Agenda and minutes

To receive any declarations of interest of a pecuniary or non-pecuniary nature from Members in respect of the items on this agenda.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 28 March 2024.

To consider any communications to be submitted by the Mayor or the Chief Executive.

To consider any outstanding appointments or changes to membership on Regulatory Boards, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and Outside Bodies following Annual Council on 17th May, 2024

To consider the following questions which have been received from Elected Members and which are asked pursuant to Standing Order No. 11.

1.    Councillor Fielding

When is the hospital park and ride feasibility study going to be published?

2.    Councillor Bullcock

What is the council doing to tackle the damage being caused to grassed verges, such as the area at the bottom of Highstone Avenue in Kingstone Ward, by cars and commercial vehicles? This damage makes the areas look unsightly and uncared for.

3.    Councillor Hunt

Where have areas been set aside within our public parks to improve the wildlife habitat and biodiversity?

4.    Councillor Fielding

Why is the wildflower area in Penny Pie Park still overgrown with weeds and nettles?

5.    Councillor Fielding

When is the council going to take safety on the crossroads at the end of Dodworth High Street seriously and provide improvements to the junction?

Mover – Councillor Kitching

Seconder – Councillor Fielding

This Council notes:

a.    The Two Child limit to benefit payments was introduced by the Conservative Government in 2017 – preventing families from claiming Child Tax Credit or Universal Credit for more than 2 children in the household.

b.    Recent research conducted by the End Child Poverty Coalition which has found that:

·         1.5 million children in the UK live in households subject to the two-child limit on benefit payments. That is roughly one-in-ten children in the UK.

·         In 2023/24 the two-child limit cost families up to £3,235 per child each year.

·         There is a strong correlation between families affected by the two-child limit and those who are living in poverty.

·         Scrapping the two-child limit would lift 250,000 children out of poverty overnight, and significantly reduce the level of poverty that a further 850,000 children live in.

·         Scrapping the two-child limit would cost £1.3 billion, however it is estimated that child poverty costs the economy £39 billion each year.

c.    That in Barnsley, 6240 children in 1780 households are currently affected by the two-child limit to benefit payments. That is 12% of all children in the authority area. At the same time, 15342 [or 29.7%] local children are living in poverty.

d.    That the Liberal Democrats have consistently opposed the two-child limit to benefit payments since it was introduced – calling for it to be axed in their 2017 and 2019 manifestos and reaffirming their commitment to scrapping it at their 2023 federal Autumn Conference.

e.    The stance of the Conservative Government to continue with the cap, and that the Labour Party Leader has also indicated that they would ‘keep the two child benefit cap’.

This Council strongly believes:

f.     That the two-child limit to benefit payments is a cruel and harmful policy that should be scrapped. 

g.    As per recent Research from the University of York, that its introduction has had no positive impacts on employment and earnings. Instead it has dragged thousands of local families into poverty.

Therefore, this Council resolves to:

h.    Ask the Chief Executive to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition indicating Barnsley Council’s strong belief that the two-child limit to benefit payments should be scrapped – which would help 6240 children living in Barnsley.

i.      Ask the Chief Executive to write to all MPs covering the Barnsley area, asking them to commit their public support to the campaign to end the cruel two child limit to benefit payments.