Councillors will be asked to make any declarations of interest in respect of items on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest made.

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting held on 12 November 2025.

The Board agreed the minutes of the meeting held on 15 January 2026 as a correct record.

To receive reports on business which in the opinion of the Chair, should be brought forward for urgent consideration.

There were no items of Chair’s Urgent Business.

To consider the draft Cabinet report on the Plymouth City Council Transformation Plan ahead of its consideration by Cabinet.

Councillor Taylor (Cabinet Member for Customer Experience, Sport, Leisure and Human Resources and OD), supported by Si Bellamy (Chief Operating Officer) and Pete Honeywell (Transformation Architecture Manager), introduced the item and highlighted:

a)     Pre-decision scrutiny offered the opportunity to strengthen the Transformation Plan;

b)    The appointment of a Chief Operating Officer (COO) from outside a local government background provided an opportunity to view operations through a fresh lens;

c)     Over the last 15 years, the funding landscape for councils like Plymouth had fundamentally changed, with demand increasing and resources being squeezed;

d)    Plymouth, and many councils across the country, were at breaking point;

e)     Transformation was no longer optional; it was essential;

f)      Transformation needed to be meaningful and not simply a new label for service reductions within the Council;

g)     The intention of the Plymouth City Council (PCC) Transformation Plan included:

                     i.         Reducing demand where possible;

                   ii.         Reducing costs;

                  iii.          Increasing the positive impact of Council services for the people of Plymouth;

h)    Four areas dominated current Council spending:

i.            Adult Social Care;

ii.           Children’s Services;

iii.          Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND);

iv.          Temporary Accommodation and Homelessness;

i)      Spending in these areas needed to change, as other changes would not have a sufficient impact;

j)      The outcomes of the Transformation Plan would result in:

                         i.     Better services for people in Plymouth; and

                        ii.     A financially sustainable Council delivering those services;

k)     Plymouth was a city with significant potential, but also one where many residents experienced poverty, poor health and barriers to opportunity. The level of demand for Council services reflected these challenges;

l)      Transformation highlighted the need to build a Council capable of supporting a growing city, tackling inequality and improving outcomes for residents;

m)   The Transformation Plan set out five key workstreams. The first workstream focused on creating capacity and reducing costs:

                         i.     One of the most significant pressures on councils was high-cost placements, including children’s residential care, specialist SEND provision and temporary accommodation;

                        ii.     Local authorities were operating within a market where private providers generated profit, while councils bore the cost;

                      iii.     The Council needed to build internal capacity to reduce reliance on expensive external provision and ensure public money supported residents rather than profit margins;

n)    The second workstream focused on operational effectiveness and service-led delivery:

                         i.     This ensured the Council had the right skills, systems and operating model to meet the city’s changing needs;

                        ii.     Residents’ expectations had evolved, alongside technology;

                      iii.     Investment in skills, training and development would provide staff with the tools and confidence to perform effectively;

                       iv.     Opportunities presented by AI should be embraced, allowing staff to focus on work requiring human judgement rather than administrative processes;

o)    The third workstream focused on early intervention and prevention:

                         i.     Crisis situations such as family breakdown, homelessness and care needs carried both high human and financial costs;

                        ii.     Prevention was both the right approach for residents and a financially sound decision;

                      iii.     Initiatives such as family hubs and partnership working had already demonstrated  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

David Northey (Interim Service Director for Finance), introduced the item and highlighted:

a)     The feedback from members regarding Budget Scrutiny had been positive, and the process would be maintained next year;

b)    The document was ‘live’ and would receive regular updates and recommendations progressed;

c)     Recommendations had been programmed into the relevant scrutiny panels work programmes for consideration across the year;

d)    Oversight of the recommendations would remain at the Scrutiny Management Board;

e)     Recommendation Three focused on engaging with Central Government on the Designated Schools Grant deficit, however, the government White Paper had now been published;

In response to questions, the following was discussed;

f)      The administration had responded positively to the 19 recommendations made by the panel;

                                               i.     17 recommendations had been fully accepted;

                                              ii.     One had been partially accepted;

                                             iii.     One had been rejected, due to the existence of a strategy for supporting vulnerable children focused on delivering value for money.

The Board agreed to note the update.

