Agenda and minutes

Venue: Town Hall, Moorgate Street, Rotherham. S60 2TH

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

Items
No. Item

146.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

To consider any announcements by the Mayor in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 3(2)(ii).

Minutes:

The Mayor was delighted to welcome Jamie Noble from the Rotherham United Community Sports Trust, which was widely regarded as one of the top preforming community organisations in the county delivering the National Citizen programmes aimed at 15-18 year olds to engage them in life long volunteering and  community social action projects.

 

The Mayor had also learnt the Club had again been recognised as the Regional Community Club of the Year for 2019 beating big clubs.

 

Rotherham United Community Sports Trust continued to shine on a local and national level and as recognition for the support they have given the community for the past ten years the Mayor was humbled to receive the Community Plaque from the Trust as a symbol to the strong partnership with the Council.  In recognition of the excellent partnership working, the Mayor was also privileged to be presenting Jamie with a Rotherham plaque and  asked the Council to join him in congratulating all those involved.

 

He invited Jamie Noble to come forward and join him in the exchange of plaques.

 

The Mayor was also pleased to present his activity since the last Council meeting which was attached for information to the Mayor’s letter. 

147.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

 

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

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Fenwick-Green and Julie Turner.

148.

COMMUNICATIONS

 

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.

Minutes:

There were no communications received.

149.

MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING pdf icon PDF 209 KB

 

To receive the record of proceedings of the ordinary meeting of the Council held on 23rd January, 2019, and to approve the accuracy thereof.

Minutes:

Resolved:-  That the minutes of the meeting of Council held on 23rd January, 2019, be approved for signature by the Mayor.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

150.

PETITIONS

 

To report on any petitions received by the Council received by the Council and receive statements in support of petitions in accordance with Petitions Scheme and Council Procedure Rule 13.

Minutes:

There were no petitions received.

151.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

 

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.

Minutes:

There were no Declarations of Interest to report.

152.

PUBLIC QUESTIONS

 

To receive questions from members of the public who may wish to ask a general question of the Mayor, Cabinet Member or the Chairman of a Committee in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 12.

Minutes:

(1) Mr. D. Smith asked when was it decided that United Caps could build a factory on land in Dinnington?

 

Councillor Lelliott confirmed a planning application for United Caps was submitted on the 17th October, 2018, but this had not yet been decided. The application would be considered by the Planning Board in due course. 

 

In a supplementary question Mr. Smith referred to a press release from Monday, 23rd July, 2018 and a photograph outside Riverside House showing Councillor Lelliott, Councillor Watson, the Chief Executive and the Project Officer for United Caps with a statement that United Caps had announced it would be constructing a new manufacturing plant in Dinnington.  A statement by the Leader of the Council confirmed the Council was excited to have a company of the quality of United Caps joining in the community and looked forward to working with them to ensure a timely completion of the new factory as well as their future expansion.  

 

Councillor Lelliott referred to a planning application being submitted in October when a Plant Manager had already been appointed and machines were being transferred to the Dinnington plant.  Reading this article the public could be led to believe there was an attempt to unduly influence the Planning Board. 

 

The planning application was forwarded to Dinnington Town Council in November.  Mr. Smith was not against the factory being built if the company were allegedly going to employ local people, but what he was against was the Leader, Deputy Leader and the Cabinet Member’s bias on the July statement when it was decided that this factory would be built in Dinnington.

 

Councillor Lelliott pointed out that as Chair of the Parish Council Mr. Smith would be fully aware of the Local Plan and the designated sites for development in industrial areas.  That particular site had always been in the Local Plan as an industrial site.  The planning application was submitted in October, 2018 and was referred onto the Parish Council in November.  Due process would be followed and the Cabinet Member gave her assurance that there had never been nor would there be any influence by the Planning Department to the Planning Board to make any decision.  It was a statutory requirement to follow the law.

 

(2)  Mr. P. Thirlwall asked could the Leader, following his question to the Leader at the October Council meeting, tell him what progress had been made to ensure that Elected Members complied with the law and properly completed their register of interests?

 

The Leader confirmed that both he and the Leader of the Opposition had reminded group members about their responsibilities under the law and he understood that virtually all Members have reviewed and updated their registers of interest.  Many were accurate to start with, but have been reviewed.  He pointed out that it was the responsibility of each individual Member to ensure their register was updated.

