Board meeting minutes 24th November 2023 - The Planning Inspectorate
Updated 17 April 2024
Applies to England
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Minutes 26th January 2024 date
| Title of meeting | Planning Inspectorate Board Meetings |
|---|---|
| Date | 24 November 2023 |
| Venue | Hybrid – Virtual & Marsham St, London |
| Chair | Trudi Elliott |
| Present | Planning Inspectorate Board Meeting (in person) |
|---|---|
| Oliver Munn (OM) | Non-Executive Director |
| Emir Feisal (EF) | Non-Executive Director |
| Paul Morrison (PM) | Chief Executive |
| Joanne Butcher (JB) | Chief Finance Officer |
| Charlotte Spencer (CS) | Leasehold Land and Planning Delivery Director, DLUHC |
| In attendance | Full meeting |
|---|---|
| Corporate Governance Officer (NP) | minutes and actions |
| Executive Support and Governance Officer (DP) | meeting support |
| Graham Stallwood (GS) | Chief Operating Officer |
| Sean Canavan (SC) | Chief Strategy Officer |
| Rachel Graham (RG) | Chief Digital and Information Officer |
| Head of Finance | (P’OT) |
| Head of People (RH) | (sub for Chief People Officer) |
| In attendance | Attending for specific items | |
|---|---|---|
| Lesley Cowley, Effectiveness Reviewer (DVLA) | (item 3) | |
| Joanna Key, Director General for Regeneration (DLUHC) | (items 4 & 5) | |
| Head of Strategy and Change (SH) | (items 3 & 6) | |
| Strategy and Corporate Governance Lead (BM) | (item 6) |
| Apologies |
|---|
| Richard Schofield (RS), Chief Planning Inspector |
| Shilpi Sahai (SS), Chief People Officer |
| Adrian Penfold (AP), Non-Executive Director |
| Zaffrin O-Sullivan (ZO), Non-Executive Director Boardroom Apprentice |
| Sponsorship Team, (DLUHC) (RW)) |
| Observer |
|---|
| Customer Service Team (CL) |
1.0 - Welcome and Declaration of Interests
1.1 The Chair called for Declarations of Interest, of which there were none.
1.2 The Chair noted apologies from RS, SS, AP and ZO.
2.0 - Minutes of September and October Board meetings and corporate action tracker 2.1 No further comments or amendments received for the September and October Board minutes.
2.2 No further updates received for the action tracker.
Agreed:
2a) The part one and part two minutes of the September Board meeting and part two October Board meeting are an accurate record of the meetings.
3.0 Planning Inspectorate Board Effectiveness Review
3.1 LC presented the Board Effectiveness Review findings, recommendations and opened discussion with the Board. The review closely followed the following guidance, Cabinet Office on Board Effectiveness Reviews, Managing Public Money 3.1 and Financial Reporting Council Provision 21.
3.2 The recommendations set out in the report are to make the Board more effective and to support the Executive Team (ET). It was recognised at the time of the review; the Balanced Scorecard was a work in progress and there had been several additions leading the Board into the role of the ET. PM and the Board agreed to review the products required to report to the Board and ET meetings.
3.3 It was agreed we now have lots of data where as previously, data was limited. Focus is now needed to align data requirements to support reporting on the Strategic Plan (SP), outcomes, benefits and key projects.
3.4 The balance of in-depth probing and strategic review was out of balance at times through review of information at the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC).
3.5 It was agreed deep dives held outside of the Board and Committee meetings, to give more insight to specific issues, were helpful and should continue to be arranged.
3.6 In preparation for the Public Bodies Review, LC advised the Board to focus on the major recommendations set out in the report. These will be the areas the review will focus on, as well as the overall progress of the recommendations set out in this the effectiveness review report.
3.7 Early engagement with the public appointments team is recommended to maintain a staggered recruitment of NEDs, to make sure appointments do not expire at the same time. This will provide stability and consistency to the Board whilst appointments end, and new NEDs are onboarded. It was acknowledged the recent recruitment of NEDs had not resulted in staggered appointments.
3.8 CS agreed to discuss sponsorship team attendance with the team as CS is now in post and is the consistent Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) representative for the Board.
3.9 The effectiveness review action plan and process needs to be developed to track progress promptly in readiness for the Public Bodies Review and/or the next effectiveness review, to demonstrate implementation of recommendations, action taken and any change.
3.10 The review recommendations give ET and the Board an opportunity to reset measures, the interplay between the Board and ET, linkages to the SP and Business Plan (BP) and the remit and connectivity of the Board and it’s sub-committees.
Agreed:
3a) The Board thanked LC for the report which was accepted without iterations.
