Agenda item

The Property Development Manager will provide an update and progress report on the production of the Asset Management Plan.

The Council’s Property Development Manager gave a presentation on the Asset Management Plan. He explained the plan was a suite of documents and gave a summary of their respective contents:

·         Property Strategy

-       Why the Council has assets

-       What the assets are

-       Vision and objective – previously there had been no vision about how the Council’s assets should be working

-       Policy framework

·         Property Organisational Framework

-       Overview of the council’s approach to asset management planning

-       Strategic fit with corporate business planning

-       Key roles and responsibilities

-       Asset management organisational arrangements – internal structure/governance

-       Corporate decision-making

-       Consultation and engagement

-       Challenge and review process

-       Data and its management

-       Property asset management practices and procedures

Mr Cucksey highlighted externally focused work based on ‘Leaner and Greener II: Putting Buildings to Work’, emphasising efficient operation to meet economic and environmental challenges while improving service delivery, working in partnership to determine locally appropriate delivery models and running successful property partnerships.

The Property Services Manager also suggested provision should be included for a Local Strategic Property Forum and a Pooled Property Partnership Board.

·         Property Performance Management Framework and Reports

-       Outline of performance management framework

-       Rationale for performance indicators and process used to adopt performance indicators

-       Property Performance Management Framework

-       Analysis of performance

-       Headline performance

-       Key activities and projects

-       Monitoring and review arrangements

·         Property Asset Management Plan

-       What the assets are

-       What is expected of them

-       How the assets are performing

-       Performance shortfalls – issues

-       Reasons for performance shortfalls

-       Priorities for intervention

-       Resources analysis

-       Action plan

-       Monitoring and review arrangements

Delivery models for consideration:

·           Strategic joint venture partnership for property rationalisation – by developing an incentivised strategic joint venture property partnership, public sector organisations could achieve better results from a wider skill set whilst deferring the costs incurred until the point at which real savings were being delivered.

·           Local Asset Backed Regeneration Vehicle – Assets could provide an equity stake in a Local Asset Backed Regeneration Vehicle or Joint Venture to realise a revenue return on the asset value until such times as the market conditions were right to achieve the best consideration reasonably obtainable from disposal.

The Localism Bill required councils to produce a register of Assets of Community Value. A second register would be kept listing those assets for which applications were submitted but they were not added to the register. These provisions gave communities a right to identify a building or other land they believe to be importance to their community’s social well-being. If the asset came up for sale, they would be given a fair chance to make a bid to buy it on the open market. Provisions would not restrict the owner of a listed asset, nor did they confer a right of first refusal to community interest groups.

Summary:

·         Documents needed updating to reflect current roles, responsibilities and governance structures.

·         The council needed to define a vision to which it was committed and identify suitable vehicles to deliver that vision.

·         External governance arrangements for the whole public estate were required.

Brief discussion ensued around partnership use of key assets. Members felt arrangements worked particularly well when a range of community and voluntary sector organisations were based in the same venue.

Action Point:

PDG members were asked to feedback comments to the Property Development Manager by Friday 17 February 2012.