COUNTY BOROUGH OF BLAENAU GWENT

REPORT TO: /
THE leader and members of the executive committee
REPORT SUBJECT: / JOINT FINANCE AND PERFORMANCE MONTHLY REPORT
REPORT AUTHOR: /
GEMMA WASLEY, CORPORATE PERFORMANCE, SCRUTINY AND DEMOCRATIC SERVICES MANAGER
LEAD OFFICER/ DEPARTMENT /
STEPHEN GILLINGHAM, DIRECTOR OF CORPORATE SERVICES AND STRATEGY


Summary Report

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PURPOSE OF REPORT

The purpose of this report is to present to Executive Committee the Joint Finance and Performance Report for the month of June (attached at Appendix 1). This report will be developed on a monthly basis and will be reported into Executive Committee (timetable in 2.4).
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LINK TO CORPORATE STRATEGIES

This report has been developed following advice from the Welsh Government Advisors who have been supporting the Council with its governance arrangements. The format of the report follows the advised Westminster Model of reporting.
The Executive Committee and Corporate Overview Scrutiny Committees Forward Work Programmes include the Joint Finance and Performance Report.
The report is directly linked to the Transforming Blaenau Gwent Programme.
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3.3 / SUMMARY
The Joint Finance and Performance Report follows the Westminster Model advised to us by the Welsh Government Advisors. The report will be monitored on a monthly basis and includes information in relation to:
·  Finance;
·  Transforming Blaenau Gwent Plan;
·  Performance; and
·  Risk.
This reporting format is to be included within the performance management framework and replaces the current performance reporting format.
The document will be reported into CMT, Executive Committee and Corporate Overview Scrutiny Committee in line with their meeting schedules.
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RECOMMENDATIONS

It is recommended that the Executive Committee provide comment on the information included within the Joint Finance and Performance Report and, where necessary, request further information or recommend appropriate action for officers to action to improve performance.


Detailed Report

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BACKGROUND

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1.3 / In October 2013, the WAO included in their Improvement Assessment Letter a recommendation that the Minister for Local Government and Government Business use their powers under Section 28 of the Local Government (Wales) measure 2009, to provide support to the Council as it was believed that the Council did not have the capacity to identify and implement the action necessary to address its serious financial difficulties.
Appointed Auditor Recommendation:
The Council must act immediately to identify and approve the actions required to deliver a legal and balanced budget for 2014-15, and to agree a sustainable Medium Term Financial Strategy that will enable the Council to live within its means. In drawing up robust plans for service transformation and change, and in taking properly informed judgements on the future design and delivery of its services, the Council must assess the impact that its decisions will have on the citizens of Blaenau Gwent.
This support was provided by Welsh Government Advisors who worked to support the Council in a number of areas in relation to governance. Once such area of support included the development of a Joint Finance and Performance Report.
2.0 / PRESENT POSITION
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2.3 / The Joint Finance and Performance Report has been developed following the Westminster Model, which was advised to us to follow.
The report is to be monitored on a monthly basis, with additional information supplementing the report on both a quarterly and annual basis.
The report will be brought to CMT, Executive Committee and Corporate Overview Scrutiny Committee (with a view to refer comments onto the specific Scrutiny Committee where relevant). The timetable for this reporting is in line with the committee meeting schedule and is provided below in paragraph 2.4.
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2.7 / Meeting Schedule
CMT / Executive / Corporate Overview
3rd June / 25th June / 14th July
8th July / 30th July
5th August / 3rd September / 1st September
2nd September / 24th September
7th October / 15th October / 13th October
4th November / 26th November / 24th November
2nd December / 17th December
8th January / 28th January
2nd February / 18th February / 16th February
3rd March / 11th March / 30th March
31st March / 22nd April
This is the first time that the Council has brought together all of its reporting, with the report including detail on a directorate basis on:
·  Finance;
·  Transforming Blaenau Gwent Plan;
·  Performance; and
·  Risk.
The report has been split by directorate and pulls out the exceptions for the month, where performance is not at the expected level.
This reporting framework will replace the current performance reporting mechanisms and will be included within the Performance Management Framework when it is reviewed in August 2014.
3.0 / CONSULTATION
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The Joint Report has been developed in consultation with the Welsh Government Advisors and officers from the Resources and Corporate Services and Strategy Directorates.

4.0 / CONCLUSION
4.1 / The Joint Finance and Performance Report will be updated on a monthly basis and reported into CMT, Executive Committee and Corporate Overview Scrutiny Committee linked to their forward work programmes.

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