Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Rae Bhatia and Cutkelvin.

Apologies were also received from the Chair, Cllr Waddington.  Vice-Chair Cllr O’Neill chaired the meeting.

The Vice-Chair read out the following messages from the Chair:

“First congratulations to Kerry Grey and all the adult education staff for the "Good" rating. Adult Education opportunities are needed now more than ever so the report of the way ahead is welcome.

Secondly to say that our task group on 20mph streets has held two meetings and is going well and on track to report back at our next commission meeting.  Constructive contributions from members … stakeholders and officers.

Finally Happy Christmas to all and thanks for your work this year.”

Members will be asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

The minutes of the meeting of the Commission held on 18 October 2023 and 16 November 2023 are attached and Members will be asked to confirm them as correct record.

Regarding the minutes form 18 October 2023, the clarity of the statistics showing an 18% increase in bus use due to a bus lane on Aylestone Road was questioned.  It was questioned as to why other authorities who had put a lot of work into bus services had seen a smaller increase in bus use.  It was suggested that other factors, such as increased bus services, had been more of a reason for the increased bus use than the bus lane on Aylestone Road.

Regarding the minutes from 16 November 2023, It was requested that it be noted that a point was raised concerning the relocation of some bus services to now stop at St Margaret’s bus station which has had led to some people with limited mobility having difficulty getting into the city centre.

Other than the above it was:

AGREED:

That the minutes of the previous meetings held on 18 October 2023 and 16 November 2023 be confirmed as a correct record.

The Monitoring Officer to report on any questions, representations and statements of case received in accordance with Council procedures.

It was noted that none had been received.

The Monitoring Officer to report on any petitions received in accordance with Council procedures.

It was noted that none had been received.

The Director for Estates and Building Services submits a report on Energy efficiency schemes in private sector housing in the city.

Cllr Dawood arrived at the beginning of this item.

The Director for Estates and Building Services submitted a report on Energy efficiency schemes in private sector housing in the city.

The Service Manager for Sustainability attended the meeting to make the presentation and assist with discussion and the Team Leader for Energy Projects attended the meeting remotely to assist with discussion.

Slides were presented as attached in the agenda pack.

Key points included:

• A large percentage of housing within the city was terraced or semi-detached and 36%was built before 1929.  This meant that many of these had solid walls and as such were energy inefficient and needed work to bring up to standard, such as by applying external wall insulation with finishes that retained the character of the building.
• Co-benefits included:
  • Reducing fuel poverty and addressing the cost-of-living crisis – Vulnerable people in the UK spent a higher percentage of their income on energy than those in Europe.
  • Reducing damp and mould and improving internal air quality – Recent events as reported in the media had led to a big push on the issue.
  • Health benefits to residents – both physical and mental.
  • Climate justice – supporting vulnerable groups as climate change mitigation moved forward – lower carbon heating could mean higher costs, so there was a need to support the most vulnerable.
  • Creating local jobs in retrofit installation.
  • Improving the local economic buying power of residents – if residents had more disposable income as a result of lower energy bills, they could spend more in the local economy.
• There had not yet been much research into the impact on homes as the climate warmed, but a watching brief was being kept on research as it came in to ensure that retrofitting was appropriate.
• In a good retrofit, an assessment was undertaken both in needs of the physical aspects of the property and how the owners of the property were using that property.  Following this a whole-house plan was prepared.  Once that plan was complete, options were considered such as upgrading the fabric of the building, looking at heating options and looking at renewable technologies.
• Barriers to retrofit included:
  • Solid wall properties – these required internal or external insulation.
  • Inaccessible lofts.
  • Disrepair – such as loose gutters and pipes that would need to be fixed prior to external insulation being installed.
  • Homes in conservation areas – in these cases it was necessary to ensure that actions fitted the planning requirements.
  • The cost of redecoration following works.
  • Compliance with the requests of the occupant – some occupants may pay more for a brick-strip effect.
  • Overall costs – these had increased since the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis.
  • Ensuring the availability of properly trained staff.
• If all retrofitting was completed as desired in the city, 86% of city properties  could be brought up to Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) level C or above, however, the cost of this would be prohibitive.
• In terms of grant schemes since October 2020 – Schemes had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41.

The Director for Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment submits a report reviewing the 2019 Adult Education Service plan and to present the 2022-23 Adult Education self-assessment plan.

