Agenda and minutes

39.1           The evacuation procedure, as noted on the Agenda, was taken as read.

39.2           The Chair welcomed Rachel Capon, Contracts Manager for the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Team, and Julie Davies, Environment and Waste Policy Officer for the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Team, to the meeting and indicated that they would be presenting the report at Agenda Item 9 – Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee 2016/17 Action Plan Update and 2017/18 Business and Action Plan Outline.  He also welcomed Nick Firkins from Ubico who was present to answer questions in relation to Agenda Item 10 – Grounds Maintenance Update.  Councillor R E Garnham, the Council’s representative on the Gloucestershire Police and Crime Panel, would be providing an update on the last two meetings of the Panel at Agenda Item 7 and Councillor Mrs E J MacTiernan was present as an observer.

40.1           Apologies for absence were received from Councillor P D Surman.  There were no substitutions for the meeting. 

41.1           The Committee’s attention was drawn to the Tewkesbury Borough Council Code of Conduct which was adopted by the Council on 26 June 2012 and took effect from 1 July 2012.

41.2           There were no declarations made on this occasion.

To approve the Minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2016.

42.1           The Minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2016, copies of which had been circulated, were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair. 

To determine whether there are any questions for the relevant Lead Members and what support the Overview and Scrutiny Committee can give to work contained within the Plan.

43.1           Attention was drawn to the Executive Committee Forward Plan, circulated at Pages No. 14-19.  Members were asked to determine whether there were any questions for the relevant Lead Members and what support the Overview and Scrutiny Committee could give to the work contained within the Plan.

43.2           A Member noted that the report on the recruitment of an Environmental Warden had been deferred from the October meeting and he questioned when this would actually happen.  The Environmental Health Manager confirmed that the report would be taken to the Executive Committee meeting on 23 November 2016 with a view to recruiting in the current financial year.  In response to a query as to the level of interest from Parish Councils, Members were advised that the consultation process was still underway but this information would be included within the report.  Another Member sought clarification as to what the Fee Charging Strategy, which was also due to be considered at the Executive Committee meeting on 23 November 2016, would cover.  She was advised that this related to the Council taking a more commercial approach to setting and reviewing fees and was about bringing formalisation to that process.

43.3           It was

RESOLVED          That the Executive Committee Forward Plan be NOTED.

To consider the forthcoming work of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

44.1           Attention was drawn to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme 2016/17, circulated at Pages No. 20-25, which Members were asked to consider.

44.2           The Head of Corporate Services indicated that a review of the Council’s Car Parking Strategy had been undertaken by an Overview and Scrutiny Committee Working Group in 2014 and Officers would be bringing a report to the next meeting of the Committee to update Members on how the strategy had been rolled out.  In addition, it was noted that the presentation from Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service had now been confirmed for the meeting on 10 January 2017.  The Chair reminded Members that this item had been requested by the Committee and he urged them to think about the type of questions which they wanted to ask in order to get the most out of the presentation.  The Chief Executive advised that the Fire Service had undergone significant change over the last 12-18 months and the new Chief Executive had been working on changing the whole strategy of the Fire Service from one which emphasised responding to fires and emergencies towards a more preventative approach.  As such, it was vital for the Fire Service to work with communities and voluntary organisations, as well as Tewkesbury Borough Council and the other District Councils within Gloucestershire, to identify people who needed support and to put preventative measures in place.  On that basis, he suggested that it may be useful to ask questions about the success of the new strategy, how it was being delivered and whether any support could be offered by the Council or other organisations.

44.3           A Member noted that the Committee was due to receive an update on enviro-crimes at its meeting in February 2017, however, he was aware that abandoned vehicles had become a particular problem recently and he questioned how this was being addressed.  The Environmental Health Manager explained that, if there was an immediate risk of danger, Officers had the power to remove the vehicle to a compound straight away, otherwise action would be taken to identify the owner and ask them to remove it.  If nobody came forward, the vehicle would be scrapped.  There had recently been an increase in the number of abandoned vehicles and, although there was no clear reason for this, it had been suggested that it could be linked to a reduction in scrap metal prices. 

44.4           It was

RESOLVED          That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme be NOTED.

To receive an update from the Council’s representative on matters considered at the last two meetings. 

45.1           Members received an update from Councillor Rob Garnham, the Council’s representative on the Gloucestershire Police and Crime Panel, on matters discussed at the last two meetings of the Panel held on 9 and 20 September 2016.

