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 Meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 5 December, 2023

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting of the Prosperous Communities Committee held on 5 December 2023 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

Setting out current position of previously agreed actions as at 22 January 2024

With no comments, questions or requirement for a vote, the Matters Arising Schedule setting out the current position of previously agreed actions, as at 22 January 2024, was DULY 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 at this point in the meeting.

The Committee gave consideration to a report presented by the Senior Project & Growth Officer - Employment & Skills. It was explained that in July 2022, the Prosperous Communities Committee approved a paper to establish a Further Education Taskforce following the announcement by the Lincoln College Group that the Gainsborough Campus would close as a Further Education College and re-open as Alternative Provision (AP) for 11–16-year-olds from Scunthorpe, Lincoln and Gainsborough. The main aim of the taskforce was to understand why the number of students entering further education had declined locally and the impact on local employers, future students, and the wider community. The Taskforce would also seek to understand why the need for Alternative Provision had increased and ways in which it could be nurtured to benefit residents and employers.

Since that time, the Council had made a significant commitment both strategically and operationally to support employment and skills development across the district. Members heard there was a well-established Employment and Skills Partnership in place which was managed by a Senior Project Officer. The recently commissioned West Lindsey Employment and Skills Report had input from over 100 local stakeholders and offered the Council a strong evidence base to take forward opportunities and actions.

It was explained that the proposed devolution deal for Greater Lincolnshire included new powers to shape local skills provision to better meet the needs of the local economy and local people, including devolution of the core Adult Education Budget, as well as input into the new Local Skills Improvement Plans. The West Lindsey Employment & Skills Partnership, along with the recently produced research report, ensured the Council and local partners were well positioned to input into and respond to the proposed devolution deal.

The Chairman thanked the Officer for her update and invited comments or questions from the Committee. Members were appreciative of the detailed report and thanked Officers for the work that had gone into the project as a whole. The continuation of the Employment and Skills Partnership was supported and encouraged, with recognition of the achievements to date echoed by Members.

Having been moved and seconded, and on reiterating thanks to all involved, the Chairman took the vote and it was unanimously

            RESOLVED that

a)    the Further Education Taskforce be concluded; and

b)    the West Lindsey Employment and Skills Partnership be approved to continue to take forward the actions from the initial Taskforce meeting; and

c)    a Member be nominated to attend future Employment and Skills Partnership meetings, with the appointment to be effective until Annual Council in May 2027.

Members heard from the Director of Commercial and Operational Services regarding the response to a motion presented at full council by Cllr Fleetwood which commissioned Officers to consider fixing asset numbers and QR or Quick Response codes to litter and dog bins to allow easier reporting of full or damaged bins by residents. Members heard that the new CRM system was allowing the Council to fulfil this type of request, an example of which was the recently launched fly tipping reporting system.

It was explained that in future months, Street Cleansing staff would fix QR codes and asset numbers to approximately 1800 bins across the district. Residents could then use smart devices to scan the QR codes and would be taken to a link to report the bin as either full or damaged, this would then be instantly sent to operatives or supervisors for response. There was also an option for reportees to leave their details in order for them to be kept updated once the work was completed.

An asset number would also be fixed to each bin to allow people who chose to report issues by telephone to simply report the asset number rather than try to explain a location. Members heard it would take some time to complete the work however it was anticipated that the system would be live by the end of April 2024.

Members of the Committee expressed their support for the proposals, in particular the option to feedback to residents once the work had been completed. The Chairman invited Councillor I. Fleetwood, Visiting Member, to speak as the proposer of the Motion to Council. He reiterated the importance of responding to residents’ reports and highlighted that, as a management tool, the introduction of QR codes and asset numbers would prove invaluable in identifying issues.

Having been proposed and seconded, the Chairman took the vote and it was unanimously

RESOLVED that

a)    the Motion as presented to Council on 6 November 2023 be accepted; and

b)    the ongoing work to affix asset numbers and QR codes to litter and dog bins in the District be approved.

The Committee heard again from the Director of Commercial and Operational Services regarding the proposed ‘Big Bin Clear Out’ service. This would allow residents to rent one of two sizes of large trade waste bins to dispose of household waste. This could be of use, for example, after parties, clearing out rooms or outbuildings, or at other times when there was excess waste which was too much for normal disposal routes, but not enough to warrant the hiring of a skip.

