Agenda and minutes

Councillor Alan Clark (other Council business)

Councillor Nick McDonald (personal)

Paul Bakajsa

Robin Goodwin

Reg Knowles

Sheila Loades

Roz Yousouf

Heidi May

None.

Of the meeting held on 23 September 2015 (for confirmation).

The minutes of the meeting held on 23 September 2015 were confirmed as a true record and were signed by the Chair.

Presentation by Lynette Daws, Assistant Director of Commissioning - Primary Care, NHS Nottingham City Clinical Commissioning Group

Lynette Daws, Assistant Director of Commissioning, Primary Care NHS Nottingham City Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), delivered a presentation regarding access to GP services within Area 1.

In addition to the information provided in the presentation of the following points were made:

(a)  Bulwell and Bulwell Forest have more than the City average of older citizens, the highest proportion of residents with poor mental health, and the highest proportion of residents within the City who smoke and are overweight;

(b)  the mystery shopper survey can only be considered as a snapshot as it was carried out by HealthWatch Nottingham with two calls made to 8 surgeries, requesting appointments over two days. Where surgeries were unable to provide either a routine appointment within one week or same-day urgent appointment, this has been investigated further;

(c)  within Area One there are 17 whole-time equivalent GPs providing 550 GP sessions each per week;

(d)  it has been a struggle to get trainee GPs to work in Nottingham as generally trainees tend to stay in the area in which they trained. As a result, 30% of available training posts were not filled in the last year;

(e)  newly trained GPs do not generally want partnerships and prefer initially to remain either salaried or work as locums. This impacts on the cost of providing locum or agency cover to an extent which is not sustainable for some practices; one practice within Bulwell held a GP vacancy for one year even though the vacancy had been advertised nationally throughout that period;

(f)  many practices are working to use clinical staff more effectively and promote the advice available from pharmacy staff;

(g)  suggestions regarding how appointments are booked and cancellations made include text messages to remind patients of their appointment, but which also offer a facility to cancel the appointment;

(h)  the ‘Physio First’ pilot enables patients to make appointments directly with the Physio Service instead of requiring referrals from a GP;

(i)  the new ‘Self-Help’ pilot operating within Bulwell will provide one central point which citizens can access to find self-help facilities such as referrals. The information will be kept up-to-date on a weekly basis;

(j)  the City Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee is considering the quality of GP practices in Nottingham and the information gathered so far can be found here: http://committee.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/ieListMeetings.aspx?CId=614&Year=0 ;

(k)  ideally, all surgeries would be able to offer a same day urgent appointment or a three-day routine appointment.

Lynette responded to the Committee’s questions as follows:

(l)  there are five practices within Bulwell which operate extended hours beyond the contractual requirements;

(m)  there is no specific CCG policy regarding patients making, but not attending, appointments. This is a waste of resources but more importantly, it wastes an appointment which may be used by another patient. Some practices do have their own policies where if patients do not attend (DNA) a set number of appointments, they are removed from the surgery’s register. However, this can just move a problem to a different practice so  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

Presentation by Zoe McAtamney, Consultation and Engagement Officer, Nottingham City Council.

Zoe McAtamney, Consultation and Engagement Officer, delivered a presentation on the purpose, activity, and achievements of Nottingham City Council’s Citizens Panel.

Citizens living within the City boundaries can apply to become members of the panel and provide their views and report their experiences of City Council services in order to help shape services and ensure that citizens are at the heart of everything the Council does.

There are a variety of ways in which panel members can be involved, including postal surveys, online surveys, mystery shopping, and focus groups. The focus of Panel topics also vary from providing feedback on specific services, to suggesting how emerging service provision is most appropriate. Incentives such as lunch, health passes or free cycle lessons are offered to panel members taking part, usually relating to the consultation.

Panel members vary in age and are drawn from across the City but with only 12% living within the Bulwell and Bulwell Forest Wards.

Regular newsletters provide feedback on the impact of the consultation, to ensure that panel members can see the effect of their work.

Anyone interested in applying to become Assistant panel member can speak directly to Zoe and her team on 0115 876 4871, access information on the panel and an application form at www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/consultation, or email engaged@Nottinghamcity.gov.uk.

RESOLVED to note the valuable contribution that citizens can make by joining and taking part in Citizen Panel consultation.

Joint report of the Director of Community Protection and the Corporate Director of Commercial and Operations

Prior to considering this item, the Chair explained that there is a small amount of confidential information relating to the report but which it is not appropriate to make public (the exempt appendix). Councillors have seen the information and did not intend to discuss it further.

Debbie Beal, Community Protection Team Enforcement Officer, presented the report and was accompanied by Melanie Fretwell, Community Protection Principle Enforcement Officer, and Thomas Henshaw, Nottinghamshire Police.

The report provides evidence which has been gathered and collated regarding some long term antisocial behaviour (ASB) issues which persistently occur on Merchant Street in Bulwell towards residents and their visitors.

The Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, provides the Council with power to introduce a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) which will prohibit specific behaviour and actions within a defined area.

