Agenda and minutes

The Chair, Councillor Richard Allan Jones, welcomed Elected Members, Officers and members of the public to the meeting and asked that they remain standing whilst they were led in prayer by the Civic Chaplain, Canon Reverend David Stevens.

It was MOVED by Councillor Lani-Mae Ball and SECONDED by Councillor Dave Shaw that Councillor Ian Pearson be elected as Chair of Council of Doncaster Metropolitan Borough for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.

RESOLVED that Councillor Ian Pearson be hereby elected as Chair of Council of Doncaster Metropolitan Borough for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.

It was MOVED by Councillor Glynis Smith and SECONDED by Councillor Linda Curran that Councillor Duncan Anderson be elected as Vice-Chair of Council of Doncaster Metropolitan Borough for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.

RESOLVED that Councillor Duncan Anderson be hereby elected as Vice-Chair of Council of Doncaster Metropolitan Borough for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.

On behalf of the Council, Damian Allen, the Chief Executive, presented a Commemorative Badge to the retiring Chair of Council.  Flowers were presented to the outgoing Mayoress and the new Mayoress.

The Chair of Council, Councillor Ian Pearson, delivered his inaugural speech.

“Thank you to all who have bestowed this honour upon me. I thought I would be elected as Civic Mayor of a Metropolitan Borough Council, but now it appears it will be Doncaster City Council.

This is an auspicious and important day and I would like to thank Team Doncaster, Ros and all Members and Officers who have taken part in the achievement of City Status.  It is a great honour and we achieved this on our fourth attempt; to achieve this it cost us less than £30,000.

This will bring great benefits to Doncaster and in years to come, we will see growth of the economy by 13 to 14%. It is the start of a long journey and we should all be proud to be residents.

My wife Sue will be acting as my Consort for the year and we have chosen to support two charities in the coming year:-

·         Be Safe - this is a charity that supports children and young people seeking refuge and support; and

·         The Mansion House - I would love to see the profile raised further and raise money for it with more events held there over the coming years. It was the only Mansion House in the Country of a Metropolitan Borough Council, and is only one of three overall across the country.

I would like to say thank you to Councillors Lani-Mae Ball and Dave Shaw for the wonderful things they have said.  Listening to them, I felt like I wanted to cry. Thank you.

All of you who know me will know I am straight talking, a bit blunt but if you talk to me, and we discuss things, we can always find some common ground to move forward.

I am here to promote the industry, business and community of Doncaster, and we have to work hard to get out of this financial crisis, fight to overcome the environmental crisis, and be warned, I will be expecting you all to come up with initiatives to do this.

Finally, I would just like to thank everyone for getting me here.”

At the conclusion of item 5 above, the meeting will stand adjourned and reconvene at 2.00 pm in the Council Chamber in the Civic Office, Waterdale, Doncaster.

It was MOVED by Councillor Cynthia Ransome and SECONDED by Councillor Steve Cox that the Council place on record its thanks and appreciation to Councillor Richard Allan Jones for the manner in which he had fulfilled his role as Chair of Council for the 2021/22 Municipal Year.

Councillor Richard Allan Jones responded as follows:-

“Being chosen to serve as Civic Mayor in May last year was one of the proudest moments of my life.

It has been another difficult year.  The shadow of the Covid pandemic still hangs over us and although restrictions have been eased, many of the traditional events were unable to take place.  However, I do not want this to detract from my year in office.  It has been an interesting and rewarding year and my wife, Elizabeth and I, have been very honoured to represent Doncaster at many varied engagements over the past 12 months.

An obvious highlight was the visit of HRH Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, when he visited our wonderful new Gallery, Library and Museum, but equally rewarding has been meeting the people of Doncaster.  I have met many inspiring people who work tirelessly within their communities, giving their time freely, with little recognition or reward, to improve the lives of others.

On a personal note, I would like to say a big thank you to my wife, Elizabeth, who has given me tremendous support throughout the year.  I could not have fulfilled my duties without you.

I would also like to record my thanks to my fellow Ward Councillors for Finningley, Jane and Steve Cox.  They have been a great support, taking on additional work to allow me to carry out my role as Civic Mayor; a huge thank you to both of you.

Thank you also to Dave the Civic Chauffeur and Attendant, and Mandy for their advice and guidance, and for making sure I am at the right place at the right time.

I would like to finish by wishing my successor, Councillor Ian Pearson, all the very best during his time as Civic Mayor. I hope that you have an enjoyable and memorable year.”

