Agenda and minutes

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

Apologies were received from Councillor John Taylor, Councillor Yusra Hussain and Councillor Gwen Lowe.

To approve the Minutes of the meeting of the Panel held on 3^rd March 2022.

The Panel considered the Minutes of the meeting held on the 3^rd March 2022.  It was highlighted that on page 5 of the Minutes that the date 16 November 2022 should be amended to 16 November 2021. The Panel also raised an issue in relation to changes to car parking in the town centre not being communicated with members.

RESOLVED: It was agreed that:

1.    The Minutes of the meeting held on 3^rd March 2022 be approved subject to the above amendment.

2.    The issue of communication with Members be flagged with the appropriate officer and an update would be provided to scrutiny during the next municipal year.

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.

Councillor Bolt declared an interest in relation to Item 6 in respect to his position as the member of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Transport Committee.

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 the public session.

The Panel 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 deputation or petitions were received.

The Panel will consider a update on the Huddersfield, Heckmondwike and Dewsbury Bus Station Projects (Transforming Cities Fund programme)

Contact:

Richard Hollinson, Head of Major Projects

The Panel considered a report giving an update on the Huddersfield, Heckmondwike and Dewsbury Bus Station Projects (Transforming Cities Fund programme) presented by Richard Hollinson, Head of Major Projects. Edward Highfield, Service Director of Skills and Regeneration, Growth and Regeneration and Project Officers Robert Stanley, Armin Alisic, Andrew Brookfield and Timothy Fawcett were also in attendance.

It was highlighted that:

·         The purpose of the report was to provide the Panel with an early update on the position of the Huddersfield, Dewsbury, and Heckmondwike Bus Station projects.

·         All three projects were currently in very early project development stages, and no decisions were being submitted for approval at this time.

·         Some initial timelines for the project had been set out, but these were indicative and subject to change at this early stage. 

·         This was to be the first not the last opportunity for scrutiny and further detailed updates would be submitted to the Panel as the projects progressed.

·         The Transforming Cities Fund (TCF) was a national sustainable transport fund administered by the Department for Transport (DfT) for delivery of sustainable transport projects.

·         Kirklees Council worked with West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) and other partners to develop a TCF Bid for the Leeds City Region.

·          The original bid was submitted to government in November 2019 by WYCA and Kirklees projects amounted to approximately £66 million of investment in sustainable transport initiatives including bus station improvements and active travel schemes.

·         From 22/23 the Transforming Cities Fund had been incorporated into the Government’s City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement.

·         This meant that the timescales for delivery of the projects had been eased from the original deadline of March 2023.

·         There was still an expectation, however, that the TCF projects would be delivered early in the 5-year settlement to demonstrate effective and efficient delivery to Government.

·         Responsibility for the bus station projects was split between WYCA and Kirklees Council. WYCA were leading on Huddersfield Bus Station (internal transformation) and Dewsbury Bus Station.

·         Kirklees Council was leading on Heckmondwike Bus Station and the external works and car park access to Huddersfield Bus Station

·         The split in responsibilities was primarily due to asset ownership and ongoing operational responsibilities for the bus stations.

·         All the projects were governed and appraised by WYCA using the local assurance framework.

·         As the projects progressed there would be further consultations and engagements held with key stakeholders.

·         There were also plans to provide more detailed updates to the Panel on each individual project at the appropriate moment in time.

·         Officers welcomed any suggestions from the Panel to help shape the projects going forwards.

The Panel thanked officers for the update and expressed their appreciation for involving scrutiny at an early stage. In the discussion to follow, the Panel asked a number of questions in relation to:

·         The key benefits of the scheme; particularly around how cosmetic improvements to the bus stations would increase uptake in sustainable travel.

·         The business case, highlighting that it was important to understand clearly how the schemes will lead to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Panel will consider a report and a presentation which sets out the progress made in delivering the Council’s Playable Spaces Strategy.

Contacts:

Will Acornley, Head of Operational Services

Catherine Little, Programme Manager, Environment Services

The Panel considered the Playable Spaces Strategy Update which was presented by Will Acornley, Head of Operational Services and Catherine Little, Programme Manager, Environment Services. It was highlighted that:

·         Many play areas in Kirklees had been built up over several years and had now reached the end of their economic life.

·         In recognising the value in play, the Playable Spaces Strategy included significant investment in refurbishing play areas in Kirklees.

·         The strategy was designed to move away from traditional mechanical play areas to play facilities that sat more naturally in the local environment.

·         A key focus of the strategy was to build play spaces around the needs of communities to design inclusive play areas for all ages and abilities.

·         The initial draft policy was introduced in 2019 and was reviewed following feedback from Councillors towards the end of that year.

·         Development of the strategy was then delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic which started in March 2020. Delivery of the strategy recommenced mid-2020.

·         Understanding what communities wanted was central to the strategy and the delay in implementation allowed more time to create recognisable branding for the project and to set up the website to drive engagement.

·         The level of public engagement had been very successful, and the variety in the designs of each play area was reflective of responding to the needs of each individual different community.

·         To date, 14 sites had been delivered including Beaumont Park which had received very positive feedback and Westerly Way, which included a mix of old and new style play equipment.

·         The delay in delivery caused by the pandemic also created time to incorporate delivery lessons learned into future plans.

·         Lessons learned included using the Section 106 programme, which ran alongside the Playable Spaces Strategy, to ensure resources were managed effectively and to enhance the work undertaken.

·         The need for robust governance and reporting processes to support the delivery of the sites was also recognised and implemented.

·         There had been some criticism in respect of communication with Councillors.

·         To improve this, monthly updates sent by email were introduced to provide Councillors with regular progress updates and explain any delays effecting play space refurbishments in their wards. These updates were being received positively.

·         The relevant Cabinet Member Portfolio Holder also received a full update on all ongoing projects regularly.

·         There were some challenges around manufacture and delivery timelines due to raw material availability and longer delivery times from Europe.

·         Delays were managed by ensuring this was factored into the lead-in time to ensure accurate start-on-site dates.

·         There were also some challenges in respect of team capacity.

·         To mitigate this a more focused approach was introduced to allow Parks Development Offices, the Programme Manager, the Parks Services Manager, and the Project Support Officer to concentrate on where their skill set was best used.

·         In summer 2021 2 new Landscape Architects were also recruited whose primary focus was Playable Spaces to help work through the backlog of phase 1 designs.

·         A further 2 new Landscape Architects were  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Panel will consider its work programme for 2021/22 and any initial items for inclusion for 2022/23.

Contact:

Jodie Harris, Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer

The Panel considered the work programme for 2021/22 municipal year.

RESOLVED: The Panel noted the work programme for the 2021/22 municipal year, and it was agreed that:

1.    The Air Quality Action Plan standing item be reviewed by the Panel as priority for the next municipal year.

2.    In relation to the Highways capital programme, that regular updates be provided on the development of major schemes to enable the Panel to monitor the delivery of those schemes.

3.    Skills and Apprenticeships be added to the work programme for 22/23 as a key part of economic development.