To receive a statement from the Leader of the Council in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 9.
Minutes:
The Leader also wished to pass on his congratulations to Councillor Tinsley on receiving the British Empire Medal. He noted how diligent and dedicated he worked across the community. The Leader also offered his congratulation to the other Rotherham people in the honours list.
The Leader acknowledged the incredible hard work and dedication of so many people in achieving the Ofsted Outstanding rating for Rotherham’s Children’s Services. He stated that it had been a long journey but the hard work and commitment from social workers, practitioners, leaders and partners had been reflected in the Outstanding rating. The Leader particularly thanked Councillor Cusworth and her predecessor former Councillor Gordon Watson, noting that being Cabinet Member for Children’s Services was an incredibly difficult job with a special burden. There was always more work to do, and the Council would never be complacent.
In the week prior to the meeting, the Department for Transport awarded Rotherham green light status in relation to potholes. This was in part due to the £50million of additional capital investment that had been made by the Council and also due to the progressive approach that Richard Jackson and his team had taken.
Finally, the Leader referenced the announcement by Government which confirmed the release of funding for the development of the Council’s Rotherham Gateway Station proposal. The announcement also positioned Rotherham at the heart of the Northern Powerhouse Rail plans. The Leader stressed the importance of having mainline train services back in Rotherham as it brought with it new opportunities. It also meant that as the new business space and investment opportunities along the Don Valley Corridor were developed, it would show that Rotherham was open for inward investment from across the country and beyond.
The Leader of the Majority Opposition Group, Councillor Z. Collingham, was invited to respond. He placed on record his congratulations to all involved in gaining the Outstanding rating for Children’s Services in Rotherham. He noted that transformation of the service had clearly been needed following the intervention by Government Commissioners in 2015. The result of that transformation was excellent news for Rotherham children and families. He paid tribute to partners, officers and leaders who had worked hard to achieve this.
Councillor Collingham asked the Leader about the ever increasing costs of children’s residential care and home to school transport. He asked what plans were in place to make sure the financial demands on those services did not impact on the demands of other services. He also sought reassurances that all planned works due to start in 2026 in Maltby, Dinnington and Wath would start this year.
Councillor Collingham raised concerns regarding how the performance of the Street Safe team would be monitored but was happy for the Leader to respond to the question submitted by Councillor Bower on this subject under Item 21.
Finally, the Leader of the Majority Opposition group referenced the U-turns made by the Labour Government and asked if the Leader was willing to U-turn when things, particularly in relation to investments, went wrong and recognise when the wrong decisions had been made.
The Leader was invited to respond to Councillor Z. Collingham. In relation to children’s residential care and home to school transport, he explained that work was already underway to address those pressures. Rotherham had bucked the national trend in reducing the number of children in residential care but the costs continued to rise. The twelve most expensive placements in Rotherham cost £10million. The Council had undertaken a huge programme of work creating in-house residential care and continued to work on the fostering service. Work also continued on early help and prevention. In relation to home to school transport, it was confirmed that additional investment meant the shortfall was the smallest it had been for a number of years. The Council would be dependent on what came out of the Government SEND reforms but the priority had to remain on ensuring those children had safe transport.
The Leader was confident that the regeneration schemes would commence in Maltby, Dinnington and Wath within a matter of weeks.
In relation to investments, the Leader stated that he was happy with the work the Street Safe Team had already undertaken, particularly in relation to helping rough sleepers. He also stated that it was right to look at where the evidence led in terms of the performance of investments.
Questions on the Leader’s statement were invited from all other members.
Councillor Sheppard welcome the news regarding the Northern Powerhouse Rail plans. He asked how this could be used to provide new skills opportunities for Rotherham residents, with a particular focus on further education.
The Leader explained that there were two aspects to the development that could provide new skills opportunities. The first was the construction of the new station and infrastructure which went with that and the second was the opportunities that would come from the best connectivity to other areas across the north. Through procurement processes, the Council would expect local people to be employed in delivering the site. As the proposals progressed, conversations would take place with Rotherham College on how students could be involved in construction and operational matters. Conversations would also take place with SYMCA regarding career’s advice and linking this to the new opportunities that would be accessible further afield.
Councillor Reynolds offered his congratulation on the Ofsted inspection outcome. In relation to Children’s Residential Homes, he noted that he had visited an in-house residential home and had been very impressed with the staff and the nature of the home. He asked how the Council was balancing the cost of these homes with the needs of the children. Councillor Reynolds was also pleased with the progress on potholes.
The Leader explained that the first duty the Council had was to make sure the needs of the children were met.
Councillor Currie noted the good leadership and governance of the Council, and highlighted the good practices clearly being shown in the Children and Young People’s Service. He asked if best practice was being shared between directorates and services across the Council, specifically with the waste collection team as residents were still experiencing many issues with this service.
The Leader agreed that the bin service needed to improve capacity and reliability and the Cabinet Member and service were working on that as a priority. Work was also ongoing in terms of sharing best practice between services.
Councillor Brent placed on record his thanks to all involved in the improvements to Children’s and Young Peoples Services.
The Leader thanked Councillor Brent for his comments. He explained that it was important for politicians to set the right environment in order to allow officers, and therefore services, to succeed.