Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Contact: Jodie Kloss/Alan Garside  Email: legalanddemocratic@watford.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

27.

Apologies for Absence/ Committee membership

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence. 

 

28.

Disclosures of interest

Minutes:

There were no disclosures of interest.

29.

Minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 January 2018 to be submitted and signed.

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 January 2017 were submitted and signed.

 

30.

Revenues and Benefits Service pdf icon PDF 241 KB

The panel will receive a presentation of the Head of Revenues and Benefits providing an overview of the service.

Minutes:

Revenues and Benefits Service

 

The panel received a presentation of the Head of Revenues and Benefits providing an overview of the service.  The Head of Revenues and Benefits introduced the presentation.  She thanked the committee for inviting Revenue and Benefits staff to the meeting and explained that there had been a lot of developments in the service over the past number of years.  She briefly outlined her background and invited questions from members during the presentation.

 

The Head of Revenues and Benefits began by discussing the collection of council tax and business rates and the amounts collected by the Council annually.  In response to a question from the Chair, the Revenues Manager outlined the structure of the teams responsible for collecting monies. 

 

The Head of Revenues and Benefits continued by discussing procedures in relation to the recovery of Housing Benefit overpayments.  In response to questions from members, the officers clarified that the overpayment figure comprised outstanding monies over a number of years and did not relate simply to the current year.  They explained how amounts were calculated, how these were recorded and how these could vary over time as claimant’s circumstances changed.  They outlined the wide range of activities undertaken by tracing and enforcement agencies to recover monies before all avenues were exhausted; and the process for writing off housing benefit overpayment debt.   The Head of Revenues and Benefits undertook to provide the panel with a breakdown by year of the number of overpayments and how these compared to the other Hertfordshire authorities.

 

The Head of Revenues and Benefits went on to explain how monies could be claimed from the government for Housing Benefit overpayments; potentially resulting in additional funds for the authority.  Councillor Watkin advised that recovery rates for the Council were high and amounted to net income provision.  He complemented the Revenue and Benefits service in this regard.

 

In response to questions from members, the Revenues Manager clarified that bailiff fees were only payable with regard to the enforcement of Council Tax and Business Rates and not in respect of sundry and housing debts. He explained how this had been catered for in the various contracts and undertook to provide the panel with the levels of bailiff fees and how these compared to the other Hertfordshire councils.

 

Members discussed the total amount of outstanding Housing Benefit overpayment and the Head of Revenues and Benefits undertook to provide the panel with a break down by year since 2009. 

 

Discussions then turned to the issue of sundry debtors and the officers outlined the various debts that comprised the category.  They explained how monies could be paid quite quickly and how the overall figure presented was a singular snapshot in time.  Councillor Watkin confirmed that this figure could be a little misleading.

 

The Head of Revenues and Benefits discussed procedures for the processing of Housing Benefit, the numbers processed and how these would be reduced with the introduction of Universal Credit.  In response to members’ questions, she reassured the panel that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.

31.

End of Quarter 3 2017 /18 Key Performance Indicator (KPI) Report

A report of the Head of Corporate Strategy and Communications providing the panel with performance indicators for Quarter 3 2017/18.

 

This report is to follow.

Minutes:

The item was withdrawn.                                                                         

 

                                                                        

                                                                        

                                                                 

                                                                 Chair

                                                                        Outsourced Services Scrutiny Panel

             

 

 

The meeting started at 7.00 p.m.

and finished at 8.30 p.m.

 

rating button