Agenda and minutes

To note the appointments made by Council at the Annual Meeting:-

Chair – Councillor Jan Lugg

Vice Chair – Councillor Susan Witts

Additionally, Councillor Gravells has been appointed as Spokesperson for the Committee

RESOLVED:  That the appointments made at Annual Council be noted.

Apologies were received from Councillors Dee, Hanman and Hansdot.

The Chair welcomed four new Members to the Committee:-

·         Councillor Hanman

·         Councillor Lewis

·         Councillor Pullen

·         Councillor Ravenhill

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 31 March 2014.

The minutes of the meeting held on 31 March 2014 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

There were no questions from members of the public.

There were no petitions or deputations.

To receive the report of the Head of Neighbourhood Services which provides Members with further information on how the performance of the Streetcare Partnership has been monitored. 

The Chair welcomed Councillor Jim Porter, Cabinet Member for Environment, Mr Steve Whiteman (Account Director Amey) and Mr Ross Cook, Head of Neighbourhood Services (GCC) to the meeting.

Members were presented with a report which outlined how the performance of the Streetcare Partnership was monitored.  The information had been provided following a request from the Committee on 6 January 2014 when the matter had been discussed.  Members were briefed on the content of the report which included a realignment of staffing resources within the Neighbourhood Services team.  ‘Headline’ key performance indicators were set out in the appendix.

Overview and Scrutiny Committee was asked to note the report and pass any comments to the Streetcare Strategic Partnership meeting for consideration.

The Committee discussed the following matters:-

1.    Generally Members considered that there should be more background to the performance figures including a key for clarification purposes.  The Head of Neighbourhood Services explained that the data represented ‘headlines’ and that more detailed reports were produced for the Streetcare Strategic Partnership meetings.  He confirmed that he would report this back to the Partnership so that future reports to Overview and Scrutiny were easier to interrogate.  Responding to a request for Overview and Scrutiny to receive all the performance data below the ‘headlines’, the Head of Neighbourhood Services cautioned that it was important not to duplicate the work of the Partnership.

2.    Clarification was sought on complaints recording and whether customer satisfaction had been achieved on those complaints which had been closed.  Mr Whiteman confirmed that all complaints had been resolved in line with the complaints policy.  The Head of Neighbourhood Services confirmed that more detailed information was available to the Streetcare Strategic Partnership.  Additionally, the Business Improvement Team would be monitoring this data.  The definition of a ‘complaint’ as opposed to a ‘service request’ was discussed.

3.    Clarification was sought on figures in the appendix relating to amenity grass cutting figures, general street cleaning and fly tipping.

4.    Cycle paths were not listed in the appendix as they were not ‘headline’ data.  It was confirmed that they featured under hedge trimming in data underpinning the appendix.  A Member commented that cycle paths in his ward were overgrown and acted as a disincentive for cyclists.

5.    It was noted that performance indicators for watercourses were contained in the more detailed information which was assessed by the Partnership.  It was further noted that any instances of Himalayan Balsam in watercourses would be dealt with by a specialist contractor.

6.    A Member commented on the absence of financial performance data in the appendix.  The head of Neighbourhood Services responded that this information was reported to the Strategic Streetcare Partnership.

7.    Members queried the accessibility of grass cutting regimes on the City Council’s website.  It was noted that the current information did not contain exact dates but the length of time grass cutting was expected to take in each ward.  The Head of Neighbourhood Services remarked that the information estimated when grass cutting was due in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To receive the report of the Cabinet Member for Housing, Health and Leisure which briefs Members on the current condition of the private rented housing sector and proposes future actions to achieve improvement.

The Chair welcomed Councillor Colin Organ, Cabinet Member for Housing, Health and Leisure and Ms Gill Ragon, Head of Public Protection (GCC), to the meeting.

Members were presented with a report which outlined the current condition of the private rented housing sector and proposed future actions to achieve improvement.  The Committee was informed that it was proposed to redirect the way the private sector housing team currently worked from a reactive style to a proactive programme of intervention on a neighbourhood basis, as suggested by the Government Select Committee.  It was intended that this approach would help to identify poorly managed and maintained properties in the private sector and enable continuous improvements to be made which would have a positive impact for the health and wellbeing of tenants and for the Council.

Overview and Scrutiny was asked to note the report and make any recommendations it considered appropriate to the Cabinet.

The Committee discussed the following matters:-

·         It was acknowledged that there were ‘good’ and ‘bad’ landlords in the private sector and that there was a need to reward good practice.  Equally, there were ‘good’ and ‘bad’ tenants.

·         It was considered that better housing conditions would encourage more responsible tenants.

·         It was recognised that overcrowding could occur in cases where a single family occupied a property or where families shared houses that were too small.  Cultural differences also resulted in varying definitions of what was deemed to be a ‘good’ standard of accommodation.

·         Members believed there was a public expectation that the Council should improve conditions.  Reference was made to some authorities which successfully operated a mandatory licensing scheme and it was mooted that the City Council should adopt this approach. It was suggested that more work needed to be done in this regard including evaluating another council which was similar to Gloucester.  The Cabinet Member responded that it was important not to alienate landlords and there was a delicate balance to be struck.  He commented that an accreditation scheme was more likely to act as an incentive to landlords to improve conditions.

·         There was concern regarding the quality of life of the tenants, many of whom fell ‘under the radar’ and who were prey to unscrupulous landlords.  It was also likely that many tenants living in poor conditions would be afraid to complain to their landlords or enter into formal disputes.

·         The role of other agencies such as the health authority and the possibility of funding from such bodies was queried. The Head of Public Protection confirmed that whilst the initiatives were at an early stage that these links would be explored.

·         Reference was made to the House Condition Survey carried out in 2011 which had identified 3 wards in the City with significantly more Category 1 hazards than anywhere else in the City.  A Member sought clarification on properties within his ward and was advised that broad information could be provided without breaching data protection legislation.

·         There was a discussion on the position of private tenancy agreements between  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

To consider the Cabinet Forward Plan which is provided for information.

The Committee considered the latest version of the Cabinet’s Forward Work Programme.  Members noted that the programme covered the period to September 2014 and requested information beyond this date for a future meeting.

RESOLVED:  That the Cabinet’s Forward Work Programme be noted.

To consider the latest version of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme.

The Committee considered the latest version of its work programme.

RESOLVED:  That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee work programme be noted.

To receive verbal updates as appropriate from Members of the Committee who sit as City Council representatives on any of the outside bodies.

There were no updates on this occasion.

Monday 21 July 2014 at 18.30 hours.

Monday 21 July 2014 at 18.30 hours.