Questions on notice under Council Procedure Rule 11.10(b) may be asked of the Lord Mayor, a Member of the City Executive Board or the Chair of a Committee.

 

Questions on notice must, by the Constitution, be notified to the Head of Law and Governance by no later that 9.30am on Friday 16^th December 2011.

 

Full details of any questions for which the required notice has been given will be circulated to Members of Council before the meeting.

(a)       Questions notified in time for replies to have been provided before this Council meeting.

 

1.         Question to the Board Member, Stronger Communities (Councillor Antonia Bance) from David Williams

 

Youth Service provision in Oxford

 

Would the Portfolio Holder agree that now the County Council has decided to dramatically reduce the Youth Service in Oxford it is time for the City to take a lead and offer to transfer the service to City control at least within the boarders of the City Wards.  Would she not also agree that the City would make a far better sponsor and manager of this vital service to the young people of Oxford than the County Council, which has treated it with disrespect and neglect over the years?

 

Answer: The councillor is correct in noting that the county council no longer provides a standalone youth service. Support for young people is now delivered through the two Early Intervention Hubs in the city, based at Union Street and Littlemore, which have a much wider remit than just youth work. Whilst this council welcomes the greater integration of the other support functions for vulnerable children, young people and families that the restructure has brought, the reduction in youth work provision is at odds with the aspirations of our communities and this council.

 

The city council already runs a substantial youth programme - both through our Positive Futures and holiday activities programmes, and through our sports development and leisure work. This programme, started by the Labour administration of 2002-6 and continued ever since, is certainly one of the most substantial run by a district council in the country, and is something we are very proud of. In the last year, more than 1400 young people took part in our Positive Futures or holiday programming, and we devote more than £150,000 per year to this work (plus £88,000 from external sources for our Positive Futures targeted schemes). This council has recently agreed proposals to enable our services to raise additional funding to expand the service for young people in the city by trading and taking on additional contracts in other areas.

 

The councillor will also have noted that the administration's budget proposals include a significant increase in funding for both youth activities and educational achievement activities - another area that the county council has failed to prioritise. The youth activities funding – proposed to be at £240,000 per year for three years – will enable an expanded open access youth offer to young people in the city, both in areas of high deprivation and in some areas that have recently lost county council youth funding. This work will be co-ordinated with the county council’s provision, but will be run independently by the city council and our partners, supporting voluntary organisations in the city and winning matched funding where possible. We look forward to the councillor and his colleagues supporting these budget proposals at the council’s budget-setting meeting.

 

The administration has decided to pursue this route and provide more youth activities ourselves to meet the aspirations of the communities of the city for more for young people to do, and for more help for young people in tough times. We think we make a better sponsor and manager of youth activities than the county council as we are much closer to the communities of the city and can integrate our offer to young people with our brilliant sports and leisure facilities and with the work done by our partners in the voluntary sector. We will continue to work closely with county council colleagues to ensure speedy access to intensive targeted support  for those families who need additional support, avoid duplication of provision, identify opportunities for joint working, prioritise safeguarding and provide constructive feedback from our communities on service provision.

 

To end on a general point: it is the view of this administration that most council-provided services to the citizens of Oxford City - including youth work - would be better provided by one council elected by the people of this city alone, and we will continue to work towards that happy day.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member would agree that the slow decline in youth service provision started 6 years ago and that it is a delicate issue for the City when it starts supporting areas that the County no longer wants to.

 

In response Councillor Price said that he agreed with Councillor Williams and that youth service provision was an issue of concern.  He said that the City Council was offering a different approach not based on youth clubs, but on activities and the prospects of working with the Council’s partners on this were very good.

 

2.         Question to the Board Member, City Development (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Dick Wolff

 

Student housing

 

“Could the Portfolio Holder give an indication of how much housing will be released into the open market by the student housing proposed in the Sites and Housing DPD?

 

Given that there are at least 25 sites in this document said to be suitable for student accommodation, could he give an indication of how much student accommodation would result it all these scenarios were to come about and the favoured student accommodation was allowed?

 

Could he also say which of the 93 sites in total would definitely have student accommodation ruled out, since some like district centres seem to favour a flexible range of uses?”.

 

Answer: No it is not possible to give an answer to this question.  The City Council has no control over the occupation of private rented property.

           

The Sites policies are broad policy proposals. Whether student accommodation is proposed and the amount will only be determined through the planning application process. Even then not all planning permissions are implemented.  

 

We have not quantified the number of student rooms that might occur on the sites allocated for students. It would be a pretty impossible task especially on mixed use sites.

 

Number of student rooms would depend upon:

                                   

- whether students accommodation was even proposed on a site where a variety of uses was acceptable

 

- whether any other uses came forward on the site too to restrict the amount of student accommodation

 

- an acceptable density and design of the proposal

 

Councillor Wolff in a supplementary question said that he felt that the question to the Board Member was quite clear, but asked how in the planning process which policy the Council could use when refusing one planning application over another.

 

In response Councillor Cook said that all applications were considered on their merits.

