Agenda and minutes

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

There was no public participation.

Minutes of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 5 December 2017

(a)          Meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee – 5 December 2017

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 5 December 2017 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

Setting out current position of previously agreed actions as at 22 January 2018.

Members gave consideration to the Matters Arising Schedule which set out the current position of all previously agreed actions as at 22 January 2018.

It was noted that the last action within the report, “wellbeing board representation” had now been completed and a decision was awaited.

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 point in the meeting.

Members gave consideration to a report which assessed the performance of the Council’s services and key projects through agreed performance measures.    Members were asked to review performance and recommend areas where improvements should be made, having regard to any remedial measures already included within the report.

The report summary was structured to highlight those areas that were performing above expectations, and those areas where there was a risk to either performance or delivery.

Areas described as performing well included:

·         Local Land Charges: sustained improvements now being shown

·         Cost of waste collection per head of population

·         Income from trade waste

·         Trinity Arts: audience figures, cost per user and surplus generated

·         Management of assets: void rates.

·         Complaints

Those areas described as risks included:

·         Homelessness

·         Enforcement

·         Benefits Service  - the cost per live claim

·         Street Cleaning Income

·         The award of grants

Further information was given on each of the above particularly of the work undertaken in respect of complaints, homelessness and enforcement.

Debate ensued and the report and general direction of travel was welcomed.

With regard to Revenues and Benefits, Members made reference to the recently approved Council Tax Support Policy and the phased introduction of Universal Credit across the District which, for a period, would result in two systems being in operation at a single time, and sought indication as to whether this posed any risks.

In response Officers advised, from a Homelessness perspective, an impact was already being seen.  Again this was a national trend, however assurance was offered that this was being monitored closely and responded to accordingly. Furthermore the Challenge and Improvement Committee had, at their most recent meeting, received a full briefing on the situation within the Homelessness Service and the action plans which were in place to mitigate and address the challenges the service currently faced.

In respect of complaints, in response to a Member’s question, Officers confirmed that more in depth data was being collected, in order that trends and patterns could be identified, both in terms of services and common themes, offering examples. This was within the role of the new Customer Experience Officer.  It was further noted that a report of this nature and detail was submitted annually to the Governance and Audit Committee.

The performance and continued success and development of the Trinity Arts Centre was again praised. Congratulations were also paid to the Land Charges Team and Waste Collection Teams.

It was clarified that the air testing, referred to on page 32 of the report, related to an additional service offered by the Building Control department, in respect of a dwellings efficiency  Air Testing in terms of air quality within the environment, was a function undertaken by the Environmental Protection Team.  The District Council did have some responsibilities in regard to this, along with a number of other agencies, and testing did take place across the District, queries and concerns in respect of this should be directed to the Environmental Protection Team in the first instance.  

It was confirmed that the newly  ...  view the full minutes text for item 90.

Members gave consideration to a report which outlined a three year vision/strategy for the town of Market Rasen.   Endorsement of and financial support to the Strategy were sought.

Mr Steven Bunney of Market Rasen Town Council addressed the Committee and outlined why the vision had been developed, the commitment to deliver and the importance of partnership working if successes were to be delivered.

Market Rasen over recent years had had a number of initiatives to stimulate growth and regeneration, it was considered each had produced something good however the collective impact sought had not materialised.  It was now considered an opportune time to move forward.  The adoption of the Local Plan provided a driver to maximise the benefits derived from housing led growth.

The Town Council had wished to produce the Vision document, which outlined partners’ common goals and aimed to create a self-sustaining town with capacity to address social, economic and environmental issues.  Mr Bunney spoke of the strong leadership and commitment to deliver that currently existed amongst partners.  The creation of a social enterprise structure to help deliver projects and improved partnership working was acknowledged as the most likely way to deliver success and access the funding that would need be required.  The financial support offered by West Lindsey wold also assist in attracting additional funding and show a strong commitment to work together.

In conclusion Mr Bunney shared with the Committee some of the recent successes achieved in the Town and saw the Vision, with the support and commitment of West Lindsey, as opportunity to build on these. Thanks were expressed to Nicola Marshall for the support she had offered the Town Council in producing its vision and developing a number of initiatives.

Debate ensued and Members welcomed the paper and were encouraged by the commitment of the Town Council.

The Financial Services Team Manager clarified that funding would be from within earmarked reserves.

Members congratulated the Town Council and wished them much success.

