Agenda and minutes

To invite Councillors and Commissioners to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests or personal interests they may have in any matter which is to be considered at this meeting, to confirm the nature of those interests and whether they intend to leave the meeting for the consideration of the item.

There were no Declarations of Interest to report.

To receive questions from members of the public who wish to ask a general question in respect of matters within the Council’s area of responsibility or influence.

Subject to the Chair’s discretion, members of the public may ask one question and one supplementary question, which should relate to the original question and answered received.

Members of the Council may also ask questions under this agenda item.

(1)          A member of the public explained she had only learnt of these proposals on the 8^th May, 2018 of the action to be taken with the closure of Parkhill Lodge.  She expressed shock the family had faced when learning the accommodation used by her sister may be closing.  She had attended a meeting at the Holiday Inn, but there appeared to be no one advocating for service users against the closures or proposing alternative options or repairs to buildings.

She was passionate for her sister’s welfare as she would struggle with any proposed move from Parkhill Lodge due to her health and being institutionalised.   She appreciated that some changes needed to be made, but wanted to ensure that her sister would continue to receive the highest level of care she had always received.

Councillor Roche, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health, confirmed Parkhill Lodge had been added late into the report and due to this it was recommended by Scrutiny that further consultation was required on Parkhill Lodge’s future.

In a supplementary question the member of the public expressed her concern as she had read recommendations that the home would close during 2019/2020, but because of findings in April closure may be initiated sooner.  She requested that as part of the further consultation all family members of service users should be fully informed.

Councillor Roche confirmed an earlier closure had been talked about, but this was due to some issues with some of the utilities.  Once the recommendation to further consult on the future of Parkhill Lodge had been accepted, families and service users would be informed.

(2)  A member of the public asked what had been the response and reactions to the recommendations in the report by people with learning disabilities and autism, the service users.

Councillor Roche confirmed the report set out the consultation details and involved in a series of mediums talking to service users.

Janine Moorcroft, Head of Service, confirmed the details of the consultation process which involved talking about various options with stakeholders, service users etc., including proposed closure of some facilities, the timelines and what may happen.  Following the publication of the report it was not considered appropriate to engage with service users further until a decision had been made.  However, once a decision was made on the recommendations of the report it was planned to create an easy read version that would be cascaded to service users and their families and to work closely as to what this would mean to them.

In a supplementary question the member of the public asked about the timeframes and if this would include feeding back to the service users with learning disabilities and autism as she was fearful services would start to be closed and service users would be unaware what was happening.

Janine Moorcroft explained that once the meeting had concluded and able to take recommendations forward there would be further communication with service users and families to ensure proper plans  ...  view the full minutes text for item 138.

To receive the record of proceedings of the Cabinet and Commissioners’ Decision Making Meeting held on 16 April 2018.

Resolved:-  That the minutes of the Cabinet and Commissioners’ Decision Making Meeting held on 16^th April, 2018, be agreed as a true and correct record of the proceedings.

Agenda Item 9 has an exempt appendix. Therefore, if necessary when considering that item, the Chair will move the following resolution:-

That under Section 100(A) 4 of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12(A) of such Act indicated, as now amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006.

Resolved:-  That under Section 100(A) 4 of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the agenda item 9 on the grounds that the appendix involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12(A) of such Act indicated, as now amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006. 

Report of the Strategic Director of Finance and Customer Services

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Read

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1     That the progress of the Customer Service & Efficiency Board work programme be noted.

2     That the Customer Access Strategy be approved for publication.

3     That any significant changes required following annual reviews of the Strategy be subject to further reports for Cabinet consideration and approval.

Consideration was given to a report proposed a new Customer Access Strategy to replace the now expired Strategy.

The Customer Service and Efficiency Board was established in September 2017, to deliver a strategic approach to service delivery and support the Council in the realisation of significant efficiencies.

The Board’s Customer Service and Efficiency work programme included a comprehensive range of projects and was highlighted in the report as well as responsible for the Council’s Customer Access Strategy.

It was important that all customers continued to have access to the services they needed irrespective of their personal situation and that the information and advice they received was simple and easy to understand.  The purpose of the Strategy was to set out how the Council aimed to achieve such building on the Council’s values to strengthen customer relationships and improve service delivery.

