Venue: Council Chamber, County Hall, Dorchester, DT1 1XJ. View directions
Contact: Lindsey Watson 01305 252209 / Email: lindsey.watson@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
No. | Item |
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Apologies To receive any apologies for absence. Minutes: An apology for absence was received from Cllr Mark Roberts. |
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To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 17 October 2022. Minutes: The minutes of the meeting held on 17 October 2022 were
confirmed and signed. |
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Declarations of interest To disclose any pecuniary, other registrable or non-registrable interests as set out in the adopted Code of Conduct. In making their disclosure councillors are asked to state the agenda item, the nature of the interest and any action they propose to take as part of their declaration. If required, further advice should be sought from the Monitoring Officer in advance of the meeting. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest. |
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To receive any updates from the Chairman of the Place and Resources Scrutiny Committee. Minutes: The Chairman asked the Head of Legal Services to provide an update on land charges. The update is attached to these minutes. The Head of Legal Services responded to questions from committee members and explained how the search times will be monitored and maintained. Several members thanked the Land Charges Team. The Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel, and the Environment updated the committee on car parking. Committee members expressed concern around car parking machines and the loss of revenue from broken machines. A member felt the car parking charges were not competitive and they were too high. The Chairman would raise the issues with the Chairman of the Audit and Governance Committee. |
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Public Participation Representatives of town
or parish councils and members of the public who live, work
or represent an organisation within the Dorset Council area are welcome to
submit up to two questions or two statements for each meeting.
Alternatively, you could submit one question and one statement for each
meeting. All submissions must be emailed in full
to lindsey.watson@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
by 8.30am on 7 November 2022. When submitting your question(s) and/or
statement(s) please note that: ·
no more than three minutes will be
allowed for any one question or statement to be asked/read ·
a question may include a short pre-amble
to set the context and this will be included within
the three
minute period ·
please note that sub divided questions
count towards your total of two ·
when submitting a question please
indicate who the question is for (e.g. the name of the
committee or Portfolio Holder) ·
Include your name, address and
contact details. Only your name will be published but we may need your
other details to contact you about your question or statement in advance of the
meeting. ·
questions and statements received in line
with the council’s rules for public participation will be published as a
supplement to the agenda ·
all questions, statements and responses
will be published in full within the minutes of the meeting. Dorset Council
Constitution Procedure Rule 9 Minutes: There was no public participation. |
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Questions from Members To receive
questions submitted by councillors. Councillors can submit up to two valid
questions at each meeting and sub divided questions count towards this total.
Questions and statements received will be published as a supplement to the
agenda and all questions, statements and responses will be published in full
within the minutes of the meeting. The submissions must be emailed in full
to lindsey.watson@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
by 8.30am
on 7 November 2022. Dorset Council Constitution – Procedure Rule 13 Minutes: There were no questions from members. |
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Property Strategy and Asset Management Plan Update PDF 418 KB To consider a report of the Corporate Director – Assets and Property. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Corporate Director for Property and Assets introduced the item and gave a presentation which is attached to these minutes. The purpose and the strategic priorities were outlined. The asset review was on track to be completed by 2024. The committee asked questions and made comments on the update. The following key points were raised:
The committee agreed to create a task and finish group on agile working. It would add value to the organisation through members’ own experience of agile working in their role as a councillor and reviewing how other organisations are working. The Committee noted the intention to develop a new Strategic Asset Management Plan. |
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Commercialisation Transformation Programme PDF 730 KB To consider a report of the Service Manager for Commercial and Procurement. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Executive Director for Corporate Development introduced the report and outlined the four themes of the programme. A large number in the budge was for third-party spend. The council aimed to become more commercially minded and there was contract management training course and information available. A non-committee member felt that there was a wealth of talent among members who had run successful businesses and members should be involved. There was a need for more commercial flexibility in local government. The committee asked questions and made comments on the commercialisation transformation programme. Officers responded to questions. The following points were raised:
Following the discussion, the committee requested:
The committee noted the progress made and proposed future developments under the programme. |
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Adjournment The meeting was adjourned at 12.48pm and reconvened at 13.00pm. Upon reconvening, it was agreed to continue the meeting
beyond 3 hours. |
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Dorset Council Climate and Ecological Emergency Strategy - Progress report Autumn 2022 PDF 632 KB To consider a report of the Sustainability Team Manager. Additional documents:
Minutes: The Sustainability Team Manager introduced the progress
report and gave a presentation which is attached to these minutes. Key areas of
progress included the public sector decarbonisation scheme, developing climate
and ecological branding, webpage development, communications support, and
partner engagement. The next steps included a refresh of the climate and
ecological strategy and action plan. The Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel, and Environment
felt that this was some of the best climate and ecological work done by
councils and it was something to be proud of.
The committee reviewed the progress report and asked
questions of the officers and portfolio holder. During the discussion, the
following points were raised:
The Chairman asked to receive further information on how the
failure to receive grant applications and the loss of experienced officers
would impact on achieving the carbon neutral target. The Chairman asked for the review on tree planting
opportunities to be progressed earlier than planned. |
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Performance Scrutiny A review of the
relevant Dorset Council performance dashboard to inform the scrutiny
committee’s forward plan and identify items for deep dives. Committee members
to flag up if any areas for potential review. Operational – Corporate: Councillors Piers Brown, Barry Goringe and David
Shortell Operational – Place: Councillors Mark Roberts, David Tooke and Jon Andrews HR: Councillors Rod Adkins, Andy Canning
and Bill Trite The Chairman, Councillor Shane Bartlett, maintains an overview of
all the above areas. Minutes: The committee considered the performance dashboard and highlighted some areas of concern. These included:
A statement would be brought to the committee on the number of overdue subject access requests. The Executive Director of Place would bring a report to the committee on staff sick leave, the causes of it, and what is being done. |
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Place and Resources Scrutiny Committee Forward Plan PDF 293 KB To review the draft
Place and Resources Scrutiny Committee Forward Plan. Minutes: Members were aware of the forward plan and have informal
meetings to discuss it. There were some items raised to add to the forward plan
during this committee. There was a need to prioritise items on the plan. |
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Cabinet Forward Plan PDF 360 KB To review the Cabinet Forward Plan. The Cabinet Forward Plan is provided to members of the
Place & Resources Scrutiny Committee to review and identify any potential
post decision scrutiny to be undertaken, by scheduling items into the forward
plan to review after a period of implementation. Minutes: The Committee reviewed Cabinet’s forward plan and identified
potential items to review. The committee would receive a statement on the 20mph policy
6 months after it has been implemented. The Fees and Charges Policy was identified as a potential
item to review. A member raised the item Updated Children in Care Strategy
and Plan which included a proposal to increase fees for foster carers. This
would be raised with the People & Health Scrutiny Committee. |
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Urgent items To consider any items of business which the Chairman has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) b) of the Local Government Act 1972. The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes. Minutes: There were no urgent items. |
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Exempt Business To move the exclusion of the press and the public for the following item in view of the likely disclosure of exempt information within the meaning of paragraph x of schedule 12 A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended). The public and the press will be asked to leave the meeting whilst the item of business is considered. There is no exempt
business. Minutes: There was no exempt business. |