Agenda item

[To consider the scrutiny work programme.]

David Pattison, Director of Governance, outlined the proposed way forward for the future Scrutiny Work Programme. The Director of Governance outlined three potential priority areas for Scrutiny Panels and Scrutiny Board and invited Panel Members to comment on the suggested topics below and agree a priority for the Work Programme:

·       Connected City

·       Employment – post Covid

·       Voluntary and Community Partnership Working

The Director of Governance advised the Board that the plan was that the chosen topic would be a cross-cutting theme where each Scrutiny Panel would consider a specific aspect of the issue as part of their Work Programme.

The Director outlined the background to each of the topics and possible areas of investigation by each of the Scrutiny Panels. At the end of each PowerPoint presentation the Board were invited to ask questions and comment on the suggested topic.

Connected City – Discussion

The Board queried the comment about the Council moving from digital by design to digital by default and whether this was something the public wanted to see happen and added that there would be members of the public who would want to continue to speak to someone in person at the Civic Centre. The Director of Governance responded that this was the opportunity to have a debate about how to make Council services accessible, while at the same accepting that some members of the public would need support to access the help needed. The Director of Governance commented on the how older members of the population had responded positively to using technology to access services and the importance of also offering people a choice of meeting people face-to-face where this was needed. The Director of Governance commented on cost savings to the Council of providing services digitally 24 hours a day and the benefits of this to the public.

The Board commented on the benefits to Councillors of using Microsoft Teams but expressed concern about the problems caused by the lack of printing facilities at home and the process involved in sending documents or printing letters. The Board stressed the importance of involving the representatives of local faith groups and to offer training and support to residents on using new technology. The Board expressed concern that some children and young people had lacked the equipment to take part in online school learning and highlighted the need to improve this situation by working in partnership with other agencies.

The Director of Governance acknowledged the importance of partnership working with communities which was seen to be critical and which also provided an opportunity to provide digital training to local residents. The Council had applied for funding to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to help fund local training and also support disadvantaged members of the community to get access to IT equipment. There was an important role for scrutiny in helping to support the work.

The Board expressed concern that 44 percent of people under 60 did not have digital skills and queried how the situation had happened as schools had included ICT lessons for many years. This issue presented a challenge for the City. The Director of Governance reported that it was estimated that 35,000 people did not have basic digital skills and also not been online for the last three months and of those groups 44 percent were under aged 60, which represented 15,400 people under 60 who have not been online in the last three months and was the opportunity to work with these groups to provide them with the necessary digital skills. The Director of Governance commented on the need for people to have basic digital skills to access a range of services that were provided online. It was also noted that the 44 percent of people who could not get online include people who may not have had a device or the home connectivity required and also that some of these people would have been able to use equipment at libraries and Wolverhampton learning platform before restrictions were introduced.

The Board discussed the potential benefits for new and existing businesses as a result of technological innovations and the importance of Wolverhampton being a leader locally in preparing to taking advantage of these new opportunities. The Director of Governance endorsed the comments and added the plans reflected the ambitious view of the both the Council and the City about the future. The important role of scrutiny in shaping the Council’s response to these challenges facing the City was highlighted.

Cllr Beverly Momenabadi, Digital Innovation Champion, commented on the opportunities presented by improved digital infrastructure and the range of work being done in the City and the wider West Midlands to help business and local residents to benefit in the future. Cllr Momenabadi commented on the report on digital infrastructure strategy that was presented to Stronger City Economy Panel which set out how businesses would be affected by changes in technology and how this technology could improve Council services and provide alternative options.

Employment – post Covid

The Director of Governance outlined the background to the topic being suggested as a cross-cutting theme for Scrutiny Board and the Panels to include on their Work Programme. The Director of Governance added the topic had been the subject of previous reviews and there was a lot of work ongoing to develop plans in response to the economic challenges facing the City post Covid.

The Director of Governance added that the Leader of the Council was Chairing a West Midlands group which was looking at the issue of youth unemployment and also listed a range of initiatives aimed at improving employment opportunities.

The Board discussed the issue of employment and the potential for choosing this topic, but concern was expressed at the scale of the project and the need to avoid duplication of work being done elsewhere.

The Board suggested the performance of the Wolverhampton’s Town Deal Board and the funding bid for the Town Fund bid could be added to the list of possible topics to be scrutinised.  The Director of Governance suggested that the Towns Fund should be considered separately and offered to meet with Councillors to discuss the issue further. Richard Lawrence, Director of Regeneration, advised the Board of the governance arrangements for Wolverhampton’s Town Deal Board which had been set by Government. The submission of the town investment plan would be presented on 31 July 2020 to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and a decision was expected late September.

Voluntary and Community Partnership Working

The Director of Governance outlined the background to the topic being suggested as a cross-cutting theme for Scrutiny Board and the Panels to include on their work programme.

The Director suggested that to start work on this issue in September might not be timely for the sector as a number of the groups were still involved in supporting people affected by the pandemic.

In addition, the University of Wolverhampton, had been commissioned by the Council to undertake specific work on how the community and voluntary sector was working. The results were expected to be available in the next few months and this could be the opportunity for scrutiny to consider this issue.