Agenda and minutes

Any apologies for absence will be noted at this point.

The Chairman read out the Emergency Procedures.

The Chairman then asked all present to stand and The Committee observed a two-minute silence in memory of The Late Queen, Elizabeth II.

Apologies were received from Cllrs Lishman and Palmer.

The Chairman then spoke about the work of the late Cllr Kevin Hughes. She paid tribute to Cllr Hughes, who had been Vice-Chair of the Committee during his tenure as a District Councillor. The Chairman offered condolences to Cllr Hughes’ family on behalf of the Committee before those present stood and observed a further two-minute silence in his memory.

Members of the Committee were invited to offer their condolences and memories of Cllr Hughes.

Cllrs Moss and Sharp added their condolences and expressed their pride at having served alongside Cllr Hughes, committing to take his legacy of work forward in Chichester District Council.

To approve the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 21 June 2022.

Cllr Barrett noted that he was yet to hear from CI Bowman regarding the number of PSCOs.

The Minutes of the meeting held on 21 June 2022 were agreed as an accurate record.

The Chairman will announce any urgent items that due to special circumstances are to be dealt with under the agenda item below relating to late items.

There were no Urgent Items.

Members and officers are reminded to make any declarations of disclosable pecuniary, personal and/or prejudicial interests they may have in respect of matters on the agenda for this meeting.

Cllr Sharp declared an interest as a Member of West Sussex County Council.

The procedurefor submittingpublic questions in writingbyno later thannoon 2 workingdays before the meetingis availablehereorfromthe Democratic Services Officer (whose contactdetailsappear on thefrontpage of thisagenda).

There were no Public Questions.

The Committee is requested to:

1.    Agree the Corporate Plan Review Terms of Reference

2.    To appoint Members and a Chairman

The Chairman welcomed Mr Buckley and invited him to present the report.

Mr Buckley explained that the purpose of the report was for the Committee to agree the Corporate Plan Review Task and Finish Group Terms of Reference, appoint members and elect a Chairman.

After a short discussion, members unanimously agreed the following:

Resolved;

1.    The Committee agreed the Corporate Plan Review Terms of Reference.

2.    The Committee appointed Cllrs Apel, Graves, Page, Purnell and Sharp as members of the Task and Finish Group

(Note: It was agreed that a Chairman would be appointed at the Task and Finish Group meeting).

The Chairman offered her congratulations to the Officers and Members who had worked on the report. She invited Cllr Bangert to present the report.

Cllr Bangert noted the omission of Cllr Purnell’s name in the report and thanked her for her contributions.

She highlighted the technical and complex nature of the subject area, thanking members and officers for their support. Cllr Bangert also paid tribute to the late Cllr Kevin Hughes who had been very interested in the concept of a housing company and had asked for it to be investigated. The group had been able to focus on the detail and had come to an informed decision working within the framework of the terms of reference and the four objectives set out at the beginning of the report.

Cllr Bangert directed members to the seven key points on page 16 and was pleased to make the accompanying recommendations to the Committee.

The Chairman invited Members to comment and ask any questions.

Responding to a question from Cllr Page, Ms Standing clarified for the Committee it had been highlighted that the Housing Allocations policy is 18 months old and needed to be reviewed to ensure it is fit for purpose.

Responding to questions about the potential use of Council owned land at Portfield, Mrs Rudziak informed the Committee that a decision has been taken by Cabinet to market the land for housing, which is being taken forward by officers.

There was considerable discussion amongst members about the importance of the provision of affordable homes within the district. Members also expressed the need for an increase in public understanding around the term itself and the difference between social housing and affordable homes. Mrs Rudziak informed members the report considered all elements of affordable housing.

There was broad consensus amongst members that Community Land Trusts, or similar programmes, are one of the main ways to deliver affordable housing. Mrs Rudziak agreed, confirming there are funds available to support such trusts across the district.

Responding to members, officers confirmed that the ‘Questions we need to ask ourselves’ section of the report had been debated in detail by the group which had in turn formed the basis of the recommendations.

