Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Barry Johnson and Gary Stapleton.

None

There were no declarations of interest made.

(A period not exceeding 20 minutes for statements from up to 5 members of the public on matters within the Panel’s remit, proposing action(s) which may be considered or contribute towards the future development of the Panel’s work programme).

There were no public statements made.

The report provided the Panel with an overview of the plans and arrangements that Doncaster Council had in place to respond to the heatwave experienced in July 2022.  Information was provided on how the Council helped partner agencies and the welfare arrangements in place to ensure responding staff were kept safe. It also outlined how the Council and its partners supported vulnerable residents and presented recommendations for future preparedness and response.

John Billings, Group Manager from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue attended the meeting to provide further details on their response to the heatwave.

A discussion took place that included the following areas;

Council's plans and arrangements for responding to the heatwave in Summer 2022 - It was explained that the Council had a duty of responsibility for civil contingency and therefore provided a co-ordination role.  Reference was made to what had been learnt within communities from the floods experienced in 2019.

In terms of the heatwave, it was explained that forecasts from the Met Office had been closely monitored alongside any alerts that came through.  It was explained that there was a heatwave contingency plan setting out actions at different levels of alerts.  When alert level 3 and 4 were reached, a Tactical Co-ordination Group (TCG) meeting was called at an early stage, ensuring that arrangements were in place to provide an appropriate response.  It was continued that the Local Resilience Forum (LRF) who had a coordinating function across South Yorkshire, also called a multi-agency meeting, which was fed into by Doncaster Council.

Council Staff - Members heard how the feedback from staff within the Council had been positive and that staff had been agreeable to the changes made.  It was noted that services should already have risk assessments in place to take into account adverse weather.  It was explained that such changes included minimised service delivery and back-up to cover shorter days, so that staff were not exposed to extreme heat.  Members heard that reminders were sent to Heads of Services around reviewing risk assessments and work patterns for their staff.  It was outlined that other options for staff to take, included booking annual leave, starting and finishing work earlier and working from an office base. 

Provision of Water – Members were informed that there were 100 free refillable water stations across Doncaster.  It was acknowledged that no further action had been required around access to water and if needed, the TCG and LRF could facilitate and co-ordinate that.  Assurances were provided that the Council was aware of those residents who were vulnerable, had medical needs or access issues should they require further support.

Vulnerable Residents – Members questioned how Members were supported during the heatwave, particularly those receiving care in their own homes and across adult social care.  It was explained that over 3000 additional deaths had been reported across the country during the 5 heatwave periods in 2022.  It was recognised that the most vulnerable people included men, those with Dementia or Alzheimer’s and over  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The purpose of the report was to share further information in the form of an update on activity around the Environment and Sustainability Strategy.  A presentation was provided at the meeting, which covered the headlines from the last 12 months and challenges for 2023.

A discussion took place that included the following areas;

111 Actions – It was clarified that the 111 Actions were developed in 2020 following the creation of the Doncaster Climate and Biodiversity commission (Chaired by Ed Miliband MP).  It was explained that these actions had been proposed, as they were deemed essential for the delivery and progress of mitigating and adapting to climate change events.

It was outlined that the strategy and actions could be found on the Team Doncaster website under the Environment and Climate section.  It was explained that many actions were difficult to monitor and activity was reported against those actions through the Council’s performance monitoring system ‘Pentana’, which produced a quarterly report.  Members heard that of the 111 actions, 54 were assigned to Heads of Service, 23 by existing and planned delivery and 39 actions to 4 thematic groups and involved Team Doncaster stakeholders.

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Points – Members were informed that on the 15^th March 2023, a recommendation would be presented to Cabinet to approve external funding for the installation of 100 charge points around 10/11 locations across the Borough.  It was commented that the funding would complement the work being done around charging in public car parks.  It was understood that 32-33,000 homes did not have access to off-street parking and presented a pressure in taking this forward.  Members were told how other Local Authorities were trialling alternative options so that more residents could have access to EV charging.

1 Million Tree Target – In reference to the 1 Million Tree target by 2031, it was clarified that this would mean planting 100,000 trees per year.  It was explained that it had not been agreed where contributions would come from and it was therefore considered that a Doncaster wide approach was needed.  It was explained that efforts would be made to work with as many stakeholders as possible, and by submitting a ‘call to action’ to businesses, residents and community groups to contribute where possible.

It was outlined that the Council had been successful bidding for funding and looking at building staff capacity to maintain new trees.  It was clarified that the funding was only for new trees and not the existing tree canopy, which presented challenges in its own right.  Members were assured that opportunities would be taken wherever possible.

It was explained that it was important when trees were planted that they were the right species and planted in the right places (to be as mindful as possible to reduce future maintenance requirements).  It was therefore hoped that as part of the ‘call to action’, that contributors were able to plant on their own land, where they could manage the trees themselves.  It  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

The Senior Governance Officer provided an outline of the Panel’s review, which considered the Council’s Community Asset Transfer process.  It was explained that the Community Asset Transfer (CAT) was a process that allowed a community organisation to take over publicly owned land or buildings in a way that recognised the public benefits resulting from a transfer.  An outline was provided on how the Panel held a number of meetings to engage and seek the views of Officers, a National Membership Network (supporting local community organisations) as well as looking at the process and practice within another Local Authority.  The Panel also heard about a range of case studies and heard the views of Members who had worked with groups involved in the process. During the review period, the Panel also considered the proposed Strategic Asset Management Strategy 2023-2030, scheduled for consideration by Cabinet on the 1st February 2023.

The Cabinet Member for Highways, Infrastructure and Enforcement acknowledged receipt of the recommendations.

RESOLVED that;

a.      The Panel agreed the recommendations from the review as included in Appendix A of the report; and

b.      That the recommendations (incorporating the feedback provided on the proposed Strategic Asset Management Strategy 2023-2030) and a report outlining the findings of the review be forwarded to the Executive for consideration.

The Senior Governance Officer presented the Scrutiny Work Plan that had recently been agreed by the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee and the Council’s Forward Plan of Key Decisions.

RESOLVED: That the update be noted.