Agenda and minutes

Venue: Town Hall, Moorgate Street, Rotherham.

Contact: James McLaughlin, Head of Democratic Services  The webcast can be viewed at http://www.rotherham.public-i.tv

Items
No. Item

82.

Minutes of the previous meetings held on 12 September and 3 October 2018 pdf icon PDF 137 KB

 

To approve the minutes of the previous meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board held on 12 September and 3 October 2018 as true and correct records of the proceedings.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Resolved:-

 

That the minutes of the previous meetings held on 12 September and 3 October 2018 be approved as a true and correct record of the proceedings.

83.

Declarations of Interest

 

To receive declarations of interest from Members in respect of items listed on the agenda.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

84.

Questions from Members of the Public and the Press

 

To receive questions from members of the public or press who are present at the meeting.

Minutes:

There were no questions from members of the public or press.

85.

Exclusion of the Press and Public

 

To consider whether the press and public should be excluded from the meeting during consideration of any part of the agenda. There are no exempt items at the time of preparing the agenda.

Minutes:

The Chair reported that there were no items of business on the agenda that would require the exclusion of the press or public from the meeting.

86.

Petition - Installation of a CCTV Camera at the Memorial Garden, Clifton Park pdf icon PDF 108 KB

 

To consider a petition referred by Council calling for the installation of a CCTV Camera at the Memorial Garden, Clifton Park

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a petition seeking the installation of a CCTV camera at the Memorial Garden in Clifton Park which had been submitted by the family of the late Kurtis Spafford.

 

Councillor Cooksey addressed the meeting on behalf of the family to explain the reason for submitting the petition. Following the premature death of Kurtis Spafford, his family and friends raised funds for a bench to be positioned in the Memorial Gardens at Clifton Park. This was chosen because of the beauty and seclusion of that part of the park, where people can take time to reflect. However, the bench had been subject to vandalism on a number of occasions, and whilst council officers had restored the bench to original condition, it was felt that such vandalism could occur again. The fear of further vandalism to the bench had become a source of stress for the Spafford family and they requested that a CCTV camera be installed as a deterrent and to support efforts to reduce anti-social behaviour.

 

The Cabinet Member for Cleaner Greener Communities responded to the issues raised by the petitioners and expressed her thanks for their attendance. She further indicated that officers had been to the site with a view to the future installation of a camera. Whilst work was ongoing to establish its viability, the service had confirmed that it would increase patrols of the area by park rangers and the police in the meantime. Responding to a question in respect of potential timescales for installation, the Cabinet Member confirmed that it would take a minimum of three months, so it was expected that a camera would be installed by the beginning of the 2019-20 financial year.

 

The Chair thanked the petitioners and Cabinet Member for their attendance.

 

Having reflected on the comments of the petitioners and the update provided by the Cabinet Member, the Board felt that action should be progressed in accordance with that set out by the Cabinet Member above. It was therefore

 

Resolved:-

 

1.    That the action proposed by the Cabinet Member for Cleaner Greener Communities be supported.

 

2.    That arrangements be made for the installation of a camera at the Memorial Garden as soon possible and at the latest by the start of the 2019-20 financial year.

87.

Outcomes from the Improving Lives Select Commission Workshop Session - Complex Abuse Investigation pdf icon PDF 74 KB

 

To consider the outcomes of the Improving Lives Workshop Session regarding the Complex Abuse investigation.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a paper presented by Councillor Clark, the former Chair of the Improving Lives Select Commission, which outlined the outcomes and recommendations from a workshop session held by the Improving Lives Select Commission on 24 April 2019. The purpose of the workshop was to seek assurance and further understanding of the extent to which agencies are working effectively together to address complex abuse.

 

It was reported that the Improving Lives Select Commission had considered the report at its meeting on 18 September. It was recommended that the report and recommendations be submitted to Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and from there, presented to a future Council meeting for information to share the findings with the wider membership.

 

The following recommendations had come from the workshop:-

 

·         That further investigations takes place to establish the low rate of neglect referrals from dental health services.

·         That information is shared in line with existing operational protocols and on a ‘need to know’ basis with ward members for the purpose of signposting residents appropriately.

·         That the appropriate agencies ensure that the GDPR does not act as a barrier to the appropriate sharing of information.

·         That further representation is made by the LSCB to the CPS and relevant Court Services to raise the issue of how all agencies can take timely action to safeguard children at risk of flight.

·         That a further update be submitted to Improving Lives Select Commission in 12 months’ time.

 

Members welcomed the report and recommendations from the Select Commission and felt it was a positive reflection on the work being undertaken.

 

Resolved:-

 

1.    That the report and recommendations, as outlined in Paragraph 9 of Appendix 1, be approved.

 

2.    That the scrutiny review be forwarded to the Council for its consideration.

 

3.    That the response of the Cabinet and partner organisations to the recommendations be reported back to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board.

 

88.

