Agenda item - Oral questions from Councillors

47.1         The Mayor noted that 18 oral questions had been submitted and that 30 minutes was set aside for the duration of the item.

 

(1)             Councillor Allcock: Subject matter: Staff Performance & Development          

 

47.2         Councillor Allcock asked a question relating to staff performance and the process for individual reviews with managers. He noted that it was well known that good staff performance was underpinned by effective and consistent management and support. The Council primarily aims to achieve this through regular one to one meetings between managers and their staff and through the annual Performance Development Plan or PDP process which all employees are required to participate in. The results of the recent staff survey revealed that 65% of Council staff responded positively to the question. My performance development plan review is held in a meaningful way. However this represents only half 56% of the total workforce and is two percent down on the previous results. The levels of completion of annual PDP's and the delivery of one-to-one meetings have been consistently low over recent years, with approximately 4 out of 10 staff missing out. In addition, results of the Staff survey show that black or Black British colleagues were less satisfied than the overall cohort of respondents on the question of whether the PDP was held in a meaningful way. So that's 57% compared with 64% that feel the PDP was meaningful. Asian or Asian British colleagues were also less likely by 5 percentage points to say that they have one to one meetings with their manager every four to six weeks in 2021 was 9% lower than in 2019. Now I'm sure Councillor Gibson would see these results as telling at a time when there are so many concerns raised by residents about poor Council performance and would also consider that the findings on their ethnicity brings shame to us all.

 

So my question is, what meaningful steps are the administration putting into place to improve these results on PDP completion and one to one support meetings in a meaningful and speedy way?

 

47.3         Councillor Gibson replied, the council has a process in place for regular 121 meetings where staff meet with line managers to cover work objectives, wellbeing and future development. A more detailed annual meeting (Performance and Development Plans) takes place to set objectives annually and to ensure there are clear links to directorate and organisational objectives. For our leadership network, a rated appraisal process ensures transparency and consistency in the management of the council’s senior managers. These processes are supported by a comprehensive learning and development offer, with some mandatory training for induction, new managers, and recruitment. I ado accept that improvements can be made and would be happy to discuss this further outside of the meeting.

 

47.4         Councillor Allcock asked the following supplementary question; will you agree to investigate the reasons for the lower response rate and look into ways to improve this?

 

47.5         Councillor Gibson replied, yes, I am hopeful that we will see an improvement in the level of responses and satisfaction in the PDP process in the next staff survey.

 

(2)             Councillor Bell: Subject matter: Industrial Relations

                                

47.6         Councillor Bell asked whether the Leader of the Council had any regrets in regard to the recent handling of the latest industrial dispute?

 

47.7         Councillor Mac Cafferty replied the council continues to work collaboratively with its Trade Unions to make the council a fair and inclusive employer, and where possible resolve issues at an early stage. Where there are disputes, we aim to understand the issues being raised by Trade Union colleagues and seek ways to resolve concerns. We proactively hold consultation meetings at both a corporate and departmental level and have well established processes that ensure we work with TU colleagues on matters such as our budget setting process and any staffing changes to our organisational structures. Following previous discussions with TU colleagues, the council has recently appointed a TU Relations Manager, to reflect our joint ambition to reduce the number of disputes and ensure a collegiate and collaborative environment, where concerns can be addressed openly. My only regret is that we weren't able to be joined by your good colleagues in our decision to get rid of some of the lowest pay grades across the council.

 

47.8         Councillor Bell asked a supplementary question, before the elections back in 2019, there was a peer review where it said that this Council, in its entirety, had to have a complete reset with the unions. If our relationship is still in need of a reset, I'd like to know what plans there are to ensure that we do not end up in a similar situation to the one we have experienced over the recent months?

 

47.9         Councillor Mac Cafferty replied, you're right to remind us about what was said through the Local Government Association peer review. There is always a way of reviewing what is going on and we must understand some of the challenges that have that have come up. However, some of the issues that were raised have been long-standing and will need to be worked through by all parties concerned collectively if changes were to be made and the welfare of staff improved.

 

(3)   Councillor Appich: Subject matter: Care Staff

                                

47.10      Councillor Appich asked a question concerning the shortfall of care staff both in home and residential care across the city.

 

47.11      Councillor Shanks replied, there is a crisis across the country at the moment and we have high demand for health care in the city, particularly for people wishing to remain in their own homes and we are looking at how to recruit more staff and support them.

 

47.12      Councillor Appich noted the information and stated that she would be keen to explore retention measures and recruitment options with the Chair outside of the meeting.

 

(4)   Councillor Bagaeen: Subject matter: Performance on Climate Change

                                

47.13      Councillor Bagaeen asked how the council was addressing the issue of climate change and what measures were being put in place to help such as the installation of charging points.

