Items
No. |
Item |
O&S.44/19 |
Minutes PDF 142 KB
to approve as a correct record and authorise
the Chairman to sign the minutes of the Panel held on 17 October
2019;
Minutes:
The minutes of the
meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel held on 17 October 2019
were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the
Chairman.
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O&S.45/19 |
Declarations of Interest
Members are invited to declare
any personal or disclosable pecuniary
interests, including the nature and extent of such interests they
may have in any items to be considered at this meeting;
Minutes:
Members and officers were invited to declare
any interests in the items of business to be considered during the
course of the meeting. These were
recorded as follows:
Cllr J Sweett declared a Personal Interest
in agenda item 15: ‘Update from the Climate Change and
Biodiversity Working Group’ (Minute O&S.55/19 below
refers) by virtue of being a solidarity hunger striker and remained
in the room and took part in the debate on this agenda
item.
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O&S.46/19 |
Public Forum PDF 13 KB
A period of up to 15 minutes is available to
deal with issues raised by the public;
Minutes:
In accordance with the Public
Forum Procedure Rules, the Chairman informed that one question had
been received for consideration during this agenda item.
1.
Question from Mr Robert Vint
‘What scrutiny has there been by
this Committee of the development of the Climate Action Plan for
the South Hams since the 25th July? Is this Committee happy with progress, with any
proposed draft indicators and targets and with the level of public
engagement with the emerging plan so far?’
In reply, the Chairman of the Panel provided the
following response:
‘In answer to the question, I can
report that the Overview and Scrutiny Panel has on its agenda today
a report from the Climate Change and Biodiversity Working Group
and, no doubt, Members of the Panel will question the Leader of the
Council on progress, draft indicators, targets and the level of
public engagement in respect of the emerging Plan. Such responses will be reported in the minutes of
this meeting.
Members have
been informed that the draft Action Plan will be considered by the
Climate Change and Biodiversity Working Group at its next meeting
on 5 December 2019 and no doubt this will be circulated to all
Members of the Council in advance of the said
meeting.’
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O&S.47/19 |
Executive Forward Plan PDF 732 KB
Note: If any Member seeks
further clarity, or wishes to raise issues regarding any future
Executive agenda item, please contact Member Services before 5.00pm
on Monday 18 November 2019 to ensure that the lead
Executive Member(s) and lead officer(s) are aware of this request
in advance of the meeting.
Minutes:
The Panel was
presented with the most recently published Executive Forward
Plan.
Whilst no formal
requests had been made in advance, the Chairman exercised his
discretion to enable for a brief discussion on the ‘Formation
of a Wholly Owned Company’ agenda item.
(a)Formation of a Wholly Owned
Company
In reply to a question, the
Leader of Council advised that the principal activity of any
proposal to form a Wholly Owned Company would be to build genuinely
affordable housing for local people.
Since the Climate Change and Biodiversity agenda was to be a golden
thread throughout all of the work of the Council, the Leader also
confirmed that it would be inevitable that it would be an important
consideration in the event of a Company being formed.
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O&S.48/19 |
Community Safety Partnership - Annual Report PDF 65 KB
Minutes:
Consideration was given to a
report that provided Members with the opportunity to scrutinise the
work of the Community Safety Partnership (CSP) as defined by
Sections 19 and 20 of the Police and Justice Act 2006 and the Crime
and Disorder (Overview & Scrutiny) Regulations 2009.
In his introduction, the
Council’s appointed CSP Member representative emphasised the
importance of all Members contacting the lead officer if they were
aware of any potential CSP related issues.
In the ensuing debate,
reference was made to:-
(a)
Exploitation Prevention training
sessions. Members were informed that
the latest round of Exploitation Prevention training sessions were
currently being held and there was one being held at Follaton
House, Totnes on Wednesday, 27 November 2019. If any Members were interested in attending this
session, they were encouraged to let officers know;
(b)
the dedication of lead officers. A
number of Members paid tribute to the hard work and dedication of
lead officers in maximising the effectiveness and success of the
CSP;
(c)
a proposal for a future CSP workshop.
A motion was PROPOSED and SECONDED
as follows:
‘That the Panel welcome the contents of the
annual report and, in order to identify issues to be raised, agrees
to convene an all Member Workshop in January
2020.’
When put to the meeting, this proposal was declared
CARRIED.
It
was then:
RESOLVED
That the Panel welcome the
contents of the annual report and, in order to identify issues to
be raised, agrees to convene an all Member Workshop in January
2020.
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O&S.49/19 |
Safeguarding Update PDF 52 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Panel considered a report that sought to
provide Members with the opportunity to annually scrutinise and
review Safeguarding.
In
his introduction, the lead Executive Member advised that a proposal
was to be presented to the next Council meeting on 19 December 2019
that would seek to approve a dementia friendly policy.
In
light of the earlier decision to convene an all Member Workshop
(Minute O&S.48/19 above refers), it was deemed appropriate for
Safeguarding to also be considered at this session. As a result, it was felt that the proposal to
recommend a revised Safeguarding Policy should be deferred to the
next Panel meeting on the afternoon of Thursday, 23 January 2020
(i.e. after the Workshop had been held). This proposal was subsequently supported by the
Panel.
It was
then:
RESOLVED
That the Panel defer consideration of the formal
Update until the next meeting on the afternoon of Thursday, 23
January 2020 to enable for Safeguarding to be considered at the all
Member Workshop that is to be convened on the Community Safety
Partnership (Minute O&S.48/19 above refers).
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O&S.50/19 |
Electric Car Charging Points - Update PDF 54 KB
Minutes:
The Panel considered a
report that provided an update in respect of the strategy for the
installation of Electric Charging Points in Council Car
Parks.
During the ensuing
discussion, the following points were raised-
(a)
In response to some specific
requests relating to charging point provision and location in
Ivybridge, it was agreed that officers would discuss in more detail
with an interested local Ward Member outside of this
meeting;
(b)
With regard to the timescales of the DELETTI (Devon
Low carbon Energy and Transport Technology Innovator) project, a
number of Members expressed their disappointment that the project
installations were not due to be completed in the South Hams until
2022. In response, officers advised
that the Council was only one of a number of project partners and
it was agreed that the programme would be circulated to all
Members. That being said, officers
would also like to see the South Hams installations advanced sooner
and they gave a commitment to lobby the project leads in an attempt
to achieve this objective. This
emphasis was considered by Members to be particularly important
when considered that the Council had declared a Climate Change and
Biodiversity Emergency;
(c)
Members were informed that, if they disagreed with
any of the proposed car parks that had been identified for
installation of the initial Electric Car Charging Points, then they
needed to let officers know within the next two weeks;
(d)
Officers highlighted that there were a number of
sources of external grant funding that could be accessed to install
Charging Points. As a result, Members
were actively encouraged to advise their town and parish councils
(who owned their own car parks) to submit bids to obtain grant
funding;
(e)
The Panel was reminded that, as part of the current
Budget Consultation Survey for 2020/21, Members were being asked
for their views on any increases in car parking charges being set
aside to install additional Charging Points in Council owned car
parks. It was confirmed that the views
of Members in this respect would be included in the 2020/21 draft
budget setting reports. As an extension
to the Survey, some Members felt that it would be useful for the
costs associated with procuring and installing Charging Points in
all Council owned Car Parks to be presented to the Panel at its
meeting on 23 April 2020;
(f)
Such were the challenges being faced, that Members
cited examples whereby customers were trading in their electric
cars because they could not be adequately charged;
(g)
Some Members made the point that they did not wish
to see any loss of car parking income to the Council as a result of
this initiative.
It was
then:
RESOLVED
1.
That the update report, in
respect of the Strategy for the installation of Electric Charging
Points in Council Car Parks, be welcomed, with the exception of the
concerns raised over the project installation date of 2022;
and
2.
That a further update report be
presented to the Panel meeting on ...
view the full minutes text for item O&S.50/19
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O&S.51/19 |
Customer Satisfaction Survey PDF 73 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Panel considered a report that provided
an update on the progress that detailed the scores achieved by the
Council as part of a recent Institute of Customer Service Customer
Satisfaction Benchmark Survey.
In
discussion, reference was made to:-
(a)
the improved Survey results. The Panel paid tribute to the improved Survey
results and noted that these had been achieved without any
additional resources being allocated.
Moreover, it was confirmed that the proposed Customer Service
Improvement Manager post would be funded through the existing
Staffing Establishment budget;
(b)
IT Procurement and Improvement. Some Members echoed the comments in the presented
agenda report that the Council’s work processing software was
not as slick as it could be. These
Members hoped that this would be rectified during the new IT
Procurement project which would then directly lead to further
improvements in Customer Satisfaction levels;
(c)
increased access to services online. In reiterating the comments in the presented
agenda report whereby there was a need to build on the progress
that had been made, some Members emphasised the importance of
promoting increased access to Council services online and ensuring
that residents were kept regularly informed.
It was then:
RESOLVED
1.
That the results from the recent
Customer Satisfaction Survey be noted; and
2.
