Agenda item

REPORT OF THE SCRUTINY OFFICER

This report highlights items scheduled in the work programme of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee for the 2026-27 civic year. It also includes items that have not yet been assigned to a specific meeting of the Committee.

RESOLVED:

(1) That the Committee prioritised topics for inclusion in the Work Programme attached as Appendix 1 and, where appropriate, determined the high-level form and timing of scrutiny input.

(2) That the Committee, having considered the most recent iteration of the Forward Plan, as attached at Appendix 2, suggested a list of items to be considered at its meetings in the coming civic year.

(3) That the Committee, noted the Decisions and Monitoring log, as attached at Appendix 3.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

(1) To allow the Committee to set a work programme which provides focused Member oversight, encourages open debate and seeks to achieve service improvement through effective policy development and meaningful policy and service change.

(2) The need to observe Constitutional requirements and monitor the Forward Plan for appropriate items to scrutinise remains a key aspect of work programming.

Audio recording – 01 hours 25 minutes 34 seconds

The Scrutiny Officer presented the report entitled ‘Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme 2026-27’ and advised that:

· The Work Programme was attached at Appendix 1 to the report.

· A site visit to Riverside Walk and Churchgate had taken place on Friday 4 September and a site visit to the Museum Collection Facility would be scheduled for October or November in due course.

· Items for the next Committee meeting included a presentation from Settle Paradigm, updates on Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) future plans, Decarbonisation of Council Buildings, the Scope of the Parking Spotlight Review, and the Work Programme and Decisions Monitoring Tracker.

· Service Managers would be consulted on topics for the Crime and Disorder Matters All-Member briefing in January to share with Committee Members for consideration.

· A response to the findings of the S106 Task and Finish Group would be provided at the Cabinet meeting in November.

· Members could submit items for the Work Programme via email, in-person or through the referral form.

· Specific questions should be submitted ahead of each meeting so that responses could be coordinated with Executive Members and Officers.

· The Forward Plan published on 21 August was attached at Appendix 2 to the report, and the Decisions and Monitoring Tracker was attached at Appendix 3.

· Recommendations from the Committee on the reports for the Annual Report of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Funding for LGR and Churchgate had been resolved by Cabinet and Council accordingly.

The following Members asked questions:

· Councillor Martin Prescott

· Councillor Ralph Muncer

· Councillor Paul Ward

· Councillor David Chalmers

In response to questions, the Chair advised that:

· They would await more information from central government regarding LGR before acting on the item scheduled for the next Committee meeting.

· Looking at costs associated with LGR should be specific to the Council, rather than County wide, and the LGR future plans item should be approached in an appropriate way.

· The item on the Work Programme related to the Climate Emergency would also focus on the Ecological Emergency declared by the Council.

· It was acknowledged that site visits were difficult for Members to attend on a weekday.

In response to questions, the Scrutiny Officer advised that:

· Officers would check on whether having an All-Member Briefing would discharge the Crime and Disorder function of the Council.

· Overview and Scrutiny Members would be responsible for the scope of the All-Member Briefing on Crime and Disorder Matters.

Councillor Claire Winchester proposed the recommendation in the report, and this was seconded by Councillor Sadie Billing.

The following Members took part in the debate:

· Councillor Ralph Muncer

· Councillor Claire Winchester

· Councillor Martin Prescott

The following points were made as part of the debate:

· The Scope of the Parking Spotlight Review should include revenue generation from car parks, enforcement and delivering on priorities.

· An item relating to Environmental Crime should be scheduled on the Work Programme as they should look at whether more resources would need to be allocated.

· Royston Learner Pool should be put into the Work Programme.

· Having an Information Note on the activities of the Planning Enforcement Team would be useful.

In response to points raised during the debate, the Scrutiny Officer advised that the scope of the Parking Spotlight Review should be targeted rather than broad as it was only a 1-day exercise.

In response to points raised during the debate, the Chair advised that:

· The draft scope for the Parking Spotlight Review would be discussed and refined at the next Committee meeting by Members.

· Scheduling Royston Learner Pool on the Work Programme would be looked at with the relevant officers.

In response to points raised during the debate, the Committee, Member and Scrutiny Manager advised that Planning Enforcement Matters were reported on quarterly to the Planning Control Committee, and any discussion by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on this could not relate to specific enforcement matters.

In response to points raised during the debate, Councillor Nigel Mason advised that an Information Note relating to Planning Enforcement would likely result in the discussion of individual cases as it was a complicated topic but was happy for this to be investigated further.

The Scrutiny Officer advised that a six-monthly Work Programme meeting had been suggested ahead of the November Committee meeting.

In response to the Scrutiny Officer, Councillor Martin Prescott highlighted that there may be greater participation from Members if it was held remotely on another evening.

Having been proposed and seconded and, following a vote, it was: