Agenda and minutes

To authorise the Chairman to sign the Minutes of the meeting of the Licensing and General Purposes Committee held on 17 January 2022 as a correct record of the proceedings.

The Chairman was authorised to sign the Minutes of the meeting of the Licensing and General Purposes Committee held on 17 January 2022 as a correct record of the proceedings.

The Chairman to ask if any Member present is substituting for another Member and, if so, to declare his/her name as substitute Member and the name of the absent Member.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors G.C. Curtis, L. Hacking and K.M. Harmer.

To receive any disclosure by Members of personal and disclosable pecuniary interests in matters on the agenda, the nature of any interest and whether the Member regards the personal interest as prejudicial under the terms of the Code of Conduct.  Members are reminded of the need to repeat their declaration immediately prior to the commencement of the item in question.

There were no disclosures of interest.

It was agreed by the Chairman to vary the order of the Agenda and for Members to discuss Item 6 first.

Members considered the Staffing Digest report of the Human Resources Manager covering the period April 2021 to March 2022 which gave an update in the field of staff management.  The following key points were highlighted:

•           recruitment remained active and similar to previous years; turnover was 6.25% for the first six months of the year and 5.14% for the latter part of the year;

•           issues regarding professional post recruitment remained a concern.  The Council was working with other local authorities to ascertain the current challenges surrounding professional recruitment;

•           two investigative hearings had been undertaken, one was unfounded and the other was still under review;

•           regular HR Liaison Group meetings were being held to discuss all HR matters;

•           an all staff survey was conducted in September 2021.  Results were generally positive, and a targeted action plan would be developed to progress improvements;

•           the Council had successfully recruited eight apprentices into various roles and service areas around the authority.  Since the scheme’s introduction, nine apprentices had successfully completed and four had secured employment with the Council;

•           due to the pandemic, in-house training was put on hold, with training providers not initially set-up for online delivery. However, online training had taken place through the iHASCO system on the topics of GDPR and Cyber Security;

•           Health and Safety and First Aid Training had been undertaken;

•           Sussex Training Consortium was now run by Arun District Council and various courses were being offered;

•           six minor staff accidents had been reported during the year, up two from the previous year, and all had been investigated fully.  Refresher training for first aiders had continued;

•           seven staff volunteers had been trained as Mental Health First Aiders to help support any staff dealing with poor mental health, in addition to supporting information released from HR to aid staff in identifying issues and signposting where help could be found through outside organisations or via the Employee Assistance Programme;

•           homeworking had remained in place and proven effective in maintaining business operations.  Opportunities to continue this practice and the effect it would have on the Council’s accommodation needs was being explored.  Full consultation would be undertaken;

•           staff meetings were either being held in person or on MS Teams;

•           the senior team restructure was now in place and working well.  Work was currently in progress regarding the corporate restructure; and

•           no new policies had been considered during this period and HR was working with the Transformation team to develop a self-service platform to make all policies accessible.

Members were given the opportunity to ask questions and the following points were noted during the discussions:

•           Members noted that there were environmental, risk management and equalities and diversity implications to the report;

•           Members praised the excellent work undertaken to support staff’s mental health;

•           Members requested that future reports  ...  view the full minutes text for item LG21/17.

Consideration was given to the report of the Chief Executive on the Review of the Local Pay Award 2022.  Pay award discussions had been on-going with Staff Side/UNISON and Members’ views were being sought on proposals for a pay settlement to enable negotiation with Staff Side/UNISON to be progressed.  Members were reminded that any pay award agreed for staff was, under the current scheme applied to Members’ allowances at the start of the following municipal year.  However, due to the district elections in May 2023, a new scheme of Members’ allowances would be approved to take effect from that time.

The Human Resources Manager advised that the national pay negotiations for local government had not been settled for the 2022/23 financial year; offers were expected to be made to the trade unions mid to late May.  Unison had requested consideration of a 2.5% pay award.

It was anticipated that inflation would continue to rise due to the longer-term impacts of COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine on the economy and that additional financial support from the Government would not be forthcoming.  It was noted that the recruitment of professional staff remained a significant challenge and the HR Manager was carrying out a piece of work with East and West Sussex to look at salary comparisons, as well as taking part in Local Government Association surveys.  For the hard to recruit to posts in Planning, Environmental and Housing, Rother District Council was in the top quarter for salary levels, but not all data had been submitted at that time.

As part of setting the annual revenue budget for this year, Rother’s pay award for 2022 was budgeted at 1% and this figure had been used in the agreed Medium-Term Financial Plan for future years.  Members were reminded that the proposed spending review for local government had been further delayed and no information was currently available for the likely financial settlement for 2022/23.

Members were keen to reward and recompense the staff employed by the Council and it was noted that a full review of pay scales had been suggested previously.  Officers were also in discussions to join a platform of staff discount schemes; further information would be available in due course.

Members requested that future reports give details of the number of staff employed at each pay scale, so that the full impact of an increase at each level would be clearer.

