Agenda and minutes

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.

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

5.2             The Chair welcomed Mr Norman Gardner, Chief Executive of the Citizens’ Advice Bureau, who was in attendance for Item 8 – Citizens’ Advice Bureau and Financial Inclusion Presentation. He also welcomed Councillor Mrs Gill Blackwell who was present as an observer since her Portfolio included responsibility for the Overview and Scrutiny function.

6.1             Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Mrs H C McLain, T A Spencer and P D Surman. There were no substitutions made on this occasion.

7.1             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.

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

To approve the Minutes of the meetings held on 2 May and 16 May 2017.

8.1             The Minutes of the meetings held on 2 May and 16 May 2016, copies of which had been circulated, were approved as correct records 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.

9.1             Attention was drawn to the Executive Committee Forward Plan, circulated at Pages No. 15-19. 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.

9.2             A Member questioned what the report entitled ‘Joint Core Strategy Strategic Allocation Sites: Allocation of Affordable Housing’ would consider. In response, the Head of Community Services advised that this related to the new developments built as part of the Joint Core Strategy and how Tewkesbury Borough, Cheltenham Borough and Gloucester City Councils met the affordable housing need.

9.3             Accordingly, it was

                  RESOLVED          That the Executive Committee Forward Plan be NOTED.

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

10.1           Attention was drawn to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme 2017/18, circulated at Pages No. 20-27, which Members were asked to consider.

10.2           Accordingly, it was

                  RESOLVED          That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme                          2017/18 be NOTED.  

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

11.1           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 its last meeting held on 6 June 2017.  

11.2           Councillor Day explained that as this had been the first meeting of the Committee since the election and it had been felt important that Members were given an understanding of the landscape of health and adult social care in Gloucestershire. The One Gloucestershire: Transforming Care, Transforming Communities Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP), set out the direction of travel for health and social care in the County and was therefore best placed to inform Members on the context and direction of travel for health and care services in the County. The Accountable Officer of Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group had described the challenges facing the services which included the projected and significant increase in the number of people over 65 years with a long term condition and the projected increase of 20% in the 75 to 84 age group by 2021. Gloucestershire had both an urban and rural landscape and the Clinical Commissioning Group recognised that one size would not fit all. The presentation had highlighted the significant amount of work in progress to deliver the STP and the positive health outcomes already being achieved. Many of those were detailed on the presentation slides which were available on the County Council’s website. Some Members had expressed the view that the STP lacked the necessary detail to help members of the public understand what it meant for them; however, the Committee was assured that, as soon as any proposal for change was ready to go out for consultation, the Committee would be consulted as a statutory consultee.

11.3           In terms of the adult social care and public health performance report, the Director of Adult Social Services had explained that the number of people with a learning disability in employment was at its highest; however, the way the indicator was now measured did not reflect that position. The Director of Public Health had highlighted that the indicator showing the number of adults receiving ‘alcohol brief interventions’ was underperforming. The service had previously been achieving target and it was felt that this dip related to the change in provider at the beginning of the year. The Director expected that performance would improve during the first two quarters of 2017/18 and informed Members that the Council would be changing how it commissioned NHS health checks next year so that people at more risk would be targeted.

11.4           Councillor Day went on to advise that the Accountable Officer for the Gloucestershire Clinical Commissioning Group had informed the Committee that there was a new Improvement and Assessment Framework in place; there were six clinical priority areas within the framework and the current assessment was that cancer, learning disabilities and mental health needed improvement and that dementia, diabetes and maternity were performing well. The Committee had received information reports covering adult social  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

To receive an update on Citizens’ Advice Bureau activity within the borough and financial inclusion. 

12.1           The Chair welcomed Norman Gardner, Bureau Manager for the Gloucester and District Citizens’ Advice Bureau (CAB), to the meeting. Members were reminded that Tewkesbury Borough Council had had a relationship with the CAB for a number of years and gave it a grant on an annual basis. The Committee received an annual presentation which provided Members with information about the work of the CAB and a flavour of what was happening within the Borough. The CAB had a four year Service Level Agreement with the Borough and currently performance against that was reported on a quarterly basis through the performance tracker.

12.2           The Bureau Manager for the Gloucester and District CAB was invited to make his presentation to the Committee. He explained that Members received a fairly comprehensive list of statistics every quarter and for the current presentation he had decided not to include those; instead he would provide a brief overview of the type of work which was ongoing. The presentation covered the following key points:

·           Our Aims – to provide the advice people needed for the problems they faced and to improve policies and practices that affected people’s lives.

·           Our Principles – the Citizens’ Advice service provided free, independent and impartial advice to everyone on their rights and responsibilities. It valued diversity, promoted equality and challenged discrimination.

·           Our Locations – Tewkesbury Borough Council; Prior’s Park; Bishop’s Cleeve; Winchcombe; Brockworth; Cheltenham Town Centre; and Gloucester City Centre.

·           How Advice is Obtained – face to face - 79.5% (75.3% in the previous year); by telephone - 12.2% (12.6% in the previous year); and by email - 8.2% (12.0% in the previous year) or online at www.gloucestercab.org.uk

·           Employment Status – employed and self-employed - 39.7%; carers - 9.8%; retired - 18.6%; and unemployed and permanently sick - 31.8%.