RESOLVED that the emerging 3 Year Vision and Strategy, to ensure Market Rasen maximises the benefits from planned housing growth, be endorsed; and it be RECOMMENDED to Corporate Policy and Resources Committee that: -

(a)     an “in principle” allocation of £200k funding from the Capital Programme towards the delivery of growth projects detailed within the strategy be approved subject to:

·         Consultation and support for the strategy

·         Setting up of an agreed implementation mechanism i.e. CIO

·         Suitable financial regulation; and

(b)     the recommendation to conclude disposal/transfer of the Area Office to Festival Hall be approved.

Members gave consideration to a report which presented a review of the Gainsborough Growth Fund Scheme, its performance since its launch in 2014 and set out recommendations going forward.

Members were provided with information on how the scheme had been created, the funding which had been invested and the outcomes it had delivered, noting the scheme was officially launched in November 2014 with an original budget of approximately £600K of which £400k circa had already been awarded. To-date the total value of investment levered through the GGF amounted to circa £2.5m. In terms of employment the Scheme so far had assisted 9 businesses and it was anticipated that these projects together would create approx. 65 direct new jobs (FTE) in the next 2 years.

Section 3 of the report set out the key findings of the review and Section 4 set out the arising conclusions, including the potential to develop a Commercial Loan Policy and Framework.

Debate ensued and Members welcomed the report and considered the Fund had delivered good outcomes including job creation which was always to be welcomed.

In response to Members’ comments the rationale and reasoning for diverting residual funds to the capital programme was explained and Officers confirmed that consideration had already been given to the re-launch and re-branding of the Feasibility and Planning Fund.  Invest West Lindsey was welcomed as a suggestion.

Members welcomed the support the Fund could offer rural business and how it could help deliver the aspirations in approved Neighbourhood Plans.

RESOLVED that: -

(a)     the Gainsborough Growth Fund Review Paper be approved and its key findings and conclusions as set out in Section 3 and 4 of the Report be endorsed;

(b)     the promotion of the Development Fund as set out in Section 5 of the Report be discontinued.

(c)     the Feasibility and Planning Fund as set out in Section 5 of the Report be retained; and

(d)     it be recommended to Corporate Policy & Resources Committee that the Fund budget, to support the launch of a district wide Feasibility and Planning Pilot Fund, be increased by £150k (subject to the confirmation of the GLLEP Housing Unlocking Grant )

Members gave consideration to a report which sought to establish an updated community grants programme for a five year period.

In presenting the report Officers outlined in detail what the recommended option would continue to see funded, what would be delivered and what funding schemes would cease, these being the small and large community grants.

In respect of those schemes being proposed for discontinuation, Officers provided background and rationale to this.  Low level interest had been shown in the small community grant scheme, and it was suggested that this could be partly attributed to the very successful Local Councillor Initiative Fund, which was well supported and easy to administer.

With regard to the large community grants scheme, whilst this had been successful and often over-subscribed, this scheme had been originally funded by a one-off cash injection into the budget, which had now been fully allocated. The scheme had often served as the primary funder for large scale projects, covering up to 80% of the total cost.

The revised match funding scheme being proposed, as part of Option 1, would see the Council offer a maximum of 30% of the total cost up to a maximum of £8,000.  This was to act as an enabling fund to attract external funding.

Debate ensued and Members welcomed the flexibility of and the support the Local Councillor Initiative Fund offered communities and welcomed its continuation.

A Member did raise one point for consideration in respect of the limit of 30% on match funding under the proposed scheme, suggesting whether consideration should be given to increasing the % threshold for modest projects where the total cost of the project was for example maybe 10-20k and offered rationale for this suggestion.  No formal proposal was made.

Another Member shared with Committee how the proposed changes to this Fund would impact on projects already in the pipeline, indicating the recommended Option was not his preferred.

In response to Members’ concerns and questions, Officers confirmed that the Community Grants Programme could be reviewed at any point, however Members needed to be mindful of budget implications which would need to be agreed by the Corporate Policy and Resources.  Option 2 within the report did set out the cost of delivering the same schemes for a further 5 years, but this did require resources that were not currently budgeted for.

On that basis it was RESOLVED that: -

(a)     Option 1:”Continue our Community Grant Programme modified to meet current financial conditions” be approved; and

(b)     this Option be RECOMMENDED to the Corporate Policy & Resources Committee for financial approval.