Members agreed that a one-year pay settlement increase of up to 2.5% at the lower end of the pay scale, subject to a minimum increase of £500, decreasing towards the top end of the scale in order to remain within the budgeted 1% increase figure for 2022/23, be approved. 

RESOLVED: That a one-year pay settlement increase of up to 2.5% at the lower end of the pay scale, subject to a minimum increase of £500, decreasing towards the top end of the scale in order to remain within the budgeted 1% increase figure for 2022/23, be put forward  ...  view the full minutes text for item LG21/18.

Members received the report of the Chief Executive providing an update on surveillance activity over the previous year, in-line with the inspecting officer’s recommendations.

There had been no use of legally approved surveillance powers in 2021; the last time the Council had applied for and were granted surveillance powers by a Magistrate was in 2015.

The Council owned and operated CCTV equipment on its own property, for the detection of crime and to deter crime. The Council’s policy was detailed at Appendix 1 to the report.  CCTV on the streets of Rother was monitored by the police from a control room in Eastbourne.

Members noted that the surveillance activity met the key recommendations of the Surveillance Commissioner’s report.  The next inspection was anticipated in 2023.

RESOLVED: That the Council’s 2021 annual update report on covert surveillance and policy on CCTV installed on its premises be noted.

The Government had published the Taxi and Private Hire Vehicles Standards Report 2020 which provided statutory guidance to the Council on how it should function.  The report had been thoroughly reviewed and the main points and changes proposed were highlighted in Appendix A to the report.  The following salient points were noted:

•           development of common core minimum standards regarding reporting passenger incidents in hackney carriage and private hire vehicles;

•           the Council held a handbook that provided an overview of hackney carriage and private hire licensing, namely the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Handbook (March 2018).  It was proposed that the Council reviewed its licensing policies every five years, as well as interim reviews should significant issues arise.  It was therefore, proposed that the handbook be reviewed during the municipal year 2022/23;

•           performance should be reviewed annually. As well as reporting to the Rother and Wealden Shared Service Partnership Board, an annual report would be presented to the Licensing and General Purposes Committee;

•           a condition be imposed that required licensed drivers and operators to sign up, use and maintain their membership of the Disclosure and Barring Service update service from their first application and at their next renewal, as this benefited all;

•           public safety remained a high priority.  It was noted that the Council’s Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Licensing Criminal Convictions Policy approved in 2019 was in-line with Local Government Association guidance and was slightly stricter than the guidance identified within the Department for Transport’s report;

•           safeguarding training would be introduced for all new drivers and existing drivers would be required to take a comprehensive Council approved training course, to ensure that they were properly aware of their responsibilities regarding passenger safety.  A minimal charge would apply to existing drivers with most of the costs borne by a grant from the Safer Rother Partnership.  Any drivers who did not undertake training would be referred to the Taxi and Private Hire Licensing Panel; and

•           CCTV was currently permitted in the Council’s licensed vehicles, subject to conditions to control use and access to the data.  The guidance proposed that this should be mandatory.  Should this be agreed, a consultation exercise would need to be undertaken with all interested bodies.

Following discussion, Members were fully supportive of the recommendations proposed and agreed that failure to have in place and adhere to up-to-date policies and procedures could lead to severe reputational damage for the Council.

RESOLVED: That:

1)         the responses to the recommendations in this report at Appendix A be noted and that changes proposed to comply with the Standards are adopted and implemented;

2)         the Taxi Handbook is reviewed in 2022/23 and amended in line with the current guidance;

3)         it be made mandatory for drivers and operators to attend Council approved training on safeguarding and that this is refreshed when drivers’ licences are renewed;

4)         it be made a condition for our licensed drivers and operators to subscribe to and maintain their membership  ...  view the full minutes text for item LG21/20.

Members received the report of the Head of Environmental Services, Licensing and Community Safety which detailed how the Council set hackney carriage fares in the district by adopting a fare card.  Fares had last been increased in December 2016.  At the last meeting, Members approved that a 10% increase be advertised for consultation and representations had been received.

Five representations had been received regarding a higher tariff on bank holidays and two objected to the removal of a higher tariff on Sundays.  One representation requested a higher than 10% increase. All representations were from licensed drivers.

Appendix A to the report detailed two options: Table 1 which represented a 10% increase in fares, including a higher tariff on bank holidays; and Table 2 which included a slightly higher tariff on Sundays.  Members were advised that tariff increase information had been gathered from neighbouring authorities; Wealden District Council had agreed an increase of 10% and Hastings Borough Council a 12% increase.

Following discussion, Members formally approved the fares as detailed at Table 1 in Appendix A to the report.  The fare increase would need to be formally advertised and if no objections were received, the new fare card would be implemented from 16 May 2022.  If any new objections were received, they would be referred to the Licensing and General Purposes Committee for determination.  It was also agreed that a further increase be advertised in December 2022, percentage to be considered at the time.    

RESOLVED: That:

1)         Hackney Carriage Fares as detailed at Table 1 in Appendix A to the report be approved;

2)         if no new objections are received, to implement from 16 May 2022; and

3)         a further increase is advertised in December 2022.