45.2           Councillor Garnham firstly wished to respond to a question about the replacement of the military police officer which had been raised at the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting in July.  He advised that the response had been received from Inspector Lee Solly who was covering the Tewkesbury area following Inspector Dave Goga’s move to the position of Staff Officer to the Chief Constable.  Members were informed that PC David Jones managed the area under the command of PS Ian Morrison and they had secured an agreement with the base commander to access the Ministry of Defence police building.  It was intended to provide a more regular presence to the personnel, families and local residents of the Innsworth area, however, PC Jones had been temporarily seconded to the response team to provide cover for injured Officers.  It was anticipated that PC Jones would return to the neighbourhood team in January; it was still intended to have a Police Community Support Officer presence which was being worked towards.

45.3           Councillor Garnham went on to advise that the meeting on 6 September had been an additional meeting to confirm the Police and Crime Commissioner’s appointment of a Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner and a Chief Finance Officer; the latter had been a straightforward confirmation with Dave Skelton, who had many years’ experience as a Finance Officer, being appointed to the role but there had been more discussion relating to the appointment of the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner.  It had been explained that, over the previous four years, the Police and Crime Commissioner had thought that a deputy might be required but had not appointed one.  Since his re-election earlier in the year, he had considered the pros and cons of such an appointment and approached Mr Chris Brierley to see if he would be interested in the post.  Mr Brierley had subsequently been offered the post and had attended the meeting to address the Panel.  The outcome of the meeting was that Mr Brierley had been confirmed by the Panel but reservations had been highlighted regarding the nature in which Police and Crime Commissioners in general were allowed to make such appointments without recourse to job adverts, selection processes etc.  Notwithstanding this, it was clear that the Police and Crime Commissioner had followed the procedure as set down by the Police and Social Responsibility Act 2011 and it was noted that the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner was only in post whilst the Police and Crime Commissioner was in office so there was no security of tenure or employment rights in that regard.

45.4           In respect of the meeting on 20 September, Members were informed that the Police and Crime Commissioner had presented his annual report and an update on the draft Police and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45.

To receive an update from the Council’s representative on matters considered at the last meeting.

46.1           Members received an update from Councillor Mrs J E Day, the Council’s representative on the Gloucestershire Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee, on matters discussed at the last meeting held on 13 September 2016.

46.2           Members were advised that the Committee had been pleased to welcome the Chief Executive, and Director of Operations, of the South Western Ambulance Service Foundation Trust (SWASFT) to the meeting.  The Committee monitored SWASFT performance on an annual basis and, being mindful of its decision to withdraw from the Out of Hours service contract in Gloucestershire and NHS 111 in the south of the region, it also wanted to understand the direction of travel for the service.  The discussion of response times had focused primarily on the Ambulance Response Programme and SWASFT had informed Members that it felt this was moving in the right direction.  Paramedics and vehicles were being used more effectively as the recording of calls was enabling better identification of RED1 calls.  The Committee had been pleased to note that SWASFT was monitoring, on a daily basis, whether the Ambulance Response Programme was having a negative impact on calls and no serious incidents had been reported to date.  Councillor Day indicated that ambulance drivers often had difficulty identifying properties when they responded to calls and asked that people ensure that house numbers were prominently displayed and well lit.

46.3           With regard to the review of Minor Illness and Injury Units (MIIUs) in Gloucestershire, the Chief Executive of Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust had informed the Committee of the outcome of the engagement exercise and the option that was being taken forward for decision by the Gloucestershire Care Services Board at its meeting on 20 September 2016.  This related to the opening hours of the MIIUs at Stroud and Cirencester changing to 8.00am-11.00pm.  Concern had been raised from Stroud representatives on the Committee that this would mean the closure of the MIIU overnight, however, the Board was clear that it was required to address the actions identified from the Care Quality Commission inspection and emphasised that this was not about saving money.  The Committee agreed that it would be important to understand the outcome of the urgent care review as this would identify where urgent care centres would be located in the County and would give a broader understanding of where members of the public could access such care. 

46.4           In terms of the Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group performance report, it was noted that the Committee had been concerned for some time about the situation with regard to the accident and emergency four hour target and the recent intervention by NHS Improvement had reinforced those concerns.  The Committee had therefore been pleased to welcome the new Chief Executive of the Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to the meeting to discuss the matter.  The Committee was informed that, although people were waiting, they were safe and the service was safe; the Trust had already improved performance from 77% of people being seen  ...  view the full minutes text for item 46.

To consider the progress made to date in relation to the 2016/17 Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan and to consider the 2017/18 outline business plan.

47.1           The report of the Interim Head of Community Services, circulated at Pages No. 26-40, provided an update on the progress against the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan for 2016/17 and detailed the outline Business Plan for 2017-20.  Members were asked to consider the report.

