Venue: Parkside, Station Approach, Burton Street, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire. LE13 1GH
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Apologies for Absence Minutes: Apologies were received from Councillors Holmes and Fisher. |
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To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 17 September 2019. Minutes: The minutes of the meeting held on 17 September 2019 were approved and authorised to be signed by the Chairman. |
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Declarations of Interest PDF 50 KB Members to declare any interest as appropriate in respect of items to be considered at this meeting. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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Review of the Scrutiny Annual Work Plan and the Forward Plan PDF 83 KB To consider the Forward Plan and identify any relevant items
for inclusion in the Scrutiny work plan, or to request further information. Copies of the latest Forward Plan will be available at the
meeting. It can be found on the website using
the following link:- Minutes: During the discussion the following points were noted:
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Housing Voids/Temporary Accommodation Task & Finish Group Update The Chair to provide a verbal update on the work undertaken by the Housing Voids/Temporary Accommodation Task and Finish Group. Minutes: Councillor Pat Cumbers, Chair of the Scrutiny Committee, provided a verbal update on the work undertaken by the ‘Task and Finish Group - Housing Voids and Temporary Accommodation’ as follows: “As you know, this Committee formed our first ‘Task and
Finish Group’ to consider the Housing Voids Process. A void being the gap between a council dwelling being vacated
and then occupied by new tenants. I shall give a short update this evening but you will, of
course, receive a full report when we have finished, along with copies of all
the evidence we have gathered. The Committee saw the importance and relevance of undertaking
this work and it was prioritised. We then agreed the scope and the ‘Terms of
Reference’. We were to consider the voids process, including current performance
and costs and to propose improvements. We were also to consider the Council’s provision of temporary
accommodation, the current costs, performance and the impact of the ‘Homeless
Reduction Act’. The ‘Centre for Public Scrutiny’ states that “good scrutiny
needs evidence”, evidence which is current and based on up-to-date statistics
and performance measures. And that is what we have been doing. We have been collating
information and evidence upon which to base robust and relevant proposals for
improvement which will form the basis of our report to Scrutiny Committee and,
with your support, to Cabinet. I will give you a brief summary of what we have been doing: Firstly, the Group has met monthly and we have reviewed and
provided feedback on: ·
Current review of housing
services systems thinking and methodology ·
Current voids processes and
performance analysis ·
Draft revised tenancy
agreement ·
Feedback on show and tell
sessions ·
Allocations Policy ·
Voids Standards Policy Secondly, we have held a series of evidence sessions and have
heard evidence from: ·
Tenant Forum Executive
Committee (TFEC) ·
North West Leics (NWL) District Council’s Head of Housing and Asset
Manager ·
MBC Customer Service Lead ·
MBC Housing Officer And this week we have additional sessions to include: ·
Housing and Commercial
Manager ·
Voids and Responsive Repairs
Officer ·
Housing Options Team Leader ·
Contractors (Repairs and Gas
Safety) Thirdly, information has been circulated electronically to
the Group – including information from other local authorities which we
have obtained from the internet, from
Councillor Browne and including this Council’s ‘Tenancy Agreement’ and the
‘Tenants’ Handbook’. We are very grateful for the support we have received from
the Director for Growth and Regeneration, the Housing Communities Manager and
officers from Democratic Services especially Natasha and Catherine. We were also very grateful to those officers from NWL who
travelled some distance to share with us their experiences re void properties
and lessons learned. We recognise that there is much work going on in this area
and hopes that the work of the ‘Task and Finish Group’ will further enhance and
assist in the improvement journey. We are already beginning to get a clear picture of the current issues in relation to voids and temporary accommodation through consideration of existing policies and processes and with ... view the full minutes text for item 31. |
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Presentation to be provided, setting out current performance, focus and challenges for the portfolio. This will include a presentation on the Workforce Strategy. To follow. Minutes: Councillor R de Burle, Portfolio Holder for Corporate
Finance and Resources gave a presentation (appended to the minutes) setting out
current performance, focus and challenges for the portfolio, including a
presentation on the Workforce Strategy and debt management. Prior to the meeting, Councillor Pat Cumbers, Chair of the
Scrutiny Committee posed a series of questions, (questions and answers appended
to the minutes). --o0o-- Councillor Browne
left the meeting and did not return. --o0o-- During the discussion of the presentation the following
points were noted: • Mrs Garton, Director for Corporate Services,
advised that bad debt provision is currently being looked at and the department
is constantly assessing which debts can be reclaimed. Currently there was not sufficient
resource in place to focus on the historic debt. • A solution was being sought to increase
resources so that each service could be
risk profiled separately in order to establish levels of outstanding debt. • Any debts over £2,500 require Cabinet approval to be written off • Members requested information on transferring
debts to external agencies., Mrs Garton advised that the use of external debt
collectors was something that could be considered, each individual case would
have to be closely assessed. Those that are vulnerable would benefit more from
support and advice. There are different types debt some types are more difficult to recover
dependant on the circumstances. • Members highlighted the importance of being
proactive in enforcing debt within the 90-day period. • Members requested further information
regarding receipt and monitoring of Section 106 monies. It was confirmed a
report was going to the Audit and Standards Committee on 19 November 2019
following a recent internal audit. • Members asked whether the council undertook
ethical investments, Mrs Garton confirmed that the Council’s investments were
heavily monitored and constrained by regulation. Full details could be found in
Treasury Management Reports which are presented to Cabinet and Council
periodically but that the ethical nature of
investments was not currently a factor • Members commented on the excellent collection
of council tax and business rates since the introduction of the secondment of a
sundry debt collector from January 2018 until March 2020. • The Portfolio Holder confirmed that a new
Policy on Corporate Debt was due to be taken to Cabinet for approval shortly. • Members were advised that a report could be brought back to committee in six months with the progress made following the implementation of the Corporate Debt Policy. |
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Urgent Business To consider any other items that the Chair considers urgent Minutes: There was no urgent business. |