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Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Town Hall, Katharine Street, Croydon CR0 1NX. View directions

Contact: Marianna Ritchie, Democratic Services  Email: marianna.ritchie@croydon.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

12/21

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 220 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on:

·       16 December 2020;

·       16 December 2020 (2);

·       29 March 2021;

·       4 May 2021;

·       5 July 2021;

·       11 October 2021;

·       11 October 2021 (2);

·       7 March 2022, and;

·       25 May 2022 as an accurate record of the proceedings.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The minutes of the meetings held on:

·        16 December 2020;

·        16 December 2020 (2);

·        29 March 2021;

·        4 May 2021;

·        11 October 2021;

·        11 October 2021 (2);

·        7 March 2022, and;

·        25 May 2022 were agreed as an accurate record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 5 July 2021 were agreed as an accurate record with the following amendment:

The removal of councillors Lara Fish, Amy Foster, and Rowenna Davis from the attendance list as they were not Members of the Council at that meeting.

13/21

Disclosure of Interests

Members and co-opted Members of the Council are reminded that, in accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct and the statutory provisions of the Localism Act, they are required to consider in advance of each meeting whether they have a disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI), another registrable interest (ORI) or a non-registrable interest (NRI) in relation to any matter on the agenda.  If advice is needed, Members should contact the Monitoring Officer in good time before the meeting.  

If any Member or co-opted Member of the Council identifies a DPI or ORI which they have not already registered on the Council’s register of interests or which requires updating, they should complete the disclosure form which can be obtained from Democratic Services at any time, copies of which will be available at the meeting for return to the Monitoring Officer.

 Members and co-opted Members are required to disclose any DPIs and ORIs at the meeting.  

·             Where the matter relates to a DPI they may not participate in any discussion or vote on the matter and must not stay in the meeting unless granted a dispensation.  

·             Where the matter relates to an ORI they may not vote on the matter unless granted a dispensation.   

·             Where a Member or co-opted Member has an NRI which directly relates to their financial interest or wellbeing, or that of a relative or close associate, they must disclose the interest at the meeting, may not take part in any discussion or vote on the matter and must not stay in the meeting unless granted a dispensation.  Where a matter affects the NRI of a Member or co-opted Member, section 9 of Appendix B of the Code of Conduct sets out the test which must be applied by the Member to decide whether disclosure is required.

The Chair will invite Members to make their disclosure orally at the commencement of Agenda item 3, to be recorded in the minutes.

 

Minutes:

There were none.

 

14/21

Urgent Business (if any)

To receive notice of any business not on the agenda which in the opinion of the Chair, by reason of special circumstances, be considered as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There were no items of urgent business.

 

15/21

Announcements

To receive Announcements, if any, from the Civic Mayor, the Executive Mayor, Head of Paid Service and Returning Officer, including appointment of the Monitoring Officer and result of the South Croydon by-election.

Minutes:

The Mayor gave her announcements to the Members of Council by noting the passing of Richard Billington, a former Councillor and honorary alderman who had passed away on the 20 May 2022.

 

The Mayor also noted the passing of Rosemary Bromwich, who was a former mayoress who had passed away on the 20 June 2022.

 

Members paused for a moment of silence.

 

The Mayor informed Council that she had met with the Director of Education, who had supported the Mayor with writing to all of the schools and colleges in Croydon to find out which charities they would like the Council to support.

 

The Mayor stated that she would be meeting to consider the charities that had been proposed to the council and she would provide an update on the name of the chosen charity via email ahead of the next full council meeting.

 

The Mayor also informed Members of the upcoming civic mayoral events:

 

·        The Croydon Carnival Auction on Sunday 31 July 2022

·        Jamaica Independence Day, Charity Fundraising Dinner and Dance on Friday 5 August 2022

·        The Mayor’s Inaugural Dinner (the date was yet to be confirmed)

·        The Charity Golf Day on the 6 October 2022.

The Mayor proposed to reduce the allocated time of a number of the standing items in order to ensure that the Members could conduct all of the necessary business. The Mayor moved to suspend Council procedure rulesin the following ways:

·        At item 9, to suspend council procedure rules (3.59 of Section 4A of the Constitution) to allow the presentation of the report on the South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan.

·        At item 12, the Annual Scrutiny Report, to suspend council procedure rules (3.51 of Section 4A) to limit discussion of this item to 20 minutes.

