Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence of Members who are unable to attend the meeting.

Apologies were received from Councillor Andrew Cooper.

To approve the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 15^th April 2021.

The minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 15th April 2021 were agreed as a correct record.

The Councillors will be asked to say if there are any items on the Agenda in which they have disclosable pecuniary interests, which would prevent them from participating in any discussion of the items or participating in any vote upon the items, or any other interests.

No interests were declared.

Most debates take place in public. This only changes when there is a need to consider certain issues, for instance, commercially sensitive information or details concerning an individual. You will be told at this point whether there are any items on the Agenda which are to be discussed in private.

All items were considered in public session.

The Committee will receive any petitions and hear any deputations from members of the public. A deputation is where up to five people can attend the meeting and make a presentation on some particular issue of concern. A member of the public can also hand in a petition at the meeting but that petition should relate to something on which the body has powers and responsibilities.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 10 (2), Members of the Public should provide at least 24 hours’ notice of presenting a deputation.

No deputations or petitions were received.

The meeting will hear any questions from the general public.

Questions should be emailed to executive.governance@kirklees.gov.uk by no later than 10.00 a.m. on 14^th June 2021.

No public questions were received.

The Committee will consider a report which provides an update on the work undertaken by the Shadow Kirklees Inclusion Commission (SKIC) to lay the groundwork for the formation of the formal Kirklees Inclusion Commission. 

Contact:

Kate McNicholas,

Head of Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Planning

A report was presented which provided an update on the work undertaken by the Shadow Kirklees Inclusion Commission (SKIC) to lay the groundwork for the formation of the formal Kirklees Inclusion Commission. 

Councillor Shabir Pandor, Leader of the Council and Councillor Amanda Pinnock, Chair of the SKIC attended the meeting and introduced the report, with the following key points:

·       The pandemic had highlighted inequalities in a number of areas, such as housing and health.

·       There was an ambition to provide levelling-up across the district. The Commission would make recommendations for solutions, based on a strong intelligence and evidence base developed using conversations with real people.

·       It was important that all residents were able to connect and communicate effectively with the Council.

·       The impact of the start in life on an individual’s life journey was recognised and the Commission was an opportunity to break the cycle of deprivation and inequalities.

·       The Shadow Commission was laying the foundations for the formal Commission. It aimed to provide a clear framework and operating model for the full Commission, including identifying prime areas of focus and who the Commission would need to work alongside to achieve its aims.

·       The importance of engagement with not just the usual cohort of partners, but also reaching those people that the Council did not usually reach and who did not normally engage using the traditional methods.

·       Evidence of lived experience would be essential to Commission’s understanding of the impact of deprivation.

·       Legacy and the continuation of dialogue, further to the Commission completing its work, was very important.

Naz Parkar, Service Director for Homes and Neighbourhoods and Kate McNicholas, Head of Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Planning were also in attendance and explained that:

·       Creative and innovative ways of working were being developed to ensure effective engagement; with the aim of meeting with people where they were comfortable and building relationships and trust.

·       The importance of the language that was used was acknowledged.

·       In forthcoming meetings, the SKIC would be giving consideration to its overall ambitions, the establishment of an evaluation framework to measure outcomes and would also consider the potential input and role of                      co-optees.

·       The Commission would be asked to focus on a number of areas including: quality of life, the impact of inequalities and inclusion; life course (impact of an individual’s start in life and early years); educational attainment, employment, health and wellbeing, neighbourhoods and housing, and control and influence.

·       The need to join-up the work with that being undertaken by the Climate Commission had been recognised.

·       The recommendations of the Shadow Commission would be submitted to Leading Members in July.

Questions and comments were invited from Committee Members and the following key issues were raised during discussion:

·       The Shadow Commission had been established as a precursor to the formal Commission to ensure that the work did not falter whilst energies were being focussed on the necessary response to the pandemic and to undertake some of the initial preparatory work.

·       In response to a question  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

The Committee will receive a presentation which will share some early thoughts in respect of the development of an Inclusive Communities Framework. This approach aims to build on the experiences of the pandemic and reflect the shift in thinking from cohesion to a broader inclusion agenda. 

