There were no declarations of interest made.

The Chair stated that Fairtrade City had been added to the longlist of proposed Scrutiny items that the Committee would consider; and a report on the City of Sanctuary Framework was due to Cabinet in December and had been added to the Work Plan

Minutes from 3 September 2024

Recommendation: That the minutes of the meeting held on 3 September 2024 be APPROVED as a true and accurate record.

The Committee resolved to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 3 September 2024 as a true and accurate record.

The Committee agreed to consider item 7 next on the agenda, followed by items 5, 6 and 8.

Cabinet, at its meeting on 16 October 2024, will consider a report from the Head of Corporate Strategy seeking approval for the LGA Corporate Peer Review Action Plan Update and Progress Review Feedback. Cllr Susan Brown, Leader of the Council, Mish Tullar, Head of Corporate Strategy and Lucy Cherry, Policy and Partnerships Officer have been invited to present the report and answer questions. The Committee is asked to consider the report and agree any recommendations.

Councillor Susan Brown, Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Partnership Working, and Mish Tullar, Head of Corporate Services introduced the report, noting the Council was not obliged to have a LGA peer review but wanted to have external oversight and to formulate plans to improve services in the city. An Action Plan had been drafted, with areas of focus being partnerships, communication around regeneration work and improved technology for use by Officers and Councillors.

Councillor Rowley requested the Committee initially focus on Community Engagement, with Councillor Brown noting the ongoing process with the Localities Team, and improved communications with those who do not traditionally engage with the Council.

Councillor Corais then discussed the overall ambition of the Council. Councillor Brown highlighted the high expectations of the authority, and the ongoing work with external organisations, such as Oxford hospitals and the Council’s Homelessness Prevention Team, ensuring homeless people are accommodated when leaving hospital.

The Head of Corporate Services noted the Government approach to prevention first, which translated into work at a local level by meeting regularly with Council’s partners. Health inequalities and working with the Health and Wellbeing Board, shaping a County-wide strategy.

Councillor Miles asked about the review of the Council-owned Companies. Councillor Brown noted as part of the peer review it involved learning from other authorities including the provision of improved governance and scrutiny. Councillor Brown highlighted the ongoing partnership with other authorities, such as Hounslow Council.

Finally, Councillor Miles concluded with a review of the ongoing priorities for the Town Hall. Councillor Brown noted the allocation of funds for projects, and the continuing balance between space for staff and commercial. It was noted the Town Hall is a grade 2 listed building, which prevents certain challenges to make the building carbon zero building. The Head of Corporate Services noted the potential use of the basement and other un-allocated parts of the building, which would be reviewed as part of a feasibility study.

The Committee thanked the officers across the Council, involved with their ongoing work with the Peer Review, and to the Corporate Policy and Partnership Officer who organised and collated the review.

The Committee noted the report; there were no recommendations.

Cllr Brown, Leader and Cabinet Member for Partnership Working and Mish Tullar, Head of Corporate Strategy left the meeting and did not return.

The Work Plan is driven to a very large extent by the Cabinet Forward Plan, a summary of which is attached. The Scrutiny Committee agrees its priorities for items coming onto the Forward Plan, which then form part of its Work Plan.

The Committee is recommended to confirm its agreement to the Work Plan, or agree any amendments as required.

Need to add Forward Plan; also check if Work Plan from October to December 2024 only is sufficient

The Committee was informed that three items had slipped from the October agenda due to recent changes to the Forward Plan, including Corporate Debt Policy, Anti-social Behaviour Review and Thriving Communities Strategy Update. The Scrutiny and Governance Advisor advised that the three items were currently deferred to November but that further changes to the Work Plan was anticipated to align with the further changes to the Forward Plan. Amendments to the Work Plan would be liaised and agreed with the Chair.

At its meeting on 11 September 2024, Cabinet considered the following reports from Scrutiny and made responses to the recommendations:

·       Anti-Social Behaviour

·       Oxfordshire Inclusive Economy Partnership Charter/Pledges – Annual Update

Since the Scrutiny Committee’s previous meeting on 3 September 2024, the following Panels have met:

·       Finance and Performance Panel (4 September 2024)

·       Climate and Environment Panel (10 September 2024)

The Committee is asked to:

1.     Note Cabinet’s responses to its recommendations.

2.     Note any updates from Panel meetings.

The Committee noted that on 11 September 2024, Cabinet considered recommendations related to two reports, responses to which were set out in the Cabinet supplement report:

• Anti-Social Behaviour
• Oxfordshire Inclusive Economy Partnership Charter/Pledges annual Update

The Scrutiny and Governance Advisor advised that the Finance and Performance Panel had met on 4 September and considered three substantive items: Council Strategy 2024-28 KPI's; Integrated Performance Report Q1 2024-25; and Treasury Management Annual Report 2023-24. The Panel made 2 recommendations to Cabinet in respect of the Integrated Performance Report and Treasury Management Report, both were agreed by Cabinet. The Climate and Environment Panel had met on 10 September 2024 and considered four substantive items: Net Zero Masterplan; Annual Air Quality Status Report; Local Area Energy Planning and Mitigation Measures Regarding Local Grid Constraints; and Zero Carbon Oxford Partnership (ZCOP) Expansion. The Panel made 5 recommendations relating to the Annual Air Quality Status Report and ZCOP Expansion, three of which were agreed by Cabinet, one not agreed, and one agreed in-part. Reponses to all recommendations were set out in the Cabinet supplement report.

Scrutiny Committee

·       04 November 2024

·       02 December 2024

·       14 January 2025

·       29 January 2025

·       03 March 2025

·       01 April 2025

Standing Panels

Housing & Homelessness: 10 October 2024; 07 November 2024; 06 March 2025

Finance & Performance: 04 December 2022; 15 January 2025; 07 April 2025

Climate & Environment: 20 November 2024; 26 February 2025; 27 March 2025

All meetings start at 6.00 pm.

Councillor Latif noted that meeting on the 1 April 2025 would clash with the Festival of Eid.

The date of future meetings were noted.