02 04 Report template and further guidance It is the responsibility of the report author to ensure that all relevant information

is included in reports, and that all necessary consultation is undertaken with officers both within and external to the department initiating the report. Report authors are responsible for ensuring that early and comprehensive consultation is carried out and for any delays that ensue when this is not the case. Members need all relevant information before them in an easily comprehensible form, so as to enable them to take decisions in an informed manner. Democratic Services & Scrutiny staff will write about six weeks before a meeting to Strategic Directors to advise on the expected reports for a meeting. Officer clearance Doc 02 05 sets out officer clearances required for different categories of reports. Plan now who will need to contribute to your report officers inside your division, across your department and in other departments, and decide how to co-ordinate all their contributions. Rather than email a draft, perhaps an officer meeting might be required. If the report concerns a corporate policy issue (such as performance, crime or equalities), it should be developed by a Governance Board, Operations Board or the Strategic Board. You need to allow five working days for comments on the draft report. You cannot deem clear (i.e. take silence as consent) Cabinet Member, legal or finance clearance Allow as long as possible for your colleagues to draft their comments. Report clearance processes vary from Department to Department; either the committee continuity officer (CCO), or report author. As contributors provide their comments, they should also inform you of any background documents that need to be added to the list. Background documents include the results of consultation. Member clearance Doc 02 05 sets out Member clearances required for different categories of reports. Cabinet and Officer Decision reports: For Cabinet, Cabinet Member, and officer delegated decisions the reports will be published on Officer Decisions, the Cabinet Member should be kept informed and involved as the report progresses. This is best done via the Cabinet Member Briefing meeting. You need to obtain the Cabinet Members clearance (which should ideally be at the same time as seeking clearance from finance, legal services and democratic services) before submitting the final cleared report. Copy the email to the Cabinet Member to the Head of Leaders Office, and relevant policy officer (who will be able to assist in obtaining the clearance of the Cabinet Member and act as a point of contact for you). Include the date of clearance in the audit trail. Ward Councillors: Ward Councillors should be consulted on local proposals specifically affecting their ward (this does not mean that borough wide issues require consultation with all Councillors). Ward Councillors have the right to be briefed and kept informed of local ward issues, and this is one part of that requirement. The timing of this consultation is a matter of discretion -

for instance it is pointless consulting on an initiative that cannot proceed because of financial reasons, but usually the earlier the consultation is carried out, the better. Such consultation could be by way of a copy of the draft report, a briefing note or a meeting. The report template includes simple advice on what to include and the following supplements that advice. Template: Title: must be short (for clarity, but some software in use will not allow headings longer than 100 characters). Name the Ward(s) affected. State All Wards if that is the case. Report summary: A short paragraph of 120 to 150 words (10 to 12 lines) telling the reader in general terms what the report is about including what is recommended, why and what will happen. Tweets Democratic Services tweet (@lbldemocracy) from all decision making meetings of the Council: Cabinet, Corporate Committee, Council, Planning Applications and Licensing (the tweet includes a link to the published report itself). In the summary section summarise your report in 125 characters cover what you are seeking. Here are some examples: Future Brixton: Somerleyton Road Project Somerleyton Road project report seeking to agree procurement of development partner and note the delivery costs Corporate Parenting Board Annual Report 2012-13 Annual report of Corporate Parenting Board, detailing positives outcomes and endorses the Lambeth Pledge to looked after children Statement of Accounts Draft Statement of accounts for the Council to be reviewed by cllrs prior to its audit and then final submission in Sept 2013 Peabody Estate, Rosendale Road, London SE24 9EQ (Thurlow Park Ward) Redevelopment of Peabody Estate incl new community centre to be considered Finance Summary:100 120 words are required here to explain if new funds are sought or how the proposal is to be financed. Recommendations: Even when the report is for information, the practice is to include a recommendation To note the contents of the report. Recommendations should be specific, and preferably with cross-references to paragraphs in the report. Mere references to paragraphs in the report or endorse action proposed should be avoided. Start each recommendation with To; do not say That the Members/ Cabinet/ Committee does XYZ, say instead To approve XYZ . If the report is to be considered by more than one body, it is essential to set out separately the recommendations to each. Example below: Recommendations: Corporate Committee To provide feedback on the Committees Annual Report for 2012-13 and agree for this to be presented to full Council for approval. Council To approve the 2012-13 Corporate Committee Annual Report.

Paragraph 1 Context A short paragraph setting out the background and history. You should state how it relates to council policies and any national government policies and objectives. Reference previous decisions as in following example: Cabinet (08.07.13 report 84/13-14) approved the Lambeth Cycling Strategy. Paragraph 2 Proposals and reasons This section should include: An explanation of the proposals Options considered Justification of the recommendations For all reports setting out the reason(s) for a proposed decision is good practice, and is required by law for executive decision-making reports. Also any particular options considered, and the reasons for their rejection, should be in the report, or recorded in the minutes or record of the decision taken. In some circumstances, the Cabinet member concerned may wish to include a paragraph on their views.

Otherwise, this is the section of the report where summarised detailed information is set out clearly. If this section extends beyond two pages, sub-headings should be used to make the report easy to follow. Paragraph 3 Finance Key points: Engage early with your Finance Business Partnering contacts at reportdrafting stage please so proposals can be properly worked through where required When the report is finished, email to FinanceClearance@lambeth.gov.uk, allowing five working days for comment. This is a single email box shared by 15-20 people representing all the business areas of the whole council. Therefore, you should therefore ensure clear labelling of reports and email subjects in terms of business areas (e.g. Parking, Adults, ICT, Libraries, followed by BU XXX, and then whatever else succinctly describes the contents of the report) Essentially every report needs to state: o How much it costs o How the council is paying for it o Capital or Revenue Where consultation with Strategic Finance colleagues is required, Business Partnering will lead.

Paragraph 4 Legal and democracy All reports must be cleared by the Director of Governance & Democracy, or authorised nominees (see below). The comments will cover the legal powers to undertake the proposed action and any restrictions which may apply, any administrative law advice and any associated risk of challenge or other court action. Reports will be cleared by: Democratic Services:

Via democracy@lambeth.gov.uk. Comments will be provided by the relevant Democratic Services Officer, and Scrutiny Lead Officer for scrutiny reports. Cabinet Member and Officer Delegated Decision reports that require publication on the website five clear days before the decision is taken will also be cleared by Democratic Services. and: Legal Services: Various officers in Legal Services and the following list is for guidance only. When in doubt, or in the absence of any of the named officers below, please send the draft report to Alison McKane. Name Extension no. 62351 62506 Area of responsibility

Alison McKane Andrew Pavlou

Finance, Miscellaneous (all areas) Contracts/Tendering/Employment/ Education/Equalities/Health Housing, Planning, Property Disposals, Regeneration, Community Safety Environment, Licensing

Greg Carson

63144

Jean-Marc Moocarme

62382

Fateha Salim

63139

Social Services, and CYPS SSC

In addition, the following officers in Legal Services are authorised to clear reports within the stated areas of responsibility, in the absence of the officers named above: Name Extension no. 62353 62102 62228 Area of responsibility

Andrew Pavlou Michael OHora David Thomas Paul Field 67714 Christine Stapleton Martin Hastwell Elena Nicolaou Peter Flockhart Christine Stephenson

Finance, Miscellaneous Contracts/Tendering/Health Contracts/Tendering Employment/ Education/Equalities Housing and Community Safety Housing Property Disposals/Regeneration Planning, Environment, Licensing Planning reports

62137 62699 60425 61957 62419

Joy Hopkinson

63141

Social Services, and CYPS SSC

Paragraph 5 Consultation and co-production See doc 02 06 for advice on the Councils requirements. Paragraph 6 Risk Management An uncertain event or set of events which should it occur will have a positive or negative effect on the achievement of our objectives Every objective has an associated risk(s) attached to it. Risk management can help ensure that potential barriers to the delivery of these objectives are identified and addressed in advance. It can help direct resources to areas of most needed including areas of innovation and efficiency. Examples of risks include future changes in legislation, unforeseen shifts in customer needs, and more. Lambeth has developed a robust and versatile methodology (based on the OGC: Management of Risk) which should be used at all times when analysing and controlling risks. The methodology is supported by classroom based training, an electronic (E-learning) course (details on intranet site) and our IT based risk register tool. All Members and managers (once trained) have access to our IT based risk register tool which provides a linear approach to recording risks. This allow Members and officers alike to benefit from a consistent manner in monitoring risks including the actions being implemented (i.e. control measures) to manage them. Key risks are reviewed on a quarterly basis within the management structures which, amongst others, includes moderation, challenges and reviews of emerging risks. The council also has a dedicated risk management team, supported by departmental Risk champions and Risk coordinators. Risk coordinators are able to provide advice and guidance in relation to risks associated specifically within their departments (details on intranet site). All reports that require a decision to be made effecting policy should include the following completed boxes: Does this proposal mitigate an existing risk on the register? (Risk number, detail required and current rating required) e.g. RRR00001 Failure to identify the existing risks that the proposal will mitigate leads decisions being made without full knowledge resulting in key risks not being mitigated Are there any risks associated with this proposal? Y/N If yes details required: (Correct Lambeth methodology should be used as per toolkit) e.g. Failure to secure resources will result in the council not delivering on time or within budget leading to reputation damage. Further guidance, course information and frequently asked questions can be found in the finance pages on the intranet alternatively contact the risk and insurance team at RiskAndInsurance@lambeth.gov.uk or ext. 69261. Departmental leads

You should ensure that all risk implications have been cleared by your Risk champion and/or the risk owner, before they are forwarded to Corporate Finance and Legal for clearance. You should be taking responsibility for identifying the risks (both opportunities and threats) associated with the report, with the assistance of your departments risk coordinator and the corporate risk management team, where required. Corporate Risk Management Section A judgment will not be made on the quality of the risk implications identified, but will only ensure that the risk section has been completed. Reports rejected due to their incomplete risk implications will run the risk of being postponed to later meetings so please support report authors by advising them of this important section. Content of Risk Implications of reports 6.1 Risk Management Implications Risk management at Lambeth requires both opportunities (uncertain positive outcomes to the organisation) and threats (uncertain negative outcomes on the organisation) to be addressed/considered. Your first statement should provide an overview of the (uncertain) opportunities and threats that the Council will be accepting by either accepting or rejecting the policy. Wherever possible risk implications should be expressed in either financial or statistical terms. Example 1: Risk opportunities implications By accepting this reports recommendations to including risk management statements, it is anticipated that the council decision making process will become more efficient. Currently 50% of policies taken to committee are accepted in the first instance, and a further 25% upon second revisions. It is predicted that by including risk implications within the template the number of reports that are accepted in the first instance will increase to 65%. The following step has been taken to ensure that this opportunity is realised: a) a series of members training sessions are being delivered to highlight the merits of this new process and to help them identify how the risk statement clarifies the risks they are accepting. Example 2: Risk threat implications By accepting this reports recommendation to include risk management statements in all reports, the council is accepting the threat that reports may initially take longer to be approved. The timing of this report could affect the statutory reports that are required to be submitted summarising year end findings. Two of the reports carry financial penalties for late submission, which could cost the council in excess of 500k. The following steps have been taken to mitigate this threat:

a) All former Divisional Directors of Resources have been engaged in the approval of this process. b) A guidance notice is being sent around to all departments 6 weeks ahead of the 1 April 2011 start date, to allow authors time to liaise with their risk management champions. c) Reporting guidance has been updated. Paragraph 7 Equalities impact assessment The Equality & Human Rights Commission www.equalityhumanrights.com.advises: {Local authorities}are expected to lead the way in carrying out their functions with demonstrable respect for equality and human rights. In the delivery of services, and in the devising of policies and procedures, public authorities have a crucial role to play in promoting the values and practices of a fair and democratic society. It is expected that all equality issues will be considered in the preparation of reports. Clearly staffing reports must address all equality issues, but the same can be equally true for reports on service provision. Ask yourself does your report adequately reflect access to the service from all sections of the community? The need for an equalities impact assessment should have been considered at the report planning stage in consultation with your departmental lead on equalities. Under this particular paragraph, indicate whether an equalities impact assessment has been undertaken. If not, explain why the policy is not relevant to the general duties of the Race Relations Amendment Act and the requirements of other equalities legislation. Please keep to one paragraph. Further advice may be sought from Policy, Equality and Performance. Paragraph 8 - Community safety implications Section 17 of the Crime & Disorder Act 1998, means that the Council must take account of the community safety dimension in all its work. All policies, strategies, plans and budgets will need to be considered from the standpoint of their potential contribution to the reduction of crime and disorder. Non-compliance could leave the Council vulnerable to legal action. All appropriate reports must therefore include an assessment of the possible impact on community safety. Further advice can be sought from Community Safety. Paragraph 9 - Organisational implications Environmental implications Reports which will impact on the environment should be sent for clearance to Public Realm. Staffing and Accommodation implications All relevant consultation with trade unions and staff should be undertaken before the decision-making report is submitted. Views received should be summarised in the report. Advice on human resources, IT, accommodation and procurement issues should be sought from the following:

Name Shida Ashrafi, Head of HR Support and Recruitment Services See website: http://intranet.lambeth.gov.uk/Staf fServices/HumanResources/ Ed Garcez, Divisional Director of ICT Services Eugene Mclaughlin, Head of Procurement

Extension 69535

Area of responsibility Payroll and Pensions

HR Support

69132

Technology

62103

Commissioning & Procurement

Impact on the front line: In many reports a short headline statement on how the proposals will improve front line services will assist members and other readers. Comments for this section may be needed from consultees across the Council. Local implications: Again in many reports a short headline statement on how the proposals will improve a locality, local groups or individuals will assist members and other readers. Comments for this section may be needed from consultees across and external to the Council. Health & safety issues: Risks involved and controls in place to manage them would need to be included. Further advice can be obtained from corporate Health & Safety - ext 66146. Health implications: see report template. Human rights issues: The Human Rights Act 1998 (which came into force in October 2000) incorporates into UK domestic law rights and freedoms guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights. It introduced new responsibilities on public authorities to act compatibly with the convention rights and allows for a case to be brought in a UK court against authorities if they fail to do so. It is important, therefore, for the Human Rights Act implications of any proposals to be thought through and dealt with, where relevant, in a separate paragraph in the report. Town Planning issues: Separate committee reports are produced for applications considered by the Planning Applications Committee. You may however need to include in your report to other committees, information on timescales etc. Property implications: The Council's land and property plays a major part in providing services and facilities to the community directly or in co-operation with others. Land is a key resource used by the Council to meet its objectives. It is therefore appropriate that reports with property implications incorporate the comments of the Head of Assets Strategy ( ext. 69929). Property implications include: disposals entering into or granting rights of occupation to third parties making major capital investments. It is important to programme consultation with the Head of Assets Strategy into the schedule for production of the report.

Paragraph 10 - Timetable for implementation A simple timetable is required. Audit trail Consultation: The first part of the audit trail sets out the names of Members, officers and outside organisations/people who have been consulted on the report. Background information: Public documents used to prepare the report must by law be included here. Members of the public are entitled to inspect them and take copies. Background documents are legally defined as those which: (a) disclose any facts or matters on which, in the opinion of the proper officer, the report or an important part of the report is based; and (b) have, in his opinion, been relied on to a material extent in preparing the report. but do not include any published works or documents that include exempt or confidential information (see definitions in section I), or in respect of executive reports, the advice of a political adviser. Do not list documents that are not public, e.g. reports to SLB. Report authors must therefore list background documents that comply with this definition. It is unacceptable to not list any documents. Notwithstanding this legal definition, it is often beneficial to report readers to also list previous committee reports etc. Lengthy appendices and other officer advice not required to be before members in making the decision, are to be kept with the report author, listed in this section, and made available to any interested Member or member of the public on request. Avoid the easy option of just listing the case file at the end of your report - this could contain papers not for public disclosure! It is the responsibility of report authors to keep copies of background papers available for public inspection for four years from the date of the meeting. In contributing comments on draft reports sent internal consultation, contributors should advise report authors of any documents that need to be added to the list. Appendices: list any strictly necessary Appendices and their titles.