Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 12th July 2016.

The minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Communities and Environment) held on 12th July 2016 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive from Members declarations as to disclosable pecuniary and other interests in relation to any Agenda item.

Councillor T Alban declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Minute Number 32 as an employee of a company that engage in commercial activities with Peterborough Hospital as well as with Addenbrookes Hospital.

Councillor B Chapman declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Minute Number 28 as a Cambridgeshire County Councillor who sits on Cambridgeshire County Council’s Highways and Community Infrastructure Committee.

A copy of the current Notice of Key Executive Decisions is attached. Members are invited to note the Plan and to comment as appropriate on any items contained therein.

The Panel received and noted the current Notice of Key Executive Decisions (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) which has been prepared by the Executive Leader for the period 1st September 2016 to 31st December 2016.

(At 7.02pm, during the consideration of this item, Councillor J Tavener entered the meeting.)

The One Leisure Active Lifestyles Annual Report 2015/16 is to be presented to the Panel.

With the aid of a report by the Head of Leisure and Health (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) the One Leisure Active Lifestyles Annual Report 2015/16 was presented to the Panel. Members noted that Active Lifestyles has been incorporated into the One Leisure brand.

Members were informed that the service’s main aim is to encourage people to get active through events such as the Park Run event at Hinchingbrooke. The Panel was informed that there is the possibility of extending the event out across the District, in particular St Neots however there are not volunteers to run the event yet. Members were reminded that Park Run is a franchise and to run it locally there is an outlay of £5k.

Following a question regarding the alternative activities encourage by One Leisure Active Lifestyles (OLAL) Members were informed that OLAL aims to attract target groups which haven’t been provided for before. The examples given was that Cyclone offers a low level group and the walking football sessions targets the over 35s. It was noted that the average age of participants of the walking football is 60 plus.

The Panel noted that OLAL has been encouraging Burgess Hall users to starting to get active and has advertised sporting events to them. As a result there has been an increase in the number of bookings during the last 12 months.

In response to a question regarding the exercise referral scheme, Members were informed that Cambridgeshire County Council won’t be providing the exercise referral scheme. There is however a joint local authority ‘Physical Activity Offer’ which will go for consideration at Cambridgeshire County Council’s Health Committee to secure £1m funding over two years.

Following a question about the discounted gym scheme for councillors it was confirmed that 10 councillors are currently using the discounted gym scheme.

In response to a question regarding the Dragon Boat clubs at St Neots, Members were informed that the Council support the groups to help themselves however would work with them in order to promote active lifestyles.

Members were informed that OLAL has been working on capturing feedback and then act upon it. The Panel noted that if OLAL can’t do anything then be up front with the customer.

In response to a query regarding £30k of external spend on printing, the Panel was informed that One Leisure gives as much printing as possible to document centre however specialist and bulk printing can be done more cheaply and efficiently by external printers.

The Panel were informed that considering the size of the OLAL team getting 5500 different individuals taking part is a good return.

Following a question regarding how often are OLAL turning attendees at the free taster sessions into paid members, the Panel was informed that after the taster the attendee can do a course however it is then up to the clubs to keep getting people to come back.

The Panel was informed that the Tour of Cambridgeshire has improved its  ...  view the full minutes text for item 26.

The Panel is to receive a report on Needs Analysis of Green Space and Play Provision – Development Priorities.

With the aid of a report by the Interim Head of Operations (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) the Needs Analysis of Green Space and Play Provision – Development Priorities was presented to the Panel. The Executive Councillor for Environment, Street Scene and Operations introduced the new Head of Operations, Neil Sloper, to Members.

The Interim Head of Operations thanked the staff of Operations for all their hard work and commented that the progress has been down to them.

Members noted that the report brings together all the previous Needs Analysis reports. The report has prioritised projects so that the £603k of Section 106 can be targeted and spent on those projects.

An explanation was given in regards to short term, medium term and long term priorities. An update report would be given in next year (September 2017) which would state the progress of the short term projects. The Panel were informed that medium term projects relates to known housing developments and long term projects relates to villages where there is no known developments.

The Panel was explained the difference between Section 106 (S106) money and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) money. S106 goes back to historical planning agreements and is prescriptive. There is £603k of S106 ready to come forward. CIL is more generic and will compete with other demands such as education. As CIL money will be harder to allocate to green spaces it is important that priorities are identified.

A discussion ensued regarding allotments and Members were informed that the provision varies throughout the District however interest in them has been raised by health eating. The responsibility for allotments is the Parishes’. The Panel,

RESOLVED

to review the status of the short term projects in September 2017.

(At 7.53pm, during the consideration of this item, Councillor J M Palmer left the meeting.)

An update report on the Street Scene service is to be presented to the Panel.

With the aid of a report by the Interim Head of Operations (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) the Street Scene Service Update was presented to the Panel. Members were informed that the Council have been involved in lengthy negotiations with Cambridgeshire County Council in relation to the maintenance of County Council grass.

