Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Kreling, Simons and JR Fox. Councillor Over and Councillor Serluca attended as substitutes for Councillor Kreling and Councillor Simons.

At this point Members must declare whether they have a disclosable pecuniary interest, or other interest, in any of the items on the agenda, unless it is already entered in the register of members’ interests or is a “pending notification “ that has been disclosed to the Solicitor to the Council.

Members must also declare if they are subject to their party group whip in relation to any items under consideration.

There were no Declarations of Interest.

The minutes of the Strong and Supportive Communities Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 17 March 2013 were approved as an accurate record.

The decision notice for each decision will bear the date on which it is published and will specify that the decision may then be implemented on the expiry of 3 working days after the publication of the decision (not including the date of publication), unless a request for call-in of the decision is received from any two Members of a Scrutiny Committee or Scrutiny Commissions..  If a request for call-in of a decision is received, implementation of the decision remains suspended for consideration by the relevant Scrutiny Committee or Commission.

There were no requests for Call-in to consider

At this point the Chairman requested that the Committee consider item 8 - Review of 2013/13 and Work Programme for 2013/2014 first on the agenda.  The Committee agreed to this request.  Item 8 therefore became item 5 on the agenda.

The Senior Governance Officer introduced the report which provided the Committee with:

·         a review of work undertaken during 2012/13 and recommendations made

·         the terms of reference for the Committee and

·         a draft work programme for 2013/2014 for consideration

The Chairman reminded the Committee that part of the remit of the Committee was to undertake all of the Council’s statutory functions in accordance with Sections 19 & 20 and associated regulations of the Police and Justice Act 2006, relating to scrutiny of crime and disorder matters, including acting as the Council’s Crime and Disorder Committee.  This covered scrutiny of the Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan.  The Chairman suggested that the Committee focus on the three priorities within the Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan over the next three meetings monitoring performance against outcomes. The priorities were:

• Reducing crime
• Tackling anti-social behaviour and hate crime
• Building stronger and more supportive communities

The Chairman also suggested that as Vivacity had now been in place for three years that the Committee look at whether it was providing value for money. 

The Chairman informed Members that the Council needed to deliver a Cultural Strategy for the next five years which needed to be drafted and implemented during 2013.  The Committee would therefore need to scrutinise this as part of its remit.

Members also requested that the City Centre Business Plan be brought before the Committee at the meeting in July.

ACTION AGREED

The Committee agreed that the Senior Governance Officer work with the Chair and Group Representatives to manage the work programme of the Committee and programme in the requested items.

The Housing Needs Manager introduced the report which provided the Committee with the Draft Homelessness Review and Draft Homelessness Strategy 2013-2018.  This was being presented to the Committee for final sign off before being presented to Cabinet and Full Council for adoption.  Also in attendance was the Assistant Housing Needs Manager and Strategic Housing Manager.  The Draft Homelessness Strategy had previously been presented to the Committee at its meeting on 7 March 2013 for comment.  The proposed draft Strategy took the form of an action plan which would be monitored on a quarterly basis throughout the life of the plan.  There were four strategic aims of the strategy:

·         Strategic Aim 1 – Preventing and relieving homelessness through a robust partnership approach

·         Strategic Aim 2 - Increasing access to safe, warm, healthy and affordable accommodation

·         Strategic Aim 3 – Reduce and prevent rough sleeping

·         Strategic Aim 4 – Promoting settled lifestyles and sustainable communities

The committee was asked to:

1.      Note the findings of the Homelessness Review

2.      Comment on and agree on the strategic objectives set out in the Homelessness Strategy 2013 – 2018 and approve the Draft Homelessness Strategy

3.      Approve the draft strategy to be taken forward to Cabinet and Full Council for adoption 

Observations and questions were raised around the following areas:

·         Members were concerned that the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea were actively seeking land for accommodation for their homeless population in Peterborough. The Executive Director of Operations informed Members that Peterborough City Council was not currently in negotiations with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and that there were no intentions to do so at this stage.

·         Was the Director aware of any other Authorities wanting to acquire land in Peterborough to facilitate the type of arrangements that had recently been detailed in the Press?  The Executive Director of Operations was unaware of any other Authorities having approached Peterborough City Council to acquire land.  Members were advised that any other Authority would be entitled to buy land and build houses in Peterborough if they so wished.

·         Were officers aware of any residents who have come from London and taken up residence in the private rented sector in Peterborough?  The  Housing Needs Manager informed Members that following the introduction of the Localism Act in 2011 there were new powers handed down to Authorities to discharge their homelessness duties by making an offer of suitable accommodation within the private sector.  This gave Local Authorities freedom to procure accommodation outside of their district.  There were many London Boroughs who had looked for accommodation across the country.  Local Authorities were free to contact private letting agents across the country.

·         Members were concerned that people coming from London and taking up accommodation in the private sector would impact on the availability of accommodation for Peterborough residents.  Was this being monitored?  Members were advised that it was not a requirement for London Boroughs to inform Peterborough City Council when they placed people with private landlords. This would therefore be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Social Inclusion Manager introduced the report which informed the Committee of the impact of Welfare Reform and the work being undertaken through the Peterborough Community Assistance Scheme to tackle poverty and destitution.  Also in attendance were representatives from the Citizens Advice Bureau, Department of Work and Pensions and Peterborough Food Bank / Care Zone.  A presentation was given which provided context and information on the impact of Welfare Reform.   Highlights included:

Main Changes:

·         Council Tax benefit – replaced by local Council Tax Support Scheme

c.8,000 households now paying Council Tax for the first time

·         Under Occupancy rules

1,737 households affected (1,414 by one bedroom, 323 by two bedrooms or more)

·         Social Fund & Community Care Grants

£1.2m of cash support (grants and loans) removed BUT replaced with Local Welfare Provision

·         Benefit cap – pilot underway in four London boroughs

£500pw for families

£350pw for single people

Expected in Peterborough from July 2013 affecting c.200 households

·         Universal Credit – to replace Income Support, Income based Jobseekers Allowance, Income related Employment Support Allowance, Tax Credits and Housing Benefit

Expected in Peterborough early 2014

·         Disability Living Allowance – replaced by Personal Independence Payments for new claimants (October 2015 for existing claims)

·         Employment Support Allowance (incapacity benefit/income support)

Claims for those able to work limited to 1 year only

Financial Impact on Peterborough:

Benefit cap                                                      £0.86m

Personal Independence Payments                £4.03m

Incapacity Benefit element of ESA                 £5.00m

ESA migration                                                 £7.34m

ESA time limit                                                  £1.80m

Social Fund/Community Care Grants                        £0.46m

Income Support for lone parents                    £0.42m

Tax Credit changes for working people         £0.10m

Under-occupancy                                           £1.16m

Bedroom Standards                                        £1.03m

Council Tax                                                     £2.40m

Carers affected by DLA claimants                 £1.60m

                                                                        £26.20m

Unintended consequences: 

•          High Street economy

•          Rent arrears/increased evictions

•          Overcrowding

•          Increased temporary accommodation costs

•          Increased social care costs

•          Acquisitive crime and shoplifting

•          Domestic abuse

•          Loan sharks

•          Substance misuse

•          Mental health

•          Fuel poverty

Peterborough Community Assistance Scheme (PCAS) which provides critical, short term support for those facing unexpected emergencies and links eligible people to longer term support and assistance provided by a network of partner agencies.

Each representative from the Citizens Advice Bureau, Department of Work and Pensions and Peterborough Food Bank / Care Zone who were in attendance addressed the Committee and gave examples of how their organisation was assisting people in need through the PCAS scheme.

Observations and questions were raised around the following areas:

·         What is being done to educate people regarding the changes in council tax and other benefits particularly those people with low literacy levels who previously did not have to pay council tax.   Members were informed that work had been carried out over the last year with organisations across Peterborough who assist vulnerable customers including those with learning disability, mental health, adult social care, children and connecting families to teach them about all the changes in benefits.

·         What percentage of people ask for help when it is too late?  Members were advised that there would always be a percentage of people who  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Safer and Stronger Peterborough Strategic Manager presented the report which provided the Committee with the 2013 revision of the Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan (2011-2014) prior to being presented to Cabinet.   Members were reminded of the background to the Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan.  The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 required that a Community Safety Partnership was formed in each local authority area within England and Wales. Community Safety Partnership’s bring together agencies that were responsible for tacking crime and disorder in the local area. 

The Crime and Disorder Act specified ‘responsible authorities’; in Peterborough those were Peterborough City Council, Cambridgeshire Constabulary, NHS Peterborough (now replaced by the Clinical Commissioning Groups), Cambridgeshire Fire Authority, and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Probation Trust.  These responsible authorities also invite other agencies who are able to contribute to the work to co-operate and Cross Keys Homes (representing Registered Social Landlords in the City) was one of these organisations.  Other agencies, particularly from the voluntary and community sector were also invited to participate in the work of the Partnership.  At present these organisations are PCVS, Peterborough Racial Equality Council, HMP Peterborough, The One Service, and the City’s Director of Public Health.  Other voluntary groups are represented on other partnership groups.

The Safer Peterborough Partnership was one of the partnerships that form the Greater Peterborough Partnership.

Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 places a legal responsibility upon designated authorities to consider the community safety implications of their actions.  The Committees role as the designated Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Committee was to review and scrutinise the decisions of all the responsible authorities that form the Safer Peterborough Partnership which was the statutory Community Safety Partnership.  The Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan was in its third year and reported and recorded crime had continued to fall until last year when it reached a plateau.  Efforts to reduce crime were therefore being refocused.  Joint working across the partnership had been important in reducing crime.

Observations and questions were raised around the following areas:

·         Neighbourhood Committees were no longer in existence and Members wanted to know what impact this had had on the work of the Safer Peterborough Partnership.  Members were advised that it was too early to comment. The Safer and Stronger Peterborough Strategic Manager  assured Members that the  Neighbourhood Management Team which was located along side the Neighbourhood Enforcement Team, Housing Team and Public Health Team worked closely together under the leadership of the Head of Neighbourhoods and this would mitigate the impact of no longer having the Neighbourhood Committees.

·         Members noted that the Safer Peterborough Partnership Plan review document had not accounted for the fact that Neighbourhood Committees no longer existed.  Great emphasis had been put on the establishment of the Neighbourhood Committees previously and the work they had done but there had been no mention of how this gap would now be filled.  Members were advised that the Neighbourhood Delivery Team and Neighbourhood Panel meetings were being revised in the way they worked to accommodate Neighbourhood  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

The Committee received the latest version of the Council’s Notice of Intention to take Key Decisions, containing key decisions that the Leader of the Council anticipated the Cabinet or individual Cabinet Members would make during the course of the following four months.  Members were invited to comment on the Plan and, where appropriate, identify any relevant areas for inclusion in the Committee’s work programme.

The Committee noted the Notice of Intention to take Key Decisions.

The Chairman noted that the decision  regarding the Expansion of Gladstone Primary School onto the site of the Gladstone Community Centre – KEY/18APR13/02 had not included the Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods as one of the decision makers and felt that he should be included as it affected a local community.

ACTION AGREED

The Senior Governance Officer to request a briefing note on the impact to the Gladstone Community Centre of the Expansion of Gladstone Primary School.

24 July 2013

Wednesday, 24 July 2013