Staffordshire County Council's cabinet met on Wednesday 16 April 2025, and approved an update to the Highways and Transport Capital Programme following confirmation of additional funding from the Department of Transport. They also approved the Community Learning Accountability Agreement for the 2025-26 academic year, and delegated authority to officers to enter into a grant funding agreement with the Department for Work and Pensions for the Connect to Work scheme.

Here's a breakdown of the key discussion points:

Highways and Transport Capital Programme

The cabinet approved an update to the Highways and Transport Capital Programme 2025/26, following confirmation of a one-off Local Transport Grant of £15.626 million from the Department for Transport¹. Councillor Mark Deaville, Cabinet Member for Strategic Highways, explained that while the funding was welcome, it was still short of what was needed to fully maintain the county's highways. He also noted the challenges of mobilising work programmes at short notice, as the funding was only announced a few days before the year-end.

Key areas of investment from the grant include:

• £5 million for pothole and patching repairs, including funding for a second JCB Pothole Pro machine.
• £3.6 million to accelerate new major maintenance schemes.
• £2.5 million to extend carriageway prevention treatments.
• £1.2 million for investment in bridge structures.
• £1 million to double the hotspot allocation for local resurfacing schemes.
• £0.9 million to extend the footway programme.
• £0.9 million to increase drainage repairs and improvements.
• £0.5 million for traffic signal refurbishment and lighting improvements.
• £0.026 million for road safety investigations.

Councillor Ian Parry, Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources, said it was prudent to pull back some of the council's reserves drawdown for highway investment to the 2026/27 financial year, to ensure sustainable funding for highways. Councillor Simon Tagg, Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Change, welcomed the extra funding, particularly for footpath maintenance and carriageway prevention treatment.

Councillor Deaville emphasised the importance of spending the money in the right areas and constantly looking for additional productivity and better ways of working. He also reminded the cabinet that Staffordshire County Council had topped up government grants by funding an extra £65 million over the next three years in its Fixing More Roads programme.

Community Learning Accountability Agreement 2025-26

The cabinet approved the Community Learning Accountability Agreement for the 2025-26 academic year. Councillor Philip White, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Economy and Skills, said that the community learning programme strongly aligns to the council's vision to ensure residents are able to lead independent lives, participate in the local economy and enjoy lifelong learning opportunities.

The tailored learning function uses approximately £1.4 million of funding allocated by the Department for Education through the Adult Skills Fund. In addition, the council has received £4.2 million from the Department for Education to deliver the Multiply programme, aimed at improving numeracy skills for people who do not have a GCSE maths qualification or equivalent.

Councillor Parry asked about the quality and performance management of teaching. Councillor White responded that performance standards are included in contracts with organisations that deliver courses, and that the council monitors these standards and the learner experience closely.

Connect to Work

The cabinet delegated authority to the Director of Economy, Infrastructure and Skills and the Director of Finance, in consultation with the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Economy and Skills, to progress the Connect to Work scheme. This scheme is aimed at helping people with disabilities, long-term health conditions and other complex barriers to employment to get into and on in work.

Councillor White explained that the scheme is administered across the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent area by Staffordshire County Council, and is aimed nationally to support around 100,000 people. The scheme is heavily under development, but early estimates indicate that the total value of the programme for Staffordshire could be as much as £20.86 million during the period 2025-2030.

Procurement of Security Services

The cabinet approved undertaking a procurement exercise for the framework agreement for the provision of security services. Councillor Parry explained that the framework covers static guarding for Staffordshire Place², mobile guarding for North and South Staffordshire, key holding and call-out services, and security of unoccupied buildings. The total procurement will be qualified for up to £2.6 million.

Framework Agreement for Fencing

The cabinet approved undertaking a procurement exercise for the framework agreement for the provision of supply and installation of new and repair of existing fences and associated services. Councillor Parry explained that the current agreement expires in September 2025, with a 12-month extension to September 2026. The new procurement will be qualified for up to £7.2 million to £9.6 million.

Leader's Update

Councillor Alan White, Leader of the Council, reflected on his five years in the role, as this was his last meeting before the upcoming county council elections. He thanked cabinet members and council staff for their work. He also mentioned Staffordshire Day, an annual celebration of the county on 1 May, and congratulated Councillor Pertys on Eccleshall being named one of the best places to live in the country by The Times newspaper.

Staffordshire Means Business

Councillor White provided an update on the Staffordshire Means Business initiative, including the latest universal credit claimant counts for Staffordshire, key employment sites being worked on around the county, and the recent tourism awards. He noted that Staffordshire remains a very good place to get a job and develop a career, and highlighted the Staffordshire Jobs and Careers Service. He also mentioned the Chatterley Valley West scheme, the Doxy Road redevelopment in Stafford, the Eastgate regeneration scheme in Stafford, and the Endurant Park Burton development.

Other Items

The cabinet also noted decisions taken by cabinet members under delegated powers, and approved the forward plan of key decisions. They then moved to exclude the public from the meeting to discuss items involving exempt information.