Information within the report includes:

(i)  the ongoing situation which has led to the proposal for a PSPO;

(ii)  an outline the powers of a PSPO including the draft order which identifies the specific area to be covered;

(iii)  resident consultation response to proposing an order;

(iv)  an overview of property tenure, length of residency and ASB issues experienced by residents responding to the consultation;

(v)  evidence of the general and specific reported ASB which has taken place on Merchant Street;

(vi)  alternative options to a PSPO.

Councillors welcomed the proposed order and thanked the Community Protection Team for their hard work in progressing the order which, if approved, will be the first of its kind in the country.

Questions from the Committee were responded to as follows:

(a)  once the Order is in place, if the ASB issues currently experienced on Merchant Street move to a neighbouring street or area, the Order can then be extended to include other streets;

(b)  once the Order is in place the powers of civil and criminal enforcement will be strengthened.

Councillors and members of the Committee commented:

(c)  this Order will help to improve the area and sends out the right message that ASB will not be tolerated;

(d)  the Order is welcomed and this type of control should have been in place years ago;

(e)  this Order is not a reflection on a lot of good and decent people who live on Merchant Street and have been victimised. The majority of problems originate from visitors to the street.

RESOLVED

(1)  to note the evidence gathered and the results of the consultation on the proposal to introduce a Public Space Protection Order (“PSPO”) in and around Merchant Street as indicated in the draft PSPO attached at Appendix 1 to the report for the area outlined in red on the plan in the Order;

(2)  that, being satisfied that the test in section 59 of the 2014 Act is met, and having regard to the rights of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, Area Committee authorise the Head of Legal Services to make a PSPO in the form indicated in the draft PSPO attached at Appendix  ...  view the full minutes text for item 35.

Verbal update by Nottinghamshire Police Inspector Christine Busuttil

Nottinghamshire Police Sgt Nev McGeehan verbally updated the Committee on the latest crime information for the area, and was accompanied by PC Thomas Henshaw.

(a)  there has been a significant decrease in burglaries in both wards, with 30% fewer burglaries compared to the same period last year;

(b)  robbery and vehicle crime are also down;

(c)  the rise in sexual offences can be attributed to historic abuse being reported;

(d)  there has been a slight increase in violent crime;

(e)  crime recording by the Police is to be reviewed, and where crime is reported as assault and then found not to have happened, classification will be changed;

(f)  classification of harassment has changed with the new legislation and can now include social media postings. This is expected to increase reported instances;

(g)  it is expected that burglary will increase over the next few weeks so crime prevention advice is being distributed. During the darker winter period Citizens are urged to ensure that a light is left on within the property, as this is a known deterrent for burglars;

(h)  purse thefts is an ongoing issue with elderly and vulnerable people targeted. Images of known offenders are posted on Facebook to help identification.

Members of the Committee commented that although compared to the same period last year, burglary had declined, the number of burglaries was still significant, and queried whether any information had been gathered as to the tenure of targeted properties, to see if there were specific patterns.

PC Henshaw responded that the Crime and Drugs Partnership would have this information and that it could be taken into consideration in future when compiling anti-burglary plans.

When queried, Sgt Nev McGeehan informed members of the Committee that the number of local policing alerts had been reduced following complaints that there were too many. Local Police alerts are issued less often but there is a greater emphasis on social media communication.

In conclusion, citizens are urged not to leave empty electrical boxes for TVs and games etc, in clear view on the street for recycling/refuse collection, as this is an advertisement to burglars of what can be found in the property.

Report of Chief Executive of Nottingham City Homes

Toni Smithurst, Nottingham City Homes Tenancy and Estate Manager, presented the report which updates the Committee on Nottingham City Homes (NCH) performance and engagement activity within Area One since the last report. The Committee is also asked to consider approving the NCH environmental programme.

Toni highlighted the following points and responded to the committee’s questions:

(a)  solar panel installation at qualifying properties is due to start soon. The exact number and location of qualifying properties was not a hand but would be provided to Councillor Klein;

(b)  regeneration work includes starting the third phase of Norwich Gardens Estate Impact Project and Snapenook Court Grander Design work;

(c)  NCH was recently nominated for RSB awards, was shortlisted, and NCH Estate and Tenancy Managers won ‘project of the year’ for a boxing club initiative.

Community representatives and Ward members expressed disappointment, concern and frustration at the ongoing situation that some ‘patches’ within Area One had not had a permanent Patch Manager in post for significant time, and that temporary Patch Managers, although effective, either moved on or were replaced. This has resulted in a lack of continuity of service. This was particularly noticeable for Tenant and Resident Groups, when as soon as a relationship and understanding of the area was established, the officer changed resulting in a new period of introduction and local learning. Some Community Representatives strongly express their views that, through no fault of the temporary Patch Managers, neighbourhoods and vulnerable people were not receiving the expected level of service.

Toni responded that the issue was also frustrating for Estate Managers who continued to request a more stable solution while the appointed Patch Manager remained on secondment. It is noted the patch manager posts cannot be permanently filled and had to remain available to the appointed Patch Manager for when their secondment finished.

