Home > Agenda, decisions and minutes

Agenda, decisions and minutes

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

Contact: Victoria Lower
020 8726 6000 x14773  Email: victoria.lower@croydon.gov.uk

Link: To view webcast

Items
No. Item

The Leader requested the meeting stand for a minutes silence in memory of Councillor Maggie Mansell who had sadly passed away. The Leader remembered her passion for equality, her compassion and her unswerving commitment to the community she served.

1/19

Minutes of the previous meeting pdf icon PDF 102 KB

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 10 December 2018 as an accurate record.

Minutes:

The part A minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 10 December 2018 were received. The Leader of the Council signed the minutes as an accurate record.

2/19

Disclosure of Interests

In accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct and the statutory provisions of the Localism Act, Members and co-opted Members of the Council are reminded that it is a requirement to register disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) and gifts and hospitality to the value of which exceeds £50 or multiple gifts and/or instances of hospitality with a cumulative value of £50 or more when received from a single donor within a rolling twelve month period. In addition, Members and co-opted Members are reminded that unless their disclosable pecuniary interest is registered on the register of interests or is the subject of a pending notification to the Monitoring Officer, they are required to disclose those disclosable pecuniary interests at the meeting. This should be done by completing the Disclosure of Interest form and handing it to the Democratic Services representative at the start of the meeting. The Chair will then invite Members to make their disclosure orally at the commencement of Agenda item 3. Completed disclosure forms will be provided to the Monitoring Officer for inclusion on the Register of Members’ Interests.

Minutes:

There were none.

3/19

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.

4/19

Community Safety presentation

Officer: Shifa Mustafa

Key decision: no

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED to note the presentation.

Minutes:

The Leader thanked Sophie Linden, Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, for attending and speaking at the meeting.

 

The Cabinet Member for Safer Croydon & Communities noted that there had been genuine collaboration with the GLA on improving community safety and thanked the CSCB Board Manager for her work in this area.

 

Following the report to Cabinet in November 2018, the Cabinet Member gave Members an update on the establishment of a violence reduction unit. A conference had been held the previous week which had been hugely successful with a large turnout which was highly engaged in the ongoing work.

 

Discussions had been held on four key areas – what we are doing, what we can do differently, how we can achieve it, and what success looks like. It was recognised that it was important that the best use of data and analytics was imperative, including information from community groups. It was further noted that knowledge of the impact of adverse childhood experiences should also inform responses to reducing violence.

 

The importance of communities was recognised as being an important factor in violence reduction, and the Cabinet Member stated that voluntary sector funding would facilitate this. It was important to work towards zero homicide, reductions in domestic violence and reductions in youth violence.

 

Members were informed that the key messages which came from the conference were that it was important to work with statutory and community partners, ensuring that data drove the work to ensure maximum impact, a network of community interventions was necessary. It was recognised that they were not working from scratch, but would work upon the positive work already undertaken and would ensure transparency and openness with their work with partners.

 

The Cabinet Member noted that a key part of the public health approach to violence reduction was to use all data and respond to what it was showing. It was further stated that building a strong coordinated network of statutory and community partners would be important to ensure the success of the work.

 

In the coming months it was planned that a series of panels would take place with partners which would test and agree the new approach. In testing and agreeing the approach, they would hear statutory partners, community partners, and also those affected to ensure the approach would be the most affective. The Cabinet Member further informed Members that conversations would continue with regional and national colleagues to ensure best practice was followed, and it was intended that external funding would be sought over the coming months.

 

The Deputy Mayor for Policing & Crime informed Cabinet that the Mayor’s Office for Policing & Crime (MOPAC) was looking at how different organisations could work together to tackle violence, and welcomed the work that was being undertaken in Croydon.

 

Whilst it was noted that the public health approach was important to tackling violence, the Deputy Mayor stated that enforcement was an important factor to consider also and the Mayor continued to invest in enforcement.

 

The Deputy Mayor stated that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4/19

5/19

Croydon Creative Enterprise Zone pdf icon PDF 149 KB

Officer: Shifa Mustafa

Key decision: no

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED to  note the contents of the report.

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Culture, Leisure & Sport informed Members that shortly before Christmas it had been announced that the council had been successful in its bid to be awarded Creative Enterprise Zone status. Members were informed that work in regards to the Creative Enterprise Zone would concentrate initially on the town centre and the council would continue to work with a core group of diverse organisations to develop the plans.

