Agenda and minutes

Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Regeneration and Skills) - Tuesday 25th June, 2024 6.30 pm

Venue: Town Hall, Bootle

Contact: Paul Fraser  Senior Democratic Services Officer

Items
No. Item

1.

Welcome and Introductions

Minutes:

The Chair, Councillor Hart, welcomed Members to the first meeting of Sefton Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee (Regeneration and Skills) in the 2024/25 municipal year.

 

Councillor Hart especially welcomed Councillors Cavanagh, Hinde, Killen, McGinnity, Morris and Sammon as newly appointed members of the Committee; and expressed thanks to Councillor Dowd, the former Chair of the Committee, and Councillors Howard, Harvey, Lloyd-Johnson, Catie Page and Sir Ron Watson and former Councillor Christine Maher for their help and involvement on the Committee during the previous year.

 

2.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

An apology for absence was received from Councillor McGinnity.

3.

Declarations of Interest

Members are requested at a meeting where a disclosable pecuniary interest or personal interest arises, which is not already included in their Register of Members' Interests, todeclare any interests that relate to an item on the agenda.

 

Where a Member discloses a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest, he/she must withdraw from the meeting room, including from the public gallery, during the whole consideration of any item of business in which he/she has an interest, except where he/she is permitted to remain as a result of a grant of a dispensation.

 

Where a Member discloses a personal interest he/she must seek advice from the Monitoring Officer or staff member representing the Monitoring Officer to determine whether the Member should withdraw from the meeting room, including from the public gallery, during the whole consideration of any item of business in which he/she has an interest or whether the Member can remain in the meeting or remain in the meeting and vote on the relevant decision.

 

Minutes:

In accordance with Paragraph 9 of the Council’s Code of Conduct, the following declarations of personal interest were made:

 

Member

Minute No.

Nature of Interest

Councillor Killen

Minute No. 6 – Work Programme 2024/25, Scrutiny Review Topics and Key Decision Forward Plan (in relation to the potential to hold an informal meeting to review the topic of Provision of Housing for Former Looked After Children who are now Care Leavers)

Has an involvement in a supported accommodation business. Stayed in the room but took no part in the consideration of the item

Councillor Killen

Minute No. 7 – Cabinet Member Reports March to June 2024 (in relation to the reference to Care Experienced Young People in the Cabinet Member Report -Highways and Housing)

Has an involvement in a supported accommodation business. Stayed in the room but took no part in the consideration of the item

Councillor Corcoran

Minute No. 7 – Cabinet Member Reports March to June 2024 (in relation to domestic abuse issues contained in the Cabinet Member Report - Communities and Partnership Engagement)

Is employed by an organisation referred to in the report. Stayed in the room but took no part in the consideration of the item

Councillor Corcoran

Minute No. 7 – Cabinet Member Reports March to June 2024 (in relation to Libraries issues contained in the Cabinet Member Report - Communities and Partnership Engagement)

Is an Advisory Board Member of “At the Libraries”. Stayed in the room and took part in the consideration of the item

 

 

4.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 261 KB

Minutes of the meeting held 5 March 2024

Minutes:

RESOLVED:

 

That the Minutes of the meeting held on 5 March 2024 be confirmed as a correct record.

5.

Council Housing Programme pdf icon PDF 344 KB

Report of the Assistant Director of Place (Economic Growth and Housing)

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Assistant Director of Place (Economic Growth and Housing) that updated on the Council’s Housing Programme.

 

The report indicated that Cabinet, at its meeting held on 7 January 2021, (Minute No. 79) approved the strategic case for Sefton Council re-entering the social housing market through the provision of council housing for rent; that the Council currently had approximately £5m of capital available to fund the acquisition of Council Housing as a result of the Right to Buy Receipts Sharing Agreement with One Vision Housing and from commuted sums secured via S106 agreements; and that the strategic rationale for the scheme was that over the past few years there had been a growing acceptance in Government that councils needed to play a greater role in meeting new build housing targets; that although very little additional council housing had been developed in the last 50 years the active participation of local councils acting as developers and landlords was something that government were actively encouraging; and that Sefton hads already partly responded to this through the establishment of Sandway Homes, its wholly owned private housing development company.

 

The report also set out the progress to date; the Phase 1 Business Plan Delivery Model Option Appraisal; that direct delivery option was selected; that under this model homes would be in the legal ownership of the Council and the programme under the Council’s direction; and that because the Council had already registered with the Regulator of Social Housing, an application could be made to access Homes England grant on eligible schemes.

 

The report concluded by detailing the Business Plan Overview for the Council Housing Programme which set out the sites, number of units and timescales for scheme completions.

 

Members of the Committee asked questions/commented on the following matters:

 

·       The classification of temporary accommodation

·       The ‘Cost Floor Rule’ associated with a Council Tenant’s Right to Buy their home   

·       Statistics on the numbers of One Vision Housing properties purchased under the Right to Buy scheme

·       The Homes England grant on the Buckley Hill Lane housing scheme and the application for Homes England Investment Partner status

·       The need to ensure that new build properties enjoyed high levels of energy efficiency; and that there should be an aspiration to achieve energy efficiency levels over and above those specified in current building regulations

·       How new build properties would be allocated and the use of Property Pool Plus

 

RESOLVED:

 

That the report updating on the Council’s Housing Programme be noted.

