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Agenda item

Questions

(1)               Due to the full time Youth Worker complement being reduced to four for the whole city, can I be advised of the programme for youth work in Torry?

 

Minutes:

The Council had before it the following questions, of which due notice had been given in terms of Standing Order 20(2), which had been placed on the agenda as the questioners had indicated they were unhappy with the responses.

 

Councillor Allan

 

QUESTION -

To ask the Chief Executive

 

“Due to the full time Youth Worker complement being reduced to four for the whole city, can I be advised of the programme for youth work in Torry?”

 

ANSWER (by the Chief Executive) -

 

The work to implement the decision to reduce the communities’ team budget by £1.4m in 2011/12 is underway. The staffing budget available for staff, including Community Learning and Development, Youth Workers, Community Training and Economic Development and Neighbourhood Community Planning staff has been reduced by approximately 67%.

 

A new management and operational structure is developed and the job matching process almost complete. The team has completed approximately 150 matching interviews during June 2011 for posts within the new structure.

 

Officers are working to manage the transformation of the service and to support the transition to leased community centres. Within the new structure, a member of staff has been appointed to the new post of Development Manager for Young People. This post holder will have a team of four youth development officers, a small team of community learning youth workers and a small budget for session staff. The team will support the delivery of youth work across the city, including providing support for leased centre committees who want to commission youth work in their areas.

 

The transition process is underway between those staff leaving and those staff taking up the new posts and reviewing how services will be delivered. A meeting is scheduled on 25th August 2011 to finalise the plans for the delivery of youth work across the city, including in the Torry area. The available resources will be used to target priority areas which will include Torry.

 

The programme at Tullos has stopped as normal, over the summer break. It is likely that this will continue, but as part of the achievement programme with schools. The work of the Torry Youth project will operate with limited funds which will require to be targeted. The facilities at Torry Youth project will continue to be available for use.

 

Officers will work with community centre management to facilitate their support for the delivery of youth work in their area. The city wide plan for youth work is being finalised during August.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

 

Councillor Young

 

QUESTION -

To the Vice Convener of the Finance and Resources Committee

 

“To ask the former Vice Convener for Corporate Policy and Performance and now Vice Convener for Finance and Resources if he can provide an explanation as to why a decision taken under his convenership in March 2011 at the Corporate Policy and Performance and Committee regarding Aberdeen City Gardens Trust Limited Board Membership Invitation which stated “The membership invitation will be considered by Council on 29th June 2011, and therefore will be removed from the business statement” was not discussed at the Council meeting of 29th June? Can he further confirm what discussions if any he has had with any officers of the Council relating to this matter and finally does he agree with me that when a Committee determines that a piece of business is put before Council for members to determine, that business should go before the Council without fear or favour?”

 

ANSWER (by Councillor Noble) -

 

I write in reply to your question to Council regarding the Aberdeen City Gardens Board membership invitation. You are quite correct that this matter came up at the Corporate Policy and Performance meeting chaired by myself in the absence of the then Convener Councillor Jennifer Stewart on the 31st March 2011. At that meeting, the committee resolved to defer consideration of the invitation to a future meeting of the appropriate committee in order to receive clarity on what a "special" member entailed and also to receive articles of association.

 

I can confirm that subsequent to the above mentioned meeting I have had no discussions with officers relating to this matter and I would agree with your point on matters going to Council from Committee.

 

In accordance with Standing Order 20(4), the Lord Provost ruled that the question had been answered satisfactorily.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

 

QUESTION -

To the Chief Executive

 

“To ask the Chief Executive to confirm how many meetings the Chief Executive, her predecessor or Council officials have had with Sir Ian Wood or his representatives since I last asked this question (December 2010) in order to finalise the £50million donation with regard to the Union Terrace Gardens project and to further ask the Chief Executive to confirm when the legal documents confirming the £50million gift will be ready for signature by both the donator and the City Council?”

 

ANSWER (by the Chief Executive) -

 

No meetings have been held between Council officials and Sir Ian Wood or his representatives for this purpose since December 2010.  I have had one introductory meeting with Sir Ian since my arrival in March 2011. The legal documentation concerning Sir Ian’s donation will primarily be a matter for discussion between his legal representatives and those of the City Gardens Trust. 

 

In accordance with Standing Order 20(4), the Lord Provost ruled that the question had been answered satisfactorily.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

 

QUESTION -

To the Chief Executive

 

“To ask the Chief Executive if it is normal for third parties who currently do not own, lease or have any pecuniary property rights over a public asset such as Union Terrace Gardens to actively promote, encourage architectural design briefs on an asset they currently do not own, lease or have any pecuniary right over?”

