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BABERGH DISTRICT COUNCIL
OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY (COMMUNITY SERVICES) COMMITTEE
MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY (COMMUNITY SERVICES) COMMITTEE HELD IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER, COUNCIL OFFICES, CORKS LANE, HADLEIGH ON TUESDAY, 16 OCTOBER 2007
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PRESENT: Mr J A B Long – Chairman
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Mr D M Busby
Mrs M O Munson
Mr M Newman
Mr A F D W Osborne |
Mr B Riley
Mr C A Roberts
Mr J R A Sayers
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Mr B D Hurren was unable to be present.
Ms J A Jenkins was present for the item referred to in Minute No. 45 below and spoke on the item with the consent of the Chairman.
Mrs J Antill was present for the item referred to in Minute No. 45 below and spoke on the item with the consent of the Chairman.
The following also attended the meeting for the item referred to in Minute No. 45 below:
Ms S McCann, Network Development Manager, Post Office Ltd
Mr G Grange, Senior External Relations Manager, Post Office Ltd
It was noted that in accordance with Council Procedure Rule No. 5 substitutes were in attendance as follows:-
Mr D M Busby (substituting for Mrs S P Clarke)
Mr C A Roberts (substituting for Mr D L Wood).
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There were no declarations of interest.
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RESOLVED
That the Minutes of the meeting held on 4 September 2007 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.
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None received.
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None received.
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The Head of Corporate Services submitted a Report (Paper G118) which provided details of the Committee’s anticipated work for the remainder of 2007/08, including items that may be the subject of call in procedures.
It was noted that in accordance with Minute No. 38 of the previous meeting, the Head of Natural and Built Environment had discussed with Mr Bennett the proposal that an Officers’ report be submitted to the Committee on street trading hour restrictions on the Sudbury Market Hill during daytime. It was now proposed that the review outlined in Appendix 1 to Paper G90 be undertaken, but with the aim of reporting back to the Committee in late 2008, rather than in February 2008 as stated in the Planning Assessment Sheet.
Members also noted that the Strategy Committee at its meeting on 27 September 2007 had resolved that Action Plans for improving satisfaction with street cleansing and with sports and leisure should be submitted to the Overview and Scrutiny (Community Services) Committee.
RESOLVED
That the Work Plan submitted as Paper G118 be noted, subject to the additions referred to above.
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Ms Sheila McCann made a presentation to the Committee. A copy of the presentation was circulated to Members and subsequently numbered Paper G126. She outlined the background to the five year plan for changes to the Post Office network which had been drawn up in response to a Government decision that nationally there should be 2,500 compulsory compensated closures, with 500 Outreach Services.
It was noted that within Babergh the following Post Offices were scheduled for closure:
Acton
Ballingdon
Burstall
Copdock and Washbrook
In addition it was proposed that the Assington Post Office should operate as an Outreach Service.
Mr M Hammond, Corporate Director, had written to the affected parishes, and invited them to send representatives to observe the Committee’s discussions. Four representatives of town and parish councils were present as observers.
The following were among the points noted:
- The current local public consultation was about the implementation of the closures programme, rather than about the closures themselves. The closing date for comments was 19 November 2007. It was envisaged that the first closures would take effect from January 2008, and that the entire programme would be completed within 18 months.
- Ms McCann described four models of Outreach Service: partner; mobile; home; and hosted.
- Babergh District Council had previously written to Post Office Ltd expressing deep concerns about the minimal and limited nature of involvement in the process.
There followed a session during which Members were able to ask questions and make comments on what they had heard.
The meeting was adjourned at 10.33am to give representatives of Parish Councils affected by the proposals an opportunity to ask questions. It was noted that there had been no formal consultation with Town and Parish Councils. The meeting re-convened at 10.53am and Mr M Hammond, Corporate Director, summed up the views of Members as expressed at the meeting as follows:
- Concern about the limited role of Babergh in the consultation process.
