Agenda and minutes

Any Member who is substituting for another Member should so indicate, together with the name of the relevant absent Member.

There were no substitutions declared.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Patrick Chung, Andrew Speed, Clive Springett, Sarah Stamp and Frank Warby.

Councillor Anthony Williams was also unable to attend.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2018 (copy attached).

The minutes of the meeting held on 12 September 2018, were confirmed as an accurate record and signed by the Chairman.

Members of the public who live or work in the Borough are invited to put one question/statement of not more than 3 minutes duration relating to items to be discussed in Part 1 of the agenda only.  If a question is asked and answered within 3 minutes, the person who asked the question may ask a supplementary question that arises from the reply.

A person who wishes to speak must register at least 15 minutes before the time the meeting is scheduled to start.

There is an overall limit of 15 minutes for public speaking, which may be extended at the Chairman’s discretion.

There were no questions/statements from members of the public.

The Chairman advised she attended the Joint (Executive Cabinet) Committee on 2 October 2018, and presented the Committee’s report on items it considered on 12 September 2018, which was noted. 

She also informed the Committee that she had written to Mr Jesse Norman MP, the Rt. Hon Matt Hancock and Mrs Jo Churchill MP regarding Civil Parking Enforcement.  To date a response had been received back from Mrs Jo Churchill MP.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/030

The Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Mildmay-White provided Report No: OAS/SE/18/030, which presented the West Suffolk’s draft Housing Strategy (Appendix 1) and draft Tenancy Strategy (Appendix 2). 

A review of the Housing Strategywas due in 2018.  By adopting a new strategy the Councils would be aligning its priorities with the Strategic Framework 2018-2020 and responding to new legislation and additional duties.  Attached to the report were a number of appendices relating to the Housing Strategy which provided additional information:

-           Appendix A:  Was an illustrative summary of the types of housing available as well as the councils role in supporting the delivery and availability of each of these options.

-           Appendix B: Sets out data relating to West Suffolk’s population and housing that had supported the development of the strategy.

-           Appendix C: The implementation plan would identify the main tasks needed to increase and improve the provision of appropriate housing over the next five years.  The plan was being developed during the consultation period and would be finalised once the consultation had concluded.

-           Appendix D: provided an overview of the Equality Impact Assessment.  No negative impacts as a result of the strategy had  been identified.

The strategy had been informed by an engagement exercise that included Councillor workshops and a consultation event with key partners.  The formal consultation was taking place for a six week period between 9 October and 20 November 2018 and involved an online survey that was available on the councils webpages.

As at 5 November 2018, 21 responses had been received and there was strong support for the priorities and actions set out in the strategy and for the issues that the council was addressing.  Specific comments had been received that relate to affordable housing, the need for appropriate housing for specific groups and the importance of infrastructure and transport to support the needs of individuals and communities.

A review of the Tenancy Strategywas also due in 2018.  The Localism Act 2011 required local authorities to produce a Tenancy Strategy that outlines how councils and registered providers approached issues which affected tenants living in the area. 

Informal discussions had taken place with registered providers operating in West Suffolk about the proposed changes.  As with the Housing Strategy, the formal consultation was taking place for a six week period between 9 October and 20 November 2018 and involved an online survey that was available on the councils webpages.

As at 5 November 2018, two responses had been received which would help the council continue to develop how it worked with registered providers and assist tenants living in West Suffolk.

The Housing Strategyand Tenancy Strategy, together with any feedback or comments from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, would be considered by the Joint Executive (Cabinet) Committee on 11 December 2018.

The Committee considered the report and the attached appendices in detail and asked a number of questions, to which comprehensive responses were provided.  In particular discussions were held on homelessness and rough sleepers;  ...  view the full minutes text for item 266.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/031

[Councillor John Burns left the meeting at 5pm after presenting the report to the Committee].

Councillor John Burns presented Report No: OAS/SE/18/031, which summarised the review of the Garden Waste Collection Service (GWCS) by a Joint Task and Finish Group and presents recommendations for the service moving forward.

