Agenda and minutes

Venue: To be held as an online video conference. To access the meeting, click on the 'View the Webcast' link below.

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

Media

Items
No. Item

1.

Declarations of Interest pdf icon PDF 129 KB

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

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2.

Apologies for Absence

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3.

Public Questions and Petitions and Other Communications pdf icon PDF 482 KB

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.

 

 

(NOTE: There is a time limit of one hour for the above item of business.  In accordance with the arrangements published on the Council’s website in relation to meetings of the Council held remotely, questions/petitions are required to be submitted in writing, to committee@sheffield.gov.uk, by 9.00 a.m. on Monday 29th March.)

 

 

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4.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Demanding An End To The National Cladding Scandal"

That this Council:-

 

(a)      notes it is now over three and half years since the tragic Grenfell Tower fire and yet the Government have failed to get to grips with the scandal of dangerous cladding;

 

(b)      notes that lack of proper action from government over covering the costs has affected Sheffield residents with many having bought their property in good faith, only to face both the immediate cost of having to fund ‘waking watches’, as well as not knowing whether they will one day be confronted by a financially crippling bill from their building owner for remedial works;

 

(c)      believes it would be distressing to see anyone held to ransom in this way at any time, but it is even more concerning given the current economic uncertainty and pandemic, and that whilst all of this hangs over them, owners in these tower blocks have little chance of selling their flats, and it is not hard to imagine the impact this must be having on the mental wellbeing of the individuals affected;

 

(d)      believes it is time for firm action from the Government rather than continued broken promises, to avoid a repeat of the Grenfell Tower tragedy;

 

(e)      believes that government are not providing the support needed to deal with all the safety problems faced in high-rise homes, including those that relate to non-ACM cladding – such as Sheffield buildings like Metis and Wicker Riverside - and that, furthermore, there is no real help for buildings with other safety issues or buildings under 18 metres in height;

 

(f)       believes that this is inexcusable, and that the Government must come forward with proposals for comprehensive remediation for safety issues and all buildings, at no cost to leaseholders;

 

(g)      notes that locally this Administration is fully supporting Sheffield City Council tenants in high-rises and, having checked out all blocks, no further cladding is to be removed, and that all blocks are regularly checked for fire safety protection;

 

(h)      further notes that, as part of the Housing Revenue Account, the Council will invest £500 million into council housing stock over the next five years, including investment in further health and safety measures such as fire safety improvements;

 

(i)       notes, however, that far more needs to be done for those in private blocks and notes that the Leader of the Council has confirmed the Council’s support for the campaign to ‘End Our Cladding Scandal’ which demands that Government leads a national effort to ensure safety in all tower blocks, with the prioritisation of those blocks most at risk;

 

(j)       confirms its backing for Sheffield Cladding Action Group and their calls on the Government to take these 10 steps to end the National Cladding Scandal:-

 

(i)       the Government must lead an urgent national effort to remove all dangerous cladding from buildings by June 2022;

 

(ii)       the Building Safety Fund must cover all buildings, regardless of height, and a range of internal and external fire safety defects, not just cladding;

 

(iii)      the Government  ...  view the full agenda text for item 4.

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5.

Members' Questions pdf icon PDF 4 MB

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)

 

 

 

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6.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Bus Services"

That this Council:-

 

(a)      notes the publication by the Department for Transport of “Bus Back Better - National Bus Strategy for England”;

 

(b)      believes that the City Region Mayor must exercise powers to bring bus services back under local control (franchising), at the earliest practicable date, and central government must continue to provide significant funding to revitalise local transport;

 

(c)      fears that once again the City Region Mayor has “missed the bus” regarding improving bus services in Sheffield and South Yorkshire, as we must, as an alternative, commit by 1st July 2021 to implementation of “Enhanced Partnership” arrangements;

 

(d)      supports Clive Betts MP’s call for the roll-out of Bus Franchising to be speeded up and fully endorses the consistent commitment, over very many years, of the major opposition party to introduce bus franchising in Sheffield;

 

(e)      believes that excellent public transport and people friendly neighbourhoods are key to reducing pollution, congestion, improving health, and contributing to zero carbon, and notes proposals, made within successive budget amendments proposed by the major opposition party, to devolve funding and powers to Community Assemblies which would have enabled them to introduce local highway schemes, which invariably aim to make neighbourhoods more accessible by walking and cycling to local services, and discourage very short trips by private car; and

 

(f)       regrets “eight wasted years” by the Administration, in bringing forward proposals for Local Area Committees, which this Council believes should be called Community Assemblies.