 

The Cabinet Member noted that there were considerable strengths within the borough, both formal and informal, and it was intended to build upon these strengths such as the borough’s music history. It was stated that the status of having a Creative Enterprise Zone and the associated funding would enable culture and creativity in the borough to flourish further.

 

The Cabinet Member for Economy & Jobs further stated that it was an excellent opportunity for Croydon and would help further develop the borough, as it was important that culture was at the heart of regeneration. Members were informed that Croydon Works would work with the scheme, particularly in regards to the training projects. The Cabinet Member stated also that an online list of properties suitable for creative businesses was being created which would facilitate new businesses to come to the borough and further develop the culture offer.

 

Councillors welcomed the paper and congratulated those involved in the successful bid. It was stated that it was hoped that the project would reinforce Croydon as a cultural centre in London, particularly with work continuing on the Music City project.

 

In response to Member questions, the Cabinet Member stated that it would be possible to create a map which showed the location of all the partners involved in the Creative Enterprise Zone. Concerns were raised, however, by the Cabinet Member that Selsdon would not be an appropriate spoke to the central zone but welcomed the suggestion of possible viable locations.

 

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED to  note the contents of the report.

6/19

Strategic Approach to Community Led Housing Provision pdf icon PDF 331 KB

Officer: Shifa Mustafa

Key decision: no

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED: to

 

1.    Approve the pledge to support community led housing as set out in the report under 2.5; and

 

2.    Approve the strategic approach to delivery of community led affordable housing commencing with a set of pilot sites as set out in the report.

Minutes:

The Leader thanked guests from Croydon Citizens for attending the meeting for the item. The Cabinet Member for Homes & Gateway Services informed Members that Community Led Housing was seen as part of the jigsaw of ensuring affordable housing provision was delivered across the borough. The council would facilitate ensuring land was available and would ensure there was an equal and fair voice for all those who were interested in developing these projects. It was further noted by the Cabinet Member that the Mayor had launched a £38million fund to facilitate community led housing, and it was hoped projects in Croydon would utilise this fund.

 

Members were shown examples of Community Led Housing; including co-housing which reduced loneliness and created a community, resident-led regeneration which empowered residents, and developer enabled regeneration. The proposals within the paper were for developer enabled housing with Brick by Brick supporting the proposals through the social responsibility commitment.

 

Mother Joyce Forbes addressed Cabinet stating Croydon Citizens was an alliance which represented local residents and had campaigned for community led housing in the borough for the last four years. While Mother Joyce was able to buy her first home at the age of 23, she noted many residents were no longer able to afford their own homes unless they moved out of their community. The housing crises, it was stated, was breaking up families. Roos Stewart went on to say that at current housing prices, he and his partner were priced out of Croydon. 

 

It was the intention of Croydon Citizens to develop community led housing in the borough which would deliver truly affordable homes. It was noted that sites across London showed that the model of community led housing was achievable and built rooted communities.

 

Mother Joyce urged Cabinet to be as ambitious as possible and requested that all sites were 100% affordable. Croydon Citizens stated they looked forward to seeing the five proposed sites become a reality and thanked the council for its commitment to assisting community led housing.

 

Members noted that in addition to community led housing, there had been a commitment by Crystal Palace Football Club to host temporary overnight accommodation for homeless people during freezing temperatures. Crystal Palace and all those involved in the council were thanked for their hard work in ensuring this took place. The Cabinet Member further noted Croydon Churches also provided shelter and thanked them for their continued support and hard work.

 

Members supported the proposals of community led housing and were encouraged by the enthusiasm shown by Croydon Citizens. In response to Member questions the Cabinet Member stated the identified sites were those which Brick by Brick had already assessed and it was stated they would be excellent partners in supporting the projects through the social responsibility requirements. The Cabinet Member further stated however, if there were any developers in the borough who had sites and were interested in community led housing then it was felt there would be interested groups who could develop the sites.

