Agenda and draft minutes

Following the meeting apologies for absence were received from Councillor Bell, Opposition Group Leader.

There were no disclosures of interest.

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 July 2024 to be submitted and signed.

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 July 2024 were submitted and signed.

The Cabinet may wish to consider whether there are any items on which there is general agreement which could be considered now, to enable discussion to focus on those items where the Cabinet sees a need for further debate.

The Mayor advised that he intended to go through the agenda as published.

Report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services

Cabinet received a report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services, which included a draft AI policy for adoption.

The Mayor invited Councillor Rodrigues to introduce the report.

Councillor Rodrigues stated that AI was increasingly being used and there were more examples of councils using this technology.  The council had identified the potential for it to be used to assist with financial savings whilst maintaining or improving our services for customers.  He noted that AI was largely unregulated.  There was a necessity to manage risks. 

Councillor Rodrigues said that he presented Cabinet with the first ever Watford Borough Council AI policy, which introduced AI and set out a framework to ensure a consistent and safe approach to the utilisation of AI whilst still allowing innovation.  The council would also ensure officers had the skills to know how to use it.  The technology was advancing rapidly and therefore it was proposed to review the policy every six months, ensuring it was still fit for purpose.

The Mayor thanked Councillor Rodrigues and commented that he was aware this was a live issue for councils.  He understood it would be part of many discussions at the LGA Conference next month.  He asked whether many other councils had an AI policy.

The Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services responded that some councils had a policy but not all.  He and colleagues had attended conferences on the subject, which had helped them understand how others managed the use of AI.  The team had also looked at other polices in its development as well as basing it on their own experience in introducing it in the Customer Service Centre.  In response to a further question from the Mayor, he explained that a formal review would be carried out every six months or sooner if it was felt necessary and the technology advanced.

The Mayor invited Cabinet to vote on the recommendations contained in the report.

Resolved –

1.         that the AI policy be approved.

2.         that the approach in relation to AI training and skills enhancement for colleagues be noted.

Report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services, Delivery Support Lead, Intelligence, Performance and Improvement Lead and Community Commissioning Lead

Cabinet received a report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services,Delivery Support Lead, Intelligence, Performance and Improvement Lead and Community Commissioning Lead, which provided an update on the progress over the first quarter of 2024/25.

The Mayor welcomed the report and commented on some of the highlights, including the car club, the Watford business pledge, Whippendell Road Parade improvements and the public toilet and Changing Places toilet at Woodside.  He noted the reduction in shop thefts, through the joint working of council officers and the Police.  He added that during this quarter the general election had taken place, and he thanked all officers who had been involved. 

The Mayor invited the Chief Executive to speak about the report. 

The Chief Executive said that the Mayor had highlighted many of the achievements during the quarter.  She also thanked officers for all their work in the achievements reported despite also having to ensure the general election could proceed smoothly and be delivered.

The Mayor noted the report would next be presented to Overview and Scrutiny Committee. 

Councillor Rodrigues thanked the Associate Director for the substantial report and asked that his thanks were passed on to the team.  He noted the number of performance indicators that had met their target and those that were outside.  He commented that those covered by his portfolio were generally good, except for the Customer Service Centre response rates which were below target.  However, this had been due to sickness, resignations and scheduled leave.  Since then additional recruitment had taken place which should allow an improvement by the third quarter of this year.

Councillor Rodrigues then asked if officers could explain how the car club numbers were monitored and how successful the Market Lates was in May.

In response to a question about car club monitoring, Councillor Stotesbury explained that both he and the Mayor received regular reports from Enterprise.  Initially there had been a soft launch for the scheme but as more bays were released there would be further publicity.  The schemes usage would continue to be monitored.

Councillor Williams reported that the Market Lates event in May had been the most successful to date.  The event held on the 2 August had not been as successful, but this was during the summer period and was something to consider in the future.  The next Market Lates was due to take place on 1 November; this one was usually popular as it had a Halloween theme.

The Associate Director confirmed that over 800 people had attended the Market Lates event on 3 May and it had been the most popular ever.

Councillor Dychton said that she wished to highlight the groups involved in the Voluntary Sector Commissioning Framework.  It had been amazing to see the numbers at the event.  These groups were able to support so many residents.  She thanked the officers and the local partners for their work. 

Councillor Stotesbury also commented on the amount of engagement with organisations.  Recently there had been the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.

Report of the Delivery Support Lead

Cabinet received a report of the Delivery Support Lead, which contained the Corporate Risk Register. 

The Mayor invited Councillor Rodrigues to introduce the report.

Councillor Rodrigues informed members that the council maintained a Corporate Risk Register that would be presented to Cabinet quarterly.  He advised that councils needed to ensure they proactively mitigated issues.  The Risk Register was a comprehensive record.  He noted some of the risks on the register including, the delivery of major projects, affordable housing and cyber-crime.  He finished by explaining that the report would be presented to Audit Committee at its next meeting.

The Mayor was pleased that the report was now coming to Cabinet, as recommended by the LGA’s Corporate Peer Challenge team.  He asked how members could feed into the risk register. For example, if they felt something had not been included.

The Associate Director responded that by bringing it to Cabinet it enabled members to see it.   If members had any concerns, they could contact him to discuss further.  He advised that, along with the Chief Finance Officer, he would be reviewing the register and could build in a mechanism for members’ feedback.

Councillor Pattinson referred to the cyber-security risk and noted that the level of risk was the same following any mitigation as at the beginning.  She questioned whether the mitigation was carrying out the role it should.

The Associate Director explained that risks could go up and down.  For example, the cyber security risk could go down as new technology was installed but increased as new cyber risks emerged.  He advised that he would consider her comments as part of the review. 

Councillor Pattinson suggested that an additional column may be useful, for example ‘residual risk’.

The Mayor thanked officers for the report which had been timely as they were about to start its review.  He asked Cabinet to vote on the recommendations in the report. 

Resolved –

1.         that the Corporate Risk Register in Appendix A has been reviewed and is noted.

2.         that Cabinet notes all risks are aligned with the four categories of risk identified in the corporate Risk Management Strategy as recommended in the Risk Management Audit report dated December 2023. The categories are Reputational, Operational & Policy Delivery, Financial and Legal & Regulatory Compliance, noting that some risks could be in one or more categories.

3.         that the proposed amendments to the Corporate Risk Register have been reviewed and are approved.

Report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services

Cabinet received a report of the Associate Director of Customer and Corporate Services and Monitoring Officer, which set out detail of a replacement Director as he was stepping down from the position.

The Mayor noted the Associate Director had taken on the role of Monitoring Officer and therefore was stepping down as a Director.  The report proposed the appointment of Paul Brooks, the Head of Property.  He thanked the Associate Director for all his work as a Director of Watford Commercial Services.

The Mayor invited Cabinet to vote on the recommendation to Council.

Resolved –

That Paul Brooks, Head of Property, be appointed as a Director of the Board of Watford Commercial Services.