Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillor Govind, and Deputy City Mayor Councillor Russell.

Members are asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed.

Members were asked to disclose any pecuniary or other interests they may have in the business on the agenda.

With regards to agenda items, Councillor Westley declared that some of his family Members were tenants of private landlords.

In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct, these interests were not considered so significant that they were likely to prejudice the Councillor’s judgement of the public interest. The Member was not, therefore, required to withdraw from the meeting.

The Chair announced that, as Members were aware, he had previously invited the Vice-Chancellors of the University of Leicester and De Montfort University to attend Overview Select Committee to outline their strategic vision and sustainability plans. To date, neither had confirmed to join the meeting, though the Chair had arranged to meet officers from both universities later on in the week.  

The Chair would discuss with the universities the continued desire of the Overview Select Committee for the universities to engage with the Committee, and hoped they would be able to in the near future.

The minutes of the meeting of the Overview Select Committee held on 16 September 2021 are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

Councillor Porter noted from the minutes of the Committee meeting held on 27^th July that the Police and Crime Commissioner would be invited to a meeting of the Committee. The Chair noted the Police and Crime Commissioner would be invited to the meeting scheduled on 24^th March 2022.

AGREED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 16^th September 2021 be confirmed as a correct record.

To note progress on actions agreed at the previous meeting and not reported elsewhere on the agenda (if any).

Members received a full set of updates, appended to the minutes for information.

Councillor Porter had requested update figures around the number of voids of council housing, after having previously been reported at the Housing Scrutiny Commission in February 2021 that there were 500 empty houses, which meant the Council had lost over a £1m in rent.

Chris Burgin, Director of Housing, reported there was an inclusion in the Progress on Actions which reported the position statement that the number of voids in the Leicester City Council housing stock currently stood at 299, which represented a significant (40%) reduction from the 495 void properties held during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2021. It was noted Housing normally operated at about 250 void properties, and was heading back towards the level where it needed to be. Linked also was a question on Council Tax loss and the response included properties had remained void for longer than expected due to the pandemic, and the council had been robustly acquiring additional properties which had taken a while to come online.

The Director of Housing further noted that as part of the Manifesto Commitment by the end of 2021 Housing would have delivered 1,250 properties to the housing which would have added to additional void levels, as well as the delay in the demolition of Goscote House which would have added to Council Tax loss, the eligibility of which would be removed in early 2022 once works commenced on the building.

The Chair noted the information on the actions arising.

The Monitoring Officer to report on the receipt of any questions, representations and statements of case submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures.

The Monitoring Officer reported that no questions, representations or statements of case had been received in accordance with Council procedures.

The Monitoring Officer to report on any petitions received.

The Monitoring Officer reported that no petitions had been received.

The Monitoring Officer submits a report that updates Members on the monitoring of outstanding petitions. The Committee is asked to note the current outstanding petitions and agree to remove those petitions marked ‘Petitions Process Complete’ from the report.

The Monitoring Officer submitted a report which provided an update on the status of outstanding petitions against the Council’s target of providing a formal response within three months of being referred to the Divisional Director.

AGREED:

That the status of the outstanding petitions be noted, and to remove those petitions marked “Petition Complete”  Ref: 21/02/01, 21/04/02, 21/07/01 and 21/07/02 be removed from the report.

The Director of Public Health will provide a general update.

Rob Howard, Consultant in Public Health (Medicine), was present at the meeting to provide an overview of the latest picture of ward trends, including Covid-19 infection rates and vaccinations. During presentation of the information, the following points were noted:

·         Overall in terms of rates of infections, things were looking good. Since the summer Leicester had lower rates than national rates, but rates had started to go up slightly over the past few weeks as national rates had reduced, which had caused concern, particularly the rate in the over 60s.

·         But the last week up to 4^th November had seen a significant drop, and were currently at 297 per 100k per week, compared to the national rate of 372. The rate in the over 60s had come down significantly over the past week, and there were continued low rates in the 17-21 age bracket and secondary school children.

·         The number of people being admitted to hospital was fairly steady with 39 residents admitted in the week up to 5 November 2021 having testing positive for Covid-19. The number of deaths was tragic but relatively small numbers, with 5 people dying week ending 29 October 2021.

·         Highest rates of infection were in Hamilton, Abbey, Rushey Mead and Beaumont Leys wards, although not hugely higher than other ward areas.

·         Overall in terms of age groups, highest rates were in secondary school age children, and the second highest rates in the 30-44 year old group, possibly the parents of the children, which had been a pattern seen over the pandemic, particularly in multi-generational households.

·         In older people, the rates were coming down slightly, with a few cases in care homes but relatively figures currently.

·         The highest rates for over 60s for the week were in Rushey Mead, Latimer South and Beaumont Leys.

·         In terms of vaccination rates compared to statistical neighbours, overall the city was doing OK, but was not seeing the right sort of rates for school age programme, and the rates for the third vaccination (booster) were also low.

·         Of particular concern were care home rates which should be priority for the CCG responsible for the programme, and was really chasing for information, and working with the City Mayor and Directors to put the pressure on to get the booster rates up, particularly into the care homes.

The City Mayor stated that he, the Consultant in Public Health (Medicine) and officers would meet with NHS colleagues on 12November 2021 to press for the concerted effort to ensure that boosters were taken up, children vaccinated, and care homes for the elderly were prioritised. There is clearly some work to be done but was a shared effort.

Members were given the opportunity to ask questions, and the following information was provided:

·         For the 12-15 secondary school age vaccination programme, this was an age group that officers had been putting a lot of pressure on and numbers had improved, however, the uptake across the age range was very low at 16.5%, compared to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 45.

The Strategic Director (City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Capital Programmes) and Director of Housing submit a report to the Overview Select Committee, which provides a strategic update on the Home Office Bridging Hotel and the Leicester City Council offer to re-settle 10 Afghan families within the city.

Members are recommended to note the report and provide any comments to the Strategic Director (City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Capital Programmes) and Director of Housing.

The Strategic Director (City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Capital Programmes) and Director of Housing submitted a report to the Overview Select Committee, which provided a strategic update on the Home Office Bridging Hotel and the Leicester City Council offer to re-settle 10 Afghan families within the city.

The City Mayor introduced the report, noting the city continued to provide full support to those individuals based in the Home Office bridging hotel. He reported that wrap around support had begun on the 4October 2021, with the STAR AMAL team providing a very wide range of support, such as, getting children in the hotel into school, GP access, ESOL learning where required, and engaging with charities on service provision.

The meeting was informed the Council had also been advocating with the Home Office for individuals. Currently there were 16 families (74 individuals) in the hotel, but was a changing picture as people moved in and out of the hotel, sometimes into permanent accommodation. Feedback had been good from those families who had thanked STAR AMAL during their time Leicester.

The Council will offer 10 properties to those from Afghanistan and were expecting the first family to take up that long-term accommodation in Leicester at the end of November 2021.

It was further reported that Home Office personnel were now regularly in the hotel so they could address families’ issues directly, and as a result, families felt they were being listened to. The Council were pushing the Home Office for clarity on a number of things, such as the impact of employment and local placement of families.

The City Mayor said that as the scheme began to evolve, behind the Council’s approach was a commitment to welcome and support where it was able to those seeking refuge, whether hotel or long-term accommodation, and that there was a determination to do all it could to help.

Members welcomed the update from the City Mayor, and the report which would be taken to Housing Scrutiny Commission. It was asked if it was known how long the Home Office would be in the city. The City Mayor noted the bridging hotel would be in place for some time to come as there were a significant number of people who would require long-term placements. He added that at this point it was difficult to assess a timeframe but would want to do all that was necessary longer term to provide support.

The Chair said the care in which the City through the City Mayor and Officers had shown towards those people who had found themselves in that position through no fault of their own was impressive, and there was a lot of work to be done. The Chair looked forward to further reports at future meetings and added would remain on the Overview Select Committee workplan as a standing item.

AGREED:

1.    That the report be noted.

The Strategic Director City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Director of Housing, and Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submits a report to the Overview Select Committee, the purpose of which is to brief Members on strategic plans for undertaking work within Leicester city’s private rented sector.

Members of the Overview Select Committee are recommended to note the content of the report and provide and comment and/or feedback.

The Strategic Director City Development and Neighbourhood Services, Director of Housing and Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submitted a to the Overview Select Committee, the purpose of which was to brief Members on strategic plans for undertaking work within Leicester City’s Private Rented Sector (PRS). The Committee was recommended to note the content of the report and provide any comments and feedback to the Directors submitting the report and/or Executive.

Councillor Cutkelvin, Assistant City Mayor for Education and Housing, introduced the report. It was noted the city had not had the equivalent of a PRS strategy before, and that historically the Housing section had rightly focussed on the Housing Revenue Account and council housing stock.

It was reported the document as presented was a first attempt at developing the strategy and was a live document which, following the Overview Select Committee meeting would be shared with other partners in the sector and tenants and residents to garner their opinion on what the paper contained.

Members were informed the paper had been written in recognition that the PRS had doubled in size over the past 20 years, and that council house ownership was down to 15% (previously 36% in 1981). The Council was also aware that the demographics of those who rented properties had dramatically changed with more families reliant on the PRS.

It was further reported that 74% in the PRS had no savings, and that 28% living in the city in the PRS were claiming Housing Benefit and Universal Credit. The housing section was having to rely more than ever on the PRS for some of the most vulnerable residents in the city, so needed to develop meaningful relationships and reform the sector to both support residents, and challenge standards, as insecure tenancies, no fault evictions, disrepair and crisis in conditions had an inevitable impact on mental health and wellbeing.

Councillor Cutkelvin stated that a decent affordable house should be a basic human right and the authority needed to do all it could to protect standards, and to support vulnerable tenants moving forward. She added that the paper demonstrated a meeting of minds between the Planning, Housing and Enforcement sections in how to support a healthy PRS economy.

The Strategic Director for City Development and Neighbourhood Services continued to present the report, which read across a number of areas of the council. It was noted an enormous amount of work had gone into the strategy  and brought together holistically tools to enable the Council to engage with the PRS, to support tenants, to support landlords, and to have those key strands of work in one place.

It was reported that officers had also looked at the options around taking forward the PRS in the city including what had been learnt from research with other cities, and it was recognised as best in practice approach. The document also discussed the adoption of a licensing scheme which had been included as a separate report on the meeting’s agenda.

The Director  ...  view the full minutes text for item 47.

The Strategic Director City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Director of Housing, and Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submits a report to the Overview Select Committee, the purpose of which is to brief Members on Licensing in the Private Rented Sector and share the key considerations with respect to the Council’s existing Mandatory Private Rented Sector Licensing scheme, and the plans to potentially introduce a Discretionary Licensing Scheme in the City (Additional Licensing and/or Selective Licensing).

The views of the Overview Select Committee are sought on the proposals including suggested next steps.

The Strategic Director (City Development & Neighbourhood Services, Capital Programmes), Director of Housing and Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submitted a report to the Overview Select Committee, the purpose of which was to brief Members on Licensing in the Private Rented Sector and shared the key considerations with respect to the Council’s existing Mandatory Private Rental Sector Licensing scheme, and the plans to potentially introduce a Discretionary Licensing Scheme in the City (Additional Licensing and/or Selective Licensing). The views of the Committee were sought on the proposals including suggesting next steps.

Councillor Cutkelvin, Assistant City Mayor for Education and Housing, introduced the report, noting the importance of working with the PRS to get the right standards for residents. It was reported informal consultation was undertaken in 2019 on selective licensing, which led to a Labour Manifesto pledge to introduce more licensing in the PRS in the city. Whilst undertaking that work it had become apparent that there needed to be a Strategy for the sector to drive up standards, with steps on how the authority could do this.

The Assistant City Mayor noted the report included links to the MHCLG website which well documented the positive impact that discretionary licensing could have on the sector. In particular, a proactive inspection process increased meaningful dialogue with landlords, and immediately improved safety standards. Also noted was the contribution that discretionary licensing made to economic resilience in the community by using licensing along with existing enforcement powers.

The Assistant City Mayor reported that in doing the work, it was recognised that it would not be a “fix” for all problems faced within the private rented sector. The authority would have to choose what the key problems were and where its focus should be in the coming months and years, to raise standards in the sector and benefit vulnerable tenants.

The Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services delivered a presentation which summarised the reports contents as an overview for the Committee and is attached to the minutes for information. Points noted during its delivery were:

·         The ambition for the Council was to ensure the PRS provided good homes and were places of safety for the most vulnerable.

·         PRS accommodation in Leicester was at 35%. The National average was 19%. A large portion of the wards had a percentage of PRS properties, which predicted 49,501 PRS stock.

·         A Housing Conditions Report stated there were 9,649 HMOs in the city.

·         The percentage of private rented stock was mapped and showed predominance in Fosse, Westcotes and Castle.

·         Also, HMOs showed predominance in Westcotes, Fosse, Castle and Stoneygate.

·         A map of the city showing concentrations of complaints and issues relating to properties in the PRS such as poor housing conditions, challenges around safety, damp and electrical issues. Other issues included anti-social behaviour, which showed high concentrations of complaints in Westcotes, Fosse, Braunstone Park and Rowley Fields and Stoneygate.

·         Three years of case data from 2017 to 2020 was analysed for complaints and issues relating to housing conditions and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

The Director of Housing submits a report which provides a six-monthly update to Overview Select Committee Members on progress of implementing Leicester’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2018-2023 at the request of the Chair of the Housing Scrutiny Commission.

The Director of Housing submitted a report which provided a six-monthly update to the Committee on the progress of implementing Leicester’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy 2018-2023 at the request of the Chair of the Housing Scrutiny Commission, and a minute extract from the Housing Scrutiny Commission meeting on 4^th October 2021 was attached at Appendix A to the report.

Councillor Cutkelvin, Assistant City Mayor for Education and Housing, introduced the report. She said that it was an important reminder that rough sleeping was the tip of the iceberg when talking about homelessness. The report demonstrated how much homelessness prevention work was vital in the city, and talked to strategic aims around increasing the levels of council homes in the city through building and acquisitions. It also talked to strategic aims around good tenancy sustainment services and good partnership working, with the NHS, Police, VCS, and business.

The Assistant City Mayor stated she had inherited strong partnership working in the homelessness sector, which continued to be recognised on a national level. The challenges faced over the past couple of years namely because of the pandemic had really put pressure on the service, and had had to re-design the service delivery through the loss of dormitories, the loss of day centres, the ‘Everybody In’ scheme which was continued in the city longer than other authorities in recognition of Leicester’s continued lock-downs, the emergence of sofa-surfers who had been managing their homelessness through friends and family which was something that they could no longer rely on given the spread of the virus.

The Assistant City Mayor was immensely impressed with officer and partners who had risen to the challenge and levels of resilience they had shown. Pressures continued to build, but it was a good time to bring the Strategy to the Committee in recognition of the good work and resilience shown.

Councillor Westley, Chair of the Housing Scrutiny Commission, was pleased to have referred the report to the Committee, as it was important to recognise success in dealing with cases of homelessness and rough sleeping, and it was clear that staff had done an excellent job under challenging circumstances. He congratulated the Assistant City Mayor for Education and Housing, the Director of Housing, and all staff involved in achieving very good progress over the past six months.

He added it was important for all Chairs of all Commissions to examine the report given that it had been a while since a report on homelessness and rough sleeping had been brought to the Committee, and the implications it had across various service and departments across the authority, and it was known that tackling the route cause of homelessness could only be done in conjunction with all service areas and partners.

The Chair of Housing Scrutiny Commission said Leicester should be really proud of how the authority had managed the important issue of homelessness, which had cross-departmental implications, such as health.

The Chair commented on the report as it highlighted an issue,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 49.

The Director of Delivery, Communications and Political Governance, and the Chair of the Overview Select Committee submit the Scrutiny Annual Report which covers the 2019 – 2021 Municipal Years. Members are recommended to note the report and make any comments prior to submission to full Council on 26^th November, to the Director or Chair as necessary.

Councillor Cassidy, Chair of the Overview Select Committee presented the draft Scrutiny Annual Report for 2019-21 which summarised activity of each of the Scrutiny Commissions.

The Chair noted the report was usually compiled annually, but no report had been completed for 2019/20 due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The Chair further noted that it had been a difficult period for the Council and the people of Leicester. It was reported that scrutiny had looked carefully at the work undertaken in response to the pandemic and the report included a summary of activity during the period.

The Chair added the report focussed a lot on the pandemic but had not ignored other important work. Given that further scrutiny reviews were continuing, as Chair of Overview Select Committee, he felt that that scrutiny was in good hands in terms of officers working with Members in a positive way, and he hoped the report showed how scrutiny had served as a critical friend to the Executive.

The Chair recommended that the report be presented to the meeting of Full Council on 25 November 2021. This was seconded by Councillor Joel.

AGREED:

That the draft Scrutiny Annual Report for 2019-2021 and the Chair’s comments be noted and forwarded to the meeting of Full Council on 25 November 2021.

The City Mayor will answer questions raised by members of the Overview Select Committee on issues not covered elsewhere on the agenda.

1.    Question from the Chair, Councillor Cassidy:

‘In light of the Government’s withdrawal of the £20 weekly universal credit uplift, what impact are we likely to see this have upon our most vulnerable residents and families in Leicester? And what else can we do to try and support those most severely affected by this withdrawal?’

The City Mayor stated in response that the impact of this would be harsh and significant for families, and whilst the authority could do things to mitigate the impact this alone would not be enough. It was noted that in October, the Government had withdrawn the uplift to the personal allowance element of UC which had been in place from March 2020.

The City Mayor had asked officers to try and assess the numbers involved, and had been provided with the following information:

·         48,000 households across the city were affected, comprising of 35,000 UC households and a further 13,000 household receiving Working Tax Credit.

·         Each of those households faced the prospect of losing over £1,000 a year, and the loss of income would be devastating.

·         It was recognised that 5% of benefit recipients (over 2,000 households) would not be able to meet essential costs, and this included many families with children affected.

·         It was suggested in looking at the national impact that a further 10% who were already unable to make ends meet would be pushed deeper into poverty. This equated to a further 4,500 households in Leicester and affected many people.

·         The cuts in benefits were against a backdrop of rising inflation, a rise in energy bills and food costs, and while those figures were significant for those experiencing poverty, those bills would be a higher proportion of income and severe impact would be felt.

·         The Council was seeking to provide additional funding, to help with discretionary housing payments to take the total funding up to £1.8million, increasing council tax relief by taking funds to £1million, and awarding grant funds of around £500k.

·         The context of scale and loss meant there was a need out there that could not be met.

·         In addition the Council was to communication to people information about where they could look for help from the Council and others. A message would be sent to people struggling to pay Council Tax to consider make alternative arrangements.

·         Discretionary relief would be focused where it would be of most help. Over 700 households had already been helped, over 500 of which were households in receipt of UC.

·         It was believed that by the end of September 2021, 30% of households claiming UC experienced significant debts, which ran the risk of being exacerbated with the increased loss of the uplift payment.

·         The Council was looking to use the £3.4million Household Support Fund to help households meet higher fuel and food bills, and would be particularly targeted at those households in most need.

·         Also, the Council was seeking to provide debt advice to people, and an additional two Debt Advisers had been invested in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 51.

The current work programme for the Committee is attached.  The Committee is asked to consider this and make comments and/or amendments as it considers necessary.

The work programme for the Committee was noted.

The Scrutiny Support Manager, in consultation with the Chair, would look at the allocation of the reports for future planned meetings.

There being no other items of urgent business, the meeting closed at 8.22pm.