47.2           The Contracts Manager for the Joint Waste Team advised that Tewkesbury Borough Council was represented on the Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee by Councillors Jim Mason and Mark Williams and the Interim Head of Community Services was a representative on the Senior Management Group.  The Gloucestershire Joint Waste Committee Action Plan 2016/17 was set out in the table at Appendix 1 to the report and it was noted that there were three priority areas: broadening the partnership – Gloucester City and Stroud District Councils were not currently part of the Joint Waste Committee; integration e.g. avoiding duplication of effort and resources; and diversion i.e. reducing the amount of waste sent to landfill through waste avoidance.  It was recognised that the information in the table was not terribly clear and Members were advised that a RAG (Red, Amber, Green) traffic light rating system would be applied in future.

47.3           The Environment and Waste Policy Officer for the Joint Waste Team drew attention to Paragraph 3.1 of the report which set out the key achievements for Tewkesbury Borough to date.  Members were informed that a developers guide had been produced setting out requirements for refuse recycling provision at new developments and this had been published on the Council’s website.  In addition, considerable progress had been made to address needle contamination which, although confined to a small number of properties, had been causing a significant problem.  This had involved a lot of work across a number of organisations but she was pleased to report that there had only been one incident in quarter 2 compared with several per month previously.  It was noted that a service level agreement between the Council and the European Recycling Company, a textile recycling contractor, had now been signed and more recycling banks were being rolled out across the County.  There was currently a good market price for textiles and income would also be received from the Salvation Army where it had recycling banks on Tewkesbury Borough Council land; promotional work would be undertaken once these arrangements had been finalised.  The Council’s service review, which had been a significant project over the last 18 months, had been approved by the Council in February 2016 and a procurement exercise was underway in respect of the new vehicle fleet; a vehicle provider was ready to be appointed and tenders for the vehicles were due to be submitted the following day.  The Environment and Waste Policy Officer for the Joint Waste Team explained that the Council currently sent its recycling to the Grundon Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in Bishop’s Cleeve, however, that contract was due to expire in April.  The new contract was currently out to tender and there had been a number of expressions  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

To consider the update in respect of the performance of the grounds maintenance service.

48.1           Attention was drawn to the report of the Interim Head of Community Services, circulated at Pages No. 41-45, which provided an update in respect of the performance of the grounds maintenance service.  Members were asked to consider the report. 

48.2           The Environmental Health Manager advised that, in future, it was intended for a performance report for grounds maintenance to be brought to the Committee at the same time as the annual report on waste and recycling so that Members could consider all of the services carried out by Ubico on behalf of the Council.  Members were informed that Ubico currently maintained a total of 299 sites on behalf of the Council as well as eight private contracts which generated an income of approximately £10,000 for the Council.  All sites were maintained either once every two weeks or once every three weeks. 

48.3           In terms of tree maintenance, the legacy tree database system had been found to be very inefficient and, in December 2015, the Council and Ubico had implemented a new system using handheld GPS devices which pinpointed the location of trees and helped to speed up identification and assessment.  Between December 2015 and March 2016, 570 tree inspections had been carried out and six high risk trees had been identified, four of which had been removed completely and the other two had been pollarded.  Members were reminded that the Executive Committee had previously approved capital expenditure to replace equipment for delivery of the grounds maintenance service and, following a procurement exercise, new equipment had been purchased in March 2016 at a cost of £56,289.  The grounds maintenance budget for 2016/17, including overheads, was £426,705 and there had been a slight underspend of £9,160 during the first quarter.  Paragraph 4.2 of the report detailed the outcomes of the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE) review into grounds maintenance and how the service compared to other local authorities in terms of value for money.  It was noted that an independent audit of Ubico was currently being carried out by Go Shared Services and was covering various aspects of the delivery of the service, particularly in relation to health and safety.  The outcome of the review would be shared with Members once it was available.

48.4           The Environmental Health Manager explained that members of the public were encouraged to use the electronic reporting system ‘Report It’ which was on the Council’s website.  This system linked directly to Ubico and it had led to a significant reduction in telephone calls to Customer Services; any calls which the Customer Services team did receive were logged using the same system.  During the first quarter of 2016/17, Ubico had dealt with 275 ‘Report It’ issues on grounds maintenance; it was noted that these were not complaints but reported issues on general grass cutting and grounds maintenance, requests for information etc.  Since February 2016, the Licensing and Systems Officer, Bhavdip Nakum, had been responsible for the grounds maintenance aspect of the contract between the Council and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.