Agenda and minutes


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Venue: Reception Room, Barnsley Town Hall

Contact: Peter Mirfin  Council Governance Officer

Items
No. Item

35.

Declaration of Pecuniary and Non-Pecuniary Interests

Minutes:

Councillor Carr declared a non-pecuniary interest in minute numbers 38 and 39 due to her position as a trustee of DIAL.

36.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting of Central Area Council held on 13th January, 2020 (Cen.09.03.2020/2) pdf icon PDF 153 KB

Minutes:

Members received the minutes from the previous meeting of Central Area Council held on 13th January, 2020.

 

Members heard how the DIAL Service was now being advertising widely, including within the Central Ward.

 

A number of concerns were raised in relation to the contract with District Enforcement, and Members were encouraged to give details about these to the Central Area Council Manager for further investigation.

 

RESOLVED that the minutes of the Central Area Council meeting held on 13th January, 2020 be approved as a true and correct record.

37.

Hope House Presentation (Cen.09.03.2020/3) pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Minutes:

Rachel Taylor from Hope House was welcomed to the meeting to provide an overview of the Hope House Connects project, financed through the Wellbeing Fund.

 

Members noted how the project sought to meet the Area Council priorities of family support and reducing isolation, and also delivered against two of the five ways to wellbeing.

 

The project built on the success of a long established group, led by a volunteer who was unable to continue.  This was further developed with increased resources and focused on early social skills, fine motor, and literacy skills.

 

The other area of focus was on families with children under the age of one, with the group known as Little Chimps.   The target of number of families to engage with had been exceeded, with the number attending Little Chimps doubling. The success of this was attributed to social media and word of mouth.  Although families attended from each ward in the Central Area, the majority were from the Central Ward.

 

Members were provided with case studies about the direct impact of the project, reducing the social isolation experienced by new parents, which in turn allowed them to build networks, access further help, and build resilience.

 

A number of indirect impacts had also been seen with connections being made by volunteers and others involved in the project delivery, resulting in them providing mutual support.

 

Members praised the project and its impact.  Discussion took place around the differences between this and a normal ‘mother and toddler’ group, and it was noted that age appropriate resources were provided, but that support was also provided for adults to engage, in order to address their issues.

 

With regards to attendance, it was suggested that the project could be promoted more widely.  It was agreed that promotional resources be provided to the Area Council Manager in order to make these aware for Members to distribute through their networks.

 

RESOLVED:-

(i)            That thanks be given for the presentation and the positive work undertaken;

(ii)               That materials be provided to Members in order to allow more widespread promotion of the service.

38.

Performance Management Report Q3 (Cen.09.03.2020/4) pdf icon PDF 354 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Area Council Manager reminded Members that the report covered the period October to December, 2019.  Whilst performance was generally positive, two of the contracts and two of the projects funded by the Wellbeing Fund had a number of ‘Amber’ ratings.

 

Members noted the cumulative impact of Central Area interventions since April 2017, and the Area Council Manager gave more in depth information about each of the areas of investment.

 

In relation to the service delivered by Royal Voluntary Service there were a number of areas rated as ‘Amber’. The number of referrals was 40 against a target of 75.  Members were reminded that the project would cease at the end of March 2020, but that careful consideration was being given to the support required by each client and referrals were being made as necessary.

 

The contract with YMCA continued to be delivered effectively.   116 Sessions had been delivered with 70 new young people participating.   During the period there had been 1,417 attendances. 

 

Members heard that 148 Fixed Penalty Notices had been issues within the quarter by District Enforcement.  It was noted that this represented a slight decrease on previous quarters, as a light touch approach had been taken over the Christmas period.  A number of areas had been targeted as a result of intelligence submitted, resulting in 28 of the notices being issued for dog fouling. 

 

Members questioned the visibility of officers, acknowledging that a visible presence was a deterrent.  It was noted that the contract only provided the equivalent of 1.5 full time officers, and that this was shared over 5 wards. The Area Council Manager responded by saying that they would discuss the possibility of providing ‘heat maps’ showing where officers had been patrolling with District Enforcement.  Members also discussed the deterrent effect for children, with them being able to undertake a litter pick in lieu of the payment of a fine.  It was suggested that this may act as a greater deterrent for adults than a fine.

 

Members considered the performance against the contract with Twiggs Grounds Maintenance.  15 social action interventions had been led by Twiggs, 42 adult volunteers engaged, and 68 pieces of added value work undertaken.  Members gave thanks for the positive work undertaken.

