Agenda and minutes

Mr. M. Maryon proposed, and Mrs. C.G. Heath seconded, and it was:

RESOLVED – That Mr. I.S. Lawson be elected Chairman of the County Council for the ensuing year.

The following Member declared an interest in accordance with Standing Order 16.5:-

RESOLVED - That the minutes of the meeting held on 8 March 2012 be confirmed.

Mr M.J. Winnington moved, and Mr. I.M. Parry seconded, and it was:-

RESOLVED – That Mr. F.A. Chapman be appointed Vice-Chairman of the County Council for the ensuing year.

The Chairman will mention a range of recent items of news which may be of interest to Members

Hear by Right Gold Award

Members were informed that the County Council was the first local authority in the Midlands to receive a national award for giving young people in care the chance to influence the way council services were run. The county council’s Children’s Voice Project, based in Stafford, received the Hear by Right Gold Award at an award ceremony on Friday 16^th March. The award recognised the outstanding and innovative work the county council undertook to ensure children who lived in foster care, were cared for by family or friends or in children’s homes were able to say what was important to them and influenced what the council did to help and support them

Members’ Long Service Award

Mr. H. Butter was presented with a Long Service Award in recognition of his 24 years service to the County Council.  Mr Butter was first elected to the County Council in 1988 and had represented the Eccleshall County Electoral Division since that date.

The Leader will inform the Council about his work and his plans for the Council, and will give an overview of decisions taken by the Cabinet (and Portfolio Holders) since the previous meeting of the Council

The Leader of the Council presented a Statement outlining his recent work and an overview of decisions taken by the Cabinet (and Portfolio Holders) since the previous meeting of the Council.  He also informed the Council of the following changes in respect of his Cabinet:

(i) That Mr Ben Adams had been appointed as the Deputy Leader of the County Council in place of Mr Ian Parry.

(ii) That Mr Pat Corfield’s Portfolio had been changed to “Cabinet Member for Culture and Communities.”

Education Support Services Project

(Paragraph 1.2 of the Statement)

In response to questions from Members in relation to the governance arrangements for the Education Support Services Project, Mr Parry indicated that two of the Council’s Select Committees would have responsibility for scrutinising the arrangements and that there would also be update reports to Full Council.

Burton upon Trent Primary School Places Strategy: proposals to create additional school places

(Paragraph 1.3 of the Statement)

Whilst acknowledging that there were issues which would need to be addressed, such as increased traffic in the area, Members welcomed the proposals to provide 1,000 new Primary School places in Burton upon Trent.  Mrs Staples thanked members for their comments and Mr Maryon confirmed that a solution was being sought to the issue of traffic generation around the proposed new schools.

Partnership for Care: Rural Premium to Reflect Additional Costs of Social Care in Rural Areas

(Paragraph 1.4 of the Statement)

In response to a question from Mr Huckfield in relation to the shortage of skilled staff in the domiciliary care sector, Mr Ellis indicated that the County Council was attempting to address this issue through a number of measures including the creation of apprentiships and trying to raise the status of jobs in the sector.  Mr Ellis also stated that the County Council was proposing to publish a “Green Paper” aimed at addressing a range of issues in relation to “care” and raising standards.

Improving Equipment and Adaptations Services

(Paragraph 1.5 of the Statement)

In response to a question from Mrs Downes in relation to proposed changes to the aids and adaptations service, Mr Ellis indicated that the proposals to enter into pooled budget arrangements would result in a more “joined-up” service for those needing support in order to remain in their own homes.  He also accepted an invitation from Mr Francis to meet with the Chairman of Cerebral Palsy Mid Staffs to discuss how the charity and the County Council could work together to improve the lives of those suffering from the disease. 

Staffordshire County Council Tourism Strategy 2012 - 2014

(Paragraph 2.1 of the Statement)

Members welcomed the County Council’s Tourism Strategy 2012 – 2014 which identified the means whereby the visitor economy may be developed, with resultant increases in employment and cultural opportunities.  Mr Philip E Jones also made reference to how initiatives by the County Council, such as “A Taste of Staffordshire”, had a positive impact on the local economy.  Mr Adams thanked Members for their positive  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Questions to be asked by Members of the County Council of the Leader of the Council, a Cabinet Member, or a Chairman of a non-Scrutiny Committee.  The question will be answered by the relevant Member and the Member asking the question may then ask a follow up question which will also be answered

Mr. R. Clarke asked the following question of the Cabinet Member for Finance and Transformation whose reply is set out below the question:-

Question

Why have Staffordshire County Council wasted millions of pounds on redundancy payouts, and then some of those people being re-employed at a later date?

