Agenda and minutes

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

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.

That this Council:-

(a)       notes that on 11 November 2018 it will be one hundred years since the First World War ended;

(b)       notes that an estimated nine million combatants and seven million civilians died as a direct result of the war, while it is also considered a contributory factor in a number of genocides and the 1918 influenza epidemic, which caused between 50 and 100 million deaths worldwide;

(c)        notes with great loss the senselessness of war, which kills people and animals indiscriminately, and believes that everything should be done to ensure that mankind’s past mistakes are not repeated;

(d)       notes with great sadness that as well as the many millions killed during the First World War throughout the world, it is estimated that upwards of 50,000 men went from Sheffield to the various ‘Fronts’ during this period, many of whom never returned home;

(e)       notes that the Sheffield City Battalion comprised of men who had enlisted together in local recruiting drives, with the promise that they would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbours and colleagues ("Pals"), rather than being arbitrarily allocated to battalions;

(f)        further notes that the Sheffield Pals trained for two years before being sent to what became known as the Battle of the Somme and that many of the Sheffield Pals were killed in the very first day of fighting, many in just the first 10 minutes, and that by the end of the four-month long battle, 90% of the Sheffield Pals were gone;

(g)       notes that a permanent overseas memorial to the Sheffield Pals, and all of the 31^st Division, stands on the Somme Battlefields and that the Sheffield Memorial Park, as it is named, is an important and fitting tribute to all of those from Sheffield who lost their life there;

(h)       notes that, as many of the Sheffield Pals signed themselves up to the War inside Sheffield’s Town Hall, it would, therefore, be fitting to honour them, and the ultimate sacrifice they paid, with a specific memorial at the Town Hall and this Administration is looking into how this can best be achieved;

(i)         notes the remembrance events in the city to commemorate one hundred years since the First World War ended including:-

(i)         Weston Park being designated as a Fields in Trust Centenary Field, and to feature in the Centenary Fields Legacy Programme, to remember those who served and lost their lives during conflict; the commemoration event is a “Thank You” to those who fought and fell in the First World War, including hundreds of Sheffield Pals;

(ii)        the planting of one hundred memorial trees throughout the city’s parks; and

(iii)       school programmes throughout Sheffield acknowledging the 100 year anniversary;

(j)         places on record our thanks to all of those who took part in in the cycle ride to the Somme earlier this year to raise funds for the remembrance works now being implemented in our parks and open spaces; and

(k)  ...  view the full agenda text for item 5.

That this Council:-

(a)       believes that the Sheffield Bus Partnership has failed on its own terms, noting the loss of patronage of approximately 10% (5 million passenger journeys per year) since 2012 and a loss of capacity since 2015;

(b)       notes the commitments of the Sheffield City Region Mayor in his 2017 manifesto to:-

(i)         use regulatory powers, and eventually franchising, to improve bus services; and

(ii)        consult on re-regulating bus services;

(c)        notes that control of the bus service is one of the very few actual powers available to South Yorkshire's regional mayor;

(d)       notes that the regional mayor has been in post for 6 months but believes the public has seen no progress or action towards bus regulation;

(e)       believes a comprehensive, efficient, regular and low-carbon bus service is vital to a successful and sustainable city; and

(f)        calls on the regional mayor to begin moves towards greater public control of Sheffield's bus network, including an immediate review of current services and public consultation on future provision.

To receive a presentation from the Head of Neighbourhood Intervention and Tenant Support (Sheffield City Council) and Detective Superintendent Una Jennings (South Yorkshire Police), to be followed by an opportunity for Members of the Council to ask questions.

