AGENDA ITEM 10
BOROUGH OF POOLE
CABINET
14 JULY 2009
TARGETED CAPITAL FUND FOR KITCHENS AND DINING ROOMS
REPORT OF THE HEAD OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE’S SERVICES – STRATEGY, QUALITY AND IMPROVEMENT
1. PURPOSE
1.1 To inform Cabinet that the Local Authority has been allocated £281,453 from the Targeted Capital Fund for kitchens and dining rooms and to seek approval for the allocation of the funding. The matter was considered by the Children’s Services Capital Programme Board at its Meeting on 2nd July 2009.
2. DECISION REQUIRED
Cabinet is asked to approve that:
2.1 The bids from schools be funded at 100% and that the balance remaining be allocated to the hub kitchen operated by the Council’s Adult Social Care and Wellbeing Unit. The funding to be used by the unit to purchase equipment with the aim of reducing the revenue costs per meal for primary schools.
3. BACKGROUND
3.1 In December 2008 the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) invited Local Authorities to submit bids for Targeted Capital Fund grant funding to increase school lunch take-up by building or refurbishing school kitchens or improving dining and facilities.
3.2 The guidance stated that £100m funding was available but that if the total amount bid for by local authorities exceeded this sum, DCSF would give priority to plans that would have the greatest impact on future lunch take-up.
3.3 The funding is available on a matched basis with a maximum of 50% available from the Targeted Capital Fund grant.
3.4 Local Authorities were asked to make Expressions of Interest to DCSF by Christmas 2008 to indicate that they intended to submit formal bids, including the amount likely to be required and a brief summary of how this money might be spent. An Expression of Interest was submitted by the Borough of Poole.
3.5 Local Authorities were asked to submit formal bids to DCSF by the end of February. Proposals should be presented using a standard template against one or more of the following goals:
a. Improving the quality of food
b. Increasing the seating capacity of dining areas
c. Improving the dining environment
d. Decreasing queuing time
3.6 In January 2009 a letter was sent to headteachers and chairs of governors of all Poole schools inviting them to submit bids for funding by Friday 13th February. Schools were also asked to state how the 50% matched funding would be funded.
3.7 It was emphasised that schools would be expected to meet any shortfall between the estimated costs of the works and the actual costs of carrying them out and that the Council could not underwrite any overspends.
4. FUNDING BID
4.1 8 schools submitted bids. A list of bids from schools is set out at Appendix A.
4.2 It was also proposed to bid for £180,000 to increase the capacity of the hub kitchen run by Adult Social Care & Well Being (ASCWB). The matched funding would be met from the balance of £180,000 remaining in the Hot School Meals budget within the Statutory Priorities budget in the Children’s Services Capital Programme.
4.3 A bid for £557,557 was submitted to DCSF at the end of February.
5. OUTCOME OF FUNDING BID
5.1 The outcome of the bid was expected by Easter but was not released by DCSF until 2nd June. A copy of the grant letter is attached at Appendix B.
5.2 DCSF received bids from 134 LAs totalling £198m which far exceeded the £100m available funding. Therefore, Ministers decided that all LAs who bid should receive funding at a level just under 50% of what was bid for.
5.3 The allocation to Borough of Poole is £281,453.
5.4 LAs are asked to work with schools and Schools Forum to agree revised plans for the allocation of this funding. The DCSF letter advises that careful thought is given to funding projects that have the greatest impact on school lunch take-up. For example, supporting a larger number of smaller projects to widen the spread of schools benefitting may achieve greater value for money and impact in terms of take-up.
5.5 The DCSF require the grant for 2009-10 to be used by August 2010 and grant for 2010-11 to be spent by August 2011. Therefore, there is a degree of urgency in agreeing revised plans with schools and Schools Forum for submission to DCSF for approval in order for the grant to be paid over to the LA.
6. ASCWB HUB KITCHEN
6.1 The ASCWB hub kitchen is currently located on the Lodge Hill site and is attached to Montacute School. The school is one of four Poole schools in the Wave 6 Building Schools for the Future (BSF) project. Since the bid was submitted in February the BSF Team have undertaken an options appraisal on possible alternative locations for Montacute School and it is likely that the new school for Montacute will be built on another site. The future of the hub kitchen on the Lodge Hill site, therefore, is uncertain and it would not be advisable to invest significant funds into a facility that may not have a long term use.
