Agenda and minutes

To receive any declarations of interest.

No Declarations of Interest were made at this point in the meeting

The Minutes of the Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel, held on the 15 October 2020, were submitted and accepted as a correct record.

The Head of Stronger Communities and the Community Safety Partnership Officer will be in attendance to provide Members with an update on the Council's contribution to the PEVENT agenda.

The Chair advised the Panel that, due to unforeseen circumstances, the PREVENT update would not be given at the meeting. Instead it would be provided at the Panel's meeting on 10 December 2020.

The Panel received an outline of the draft report into its review into community cohesion.

As part of the outline the Panel were advised that the report consisted of four Terms of Reference that were: examining the factors affecting community cohesion; determine how community cohesion is measured and to receive statistical information; to examine the work of the Council and it partners are undertaking to promote community cohesion and to identify best practice and evidence based approaches to build and strengthen cohesive communities.

The Democratic Services Officer expressed his thanks to a colleague for their contribution to the draft report.

The Panel was advised that, despite there being many factors affecting community cohesion, much of the work undertaken by the Council and its partners was founded on the principles of the Cantle Report following the Northern Town Riots.

The Panel was advised that a great deal of work had been undertaken by the Council and its partners to ensure community cohesion remained one of the Council's priorities.

A Member asked how long the funding for the Pathfinder project lasted and it was confirmed that this information would be provided to the Member directly.

A Member queried what role the Joint Action Groups played in community cohesion and if an update on their activity could be provided at the next meeting. It was confirmed this would be explored for the next meeting.

A Member thanked the Officers involved in the report's completion.

The Panel discussed potential recommendations for inclusion in the draft report. As part of the discussion the following recommendations were put forward:

1. That the Council develop a Community Cohesion Strategy for Middlesbrough that:

●          Ensures all aspects of community cohesion work is co-ordinated and monitored.

●          Informs the Council's existing social regeneration agenda and is monitored through existing performance reporting processes.

●          Is in place by the end of 2022/23.

2. Given recent staffing changes, as well as the discontinuation of funding for key projects after 2021 and the uncertainty brought about the Covid-19 pandemic, the Council should look to ensure the current Strategic Cohesion and Migration Manager is sufficiently supported via a robust staffing structure beyond 2021.

3. That the Executive consider including Middlesbrough in the Refugee Resettlement Scheme.

4. To assess progress against its objectives, the Panel should receive an update on the progress of Place Based Working no later than November 2021.

It was agreed that the Democratic Services Officer would refine the proposed recommendations on behalf of the Panel. It was also agreed that the Chair and Vice Chair would approve the final draft of the recommendations on behalf of the Panel.

ORDERED that:

1.         Information relating to funding periods for the Pathfinder project be provided to the Panel

2.         An update on the work of Joint Action Groups be explored for a future meeting

3.         The draft recommendations discussed at the Panel be refined by the Democratic Services Officer and agreed by the Chair and Vice Chair on behalf of the Panel.

For the Panel to discuss potential Terms of Reference for its forthcoming review into Cultural Events.

The Panel discussed potential Terms of Reference for its next review into cultural events. The Panel based their discussion on the topic's overview provided by the Director of Regeneration and Culture on the 15 October 2020. As part of the discussion it was stated that cultural events fed into different Council initiatives and had the potential to impact on people's lives both culturally and economically.

The Panel discussed potential Terms of Reference that related to both social and economic impact and discussed inviting different stakeholders to provide evidence. Potential witnesses included the Council's Events Team and members of the Mela organising committee to provide examples of best practice and how they contributed to wider social regeneration initiatives.

The Panel also considered examining different cultural event formats, such as e-gaming, and considered inviting representatives from the British E-Gaming Association to provide evidence on events they hold and what impact they had.

Finally, the Panel considered how cultural events contributed to wider economic initiatives such as the Future High Streets initiative and Town's Fund. The Panel also discussed potential collaborative working with other Scrutiny Panels including the Economic Development, Infrastructure and Environment Scrutiny Panel.

The Panel agreed that future cultural events needed to be able to react to changing events, such as the Covid Pandemic, and attract as wide an audience as possible to ensure their impact was still relevant.

Following discussion the following Terms of Reference were drafted:

Term of Reference A
Using examples of best practice, learn how cultural events were delivered in Middlesbrough how they contribute to wider social regeneration initiatives.

Term of Reference B
In light of COVID-19 explore potential future event formats to understand if cultural events can be sustainable in a post Covid world.

Term of Reference C
To learn how cultural events can contribute to wider economic initiatives in Middlesbrough.

It was agreed that the Democratic Services Officer refine the Terms of Reference discussed and for the Panel to agree them at its meeting on 10 December 2020.

A Member commented that should any Member of the Panel have further suggestions they should email the Democratic Services Officer.

ORDERED that:

1. The Democratic Services Officer refine the Terms of Reference discussed.
2. The Panel agree the drat Terms of Reference at its next meeting.

The Chair provided an update on what was discussed at the last OSB meeting held on 5 November 2020. The Chief Executive and Director of Public Health were in attendance to provide an update on the ongoing Covid situation and the Council's continued response.

The Deputy Mayor was also in attendance to provide the Board with an update on his portfolio and his aspirations and emerging issues surrounding this.

The Board also received information from the Head of Democratic Services regarding the Board's Membership. The Board was informed that the Constitution and Member Development Committee had agreed to submit a proposal to Council for Scrutiny Chairs to be classed as ex-officio to ensure they received a place on the Board irrespective of Political Balance.

The Board also agreed the final reports from the Adult Social Care and Services Scrutiny Panel (on Physical Activity for Older People (Aged 65-Plus), the Children and Young People's Learning Scrutiny Panel (on Addressing Poverty Issues and the Impact on Learning) and the Economic Development, Environment and Infrastructure Scrutiny Panel (on Teesside Crematorium) respectively.

None.