Agenda item

With reference to article 23 of the minute of its previous meeting of 21 April, 2011, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport which provided an update on progress officers were making in relation to developing a management agreement for Inchgarth Community Centre to manage the programme for the community rooms at the Kaimhill 3Rs school.

The report recommended:

that the Committee –

(a)       confirm that it will be a requirement for Inchgarth Management Committee to fully meet the requirements of the Council’s Following the Public Pound code of practice;   

(b)       instruct officers to facilitate the necessary actions to support an after school club for the pupils of Kaimhill Primary School (the programming of which would be developed in consultation with Inchgarth Management Committee); and

(c)        agree that the model management agreement being developed should include a requirement for management committees to ensure that there will be no charge levied for the provision of out of school care by non profit making registered childcare and pre school providers (as per the Council’s Out of School Care policy).

Members queried as to the difference between audited accounts and independently verified accounts, and the Corporate Accounting Manager advised that to produce audited accounts, a clear process had to be followed and accounts would be produced to a professional standard; to produce independently verified accounts would be less onerous on organisations, but an appropriately qualified person would have to undertake this task. It was suggested that as part of the Following the Public Pound review that would be reported to a future meeting of the Audit and Risk Committee, an ‘appropriately qualified person’ should be defined. At this point the Director of Corporate Governance advised that as part the aforementioned review, officers would look at whether the Council would have the capacity to undertaken an internal audit in cases such as this.

The Convener confirmed at this stage that Inchgarth Management Committee would not be required to produce what officers had referred to as a ‘business plan’, but that a full programme of activities would have to be set out.

The Committee resolved:

(i)        to confirm that it will be a requirement for Inchgarth Management Committee to agree the following:

·        to provide the Council with monthly accounts

·        to provide minutes of its meetings to the Council Liaison Officer

·        to provide quarterly attendance figures

·        to provide an annual independently verified copy of its accounts as per the terms of its new constitution

·        that the Council Liaison Officer may attend any management committee meeting of his or her choice;

(ii)       that this provides the basis for negotiations with management committees for other 3Rs buildings;

(iii)      to approve recommendation (b) as contained within the report; and

(iv)       to instruct officers to report back on establishing a community development fund of £50,000 per annum that can be bid for by community groups to provide not for profit registered childcare and pre school provision.

            In accordance with the decision taken at article 2 of this minute, the following articles were considered with the press and public excluded.