 

3.         Question to the Board Member, City Development (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Michael Gotch

 

Provision of cemetery space

 

We welcome the decision not to use Five Mile Drive Recreation Ground for additional cemetery space.  City policy is that recreation space is not to be redeveloped unless acceptable alternative recreation facilities are offered and none was at Wolvercote.  Will the Portfolio Holder remind officer of that policy, and also instruct Officers to actively investigate two other sites at Barton north where Dignity Funerals PLC (who run the Crematorium) have offered to talk to the City Council about possibly running a new cemetery on the same site, and at Kidlington south where Cherwell District Council is currently developing a large new cemetery within easy reach of the City.  Both of these sites could well involve the City in little or no capital expenditure.

 

Answer: The report to City Executive Board on the 7^th of December updated members on the first phase of the cemetery project.  Cemetery Development Services were appointed to undertake a full site search that led to 17 long listed sites reducing to a short list of four sites.

 

To gain further insight into the possibility of developing a cemetery at the preferred site, north of Oxford Road in Horspath, borehole tests will now be undertake over the next six months.  Pending the results of these tests we will then enable a business case to be developed and submitted to the City’s Executive Board towards the end of 2012.  The business case will also cover other options, including a development with a partner.  It will also show what level of alternative provision may be accessible to City residents.

 

Borehole tests for the Barton site show that the site is unlikely to be suitable, but it is now also being scored using the same assessment criteria that the other sites have been assessed under.

 

Councillor Gotch in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member would agree that there were no boreholes in Barton and that it would be a wiser move to work with Cherwell District Council on a Kidlington site.

 

In response Councillor Lygo said that the Council wanted to ensure that there was a site within the boundaries of Oxford.

 

4.         Question to the Board Member, City Development (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Michael Gotch

 

Student accommodation and family housing

 

City Policy – to encourage the two Universities and other educational institutions to provide purpose built student accommodation is generally welcomed.  Relevant planning applications are usually accompanied by claims that family housing will be vacated if the application is approved, yet rarely, if ever, is any evidence is provided, before or after.  Does the Portfolio Holder have any statistics demonstrating the return of family housing to family occupation? If not, will he instruct planning officers to compile and publish the figures for, say, the last three years (perhaps by reference to Council Tax information) and, in future, not to accept such planning application claims that are not backed by firm evidence.

 

Answer: Planning officers have only claimed that family housing ‘will’ become available as a result of granting permission for purpose built student accommodation where the former is owned by the applicant and has given that undertaking.  In most instances there is no direct link between applicant and private rented accommodation occupied by students.  The City Council has no control over the occupation of private rented accommodation.  

 

There are no clear statistics of the number of homes where there has been a change of use from student accommodation to family housing.  This change of use does not require planning permission.  It is not possible to compile these figures from any Council source.  The only authoritative source of data is the Census which is collected once every 10 years.  The results of the 2011 census collected in March this year are anticipated to be released by the Government in 2013.

 

Councillor Gotch in a supplementary question asked if the Council actually knew what the situation was and what records were kept providing evidence that these developments freed up family housing.

 

In response Councillor Cook said that when colleges sold housing to fund new developments this was generally the only time that you could see family housing being freed up.  He did not believe that you could obtain this information from Council Tax records as you would need to have a direct correlation between what was sold and what was built.

 

5.         Question to the Board Member, City Development (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Jean Fooks

 

Park and Ride security

 

Does the Board member remember why security was    introduced at the Park and Ride sites? Does he really think that CCTV and a telephone helpline adequately compensate for the lack of staff, particularly at night when the very large car parks can mean your car is parked a long way from any source of help if needed?

 

Answer: I understand that sometime ago, going back perhaps 20 years, vehicle crime in Oxford was one of the highest in the country.  The Police have tackled this situation to a point where vehicle crime in Oxford is at a much lower level such that vehicle crime is not likely to reduce further. Higher security on modern cars and Police intervention, have both helped to secure this achievement.

 

The current CCTV operation is available at each site and is capable of being viewed by staff and in the Police control room.  The Council is in the process of upgrading the CCTV cameras and systems to make them more active (they will react to movement) and will be capable of being viewed by Police and staff.  The system proposed has been discussed with Oxford's crime prevention officer who had no objections or major concerns about removing staff from these sites.  These systems give Police Officers more control over sites and will allow them to respond directly and more quickly. CCTV is an effective crime control system.

 

When these sites were staffed there was no requirement to patrol the area during evening shifts, staff used CCTV to monitor the area from the site office. 

 

The Help points will be available to assist customers with information and help.  The crime prevention officer is currently deciding if they would prefer the emergency button to send a 999 signal or 101.   At present they are leaning towards 999, but would monitor to see if too many false alarms occur. With upgraded CCTV system they would immediately be able to see where the incident is and therefore how to react.

 

Mobile phones are used by the majority of customers which can also be used to contact emergency services when needed from remote areas.

 

Oxford has a number of suburban sites that operate at night without staff or CCTV and none of these sites are experiencing any major vehicle crime.

                         

It is possible that these systems will more than compensate for staff presence. The Council and Police will continue to monitor the situation at these sites.

 

Councillor Fooks in a supplementary question asked what consultation had been carried out with the public and what monitoring was being carried out.

 

In response Councillor Cook said that he had taken advice from experts and the Police in crime prevention who raised no concerns.  He said that given the low level of crime that existed now, this was not an issue.  He further added that the CCTV system was better because the Police would be viewing the images.

