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Agenda and minutes

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

Contact: Simon Trevaskis  Email: simon.trevaskis@croydon.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

35/23

Minutes of the Previous Meetings pdf icon PDF 96 KB

To approve the minutes of the meetings held on 17th and 22 May 2023 as an accurate record.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The minutes of the meetings held on 16 and 22 May 2023 were agreed as an accurate record.

 

36/23

Disclosure of Interests

Members are invited to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) and other registrable and non-registrable interests they may have in relation to any item(s) of business on today’s agenda.

Minutes:

There were no disclosures of interest made at the meeting.

 

37/23

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 for the consideration of the Scrutiny & Overview Committee at this meeting.

 

38/23

Executive Mayor Update to Scrutiny & Overview Committee pdf icon PDF 78 KB

The Scrutiny and Overview Committee is asked to receive and review the update provided by the Executive Mayor.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report on pages 21 to 52 of the agenda which provided an update from the Executive Mayor on the key achievements from his first year in office and his priorities for the year ahead. An update from the Mayor was included within the Committee’s work programme for the first meeting of each new municipal year to provide the Committee with the opportunity to scrutinise the Mayor’s record in the preceding year and his priorities for the year ahead.

In addition to Executive Mayor Perry, the Council’s Chief Executive, Katherine Kerswell, Corporate Director for Resources, Jane West and Assistant Chief Executive, Elaine Jackson were also in attendance at the meeting.

The Executive Mayor introduced the report, highlighted his pride at being the first elected Mayor in the history of Croydon and reconfirmed his commitment to delivering his election pledges and restoring pride in the borough. There was a need for significant change within the Council to address the long-term issues to ensure that the Council was financial sustainable. The Mayor’s Business Plan had been agreed at the end of 2022 which set out the commitment to delivering the Mayor’s manifesto pledges, with the Council’s financial sustainability being a key driver. Listening to residents would also continue to be a priority for the Mayor as the Council continued to reshape its services to become a more sustainable authority.

The Chief Executive advised that the Corporate Management Team (CMT) had also reviewed delivery over the past year, which had revealed positive signs that the culture of the Council was moving forward and the way the Council worked was improving. Improvements such as the new telephony system were having a positive impact by making it easier for residents to get in contact with the Council. Work continued on the Council’s improvement journey with a range of transformation programmes due to be launched in 2023-24. This transformation work would require ongoing work to ensure that staff were onboard with delivery and able to manage their business as usual roles.

The first question put to the Mayor asked whether his manifesto pledges would need to be revised in light of the government’s intervention at the Council, through the Improvement & Assurance Panel, and the findings from the ‘Opening the Books’ review. In response, the Mayor highlighted that the pledges had been created within the context of the Council’s financial situation and did not require significant additional spending to deliver. As such the manifesto commitments remained in place and the Administration remained committed to delivering these for residents. A key priority for the Mayor had been to gain a thorough understanding of the Council’s finances which was why the ‘Opening the Books’ exercise had been commissioned, leading to the discovery of a number of legacy issues. The relationship with the Improvement and Assurance Panel was very much business as usual, with the finer detail of the Panel’s role expected to be clarified by the Government imminently.

In response to a requested update on the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38/23

39/23

Improvement & Assurance Panel

To receive a verbal update from the Croydon Council Chief Executive, Katherine Kerswell, and the Chair of the Improvement & Assurance Panel, Tony McArdle.

Minutes:

This item was deferred to the next meeting of the Committee scheduled for 25 July 2023.

 

40/23

Scrutiny Work Programme 2023-24, including the re-establishment of the Homes Sub-Committee pdf icon PDF 118 KB

The Scrutiny & Overview Committee is asked to:

1.     Agree the underlying principles to guide the work of the Council’s Scrutiny function in the forthcoming year.

2.     Agree that the remit of the Streets, Environment & Homes Sub-Committee will be divided through the formation of a separate Homes Sub-Committee until the end of 2024-25 municipal year.

3.     Agree that the terms of reference agreed for both the Streets & Environment and the Homes Sub-Committees in October 2022, as outlined in section 5, remain valid and are agreed.

4.     Agree to waive the requirement for the seats on the Sub-Committees to be allocated in line with the overall political balance of the Council.

5.     Agree the appointments (including regular and reserve members and chairs and vice-chairs) to the Sub-Committees as set out in Appendix 1.

6.     Note that Sub-Committee arrangements will revert to three sub-committees (Children & Young People, Health & Social Care and Streets, Environment & Homes) from the start of the 2025-26 municipal year, unless the Scrutiny & Overview Committee resolves otherwise.

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report set out on pages 53 to 62 of the agenda which set out the principles which would under pin the work programme for the Committee and its sub-committees in the year ahead. The report also proposed re-establishing the Homes Sub-Committee for a further two years, waiving political balance requirements to allocate seats for Green and Liberal Democrat members and the allocation of the Health & Social Care Sub-Committee Vice-Chair role to the Conservatives.

The Vice-Chair of the Committee advised of a correction to the appointments listed in the report, confirming that Councillor Adele Benson was the Conservative appointment as Vice-Chair on the Homes Sub-Committee, rather than Councillor Danielle Denton as listed.

It was confirmed that the report had been reviewed by the Deputy Monitoring Officer prior to publication to ensure that it complied with the statutory notice required when proposing to waive the political balance requirements in relation to committee appointments.

Resolved: The Scrutiny & Overview Committee resolved to: -

1.      Agree the underlying principles to guide the work of the Council’s Scrutiny function in the forthcoming year.

2.      Agree that the remit of the Streets, Environment & Homes Sub-Committee will be divided through the formation of a separate Homes Sub-Committee until the end of 2024-25 municipal year.

3.      Agree that the terms of reference agreed for both the Streets & Environment and the Homes Sub-Committees in October 2022, as outlined in section 5, remain valid and are agreed.

4.      Agree to waive the requirement for the seats on the Sub-Committees to be allocated in line with the overall political balance of the Council.

5.      Agree the appointments (including regular and reserve members and chairs and vice-chairs) to the Sub-CommitteeS.

6.      Note that Sub-Committee arrangements will revert to three sub-committees (Children & Young People, Health & Social Care and Streets, Environment & Homes) from the start of the 2025-26 municipal year, unless the Scrutiny & Overview Committee resolves otherwise.

 

41/23

Scrutiny Recommendations pdf icon PDF 98 KB

The Scrutiny & Overview Committee is asked to

  1. Approve the recommendations made by its Sub-Committee’s for submission to the Executive Mayor for his consideration.
  2. Review the response provided by Mayor to recommendations made by the Scrutiny & Overview Committee.
  3. To agree whether to make any formal recommendations arising from the Scrutiny & Overview Committee meeting held on 22 May 2023.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered a report set out on pages 63 to 70 of the agenda which presented recommendations proposed by the scrutiny sub-committees for sign-off ahead of submission to the Executive Mayor and responses from the Mayor to previously made decisions.

The report also provided the Committee with proposed recommendations based upon the discussion held at its last meeting on 22 May 2023. The meeting had ended prematurely following a fire alarm at the Town Hall, preventing the Committee from concluding its discussion on the Annual Asset Disposal Plan 2023-24 item. During a discussion on these recommendations, it was agreed that the recommendation concerning the engagement with ward councillors on asset disposals would be expanded to include the local community where appropriate.

Resolved: The Scrutiny and Overview Committee resolved to:-

1.               Approved for submission to the Executive Mayor, the recommendations made by the Streets & Environment Sub-Committees.

2.               Note the response provided by the Executive Mayor to recommendations made by the Scrutiny & Overview Committee.

3.               Agree the recommendation arising from the Scrutiny & Overview Committee meeting held on 22 May 2023 for submission to the Executive Mayor.

42/23

Exclusion of the Press and Public

The following motion is to be moved and seconded where it is proposed to exclude the press and public from the remainder of a meeting:

 

“That, under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act, 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information falling within those paragraphs indicated in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.”

 

 

Minutes:

This motion was not required.