6.2 There are a number of options that should be considered for the future location of the hub kitchen. These include incorporation within the new Montacute School or relocation to another school site. However, there is currently no funding identified to implement this.
6.3 A joint report of the Heads of Adult Social Care and Wellbeing and of Children and Young People’s Integrated Services on the provision of school meals to the meeting of Schools’ Forum held on 17th June 2009 proposed the following objectives:
· All Primary phase schools to have hot meals by April 2010
· To maximise the eligibility of FSM take up to 95% by July 2010 in all Primary phase schools
· To set a more realistic target of 20% to increase the take up of paid school meals by 2011.
6.4 The joint report also set out information on the take up of meals at Primary phase schools and the cost per meal charged by the providers of meals. Meals provided by ASCWB at £2.50 are higher than those provided by other providers. This may have an impact on the take up of meals.
6.5 In view of the uncertain future of the hub kitchen on its present site, it is proposed that consideration be given to reducing the level of funding invested in the hub kitchen and instead targeting funding at measures that would reduce the revenue costs per meal.
7. OPTIONS FOR ALLOCATION OF THE FUNDING
7.1 A number of options have been identified for how the reduced level of grant could be distributed.
7.2 Option 1: the grant allocation is distributed to schools and the hub kitchen in proportion to the reduced level of grant received.
7.3 Adopting this option could mean that:
· some projects may not be able to go ahead because insufficient funding was available
· funding would be invested in the hub kitchen at levels higher than would be advisable given the uncertainty over its future location.
7.4 Option 2: schools who bid for less than £20,000 receive the full amount requested and the balance is distributed between the remaining schools and the hub kitchen in proportion to the reduced level of grant received.
7.5 Adopting this option would mean that:
· all the smaller projects which may have a high impact for little funding would be fully funded
· some of the larger projects may not be able to go ahead because insufficient funding was available
· funding would be invested in the hub kitchen at levels higher than would be advisable given the uncertainty over its future location.
7.6 Option 3: fund the bids from schools at 100% and allocate the balance to fund measures for the hub kitchen that would reduce the revenue costs per meal.
7.7 Adopting this option would mean that:
· all the school projects would be fully funded
· investment in the hub kitchen would be targeted at measures that would reduce the revenue costs per meal and would be at a level which took account of the uncertainty over its future location.
7.8 Calculations of the revised allocations to schools and the hub kitchen for Options 1, 2 and 3 are set out in Appendix C.
8. CONSULTATION WITH SCHOOLS’ FORUM
8.1 Schools’ Forum was consulted on the three options identified above at their meeting on 17th June 2009.
8.2 The Forum approved the recommendation that Option 3 be adopted.
9. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
9.1 The outcome of the funding bid is that the LA has been allocated 50% of what it bid for.
9.2 The proposed Option 3 will result in all the schools receiving the full amount that they bid for.
9.3 The balance of £180,000 remaining in the Statutory Priorities Hot Meals budget will be used to fund the schools at 100% and a lesser amount will be available to invest in the hub kitchen.
10. LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
10.1 No specific Legal implications have been identified.
11. RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS
11.1 There is a risk that DCSF may not approve the revised plans. This is a low risk because the proposed Option 3 means that all the school projects can go ahead as planned. The proposed change for the hub kitchen is made in the light of the BSF programme and therefore fits better with the LA’s strategic priorities.
11.2 There is a risk that the funding available may be insufficient to deliver the individual school projects. This is a low risk for the Council because it has been emphasised to schools that they would be expected to meet any shortfall between the estimated costs of the works and the actual costs of carrying them out and that the Council could not underwrite any overspends.
12. EQUALITIES IMPLICATIONS
12.1 The proposed Option 3 means that all the projects put forward by schools will be able to go ahead as originally planned. All these projects are intended to increase the take up of school meals in Primary and Secondary phase schools. This will be to the benefit of all pupils.
13. CONCLUSION
13.1 The capital funding allocated to Poole from the Targeted Capital Fund for School Kitchens and Dining Facilities, when combined with contributions from schools, will assist the schools who bid for funding to increase the take up of school meals through the provision and improvement of kitchen and dining areas. It can also be used to invest in measures to reduce the costs of meals provided by the hub kitchen which would result in increased take up of school meals.
13.2 It is recommended that Option 3 be adopted for the allocation of the grant.
Stuart Twiss
Head of Children and Young People’s Services – Strategy, Quality and Improvement
Contact officers:
Nicola Keynes
Senior Education Officer (Planning and Development)
01202 633691
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