 

6.         Question to the Board Member, Sport, Play and Schools Liaison (Councillor Mark Lygo) from Councillor Jean Fooks

 

Hinksey Pools leak

           

When and how was the leak at Hinksey Pools discovered? How long had it been losing water for which the Council was paying? How much did the leak cost – and has it yet been repaired?  

 

Answer: Hinksey pools opened in 1934 and as is common with many older facilities there have been leaks on several occasions.

 

The most recent leak was discovered following a series of tests in 2010.  It is not clear how long the pool had been leaking on this occasion, as the weather conditions and water treatment also have an impact on the water depth.

 

The water bills for all the centres are paid directly by Fusion Lifestyle, the council’s leisure operator.  The council have been working closely with Fusion to find a long-term robust solution to the leak.

 

The repairs need to take place out of season and are programmed to start in February 2012.  The budget cost for these works is £110,000.

 

Councillor Fooks in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member was happy with the water levels and the monitoring.

 

In response Councillor Coulter said that he was happy with the monitoring and that £100k had been made available for repairs which would be carried out in February 2012.

 

7.         Question to the Board Member, Housing Needs (Councillor Joe McManners) from Councillor Nuala Young

 

Number of Council voids in lettings

 

“Could the Portfolio Holder indicate how many elderly people are on the waiting list for sheltered accommodation and for how long.  Could he also give the figures for how many people have had to move out of the City to get sheltered accommodation.  Also why are there so few new sites proposed for retirement or elderly homes in the Sites and Housing DPD?”

 

Answer: There are currently 110 applicants on the Housing Register who have been assessed as eligible for sheltered accommodation with a one-bedroom housing need.  There are also a further 9 applicants with a two-bedroom housing requirement with an assessed need for sheltered accommodation.   From 1/4/11 to 30/11/11 there have been 88 households housed in sheltered in accommodation, 82 in to one-bedroom sheltered properties and a further 6 households in to two-bedroom sheltered properties.

 

Waiting times on the Housing Register can vary significantly, there are currently over 6000 applicants on the housing register and only around 600 properties are expected to become available to let during 2011/12. Other factors that can impact significantly on waiting times include an applicant’s housing need (based on the Council’s Allocations Scheme), the size and type of property and area an applicant requires or is willing to move to in Oxford.  Due to the high demand for housing and the low amount of properties that become available, many applicants on the Housing Register assessed as being in low housing need are unlikely to be made an offer of accommodation in the foreseeable future.  However, if their circumstances and their housing needs are considered to have increased in the future, this will increase their chances of receiving an offer of accommodation. So if an applicant is only recently assessed as needing sheltered accommodation after waiting on the housing list for many years this will increase their chances of receiving an offer of accommodation.

 

There are 117 applicants on the Housing Register assessed as needing sheltered accommodation currently, the longest waiting application is 40 years old, however, this, lady has been considered adequately accommodated in her own home.

 

On the sites and development SPD question, the answer is that the urgent pressure on housing need and

 

Excluding the applicant above, the waiting times for applicants eligible for sheltered accommodation on the housing register are as follows:

 

37% are under one year old,

27% one to two years old,

23% 3 to 5 years old

13% 6 to 11 years old   

 

It is not possible to provide information regarding where people have moved to after they have left Oxford because each Council manages their own Housing Register.

 

On the Sites and Development SPD, the main reason will be that the pressing urgent need is for family housing (more than 2 bed).  The fact that 88 people were placed in Sheltered Accommodation in the first 6 months of the year with 110 on the list supports this.

 

Councillor Young in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member considered that the sale of Grantham House in Jericho was an unacceptable move.

 

In response councillor Price said that there were 110 people on the list and that 88 had been housed within the past 6 months.  Grantham House was an old development and even with a refurbishment it would still not be of an appropriate level.  He further added that Cardinal House following a redevelopment had come on stream in 2011 and Bradlands would this year.

 

8.         Question to the Board Member, Housing Needs (Councillor Joe McManners) from Councillor Stuart Craft

 

Accommodation of homeless people

 

“At the last Full council meeting you promised to clarify whether the facts you had regarding the accommodation of homeless people at the Holiday Inn, Grenoble Road, were correct and whether the payment you had cited was for an individual or couple.  As I have not received your response, can you please provide it now?

 

Can you also provide the figures for how many people Oxford City Council has housed in hotels and bed and breakfast establishments in Oxford since you have held the portfolio and how much has this cost?”.

 

Answer: The Holiday Inn has only been used once to place a pregnant homeless applicant who had no where else to stay.  The lady was placed for 2 nights because no other suitable accommodation could be identified as available in or outside the city, and was moved as soon as a more suitable and cheaper property could be identified.

 

From 1/4/11 to date the Council has paid £64 000 to hotels for providing nightly charge accommodation for homeless households it has been necessary to place in emergency temporary accommodation in or around the City. These placements have been made because the Council has had a statutory duty to do so. If a person or family has been accepted as homeless, the council has a legal obligation to find accommodation.  Placements into hotels have only been made as a last resort where no other suitable accommodation has been identified as available.  The Council does re-charge Housing Benefit for those who are placed in such accommodation but is capped to only charging £22/night so can only recover a proportion of the cost.