Actions:
3b) TE/NP As part of the effectiveness review action plan, agree with NEDs the format for the Board minutes.
3c) CS to reinstate the annual letter to the Chief Executive, this will set objectives for the Board.
3d) TE with LC to review the effectiveness action plan and process once developed.
3e) NP, TE & PM to make sure the process and action plan to track effectiveness recommendations returns to the Board for approval, make sure it includes:
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connection with DLUHC colleagues for NED recruitment and appraisal process;
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performance management and how ET hold each other to account.
4.0 Chief Executive’s update to the Board
4.1 PM explained the SP has been published internally on the intranet and discussions are taking place with DLUHC colleagues, in relation to publishing on the.gov.uk website.
4.2 The 2024/25 BP cycle is underway and will be informed by OM’s review which is focussed on performance improvement. The outcomes of OM’s review are expected to report in mid-December.
4.3 The ET, with RS, are developing measures for quality to support the mission of the SP.
4.4 PM sent a message to the organisation following recent calls for Civil Servants to return to offices for 60% of their contracts. Whilst the refurbishment of Temple Quay House (TQH) continues, this is not an option for the Inspectorate currently. PM and JB have discussed the implications with DLUHC colleagues, and they are supportive of our current position.
Actions:
4a) Outcomes of OM’s review to return to the January Board meeting.
4b) CEO and DLUHC updates to the Board to be supported by a report and CEO report to the Board to include good news stories.
5.0 Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) update
5.1 JK explained housing is a focus in the Autumn Statement, including Local Planning Authority (LPA) funding and local housing allowance. Along with LPAs having Local Plans in place to support local communities to decide where and how developments take place.
5.2 Further funding is available for skills development for the Planning Profession and to boost LPA capacity. The Secretary of State is expected to announce LPA funding in December.
5.3 GS explained to the Board, should LPAs be designated through s62a and applications come to the Inspectorate, this will have an operational impact on the Inspectorate and the plans to recover performance. Following discussion with ET, PM explained the operational risk has been raised with DLUHC colleagues.
5.4 Following the recent reshuffle, Minister Rowley has been reappointed as the Housing Minister.
6.0 Balance scorecard
6.1 BM explained four of the BP measures have improved, three have worsened. The core measures are generally stable with month-on-month improvements for measure CM1B – decision time for written representation appeals (planning) vs previous year and CM8C – Freedom of Information (FoI) reporting. A new balanced scorecard is being developed to track the delivery of the emerging 2024/25 BP and will be presented to the Board at a later date.
6.2 OM acknowledged there is lots of work taking place to improve productivity and performance. These are not quick fixes which will improve CM1 reporting anytime soon, and suggested the team think about reporting against the SP and the productivity improvement plan, and if we are exceeding or not.
6.3 The Customer Insight Lead will give a further update on FoI performance and recovery plan in December following the September Board update. Data is showing vast improvement to FoI response times, following the implementation of a recovery plan, additional training, and monitoring. The Service teams also have metrics in place about customer contacts, trends, what our customers tell us and what improvements we need to make.
6.4 The Board agreed it needs to see the data that displays the biggest risks reporting red, the impact and the actions ET are taking, giving the strategic level view to the Board. The future balanced scorecard should monitor the delivery of the three pillars of the SP, including productivity measure, quality measure, forecast of workload, output of decisions or recommendations, and capacity plan. It also needs to include critical project delivery, learning lessons and benefits realisation for investment. All of these things need to report to the Board at a strategic level.
6.5 Early warning signs also need to report to the Board, with the relevant accountable and responsible person(s) attending the meeting.
6.6 The Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIP) application service passed the test for the public beta. The Board took the opportunity to congratulate the team on this milestone and achievement.
Actions:
6a) NP to add a standing item to the agenda to celebrate successes.
6b) BM and RG to review the reporting measure for FoI.
6c) BM to align the range of CM1 appeal reporting measures with productivity improvement plan and Strategic Plan going forward.
6d) PM to issue an internal blog about the NSIP application service and celebrate the success.
7.0 Budget update – OFFICIAL SENSITIVE
8.0 Forward Look, review of the meeting, blog key points
8.1 The Board took the opportunity to thank ZO for her contributions to the Board and other work across the organisation.
Actions:
8a) NEDs to provide availability for the OnePINS and Inspector training events.
8b) RG to draft the Board blog.
8c) Blogger to be agreed at the start of each meeting.
Next meetings 26th January 2024 (virtual):
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Audit and Risk Assurance Committee – 10.00am – 12.30pm
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Planning Inspectorate Board – 1.15pm – 4.15pm