- Concern about the impact of Post Office closures in Babergh on the elderly and vulnerable.
- Concern about the lack of consultation with Town Councils and Parish Councils.
- Members wished to encourage Post Office Limited to engage fully with local communities and parish
councils to develop Outreach Services.
RESOLVED
That Mike Hammond, in consultation with the Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny (Community Services) Committee, prepare for consideration by the Strategy Committee a response to Post Office Limited reflecting the views expressed by Members.
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The Head of Natural and Built Environment presented a Report (Paper G121) providing an overview of enforcement activity undertaken within that Division, in accordance with Minute No. 21of the Committee’s meeting held on 24 July 2007.
In the ensuing discussion the following were among the points noted:
- As a result of recent smoke free legislation people drinking alcohol and dropping litter on pavements outside public houses were causing problems.
- The Rogers Review commissioned by the Government had indicated certain areas of enforcement which were not considered to be high priorities. They included litter, fly tipping, street trading licensing and dog fouling. Members did not agree that these should be seen as low priorities.
- Some Authorities had adopted a policy of encouraging premises to display the results of there food hygiene standards inspections. The Suffolk Food Hygiene Officers had reservations about this approach, but Members saw some merits in it. Further guidance was awaited from the Food Standards Council. Officers were asked to discuss the issue further with the Suffolk group.
- Members were disappointed to see that some planning enforcement cases had been outstanding for more than ten years. It was recognised that some such cases could be protracted, but they considered there was a need for further clarity in setting priorities in the area of planning enforcement.
RESOLVED
(1) That the information contained in Paper G121 be noted.
(2) That the Head of Natural and Built Environment submit a further report to the Committee in May 2008 covering: a review of the effectiveness of the new enforcement arrangements; proposed priorities for future actions; an update on the situation regarding drinking outside licensed premises; and the public display of food hygiene inspection results.
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The Head of Customer Services presented a Report (Paper G119) identifying service issues where it was felt that Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) could be successfully applied to improve service performance, efficiency or customer satisfaction.
RESOLVED
(1) That the Council’s process for re-letting vacant council housing be reviewed and re-engineered to increase performance (as measured by BVPI 212) and to increase rental income.
(2) That a review of the Council’s regulatory and enforcement responsibilities be undertaken and that, within that review, the processes used to secure an effective outcome be subject to Business Process Re-engineering.
(3) That the Committee receive regular and timely reports on the progress of each review.
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The Head of Corporate Services submitted a Report (Paper G114) outlining progress on drawing up a ‘basket’ of key indicators to be monitored by the Overview and Scrutiny Committees on a quarterly basis. A revised Appendix 1 to Paper G114 (subsequently re-numbered G114A), incorporating changes made by Heads of Services and by the Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee at its meeting on 9 October 2007, was circulated at the meeting.
It was noted that the Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee was responsible for all Performance Indicators (PI’s) and would be expected to draw the attention of the Overview and Scrutiny (Community Services) Committee to any PI’s falling within that Committee’s remit, about which the Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee had concerns. In such cases, the Overview and Scrutiny (Community Services) Committee would consider what action was required and report to the Strategy Committee, with the Overview and Scrutiny (Stewardship) Committee being kept informed of proposals.
RESOLVED
That the “basket” of performance indicators set out in the Appendix to these Minutes be approved.
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RESOLVED
That pursuant to Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the item specified below on the grounds that if the public were present during this item, it is likely that there would be the disclosure to them of exempt information as indicated against the item.
The Committee was satisfied that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
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The Head of Community Development submitted a Report (Paper G120) detailing the results of a feasibility study into alternative arrangements for the monitoring and recording of CCTV footage in Babergh.
RECOMMENDED TO STRATEGY COMMITTEE
That Option 1 as set out in Paragraph 7 of Paper G120 be adopted.
Note:The Meeting adjourned for refreshments between 11.07 a.m. and 11.28 a.m.
The business of the meeting was concluded at 1.25 p.m.
Chairman
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