Members were reminded that the Council has struggled to maintain the grass this year due to grass growing conditions. Normally the Council aim to cut grass between 8 to 12 times a year however this year the grass has been cut between 12 and 14 times. The County standard is for 3 grass cuts a year in urban areas however it is clear that this isn’t acceptable to the residents.

In response to a question about the disparity between the District Council and County Council standards of grass cutting, the Panel was informed that it comes down to a policy decision. It is the policy of the District Council to have a minimum of 8 cuts per year however it is the policy of the County to cut grass 3 times a year.

Members were informed that the discussions with the County are regarding land ownership of the land which has been maintained. It was noted that the County Council only provide £48k to maintain its grass, shrubs and hedges. The Panel was told that progress has been made and the Council are confident that the negotiations will result in a substantial agreement.

The Panel were informed that in relation to public rights of way on the Ouse Valley Way the County Council will cut the grass twice a year and then respond to complaints. The County Council will also undertake enforcement work with private land owners who fail to adequately maintain their land that forms part of a public right of way.

Following a query it was confirmed that the Council will have future meetings with the County Council regarding maintenance of County Council owned grass as well as the future ownership of the land.

The Panel is to receive an update on the Waste and Recycling Round Reconfiguration project.

With the aid of a report by the Interim Head of Operations (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) the Waste and Recycling Round Reconfiguration Implementation Update was presented to the Panel.

Members were informed that the Executive Councillor for Environment, Street Scene and Operations is still optimistic that the round reconfiguration will ‘go live’ on 21st November 2016 however if the service is not ready to deliver then the reconfiguration won’t ‘go live’. The Panel were informed that the Implementation Update presented to them in October 2016 will confirm if the Council is able to ‘go live’ on 21st November 2016.

The Panel noted that before the ‘to be’ model of waste collections can be confirmed the ‘as is’ model requires establishing. In order to do this the Council need to complete a series of projects so that the information is up to date and accurate, however the Panel were told that the service has encountered a number of problems and anomalies. The Council are currently awaiting 700 responses from residents regarding their requirement of an assisted collection. In addition in the north of the District there are 9000 residents who have two green bins, one for dry recyclates and the other for green waste, which leads to confusion for residents as well as the refuse collectors.

In addition the Council has not reviewed assisted collections for four years and sack collections for three years. The Council will endeavour to include all the planned housing developments when building the scenarios.

The Panel thanked the Interim Head of Operations for the report and emphasised that it is better if the work is not rushed and that the round reconfigurations are correct.

The Panel is to receive a verbal update on the work of the Cambridgeshire County Council Health Committee from the Panel’s representative, Councillor Mrs A Dickinson.

Councillor A Dickinson informed Members that she had attended the Cambridgeshire County Council Health Committee on 14th July 2016 as the representative of the Council. At the meeting Mr McCarthy, Chief Executive Officer of Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust, Mr Burns, Chairman of Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust and Mr Graves, Chief Executive of Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust were in attendance and gave a presentation on the planned consultation on collaboration between Hinchingbrooke and Peterborough Hospitals.

The Panel was informed that Mr McCarthy gave the same presentation as he had at the Special Meeting of the Panel on 28th June 2016. The committee asked questions on the proposed plans and highlighted that Mr McCarthy’s presentations need to be easier to understand with less technical language.

Members noted that the committee also discussed the following items: the effectiveness of stop smoking services, healthy weight strategy, health and care executive governance framework and appointment to advisory groups and panels.

It was highlighted to the Panel that District Council representatives have no voting rights on the Panel, however Councillor Dickinson believes that it is worthwhile attending and that the next meeting is 8th September 2016.

In addition to the Health Committee, Members were informed that Councillor Dickinson attended the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Oversight meeting on 25th July 2016. At the meeting the Car Quality Commission report was expected in the following days and subsequently the report graded Hinchingbrooke as a good. The Panel were told that issues came up which was more relevant to County Council than the District Council. As a result Councillor Dickinson will ask the Health Committee if a County Council representative will be able to attend future Oversight Meetings.

In response to the questions were there any changes to the presentation Mr McCarthy gave to the Health Committee and were the Committee happy with the response, the Panel were informed that there wasn’t any changes and that the Committee had many questions about the plans.

(At 8.36pm, during the consideration of this item, Councillor R C Carter left the meeting.)

To consider the work programme of the Performance and Customers Overview and Scrutiny Panel.

The Panel received and noted a report by the Democratic Services Officer (Scrutiny) (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) which contained details of studies being undertaken by the Overview and Scrutiny Panel for Performance and Customers.

To consider a report on the Panel’s activities.

With the aid of a report by the Democratic Services Officer (Scrutiny) (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) the Panel reviewed the progress of its activities since the last meeting. Following the explanation that the Chairman for the Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust, Mr Alan Burns, has not responded to the letter sent, the Panel want a further letter written to ask if Mr Burns had received the first letter. A copy of the first letter will be attached.

(At 8.43pm, during the consideration of this item, Councillor R B Howe left the meeting.)