Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber - Civic Centre

Contact: Judy Cordell, Senior Democratic Support Officer  Tel:- 023 8083 2766

Items
No. Item

31.

Apologies and Changes in Panel Membership (If Any)

To note any changes in membership of the Panel made in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.3.

Minutes:

The Committee noted the apologies of Councillors Furnell, Hannides, T Thomas and Whitbread and Appointed Member Catherine Hobbs.  The Committee also noted that following receipt of the temporary resignation of Councillors T Thomas from the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee, the Service Director, Legal and Governance, acting under delegated powers, had appointed Councillor D Thomas to replace her for the purposes of this meeting. 

32.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting (including matters arising) pdf icon PDF 1 MB

To approve and sign as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 9th November, 2017 and the Special meeting held on 29th November and to deal with any matters arising, attached.

Minutes:

RESOLVED that the minutes of the 9th November, 2017 and the Special meeting on the 29th November 2017 Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee be approved and signed as a correct record. 

33.

Alternate Weekly Bin Collections - Review of the Impact and Effectiveness pdf icon PDF 77 KB

Report of the Service Director - Legal and Governance recommending that the Committee note and discuss the findings of the review of the impact and effectiveness of the change to Alternate Weekly Bin Collections.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Service Director, Legal and Governance detailing a review of the impact and effectiveness of the Alternate Weekly Bin Collections. 

 

The Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport was present and with the consent of the Chair addressed the meeting. 

 

RESOLVED that:

 

i)  to avert future problems, officers consider providing information on effectively managing household waste and recycling to residents who, during the November 2017 consultation, responded that their bins were regularly overflowing;

ii)  that the Committee were provided with information that outlines the in year costs and savings associated with the implementation of Alternate Weekly Collections;

iii)  the Council targets persistent offenders when exercising EPA Section 46 powers that require household waste to be placed in appropriate receptacles and at specified collection times;

iv)  the Executive, when discussing with counterparts across Hampshire future options with regards to material recycling facilities, promote opportunities to enable glass and dry products to be recycled within the recycling bins;

v)  the Committee were provided with waiting times for customers using the Contact Centre and the action that has been taken to address this to benefit waste services, amongst others; 

vi)  the 2017/18 recycling and general waste statistics were circulated to the Committee when they had been validated;

vii)  the impact and effectiveness of Alternate Weekly Collections (AWC) be considered at a meeting of the OSMC in 2018/19, preferably in the autumn.  The Committee requested that the update includes a comprehensive suite of performance indicators and metrics to enable comparisons to be made between the periods before and after the implementation of AWC. If possible a geographical breakdown of key outcomes was requested.

34.

Planning Enforcement pdf icon PDF 129 KB

Report of the Service Lead - Infrastructure, Planning and Development setting out the Council's approach to planning enforcement.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Committee considered the report of the Service Lead, Infrastructure, Planning and Development detailing the external review of Southampton City Council planning enforcement procedures. 

 

The Service Director, Growth and Service Lead, Infrastructure, Planning and Development were both present and with the consent of the Chair addressed the meeting. 

 

RESOLVED that:

 

i)  opportunities were identified to make it easier for members of the public to access the planning use class of residential properties in Southampton;

ii)  the Council employs a more robust use of warning letters, especially relating to Section 215 notices, and seeks to reduce the timescales for issuing formal warnings;

iii)  recognising the importance of the Planning Service to the economic performance of the city and the Council’s sustainability, the Executive prioritises the Planning Service, and improving the customer experience, when considering the next stages of the Council’s transformation programme / digital journey;

iv)  reflecting the recommendation above, steps were taken to improve access to information on current planning applications for Councillors and members of the public as soon as possible;

v)  the Committee were provided with Planning metrics that outline:

·  The current operational performance of the Planning Service against key indicators;

·  The performance of the IT system employed by Planning.

It is recommended that this information is also considered by the Council’s Senior Management Team; and

vi)  Planning Enforcement returns to the OSMC agenda in approximately 6 months’ time to consider the findings from the review of planning enforcement procedures and the associated improvement plan.