 

In a supplementary question Mr. Thirlwall  confirmed that despite Councillor Read’s efforts as Leader there were  ...  view the full minutes text for item 152.

153.

EXCLUSION OF THE PRESS AND PUBLIC

 

Should it be necessary, in the opinion of the Mayor, to consider excluding the press and public from the meeting in relation to any items of urgent business on the grounds that private information is likely to be divulged.

 

There are no such items at the time of preparing this agenda.

Minutes:

Resolved:-  That under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, that should the Mayor deem if necessary the public be excluded from the meeting on the grounds that any items involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the paragraphs of Part 1 of schedule 12(A) of such Act indicated, as now amended by the Local Government (Access to information) (Variation) Order 2006.

154.

LEADER OF THE COUNCIL'S STATEMENT

 

To receive a statement from the Leader of the Council in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 9.

Minutes:

The Leader reported on the Independent Review which had taken place in early February giving the Council an opportunity to demonstrate its continued improvement and to showcase the progress it was continuing to make since the Commissioners had left.  The review went really well with the view of the Review Team being that excellent progress had and continued to be made by the Council. 

 

The Leader wished to thank everyone for their continued support in turning the Council around.

 

In addition, an update on the progress of projects being led by the City Region highlighted:-

 

·             An independent bus review chaired by Clive Betts, which would examine all aspects of Sheffield City Region’s bus services with recommendations expected to address declining patronage, congestion and air quality.

 

·             The Council had secured £663,000 from the Sheffield City Region’s housing fund as part of a £2.6m “Modern Methods of Construction” pilot.  The scheme would deliver twelve bungalows and ten single person pods on five sites.

 

·             The Council were awaiting the outcome of a bid to “Tranche 1” of the Transforming Cities Fund which, if successful, would fund cycle infrastructure improvements between the Town Centre and Greasbrough totalling £1m.

 

·             The Secretary of State had written to Yorkshire Leaders and Mayor Jarvis in response to the One Yorkshire devolution proposal saying that the proposals did not meet the Government’s criteria for devolution, largely due to the geography being “far greater than any of today’s functional economic city regions”.  However, the Government were prepared to open discussions around a different localist approach to devolution in Yorkshire.

 

The letter did stress the importance of “honouring commitments to the people of Sheffield City Region through the implementation of the Sheffield City Region devolution deal which still remains a priority”.

 

Finally, in partnership with other South Yorkshire Authorities and Sheffield Hallam University, as part of the South Yorkshire Futures work, the Council had secured funding from the South Yorkshire Early Outcomes Bid, securing a proportion of the overall funding pot of £6.5m. 

 

The ambition of the fund was to increase the number of local authorities starting a transformation journey to improve, and to build knowledge of how to improve, the collective operation of local services in securing good early language outcomes for children.

 

Councillor Carter asked about the bus consultation and the review over the next twelve months and sought the Leader’s stance on having London-style bus contract for South Yorkshire that could lead to an ever more unified and joined up service.

 

The Leader believed legally a Transport for London type regulation could not be introduced.  As part of the bus deregulation there was only one part of the country that was exempted.

 

As part of the devolution deal the Leader would continue to support proposals around bus franchising, but nowhere in the country had this yet been taken that forward.  This did warrant some closer attention.  It was not certain whether this would necessarily resolve some of the challenges being faced, but certainly some form of better co-ordination  ...  view the full minutes text for item 154.

155.

MINUTES OF THE CABINET MEETING pdf icon PDF 90 KB

 

To note the minutes of the Cabinet Meetings held on 21st January and 4th and 18th February, 2019.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendations and minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 21st January, 4th and 18th February, 2019, be received.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

156.

RECOMMENDATION FROM CABINET - BUDGET AND COUNCIL TAX 2019-20 AND MEDIUM TERM FINANCIAL STRATEGY pdf icon PDF 395 KB

 

To agree the Budget and Council Tax level for the 2019/20 financial year.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to Minute No. 109 of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 18th February, 2019 consideration was given to the report which proposed the Council’s Budget and Council Tax for 2019/20.  This was based on the outcome of the Council’s Final Local Government Finance Settlement, budget consultation and the consideration of Directorate budget proposals through the Council’s formal Budget and Scrutiny process (Overview and Scrutiny Management Board) alongside a review of the financial planning assumptions within the Medium Term Financial Strategy. 