The new Strategy formed the framework for the way customers accessed services and the way the Council delivered them, cutting across all areas of business to deliver greater efficiency, make better use of resources and improve customer experience.

The new Strategy was aligned to the Council Plan and the Council’s Digital Strategy.  It had a greater digital focus to reflect the vision for a modern, efficient council that made best use of available resources and provided value for money, customer-focused services.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the progress of the Customer Service and Efficiency Board work programme be noted.

(2)  That the Customer Access Strategy be approved for publication.

(3)  That any significant changes required following annual reviews of the Strategy be subject to further reports for Cabinet consideration and approval.

Report of the Strategic Director of Finance and Customer Services

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Alam

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

That, subject to the required objectives described in this report being met, approval be given to the delivery of a public access Wi-Fi across Rotherham Town Centre.

Further to Minute No. 72 of 12^th September, 2016, consideration was given to a report seeking approval to enable the delivery of a free public access Rotherham Town Centre Wi-Fi service as part of implementing the Digital Council Strategy and at no cost to the Council.

The project would provide a public access Wi-Fi service in public spaces and public buildings within Rotherham’s Town Centre area to make it more vibrant and an attractive place for citizens, visitors, businesses and shoppers in order to increase footfall and to help local businesses thrive and grow.  This had also been requested by local businesses.

It was proposed that the Council undertake a competitive procurement for a concession contract for the provision of a service and, subject to the required objectives set out in the report being met, to enter into a concession contract for the provision of those services. 

Resolved:-  That the delivery of a public access Wi-Fi across Rotherham Town Centre be approved.

Report of the Assistant Chief Executive

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Alam

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendation:-

That the Council be recommended to approve the Council Plan Indicators for 2018-2019.

Consideration was given to the report which detailed the proposed annual review of the Performance Indicators included within the 2017-2020 Council Plan

Since the publication of the 2017-2020 Council Plan work had taken place alongside Cabinet Members and performance leads to refine the headline measures for the 2018-2019 financial year.  At the same time, Service Plans had been refreshed for 2018-2019.

The proposed revised Council Plan Indicators for 2018-2019 was attached at Appendix A of the submitted report.  It now included a total of 70 measures (reduced from 72 in the previous version) which formed the priority actions under each of the 4 themes of the Council’s vision as well as the fifth, cross-cutting corporate commitment to operate as a modern and efficient Council.

Appendix A included green highlighting where a change was proposed compared to 2018-2019.  In total 47 individual target measures had been revised, with a number showing a tightening of targets from 2017-2018.

The 2017-20 Council Plan included 25 measures which were highlighted as headline priorities, informed by discussions with the Leader and Cabinet.  This highlight had been removed from the 2018-2019 revised Council Plan Indicators for 2018-2019 to ensure all measures were perceived as priorities.

In total 8 Indicators had been removed compared to 2017-2018; 4 had been added and 12 had been replaced by 14 refreshed Indicators. 

Cabinet Members highlighted particular indicators within the suite that had either been added, refreshed and readily understandable or removed, including the percentage of looked after children in family based settings, domestic abuse, licensing and reliance on external annual data for anti-social behaviour and hate crime.

Resolved:-  That the Council Plan Indicators for 2018-2019 be approved.

Report of the Strategic Director of Finance and Customer Services

(This item includes an exempt appendix)

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Alam

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1.    That discretionary relief be refused for Dinnington School of Swimming and Fitness CIC, Unit 6 Brooklands Park, Brooklands Way, Dinnington, Sheffield, S25 2JZ.

2.    That 20% discretionary top up relief for the period 1^st April 2017 to 31^st March 2019 be awarded to Rotherham & District Citizens Advice Bureau, 5 Eastwood Lane, Rotherham S65 1EQ.

Consideration was given to a report which detailed two applications for the award of a discretionary business rate relief for Dinnington School of Swimming and Fitness CIC and Rotherham and District Citizens Advice Bureau. This was in accordance with the Council’s Discretionary Business Rates Relief Policy (approved 12^th December, 2016).

