Members are reminded to consider the categories of interest in the Code of Conduct for Members to determine whether they have an interest in any agenda item and any action they should take. For further details, please see the attached note from the Monitoring Officer.

Members are reminded to declare the nature of the interest and the agenda item it relates to. Please note that ultimately it’s the Members’ responsibility to declare any interests form and to update their register of interest form as required by the Code.

If in doubt as to the nature of your interest, you are advised to seek advice prior to the meeting by contacting the Monitoring Officer or Democratic Services

The following Members for transparency declared a potential interest in relation to Item 9 Pre-Decision Scrutiny Questions:

1.    Councillor Marc Francis due to his wife Councillor Rachel Blake being the Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Wellbeing; and

2.    Councillor Ehtasham Haque due to wife Councillor Sabina Akhtar being the Cabinet Member for Culture, Arts and Brexit.

Councillor Mohammed Pappu (Chair) provided the Committee with the following updates:

v  The latest COVID update information from public health had been circulated today by officers and will aim to continue with this for every meeting.

v  The initial governance and scrutiny training session had been held and the next training session would be on Monday 4th of October at 6:00 PM on “questioning skills” and it will to be delivered by Sunita Sharma. Ms Sharma is an experienced coach and facilitator with over 30 years’ experience in local government, the private sector, and a variety of other settings. She has been a long-standing associate consultant with Centre for Governance and Scrutiny (CfGS) and has provided invaluable support to the Borough’s elected Members and senior managers. The Chair stressed that engaging in learning, training and development is essential in gaining experience and enabling councillors to fully understand their role and contribute fully to the democratic process. The final session will be on Wednesday, 24th October at 6:00 PM on chairing skills delivered by Ms. Sharma in addition, support will be available to scrutiny leads to help and develop their Charing skills and the smooth running of the scrutiny sub-committees.

vNoted that following the recent briefing session the report by Savills on the borrowing and investment capacity within the HRA had been circulated and Members were encouraged to consider the responses received.

To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee

The Chair Moved and it was:-

RESOLVED

That the unrestricted minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 28^th June 2021 be approved as a correct record of the proceedings and the Chair was authorised to sign them accordingly.

MATTER ARISING

Minute 3. - Update on attendance at the Mayors Advisory Board (MAB) Improvement Session

The Committee noted that as part of the Council’s improvement journey the LGA have agreed to undertake a one-day ‘light-touch’ Corporate Health Check (CHC) on 28^th September 2021

As a result of discussions on the CHC and in response to a request it was noted as part of the planning for this CHC it will be considered if LGA team can come and speak to the Committee or the Chair during the one-day ‘light-touch’.

To receive any petitions (to be notified at the meeting).

Nil items

The Committee is asked to note the Cabinets Forward Plan.

Noted

The Strategic performance and delivery report – Q1 2021/22 is going to Cabinet  on 22 September 2021 , and provides an update on the delivery and implementation of the council’s Strategic Plan throughout 2021/22.

The Committee received a report that provided an update on the Council’s performance against the performance indicators included in the Councils Strategic Plan in quarter 1 of 2021/22. The main points of the discussion and questions arising may be summarised as follows.

The Committee:

v  Welcomed the new, easier-to-read format of the report.

v  Heard that the current government-funded early years childcare to disadvantaged families had been specifically targeted at reducing the early years attainment gap and was intended to better prepare disadvantaged children for the start of formal schooling. However, it was recognised that it is also important to ensure children have a healthy and balanced diet in their early years as this gives their bodies a chance to properly grow; children need carbohydrates for their energy and protein for their muscle growth and to strengthen their immune systems. Therefore, LBTH was looking at how to make this offer more appealing to both families and providers.

v  Noted that with regard to sickness absence a measurement of absence within the organisation is necessary when deciding on the need for, or setting, an absence target. Although having a target in place will not reduce absence in its own right, it plays is an essential element in any overall absence management programme.

