Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Bray, Crooks, Lynch and Williams with the following substitutions authorised in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4:

Councillor Hodgkins for Councillor Lynch

Councillor Hollick for Councillor Crooks

Councillor Kirby for Councillor Williams

Councillor Nichols for Councillor Bray.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 17 September 2015.

It was moved by Councillor Camamile, seconded by Councillor Bill and

RESOLVED – the minutes of the meeting held on 17 September be confirmed and signed by the Chairman.

No interests were declared at this stage.

At Council on 12 October, the authority’s response to the Leicestershire Fire & Rescue Service consultation was referred to the Scrutiny Commission.

A copy of the Council minute and the consultation document is attached for your information.

Following referral of this item to the Scrutiny Commission by Council, members were presented with a suggested response based on the resolution of Council. Some members felt that the response should be stronger to reflect the serious concerns of the residents of Hinckley, and others felt that the response was appropriate given that some areas of the Borough were not being adversely affected. Some minor adjustments were suggested to the wording and subsequently Councillor Bill requested an adjournment to discuss the wording. The meeting adjourned at 6.54pm.

Upon reconvening at 6.58pm, it was moved by Councillor Nichols and seconded by Councillor Bill that the following be submitted as a response to the consultation, which upon being put to the vote was CARRIED:

“Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council welcomes the opportunity to respond to consultation from the Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service on its Integrated Risk Management Plan: ‘Towards 2020’.

We appreciate the time give to use by Steve Lunn at the Council meeting on 12 October, his explanation of the case for the proposals and his response to questions from elected members.

The Council values very highly the services and protection provided by Leicestershire Fire & Rescue Service across the county, and particularly to the people of Hinckley & Bosworth, who are served not just from Hinckley Fire Station, but also from the neighbouring station at Coalville. We recognise also the financial pressures faced by the Fire & Rescue Service, as the Council faces very similar pressures, to which we have responded without negative impact on the public.

We express serious concerns over the planned reduction in emergency cover, in particular the removal of a crewed fire engine at Hinckley. We acknowledge the reassurances given in the presentation and in the consultation documentation and understand the direction being taken. However, those assurances must be delivered in practice to ensure the continued safety of local people. To ensure that this happens, we would also request an annual update of response times and incidents to the Scrutiny Commission”.

It was unanimously

RESOLVED – the above be submitted as the Council’s response to the consultation.

Following a motion to Council in July 2015 and convening of a working party to discuss, a response was prepared to the Ministry of Justice consultation relating to Magistrates Courts. A copy of that response is attached for members’ information.

The Scrutiny Commission was updated with regard to responding to the Ministry of Justice consultation on Hinckley Magistrates Court. Members were presented with a copy of the letter that had been sent by way of response and it was explained that a member working group had met to agree a response, which had then been drafted by an officer group. During discussion, the following points were made:

·         The feeling that response was well-balanced

·         There may be a number of artefacts in the building and Hinckley Museum should be asked to ensure these are recovered should the service cease to operate from the building

·         It would make sense for the service to remain in Hinckley, and would be beneficial to all if the Hub could be used for this purpose.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Corporate Direction).

Members were informed of the findings of the winter customer satisfaction survey. It was noted that these findings had already been fed back to services. During presentation and discussion, the following points were raised:

·         The drop in satisfaction in relation to doorstep recycling

·         The improvement in satisfaction with sports and leisure provision across the borough, with the exception of Groby

·         The improvement in satisfaction in relation to parks and open spaces, except for Barlestone, Nailstone & Osbaston ward which, it was noted, was an area for which the relevant parish councils were responsible for parks

·         The Borough Bulletin remained the main source of information about the Borough Council, except for in Barwell

·         Some felt the council’s website was difficult to navigate

·         The low response rate to such consultations may mean that residents are generally happy with council services, or may indicate apathy.

In relation to the drop in satisfaction in the recycling service, it was suggested that this may have been due to the Recycle Right project and the change in recyclables accepted. The importance of education was emphasised and it was agreed that a briefing note be sent to members to inform them of educational activities currently being provided by officers of the Council. Information was also requested on how new residents were informed of the recycling rules. In response to concerns about cigarette butts and chewing gum on pavements, members were asked to let officers know of any problem areas.

It was requested that a copy of this, and future, satisfaction survey reports be sent to parish councils for their information.

Members will be provided with a verbal update on the Crescent development.

The Scrutiny Commission received a verbal update on the Crescent development, being informed that the first phases of the project were nearing completion with Sainsbury’s due to open on 4 November 2015. It was noted that the cinema was due to open early December and the majority of the other units in block C (the block for which the Council was responsible) were either let or in advanced stages of negotiation and would start fitting out in early 2016. In relation to the other units which were not within the control of the Council, it was reported that these were almost 70% let with the remainder again in advanced negotiations.

Members asked for a more detailed report in early 2016 with a financial update and it was agreed that, where possible, any reports for decision by Council would be brought to the Scrutiny Commission first if timings allowed.

RESOLVED – progress on the Crescent Development be noted.