Resolved:-  (1)  That discretionary relief for Dinnington School of Swimming and Fitness CIC, Unit 6 Brooklands Park, Brooklands Way, Dinnington, Sheffield be refused.

(2)  That 20% discretionary top up rate relief for the period 1^st April, 2017 to 31^st March, 2018 to Rotherham and District Citizens Advice Bureau, 5 Eastwood Lane, Rotherham be awarded.

Report of the Acting Strategic Director of Children and Young People’s Services

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Watson

Commissioner:         Bradwell (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1.    That the outcome of the consultation on Enabling School Improvement be noted.

2.    That the commitment to working with individual settings, schools and strategic partners with pace, pride and passion to further develop good and outstanding provision be noted.

3.    That the establishment of a Rotherham Strategic Education Partnership Board, as set out in section 4 of this report, to create opportunities to exploit synergies; identify both gaps in provision and duplication and create greater strategic coherence and help to secure improved outcomes be endorsed.

4.    That the proposal to recruit to the substantive post of Assistant Director (Education) recognising this may be through a permanent appointment or a fixed term full time/part time seconded appointment be noted.

5.    That the operational decisions of the Strategic Director of Children and Young People’s Services relating to the relocation of operational functions be noted. 

Consideration was given to a report containing an overview of proposals for the future enablement of School Improvement in Rotherham and proposals to bring together key strategic partners to create a Rotherham Strategic Education Partnership Board to set and oversee Rotherham Education priorities and avoid duplication.

The report considered the wider aspects of school improvement in Rotherham for consultation and had been circulated widely to all Head Teachers, Chairs of Governors, Chief Executives of Teaching School Alliances, Diocesan Authorities and other stakeholders including sub-regional partners and a period of consultation with key stakeholders had taken place between 7^th February and 23^rd March, 2018. 

The report outlined a range of models implemented by other local authorities that were assessed against the educational needs of Rotherham.

It was proposed that the single overarching Strategic Education Partnership Board would give schools and key education partners even greater ownership and responsibility for setting the priorities for improvement and leading the work to deliver them.  It would bring together directly or indirectly the expertise of staff employed directly by the local authority, individual schools, teaching schools and other school-to-school support providers.  It would establish an even stronger education system for all children, shared by political, Council and school leaders, building stronger connections with other key partners in the region such as the Regional Schools Commissioner and senior Ofsted Inspectors.

This report had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board as part of the pre-scrutiny process who were in support of the recommendations, subject to members of the Rotherham Youth Cabinet being appointed to the Rotherham Strategic Education Partnership Board to ensure that the voice of young people was heard, that the governance arrangements be clarified to include provision for oversight by non-executive Members and that reports from the Board on progress made against priorities be presented to Scrutiny Members on as and when basis.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the outcome of the consultation on Enabling School Improvement be noted.

(2)  That the commitment to working with individual settings, schools and strategic partners with pace, pride and passion to further develop good and outstanding provision be noted.

(3)  That the establishment of a Rotherham Strategic Education Partnership Board, as set out in section 4 of the report submitted, to create opportunities to exploit synergies; identify both gaps in provision and duplication and create greater strategic coherence and help to secure improved outcomes, be endorsed and include members of Rotherham Youth and/or Looked After Children Council to ensure that the voice of young people is heard.

(4)  That the proposal to recruit to the substantive post of Assistant Director (Education) recognising this may be through a permanent appointment or a fixed term full-time/part-time seconded appointment, be noted.

(5)  That the governance arrangements be clarified to include provision for oversight by non-executive Members, with reports on progress made against priorities presented to Scrutiny Members on as and when basis.

Report of the Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Hoddinott

Commissioner:         Kenny (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1.    That the revised Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council (RMBC) Code of Practice for Highway Inspection and Assessment (Appendix A) be approved and implemented by October 2018. This will ensure that Rotherham’s highway network is safely maintained, thereby safeguarding users.

2.    That Cabinet support the recommendation of Improving Places Select Commission that a further update, incorporating additional performance management data, will be provided to Improving Places Select Commission and the Cabinet Member for Waste, Roads and Community Safety.

Consideration was given to a report proposing a revised Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council Code of Practice for Highway Inspection and Assessment which included policies for both Highway Safety Inspection and Skidding Resistance.

