Issue - meetings

Report of the Leader of the Council outlining business undertaken by the Executive since November 2020.

The report of the Leader of the Council was submitted setting out the details of the business undertaken by the Executive.

The Leader and the Cabinet made statements and responded to questions.

The following questions were submitted in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.1:-

1.  Additional Restrictions Grant

Question from Councillor Fitzhenry to Councillor Hammond (Councillor Barnes-Andrews to respond).

Please can you explain why Southampton is one of the poorest performing local authorities in the country for the distribution of the Additional restrictions Grant.

Answer

• In December the government provided £5 million through the Additional Restrictions Grant scheme to disperse, on a discretionary basis, before March 31 2022. This remains the case. On the 23 December the Additional Restrictions Grant scheme open to submissions and remains open, as the scheme expands each week.

• On the 25 February a national newspaper reported that Councils were failing to distribute funds and locally reported on the 11 March.  These reports were based on data from 17 January 2021. On the 17 Jan we had administered 16 grant payments valued at £21,344 as reported.  By the 28 January we had administered 93 grant payments totalling £83,600 and by the 1 March we have administered 266 payments totalling £215,850.  At the end of March we will have administered nearly 420 payments totalling £338,100.

• The difference in performance is in part due to some local authorities decided to provide larger one-off payments, in contrast we have chosen to begin by providing ongoing monthly payments, which will continue throughout the spring and summer as businesses reopen in line with the governments ‘Roadmap’.

• We are targeting businesses that are most in need and who have been unable to access other support. Today we have launched a scheme for mobile workers through capital grants potentially valued £1.6 million through the Additional Restrictions Grant.

• The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) only issued a revised steer on this scheme on the 9 March 2021, with a request to all Local Authorities to issue this funding as quickly as possible. BEIS also announced that the complex landscape of different grants will be simplified to two schemes, the Restart Grants and the Additional Restrictions Grant. This is very welcome.  

• I am confident that we will issue the majority of this funding to those local businesses most in need and strategically in line with the latest ‘Roadmap’ with the lifting of all restrictions by June.

2.  School Attendance

Question from Councillor James Baillie to Councillor Paffey.

What are the Council doing to ensure the no child is left behind through not attending school for the last 2 months?

Answer

  All children have now been welcomed back onto school sites across   the city and have received well-planned and delivered virtual lessons or   provision within the school throughout the most recent lockdown.  As a   council we have supported education leaders since the first lockdown   last year to ensure good coordination and consistency of schooling in   very difficult circumstances. In particular:

·  Our School Improvement  ...  view the full minutes text for item 61