| Time: | 7.30pm | Place: | Council Chamber, Council Offices, Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City |
| PRESENT: | Councillor Cathryn Henry (Chairman), Councillor Steve Hemingway (Vice-Chairman), Councillor Clare Billing, Councillor Bill Davidson, Councillor Jean Green, Councillor Sal Jarvis, Councillor David Leal - Bennett, Councillor M.R.M. Muir, Councillor Janine Paterson, Councillor Frank Radcliffe, Councillor Mike Rice and Councillor Deborah Segalini. |
| IN ATTENDANCE: | Councillor David Levett (Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise), John Robinson (Strategic Director of Customer Services), Ian Fullstone (Head of Development and Building Control), James Ellis (Advisory and Litigation Lawyer), Louise Symes (Strategic Planning and Projects Manager), Sarah Dobor (Communications Manager), Helen Rae (Active Communities Manager), Brendan Sullivan (Scrutiny Officer) and Hilary Dineen (Committee and Member Services Officer). |
| ALSO PRESENT: | Councillor Julian Cunningham and two members of the public. |
| Meeting attachments |
Agenda Front Pages Audio Recording of Meeting |
| Item | Description/Resolution | Status | Action | |
| PART I | ||||
| 40 |
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Sandra Lunn, Paul Marment and Gerald Morris. |
Noted | ||
| 41 |
MINUTES Minutes RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Meeting held on 8 July 2015 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman. |
Agreed | ||
| 42 |
MINUTES Minutes RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the Meeting held on 21 July 2015 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman. |
Agreed | ||
| 43 |
NOTIFICATION OF OTHER BUSINESS No other business was submitted for consideration by the Committee. |
Noted | ||
| 44 |
CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS (1) The Chairman reminded those present that, in line with Council policy, the meeting would be audio recorded; (2) The Chairman welcomed Councillor David Levett (Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise) to the meeting; (3) The Chairman advised that she had agreed to move Item 16 - Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act Update and Annual Review forward on the agenda and that it would now be considered after Item 12 - Update on Employment Partnerships Task and Finish Group Report; (4) The Chairman advised that, due to the length of the agenda, Item 19 - Protocol for Task and Finish Groups would be deferred to the meeting due to be held on 8 December 2015; (5) Members were reminded that any declarations of interest in respect of any business set out in the agenda, should be declared as either a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest or Declarable Interest and are required to notify the Chairman of the nature of any interest declared at the commencement of the relevant item on the agenda. Members declaring a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest must withdraw from the meeting for the duration of the item. Members declaring a Declarable Interest which requires they leave the room under Paragraph 7.4 of the Code of Conduct, can speak on the item, but must leave the room before the debate and vote. |
Noted | ||
| 45 |
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION There were no presentations from members of the public. |
Noted | ||
| 46 |
URGENT/GENERAL EXCEPTION ITEMS No urgent or general exception items were received. |
Noted | ||
| 47 |
CALLED IN ITEMS Since the last meeting, no decisions had been called-in by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. |
Noted | ||
| 48 |
PRESENTATION BY THE EXECUTIVE MEMBER FOR PLANNING AND ENTERPRISE Councillor David Levett, Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a PowerPoint presentation on the issues within his Portfolio, focussing on the Local Plan as follows: PREFERRED OPTIONS CONSULTATION - The Preferred Options document was approved for consultation on 25th November 2014; - The Consultation ran from 18th December until 5th February 2015; - There was a large amount of publicity in the local press, national press, radio and on TV; - Councillor Levett attended 9 public meetings with approximately 1,800 people attending in total; - NHDC received 8,382 responses to the consultation of which 42 percent were received by email, 14 percent on-line and 44 percent were written; - The responses had been categorised, which demonstrated that the largest number of responses were about Policies and sites; - The sites that had received the most responses were Cockernhoe/East of Luton, Hitchin and Baldock; - Representations had been published on the NHDC website; - A detailed report was considered by Cabinet on 28 July 2015; - The responses to the consultation were still being analysed; - Responses to the representations were in progress. NATIONAL PROGRESS ON LOCAL PLANS - There are 336 Local Planning Authorities In England; - The latest Planning Inspectorate data was 31st May 2015; - 214 Local Plans had been adopted under the Planning & Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, this did not include those ‘in transition' when Act came in; - 64% of Local Planning Authorities had an adopted Local Plan in place, however: - Of the 117 Local Plan that had been published since the introduction of the National Planning Policy Framework only 44 had been found to be sound; - Of the 44 mentioned above only 13 were in the South East and only 5 had Greenbelt within their area. HOUSING NUMBERS The updated Strategic Housing Market Assessment (presented to Cabinet on 15 July 2015) suggested that the North Hertfordshire Local Plan 2011 - 2031 had will need to consider accommodating some 16,500 homes. 