Agenda and minutes

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

All Members of the Committee were in attendance.

To approve the Minutes of the meetings of the Committee held on 19^th May and 15^th June 2021.

The minutes of the meetings of the Committee held on 19^th May and 15^th June 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 sheila.dykes@kirklees.gov.uk no later than 10.00 a.m. on 2 August 2021.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 51(10) each person may submit a maximum of 4 written questions.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11(5), the period allowed for the asking and answering of public questions will not exceed 15 minutes.

No public questions were received.

Councillor Shabir Pandor, the Leader of the Council will set out his portfolio priorities for 2021/22.

Councillor Shabir Pandor, the Leader of the Council gave a presentation in respect of his portfolio priorities. Jacqui Gedman, the Chief Executive was also in attendance.

Councillor Pandor highlighted the following points in respect of the Council’s response to the pandemic:

·       The value of the approach whereby Council staff, Councillors, partner organisations, including the voluntary sector, and communities had worked together was recognised.

·       The pioneering work undertaken in respect of Covid testing and vaccination centres, alongside partners in the health sector.

·       Significant business grants support had been rolled out to local businesses.

·       Core services, such as social care, children’s services and refuse collection had remained operational throughout.

In addition, he reported the following achievements:

·       A new dementia-friendly library service had been established in Fartown.

·       The Kirklees Climate Commission had been established, further to a resolution of Council, and a two-day Youth Summit held to engage with young people about climate issues.

·       Investment of £2 million was to be made into new electric/hybrid vehicle fleet and electric vehicle public infrastructure.

·       A Youth Engagement Service had been established.

·       There had been a focus on apprenticeships, with the aim of engaging 1,700 participants during the life of the project.

·       Refurbishment and extension of respite care facilities had been undertaken, to assist families dealing with complex care needs.

·       Work was being undertaken with the Local Government Association to put the case forward at a national level for adult and children’s services funding.

·       The Adult Social Care Vision had been endorsed and the Children’s Transformation Plan continued to be implemented.

·       Large scale investment plans had been approved, including the Huddersfield Blueprint and Dewsbury Masterplan. Work was also being progressed in relation to smaller centres, improvements to the Penistone Line and the Transpennine hub.

Questions and comments were invited from Committee Members, with the following issues being covered:

·       The Youth Engagement Service had been established to work directly with young people and their families, with a focus on providing information and support to empower them to make decisions and implement positive changes to their lives.

·       Other priority areas related specifically to children and young people included: a focus on improving learning outcomes and closing the attainment gap; fulfilling transformation ambitions, such as those in respect of special educational needs provision; and ensuring that young people have the ability and skills to live independently. The introduction of ‘family hubs’ would facilitate the offer of a wide range of support for children and young people across Kirklees.

·       In respect of the Peer Challenge feedback in relation to the roles of Cabinet Members and senior officers; examples were given of the establishment of  policy by the Cabinet in a number of areas, such as the Investment Plan for Huddersfield, Dewsbury and smaller towns; inclusivity and diversity; the development of Kirklees role within the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to ensure that the district benefited from large infrastructure schemes; and the Penistone Line bid submission. It was recognised that there may be some work to do but it was considered  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

A presentation will be given in respect of the development of the latest version of the Council Plan.

Contact:

Kate McNicholas, Head of Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Planning

Kate McNicholas, the Head of Policy Partnerships and Corporate Planning gave a presentation in respect of the development of the latest version of ‘Our Council Plan’.

Kate highlighted the following points:

·       It was anticipated that a draft of the refreshed plan would be completed by the end of September.

·       The refresh would take the plan up to Spring 2023 with the aim being to undertake a full review for that point forward.

·       The well-established shared outcomes were to be retained.

·       The plan would be updated to reflect the emphasis on people, partners and place that had further developed through the pandemic.

·       Three new values had been introduced in the 2020 refresh; inclusion, kindness and pride and these were to be reviewed to consider if any development, refining or amendment would be appropriate.

·       Tackling inequalities had also been introduced as a ‘mission critical’ issue and there was a need to now embed this.

·       There were a number of other areas of development to be included such as: the ‘citizen’s outcome’, to measure whether citizens felt able to influence what happens in their local place; the approach to recovery planning; and the organisational priorities as they aligned to the outcomes.

·       In response to concern that there had been insufficient engagement with Councillors previously, in refreshing the plan, the leaders of the political groups had been offered the facility to have an input at an early stage.

·       The refreshed plan would be submitted for consideration by the Corporate Scrutiny Panel, prior to progression to Cabinet and Council for endorsement.

·       Alongside the refreshed plan, a progress report would be produced which would set out; changes against population level indicators, delivery against ambitions and other key achievements.

·       In looking forward, connections would be made to the Economic and Health & Wellbeing strategies and the development of a new Inclusive Communities Framework.

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

·       Councillors should be asked for their view on the three new values introduced last year.

·       The opportunity to have an input to the refreshed plan was welcomed.

·       In response to a comment that priority should be given to using and supporting locally owned/managed businesses to maximise the amount of money that would then be retained within the local economy, it was explained that the Economic Strategy did have, and would continue to have, an emphasis on the inclusive economy and growing productivity. The importance of local businesses as an element of the economic recovery plan had been recognised. It was also considered that there may be opportunities associated with different business models, such as social enterprise.

·       It was acknowledged that ‘we’re kirklees’ was an internal branding intended to reinforce values and pride for staff; but perhaps did not sit comfortably externally and with the place-based approach.

·       The need for a specific offer for youth, in light of the particular disadvantages they had experienced during the last few years, had been recognised. The plan would reflect the ongoing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.

The Work Programmes/Agenda Plans for the four Scrutiny Panels; Children’s, Corporate, Economy and Neighbourhoods, and Health and Social Care are submitted for the Committee’s consideration.

Contact:

Sheila Dykes, Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer

The Chair of each of the Scrutiny Panels and the Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee gave a brief outline of their work programmes for 2021/22 and upcoming meetings.

Resolved –

That the Work Programmes be agreed and that thanks be expressed to all Panel Members for the work undertaken in the development of these plans.