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)

That this Council:-

(a)       believes that Universal Credit’s callous and chaotic roll-out will push families into poverty in Sheffield, which is unacceptable, and that the roll-out of Universal Credit must be stopped immediately;

(b)       notes that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the Rt. Hon. Esther McVey MP, has conceded that some of the poorest families will be £200 a week worse off and that, when asked in Parliament, the Minister could not guarantee that no one in Sheffield will be worse off;

(c)        believes that the Government are using Universal Credit as a vehicle for cuts - leaving people in debt, rent arrears or forced to turn to food banks to survive – and that claimants are still experiencing delays to initial payments, with the Department for Work and Pensions estimating in June that 40% of claimants were still experiencing financial difficulties even 9 months in to their claim;

(d)       notes research from the Trussell Trust which shows moving on to Universal Credit from existing benefits is the fastest growing cause of referrals to food banks and that, on average, food bank demand in areas where Universal Credit has been in place for at least 12 months increased by 52%, compared with 13% in areas where the new benefit had been in place for three months or less;

(e)       notes that a wide range of organisations, including Citizens Advice, the Child Poverty Action Group and over 80 disability organisations, have warned that the Government’s plans still risk thousands of people losing support either temporarily or falling out of the system altogether;

(f)        confirms that £17 billion of social security cuts have already taken place since 2010, much of which took place under the coalition government, such as the introduction of the Bedroom Tax and cuts to council tax support, which have already had a damaging impact;

(g)       recalls the 2014 report commissioned by the Council and published by Sheffield Hallam University, about the impact of welfare reform on Sheffield under the coalition government, which highlighted that:-

(i)         some local communities were hit by welfare reform five times harder than others;

(ii)        just under half of the financial loss from welfare reform fell on working households;

(iii)       couples with children lost an average of nearly £1,700 a year;

(iv)       lone parents lost over £2,000 a year; and

(v)        men and women with health problems or disabilities were significantly disadvantaged;

(h)       believes Universal Credit is not just a vehicle for cuts, its design is also deeply flawed; and

(i)         believes Universal Credit isn’t working and cannot continue in its current form and that the roll-out in Sheffield should be stopped and a genuinely comprehensive system in which no one is worse off should be introduced.

That this Council:-

(a)       notes that the Sheffield Bus Partnership is a voluntary agreement between South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), Sheffield City Council and the bus operators First South Yorkshire, Stagecoach Sheffield, TM Travel and Sheffield Community Transport;

(b)       notes it aims to provide a better coordinated network of buses and trams in Sheffield, making it easier to travel around the city;

(c)        notes that in the presentation to the Economic and Environmental Wellbeing Scrutiny and Policy Development Committee in October 2018, SYPTE’s future steps do not include a commitment to increase passenger numbers;

(d)       notes the Partnership has failed in its central purpose to grow bus passenger numbers;

(e)       believes that the extent of cuts to concessionary travel and service support have proved to be un-necessary;

(f)        notes the recent Sheffield Bus Partnership report that stated that passenger numbers were down due to changes in employment patterns, reduced need to travel and an increase in online shopping;

(g)       believes that this is not the case and that passenger numbers are down due to:-

(i)         service cuts and the lack of services available to the general public;

(ii)        recent extortionate fare increases, which are forcing people to use their cars over public transport as a cheaper and more accessible option; and

(iii)       a lack of public confidence in the reliability of the bus service, which is also contributing to decreasing passenger numbers; noting that punctuality of bus services has reduced, down to 84% from 87% over the past three years;

(h)       is concerned that increased car use will add to air pollution in the city centre if fewer people are using more energy efficient bus services;

(i)         is also concerned that cuts to bus services are preventing people from getting to work, school, run errands and attend medical appointments;

(j)         is dismayed that elderly residents in Wincobank are being forced to climb up and down one of Sheffield’s steepest streets to get to their nearest bus stop after their usual accessible service was cut;

(k)        notes that under the Bus Services Act 2017, automatic access to bus franchising powers is given to the Sheffield City Region Mayor, as a directly elected mayor of a combined authority, and could be used to improve bus services; and

(l)         resolves to:-

(i)         support the introduction of a statutory bus quality contract in Sheffield;

(ii)        at the earliest practicable time, give notice to terminate Sheffield City Council’s membership of the Sheffield Bus Partnership; and

(iii)       send copies of this motion to all the other parties to the Bus Partnership Agreement.

Report of the Chief Executive.

To receive the record of the proceedings of the meeting of the Council held on 3rd October 2018, and to approve the accuracy thereof.

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.