 

47.14      Councillor Mac Cafferty replied, the council is taking a number of actions to address the situation and will need to work with other organisations if a real difference is to be made. The council is monitoring carbon emissions and a report will come to committee in due course, but the expectation is that we will see an improvement.

 

47.15      Councillor Bagaeen asked a supplementary question and for clarification as to how the Council planned to measure the level of carbon emissions and its position in relation to the Carbon Disclosure Project and how will it manage the impact on its residents?

 

47.16      Councillor Mac Cafferty replied, the Council is developing a carbon emissions plan and the Working Group will take lead, but a number of the actions could not be completed earlier due to the need to develop the plan. He hoped that once the plan was in place it would alleviate a number of concerns and answer questions that were being raised.

 

(5)   Councillor Pissaridou: Subject matter: Adult Social Care

           

47.17      Councillor Pissaridou asked if the arrangements for the discharge of patients from hospital could be reviewed as she believed it was not working well. She referred to a case of a person who should have been in hospital for a two-night stay but because of a lack of care staff remained in hospital for a further ten days. This had a significant impact on the person and their family and meant they had to wait longer for post-operative care to be put in place.

 

47.18      Councillor Shanks replied, I believe that there is a discharge process in place which looks at what assistance may be required after a person leaves hospital. However, it does appear that something went wrong and perhaps the case can be looked at by the appropriate bodies to see whether changes need to be made to the process.

 

47.19      Councillor Pissaridou asked a supplementary question; can the Chair confirm how the discharge process is funded and assure residents that there is adequate funding to meet their needs.

 

47.20      Councillor Shanks replied, it is difficult to confirm as funding for adult social care comes from government and although there is an intention to increase this, it is not known how and when it will be provided. In the meantime there are pressures on the budget which we are trying to address.

 

(6)   Councillor Platts: Subject matter: Rats

                                

47.21      Councillor Platts asked a question relating to the increase in rats in areas of the city and what action was being taken to address the situation.

 

47.22      Councillor Heley replied she had not been aware of the situation in the areas referred to but would raise this with officers and ensure that action was taken to address the matter.

 

47.23      Councillor Platts asked a supplementary question and queried whether the Chair agreed that the rat problem had been exacerbated by the overflowing bins due to either there being an insufficient number or collections?

 

47.24      Councillor Heley replied that she would be happy to look into the situation and to see whether additional bins were required and what other action could be taken to alleviate the problem.

 

(7)   Councillor McNair: Subject matter: Bin Strike Compensation

47.25      Councillor McNair asked what compensation residents could claim as a result of missed rubbish collections due to the recent strike action.

 

47.26      Councillor Heley replied, the council had apologised for the disruption caused during the industrial action and a clean-up process had begun but it was not possible to offer any compensation.

 

47.27      Councillor McNair asked a supplementary question, what improvements to the refuse collection service could residents expect to see now that the strike was over?

 

47.28      Councillor Heley replied, there is a modernisation programme underway, and this should see improvements to the service being implemented.

 

 

 

 

(8)   Councillor Fishleigh: Subject matter: Real-Time Air Quality Monitoring

                                

47.29      Councillor Fishleigh asked if the Chair could provide an update on the roll-out of real time air quality monitoring.

 

47.30      Councillor Heley replied, the issue was recently raised at committee and an in-depth report was due to be brought to a future committee meeting and officers were investigating the potential use of mobile air quality equipment that could be used to provide information.

 

47.31      Councillor Fishleigh asked a supplementary question, was it possible to give a timeline for the report and data from the air quality monitoring.

 

47.32      Councillor Heley replied, she would need to speak to officers and could then inform Councillor Fishleigh.

 

(9)   Councillor Wilkinson: Subject matter: Service Delivery Criss

         

47.33      Councillor Wilkinson asked, what action was being taken to address the volume of complaints that all Members were receiving about the delivery of basic council services. There were problems with refuse collections, graffiti and being able to obtain parking permits for example. Whilst it was recognised that the pandemic had been a factor there was a need to get services back working effectively.

 

47.34      Councillor Heley replied, it is recognised that there are issues affecting the delivery of services and staff were working to address these and the situation was being scrutinised by the ET&S Committee with regular updates being brought to Members. There was a modernisation programme being followed and this should see improvements coming to fruition.

 

47.35      Councillor Wilkinson asked a supplementary question, do you agree there is a problem and if not, why are councillors receiving so many complaints?

 

47.36      Councillor Heley replied, there are issues that need to be tackled and the ET&S Committee was working to ensure these could be resolved, and she looked forward to working with the Councillor to ensure that solutions could be found.

 

(10)   Councillor Simson: Subject matter: Missed Funding Opportunities

                                

47.37      Councillor Simson asked whether the Administration had taken up the opportunity to bid for funding support from the Police & Crime Commissioner towards making the city streets safer?

