Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting of the Commission held on 14 September 2010.

The Minutes of the meeting held on 14 September 2010 were approved as a true and correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any Declarations of Interest from Members.

There were no declarations of interest received.

To receive an update on actions following the previous Commission meeting.

The actions following the previous meeting were covered on the agenda.

To consider any items called-in by the requisite number of Members following the previous Executive meeting.

No items were called-in following the last Executive meeting.

To consider any items proposed for a Councillor Call for Action. 

No new Councillor Call for Action (CCfA) items were raised for discussion.

To consider any petitions requiring an Officer response. 

No petitions were brought to the Commission for consideration. 

Purpose:

·              To be informed of the response to the Commission’s recommendations following its review into the severe winter weather of 2009/10.

·              To receive an update on the activity undertaken since the Commission’s review.

·              To examine the preparations in place for the coming winter. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 8) providing an update on the activity undertaken since the Commission’s review and to examine the preparations in place for the coming winter.

Councillor Brian Bedwell opened the item by stating the importance of the scrutiny undertaken at the beginning of the year and in the valuable work that had followed in response to, and in addition to, the scrutiny work.

Mark Edwards was then asked to provide an update from the perspective of the Highways Service and the following points were made in relation to the six highways related recommendations formed by the Commission:

·                    The Highway Winter Service Plan had undergone a detailed review during the previous six months.  This encompassed the Commission’s recommendations and some additional activity which had been identified from within the service.  The full draft had been sent to all Members and parish/town councils for consultation and the latest version would be made available in the Members Boardroom.  It was hoped that the plan would be approved as an Individual Decision on 11 November 2010.

·                    The comments received from parish and town councils in relation to gritting routes had been taken into account and approximately a dozen routes had been added.  Many of these ensured that routes to, for example, schools and General Practitioner surgeries were included in the primary gritting route and treated wherever practicable. 

·                    Amendments had been made to the Winter Policy to allow for earlier treatment of town centre footways and to provide greater clarity on this matter. 

·                    The salt stock had been increased, as recommended, to 5,000 tonnes, this took into account the fact that around 4,000 tonnes were used last winter.  This was purchased at an early stage which ensured that the salt had been delivered in time.  This was not the case for all local authorities.

·                    All parish and town councils had been consulted on the draft Salt Bin Policy.  This proposed that the existing West Berkshire Council (WBC) owned bins would remain on the network, but gave parish and town councils the opportunity to obtain new bins at their own cost with WBC paying for salt refills.  This had been positively received by many and approximately 50 new bins had been requested.  Discussions were also ongoing with parish and town councils with regard to them taking on the ownership of WBC bins at no further cost, as it would be ideal if they were under one ownership.  Replacement of existing bins was expected to be infrequent, but it would be the responsibility of the owner to do so. 

·                    To ensure adequate communications regarding the use of salt bins, an information notice would be put on them.  Information on WBC’s website was also being updated.

·                    The report produced following the Governments’ Winter Resilience Review had been published and this included information and guidance on the issue of potential legal action arising from an individual clearing their own footpath etc.  This stated that there was no law to prevent someone from doing so  ...  view the full minutes text for item 83.

Purpose: To outline the results of the investigation into the Council’s Performance Management Framework.  

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 9) outlining the results of the investigation into the Council’s Performance Management Framework.

Councillor Irene Neill, Chairman of the Task Group, made the following points:

·                    The importance of the ‘golden thread’ principle was highlighted, whereby the Council’s aims and objectives should be monitored and sought to be achieved throughout the Council Plan, Service Plans, team plans and in individual’s appraisal documents.

·                    One of the main purposes for the formation of the task group related to the structure of the Executive Cycle and the time delay this caused before the Commission could see performance reports.  It was not found to be possible to alter this so that a significant difference could be made.  However, it was recommended that the Commission’s activity should be altered to assess the impact of any measures taken to address indicators reported as red or amber to help to resolve difficulties. 

·                    There was found to be a need for a greater correlation between the budget setting process and the Council Plan process. 

·                    The Council’s practice of publishing quarterly performance reports was not commonly found in other local authorities.

