ACHIEVING PRESTON'S PRIORITIES - Budget and Policy Proposals 2018/19
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
ACHIEVING
PRESTON’S PRIORITIES
Budget and Policy Proposals
2018/19
CONTENTS
Page
No
PART ONE Achieving Preston’s Priorities ...................................................................... 1
How are we doing? ....................................................................................... 1
PART TWO (i) Efficiency Plan Update ........................................................................... 18
Introduction .................................................................................................. 18
Updates ......................................................................................................... 18
Stakeholder Consultation ............................................................................. 21
Conclusion .................................................................................................... 21
(ii) Medium Term Financial Strategy(MTFS) .............................................. 22
Local Government Finance Settlement ........................................................ 24
The Approach to Meeting the Financial Challenge ...................................... 25
The General Fund Revenue Forecast ........................................................... 26
Reserves & Provisions ................................................................................... 27
External Audit ............................................................................................... 27
Preston, South Ribble and Lancashire City Deal ……………………………………….. 28
Conclusions – General Fund Revenue Forecast ........................................... 30
Collection Fund ............................................................................................. 30
Five Year Capital Programme ....................................................................... 31
Conclusions – Capital Programme ................................................................ 35
Treasury Management Strategy ................................................................... 35
Overall Conclusions and Financial Assurance Statement ............................. 36
Appendix A Initial Forecast February 2016 ...................................................................... 38
Appendix B General Fund Forecast Assumptions ............................................................ 39
Appendix C Latest Forecast Changes ............................................................................... 40
Appendix D General Fund Forecast Adjustments (details) .............................................. 41
Appendix E Latest General Fund Forecast Position ......................................................... 45
Appendix F Cabinet Savings Proposals ............................................................................ 46
Appendix G Latest Capital Programme ............................................................................ 47
Appendix H Risks …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 51
Appendix I Treasury Management Strategy ……………………………………………………………….. 57
Appendix J Statement of Policy – Minimum Revenue Provision …………………………………. 68
Appendix K Results of Budget Consultation ……………………………………………………………..…. 69
Foreword The greatest challenge for the Council is achieving financial stability ensuring we have a position where we do not spend more than our income. We must do this because we cannot continue to bridge the gap with reserves which only represent a short term fix and would soon be exhausted. Over the period from 2011/12 to 2018/19 the net revenue budget position will have reduced from £25.1m to £20.4m. Through fundamental reviews of all our services, assets and investments we are closing the gap between income and expenditure and nearer to achieving a balanced budget. Throughout this period the Council has invested in the City through City Deal and in particular has used its capital reserves to invest in the City Centre Harris Quarter projects. We have also invested £1m to secure the future of our Leisure Centres in Preston with GLL. However the budget squeeze comes at a cost in terms of what the Council is not able to do. Our capacity to deliver services in many areas is now very stretched and in some areas this means we cannot offer the highest standard of service possible. We can no longer provide comprehensive community services which provide a vital lifeline to the most vulnerable individuals and families in Preston. Moving forward our ability to make investment in our Streets, Parks and Open Spaces is at risk. More difficult decisions lie ahead but we will continue to press on with our priorities as set out in this document. Councillor Peter Rankin Leader of the Council
PART 1: ACHIEVING PRESTON’S PRIORITIES
How are we doing?
• Securing investment; improving assets & infrastructure;
Your City attracting high quality jobs; creating a City with a strong
cultural and leisure offer.
Why are we taking action?
Preston is identified nationally as a City with significant economic prospects and potential to become a much
greater force in the regional economy. To achieve this ambition there are a number of key issues that we
have been addressing:-
A need to diversify and strengthen the City centre workforce
The need to find innovative solutions to redundant commercial and retail property
A need to grow the leisure, culture and tourism offer
Transport network prioritising accessibility by car at the expense of pedestrians, cyclists and public
transport
Poor arrival experience, connectivity and functionality of the City’s railway and bus station
Under-utilisation of the City’s rich legacy of historic buildings and spaces
Under-provision and limited range of new housing in Preston’s central area
What actions are we taking?
HARRIS QUARTER
Harris Hotel – the former Post Office –
The conversion of the building to a hotel, restaurant, spa, conference centre and
wedding venue began in Autumn 2017 and the initial stripping out works were
almost complete by the end of the year. The owners and operators, Signature Living,
have an ambitious programme of works and are aiming to have the venue open in
summer 2018. See more at www.harrishotel.co.uk
1|Page
Culture and Leisure – Preston’s Cultural Framework vision comes to an end in 2018. Priorities focused
on ensuring the City is recognised as a major centre for culture in the North West,
with a thriving creative sector where everyone has opportunities to be insured by
and participate in arts and heritage and to have joyful experiences which reinforce
the spirit of the Guild.
A co-ordinated cultural vision and strategy for the City is being commissioned to set
out a clear cultural proposition for Preston identifying the strengths and areas that need development. This
is due for completion mid-2018.
The development of the Lancashire Encounter biennial arts festival is a key priority. Preston City Council is
positioning the festival as the key cultural event for central Lancashire, and a driver for the development of
Lancashire’s arts and cultural offer. The festival is seeking Arts Council England funding for its second full
scale year in 2018 with the intention to follow this with a long term strategic funding application for the next
four years working closely with key arts organisations and cultural partners.
The City has a well-established annual events programme spanning the year, which the Council is supporting
and/or delivering with its partners. The main focus is around the Flag Market venue and the Harris.
