Agenda and minutes

Councillor Sue Johnson – other Council business

Councillor Dave Liversidge – personal

Councillor Alex Norris – annual leave

Councillor Andrew Rule – personal

Councillor David Smith - unwell

Councillor Mick Wildgust – unwell

None.

None.

Councillor Rosemary Healy presented a petition on behalf of residents of Blythe Street, Staples Street and Querneby Street, requesting the enforcement of 20 mile per hour speed limits, which are not being adhered to, and the erection of bollards on Blythe Street and Staples Street to prevent vehicles travelling at high speeds and using the area as a cut-through.

The minutes of the meeting held on 9 May 2016 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

The Chief Executive reported the following official communications:

Alison Challenger has been appointed to the role of Director of Public Health, following an external recruitment process.

The results of a national passenger survey, undertaken by Passenger Focus in Autumn 2015, have now been released. The tramways satisfaction survey was carried out in six cities, with NET achieving the highest overall satisfaction scores in the UK of 98%, an increase from 96% in 2014. The average satisfaction score for all networks was 92%.

The Nottingham City Council Heritage Strategy has won the Excellence in Planning for Built Heritage Award at the National Royal Town Planning Institute Awards Ceremony in May 2016. The judges commented that The Nottingham Heritage Strategy is a good practical exemplar with wider application potential. It shows that Heritage can be at the heart of place making and can combine with economic growth principles.

The death was reported of County Councillor, former City Councillor, and Honorary Alderman Martin Suthers, OBE. Councillor Suthers died on Saturday 21 May 2016 from an inoperable tumour on his lung after a short six week illness. He had represented the Bingham ward on the County Council since 2000, and was also deputy leader of the Conservative Group at the County Council. Councillor Suthers was a Nottingham City Councillor from 1967-69 and again from 1976-95, and was Lord Mayor of Nottingham in 1988-89.

Councillors Chris Gibson and Georgina Culley spoke in tribute to Martin Suthers, and a minute’s silence was held.

None.

Process for appointment of Honorary Aldermen

Councillor Georgina Culley asked the Leader:

Could the Leader of the Council explain to me why the procedure and qualifying criteria for nominating Honorary Aldermen has changed for this municipal year?

Councillor Jon Collins replied as follows:

Thank you Lord Mayor. It hasn’t.

Strike action by teachers

Councillor Jim Armstrong asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Education, Employment and Skills:

Does the Portfolio Holder for Education support the recent strike action by teachers in Nottingham, action which has stolen a day’s education from the children of this city?

Councillor Sam Webster replied as follows:

Thank you Lord Mayor, and I’m grateful to Councillor Armstrong for his question. There was strike action by the National Union of Teachers nationwide, last Tuesday 5 July. The strike had an impact in Nottingham schools and on Nottingham children, and this is regrettable. It’s a shame to see that the relationship between education professionals and the government has broken down to such an extent that 92% of NUT members who voted in the strike ballot voted in favour of strike action. It’s a worrying trend that we have increasing levels of dispute between the government, trade unions, and professional bodies; including junior doctors and teachers.

However, to give an idea of the impact in Nottingham of this particular strike, I can report that only 10% of schools were completely closed, and a large majority of schools were open to all pupils. I fully recognise that loss of learning, even for one day, isn’t what any of us would want, and the disruption caused to parents and carers is also regrettable. My view is that strike action that impacts on children’s education should only be used as a last resort. However, it’s important for us to understand why exactly teachers up and down the country chose this course of action. And with a 92% vote in favour of a strike, it would be foolish to dismiss out of hand the genuine concerns of some teachers.

So I’ll try to give some context to Councillor Armstrong’s question. In a letter written to Nicky Morgan on 28 June, the NUT highlighted reasons for striking, stating that the note was a last appeal before action was taken. Kevin Courtney, the Acting General Secretary of the NUT, warned that the funding situation in schools would get progressively worse unless government changed course. He argued that the funding cuts could have negative implications, including an increase in class sizes, fewer subject choices for children, and cuts in support and teaching staff, all of which could affect standards overall.

The strike took place due to concerns about funding. Funding to ensure the profession attracts and retains the best teachers, funding that ensures class sizes remain static and do not rise, funding to ensure that schools are properly equipped and resourced, funding to ensure that valuable aspects of children’s education such as the arts and music are retained, funding to ensure redundancies in schools  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25.

Report of the Leader

The Leader submitted a report on decisions taken under urgency procedures, as set out on pages 21 to 24 of the agenda.

RESOLVED to note the urgent decisions (exempt from call-in) taken:

Report of the Leader

The Leader submitted a report on changes to the constitution, as set out on pages 25 to 26 of the agenda.

RESOLVED to:

1)  approve the proposed changes to the membership and voting arrangements for the Health and Wellbeing Board as outlined in paragraph 5.2 of the report, subject to agreement by the Health and Wellbeing Board at its meeting on 27 July 2016, and the resulting changes to the Constitution;

2)  approve the changes to Health Scrutiny terms of reference to reflect the new membership number of 10.

Report of the Leader

The Leader submitted a report on the appointment of the Honorary Recorder, as set out on pages 27 to 28 of the agenda.

RESOLVED to appoint His Honour Judge Dickinson QC as Honorary Recorder for the City of Nottingham under the powers in the Courts Act 1971, with the appointment starting from 8 August 2016.

Report of the Portfolio Holder for Community Services

The Portfolio Holder for Community Services submitted a report on the Crime and Drugs Partnership Plan refresh, as set out on pages 29 to 42 of the agenda.

RESOLVED to approve the Partnership Plan 2015 to 2020 (2016/17 refresh), as set out in appendix 1 of the report.

Motion in the name of the Portfolio Holder for Community Services, Councillor Nicola Heaton:

“This City Council is proud of the work it did to introduce a City Police Division in August 2003. Following the introduction of the City Police Division, crime in the City has fallen by half, anti-social behaviour has reduced and Nottingham people feel safer.

This City Council believes that the removal of the City Police Division, announced by the Chief Constable, following inadequate consultation with both partners and the public, will damage policing in Nottingham.

The City Council therefore calls for:

•  the City Division to be reinstated based on the current city boundaries

•  the appointment of a Divisional Commander

•  the appointment of a Chief Constable committed to delivering these changes”

Moved by Councillor Nicola Heaton, seconded by Councillor Linda Woodings:

“This City Council is proud of the work it did to introduce a City Police Division in August 2003. Following the introduction of the City Police Division, crime in the City has fallen by half, anti-social behaviour has reduced and Nottingham people feel safer.

This City Council believes that the removal of the City Police Division, announced by the Chief Constable, following inadequate consultation with both partners and the public, will damage policing in Nottingham.

The City Council therefore calls for:

•  the City Division to be reinstated based on the current city boundaries

•  the appointment of a Divisional Commander

•  the appointment of a Chief Constable committed to delivering these changes”

RESOLVED to carry the motion.

Motion in the name of Councillor Glyn Jenkins:

“This City Council believes that we all owe a debt to those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces.

It is concerned that local authorities, national government, charities and other service providers are not yet fully able to meet the needs of our Armed Forces community as accurate information about this group just isn't currently available. We don't actually know exactly how many veterans, reservists and dependents there are in the United Kingdom - let alone our local community - or what their needs might be.

The only way that comprehensive information of this kind could be achieved would be through the inclusion of questions about the Armed Forces community in the next national census. This Council therefore supports the Royal British Legion's call for the UK, Scottish and Northern Ireland governments to commit to this modest addition to the census.

The Office for National Statistics, National Records Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency have already begun consulting on the content of the next census. This council supports the inclusion of questions on the Armed Forces community as the next census is trialled and developed in the coming months and years.”

Moved by Councillor Glyn Jenkins, seconded by Councillor Brian Grocock:

“This City Council believes that we all owe a debt to those who serve or have served in the Armed Forces.

It is concerned that local authorities, national government, charities and other service providers are not yet fully able to meet the needs of our Armed Forces community as accurate information about this group just isn't currently available. We don't actually know exactly how many veterans, reservists and dependents there are in the United Kingdom - let alone our local community - or what their needs might be.

The only way that comprehensive information of this kind could be achieved would be through the inclusion of questions about the Armed Forces community in the next national census. This Council therefore supports the Royal British Legion's call for the UK, Scottish and Northern Ireland governments to commit to this modest addition to the census.

The Office for National Statistics, National Records Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency have already begun consulting on the content of the next census. This council supports the inclusion of questions on the Armed Forces community as the next census is trialled and developed in the coming months and years.”

RESOLVED to carry the motion.

To note the following changes to Committee memberships:

RESOLVED to note the following changes to Committee memberships: