Mayor Dr Nik Johnson looked buoyant on Thursday, confident that the Government is about to remove Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority from ‘special measures’. More than 18 months after the Combined Authority was issued a Best Value Notice by the Government to address concerns and request “assurance of improvement,” the cloud is expected to be lifted within days.
Technically the Best Value Notice expired on July 31, but with a change of government formal notification that it has actually ended and won’t be renewed is awaited.
“I’d say to all members around the table the conversations with officials are positive,” Mayor Johnson told board colleagues.
“But it needs the minister to confirm what that means and that’s probably as much as I can say at this stage.
“I would have hoped to have said more but we are stuck with needing the formal confirmation of things.”
That confirmation could come as early as Monday after a glowing and upbeat assessment was presented to the board at its meeting at Fenland Hall, March.
Angela Probert, interim programme director, transformation, presented a report which explained the authority is awaiting final confirmation from the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), regarding whether a new Best Value Notice will be reissued to replace the Notice that expired at the end of July 2024.
She had good reasons to be optimistic, explaining that “the overall progress across the improvement plan continues to be green with the majority of activities planned for the period up to the end of July now completed”.
Detailing a series of major improvements that have shaped and strengthened the Combined Authority, she said “the position remains positive, with continuing progress to further improve and strengthen processes, procedures, reporting and documentation”.
There were “clear signs of embedding good practice across the organisation supported through training”.
And she reminded members that a recent internal audit review “gave ‘substantial assurance’ to the arrangements in place and confirmed that the authority has well established governance arrangements for monitoring progress and slippage” and against its improvement plan.
Addressing board members, she repeated that “progress continues to be made across the improvement plan – it’s on track and rated green”.
Cllr Chris Boden said the second Best Value Notice had expired at the end of July and “my understanding was that notice was for a period of six months ending the 31st of July 2024 and that it is now lapsed.
“It was really simple and straightforward. However, we await a decision and a letter from government about whether or not there will be a new Best Value Notice.
“My understanding was if it lapsed then that’s it – it has finished, and they’d have to start again afresh and because no letter was issued before the 31st of July that is or should be the end of it now”.
Her added: “Ultimately how long do we wait before we know whether we still have a Best Value Notice or not – so this question is asked not because I know the answer but because I’m honestly puzzled about whether or not we’re out of the best value notice period, which is what I believe, or we are potentially still within it and if so for how long?”.
However, Cllr Boden was assured by Cllr Dennis Jones that with the change of government it had taken time to evaluate matters.
He said he had liaised with government housing colleagues who were fully aware the Best Value Notice had lapsed, and the new minister would be in touch with the Combined Authority.
He fully expected to hear the outcome at the beginning of next week.