 

The number of households placed in hotels at any one time varies depending on the availability of other suitable temporary accommodation; there are currently no families placed in hotels in the City.  The maximum number of homeless families placed in to hotels at any one time from 1/4/11 to date has been 8 families.

 

The pressure on our homeless services has increased significantly after the Coalition Government’s cuts to Housing Benefit. This has not only led to increased presentation as homeless but also less willingness of private sector landlords to accommodate with less HB.

 

What is particularly unsatisfactory is that for the last few years we have succeeded in reducing temporary accommodation, however this has left us with less flexibility in the system.

 

We have looked to put into place measures to try to cope with the increased pressure the homeless services but expect the situation to get worse as the government seeks to reduce benefits for the most vulnerable.

 

Councillor Craft in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member could justify this and other hotels charging this level for accommodation.  Would the Board Member agree that the public interest would be better serviced by the Council retaining its own land and developing housing.

 

In response Councillor Price said yes, however the particular case cited by Councillor Craft was due to an extreme difficulty in finding accommodation for the person and that the number of properties available to the Council was dwindling.

 

9.         Question to the Board Member, Customer Services (Councillor Val Smith) from Councillor Jean Fooks

 

Out-of-hours noise service

 

Why is there still no out-of-hours noise service between 5 and 6pm, i.e. between the time that Council staff go off duty, and the time that calls are forwarded to Astraline?

 

Answer: Callers  for the  Environmental Development  out-of-hours noise service phoning after 5 pm Monday to Thursday, and after 4:30 pm on a Friday will be advised to call our out of hours provider Astraline. After 6pm calls are automatically routed to Astraline by the automated telephone system. 

 

Councillor Fooks in a supplementary question asked why when she had called the number on 16^th January 2012 the line went dead and what number should people actually call.

 

In response Councillor Smith said that the out of hours number given was the number to ring but added that the number of calls received between 5pm and 6pm was low.  She added that ways of improving the service were continually being looked at.

 

10.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor Nuala Young

 

Public toilets

 

“Could the Portfolio Holder give a list of the public toilets that have been closed or demolished over the last 10 years.  Could he identify which toilets he has ordered closed since he became the Portfolio Holder in 2008 in that list.

 

Does he also recollect in 2009 promising to reopen the toilets he had proposed to close.

 

Would he further agree that the present standards of hygiene in the City toilets is inadequate and far from being ‘perfect’ the present situation needs to be improved?”

 

Answer: In 2001, when the Lib Dems ran the City Council, they closed public toilets in Ashurst Way and Blue Boar Street. In 2006, when the Lib Dems ran the Council with Green Party support, they closed St Bernards Road and St Giles toilets. I don’t recall promising to re-open toilets closed by the Lib Dems.

 

In 2009, when Labour ran the Council, we closed Castle Street and Barns Road. Castle Street was closed because of vandalism and drug use and because the Westgate Toilets are available close by.

 

We closed Barns Road toilets because toilets are available in the adjacent Cowley Centre. Abingdon Road and Wolvercote are now open only in the summer when demand is greatest.

 

Oxford now has 22 public toilets and 10 community toilets (including the facilities at the Town Hal) a total of 32 and a significant increase in toilets available to the public.   

 

The toilet staff have achieved a high standard of cleanliness which has recently been independently assessed through unannounced inspections by the British Toilet Association (BTA). At the Loo of the Year Awards, earlier this month, Oxford’s public toilets came 14^th in the highly contested United Kingdom Local Authority Public Conveniences category.

 

If Labour’s proposed budget is agreed, we will spend money on making Oxford’s public toilets even better next year.

 

Councillor Young in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member could investigate having the Officer responsible for closing the City Council toilets each evening, starting this at 8.00pm.

 

In response Councillor Tanner said that the centre of Oxford was full of toilets that were open, but no city Council toilets were closed before 5.00pm.

 

11.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor David Williams

 

Garden Waste Scheme

 

“Would the Portfolio give the present figures for those who have paid the charges for the Garden Waste Scheme?

 

Could the Portfolio holder also give and indication where the garden wastes is going from households who have not paid the fee.

 

Could the Portfolio holder give an indication how much longer he intends to continue with the charging for garden waste collection given that the City with its bloated reserves could easily afford to deliver this service as a part of the normal Council collection systems.

 

Does the Portfolio Holder recall that one of the recommendations of the so called ‘Bonn Report’ on Waste and Recycling was that Oxford City Council should NOT introduce separate charges for waste collection?

 

Answer: There are 9,926 paid subscribers to the Garden Waste Scheme.

 

We assume that most residents are taking their garden waste to Redbridge or are home composting.  Domestic landfill figures continue to reduce compared to 2010-11.

 

I share people’s anger at having to charge for garden waste collections. But when the City Council’s grant from Government is cut by a quarter in two years something has to give. Charges in other areas of waste and recycling would have been more damaging.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member would agree that the scheme was a waste of time as only 10% of householdes had signed up to it and would he agree to abandon this scheme and put the cost into the general rates.

 

In response Councillor Tanner said that the brown bin scheme had been a remarkable success.

 

12.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor David Williams

 

Refuse Collection Service

 

Now that complaints about the waste bin collections have almost tripled would the Portfolio holder reveal what has happened to the Code of Conduct for Waste Collection devised by the East Area Parliament back in the days when there was real local democracy.
 
Could he confirm that clear rules for householders and operatives collecting the bins were set down in that Code of Conduct.
 
Can the Portfolio holder acknowledge that officer pledged to incorporate that well worked out set of rules related to how bins were collected into a Code of Practice but that the vast majority of households have no idea that such a guide exists.
 
Would the Portfolio holder confirm that the suggestion of an agreed set of rules between local ratepayers and the Council collection service delivered to every household as a contract was one of the recommendations of the original Bonn report. 

 

Answer: The City Council carries out 4,386,000 collections per year. Complaints in the period April-September 2011 are 0.07% which suggests that 99.93% of residents are happy with the service we provide. A new chargeable garden waste service was introduced in May 2011 and, as with some new schemes, there were a few initial teething problems during its introduction which could have contributed to the number of complaints.

 

But it is important that we learn from complaints and improve our service wherever we can. I shall be discussing with officers, the crews and the public what improvements we can make.  

 

The booklet ‘Your Guide to the improved Recycling & Waste Collection Service’ incorporates clear rules for households for the presentation of their waste. This booklet, which includes many of the ideas put forward by the East Area Committee, was delivered to all households that received a blue wheelie bin in October 2010 along with an explanatory letter.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the front page of the Oxford Mail was wrong.

 

            In response Councillor Tanner said yes.

 

13.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor Jean Fooks

 

Recycling and small blocks of flats

 

While I anticipate that Councillor Tanner will try to blame the government for the slow increase in the city’s recycling rate, could he please explain why small blocks of flats are still not allowed to have food caddies, which would help to raise the composting rate and decrease the waste sent to landfill? Is this not in his gift rather than the government’s?

 

Answer: Despite the best efforts of the Coalition Government the City Council is steadily increasing food waste collections from private and council flats in the city. Flats with their own front door can be treated as any normal domestic house. Some flats with their own front door have already been issued with food caddies.

 

To find the best possible way to introduce a successful collection service for flats, we have launched a 6 month trial at 10 sites across the city. Five of these sites are run by the City Council and are a mixture of developments including a large sheltered block.  The other five sites are in the private sector and they have agreed to take part in the trial which will also introduce bin washing. We are trialling purpose built food containers of various sizes and we are also comparing the use of 240 litre compost liners against a comprehensive bin washing programme.

 

The aim of the trial is to ensure that the best possible solutions are adopted.

 

Councillor Fooks in a supplementary question asked if Members could be reassured that the progress would be reported to scrutiny.

 

            In response Councillor Tanner said yes.

 

14.       Question to the Deputy Leader of the Council (Councillor Ed Turner) from Councillor Jean Fooks

 

Council Tax – Unparished areas

 

Council will remember the concerns expressed by Mr Rodrigo about the council tax setting. As we are nearing the time when the Council Tax will be set for 2012/13, could Council be assured that the ‘Special Expenses’ for the unparished areas of the city will be fully explained? And that expenditure of the parish precepts is clearly set out for all to see?

 

Answer: Mr Rodrigo did indeed raise helpful points last year, although addressing some of these would be a matter for central rather than local government.  The amount of special expenses will be detailed in the council tax setting report to Council in February 2012. The Council may only have limited information on the detailed spend of the precepts by Parishes as there is no obligation to provide such information in detail. To this extent it may be that Councillor Fooks may need to approach the parishes direct for the detail that she is seeking.   

 

Councillor Fooks in a supplementary question asked if we can be sure that sufficient detail on what should be payable by each Council Tax payer is clarified.  In response Councillor Price said that he would be seeking this information in this years budget report to ensure that the detail received is accurately displayed there.

 

15.       Question to the Leader of the Council (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor Stuart Craft

 

Oxford City Council asset sales

 

“Can you provide me with a list of all Oxford City Council assets, including land and property, that have been sold off to the private sector since 1995?”.

 

Answer: A list of freehold disposals undertaken since 1995 has been circulated to all members. Some caution is advised as some recent transactions may not yet be recorded on the system, and the precise details of some of the older disposals have not always been recorded

 

Councillor Craft in a supplementary question asked if the Leader of the Council would agree that the income from the properties would have been higher than the sale price and that the City Council was operating social cleansing.

 

In response, Councillor Price did not agree to either point raised by Councillor Craft.

 

16.       Question to the Leader of the Council (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor David Williams

 

Days of work

 

“Could the Portfolio holder confirm that 15,404.6 days were lost to sick leave from a base of around 1200 staff last year. Would he agree that means that the average number of sick days is 12.8 compared to the average public sector of 8.3 (The previous year the average at OCC was claimed to be 10.7 days).  In 2009 it was reported that Vale of the White Horse averaged 5.7 sick days, Cherwell 6.3 and South Oxfordshire only 3.6 days).  Given that the cost for temporary staff was £3,664,977.08 would he share my concern that OCC appears to be such a poor employer.

 

Could he confirm that these figures are correct and that after numerous claims to be addressing this issue there has not been the very substantial improvement that is required?”.