Members heard that the proposal had been worked up on a cost recovery basis, with bins available at either 660litres or 1100litres, costing either £50 or £60 for a week. This was a service the council would be able to charge for and would work on a cost recovery basis. It was anticipated that demand would not be high initially, meaning the service could be delivered through the normal bulky service. It was confirmed that terms and conditions for the service, including disposal conditions, would be included in the refreshed Waste Policies document which was due for consideration by Committee in March 2024. As with the bulky waste service, residents would be encouraged to reuse or recycle waste material. The service was being initiated as a pilot scheme, to start in the new financial year and be reviewed after 12 months of operation.

Members of the Committee expressed their support for the scheme, however, it was enquired whether the cost was a suitable alternative to skip hire. It was explained that, as waste removal costs had increased significantly, as had the cost of skip hire, meaning the scheme would offer a viable alternative for residents.

There was some concern regarding contamination of waste, or if the bins were used for inappropriate materials. It was explained that the revised terms and conditions would be very clear as to what was and was not appropriate waste for the scheme, with residents liable for extra costs if used incorrectly.

It was also highlighted that, as a pilot scheme, feedback would be sought in order to assess the positives and negatives of the arrangements and how that might impact future delivery of the scheme.

Having been proposed and seconded, the Chairman took the vote and it was unanimously

RESOLVED that

a)    the temporary excess waste solution for residents (to be known as the ‘Big Bin Clear Out’ service) be supported and RECOMMENDED to the Corporate Policy & Resources Committee for approval; and

b)    if approved, a further report be presented to the Prosperous Communities Committee in March 2025 for a final decision on whether to continue with the service.

With his final report of the evening, the Committee heard again from the Director of Commercial and Operational services. He explained that the Committee had previously requested quarterly updates from the Markets Working Group and this was the first of such updates.

Members heard that the group had not managed to meet four weekly as specified in the Terms of Reference, due to either Officer or Member unavailability, however there had been three meetings held. It was noted that meetings had been quorate and discussed a range of issues. This included latest news from the Towns Manager and Operations Lead, as well as updates on the three year markets action plan and new stall procurement. It was explained that progress had been made on the introduction of refreshed trader terms and conditions, and the proposed antiques market was to be supplied by a specialist market operator. A visit to Barnsley market was also being arranged. Officers would continue to support Members in the group and report back to Committee in line with agreed timescales.

With no comments, questions or requirement for a vote, the update on the work of the West Lindsey Markets’ Member Working Group was NOTED.

Members gave consideration to the final report of the evening, setting out the details of the Committee’s draft revenue budget for the period of 2024/2025 and estimates to 2028/2029, introduced by the Section 151 Officer.

Members heard summarised that after taking a robust approach to the estimations within the budget for this Committee, the total cost of services for 2024/2025 would be £5.431m (£5.612m 2023/2024). This had resulted in base budget increases in expenditure of £1.974m, and additional income of £2.155m, resulting in a net base budget decrease of £0.181m.

There were £0.395m of expenditure budgets which were funded from Earmarked Reserves to support one off project resources in 2024/2025 (£0.827m in 2023/2024). This was a decrease of £0.432m from 2023/2024 to 2024/2025.

Services within this Committee had also contributed to Earmarked Reserves £0.104m in 2024/2025 for asset replacement programmes (£0.104m in 2023/2024).

Excluding the use of earmarked reserves, there was an increase of £0.251m on the base budgets for this Committee. The proposed budgets within the report were included in the overall balanced position for 2024/2025, the budget gap being funded from Reserves.

Members of the Committee thanked the Section 151 Officer for her summary. It was enquired whether the leased sports equipment was or would be owned by the Council, and a Member of the Committee asked whether the Wellbeing Lincs partnership contract was to be renewed. In response to these queries, it was confirmed that the equipment would be owned by the Council at the end of the lease, and there was a procurement process underway regarding the Wellbeing Lincs contract.

Members expressed their contentment with the contents of the report and, having been proposed, seconded and voted upon, it was unanimously

RESOLVED that the Prosperous Communities Budget 2024/2025 and revenue estimates to 2028/2029 be RECOMMENDED to the Corporate Policy and Resources Committee for the purpose of budget setting 2024/2025 and for inclusion in the Budget and Medium-Term Financial Plan 2024/2025 to 2028/2029 (as amended by any decisions taken on this agenda).

With no questions or comments, the work plan was DULY NOTED.