Agenda item

Homelessness

 

Councillor Maria Watson asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Housing, Planning and Heritage:

 

Could the Portfolio Holder outline, to the best of her knowledge, the most recently recorded number of homeless people living within the City?

 

Councillor Linda Woodings replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor and thank you Councillor Watson for your question.  As you are no doubt aware homelessness is national crisis caused by the impact of Government austerity, welfare reform and a broken housing market.  In Nottingham, despite our substantial efforts, homelessness case management records show that there are a total of 698 households who are homeless in the City.  465 are under the main homelessness relief duty, 165 are owed the main homelessness duties and a decision on main duty is pending for 68 households.  In addition, there are also 266 households currently under the homelessness prevention duty who are not currently homeless but threatened with homelessness anticipated to occur within the next 56 days.  It is at this point that I really do pay tribute to the NPRAS Team, the Nottingham private rented assistance scheme, who last year assisted 331 households before they became homeless. 

 

I do appreciate that many citizens conflate homelessness with people who present as homeless and rough sleeping in the city centre.  So I do repeatedly receive regular assurances in Nottingham, just in case there is any confusion, that we have our ‘no first night out’ policy and it gives me the confidence to say that those people who present as rough sleeping in the City either have, or have been offered accommodation.  Our latest rough sleeper count in June, which is conducted every month by the City’s Street Outreach Team, showed 48 people sleeping rough and that was a fall of 5 on the count for May. 

 

How we are addressing this is by our ambitious programme of affordable council housing development which will help provide accommodation at a cost and standard that provides our residents with a decent home.  Over the last four years we have built 2293 affordable homes with more than 500 in the pipeline as of May. We intend to build or buy 1000 more council homes for rent and facilitate the building of 4000 homes across the City.  We also, within our manifesto, say that we will protect our benefits and welfare advice services for citizens in order that they do not get into debt.  We are obviously campaigning to scrap the ‘right to buy’ but in the interim, whilst we have the current Government, we are campaigning to limit ‘right to buy’ to at least give us a moratorium period on ‘right to buy’ of new builds in order that we can recover our build costs.  We set aside £9million to address homelessness in the City, making possible the purchase of 130 homes for use as temporary accommodation.  We have additional staffing in our NPRAS Team.  It has doubled in size now to support people to avoid them become homeless and facilitate access to new tenancies in the private rented sector.  We also prevent unnecessary evictions from social housing and Nottingham City Homes has put in place an efficient mechanism to identify and prevent eviction of families at risk. We are about to start a consultation on the way we allocate housing to allow people to have a fair chance of accessing the limited supply of social housing before they reach the stage of homelessness.  We are contacting empty home owners across the City to offer to purchase properties and bring them back into use.  This is all being driven in a systematic way by a cross-council taskgroup and the Homelessness Prevention Strategy Implementation Group, alongside our Homelessness Partnership Forum to address all the issues that we can undertake to prevent and address homelessness in the City. 

 

Single-use plastics

 

Councillor Kirsty Jones asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Energy, Environment and Democratic Services:

 

Whilst the City Council has committed to ensuring that Council premises will become single-use plastic free, there has been no mention of a time-frame.  Will the Portfolio Holder take this opportunity, given the pressing need for this issue to be dealt with, to set out her plan for how soon it will be before Nottingham City Council becomes single-use plastic free?

 

Councillor Sally Longford replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor and thank you Councillor Jones for your question.  I am delighted that you are taking an interest in our environmental issues and I look forward to working with you on them in the future.  As I am sure you are aware, the pledge to make the Council single-use plastic free was contained within the Labour Manifesto this year and therefore it should be enacted during this term of office which runs to 2023.  However I very much hope that we will be able to achieve this goal long before that. Of course, as I am sure you are aware, we didn’t only pledge to cut the Council’s use of plastic but also to work to reduce plastic use across the City by providing water bottle refill stations.  Within the Energy Services Department a voluntary plastics taskforce has begun to work on this issue.  Their activity has included organising the Refill water campaign to reduce single use plastic bottles.  The Refill scheme has already signed up many local businesses which enables people to get their water bottles refilled and I would again encourage everyone to download the app onto their phone which helps you identify those businesses which are participating.  This campaign received very positive publicity on Notts TV in June and while I was off sick my colleagues Zafran Khan and Angela Kandola were spreading the word about the campaign in neighbourhoods.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers and businesses who have become involved. 

 

Already a number of service areas in the Council are developing ideas around this issue, making changes to single use plastic use within their areas.  For example our leisure centre cafes are already signed up to the Refill campaign and are now working with the Council’s Water Officer to look at water refill provision.  From 1 July the use of single-use plastic overshoes was banned in all our leisure centres.  I am told that the feedback from citizens has been very good.  I have been working with the Waste Collection Team over the last year to start the process of getting rid of the orange recycling bags which are used in many apartments in the City.  This is a laborious process. The Team have to negotiate with the management company of each apartment block separately but progress is being made and we obviously wish to ensure that tenants can still continue to recycle as well as they could before, if not better. 

 

As a Council dealing with resources more effectively is part of the sustainability vision for the City being developed with the Green Partnership. It is not only in the context of waste and resources that this features, but also within the carbon neutral 2028 target as oil based plastics have a significant carbon footprint. 

 

Getting rid of single use plastic across the authority is a significant piece of work and one that requires careful consideration so that the necessary functions provided by plastics can continue and that the replacements do not have significant unintended consequences.  We are at the first stage, which is to audit the extent and purpose of single use plastics across the organisation.  The immediate next step is prioritising areas for action and potential solutions that meet our needs.  Where there are not any suitable available products, we will engage with partners such as the Core Cities and use our connections to organisations such as the Innovation Gateway to source new ones.  Clearly many organisations are making similar steps and innovative solutions are becoming more available and affordable.  Once the audit is complete it will become possible to provide a more accurate timescale which I will be happy to share with the Council when it is available. 

 

Special Responsibility Allowances

 

Councillor Kevin Clarke asked the following question of the Leader of the Council:

 

Since 2015, the Council has spent an eye-wateringly excessive £1,652,016.42 on an unnecessary payment to councillors entitled ‘the Special Responsibility Allowance’.  At a time when the answer to every question put to the Council bemoans budget cuts, is it not time that the Council invests this money back into the community through Area Committees, as opposed to further lining the pockets of councillors?

 

Councillor David Mellen replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor.  Can I thank Councillor Clarke for his question.  Since 2015, the period he has talked about, we have had four more years of a Conservative-led Government, committed to austerity and restricting local spending whilst hitting poor communities and big northern and midlands cities hardest. This means cuts to funding for services that we all rely on including the police, NHS, schools and benefits cuts to the most vulnerable across the City.  Lord Mayor, I make no apology for highlighting the fact that Nottingham has lost £100million in government grants since 2013.  In total, we have had to make more than £268million savings in that time.  As councillors we need to speak up for our City and the challenges our citizens face on a daily basis.  If we don’t speak up for the people for Nottingham, no one will.  Lord Mayor, these difficult times have led to challenges in delivering on our ambitious commitments to the City.  However we never use that as an excuse.  That is why, over the last four years, we have been able to deliver in full on 178 out of the 202 commitments we made in our last manifesto.  Since 2015 members on this side of the Chamber have completed 20,000 individual pieces of casework; we have ensured that almost 90% of children are taught in good or outstanding schools; 2293 homes have been built so that Nottingham people can afford to rent or buy with more underway to meet the target; anti-social behaviour is down by 18% and we continue to work with the police to cut crime which has actually risen over that period mainly due to cuts to the police; Robin Hood Energy has been set up with more than 135,000 customers benefiting from cheaper energy with extra discounts available for Nottingham residents; and a job, training place or further education place has been provided for every 18-24 year old in the City. 

 

You might say, why am I saying all that?  Well because, Lord Mayor, Labour councillors care passionately about Nottingham.  We hold political office because we want to make the communities we live in better places.  We live in Nottingham, we use the services, we come from the community and we want to make sure the Council delivers the best for the people of Nottingham.  Being a councillor in Nottingham is not something to be treated lightly.  It would be difficult to take on extra responsibilities alongside a full time job and, for some of us, being a councillor and fulfilling our responsibilities here and in our wards is a full time role.  Taking on responsibilities requires time, commitment and can’t be half-hearted.  The citizens of Nottingham deserve that to be the case.  Being a councillor with additional responsibility cannot be left to those who have an additional source of income or those with a partner who can financially support them.  It should be open to everyone and chosen on merit not on favourable financial circumstances. 

 

Of course, what would not be appropriate would be for us, as councillors, to set the level of allowances, but that does not happen.  The level of Special Responsibility Allowance is set by an Independent Remuneration Panel who rightly consider the additional time and responsibility these roles bring with them.  It is right that members who work to deliver the ambitious targets for the City or commit considerable time or effort in doing so receive an appropriate allowance.  Because this is not just a pastime or a hobby for our members.  We are passionate about delivering on the promises we have made and we think that committing our time to these ambitious targets is something worth doing.  Of course, if a member has another source of income and chooses not to receive an allowance that is their choice.  At a time when nationally over the last five years we have seen politicians make promises to win elections and then break them when in office.  I am confident that our record of delivering on our promises and then letting the Council publish its own assessment of how we have done gives confidence to voters that when we pledge to do something as Labour politicians we will do it. 

 

Notts County Football Club

 

Councillor Kevin Clarke asked the following question of the Leader of the Council:

 

Given the troubled situation at Notts County, can the Council assure fans of the club, who are at this time increasingly anxious regarding the Club’s future, that they will approach talks with interested parties, as well as the future purchaser, with the best interests of the 157 year old Club at the forefront of their minds?

 

Councillor David Mellen replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor.  Thank you to Councillor Clarke for his question and welcome to his first Council meeting.  The situation at Notts County is an issue of great concern to the City Council, a large number of people in the City and beyond.  We understand the footballing and financial challenges that the Club faces.  However, the Club has a long and proud history in Nottingham and it would be a travesty if this were put at risk.  Our interests are in ensuring that Notts County continues to make a major contribution to life in the City and I can absolutely assure you that any discussions we hold on this subject are with this in mind.  It is worth noting that while the City Council holds the freehold of Notts County’s Meadow Lane Ground the leasehold is held by the Hayden Green Foundation.  Over many years they have operated in the best interests of the Club and the wider community and I am sure that they will continue to do so. 

 

Relationships and Sex Education

 

Councillor Nick Raine asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Early Years, Education and Employment:

 

Does the Portfolio Holder for Early Years, Education and Employment agree that our Council should support the teaching of inclusive Relationships and Sex Education which fosters respect, celebrates difference and supports the rights of LGBT+ people to be positively represented and supported in all our schools?

 

Councillor Neghat Nawaz Khan replied as follows:

 

Can I thank Councillor Nick Raine for his question.  As I said earlier, on 25 June a public statement was signed by 54 councillors that confirmed, across the entire political spectrum, Nottingham’s commitment to being a diverse City that celebrates equality, inclusivity and respect.  The statement makes clear that good relationship and sex education can equip young people with facts they can trust helping to keep them safe and preventing them from turning to playground gossip or dubious information online.

 

Relationships and sex education in schools is nothing new.  For many years schools have had a legal duty to deliver relationships and sex education lessons.  Teachers are experienced in managing relationships and sex education lessons sensitively in an age-appropriate way and they make sure the right conversations are happening at the right stage in children’s lives.  It is important that children and young people are given the opportunity to explore a range of family and relationship types in a way that is supportive, inclusive and affirms children’s different experiences of family life.  In modern Britain families come in many different shapes and sizes including same sex parents, single parents, fostering and adoptive parents.  Good relationships and sex education teaching and an inclusive school environment should meet the needs of all pupils regardless of their gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, race and faith.  The Council, through the Education Directorate, Public Health and Community Cohesion Officers has worked with headteachers, governors, teaching staff and parents to support the provision of excellent relationships and sex education, inclusive relationships and sex education resources and curriculum support.  Our schools and academies have demonstrated a clear commitment to ensuring that children and young people who have a diverse family relationship or who identify as LGBT+ are affirmed and supported in their schools. The Council has an active dialogue with representatives of multi-faith groups to ensure that our support and approach to equality, diversity and inclusion is respectful of faith perspectives but operates within the legal framework that underpins the rights of LGBT communities.  Recent tensions have clearly demonstrated a lack of understanding amongst communities about the issue of relationships and sex education.  Over the summer period I will be talking to our communities about their concerns, myth-busting and ensuring that people have the right information to make an informed decision.  I will welcome continued councillor support on this. 

 

Nottingham College

 

Councillor Jay Hayes asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder of the Leader of the Council:

 

Is the Leader aware of the ongoing dispute at Nottingham College where staff have been asked to sign new contracts which worsen their pay and conditions?  Will he join me in calling for the College to seek an immediate negotiated resolution to this dispute which is in the best interests of staff, students and further education in the City?

 

Councillor David Mellen replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor.  Can I thank Councillor Hayes for his question.  We are aware that over the last 12 months Nottingham College has been in consultation with trade unions and its workforce.  As the College is run as an independent organisation, we have limited influence and we cannot direct the College to take a particular course of action.  However, Nottingham College is a vital partner.  I recently met with the College leadership to discuss the ongoing dispute with their employees and urged them to resolve this dispute as soon as possible. 

 

Over the last 10 years, colleges have had to deal with an average funding cut of 30% whilst costs, including those of pensions, have risen dramatically.  The level of cuts is something that we as Nottingham City Council understand very well as do the police force, our health services and, more recently, our schools which have started to receive real term cuts.  So whilst the contenders for the Conservative Party leadership seek to outdo each other as to who can offer the biggest tax cuts, public services and those that they serve in Nottingham are suffering because of the Government’s woeful underfunding of public services here. 

 

I understand that the overarching objective of the College is to achieve agreement on a more flexible, modern employment contract, which ensures all roles are graded and paid in an objective and fair way and at the same time delivers a modern College which is able to meet the skills and demands of local people.  Alongside these aims we would urge the College to value their staff, and do everything they can to retain them, many of whom have served this City for many years in our further education colleges.  Further Education teachers are not well-paid compared with school teachers, yet preparing our young people for the jobs market is a vital responsibility and we need the very best skilled teachers to carry out this essential task.  The job of the trade unions is to protect staff and fight for their interests, and their role in the future of our College is also very important.  We support their right to take industrial action when they feel their staff pay and conditions aren’t being protected as they feel is happening now. 

 

At a time when the new College Hub building is progressing at Broadmarsh East on a daily basis we need this new opportunity and learning environment to be capturing the excitement of staff and students alike.  We need this dispute to be brought to a conclusion as soon as possible.  In addition to my meeting with the College leadership some weeks ago, last week I wrote to the College to urge them to keep the negotiations open and work hard with the trade unions to find a resolution which is acceptable to staff, students and the further education of our City. 

 

 

Early years childcare

 

Councillor Carole McCulloch asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Children and Young People:

 

Could the Portfolio Holder for Children and Young People explain how, at a time when nursery costs are becoming unaffordable for middle and low earning households, many nurseries themselves are struggling to survive: in other words why both the families and nursery providers are being failed by the current system?

 

Councillor Cheryl Barnard replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor and thank you Councillor McCulloch for raising this important issue.  The Government scheme funds nursery hours for children and pays nurseries directly for those hours.  The scheme covers 15 hours a week for 38 weeks.  This is 570 hours per year, with parents being able to take less hours per week to cover more weeks.  For working parents who meet the criteria the 15 hours is increased to 30 hours per week however this again only covers 38 weeks of the year and the rate paid to nurseries is less than £5 per hour and does not cover their costs.  This results in parents of children being asked to pay for extras like meals, snacks, drinks and trips and parents having to pay for additional hours to cover the weeks not covered by the schemes and any hours in excess of 30 hours a week to cover them while they are working. 

 

Nurseries are struggling to cover their costs and having to close.  I spoke to two local nursery providers who are struggling.  The Toy Library in Bulwell, a not for profit organisation, provides a nursery in Snapewood because of high levels of deprivation in that area.  They are at risk of closing this nursery as the £4.88 per hour funding they receive for under 2s does not cover their costs.  They tell me that it is difficult providing a quality service with current funding and that many nurseries in the private sector survive by using apprentices and cutting staff to child ratios.  I also spoke to the manager of Tick Tock nursery in Broxtowe who confirmed that Government funding doesn’t cover the service if you want to provide qualified staff and that nurseries are being forced to employ unqualified school leavers as apprentices meaning that the outcomes for children are not as good.  Tick Tock is also having to charge £2 per day to cover the five meals and snacks provided and say that this is much lower than that charged by other nurseries.  Both nurseries have told me that recruitment and retention of staff is difficult due to the low rates of pay that they can offer.  In the first year of the increase to 30 hours funded places the National Day Nurseries Association found that 123 nurseries closed compared to 73 closures the previous year.  This is an increase of 66%.  There has also been a significant decrease in the number of childminders with the loss of 1000 childminders in the last 4 months of 2018 as they too have been affected by the rate paid for places. 

 

Early intervention is crucial to improving the life chances of children and that is why Nottingham City Council is proud to have invested £45million in the Small Steps Big Changes programme and why the Council is committed to ensuring that atleast 75% of eligible two year olds access free nursery provision.  Nottingham City Council has a proud record of investing in early years by delivering 150,000 free books to more than 5000 children as part of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library; 560 ‘stay and play’ sessions in communities across Nottingham; investing £45million in early intervention in St Anns, Arboretum, Bulwell and Aspley through the Small Steps Big Changes programme; and we have retained all our 18 children’s centres across the City despite enormous financial pressure.  The independent research agency Ceeda published research in June 2019 and they found that 17% of childcare providers in the most deprived areas of England anticipate closure in the next year.  Only 8% in the most affluent areas face such as prospect.  The current Government scheme is inadequate.  What is needed is a properly funded service that covers the whole year and is paid at a realistic hourly rate.  This is the situation facing parents and nurseries in our area. We need to support them and challenge the Government to provide realistic funding. 

 

World War 1 Memorial

 

Councillor Zafran Khan asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and IT:

 

Does the Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and IT share my pride about the completion of the new WW1 Memorial at Victoria Embankment?

 

Councillor Dave Trimble replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor and can I thank Councillor Zafran Khan for his question.  I do indeed share your pride in the completion of this very moving memorial.  I cannot though take the credit for it.  I was on my way to a Nottingham Labour canvassing session in the summer of 2017 with Jon Collins, ex-leader of the Council, and he told me of his idea of a new memorial with the names of everyone on it that gave their lives in the First World War.  A feasibility study was then explored and a number of possibilities for how this could be done.  In terms of displaying the names, different options were considered from digital projections to online rolls of honour and even a feasibility study of adding the names to the existing memorial.  After a visit I paid to the National Arboretum Memorial the decision was made to commission a new memorial.  The clear advice given by the Director of the Arboretum and military organisations was to definitely not put any names on it.  When I told him of this, Jon Collins said that we already have a memorial without any names on it, adding names was the point of this and therefore that was what we were going to do.  Our confidence regarding the names was based on the knowledge of the Trent to Trenches project that started in 2013 that was both a City and County Council project to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.  A team of volunteer researchers worked on the production of the roll of honour for Trent to Trenches.  The Parks Department started putting together a partnership with the County Council and other interested parties.  As it was not possible to distinguish if people were from within the City boundary or outside the City boundary, in Arnold or Netherfield for example, as the records were not always consistent we decided to try and do a county-wide memorial. 

 

The memorial features the names of nearly 14,000 people from the City and the County who lost their lives in the 1914-18 War including civilian casualties. It was to be a memorial for all.  It includes two people killed in the zeppelin air raid on the City in September 1916.  The 134 civilians killed included many women at the Chilwell munitions factory explosion of July 2018.  It also lists those that were shot at dawn.  Space has been left for any new names that we may become aware of in the future.  An international design competition was launched and a Nottingham based company Letts Wheeler Architects won that contract.  The construction was carried out by East Midlands businesses and it was project managed by our very own staff.  Co-funding came from the City and County Councils with contributions from all 7 district councils in the county.  The project also received donations from a number of associations, parish councils, community groups and local businesses as well as public subscriptions and collections at events and even some City Councillors’ own ward budgets.  There was also an online giving platform hosted by the Nottingham Open Spaces Forum.  So a big thank you to all of those. 

 

There was a very moving official opening ceremony held a week ago which the Leader of the Council spoke at.  I live very close to it and go past it almost on a daily basis and it is very clear to see that the memorial is proving to be very popular with the public.  The memorial is also thought to be the first of its kind in the country with all the names in one place in such as big city and county.  It is one that we should all be proud of.  So can I say a huge thank you to City Council Team who delivered it; and to the Trent to Trenches Team for their fantastic research.  I would like to say a thank you to ex-councillor Brian Grocock, who is in the public gallery today, both for his unstinting services as the Council’s Armed Forces Champion for very many years and for his dedication and commitment to this memorial too.  Also thanks to Jon Collins who not only though of the idea in the first instance but was also key to delivering it, even though I know he would really dislike being singled out.

 

Homelessness Prevention Strategy

 

Councillor Andrew Rule asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Housing, Planning and Heritage:

 

The Portfolio Holder will be aware that part of the City Council’s Homelessness Prevention Strategy includes provision for rough sleepers being rehoused in void Nottingham City Homes properties.  Can she outline what assessments are carried out to ensure that the appropriate support networks are in place to assist these individuals with the transition process from sleeping rough on the street to being rehoused?