·           Disposable Monthly Income – under £999 - 39.7%; £1,000-£1,499 – 9.8%; £1,500-£1,999 – 18.6%; and over £2,000 – 31.8%.

·           Disabilities – physical disability – 12.6%; mental illness – 9.1%; long term health issues – 21.0%; and not disabled – 31.8%.

·           Issues Dealt With - 2,885 in 2016/17 and 2,534 in 2015/16. Welfare benefits – 862 (715 in the previous year); debt – 720 (640 in the previous year); employment – 284 (262 in the previous year); relationships – 219 (222) in the previous year; and housing – 204 (195 in the previous year).

·           Case Studies –

A.     Miss D was single, had two young children and had claimed housing benefit, Council Tax reduction and income support. Her benefits had been stopped and a refund of over £65,000 was demanded when the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) had claimed she had been living with the father of her children. Two months later, Miss D became at risk of eviction as the loss of housing benefit resulted in the rent ceasing to be paid. At that point help was sought from the CAB. Actions taken included: a new claim for housing benefit was successfully made to avoid further rent arears; the landlady was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

To review and scrutinise the performance management information and, where appropriate, to require response or action from the Executive Committee. 

13.1           The report of the Head of Corporate Services, circulated at Pages No. 28-62, attached performance management information for the final quarter and the full year of 2016/17. The Overview and Scrutiny Committee was asked to review and scrutinise the performance information and, where appropriate, identify any issues to refer to the Executive Committee for clarification or for further action to be taken. 

13.2           Members were advised that this was the final quarterly monitoring report for 2016/17 and progress against delivering the objectives and actions for each of the Council plan priorities was reported through the Performance Tracker which was attached at Appendix 1 to the report. The majority of key activities were progressing well or had been implemented and those of particular note were set out at Paragraph 2.3 of the report with the full year achievements attached at Appendix 2 to the report. The achievements included the five year extension of the County Council’s leases in the Public Services Centre; the approval of a new Economic Development and Tourism Strategy; and the building of 249 new affordable homes across the Borough which was significantly above the Council’s target of 150. Due to the complex nature of the actions being delivered, it was inevitable that some may not progress as smoothly or quickly as envisaged and those were set out at Paragraph 2.4 of the report. In terms of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), the data reported was the position as at the end of March 2017. Of the 17 indicators with targets: 5 were unlikely to achieve their target; and 12 were on target. The Key Indicators of interest were set out at Paragraph 3.3 of the report and particular attention was drawn to KPI 14 – processing minor planning applications – performance was slightly improved from last year but significantly under target due to turnover of staff, in particular the departure of the North Team Leader and vacancies including a senior planning officer and 1.6 full-time equivalent planning officers.; KPI 20 – number of enviro-crimes reported - flytipping and dog fouling complaints were increasing which had resulted in the target not being achieved; and KPI 30 – recycling - waste to landfill was down by 600 tonnes, food and garden waste tonnage was up by 680 tonnes and recycling was up by 500 tonnes. 

13.3           During the debate which ensued, the following queries and comments were made in relation to the Performance Tracker: 

To consider the corporate policies and strategies for potential review by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee during 2017/18. 

14.1           The report of the Head of Corporate Services, circulated at Pages No. 63-73, set out an updated list of corporate policies and strategies. Members were asked to consider that list and identify any for inclusion within the Committee’s 2017/18 work programme.   

14.2           The Head of Corporate Services advised that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee had previously requested that a list of policies and strategies be produced to help inform its work programme as well as to provide support to the Executive Committee. That list was updated on an annual basis and the latest version was attached to the Committee report at Appendix 1. The policies and strategies that were due for review in 2017/18 were highlighted in bold.

14.3           There were four policies / strategies that were suggested for review by an Overview and Scrutiny Committee workshop which were the Workforce Development Strategy; the Customer Care Strategy; the Corporate Enforcement Policy – this referred to regulatory services; and the Waste Policy – this was not in the Council Plan but was a major front-facing service area. Members were asked to consider adding those to the work programme and whether they felt there were any further to add.

14.4           During the brief discussion which ensued, a Member referred to the Anti-Bullying and Harassment Policy and questioned whether the Council actively monitored any trends and whether it looked for a cause or just waited for complaints to arise. In response, the Head of Corporate Services explained that the policy was well promoted throughout the organisation and, in addition, the staff survey had a question about bullying and harassment. Officers did look for trends and incidents were viewed very seriously when they occurred. The Chief Executive advised that exit interviews were undertaken when people left the organisation and any issues identified were monitored. He was of the view that tackling any problems was a priority and would be dealt with swiftly. Staff members could report any instances of bullying and harassment to HR, Union representatives, named individuals within the organisation and Line Managers so there were many routes open for people that wished to report such behaviours.

14.5           A Member expressed concern with the system to report issues on enviro-crimes and waste as, once reported to Ubico, the Council seemed to lose control of the issue and they were then not dealt with in as timely a manner as Members would like. In response, the Head of Community Services explained that concerns were reported to Ubico and they had timescales for a response. Generally, if it was an urgent issue, this would be highlighted when the report was made; this meant Ubico could divert resources if necessary to get the matter dealt with as soon as possible. In relation to the Safeguarding Children Policy, a Member questioned whether this could be reviewed earlier than the target date of January 2018 due to the seriousness of the issues raised by a recent Ofsted inspection of County Council Services. In response, the Chief Executive  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.