The City Mayor will answer questions raised by members of the Overview Select Committee on issues not covered elsewhere on the agenda.
Minutes:
The Chair reminded members that he would prefer for all questions to be provided in advance, which would help to provide more detailed responses at meetings.
The Chair accepted the following questions to be asked to the City Mayor:
At a previous meeting of OSC, a presentation was given, and a proposal was raised in relation to the use of unused school meal food. Please can you tell us if there is any update in relation to this?”
In responding to this question, the City Mayor made the following points:
· Much research had been conducted into the possibility and this had been followed up. This was a very important issue as food waste cost money and used resources as well as not being good for the environment and was a particular issue as many did not have access to sufficient food.
· However, unfortunately the idea of re-distributing unused school meal food to families for free had many constraints on it, most notably the food safety regulations that needed to be followed. These regulations stipulated that hot food was only safe for 90 minutes and cold food was deemed unsafe after four hours at room temperature.
· Boxing up unused food and distributing it would most likely take more than 90 minutes and therefore it was concluded that hot food, which made up much of the food that went to waste, could not be passed on. Cold food could potentially be used for another dinner sitting.
· Allergen information also needed to be managed.
· As leftover food could not be packed up and sent safely, the focus should perhaps be on preventing food waste. Schools needed to look to reduce waste and the Council had been encouraging this through the e-bulletin, the ‘keeping-in-touch’ meetings and the Eco Schools Team. The Council’s own provider, City Catering, was working on new ways of reducing waste, such as encouraging the pre-ordering of meals a day in advance so that the right number of meals were provided, although this could be challenging for young people. Portion sizes, menus to meet children’s preferences and tasting sessions for positive food choices were also being looked at.
· Above all, it was important to record and monitor food waste to enable City Catering to make decisions on future production.
· The Council continued to support families in need through local food banks and food initiatives and a range of projects including holiday activities and food programmes for children who receive holiday meals.
In response to a question around parents being asked to make meal choices in advance and choose meals based on the preferences of the child and whether this could this be explored to see if it resulted in a reduction in food waste before it was rolled out across the city. The City Mayor noted that the system may not always result in a reduction in food waste, particularly due to changing preferences of children, but took the point on board.
In response to a question regarding the sign-off of the accounts for year-end 31 March 2023 by external auditors Grant Thornton. The Director of Finance confirmed the papers would be going to Governance and Audit the following week, when it was anticipated they would approved.
In response to further questions regarding challenges on the valuation of buildings and land, the Director of Finance noted that there were national issues surrounding valuation and the rules were complex to follow.
With particular regard to the value of a building recently sold on Vaughan Way, the Director of Finance would look into this and make contact with Cllr Porter outside the meeting.
The Chair noted the importance of submitting questions to the City Mayor in advance of the meeting as it allows a chance to prepare responses.
AGREED:
(1) That the responses to the questions raised be noted; and
(2) Further detail regarding the value of the building recently sold on Vaughan Way would be provided directly to Cllr Porter.