v  Noted that the Borough’s current level recycling was due to a combination of factors, particularly the impact of recycling contamination on the performance figure (e.g. when materials are sorted into the wrong recycling bin, or when materials are not properly cleaned). It was felt to be important to look at how the Council and its partner agencies can change people’s attitudes to recycling (e.g. what do residents need to know/receive/be made aware of). In addition, waste collections may be delayed as regular staff are absent due to illness and/or self-isolation. In addition, whilst agency staff are in place to provide the usual service, it was noted that there may be delays to normal collection days and time.

v  Agreed that if the Council is to increase the percentage that is being  recycled it needs to collaborate with the people and businesses of Tower Hamlets and provide leadership to businesses, housing associations and others that have a responsibility for managing waste.

v  Noted that Tower Hamlets has the highest density of housing in London and the population continues to grow. This provides an additional challenge as recycling rates are lower from flats compared to kerbside properties and over 80 per cent of properties in Tower Hamlets are flats.

v  Noted that only 32.6 percent of senior staff are BAME, equating to just over sixty-eight full time equivalent staff and whilst a target for this measure has not yet been set the staff profile needs to be a proper reflection of the communities that the Council seeks to serve and this needs to be addressed. However, on the 27^th October 2021 the Cabinet will be considering the recommendations of the Black, Asian  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.1

P3 budget monitoring report is going to Cabinet on 22 September 2021 and includes details about General Fund revenue, Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG), Housing Revenue Account (HRA) and progress made against savings targets.

The Committee received a report that (i) presented the budget monitoring report 2021-22 as of 30^th June 2021 for the General Fund, Dedicated Schools Budget (DSB) and the Housing Revenue Account (HRA), (ii) detailed progress made against savings targets and the Council’s capital programme; and (iii) provided projections on General Fund earmarked reserves and the forecast impacts of Covid on the Councils finances in 2021-22. A summary of the discussions and questions raised is set out below:

The Committee

v  Observed that the report is going to Cabinet on 22^nd  September 2021 see following link

v  Noted that the projection for the General Fund outturn is for an overspend of £0.1m, which already considers the use of some earmarked reserves in delivering services (i.e. without the use of these reserves there would be a higher forecast overspend).

v  Noted that given the latest forecast financial position, earmarked General Fund reserves are consequently projected to reduce; from £173m to £166m by the end of this fiscal year.

v  Accepted that it is important to note that the reserves position of the Council is uncertain pending the closure of the statement of accounts for the period 2016 – 2021.

v  Noted that the Councils budget has been stretched for some time, but the pandemic has exacerbated the situation. It has increased the amount that the Council has had to spend on protecting the most vulnerable residents and sets the Borough on a path to rebuild and reboot for a fairer future.

v  In response to questions raised regarding the current interest rates and inflation noted that the Council has modelled the current and anticipated funding available for individual services within the projected resource constraint (e.g. sources of council revenue, including grants, local taxes, fees and charges, investment income).

v  Noted that the Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) is subject to a regular review and as part of that process the Council maintains an in-year contingency to address any ‘budget short fall’ and reserves can be used on a one-off basis.

v  Asked if an analysis could be provided on the impact of inflation on contracts especially if inflation remains at its current level.

v  Stated that there would benefit in undertaking a benchmarking exercise in the autumn in relation to the  New Homes Bonus. This exercise should primarily look at what assumptions have other boroughs made in their MTFS in relation to New Homes Bonus.

v  Stated that it would be useful to know what will the impact be of the National Insurance increase for Heath & Social Care have on the Council both as an employer and as purchaser of services? As this information would then help to inform scrutiny of the budgetary process prior to the publication of firm and detailed spending proposals.

v  Noted that the Place Directorate is forecasting a £4.8m adverse variance before proposed reserve drawdowns. The Directorate is projecting to drawdown £5.6m from agreed and ringfenced reserves, identified during the budget setting process,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.2

The Committee will receive a presentation that provides an outline a summary of the work undertaken to date for the development of policy to address digital exclusion including working with key stakeholders/ partners, utilising the different resources, approach for upskilling local people.