2,196 had already been achieved and sites needed to accommodate 12,233 had been identified in the Preferred Options consultation (this included 2,100 dwellings East of Luton). This meant that there remained a shortfall of 2,071 homes that needed to be accommodated in the pre-submission draft. NEXT STEPS - Review Policies including: Cumulative Development Health Provision Master Plans and Principles Local Housing for Local People Economic Development; - Review Sites; - Review unmet needs; - Review issues raised from response to consultation; - Finalise Numbers and sites; - Member Briefings at appropriate stages. Councillor Levett concluded by advising that the Next Stage Local Plan would be presented to Council for approval in January 2016. COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS In response to comments and questions from Members, Councillor Levett advised as follows: - Work was being undertaken on the analysis of responses, including looking at the proportion of population that had responded in each area; - The Local Plan could not affect health provision, but would add weight to any provision requested as the developer would have to take account of infrastructure for cumulative development; - Local exception sites were not common, but where appropriate, the Local Planning Authority had included a condition that local people be offered the housing first; - The local Planning Authority had already started receiving hostile applications and it was important that the Plan was put in place as soon as possible; - NHDC had spent years working on this Plan, which had included public consultation. The next version of the Local Plan would be the Pre - Submission Document. which would be presented to Council for approval, where Members would be able to contribute to the discussion. A next steps report on the Local Plan would be taken to Full Council in January 2016; - Any new sites put forward would have a consultation period once Full Council adopted the Pre - Submission document. The Chairman thanked Councillor Levett for his presentation. |
Noted | ||
| 49 |
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY Report Appendix A - Economic Development Strategy Appendix B - Action Plan Appendix C - Evidence The Strategic Planning and Projects Manager presented the Economic Development Strategy report. She advised that work on the Strategy had been undertaken over the last 6 months, which had included discussions with the Executive Member and Shadow Executive Members as well as a workshop for key stakeholders. Public consultation had taken place during February and March 2015, with the document being widely publicised through a number of different avenues. She drew attention to Paragraphs 8.2 and 8.3 which identified the key issues and explained that giving an identity to North Hertfordshire, in Economic Development Terms, was difficult due the uniqueness of having 4 different towns and large rural areas within the District. The Strategic Planning and Projects Manager expressed her thanks for the help of local businesses and organisations in drawing up the Strategy. Members expressed surprise that the Economic Development Strategy and Action Plan had been drawn up without the benefit of input from an Economic Development Officer and that, in light of the housing numbers required in the Local Plan, the target number of jobs seemed very low. The Strategic Planning and Projects Manager advised that the team already had the skills required to draw up the Plan, and the Economic Development Officer would be tasked with taking the actions forward. The Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise advised that the majority of North Hertfordshire residents worked outside of the District. It was noted that the Delivery Timescale of Project 19 in the Action Plan should read "project is linked to project 11". Members were concerned that the Action Plan focussed on activities with Colleges, but no mention of secondary schools, as many schools now offered vocational training courses. The Head of Development and Building Control informed Members that, once the Strategy was in place, all schools and other organisations would be contacted and those who wished to participate in the action plan invited to a future workshop. There was some discussion about using Luton Airport and Kings Cross to promote North Hertfordshire and that this could help the Tourism industry. The Head of Development and Building Control advised that the vision was to provide