The Commission will also be consulted regarding the draft Accountability Agreement, which lays out planning priorities and targets for 2024-25 and will form the basis of the service’s Adult Education Budget contract with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA).

The Director for Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment submitted a report reviewing the 2019 Adult Education Service plan and to present the 2022-23 Adult Education self-assessment plan.

The Commission were also consulted regarding the draft Accountability Agreement, which laid out planning priorities and targets for 2024-25 and would form the basis of the service’s Adult Education Budget contract with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA).

The Assistant City Mayor - Communities, Adult Learning, Jobs and Skills, the Director for Tourism, Culture and Inward Investment and the Head of Adult Education attended the meeting to assist with the discussion.

Key points included:

• The ESFA Accountability Agreement laid out priorities for use of funding for 2024/25.  It was currently in the planning stage, and this was an opportunity for members to learn about the developments and for comments and suggestions that could be incorporated into the Adult Education and Skills Boot Camp programmes for 2024-25.
• An additional £2 million of Skills Bootcamp funding was being applied for.
• Many of the objectives in the plan for 2019-23 had been achieved despite the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
• The Self-Assessment report, as was required by Ofsted, highlighted the impacts post-Covid and had shown good progress with numbers of learners increasing by 28% and achievement by nearly 5%.  New funding was being sought in order to get more funding for the long-term viability of the service.  The Multiply programme had started and grants from Public Health to expand the service had been secured.  Key strengths included a diverse curriculum, the way funding was used, and how additional funding was brought in.  Partnership work was outstanding.  The team were looking to how they could support other departments’ agendas in adult education.
• Areas for improvement included a lower-than-expected attendance, which was partly explained by sickness and learners having conflicting commitments. Another area for improvement was a shortage of tutors.  A trainee tutor programme was under way as part of the Multiply programme, which was working well but was relatively expensive.
• Skills Boot Camps were being trialled.
• The Accountability Agreement that identified priorities was not due until June 2024, but had been brought to the commission well in advance.
• New key points in the Agreement included:
  • The Green Skills Agenda
  • The priorities set out in Leicestershire Learning and Skills Improvement Plan
  • Digital skills
  • The needs of small businesses
  • English as a Second Language (ESOL)
  • Healthy Living and Wellbeing as part of the Anti-Poverty Strategy
• Skills Bootcamps were short intensive courses with a minimum of 60 hours of learning over a maximum of 16 weeks.  These were at Level 3 or above (equivalent to A-Level).
• Slides were presented (attached).

The Committee were invited to ask questions and make comments. Key points included:

• Most funding came from national funding, the Community Learning Grant and Skills Budget Funding with was paid according to results.  Fees made up part of the funding but not the bulk.  Grants were also sought in partnership with other services.
• The Multiply programme provided a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

The Director for Planning, Development and Transportation submits a report providing the Commission with details and context on electric vehicles within Leicester and providing the Commission with information as to the progress on EV uptake and infrastructure delivery within Leicester.

The Director for Planning, Development and Transportation gives a verbal update on progress with informal work to inform the Commission of progress on current informal scrutiny and to help them decide about priorities for upcoming informal scrutiny.

It was noted that two meetings had taken place for the informal scrutiny on 20mph zones and that a final meeting was taking place in January.  Two other informal scrutiny groups had now been proposed, on Electric Vehicle Charging Points and on 24-Hour Bus Lanes.   The Commission were asked to decide the priorities for the next informal scrutiny.

It was further noted that the next informal scrutiny could not take place until the informal scrutiny on 20mph zones was complete.  It was uncertain as to when guidance from the Department of Transport would come through. It was thought that the government may produce guidance on bus lanes in the future, however, there was none at this time.

By way of an update on the 20mph zones informal scrutiny it was reported that the first session considered baseline information on what was currently done and what could be done, the second meeting had looked at representations from other bodies, and the final session in January would consider recommendations to take to formal scrutiny.

AGREED:

That Electric Vehicle Charging be the next topic of informal scrutiny.

The Director for Planning, Development and Transportation gives a verbal update on progress with informal work.

AGREED:

That the presentation on EV Charging be shown at the first informal scrutiny meeting on the topic.

For Members’ consideration, the work programme for the Commission is attached.

The work programme was noted, including the arrangements on informal scrutiny that had been discussed at the meeting.

There being no further items of urgent business, the meeting ended at 19:41.