Agenda and minutes

No declarations of interest were made.

RESOLVED

that the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 16 July 2020,

be received and approved as a correct record.

The Service Manager, Scrutiny and Democratic Services introduced the report and outlined the purpose of the meeting which included receiving updates on the work being undertaken by Scrutiny Panels A and B, as well as the recently established COVID-19 Response and Recovery Scrutiny Panel. 

Workplan management was also a key responsibility of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, as set out in the Council’s Constitution and Members were also being asked to agree the particular terms of reference for the two new reviews added to the Scrutiny Workplan for 2020/2021, namely, ‘Accessibility in Ashfield’ and ‘Recycling and Collection Rates in Ashfield’.

COVID-19 Response and Recovery Panel

Following recommendations from Cabinet, the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Panel was established and formalised at the Council meeting held on 9 July 2020; set up to review the Council’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to take an active role in the Council’s recovery plans.

The Panel had so far met on two occasions and were operating in accordance with a work programme approved at the first meeting.  The Panel meeting dates had been scheduled to ensure they aligned with scheduled Cabinet meeting dates, thus enabling swift action on any Panel recommendations as required.

At the second meeting of the Panel, Members welcomed attendance from all members of the Corporate Leadership Team (CLT) with the focus of the meeting being centred around local recovery themes.  The meeting took a question and answer format as questions from the public were put to the relevant CLT Director, alongside questions from Panel Members.

The October 2020 meeting of the Panel was intending to focus on the main theme of small business support in Ashfield particularly during the recovery stages of the pandemic. Various business representatives across a variety of sectors had been invited and again, questions would be encouraged from local communities through the Council’s social media platforms. 

The COVID-19 Response and Recovery Panel’s Vice Chairman, Councillor Jim Blagden, took the opportunity to congratulate the Council’s employees for showing great resolve and unstinting commitment to the residents of Ashfield during the lockdown by delivering a full range of services under very difficult circumstances.

Members were also keen to pursue the erection of a permanent memorial to celebrate and honour all the key workers and volunteers within Ashfield who had shown great bravery and commitment to others during the pandemic.  A formal letter of thanks was also due to be sent from the Council to all local foodbanks and community groups for their unwavering support towards the more vulnerable groups within Ashfield during this time.

The questions asked at the second Panel meeting had also revealed some concerns surrounding the following:

• the long term viability of small local businesses;
• the gap in funding affecting churches and charities following the lockdown;
• the increase in Council tenant rent arrears and its impact on homelessness issues;
• the real prospect of a second wave of coronavirus and its impact on local communities within Ashfield.

It was felt that all the above issues would  ...  view the full minutes text for item OS.8