Implementation of the Early Help Strategy 2016-2019: 'Phase Two & Phase Three' pdf icon PDF 254 KB

Cabinet Portfolio:                 Deputy Leader – Children’s Services and Neighbourhood Working

Strategic Directorate:           Children and Young People’s Services

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report concerned with proposals for the implementation of Phase Two & Phase Three of the Early Help Strategy 2016-2019, following the 90 day public, partner, staff and young people’s consultations which began in April 2018 and which concluded in July 2018. The report provided a summary of the ninety day consultation activity, feedback on the proposals from staff, service users and partners and an overview of how the responses had informed the final proposals. The report also covered the approved savings considered at the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board on 14 December 2017.

 

Councillor Cusworth providing the following feedback from the Improving Lives Select Commission who had looked at the issues in details:-

 

·         Members were assured around children centres that de-registration would not lead to loss of service. Examples were provided to Members of different and improved delivery models

·         Members had sought assurance that service level agreements would be in place with schools in respect of youth service provision (once approval had been given)

·         Members were assured that rationalisation of job descriptions would not have detrimental impact on service users and that there was a good focus on staff development

·         Members were assured that team would have blend of skills/specialisms

·         Members had raised concerns whether asset transfers could deliver savings in timescales, as this was considered an ambitious target

·         Members expressed concerns about lack of engagement with children and young people and other service users – want to review in September 2019 – with focus on seeking children and young people/service users views

·         Members questioned the exit survey as a measure, specifically whether this had captured views of Early Help users who had been escalated to social care

·         Member raised no concerns in respect of the equality impact assessment

 

Members sought reassurances that the public were fully on board with proposal. In response, the Cabinet Member explained that whilst the proposal was to de-register Children’s Centres, the buildings would remain in place and this would not cause an issue because 70% of contacts with families were not in the Council’s own buildings, but in other community locations. The essence of the proposals was to take the service to families, rather than binding it to specific buildings or locations.

 

Following on, Members sought clarification in respect of the future use of the buildings. The Cabinet Member again reiterated that the Children’s Centres were proposed to be de-registered, rather than closed. The Acting Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment confirmed that where buildings were surplus to the requirements of the service, they would return to the corporate landlord estate.

Reflecting on the fact that the vast majority of young people would grow up without intervention from the service, the proposed move to a targeted service model was considered to make sense, but Members sought further assurances in respect of how targets would be detected in future.  In response, the Cabinet Member indicated that neighbourhood working would help with the process by enabling services to work closer together to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 88.

89.

Modern Slavery Update and Transparency Statement pdf icon PDF 117 KB

Cabinet Portfolio:                 Waste, Roads and Community Safety

Strategic Directorate:           Regeneration and Environment

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report which provided a brief overview of planned activity in relation to modern slavery for the financial year 2018/19. This report also provided a draft statement for publication in line with the requirements laid down by the Modern Slavery Act 2015.

 

Members sought assurances about the measures in place to monitor modern slavery in the agricultural and construction industries. In response, it was explained that work had started with car wash businesses, but there was an awareness of high risk sectors across the economy. Intelligence was considered to be key in addressing the issues underpinning modern slavery and working with the Gangmasters Licensing Authority.

 

Reflecting on the guidelines detailed in the paper, Members queried whether work had reached a point where detail could be provided on implementable policies or whether that remained work in progress. In response, the Cabinet Member indicated that work was underway and more work remained to be done.

 

Members were pleased to see that this work was in progress and welcomed the Council’s recent adoption of the Co-operative Party’s Charter Against Modern Slavery.

 

Resolved:-

 

That the Cabinet be advised that the recommendations be supported.

90.

Government Consultation - Planning Process and Shale Gas pdf icon PDF 79 KB

Cabinet Portfolio:                 Jobs and the Local Economy

Strategic Directorate:           Regeneration and Environment

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to a report introducing draft responses on behalf of the Council to two government consultations relates to the planning process and shale gas. The two papers were:-

 

·         on the principle of granting planning permission for non-hydraulic shale gas exploration development through a permitted development right

·         on inclusion of shale gas production projects in the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) regime

 

Members noted that the draft responses to both consultation papers were not supportive of the proposals. The Board indicated its support for the response to be sent to the Secretary of State.

 

Resolved:-

 

That the draft responses to the government consultations be supported.

 

91.

Forward Plan of Key Decisions - October to December 2018 pdf icon PDF 259 KB

 

To receive the current Forward Plan of Key Decisions covering the period from 1 October to 31 December 2018.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the Forward Plan of Key Decisions covering the period from 1 October to 31 December 2018 and Members identified the following items for pre-decision scrutiny:-

 

Resolved:-

 

That the following items on the Forward Plan of Key Decisions be submitted for pre-decision scrutiny:-

 

·         Medium Term Financial Strategy

·         Sex Establishment Policy

·         Community Energy Switching Policy

·         Submission of the Clean Air Zone Outline Business Case to the Joint Air Quality Unit

92.

Urgent Business

To determine any item which the Chair is of the opinion should be considered as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

The Chair reported that there were no items of business requiring the Board’s urgent consideration.

93.

Date and time of next meeting

 

The next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board will be held on Wednesday 24 October 2018 at 10.00 a.m. in Rotherham Town Hall.

Minutes:

Resolved:-

 

That the next meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board be held on Wednesday 24 October 2018 at 11.00 a.m. in Rotherham Town Hall.