 

Answer: The correct figure for 2010/11, as reported in the sickness outturn report to Value and Performance Scrutiny Committee, was 10194.28 days lost. With an average FTE figure of  1114.3,the average number of days lost per FTE was 9.15 days.  Comparisons with other nearby local authorities have to take account of the City Council's large manual workforce in comparison with these other authorities which have externalised large parts of their direct service operations.  Manual workers, both in local government as elsewhere in the economy, have average sickness absence rates that exceed those for non-manual workers due to the nature of the work performed.  There is still room for improvement but it is pleasing that the position has improved significantly over the past year and the figure recorded is well below the nearly 13 days lost per FTE in earlier years.  In 2012 the management team is likely to introduce further measures to improve attendance, including improvements to our health & well-being programme, occupational health provision and more action to reduce short term sickness absence.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Leader of the Council felt that it was time to check the figures as there seemed to be discrepancies.  In response Councillor Price said that he would request the Head of People and Equalities to look at the figures again.

 

17.       Question to the Leader of the Council (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor David Williams

 

Cross Party Chief Executive Appraisal

 

“Could the Supreme Leader confirm that the usual six monthly cross party appraisal of the performance of the Chief Executive by the Leaders of the three major local parties will no longer take place and that in future he personally will conduct the appraisal of the Chief Executive on a continual basis.

 

Could he confirm that this is yet another small step towards total control in his hands?”.

 

Answer: No. The annual appraisal of the performance of the Chief Executive and the setting of key personal objectives for the following twelve months will continue to be undertaken on a cross party basis, with support from an external facilitator from SOLACE.  This is standard good practice around the sector.  The exceptional six monthly review cycle was introduced following the appointment of a new Chief Executive to provide support in taking up the new post.  The move to the normal annual cycle will be cost saving to the Council in relation to the fees paid to SOLACE.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Leader of the Council would agree to a give a commitment to a one year cycle.

 

Councillor Price in response said no.  It was open to the Group Leaders to have meetings with the Chief Executive and that it was a common approach in Local Government to have an annual review.

 

18.       Question to the Leader of the Council (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor Matt Morton

 

E-Search system for licensing

 

“Would the Leader agree that it would be helpful to the public seeing information on licensing applications if an e-finder search system was introduced on the Council website for licensing in the way it works for planning.  Would the Leader give a commitment to look into this suggestion and to report back as a later stage to the City Executive Board?”.

 

Answer:An e-finder search system for licensing applications has been in place for some time on the Council website and works in a similar way to the Planning counterpart.  Simply go on the website, click on 'Do it now', this pulls up the A-Z and then look at 'L' for licensing.  Applications can then be checked.

 

I will also ask for another link to be put in the 'Most Visited' category next to planning applications.

 

(b)       Questions notified by the deadline in the Constitution (replies given orally at Council)

 

19.       Question to the Board Member, City Development, (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Jim Campbell

 

Westgate Car Park Charges

 

In his response at CEB to John Goddard's proposal (one which would benefit both retailers and the public) to waive charges at Westgate Car Park on the two Thursday evenings before Christmas, Councillor Cooks replied that the Council (aka the Labour administration) could "only go so far". Could he please tell us how far so far is?

 

Response: It is as far as it is fiscally prudent to do so.

 

Councillor Campbell in a supplementary question asked what steps the Board Members and the City Executive Board had taken to support local businesses.

 

In response Councillor Cook said that in partnership with the county Council, a City Centre Manager had been appointed.

 

20.       Question to the Board Member, City Development (Councillor Colin Cook) from Councillor Mary Clarkson

 

Oxford Covered Market

 

I understand that the Covered Market unit, which was formerly Palms Delicatessen has been let to a business called ‘Cards Galore’.  How many other expressions of interest were there for this unit and how many were discounted by Officers?

 

Response: A total of 42 enquiries were received. All but 2 of those were for uses that were considered inappropriate and as a consequence were not pursued further. Of the 2 that remained, one was Cards Galore, the party who has now taken the unit, the other was discounted as not offering the best consideration.

 

Councillor Clarkson in a supplementary question asked what the main priority was.

 

In response Councillor Cook said that provided the new business met the criteria and then it depended on how much rental income the Council would receive.

 

21.       Question to the Board Member, Housing Needs (Councillor Joe McManners) from Councillor Tony Brett

 

HMO Amenity and Facilities Good Practice Guidelines

 

Given that this council’s “HMO Amenity and Facilities Good Practice Guidelines” make it clear that one shared bathroom which includes a lavatory is sufficient for up to four people in an HMO can Cllr McManners tell me why, with just two more people a second bathroom (also containing a lavatory) is not deemed sufficient by the administration?  Can he tell me how many extra lavatories in the last 12 months this council has forced landlords to have installed in 6-person HMOs that already had two lavatory-containing shared bathrooms?

 

Response: There are no national standards for facilities and amenities in HMOs and each council must produce its own guidelines. Our standards were developed following consultation with landlords in the city as well as consideration of work carried out by other local authorities. Some of the proposed standards were amended following comments from landlords.  We recently compared our standards with those used by 14 other similar cities and concluded that the standards being applied in Oxford are consistent with those being applied elsewhere.

 

The use of an HMO is considered to be very different to a family house occupied by a similar number of people which is why additional standards are required. For example, 6 young professionals living in a house are all likely to be getting ready to go to work at the same time in the morning and so both bathrooms are likely to be in constant use. A separate w.c. is therefore an essential amenity for the other occupiers.

 

There were only two HMOs licensed in the last 12 months where an additional separate toilet was required to be installed. Both of these properties were occupied by 6 people and had 2 bathrooms. The additional toilet compartment was provided at one property by partitioning off the toilet from the remainder of the bathroom.

 

In the last 12 months a total of 359 licences have been issued so only 0.5% of HMO licences have required an additional separate w.c.

 

Councillor Brett in a supplementary question asked why this was the case.

 

            In response Councillor Price said that the response set this out clearly.

 

22.       Question to the Board Member, Housing Needs (Councillor Joe McManners) from Councillor Tony Brett

 

HMO Applications

 

In the last 12 months, how many Oxford homes where an HMO license has been applied (or re-applied) for have passed the inspection without the Council requiring modifications, or additions before the grant of the license?  What percentage of total homes inspected in that period does that figure represent?

 

Response: The records indicate that in the last 12 months only 11 HMOs were inspected that did not require any work before the licence was granted.

 

A total of 454 inspections have been carried out so this represents 2% of the total for the same period.

 

In the last 12 months 4 successful prosecutions of HMO landlords and letting agents have been taken and one letting agent was formally cautioned for licensing offences.  A HMO landlord has also been prosecuted for illegally evicting tenants and was given a 6 week prison

sentence, suspended for 12 months, plus 60 hours community service.  A further 5 cases have been referred to Law & Governance for prosecution for failing to licence HMOs and currently over 30 properties are being formally investigated for licensing offences.  In addition the council has used its powers to issue an Interim Management Order to take over an HMO where the landlord was refused a licence because he was not a fit and proper person. Significant improvements have been made to this property which is being brought up to standard.

 

These figures and the high level of enforcement action demonstrates the need for our HMO licensing scheme and shows that we are committed to driving up standards in the private rented sector.  This is more important than ever as so many people now have to use the private rented sector to find a home.  The improvement work also represents a real investment in improving standards in the private sector and should be welcomed by council.

 

Councillor Brett in a supplementary question asked if the test was to stringent as it implied that the vast majority of HMO’s were unfit for tenants.

 

In response Councillor Price said that the figures spoke for themselves and that most works related to fire precautions at the property and he felt that regulation was overdue.

 

23.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor David Williams

 

Bin collection service complaints

 

"Could the Portfolio holder confirm that the number of complaints about the Bin Collection system have trebled this year.
 
Could he further comment on the possibility that his  scheme of reducing the number of operatives in each team collecting the receptacles, has had a marked effect on the service and is the underlying reason for the increased level of complaints.
 
Could the portfolio holder also explain whatever happened to the Code of Conduct on waste Collection devised and approved by the East Area Parliament nearly two years ago that was passed to relevant officer and which would have addressed many of the complaints now being made”

 

Response: No, the number of complaints about refuse collection and recycling has actually fallen.  We are examining the complaints at present but a significant number seem to be about missed bins. Complaints are important to the City Council as an aid to improving the service.

 

Reducing the number of crew on each bin round was made possible when the City Council stopped collecting so-called side-waste, the black bags of mixed waste left alongside green wheelies. This change has not only saved the taxpayer money but also encouraged higher levels of recycling.

 

‘The City Council’s guide to the improved recycling and waste service, October 2010, sets out the dos and don’ts of the service. The information is also on the website at: http://www.oxford.gov.uk/PageRender/decER/Environmentwasteandrecycling.htm   The overwhelming majority of Oxford citizens find the blue wheelie and food waste caddy system works well and is easy to use.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Board Member would agree that this was a ‘red herring’ on reducing the number of operatives in the cabs.  The volume of waste collected was the same with fewer people doing the collecting.  The policy on the black bag was not truthful.

 

Councillor Tanner in response said that the amount of waste collected had fallen due to residents being encouraged to use one bin.  This was also very beneficial as less waste went to landfill.

 

24.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor Dick Wolff

 

Complaints on informally moored boats

 

In the recently published New Revenue Investment proposals, £44,000 is being set aside over 2 years for proactive riverbank enforcement, while only £24,000 is budgeted over the same 2 years for proactive noise nuisance control. There have been 1780 complaints over the last 2 years about noise nuisance, resulting in just 22 noise abatement orders.  How many complaints have been received about informally moored boats?"

 

Given that the Housing minister, Grant Schapps has exhorted councils to proactively use their riverbanks to have moorings that will offset a little of the homeless problem and this problem is likely to worsen, should we not be setting up moorings for homeless people rather than persecuting them in this way?

2 years ago I was compelled to ask the council to hold off evicting several families from their moorings just before Christmas. At the time the council did not have a policy on riverside moorings. I understand that a policy has been developed, but have not heard the details. Please enlighten me.

 

Response: - £44000 will be a one off temporary budget for mooring enforcement etc. during office hours over the two year period.  In the same period, £96,000 will be made available in the budget for out of hours noise enforcement.  This latter figure is made up of £36,000 per annum for reactive work plus £12,000 per annum for pro-active work, making £48,000 per year.