Members gave consideration to a report which advised of an ongoing public consultation in respect of the Lincolnshire Wolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Management Plan 2018-2023.

The report had been submitted to provide Members a final opportunity to agree any additional comments to be included in the final consultation response. Members had previously been provided an opportunity, by way of e-mail invitation, to make representations to the ongoing consultation. 

In presenting the report, Officers outlined the process which had been undertaken in carrying out the review, summarised the key changes which were being proposed, and highlighted some keys actions within the proposed action, including the intention to seek a boundary review which would see a greater proportion of the AONB being within West Lindsey if successful.

Debate ensued and a number of Members indicated that they had already made representations and were supportive of the proposed management plan

RESOLVED that: - 

(a)     there were no additional comments to be submitted as part of the Lincolnshire Wolds AONB management plan 2018-2023 public consultation; and

(b)    the draft Lincolnshire Wolds AONB Management Plan 2018-2023, subject to any changes recommended as a result of the consultation, be endorsed.

Members gave consideration to a report which sets out details of the Committee’s draft revenue budget for the period of 2018/19 and estimates to 2022/23.

The process for preparing the budget was shared with Members and detailed at Section 1.3 of the report.  The major variances when compared to the 2016/17 base budget and the reasons for these were also shared with Members and were detailed in Section 2 of the report.  Members also noted the consultation and engagement which had been undertaken with regard to budget setting and this was outlined in Section 4 of the report.

Members welcomed the generally very pleasing picture and congratulated Officers on the work they had undertaken in what were financially difficult and challenging times.

In response to a Member’s comment regarding the leisure contract savings, Officers clarified the level of savings which had been delivered and outlined how, through careful procurement, these had been realised.  

RESOLVED that the draft Prosperous Communities budget for 2018/2019 and revenue estimates to 2022/23  be RECOMMENDED to the Corporate Policy and Resources Committee for inclusion in the Medium Term Financial Plan 2018/19 – 2022/23.

Section 11 of the Children Act 2004 placed duties on a range of organisations and individuals to ensure their functions, and any services they contracted to others, were discharged having regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people.

As a District Council, West Lindsey District Council (WLDC) was subject to these duties. A compliance check in the form of a self-assessment and peer moderated audit by the Lincolnshire Safeguarding Children Board (LCSB) was carried out every three years.

Members received a report which provided details of WLDC’s compliance, as set out in the LSCB moderated assessment, carried out during December 2017. It provided assurance that WLDC’s policies, processes and practises were compliant with the requirements of Section 11 and that WLDC had a proactive approach to safeguarding and promoting wellbeing.

Members congratulated Officers for the work they undertook with regard to Safeguarding and the commitment they persistently demonstrated to ensuring the welfare of children and young people was promoted and maintained. .

In response to a Member’s question, Officers confirmed that any contractor not deemed to be compliant with the safeguarding requirements, would not be successful in any contract bid they may make, as demonstrating compliance was a mandatory requirement in the evaluation of bids.

RESOLVED that the outcome of the Assessment, which demonstrates compliance across all requirements placed on WLDC by Section 11 of the Children Act 2004, be endorsed.

Local Housing Authorities were required to have in place, a long term strategic approach to preventing and managing homelessness through an evidence based Homelessness Strategy. Since 2002, the seven Lincolnshire Housing Authorities had collaborated to achieve this with a lot of success and additional investment in Lincolnshire as a result.

Members considered a report which presented Lincolnshire’s fourth joint homelessness strategy (2017 – 2021). It set out the key challenges, priorities and objectives for preventing and tackling homelessness across Lincolnshire over the next five years. 

The Strategy Overview, including details of Key national drivers for change, as well as information on the Local drivers/evidence that had shaped the Strategy were shared with Committee and summarised in Section 3 of the report.   The Strategy would be supported by a delivery plan, a copy of which had also been provided to Members.

In response to a Member’s question, Officers confirmed that the County Council had committed to sign up to the Strategy, a decision was awaited as to which of its governance processes would be responsible for ensuring this happened.

In respect of funding the work, Officers confirmed this was deemed “business as usual”, the document however allowed work to be co-ordinated and facilitated collaboration with partners.  For example the “Duty to Refer” responsibilities would necessitate the Team to change the way in which it worked but these changes would be accommodated within current resources.  Furthermore, additional funding, would always be sought wherever possible.  Previous successes included funding awards towards entrenched rough sleeping projects and domestic abuse.  This approach would continue to be adopted.

