Venue: Virtual meeting
Contact: Caroline Breheny
No. | Item |
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Declarations of Interest Minutes: There were no declarations of interest received at
this point in the meeting. |
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Minutes - Overview and Scrutiny Board - 8 September 2021 PDF 172 KB Minutes: The minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Board meeting held on 8 September were submitted and approved as a correct record. |
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Executive Forward Work Programme PDF 298 KB Additional documents: Minutes: The Chief Executive submitted a
report which identified the forthcoming issues to be considered by the
Executive, as outlined in Appendix A to the report. The report provided the Overview and
Scrutiny Board with the opportunity to consider whether any item contained
within the Executive Forward Work Programme should be considered by the Board,
or referred to a Scrutiny Panel. NOTED |
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Executive Member Update: Executive Member for Regeneration PDF 136 KB Additional documents: Minutes: The Executive Member for Regeneration, Cllr Eric Polano, was in
attendance to update the Board on his aims and aspirations, progress made to
date and to highlight any emerging issues relating to his portfolio. The
Director of Regeneration was also in attendance. As part of his update to the Board, the Executive Member for
Regeneration explained that his portfolio did not neatly match the way in which
services were structured and the slides included in his presentation showed the
way the portfolio was set out and how services were structured. It was explained that the main areas of the portfolio were as follows:- Transportation – designing
how people get about (not the maintenance of the roads) Inward investment – attracting
money, people and jobs into Middlesbrough Economic development –
growing the jobs available in the town Housing development –
increasing the options for people wanting to live here Planning – managing the long
term look and functionality of the town Building control – ensuring
things were built correctly and safely In terms of changing the town centre one of the main areas of focus was
on converting Captain Cook Square into a leisure destination. Currently the
town centre had too much retail space and insufficient leisure space. The
Council had therefore purchased Captain Cook Square in an effort to redress the
balance. In respect of developing the concept of urban living it was explained
that Middlehaven was the focal point for a significant amount of investment to
create more houses and apartments for people wanting to live in the centre of
town. Boho X was another key area of focus and would
deliver sixty thousand square feet of commercial space for the digital sector.
In addition the Council was currently refurbishing the Captain Cook Pub and
work would soon commence on the Old Town Hall to bring these buildings back to
life. Clearing up eyesore sites and properties was another high priority and
it was advised that the Council was investing in buying up eyesore sites and
properties that were blighting local communities. In terms of the Future High
Streets Fund and the Towns Fund Middlesbrough had received in the region of
£35m to spend on changing the town centre and Middlehaven, as well as some
other parts of the town. Delivering housing growth was a further area of focus
and the Council was working with house builders to deliver 400-500 new homes
each year. The Executive Member for Regeneration advised the Board that in respect
of his own personal priorities the areas that he was most passionate about
driving through were dealing with the eyesore sites and properties and getting
more people into the town centre. It was advised that the Council had invested
£1m into working with Middlesbrough Development Company (MDC) to buy up or
refurbish properties in local communities that were ruining people’s lives. The
Council was looking to tackle as many of these as possible and clean up some of
the worst streets. In terms of ... view the full minutes text for item 20/37 |
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Chief Executive's Update PDF 426 KB Minutes: The Chief Executive was in attendance and provided an update to the
Board in respect of the following:- ·
COVID-19 update ·
Executive update ·
LMT update ·
Chief Executive briefing
staff feedback In terms of the latest local COVID-19 data, as at 18 October 2021 the
rolling seven-day rate of cases per 100k of the Middlesbrough population was as
follows:
Reference was made to the vaccination rates and to date 65.4% of over
12’s in Middlesbrough had received 2 doses of the vaccine. In terms of
vaccination by age range 9.6 % of young people in Middlesbrough aged 12 to 15
had received 1 dose of the vaccine and the vaccination rates increased with
age. For example, 87.3 % of people aged 55 to 59 in Middlesbrough had received
2 doses of the vaccine and 94.2 % of people aged over 80 had received their 2
doses. It was emphasised that the number of over 50’s unvaccinated in
Middlesbrough was 8.2 %, which equated to 4,335 people and this was the area of
greatest concern. In relation to the Executive decisions taken recently it was noted that a number of reports had been considered. These included; a report on Middlehaven; the expansion of Middlesbrough College; Community Environmental Initiatives; Council Tax Reduction Scheme; Fountain Court and Centre Square Office development. In respect of the current LMT strategic items if was advised that the focus was on poverty / social exclusion; reoccupation / Fountain Court; values / staff engagement; 2022/23 budget preparation; performance management and locality working. Reference was made to the feedback received from staff in respect of the Chief Executive’s staff briefings and it was noted that over 95% of staff rated the briefings as very good / good overall; over 90% rated the relevance and usefulness of the content of the briefings as very good / good overall; over 90% rated the opportunity to ask questions at the briefings as very good / good overall and over 70% had opted for the briefings to be continued virtually in the future with over 20% opting for a mix of virtual / in person. It was anticipated that the briefings would continue to be held virtually but on a six monthly basis an in person event would be held. The themes from the free text responses to the Chief Executive staff briefings were provided and these included the following;- · Staff valued hearing direct from the top · Staff wanted the same level of engagement at Directorate level · Subjects that staff were particularly interested in were; Strategic Priorities; Reoccupation; LMT thinking Following the update, Members were afforded the opportunity to ask