Promotion of Moor Park as the major outdoor event venue is ongoing and an established programme of large
scale events including: Race for Life, Rockprest, circuses and fairs. The Council is actively working with
partners to introduce a co-ordinated approach to programme delivery across Preston’s public realm.
Re-imagining the Harris – The Harris continues to deliver a range of incremental improvements across
the building, this has included the installation of a new wireless system, the re-
provisioning of the Harris café and the opening up of new spaces in the Harris for
public use. Further progress will be made in moving to a shared library, museum
and art gallery service and single team in the Harris during early 2018. The team
are working closely with colleagues at Preston City Council (PCC) and Lancashire
County Council (LCC) to take the capital redevelopment of the Harris to the next
stage. This will involve a bid for significant funding to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) as well as working with
a range of other funders and stakeholders.
Harris Museum and Art Gallery - The Harris has submitted its business plan to Arts Council England,
outlining how it will utilise the National Portfolio funding of £225k per annum it will
receive from April 2018. The funding will enable the Harris to deliver an enhanced
programme of activity based on four themes; Made in Preston, Collections for the
21st Century, Communities at the Heart and a Thriving Cultural Sector in Lancashire.
In the meantime, the Harris has continued to expand and diversify its programme
of events and exhibitions. The British Library Harry Potter exhibition in the
Community History Library is an excellent example of the joined up working taking place in the Harris
now. This programme continues to draw in new audiences with visitor figures continuing to increase across
the Harris.
2|Page
City Deal – We are working in partnership with Lancashire County Council, South Ribble Borough Council
and the Homes and Communities Agency to drive forward growth over the next ten
years to generate 20,000 jobs, £1bn growth in gross value added, £2.3bn in
commercial investment and 17,000 new homes. The deal with Central Government includes a £350m
infrastructure delivery programme. Significant progress has been made this year, with the completion of the
Broughton by-pass (James Towers Way), improvement works on New Hall Lane, improvements to Preston
Bus Station and Car Park and duelling of roads south of the City. Planning Permission was granted for the
Preston Western distributor road, East – West link road and the Penwortham by-pass. The masterplan for
the North West Preston strategic housing site was adopted as planning guidance.
Over 3,000 houses have been built in the City Deal area so far, including 800 in Preston in 2016/17, a
significant increase on previous years. The Central Lancashire Construction Skills Hub is a partnership
between Preston College, UCLan and a number of specialist construction training providers to promote
opportunities for apprenticeships within the City Deal and encourage meeting social value outcomes. Over
50 different companies and organisations attended a skills event in July 2017. Work has also started on a
City transport plan for Preston City Centre and identifying improvements on public transport corridors in the
City deal area.
Key priorities for 2018/19 include land acquisition for the construction of the Preston Western distributor
and East - West link road, the construction of the Youth Zone and new public square in front of the bus
station, and commencement of the public realm works on Lancaster Road, Lord Street and Tithebarn Street.
Revitalised Market and New Cinema and Restaurant Development – The fully refurbished
Outdoor Market with new market stalls has re-opened and the new Market Hall was
completed ready for fit-out on schedule in December 2017. Completion of the
external paving works around the Market Hall and on Starch House Square is due to
be completed before the scheduled opening of the new food-led Market Hall and
contemporary Box Market in February 2018. Lettings for all trading areas have been
very strong and we have been able to announce an interesting and varied mix of
traders, both old and new, taking leases.
Details of how the current indoor market building and multi-storey car park will be demolished following
their closure in early 2018 are currently being drawn up. A contractor to carry out the demolition will be
appointed early in 2018.
Work on the cinema-led leisure scheme and replacement multi-storey car park continues between Muse
Developments, Preston City Council and Lancashire County Council. The Light Cinema group remain fully
committed to opening a multiplex cinema in the Markets Quarter.
Preston Bus Station – The County Council’s refurbishment works to the car park are now approaching
completion as are the works to the eastern side of the building to form the new bus
bays. The new coach station at the southern end of the building was started in
autumn 2017 and is progressing well. The public square being formed on the
western side linking the bus station to Tithebarn Street and the City centre beyond
will be constructed in 2018 when work on the new Youth Zone at the northern end
of the new square is also due to commence.
3|Page
Fishergate Central – Public Realm – The final phase of works (being referred to as Fisherage 3)
linking the railway station to the bus station will commence in January 2018. The
extent of Fishergate 3 is the southern section of Lancaster Road including the space
in front of the Guild Hall, Lord Street and the remaining part of Tithebarn Street.
Buses will need to be re-routed during the construction period. Consideration is
being given to future funding for remaining streets within the Harris Quarter,
particularly the northern section of Lancaster Road in front of the Town Hall and markets which require
significant investment to upgrade the public realm.
Railway Station - Network Rail is planning to make significant investment in the station to ensure it is
HS2 compliant, and there is a unique opportunity to build on this requirement to
bring forward significant redevelopment proposals for the station and wider
area. In addition to providing major transport and connectivity improvements the
new commercial, housing, education and public space investment opportunities
which would accompany such a vision are significant. These are long term plans
which we are bringing forward with partners in the City Deal in conjunction with the Lancashire Enterprise
Partnership. Joint working between Network Rail, LCC, PCC and other partners to advance the project is due
to continue throughout 2018.
Winckley Square (Townscape Heritage Initiative and Gardens) – The HLF funded public
realm improvements on Cannon Street have recently been completed and already
investment into a number of properties is starting to occur/be planned. A series of
three community training events have been held – all were fully booked and the
intention is to run a further session next year.
The Winckley Square Gardens restoration project is now completed and a creative
events and activity programme is in place to encourage maximum utilisation of these highly attractive historic
gardens.
