Agenda item
Register of Significant Partnerships - Annual Assurance Review 2023
Report of the City Treasurer attached
Minutes:
The Committee considered the report of the City Treasurer that provided an overview and outcome of the assurance process which had taken place as part of the annual review of the Register of Significant Partnerships(RSP) for 2023.
The purpose of the RSP annual review was to assess whether the partnership arrangements that the Council is a party to were performing well, delivering value for money, have strong and effective governance structures, effectively mitigating risk and realising the benefits that they were established to achieve.
The detail contained in the report focused on a number of key areas:
- Any new partnerships which have been added to the register;
- Entries recommended to be removed;
- Any partnerships where the assurance rating has increased to ‘Substantial’ since the last review; and
- Any partnerships now classed as ‘Reasonable’ or ‘Limited’ strength following completion of the latest self-assessment.
All partnerships not currently rated as ‘Substantial’ assurance would be subject to a six-month reassessment. This would take place in September 2024. The outcome of the six-month review would be reported to Audit Committee in November 2024.
The Chair invited the Executive Director of Adult Social Services to address the Committee in relation to Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust (GMMH). She advised that NHS England had commissioned an Independent Review of mental health services provided by GMMHT. The Review was chaired by Professor Oliver Shanley and the findings of this review and subsequent Improvement Plan had been reported to the Health Scrutiny Committee at their meeting of 26 June 2024. The new Chief Executive had attended that meeting and addressed questions raised by Members. She added that additional resources had been deployed to support the Trust and stated that staff recruitment and retention, in addition to an increasing demand on services continued to present a challenge to the Trust and on that basis agreed that it was appropriate that the limited assurance rating remained in place whilst the model was being strengthened and improvements were being driven. She gave assurance that herself and the Executive Member for Healthy Manchester and Adult Social Care remained fully briefed on the situation at GMMH.
The Assistant Director (Assurance & Risk) addressed the issues raised by Committee Members in relation to the AVRO Hollows Tenant Management Organisation (AHTMO). He explained that the Assistant Director (Strategic Housing) could not attend the meeting due to an annual leave commitment and had therefore submitted his apologies for this meeting. He provided an historical context to the organisation and described the challenges that surrounded this. He said that a Special Review of the AHTMO has been undertaken by an Independent Reviewer who had made a total of 77 recommendations for the TMO and the Council. The TMO had received the report, and a meeting was recently held with the Board to discuss the Improvement Plan. He stated that the Council had a duty to offer support and guidance to the TMO in recognition that they are residents and volunteers and outlined the challenges and expectations this presented in terms of collaboration, adding that both he and the Assistant Director of Housing met with the Board monthly with a view to progressing the required improvements in the required timeframes. He gave assurance that the Council retained the responsibility for the physical assets (i.e. the buildings, including the fire risk assessment and any remedial work of the external cladding). However greater clarity and assurance was needed around fire management processes. He added that the Board were subject to an annual ballot of the residents, and any tenant could put themselves forward to sit on the Board at the Annual General Meeting. Whilst a ballot had taken place relatively recently, concerns remained regarding the Board’s understanding of their legal duties and associated aspects of governance arrangements. He said that ultimately there was a legal route that the Council could instigate to bring management back into Council control. He also confirmed that local ward Councillors were informed of relevant discussions in relation to these properties, referring to improvements to rendering and the significant capital investment that had been delivered to improve the properties.
The Committee was mindful of the length of time its recommendations had remained outstanding on this matter and held the view that no meaningful progress had been made since it was last considered. Questions were asked about the extent to which the Board was representative of its residents and it’s capability to respond to incoming legislative requirements for social housing entities resulting in increased demands to uphold governance arrangements. Emphasis was given to the Council remaining ultimately responsible in the eyes of the regulator for housing standards for its residents meaning that a strong level of assurance was crucial to its success.
The Chair recommended that a report on GMMHT and AVRO Hollows Tenant Management Organisation be submitted to the November meeting of Audit Committee. The Committee agreed to this.
In response to a question raised by the Chair in relation to the National Football Museum and repairs, the Head of Commercial Governance, Assurance and Initiatives stated that the report referred to the organisational effectiveness of entities that formed part of the Register of Significant Partnerships and that the issue of maintenance did not form part of this reporting, however appropriate enquires would be made around maintenance arrangements.
In relation to Victoria North (Northern Gateway Operations) established issues were referred to relation to the internal governance structure of FEC (Far East Consortium). The Housing Investment Manager, Major Regeneration acknowledged the reported historical issues and the steps taken to address these. He said that it was envisaged that once the action plan had been implemented, the entry would return to an ‘substantial’ assurance rating on the Register. He gave assurance that a number of documents and reports had been provided to the Internal Audit Team which showed that the actions were already underway, and that progress was being made in a number of areas, adding that FEC had also confirmed their support in implementing the action plan. In view of its remit, it was noted that an update on those matters would be reported to a meeting of the Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee at an appropriate time.
Decision
- To note the report.
- To agree that a further update on
matters pertaining to the Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust
shall be submitted to the November 2024 meeting of Audit Committee,
with an invitation extended to the relevant Service Director and
Executive Member.
- To agree that a further update on matters pertaining to the AVRO Hollows Tenant Management Organisation shall be submitted to the November 2024 meeting of Audit Committee with an invitation extended to the relevant Service Director and Executive Member.
[Dr Downs declared a personal interest in this item of business as his partner is an employee of Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust]
Supporting documents:
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Register of Significant Partnerships, item 23.
PDF 144 KB
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Appendix - 2023 Register of Significant Partnerships, item 23.
PDF 142 KB