David Northey (Interim Service Director for Finance) introduced the Finance Monitoring Report Month 10 report and discussed:

a)     The report reflected the position as at the end of January and had been scheduled to align as closely as possible with the Cabinet reporting cycle;

b)    An overspend of over £4 million was being reported at this stage;

c)     Based on Month 11 projections, the overspend was expected to reduce and would not remain at its current level;

d)    It remained uncertain whether the overspend would reduce to a balanced position;

e)     Senior managers had implemented measures to control expenditure, including ensuring that spend was essential and placing holds on recruitment;

f)      The four largest areas of spend continued to present the most significant financial pressures;

g)     The Growth directorate was performing strongly, exceeding its targets for growth dividends and income maximisation;

h)    A revised approach had been taken to the capital budget following approval:

i.                Close working arrangements were in place between Cabinet Members and officers regarding capital expenditure;

ii.              A new capital pipeline had been introduced to define the financial envelope over the next five years;

iii.             External factors, including global economic conditions and interest rates, were continuing to impact capital spending.

In response to questions, it was discussed that:

i)      In relation to savings arising from the removal of retention payments for social workers in the Child Protection Team, this decision had been taken with appropriate advice from HR and the Director of Children’s Services;

j)      The Council did not anticipate cost pressures arising from global events in 2025/26, as it remained under existing contractual arrangements with providers;

k)     The overspend of over £700,000 within Customer and Corporate Services was primarily attributable to facilities management costs;

l)      The incoming Chief Operating Officer would lead on the development of a new asset management strategy;

m)   Action: A written response would be provided to the Scrutiny Management Board setting out in detail why the £1.1 million savings target had not been achieved.

The Panel agreed to:

1. Note the forecast revenue monitoring position at Month 10;

2. Note the revised capital programme for 2025–2030, as set out in Table 18.

David Northey (Interim Service Director for Finance) introduced the item and highlighted:

a)     The Risk Register update focused on emerging operational risks;

b)    Within two days of the conflict in Iran, the Council received advice from its Treasury Management Advisors regarding potential impacts on interest rates;

c)     There was a risk extending beyond the 2025/26 financial year if the conflict continued, particularly in relation to interest rates, inflation and fuel costs;

d)    The Council was currently protected by long-term fuel contracts; however, risks may arise if the conflict persisted when new contracts are negotiated;

e)     Wider impacts on suppliers was anticipated, with potential increases in capital contract costs;

f)      A contingency plan was required to mitigate these risks;

g)     The Council continued to work closely with its financial advisors, particularly in relation to refinancing requirements;

h)    Rising interest rates were partially offset by returns on the Council’s investments;

i)      A significant proportion of the Council’s borrowing was secured through long-term arrangements extending to 2050 and 2070;

j)      Short-term borrowing presented the greatest exposure to increased interest rates.

In response to questions, it was discussed that:

k)     The requirement to refinance £47 million of debt had previously been raised at the Audit and Governance Committee;

l)      In relation to the combined impact of rising interest rates and capital project costs, it was noted that markets can stabilise during periods of volatility:

i.       For example, crude oil prices rose to $110 per barrel before returning to $90 within 24 hours;

ii.      The Council maintains close engagement with its advisors on interest rates and debt management;

iii.    Advisors are providing daily updates on market conditions;

m)   Refinancing decisions involved balancing risk and opportunity, with ongoing assessment of market conditions to determine optimal timing;

n)    In considering the transition from short-term to long-term debt, the Council aimed to secure favourable terms, with larger capital projects typically financed over longer periods.

The Panel agreed to note the Risk Register.

This report was taken as read. In response to questions, the Board discussed:

a)     Future meetings of the Scrutiny Management Board would receive a roadmap of key decisions expected over the following 12 months;

b)    The Parking Services annual review was raised, noting that the decision had already been taken earlier in the week. Due to the timing of Scrutiny Management Board meetings, there had been no opportunity to consider whether the decision warranted further scrutiny;

c)     It was noted that other issues had similarly fallen between Scrutiny Management Board meetings over the preceding 12 months;

d)    The proposed roadmap was intended to support forward planning of agendas and topics for the Scrutiny Management Board.

The Board agreed to note the report.

To receive updates from individual Chairs of their respective Scrutiny Committees and associated work programmes.

The Board agreed to note the verbal updates from Panel Chairs.

For discussion of items on the Scrutiny Management Board’s Work Programme.

The Board agreed to review the Work Programme at the next Scrutiny Management Board, due to this meeting being the last meeting of the year.

The Board agreed to note the progress of the Action Log.