sickness in the early months of the review had impacted on the bedding in period. It was considered that workforce planning would not be a problem going forward.
Further information would be disseminated to staff through the team briefing process etc. on how to work with the three new service areas effectively.
It was suggested that a briefing would be helpful for members to enable them to identify who was responsible for what in the new structure.
Issues with training were discussed with regard to staff sending the appropriate messages.
It was confirmed that specific officers had responsibility for the three different service areas in geographical areas. There was also a website facility to identify who had particular responsibility for a particular address.
Although plans were now underway for moves to ‘digital by choice’, it was understood that staff were still keen to provide face-to-face services. Management would need to think about the cultural change required and how to reassure staff that they were providing good customer service.
J Urwin and A Allison were working with NCC to improve the service at the two service centres not staffed by YHN. It was also pointed out that a process map and procedure notes had been provided to these areas. The intention was to roll out awareness raising and the training model to all staff.
With regard to measuring performance, A Allison advised that only some of the data was quantifiable and different approaches were used:-
o Income – this was easy to measure; there was now a specialist team utilising new software and collecting more than ever;
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o HASBET – sophisticated monitoring was in place eg. around evictions; and,
o Tenancy and Estate Management – this was more difficult to quantify but staff were now logging activity in broad categories on Sharepoint.
Similarly, J Urwin stated that some performance was very measurable whilst other aspects required more analysis.
N Scott commented that this financial year was a transition from traditional indicators to allow a base line to be established for what YHN would like to do next year. A (smaller) STAR survey would be run this year to collect softer data. This would go to Board as part of the delivery plan discussions.
The Chair stated that it was important that staff of all grades could buy into what the organisation was doing. In respect of procedures, details of the recruitment process were provided and members were informed that the majority of staff did achieve their first preference job.
In response to a question about what YHN was doing as a provider to ensure wellbeing, N Scott said that this would be added to the forward plan and brought back to committee. - add to work plan
17 INVESTMENT PROGRAMME QUARTER 3 PERFORMANCE Submitted: Report of Jen Vinton (Head of Head of Assets and Regeneration) (previously circulated and copy attached to the Official Minutes).
Jen Vinton introduced the regular Performance and Progress Update report to provide Committee with information on the investment programme including the:
Scheme progress during Quarter three of 2014/15
Performance during Quarter three of 2014/15
The current expected outturn for the 2014/15 investment programme was £49.8M.
Appendix one detailed the current forecast expenditure for the 2014/15 investment programme. J Vinton highlighted key schemes from each of the budget headings in the programme. Lifecycle Programme – current budget forecast of £21.8M
516 roof replacements had been delivered against the target of 819 properties.
Window replacement work had started on two multi storey blocks- Denton and Hilltop House.
Standard Housing Investment – current budget allocation of £12.4M
The single glazed window scheme was now complete.
Works at Cruddas Park House to install new windows, a new roof and external wall insulation was now well under way and expected to complete in May 2015.
External wall insulation works at Ewart, Shafto and Bramwell Court were now complete.
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Environmentals and Communals – current budget allocation of £3.5M
Re-modelling works on New Mills estate was currently on site and progressing well.
Work was ongoing to deliver the successful schemes approved through the Participatory Budget.
Communal improvements were on-going at Iris Steadman House – Board members were e-mailed about an incident during this project. This would be the subject of a report to Board next week. The environmentals were due to follow at this block. Residents would be encouraged to provide feedback on the garden design.
Regeneration – current budget allocation of £4.9M
The official opening event for Moor House was held in January. A further event was being held tomorrow for residents to provide feedback on what they liked and disliked about the new block. This would have the dual purpose of providing YHN staff with the opportunity to talk to residents and learn their views, at the same time as strengthening the community and encouraging people to be good neighbours.
New Build – current budget allocation of £2.4M
New build works at Bristol Terrace and Middle Street were now complete.
The expected outturn figure for the year at the end of quarter three was £49.8M. This was now being estimated at between £45M - £46M The graph at Appendix two indicated the expected spend profile; Appendix three contained details on Customer Satisfaction from Quarter Three 2014/15; J Vinton informed members that there were no concerns with the levels of satisfaction as the schemes monitored received overall scores of 91% and 98%. Appendix four (circulated at the meeting) detailed duration and defect target performance indicators for the programme. Member comments /points raised in discussion
A member asked if there was a standard definition to aid understanding of the budget headings. In a supplemental question she asked if spend was only tracked against the capital programme.
