To receive a presentation from Mayor John Biggs

The Committee received a presentation from Mayor John Briggs he set out the Council’s key achievements over the last seven months since the election and noted that this had been a particularly busy period. The questions and comments from Members on the report may be summarised as follows:

The Committee:

·         Noted that the LGA Peer Review in June, which had noted areas of improvement around developing an open culture; strong leadership; the Council’s healthy financial position and ongoing work around an increasing the pace and appetite for change;

·         Noted that the Council has made strong progress in its improvement journey, culminating in the Council’s directions lapsing in September;

·         Was advised that further work has included the development of the Council’s new Strategic Plan, Partnership Plan and aimed to improve transparency by revising its Performance Reports;

·         Was informed with regard to Children’s Services, the Council has prepared for Ofsted visits, launched a social worker academy, held an Early Years Summit with key partners and offered free meals to children to stave off holiday hunger;

·         Noted that to further address poverty, the Council has continued its Council tax Reduction Scheme, based on 100% Council Tax Liability;

·         Noted that to tackle ASB and crime, the Council has increased funding and continued Operation Continuum to disrupt drug markets in the Borough;

·         Was informed that the Council has also (i) Launched the Breath Clean campaign to change behaviours to tackle air pollution across Tower Hamlets; (ii) Built new Council homes to address the Borough’s affordable housing needs; (iii) Helped 5,000 residents find work through a new WorkPath Programme; and (iv) Brought waste back in-house to improve waste and recycling service delivery; and

·         Was advised by the Mayor that regarding the future uncertainty with both Brexit and the Fair Funding Review and the Council’s efforts to mitigate any risks of uncertainty through launching a Brexit commission.

The Committee then queried the Council’s work and plans on following areas:

·                     School Planning:

What can the Council do to alleviate school funding difficulties? The Committee noted that the Council has limited influence over school budgets. Schools are facing budget deficits and year on year cuts, exacerbated by demographic changes resulting in take up in some areas lagging behind full capacity. The Committee noted that the Council does not have resources to shore up these deficits but is working with schools to mitigate the impact.

How is the Council easing school planning uncertainty? The Committee noted the problems with predictability in the west of the Borough and had consulted with key stakeholders.

·                     Childcare Support:

The Committee noted that Government funding provides 30 hours of childcare for under 5s for working parents, compared to 15 hours of childcare for non-working parents. This is not assisting parents get into work and alleviating child poverty. The Committee noted that the Council is looking at providing a package of funding (approximately £1m) but Government has delayed its plans on packages on this.

·                     SEND funding:

The Committee noted that the overspend in SEND spending needs  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3