Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Fonseca.

Members of the Economic Development, Transport and Tourism Scrutiny Commission had been invited to attend the meeting for agenda item 8, “Language and IT Training”.  Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Patel in relation to this.

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

No declarations of interest were made.

The Minutes of the meeting of the Neighbourhood Services and Community Involvement Scrutiny Commission held on 7 December 2017 are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

AGREED:

That the minutes of the meeting of the Neighbourhood Services and Community Involvement Scrutiny Commission held on 7 December 2017 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).

The Chair reported verbally that, where appropriate, all actions agreed at the last meeting of the Commission, (held on 7 December 2017), had been included in the Commission’s work programme.

The Chair reminded Members that he had agreed to take an additional item at this meeting as a matter of urgency, relating to the government’s consultation on the level of future stakes for Fixed Odds Betting Terminals.  This consultation had ended on 23 January 2018, but the department had agreed to receive a representation from this Commission after the deadline.

The Chair also reminded the Commission that a Members’ training session on scrutiny would be held at 5.30 pm on Thursday 8 February 2018.

The Monitoring Officer to report on the receipt of any petitions submitted in accordance with the Council’s procedures.

The Monitoring Officer reported that no petitions had been received.

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.

The Director of Learning Services submits a report detailing how the Adult Skills and Learning Service is helping the increasing adult population from diverse and new communities in Leicester to compete for employment and training opportunities and engage better in local community life,with particular regard to those adults having language difficulties and/or difficulties accessing digital services.  The Commission is recommended to:

a)     note the work being carried out in this area and refer residents to the service when needs are identified; and

b)     identify and inform the service of areas of unmet need, so that, if possible, they can be addressed within the planning of programmes for 2018-19.

Members of the Economic Development, Transport and Tourism Scrutiny Commission have been invited to the meeting to participate in the scrutiny of this item.

The Interim Director of Learning Services submitted a report detailing how the Leicester Adult Skills and Learning Service (LASALS) was helping the adult population from diverse and new communities in the city to compete for employment and training opportunities and engage better in local community life,with particular regard to those adults having language difficulties and/or difficulties accessing digital services.

Members of the Economic Development, Transport and Tourism Scrutiny Commission had been invited to attend the meeting to participate in the scrutiny of this item.  Councillor Kitterick was in attendance in this capacity.  The Chair welcomed him to the meeting.

The Head of Adult Skills and Learning Services introduced the report, explaining that there were long-term low levels of skills in the city, particularly in English and maths, with 62% of residents being qualified at less than Level 2.  One way in which this was being addressed was through LASALS’ work as a key partner in the Leicester to Work theme of the Leicester: Great City Economic Plan (2016-202), its role within this being to address low skill areas.

It was noted that:

·           To make it easier to enrol on courses, weekly drop-in enrolment sessions were held at the Leicester Adult Education College every Thursday.  These had been very successful;

·           Basic level IT skills and IT skills for job searches courses were free, but one barrier to participation in some other courses was recognised as being the cost of course fees and eligibility for assistance with fees.  For example, an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) course could cost approximately £800.  Approximately 60% of ESOL learners received the course free of charge and payment instalment plans were available to those required to pay at least part of the fee;

·           People with irregular working patterns could find it difficult to attend classes, so attendance requirements were as flexible as possible.  For example, some people attended different classes each week;

·           People started the courses with very different skill levels, so the flexibility and funding that could now be offered meant that people could take longer to learn if they needed to;

·           Refugees and asylum seekers could encounter problems obtaining funding for courses, so when funding was not immediately available they attended classes that were already running but had spaces available;

·           The core programme of digital inclusion courses included courses of general interest and those focussed on work-based skills and searching for work on-line;

·           There had been a retention rate of 88% during the previous year on digital inclusion courses and a success rate of 80%.  These figures were in line with national averages;

·           People were required to apply for, and manage, Universal Credit on-line, but many did not have the IT or language skills to do this.  An introduction to Universal Credit course therefore was being developed.  It also was hoped that funding would be available for Universal Credit Champions, who would be based at locations where people could drop-in for advice;

·           Over the last five years, LASALS had been working  ...  view the full minutes text for item 58.

The Director of Finance submits a report setting out the City Mayor’s proposed budget for 2018/18 to 2020/21.  The Commission is recommended to pass any comments to the Overview Select Committee as part of its consideration of the report before it is presented to the Council meeting on 21 February 2018.

The Director of Finance submitted a report setting out the City Mayor’s proposed budget for 2018/19 to 2020/21, noting that a balanced budget was proposed for the next financial year.  This had been achieved by drawing on the last of the Council’s reserves.

