Cobtree Manor Estate Charity Committee |
20th July2017 |
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Is the final decision on the recommendations in this report to be made at this meeting? |
Yes |
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Cobtree Manor Park Visitor Centre/Café Update. July 2017 |
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Final Decision-Maker |
Cobtree Manor Estate Charity Committee |
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Lead Head of Service |
Head of Regeneration and Economic Development |
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Lead Officer and Report Author |
Jason Taylor – Leisure Manager |
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Classification |
Public |
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Wards affected |
Boxley |
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This report makes the following recommendations to this Committee: |
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1. The Committee is asked to note the contents of Visitor Centre/Café Update. |
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This report relates to the following corporate priorities: |
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· Keeping Maidstone Borough an attractive place for all - · Ensuring that there are good leisure and culture facilities |
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Timetable |
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Meeting |
Date |
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Cobtree Manor Estate Charity Committee |
20th July 2017 |
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Cobtree Manor Park Visitor Centre/Café Update. July 2017 |
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1. PURPOSE OF REPORT AND EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1.1 The
information in the report is to update the committee on the performance of the
Cobtree Manor Park Visitor Centre/Cafe as agreed at the Committee on 3rd
August 2016 meeting.
1.2 Within
this report is a table which shows the financial performance of the Visitor
Centre/ Café since it opened in August 2015, and another which shows the
financial prediction for the remainder of this financial year.
2. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
2.1
The
Cobtree Manor Visitor Centre/ Café first opened in August 2015.
2.2 Below is a breakdown of the month on month café/ visitor centre costs and income from when the facility opened to the current time.
2.3
It
can be seen in the table above that the first three months of this financial
year has seen a considerable improvement on previous performance. This is due
to a number of reasons:
2.4 Increase in prices
of 15% from April 1st 2017.
2.5 Streamlining of
staff rotas and reducing staff numbers at quieter times.
2.6 Agency staff only
being used to cover emergencies such as staff sickness.
2.7 More competitive
supplier costs through supplier negotiations.
2.8 The opening of a
second point of sale at peak times which has not only increased sales but also
reduced customer waiting times.
2.9 Refinement of menus removing unpopular items and labour intensive dishes.
2.10 Introduction of
disposable plates. Cups etc. at peak times.
2.11
It
should be noted in the table that there has been a slight reduction in the
average service cost. The reason for this is that the cost of maintenance to
the toilets has been removed and added to the park cost. This is in line with
other park toilets. The cost of cleaning the toilets is however still included
in with the cleaning of the café.
Predicted Financial Income of the remainder of 2017/18
2.12
Below
is a table which shows the predicted outcome for the remainder of the current
financial year. The totals at the bottom of the table include income already
generated in the first quarter, which are shown in the previous table.
2.13
This
table is based on the following presumptions:
2.14
The
column in green shows the total staff and catering provision costs as being the
same as the equivalent months last year. We are not predicting any increase in
these costs because we have negotiated more advantageous supplier costs and have
streamlined staff costs.
2.15
The
column shown in orange makes the assumption that our total sales will increase
by 15% over the same months last year. We believe that this is realistic
because since last year we have increased our charges by 15% and the actual
number of sales has continued to increase year on year.
2.16
The
above table shows a predicted profit this financial year of £19,954 for the
café. Officers believe that this is a conservative figure for the following
reasons:
2.17
Last
year there was a delay in the invoicing from suppliers which meant that a
considerable amount of goods sold during the summer holidays were not charged
for until September. We now have better financial monitoring in place which
will prevent this happening this year and should result in September 2017
generating profit unlike last year.
2.18
Through
better staff rota processes, staffing levels and costs during the winter months
will be greatly reduced. As well as reduced hours it may be prudent to close
one or two days during the week in the winter months, which would further reduce
costs.
2.19 It is hoped that taking this into account the profit generated could realistically be up to £10,000 greater than that shown in the table above.
External Tender
2.20
As
mentioned in the last Cobtree Café/Visitor Centre update Maidstone Borough
Council has now run a tender process with a view to externalising the operation
of its cafes in Mote Park and at Maidstone Museum. It was indicated in this process
that there may be an option to include Cobtree Café in the future. The
information from this tender process is being presented to this committee in a
separate report.
3. AVAILABLE OPTIONS
3.1 The committee could choose not to note the information contained in this reports, however the committee has requested regular updates on the Café Visitor Centre performance
4. PREFERRED OPTION AND REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
4.1 It is recommended
that the information in this report regarding the performance of the Café/
Visitor Centre is noted.
5. CONSULTATION RESULTS AND PREVIOUS COMMITTEE FEEDBACK
5.1 The
committee has previously resolved to receive regular updates on performance of
the Café/ Visitor Centre.
6. NEXT STEPS: COMMUNICATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF THE DECISION
6.1 Any comments from the Committee will be passed on to the relevant parties.
7. CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES AND IMPLICATIONS
Issue |
Implications |
Sign-off |
Impact on Corporate Priorities |
The work of the charity links directly to its charitable objects and the corporate priorities of the Council. |
Head of Regeneration and Economic Development |
Risk Management |
Risks to running the estate are dealt with in the annual Estate Risk Management Report. |
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Financial |
Financial risks are considered in the ongoing finance updates. |
Cobtree Finance Officer |
Staffing |
No implications. |
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Legal |
No implications. |
Deputy Head of the Legal Partnership |
Equality Impact Needs Assessment |
No implications. |
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Environmental/Sustainable Development |
No implications. |
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Community Safety |
No implications. |
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Human Rights Act |
No implications. |
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Procurement |
No implications. |
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Asset Management |
No implications. |
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8. REPORT APPENDICES
None
9. BACKGROUND PAPERS
None