To confirm the Minutes of the meeting held on 4 May 2010.

The following points were noted:

Minute No 33/10

(24/10) A presentation had been given to the Green Panel and more work was being done to establish the benefits of ISO14001.  A presentation would be made to Exec Board with options.

(29/10) The report had been delayed due to leave commitments.  Advice on business priorities was sought to help assess priorities for project progress.

Members were concerned that the Licensing project was still on-going. Data entry/cleansing had been extended due to staff resourcing issues however the recruitment of additional temporary staff would help to bring the project back on target.  The project was already delivering operational benefits such as reducing the need for storage space and providing a much needed review of the licensing process.  The project also had potential to be a marketable asset when fully completed.

With the removal of the CAA the Policy and Performance Manager said that his team had some spare capacity to take on additional performance functions, but he needed to understand the BIT programme and its delivery aspirations.

The Chairman requested a detailed report on the Licensing project for the next meeting.<1>

The imminent introduction of a new VM ware environment should deliver performance improvements for LAGAN system users.  This tied in with a review of the Dereham/Thetford link and the placement of key applications which should also deliver noticeable benefits for LAGAN users. 

Members were concerned about the lack of a long term back-up power supply for Dereham and resolved to:

RECOMMEND TO CABINET that an on-site back-up generator be provided to safeguard business continuity at Dereham.

Minute No 40/10

More information about the cost of the Digi TV connector from Civica was requested for the next meeting.<2>

A Member was concerned that recent changes in Government might affect future funding in support of housing initiatives, this was to be confirmed.

The minutes of the meeting held on 4 May 2010 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any apologies for absence. 

Apologies for absence had been received from Margaret Bailey and Kevin Rump.

To note whether the Chairman proposes to accept any item as urgent business, pursuant to Section 100(B)(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

None.

Members are asked at this stage to declare any interests they may have in any of the following items on the agenda. The Members’ Code of Conduct requires that declarations include the nature of the interest and whether it is a personal or prejudicial interest.

No declarations were made.

To note the names of any non-members who wish to address the meeting.

Mr P Duigan was in attendance.

Report of a Director.

The Customer Services Manager advised Members that the Strategy had been re-drafted and refined to three objectives with time-lines.  It was currently with the Chief Executive for comment and would be presented to the next meeting.

The ‘Tell Us Once’ project was moving ahead and a meeting would be held on 17 June to decide the way forward.  The Government would be providing the software for the project and an implementation Manager, free of charge.

A report was going to Exec Board on 8 June concerning ‘intellectual property’ and copyright.  The use of the © mark on Council scripts, etc would be investigated.

Report of a Director.

Copies of the Policy were tabled by the Head of ICT, who advised Members that minor changes had been made to the Policy as previously discussed.

One addition was needed to make specific reference to the Social Media Policy prior to submission to a future Local Joint Consultative Committee.

Discussions with other authorities regarding potential ICT partnership arrangements were on-going.  It was suggested that NCC Broadband services to the schools had capacity to be shared with public sector users.  There was also currently a pilot scheme being run by NCC on wi-fi provision.

The Head of ICT informed Members that NCC had an e-learning package for on-line courses which could be accessed at a reduced cost and that network sharing proposals would open up communication channels to other Partners in Norfolk, avoiding significant costs and providing additional resilience.

A Business Case would need to be prepared to identify where cost savings and benefits could be found.  The Chairman warned that cuts were coming and efficiencies needed to be identified.  He asked for a report for the next meeting.<2>

The following changes to the wording of the Strategy were agreed:

§                     Paragraph 3.1.3 (first bullet point) - replace regularly with continually

§                     Paragraph 5.1.3 (penultimate sentence) – add …will be invoked and could result in dismissal.

§                     Paragraph 6.1 (third paragraph) – after Steria add and ICT Manager.

§                     Paragraph 6.4 (first paragraph) – after ICT Manager add or ICT Deputy.

Other minor typing errors were noted.  The Head of ICT said that he would make the changes and re-issue to Policy in advance of the next meeting.

Members asked for clarification of the use of equipment for party political activities (Paragraph 7, second bullet point).  The Chairman asked for the wording to be checked by the Legal Department.<1>

None received.

None.

Verbal update by the Head of ICT.

Members had been invited to attend training days offering a range of date and time options, however attendance had been less than 20% which was disappointing.

Update on all live projects by the ICT Project Manager.

The Head of ICT advised that about 15 key projects were currently live.

The Chairman said that it was useful to have a list showing active projects and others that were proposed.  He wanted to limit the number being actioned to ensure delivery.  The list should also be circulated to the Finance department so that they were kept advised of which projects were active and what was being budgeted for.

The Finance representative noted that capital projects were now linked to the TEN performance system. 

Good progress was being made on switching voice and broadband contracts, with expected savings of up to £25,000 per annum.

Future changes expected for Building Services.

The Head of ICT reported that due to changes to Building Regulations the Ocella system needed to be upgraded.  As this was a result of a change in legislation, the cost of the upgrade may fall to the Council.

The upgrade would be discussed at the Contracts Monitoring Group to be agreed as a project which would be subject to standard governance / application request processes.

Note:  There was currently no budget provision allocated for this.

Update by the Senior Business Improvement Officer.

This item had been discussed at Minute No 46/10 above.

Update by the head of ICT / Steria.

The update from Steria was tabled.

The report was noted.

Verbal report by Head of ICT.

This item would be kept on the Agenda as a Standing Item whilst other opportunities for shared services were investigated.

Members wished to note their disappointment at the failure of the South Norfolk shared service proposals and to encourage officers to seek savings elsewhere including further dialogue with Forest Heath.

It was recognised that delivering savings and efficiencies would be a priority for the foreseeable future.  It was likely that funds allocated to projects with a weak business case would be recovered and reapplied to projects with stronger financial justification.  This would assist the Council in its internal transformation programme, with ICT/BIT playing a lead role in assessment, governance and delivery of key projects and monitoring the realisation of benefits highlighted through the TENS system and managed by the Performance Team.

Update by the Senior Accountant Capital and Treasury.

The Finance representative tabled the latest Finance Performance Report.

The report was noted.

To note arrangements for the next meeting to be held on Tuesday 6 July 2010 in the Norfolk Room, Conference Suite, Elizabeth House, Dereham.

The arrangements for the next meeting were noted.