University of Central Lancashire – PCC is continuing to support the university in bringing forward its
masterplan and multi-million pound investment in the Preston campus. The new
Engineering Innovation Centre is well underway having commenced on site in the
middle of 2017. It is due to be completed and open in 2019. The planning
application for the new public square, student support centre and remodelling of
the highway around the Adelphi roundabout is due to be considered in January
2018. Subject to a positive planning decision, work is programmed to start later in 2018.
4|PageHeritage Lottery Funding (HLF) Moor Park Phase 1 – Following a successful HLF funding bid in
2014 there has been significant investment into developing the play and sporting
facilities on Moor Park. Central to the bid was the creation of a £500k skate park
which is designated as a regional centre of excellence for extreme sports. Other
facilities developed included the drainage of the cricket pitch and the creation of an
events area for major events within the park. A phase 2 HLF bid is planned for 2018
which has the potential to include renovation of the lake and bridge, further renovation of the observatory
and development of other facilities such as creating an iconic children’s play area
Promoting the City – Promotion of the City and its growth continues to be delivered through a range of
activities. Instructed by the City Deal Executive, Marketing Lancashire is taking a lead on ‘Invest Central
Lancashire’ which will include the production of site, business and cultural based materials for promotional
purposes and use at external events such as conferences and presentations. Under the co-ordination of
Marketing Lancashire, PCC was represented at MIPIM UK, the major property-based event in London, in
October 2017. PCC officers are already booked to give presentations or sit on panels at a number of events
in 2018. Early steps have been made to establish a Business Forum in the City to mobilise both public and
private sector promotion. The inaugural meeting of the forum is being planned for early 2018.
Preston Housing Zone – We are continuing to develop our strategy for City centre living supported by
consultants Cushman and Wakefield. There are positive signs of investment by the
private sector in and around Winckley Square and it is expected that work on 17
new apartments for sale on Guildhall Street will commence early in the New Year.
The Council is being approached by developers looking for sites and investment
opportunities in Preston and support is being provided.
Work on a masterplan for Stoneygate will commence in February 2018, following appointment of
consultants.
Amounderness House and Birley Street Annex – Building on the progress with the markets and
the conversion of the former Post Office, first steps are being taken to bring these
long-term vacant/ underused buildings back into active use. Some initial feasibility
work is underway with the prospect of the buildings being marketed for sale later in
2018. Similar to the process when selling the former Post Office, the Council will select
a purchaser based on a number of factors including their proposed re-use and how
that fits in with the surrounding regeneration of the Harris Quarter.
Health Hub – Plans to develop a City centre ‘Health Hub’ are in the early stages of development following
discussions between the Royal Preston Hospital (RPH), the City Council and the Chorley & South Ribble and
Greater Preston Clinical Commissioning Groups. The Council owned land to the rear of Princes Buildings has
been identified as a potential site. The scheme would see out-patient services from RPH delivered in a
community setting along with relocated GP practices, offices and new housing. The City Council is looking to
5|Pageput together a funding package with partners to explore options for its development and delivery within the
framework of the One Public Estate programme with the Local Government Association and the Ministry for
Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Central Lancashire Play Pitch Strategy 2018-2023 – In partnership with South Ribble Borough
Council and Chorley Borough Council, Preston is developing its Play Pitch Strategy 2018-
2023. The strategy will provide a strategic framework which is evidence based to identify
local need at ward level of where the City is deficient in play and outdoor sports facilities.
Based on this strategy the Council, in partnership with English Football Association will
look to further invest in the redevelopment and refurbishment of the grass pitches and
changing facilities within the City’s parks and open spaces.
The Rugby League World Cup 2021 – The Rugby League World Cup 2021 will be hosted by the UK
and Ireland. Event organisers have opened the bidding process for Cities to declare
their expression of interest (EOI) to become host Cities for world cup matches and/or
host Cities for training venues for one of the competing nations. Due to Preston’s
previous successful track record in 2013, when the City hosted the Ireland team as a
host training City, event organisers have encouraged an EOI bid from Preston. In
partnership with other strategic partners, mainly the University of Central Lancashire, the Council will look
to submit an EOI in 2018 to become a host training City 2021.
Working in partnership
Collaboration Board - a Preston City Council, Lancashire County Council and UCLAN partnership
working together to regenerate and improve the infrastructure of Preston City Centre
City Deal Executive and Stewardship Board - a board with representation from Preston City Council,
Lancashire County Council and South Ribble Borough Council which governs investment of the City
Deal money.
Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) - collaboration of leaders from business, universities and
local councils, who direct economic growth and drive job creation.
Winckley Square Community Interest Company - a not-for-profit organisation established in 2011
to help drive the revival of Preston's historic Winckley Square.
Shadow Lancashire Combined Authority (LCA) - focused around key themes such as Prosperous
Lancashire, Connected Lancashire, Skilled Lancashire, Better Homes for Lancashire, Joined up Public
Services for Lancashire.
Key Cities - the Council is a founder member of the Key Cities Group.
Cultural Framework – with our creative partners in the City we have established a Cultural
Framework Board. The board is leading on the cultural vision for the City linking to our broader place
making agenda.
6|PageWhat impact do we hope to make?
Through a range of actions including direct investment and the facilitation of wider public and private sector
investment we aim to:
Through the new markets scheme, improve and enhance the shopping experience in Preston, whilst
maintaining a source of quality produce at an affordable price, strengthening the City centre’s
position as a main shopping destination.
Through the new cinema and restaurants, enhance the City centre as a hub for leisure activity,
attracting more visitors throughout the day and evening to a more diverse range of activities.