On 6 and 7 June 2018, both St Edmundsbury and Forest Heath Overview and Scrutiny Committees resolved to establish a Joint Task and Finish Group (the Group) to review the progress of the GWCS and to consider the Motion put forward by Councillor Nettleton to introduce a sliding scale of subscription charges.  The Group met on five occasions to discuss the planned approach to the review and to consider the specific areas to be explored.  It was agreed that the review would explore the following areas:

-        Finance

-        Customer access

-        Service terms and conditions

-        Impact on residual waste

-        Communications and marketing

-        Operational changes

-        Impact of proposed changes

The report included the background to the review and progress to date; the review carried out by the Group and proposed recommendations.  Also attached to the report were a number of appendices, namely:

Appendix A – Summary of meetings

Appendix B – Financial modelling

Appendix C – Subscription charges of other councils

Appendix D – Subscriptions through the Customer Access Team

Appendix E – Information flow and process map

Appendix F – Examples of branding used

Appendix G – Summary of meeting content, observations, recommendations

Throughout the four meetings, the Group reviewed the various elements of the GWCS, experiences from other councils and the options moving forward.  At the final meeting the Group formulated its recommendations, which were set out in Section 4 of the report.  Subject to the approval of the recommendations, officers would then develop an Implementation Plan.

The Committee considered the report in detail and asked a number of questions to which comprehensive responses were provided.

In particular the Committee discussed the proposed increase to £43, and questioned why the Group decided not to go with an increase to £45.  In response members were informed that the Group had considered the size of the uplift, and felt a 12% increase to £45 would not be acceptable to customers.  The aim of providing the service was to ensure that it was financially self-supporting and not making large surpluses.

In response to a question raised regarding whether Suffolk County Council could increase fees, members were informed that the Council had an arrangement with SCC for a five-year period. The only variable would be gate fees and the number of subscribers to the scheme, hence why the Group was proposing an annual review of the fees as part of the budget setting process.

Councillor Mike Chester then moved the recommendation, this was duly seconded by Councillor Richard Rout, and with the vote being 7 for and 1 abstention, it was:

          RECOMMENDED: 

That the recommendations, as set out in Section 4 of Report No: OAS/SE/18/031, be approved by the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 267.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/032

[Councillor John Burns re-joined the meeting at 5.29pm to collect his belongings, and left the meeting at 5.30pm prior to the vote taking place on this item.

Councillor Paula Fox left the meeting at 5.30pm prior to the vote taking place on this item].

Councillor Diane Hind presented Report No: OAS/SE/18/032, which summarised the review of the Bury St Edmunds Christmas Fayre and presented a draft Action Plan (Appendix F) for taking forward the recommendations from the Christmas Fayre Joint Task and Finish Group. 

On 18 and 19 April 2018, both St Edmundsbury and Forest Heath Overview and Scrutiny Committees resolved to establish a Joint West Suffolk Task and Finish Group (the Task Group) to complete a review of the Bury St Edmunds Christmas Fayre. The Group met to discuss the planned approach to the review and to consider the specific areas to be explored.  It was agreed that the review would explore the following areas:

-        Principle and ownership

-        Vision

-        Timing and length

-        Format and venues

-        Type of stalls

-        Links to wider economy (retail and tourism)

-        Transport and accessibility

-        Finance

-        Staffing and volunteers

-        Safety and Security

-        Examples from other places

-        Communications and marketing

-        Management and resources

The report summarised the review of the Bury St Edmunds Christmas Fayre and presented a proposed three-year action plan for taking forward the recommendations from the Task Group. It also included an introduction; the background to the review; engagement; evidence base and Christmas Fayre review findings and recommendations.  Also attached to the report were a number of appendices, namely:

Appendix A – Christmas Fayre key details document.

Appendix B – 2015 Christmas Fayre Review Action Plan and progress table.

Appendix C – Christmas Fayre Engagement/surveys summary document.