The Committee received a presentation that outlined a summary of the work undertaken to date for the development of policy to address digital exclusion including working with key stakeholders/ partners, using different resources, approach for upskilling local people. The main points arising from the discussion and the questions raised may be summarised as followed:

The Committee:

v  Agreed that there is a need to understand and better coordinate these activities to strengthen this work, avoid duplication, identify specific gaps in provision and to sign post people in user friendly language.

v  Observed that there are a broad range of initiatives taking place across Tower Hamlets which aim to improve digital inclusion. Many of these began as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

v  Agreed that there is a need to understand and better coordinate these activities to strengthen this work, avoid duplication and identify specific gaps in provision.

v  Agreed that achieving digital inclusion in Tower Hamlets should be considered that as an essential element in creating a fairer environment in terms of both money and jobs.

v  Agreed that the Borough will not effectively tackle poverty nor maximise access to job opportunities without reducing the number of people who cannot access the internet.

v  Agreed that Digital inclusion is about ensuring the benefits of the internet and digital technologies are available to everyone and effectively signposted.

v  Stated that digitally excluded people can lack skills, confidence, and motivation, along with having limited or no access to equipment and connectivity. This can create additional layers of social exclusion which can exacerbate social and economic problems. Whereas getting online is usually life-enhancing and it can be life-changing!

v  Indicated that digital inclusion is not only about whether people can access the internet it is also about how user-friendly web sites are e.g. Tower Hamlets Connect digital portal has been launched. It includes user-friendly information on money management, debt and paying bills, with links to local information and advice..

v  Stated that it is important the Council places the voices of local people at the heart of any digital inclusion stratagem. This needs to remain community based in character, not technological and that it is explicitly in  meeting the needs of citizens and communities.

v  Indicated it should not be ignored that having a strong social network is crucial for health and well-being regardless of age e.g. actually going somewhere having a conversation about a transaction is actually a really important social interaction. Hence there needs to be a balance between making sure that people are digitally enabled but also that the provision to support people who prefer to have those face-to-face conversations.

v  Stated that organisations need to be doing more in order to make sure that their services are more user friendly and to maintain a strong element of social interaction in delivering services.

v  Noted that the London Office of Technology and Innovation (LOTI) is working to get all Londoners online with an emphasis on helping those who  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.3

To consider pre-decision scrutiny questions/comments to be presented to Cabinet .

(Time allocated – 30 minutes).

Following comments by the Committee the Pre-Decision Scrutiny Questions (PDSQ) Members agreed the particular questions/recommendations that they wanted to raise with Cabineton the 28^{th of} July 2021 (See attached appendix).

The Committee are asked to note the updates from Scrutiny Leads.

The Committee received and noted the updates from the Scrutiny Lead Members. Arising out of discussions on these updates it was noted that Councillor Faroque Ahmed (Scrutiny Lead for Community Safety) had participated in the recent Tower Hamlets Tension Monitoring Group and that the Council, police, community, and faith leaders are working closely to provide community reassurance around three serious incidents that have taken place in recent weeks in Tower Hamlets. In addition, Councillor Ahmed advised the Committee that he was convening a Challenge Session on the 30^th of September 2021.

To consider any other unrestricted business that the Chair considers to be urgent.

With no other business to discuss the Chair called this meeting to a close; thanked all those attending for their contributions and informed the Committee that the next meeting would be on Monday, 20 September 2021.

As the agenda circulated contained no exempt/ confidential reports and there was therefore no requirement to exclude the press and public to allow for its consideration.

To consider and agree pre-decision scrutiny questions/comments to be presented to Cabinet.

(Time allocated 15 minutes).

Nil item

To consider any other exempt/ confidential business that the Chair considers to be urgent.

Nil items