That the Executive be RECOMMENDED to approve the actions contained within Section
5 of the presented agenda report that are headed as
follows:
- Customer
Service Improvement Manager;
- Complaint
Handling Review;
- Staff
Meetings, Performance Monitoring and Training;
- IT Procurement and Improvement;
- Continued
Surveying; and
- Progress
Reporting.
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O&S.52/19 |
Guidance on Information Commissioner's Office Procedure PDF 66 KB
Minutes:
Consideration was given to a report that
recommended a procedure to inform Members and the public of
decisions made by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
in relation to requests for information.
During the debate, some Members questioned
why the recommendation was for local Ward Members to only be
notified if an ICO request related to a planning
matter. These Members felt that other
matters (e.g. an Environmental Health matter) may also be of
interest (and relevance) to local Ward Members.
In
response, officers advised that the guidance was drafted to take
into account the potential sensitivities around matters such as
Housing and Benefits and it was recognised that it would not be
appropriate for these to be shared with local Ward
Members. As a way forward, it was
agreed that the Deputy Monitoring Officer would consider the
appropriateness of disclosing a matter to local Ward Members on a
case by case basis.
It
was then:
RECOMMENDED
That Council be RECOMMENDED that the following procedure be adopted to
inform Members and the public of decisions made by the Information
Commissioner’s Office in relation to requests for
information:
1.
That the Council takes the necessary steps to
publish on a quarterly basis details relating to the number of
requests handled by the Council and the decisions taken in relation
to those requests in accordance with the Section 45 Code of
Practice;
2.
That the Council reviews its Publication Scheme in
the light of requests for information it receives
annually;
3.
When the Council is advised by the ICO that a
request has been referred to it, the Leader and relevant lead
Executive Member be notified and, if the matter relates to a
planning issue, the local Ward Members are also
notified. For non-planning issues, the
Deputy Monitoring Officer will determine on a case by case basis
whether it could be disclosed to local Ward Members;
4.
That all Members be notified with a copy of the
Decision Notice when it is received, in addition to it being published on the Council website and the
matter will be reported to the Overview and Scrutiny Panel;
and
5.
That, when an ICO decision recommends that further
action is taken by the Council, the Freedom Of Information Officer
will ensure that the relevant officer takes the action on behalf of
the Council or seeks the agreement of the Monitoring Officer if
they wish to challenge the Decision.
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O&S.53/19 |
Ombudsman's Annual Review Letter 2019 PDF 90 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Members considered a
report that presented the Local Government & Social Care
Ombudsman’s (LGO) Annual Review Letter 2019 regarding
Ombudsman complaints that had been received against the Council for
the period 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019.
In discussion, the
importance of lessons being learned from the findings of the
Ombudsman was recognised.
It
was then:
RESOLVED
That the Panel has reviewed the
Ombudsman’s Annual Letter for 2019.
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O&S.54/19 |
Housing Report PDF 67 KB
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Consideration was
given to a report that presented a series of proposals that would
help the Council to shape its emerging Housing Strategy.
In discussion, the
following points were raised:-
(a)
Officers emphasised the importance of Member
engagement in the development of the emerging Housing
Strategy;
(b) The
view was expressed that there was little detail about caravan
dwellers in the presented agenda report. The Panel acknowledged that there were a number of
challenges around caravan dwellers and it would be essential for
these to be incorporated into the emerging Strategy. In addition, it was requested that these
challenges be included as part of the Gypsies and Travellers Member
Session on 30 January 2020;
(c) The
Panel retained the belief that the national definition of
‘affordable rent and purchase’ was still too high for
the South Hams. As a result, the Panel
wished to note with concern:
-
the rise in recorded local
Housing Need;
-
that levels of fuel poverty in
the South Hams are currently above the national average;
-
the average house prices in the
South Hams are currently 13 times the average salary;
and
-
that rental levels are often
higher than Local Housing Allowance Rates.
(d) The
need for the Council to be more imaginative in how it applied its
planning policies was recognised;
(e)
A Member cited the extent of the recent development
in Ivybridge and felt that the issues in that town differed
significantly to those in areas such as Salcombe and
Dartmouth. As a result, Members felt
that the Strategy should not be generic and would need to reflect
these differing issues across the district;
(f)
Whilst acknowledging that there may be barriers
following the recent Public Works Loan Board interest rate
increase, the Panel was still interested in the concept whereby the
Council could potentially act as a lender to Developers who were
struggling to obtain finance to build local housing.
It was
then:
RESOLVED
That the Panel note with concern:
1.
the rise in recorded local
Housing Need;
2.
that levels of fuel poverty in
the South Hams are currently above the national average;
3.
the average house prices in the
South Hams are currently 13 times the average salary;
and
4.
that rental levels are often
higher than Local Housing Allowance Rates.
and,
in order to address these concerns, the Panel supports the
proposals to engage positively and help shape the emerging Housing
Strategy and the principle of an interventionalist approach in the
market.