Through new hotels at the former post office and elsewhere, attract additional tourism visitors to
the City and to increase their dwell time, in addition to providing a welcome asset for business and
educational visitors.
Through the transformed public realm being delivered through Fishergate Central and its extensions,
make Preston an attractive and comfortable place for people visiting, working and living in the City
centre, thereby improving its prospects for commercial and residential investment.
Through the Winckley Square lottery-funded initiatives, ensure the protection and enhancement of
this key heritage asset, promoting self-sufficiency through economic use where the asset has
previously been underused.
Through the Re-Imagining the Harris project, protect and enhance the City’s premier cultural asset
bringing more visitors into the City whilst creating a hub of creative activity to enhance the city’s
cultural offer.
Through the support and facilitation of the delivery of the UCLAN masterplan, enable the university
to further enhance its global reputation as a leading educational establishment, whilst transforming
its environs into a coherent legible campus with strong links to the City centre.
Through the Preston Housing Zone and the delivery of the North West Preston Masterplan, deliver
the level and quality of housing required to support the economic growth of the City over the next
ten years.
Secure significant investment into the Grade 1 listed Harris in order to transform our cultural offer in
the City.
7|Page• Fairness at the heart of decision making; an economy
Fairness for you supporting prosperity and promoting fairness in
working lives and practices; accessibility to affordable
energy and decent affordable homes.
Why are we taking action?
There are areas in the City where people experience the effects of multiple deprivation including:-
Lower than national and Lancashire average skills levels;
Poorer health outcomes in the same wards of the City from cradle to grave especially in long term
conditions as evidenced in the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA);
Lower wage levels than the national average;
Poor housing conditions; and,
Where the reduction in public services and the impact of changes to the benefits and social housing
system has a potentially disproportionate effect.
What actions are we taking?
Embedding Fairness in the Council’s Strategic Planning – The Council is committed to ensuring
that its budget and strategic decision making processes reflect the principles of fairness and ensure that the
budget reflects the priorities set out in the Achieving Preston’s Priorities. The principles in the Fairness
Charter underpin all of the Council’s activities. We will revise our business consultation and engagement
processes in the course of 2018/19.
We plan to continue our partnership with the What Works Centre for Local Growth to consider ways in which
to contribute to the implementation of the Government’s (Local) Industrial Strategy (LIS) to inform the
refresh of the Lancashire Strategic Economic Plan (SEP), the Central Lancashire Local Plan, the City Deal and
the Council’s inclusive growth/fairness work.
Social Value Policy – The Council applies Social Value policies to its own working, considering how the
services we commission and procure might improve the economic, social and
environmental wellbeing of the area. We continue to work with other Preston
“anchor” institutions to encourage the sharing of best practice and we are leading
on placing social value at the heart of the City Deal through delivery of its
Employment and Skills Strategy and its Construction Hub.
We will partner with South Ribble Borough Council & LCC colleagues to run briefing and training sessions on
Social Value for practitioners and will review the council’s own Social Value policy in 2018/19 with a view to
updating it, in the light of experience and wider policy changes.
8|PageCommunity Wealth Building – We continue to work to increase the amounts of existing Council and
partner expenditure repatriated to Preston and Lancashire. Since 2013 the City Council has increased the
percentage of its procurement spend within the Preston Local Authority District (LAD) from 14% to 29.4% -
an increased spend of £1,159,769 (figures based on top 300 suppliers). Spend in 2016/17 within Lancashire
(including Preston) rose to £4,404,215, equivalent to 41.7% of procurement spend. Nevertheless, 61% of
procurement spend remains with suppliers outside Lancashire, although this is a reduction from the 71% in
2012/13. We estimate that of the PCC spend currently outside Lancashire some 52% is potentially capable
of being sourced locally and will continue to work to increase this figure. Figures for collective spend for all
Preston anchor institutions (Preston City Council, UCLAN, Preston’s College, Cardinal Newman College, the
Constabulary, Lancashire County Council, Community Gateway) show that between 2012/13 and 2016/17
local procurement spend within the Preston LAD increased by £74.7m and within Lancashire (including
Preston) by £199.7m. Of the spend outside Lancashire, we estimate that some 62% is capable of being
sourced locally and continue to work with anchor partners to make further improvements. It should be noted
that these increases in local procurement have happened at a time when overall procurement spend across
the anchors has fallen sharply. We will look to extend and deepen this work with anchor partners in the
course of 2018/19 and beyond, including production of more detailed breakdown of results by anchor and
the publication of a “how to” guide for other interested authorities and anchor institutions.
Procure Urbact Project – Drawing on our community wealth building experience, we delivered, as lead
partner, a European Union funded “Procure” project which allowed us to share and
develop our learning and best practice with European partners. The project will
come to an end in May 2018 and final project outputs are now available at
http://urbact.eu/procure.
Due to our work on progressive procurement, Preston was appointed to the EU Urban Agenda Partnership
on Innovative and Responsible Public Procurement, one of 13 partnerships each covering a different topic.
(https://ec.europa.eu/futurium/en/urban-agenda/terms/all/public%20procurement). In addition, the
European Commission has awarded Preston “Good Practice City” status (http://urbact.eu/urbact-good-
practice-label-awarded-97-cities) for our work on procurement spend analysis and on the back of that has
invited us to apply for a two year project extension as a Transfer Network, with a view to sharing the learning
from community wealth building further.
Living Wage – We continue to lead by example, as the first accredited Living Wage Council in the North
West, paying its own staff the living wage and encouraging other local employers,
from both the public and private sectors, to do so as well. There has been a
significant improvement in the number of people paid the Living Wage between 2016
and 2017. The latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) using
the Living Wage rate of £8.25 in 2016 and £8.45 in 2017 show that the number of jobs in Preston paid less
than the Living Wage have decreased from 19,000 in 2016 to 15,000 in 2017. As a proportion of employee
jobs receiving less than the Living Wage, this is a fall from 23.3% to 19.3%. Conversely, this indicates that
80.7% of all employees in Preston were paid the Living Wage in 2017 – an increase from 76.7% in 2016.
Around 45 companies and institutions based in Preston are Living Wage employers, accredited either by the
9|PageLiving Wage Foundation or the Council. We will continue to work with local partners and the Living Wage
Foundation to improve this position during 2018/19.
Inner East Preston – Friends of Fishwick and St Matthews (FOFS) Executive group
(http://friendsoffishwickandstmatthews.org.uk/) continue to work on the delivery
of their plans. Substantial progress has been made with Paul’s Pad where
contractors are on site to clear and level the area. The Executive group have also
entered into an agreement with Contour Homes for the secondment of an officer to
support them in reviewing their Big Local plan and agreeing a further plan for the
next two years. The Council is also progressing arrangements to second the Employment & Financial
Inclusion Assistant from its team to work with them part-time to support them in the delivery of their
employment and training priority.
Community Work Clubs – Work continues to support the Work Club Network and the 15 work clubs
across the City and to develop our relationship with Job Centre Plus to maximise
work and training opportunities for local people.
(http://www.preston.gov.uk/yourservices/jobs-and-volunteering/work-clubs/)
These include Lancashire Adult Learning with Preston Vocational Centre; Lancashire Women’s Centre with
the UCLAN ‘In the City’ work club and encouraging other training providers, e.g. Lancashire Mind to deliver
in job clubs.
Co-ops – The Preston Co-operative Network (PCN) works with existing organisations in Preston to explore
how they may make the transition to co-operative status, using an approach based on the model of the
successful Mondragon Co-operative Group (Spain). (http://clok.uclan.ac.uk/14526/1/Co-
operative%20activity%20PrestonREPORT%20copy.pdf). PCN and PCC will explore further in 2018/19 the
potential for digital co-ops in Preston with UCLAN and Co-Tech, a London based platform co-op
(http://www.coops.tech/). PCN anticipate the registration of two new co-operatives in the first half of 2018.
Following the publication of the latest aggregate anchor institution figures on localising procurement spend
during 2018/19 we will, in partnership with the Centre for Local Economic Strategies (CLES), explore the
potential for the establishment of a co-op or co-ops to fill any gaps in the local supply chain (see
https://projects.jsonline.com/news/2017/4/27/in-cleveland-co-op-model-finds-hope-in-employers-rooted-
in-the-city.html for a possible exemplar).
Financial Inclusion – The Financial Inclusion Group (FIG) has continued to meet to co-ordinate activities
and share relevant information (e.g. the impact of the end of the Care and Urgent
Needs function), good practice, opportunities for training and promote awareness
and understanding of what is available. To address food poverty in disadvantaged
communities action has been taken to raise awareness of Fareshare. Three local
groups have since signed up to receive food - Intact, St Teresa’s School (with
Fishwick) and St Catherine’s Hospice. An event was held in June to share good
10 | P a g epractice and to explore with Preston North End (PNE) about partnerships between football clubs and food
banks (Tranmere Rovers and Need, Engage, Organise (NEO) for example). NEO, an organisation from
Birkenhead, involved in the ‘Feeding Britain’ initiative shared their experience with our community groups at
the event.
Since then, the council has continued to work with Fareshare (www.fareshare.org.uk), promoting their
service to Callon Kids Club, who were able to access food for their summer holiday programme – with
around 750 meals being provided to children and families across 5 days of outings. Links between FIG and
mental health services (Lancashire MIND, Lancashire Care Foundation Trust) are being developed to ensure
that people accessing these support services are also aware of other agency support available. The City
Council is supporting the “This Stylist Listens” project, which provides basic health awareness training
to hairdressers and barbers. This training will now be expanded to include information on accessing debt
advice and other related services.
Initial discussions were held in 2016/17 around the potential for a Community Bank in Lancashire. The
Lancashire Councils Chief Finance Officers group will take forward these discussions in 2018/19, engaging
with other bodies such as the Lancashire Pension Fund and the universities, with the Winchester Community
Bank and other bodies.
Advice Services provide a free and confidential phone / appointment service offering in depth advice on
welfare benefits and debt. This includes “personal budgeting advice” for customers in financial difficulties,
advice on a wide range of DWP benefits, completion of claim forms, representation at tribunals and food
bank referrals. The team also provide regular surgeries at Vine House and Rosemere Cancer Units to
maximise their income at a difficult time in their lives.
The Council adopted a Sustainable Food strategy in April 2017 in recognition of the importance of food in
relation to fairness, poverty, health and the environment. The strategy sets out common “sustainable food”
principles (local, low waste, fair, healthy and organic, for PCC services, partners and suppliers, and aims to
co-ordinate related initiatives collaboratively across sectors to benefit City residents and businesses. The
Council will prioritise in particular activities to tackle food poverty and diet related ill health through the
promotion of healthy and sustainable food, to reduce waste and the economical footprint of the food system
and to promote a diverse and fair local food economy.
