Agenda and minutes

Apologies of absence were received from Councillor’s Mrs Clubley and Price, JP.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Streetscene Policy Development and Review Panel meeting held on 26 March 2018.

It was AGREED that the minutes of the Streetscene Policy Development and Review Panel held on 26 March 2018 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

There were no Chairman’s announcements.

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 Head of Streetscene on the Panel’s Work Programme for 2018/19.

The Panel considered a report by the Head of Streetscene which reviewed the Panel’s work programme for the year.

The Head of Streetscene informed the Panel that the Members Tour which was scheduled for the July meeting has now been changed to a tour of the depot, which will take place at 4pm on the day of the meeting.

Members were given the opportunity to put forward any suggestions for the work programme for the year. The Chairman suggested that an item on Fly Tipping be added to the work programme so that the Panel can look into this in conjunction with the Health and Public Protection Panel who are also looking into this issue as part of their work programme as this issue affects both Panels.

Councillor Mrs Mandry asked if an item on the policy for Children’s Graves could be added to the work programme.

The Head of Streetscene also informed the Panel that a presentation on the Communication Plan for Single Use Plastics would be added to the work programme for the next meeting.

It was AGREED that the Panel:-

(a)          change the proposed Tour of the Borough which is scheduled for the 12 July 2018 meeting to a Tour of the Depot visit;

(b)          add a review of the Fly Tipping Policy to the Street Cleansing report which is scheduled for the 25 January 2019 meeting;

(c)          add an item titled “Communications Plan – Single Use Plastics” to the work programme for the 12 July 2018 meeting;

(d)          add an item titled “Review of Cemetery Regulations including Children’s Graves Policy” to the 14 March 2019 meeting; and

(e)          subject to the inclusion of (a) – (d) above, approve the Work Programme for 2018/19.

To receive a presentation by the Head of Streetscene on the services within Streetscene and the key achievements over the past 12 months.

The Panel received a presentation from the Head of Streetscene, the Operations Manager, the Transport Manager and the Countryside Ranger on the services that fall within the Streetscene portfolio. (attached as Appendix A to these minutes).

The presentation looked at the changes that have occurred over the past 12 months, the achievements made in the service areas and the challenges that face the services for the upcoming year.

The Chairman enquired as to how well officers work together with the Enforcement Officers in regards to dealing with cases of fly tipping and littering. The Head of Streetscene informed the Panel that the management for the enforcement team had now changed and that they now formed part of the Streetscene department. This has allowed them to work more closely with the operatives who remove this waste to provide a more efficient and proactive service.

Questions were asked around the effectiveness of the prosecution of offenders for littering and fly tipping. The Head of Streetscene confirmed prosecution of offenders can be difficult and time consuming. Recent training has highlighted a need for closer liaison with the courts to understand what information is required for the Council to have a better chance of a successful prosecution. Alongside this, there is work that is being undertaken to try and better educate people to prevent littering and fly tipping from occurring in the first place.

It was AGREED that the Head of Streetscene, the Operations Manager, the Transport Manager and the Countryside Officer all be thanked for their informative presentation.

To consider a report by the Head of Streetscene on the notice of motion that went to Council regarding Single Use Plastics.

The Panel considered a report by the Head of Streetscene regarding the use of Single Use Plastics.

The Head of Streetscene informed the Panel that he would be bringing a presentation to the next Panel meeting on the Communications Plan for educating members of staff, via the Council’s Intranet and to the public via a variety of mechanisms.

The Chairman informed the Panel of an app called “refill” which allows you to find the nearest place to your current location where you can fill up your reusable water bottles for free. All members agreed that this is an excellent idea and encouraging people to use reusable water bottles and is good move forward in preventing the use of single use plastics.

At the invitation of the Chairman, Councillor Mrs K K Trott addressed the Committee on this item.

At the Invitation of the Chairman, Councillor S Martin, Executive Member for Streetscene addressed the Committee on this item. He congratulated Officers on the progress that has been made on bringing this motion forward in a very short space of time.

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