Agenda item

Updates from the chairs of the scrutiny panels

[To receive updates from the chairs of the Scrutiny Panels:

·       Stronger City Economy Scrutiny Panel

·       Vibrant and Sustainable City Scrutiny Panel

·       Health Scrutiny Panel

·       Our Council Scrutiny Panel

·       Adults and Safer City Scrutiny Panel

·       Children, Young People and Families Scrutiny Panel

 

Minutes:

The Board considered the updates from the Scrutiny Panel chairs.

 

1.     Stronger City Economy Scrutiny Panel

 

The Scrutiny Officer read out the update from Cllr Sweetman in her absence.

 

At the meeting on the 16 July the Panel had considered an item tilted Public Realm, Transport and Linking the City. Members of the Vibrant and Sustainable City Scrutiny Panel had been invited to attend for this item and many of them did so. The Panel made a number of recommendations including that Cllr Martin Waite be invited to sit as a Member on the newly formed informal Member Reference Group on the Public Realm / Westside Link and that he report back into the Scrutiny process and that the Stronger City Economy Panel receive more information at their next meeting in September 2019 on the marketing plans for the Public Realm / Westside Link project. 

 

The Panel at their meeting in July considered the Digital Infrastructure Strategy as a pre-decision item.  The Panel resolved, that officers co-ordinate with the Council’s Communication team on an effective communication and engagement plan promoting the benefits that the successful implementation of the Digital Infrastructure Strategy will bring to the City.  Concerns raised at this meeting regarding the Westside Link / Public Realm were re-visited at the September meeting. Members continued to raise a number of serious concerns about the project and agreed that answers be pursued.  This will in part be through the new Member Reference Group, which the Portfolio Holder had established. 

 

The Panel also considered the City Identity and Marketing for the City of Wolverhampton.  It was clear that good work was ongoing in this area.

 

2.     Vibrant and Sustainable City Scrutiny Panel

 

Cllr Singh stated that the Panel had considered burial places and capacity at Bushbury Crematorium and that this was the 16th busiest crematorium out of 219 in the UK. Cllr Singh stated that Cllr Leach and her team had been working hard over the past year to provide new burial spaces and that it was an example of good cross panel working that had been praised by the equalities team. The Panel had specifically requested that the bereavements team make sure that the service met with people’s expectations and ensured that all religious matters and faith matters were taken into consideration.

 

The Housing Strategy had been considered as an item of pre decision scrutiny and Cllr Singh stated that a number of good suggestions made by the Panel were noted.

 

The Panel had also considered Keep the Street Neat which included the issue of fly tipping and had a night visit to the casino and a number of night time economy retail establishments.

 

The Board praised the work of the Trading Standards and Enforcement Team and stated that it had been wonderful to see how they worked with the Police and the sniffer dog.

 

3.     Health Scrutiny Panel

 

Cllr Page stated that the Health Scrutiny had held a very good public meeting at Linden House in relation to the possible closure of a GP surgery and that the Panel had enjoyed a productive site visit to West Park Hospital.

 

Cllr Page praised the good partnership working that took place on the Panel with the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), Public Health, the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, and Healthwatch amongst others all playing a vital role.

 

Work of the Panel included looking at GP appointment waiting times, dementia, the CCG annual report, the Public Health annual report and the Healthwatch annual report. Cllr Page thanked the Scrutiny Officer for his support and stated that he was pleased with how the Panel was working and where it was heading.

 

4.     Our Council Scrutiny Panel

 

Cllr Brookfield stated that the Panel had started looking at the digital print service which had undergone a major modernisation with new equipment being installed and new ways of working being rolled out. Cllr Brookfield stated that the Panel were going to look at the services’ competitiveness in the market at a future meeting to ensure that the Council was at the very least doing all of its own printing.

 

The Panel would also be looking at asset disposal and had already received a presentation from the Head of Assets. To date everything was on track but the Panel were keen to just keep an eye on things.

 

The Board queried whether the Panel would be considering the issue of Universal Credit and how much money being taken out of the local economy due to this. Cllr Brookfield stated that the issue was on the workplan for a future meeting.

 

The Board also considered that work could be done regarding the weak skills base in the City as until this improved local people would not be able to fill the vacancies on offer. 

 

SMART working was on the workplan for a future meeting along with Community Asset Transfers and Council Tax, Business Rates and general indebtedness.

 

 

 

5.     Children and Young People and Families Scrutiny Panel

 

Cllr Potter stated that there had been a very good discussion for the Portfolio Holder Question Time with Cllr Reynolds.

 

Other items included consideration of findings from external inspections, SEND and exclusions and the Summer Squad.

 

A detailed item on exclusions was scheduled to come before the Panel in January 2020.

 

Resolved:     That the updates be noted.