Affordable Housing Funds – House builders are now encouraged to make a financial contribution to
affordable housing off-site as well as providing affordable housing on-site as part of
their development. The aim is to increase the number of affordable homes on a
variety of sites. We are committed to delivering an affordable housing programme
focussing on the re-use of empty properties. We have established a £400k
Affordable Housing Fund using developer contributions and are seeking a
development partner to deliver affordable housing by bringing long term empty properties back into
use. Work is expected to commence on a scheme in April 2018 which could potentially bring back into use
at least 20 empty properties.
11 | P a g eAffordable Warmth – We continue to work collaboratively with other Lancashire authorities on the
Cosy Homes in Lancashire (CHiL) programme to make homes more energy efficient, including
supporting its adoption by the proposed Combined Authority for Lancashire. To date the CHiL
programme has delivered over £6m of energy efficiency improvements across
Lancashire. Preston has been by far the best performing district in terms of drawing down the
funding to its residents, with over 2,000 vulnerable/ low income households across Preston
now benefitting from a range of measures including insulation, new boilers and full central
heating systems. Funding partners are continuously being explored to continue installing these measures,
and the CHiL board regularly submit bids where applicable. The outcome of bids for schemes in 2018/19 is
currently awaited. The City Council’s partnership agreement with Cheshire East Council to establish a low
cost energy tariff, known as Fairerpower Red Rose, was launched in September 2017 and the first customers
in Preston to benefit from lower bills were able to switch in October. Fairerpower has been widely promoted
and there have been high levels of interest, pending data on numbers of switchers at year end.
Focussed Enforcement Activity on Private Sector Housing Standards – The Council
completed focussed activity in St Matthew’s ward inspecting 675 properties with the
assistance of additional resources. At that point
The properties were found to be in better condition than expected with only one
enforcement notice served;
57 were vacant;
Some landlords activity supported the process;
70 properties have been added to the Accredited Properties Scheme;
10 properties have maintained standards and have been accredited for a second year;
Complaints from tenants have been lower than in previous years.
Latterly core resources in the team have been deployed to deal with inspections following the
Grenfell Tower fire.
Accessible and Affordable Leisure Services – The Council completed a transfer of its Leisure
Service to GLL on 1 May 2017. The transfer secured the long term future of both
leisure centres and will provide for significant capital investment in them. The
Council continues to work with partners such as Lancashire Sport to focus on Health
and Wellbeing priorities for the City. A local management board has been
established to co-ordinate partnership work for the benefit of the City and its
residents.
Smoking – Our scrutiny study on infant mortality identified smoking levels in Preston as being a major
contributory factor to poor public health, with negative impacts across the whole age
range. The Council is already an active participant in Tobacco Free Lancashire, but we want
to do more to improve long term public health in the City. We will therefore introduce a
10-year plan that makes tackling smoking a public health priority for the City. We will work
with Lancashire’s Director of Public Health, the NHS and other partners to bring about a
substantial reduction in smoking levels amongst the population of Preston.
12 | P a g eWorking in partnership
The Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Forum - a group formed to act as a focus for a BME voice and
activity and to promote co-operation.
Social Forum - is an opportunity for people with an interest in the City to get together and discuss and
influence issues around equality and fairness in Preston.
Shadow Lancashire Combined Authority (LCA) - focused around key themes such as Prosperous
Lancashire, Connected Lancashire, Skilled Lancashire, Better Homes for Lancashire, Joined up Public
Services for Lancashire.
Central Lancashire Health & Wellbeing Partnership – aimed at building strong and effective
partnership working between Preston, Chorley and South Ribble Councils, the NHS bodies,
Lancashire County Council, the Voluntary Community and Faith Sector and other public bodies to
improve local people's health and wellbeing.
Preston Children's Board - a partnership which comes together to take forward actions to improve
the lives of children and young people.
Community Safety Partnership - working with neighbouring Councils across the Police Division
footprint a partnership which comes together to take action on the priorities it has identified for
Preston such as: reducing offending and re-offending; harm reduction and support to communities
particularly those most vulnerable and prevention and early intervention.
What impact do we hope to make?
We are aiming to directly deliver:-
An increase in the number of inspections of private sector rented properties;
An increase in the number of people attending jobs clubs;
An increase in the number of Living Wage Employers;
An increase in the procurement spend in Preston by its anchor institutions;
An increase in the number of affordable housing completions;
Attract external funding for energy efficiency improvements in private homes; and,
Provide targeted debt and welfare advice to help clients regain control of their finances and to
maximise their entitlement to benefits.
We are aiming to have influence on:-
The joint Employment and Skills Strategy being reviewed by the LEP and LCA;
An established and active Friends of Fishwick and St Matthew’s organisation;
The roll out of digital fibre connections as part of the LCA Plan;
A positive improvement in health and well-being services from the ‘Our Health Our Care
Sustainability Plan’;
Reducing smoking levels amongst Preston’s residents through joint working with Lancashire County
Council, the NHS, other relevant partners and our local communities.
13 | P a g e• Providing well run value for money services; demonstrating
Your Council good governance, openness, transparency and a strong
democratic process
Why are we taking action?
The Council is facing significant service delivery challenges:
Our budget is reducing;
Our service delivery must be prioritised to areas that have the greatest impact;
Our services should be as efficient and effective as possible;
We must maintain the highest standard of governance;
We are driving to implement the Government’s transparency agenda.
What actions are we taking?
Service Improvement Board – The Service Improvement Board continues to oversee projects relating
to digital transformation, improving customer service and back-office processes, and introducing new
technologies to generate efficiency savings for the Council. The newly developed Digital and Customer
Access Strategy has been corporately endorsed and a detailed digital project plan is now being developed.
