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 meeting of the Committee held on 9^th November 2021.

The Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 9^th November 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.

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.

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.

No deputations or petitions were received.

The meeting will hear any questions from the general public in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.

No public questions were received.

The Committee will receive a report which provides:

·       An update on the work of the Kirklees Armed Forces Covenant Board

·       An overview of the Armed Forces Bill 2021/22 and the associated preparatory work being undertaken in conjunction with partners.

Contact: Vina Randhawa, Democracy Manager

Vina Randhawa, Democracy Manager presented a report which provided an update on the work of the Kirklees Armed Forces Covenant Board, and an overview of the Armed Forces Bill 2021 and the associated preparatory work being undertaken in conjunction with partners.

Councillor Masood Ahmed, the Council’s Armed Forces Champion and Councillor Naheed Mather, the Cabinet Member for Environment and the relevant Portfolio Holder were in attendance.

The Committee also welcomed Jim Dodds and Colin Cranswick, members of the Kirklees Armed Forces Covenant Board.

Vina explained that the figures set out in the report for Kirklees were based on the 2011 Census and that updated data would be available from Spring 2022.

Councillor Ahmed said that significant work had been undertaken to further develop the work of the partnership, with limited resources, and he thanked Vina and the members of the Board for their work.  He highlighted the following positive initiatives; Kirklees was now working towards achieving the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme Gold Award; the Board’s engagement with the West Yorkshire Good Practice Forum; and promotion of the masterclasses run by the Ministry of Defence in respect of Defence Transition Services and the Veteran’s Welfare Service. He said that the partnership was strong and productive, with around forty representatives of different services attending meetings, and the Action Plan was nearing completion. Work was ongoing to update the website and there was a wish to develop e-learning packages and perhaps a community directory for Kirklees. The Board would work with partners to try and address recognised gaps in terms of NHS representation.

Jim Dodds and Colin Cranswick echoed Councillor Ahmed’s comments and thanked both him and Vina for their contributions. They commented that:

·       The Covenant was moving forward but progress was slow, in the main, due to a lack of resources. A Life Forces Guide had been produced in 2014 and distributed to all doctors’ surgeries. This needed to be updated but this could not be undertaken without funding. An excellent app had been developed with Huddersfield University, which could act as a gateway to accessing help for veterans, but again resources were needed to progress to production.

·       The Chair of the Board needed to have the capacity to engage with partners and promote the Covenant within Kirklees.

·       The meetings of the Board were very productive.

·       A number of other authorities had appointed a dedicated officer to advise on the implications of the Covenant and associated responsibilities.

·       It was considered that the position in Kirklees was excellent overall, but a single point of entry would be beneficial to avoid people being passed around the organisation and having to repeat information.

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

·       The Committee expressed support for the principles of the Covenant and confirmed that the need to understand the particular issues affecting members and former members of the armed forces, and to support them, was recognised. Members thanked all those who had contributed to the work of the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

The Committee will give consideration to a progress report on Council activity relating to the key recommendations outlined in the 2019 Local Government Association (LGA) Corporate Peer Challenge Report.

Contact: Michelle Hope, Programme Manager, Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Planning

The Committee gave consideration to a report in relation to Council activity relating to the key recommendations outlined in the 2019 Local Government Association (LGA) Corporate Peer Challenge Report.

Andy Simcox, Service Director for Strategy and Innovation and Michelle Hope, Programme Manager, Policy, Partnerships and Corporate Planning introduced the report which set out the progress in respect of each of the recommendations and, where appropriate, the adjustment of actions in the context of the pandemic and recovery.

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

·       Recommendation 6 had referred to a sharper delineation of the roles of Cabinet Members and senior officers; whilst the report addressed officers’ actions it did not give a Cabinet response. It was suggested that this could be discussed with the Leader of Council when he next attended the Committee.

·       In response to a comment in respect of appetite for risk and taking opportunities being considered on a systemic basis; this was acknowledged and it was suggested that opportunities should be catalogued and consideration given to how this informed the Council’s ambition and decision-making. This was an issue that could be appropriate for consideration by the Corporate Governance and Audit Committee, and this would be discussed with the Service Directors for Legal, Commissioning and Governance, and Finance.

·       Comments in the report in respect of the appetite for a review of the electoral cycle were queried, as a number of Members had supported this, and this was taken on board.

·       In relation to Recommendation 1, the improvements achieved in terms of communications were recognised and welcomed. The development of a long-term sustainable relationships with residents was very important, both on the ground as well as through digital communications. There was a need to improve in terms of the promotion of good stories.

·       In respect of the proposals for flexibility of staff roles, it was important that front-line staff were also included. This had been acknowledged as an important issue (that had arisen from the ‘listening circles’) and work was to be undertaken to understand the different types of frontline staff and what flexibility would mean to them, and to consider improvement of their working conditions.

·       The Place Standard engagement work was good but it was considered that there was still some confusion for residents and Councillors about place-based working and how all the different elements fitted together.

·       There was a need to engage with Councillors more effectively, it was important that, as place-based working progressed, corporate communications should work with Ward Councillors in respect of the activity going on in their areas.

·       The Communications Strategy was being refreshed and input from scrutiny at an early stage would be welcomed, alongside engagement with other stakeholders, partners and communities with the aim of establishing how to achieve further reach within communities. The comments about place-based working and working with Ward Councillors would also be considered within this work.

·       More councillor involvement was needed in the setting up of hubs and setting priorities  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

To give consideration to the Committee’s Work Programme for 2021-

22.

Date of next meeting: 3^rd February 2022.

Contact:  Sheila Dykes - Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement

Officer

Consideration was given to the Committee’s Work Programme for 2021-

22.

It was noted that the next meeting would take place on 3^rd February 2022 and the following items were scheduled for consideration:

(i)             Leader’s Priorities Update.

(ii)            Corporate Safeguarding Policy Refresh.

The Chair reported that she had been consulted in respect of an urgent decision, made by Cabinet on 14^th December 2021, in respect of supporting the recruitment, retention and valuing the contribution of social care staff in Kirklees this winter. She had agreed to the decision being exempt from call-in as the implementation of the funding was urgent but had requested that a report be presented to the Health and Social Care Scrutiny Panel in respect of the design of an appropriate approach to utilising short-term funding to support the adult social care sector over the winter.