Agenda and minutes

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 25 June 2025.

The minutes of the meeting held on 25 June 2025 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

To disclose any pecuniary, other registrable or non-registrable interest as set out in the adopted Code of Conduct. In making their disclosure councillors are asked to state the agenda item, the nature of the interest and any action they propose to take as part of their declaration.

If required, further advice should be sought from the Monitoring Officer in advance of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest.

Representatives of town or parish councils and members of the public who live, work, or represent an organisation within the Dorset Council area are welcome to submit either 1 question or 1 statement for each meeting.  You are welcome to attend the meeting in person or via MS Teams to read out your question and to receive the response.   If you submit a statement for the committee this will be circulated to all members of the committee in advance of the meeting as a supplement to the agenda and appended to the minutes for the formal record but will not be read out at the meeting. The first 8 questions and the first 8 statements received from members of the public or organisations for each meeting will be accepted on a first come first served basis in accordance with the deadline set out below.  Further information read Public Participation - Dorset Council

All submissions must be emailed in full to [email protected] by 8.30am on 1 October 2025.

When submitting your question or statement please note that: 

• You can submit 1 question or 1 statement.
• a question may include a short pre-amble to set the context.
• It must be a single question and any sub-divided questions will not be permitted.
• Each question will consist of no more than 450 words, and you will be given up to 3 minutes to present your question.
• when submitting a question please indicate who the question is for (e.g., the name of the committee or Portfolio Holder) 
• Include your name, address, and contact details.  Only your name will be published but we may need your other details to contact you about your question or statement in advance of the meeting. 
• questions and statements received in line with the council’s rules for public participation will be published as a supplement to the agenda. 
• all questions, statements and responses will be published in full within the minutes of the meeting.

There were no questions or statements from members of the public or local organisations.

To receive questions submitted by councillors.  

Councillors can submit up to two valid questions at each meeting and sub divided questions count towards this total.   Questions and statements received will be published as a supplement to the agenda and all questions, statements and responses will be published in full within the minutes of the meeting. 

The submissions must be emailed in full to [email protected]  by 8.30am on 1 October 2025.

Dorset Council Constitution – Procedure Rule 13

There were no questions from councillors.

To consider the Forward Plan.

The forward plan was noted.

To consider a report of the Interim Corporate Director for Commissioning and Improvement.

The shareholder committee considered a report of the Corporate Director, Commissioning and Improvement, which presented the developments on the part of the Council, relevant to Care Dorset, and summarised significant developments since the last meeting of the shareholder committee.

In presenting the report, particular reference was made to supported living, including work with Care Dorset to develop a second move-on service in Weymouth and a review of two other supported living settings. Updates were also provided on progress with reablement and the current financial position, which included a targeted saving of £500,000 for the current financial year, expected from improved operational efficiency within day services. In addition, it was reported that the consultation around day services had now concluded, and thanks were given to Care Dorset for their support. Revised proposals would be considered by Cabinet in December.

Councillors considered the issues covered in the report and discussion was focused on the following areas:

·       In response to a question relating to the £500,000 savings target and the potential impact of this, the Managing Director, Care Dorset provided an overview of savings already made and noted ongoing work required

·       The Cabinet member for Adult Social Care recognised the good progress that had been made by Care Dorset and, in addition, noted that he had visited a supported living setting in Weymouth and had the opportunity to meet the young people and the staff team whom he commended. He also highlighted that he would be speaking at a Future Care event shortly

·       In respect of the report to be presented to Cabinet following the consultation on day services, the Chair asked that information on supporting integrated neighbourhood teams be included

·       Further information was provided on the reablement app produced through the Future Care programme, which Care Dorset had been trialling.

The report was NOTED.

To consider a report of the Managing Director, Care Dorset.

The shareholder committee considered a report, which provided an update on matters relating to Care Dorset since the previous meeting. This included Care Dorset’s financial and operational performance, workforce trends, governance and strategic priorities.

In presenting the report, the Chair of the Board provided an update on corporate governance matters and reported that a non-executive director, Dr Felix Davies, had been appointed to the board to provide clinical leadership.

The Managing Director provided an overview of issues covered in the report and in particular made reference to paragraph 1.2 of the report, with progress having been made with the occupation agreement and discussion with Dorset Council officers having taken place. In addition, reference was made to workforce and work placement development, including progress made in respect of sickness levels, an overview of financial performance, progress made across all areas in the business plan and external recognition.

Councillors considered the issues arising from the report and points were noted in the following areas:

·       In response to a question, information was provided about the role of the neutral agency vendor and how this could drive improvements in cost in this area. The neutral vendor also provided an oversight dashboard, which would enable trend analysis to be undertaken

·       Regarding the projected year-end financial position, it was noted that some re-forecasting work was to be undertaken but that it was hoped that the company would be in a break-even position by the end of the financial year. Further information could be provided following the meeting

·       If a break-even position was not achieved, there would be a pressure on the shareholder, therefore further understanding of this was required

·       In response to questions relating to property related matters, it was reported that work to the boilers referenced in the report had been undertaken with some parts awaited to improve efficiency of the boilers. In addition, work on fire doors at day centres was currently on hold, with discussions having taken place with property colleagues and mitigating risk assessments put in place

·       A working capital loan arrangement was in place with the council’s finance team and included criteria for when money was drawn down, with agreed interest arrangements for repayment in place

·       In respect of outstanding property matters (set out at paragraphs 1.1 and 1.3 of the report) and whether action was required from the shareholder committee, the Managing Director noted that there was no requirement for action currently. There was confidence that the conversations taking place were addressing the issues and thanks were expressed to council officers

·       An update was provided in respect of occupancy levels in different settings, which were comparable with other similar organisations

·       In response to a question, it was noted that there was a year-to-date budget deficit variance of £270k which was based on the revised budget forecast position. This included a 40% reduction in the cost of agency, which was on target to be achieved by 30 September 2025.

The report was NOTED.

To consider any items of business which the Chair has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) (b) of the Local Government Act 1972. The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes.

There were no urgent items.

To move the exclusion of the press and the public for the following item in view of the likely disclosure of exempt information within the meaning of paragraph x of schedule 12 A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended). The public and the press will be asked to leave the meeting whilst the item of business is considered.  

There are no exempt items scheduled for this meeting.

There was no exempt business.