In response to a Member’s comment, Officers indicated that under the new Homelessness Reduction Act, the Authority’s responsibilities to assist its residents would only increase.  It was also stressed, the reasons for homelessness were often complex, embedded and those who used the service were often vulnerable.

A Member made reference to the previous ring-fencing arrangements for funding for supported housing provision held by the County Council, and how since ring-fencing requirements had been removed, funds had been diverted elsewhere, further compounding the issues.   Supported Housing Provision across the County, as a result, had significantly reduced over recent years and assurance was sought that the remaining funds were still committed to supported housing provision.

In response, Officers acknowledged the reduced funding position and the impact this had had but outlined the various ways in which the County Council had indicated their commitment to deliver supported housing provision.

Their endorsement of the Strategy was a positive indicator and they had been actively engaged in the Strategy's development. The rough sleeper project earlier referred to had being mainstreamed, and the County Council had retained some investment in supported housing provision which was not the case across the country.

The County Council were currently reviewing provision to ensure this was fit for purpose and Officers were not aware that any reductions were being proposed.

RESOLVED that the Lincolnshire Homelessness Strategy (2017 – 2021) be approved.

Members gave consideration to a report which the presented the Draft Housing Strategy for adoption.

The draft Strategy had first been presented to Committee in July 2017, when it had been approved for consultation purposes.

Consultation on the draft Strategy had ran from 9^th October 2017 to 20th November 2017 and the report summarised the findings of the consultation exercise, and a table of amendments made to the document since it was first presented, together with arising amended Strategy.  It was noted that the changes to the document had not resulted in a fundamentally different document.

A map and diagram referred to in the Strategy but omitted from the copy circulated were provided to Members

Debate ensued and Members welcomed the document, including the links to Neighbourhood Planning.

Visiting Member Councillor Tom Smith addressed the Committee and expressed concern that the representation he had submitted on behalf of AFCAS had not been fully or adequately addressed in the revised document.

Officers indicated that consultation responses, received back by teams were anonymous, however having re-reviewed the responses received, Officers indicated they had potentially identified the response, and read this to the Committee and shared rationale for why this had not directly been addressed.

In response Councillor Smith indicated that this was not the consultation response he had submitted or was referring to, as this had amounted to some three pages and had posed a number of suggested amendments, none of which, he was of the view, had been addressed in the revised Strategy.

Officers indicated that they were not aware of such a response having been received and would need to look into the matter further.  Councillor Smith indicated he would resend this to Officers

In light of this, it was proposed and seconded that an additional recommendation be added to the report, namely: -

“the additional consultation response, referred to in the debate, be further considered by Officers and delegated Authority be granted  to the Executive Director for Commercial and Economic Growth, in consultation with the Chairman of the Prosperous Communities Committee to make any necessary amendments to the Strategy, as a result”

On being put to the vote the amendment was CARRIED.

On that basis it was RESOLVED that: -

(a)       having considered the feedback from, and response to the consultation exercise (appendix 1 of the report)  it be noted; and

(b)       the amended West Lindsey Housing Strategy (appendix 2 of the report) and associated Implementation Plan (appendix 3 of the report)  be approved for adoption, subject to (c) : -

(c)       the additional consultation response, referred to in the debate, be further considered by Officers and delegated Authority be granted  to the Executive Director for Commercial and Economic Growth, in consultation with the Chairman of the Prosperous Communities Committee to make any necessary amendments to the Strategy, as a result.

Members considered a report which provided an overview of the rationale and proposed strategy to progress, resource and oversee delivery of individual strategies to promote social regeneration in the most vulnerable communities across West Lindsey. This work sat closely alongside, aligned with and supported the Councils regeneration objectives and recognised that addressing socio-economic and environmental risks was integral to supporting regeneration potential and aspirations.

Situating this as a key programme of work within the West Lindsey Housing Strategy allowed for a clear structure, clear delivery aims and accountable governance arrangements to be in place whilst also ensuring that the work was not considered or delivered in isolation of the Councils wider strategic objectives.

The work would need to be resourced and Members noted that a resource allocation of £300,000 had been approved by Council within the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) 2013/14.

This allocation had not been accompanied at the time by a plan to allocate the resource to specific interventions to support vulnerable communities. The Supporting Vulnerable Communities Earmarked Reserve remained largely unspent.

The strategy provided a plan and framework for the allocation of this resource to enable direct intervention for the vulnerable communities within West Lindsey.