Several members expressed concerns regarding the largest Registered Provider of social housing in our district, Hyde. Several members have, at times, found Hyde to be unresponsive to calls and emails. They felt that improvements are needed to reassure residents that their concerns are dealt with quickly and effectively.

Ms Standing informed members that she, Mrs Rudziak and Cllr Sutton had met with a representative of Hyde who acknowledged some failings in their services and outlined his plans to improve on any shortcomings. Ms Standing outlined that regular meetings take place with Hyde where complaints performance is reviewed.

The Chairman once again thanked members and officers for their work on the report.

Resolved;

The Committed noted:

i)               The findings of the Task and Finish Group as set put in paragraph 4.11 of the report

ii)  ...  view the full minutes text for item 83.

The Committee is requested to:

1.    Receive the Annual Report from Everyone Active (Sport and Leisure Management Ltd) Appendix 1 and note the performance for 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022

The Chairman welcomed Mrs Peyman and Mr Mills to the meeting and invited Mrs Peyman to introduce the report.

Mrs Peyman explained that the report provides details of the leisure management contract from April 2021 to March 2022. She informed members due to the impact of Covid-19 a contract variation had been in place as the leisure market recovered and assured members that performance and the provision of community services are monitored closely.

Mrs Peyman invited Mr Mills to present the Everyone Active Annual Report.

Mr Mills explained that this had been a transition year following the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic. He was pleased to inform Members that there are now more people learning to swim than ever before, with 1300 children registered in the swim school and 15 schools using the site. He also commended to members the community projects run by Everyone Active including Community Moves, physical activity intervention for vulnerable adults and the Reboot scheme. He also noted that various organisations use the site as a hub in providing community services, such as UK Harvest and West Sussex Mind.

Mr Mills concluded in offering his thanks to members and officers for their continued support.

Responding to questions relating to schools using the site for swimming lessons, Mr Mills assured members that Everyone Active reached out to as many schools as possible and encouraged members to refer schools not on the list to him and his team.

There was some discussion about the potential challenges faced due to the increase in energy prices. Mr Mills acknowledged that all businesses would be affected by the energy crisis. He noted however, that work on the decarbonisation of the Westgate building, a switch to LED lighting and a new CHP unit will reduce energy consumption.

In response to a question about competition, Mr Mills indicated that he feels the centre is well placed to deal with coemption from a growing number of gyms. He highlighted to members that Everyone Active are able to offer more than a straightforward gym facility; namely, swimming, group exercise classes and the health suite. Mr Mills is confident that Everyone Active will continue to hold a strong place in the market locally.

Members offered their congratulations to Mr Mills and his team for their considerable success, especially given the recent challenges presented to the leisure industry by the pandemic.

The Chairman offered her congratulations and thanked Mr Mills and Mrs Peyman for their attendance.

Resolved;

The Committee considered the report from Everyone Active and noted the performance for 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022.

Consideration of any late items as follows:

a)    Items added to the agenda papers and made available for public inspection.

b)    Items which the Chairman has agreed should be taken as matters of urgency by reason of special circumstances reported at the meeting.

There were no late items.

The Committee is asked to consider in respect of the following item whether the public, including the press, should be excluded from the meeting on the grounds of exemption under Parts I to 7 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as indicated against the item and because, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption of that information outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. The reports dealt with under this part of the agenda are attached for members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and senior officers only (salmon paper).

Cllr Apel proposed and read the part II resolution in relation to agenda item 11. This was seconded by Cllr Purnell and agreed by the Committee with a vote to go into part II.

RESOLVED

That with regard to agenda item 11 the public excluding the press should be excluded from the meeting on the grounds of exemption in Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 namely paragraph 3 (information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information)) and because in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption of that information outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

 Members took a short break.

The Committee is requested to consider the report and make the recommendation as set out in section 3.1 of the report.

The Chairman invited Mr Buckley to present the Part 2 report.

Following a brief discussion members voted unanimously for the recommendation as set out in the report.

The Chairman thanked Mr Buckley for his attendance.