 

 

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7.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Sheffield City Council Declares A Biodiversity and Ecological Emergency"

That this Council:-

 

(a)      notes with alarm that:-

 

(i)       according to the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services (IPBES), species extinction is running at between 10 and 100 times faster than historical averages;

 

(ii)       the State of Nature 2019 UK report, published by a consortium of 70 nature organisations, finds that as little as 5% of land in the UK is being effectively looked after for nature, that 41% of species are in decline and 10% are threatened with extinction;

 

(iii)      the UK only has half its biodiversity remaining, and is in the bottom 10% of countries on this measure; and

 

(iv)      the RSPB reports that there are 40 million fewer birds in the UK than in 1970;

 

(b)      further notes that the biggest drivers of biodiversity decline nationally are climate change, habitat loss and intensive farming, and believes that, locally, mismanagement of moorland to the west of the city can be added;

 

(c)      believes that the health and well-being of the people of Sheffield depends crucially on maintaining a thriving and biodiverse natural environment;

 

(d)      therefore, declares a Biodiversity and Ecological emergency;

 

(e)      directs officers, in consultation with organisations such as Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust, Wildscapes CIC and ShefFood Partnership, to draw up plans to reverse declines in species and habitats in Sheffield, reporting back in July 2021, paying particular attention to the opportunities for:-

 

(i)       natural solutions rather than technical and engineering fixes and especially when considering flood management;

 

(ii)       change of use of grassed areas throughout the city to become areas of planting of native wildflowers, shrubs and trees, as well as being used to grow food, to bolster habitats for invertebrates and birds;

 

(iii)      the inclusion in the emerging Sheffield Plan of the vital importance of habitat integrity and wildlife corridors;

 

(iv)      the embedding in the Sheffield Plan of the use of green spaces for urban horticulture; and

 

(v)      training and apprenticeship opportunities in horticulture and ecological management;

 

(f)       resolves in the meantime to immediately stop using any practices and materials detrimental to wildlife, including glyphosate; and

 

(g)      commits to negotiating with private landowners to initiate restoration of peat land and utilising natural flood management techniques to greatly reduce Sheffield residents and businesses exposure to flooding.

 

 

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8.

Notice of Motion Regarding "Thanking The City's Workers and Demanding Pay Justice For Them"

That this Council:-

 

(a)      believes that keyworkers have kept the city’s essential services going, working alongside communities, mutual aid groups, voluntary services, faith groups, businesses and schools to provide support to those in need;

 

(b)      believes that thanks and gratitude should be given to all keyworkers, not just those at the NHS, but also the city’s teachers, police, bus drivers, postal workers, and shop workers – plus many more;

 

(c)      believes it is inexcusable that the Government have frozen public sector pay for at least a year, and that whilst they clapped for key workers on the steps of Downing Street the Government are now turning their backs on them at the first opportunity;

 

(d)      notes that public sector workers have already seen their pay decrease in real terms over the last decade – due to pay freezes first enacted by the coalition government from 2010;

 

(e)      believes that, like all the city’s key workers, care workers have given so much during the pandemic and we should all be grateful for their dedicated work;

 

(f)       notes that the city’s carers often work in difficult working conditions with inadequate pay, and believes that care workers deserve a pay rise and, therefore, welcomes that from April this Administration is investing £4.2 million into the care sector to enable Sheffield’s care workers to receive a pay rise;

 

(g)      notes that this investment is the first step in this Administration’s ambition to achieve pay, conditions and a career path in line with NHS Healthcare Assistants, and the Council will work with the city’s care providers to deliver this;

 

(h)      believes that all our workers are public service super-heroes - they keep our communities clean and safe, look after those in need and keep our towns and cities running, and that without the professionalism and dedication of staff, the council services our residents rely on would not be deliverable;

 

(i)       believes that local government workers deserve a proper real-terms pay increase, and the Government needs to take responsibility and fully fund this increase and should not put the burden on local authorities whose funding has been cut to the bone, and who have not been offered adequate support through the Covid-19 pandemic;

 

(j)       notes that since 2010 there is a £475 million shortfall for council services due to central government funding cuts and increased service pressures – this is a huge 50% of the budget – and this is not even considering the current pandemic of which the full impact on council finances is not yet known;

 

(k)      resolves to support the pay claim submitted by GMB, Unison and Unite on behalf of council and school workers, for a substantial increase with a minimum of 10 per cent uplift in April 2021, and calls on the Local Government Association to make urgent representations to central government to fund the NJC pay claim;

 

(l)       commits to writing to the Chancellor and Secretary of State to call for a pay increase for local government workers  ...  view the full agenda text for item 8.

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9.

Minutes Of Previous Council Meetings pdf icon PDF 498 KB

To receive the records of the proceedings of the ordinary meeting of the Council held on 3rd February 2021 and the special meeting of the Council held on 3rd March 2021, and to approve the accuracy thereof.

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10.

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.

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