Agenda and minutes

Apologies of absence were received from Councillors J M Englefield and D M Whittingham.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Streetscene Policy Development and Review Panel held on 22 October 2015.

The Chairman referred to item 8 of the previous minutes and asked the Public and Open Spaces Manager for an update on the hooks for public toilets. She confirmed that all public toilets, men’s and women’s, now have hooks on the backs of the doors.

The Chairman also enquired as to the progress made on the sponsorship of public toilets. The Director of Operations advised the Panel that a number of authorities had been contacted regarding this and those that had made enquiries had not received any interest. He therefore concluded that this is not a viable option for providing capital revenue for public toilets.

It was AGREED that the minutes of the Streetscene Policy Development and Review Panel meeting held on 22 October 2015 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

The Chairman made the following announcements:

He announced that Fareham will be taking part in the Clean for the Queen campaign. This is a campaign by Country Life Magazine in partnership with Keep Britain Tidy which aims to have a national clean up in time for The Queens 90^th Birthday in 2016.

About 2.25 million pieces of litter are dropped on the streets of the UK every day with thirty million tons of rubbish collected from England’s streets each year.

Here in Fareham alone we collect over 700 tonnes of street litter from our litter bins and streets each year across the Borough.

It is hoped an army of volunteers across the country will rally together to help clean up their local areas and will include a special clean-up weekend on March 4-6.

A hand-out containing full details of this campaign was circulated to members at the meeting and has been attached to these minutes.

In addition to this the Chairman also informed members that following a recent request regarding the costs of Project Integra membership, he was able to provide the following information:

The cost of Fareham Borough Council Project Integra Membership for 2014-15 was:

Project Integra Executive                   £4,845

Recycle for Hampshire                    £9,469

Materials Analysis Facility               £6,124

Total                                                £20,438

Members were informed that this figure had decreased from £26,000 following the Project Integra Strategic Review in 2012.

To receive any declarations of interest from members in accordance with Standing Orders and the Council’s Code of Conduct and disclosures of advice or directions received from Group Leaders or Political Groups, in accordance with the Council’s Constitution.

There were no declarations of interest made at this meeting.

To receive any deputations of which notice has been lodged.

There were no deputations made at this meeting.

To consider a report by the Director of Operations which premliniary reviews the work programme for 2015/16 and draft work programme for 2016/17.

The Panel considered a report by the Director of Operations which reviewed the Panel’s work programme 2015/16 and the draft Work Programme for 2016/17.

At the invitation of the Chairman Councillor Miss Harper, Executive Member for Streetscene addressed the Panel on this item.

The Director of Operations informed the Panel that there is currently an item on the work programme for the March meeting regarding a verbal update on Vanguard. He explained to members that it is still very much early days for the intervention and that there would be very little to report to the Panel by the March meeting and therefore suggested that it be moved to the 2016/17 work programme as an unallocated item.

Councillor Norris raised a query regarding the Allotment Agreement which is proposed for the September 2016 meeting as he had been informed that the fees will be charged at the end of January 2016. The Parks and Open Spaces Manager informed the Panel that the rents are reviewed every three years in accordance with the terms of the lease, with the next review being due on 1 April 2016. Due to the fact that the lease die renewal, it is likely that the issues relating to the future fees will form part of the discussions which will be held with the Associations in the near future.

The Chairman suggested forming a small working group to discuss the issues with the allotment agreement prior to a new agreement being considered. It was agreed that Councillors Keeble, Norris and Mrs Bayford be elected as the members for the working group.

The Director of Operations offered members the opportunity to put forward suggestions for the 2016/17 work programme. No suggestions were put forward at the time as members felt that the proposed work programme covered a wide range of topics.

It was AGREED that the work programme for 2015/16 be approved.

To consider a report by the Director of Operations on an annual review of Fleet Management.

The Panel considered a report by the Director of Operations on an annual update on Fleet Management.

The report was presented by the Refuse Recycling and Transport Manager who also provided the Panel with a short presentation on the crew and vehicles that form the Transport Fleet.

The Panel enquired as to the additional work that has been created by the Daedalus development and how it is going to be managed by the Streetscene service. The Refuse Recycling and Transport Manager informed members that she is currently working with the Operations Manager to decide on what is the best way to incorporate this additional work into the service. She explained that the work would be undertaken by the existing staff with the addition of one new employee.

The Chairman enquired as to whether the Council still had any older vehicles left in the fleet that need to be replaced with new narrower vehicles. He was informed that all the vehicles in the fleet are now the newer narrow vehicles and therefore there is no need to buy any such vehicles at present.

It was AGREED that the content of the report be noted.

To consider a report by the Director of Operations on the Corporate Cleaning Contract Renewal.

The Panel considered a report by the Director of Operations on the Corporate Cleaning Contract Renewal.

The Panel was informed that the new cleaning contract has been awarded to Hi-Spec Facilities Services PLC. It is still in the early stages of working with the new contractor but indications are very positive that the company is going to perform well. The Parks and Open Spaces Manager is pleased that Hi-Spec have taken up the offer of an office and storage space at the depot which makes communication much easier. Other encouraging indicators are the bonus scheme the company uses to reward good work for their employees and their use of technology to provide instant up to date feedback and comments.

It was AGREED that the content of the report be noted.