Agenda and minutes

Cllr Northcott declared a non-pecuniary interest relevant to item 5 as Staffordshire County Council Cabinet Member for Public Health and Integrated Care Safeguarding.

To consider the Minutes of the last meeting of the Committee.

Resolved:       That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 27^th November 2023 be agreed as accurate record.

There were no updates required from Cabinet members.

The Service Director for Regulatory Services introduced the three reports included in the agenda pack respectively addressed to Cabinet, Full Council and this Committee.

A recent decision taken by Full Council enabled the Committee to take the necessary steps to deliver the work specified by the Council of which the creation of a Task and Finish Working Group rebranded as Committee of Inquiry and tasked to address three strands of inquiry reflecting the debate at Full Council:

-        what was the impact of the ongoing odour issue;

-        what needed to be done next, and by whom, to bring about resolution;

-        what, if any, opportunities had been missed to resolve this issue sooner.

The Service Director for Regulatory Services went through the details provided in the report to the Committee.

Cllr Adcock expressed his support to the recommendations.

Resolved:       1. That a Task & Finish group be established to examine the ongoing odour issues associated with Walleys Quarry with the terms of reference and format as set out in this report and that the Chair seek permission from the other scrutiny chairs to open up membership from across all three scrutiny committees for this task and finish group;

2. That the election of a chair and the determination of arrangements for the conduct of the inquiry, including timing, inputs, and final report preparation be delegated to a Scoping Meeting of the Task and Finish group.

3. That a report to Cabinet and Council setting out the inquiry findings and recommendations be submitted by the Committee.

Members enquired about the practical consequences and timeframes of a closure of the site as requested by Full Council.

The Service Director for Regulatory Services clarified that a suspension notice would require steps to be taken to remove the risks of severe pollution. The notice however would only have effect as a temporary measure and the site would be re-opened once the steps had been taken. The closure notice would be a permanent measure and initiate the full closure of the site. The current permissions enabled waste to be deposited by the operator until the end of 2026, with the restoration of the site to be completed by 2042

Watch the debate here

Presentation by Carl Inskip-Ward School Games Organiser & Community Leisure Manager, Chesterton Community Sports College

Chesterton Community Sports College's School Sport Manager Carl Inskip-Ward provided a presentation on the organisation of school games and junior sport competitions, as well as the management of the Sports Centre and primary swimming.

Members commented and responses were provided as follows:

-        Cllr Barker enquired about the swimming pool. – The community was allowed to hire the facilities however the accessibility was to be improved before this could be used as a public swimming pool as it was not currently DDA compliant.

-        Cllr Richards asked about the 30 minutes daily of physical activity required by the Government vs the 60 minutes recommended by Sports England. – The 30 minutes were a minimum requirement and schools were free to increase it.

-        Cllr Richards also wondered if any funding was coming from Sports England or the Government. – No funding was received at the moment.

-        Cllr Adcock asked what was the situation now compared to pre-pandemic regarding for example swimming lessons and sports competitions. – Some schools had offered ways for children to stay active during the pandemic such as virtual competitions and activities to do at home. While fitness level had nonetheless gone down the situation had definitively improved since sport activities had resumed.

-        Cllr Reece asked if Mr Inskip-Ward was getting any administrative support for his work. – There was no extra funding available meaning all aspects referred to in the presentation were managed by one person.

-        Cllr Brown wished to know what age groups were included in the 30 minutes physical activity requirement and if there were transports arrangements. – The requirement did not apply to under 5’s. Most schools had mini buses or would use their school sports money.

-        Cllr Barker asked if primary schools contributed to swimming lessons. – Indeed they did and had to report back every year to justify the funding received.

-        Cllr Brown asked if the contact details for Mr Inskip-Ward could be circulated to members to allow them to follow up with any further queries. It was agreed to do this.

Watch the debate here

The Service Director for Commercial Delivery provided members with information on the achievements of the 850 Celebration year.

Members commented and responses were provided as follows:

-       Cllr Reece enquired about the relaunch of the Civic Society and blue plaques. – There was now a national scheme with set criteria of what was suitable for blue plaques and an open event would shortly be organised to gather interests.

-       Cllr Adcock expressed his satisfaction over to the legacy of the celebration and the pride felt by residents.

The Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and Heritage commended the report, thanking officers as well as the teams involved in the celebrations.

Resolved:       That the achievements of the 850 Celebrations be reviewed and any comments be fed back to the Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and Heritage.

Watch the debate here

The Service Director for Sustainable Environment presented the Biodiversity and Tree Management Plan and accompanying report.

Members commented and responses were provided as follows:

-       Cllr Brown asked about the new arboriculturist. – A new arboriculturist had indeed had just joined and would be supported by the team already in situ. The Council was in a good position considering the national skill gap.

-       Cllr Reece asked if there was sufficient funding to meet the needs of the strategy. – Indeed there was at the moment. The plan was intended as a fluid document under continuous review, with other resources to be investigated going forward. A software was used to keep track of trees which all had their own reference number.

-       Cllr Reece asked about trees maintained by other organisations. – The Council did not have any influence in ensuring works were carried out however this could be taken to the Sustainability Board with the Portfolio Holder for Sustainable Environment.

-       Cllr Dymond asked how often trees were looked at in the borough. – This was usually every two years but would depend on the inspection regime and the level of risks associated.

-       Cllr Crisp asked if there were any maps available. – There were maps but not in a format that could be easily handed out to councillors. This could be looked into as part of the evolving process.

Resolved:       That the report be noted, and any comments and / or recommendations be provided to the Portfolio Holder for Sustainable Environment.

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To receive feedback from members of this committee who attended the meetings of the Healthy Staffordshire Select Committee

Members looked at the report received from the County Council Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee and commented as follows:

-        The Chair said that dentistry provisions were being discussed at County level and draft minutes of the January SCC Health and Care Scrutiny Committee meeting where the matter was on the agenda would be available to members in March.

-        Cllr Richards referred to the earlier presentation on school games and expressed the wish for childhood obesity and leisure centres to also be discussed as such.

-        Cllr Reece asked about the Health and Social Care Act and wondered about specific issues. The Chair shared his wish to see this on the work programme and it was suggested this could be raised with the County Council.

-        Cllr Brown asked about housing provisions. – This had been addressed by the Housing Task and Finish Working Group and a report had been submitted to the Economy and Place Scrutiny Committee in December 2023. It was requested that the report be shared with members.

Resolved:       That the District and Borough Health Scrutiny Activity report be noted and shared with members when available.

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The Service Director for Planning went through the work programme and confirmed that the item on leisure centres and childhood obesity could be brought back to a future meeting. The issue of NHS dentistry provisions could be considered in light of the minutes of the County Council Health and Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

The next Committee meeting scheduled in June should feature the following items:

-        an update from the Chief Fire Officer;

-        Walleys Quarry as a recurring item.

Reports to future committee meetings to include in addition to the matters raised above:

-        the A53/Bus Gate – Final Business Case;

-        Kidsgrove Care Solutions – supporting people with learning disabilities.

Resolved:       That the work programme be noted.

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Any member of the public wishing to submit a question must serve two clear days’ notice, in writing, of any such question to the Borough Council.

There were no questions from members of the public.

To consider any business which is urgent within the meaning of Section 100B (4) of the Local Government Act 1972.

There was no urgent business.

Resolved:       That the next meeting be held on 3^rd June 2024.