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O&S.55/19 |
Update from the Climate Change & Biodiversity Working Group PDF 43 KB
Minutes:
Members considered an
update from the Working Group and, in the subsequent discussion,
reference was made to:-
(a)
the emerging draft Action Plan containing over 160
actions. In terms of process, the Panel
was reminded that all Members had been invited to attend the
Working Group meeting on 5 December 2019. The draft Action Plan was to be first considered
at this meeting before then being recommended for approval to the
Council meeting on 19 December 2019;
(b) the carbon
footprint of the Council. Officers
confirmed that, once the carbon footprint baseline data of the
Council had been established, then it would be possible to set a
series of Key Performance Indicators within the Action
Plan;
(c)
the Working Group. Since being
established in July 2019, a Member expressed his disappointment
that the Working Group had only met twice to date and had still not
been given sight of the draft Action Plan.
The Member proceeded to question the merit of the
Working Group and regretted the lack of Member involvement
following the Council decision on 25 July 2019 to declare a Climate
Change and Biodiversity Emergency. In
reply, the Leader stated that the six-month time frame that the
Council had set to develop an Action Plan had been incredibly
challenging and all Members would receive a first draft version as
far in advance as possible of the Working Group meeting on 5
December 2019;
(d) the ‘Call
for Evidence’ Themed Hearings.
Some Members could not see any justification as to why they could
not attend (as observers) any of the ‘Call for
Evidence’ Themed Hearings. In
reply, the lead officer advised that he had made the request to the
Devon Climate Emergency Response Group, but that this had been
rejected. Despite the Panel being
reminded that all of the Hearings would be webcast, Members wished
for the lead officer to contact the Response Group to ask that it
reconsiders its decision in this regard;
(e)
the Citizens Assembly proposal. Some
Members expressed their disappointment at the lack of information
that had been forthcoming from Devon County Council on its Citizens
Assembly proposal.
It was then:
RESOLVED
1.
That the Panel requests that the
lead officer makes representations to the Devon Climate Emergency
Response Group calling for South Hams District Council Members to
be able to attend the ‘Call for Evidence’ Themed
Hearing at Follaton House on Wednesday, 27 November
2019;
2.
That the Panel expresses its
concerns over the lack of information that had been received from
Devon County Council in relation to its Citizens Assembly proposal;
and
3.
That the Climate Change and
Biodiversity Working Group be RECOMMENDED that the
draft Climate Change Action Plan should attempt to address the
dangers that Climate Change poses including, but not limited to,
extreme weather events such as flood and drought. In cases where elements are outside its remit, the
Council should aim to communicate with (and work alongside) those
who are responsible for those elements.
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O&S.56/19 |
Task and Finish Group Updates:
(a) Leisure Review;
and
(b) Locality
Service.
Minutes:
(a)
Leisure
Review
During his update, the Group
Chairman advised that:
-
the Group had conducted a very useful site tour
of the four Leisure Centres in the South Hams. During the tour, the Group had met with Leisure
Centre staff and managers and a further meeting with senior Fusion
representatives was to be held on Thursday, 12 December 2019;
and
-
the Group was still on target to present its
concluding report to the next Panel meeting on 23 January
2020.
(b)
Locality
Service
The Group Chairman provided an
update to the Panel and informed that:
-
the inaugural meeting had been
held at which the Group had approved the Terms of Reference for the
Review;
-
some Group Members had already
shadowed Locality Engagement and Mobile Locality
Officers;
-
the next Group meeting (during
which Members were to interview the three Locality Engagement
Officers) was to be held on Thursday, 28 November 2019;
-
all Members were encouraged to
complete the Member Survey on the Locality Service;
-
the Group was still on target to present its
concluding report to the next Panel meeting on 23 January
2020.
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O&S.57/19 |
Annual O+S Work Programme PDF 50 KB
Minutes:
During consideration
of the latest version of the Panel’s Annual Work Programme,
the following additions, amendments and deletions were
made:
(a)
The Panel acknowledged that it
had earlier decided to defer consideration of the formal
Safeguarding Update until its next meeting on the afternoon of
Thursday, 23 January 2020 (Minute O&S.49/19 above
refers);
(b)
Members also noted that a
further update report on Electric Charging Points would be
presented to the Panel meeting on 23 April 2020 (Minute
O&S.50/19 above refers) that would focus on:
-
The lobbying to be undertaken on
bringing the completion date forward; and
-
The costs associated with
procuring and installing Charging Points in all Council owned Car
Parks.
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