 

The budget sums are in keeping with the work involved and reflect the position with service requests.  The Council receives between 500-600 service requests on average each year relating to alleged unlawful mooring for example.

 

As a matter of policy, the Council recognises the part that is played by fully serviced residential boat moorings.  It is also aware of the importance of ensuring that such moorings are properly located and so works closely with key partners such as British Waterways and the Environment Agency to identify suitable sites.

 

There is a general policy presumption for example, that such moorings will not be permitted on the main river channel but will need to be in basins or navigable streams.  Consequently survey work has shown that, opportunities for new residential moorings are limited & at best the handful of possible new moorings resulting will do little in the face of the homelessness problem. 

 

Councillor Wolff in a supplementary question asked what are service requests and these would still cost money to deal with.  He asked if this would be better dealt with in a report for Members.

 

In response Councillor Tanner said that the bulk of requests were about other people mooring their boats illegally.  He said that the Council was clear that it did not want additional boats illegally moored and that to resolve this, the number of moorings of the main channels needed to be increased.

 

25.       Question to the Board Member, Cleaner, Greener Oxford (Councillor John Tanner) from Councillor Graham Jones

 

Advertising Boards

 

Will the Administration consider what can be done to remove the forests of letting boards from Oxford's streets?

 

Response: Estates agents boards normally benefit from ‘deemed advertisement consent’ whilst the site is for sale or for rent and for 14 days afterwards.  The Council does not have any control provided they meet certain requirements.  The rules are set out in Class 3A of the Advertisement Regulations 2007, which state:

Class 3A permits the display of a single board or two joined boards to be displayed (usually by estate surveyors, chartered surveyors, auctioneers and valuers), advertising that residential, agricultural, industrial or commercial land or premises, on which they are displayed, are for sale or to let, or that the land on which the board is displayed is to be sold or let for development for residential, agricultural, industrial or commercial use. Illumination is not permitted. Where the advertisement consists of more than a single board or two joined boards only the first advertisement to be displayed will benefit from deemed consent.

Size limits apply. No advertisement board is allowed to extend outwards from the wall of a building by more than 1 metre. The height above ground level at which the advertisement may be displayed is limited as is the size of characters or symbols on the board.

The only permitted additions to the board(s) are statements saying that the sale or letting has been agreed, or that land or premises have been sold or let, subject to contract. Boards must be removed not later than 14 days after the sale has been completed or the tenancy has been granted.

The Council does not proactively monitor compliance of all estate agents’ boards in the city, however we will investigate all specific complaints when they are raised, and we do pursue offenders.  The Council has addressed problems associated with groupings of estate agent boards, and has taken action against particular estate agents when they have been causing a particular problem.   The Council will continue to respond to complaints.

 

26.       Question to the Board Member, Safer Communities, (Councillor Bob Timbs) from Councillor Ruth Wilkinson

 

Leaflets and fliers

 

There is resident concern that poorly delivered leaflets and fliers left sticking out of letterboxes attract attention to the absence of the occupier and increase the likelihood of break-ins. Please can the Board Member responsible for safer communities outline the ways in which the City Council works with businesses to improve leaflet delivery etiquette?

 

Response: Councillor Timbs said It is a standard requirement that distributors delivering Council material should post any material right through the letterbox. If it is brought to our attention that this instruction has not been carried out we will report this to the distributor and ask them to check the area concerned immediately and post through any that are still left sticking out.

 

We will ensure that we remind distributors before each delivery that it is essential that this obligation is carried out and we will make it clear that any individuals responsible for delivering in this manner should not be employed to distribute our material again.

 

The City Council is not responsible for delivery of non council material.

 

The police have not identified this as an area in which measures are needed for crime prevention but we will discuss with them what might be feasible given the very large number of distribution arrangements that exist in the city.

 

Councillor Wilkinson in a supplementary question asked if it would also help if the issue was raised at the Neighbourhood Action Group.  In response Councillor Timb’s agreed with Councillor Wilkinson’s suggestion.

 

27.       Question to the Leader of the Council, (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor David Williams

 

Support for small local businesses

 

“Following the Portas Review, which contains much advice and ideas for Local Authorities to consider, what is the Council doing to support small local businesses and how will it consult on, and respond to, the recommendations in the Review?”

 

Response: ThePortas Review was submitted to the Government and it is for Ministers to respond to, rather than local councils.  If and when the Government publishes any proposals for consultation, we will of course consider them at that time and respond.

 

However, the City Council does play an active role in relation to the city centre business community through the City Centre Manager, and through him we are following up on the Review in discussions with City Centre retailers and County Council officers.  A workshop is being held later this week with the Covered Market traders as part of this exercise.

 

Councillor Williams in a supplementary question asked if the Leader of the Council would provide a report on the workshop held.

 

In response Councillor Price said that the business rates were set nationally.  He added that a great deal of work had to be undertaken in planning terms to protect the diversity of trade and agreed that this issue would be a good one for scrutiny and the Cross Party Working Group to consider.

 

28.       Question to the Leader of the Council, (Councillor Bob Price) from Councillor Graham Jones

 

Bus tabling

 

Will the Administration work with its partners to bring about a change in the law to allow joint-route bus operators to share control room data that enables the proper operation of joint timetables?

 

Response: Yes; an excellent proposal.