The Scrutiny Committee will meet on 5 June 2024 and the Climate and Environment Panel will meet on 11 June 2024.  The following reports are expected, together with any other recommendations from those meetings:

·        Tree Management Policy 2024-2032

·        HRA Energy Efficiency Projects

·        Framework for the Installation of Renewable Technologies in Council-Owned Properties

The following reports which were deferred from the April Cabinet meeting will also be included:

·         Biodiversity Net Gain

·         Citywide Retrofit Strategy

·         Tree Planting

·         Energy Generation / Solar Potential on Council Buildings

·         Integrated Performance Report Q3 2023/24

·         Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code Self-Assessment

·         Implementation of Selective Licensing

·         Adult Exploitation

The Scrutiny Committee had met on 5 June 2024, at which meeting it had agreed its operating principles for the year, the establishment and membership of standing panels and review groups, and its work plan. 

The Climate and Environment Panel had met on 11 June 2024 and had considered the following reports:

·        Tree Management Policy 2024-2032

·        HRA Energy Efficiency Projects

·        Framework for the Installation of Renewable Technologies in Council-Owned Properties

All of the recommendations, together with Cabinet Members’ responses, were included in the separately published supplement to the agenda.

No recommendations had been made in relation to the HRA Energy Efficiency Projects.

Eight recommendations had been made in relation to the Tree Management Strategy, of which six were agreed. 

A recommendation that the Council should explicitly recognise the importance of mature trees within the Tree Management Policy and highlight the need for the planning process to be sympathetic to mature and existing trees had been partially accepted: the Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services and Council Companies explained that this was because the focus of the Tree Management Policy was on trees which were managed by the Council on council-owned land.  The issue of how trees were dealt with through the planning process was addressed separately within planning policy, specifically the Oxford Local Plan.

A recommendation to include within the Tree Management Policy a reference to the Council explicitly recognising the need to work in partnership with the County Council and/or Highways on street tree issues had been rejected.  The Cabinet Member for Citizen Focused Services and Council Companies explained that the Policy’s specific focus was on trees which were managed by the Council on council-owned land, and therefore adding a reference to trees which the County Council was responsible for would not be appropriate.  However, the need to work closely with County (for example in cases where trees on City Council land were impacting on roads) was recognised and did already happen.

One recommendation had been made in relation to the Framework for the Installation of Renewable Technologies in Council-Owned Properties, which had related to encouraging the submission of bids to the Framework from diverse suppliers which were representative of the local population of Oxford.  The recommendation had initially been only partly accepted on the basis that the Council’s procurement processes were constrained by legal requirements and the need to obtain best value for the Council taxpayer.  However, following clarification from the Chair of Scrutiny that the recommendation related to the submission, rather than the evaluation, of bids the Deputy Leader (Statutory) – Finance and Asset Management agreed that this recommendation could be fully accepted.

A number of reports which had been deferred from the April Cabinet meeting were also received:

·         Biodiversity Net Gain

·         Citywide Retrofit Strategy

·         Tree Planting

·         Energy Generation / Solar Potential on Council Buildings

·         Integrated Performance Report Q3 2023/24

·         Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code Self-Assessment

·         Implementation of Selective Licensing

·         Adult Exploitation

All of the recommendations relating to these reports, together with Cabinet Members’ responses, were also included in the separately published supplement to the agenda.

In relation to Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG), two recommendations had been made, of which one had only been accepted in part.  This had related to the Council seeking to identify sufficient sites to establish itself as a key provider of biodiversity units locally.  The Deputy Leader (Statutory) explained that the reason why the recommendation had only been accepted in part was that whilst it represented a good longer term aim, there was a need for the Council to focus on demonstrating BNG delivery for its own projects first. 

In relation to the Citywide Retrofit Strategy, two recommendations had been made, of which one had only been accepted in part.  This had related to including non-residential Council-owned buildings within the scope of the strategy.  The Deputy Leader (Statutory) explained that whilst the premise was accepted, the reason why the recommendation had only been accepted in part was because of the need to manage expectations about how quickly that additional piece of work could be delivered, as well as the need to consider the resource implications alongside the setting of the Council’s budget.

In relation to Tree Planting four recommendations had been made, of which one had been accepted in part.  This had related to the production of a guidance document setting out the process for the planting of new street trees on public land.  Councillor Katherine Miles, Chair of Scrutiny, clarified that this recommendation had pre-dated the subsequent consideration by scrutiny of the Tree Management Policy, and had been superseded by that work.

In relation to Adult Exploitation two recommendations had been made, of which one had been accepted in part.  This had related to rolling out a social media campaign aimed at spotting the signs of adult exploitation and modern slavery.  The recommendation was only partly accepted as the issue of adult exploitation, spotting the signs, how to report, and support for victims was covered within existing social media campaigns which were undertaken at different times of the year.

All of the recommendations relating to Energy Generation/Solar Potential on Council Buildings, the Integrated Performance Report Q3 2023-24, the Housing Ombudsman Complaint Handling Code Self-Assessment and the Implementation of Selective Licensing had been fully accepted.