North Hertfordshire with an economic identity which could be Town or sector specific advice such as tourism and film and TV. The Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise thanked the Officers and Members that had worked on the Strategy and commented that it had been a pleasure to work with a group of people who had worked together for the benefit of North Hertfordshire RESOLVED: That the Head of Development and Building Control be requested to amend the wording of the Business Activity and Description of Project 12 in the Action Plan regarding the Economic Development Strategy to read: "Project not yet scoped in any detail but North Hertfordshire College are working with local employers to develop an employability standard. The standard will set out the core competencies and attributes employers look for in their employees, regardless of job role or sector. Once developed the standard will be interweaved throughout all North Hertfordshire College's and school's provision, to ensure all learners, regardless of the programme they are on, are ready for the world of work." RECOMMENDED TO CABINET: That, subject to the above amendment, the Economic Development Strategy be supported. REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to comment of the Economic Development Strategy prior to consideration by Cabinet. |
Agreed | ||
| 50 |
TASK AND FINISH GROUP REPORT ON THE COMMERCIALISATION OF COUNCIL SERVICES Report Appendix A - T&F Group report Appendix B - Senior Management Team Comments The Chairman of the Task and Finish Group on the Commercialisation of Council Services had offered his apologies for this meeting. In his absence Councillor Mike Rice, a Member of the Task and Finish Group, presented the report to the Committee. Councillor Rice informed Members that the Task and Finish Group had considered evidence from a range of sources about the scope of the Council's commercial activities, the legal framework and the ways that other Council's had pursed commercial activities. The Group concluded that there were real opportunities for the Council to generate income at a time when other sources of income were coming under increasing pressure The Group decided to concentrate on the principles and frameworks that the Council should adopt to identify, assess and realise opportunities, rather than consider specific projects. The Task and Finish Group's definition of commercialisation was: "An activity that generates income for the council that can be spent to help the council meet its objectives for the community. Some of these activities might themselves provide benefits to the community (such as Careline) but others might not". The Group was clear, however, that the council should not undertake commercial activities that would be damaging to the council's community objectives, however commercially attractive these might be. Whilst accepting that any commercial activity that was likely to be profitable carried some level of risk, the Council should not undertake activities whose failure would undermine the ability to perform its core functions. In order to maximise the chances of success the council should concentrate on areas where it would have some competitive advantage over potential competitors. This might be capital, land, skills or relationships, but it would be unwise to embark on commercial activities where the council had none of these. Having listened to evidence from Officers, the EELGA and Colchester BC (who were seen by many as the leaders, in the East of England, in this field), the Group concluded that the Council would need to make some changes to its structures and processes in order to maximise the success of commercialised activities. In some cases this may eventually require the creation of entities such as companies but where this was not done the Council would need to consider how it operated in a manner which did not prejudice the commercial success of the venture, or stray outside what was legal or proper for the council to do. To ensure that the right skills were available (which were different from the professional skills that the Council requires from Officers), the Group concluded that there should be an enterprise focused Commercial Manager to advise on and lead the implementation of commercial activities. To ensure the proper monitoring and accountability of commercial activities it was proposed that there should be a commercial board consisting of Members and Officers that reported to Cabinet. This would incur some additional cost, but successful pursuit of commercialised activities would be capable of generating income that would exceed this cost massively. Councillor Rice proposed the recommended actions as set out in the report. Members commented and asked questions as follows: The Scrutiny Officer was praised for the work undertaken regarding this report. Member comments included that the visit to Colchester was very helpful and was a breath of fresh air. It was acknowledged that Careline was a successful business which was led by a professional, but Members were concerned at the constraints placed on