Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council

The amended financial regulations reinstate the intention to pay SMEs within 10 days. This is a procurement and supplier-management policy change that can improve supplier cashflow and the council’s attractiveness to smaller bidders.

The committee received the annual children’s complaints and compliments report for 2025-26. The report covers both statutory social care complaints and corporate complaints for learning and achievement, with email the dominant contact route and a large proportion of cases resolved within timescale.

Cabinet approved a package of housing development decisions: a construction contract and capital expenditure for five homes at Anglesey Avenue, a business case for 20 supported units plus eight homes at Townsend Grove, and use of £600,000 section 106 funding to advance the SCH development pipeline. The schemes rely on Homes England funding and existing public open space appropriation, and are intended to deliver social rent and supported housing.

Members approved expansion of Reynolds Cross School by 30 places from January 2028. The school’s existing building is end-of-life and uneconomical to repair, so the project includes a new wing, new hall and kitchen, specialist SEND spaces, PMLD classrooms, therapy space, a nursing hub and improved staff facilities.

The council reported a legislative change affecting enforcement action for debt recovery: the notice period before taking control of goods has increased from 7 days to 14 days, with scope to extend to 28 days in specific circumstances. This is a procedural policy change rather than a procurement issue, but it affects how external enforcement services are used and may influence operational requirements for any future collection arrangements.

The council and SCH are replacing a tenancy agreement that dates from 2012. The new draft reflects current legislation on building safety, fire safety, social housing regulation and domestic abuse, and is intended to modernise responsibilities and reduce operational risk before consultation and approval.

The meeting focused on NHS provider quality, waiting-time pressures, maternity and health inequalities, supported living commissioning, and the annual adult social care complaints/complements report. Members discussed UHB quality and safety concerns, elective and cancer backlogs, infection control, complaints handling, and future commissioning options for supported living ahead of the current framework expiring in June 2027. The board also noted broader adult social care and public health priorities, including unpaid carers, health inequalities, smoking reduction and neighbourhood-based care.

The meeting covered two main procurement-relevant themes: the annual air quality report and a substantial housing policy refresh. Air quality discussion highlighted ongoing monitoring arrangements, low-cost sensors, platform improvements with the Combined Authority, and alignment of future reporting with national and WHO targets. Housing discussion focused on a new tenancy agreement, equality reporting, access arrangements for safety inspections, communication improvements, and the use of enforcement as a last resort.