 

47.38      Councillor Powell replied, officers had been working with the Police & Crime Commissioner to support the council’s safer streets project but due to staffing pressures it was not possible to complete the necessary bids for funding. Officers were working on developing the Community Safety Strategy and then with the start of the pandemic it led to officers being asked to lead on emergency planning matters and other related issues. However, bids were submitted for the round two of Safer Streets and one was successful and subsequently for round three which will see support for the night economy project to improve street lighting.

 

47.39      Councillor Simson asked a supplementary question as to whether the capacity issues for staffing had been resolved?

 

47.40      Councillor Powell noted that significant funding had been put into supporting domestic violence projects and a Working Group was currently looking at the impact of the contractual changes and procurement process. As part of this a new staffing structure was also being progressed and a report would be coming to the next TECC Committee in November. She also noted that officers continued to put bids forward for a wide range of government programmes when capacity allowed, and this would continue under the new structure.

 

47.41      The Mayor noted that the 30 minutes set aside for the item had been reached but that there was general consent for questions to continue and therefor stated that he would continue for a further 10minutes.

 

(11)   Councillor Henry: Subject matter: Rubbish Collections

         

47.42      The question was asked on Councillor Henry’s behalf, what plans are there to recruit more permanent staff in City Clean to ensure that rubbish and recycling rounds can be completed on time?

 

47.43      Councillor Heley replied, an offer had been put forward by the management team and it was hoped that this would be accepted by the trade union and then implemented.

 

(12)    Councillor Mears: Subject matter: Repairs Backlog

                                

47.44      Councillor Mears asked what action was being taken to address the backlog of housing repairs?

 

47.45      Councillor Gibson replied, as Members will be aware there has been a  pandemic which has impacted on the service and the ability to carry out repairs, with only essential repairs being undertaken. Whilst all repairs are being logged, there is a need to prioritise the work.

 

47.46      Councillor Mears asked a supplementary question, there are 277 empty properties awaiting to be released. How will this be achieved and what extra costs will be incurred by tenants and leaseholders in contributions to the Housing Revenue Account following the decision to bring the repairs service back in house?

 

47.47      Councillor Gibson replied, it was hoped that more properties could be made available, and officers were working with contractors to enable this to happen. He could not comment on the HRA at this point but would ensure Councillor Mears received further information.

 

(13)          Councillor Fowler: Subject matter: Blakers Park Playground

         

47.48      Councillor Fowler stated that she had received complaints about the lack of consultation in regard to proposals for Blakers Park and asked if the delayed improvements over the summer would be taken forward and residents consulted?

 

47.49      Councillor Heley replied, there are published plans for the park, and it is open for use. Unfortunately the completion of the works was delayed due to unforeseen issues but these ha been addressed, and she was happy to put the councillor in touch with the playgrounds officer who can provide more information.

 

47.50      Councillor Fowler asked a supplementary question, I note that there have been incidents of anti-social behaviour in the park and damage to the equipment reported in the press, will action be taken to address this and ensure the park is safe to use?

 

47.51      Councillor Heley replied, I will ask officers for an update and provide you with a written response. She also noted that local ward councillors had set up a local action team and that would be a good forum to raise issues and discuss matters like this.

 

(14)   Councillor Grimshaw: Subject matter: Football Pitches

                                

47.52   Councillor Grimshaw stated that she had been disheartened to see the poor state of facilities and local pitches for grassroots football and asked if any action was planned to improve the conditions for those that took part in the games and came to watch?

 

47.53   Councillor Heley replied, she would ask officers to provide the details for the planned works for these.

 

47.54   Councillor Grimshaw asked a supplementary question, will sufficient funding be identified in the budget for next year to ensure that pitches and facilities can be maintained?

 

47.55    Councillor Heley replied, it is important to provide these facilities and she hoped that funding could be found and she would continue to lobby the government for more funding.

 

47.56   The Mayor stated that the time for oral questions had gone beyond the 30 minutes set aside for the item and therefore the remaining questions would be carried over to the next meeting.

 

(15)    Councillor Williams: Subject matter: Fuel Poverty

 

(16)    Councillor Evans: Subject matter: Women’s Safety

 

(17)   Councillor O’Quinn: Subject matter: CAHMS

 

(18)   Councillor Childs: Subject matter: Telephone Boxes

 

47.57      He then adjourned the meeting for a refreshment break at 6.40pm.

 

47.58      The Mayor reconvened the meeting at 7.10pm and informed Members that during the recess a councillor had received a positive PCR result. Having consulted with Group Leaders and being mindful of the health & safety of Members and officers it was agreed that the meeting should be curtailed. There was one tine sensitive motion which he would take and all other items requiring discussion would then be deferred and others noted.

 

47.59      The Mayor then invited Councillor Appich to move the notice of motion concerning fair trade, item 53 on the agenda.