Agenda and minutes

Up to 15 minutes are allowed for public participation.  Participants are restricted to 3 minutes each.

There was no public participation.

To confirm and sign as a correct record the Minutes of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 3 December 2019.

(a)          Meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee – 3 December 2019.

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 3 December 2019 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

Setting out current position of previously agreed actions as at 20 January 2020.

Members gave consideration to the Matters Arising Schedule which set out the current position of previously agreed actions as at 20 January 2020.

The Democratic and Civic Officer advised Members that the majority of the matters arising had been completed. Of the three outstanding matters, Members were informed that provision for enforcement training for Parish Councils would be outlined within the Parish Charter, meaning there was a revised target date of the end of May 2020. The date also needed to be amended regarding the final version of the Parish Charter which should read 2020 rather than 2019. With regards to the establishment of the Environmental and Sustainability Working Group, Members heard this was underway with Councillor Tracey Coulson as Chairman.

Councillor Coulson provided the Committee with a brief update as to progress with the working group. She explained that the inaugural meeting had been held where it had been agreed to adopt a tool kit drafted by the sustainable energy charity Ashden in conjunction with Friends of the Earth. This tool kit was specifically for councils who were focusing on greener credentials. Councillor Coulson stated there would be monthly meetings of the group for the first three months with a view to presenting the final strategy at Annual Council in May 2020.

A Member of Committee enquired about a matter which was no longer included on the schedule. This was regarding problems with pigeons in Gainsborough town centre. He noted that the action had been to erect signs in the market place but, as this had not yet happened, enquired why the matter was not still listed. The Chief Executive explained that it had been passed to the relevant Officers to deal with, however the matter would be raised again from the current meeting with an update to be provided next time.

There was a further enquiry from a Member of Committee with regards to the leisure centre client feedback and whether the Committee would continue to receive regular updates. The Chairman explained that it would be included in the Progress and Delivery reports from April and so Members would continue to receive regular information.

RESOLVED that progress on the Matters Arising Schedule, as set out in the report, be received and noted.

Members may make any declarations at this point but may also make them at any time during the course of the meeting.

There were no declarations of interest made at this stage in the meeting.

The Committee gave consideration to a report regarding the addition of a ‘Rough Sleeping’ chapter to the existing Lincolnshire Homeless Strategy 2018-2021. The report was introduced by the Home Choices Team Manager who explained that the addition of the chapter was a statutory requirement. She highlighted that, as the strategy was county wide, the figures covered not only West Lindsey as a district but all areas in the county although it did serve to demonstrate the low numbers of rough sleepers in West Lindsey. She noted the pro-active work undertaken by the Home Choices team and the focus on training staff and keeping them up to date with legislative changes.

Members heard that in June 2020 there were to be changes made to the number of beds available in the district, from 30 beds to 12, which may have an impact on the number of rough sleepers. The Home Choices Team Manager assured the Committee that the district only had need of the 12 beds and there would be options in place to offer further support to those who may be impacted by the reduced number of beds available. She explained that there had been bids submitted to the Ministry of Housing for additional money, one fund in particular was for cold weather provision and they had been working closely with Market Rasen House to look at move on accommodation or outreach services for individuals who may not be able to use Market Rasen House. The Home Choices Team Manager informed the Committee that the team had found out the previous day that as part of a combined bid to the Ministry of Housing for rural districts, £607,000 had been awarded for use across the four districts involved with the bid. This would be used to fund outreach support services, intensive support packages and property support options and that by working together across the four districts, they hoped to minimise the anticipated increase in numbers of rough sleepers.

The Chairman thanked the Home Choices Team Manager for her in depth explanation of the strategy and for the work her team undertook across the district. He invited comments from Committee Members.

A Member of Committee opened with thanks to the Home Choices Team for their fantastic work and commended the team however he noted that in comparison with 10 years ago, funds available for such work were significantly reduced. This was acknowledged by the Committee and the Home Choices Team Manager however the team could only work with what was currently available to them.

Following a question regarding the division of the grant funds, the Committee heard that it was anticipated for one district to be the budget holder and that the street outreach work may be contracted out to specialist workers. There would be increased funds available for advance rent costs and rental deposits and it was hoped that despite low numbers of rough sleepers, West Lindsey District Council would be able to use the funds more intensively for those  ...  view the full minutes text for item 57.

The Committee received a presentation from the Senior Project & Growth Officer for Employment & Skills regarding the work underway for the Employment and Skills Partnership. She explained that the partnership had been in place for four years and now had 12 member organisations from the public, private, voluntary and education sectors. She added that West Lindsey District Council was the only district represented on the Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership board and the only district in the county to have a skills partnership, a dedicated Employment and Skills Officer, a constituted Employment Board and an annual budget of £10,000, which was approved 18 months ago to support the delivery plan. The Committee heard details of the Made in Gainsborough initiative which created and supported jobs in the Gainsborough area and also the committed work taking place at several local schools, academies and colleges which was already showing significant benefits across the area.

The Senior Project & Growth Officer explained that there was also significant work being undertaken in order to improve support for unemployed young people and their access to work. She explained the council was working with a number of partner agencies such as Acis, the DWP and voluntary services in order to provide impartial advice, advocacy services and support with finding and successfully gaining employment. Members were told of the recent success of a careers event involving the new local restaurant in Gainsborough where almost all of those employed had been identified at the careers event.

There was further information provided regarding the success of the apprenticeships provided through the Made in Gainsborough initiative. Members heard there were significant plans in place for further initiatives based on the Made in Gainsborough model as well as closer working partnerships with the University of Lincoln to highlight opportunities for graduates in the area. The Senior Project & Growth Officer explained there was a delivery plan in place for the retention of graduates from the University of Lincoln and encouraging growth and graduate opportunities in the Gainsborough area. She concluded by thanking Councillors for their support of the Employment and Skills Partnership and assured them there would be continued focus on these areas.

The Chairman thanked the Senior Project & Growth Officer for the detail of her presentation and also the work she was involved with so passionately. He then invited comments from Members of the Committee.

There was consensus across the Committee that, not only was the presentation comprehensive and well delivered, but the commitment to this area of development was highly commendable. There were discussions regarding the challenges faced by young people seeking employment and the difficulties specifically in West Lindsey, either as a result of rural localities or lack of employment opportunities in general. It was also acknowledged that there were increasing numbers of young people facing significant mental health difficulties. The need for specialist or intensive support and intervention for these young people was not always possible to meet through the usual employment support routes. The relevance of academic qualifications was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 58.

Note:              Councillor A. Welburn left the room at 7.39pm

The Committee heard from the Business Support Team Leader regarding the Prosperous Communities Committee budget for 2020/2021. She highlighted the key points of the report including the total cost of services for 2020/21 would be £4.626m compared to £4.122m in 2019/20. This had resulted in base budget increases of £1.032m, and additional income of £0.528m, resulting in a net movement of £0.504m. The Committee heard that, included within the movement of £0.504m was £0.541m relating to Secondary

Employer Pension Contribution payments (Pension Deficit contribution). Previously this budget had been held in one budget line within Corporate Policy & Resources however from 2020/21 the budget had been allocated across all services based on staffing levels (FTE) in order to more accurately reflect the total cost of each service.

The Business Support Team Leader added that £0.087m of budgets to support service investment projects had been included which were to be funded from Earmarked Reserves, therefore the overall impact was a decrease of £0.124m, excluding allocation of Pension Deficit and use of Earmarked Reserves. She read aloud the recommendation of the report and invited questions from Members.

A Member of Committee enquired about the grants and contributions included as income for the budget and whether this meant they were guaranteed to be received. The Business Support Team Leader explained that these amounts were only included when there was high assurance that they would be received. The income for health and wellbeing was also queried and it was explained that this was regarding the leisure contract which had not been in place previously so showed as a new income stream.

Note:              Councillor A. Welburn returned to the room at 7.44pm

With no further questions it was

RESOLVED  that the draft Prosperous Communities budget 2020/21 and revenue estimates to 2024/25 be recommended to Corporate Policy and Resources Committee for the purpose of budget setting 2020/21 and for inclusion in the Medium Term Financial Plan 2020/21 to 2024/25.

Members gave consideration to the Committee Work Plan.

RESOLVED that the workplan as set out in the report be received and noted.