Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Town Hall, Pinstone Street, Sheffield, S1 2HH

Contact: Paul Robinson, Democratic Services  Email: paul.robinson@sheffield.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

2.

Declarations of Interest pdf icon PDF 88 KB

Members to declare any interests they have in the business to be considered at the meeting.

Minutes:

3.

Suspension of Council Procedure Rules pdf icon PDF 132 KB

To approve, for the duration of this meeting, certain revisions to the Council Procedure Rules, as set out in the schedule included with this agenda, in order to apply, for this meeting, the changes to the operation of the full Council meeting that were used at the September, October and November meetings as part of a pilot exercise being overseen by the Review of Full Council Meetings Member Working Group.

Minutes:

4.

Public Questions and Petitions and Other Communications

To receive any questions or petitions from the public, or communications submitted by the Lord Mayor or the Chief Executive and to pass such resolutions thereon as the Council Procedure Rules permit and as may be deemed expedient.

Minutes:

5.

Members' Questions pdf icon PDF 608 KB

5.1       Questions relating to urgent business – Council Procedure Rule 16.6(ii).

 

5.2       Supplementary questions on written questions submitted at this meeting   – Council Procedure Rule 16.4.

 

5.3       Questions on the discharge of the functions of the South Yorkshire Joint Authorities for Fire and Rescue and Pensions – Section 41 of the Local Government Act 1985 – Council Procedure Rule 16.6(i).

 

            (NB. Minutes of recent meetings of the two South Yorkshire Joint Authorities have been made available to all Members of the Council via the following link -

            http://democracy.sheffield.gov.uk/ecCatDisplay.aspx?sch=doc&cat=13165&path=0)

 

Minutes:

6.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Access to Urgent Primary Care" - Given By Councillor Steve Ayris and To Be Seconded By Councillor Shaffaq Mohammed

That this Council:-

 

(a)       is committed to good access to our local NHS services for all our citizens;

 

(b)       notes the progress update report to the Healthier Communities and Adult Social Care Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee on 15th November 2017, “Reviewing Urgent Primary Care across Sheffield”;

 

(c)        is concerned that the proposals involve the closure of the Walk-In Centre at Broad Street and the Minor Injuries Unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital;

 

(d)       also notes:-

 

(i)         that the majority of consultation respondents in the report feel that the proposed changes will not make it simpler to know where to go if they need urgent care (treatment for minor injuries or illnesses within 24 hours); and

 

(ii)        public concerns about the possible impact on emergency services (A&E/Ambulances) and lack of availability for those living in large parts of the City;

 

(e)       therefore calls on the Clinical Commissioning Group to abandon any plans to close the Walk-In Centre at Broad Street or the Minor Injuries Unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital and revise their plans accordingly; and

 

(f)        will mount a campaign to prevent closure of these facilities, and in order to achieve this, calls upon the Leader of the Council to set up a group of Party Leaders on the Council to co-ordinate the Council’s opposition to the closure of the Walk-In Centre on Broad Lane and the Minor Injuries Unit at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital.

 

Minutes:

7.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Crisis in Children's Social Care" - Given By Councillor Andy Bainbridge and To Be Seconded By Councillor Jackie Drayton

That this Council:-

 

(a)       notes that the past seven years of austerity has hit some of the most vulnerable in our society the hardest and that in the last year alone, 646,120 children in England sought support after suffering from neglect or emotional abuse;

 

(b)       further notes that since 2010 the number of child protection investigations nationally have increased by 108% to 185,450 cases a year - with little to suggest that this trend is likely to change without major intervention from central government;

 

(c)        believes that early intervention is crucial but with reducing funds and an increasing number of children requiring emergency support, many councils have been forced to cut back on preventative services;

 

(d)       notes the recent warnings by three leading children’s charities (Children’s Society, Action for Children and the National Children’s Bureau) that early intervention services had been hit hardest by government cuts since 2010, and the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition, with targeted funding for early intervention having fallen by 55%;

 

(e)       further notes that by the end of the decade it is set to fall another 29% in real terms (or £808 million) with the most-deprived councils having to cut funding six times more than the least-deprived;

 

(f)        reaffirms this Administration’s commitment to protecting vulnerable children and that, even in the face of continuing funding cuts, the Administration believes in the importance of early preventive action for children and young adults;

 

(g)       acknowledges earlier commitments made by this Administration, most recently at October’s Full Council meeting, to provide additional support for early years and those affected by adverse childhood experiences (ACEs);

 

(h)       notes that rather than reduce children’s services, this Administration has reconfigured centres to expand from 0-5 years to provide a range of children’s services to family centres for 0-19 years (and to 25 for those with learning difficulties);

 

(i)         further notes that this Administration has also brought children centres closer to people with outreach services now running from a variety of services such as schools and GP surgeries  - covering all of the city;

 

(j)         believes that the Liberal Democrats opportunistically opposed the newly configured children’s services, and erroneously and repeatedly stated that children centres, such as Angram Bank, would be closing, when in reality no such closures were ever proposed or have subsequently taken place;

 

(k)        believes that this Administration will do everything it can to protect the city’s children, but that without additional funding from central government, it is becoming increasingly difficult;

 

(l)         notes the results of a recent survey by Action for Children which found that, of 500 Conservative Councillors surveyed, over 50% believed that central government funding cuts have made it harder for their council to support services for children and young people, and further notes that the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned that the number of children in care was at a “tipping point” with record high numbers continuing to rise;

 

(m)      notes, with shock and anger, that the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s recent  ...  view the full agenda text for item 7.

Minutes:

8.