 

Councillor Linda Woodings replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor, and thank you Councillor Rule for your question.  As you are no doubt aware the City’s Homelessness Prevention Strategy has tackling rough sleeping as one of its key objectives.  It recognises that the solution to the problem is often to help individuals into stable accommodation and deliver intensive support in order to sustain the tenancy, support greater independence and stop the cycle of homelessness and reoccurrence of complex problems which many rough sleepers experience.  The Council, working in partnership with Nottingham City Homes and other local housing providers, seeks to halve the number of rough sleepers in the City by November 2019 to 17, and that would be down from 34 in 2018. Via our ‘no first night out’ approach we want to ensure that no one needs to sleep rough in Nottingham.  Recently the Council bid successfully for funding via the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Rough Sleeper Initiative and funding was secured to assist with the move on of rough sleepers moving out of supported accommodation and into the community.  Support is provided by our strategic partner Framework.  In addition, there are two ‘housing first’ schemes at a very early stage within the City. ‘Housing first’ is a scheme that has been incredibly successful in countries like Canada, America and Finland.  It is a very Ronseal kind of project.  You sort out the housing first, and once somebody is in a home you deliver the wrap around support to help them come back into the community.  Our first ‘housing first’ scheme is delivered by Opportunity Nottingham and it delivers intensive support to rough sleepers being helped into accommodation.  It is funded by the Big Lottery.  We also have a ‘housing first’ project being led by Framework.  In all cases prior to individuals being housed, a four-week plan is agreed with that person who must be willing to participate and both parties must agree that they are ready to move on.  Support packages are bespoke to the individual’s needs, however following the successful transition to permanent housing support will include home visits to ensure transition to permanent housing; health and wellbeing assessments prior to and during the tenancy, and they are mental and physical health and wellbeing assessments; applying for Universal Credit and budgetary support assistance; tenancy-ready support such as money management, simple things like cooking skills, how to do your washing and get your washing out; relationship support and that’s relationship support with your landlord, your neighbours and your friends;  and assistance and advocacy.  In addition to the ‘housing first’ schemes, our emergency night shelter staff also support rough sleepers.  They have helped 153 people find secure homes as well as setting up support plans, referring people to other agencies and supporting people after they have been housed as well.  In order to support our rough sleeper schemes Nottingham City Homes is creating a co-ordinator post and that is someone who will work alongside the support workers to provide additional assurance of support across the tenancies being created in this way. 

 

Robin Hood Energy

 

Councillor Andrew Rule asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Finance, Growth and the City Centre:

 

Following the additional financial support provided to Robin Hood Energy at the end of last year, can the Portfolio Holder provide an update on whether he believes any additional support will be required going forward?

 

Councillor Sam Webster replied as follows:

 

The Council approves investments based on a business case.  At this current time no further investment has been considered or approved.  If the Council makes a decision to invest further in Robin Hood Energy I can assure Councillor Rule that he will be one of the first to know.

 

Solar panels

 

Councillor Andrew Rule asked the following question of the Portfolio Holder for Housing, Planning and Heritage:

 

The Portfolio Holder will be aware earlier in the year that the City Council had to spend over £104,000 replacing inverters on solar panels installed on residential properties owned by the Council, between 2016 and 2018, after it transpired no income was being generated from the panels.  Whilst I appreciate she was not Portfolio Holder at the time the initial work was undertaken; can she nevertheless tell the Chamber what processes have been put in place to ensure that should similar issues arise in the future they don’t go unnoticed for so long?

 

Councillor Linda Woodings replied as follows:

 

Thank you Lord Mayor, and thank you Councillor Rule for your question.  The scheme referenced in your question was delivered in 2012/13 by Nottingham City Homes and prior to the Energy Services Division that we now have in place.  A complete review of all of our energy assets was delivered in 2017 by the new Solar Projects Team within Energy Services and that review has ensured all assets are operating at optimum performance across both the domestic and commercial solar photo voltaic assets that we own and operate.  In addition, we have performance monitoring software in place now to pick up under-performance within 24 hours.  Despite this problem, Nottingham City Council has been one of the most prolific adopters of solar power in the country.  We have installed panels on public buildings, including our libraries, our leisure centres, schools and offices all of which generated significant generation patterns this year.  As well as generating clean electricity for our buildings, there are financial benefits of self-generation which help plug our budget gap and protect frontline services to the tune of some £300,000 per year.  In December 2018 the Council alone topped 1million kilo watt hours from our solar panel schemes and, as you have referenced in your question, we have also subsidised the installation of solar panels on 4,500 domestic properties.  That means that those households have benefitted from the free and green electricity generated.  The installation costs are more than covered because of the feed-in tariffs and extra income is generated for the Council because of that.