this business by the costs of recharges and the restrictions placed on it, such as having to use the Council's Document Centre, which were more expensive. Some of the issues in the report were quite ambitious and the recommendations contained in the report should be referred to Cabinet without alteration. In respect of the Comments made by the Senior Management Team, some Members felt these were too cautious and could lead to barriers that would prevent successful commercialisation. Members asked that the upcoming Task and Finish Group on Recharges be requested to consider the comments contained in the report of this Task and Finish Group regarding the constraints that could be caused by recharges. Members agreed that the Task and Finish Group Report should be supported and referred to Cabinet without any amendment. RESOLVED: (1) That the Task and Finish Group report on the Commercialisation of Council Services and the appended recommendations be approved; (2) That the comments of the Senior Management Team regarding the recommendations made by the Task and Finish Group on the Commercialisation of Council Services be noted; (3) That the Task and Finish Group on Commercialisation of Council Services and accompanying comments be considered by Cabinet on 10 November 2015; (4) That the Task and Finish Group on Recharges be requested to consider the comments made by this Task and Finish Group regarding the constraints that recharging can cause. REASON FOR DECISION: To comment on the report of the Task and Finish Group on the Commercialisation of Council Services prior to consideration by Cabinet. |
Agreed | ||
| 51 |
UPDATE ON EMPLOYMENT PARTNERSHIPS TASK AND FINISH GROUP REPORT Councillor David Levett, Executive Member for Planning and Enterprise, gave a verbal update on the Employment Partnerships Task and Finish Group as follows: RECOMMENDATION 1 The Council should seek opportunities to give unemployed people work experience, apprenticeships and traineeships within the Council and within community organisations. Councillor Levett advised that NHDC already had an Apprenticeship Scheme. RECOMMENDATION 2 When assessing planning applications for larger projects, when letting contracts to supply Council services, and when allocating grant funding the Council should consider setting developers, contractors and grant recipients a minimum level of local employment as a condition of approval. Councillor Levett advised that local employment could not be condition as a Planning consideration, however this could be negotiated through any S106 or Unilateral Undertaking agreement and could be included in the Local Plan Masterplan. RECOMMENDATION 3 (REJECTED) The Council should develop a programme which offers interviews with both members and officers to unemployed people to improve their interview techniques and their chances of getting a job. A Member expressed disappointment that this had been rejected as it was designed to help people gain employment and it was a false economy not to resource this type of support. Councillor Levett advised that there were other agencies, such as Job Centre Plus, which had staff with the expertise to support people with interview techniques and other aspects of looking for employment. RECOMMENDATION 6 The Council should enhance its understanding of economic trends and activity in the district and share this information with members and partners. Councillor Levett advised that these issues were covered in the Economic Development Strategy. RECOMMENDATION 7 (REJECTED) The Council should be aware of and promote the employment opportunities the expansion of Luton airport will bring for North Herts. A Member expressed disappointment that this recommendation had been rejected by Cabinet as the expansion of Luton Airport would mean job opportunities, which could benefit those in North Hertfordshire seeking employment. RECOMMENDATION 8 The Council should consider establishing a North Herts Economic Forum; and aim to have a greater officer and member presence at existing economic fora. Councillor Levett advised that this was covered under Project 3 of the Action Plan included in the Economic Development Strategy. RECOMMENDATION 9 The Council should encourage the Hertfordshire LEP to emulate the success of the Cambridgeshire LEP in working with the voluntary sector. Councillor Levett advised that this was a "work in progress". RECOMMENDATION 10 The Council should act as a broker and facilitator between the private sector and voluntary and other community organisations. Councillor Levett advised that this was covered under Project 17 of the Action Plan included in the Economic Development Strategy. RECOMMENDATION 11 (REJECTED) The Council should consider creating an Enterprise Grant Scheme of the type run by Bassetlaw District Council, which provides grants for capital expenditure of up to £1,500, or £2,500 for businesses seeking to locate, re-locate or expand within North Hertfordshire. This money can be used to support the employment of people with disabilities. A Member queried why this recommendation had been rejected. Councillor Levett advised that there were already better schemes in place to achieve these goals. RESOLVED: That the update on the Employment Partnerships Task and Finish Group be noted. REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee is kept up to date regarding the recommendations of the Employment Partnerships Task and Finish Group. |
