Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chairman for the ensuing Municipal Year.

Resolved:- That Councillor Eve Rose Keenan be elected Chairman of the Rotherham Borough Council for the ensuing Municipal Year and that she be entitled to the style of Mayor by virtue of Section 245(1) of the Local Government Act 1972.

Mover:- Councillor Hoddinott                        Seconder:- Councillor Clark

Councillor Keenan thereupon made and subscribed the statutory declaration of acceptance of office.

(Counciillor Keenan assumed the Chair)

To pass a vote of thanks to the retiring Mayor.

Resolved:- That  the Council  tender its  sincere  thanks to  Councillor Lyndsay Pitchley for the  excellent manner in  which she has carried out  all her duties as Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Rotherham and that the best thanks of this Council be recorded for the kind and admirable way in which Mr. Alex Armitage performed the duties of Consort.

 Mover:-  Councillor Taylor             Seconder:-  Councillor Russell

To elect a Vice-Chairman for the ensuing Municipal Year.

Resolved:- That Councillor Alan Buckley be elected Vice-Chairman of the Rotherham Borough Council for the ensuing Municipal Year and that he be entitled to the style of Deputy Mayor by virtue of section 245(1) of the Local Government Act 1972.

Mover:-  Councillor Taylor                    Seconder:-  Councillor McNeely

Councillor Buckley thereupon made and subscribed the statutory declaration of acceptance of office.

To consider any announcements by the Mayor or the Leader.

There were no announcements to report.

To receive the apologies of any Member who is unable to attend the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Ellis, Jones, Price, Roche, Sansome, John Turner and Vjestica.

To report on any petitions received by the Council.

The Mayor reported that one petition had been submitted, but had not met the threshold for consideration by Council, and would be referred to the relevant directorate for a response to be prepared:-

·             From 313 residents requesting access into Beech Road, Avenue Road and Sandymount Road through the removal of a pub fence to facilitate a safer walking route.

Any communication received by the Mayor or Chief Executive which relates to a recommendation of the Cabinet or a committee which was received after the relevant meeting.

There were no communications to report.

To invite Councillors 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 the record of proceedings of the ordinary meeting of the Council held on 8^th March, 2017 and to approve the accuracy thereof.

Resolved:- That the minutes of the meetings of the Council held on 8^th March, 2017 be approved for signature by the Mayor.

Mover:-  Councillor Read                                 Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

To note the minutes of Cabinet and Commissioners’ Decision Making Meetings held on 13^th March and 10^th April, 2017

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendations and minutes of the meetings of the Cabinet/Commissioners’ Decision Making Meetings held on 13^th March and 10^th April, 2017, be received.

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

To consider recommendations from Cabinet in respect of the Capital Programme and the Constitution arising from the review of Neighbourhood Working.

Further to Minute No. 206 of the meeting held on 10^th April, 2017, Councillor Yasseen outlined the aim the review which would herald the introduction of “a new model of citizen engagement and neighbourhood working linked to a review of Area Assemblies” to provide a focus on communities and introduce a new way of working.

The revised model of neighbourhood working would focus more on Ward level working, accountability and governance following a cross-party working group which had welcomed input and contributions to the process of developing the new neighbourhood strategy and model.

Councillors Cowles, B. Cutts and Jepson were unable to offer their support to the proposals as it was felt, whilst the move was in the right direction, it lacked structure and framework and required more clarity.

Councillors Cusworth, Steele and Watson expressed their surprise as this report had been presented as part of the pre-scrutiny process for discussion and would facilitate the formation of distinct Ward plans for the future with the support of the devolved budget.

Resolved:-  (1)  That £210k be added to the Capital Programme in 2017/18, to be funded from capital receipts, and that this budget be reviewed as part of the overall corporate budget setting process for 2018/19.

(2)  That the Constitution be amended to:-

·                Remove the reference to Area Assemblies in the heading of Part III of the Constitution and delete Article 12 of the Constitution [Area assemblies and area assembly co-ordinating groups]

·                Remove references to Area Assemblies and Area Assembly Co-ordinating Groups from the Executive Procedure Rules

·                Delete Rule 16(6),(7) and (8) [Conflicts of interest – membership of Area Assembly Co-ordinating Groups and Overview and Scrutiny Committee] and references to “Chairs of Area Assemblies” and all other references to “Area Assemblies” in the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules

·                Delete references to area committees in the Access to Information Procedure Rules

·                Delete references to area committees and Area Assembly Co-ordinating groups in the Standing Orders.

·                Delete references to area committees in the Code of Conduct for Members and Co-opted Members

·                Delete the reference to Chair of Area Assembly in the Members’ Allowances Scheme

·                Remove references to area assemblies from the Scheme of Delegation for Members and Officers

Mover:-  Councillor Yasseen                     Seconder:-  Councillor Hoddinott

To consider a recommendation from Cabinet in respect of amendments to the Council’s petition scheme.

Further to Minute No. 201 of the meeting held on 10^th April, 2017, Councillor Read, Leader, highlighted the suggested changes to the Petitions Scheme as recommended by the Cabinet.  This included:-

20 signatures            To be considered as a petition.

20 signatures            For a call for action to be regarded as a formal petition and presented to the Mayor at Council.

600 signatures          For an officer to be required to give evidence to Overview and Scrutiny.

2,000 signatures       For a petition to be debated at a Council meeting.

It was also recommended that all received petitions would need to be logged on the website, clearly indicating what action had been taken.

Resolved:-  That the associated constitutional changes in respect of the Petitions Scheme be incorporated within the external review of the Constitution being undertaken by the Association of Democratic Services Officers.

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

To consider a report in respect of the review of the Constitution.

Consideration was given to a report which detailed how, following the adoption of the recommendations from the Governance Review at the Annual Meeting in 2016, a number of subsequent amendments to the Constitution of the Council have been made during the 2016-17 municipal year. In addition to this, an external review of the Council’s Constitution had been commissioned by the Monitoring Officer, on behalf of the Constitution Working Group. This work was being undertaken by the Association of Democratic Services Officers, the professional body for governance and democratic services professionals.

Following the restoration of decision making powers in respect of the appointment of Councillors to serve on outside bodies, it was proposed that the Council formally adopt procedure rules which would enable the Authority to discharge its responsibilities.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the final report in respect of the external review of the Constitution be submitted to the next meeting of the Council on 12th July, 2017 following detailed consideration of the interim report and further proposals by the Constitution Working Group.

(2)  That the Procedure Rules for the Appointment of Councillors to Serve on Outside Bodies be incorporated within Standing Orders (Appendix 4 of the Constitution).

Mover:-  Councillor Read                           Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

To report on the establishment of political groups, the political balance of the Council and the entitlement of each group to seats on the authority’s committees.

Consideration was given to a report which detailed how Section 15 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 placed on local authorities the duty to allocate seats to political groups and set out the principles to be followed when determining such allocation following formal notification of the establishment of political groups in operation on the Council.

There was a requirement to annually review the entitlement of the political groups to seats on the committees of the Council. This was also required following the by-elections in Brinsworth and Catcliffe and Dinnington Wards in February, 2017.

The allocation of seats must follow two principles:-

(a)       Balance must be achieved across the total number of available seats on committees; and

(b)       Balance must be achieved on each individual committee or body where seats are available.

There were presently two political groups in operation on the Council – the Labour Group and the UK Independence Party Group – with two non-aligned Councillors (members who were not in a political group).

There were 169 seats available on committees, boards and panels and under the calculation the Labour Group was entitled to 129 seats and the UK Independence Group entitled to 35.  This left 5 seats which could not be given to members of the political groups and should be allocated to the 2 non-aligned councillors.

Resolved:-  (1)  That the operation of two political groups on the Council and the detail of their designated Leaders be noted.

(2)  That the entitlement of the membership of the political groups be agreed and such entitlements be reflected in Council’s appointments of members to committees.

(3)  That approval be given to the appointment of Members to committees, boards and panels, and the appointment of Chairs and Vice-Chairs, as set out on the schedule tabled at the meeting as follows:-

Executive

REGULATORY BOARDS

Standards and Ethics Committee:-

(8 Council Members)

Licensing Board:-

(21 Members)

Licensing Committee:-

(15 Members drawn from Licensing Board)

The Proper Officer has not received any notice of a motion under the provisions of Standing Order 10(4)(b).

No motions had been submitted.

To put questions, if any, to the designated Members on the discharge of functions of the South Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel, South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority, Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield Combined Authority and South Yorkshire Pensions Authority, in accordance with Standing Order No. 7(5).

Councillor Carter referred to there being a few high profile fires in the area recently since the second overnight pump was cut and asked would the Spokesperson push for the second pump to be reinstated to guarantee our area was safe from fires?

Councillor Atkin confirmed South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service remained committed to providing the best possible service to the people of South Yorkshire within the financial resources which were available. It was through the risk profiling and Integrated Risk Management Plan processes that having the right resources in the right place at the right time continued in order to provide the best possible service. This included the Service's response model and appliance availability at Rotherham Community Fire Station.  

The transition of moving from 2 whole time crewed appliances at Rotherham to one during the night was as a result of the implementation of the 2013/2017 Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP) together with significant statistical analysis and risk modelling. The IRMP was agreed by the Fire Authority in response to the cuts in Government funding which had seen the Service budget reduce by £12M during this current period of austerity.

The recent high profile incidents attended by South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service all received a swift, professional response from fire control, appliances, officers and specialist vehicles, and required a significant number of resources to bring them to a safe and timely conclusion. 

To ensure that the nearest available appliances were mobilised, the mobilising system used an Automatic Vehicle Locating System (AVLS). These incidents drew from the Service's resources across the county (as well as neighbouring counties) and at the same time the Service successfully dealt with other ongoing incident demand. These included high rise incidents and house fires in other areas of South Yorkshire.

In a supplementary question Councillor Carter again referred to the Integrated Risk Management Plan from 2013 and the one currently being considered and asked was the review of this second pump overnight going to be included for reconsideration by the Fire Authority.

Councillor Atkin responded by confirming the Integrated Risk Management Plan had been approved by the Fire Authority and the separate issue consulted upon. 

To put questions, if any, to Cabinet Members and Chairmen (or their representatives) under Standing Order No. 7(1) and 7(3).

 (1)  Councillor Napper asked what was the nature and role of the Emergency and Safety Department of R.M.B.C.?

Councillor Alam confirmed the Emergency and Safety Team comprised of 2 distinct elements of the Emergency Planning Shared Service and the Health and Safety Team.

The Emergency Planning Shared Service was established in June 2011, and ensured the equal delivery of both Emergency Planning and Business Continuity functions within Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council and Sheffield City Council.  The main duties of this service were to discharge the Council’s statutory functions under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 and ensure both authorities were resilient to a wide range of disruptions and able to respond effectively should a major incident occur.

The Health and Safety Team’s primary role was to ensure Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council discharged its duty as set out in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and associated legislation.

In a supplementary question Councillor Napper referred to an issue at Woodlaithes and an unsafe heavy duty fence leaning over the pavement.  As a result of no response from the Health and Safety Team, the Public Rights of Way Officer followed up the query and on further inspection served an Emergency Notice for action on the fence within 24 hours.  Ownership of the fence was not clear at that stage, but Councillor Napper confirmed he was concerned for public safety which was the reason for his initial contact with the Health and Safety Team.

Councillor Alam responded and asked if he could be forwarded the details and he would follow up, although the matter had since been resolved.

(2)   Councillor Jepson asked what support was the Council intending to give to Anston Park Junior School since Ofsted gave it an overall rating of ‘Requires Improvement’ following its recent inspection in April of  this year and given that this was the same rating as the previous inspection carried out in February of 2015.

Councillor Watson confirmed that following the inspection of Aston Park Junior School it was again identified as “Required Improvement”.  However, the report set out that the school was an improving school with the capacity in leadership across the school to improve further along with the teaching of English and Maths and the children at the school were making faster improvement than they had previously. The school’s improvement was supported by the wider school system and the report stated that the school had forged successful links with other schools to support its improvement and that these have been successful. The school also bought into the Council’s School Improvement Traded Service. The Council would continue to monitor the school’s outcomes to ensure that improvement continued and to support a judgement of good or better at the next inspection. This would be done by Consultant Head Teacher visits, monitoring of outcomes data and access to training and development to support the school’s development priorities.  Anston Park Junior School was a maintained school and the Council had a statutory responsibility to intervene  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

To receive and consider reports, minutes and recommendations of the Standards and Ethics Committee.

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendation and minutes of the meetings of the Standards and Ethics Committee be adopted.

Mover:-  Councillor McNeely                  Seconder:-  Councillor Allen

To receive and consider reports, minutes and recommendations of the Audit Committee.

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendation and minutes of the meetings of the Audit Committee be adopted.

Mover:-  Councillor Wyatt                      Seconder:-  Councillor Walsh

To receive and consider reports, minutes and recommendations of the Health and Wellbeing Board.

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendation and minutes of the meetings of the Health and Wellbeing Board be adopted.

Mover:-  Councillor Watson                    Seconder:-  Councillor Mallinder

To receive and consider reports, minutes and recommendations of the Planning Board.

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Resolved:-  That the reports and minutes of the meetings of the Planning Board be adopted.

Mover:-  Councillor Atkin                        Seconder:-  Councillor Tweed

To receive and consider reports, minutes and recommendations of the Licensing Board Sub-Committee.

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Resolved:-  That the reports and minutes of the meetings of the Licensing Board Sub-Committee be adopted.

Mover:-  Councillor Buckley                    Seconder:-  Councillor Beaumont

To consider any other public items which the Mayor determines are urgent.

There were no items of urgency.

To note that the next meeting of the Council will take place on Wednesday 12 July 2017 at 2.00 p.m. in Rotherham Town Hall.

Resolved:-  That the next meeting of the Council will take place on Wednesday, 12th July, 2017 at 2.00 p.m. at the Town Hall.