Agenda item

The Area Council Manager introduced the item noting that the report covered the third quarter period October to December, 2016.  It was acknowledged that the next report, covering January to March, 2017, would be submitted to the Area Council at their meeting in May.

Attention was drawn to Appendix 1, and Part A of the Performance Report, which provided an overview of the cumulative impact of the investment made by the Area Council to date. Overall there were no issues with any of the contracts held.

With regards to the contract with RVS, the monitoring report had been submitted in a timely fashion and it was noted that 183 additional people had engaged with the service, bringing the total to 836 over the course of the contract.  Members noted that the service would come to an end on 30^th June, 2017 and appropriate plans were being made to take account of this.

The meeting noted the significant number of activities arranged, and the success of the winter warmer packs.  Councillor Clarke talked of the positive feedback from service users, and the impact the service had made to their lives.

With regards to the contract with YMCA, the monitoring report was being submitted satisfactorily.   From October to December, 2016 152 sessions had been held, engaging 44 additional children.  Within the quarter there had been 2677 separate attendances, and 13 new peer supporters had been trained.   It was noted that the contract was due to end on 31^st March, 2017 and arrangements had been made for this.

Members noted that issues with the monitoring of users demographics were still ongoing, but that this did not impact on overall performance.

The meeting considered the performance information relating to the contract with Kingdom Security.  The monitoring report had been provided in a timely fashion and Members noted that 247 Fixed Penalty Notices had been issued within the quarter, with 13 Parking Charge Notices in addition.  This brought the number of Fixed Penalty Notices for dog fouling and littering to 2,083.

The meeting heard how a number of young people had engaged in clean up events, instead of paying the penalty notice.

Members discussed the lack of clarity between the enforcement services provided centrally, and those funded through the Area Council.  The meeting went on to consider the impact of enforcement on the environment, noting that littering was still an issue within every ward of the Central Area.  It was suggested that issuing Fixed Penalty Notices to those dropping cigarette ends did help to stop littering, but only reduced small volumes of litter.

The meeting went on to consider the contract with Twiggs Grounds Maintenance.  Performance against the contract was positive, and in addition many projects had been supported above and beyond the requirements of the contract.

The Service Level Agreement to support those in Private Sector Housing was discussed.  Officers employed continued to work with vulnerable individuals with 261 additional properties visited during the quarter, bringing the total number of households visited to 1,488, with 653 of these having 3 or more contacts.  Relationships between the officers, landlords and tenants were well established and feedback about the service had been extremely positive.  Councillors sought assurances that, although the officers were employed by Barnsley MBC directly, they would be working fully for Central Area Council.  It was agreed that the Area Council Manager would follow this up with the manager of the SLA.

The meeting discussed the Home Visiting Service provided by Homestart.  It was noted that 14 families were being directly supported and 3 new volunteers had been engaged.  Members noted how the project had supported individuals across the Central Area from a variety of backgrounds.  Feedback regarding the service was positive, and it was acknowledged that the service supported many individuals who would not normally access support through family centres.

Finally the meeting considered the performance of the three organisations contracted under the Youth Programme.  All of which had provided case studies as part of the report, and all of which had received positive feedback.

RESOLVED that the report be noted.