Agreed | ||
| 52 |
CONSULTATION STRATEGY 2016 - 2020 Report Appendix A - Consultation Strategy The Communications Manager presented the report entitled Consultation Strategy 2016 - 2020. She informed Members that the Strategy was last reviewed in 2010 since when financial pressures and a huge growth in digital communications, combined with changes to statutory consultations had significantly altered the communications landscape. The Strategy would put in place a process to consider whether the duty to consult applied and, if it did, the extent to which consultation was needed. She stated that although on-line usage had grown it was still appropriate to use a combination of survey methods. Members asked several questions including whether results of consultations were weighted in order to provide a more accurate result and whether consideration would be given to developing an app to gain views. The Communications Manager advised that independent consultants were used for the District Wide Survey and the information gathered was weighted. However the Council did not have the resources to do this with in house surveys. In respect of developing an app, this could be considered along with the use of social media. There was some concern about the difficult to reach and it was suggested that some surveys should be undertaken on a face to face basis in different locations. Concern was also expressed about the proposed delegation of responsibility for deciding whether the Duty to Consult applied and whether any decision not to consult would be recorded. The Communications Manager advised that locations of physical surveys were considered on a case by case basis as was how consultations were publicised. In respect of the Duty to consult, in some areas this was an express requirement and therefore was not addressed in this Strategy. The Strategic Director for Customer Services advised that the Strategy would ensure that a conscious decision was taken about consultation and that all reports, including delegated decisions would include details of consultations carried out and what form that took. RECOMMENDED TO CABINET: (1) That the proposed Consultation Strategy for 2016 - 2020 be approved; (2) That the responsibility for deciding whether the Duty to Consult applies to proposed changes of policy/service be delegated to the relevant Head of service in consultation with the Executive Member for that service area. REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to consider the Consultation Strategy 2016 - 2020 prior to consideration by Cabinet. |
Agreed | ||
| 53 |
ANNUAL SAFEGUARDING PERFORMANCE UPDATE FOR APRIL 14 - MARCH 15 AND DBS CHECKS FOR COUNCILLORS Report The Active Communities Manager presented the report entitled Annual Safeguarding Performance Update for April 14 - March 15 and DBS Checks for Councillors. She reminded members that the Council had a statutory duty to protect children and refer any concerns to the relevant agencies. There was also a duty to protect vulnerable adults, however concerns regarding vulnerable adults could only be referred with their consent unless the adult lacked the mental capacity to protect themselves. In the last year NHDC had made 7 referrals regarding children at risk of harm, but it should be noted that homelessness is an automatic reason for referral and 3 referrals regarding vulnerable adults. She drew attention to section 8.4 of the report which detailed progress and planned developments. In respect of Disclosure Barring checks the Active Communities Manager advised that the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 had changed the regime of vetting and barring individuals from working with children and vulnerable adults, which had significantly reduced the number of positions and circumstances in which persons would need a criminal records check. There was no legal requirement for a Councillor to undergo such checks by virtue of their position as an elected Member and advice from the Disclosure Barring Service was that Councillors undertaking their general constituency duties would not routinely require DBS checks. She suggested that the Committee may wish to recommend basic DBS checks for all Councillors and, if their role involves regular and unsupervised contact with children and/or vulnerable adults, enhanced DBS checks for Executive Members and the Children's Champion. Members were pleased that the Council's Safeguarding duties were being treated seriously. The discussion regarding who should be DBS checked and at what level was vigorous with Members having differing opinions and it was decided to vote for each option. The vote for a standard DBS check for all Councillors was lost The vote for enhanced DBS checks for Executive Members and the Children's