 

 

ANSWER (by the Chief Executive) -

 

No. Any party does so at their own financial risk. However, the Council by virtue of their decision of May 2010 and those of subsequent meetings, have noted and encouraged the course of action undertaken by the City Gardens Trust.

 

In accordance with Standing Order 20(4), the Lord Provost ruled that the question had been answered satisfactorily.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

 

QUESTION -

To the Leader of the Council

 

“To ask the Leader of the Council who owns the land in and around the proposed Union Terrace Gardens development and if it does belong mostly to the city of Aberdeen or is under their direct control what are the consequences to the Council tax payer or Council itself if for any reason the Council transfers control of Union Terrace Gardens by whatever means to a third party and for whatever reason the proposed development gets into financial difficulties and in this regard can he confirm or otherwise if any of the proposed businesses currently behind the scheme have indicated a willingness to underwrite the project in order that the Council tax payer is protected should any proposed development become financially challenged?”

 

ANSWER (by Councillor McCaig) -

 

The land comprising Union Terrace Gardens belongs to the Council. In the event of the Council transferring the control of Union Terrace Gardens, appropriate agreements will be put in place at that time to protect the Council’s interests. The project is not sufficiently advanced to respond to the remainder of the question and the matters raised will no doubt be discussed at the appropriate time.

 

In accordance with Standing Order 20(4), the Lord Provost ruled that the question had been answered satisfactorily.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

 

QUESTION -

To the Leader of the Council

 

“To ask the Leader of the Council to provide Council with (1) the total financial cost to the Council from May 2007 until May 2011 of employing consultants regardless of capacity of employment giving a break down in terms of each year over the last 4 years; and (2) the total financial cost to the Council from May 2007 until May 2011 of employing agency staff regardless of capacity of employment giving a breakdown in terms of each year over the last 4 years.”

 

ANSWER (by Councillor McCaig) -

 

Cost of Employing Consultants and Agency Staff

 

Following Councillor Young’s questions requesting the cost of employing consultants (regardless of capacity of employment) and agency staff a review of the Council’s financial ledger was undertaken to identify the financial cost.

 

  1. The cost of employing consultants is shown in the table below by financial year.  This is also shown in the context of the Council’s total gross budget annually and showing the level of spend as a percentage of total budget:

 

 

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

20011/12

 

£’000

£’000

£’000

£’000

£’000*

Gross Budget

640,318

659,188

689,554

672,313

688,006

Consultants Fees

1,140

2,016

2,736

1,317

151

Fees as % of Budget

0.32%

0.31%

0.39%

0.20%

0.02%

            * Shows year to date expenditure against full year budget

 

- This shows that over the period covered the Council has spent £7.4 million from a total gross budget of £3,349 million or 0.24% of the total spend for the period (less than a quarter of 1%).  These costs have been incurred to assist the Council in improving service delivery, reducing expenditure levels for future years (spend to save initiatives) and to deliver new projects (often to meet new statutory requirements).

 

  1. The cost of employing agency staff is shown in the table below by financial year along with the total staffing budget along with the percentage of total staffing costs that agency costs represent:

 

 

2007/08

2008/09

2009/10

2010/11

20011/12

 

£’000

£’000

£’000

£’000

£’000*

Gross Budget

640,318

659,188

689,554

672,313

688,006

Agency Costs

8,911

8,164

7,889

7,695

901

Costs as % of Budget

1.39%

1.24%

1.14%

1.14%

0.13%

            * Shows year to date expenditure against full year budget

 

- This shows that over the period covered the Council has spent £33.6 million from a total gross budget of £3,349 million or 1% of the total spend for the period.

 

- The types of posts that the Council has used agency staff for tend to be traditional trades (joiners, electricians, plumbers, etc.), vehicle drivers, social care workers, and other seasonal type work (such as grounds maintenance staff).  The reason for relying on agency staff will be due to a number of factors such as difficulty in recruitment and Council policy to specifically utilise agency staff for seasonal or fixed term contract work.  All costs were budgeted for or met from existing budgets and resulted in the Council meeting its legal obligations within the annually set budget.  That is, the Council did not exceed the total staffing budget for any of the financial years.

 

-          The level of spend on agency staff has fallen year on year.  This has been due to a number of factors, such as the Council moving to reduce the level of agency staff it employs and the economic down turn means that more people are now seeking full time employment allowing the Council to fill posts that it previously has had difficulties recruiting into.

 

-          It should also be noted that in certain instances it is more economically advantageous for the Council to employ agency staff rather than employ staff directly.

 

In accordance with Standing Order 20(4), the Lord Provost ruled that the question had been answered satisfactorily.

 

The Council resolved:-

to note the details.

Supporting documents: