Issue - meetings

Purpose of report

To review and consider adopting the Corporate Asset Management Strategy 2025-2030, whilst ensuring the strategy was in accordance with SKDC current priorities and objectives.

Decision

Cabinet approve the adoption of the updated Corporate Asset Management Strategy 2025-2030.

Alternative options considered and rejected

Consideration had been given to not updating the existing strategy and relying on the existing outdated Asset Management Strategy 2022-2027. This option was considered inappropriate, as the existing Strategy outlined need for a mid-term review and there had been significant change since the Strategy’s initial implementation. This may also have resulted in a missed opportunity to support the delivery of the Council’s Corporate Plan.

Manage the portfolio on a purely responsive basis – this was not pursued as this tended to be more costly than a strategic approach to management of the portfolio and could have impacted on the delivery of services.

Reasons for the decision

This was a medium-term strategy to manage corporate property within the GF set within the context of the Corporate Plan.

There were 11 key actions within the Strategy:

1.    Service Planning and Asset Appraisal

2.    Asset Information

3.    Compliance

4.    Maintenance and Investment

5.    Current Major Projects

6.    Regeneration

7.    Equalities

8.    Investment Portfolio

9.    Working with Partners

10.Energy Efficiency

11.Value for Money

The Strategy had been submitted to Finance and Economic Overview and Scrutiny Committee who had recommended no edits to the Strategy.

Much importance was attached to properly maintaining assets. The Council invested in a new Asset Management System approximately two years ago. The Strategy was clear that the Council was trying to plan rather than reactively spend. This was difficult due to many years of backlog, but it was slowly being turned around.

Condition surveys drove investment plans. Officers were focussing on desirable and long-term repairs [JW1] Officers looked at reactive repairs in terms of planned maintenance. If repairs were failing at a car park then investigations would take place to find out whether there was any planned maintenance. If the repair was urgent it would be dealt with there and then; the central database was updated alongside this.

A ratio of 70:30 in favour of planned maintenance was aimed for; currently it was the other way around.

There was an asset disposal strategy. Criteria were followed before investing in assets. There was a delegation in place for senior officers in consultation with the Cabinet Members for Property and Public Engagement and Finance to dispose of GF assets up to a value of £2 million.