J Vinton advised that after the completion of the Modern Homes Programme, interim budget heads were put in place. These budget heads were approved by Board, and also Cabinet. A new Asset Management Strategy was approved by Cabinet in January. This approved the budget for 2015/2016. It was planned that a four year strategy would go to Cabinet for approval within the next six months.
Appendix one was monitored on a fortnightly basis as well as the individual projects, which sat beneath the budget heads.
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A member commented that gardening was a great activity for wellbeing. Committee noted that the Environmental Services Team would look at a range of designs and raised beds would be considered. J Vinton advised that her team were looking at ways to build stronger communities following recent training. Gardening was a key theme identified to deliver this particularly for sheltered blocks.
The Chair asked for an update on the Blakelaw 165 project and the tenant who did not want to move. He was informed that the tenant would be allowed to stay and that alternative ways of closing off the walkways were being considered.
18 BUS TOUR OPTIONS Submitted: Report of J Vinton (Head of Assets and Regeneration) (previously circulated and copy attached to the Official Minutes). The report provided Customer and Service Delivery Committee with two options for a bus tour to be held prior to the next meeting in May 2015. Members agreed that Tour 1 was the preferred option.
RESOLVED – That Customer and Service Delivery Committee agreed that:-
Tour 1 (details below) was the preferred option for the bus tour in May.
To extend the invitation for the tour to YHN’s Board
To carry out the bus tour on the afternoon of the 19th May prior to the next Customer and Service Delivery Committee.
Tour one programme
Glanton Wynd – First low rise block to receive the improved communal area specification.
Ewart and Shaftoe Court – previous report to Customer and Service Delivery Committee about problems with dampness and water ingress. External insulated render work now complete.
BISF Phase two – Aln Crescent area. Work on site to deliver external insulated render to these non - traditional properties.
North Kenton 5 storey blocks – demolition.
New Mills estate – environmental improvements.
Moor House – sheltered remodelling. Work is complete on this sheltered block and tenants have now moved in.
Cruddas Park House and Shopping Centre – external improvements to the block and the shopping centre.
Beech Grove Road – view the site of the next apprentice led new build project.
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19 CUSTOMER INSIGHT Submitted: Report of Louise Horsefield (Head of Business Strategy) for information (previously circulated and copy attached to the Official Minutes). The report provided a summary of customer involvement activity delivered between 1 October 2014 and 31 January 2015. The Chair commented that he was pleased that young people had provided feedback as part of the voids review about their experiences when moving into a property. Heather Horan (Lead Customer Involvement Officer) said that she would look into the possibility of getting young people along to this committee. She also informed attendees that a report would be going to Board about how to get the group of tenants who monitored performance involved with the committee structure. A member commented that councillors received a lot of calls about housing issues which would not be designated as formal complaints. This raised the question of how soft intelligence was monitored. A Allison advised that the NCC Customer Service Team were looking at how this type of information could be captured via the internal Sharepoint system; a status update would be brought back to committee. – add to action list.
20 LEASEHOLD AND RIGHT TO BUY UPDATE Submitted: Report of Jen Vinton (Head of Investment Deliver) (previously circulated and copy attached to the Official Minutes). An update was provided to Customer and Service Delivery Committee for information on a biannual basis. The Chair stated that he was impressed with the Buyback scheme with Groundwork. This was a very good example of good practice and he would like to see more of this going forward if possible.
21 SURVEY OF TENANTS AND RESIDENTS DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION Submitted: Report of Louise Horsefield (Head of Business Strategy) to provide follow-up information on the recent STAR (previously circulated and copy attached to the official minutes.
22 PROTECT - CONFIDENTIAL MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 10 NOVEMBER 2014
RESOLVED – That the confidential minutes of the meeting held on 10 November 2014 be agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
23 DATE AND TIME OF NEXT MEETING 4.30pm on Tuesday, 19 May 2015
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