The Chair then announced a short recess and determined that the meeting would reconvene at 2.00 pm.

There were no declarations of interest made at the meeting.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Council Meeting held on Monday, 28th February, 2022, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member, be approved as a correct record, and signed by the Chair.

The Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, made the following announcements:-

“I am sure most of you are already aware, but Doncaster is to be granted City Status as part of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. 

To become one of the UK’s newest Cities underlines our firmly held belief that we think, act and feel like a City.  I have said for a long time that we are a City in all but name and now we can proudly say that Doncaster has achieved City status.

We are one of eight recipients to win the Royal honour, the furthest North, in England, and the only one in Yorkshire.

This Royal Seal of approval will mean we can continue with our vision to drive our Borough forward and realise our aspirations.  Being a City will help boost the profile of Doncaster on many different levels from attracting new and growing business, underlining Doncaster as a tourist destination, upping our role on the national stage and giving us a stronger voice.

I would like to personally thank Dan Fell, the Chief Executive of Doncaster Chamber, for his leadership of this bid, and all our Team Doncaster partners for their passion and promotion of our City Status bid.  Being granted City Status is proof of what we can achieve when we work together across the Team Doncaster partnership.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our bid across Doncaster and who, like us in Team Doncaster, want Doncaster to be recognised for how far we have come and our exciting future ahead.  Congratulations too from Doncaster to all of the other City Status winners.  I hope you are as delighted as I am.  We will be celebrating as part of our already planned Jubilee events and will make the occasion even more special.

As many of you will already be aware, this week we welcomed a team of experienced Officers and members from other Local Authorities to the Council, to carry out an LGA Corporate Peer Challenge.  A Peer Challenge is an opportunity to take stock and reflect on how to further improve outcomes for local residents.

During their four day visit to the Council, the Peer Challenge Team gathered information and views from more than 35 meetings and spoke to around 120 people, including a range of Council staff together with Members and external stakeholders, in addition to carrying out further research.

We have now received the initial feedback from the Peer Challenge Team and I am delighted to report that this is very positive indeed with one of the overall observations being ‘Doncaster is on a journey of continuous improvement with many good features and if continued, will be an exemplar Council’.

They also observed that the Council has a compelling vision and clear priorities to deliver its ambitions for Doncaster, and that there is pride and a strong sense of place and identity amongst Members and staff.  The team highlighted the strong leadership and partner relationships too, with partners well engaged and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

The Council considered a report which advised Members of the outcome of the Wheatley Hills and Intake Ward By-Election held on Thursday, 31st March, 2022.

Members noted that the eligible Electorate was 12,933 electors of which 2,879 were issued with Postal Votes and 1,264 (43.90%) were returned.  As well as those Postal Votes issued, there were ten polling stations on polling day which 536 (5.33%) electors visited to cast their vote.  In total, 1,800 electors cast their vote, of which 3 were rejected marking a turnout of 13.92%.

RESOLVED that the result of the Wheatley Hills and Intake Ward By-Election held on Thursday, 31st March, 2022, be noted.

The Council received a report, presented by the Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, with regard to the composition and constitution of the Executive for the 2022/23 Municipal Year, and announced that the Cabinet would be comprised as follows:-

Councillor Glyn Jones

Deputy Mayor and lead on Housing and Business

Councillor Lani-Mae Ball

Cabinet Member for Education, Skills & Young People

Councillor Nigel Ball

Cabinet Member for Public Health, Leisure, Culture and Planning

Councillor Joe Blackham

Cabinet Member for Highways, Infrastructure and Enforcement

Councillor Rachel Blake

Cabinet Member for Children's Social Care, Communities and Equalities

Councillor Phil Cole

Cabinet Member for Finance and Trading Services

Councillor Mark Houlbrook

Cabinet Member for Sustainability and Waste

Councillor Jane Nightingale

Cabinet Member for Corporate Resources

Councillor Andrea Robinson

Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care

A copy of the current Scheme of Delegations, dated 12th October 2021, was attached at Appendix A to the report.

RESOLVED that the report on the composition of the Executive, be noted.

The Council considered a report which sought approval for a number of proposed revisions to the Terms of Reference for Council appointed Committees and Sub-Committees.

The Terms of Reference were approved at Council each year and ensured that the highest standards of governance were met, and allowed for the proper discharge of functions.

The Council noted that changes had been proposed to the Terms of Reference to the Audit Committee, the Doncaster Covid-19 Oversight Board and the Health and Wellbeing Board, which had been appended to the report at Appendix A, with proposed deletions shown as crossed through, and additions in bold italics.

RESOLVED that

(1)      the proposed revisions to the Terms of Reference, as set out in paragraphs 8 to 10 and in Appendix A of the report, be approved;

(2)      the existing Terms of Reference for all other Committees and Sub-Committees of the Council, as set out within Part 3 of the Constitution, remain unchanged; and

(3)      the Constitution be updated to reflect the revisions to the Terms of Reference as agreed.

(Notice - Approval of alternative arrangements for appointments to some Committees and Sub-Committees on a non-proportionate basis, is to be considered).

The Council considered a report which proposed the allocation of seats on Committees and Sub-Committees of the Council, having regard to political balance in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government and Housing Act, 1989.

The Council was also advised of adjustments necessary to reflect a best proportionate fit in accordance with the principles of proportionality, as set out within paragraph 25 of the report.

It was reported that following the dispatch of the agenda papers, a list of Political Group nominations for the appointment of Members to serve on Committees, Sub-Committees and Scrutiny Panels, had been circulated to Members and tabled at the meeting, which outlined nominations received from Group Leaders.

The Council was also requested to make appointments and co?options to other Committees of the Council, not subject to the requirement for proportional balance.

Members noted that the proposed allocation of seats set out in the report, was based on:-

(i)            Proportionality being applied to the Committees/Sub-Committees shown in the table below based on the membership indicated:-

(ii)          Proportionality would not apply to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee, or the four Overview & Scrutiny Standing Panels, in order to maximise cross-party representation;

(iii)         The Licensing Committee, set up under the Licensing Act 2003, need not be politically proportionate.  However, in seeking nominations from Group Leaders onto these 14 seats, these had been sought in proportion to the overall composition on the Council.  The appointment of Licensing Sub-Committees to conduct hearings under Section 10 of the Licensing Act 2003, was a statutory function reserved by the Act to the statutory Licensing Committee.  Accordingly, it was a matter for the Licensing Committee to appoint these Sub-Committees and to schedule any required meetings; and

(iv)         Proportionality would not apply to the Health and Wellbeing Board in accordance with legislative requirements.

RESOLVED that

(1)      seats on Committees and Sub-Committees be allocated as set out in the table at paragraph 25 of the report, subject to the Labour Group losing 1 seat on the Chief Officers Appeals Committee and the Mexborough First Group losing 1 on the Awards, Grants and Transport (Appeals) Committee;

(2)      as a consequence of the loss of the 2 seats detailed at (1) above, the two seats, 1 seat to be allocated to the Conservative Group and 1 seat be allocated to the Independent Member, Councillor Rob Reid, as follows:-

(a)      Conservative Group

·      Awards, Grants and Transport (Appeals) Committee (Councillor Martin Greenhalgh)

(b)     Councillor Rob Reid

·      Chief Officers Appeals Committees

(3)      the membership of Committees and Sub-Committees for 2022/23 including substitute provision in respect of the Chief Officers Appointments Committee, the Chief Officers Appeals Committee and the Employee Relations Disputes Resolution Committee, be as set out in the schedule attached to these minutes  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The Council considered a list of political nominations for the appointment of Members to serve as Chairs and Vice-Chairs on Committees, Sub-Committees and Scrutiny Panels, for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.  The list of nominations had been circulated to Members and tabled at the meeting, following the dispatch of agenda papers.

It was noted that in accordance with Rule 3 of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules, Council looked to ensure that not all Chairs and Vice-Chairs were drawn from the same Political Party.

RESOLVED that the Chairs and Vice-Chairs of Committees and Sub-Committees for the 2022/23 Municipal Year, be as follows:-

Members considered the Diary of Meetings for 2022/24, which detailed the dates of all meetings and scheduled events for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 Municipal Years.

The draft diary had previously been considered at the Council Meeting on 20th January, 2022, and had allowed Members the opportunity to make any changes, if necessary.

RESOLVED that

(1)      the proposed Diary of Meetings for the 2022/23 and 2023/24 Municipal Years, as attached at Appendix A to the report, be approved; and

(2)      the schedule of Cabinet Meetings as determined by the Mayor of Doncaster, be noted.

The Council considered a report which sought the appointment of representatives to the schedule of Council Appointments to Outside Bodies for the 2022/23 Municipal Year.  The list of nominations had been circulated to Members and tabled at the meeting, following the dispatch of agenda papers.

RESOLVED that the Council appointments to Outside Bodies, as set out in the schedule attached to these minutes at Appendix B, be approved.

The Council considered a report which sought approval to appoint Dr Stuart Green for a 4 year term as the Council’s Co-opted, non-voting, Independent Member to sit on the Audit Committee.

It was reported that at the Annual Council Meeting on 13th June, 2014 Council agreed to appoint one Co-opted, non-voting, Independent Member to sit on the Audit Committee.  Kathryn Smart was appointed following interviews to this position and served a second term which would expire on 31st May, 2022.  As Kathryn Smart did not wish to serve a third term, the position was advertised and interviews were held on 1st April, 2022.

Members were informed that Dr Stuart Green was an Assistant Professor in Accounting in the Business School of Durham University and was Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) and Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales qualified, in addition to Doctorates and Higher Doctorates in Accounting.  He also held independent non-executive Director positions on the Audit, Remuneration and Standards Committees of several large public sector organisations.

It was noted that the appointment of a Co-opted Member to the Audit Committee was not a statutory requirement, but it was CIPFA best practice to have an independent person with a financial background and expertise in some areas of the roles and responsibilities of an Audit Committee.  The person appointed would provide external robust challenge to the work of the Committee which added value to the Council operations in managing its risks and achieving its key priorities of improving services provided to the citizens of the Borough.  The work undertaken by the Audit Committee also improved and strengthened governance arrangements within the Council and its partners.

RESOLVED that

(1)      Dr Stuart Green be appointed as the Co-opted, non-voting, Independent Member to sit on the Audit Committee for a 4 year term to 31st May; 2026; and

(2)      the Council’s gratitude be expressed to Kathryn Smart as its outgoing Independent Member, for the eight years of highly valued guidance and support she has given the Audit Committee.

The Council considered a report presented by Councillor Jane Nightingale, Cabinet Member for Customer and Corporate Services, which outlined 2022/23 Member Training and Development Programme, and training undertaken during 2021/22.  The provisional Training and Development Programme for 2022/23, was attached at Appendix A and that Officers were currently working to confirm dates and times of some of the sessions, and Members would be advised of these in due course.

It was reported that following the Election in May 2021, the priority was to ensure all Members were able to understand their roles and responsibilities.  There had been a focus on induction and mandatory training and that opportunities would be provided for those Members who had not completed their mandatory training.  Members who had taken up new positions on Committees such as Licensing, Planning and Chairing, would be able to undertake their training shortly after the Annual Council Meeting.

It was noted that the cross-party Member Development Working Group would continue to review Member development and training, and which would also identify further training and development needs, and opportunities during the course of the year.  In particular, the Working Group would be reviewing feedback from the Member’s questionnaire and looking at how some key skills could be developed to support Members in their community leadership role, enhance digital skills and provide more support to Overview and Scrutiny Members.

RESOLVED that

(1)      the Member training and development undertaken during 2021/22, be noted;

(2)      the programme of Member Development activities and Seminars scheduled for 2022/23, as detailed within Appendix A to the report, including the list of training deemed to be mandatory for all Members and for specific groups of Members, be approved; and

(3)      the programme Member Development be further updated over the course of the year, in consultation with the Member Development Working Group.

The Council considered a report, presented by the Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, which proposed the adoption of the Rossington Neighbourhood Development Plan, as part of the Statutory Development Plan for the Borough following a successful Referendum result.

It was reported that Rossington Parish Council had produced a Neighbourhood Development Plan for the Parish boundary which was known as the Designated Boundary.  The Parish Council and the Planning Policy and Environment Team at Doncaster Council, had worked collaboratively to ensure that the Local Plan and the Rossington Neighbourhood Plan, did not conflict with each other.

The final stage of the Neighbourhood Plan process was the Referendum whereby anyone living in the designated Neighbourhood Plan area had right to vote on whether they wanted the Council to use the Neighbourhood Plan to help it decide planning applications in the neighbourhood area.

Members were informed that the total electorate in Rossington was 10,840 and that the turnout for the Referendum was 10.97%.  1189 papers had been issued with 1058 voted in favour, 124 voted against, with 7 papers being rejected.  Subsequently, in accordance with Section 38A of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004, as amended,  Full Council was required to adopt the Rossington Neighbourhood Plan.

Following the presentation of the report, Members of the Council were afforded the opportunity to comment on the report.

RESOLVED that the Rossington Neighbourhood Development Plan be adopted as part of the Statutory Development Plan for the Borough.