Agenda and minutes

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

Apologies were received from Andrew Bird, Co-optee.

To approve the Minutes of the meeting of the Panel held on 6 January 2022.

The Panel considered the Minutes of the meeting held on the 6 January 2022.  It was highlighted that a recommendation in relation to improving engagement and consultation with the public had not been recorded under Item 7. It was also emphasised that the Cabinet Member had agreed with Panel members concerns about the approach to consultation and the low response rates and it was requested that this also be recorded in the Minutes.

RESOLVED: It was agreed that the recording of the meeting held on 6 January 2022  would be checked and following any amendments made, the Minutes of the meeting held on the 6 January 2022 would be put before the Panel for approval in the next meeting of the Panel.

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 Lowe declared an interest in relation to Item 8, as the Place Partnership Lead for Batley, Birstall and Birkenshaw.

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 Board will hear any questions from the general public. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, questions should be emailed to executive.governance@kirklees.gov.uk  no later than 10am on Monday 7^th January 2022.

No questions were received from the public.

The Panel will consider the report Kirklees Economic Strategy Refresh.

Contact:

Jonathan Nunn, Strategy and Policy Officer (Sustainable Economy)

The Panel considered a report giving an update on the Kirklees Inclusive Economy Strategy Refresh presented by Edward Highfield, Service Director of Skills and Regeneration, Growth and Regeneration. James Hopton, Intelligence and Insight Lead and Councillor Peter McBride, Cabinet Member for Regeneration were also in attendance.

Edward Highfield gave a presentation which highlighted the key points in respect of:

·         Kirklees’s economic outlook and the national context, including the impact of the pandemic, increased cost of living, major inflation, inequalities, and Brexit.

·         The reasons for the refresh: the 2019-2025 Strategy was within in time, but it was highlighted that the world had changed significantly since its introduction, and it was important for Kirklees to have a strategy that responded to the new local and national context with a strong locally owned set of priorities. The review of the local plan, was also likely to commence in 2022 and would be informed by Kirklees’s economic ambitions

·         The new opportunities for Kirklees, including devolution to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority and in clean economic growth in line with the climate change agenda. 

·         Articulating clear links between the economy, communities and health and embedding this into the strategy.

·         Strengthening the links between inclusion and growth: The Strategy would be renamed as the ‘inclusive economic strategy’ to emphasise focus on inclusive growth.

·         The scope of the refresh: The strategy would set out the ambition for macro-economic growth, incorporating elements from the Local Economic Recovery Plan. 

·         The plans to leverage partnership arrangements with the Council’s key anchor organisations.

·         The output: the strategy would focus on a 10-year term but would also include a framework for action over a short term.

·         Acknowledgment that the strategy would have multiple audiences that would require tailored outputs.

·         The approach/timeline for the development of the strategy, including public and partner engagement, drafting and the formal governance processes with the aim of Cabinet/ Council endorsement in September 2022.

Cllr Peter McBride added that a refresh of Kirklees’s economic strategy in response to the national context (i.e.- the Covid-19 pandemic, major inflation, and Brexit) alongside large-scale investments in Kirklees’s town centres, was timely and essential to the evolution of the local economy and communities in Kirklees. He also highlighted that there were new opportunities in the Huddersfield University, and in the health industry both of which played a key role in supporting business, the local economy, and communities. 

The Panel acknowledged that there were some challenges because of Brexit but highlighted the importance of identifying and utilising positive opportunities to enhance Kirklees’s economy. Concerns were also raised about engagement with private sector partners highlighting that often-private business owners did not have the time to attend meetings for example. It was suggested that work be undertaken to rethink the way engagement with private sector partners was held to ensure fair representation of local growing businesses.

Responding to the Panel’s comments on trade, Edward Highfield agreed that it was important to identify and build on the positives within the current economical context and that trade  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Panel will consider a progress report on the work of the Place Partnerships to date and the next steps with regards to the Active Travel theme.

Contact:

Vina Randhawa, Democracy Manager

Emily Parry Harries, Head of Public Health

The Panel considered the Place Partnerships Active Travel Progress Report presented by Vina Randhawa, Active Citizens and Places Manager and
Emily Parry-Harries, Head of Public Health. Councillor  Cathy Scott, Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Housing and Democracy was also in attendance and introduced the item, highlighting that the Place Partnership approach to working in places was crucial and timely following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Vina Randhawa presented an overview of the report and explained that:

·         7 Place Partnerships were established at Annual Council in May 2019, as a part of the Councils approach to Place Based Working.

·         The approach involved a number of wards working together (3 or 4 wards per Place Partnership) to respond to strategic issues on a geography greater than a ward.

·         A Place Partnership Lead Councillor had been identified for each geography.

·         The Place Partnership Leads, working with Councillors and officers,  used data, intelligence, and insight to propose interventions that will lead to better outcomes for communities.

·         The 7 Place Partnership Leads also met regularly as a group along with the Cabinet Portfolio Holder to share progress, discuss common themes and problem solve.

·         After identifying their priorities for investment under a pre-established theme, the Place Partnership leads would refer their recommendations to the Cabinet.

·         The Leads previously worked on improving mental health and domestic abuse outcomes, and for 2021/22 the theme was Active Travel.

·         For the Active Travel theme, officers from a range of different services, such as Public Health, Major Projects and Street Scene had worked together to develop Active Travel Intelligence packs for each Place Partnership Lead.

·         The information packs included health indicators, examples of best practice, summaries of planned schemes, place standard information, school travel data etc.

·         The packs were circulated to the Place Partnership Leads who were briefed on the content and key indicators in their profile.

·         This was followed by a meeting for all ward Councillors, via their Place Partnerships, to consider the profiles and to start to identify priorities and plan for engagement with the community and external stakeholders.

·         Officers had also started to scope options around these priorities which were due to be discussed at the next Place Partnership meeting in February where the next steps would be discussed and agreed by Members.

·         Evaluation was planned and built into all proposals recommended to Cabinet.

·         Where issues were beyond the scope of the Place Partnerships the Leads were keen to ensure that they were elevated and reported to Council.

·         A communication plan was being developed to help raise awareness and promote the work of Place Partnerships.

In the discussion to follow, the Panel raised concerns about the timings of ward councillor engagement meetings, highlighting that meetings should be arranged with consideration of other commitments members may have and ensuring that they do not miss their opportunity for engagement.  Cllr Cathy Scott agreed to raise the issue with the Place Partnership Leads, highlighting that all members should be given opportunity to have their say.

In response to a question from the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

The Panel will consider its work programme for 2021/22.

Contact:

Jodie Harris, Principal Governance and Democratic Engagement Officer

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

RESOLVED:

That the work programme for the 2021/22 municipal year be noted.