 

The Council remained committed to protecting the most vulnerable children and adults, but despite the positive direction of travel for the Council, the challenges were still significant in the following areas:-

 

·             Children’s social care continued to overspend over and above the significant additional resources that have been provided for the service in recent years.

·             More children than anticipated required care and protection by the local authority.

·             Implications for support services as the increase in looked after children numbers had led to additional legal costs.

·             Adult Care budgets continued to be under pressure due to demographic pressures.

 

In setting the proposed 2019/20 budget, approval was sought for an increase of 2.99% in the Council’s basic Council Tax.

 

The Leader wanted to place on record his thanks to the people whose hard work enabled him to present this budget today; his Cabinet colleagues who have worked hard and selflessly again to deliver the best possible proposals, staff, especially in Finance, and of course Councillor Alam.

 

He explained this was the fifth budget he had presented with the grim gruelling tide of Tory austerity reaching a little higher and a little further.  Each year the steps taken hold off the worst effects from those least able to afford it.

 

A decade of austerity that meant, by the end of the next two years, the Council would have been forced to find cuts and savings amounting to more than £200 million from its budget. That was nearly £800 for every man, woman and child who lived in the borough.

 

Only this week five of the biggest children’s charities in the country joined forces to slam what they called the “devastating and dangerous” funding cuts to Children’s Services across the country.

 

The Leader described how when he became Leader of this Council four years ago, there were a little over 400 children in care. Last year that number hit 660.  Whilst that number had since fallen and steps were being taken to ensure that more vulnerable children were able to stay in a family setting, with the right support, the primary obligation was to children.

 

In setting the budget plans for the next two years, the Council were committing a total of £17 million more than was planned to ensure that the needs of children in the Council’s care were met.

 

In 2014/15, the net revenue budget for the Children’s Services directorate was £42.9 million. Next year it would be £65.4 million.

 

The Leader confirmed that the number of agency social workers  ...  view the full minutes text for item 156.

157.

RECOMMENDATION OF THE CABINET - HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT - BUSINESS PLAN 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 75 KB

 

To consider a recommendation from Cabinet in respect of approving the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan for 2019/20.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to Minute No. 92 of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 21st January, 2019 consideration was given the report which provided a detailed technical overview of the current position and the reason for changes to the Housing Revenue Account Business Plan.

 

The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) recorded all expenditure and income relating to the provision of Council housing and related services, and the Council was required to produce a HRA Business Plan setting out its investment priorities over a thirty year period.

 

Engagement work with tenants was ongoing and the Council had received national funding bodies support to the Housing Growth Programme.  Funding had also been received to support the prevention of, and support to, victims and survivors of domestic abuse, rough sleepers and the Council would work towards supporting the most vulnerable of people.

 

Following the introduction in 2012 of HRA self-financing, whereby the Council was awarded control over its HRA in return for taking on a proportion of national housing debt, Rotherham’s HRA was in a strong position with a healthy level of reserves.  A number of policies were introduced by Central Government that resulted in a reduction to HRA resources, namely:-

 

·             1% per annum reduction in Council rents over four years. 2019-20 is the final year of this policy.

·             Reinvigoration of the Right to Buy (RTB) (reduction of qualifying period to three years): Reducing stock

·             Welfare reform - bedroom tax, universal credit and benefits cap: Impacting on tenants’ ability to pay their rent, and increasing the resources required by the Council to collect rent from tenants in receipt of benefits.

 

At the time this resulted in the need for significant savings to be made over the life of the business plan.

 

The key shift in policies and legislation had resulted in changes to underlying assumptions were:-

 

·             Agreed rent formula of CPI + 1% from 2020-21 onward for five years.

·             Removal of the HRA Debt Cap.

·             Removal of pay to stay which would have meant any household earning over £31,000 would have been required to pay at or near market rent.

·             Removing the proposed restriction of Housing Benefit to Local Housing Allowance rate for new tenants from April 2019.

·             Removal of the proposed enforced sale of higher value Council Properties.

·             Removing the planned restriction of Universal Credit Housing costs to the majority of 18-21 year olds.

 

Whilst there have been a number of welcomed policy changes, there were still multiple policies which would continue to impact directly or indirectly on the amount of resources available with the HRA Business Plan. These were:-

 

·             Roll out of full service Universal Credit to all remaining working age tenants in Rotherham since July 2018 onwards.