 

Performance against the Service Level Agreement to support the reduction in the flytipping of household waste had been positive, with 220 incidents reported, 81 of which were going forward for further investigation by the officer in question.  Noted was the work undertaken informally, with conversations taking place with residents in areas where hoarding or neglect was seen.

 

Members praised the work of the officer, and it was suggested that it may be useful for them to go on Berneslai Homes Walkabouts with Members and officers where there were issues with homes in both public and private ownership.

 

Members heard how the officer responsible for supporting new tenants in the private rented sector had made direct contact with 42 households.  21 had been supported with issues related to waste  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.

39.

Procurement and Financial Update (Cen.09.03.2020/5) pdf icon PDF 766 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Area Council Manager introduced the item providing an update on the current situation in relation to each of the priority areas previously agreed. With regards to the ‘Addressing Loneliness and Social Isolation in Adults and Older People’ priority, Members heard how research was currently underway in order to inform future commissions.  In mid January ‘Just Works’ had been appointed and to date a literature review had been undertaken, 28 community conversations conducted and an online survey launched.  A report featuring the results of the research would be completed to feed into a workshop to discuss this in more detail on 31st March, 2020.  The outcome of the workship was scheduled to be discussed at the Area Council meeting in April.

 

An overview of all current contracts and associated timescales was then provided.  It was noted that the current Service Level Agreements (SLAs) concentrating on supporting new tenants in private sector rented accommodation, and that to assist the reduction in the flytipping of household waste were due to come to an end in November.  They would therefore be discussed by the Area Council in April or June.

 

Members noted that each of the projects funded through the Wellbeing Fund was likely to end in June or July.  The report circulated provided a brief overview of each, and suggested a course of action for each to consider moving forward. 

 

Members discussed Creative Recovery and noted that the project had been delayed, and that the second part of the project had yet to be delivered.  Members expressed concerns at the delays and lower than expected performance, and reassurances were given that performance had been monitored regularly by the Area Council Manager.  Members also noted that projects were paid in arrears for delivery, providing a safeguard should delivery not be forthcoming.

 

Exodus, TADS and The Youth Association would be invited to apply to the Youth Work Fund.  It was noted that opportunities for ELSH may be forthcoming from the research into social exclusion.

 

A suggestion was made that the DIAL service be delivered for 12 months at a cost of £30,000 with 1 session per week in each ward, and that the Hope House Connects project be supported from June 2020 to the end of July 2021 at a cost of £14,000.

 

Members noted the Youth Work Fund had been launched, which would allocate £60,000 of previously ring-fenced Area Council Finance.  The attention of Members was drawn to the application pack which had been circulated as an appendix to the report.  The closing date for applications was 27th March, and an evaluation panel was set to meet on 23rd April, with the outcome being able to be reported into the next Area Council meeting.

 

Members were reminded of the second element of support for young people 13+, which involved the establishment of a package of training and development assistance for volunteers.  Information sessions had been organised an the feedback from interested parties would be taken into account in the next  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

40.

Notes of the Ward Alliances (Cen.09.03.2020/6) pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Central – held on 22nd January, and 19th February, 2020

Dodworth – held on 14th January, 2020

Kingstone – held on 8th January and 12th February, 2020

Stairfoot – held on 13th January, and 10th February, 2020

Worsbrough – held on 6th February, 2020

 

Minutes:

The meeting received the notes of the following meetings of the Ward Alliances within the Central Area:-

 

Central Ward Alliance on 22nd January, and 19th February, 2020;

Dodworth Ward Alliance on 14th January, 2020;

Kingstone Ward Alliance on 8th January, and 12th February, 2020;

Worsbrough Ward Alliance on 6th February, 2020.

 

RESOLVED that the notes and feedback from the Ward Alliances be received.

41.

Report on the Use of Ward Alliance Funds (Cen.09.03.2020/7) pdf icon PDF 555 KB

Minutes:

The Area Council Manager introduced the item referring to finance remaining in each of the Ward Alliance Funds.

 

Central Ward Alliance Fund had £10,405.34 remaining, and Dodworth Ward Alliance Fund had £15,554.14 remaining at the time the report had been published, but a number of applications had subsequently been approved leaving around £10,000 remaining.

 

Kingstone Ward Alliance Fund had £4,538.91 remaining; Stairfoot Ward Alliance £10,026.99 remaining and Worsbrough Ward Alliance £18,161.66 left to allocate.

 

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

 

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