questions. A Member of the Board made reference to the fact that the take up of the COVID-19 vaccination by young people had been slow ... view the full minutes text for item 20/38 |
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Scrutiny Chairs Update Adult Social Care and Services Scrutiny Panel - Councillor
J. Platt Minutes: The Scrutiny Chairs provided updates
in respect of the work undertaken by their respective panels since the last
meeting of the Board. NOTED |
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Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel - Final Report - Cultural Events in Middlesbrough PDF 736 KB Minutes: The recommendations to be submitted to the
Executive were: 1) To enhance and
strengthen community cohesion, cultural events traditionally held in the town
centre should be delivered within communities where possible. Ideally this should
take place with at least some elements of the Christmas 2021 celebrations. 2) Given its growing
cultural and financial significance the Council should work with relevant third
parties, including charities and the private sector, to introduce eSports as a
regular and high profile cultural event. Where possible this should relate to
wider leisure initiatives the Council is currently involved in. 3) Future leisure
developments in the town centre should look to include opportunities for
associated hospitality venues, such as an eSports business. 4) In order to attract a
wider audience; the Council should continue to work with Teesside University so
that the Town Hall can be used as a venue for the Animex
Festival, ideally for the event held in 2022. 5) To attract audiences
that sit outside Middlesbrough’s local boundaries; the events team should
explore how to exploit virtual event delivery by having an on-line component. AGREED that the findings and recommendations of
the Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel be endorsed and referred to the
Executive. |
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Revenue and Capital Budget – Projected Outturn position as at Quarter One 2021/2022 PDF 1 MB Minutes: The Director of Finance and the Head of Financial Planning
and Support provided an update to the Board; the following points were
highlighted:
Following the update, Members were afforded the
opportunity to ask questions. A Member queried as to what issues the Board should be most
concerned about at present in respect of risk and unforeseen eventualities. It
was advised that one of the emerging risks was in relation to energy inflation
and whether that would filter through and become a longer term pressure, the
legacy of COVID-19 on income was another key potential risk factor. The MTFP
for next year was currently being prepared and those issues were being
considered. The financial implications for the Council resulting from the new
Health and Social Care Bill was another unknown at this stage, although it was
anticipated that more detailed information would be available following the
forthcoming Government Spending Review and Local Government settlement. Reference was made the Environment and Community Services overspend
and whether there was potential for that money to pulled back over the course
of this financial year. It was explained that the overspend was a result of the
kerbside recycling company entering administration, which had generated a financial
pressure of £500,000. The contact for kerbside recycling was currently out to
tender and it was hoped that savings would be achieved following that process.
Another risk in this area was the Integrated Transport Unit, as to a lack in
the availability of taxi drivers increased costs were being incurred. Efforts
were being made to pull back on costs but there were real challenges. In response to a query regarding the ... view the full minutes text for item 20/41 |
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Strategic Plan 2021-2024 – Progress at Quarter One 2021/2022 PDF 601 KB Minutes: The Head of Strategy, Information and Governance provided an
update to the Board, which included the following points:
The
Chair thanked the Head of Strategy, Information and
Governance and the Strategic Delivery Manager for their attendance and
contribution to the meeting. AGREED that the information provided
be noted, and the agreed action be undertaken. |
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Scrutiny Chairs' Training Minutes: The
Democratic Services Officer advised that reference had made at the recent
Constitution and Members’ Development Committee to Chair / Vice Chair training
for Scrutiny Chairs. In light of the discussion a mandatory training session
would be scheduled for Scrutiny Chairs / Vice Chairs by the end of November
2021. It was
emphasised that mandatory training for the Chairs of the relevant Children’s
Scrutiny Panel’s was also included as part of the Council’s agreed OFSTED
Improvement Plan and must be undertaken on an annual basis. A day time and
evening training session would be provided, in an effort to accommodate any
Members working full time or with child / carers responsibilities. The training
sessions would be held virtually. AGREED that information in respect of the proposed
dates be circulated and Chairs / Vice Chairs confirm their availability to
attend the sessions. |