·             Ongoing Right to Buy eligibility.

 

The combined effect of these changes was likely to have a significant impact on the nature of housing provision in Rotherham, not just in terms of Council Housing.

 

The Council would continue to invest in the future of its Council housing services in Rotherham and £51 million  ...  view the full minutes text for item 157.

158.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN HEALTH ACT 2007 - ELECTION OF LEADER OF THE COUNCIL pdf icon PDF 109 KB

 

To elect a Leader of the Council, in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report which set out details for the election of the Leader of the Council in accordance with the requirements of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.

 

In accordance with the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, under the system of governance used by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, it was a requirement to elect the Leader of the Council for a four year term of office. The present Leader of the Council, Councillor Chris Read, was elected to this position on 4th March, 2015.

 

As the current term of office of the Leader of the Council was due to expire on 4th March, 2019, it was necessary to vote to ensure that the office of Leader was filled.

 

After the move to whole Council elections, it was recommended that the Constitution be amended to reflect the need to appoint a Leader for a four year term of office from the date of the first “Business” Annual Meeting after an election. This would ensure that the term of office was coterminous with the electoral cycle.

 

Resolved:-  (1)  That Councillor Chris Read, as Leader of the Majority Group, be elected as Leader of the Council, in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act.

 

(2)  That Article 7.3 of the Constitution be amended to read:-

 

The Leader will be a councillor elected to the position of Leader by the Council at its annual meeting for a term of four years, to be coterminous with the electoral cycle of whole Council elections.

 

He or she will hold office until:

 

·             he or she resigns from the office; or

·             he or she is no longer a councillor; or

·             he or she is removed from office by resolution of the Council, whereupon his or her term of office as Leader shall end on the day of that Council meeting.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Keenan                    Seconder:-  Councillor Walsh

159.

CALENDAR OF MEETINGS FOR THE 2019/20 MUNICIPAL YEAR pdf icon PDF 80 KB

 

To agree the Calendar of Meetings for the Council’s Committees, Boards and Panels for the 2019-20 municipal year.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report which detailed how the Council amended the Procedure Rules in the Constitution in September, 2017 to require the Calendar of Meetings to be presented for approval at the Budget Council meeting. This report was, therefore, submitted in accordance with that requirement.

 

Resolved:-  That the Calendar of Meetings for the 2019/20 municipal year be approved.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

160.

ATTENDANCE DISPENSATION UNDER SECTION 85 OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972 pdf icon PDF 87 KB

 

To consider a waiver of the six month rule under Section 85 of the Local Government Act 1972 and to excuse the non-attendance of Councillor Lindsay Pitchley at Council meetings for a period until the end of the calendar year, having regard to the circumstances of her absence from meetings

Minutes:

Consideration of this item was no longer required.

 

The Mayor was supported in welcoming Councillor Pitchley to the meeting and that her recovery would continue. 

161.

APPOINTMENT OF MAYOR-ELECT AND DEPUTY MAYOR-ELECT pdf icon PDF 97 KB

 

To appoint a Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect for the 2019-20 municipal year and to recommend the Constitution Working Group to develop a protocol for the appointment to those offices in future municipal years.

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the report which invited Council to appoint a Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect, who would then be nominated for election as Mayor and appointment as Deputy Mayor at the Annual Meeting of the Council on 17th May, 2019. 

 

It was also proposed that the Constitution Working Group be tasked with developing a protocol to codify the process for the appointment of a Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect in future years.

 

Councillor Napper moved and Councillor Reeder seconded the nomination for Councillor John Turner to be elected as Deputy Mayor Elect.

 

Councillor Read moved and Councillor Watson seconded the nomination for Councillor Ian Jones to be elected as Deputy Mayor Elect.

 

Councillor Read Moved and Councillor Watson seconded the nomination for Councillor Jennifer Andrews to be elected as Mayor Elect.

 

Resolved:-  (1)  That, after receiving nominations from the political groups of the Council, Councillors Andrews and Jones (respectively) be nominated Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect for the 2019-20 municipal year.

 

(2)  That the Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect be nominated for election as Mayor and appointment as Deputy Mayor at the Annual Meeting on 17th May, 2019.

 

(3)  That the Constitution Working Group develop and recommend to Council a protocol to codify the process for appointing the Mayor-Elect and Deputy Mayor-Elect for ensuing municipal years.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Read                       Seconder:-  Councillor Watson

162.

OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY UPDATE pdf icon PDF 1 MB

 

To receive an update on the activities of the Council’s Overview and Scrutiny bodies in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 14.

Minutes:

Councillor Steele, Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board, provided an update on the latest work carried out by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board and the Select Commissions - Health, Improving Lives and Improving Places over the last few months.

 

An update was provided on the work undertaken by Scrutiny during the last few months and good progress was being made with the planned programme looking specifically at the budget, the Town Centre Masterplan and overspends in Children's and Adults Services.

 

In addition, Council at its last meeting considered a scrutiny review looking at modern methods of construction and it was hoped this policy would be adopted moving forward.

 

Health Select had focused on the Integrated Care Pharmacy and implementation of programmes integrating health and social care.

 

Improving Lives continued with its work on the Ofsted recommendations and the improvements to services like domestic abuse.

 

Improving Places were continuing to monitor the externalised contract with Dignity and to do further work for the benefit of the people of Rotherham.

 

Cabinet Members were able to bring forward projects for scrutiny to consider and Councillor Roche had requested some consideration to the care tendering process and particular recommendations were made.  This would be evaluated after twelve months to ensure it was fit for purpose.

 

Scrutiny in Rotherham was making a difference and the Chair thanked all those involved in the process.

 

In seconding the report Councillor Cowles endorsed much of what the Chair had proposed.  Scrutiny was an important function, but not always properly understood or appreciated and worked effectively on a cross-party basis.

 

Resolved:-  That the report be received and the contents noted.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Steele                      Seconder:-  Councillor Cowles

163.

THRIVING NEIGHBOURHOODS - UPDATES FROM WARD COUNCILLORS pdf icon PDF 1001 KB

 

To receive updates from ward councillors from Holderness, Dinnington and Hellaby on the activities supporting Thriving Neighbourhoods across the Borough.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to Minute No. 55 of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 19th November, 2018, consideration was given to the annual Ward Updates for Holderness, Dinnington and Hellaby as part of the Thriving Neighbourhoods Strategy.

 

The Strategy signalled a new way of working for the Council both for Members and for staff and covered every Ward in the borough delivered through Ward Plans developed with residents to address local issues and opportunities. Ward Members would be supported by the neighbourhood team and would work with officers and residents from a range of organisations to respond to residents.

 

Councillors M. Elliott and Taylor, on behalf of the Holderness Ward, gave an update on their ward priorities.

 

Councillor Elliott described the use of the devolved budget for worthwhile causes, the discussions with residents when formulating Ward Plans and the issues identified as a priority.

 

He further reported that Holderness Ward itself had around twenty-three groups and organisations undertaking fantastic work so wherever possible assistance was provided with raising funds through use of the Community Leadership Fund.

 

The Ward also supported, through the Start a Heart Project, the location of a defibrillator.  In addition, the relocation of a community group to Heighton View Community Centre was supported through a variety of consultations and awareness raising sessions.

 

Additionally, there have been number of skip days at different venues around the Ward with the aim of avoiding residents’ temptation to fly tip, engagement in the Love Where You Live initiative with residents and the local Scout Group and the installation of covert cameras deployed in known local hotspot areas.  These cameras have been used to gather information for offences linked to fly tipping and had resulted in the seizure of four vehicles and prosecution for the offenders.

 

A number of road safety initiatives have also been supported outside schools and public buildings.   Aston Springwood School have also been asked to submit designs for signs to be erected to promote playgrounds around the Ward.  The standard of entries was overwhelming.

 

Speeding traffic remained an issue in the Ward and liaison had taken place with the community to join together to use a handheld speed camera, to undertake a survey with Highways  and Councillors were in the process of purchasing a mobile speed activation sign to support the concerns on Nickerwood Drive.

 

Swallownest Bowling Club offered to support an initiative to allow groups of school children to experience crown green bowling, which would be taken forward.

 

Numerous estate roads were also in need of attention and through the utilisation of the multi-hog machine it was hoped the areas suggested would be repaired.

 

A number of community safety initiatives have also been supported for vulnerable persons including window, shed and scooter alarms, which were being distributed and based on a person’s need.  In addition, a community engagement initiative where local craftsmen would undertake small immediate repairs was promoted.

 

Councillor Taylor thanked his Ward colleague and commended how easy it had been to work together in developing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 163.

164.