 

6.

Work Programme 2024/25, Scrutiny Review Topics and Key Decision Forward Plan pdf icon PDF 399 KB

Report of the Chief Legal and Democratic Officer

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Chief Legal and Democratic Officer that sought views on the draft Work Programme for 2024/25; the identification of potential topics for scrutiny reviews to be undertaken by informal meetings of the Committee; the identification of any items for pre-scrutiny by the Committee from the Key Decision Forward Plan; that updated on the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee; that sought a potential date for an informal meeting of the Committee to consider the provision of housing for former looked after children who were now care leavers; and that sought a decision on whether the Committee wished to pursue, at an informal meeting of the Committee, the topic of the formal and informal processes for engagement between officers at the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCR CA) and at Sefton Council, relating to the review, approval, funding, development and implementation of strategies, policies and projects. This relates to both regionally-led (LCR CA-led) and locally-led (Sefton Council-led) proposals.

 

Members of the Committee asked questions/commented on the following issues:

 

·       The benefits of holding informal meetings rather than formal Working Groups to review topics

·       The ability to update the Committee’s Work Programme at each meeting

·       The operation of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee

 

RESOLVED: That

 

(1)

 

the Work Programme for 2024/25, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report, be approved;

 

(2)

the Chief Legal and Democratic Services Officer be requested to liaise with Members regarding the selection of a date to hold an informal meeting of the Committee to consider the provision of housing for former looked after children who were now care leavers; and that it be agreed that the informal meeting be held using Microsoft Teams;

 

(3)

Sefton’s appointed Members on the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee be requested to raise the issues, at that Committee, of the formal and informal processes for engagement between officers at the Combined Authority and at Sefton Council, relating to the review, approval, funding, development and implementation of strategies, policies and projects. This relates to both regionally-led (LCR CA-led) and locally-led (Sefton Council-led) proposals; rather than the matter be dealt with at an informal meeting of the Committee; and

 

(4)

the update on the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority Overview and Scrutiny Committee be noted.

 

7.

Cabinet Member Reports - March 2024 to June 2024 pdf icon PDF 348 KB

Report of the Chief Legal and Democratic Officer

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Chief Legal and Democratic Officer that included the most recent reports from the Cabinet Members for Cleansing and Street Scene; Communities and Partnership Engagement; Housing and Highways; Public Health and Wellbeing (Green Sefton element); and Regeneration, Economy and Skills.

 

Councillor Dowd, Cabinet Member - Communities and Partnership Engagement presented her report and highlighted the following issues:

 

·       The all-Easter Holidays Activity Fund and that in particular that 253 secondary aged young people attended HAF provision over the Easter holidays across 6,595 individual sessions

·       The two procurement exercises currently underway with regards to domestic abuse

·       The recent successful bid to the Library Improvement Fund that had secured £80,000 of capital funding to pay for improvements to Bootle Library

 

Members of the Committee asked questions/commented on the following issues:

 

·       Why Fly Tip? that was part of a £50,000 grant to tackle rear entry and on street fly-tipping; and whether an evaluation of the scheme would be undertaken to measure outcomes and be reported to Committee

·       Compliments were paid for the community engagement activity associated with the Sefton Pride event held in Southport on 15 June 2024

·       Satisfaction was expressed at the good news regarding the successful bid to the Library Improvement Fund to secure funding to pay for improvements to Bootle Library

·       With regard to the Youth Engagement team, the selection of sites for the youth bus across the borough

·       With regard to work with migrants and sanctuary seekers, the selection of sites in the borough for weekly advice and support sessions

    

 Councillor Harvey, Cabinet Member - Cleansing and Street Scene presented his report and highlighted the following issues:

 

·       That he would be shortly visiting Sefton Arc to gain an understanding of how the service operated

·       The prevalence of fly-tipping incidents

·       The weed control programme which was now in the second of four sprays for the season; and that sample inspections were undertaken to capture evidence of ‘die back’ of weeds approximately 10-14 days following the scheduled spray

·       Grass cutting on the Formby Bypass

·       The continual problem of waste being fly-tipped in rear entries

 

Members of the Committee asked questions/commented on the following issues:

 

·       The supervisory/inspection regime in place to ensure road sweepers undertook their duties to agreed standards

·       Problems associated with properties that had no refuse storage facilities and whose residents placed their refuse on the highway

·       The use of seagull-proof refuse sacks to prevent the spillage of litter due to scavenging animals

·       Regarding grass cutting on the Formby Bypass, it was often difficult to balance the views of those residents who were in favour of the activity against those who were opposed and would rather allow a wildflower verge to flourish

·       Weed issues on Marine Drive in Southport that did not give a good impression to visitors to the town

·       Performance monitoring of the weed control contract

·       Complaints received about the cleanliness of Chapel Street, Southport

·       Street scrubbing operations in Southport town centre

·       Upkeep and maintenance of small parcels of council land by community  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.