Further clarity was sought on the reasons why performance reports could not be released to the Commission at an earlier stage, so that advice and assistance could be offered as part of policy development.  David Lowe advised that this was an issue of timeliness due to the time taken for reports to be seen by Corporate Board, Management Board and the Executive. 

In response to the suggestion made that this was a political decision, Councillor Quentin Webb, another Member of the task group, accepted that this was partly the case as the process needed to be in the control of Corporate Board and Executive Members.  It was felt right that they undertook the function of analysing the corrective action being taken to address poor performance. 

David Lowe went on to advise that the function of analysing indicators reported as red or amber by the Commission would enable more current discussions to be held. 

It was added that there were different methods that could be deployed in holding the Executive to account, which included questioning decisions that had been made.

Recommendation 1, which asked that the number and relevance of measures in place to evaluate progress against the aims of the Council Plan, was then discussed.  There was a view that this recommendation should be more specific in requesting that consideration should be given to reducing the number of indicators as well as ensuring they were SMART (Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic and Timebound). 

The task group did discuss this aspect, but it was felt that this could not be included in the recommendation as the Council Plan had not yet been finalised.  However, it was agreed that the recommendation would be amended in light of these comments.

Councillor Anthony Stansfeld, Portfolio Holder for Performance, was then asked to comment on the report and he made the following points:

·                    Indicators needed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 84.

Purpose: To outline the results of the investigation into the use of local food.

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 10) outlining the results of the investigation into promoting the use of local food.

Nine recommendations to encourage the use of local food were proposed in the report for the consideration of the Executive and the West Berkshire Partnership.  Some activity had already been incorporated as a result. 

Councillor Emma Webster informed Members that farm shops and local village markets were discussed at the meetings and this was recorded in the minutes.  A mechanism for raising awareness of these and other initiatives were the booklets produced by the Local Food Group.  This covered Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.

The work undertaken by parish and town councils in managing and increasing the number of allotments was another topic included in the review.  The cost of developing land for allotment use could be a restricting factor and legislation needed to be explored to assess whether land could continue to be used for allotments in future generations.  Allotment usage was a potential topic for a future District Parish Conference. 

RESOLVED that the recommendations would be approved for the consideration of the Executive and the West Berkshire Partnership. 

Purpose: To outline the results of the investigation into the need for a policy for the installation of automatic fire suppression systems in Council buildings.

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 11) outlining the results of the investigation into the need for a policy for the installation of automatic fire suppression systems in all new Council buildings and those undergoing major refurbishment.

The potential to lower insurance costs as a result of installing fire suppression systems was examined by the Safer Select Committee.  This found that the Council already had a low premium which was offset by a high excess and therefore further savings were unlikely.  However, recommendation (e) asked that further discussions be held with the Council’s property insurers with the aim of achieving further savings. 

RESOLVED that the recommendations would be approved for the Executive’s consideration. 

Purpose: To outline the results of the investigation into the support that can be provided to small schools in West Berkshire.  

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 12) outlining the results of the investigation into the support that could be provided to small schools in West Berkshire.

Councillor Irene Neill opened the item by advising that the matter was investigated at the request of Management Board and it was agreed between Councillor Neill and Ian Pearson, Head of Education Services, that a single group would be formed to avoid duplication.  A wide membership was formed which included Councillors Neill and Alan Macro as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Select Committee and Councillor Barbara Alexander, Portfolio Holder for Education.

The 16 schools covered in the review had 100 pupils or less on their roll and a number of different aspects were covered.  The findings from the review included:

·                    The importance of good leadership and quality teaching.

·                    The transition of pupils from a small primary school to a large secondary was not felt to be a concern.

·                    It was difficult to determine whether educational viability was compromised because of low numbers and it was hard to establish a minimum number of pupils.

The group’s report was then presented to the Stronger Communities Select Committee and, subject to some minor amendments, it was approved without the need for any additional work. 

The potential for schools to form partnerships and federations was encouraged in a number of the recommendations, this included access to sports provision, teaching for gifted and talented pupils, and to create opportunities for teachers to share knowledge and experience.

The financial viability of retaining small schools was a consideration and there were some additional costs to meet.  However, funding protection was in place to help meet fixed costs that were incurred by all schools.  The small schools group and the Select Committee felt there was a case to continue to support small schools, particularly due to the benefits to local communities. 

It was noted, however, that a decision might need to be taken at a later date regarding a small school’s future based on either its educational or financial viability. 

Due to an insufficient amount of detail at the time of the review, consideration was not given to the potential changes to the provision of education, i.e. free schools. 

RESOLVED that the recommendations would be approved for the consideration of the Executive. 

Purpose: To provide an update on the work of the Select Committee and provide information on the meeting held on 7 September 2010. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 13) on the work of the Greener Select Committee.

The Select Committee considered evidence regarding assisted waste collection and fly tipping at its last meeting, and Commission Members raised a number of points in relation to this:

·                    It was queried whether recycle checks were undertaken prior to the black waste sacks being sent to landfill.

·                    It was felt by some Members that fly tipping appeared to be on the increase and it was suggested that this should be investigated in more depth.  Councillor Emma Webster advised that the evidence presented suggested a downward trend across West Berkshire, however it was requested that this information be broken down by Ward and circulated to Members.  This issue would also continue to be monitored at future meetings.  Incidents of fly tipping were recorded by both the incident and by the number of items.  Members were also eager to understand the level of prosecutions as a result of fly tipping.

·                    The inability for household waste recycling centres to receive paint tins was another issue raised by Members. 

Councillor Webster agreed to take these points back to the Select Committee for further discussion/investigation. 

The next review was into the Council’s Rights of Way Improvement Plan. 

RESOLVED that the update would be noted and the points raised in relation to waste collection and fly tipping would be discussed at the next meeting.

(Councillor Emma Webster left the meeting at 7.50pm). 

Purpose: To provide an update on the work of the Select Committee and provide information on the meetings held on 9 September 2010 and 12 October 2010. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 14) on the work of the Healthier Select Committee.

RESOLVED that the report be noted. 

Purpose: To provide an update on the work of the Select Committee and provide information on the meeting held on 13 September 2010. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 15) on the work of the Resource Management Select Committee.

RESOLVED that the report be noted.  

Purpose: To provide an update on the work of the Select Committee and provide information on the meeting held on 20 September 2010. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 16) on the work of the Safer Select Committee.

Three new items were proposed for the work programme, as follows:

·                    To investigate the visibility and effectiveness of schemes aimed to empower communities that face perceived hostile situations.

·                    To examine how the integrated offender management scheme might be supported.

·                    To examine how crime might be designed out from new developments.

These arose from the item on crime statistics. 

RESOLVED that the additions to the work programme would be approved. 

Purpose: To provide an update on the work of the Select Committee and provide information on the meeting held on 21 October 2010. 

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 17) on the work of the Stronger Communities Select Committee.

Positive news was received that the playbuilder programme funding, which was at risk, had been received in full and projects could proceed as planned.

The first meeting of the Housing Register Task Group was held on 27 September 2010 where some concerns were raised regarding the level of communication undertaken with residents.  It was suggested that Ward Members could assist with this process but there were felt to be data protection restrictions.  This matter would be discussed in more detail at the next meeting scheduled for 5 November 2010.

A new item was proposed for the work programme to explore the Big Society initiative as it was felt to be opportune to look at enabling people and encouraging them to take responsibility for their own communities. 

RESOLVED that the update would be noted and the addition to the work programme approved. 

Purpose: To advise the Commission of items to be considered by West Berkshire Council from November 2010 – February 2011 and decide whether to review any of the proposed items prior to the meeting indicated in the plan. 

The Commission considered the West Berkshire Forward Plan (Agenda Item 18) for the period covering November 2010 to February 2011.

RESOLVED that the Forward Plan would be noted. 

Purpose: To receive, agree and prioritise the work programme of the Commission and Select Committees for the remainder of 2010/11. 

The Commission considered the work programme of the Commission and Select Committees for the remainder of 2010/11 (Agenda Item 19).

RESOLVED that the work programme would be noted.