(Members Code of Conduct - Part 4A of the Constitution)

To receive disclosures of interests from members and co-opted members on matters to be considered at the meeting. The disclosure must include the nature of the interest.

An interest must also be disclosed in the meeting when it becomes apparent to the member during the meeting.

Notes:

(1)       Members may remain in the meeting and take part fully in discussion and voting unless the interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest or an interest which the Member feels would call into question their compliance with the wider principles set out in the Code of Conduct.  Disclosable pecuniary interests relate to the Member concerned or their spouse/partner.

(2)       Members in arrears of Council Tax by more than two months must not vote in decisions on, or which might affect, budget calculations, and must disclose at the meeting that this restriction applies to them.  A failure to comply with these requirements is a criminal offence under section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992. 

(3)       Members are also welcome to disclose interests which are not disclosable pecuniary interests but which they consider should be made in the interest of clarity.

(4)       Officers must disclose interests in accordance with Council Standing Order 44.

During the course of the meeting, Councillor Kamran Hussain disclosed that he was acquainted with objector for subject item Lumb Lane, Bradford, Traffic Calming Measures – Objections (minutes xx) for the sake of transparency.

Action: Director of Legal and Governance

Recommended –

That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 September, 20 October and 22 November 2022 be signed as correct records (previously circulated).

(Asad Shah – 01274 432280)

That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 September, 20 October and 22 November 2022 be signed as correct records.

Action: Director of Legal and Governance

(Access to Information Procedure Rules – Part 3B of the Constitution)

Reports and background papers for agenda items may be inspected by contacting the person shown after each agenda item.  Certain reports and background papers may be restricted. 

Any request to remove the restriction on a report or background paper should be made to the relevant Strategic Director or Assistant Director whose name is shown on the front page of the report. 

If that request is refused, there is a right of appeal to this meeting. 

Please contact the officer shown below in advance of the meeting if you wish to appeal. 

(Asad Shah - 01274 432280)

There were no appeals submitted by the public to review decisions to restrict documents.

(Access to Information Procedure Rules – Part 3B of the Constitution)

To hear questions from electors within the District on any matter this is the responsibility of the Committee. 

Questions must be received in writing by the City Solicitor in Room 112, City Hall, Bradford, BD1 1HY, by mid-day on Monday 16 January 2023.

(Asad Shah - 01274 432280)

There were no questions submitted by the public.

The report of the Strategic Director, Place (Document “P”) considers objections received to recently advertised proposals for  traffic calming measures on Lumb Lane, Bradford.

Recommended –

(1)       That the objections be overruled and the proposed traffic calming measures be constructed and implemented as advertised.

(2)       That the objectors be informed accordingly.                                                                                       

(Andrew Smith – 01274 434674)

The report of the Strategic Director, Place (Document “P”) considered objections received to recently advertised proposals for traffic calming measures on Lumb Lane, Bradford.

Resolved –

(1)       That the objections be overruled and the proposed traffic calming measures be constructed and implemented as advertised.

(2)       That the objectors be informed accordingly.

ACTION: Strategic Director, Place                                                            

The report of the Bradford West Area Co-ordinator (Document “Q”) provides an update on the Street Cleansing Service in the Bradford West Constituency area and shows trends of the numbers of fly tipping and cleansing cases reported to the Council.

Recommended –

(1)       That the Bradford West Area Committee notes the report.

(2)       That a further report is presented in 12 months.

(Arshad Mahmood – 01274 432597)

The report of the Bradford West Area Co-ordinator (Document “Q”) provided an update on the Street Cleansing Service in the Bradford West Constituency area and shows trends of the numbers of fly tipping and cleansing cases reported to the Council.

The Bradford East Area Co-ordinator was present and with the invitation of the Chair, provided a synopsis of the report. He stated that currently the Bradford West Area had 7 ward based clean teams that undertook individual work. After cleaning the Area’s Gateway routes, each clean team would move on to one of the weekly routes in ensuing each street within the ward would be attended to once a week.

