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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber

Contact: Democratic Services Tel: 01684 272021  Email:  democraticservices@tewkesbury.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

23.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

23.1           Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Mrs J E Day, J H Evetts, R E Garnham, Mrs H C McLain, A S Reece and D J Waters.  

24.

Declarations of Interest

Pursuant to the adoption by the Council on 26 June 2012 of the Tewkesbury Borough Council Code of Conduct, effective from 1 July 2012, as set out in Minute No. CL.34, Members are invited to declare any interest they may have in the business set out on the Agenda to which the approved Code applies.

Minutes:

24.1           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.

24.2           There were no declarations of interest made on this occasion.

25.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 145 KB

To approve the Minutes of the meetings held on 9 and 16 May 2017.

Minutes:

25.1           The Minutes of the meetings held on 9 and 16 May 2017, copies of which had been circulated, were approved as correct records and signed by the Mayor.  

26.

Announcements

1.   When the continuous alarm sounds you must evacuate the building by the nearest available fire exit. Members and visitors should proceed to the visitors’ car park at the front of the building and await further instructions (during office hours staff should proceed to their usual assembly point; outside of office hours proceed to the visitors’ car park). Please do not re-enter the building unless instructed to do so.

 

      In the event of a fire any person with a disability should be assisted in leaving the building.  

 

2.   To receive any announcements from the Chair of the Meeting and/or the Chief Executive.

Minutes:

26.1           The Mayor extended his deepest sympathies, and those of the Council, to the Leader following the sad loss of his sister.

26.2           The evacuation procedure, as noted on the Agenda, was advised to those present.

26.3           The Mayor welcomed Mr Matt Lennard and Dr Claire Mould to the meeting. They were in attendance to provide a presentation at Item 7 of the Agenda – Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Alliance Presentation.

27.

Items from Members of the Public

a)   To receive any questions, deputations or petitions submitted under Council Rule of Procedure.12.

 

(The deadline for public participation submissions for this meeting is 21 June 2017).

 

b)   To receive any petitions submitted under the Council’s Petitions Scheme.

Minutes:

27.1           There were no items from members of the public on this occasion.  

28.

Member Questions properly submitted in accordance with Council Procedure Rules

To receive any questions submitted under Rule of Procedure 13. Any items received will be circulated on 27 June 2017.

 

(Any questions must be submitted in writing to Democratic Services by, not later than, 10.00am on the working day immediately preceding the date of the meeting).

Minutes:

28.1           There were no Member questions on this occasion.  

29.

Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Alliance Presentation

To receive a presentation on how the VCS Alliance can work with the public sector to ensure better engagement with the voluntary sector and communities resulting in better outcomes for both. 

Minutes:

29.1           The Mayor invited Mr Matt Lennard and Dr Claire Mould of the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Alliance to make their presentation to the Council.

29.2           The presentation covered the following main points:

·               Alliance and the VCS – independent voice for the VCS community in the County. Could be challenging at times due to the diverse nature of the 4,000 organisations which included 2,500 registered charities and 1,500 informal community groups. The VCS was an independent advocate for the sector with the sole aim of providing a voice for the voluntary and community sector in Gloucestershire – the organisation included 12 Trustees; four Board Directors; and three staff members. The Alliance worked well in effectively establishing a relationship between the voluntary and community sector and the County Council, the Local Enterprise Partnership and the Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group. In terms of staff, the Head of Operations and the Project Coordinator were paid for by Gloucestershire County Council and the Health and Wellbeing Officer was paid for by the Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group.

·               Our Function – through advocacy and representation – this meant attendance at meetings throughout the County and acting as a conduit for the voluntary and community sector; through information provision - using newsletters, local regional and national bulletins; and targeted consultation; and through partnership building – this was the hardest part of the Alliance’s function with one of the consistent themes being to ‘work better together to survive and thrive’.

·               Forums - there were quarterly forums which VCS members attended to listen to people that commissioned services e.g. health and wellbeing; stronger, safer communities; children and young people; and art and culture.

·               Future Work – the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner had recently joined which was great news for the VCS in terms of relationships. This had provided an engagement officer, the Police and Crime Plan and sought to link up projects like the Aston Project. The Alliance was also looking at better engagement with District Councils and it was working with a team at Tewkesbury Borough Council to create a model for this.

·               Benefits of Engaging the VCS in Enabling Active Communities – VCS could help reach those who experienced the greatest health inequalities with particular emphasis on engagement with those people who were less frequently heard. The VCS could also often have an impact well beyond what statutory services could achieve alone as it understood specific local needs, had high levels of trust and engagement with local communities and had the ability to work across multiple services. The VCS was not just about providing services as it was expertise that was needed and tapping into that could have just as much impact. There was often misunderstanding of what the VCS could provide as it was not only about volunteers but also about people that were at the top of their chosen field, with an absolute understanding of their particular area of expertise, and that type of knowledge should not be underestimated.

29.3           The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 29.

30.

Recommendations from Executive Committee

The Council is asked to consider and determine recommendations of a policy nature arising from the Executive Committee as follows:- 

30a

Preparation for the General Data Protection Regulation pdf icon PDF 83 KB

At its meeting on 7 June 2017 the Executive Committee considered a report which sought to prepare the Council for the General Data Protection Legislation. The Committee RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL that ongoing funding for the Business Administration Manager post be included in the base budget for 2018/19 and future years.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

30.1           At its meeting on 7 June 2017, the Executive Committee had considered a report which detailed the preparations required for compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation that was due to be implemented on 25 May 2018. The Executive Committee had recommended to Council that ongoing funding for the Business Administration Manager post be included in the base budget for 2018/19 and future years.

30.2           The report which was considered by the Executive Committee had been circulated with the Agenda for the current meeting at Pages No. 17-30.

30.3           The recommendation was proposed by the Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee. He informed Members that the Regulation significantly increased the data protection obligations on the Council and its requirements were extensive and complex. He explained the risks associated with non-compliance, which included reputational and financial, the latter involving fines that could be as much as 20 million. Members were encouraged to support the recommendation to establish a Business Administration Manager’s post who would work with the Senior Information Risk Owner and the Data Controller and all teams to implement the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation and maintain compliance post the implementation date of May 2018.

30.4           During the discussion which ensued, a Member questioned whether the Regulation was linked to the European Union (EU). In response, the Chief Executive explained that this was an EU Regulation but the United Kingdom (UK) government had already indicated that it intended to adopt the same standard, regardless of Britain’s exit from the EU, and this had been confirmed by the Information Commissioner’s Office. The Regulation had a serious impact on all organisations that stored, handled and received personal data and, as well as ensuring it was in compliance, the Council would need to help others to comply e.g. Parish Councils. Another Member questioned whether the Regulation would have an impact on individuals i.e. when Councillors kept personal data on their files. In response, the Chief Executive advised that if information was held by individuals the legislation did not apply; however, as Councillors, they may have the information for one of three reasons: in their role as a Councillor; for Ward purposes; or for personal information. When handling the Council’s data they were covered by the Council as a whole and therefore there was a duty to manage it properly. The Ward information was a Councillor’s own personal responsibility and he encouraged Members to register themselves with the Information Commissioner’s Office as a Ward Councillor. In order to ensure Councillors were kept fully appraised of the legislation as it developed, seminars would be provided in due course. The purpose of the recommendation today was to gain the financial support for the new post.

30.5           A Member noted that the job description for the new Business Administration Manager post indicated that there would be a large impact on the Council and she felt this would also apply to Parish and Town Councils; she questioned whether the new post would be available for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30a