The Director of Finance advised the Commission that:

·           Unison trades union had rejected the employers' offer of a 2% increase on employees’ pay for 2018/19. This could have a significant impact on the budget, as allowance for a 1% award had been built in to budget ceilings;

·           A significant pressure on the budget was the continuing reduction in housing benefit administration grant, received from the Department for Work and Pensions.  The number of housing benefit claimants had not fallen, but by 2019/20 the grant received would be less than half that received in 2010/11;

·           Under the government’s welfare reforms, if elderly people were already in receipt of Housing Benefit they would continue to receive it.  However, non-payment of rent was recognised as a risk for the Council, as reduced income to the Housing Revenue Account would affect the Council’s ability to pay for repairs to the housing stock;

·           Government funding for discretionary housing payments continued to be ring-fenced and would reduce over the next few years.  The Council would be advised in March what funding it would receive for these payments over the coming year, but indications were that it would be approximately the same level as the current year;

·           The Supporting Tenants and Residents (STAR) service initially had been included in the recent review of welfare advice services.  However, it was felt that including it in the new social welfare advice contract would not have made that contract attractive to the market, so it was removed.  Instead, an internal review was being undertaken to determine the way forward for this service; and

·           This Commission’s remit included discretionary services and regulatory services for which there was discretion in how they were provided.  Historically, financial savings had been made through cuts to such services and this was likely to continue.

The Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services drew Members’ attention to the large number of actions undertaken through these service budgets.  For example, annually there were approximately 9,000 licensing applications processed, 13 million waste collections, 8,500 fly tips dealt with and 27 community/library buildings operated and maintained.  Despite budget reductions over recent years, good services continued to be provided.  This was evidenced from feedback such as that from waste collection services, which showed high levels of satisfaction with waste collection and waste management.

The Commission noted that a change in law relating to the content of waste processed through the anaerobic digester that the Council used at Wanlip had resulted in significant costs to the Council.  These costs would be reduced by reducing the organic content of sand derivative from the waste processed there from the current level of approximately 15% to below 10%.  Work was underway with Biffa, (the Council’s contractor), to install clarifying equipment that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 59.

To receive an update on spending reviews affecting services within this Commission’s portfolio and not considered elsewhere on the agenda.  Members are recommended to receive the update and comment as appropriate.

Members noted that information on the spending review programme was included at Appendix 8 of the report on the “General Fund Revenue Budget 2018/19 to 2020/21”, (see agenda item 9).

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

AGREED:

1)    That a briefing on knife crime for members of this Commission be given at 5.00 pm on the day of the next meeting of the Commission, (28 March 2018), and that the start time of that meeting be put back to 6.15 pm to accommodate the briefing;

2)    That members of the Children, Young People and Schools Scrutiny Commission be invited to attend the briefing referred to under 1) above; and

3)    That the Scrutiny Policy Officer liaise with the Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services to determine which partners, (for example the Police), should lead the briefing referred to under 1) above.

This report is submitted as an urgent item, as the information on the consultation was not available when the agenda was prepared and the deadline for comments is before the next meeting of the Commission.  In view of the Commission’s previous support of the proposals outlined below, it is considered appropriate that the Commission be given the opportunity to respond to this consultation.

The Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submits a report advising the Scrutiny Commission on Government consultations in respect of changing limits on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs).  The Commission is recommended to:

a)     Respond to the DCMS review by reiterating the Council’s support for the £2 maximum stake limit for B2 machines;

b)     Request the Executive to also reiterate its support for this position;

c)     Inform the Local Government Association and local MPs of this position; and

d)     Maintain under review the DCMS actions relating to gambling and social responsibility, with a future report to scrutiny if appropriate.

With the agreement of the Chair, this report was submitted as an urgent item, as the information on the consultation referred to was not available when the agenda was prepared and the deadline for comments was before the next meeting of the Commission.  In view of the Commission’s previous support of the proposals contained in the consultation, it was considered appropriate that the Commission be given the opportunity to respond to it.

The Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services submitted a report advising the Commission of government consultations in respect of changing limits on Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs).

The Commission thanked Members and officers for the previous work that had been done on this, (minute 85, “Executive Response to Scrutiny Report on the Impact of Gambling on Vulnerable Communities”, 22 March 2017 referred), noting that the national conversation on this had only started after that work had been done.

The Commission welcomed the suggested limit to stakes on FOBTs, but expressed some concern that once someone reached a limit on one machine they were free to move to a different venue and continue to gamble.  This was particularly concerning as betting shops often located near each other.

AGREED:

1)    That the Chair be asked to respond on behalf of this Commission to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport consultation on proposals for limiting the maximum stake on all Fixed Odds Betting Terminals reiterating this Council’s support for restricting the maximum stake on all B2 machines to £2;

2)    That the Executive be asked to support the response agreed under 1) above, thereby reiterating its previous support for this position;

3)    That the Director of Neighbourhood and Environmental Services be asked to inform the Local Government Association and local Members of Parliament of this position; and

4)    That Department for Culture, Media and Sport actions relating to gambling and social responsibility be kept under review and a further report made to this Commission if appropriate.

The meeting closed at 7.09 pm