Notice of Motion Regarding "National Budget" - Given By Councillor Olivia Blake and To Be Seconded By Councillor Abtisam Mohamed

That this Council:-

 

(a)       believes that this year’s Budget was further evidence that we have an out-of-touch Government with no idea of the reality of people’s lives and no plan to improve them;

 

(b)       notes that real wages are lower than they were in 2010 and the Budget confirmed a further hit to living standards with disposable income set to fall in 2017, but despite these dire predictions, the Chancellor of the Exchequer made no mention of Local Government funding;

 

(c)        further notes that national economic growth is the lowest it has been since the Conservatives came to office and the recent Budget confirms that failure, with growth revised down in every year of the forecast, and the National Living Wage revised down to £8.56 per hour;

 

(d)       further notes that productivity has been revised down every year, while business investment has been revised down next year and each following year, and that rather than pause the rollout of Universal Credit, the Chancellor offered help which is only a fraction of the £3 billion a year cuts made to the scheme;

 

(e)       supports the Labour Party’s alternative budget which would scrap the public sector pay cap, pause and fix the Universal Credit roll-out, and introduce a real living wage of at least £10 an hour by 2020; Labour would bring forward investment in infrastructure across every region and nation to create high-wage, high-productivity jobs, and start a large-scale housebuilding programme, backed up with controls on rents;

 

(f)        believes that the small-scale tinkering with councils’ borrowing for housing falls far short of what is needed – as recent changes will provide only an average of £293m a year over three years; further believes this national picture is not good enough and notes that in Sheffield we are ready to build more homes for the city, if only the Government would lift the borrowing cap;

 

(g)       believes that all Government ministers since 2010 should be ashamed by the number of people homeless or sleeping rough in this country, with the number of people sleeping on UK streets having more than doubled since 2010, a remarkable failing of recent Governments given that, under Labour, rough sleeping fell by three-quarters;

 

(h)       notes that the budget also did nothing for the country’s 4.5 million private renting households; whereas a Labour Government would control rents, make three-year tenancies the new norm, and introduce new minimum standards;

 

(i)         believes that the Chancellor has not done nearly enough to end the current misery caused by the rollout of Universal Credit as the Government are still offering a desperate choice to those moving on to Universal Credit - wait 5 weeks to receive support or take a Government loan, going further into debt to make ends meet;

 

(j)         believes that the social security system should seek to prevent people from getting into debt, not encourage it, and support is given to the Labour Party’s calls for the Chancellor to ensure that two week payments are rolled out  ...  view the full agenda text for item 8.

Minutes:

9.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Public Accountability of Members and Officers" - Given By Councillor Robert Murphy and To Be Seconded By Councillor Douglas Johnson

That this Council:-

(a)       notes the recent application to the High Court by Sheffield City Council to commit Cllr Alison Teal for contempt;

(b)       notes that the case was dismissed by the Court against Cllr Teal after the Judge agreed with Cllr Teal’s view of the facts and law;

(c)       is seriously concerned that a member of the opposition on this City Council was selected from a significantly larger group of protestors for the case;

(d)       believes that the nationwide bad publicity has brought severe reputational damage to the City Council and the City of Sheffield;

(e)       is seriously concerned that despite the Judge's findings, there has been no public apology, statement or investigation by the Administration;

(f)        calls for an independent enquiry into the conduct of members of the Administration and Council officers that led to this case being brought, the enquiry team being agreed by all groups represented on Sheffield City Council, and the findings made public; and

(g)       will ensure that the enquiry team will have access to all information requested.

 

Minutes:

10.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Play Streets" - Given By Councillor Alison Teal and To Be Seconded By the Deputy Lord Mayor (Councillor Magid Magid)

That this Council:-

 

(a)       notes the importance of active play for the health and wellbeing of young people, and the success of organisations like Bristol-based CiC Playing Out in promoting the temporary use of residential roads for ‘playing out sessions’ to encourage active play;

 

(b)       further notes that Playing Out has found that the level of dangerous nitrogen oxide air pollution on the roadside can be significantly decreased during a play street session, providing an additional health benefit;

 

(c)        welcomes the fact that a small number of playing out sessions have already been held in Sheffield, including in May 2017 on Wake Road, but believes that Sheffield City Council can do more to support and promote this positive initiative;

 

(d)       believes that playing out sessions will be most successful if they are resident-led, but that Sheffield City Council has an important role to play in supporting residents to plan and run these sessions on their own streets; and

 

(e)       therefore calls upon the Administration to instruct officers to:-

 

(i)         develop a policy framework to enable a pilot to take place in Sheffield in the summer of 2018, including designing a quick and simple application process for residents wishing to facilitate playing out sessions on their street, and removing barriers to them doing so;

 

(ii)        make contact with relevant officers where similar schemes are currently operating successfully, such as Leeds, Hackney, and Bristol, to learn about the key steps to successfully implementing the policy, and to research the concept on the Playing Out website; and

 

(iii)       present proposals to Cabinet within two months for approval, with a view to advertising the new scheme in time for communities to come forward to be part of the pilot during the school summer holidays 2018.

 

Minutes:

11.

Minutes Of Previous Council Meetings pdf icon PDF 99 KB

To receive the records of the proceedings of the extraordinary meeting and ordinary meeting of the Council held on 1st November 2017 and to approve the accuracy thereof.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

12.

Representation, Delegated Authority and Related Issues

To consider any changes to the memberships and arrangements for meetings of Committees etc., delegated authority, and the appointment of representatives to serve on other bodies.

Minutes:

13.

Changes to the Constitution pdf icon PDF 185 KB

Report of the Chief Executive outlining proposed changes to the Council’s Constitution.

Additional documents:

Minutes: