Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

There were no apologies for absence received.

There were no public questions for this meeting of the Cabinet to consider.

The Minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 19^th August 2024, are attached for approval.

Resolved:
That the minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 19^th August 2024, be approved as a correct record.

A report that provides an update, as at 31^st July 2024 - Month 4, of the Council’s 2024/25 forecast revenue budget position and the financial position of the capital programme together with the revised capital programme.

Purpose of the report

The report provided the Cabinet with an update, as at 31^st July 2024 (Month 4), of the Council’s 2024/25 forecast revenue budget position and the financial position of the capital programme together with the revised capital programme 2024/25 to 2028/29.

Reasons for the Recommendations

a.    Revenue Position

The forecast overspend position based on the Month 4 profiled budget was £7.202m which if not addressed would result in a year-end overspend of £21.065m (£26.033m at month 3). This financial monitoring report followed on from the position reported at Month 3 and was considered a warning of the potential year-end position if no further action was taken to reduce net expenditure. The management actions already implemented for 2024/25 have been factored into the Month 4 forecasts and this has resulted in a reduction in the position previously reported. Work continues across the organisation to address this position and it is anticipated that by the year end, the current outturn deficit position should reduce even further.

b.    Capital Position

The submitted report outlined the most up to date capital spending position for 2024/25 to 2028/29 for approved schemes. The revised capital programme budget for 2024/25 is £103.935m at the close of month 4 (£101.680m at Month 3), a net increase of £2.255m. Actual expenditure to 31 July 2024 was £17.397m (16.74% of the forecast outturn). It was likely that the forecast position will continue to change throughout the year with additional re-profiling into future years.

Options/Alternatives

The options that Cabinet considered in relation to the submitted report were:

a.    To consider the forecast revenue and capital positions presented in the report including proposed changes.

b.    To propose alternative forecast

The preferred option was that the Cabinet Committee considers the forecasts and changes within this report; option (a).

Decisions:

1.    Cabinet notes the contents of the report.

2.    Cabinet approves forecast profiled budget, being an adverse position of £7.202m at Month 4 and the forecast potential adverse position by year end of £21.065m, with mitigations in place to reduce expenditure.

3.    Cabinet approves the revised capital programme for 2024/25 including the proposed virements and the forecast for the financial years to 2028/29 as at Month 4.

The Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Finance that provided Members with an update, as at 31^st July 2024 (Month 4), of the Council’s 2024/25 forecast revenue budget position and the financial position of the capital programme together with the revised capital programme 2024/25 to 2028/29.

The recommendations in the report were presented as the forecast overspend position based on the Month 4 profiled budget was £7.202m which if not addressed would result in a year-end overspend of £21.065m (£26.033m at month 3). This financial monitoring report followed on from the position reported at Month 3 and was considered a warning of the potential year-end position if no further action was taken to reduce net expenditure. The management actions already implemented for 2024/25 have been factored into the Month 4 forecasts and this has resulted in a reduction in the position previously reported. Work continues across the organisation to address this position and it is anticipated that by the year end, the current outturn deficit position should reduce even further.

The submitted report also outlined the most up to date capital spending position for 2024/25 to 2028/29 for approved schemes. The revised capital programme budget for 2024/25 is £103.935m at the close of month 4 (£101.680m at Month 3), a net increase of £2.255m. Actual expenditure to 31 July 2024 was £17.397m (16.74% of the forecast outturn). It was likely that the forecast position will continue to change throughout the year with additional re-profiling into future years.

Options/Alternatives: The options that Cabinet considered in relation to the submitted report were:

a.    To consider the forecast revenue and capital positions presented in the report including proposed changes.

b.    To propose alternative forecast

The preferred option was Option a.

Resolved:

1.    That the Cabinet notes the report.

2.    That the Cabinet approves forecast profiled budget, being an adverse position of £7.202m at Month 4 and the forecast potential adverse position by year end of £21.065m, with mitigations in place to reduce expenditure.

3.    That the Cabinet approves the revised capital programme for 2024/25 including the proposed virements and the forecast for the financial years to 2028/29 as at Month 4.

A report that seeks capital funding to provide, install, implement and support a more modern, secure wireless infrastructure.

The Cabinet considered a report of the Assistant Chief Executive which explained that the Council currently operated three different wireless infrastructures:

a.    Legacy on-premises Cisco, utilising the 5508 wireless LAN controllers (“WLC”)

b.    Current Cloud-managed Meraki solution

c.    New FortiGate-managed access points in Spindles, utilising the FortiGate wireless LAN controllers (“WLC”)

The purpose of the report was to replace #1 & #2 with #3 across the board after the successful implementation of the system at the Spindles site.

The report was seeking to secure capital funding to provide, install, implement and support a more modern, secure wireless infrastructure across the Oldham locale. This cost is for a five-year contract, with expected annual costs thereafter.

Options/alternatives considered: This information is contained in the confidential Part B section of the submitted report.

Resolved:

That the Cabinet would consider the commercially sensitive information contained at Item 12 of the agenda before making a decision.

A report seeking the authorisation of the purchase of liquid fuels to supply the Council’s vehicle fleet.

The Cabinet considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive that sought authority to utilise the Yorkshire Purchasing Organisation’s framework for Liquid Fuels and Associated Products.

The recommendations in the report were presented as the Council required the supply of liquid fuel on site to ensure that its vehicle fleet was fully operational.

Options/alternatives considered: This information was contained in the confidential Part B version of this report.

Resolved:

That the Cabinet would consider the commercially sensitive information contained at Item 13 of the agenda before making a decision.

A report that seeks approval to accept Oldham’s pilot grant allocation of £500,000 from the Green Spaces Fund held by DLUHC.

Purpose of the Report

a.    Government announced the High Street Accelerator Programme in September 2023 and invited Oldham Council to submit an expression of interest in participating due to the high level of vacant premises in the town centre.

b.    The Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities confirmed ten towns to participate in a High Street Accelerator pilot. Our High Street Nomination Form was completed for Union Street and Yorkshire Street as the pilot high streets for this funding based on existing data, notably.

c.    In 2019, Oldham town centre was identified as one of the top 20 town centres in the country most ‘at risk’ from key consumer trends (Oldham Economic Review).  Geographically, Oldham struggles with leakage of jobs, visitors and spending to central Manchester and surrounding towns, and employment has fallen consistently in recent years, leading to vacant retail and eatery units; according to CACI Retail Footprint Data, the flows to Oldham town centre have retracted significantly and the spend profile for Oldham reduced from £170m in 2010 to £156m in 2017.

Reasons for the Recommendations

The purpose of this report is to seek approval to accept Oldham’s pilot grant allocation of £500,000 from the Green Spaces Fund held by Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), and to approve the programme of spend for the various projects it will fund. 

Options/Alternatives Considered:

·         Option 1: accept the Green Spaces Fund grant of £500,000 from DLUHC, progress the proposed projects detailed in this report and expend the grant monies as detailed in the funding breakdown.

·         Option 2: do not accept the Green Spaces Fund grant of £500,000 from DLUHC and do not progress the proposed projects detailed in this report.

The preferred option was option 1.

Decision

1.    To accept an external Green Spaces Fund grant and to expend the funding on progressing the proposed High Street Accelerator programme projects.

2.    To delegate authority to the Section 151 Officer to finalise and formalise a Memorandum of Understanding with DLUHC with regard to the Green Spaces Fund grant funding arrangements and any other documentation required by DLUHC.

3.    To delegate authority to the Borough Solicitor to carry out all necessary legal formalities.

The Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Economy, which outlined that the previous Government had announced the High Street Accelerator Programme in September 2023 and invited Oldham Council to submit an expression of interest in participating, due to the high level of vacant premises in the town centre.

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities confirmed ten towns to participate in a High Street Accelerator pilot. Oldham’s High Street Nomination Form had been completed for Union Street and Yorkshire Street as the pilot high streets for this funding based on existing data, notably: that in 2019, Oldham town centre was identified as one of the top 20 town centres in the country most ‘at risk’ from key consumer trends (Oldham Economic Review).  Geographically, Oldham struggles with leakage of jobs, visitors and spending to central Manchester and surrounding towns, and employment has fallen consistently in recent years, leading to vacant retail and eatery units; according to CACI Retail Footprint Data, the flows to Oldham town centre have retracted significantly and the spend profile for Oldham reduced from £170m in 2010 to £156m in 2017.

The recommendations in the report were presented to seek approval to accept Oldham’s pilot grant allocation of £500,000 from the Green Spaces Fund held by Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), and to approve the programme of spend for the various projects it will fund. 

Options/Alternatives Considered:

·         Option 1: accept the Green Spaces Fund grant of £500,000 from DLUHC, progress the proposed projects detailed in this report and expend the grant monies as detailed in the funding breakdown.

·         Option 2: do not accept the Green Spaces Fund grant of £500,000 from DLUHC and do not progress the proposed projects detailed in this report.

The preferred option was option 1.

Resolved:

1.    That the Cabinet accepts an external Green Spaces Fund grant and to expend the funding on progressing the proposed High Street Accelerator programme projects.

2.    That the Cabinet delegates authority to the Section 151 Officer, or her nominated representative, to finalise and formalise a Memorandum of Understanding with DLUHC with regard to the Green Spaces Fund grant funding arrangements and any other documentation required by DLUHC.

3.    That the Cabinet delegates authority to the Borough Solicitor, or his nominated representative, to carry out all necessary legal formalities.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

The Cabinet considered a report of the Director of Economy which updated Members on the progress of two Joint Venture (JV) Regeneration Projects that the Council is completing with Grasscroft Seddons at Broadway Green and Langtree at Hollinwood Junction.

The report outlined the progress already made and the remaining works due to be completed on both Joint Venture partnerships.   When completed the JVs WOULD deliver: 

·           680 new homes including 300 affordable.

·           2,720 Full Time Equivalent Employment Opportunities

·           Over 790,000 Sq Ft of new industrial and employment space.

·           £7.47 Million Financial Return to the Council.

·           5 new retail outlets including supermarkets, cafes and garage.

·           Annual Business Rates of circa £2.1 Million.

·           Estimated annual Council Tax Income of £1 Million.

·           Creation of a new 20-acre linear park.

Options/alternatives considered: This information was contained in the confidential Part B version of this report.

Resolved:

That the Cabinet would consider the commercially sensitive information contained at Item 14 of the agenda before making a decision.

To consider that the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following three items of business, pursuant to Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 on the grounds that discussions may involve the likely disclosure of exempt information, under paragraph 3 as defined in the provisions of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act, to the Local Government Act 1972 and public interest would not be served in publishing the information.

Resolved:

That in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting, for the following three items of business, on the grounds that they contain exempt information under paragraph 3 Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act, and it would not, on balance, be in the public interest to disclose the reports.

To consider confidential recommendations.

Purpose of the report

The Purpose of the report was to request £293K capital funding to provide, install, implement and support a more modern, secure wireless infrastructure across the Oldham locale. This cost is for a five-year contract, with expected annual costs of circa £12k thereafter.

Reasons for the Recommendations

Currently, the Council operated three different wireless infrastructures:

1.    Legacy on-premises Cisco, utilising the 5508 wireless LAN controllers (“WLC”)

2.    Current Cloud-managed Meraki solution

3.    New FortiGate-managed access points in Spindles, utilising the FortiGate wireless LAN controllers (“WLC”)

The intention was to replace #1 & #2 with #3 across the board after the successful implementation at the Spindles site.

To facilitate this, it is proposed that Fortinet APs are purchased.

The intention was to mix these approaches for deployment:

·         Straight swap of Cisco AP for Fortinet AP across a whole site

·         Swap out Meraki APs across a whole site with Fortinet AP

·         Redeploy existing Meraki APs to the Civic Centre (NB: once the Civic Centre is vacated, the Meraki Wireless Infrastructure will be decommissioned)

This would achieve the aim of completely removing the Cisco solution harmonising wireless access point infrastructure to a single vendor and management overlay once the Civic Centre is vacated. Until then, we will re-utilise the Meraki solution so as not to overbuy the new Fortinet solution for a site we know is closing. 

Options/alternatives considered:

Option 1: Do Nothing. Not a viable option due to the out-of-support Cisco equipment and potential security vulnerabilities.

Option 2: Replace all the existing Cisco and Meraki Wireless AP’s with the Fortinet Range of Wireless AP’s.

Option 3: Replace the existing Cisco Wireless AP’s with the Fortinet Range of Wireless AP’s and redeploy the appropriate number of Meraki Wireless AP’s Points at the Civic Centre to replace existing Cisco Wireless AP’s.

The preferred option was Option 3.

Decision

Cabinet authorises the replacement of the existing Cisco Wireless AP’s with the Fortinet Range of Wireless AP’s and redeploy the appropriate number of Meraki Wireless AP’s Points at the Civic Centre to replace the existing Cisco Wireless AP’s. The old Cisco Wireless Infrastructure can then be decommissioned. By utilising the FortiNet solution this gives a significant saving compared to equivalent Cisco wireless infrastructure, which is currently circa £430K for hardware alone without installation, implementation and support. Additionally, by redeploying the existing Meraki Wireless AP’s at the Civic Centre this also reduces costs further.

Consideration was given to the commercially sensitive information in relation to Item 7: Wireless Infrastructure Replacement.

Resolved:

That Cabinet authorises the replacement of the existing Cisco Wireless AP’s with the Fortinet Range of Wireless AP’s and redeploy the appropriate number of Meraki Wireless AP’s Points at the Civic Centre to replace the existing Cisco Wireless AP’s. The old Cisco Wireless Infrastructure can then be decommissioned. By utilising the FortiNet solution this gives a significant saving compared to equivalent Cisco wireless infrastructure, which is currently circa £430K for hardware alone without installation, implementation and support. Additionally, by redeploying the existing Meraki Wireless AP’s at the Civic Centre this also reduces costs further.

To consider confidential recommendations.

Purpose of the report

The Fleet Management Service required authorization to utilise the Yorkshire Purchasing Organisation (YPO) framework for Liquid Fuels and Associated Products.

Reasons for the recommendations

The Council required the supply of liquid fuel on site to ensure that its vehicle fleet is fully operational. The YPO operates a mini competition of behalf of AGMA (Association of Greater Manchester Authorities) obtaining continuity of supply and value for money.

Options/alternative considered.

·         Option 1: To approve the use of the YPO framework to purchase liquid fuels from the rank 1 supplier (Standard Oil Fuels) because of the tender process.

·         Option 2: To not approve the use of the YPO framework and the purchase of liquid fuels from the rank 1 supplier. Oldham Council, in this instance, would need to undertake its own tender process without the advantage of the buying power YPO and AGMA bring which may result in higher costs.

Option 1 was the preferred Option.

Decision

To purchase liquid fuels using the YPO framework for the Supply of Liquid Fuels and Associated Products. The Council will contract with the rank 1 supplier as per the outcome from the tender process undertaken by YPO.

Consideration was given to the commercially sensitive information in relation to Item 8: Purchase of Liquid Fuels

Resolved:

That Cabinet authorises the purchase of Liquid Fuels, using the Yorkshire Purchasing Organisation’s (YPO) framework for the Supply of Liquid Fuels and Associated Products and the Council will contract with the rank 1 supplier as per the outcome from the tender process undertaken by YPO.

To consider confidential recommendations

Purpose of the report

The report outlined the progress already made and the remaining works due to be completed on both Joint Venture partnerships.   When completed the Joint Ventures will deliver: 

·           680 new homes including 300 affordable.

·           2,720 Full Time Equivalent Employment Opportunities

·           Over 790,000 Sq Ft of new industrial and employment space.

·           £7.47 Million Financial Return to the Council.

·           5 new retail outlets including supermarkets, cafes and garage.

·           Annual Business Rates of circa £2.1 Million.

·           Estimated annual Council Tax Income of £1 Million.

·           Creation of a new 20-acre linear park.

Reasons for the Recommendation

The report updates the Cabinet on the progress of two Joint Venture (JV) Regeneration Projects that the Council is completing with Grasscroft Seddons at Broadway Green and Langtree at Hollinwood Junction.

Options/alternatives considered:

None reported.

Decisions:

1.    That Cabinet notes the progress made and outcomes achieved to date.

2.    That Cabinet approves the acceptance of the final JV profit share to the Council from Broadway Green of £526,320 to be received in October 2024.

3.    That Cabinet approves the financial subsidy control agreement to secure the inward investment into Plot369 at Broadway Green by Inspired Global Cuisine, and the creation of 700 jobs.

Consideration was given to the commercially sensitive information in relation to Item 10: Business Investment.

Resolved:

1.    That the Cabinet notes the progress made and outcomes achieved to date.

2.    That the Cabinet approves the acceptance of the final JV profit share to the Council from Broadway Green of £526,320 to be received in October 2024.

3.    That the Cabinet approves the financial subsidy control agreement to secure the inward investment into Plot369 (detailed in the confidential report) at Broadway Green by Inspired Global Cuisine, and the creation of 700 jobs.