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Overview and Scrutiny Commission – ADVISORY MEETING 7 October 2021 6.30 - 8.30 pm
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Present:
Councillors Angell (Chair), Virgo (Vice-Chairman), Mrs Birch, Brossard, Gbadebo, MJ Gibson, McLean, Mrs Mattick, Porter and Temperton
Parent Governor representative:
M Glanville
Apologies for absence were received from:
Councillors Mrs McKenzie-Boyle and Mossom
Executive Member present:
Councillor Harrison, Executive Member for Culture, Delivery and Public Protection
In attendance:
Councillor Brown
Also Present:
Timothy Wheadon, Chair of Community Safety Partnership
Superintendent Felicity Parker, Local Police Commander Bracknell & Wokingham
Alison O’Meara, Head of Community Safety
32. Minutes of previous meeting
RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Commission held on 9 September 2021 be approved as a correct record, and signed by the Chair.
33. Declarations of Interest and Party Whip
There were no declarations made and no indications that councillors would be participating while under the party whip.
34. Urgent Items of Business
There were no items of urgent business.
35. Public Participation
No submissions had been made by members of the public under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme for Overview and Scrutiny.
36. Community Safety
Timothy Wheadon, Chair of Community Safety Partnership, Superintendent Felicity Parker, Local Police Commander Bracknell & Wokingham, Alison O’Meara, Head of Community Safety and Councillor Harrison, Executive Member for Culture, Delivery and Public Protection had been invited to attend. Meeting as the Crime and Disorder Committee, the councillors present received a presentation on the performance of the Community Safety Partnership and the priorities in the Community Safety Plan for the coming year.
In response to the questions submitted in advance and arising from discussion it was noted:
- knife crime was observed in low numbers across Bracknell Forest but was connected to both drug crimes and domestic abuse so was associated with a wide range of age groups
- Thames Valley Police were aware of councillors concerns about speeding in the area and it was noted that police resources to actively tackle it were an issue. A task and finish group had been set up to consider the strategy for tackling the issue. A volunteer Speed Watch project was discussed and it was agreed that Councillor Mrs Birch would be interested in being a contact for this. There were certain areas that speed cameras could be located due to how they were calibrated but the intention was to make sure there was increased visibility, increased operations and stopping and seizing noisy vehicles
- it was key to increase the community’s awareness of the issue as a deterrent because speeding was being perpetrated by residents as well as those travelling through the area
- that operations were focused in areas where there was a risk of injury
- the task and finish group involved highways officers to help engineer solutions
- concerns regarding lorries going through red lights at the twin bridges roundabout would be fed back
- that the legal definition of stalking was in relation to harassment where behaviour is escalating and police consider the threat, harm and risk an individual is facing. However, the Crime Prosecution Service determines which crimes to prosecute
- if a property where drugs are being smoked is an issue then this should be referred to the community safety team who could take steps with partners such as if owned by a Housing Association then they would work with them to issue warning letters and if privately owned they would contact private landlords and make them aware of the issue
- there had been over 2,000 calls reporting domestic incidents over the past year, 74 reports of rape in the area which was a slight decrease and 170 reports of sexual assault not including rape
- there was recognition that these were devasting incidents and it was sometimes difficult to gather the evidence to hold perpetrators to account
- There is support for victims by specially-trained officers who will signpost them to services and also support them in court
- the CSP encouraged reporting ASB intelligence as quickly as possible, such as gatherings being planned so that they can take action
- prevention activities included using outreach teams as well as communication campaigns, signage by fire service and police and rangers with active patrolling
- when ASB activities took place in premises there are a number of criminal and civil which could be deployed ranging from a low-level response first but could increase to community protection notices taking into consideration the vulnerability of victims
- the proposed Community Safety Fund’s (from the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner) budget reduction of £16k over a three-year period was significant but the phased reduction enabled the CSP to prepare and discuss options with partners
- the Head of Community Safety was asked to feed back the outcome of these discussions to the Commission to understand the impact of this reduction
- every year a public consultation was undertaken to review CSP priorities which included asking additional questions such as where local hotspots for crime and ASB are that police and other partners may not be aware of
- there was recognition that more work needed to be done to report back to the public on success stories to counter negative narratives observed on social media at times
- the focus for CSP is about preventing crime, not just responding to it
- it was noted that not everyone is arrested as there are other ways to deal with incidents e.g. out of court disposals, restorative justice or payment made for damage. This needs to be proportionate response to the crime committed