 

In  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6/19

7/19

Education Estates Strategy pdf icon PDF 429 KB

Officer: Robert Henderson

Key decision: yes

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED: to

 

School Place Planning

1.    Note the review of mainstream school pupil projections undertaken and submitted to the Department for Education (DfE) in July 2018 – available places vs SCAP18 forecasts – at Appendix 1 of the report;

 

2.    Early Years Provision

Note publication of the 2018 Childcare Sufficiency Assessment report – at Appendix 2 of the report;

 

3.    Alternative Provision / Pupil Referral Unit (PRU)

3.1Note the intention that the Cabinet Member for Finance and Treasury in consultation with the Leader will approve the lease of land from John Ruskin College and to delegate authority to the Executive Director, Children, Families and Education to agree terms and sign the lease;

 

3.2Note the entering in of a licence for refurbishment of the existing Cotelands PRU building at John Ruskin College;

 

Special Educational Needs and Disability

4.    Agree the proposed Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) School Place Supply Strategy (at paragraph 3.44, Table 1 of the report) for the next 3 academic years – 2019/20 to 2021/22;

 

5.    Consider the responses to statutory consultation and approve the proposed extension of the age range from 4 – 11 to 2 - 11 for Red Gates School from September 2019 – at Appendix 3 of the report;

 

6.    Note that the ESFA commissioned Croydon to lead on the delivery of the new special free school - Addington Valley Academy (Timebridge site) which will be fully funded by the ESFA at a budget of £13.510m (paragraphs 3.29-3.31 of the report);

 

7.    Note update on the partnership with Croydon Further Education (FE) college to establish new local post 16 places in an SEN Centre of Excellence (paragraphs 3.32-3.33 of the report);

 

8.    Note the continued planned expansion of secondary autism Enhanced Learning provision at Oasis Arena. (paragraph 3.34 of the report);

 

           School Admissions

9.    Agree to recommend to full Council  the proposed changes to the admission arrangements for the 2020/21 academic year – Appendix 4 of the report (Consultation outcomes report)

·         Acceptance of first preference offers as part of the coordinated admission arrangements

·         Pan-London primary and secondary coordinated admissions schemes and post offer process (main rounds of admissions)

·         The processing of overseas applications for admission to school within the normal admissions rounds (excluding Crown servants)

 

10.Agree to recommend to full Council that it determine the proposed Community schools Admission Arrangements for the 2020/21 academic year (Appendix 4a of the report),

·         adoption of the proposed Pan London scheme for co-ordination of admissions to Reception and Junior schools – at Appendix 4b of the report; and

·         adoption of the proposed Pan London scheme for co-ordination of admissions to secondary schools – at Appendix 4c of the report;

 

           Capital Programme

11.Approve the Capital Programme as set out in Appendix 5a of the report;

 

          School Maintenance and Compliance

12.Note the detailed proposed Schools’ Maintenance Plan for 2019/20 of £2m as set out  ...  view the full decision text for item 7/19

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Learning stated that the annual report ensured the council met its duties to ensure there was a sufficient supply of school places throughout the education system. Forecasts suggest that there were sufficient places for the next five years as there had been a 5% drop in the birth rate in the borough.

 

Work continued on ensuring the education estate provided good quality buildings for young people to be educated in so as to ensure improved outcome for young people. Cabinet was shown a video of the construction of a new education space at West Thornton Academy which provided a different environment from traditional classrooms. This was part of the clear direction of travel of ensuring young people received the best education which reflected modern thinking.

 

With regards to SEN provision, Cabinet was asked to note the work that had been undertaken to establish the Addington Valley SEN free school, which was to be fully funded by the Education Funding Agency. Further work had also been undertaken to develop SEN provision in the borough with St Nicolas to be expanded to provide two new forms of entry.

 

Cabinet was informed that challenges remained, with some parts of the borough having more school places than necessary, however it was intended to develop housing where there was available provision in schools. It was further noted that some school buildings required high levels of maintenance, and the cost of building maintenance had increased. The Cabinet Member stated it was important to ensure that schools continued to receive the required level of funding to maintain these buildings and provide good education standards for children.

 

Members were informed that a fire safety audit had been completed in October 2018, and it was noted that there were management requirements for all schools to meet fire safety standards. It was intended to ensure all schools had the required management arrangements in place by March 2020.

 

In response to Member questions the Cabinet Member stated that most surplus places were at primary school level and it was anticipated that the surplus places at secondary schools would be filled by the bulge classes moving through primary education at present. In response to the surplus places at primary level it was intended that in-year reductions in classes would be undertaken.

 

In relation to the Pupil Referral Units the Cabinet Member stated that land from John Ruskin College was being refurbished and work had continued with Saffron Valley Collegiate to ensure good provision for PRUs.