With prescriptive working, there was greater transparency around what was expected of staff and this increased understanding by staff and Managers with has the following advantages:

·         A prescribed day of working allowed programmed days of action for residents to move cars to allow more effective litter clearance, mechanical sweeping and gully cleaning;

·         More effective mechanism to performance manage teams in terms of all work undertaken; and,

·         More efficient use of resources targeting areas of need, eliminating down time in terms of reacting to complaints travelling from one end of a ward to another;

·         It also gave the public a clear understanding as to how often and when their area or street would be cleaned.

Cleansing staff continued to support days of action, sometimes by working alongside local residents but mostly by removing the waste collected by residents. The vital role provided by local residents and businesses in helping to remove waste and litter continued in the Bradford West Area. Whilst some litter picks were organised and undertaken on an ad hoc basis, other groups regularly litter picked their neighbourhoods. However, cleansing staff collect the bags of litter and large items.

In response to clarifications ought by the committee, it was advised that some referrals may have not been attended to due to being overlooked as a result of immense workloads, however this would be addressed as a matter of urgency. The costs associated with cleaning locations following events in the Bradford West area were covered with the existing Bradford West area budget.

The Chair thanks the Bradford East Area Co-ordinator for his support in cleansing services for the Bradford West area.

Resolved –

(1)       That the Assistant Director, Neighbourhood and Customer Services and the Portfolio Holder, Healthy People and Places gives this committee assurance that funding be available to support the Task Force Team after June 2023 when its funding comes to an end, to allow the team to continue working with Bradford West Ward Officers.

(2)       That an update report be presented to the Bradford West Area Committee in 12 months.

ACTION: Assistant Director, Neighbourhood and Customer Services

This report of the Bradford West Area Co-ordinator (Document “R”) provides information on the work of the Neighbourhood Wardens and Environmental Enforcement Officers in the Bradford West Area. 

Recommended –

(1)       Bradford West Area Committee notes the progress of the Environmental Enforcement & Neighbourhood Warden Service.

(2)       A further report detailing the progress of the Environmental Enforcement & Neighbourhood Warden Service is brought to the Area Committee in 12 months’ time.

(Arshad Mahmood – 01274 432597)

This report of the Bradford West Area Co-ordinator (Document “R”) provided information on the work of the Neighbourhood Wardens and Environmental Enforcement Officers in the Bradford West Area. 

The Environmental Services and Enforcement Manager attended the meeting and gave the following summary of the report. The Environmental Enforcement Officers dealt with waste-related issues affecting the environment and our neighbourhoods. They primarily dealt with complaints (known as service requests) received from the public. The types of issues they undertook included:

·         Fly tipping

·         Rubbish in gardens

·         Business waste

·         Litter from businesses

·         Dog Control Offences

·         Deployment of CCTV

·         Business and Householder Duty of Care Offences

·         Seizure of vehicles involved in fly tipping

·         Pro-active enforcement – stop & search

·         Pest Control – rats & mice

There were currently 3 Environmental Enforcement Officers in Bradford West. In addition, he also provided environmental enforcement training to further support the team.

In response to clarifications sought by the committee, it was explained that:

The fact that the service was inundated with complaints, additional resources would enable him to increase the Enforcement Officer resource within the team.

However, the service had encountered some setbacks in recruitment due to a lack of interest in vacancies advertised;

The Chair expressed stated that to secure additional funds was paramount for the service due to the fact that the City Ward within the Bradford West area was larger than any other ward and the needs of the area to be covered on a daily basis was extremely demanding due to limited funds.

The Committee echoed the sentiments of the Chair, therefore:

Resolved –

(1)       That the Assistant Director, Neighbourhood and Customer Services and the Portfolio Holder, Healthy People and Places be requested to ensure funding for Bradford West be enhanced to meet the extra need of the City Centre or that the same model in place for the Cleansing Team be deployed.

(2)       That the committee is concerned that the Task Force funding for the Enforcement work is due to end in June 2023, and therefore the Assistant Director, Neighbourhood and Customer Services and the Portfolio Holder, Healthy People and Places provide reassurances that this will not affect the Enforcement Team in Bradford West as this team is currently under resourced in light of the significant workload.

(3)       That a further report detailing the progress of the Environmental Enforcement and Neighbourhood Warden Service be brought to the Area Committee in 12 months’ time.

ACTION: Assistant Director, Neighbourhood and Customer Services