Reply

The recent article regarding redundancy payouts contains a number of factual inaccuracies. Where people were re-employed it was not on a ‘like for like’ basis, with the majority of people returning on a casual contract (ad-hoc employment for a short period of time).

The cost of redundancy payouts are outweighed by the salaries attributed to the posts made redundant, providing a future saving to the authority. The Council actively seeks redeployment in to suitable alternative employment in all cases of compulsory redundancy (during notice period), and where successful redundancy is not paid, leading to a further reduction in total redundancy costs.

Supplementary Question

Your reply talks about “the majority of people”; may I ask how many people were made redundant, too early, whose jobs then had to be covered at a later date?

Reply

I do not have the precise details to hand and will therefore respond to Mr Clarke in writing after the meeting.

Mr. P.R. Davies asked the following question of the Leader of the County Council whose reply is set out below the question:-

Question

I am sure that Council will join me in congratulating Her Majesty the Queen on celebrating her Diamond Jubilee. Our Council, to mark the Jubilee, will be presenting both a national Union flag and a Staffordshire County flag to all Staffordshire schools.

I would like to ask the Leader of the Council what the cost of this initiative to the Council Tax payers of Staffordshire will be in these austere times, from which budget will it come and will the flags be manufactured in Britain

Reply

The Diamond Jubilee celebrations in June are at the start of what promises to be a momentous summer. We want to make sure that everyone in Staffordshire can join in the festivities as we pay tribute to The Queen’s extraordinary reign before enjoying the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

To mark this unique occasion and help our schools with their Diamond Jubilee celebrations, the County Council and Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire, Mr Ian J Dudson CBE, are providing a Union flag and a Staffordshire County flag to all schools.

The flags have been supplied via a local company, Midland Flags of Stoke-on-Trent, at a total cost of £1,932. The flags themselves are made in Taiwan. We made every effort to source a British manufacturer but the flags would have cost significantly more. However, I am pleased we are sourcing them from a local supplier. They are being paid for out of an existing budget held by the communications and marketing team to support such positive initiatives.

As well as having the flags for their Diamond Jubilee celebrations, schools will be able to use them in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

Report of the Director of Law and Democracy

The Council considered a report of the Director of law and Democracy recommending changes to the County Council’s Constitution in the light of the following matters:

·        Under the Localism Act 2011 the national Standards regime had been abolished and replaced with the requirement for a local members code of conduct and revised processes and procedures associated with that code.

·        The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 reformed national policing decision making arrangements, introducing Police and Crime Panels to scrutinise and support the elected Police and Crime Commissioners.

·        The ongoing review of Scrutiny Committee structures in the context of the County Councils new ways of working and focus on localism has led to the proposed establishment of five Select Committees and four Local member focus events.

RESOLVED – That the following amendments to the relevant sections of the Constitution be approved:-

(i) A Local Members’ Code of Conduct and associated actions relating to the merger of the Audit and Standards Committees, Arrangements for consideration of alleged breaches of the Code including additional delegations to the Director of Law and Democracy and the proposals in respect of two Independent Persons.

(ii) The establishment of the Staffordshire Police and Crime Panel as a Joint Committee, with Staffordshire County Council as the Host Authority .

(iii) The replacement of Scrutiny Committees with five Select Committees and the introduction of four Local Member Focus Events.

To consider the appointment of members to Committees on the nomination of Group Leaders (to be circulated at the meeting)

RESOLVED – That the members indicated below serve on the Committees indicated for the period up to the annual Council meeting in 2013:-

To consider the appointment of Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen of Committees (to be circulated at the meeting)

RESOLVED – That the under-mentioned be appointed as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Committees stated for the period up to the annual Council meeting in 2013:-

Resolved – That the periodic report of the Staffordshire Police Authority be received.

RESOLVED – That the Periodic Report of the Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Authority be received.