Agenda item

Report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services is attached.

The Committee considered a report and appendix presented by Councillor Thorpe, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, setting out performance against the Corporate Plan at Quarter Four 2025/26.

Councillor Thorpe reported that the year-end position presented a broadly positive picture, with approximately 60% of measures on track and a further 37% not currently on track but with mitigation measures in place. Key achievements included labour market performance of 95.7%, with 4.3% of residents not in employment, education or training, support for approximately 7,800 businesses across the borough, delivery of 312 new homes including 80 affordable homes, and strong collection rates for both Council Tax and Business Rates. Members were advised that staff sickness absence had increased during the year. Children's Services performance had continued to improve through delivery of the improvement plan.

Members heard that a number of projects remained amber or red. Regeneration activity in Radcliffe, including Market Chambers, remained on track and continued to progress positively. Delays had occurred to the Digital Strategy due to delays in appointing a Digital, Data and Technology Manager. The Pupil Referral Unit project had been delayed after the original site proved undeliverable, and elements of the Local Plan timetable had been impacted by the General Election. Concerns were also raised regarding delays affecting flood resilience and development work.

Councillor Sheppard raised a question regarding objectives described as "not on track but with risks addressed" and what mitigation actions had been implemented, including milestones and measures of success over the next six months. Officers advised that a detailed annex containing this information was available and would be circulated to Members. It was agreed that the appendix received by officers would be shared with the Committee.

Members discussed the challenge of demonstrating the relationship between Corporate Plan activity and long-term outcomes, particularly in relation to health and social care. It was noted that factors such as an ageing population, changing patterns of hospital discharge and wider demographic trends made it difficult to establish direct causality between interventions and outcomes.

Kate Waterhouse advised that performance was monitored through the Health and Wellbeing Board and Locality Board arrangements and that work was ongoing through Public Health programmes to better demonstrate the impact of preventative interventions, including reductions in hospital admissions. Whilst attributing specific outcomes directly to individual interventions remained challenging, efforts continued to improve understanding of impact and value for money.

Councillor Thorpe highlighted smoking cessation as one example where positive outcomes could be evidenced but noted that wider public health outcomes, including health inequalities and mortality differences across communities within the borough, could take many years to improve and were influenced by a range of factors.

Members were advised that further consideration of performance measures and outcomes would be undertaken through the Member Development Board.

In response to a question submitted in advance regarding the principal financial risks affecting delivery in 2026/27, Councillor Thorpe advised that these were identified within the Budget Report approved by Council in February.

The most significant risks related to demand pressures within Adult Social Care and Children's Social Care and the associated costs of meeting that demand, together with the Council's ability to deliver approved savings proposals. Given that Adult and Children's Services accounted for approximately 70% of the net revenue budget, any increase in demand above forecast assumptions presented a significant financial risk.

Members were advised that monthly budget monitoring was undertaken by the Finance Team and overseen by the Finance Board. Emerging overspends and financial pressures were identified at the earliest opportunity and mitigation plans implemented to minimise impacts on the Council's financial position and reserves.

Further discussion reflected wider risks facing local government including workforce challenges, an ageing workforce, income generation requirements and ensuring that robust information was available to support decision-making.

Councillor Haroon asked what had contributed to the reduction in agency social workers. Councillor Thorpe advised that Greater Manchester initiatives, work to make Bury a more attractive employer and investment in developing the Council's own social work workforce had all contributed to reduced reliance on agency staff.

Kate Waterhouse added that changes in national guidance had encouraged local authorities to reduce dependency on agency workers and focus on recruitment and retention of permanent staff.

Councillor Rahimov referred to the reported average of 14.1 days lost per employee through sickness absence and asked whether reducing agency staff had increased pressures upon permanent employees.

Councillor Thorpe acknowledged that workforce wellbeing remained a key priority and advised that the recently appointed Head of People was reviewing a range of workforce matters. He noted that moving away from agency staffing could not be viewed as a simple transfer of workload but remained preferable from both financial and organisational perspectives.

Councillor Martin queried when more up-to-date dashboard information would be available. Kate Waterhouse explained that some performance indicators relied upon nationally published datasets, resulting in unavoidable delays. Work was ongoing to improve data quality and benchmarking through use of local government data sources.

Councillor Martin also questioned how the report's conclusion regarding strong financial performance could be justified in the context of an overspend.

Councillor Thorpe explained that the overspend represented approximately 3% of the Council's overall budget and was largely attributable to continuing pressures within Adult and Children's Social Care. He highlighted savings delivery, treasury management activity and borrowing arrangements that had generated significant savings elsewhere within the organisation.

Neil Kissock added that stronger performance management arrangements had contributed to improved financial oversight and delivery.

Councillor Martin sought clarification regarding collection performance and was advised that collection rates were approximately 95%.

Councillor Bayley commented that comparative sickness absence data from the previous year would have been helpful and referred to figures contained within the performance report, noting an upward trajectory from February 2025.

Members discussed staff wellbeing and mental health support, including the availability of flexible working arrangements where appropriate. Councillor Thorpe stated that employees who were unwell should take sickness leave and confirmed that support arrangements were in place to promote staff wellbeing.

Kate Waterhouse advised that improvements had been made to sickness absence recording processes so that more meaningful information could be collected regarding causes of absence. Work was also taking place around performance management, wellbeing initiatives and Personal Development Reviews to ensure staff were appropriately supported.

Councillor Bayley reiterated that employees who were ill should not feel pressured to attend work. Councillor Thorpe agreed while noting that sickness absence could create additional pressures for colleagues and that sickness absence policies were under review.

Councillor Rahimov asked about the Family Safeguarding Model and the reported reduction in residential placements for children. Councillor Thorpe advised that residential placements had reduced from a previous peak to 39, compared with a budget assumption of 42 placements. Whilst recognising that demand remained volatile, he explained that the Family Safeguarding Model supported earlier intervention and reduced the need for more costly residential placements.

It Was Agreed:

·       The Committee noted the report

Actions:

·       Circulate the appendix detailing mitigation actions for measures not currently on track to Members prior to next update.