The Reviewed Code took account of recommendations within “Well-managed Highway Infrastructure (A Code of Practice)”, a report commissioned by the Department for Transport.  This new Code of Practice would replace “Well-maintained Highways”, “Management of Highway Structures” and “Well-lit Highways” in October 2018.

The new code varied significantly from the current reliance on specific guidance and recommendations to a more flexible risk-based approach to highway asset management.  The purpose of the new risk-based approach was that highway safety inspections determined the scale and likelihood of the risk presented by a highway defect and used this to determine the appropriate category of response.

The introduction of a risk-based approach to highway inspection moved away from a highway inspection system based on specific defect intervention/repair levels and replaced it with a system that required risk assessment to determine the need for repair works.  Therefore, the proposed “Rotherham MBC Code of Practice for Highway Inspection and Assessment” had been developed taking into account the change in national guidance and training of the Highway Inspectors would now commence in readiness to meet the October, 2018 implementation.

The report had been considered by the Improving Places Select Commission on 14^th March, 2018.

It was also noted that customer satisfaction rates for work already completed had been very positive.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the revised Rotherham Borough Council Code of Practice for Highway Inspection and Assessment (Appendix A) be approved and implemented by October, 2018.  This would ensure that Rotherham’s highway network was safely maintained thereby safeguarding users.

(2)  That a further update, incorporating additional performance management data, be submitted to the Improving Places Select Commission and Cabinet Member for Waste, Roads and Community Safety.

Report of the Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Lelliott

Commissioner:         Kenny (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

That the final decision agreeing to the proposal to permanently remove the public phone box at the junction of Stubbin Road and Cortworth Lane, Nether Haugh be noted.

Consideration was given to a report regarding the request for the removal of the public telephone box at the junction of Stubbin Road and Cortworth Lane, Nether Haugh.

Under Ofcom guidance the Council was required to undertake a 2 stage public consultation on the proposal.  After considering any consultation responses the Council must then make a final decision as to whether it agreed or objected to removal of the telephone box.  The final decision must be made within 90 days of the Council being notified of the proposal by BT.

It had not been possible within the 90 day timeframe for the Council’s final decision to be made by Cabinet.  The final decision to agree to the closure and removal of the telephone box was made in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Jobs and the Local Economy.  The decision took into account an assessment of the telephone box against a number of criteria, that the request for the removal had come from the community and not a cost cutting exercise from BT and that no consultation responses had been received objecting to the removal.

Resolved:-  That the final decision agreeing to the proposal to permanently remove the public telephone box at the junction of Stubbin Road and Cortworth Lane, Nether Haugh, be noted.

Report of the Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Roche

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

1.  That approval be given to the draft Learning Disability Strategy and approve future stakeholder engagement.

2.  That approval be given to the development of a Rotherham Supported Living and Better Days Framework as detailed in the Learning Disability Strategy (Appendix C).

3.  That approval be given to the transformation of the Learning Disability Services over the next two years which will see the services move from existing building based locations to alternative care and support that will be situated as close to the person as possible in their local community, using and developing existing resources and community buildings i.e. leisure centres and community provision.  Oaks Day Centre, Addison Day Centre, Treefields, Quarryhill and Parkhill will be decommissioned. 

4.  That the Council continue to provide a service to people with high complex needs. The Elliott Centre and Maple Avenue buildings will be reviewed and may be moved to more suitable alternative premises should they become available.

5.  That approval be given to the delivery plan which sets out how the Council will make sure all people with a learning disability have access to community based services that promote independence, wellbeing and social inclusion. This will ensure that: 

•      Each person with a learning disability has a review based on a person centred approach, which will inform the support and services the Council needs to provide to meet their individual needs by 2020. A dedicated team of social workers with the support of the existing staff will undertake the reviews. This will also include advocacy support and engagement with carers.

•      Each person will have the opportunity to make sure every day in their life is meaningful, of value and leads to them having a ‘Good Day’. Doing things which have a purpose; being in ordinary places doing things most other people in the community would be doing; doing things that are for the individual; making sure they receive the right amount of support; and are in touch with local people, developing friendships.

•      More people have the opportunity to participate in paid employment.

•      A strength based approach will be taken  to develop a range of opportunities, including shared lives, use of personal budgets, develop skills for independent living  provide support when the carer needs it and making sure more people have their own front door.

Consideration was given to a report which set out the details for the next steps in the transformation of services and support for people with a learning disability in line with the Learning Disability Strategy, vision and the learning from the consultation with people and families.

The needs of people with a learning disability were continuing to change and were becoming more diverse.  People and families had higher expectations of what it meant to have an independent life in their community and wanted more control over their lives.

The challenges facing the Council were being recognised and the review of the Learning Disability Services which began in 2015 had resulted in a number of reports and consultation with the people who used the services.

The review was integral to the Council’s overall vision for transforming Social Care and built on the principles of the Care Act 2014 with the need to move away from traditional building-based support.  This would result in Oaks Day Centre, Addison Day Centre, Treefields and Quarryhill being decommissioned with further consultation on the future of Parkhill Lodge.

The Council fully understood that changes could create anxiety and would be respectful of this and would consider and take into account the learning from the consultations that have taken place to develop a robust communication and engagement strategy.  This would be to ensure people with learning disabilities, their families and carers, received reliable and timely information and were fully engaged and included throughout the development of plans.

Moving forward all service users would undergo a person-centred approach thorough individual assessment of need before alternative provision was put in place.

Cabinet Members acknowledged the sensitivity around this Service, but reflected on the lessons learnt from other local authorities and welcomed the opportunities that may arise for Service users from within their own communities.  However, Members, families and Service users were reassured that needs would be carefully looked at by a dedicated team and that no changes would take place until a full assessment had been undertaken.

This report had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board as part of the pre-scrutiny process who were in support of the recommendations, subject to monitoring reports being submitted to Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and/or Health Select Commission 6 months after implementation of the Strategy and underlying work streams, the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health consider how non-executive Members could become involved in the evaluations of client experience in the delivery of the Learning Disability Strategy, visits to other authorities that have implemented a similar approach be arranged for Members and carers to observe the benefits outlined within the report and that prior to any decision on the future of Parkhill Lodge being made, a specific and formal consultation exercise is carried out on the proposed closure.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the draft Learning Disability Strategy and future stakeholder engagement be approved.

(2)  That the development of a Rotherham Supported Living and Better Days Framework as detailed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 148.

Report of the Strategic Director of Adult Care, Housing and Public Health

Cabinet Member:     Councillor Roche

Commissioner:         Ney (in advisory role)

Recommendations:

That option 2 of the report be approved, which is to move the provision of rehabilitation out of the building base (RICC at Badsley Moor Lane) and re-provide within the community.

Consideration was given to proposals for the future of Rotherham Intermediate Care Centre (RICC) at Badsley Moor Lane.

The RICC was delivered in partnership by the Council and The Rotherham Foundation Trust. It contributed to the aims, objectives and outcomes set out in the Intermediate Care Service specification and Better Care Fund Plan 2017-19.

The Centre was jointly commissioned by the Rotherham Clinical Commissioning Group and the Council through a Section 75 Agreement under the Better Care Fund to provide rehabilitation and community integration facilities within a day setting for residents of Rotherham or who were registered with a Rotherham GP practice. 

This report had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board as part of the pre-scrutiny process who were in support of the recommendations, subject to the Health Select Commission receiving updates on the performance of re-designed Intermediate Care Service to ensure there was no negative implications for the client experience.

Resolved:-  (1)  That Option 2 of the report submitted be approved i.e. to move the provision of rehabilitation out of the building base (RICC at Badsley Moor lane) and re-provide within the community.

(2)  That Health Select Commission receive updates on the performance of re-designed Intermediate Care Service to ensure there was no negative implications for the client experience.

To receive a report detailing the recommendations of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board in respect of the following items that were subject to pre-decision scrutiny on 16 May 2018:

·         Customer Access Strategy

·         Enabling School Improvement

·         The Transformation of Services and Support for People with a Learning Disability

·         Proposals for the future of Rotherham Intermediate Care Centre (RICC)

Consideration was given to the circulated report, the contents of which were included as part of the relevant items and the details included accordingly.