Contact:

Jill Greenfield, Service Director – Customer and Communities

Jo Richmond, Head of Communities

Jill Greenfield, Service Director - Customer and Communities, and Jo Richmond, Head of Communities, attended the Committee and gave a presentation which shared early thoughts in respect of the development of an Inclusive Communities Framework to guide work alongside communities. The following points were highlighted:

·       The approach aimed to build on the experiences of, and strengths  identified during, the pandemic and reflect the shift in thinking from cohesion to a broader, more holistic inclusion agenda. 

·       It would embed the role of organisations and institutions as enablers, co-producers and convenors, using the building blocks that were already in place.

·       There was a need to hear a range of voices and act on the information received.

·       It would aim to create the right conditions for communities to thrive; the core of which was building local trust and connectivity. People wanted to feel; safe, that life is fair, connected to their neighbours, that they have a voice and influence, a sense of belonging, and that they had access to work.

·       There were significant interdependencies with other strategies (Economic Strategy and Health and Wellbeing Strategy) and initiatives such as the Inclusion Commission. Consideration was being given to how to conduct one conversation with people so that inclusion was not being looked at in isolation.

·       Work was being done to explore and develop indicative outcomes.

Members asked questions and commented on the issues raised, with the following key issues being covered:

·       The work of the Inclusion Commission would feed into this developmental process.

·       The work was at a very early stage. It was intended to provide a framework to establish a set of principles for ways of working with communities to reach across the whole system and to provide some checks, balances and challenges. It would be a high-level document but it was important that it had an impact. An example was given in respect of the Integrated Care System: the framework would provide a set of principles and approaches that organisations and agencies could adopt when considering what services should look like.

·       In response to a question about when this work would be delivered and concern that inequalities had become more amplified during the pandemic and about people becoming disenfranchised, it was explained that, during the pandemic, inclusion work had proved much more difficult to undertake due to the restrictions on face-to-face contact. The right conditions were important for these conversations particularly when discussing the more difficult subjects. Work was ongoing and it was acknowledged that there was a need to proceed as a matter of urgency, but it was also important that this was balanced against the need to progress at the speed of trust.

·       The pandemic had also strengthened some communities and helped to establish trusted relationships and the team would be working to build on these foundations.

·       This approach positioned the Council as convenor and enabler: the message being that this was not about the Council trying to fix an issue but rather ensuring that it did not get in the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

The Committee is asked to consider the allocation of co-optees to the Scrutiny Panels, for the 2021/22 municipal year.

Contact:

Sheila Dykes,

Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer  

The Committee was asked to consider the allocation of co-optees to the Scrutiny Panels, for the 2021/22 municipal year.

Members paid tribute to the co-optees, in particular those who were retiring, for their valued contributions to the work of scrutiny. Their knowledge, experience and insight were very much appreciated.

RESOLVED-

(1)That the allocation of co-optees for the 2021/22 municipal year be agreed, as set out in the report.

(2)That the serving co-optees be thanked for their continued commitment and contribution to the work of Scrutiny in Kirklees.

(3)That Peter Bradshaw and Eilidh Ogden be formally thanked for their contribution to the Health and Adult Social Care, and the Economy and Neighbourhoods Scrutiny Panels respectively.

The Committee is asked to consider the re-establishment of the Ad Hoc Scrutiny Panel in respect of Residential Housing Stock – Health and Safety Compliance.  

Contact:

Sheila Dykes,

Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer

The Committee was asked to consider the re-establishment of the Ad Hoc Scrutiny Panel in respect of Residential Housing Stock – Health and Safety Compliance.  

RESOLVED –

That the Ad Hoc Scrutiny Panel be re-established with the Terms of Reference and membership details set out in the report.

To give consideration to the Committee’s Work Programme for 2021/22.

Date of next meeting: 3^rd August 2021.

Contact: Sheila Dykes,

Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer

The Work Programme for 2021-22 was noted.