Champion, if their role involves regular and unsupervised contact with children and/or vulnerable adults, was won. RESOLVED: (1) That the annual report of progress made against the Council's fulfilment of the statutory duty to maintain an effective safeguarding function with regard to children be noted: (2) That the annual report of progress made against the Council's application of its safeguarding function with regard to vulnerable adults be noted; (3) That the processes in place at NHDC for application and review of safeguarding processes are sufficient and robust; (4) That the Head of Policy and Community Services be requested to provide an annual review of the Safeguarding processes. RECOMMENDED TO CABINET: That, if their role involves regular and unsupervised contact with children and/or vulnerable adults, enhanced Disclosure Barring Checks be carried out on all Executive Members and the Children's Champion. REASON FOR DECISION: (1) To ensure that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee is kept appraised of the safeguarding performance within NHDC; (2) To consider the best course of action in respect of Disclosure Barring Checks for Councillors. |
Agreed | ||
| 54 |
PERFORMANCE INDICATORS - FIRST QUARTER 2015/16 Performance Data The Chairman informed Members that the Performance and Risk Manager had tendered her apologies for not being at the meeting due to ill health. She suggested that Members email the Performance and Risk Manager with any questions they may have. RESOLVED: That the Performance Indicators - First Quarter 2015/16 be noted. REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to consider the First Quarter Performance Indicators for 2015 - 2016. |
Agreed | ||
| 55 |
REGULATION OF INVESTIGATORY POWERS ACT UPDATE AND ANNUAL REVIEW Report Appendix A - RIPA Policy The Advisory and Litigation Lawyer presented the report entitled Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act Update and Annual Review. He advised Members that, in addition to the amended RIPA policy there would be a new Social Media Policy. There was some discussion by Members about whether there was a role for the Standards Committee in considering the Policy. [NB: Paragraph 6.2.7(r) of North Hertfordshire District Council's Constitution stated that one of the functions of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee is to consider reports relating to the Authority's use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000) (RIPA)] . RESOLVED: That the update on the use of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 be noted. RECOMMENDED TO CABINET: That the amended North Hertfordshire Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 Policy and Procedures be adopted. REASON FOR DECISION: To comply with best practice guidance and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee's Terms of Reference and to consider the amended Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act amended policy prior to consideration by Cabinet. |
Agreed | ||
| 56 |
MEMBERS' QUESTIONS No questions had been submitted. |
Noted | ||
| 57 |
RESOLUTIONS OF THE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE List of Resolutions The Chairman suggested that the Committee monitor the number of recommendations accepted by Cabinet that are acted upon. RESOLVED: That the actions resulting from the resolutions of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee be noted. REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to review and monitor the progress of resolutions made. |
Agreed | ||
| 58 |
PROTOCOL FOR TASK AND FINISH GROUPS Report Appendix A - Revised Task & Finish Protocol Appendix B - Existing Task & Finish Protocol The Chairman had previously announced that the Protocol for Task and Finish Group would be deferred and considered at the next meeting of this Committee due to be held on 8 December 2015. |
Noted | ||
| 59 |
OVERVIEW & SCRUTINY COMMITTEE WORK PROGRAMME Report Appendix A - Projects Draft Scope Appendix B - Programme for Meetings Appendix C - Forward Plan The Scrutiny Officer presented the Overview and Scrutiny Work Programme and advised that the Executive Member for Community Engagement and Rural Affairs would make a presentation to the next meeting of the Committee, focussing on Hitchin Town Hall, Community Safety and Community Halls. He would also invite the Police and Crime Commissioner, Chief Constable of Hertfordshire and the local Inspector to attend the meeting and give a presentation RESOLVED: (1) That the Executive Member for Community Engagement and Rural Affairs be invited to attend the meeting of this Committee, due to be held on 8 December 2015, to give a presentation regarding issues within his portfolio; (2) That the Police and Crime Commissioner of Hertfordshire and the Chief Constable of Hertfordshire be invited to attend the meeting of this Committee due to be held on 8 December 2015; (3) That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme be noted. REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to plan and carry out its workload efficiently and effectively. |
Agreed | ||