Agenda item

Report attached.

The Cabinet considered a report of Councillor Melissa Fisher, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Housing and Regeneration, about the provision of the Holiday Activity and Food Programme Services (HAF) in Hyndburn.

Councillor Fisher provided a brief introduction to the report, explaining the background to the delivery of his service and the need to provide financial support for this year’s Spring / Easter Programme because of the short timescale involved.  Hyndburn Leisure had a long and good track-record of delivering HAF services and had the necessary systems in place to continue to undertake this work,

Approval of the report was not deemed a key decision.

Reasons for Decision

Hyndburn Leisure had been procured as the preferred provider by Lancashire County Council (LCC) to deliver the HAF Programme in Hyndburn from 2021/22 to 2025.  LCC has shifted to a collaboration agreement with District Councils which transferred the delivery and funding obligations to District Councils for future financial years.  Working collaboratively might provide the opportunity to review services in Hyndburn and within the agreement, District Councils would have the ability to deliver services in-house or appoint a provider to deliver the service on its behalf.

The HAF Programme ran during the Spring / Easter, Summer and Winter holiday months with the aim of providing free holiday provision to children whose families received eligible benefits and related free school meals.  The Programme looked to support children with:

• Provision of Healthy and nutritious meals;
• Maintaining a healthy level of physical activity;
• Being happy, having fun, meeting new friends;
• Developing a greater understanding of food, nutrition and other health-related issues;
• Taking part in fun and engaging activities that supported development;
• Feeling safe and secure;
• Getting access to the right support services; and
• Returning to school feeling engaged and ready to learn.

LCC had only recently received confirmation from the Department for Education on the HAF funding for 2026/27 and because LCC only received funding / notification on an annual basis, it would facilitate agreements with District Councils on a year-by-year extension.  Whilst LCC had indicated Hyndburn’s 2026/27 allocation for HAF delivery would be circa £351,000, at the time of writing the report, the Council had yet to receive the legal agreement from LCC.

The Council had also received a request from LCC asking it to financially support the cost of this year’s Spring / Easter Programme delivery.  This was to ensure the HAF Programme in Hyndburn could continue providing its valuable offer to children and families, whilst the funding was transferred from LCC.

Hyndburn Council did not have the resources or expertise to deliver the HAF service in-house and, due to the limited timescales before the start of the 2026/27 Spring / Easter Service Programme, it was not possible to tender the provision for the service.

Whilst the full year report was in the process of being finalised, the following information was a brief overview of the 2025 HAF Programme successfully delivered by Hyndburn Leisure:

Easter 2025 Programme

• Children engaged: 614
• Provisions: 27 locations
• Total attendances: 1,685

Summer 2025 Programme

• Children engaged: 980
• Provisions: 26 locations
• Total attendances: 7,369

Christmas 2025 Programme

• Children engaged: 667
• Provisions: 23 locations
• Total attendances: 1,616

Overall Delivery Position

• Total children engaged across 2025: 2,261 (non-unique total across programmes)
• Total attendances across 2025: 10,670
• Average children engaged per programme: 753.6
• Average provisions per programme: 25 locations
• Summer remained the highest-impact delivery period, generating the greatest volume of engagement and attendance across the year.

SEND

• Specific places remained limited due to the specialist skillset required, enhanced staffing ratios, suitable venue requirements and access to specialist equipment and resources.
• Of the SEND places offered, 61.5% had been attended.  However, despite the limited number of designated SEND-specific spaces, 657 children with SEND accessed HAF provision during the 2025 delivery period, demonstrating a strong inclusive practice across mainstream delivery, provider commitment to supporting additional needs and ongoing demand for specialist provision.

The report recommended that the Council waived its Contract Procedure Rules and appointed Hyndburn Leisure to deliver the 2026 Spring / Easter HAF Programme for the following reasons:

• The Council did not have the resources or experience to deliver the services itself.
• Given the late funding acknowledgment from LCC there was not time for the Council to run a procurement exercise and ensure delivery of the project in time.
• A service’s agreement could not be signed and the funding released to Hyndburn Leisure unless the Council’s Contract Procedure Rules were waived.
• Hyndburn Leisure had a proven track record of HAF Programme service delivery and held existing operational infrastructure, safeguarding systems, community partnerships and delivery capacity necessary to deliver the services within the required timescales.

Once the Council had received the legal agreement from LCC, it would review the best mechanism and approach for delivery of the remaining HAF Programme for 2026/27 given that LCC had confirmed HAF funding would be ringfenced until 2029.

Alternative Options considered and Reasons for Rejection

Cabinet could decide to not agree to waive Contract Procedure rules to appoint Hyndburn Leisure to deliver the Spring / Easter 2026 HAF Programme on the authority’s behalf.  This was not recommended for the reasons mentioned in section 3 in the report.

The Council could decide to deliver the services in-house.  This was not recommended as the Council did not have resource or in-house expertise to deliver the services directly.

Resolved                                  (1)  That Cabinet agrees to waive the Council’s Contract Procedure Rules to appoint Hyndburn Leisure to deliver the 2026 Spring / Easter HAF Programme on behalf of the Council.

(2)   Cabinet agrees to a £67,000 payment to Hyndburn Leisure in the financial year 2025/26, for the delivery of the Spring / Easter HAF programme prior to the Council receiving the full grant funding from Lancashire County Council.

(3)   That Cabinet agrees to delegate authority to the Executive Director (Environment) to negotiate and agree all terms relating to the HAF Services Contract with Lancashire County Council and service level agreement with Hyndburn Leisure in consultation with the Executive Director (Legal & Democratic Services) and Portfolio Holder.