The Chair commented that the issue was not limited to this one patch, and that the broader issue needed to be addressed. She stated that she would again write to Nick Murphy, the Chief Executive of Nottingham City Homes, on this issue and ask that he respond to the affected Tenant and Resident Groups.

Toni responded to an issue which had been raised by a community representative who was unable to attend the meeting, regarding reported fly tipping on the edge of Bradford Street allotments. This issue had been reported for clearing some time ago but no action had been taken. Toni reported that the patch manager was investigating why this had not yet been cleared, and would contact the community representative with his findings.

The current financial position is detailed as follows:

RESOLVED

(1)  to note

(i)  the update report contained within appendix 1 to the report;

(ii)  the performance report contained within appendix 2 to the report;

(2)  to note the approve the NCH environmental Programme Funding for Bulwell & Bulwell Forest  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

Each Area Committee has been asked to select 3 priorities to focus on addressing during the year. Community Representatives are invited to suggest priorities.

Each Area Committee has been tasked to select three Area priorities to focus on addressing during the year. With their experience and knowledge of local issues, community representatives were invited to suggest priorities.

Suggestions included:

(i)  unemployment and un-employability;

(ii)  housing;

(iii)  health and well-being

(iv)  deprivation and inequality;

(v)  crime and antisocial behaviour

Following a discussion, during which the five ward pledges were referred to,

the committee agreed on three priorities.

Resolved to focus on addressing the following three priorities, with specific consideration of deprivation within each:

(i)  Health and well-being;

(ii)  Unemployment (including un-employability);

(iii)  Crime and Antisocial Behaviour.

Report of Director of Neighbourhood Services.

Suki Shergill, Neighbourhood Development Officer, presented the report which proposes Area Capital and Public Realm (local Transport Plan –LTP) funded schemes.

RESOLVED

(1)  to note the following financial position of the Bulwell Ward budget:

(2)  to approve the following Bulwell Ward LTP schemes:

(3)  to note the following financial position of the Bulwell Forest Ward budget:

(4)  to approve the following Bulwell Forest LTP schemes:

(5)  to approve the following Bulwell Forest Public Realm schemes:

Suki Shergill and Celia Knight, Neighbourhood Development Officers, presented the report which informs the Committee of the financial position of Ward member budgets and the action agreed by the Director of Neighbourhood Services as a result of Ward member funding.

It was noted that although some further schemes had been approved this had taken place of the report had been produced as they were not included but were progressing.

RESOLVED

(1)  to note the following Ward Councillor Budget allocations for Bulwell Ward:

(2)  to note the Bulwell Ward Councillor Budget financial position:

(3)  to note the Bulwell Forest Ward Councillor budget allocations as follows:

(4)  to note the following Bulwell Forest Ward Councillor budget financial position;

Report of Director of Neighbourhood Services

Suki Shergil and Celia Knight, Neighbourhood Development Officers, presented the report which informs the committee of the financial position of Ward member budgets and the action agreed by the director of neighbourhood services as a result of Ward member funding.

It was noted that although some further schemes had been approved this had taken place of the report had been produced as they were not included but were progressing.

Resolved

(1)  to note the following Ward Councillor budget allocations for Bulwell Ward:

(2)  To note the Bulwell Ward Councillor budget financial position:

(3)  To note the Bulwell Forest Ward Councillor budget allocations as follows:

(4)  To note the following Bulwell Forest Ward Councillor budget financial position;

Report of Director of Neighbourhood Services

The Chair introduced the report which provides detailed performance statistics along with commentary of progress made against area targets and informed the committee that the information had been considered during the Neighbourhood Action Team meeting (NAT).

It is noted that if any members of the Committee have any issues or questions to raise regarding contents of performance reports, they can inform their ward Neighbourhood Development Officer a few days before the meeting to enable the answers or information to be provided at the meeting.

RESOLVED to note the report

The opportunity for Community Representatives to suggest future agenda items.

The Chair presented the opportunity for Community Representatives to suggest future agenda items to be considered by the Committee. Any suggestions needed to be presented at least six weeks before the meeting date to either Celia Knight, Neighbourhood Development Officer for Bulwell Forest Ward, or Suki Shergill, Neighbourhood Development Officer for Bulwell Ward.

The Bulwell Christmas Festival will be held on Monday 7 December 2015.

In Bulwell Riverside between 9.30am and 12.30pm there will be approximately 17 stalls run by local groups and organisations, offering crafts and gifts.

Totstime will also be held at Bulwell Riverside between 10.30am and 11am for children under the age of 5 years (including a special visitor).

Between 3.30pm and 5.30pm a range activities will be held, including Santa’s grotto, face painting, live music, rides and food, including the switching of the Christmas lights at 5pm.

Community representatives are asked to promote the events within their local communities.

To consider excluding the public from the meeting during consideration of the remaining items in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 on the basis that, having regard to all the circumstances, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information by virtue of Paragraphs 5 and 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.