Following the successful launch of free public Wi-Fi in the Council’s One-Stop-Shop and the Harris Museum
and Art Gallery, we are currently working on provision for the new Market Hall when it opens in the New
Year. There will be free Wi-Fi for members of the public as well as secure connectivity for traders.
The technology that underpins a virtual desktop infrastructure has been
implemented. Business systems continue to be tested before a phased desktop
rollout can be considered. The desktop rollout will increase operational flexibility,
significantly improve the speed and reliability of desktop computing whilst also
reducing energy costs.
The introduction of Interactive Voice Recognition software (IVR) continues to be a success in Council Tax,
Business Rates and Planning. More services are now being considered, included Housing Benefits and
existing services revisited to assess their suitability for IVR.
Our online garden waste scheme has been successful with 75% of customers registering (or re-registering)
and paying for a year’s garden waste removal. Our goal is to increase the numbers online each year, in line
with the Council’s emerging Digital and Customer Access Strategy.
Plans to introduce self-service scanning stations into our One-Stop-Shop by late Spring 2018 are
underway. Hard copy information will be self-scanned by customers leading to service efficiencies in the
Contact Centre.
14 | P a g eElectoral Review – In order to maintain the level of electoral equality, the Local Government Boundary
Commission for England (LGBCE) is undertaking an electoral review of Preston. This
examination of the Council’s electoral arrangements will include: the total number of
Members to be elected to the Council; the number and boundaries of electoral wards; the
number of Members for any electoral ward and the name of the wards.
Following a submission to the Boundary Commission concerning the number of elected
Members required to achieve our objectives and priorities, the Commission agreed with the
numbers in the Council’s submission. The Council has sent a submission on the names and boundaries of its
wards to the LGBCE. The LGBCE have published draft recommendations on the new electoral arrangements
for Preston. The broad public consultation concerning these draft recommendations closed in November
2017. The outcome was published in January 2018 and the implementation of the new arrangements are
scheduled for the local elections in 2019.
A Combined Authority for Lancashire - Most recently the Government announced its new Industrial
Strategy which imposes new requirements at the local level as well as a review of Local Enterprise
partnerships. Further discussions will be needed in 2018/19 to identify the best way to marry these different
issues together and proceed on a basis which commands consensus at the Lancashire level.
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) – This Regulation will apply in the UK from
25 May 2018 and will replace the Data Protection Act 1998. In order to process
personal data lawfully under the GDPR it will be necessary to identify a lawful basis
for each of the Council’s processing activities. The GDPR creates new rights for
individuals and strengthens existing rights currently in force under the Data Protection
Act.
The Council has commenced a review of all data held, including a review of policies and procedures to ensure
compliance with GDPR. A process has begun to raise awareness of GDPR amongst staff and Members.
15 | P a g eWorking in partnership
Inclusion Reference Group
Shadow Combined Authority / Lancashire Leaders
What impact do we hope to make?
Reduce costs and deliver further value for money by increasing online transactional access to more
services;
Improve the effectiveness of our service delivery by implementing cost effective technologies such
as Interactive Voice Recognition software;
Maintaining high opinions of our financial and legal services, unqualified external audit opinion;
Make the Council sustainable in the long term;
Accessible services and customer satisfaction.
16 | P a g ePLANNING AND DELIVERY OF THE COUNCILS PRIORITIES 17 | P a g e
PART 2: (i) Efficiency Plan Update
Introduction
1. A Four Year Efficiency Plan was formulated in response to the government’s offer of a four year
finance settlement deal. Budget Council in February 2017 subsequently approved the savings
proposals within the efficiency plan.
2. Since February 2017 the Cabinet has worked on the plan through its Budget Working Group which
consists of Cabinet Members plus three back bench Members. Major savings have already been
achieved:
Successfully transferring the leisure centres to Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL) on 1 May 2017,
securing significant ongoing savings circa £700k.
Implementing efficiency savings circa £300k from the introduction of new technology in the
Contact Centre and planned restructures in the Communications Team.
3. The Cabinet have identified further savings targets for 2018/19 onwards. These include further
efficiencies through implementing a digital strategy, refinancing of the capital programme and
increasing the Council Tax in line with the recent change to Council Tax capping rules. Further details
are included later within this report.
Updates
The following provides an update on each of the savings areas:
ALTERNATIVE SERVICE DELIVERY
Both Fulwood and West View Leisure Centres successfully transferred to GLL on 1 May 2017.
The Budget Working Group also tasked officers with working up a business case to look at the
feasibility of setting up a trading company. Initial work has been carried out on providing an external
skip trading company; however the business case showed the proposal not to be feasible. Work is
continuing to review other opportunities for trading.
INCOME GENERATION
A review of the investment portfolio has been undertaken by specialist property advisors. An action
plan is now in place to work on the recommendations resulting from the review. The initial brief was
to review whether the service is providing value for money, investigate opportunities to dispose of
property assets for development, and explore other opportunities to maximise income or financial
receipts.
18 | P a g e EFFICIENCIES
The Council continues to review ongoing underspends and remove these from budgets were
possible, the instruction to only spend were necessary remains in place. Updates on the efficiency
savings targets are as follows:-
(i) Management Efficiency Savings
The Management team have implemented ongoing savings totalling £300k, the majority of
which are as a result of the introduction of new technology in the Contact Centre. This enables
the Council to implement channel shift practices to improve the customer experience by
introducing new technologies to provide enhanced customer access to services. In addition, the
Council has restructured the Communications team resulting in savings.
(ii) Management cost savings
A review of the management costs of the Council is currently underway and initial proposals for
achieving the £100k target in 2018/19 have been considered by the Budget Working Group.
Further work will continue during 2018 to identify the additional savings target 2019/20
onwards. A further update will be provided in the next Achieving Preston’s Priorities report.
Following engagement of consultants saving proposals were identified for the Waste Management
Service. Initial efficiency savings have been implemented and the Council has recently consulted in
implementing new and increased charging and changes to the services being offered. A provisional
target for waste collection savings was included for potential areas for change in working practices.
All proposals are subject to staff consultation.
The Council is currently in consultation with unions regarding ceasing the Car Leasing Scheme and
this will be brought forward for decision at Employment Committee. The saving is being adjusted in
the forecast in line with the estimated implementation timescales.
A saving in the Mayoralty budget was successfully implemented during 2017.
RATIONALISATION OF THE COUNCILS ASSETS
An external review of all property and land assets held by the Council resulted in an Investment
Property Action Plan being prepared. The aim is for the Council to improve the return of the
investment portfolio and identify and implement efficiencies for Property Services. The Council has
commenced work on the action plan with significant work being undertaken on the individual actions
during 2018. The disposal of freeholds and changes to leases on existing buildings producing potential
receipts has been agreed by Cabinet previously.
The Cabinet is continuing to review City Centre assets with the aim of actively seeking City Centre
development opportunities, reducing the annual cost burden of maintaining empty operational
properties and opportunities for selling the assets to obtain a capital receipt.
CONTINGENCY PLAN
The Budget Working Group formulated a contingency plan of savings to be called upon in the event
that any of the above savings are delayed or are not able to proceed. However the Budget Working
19 | P a g eGroup will continue to consider alternative saving proposals where possible in order to achieve an
ongoing balanced budget.
As part of the work to formulate the 2018/19 budget the Cabinet are proposing additional savings
which can be found below.
2018/19 Budget Proposals
1. The Cabinet have put forward the following budget strategy in working towards setting the 2018/19
budget and Council Tax:
Continue implementing the Four Year Efficiency Plan 2016/17 to 2019/20 – planned work
for 2018/19 includes the following:
(i) continue work on the Investment Property Action Plan,
(ii) continue implementation of the Waste Management savings,
(iii) implement £100k reduction in Management Costs and identify future years, and
(iv) continue work on the Parks review.
New savings proposals identified include:-
DIGITAL - Digital First Strategy to deliver further service improvements for customer
service and transactional access. £60k in 2018/19 rising to £100k 2019/20 ongoing.
Refinancing Capital Programme – this includes an annual contribution of £100k p.a.
from the Asbestos reserve and capital receipts to reduce the level of prudential
borrowing in the capital programme. This enables a revenue saving to be made from
reducing the MRP (principle) and interest costs. Savings approximately £70k p.a.
Council Tax Increase – it is proposed to increase Council Tax in 2018/19 by 2.99%.
Release of Reserves – planned use of reserves to fund the shortfall in financing during
the period of the Efficiency Plan.
In addition to the above the Council has been able to achieve further savings on
insurance costs from negotiating and awarding new contracts. Increases to fees and
charges are being considered by individual Cabinet Members.
Additional Spend Proposal -
Preston has been awarded the URBACT Good Practice City label for our practice of
progressing procurement practice through spend analysis. As a Good Practice City,
Preston City Council had the opportunity to bid for a two year extension to the
Procure project, with the aim of adding value to what has already been achieved. In
order to facilitate the bid Cabinet have included a growth item of £28k in the 2018/19
budget to be utilised as match funding.
2. The costs of redundancy are provided for within the forecast.
20 | P a g e1. Cabinet have carried out stakeholder consultations on the Waste Management Service proposals
and the Council Tax Support scheme. Further high level consultations are being undertaken on the
additional proposals highlighted above including raising Council Tax by 2.99%. The results of the
consultation will be provided to Members.
2. The Council has a policy to avoid compulsory redundancy where possible, seeking volunteers and
identifying redeployment opportunities. However the size of the savings challenge means
compulsory redundancies may be unavoidable. Specific consultation, support and advice is
provided to all staff that are affected by the proposals. Employment Committee agreed a change
to the Redundancy Policy in December 2017 which will result in a change to the benefits paid to
employees leaving the Council by reason of redundancy.
3. All savings proposals are subject to an Equality Impact Assessment (EIA). Any reduction in council
expenditure that leads to a reduction in services will inevitably have an impact on the wider
community served. The EIAs consider the effect on people within all the equality strands in relation
to the wider community; and, if and how one group is disproportionately disadvantaged by the
savings and growth in relation to other groups.
1. By the end of the five year forecast the Council still needs to save year-on-year roughly the
equivalent of what it spends on all of the ‘choice services’, i.e. all of the services it chooses to run
as opposed to those it has a statutory duty to provide. Examples of choice services are:-
Harris Museum
Welfare Benefits Debt advice
Policy Advice
Community Engagement
Events
2. Whilst the Council has already delivered significant savings from the Efficiency Plan during 2017
work is still ongoing to implement those identified for 2018/19 onwards. In addition the Budget
Working Group will continue to review services, options for income generation and efficiencies
during 2018 in order to identify further savings to avoid the contingency plan savings being called
upon.
3. Close monitoring of the ambitious Efficiency Plan and additional proposals will need to be
undertaken to ensure the savings plans remain on track. In the event that alternative savings cannot
be found or the efficiency plan savings are delayed or cannot be implemented then Budget Working
Group may need to swiftly implement the contingency plan of alternative savings.
21 | P a g eYou can also read