AUDIT COMMITTEE pdf icon PDF 100 KB

 

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

 

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Minutes:

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

 

Mover:-  Councillor Wyatt                      Seconder:-  Councillor Walsh

165.

HEALTH AND WELLBEING BOARD pdf icon PDF 116 KB

 

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

 

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Minutes:

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

 

Mover:-  Councillor Roche                      Seconder:-  Councillor Mallinder

166.

PLANNING BOARD pdf icon PDF 57 KB

 

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

 

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Minutes:

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

 

Mover:-  Councillor Sheppard                 Seconder:-  Councillor Williams

167.

STAFFING COMMITTEE pdf icon PDF 49 KB

 

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

 

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Resolved:-  That the reports, recommendations and minutes of the meetings of the Staffing Committee be adopted.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Alam                        Seconder:-  Councillor Read

168.

RECOMMENDATION FROM THE STAFFING COMMITTEE - PAY POLICY STATEMENT 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 75 KB

 

To consider a recommendation from the Staffing Committee in respect of the Pay Policy Statement 2019/20.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to Minute No. 11 of the Staffing Committee held on 30th January 2019 consideration was given to the report which detailed how under the Localism Act 2011, Chapter 8 Pay Accountability, authorities were legally required to produce and publish a Pay Policy Statement by the 31st March each year.  This needed to include and detail the remuneration of its Chief Officers and must then comply with the Pay Policy Statement for the financial year in making any determination. 

 

The format and content of this Pay Policy was in line with previous practice and in accordance with guidance previously issued by the regional Local Government Employers Association.  It was, therefore, felt to reflect good practice and it had not been considered appropriate to deviate from this.

 

Resolved:-  That the Pay Policy Statement for 2019/20 be approved.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Alam                        Seconder:-  Councillor Read

169.

RECOMMENDATION FROM THE STAFFING COMMITTEE - ADOPTION OF REMUNERATION PACKAGE FOR THE STRATEGIC DIRECTOR OF REGENERATION AND ENVIRONMENT pdf icon PDF 91 KB

 

To consider a recommendation of the Staffing Committee concerning the adoption of a remuneration package for the Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment in accordance with the Council’s Pay Policy Statement and Officer Employment Procedure Rules.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Further to Minute No. 13 of the meeting of the Staffing Committee held on 18th February, 2019, consideration was given to a report which detailed the open and rigorous recruitment process to fill the vacant post of Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment.

 

The report also set out the recommended level of remuneration detailed in the Authority’s Pay Policy Statement for the post of Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment as earning £100,000 or more and, therefore, recommended this to Council for approval.

 

Resolved:-  That, in accordance with the Pay Policy Statement 2018-19 and the Officer Employment Procedure Rules, the remuneration package of £117,976 for the post of Strategic Director of Regeneration and Environment be approved.

 

Mover:-  Councillor Alam                        Seconder:-  Councillor Read

170.

LICENSING BOARD SUB-COMMITTEE pdf icon PDF 52 KB

 

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

 

To confirm the minutes as a true record.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

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

 

Mover:-  Councillor Ellis                         Seconder:-  Councillor Beaumont

171.

MEMBERS' QUESTIONS TO DESIGNATED SPOKESPERSONS

 

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 Council Procedure Rule 11(5).

Minutes:

(1)  Councillor Napper referred to the Police and Crime Commissioner increasing the precept to Police by 14% and asked why?

 

Councillor Sansome pointed firstly the South Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel was a scrutiny board and secondly it was for the Police and Crime Commissioner to answer questions on his budgets.  He, however, made the following points.  The budget assumed the Force could make £4.0m of savings and used £2.6 million of reserves.  If the Police and Crime Commissioner did this he could increase the number of police officers by 55 (40 would go into neighbourhoods).

 

This would be the first time since 2010 that the overall number of police officers in South Yorkshire would have gone up.

 

At the same time South Yorkshire Police continued to face exceptional other cost pressures including Hillsborough and CSE which were expected to cost in the region of £7 million in the coming year.

 

The South Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel thoroughly scrutinised the budget proposals and did understand the need to increase the precept.

 

In a supplementary question Councillor Napper asked was part of the precept used to fund the false arrest of the residents in the tree protests and who were compensated out of court.

 

Councillor Sansome confirmed this was a question for the Commissioner and the Police, but gave a commitment he would seek to find an answer.