- every single victim of crime is asked how satisfied they are with how they have been dealt with by police and survey responses are considered by independent advisory groups
- it was not possible to confirm how accurate or current the data was on externally managed data sites such as police.uk
- the Local Police Commander Bracknell & Wokingham would provide arrest rates, prosecution figures, conviction and reoffending rates to the Commission
- in response to ASB car meets, a task and finish group had been set up to work with partners including Parks and Countryside and Highways to understand the locations and engage with the organisers to try to make them understand the impact of their events on residents. Police also undertook ‘meet and greet’ visits to meets once identified
- the Local Police Commander of Bracknell & Wokingham would help unblock the speedwatch training required by the PCSO in Birch Hill and Hanworth to get this project up and running again
- one strand of sexual exploitation was sex workers within organised crime but this was not a common occurrence in Bracknell Forest
- the Local Police Commander Bracknell & Wokingham would provide data on how many knives were found when people were stopped and searched
- it was explained that a community protection notice was a civil order that could be put in place for a fixed period of time with conditions to give the offender the opportunity to stop their behaviour. These could be issued by the police, local authority or housing associations if the powers were given to them
- in light of recent events, residents were advised that if they felt unsafe with any police officers they should ask for identification and ask the officer to call in or for the individual to call 999 in order to have confidence in the police service
- officers were discouraged from operating in plain clothes and this would only happen on specific operations but action/arrests would be made by uniformed officers
- if it was not possible to challenge officers there and then – get their officer number (displayed on their shoulders) and complain. If you don’t feel safe, please tell the police
The Chair thanked the representatives of the Community Safety Partnership for their attendance and noted their success was a reflection of the successful partnership working undertaken. The responses to questions submitted in advance of the meeting by Councillor Brown would be included with the minutes. The Local Police Commander for Bracknell & Wokingham thanked Alison O’Meara, Head of Community Safety and her team for their approach to partnership working.
37. Council Plan Overview Report
The Chief Executive of Bracknell Forest Council, Timothy Wheadon, introduced the Council Plan Overview Report (CPOR) covering the fourth quarter of 2020/21. There had been a delay in the circulation of the CPOR due to the impact on staff involved in the conduction of surge testing in the GU47 area. The Chief Executive therefore noted that the data was outdated.
The following questions were asked:
· In relation to the reference KPI reference L396 relating to the number of hours of staff time saved by utilising robotic process automation the Chief Executive clarified that this was software that undertook frequent and regular processes by picking up key words and phrases. The project had not progressed as prioritisation needed to be given to the roll out of Microsoft Teams.
· In response to a query about the lack of spare laptops across the borough it was confirmed that there was a global shortage of microprocessors and ICT were working on utilising older equipment.
· The Chief Executive was asked to comment on the Prime Minister’s speech during the Conservative Party Conference that no housing was to be built on the green belt. The Chief Executive reiterated that the Council had decided on the Local Plan for Bracknell Forest and this is what would be delivered.
· It was acknowledged that the CPOR contained a full list of what had been achieved during this particularly difficult year.
· It was queried how the internal review of contracts within Forest Care could yield a saving of £0.184m during a pandemic. The Chief Executive explained that this was actually increased income and a positive positive rather than a reduction of provision.
· Clarification was sought on the underspend of £0.940m within Early Help and Communities and it was explained that the biggest underspend had occurred because processes had been improved to reduce the provision of bad debts. The staffing vacancies had been held during the pandemic while they were not required rather than a reduction in the staff team.
· In response to a question relating to the absence of a Service Level Agreement with South Hill Park it was noted that the Council wanted to agree a two or three year agreement but South Hill Park were not in a position to do that until after the budget had been set.
· The Chief Executive would confirm after the meeting whether the Youth Centre in the town centre was open and welcoming young people.
38. Work Programme Update
Each Panel Chair provided a verbal update on work programme progress.
Environment and Communities
The scope for the proposed Residential Parking review required further work before being considered by the Commission.
Education, Skills and Growth
The scope for the proposed SEND review required further work before being considered by the Commission and discussions had been started with officers to establish a deliverable schedule.
The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) review activity programme had been completed and the report was being drafted.
Health and Care
The Mental Health review activity programme was in development and a series of meeting dates had been proposed.
CHAIRMAN