Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence received.

To be apprised of any changes to the membership of the Committee in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.

In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4, the Committee noted the termination of Councillors R Bailey and D Westley and the appointment of Councillors T De Freitas and D Whittington for this meeting only, thereby giving effect to the wishes of the Political Groups

Note:  No other business is permitted unless, by reason of special circumstances, which shall be specified at the meeting, the Chairman is of the opinion that the item(s) should be considered as a matter of urgency.

There were no urgent items of business.

If a member requires advice on Declarations of Interest, he/she is advised to contact the Legal and Democratic Services Manager in advance of the meeting.  (For the assistance of members a checklist for use in considering their position on any particular item is included at the end of this agenda sheet.)

There were no declarations of interest.

In accordance with Overview and Scrutiny Committee Procedure Rule 16, Members must declare the existence of any Party Whip, and the nature of it, when considering any matter in the following categories:

-       The review of any decision of the Cabinet or

-       The performance of any Member of the Cabinet

N.B. The Secretary of State believes whipping is incompatible with Overview and Scrutiny.

There were no declarations of Party Whip.

To receive as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 23 February 2023.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the meeting held 23 February 2023 be received as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

Residents of West Lancashire on giving notice, may address the meeting to make representations on any item on the agenda except where the public and press are to be excluded during consideration of the item.  The deadline for submissions is 10.00am on Friday 9 June 2023.  A copy of the public speaking protocol and form to be completed is attached.

There were no items under this heading.

To scrutinise the Minutes of Cabinet held on 7 March 2023.

Consideration was given to the Minutes of Cabinet held on 7 March 2023 as contained on pages 15  to 22 of the Book of Reports.

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of Cabinet held 7 March 2023 be noted.

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources.

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources as contained on pages 23 to 34 of the Book of Reports, which was to update Members on progress with implementing the recommendations of the Planning Services review.

The Head of Planning and Regulatory Services and Planning Services Manager responded to comments and questions raised by Members.

·       Recruitment of Planning Officers / Enforcement Officers

·       Provision of the 'weekly list' is preferential to be in the new Ward format rather that numerical for Members

·       Communication issues with switchboard to be transferred to Planning Officer/Services

·       Monitoring of the Planning Services Review through Cabinet and Members Update

The Chairman thanked Officers for their work and to the Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Planning & Community Safety for his attendance.

RESOLVED:

A.              That the update on progress of the Planning Services review be noted.

B.              That future progress reports be reported via the Corporate & Environmental Overview and Scrutiny Committee Members Update and Cabinet.

C.              That consideration be given to assist and provide Members with a Planning Weekly List in Ward order.

(Note: Councillor G Dowling - Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Planning & Community Safety was in attendance for this item)

To consider the report of the Head of Finance, Procurement and Commercial Property.

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Finance, Procurement and Commercial Property as contained on pages 35 to 54 of the Book of Reports which set out details of the proposed Procurement Policy.

The Procurement Manager outlined the report and responded to comments and questions raised by Members:

·       Inclusion of question - requirements under Modern Slavery Act 2015

·       Monitoring of budget setting process, financial and resource implications

·       Savings tracker / Value for Money process

RESOLVED:That the Committee considered the Procurement Policy and recommend to Council that the Procurement Policy be noted and approved.

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources.

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources as contained on pages 55 to 68 of the Book of Reports, the purpose of which, was to share the action plan developed through the cross organisational officer Task & Finish Group, following the analysis of the Citizen Survey 2022.

The Digital Communications Manager outlined the report and responded to comments and questions raised by Members.

·       Any follow on from Covid included 2021/22 period / thanks to Council Staff and Volunteers

·       Residents not signed up to garden waste subscription / subscription patterns

·       What methods of inclusion for residents not able to signup for garden waste subscription online

·       Did the Council commit to 'no mow May'?

·       Road signage blockage / LCC responsibility

The Digital Communications Manager informed that she would contact the relevant Service area, in response to the above questions.

The Chairman thanked officers for their excellent work.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources.

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources as contained on pages 69 to 92 of the Book of Reports, which presented performance monitoring data for the quarter ended 31 March 2023.

The Chairman commented on the excellent presentation of the report.

RESOLVED: That the Council’s performance against the Council Plan for the quarter ended 31 March 2023 be noted.

To consider the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources.

Consideration was given to the report of the Corporate Director of Transformation, Housing and Resources as contained on pages 93 to 108 of the Book of Reports, which was to approve the draft of the new Council Plan 2023-28 for public consultation.

A comment was raised in respect of benefits of the new 'Tree Management Strategy' for West Lancashire.

RESOLVED:

A.    That the Committee note the process for developing a replacement Council Plan to date.

B.    That the Committee note the draft Council Plan 2023-2028 priorities and areas of focus to be used in public consultation at Appendix 1.

C.   That the process for approving a final plan outlined in section 4.1 is endorsed.

D.   That the 'Tree Management Strategy' for West Lancashire be presented to a future meeting of the Committee within appropriate time scale.