 

Members queried whether the council was able to encourage schools to let out their facilities out of school hours to community groups; however the Leader stated that the local authority had a reduced influence on schools and the use of their facilities as many were academies. The Cabinet Member further noted that while a number of community groups were using school facilities, it was on a case by case basis and in agreement with the school and not the council.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7/19

8/19

London Councils Grants Scheme 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 237 KB

Cabinet Member: Councillor Hamida Ali

Officer: Hazel Simmonds

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED:  to

 

1.    Approve the London Councils Grants Scheme budget for 2019/20 of £6.909m; and

 

2.    Agree Croydon Council’s 2019/20 contribution to the London Councils Grants Scheme budget amounting to £290,784.

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Safer Croydon & Communities informed Members that the paper was a routine report taken to every January Cabinet meeting which set out the contribution Croydon would make to the London Councils Grants Scheme. Members were informed that the contribution was calculated on the basis of population size and thus Croydon would make the second highest contribution.

 

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED:  to

 

1.    Approve the London Councils Grants Scheme budget for 2019/20 of £6.909m; and

 

2.    Agree Croydon Council’s 2019/20 contribution to the London Councils Grants Scheme budget amounting to £290,784.

9/19

Stage 2 Response to Recommendations arising from Health and Social Care Scrutiny Sub-Committee (25 September 2018) and Streets, Environment & Homes Scrutiny Sub-Committee (9 October 2018) pdf icon PDF 112 KB

Officers: Richard Simpson

Key decision: no

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED to approve the response and action plans attached to the report at Appendix A and that these be reported to the Scrutiny and Overview Committee or relevant Sub-Committees.

Minutes:

The Chair of Scrutiny & Overview Committee noted the responses from Cabinet to recommendations made at scrutiny committees, and informed Cabinet that the responses would be considered by the relevant committees and further recommendations may be made. The Leader requested all Cabinet Members to actively be involved in the process.

 

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED to approve the response and action plans attached to the report at Appendix A and that these be reported to the Scrutiny and Overview Committee or relevant Sub-Committees.

10/19

Investing in our Borough pdf icon PDF 243 KB

Officer: Richard Simpson

Key decision: no

Additional documents:

Decision:

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED: to note

 

1.    The contracts over £500,000 anticipated to be awarded by the nominated Cabinet Member, in consultation with the nominated Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources or, where the nominated Cabinet Member is the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources, in consultation with the Leader;

 

2.    The list of delegated award decisions made by the Director of Commissioning and Procurement, between 10/11/2018 – 11/12/2018; and

 

3.    Property acquisitions and disposals to be agreed by the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources in consultation with the Leader since the last meeting of Cabinet.

 

RESOLVED: to recommend

 

1.    To the Leader of the Council, that prior to the next meeting of Cabinet in February, the Cabinet Member for Families, Health and Social Care, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources be authorised to agree the awards of contracts related to the Crosfield House redevelopment for the purposes set out in the procurement strategy approved by Contracts & Commissioning Board on 17 December 2018 (decision reference CCB1442/18-19). The reasons for this delegation are set out in paragraphs 4.4.1 to 4.4.3 of the report and any awards made under this delegation will be notified in the standard contracts report at future Cabinet meetings.

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Treasury informed Cabinet that the report outlined how the council was continuing to realise value for money through the award of contracts. In response to Member questions, the Cabinet Member stated there were plenty of examples across the borough of good quality family homes being built.

 

The Leader of the Council delegated to the Cabinet the power to make the decisions set out below.

 

RESOLVED: to note

 

1.    The contracts over £500,000 anticipated to be awarded by the nominated Cabinet Member, in consultation with the nominated Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources or, where the nominated Cabinet Member is the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources, in consultation with the Leader;

 

2.    The list of delegated award decisions made by the Director of Commissioning and Procurement, between 10/11/2018 – 11/12/2018; and

 

3.    Property acquisitions and disposals to be agreed by the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources in consultation with the Leader since the last meeting of Cabinet.

 

RESOLVED: to recommend

 

1.    To the Leader of the Council, that prior to the next meeting of Cabinet in February, the Cabinet Member for Families, Health and Social Care, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources be authorised to agree the awards of contracts related to the Crosfield House redevelopment for the purposes set out in the procurement strategy approved by Contracts & Commissioning Board on 17 December 2018 (decision reference CCB1442/18-19). The reasons for this delegation are set out in paragraphs 4.4.1 to 4.4.3 of the report and any awards made under this delegation will be notified in the standard contracts report at future Cabinet meetings.

11/19

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:

The item was not required.