Appendix D – Information from Christmas Fayres held in other places and scheduled of Christmas events in West Suffolk.

Appendix E – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats document.

Appendix F – Proposed Three Year Action Plan.

The Portfolio Holder for Planning and Growth then thanked the Committee for the opportunity to address the Committee, and commended the Task Group on its work which had resulted in the recommendations being proposed. She then updated members on how important it was to ensure the safety of the public at events, and referred to paragraph 5.32 in the report.  She explained that two weeks ago, the Council led a table-top exercise to test how all partners would be able to respond in the event of an incident occurring at the Fayre.  This unfortunately took place after the Task Group’s final meeting, but raised some important points and hoped the Overview and Scrutiny Committee would support an additional recommendation arising from the review.  This would add the following wording to Appendix F on “Safety and Security” as follows:

“An Independent Peer Review of the Council’s Command and Management of the Christmas Fayre and Event Safety Plan is commissioned.  This should consider the management and skills/expertise to deliver the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 268.

As there were only five members of the Committee present, the Chairman declared the meeting inquorate under Part 4, Paragraph 4 of the Committee Procedure Rules of the Council’s Constitution and announced that (where indicated below), the items of business would stand adjourned for consideration at the next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 9 January 2019.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/033

This item was deferred to the next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee (9 January 2019), due to the meeting being inquorate.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/034

The Committee was reminded that on 13 September 2017, it received a presentation from Councillor Alaric Pugh, the then Cabinet Member for Planning and Growth setting out responsibilities covered under his portfolio.

At this meeting the recently appointed Cabinet Member for Planning and Growth, Councillor Susan Glossop had been invited to give an update on her portfolio since taking over. Report No: OAS/SE/18/034 set out the focus for the annual update.  

Prior to the meeting taking place, the Cabinet Member was provided with some key questions from Scrutiny Members on what they would like included in the update, and responses were set out the report.

The Cabinet Member thanked the Committee for the invitation and the questions submitted, as set out in the report.  At this point the Cabinet Member took the opportunity to update the Committee on the following areas:

-      Following the Extraordinary Overview and Scrutiny meeting on 31 October 2018, regular meetings would now be held with Councillor Mary Evans, Suffolk County Council Cabinet for Highways and Transport, Leaders/Growth Portfolio Holders with support from officers to look at:

·         Large scale infrastructure projects

·         Masterplan/place projects

·         Major planning applications

·         Policies including the Local Transport Plan

·         Joint funding bids and service delivery in West Suffolk including OSPA 

-      Looking at improving communications with members.  If members had any issues or concerns in their ward regarding planning and growth she was keen to hold one to one meetings to discuss.

-      Looking at harmonising licensing polices prior to becoming a West Suffolk Council on 1 April 2019

The Committee asked a number of follow-up questions relating to the responses provided on growth areas and regeneration to which responses were provided.

In response to a particular question raised regarding the whole development of the Western Way Project, the Cabinet Member agreed to relook into the aspiration of having a bridge from the Howard Estate to Asda as part of the overall project.

There being no decision required, the Committee noted the annual update.

Report No: OAS/SE/18/035

The Committee received Report No: OAS/SE/18/035, which updated Members on the current status of its rolling work programme of items for scrutiny during 2019 (Appendix 1).

The report also requested that Members identify questions they would like the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture to cover on 9 January 2019.

The Committee considered Appendix 1 and due to the size of the work programme suggested that the Joint Executive (Cabinet) Committee Decisions Plan and the Shadow Executive (Cabinet) Decisions Plan be removed from the January 2019 meeting to allow sufficient time to consider the rest of the proposed agenda.

Also, at the time of the meeting members had not identified any questions they wished to put to the Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture, but would submit questions following the meeting to the Democratic Services Officer (Scrutiny) by Wednesday 21 November 2018.

There being no decision required, the Committee noted the update and the removal of the Decisions Plans from the January 2019 meeting.