The specific projects recommended for progression using the Earmarked reserve were detailed at Section 5.5 of the report.

Debate ensued and Members welcomed the paper.

Assurance was sought that measures were in place to evaluate progress and measure success.

In response Officers advised that there was piece of work ongoing, subject to approval of the Strategy to develop measures to evaluate success.  Performance measures on the whole across the organisation were being reviewed to ensure Officers were reporting against the correct things.

Some of the activity within the Strategy was not in the direct control of the Council and therefore Partners would also need to be engaged in agreeing performance measures.

RESOLVED that:

(a)     the ‘Supporting Vulnerable Communities Place Based Strategy 2017’ be approved;

(b)     the projects listed against the recommended allocation of the Supporting Vulnerable Communities Ear Marked Reserve to support the delivery of this strategy (detailed below) be agreed and it be RECOMMENDED to the Corporate Policy and Resources Committee that the requested resources be released for the following projects:

·         SVC 01 Continuation of Community Payback (18/19 & 19/20 Revenue)

·         SVC 04 Private Sector Landlord Support (18/19 & 19/20 Revenue)

·         SVC 05 Vulnerable Communities Enforcement Officer (18/19 & 19/20 Revenue)

·         SVC 06 CCTV Expansion (One Off - Capital)

·         SVC 07 Lincolnshire Action Trust: Young Oasis (18/19 Revenue); and

(c)     the proposed two yearly review of the strategy to ensure it remains meaningful and able to deliver its objectives be supported.

Note:  Councillor Gillian Bardsley declared a personal non-pecuniary interest in this item of business and the following item of business as she was a landlord.

Gainsborough South West Ward was considered a vulnerable community. Members gave consideration to a report which provided an overview of a proposed strategy to progress, resource and coordinate necessary work programmes and improvements in Gainsborough South West Ward in order to stabilise and normalise the ward.

The report further demonstrated how this approach aligned with and supported the Council’s regeneration and Growth objectives; recognising that addressing socio-economic and environmental risks was integral to supporting regeneration potential and aspirations

The report finally addressed concerns in respect of drug prevalence in Gainsborough South West Ward and provided an overview of proposed work programmes in response to the evidence base.

Debate ensued and a Local Ward Member spoke of the number of times initiatives had started and failed in the area.  She was accepting that there would be no quick fix but spoke in support of the proposals and indicated she was hopeful for the future.

Making reference to drug prevalence within the Ward, another Ward Member expressed concern that the reported picture was still being down played and should be more of a priority. 

In response Officers gave their absolute assurance that drug prevalence was not being played down and the Council was committed to doing everything within its power to identify and tackle crime.  Investment had been made in enforcement, additional CCTV and Officers took their responsibility to share information and concerns with key partners very seriously.

However it was stressed that the Police could only act on evidence.  In response to comments regarding the number of Officers deployed to the Ward recently from outside the County, again assurance was offered that this was not due to there being a particular single issue within the Ward.  Regional policing was now common practice and not a reflection of a more serious crime or issue.  However the action was as a result of evidence having been gathered and thus action could be taken.

Regular liaison meetings had been taking place since July 2017 and assurance was again given that this matter was being taken very seriously.

Other Members of Committee were very supportive of the work being undertaken in the Ward, making reference to the Flourish Academy Scheme, and of the need to act on evidence.  Evidence did indicate the Ward had issues with drugs but not to the degree that was being implied and significant resource was being dedicated to resolve the issues.

In response to Members’ questions, Officers further outlined the work being undertaken by Benjamin Adlard School which was receiving much local and national attention, confirming that this was being supported by the Council.

RESOLVED that: -

(a)          the Gainsborough South West Ward Strategy 2017 and associated delivery plan be approved; and

(b)          the proposed two yearly review of the strategy to ensure it remains meaningful and able to deliver its objectives be supported.

Members gave consideration to the Committee Work Plan.

It was noted that the Lead Officer and Committee Chairman would be meeting in the coming weeks to start identify key reports for the 2018/19 civic year.

RESOLVED that the Work Plan as set out in the report, be received and noted.

Tuesday 6 February 2018 commencing at 6.30 pm.

RESOLVED that the date and time of the Concurrent Committee Meetings of the Prosperous Communities Committee and the Corporate Policy and Resources Committee, this being 6 February 2018 commencing at 6.30pm, be noted.