·        At item 14, Mayor and Cabinet Questions, to suspend council procedure rules (3.29 to 3.32 of Section 4A) to reduce the three pools of Cabinet Members to one pool allocated to the Mayor, who could call upon Cabinet Members individually to support answering questions where necessary.

·        At item 15, Maiden Speeches, to suspend council procedure rules (3.7 of Section 4A) to limit the time allocated to each speech to two minutes.

This motion was seconded by Councillor Creatura.

 

The motion was taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

The Mayor invited the Chief Executive, Katherine Kerswell, to make her announcements.

 

The Chief Executive in her role as the Head of Paid Service asked the Council to note the appointment of Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense as the Monitoring Officer. The Chief Executive thanked Andrew Hunkin for his work as the interim Monitoring Officer.

In her role as Returning Officer the Chief Executive also informed the Council that Danielle Denton had won the South Croydon by-election held on the 30 June 2022, which had brought the total Conservative party membership at the Council to 34 including the Executive Mayor.

 

16/21

Political Balance following by-election pdf icon PDF 103 KB

This report fulfils the Council’s duty to review and determine the representation of different political groups on certain committees following a recent by-election.

Minutes:

The Civic Mayor introduced the item and informed the Members that it had been proposed to appoint Councillor Denton as an additional Member of the Audit and Governance Committee.

 

The Executive Mayor moved the recommendation which also sought to appoint Councillor Sherine Thampi as the reserve Member for the Committee.

 

The motion was seconded by Councillor King.

 

The motion was taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.1        Note that there were now 34 Labour Group Members; 34 Conservative Group Members (including the Executive Mayor); 2 Green Group Members and 1 Liberal Democrat Member.

1.2        Agree the amended size of committees and the allocation of seats on committees in accordance with the principles set out in the report and, in particular, at paragraph 3.16. The amendment increased the size of the Audit and Governance Committee by one seat.

1.3        Appoint Councillor Danielle Denton to the Audit and Governance Committee, and one other Conservative Member as a substitute member, in accordance with the wishes of the Conservative Group.

1.4        Subject to 1.2, authorise the Monitoring Officer to amend the Constitution to reflect the increase in the size of the Audit and Governance Committee.

 

17/21

Appointment of an Independent Panel pdf icon PDF 113 KB

This report seeks Council’s approval to establish an Independent Panel for the statutory purposes explained, to appoint all the Council’s Independent Persons to it and authorise the Monitoring Officer to invite, in accordance with statutory rules, three such Independent Persons to form a Panel from time to time and to amend the Constitution.

 

Minutes:

The Mayor introduced the item and asked Councillor Jason Cummings to introduce the report to the Members.

 

Councillor Jason Cummings informed the Council that the report sought the council’s approval to establish an independent panel which consisted of all of the council’s independent persons and to authorise the Monitoring Officer to invite three independent persons to form a panel when required.

 

Councillor Jason Cummings then went on to state that the Monitoring Officer would need authorisation to include the establishment of the independent panel in the Constitution.

 

The motion was seconded by Councillor Creatura.

 

The motion was taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.     Establish an Independent Panel, comprising three Independent Persons, and approve the terms of reference set out at paragraph 1.10.

2.     Appoint all the Council’s Independent Persons to the Independent Panel and authorise the Monitoring Officer to invite, in accordance with the statutory rules, three such Independent Persons to form a Panel from time to time.

3.     Authorise the Monitoring Officer to include the establishment of the Independent Panel in the Constitution and to make any necessary consequential changes.

 

18/21

Public Questions

The Chair will receive questions from the public gallery in accordance with council procedure rules.

Minutes:

The Mayor informed Members that they had received one question from a member of the public. The Mayor read the question on behalf of the member of the public as they were unable to attend the meeting.

 

The question was from Catherine Bradler.

 

I would like to request a site meeting with Cllr Roche/relevant officers to agree ways for traffic management on Southern Avenue. It has become a notorious rat run to avoid traffic lights at the bottom of South Norwood Hill.

 

·        Cars break the speed limit, drive recklessly along street causing risk to residents. It’s only a matter of time someone is killed.

·        Vibration from heavy vehicles causes structural damage.

Councillors have visited Southern Avenue, they agree the situation is unacceptable and something needs to be done, but no action has happened! Please commit to a site meeting, to discuss ways to this serious safety issue.

 

In his response, the Cabinet Member for Streets and Environment, Councillor Roche stated the following:

 

Thank you for your question, Catherine. I’m sorry to hear about the frustration you and your neighbours have experienced from poor driver behaviour and excessive speeding in your local area. The council, under the previous administration, introduced a temporary healthy neighbourhood scheme enforced by planters in May 2020, which subsequently had to be removed in February 2021, following informal public consultation exercise and decision made by the then Cabinet Member. We, the new administration, are still considering the next steps for the LTN programme. Officers are currently working with neighbouring boroughs, the Greater London Authority, Transport for London and relevant partners but as yet we are not in a position to bring this scheme forward nor are we able to confirm a likely timeframe. I would be happy to arrange a site visit to meet with you and other residents with the relevant officers to discuss potential solutions to the serious safety issues you have described. In the meantime, I have asked officers to contact the Police's Road Safety Engineering Unit and ask for enforcement to be carried out in your local area.”

 

The Mayor confirmed that the response was submitted to the questioner and a resolution had been reached in advance of the meeting.

 

19/21

Recommendations from the Executive Mayor in Cabinet to Council for Decision pdf icon PDF 126 KB

Council will receive the following recommendations from the Executive Mayor in Cabinet and consider the following:

·       Croydon Suburban Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document (SPD2)

·       South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Mayor introduced the item and invited the Executive Mayor to move the first recommendation to council.

 

The Executive Mayor informed Members that removing the Croydon Suburban Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document (SPD2) would represent the start of a reset of the planning policy in Croydon. The Executive Mayor felt as though SPD2 had been used to force inappropriate and unwanted development in the borough and whilst housing demands were a real issue, it was important that this challenge was met with solutions that worked for residents.

 

The Executive Mayor went on to state that he would like to put design and respect of the local character of areas within the borough at the heart of any future planning policy. The Executive Mayor notified Members that in the coming months, he would be looking at what further changes could be made to the local plan.

 

The Executive Mayor moved the recommendations in the report.

 

The Motion was seconded by Councillor Bains.

 

The recommendation was deferred until item 10 on the agenda.

 

The Mayor invited the Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration, Councillor Bains to introduce the second set of recommendations to Council.

 

Councillor Bains stated that the report proposed to provide protection for historical characteristics of the local area and would also enable the Planning Department at the council to be more efficient by providing them with clearer regulations to refer to. Councillor Bains also welcomed further engagement from the community if they felt as though there were any other important historical characteristics which required protection.

 

Councillor Bains moved the recommendations in the report.

 

This was seconded by the Executive Mayor.

 

The recommendations were taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.3        Consider the report at Appendix B and note the Consultation Statement for the South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP) (set out in Appendix 2 of the report at Appendix B), including the list of comments, responses and (where applicable) amendments at Appendix 1 of the report at Appendix B.

1.4        Agree the adoption of the South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP) 2022 (set out in Appendix 2 of the report at Appendix B) as a Supplementary Planning Document in accordance with The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012, particularly regulation 14; and,

1.5        Agree the changes to the South Norwood Conservation Area boundary as described in the report at Appendix B and in the South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP) (set out in Appendix 2 of the report at Appendix B); and,

1.6        Agree the revocation of the South Norwood Conservation Area Appraisal and Management Plan (CAAMP) 2007 (set out in Appendix 3 of the report at Appendix B) in accordance with The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012, particularly regulation 15(3).

1.7        Agree the delegation to the Director of Planning and Sustainable Regeneration, following consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning & Regeneration, in relation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 19/21

20/21

Recommendations deferred for Debate

To debate any of the recommendations from the Executive Mayor to Council for decision.

Minutes:

The Mayor introduced the item and invited Councillor Clark to address the Council in regards to the Croydon Suburban Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document (SPD2).

 

Councillor Clark informed the Council that at the annual Council meeting, Councillor King had made it clear that the opposition would work with the administration to ensure that SPD2 was replaced with new local design guidance that attracted the support of residents across the borough.

 

Councillor Clark stated that there were concerns from the Scrutiny Streets, Environments and Homes Sub Committee about the withdrawal of SPD2 without replacement design guidance being put in place.

 

Councillor Clark also asked Members to consider the equality analysis report, which flagged the risk of the slowing down of the time that the council had to consider Planning applications and with less guidance for applications it may be difficult to determine whether an application was acceptable and for applicants to know what would be deemed as acceptable. Councillor Clark went on to explain that this may result in more applications being taken to appeal which would further delay outcomes.

 

Councillor Clark noted that appeals could prove costly for the Council and that it was important to avoid using taxpayer money to cover legal expenses and that the risk of delays in processing applications effectively may affect housing delivery which would impact the availability of affordable and specialist housing.

 

The Mayor invited Councillor Sutton to address the Council.

 

Councillor Sutton stated that there would need to be a process in place to mitigate and ensure that groups of people with protected characteristics were not negatively impacted by delays to access to affordable or specialist housing because of the revocation of SPD2.

 

Councillor Sutton explained that she would welcome an appropriate design led approach working with communities to have sustainable planning to meet housing targets across the borough. Councillor Sutton was also concerned that the revocation of SPD2 would lead to overcrowding and over intensification in areas that were already congested with development. However, Councillor Sutton did accept that the revocation of SPD2 would mitigate the number of planned developments that would impact green spaces.

 

The Executive Mayor welcomed the commitment of colleagues who supported the proposal to revoke SPD2. The Executive Mayor stated that the council was delivering more than their current housing target and that that there would be a full consultation regarding the replacement supplementary planning document and any issues raised would be taken into account.

 

The Executive Mayor proposed the motion to revoke SPD2.

 

The motion was taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.1        Consider the report at Appendix A and agree the revocation of the Croydon Suburban Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document (SPD2) (set out in Appendix 1 of the report at Appendix A) in accordance with Regulation 15 (2) and (3) of The Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012.

1.2        Note the decision of the Executive Mayor to produce the residential extensions and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20/21

21/21

In-year Appointments pdf icon PDF 80 KB

Council is asked to note that Councillor Mike Bonello has volunteered to step down from his appointment as a Council Trustee to the Church Tenements Charity following notification from the Charity that its membership requirements had changed resulting in the appointment which had been made at the Annual Meeting in May 2022 becoming obsolete.

 

Minutes:

The Mayor introduced the item and informed Members that the Church Tenements Charity, to which Council had appointed three members at the Annual meeting in May, had since reduced its membership requirements from three members to two and Councillor Bonello, who was appointed, had agreed to step down from the outside body.

 

This recommendation was taken to a vote and carried with all Members voting in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.1  Note that Councillor Mike Bonello volunteered to step down from his appointment as a Council Trustee to the Church Tenements Charity following notification from the Charity that its membership requirements had changed resulting in no need for this appointment which had been made at the Annual Meeting in May 2022.

 

22/21

Annual Scrutiny Report pdf icon PDF 78 KB

The Councilis asked to receive and consider the Annual Report presented at the meeting as listed in paragraph four of the report.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Mayor introduced the item and invited Councillor Rowenna Davis to present the report.

 

Councillor Davis thanked the Chairs and Members for their work over the past year, particularly the work on the community safety strategy, the call-ins, the budget, the work on exclusions and the housing improvement plan.

 

Councillor Davis explained that the function of Scrutiny was to hold Members and officers to account and that this was central to the Council’s recovery. Councillor Davis highlighted that the Chief Executive had acknowledged that, in the past, Scrutiny had been abused and this had contributed to the Council’s position in the recent years.

 

Councillor Davis continued by stating that she would like two principles to guide Scrutiny’s work in the year ahead, which were community engagement and impact.

The first principle was community engagement. During the scrutiny on the Housing Repairs contract one pensioner told her his story about a leak in his property which took a while to fix. This was an example of the feedback which Scrutiny would need to create better recommendations.

 

Councillor Davis then explained that the second principle was impact, she stated that she wanted recommendations to be tracked and evaluated.

 

Councillor Davis continued stating that there were two themes for the work programme over the coming year; these were the Council’s finances and the people’s finances. The work programmes for the three sub committees could be found online.

 

Scrutiny Streets, Environment & Homes Sub-Committee would focus on the town centre and the Veolia contract, which would be overseen by Councillor Ben-Hassel.

Scrutiny Children & Young People Sub-Committee would focus on safeguarding and sound finances, which would be overseen by Councillor Richard Chatterjee.

Scrutiny Health & Social Care Sub-Committee would focus on the new integrated care partnership and mental health, which would be overseen by Councillor Sean Fitzsimons.

 

Councillor Nwafor was invited to ask a question and stated that she was pleased to see the increased engagement from Scrutiny to ensure that the voice of the community was kept at the centre of decision making at the Council. Councillor Nwafor then asked what key concerns had been identified regarding the current cost of living crisis and what the main solutions that Councillor Davis would recommend to the Council were.

 

In response to Councillor Nwafor’s question, Councillor Davis stated that Scrutiny had held a community meeting with voluntary groups, food bank leaders, soup kitchen leaders and advice groups to hear what they considered to be the key issues facing the community. Councillor Davis informed the Council that Scrutiny had also had a meeting with officers to hear about the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the Council. The key findings from these meetings were that the issues would concern rent, fuel and energy costs, cost of food, difficulty for residents seeking help from the Council and how hard voluntary groups found it to work with the Council.

 

Councillor Nabukeera was invited to ask a question and asked, in light of the Mayor’s decision not to delegate decision-making powers, what  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22/21

23/21

Use of Special Urgency Procedures for Key Decisions 2021-22 pdf icon PDF 114 KB

To receive the quarterly report which details the cases where Special Urgency has been used during the 2021/22 municipal year.

Minutes:

The Civic Mayor introduced the item and informed the Council that the report noted that Special Urgency Procedures were used in four instances, and that these were related to ensuring the continuity of provision of statutory services to residents, and to reduce costs or the loss of savings to the council.

 

The Chair moved to agree the recommendations in the report.

 

This was seconded by Councillor Creatura.

 

This was taken to a vote and carried with a unanimous vote in favour.

 

RESOLVED, to:

 

1.1.          To note the use of Special Urgency for the key decisions listed at section 3.4 of the report during the 2021/22 municipal year.

 

24/21

Mayor and Cabinet Questions

The Mayor, supported by the Cabinet, will respond to questions from Councillors (80 minutes).

Minutes:

In the Executive Mayors announcements, the Mayor welcomed and congratulated Councillor Denton on her appointment as the Ward Councillor for South Croydon following the recent by-election. The Executive Mayor then informed Council that Croydon had two fires in the recent heatwave resulting in the loss of wildlife; however, there was no loss of life or property and he thanked the emergency services for their efforts.

 

Councillor King asked the Executive Mayor whether he would accept the recommendation in the Opposition motion to develop and publish a comprehensive strategy to support Croydon’s residents and businesses impacted by the cost-of-living crisis.

 

In response, the Executive Mayor stated that the cost-of-living crisis had affected many countries across Europe and the Western world. The Executive Mayor informed Council that the council was currently in a poor financial position; however, it would do everything to support its residents during this difficult time. The Executive Mayor stated that he had written to the Secretary of State about the cost-of-living crisis. The Executive Mayor felt it was important for the council to use the £3 million hardship fund to help those in need, the £1 million of hardship fund for those that fell outside of statutory demands as well as other measures of government funding.

 

Councillor King asked a supplementary question, which queried whether the Mayor’s failure to provide a straight answer was evidence that the he was unable to listen to the residents of the borough. Councillor King also stated that the Mayor was not listening to Croydon on matters such as the livelihood of residents throughout the borough.

 

In response the Executive Mayor stated that the previous Administration had failed to listen to financial advice which led to the poor financial situation that the Council was currently faced with. 

 

Councillor Benson asked the Executive Mayor what the new administration had done to help the council to tackle the grass-cutting situation across the borough.

 

In response, the Executive Mayor stated that he knew that grass cutting was a problem across the borough but particularly in the New Addington ward. The Executive Mayor went on to explain that this was a result of poor financial management by the previous administration. The Executive Mayor informed Council that he was pleased that seasonal staff had been put in place and he stated that every area of grass would be cut and the Council would go back to a regular cutting cycle.

Councillor Benson asked a supplementary question and queried how the Council could manage the frustration throughout the borough regarding the frequency of the grass cutting considering the backlog without putting pressure on already limited services.

 

The Executive Mayor stated that the Council would put extra measures in place to manage the grass cutting. The Executive Mayor went on to explain that weather would have an impact on any proposed schedule for grass cutting and so he preferred a rough guide to a strict timetable. The Executive Mayor invited Councillor Roche to address Councillor Benson, who stated that it  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24/21

25/21

Maiden Speeches

To hear maiden speeches from up to five Councillors newly elected at the election held on 5 May 2022.

Minutes:

Delivering her Maiden Speech, Councillor Denton thanked her predecessor, the Executive Mayor, and commended him for his work in the South Croydon ward. Councillor Denton went on to say that, through her work she had connected with the local businesses, residents, faith organisations and charities and as a founding member of the South Croydon Business Association she had a platform to carry her work forward in collaboration with the Council.

 

Councillor Foster spoke about her experience as a teacher and explained that this experience had taught her about inequality. Councillor Foster stated that during the pandemic inequalities were amplified and the burden placed upon the borough left residents with another crisis. Councillor Foster expressed her desire to build on the legacy of her predecessors and that she wanted to ensure that the opportunities on offer were captured by children and young people within the borough.

 

Councillor Sherine Thampi thanked his predecessor Councillor Steven Hollands. Councillor Sherine Thampi stated that Old Coulsdon was blessed with great heritage sites such as a monument dedicated to the First World War. Councillor Sherine Thampi concluded that he would ensure that residents’ voices were heard within the council.

 

Councillor Herman thanked his predecessors, Councillors Clive Fraser and Patsy Cummings. Councillor Herman stated that residents had asked him to make the Council work for them and he stated that it was his duty to deliver for his residents.

 

Councillor Patel stated that she was honoured to be one of Croydon’s first Green Councillors. Councillor Patel promised to raise the voices of residents within the Council and felt that it was clear that residents wanted change due to the old duopoly being broken up. Councillor Patel concluded by asserting that Members must ensure that the climate emergency was factored into every decision taken by the council.

 

26/21

Council Debate Motions

To debate any motions submitted in accordance with Council Procedure Rules.

 

 

Minutes:

The Executive Mayor read out the first Council Debate Motion:

 

This Council would like to praise its staff for the way they have worked and supported our residents through the Covid pandemic and Croydon Council's financial difficulties. It has been an unprecedented time of disruption and change. Whilst accepting that the process is ongoing and that there are more changes and difficult decisions to come it is right to pause and thank those who in many cases have borne the brunt of the effects of the decisions and failures of others. 

To all Croydon Council's staff. Thank you.”

 

Councillor Hale seconded the motion and reserved her right to speak.

 

Councillor Campbell stated that many officers within the Council were residents of the borough, some of whom faced many issues such as increase in National Insurance contributions, the energy crisis or the reduction in Police services and resulting rise in crime. Councillor Campbell asked whether Members were aware of how many officers were accessing food banks and topping up salaries using universal credit. Councillor Campbell informed Members that a ‘thank you’ did not address the issues that officers faced and advocated for anonymous surveys on how the administration was doing in terms of leadership to improve outcomes.

 

Councillor Ben-Hassel stated that under the previous Head of Paid Service restructures within the Council could have been handled better and she hoped that the new executive team would handle restructures more efficiently. Councillor Ben-Hassel informed Members that as the Chair of the Scrutiny Streets, Environment & Homes Sub-Committee she looked forward to the work force strategy update in September, where she would be able to assess the impact of the pressures placed upon officers. Councillor Ben-Hassel concluded by stating that there was an issue with recruitment and the number of vacant posts which had caused many officers to work under unnecessary pressure.

 

Councillor Hale exercised her right to speak and acknowledged that the Council’s workforce had the terrible financial and leadership issues to contend whilst supporting residents through the Covid pandemic. Councillor Hale accepted that there were numerous issues within the Council which left staff working through backlogs, having to make critical decisions with untrustworthy data and many departments had had several interim appointments at senior and Corporate Director level. Councillor Hale stated that the administration would seek to fix the Council’s finances and that the Cabinet paper, ‘Opening the Books’, which set out plans to deep-dive into the Council finances, would be key to finding a solution to the Council’s financial situation.

 

Councillor Hale seconded the motion.

 

This was put to a vote and carried unanimously.

 

The second debate motion was introduced by Cllr King.

 

“This council is alarmed at the deepening Cost of Living crisis facing residents and businesses in our Borough.

 

This council notes that Croydon's voluntary sector, which works directly with Croydon families in or at the edges of poverty, are reporting desperate increases in demand from residents struggling to meet their rents, pay for fuel and feed their  ...  view the full minutes text for item 26/21