170214_minutes draft

MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL

 

Communities, Housing and Environment Committee

 

Minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 14 February 2017

 

Present:

Councillor Mrs Ring (Chairman), and

Councillors Barned, Mrs Blackmore, M Burton, Joy, D Mortimer, Mrs Ring, Mrs Robertson, Webb and Webster

 

 

Also Present:

Councillors Mrs Gooch

 

 

<AI1>

31.        Apologies for Absence

 

It was noted that apologies for absence had been received from Councillor Perry.

 

</AI1>

<AI2>

32.        Notification of Substitute Members

 

It was noted that Councillor Blackmore was substituting for Councillor Perry.

 

</AI2>

<AI3>

33.        Urgent Items

 

There were no urgent items.

 

</AI3>

<AI4>

34.        Notification of Visiting Members

 

Councillor Gooch was in attendance as a Visiting Member to observe.

 

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<AI5>

35.        Disclosures by Members and Officers

 

There were no disclosures by Members or Officers.

 

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<AI6>

36.        Disclosures of Lobbying

 

Councillors M Burton, Joy, D Mortimer, Ring and Robertson disclosed that they had been lobbied with regard to item 15: Provision of a Public Realm CCTV Service.

 

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<AI7>

37.        To consider whether any items should be taken in private because of the possible disclosure of exempt information.

 

RESOLVED: That all items on the agenda be taken in public as proposed.

 

</AI7>

<AI8>

38.        Minutes of the Meeting Held on 17 January 2017

 

RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 17 January 2017 be approved as a correct record and signed.

 

</AI8>

<AI9>

39.        Presentation of Petitions (if any)

 

There were no petitions.

 

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<AI10>

40.        Questions and answer session for members of the public (if any)

 

There were no questions from members of the public.

 

</AI10>

<AI11>

41.        Committee Work Programme

 

A Member requested that an item on littering from moving vehicles was added to the work programme for a date to be confirmed.

 

RESOLVED: That the Committee Work Programme be noted.

 

</AI11>

<AI12>

42.        Report of the Head of Policy and Communications - Strategic Plan Performance Update Quarter 3 2016/17

 

The Policy and Information Manager presented the report detailing the progress of key strategies, plans and performance indicators in support of the Strategic Plan 2015-2020.

 

The Policy and Information manager highlighted the following:

 

·                Although the percentage of household waste sent for reuse, recycling or composting had missed target, the direction of travel showed an upward trend.

 

·                The percentage of relevant land and highways that was assessed as having deposits of litter that fell below an acceptable level had reached target, but the direction of travel showed a downward trend.

 

In response to a question the Committee was advised that detritus consisted of fine particles, as opposed to litter which was constituted of larger items.

 

RESOLVED: That:

 

1.        The summary of performance for Quarter 3 of 2016/17 for Key Performance Indicators and corporate strategies and plans be noted.

 

2.        That the areas where complete data was not currently available be noted.

 

3.        That the performance of Key Performance Indicators from Quarter 2 of 2016/17 for which data was not available at the 15 November 2016 meeting of the committee be noted.

 

4.        That no actions or amendments to the Quarter 3 report be identified.

 

For – 9        Against – 0           Abstain – 0

 

</AI12>

<AI13>

43.        Report of the Director of Finance and Business Improvement - Third Quarter Budget Monitoring 2016/17

 

The Director of Finance and Business Improvement introduced the report which provided an overview of the revenue budget and outturn for the third quarter of 2016/17, and highlighted financial matters which might have a material impact on the medium term financial strategy or the balance sheet.

 

The Director informed the Committee that progress had been made with regard to the temporary accommodation overspend which had decreased from quarter 2. Key factors in this progress were identified as the implementation of the Temporary Accommodation Strategy and a reduction in homelessness applications.

 

In response to a question the Director clarified that, although there was a projected overspend within the Commercial Waste Service, overall the service was performing well.

 

RESOLVED: That the revenue positions at the end of the third quarter, and the actions being taken or proposed to improve the position where significant variances have been identified, be noted.

 

For – 9        Against – 0           Abstain – 0

 

</AI13>

<AI14>

44.        Report of the Head of Housing and Community Services - Pitch fee increases in respect of the Council's Gypsy and Traveller sites

 

The Director of Finance and Business Improvement introduced the report which proposed an increase of 2.5% in the pitch fees for Council-owned Gypsy and Traveller sites. It was explained that the increase would cover costs.

 

RESOLVED: That the proposed percentage pitch fee increase of 2.5% for Council-owned Gypsy and Traveller sites be agreed for commencement from 3 April 2017.

 

For – 9        Against- 0             Abstain – 0

 

</AI14>

<AI15>

45.        Report of the Head of Housing and Community Services - Review of CCTV Provision

 

The Community Partnerships and Resilience Manager presented the results of a review of the existing static CCTV cameras and recommended the decommissioning of those that were not deemed compliant with the regulatory Code of Practice.

 

During discussion Members raised the following points:

 

·         CCTV was beneficial to the Police for providing evidence of crime and to protect the welfare of on-duty Police Officers.

 

·         Volunteers could be sought in order to save money on the cost of monitoring the live footage.

 

·         The review had used data recorded over the summer months, and it was queried whether there would have been a larger number of incidences captured over the winter months when nights were longer.

 

·         There was no longer a need for a large number of static CCTV cameras as many shops now had external CCTV provision, and people could use mobile phones to record incidences.

 

·         CCTV cameras were not acting as a deterrent and should be removed.

 

·         Most of the cameras were placed in the town centre, but other urban areas within the Borough experienced the highest crime rates.

 

In response to Member’s queries the Community Partnerships and Resilience Manager advised that:

 

·         Static CCTV cameras had been installed in areas that were originally high crime areas. As crime rates had changed a number of cameras had been decommissioned. Regular review was recommended to ensure that cameras were stationed at the most useful sites.

 

·         The majority of CCTV cameras were in the town centre as this was the busiest area of the Borough. Many agencies including the MaidSafe network used the cameras to foster a safe night-time economy.

 

·         The Medway Control Room moved to electronic recording of incidences in June 2016, and it was this data that was used for the review. The town centre was also at its busiest during the lighter summer months.

 

Members requested an additional review of the effectiveness of mobile CCTV cameras to return to Committee within 6 months.

 

RESOLVED: That:

 

1.        The decommissioning of CCTV static cameras to 30 to ensure compliance with the regulatory Code of Practice be endorsed.

 

For – 8          Against – 1           Abstain - 0

 

2.        Authority be delegated to the Head of Housing & Community Services to carry out consultation as outlined in Paragraph 4.1 of the report with Maidsafe users and to provide a further report to the Committee within 6 months recommending the hours of live monitoring.

 

For – 9          Against- 0             Abstain - 0

 

3.        The Head of Housing & Community Services be directed to explore alternative technologies to improve data transfer and reduce revenue costs and provide a report to the Committee within 6 months.

 

For – 9          Against- 0             Abstain - 0

 

4.        A comprehensive evaluation of the effectiveness of mobile CCTV cameras be reported to the Committee within 6 months.

 

For – 8          Against – 1           Abstain – 0

 

Councillor Blackmore wished her dissent to be noted as she felt that the objective of the evaluation was unclear.

 

</AI15>

<AI16>

46.        Duration of meeting

 

8.00 p.m. to 9.15 p.m.

 

</AI16>

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