Venue: Council Chamber, Council Offices, Corks Lane, Hadleigh
Contact: Committee Services
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SUBSTITUTES AND APOLOGIES Any Member attending as an approved substitute to report giving his/her name and the name of the Member being substituted.
To receive apologies for absence. |
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DECLARATION OF INTERESTS Members to declare any interests as appropriate in respect of items to be considered at this meeting. Minutes: None declared. |
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BOS/17/5 TO CONFIRM THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 19 JUNE 2017 PDF 162 KB Minutes: RESOLVED
That the Minutes of the meeting held on 19 June 2017 be confirmed and signed as a correct record, subject to –
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TO RECEIVE NOTIFICATION OF PETITIONS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE COUNCIL'S PETITION SCHEME Minutes: None received. |
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QUESTIONS BY THE PUBLIC To consider questions from, and provide answers to, the public in relation to matters which are relevant to the business of the meeting and of which due notice has been given in accordance with the Committee and Sub-Committee Procedure Rules. Minutes: None received. |
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QUESTIONS BY COUNCILLORS To consider questions from, and provide answer to, Councillors on any matter in relation to which the Committee has powers or duties and of which due notice has been given in accordance with the Committee and Sub-Committee Procedure Rules. Minutes: None received. |
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BOS/17/6 OUTSTANDING ITEMS FROM JOINT SCRUTINY COMMITTEE MEETINGS 2016/17 PDF 199 KB Minutes: Ben Staines, Project and Research Officer, introduced Paper BOS/17/6 which outlined the current position on items previously considered by the Joint Scrutiny Committee, to enable Members to decide which of those items should be added to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s Forward Plan for 2017/18.
RESOLVED
That the following items be included in the Committee’s Forward Plan:-
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SCOPING FOR HOMELESSNESS / BED AND BREAKFAST ACCOMMODATION REVIEW PDF 154 KB The Overview and Scrutiny Committee Members to use the attached Scoping Template to guide this process. Minutes: Members had before them the following documents:-
· copies of the slide presentation ‘Preparing for the Homelessness Reduction Act’ by Andy Gale (circulated prior to the day of the meeting) · Homelessness Statistics 2014/15, 2015/16 and 2016/17 (circulated at the meeting) · Review Scoping Document – Homelessness and Bed and Breakfast placements (circulated with the agenda for the meeting)
Jan Osborne, Cabinet Member for Housing, was present at the meeting and referred to the work being done by Andy Gale in the areas of prevention and the focus on delivery, together with creative and proactive solutions.
Heather Sparrow, Corporate Manager – Homelessness Prevention and Older Persons, gave the background to the proposed Review, and outlined some key points, including the following:-
Obligation to respond to applications / timescales for processing Eligibility / Priority need – legal/medical etc /Intentional homelessness / Local connection Discretionary – advice and assistance, with requirement to provide interim accommodation in some circumstances The impact of the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 – to be implemented from 3 April 2018 Code of Guidance to be the subject of consultation from September Workload is anticipated to double to provide personal housing plans, legal notices and letters – 4.5 FTEs to be appointed across the 2 Districts - some costs might be covered from Government funding of £61m Challenges to new legislation via the courts – impact of Case Law Effect of Benefits Cap / Universal Credit (from Oct 2017) / potential increase in length of stay in B&B accommodation
The Corporate Manager also referred to issues around rough sleeping and domestic abuse, and to the Homelessness Statistics for the 3 years to the end of March 2017
Members then discussed |
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SCOPING A REVIEW OF VOIDS PDF 155 KB The Overview and Scrutiny Committee Members to use the attached Scoping Template to guide this process.
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DISCUSSION ON RISK AND PERFORMANCE AND WHERE THE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE CAN ADD VALUE |
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TRAINING UPDATE The Assistant Director – Law and Governance to give an oral update on the training available. |
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BOS/17/7 BDC OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY DRAFT FORWARD PLAN PDF 144 KB |