 

(2)  Councillor Cowles explained Councillor Sansome had previously agreed with him that the 101 call system, despite being a straight forward application, remains unfit for purpose. Therefore, he asked could Councillor Sansome say why he had agreed to the uplift in the precept when he believe he stated he would oppose the increase?

 

Councillor Sansome explained having reminded himself of the response he gave at the Council meeting on 23rd January and clarified he had agreed that the 101 system was unfit for purpose. What he had said was that he shared Councillor Cowles’ frustrations around the difficulties the public were experiencing with the 101 system. He had also assured fellow Councillors that the Police and Crime Panel had regular updates on 101, both at full Panel meetings and other meetings with the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Panel with the Commissioner and it was an issue the Panel was collectively concerned about, and would continue to monitor.

 

On the second point in respect of the uplift in the precept, he had not said he would oppose the increase, but both he and Councillor Short said it had to be right for the people of Rotherham.

 

The Panel held a Budget Workshop on 29th January, 2019 prior to the formal meeting on the 4th February, 2019. The proposals were looked at in great detail, and many questions asked. The Panel considered its options carefully and, whilst the increase in the precept was agreed, it was with a strong recommendation that the Commissioner discussed an increase in police officers and/or PCSOs over and above the forty that were proposed for neighbourhood policing across  ...  view the full minutes text for item 171.

172.

MEMBERS' QUESTIONS TO CABINET MEMBERS AND CHAIRMEN

 

To put questions, if any, to Cabinet Members and Chairmen (or their representatives) under Council Procedure Rules 11(1) and 11(3).

Minutes:

(1)  Councillor Carter asked what progress has been made with installing the twenty-one new CCTV cameras agreed for use by South Yorkshire Police?

 

Councillor Hoddinott was unsure about the reference to South Yorkshire Police, but confirmed the Council did allocate additional capital funding this year to purchase CCTV equipment for the Borough, with one camera dedicated to each ward and some had already been installed.

 

In a supplementary question Councillor Carter asked how many of the twenty-one have already been installed in their locations.

 

Councillor Hoddinott confirmed four were installed and five were about to be installed.  Twelve wards were yet to formally agree where they wanted to put them.

 

(2)  Councillor B. Cutts asked what numbers of foreign nationals have registered in Rotherham last year?

 

The Leader confirmed he would provide this in writing to Councillor Cutts so the detail could be clearly seen, but thenumbers of National Insurance registrations for foreign nationals totalled 463.  The full breakdown was:-

 

 

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

TOTAL

Bulgaria

 

18

30

39

25

0

112

Czech Republic

31

43

61

27

21

15

198

Eritrea

5

 

15

16

14

6

56

Italy

12

15

18

24

29

11

109

Lithuania

40

27

38

45

51

30

231

Pakistan

56

26

47

55

39

44

267

Poland

134

106

132

97

62

42

573

Romania

9

131

206

279

190

72

887

Slovakia

131

137

76

55

52

29

480

Spain

9

16

31

30

18

10

114

Others

236

208

238

274

223

204

1.383

TOTAL

663

727

892

941

724

463

4,410

 

(3)  Councillor Carter asked how much more did it cost to have an out of hours burial in Rotherham compared to Sheffield?

 

Councillor Hoddinott confirmed it was difficult to compare as Rotherham offered exclusive right of burial for one hundred years and Sheffield offered ninety years.  Even with this difference Rotherham was nearly £200 cheaper.

 

(4)  Councillor Carter asked what discussions had the Cabinet Member had with the Red Box Project and what were the outcomes regarding introducing free sanitary wear in secondary schools?

 

Councillor Watson confirmed this was one of the rare occasions where he and Councillor Carter were in agreement on where this should go.  He explained the Red Box project was a voluntary charity that provided sanitary protection for girls in school.  All schools have a small budget for girls who needed help during the day where they could be given products.  The idea behind the Red Box Project was for families that were so financially challenged to be given a full week’s worth of products and be able to go to school rather than having to choose between food and heating and sanitary protection for their daughters.  The Red Box Project was a voluntary charity with no paid staff.

 

Councillor Watson had met with all the Secondary School Head Teachers who were keen to have this project in their schools.  The second step from this was the setting up a meeting with the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 172.

173.

URGENT ITEMS

 

Any other public items which the Mayor determines are urgent.

Minutes:

There were no urgent items.