The Director of Legal and Governance will report the names of alternate Members who are attending the meeting in place of appointed Members. 

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 must consider their interests, and act according to the following:

(2)       Disclosable pecuniary interests relate to the Member concerned or their spouse/partner.

(3)       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. 

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

Although Councillor Stubbs attended as an observer only, he declared in the interests of transparency that his wife had received some funding from City of Culture for work as a dance artist.

Recommended –

That the minutes of the meeting held on 17 January 2023 be signed as a correct record (previously circulated).

(Su Booth/Louis Kingdom – 07814 073884/07890 416570)

Resolved –

That the minutes of the meeting held on 17 January 2023 be held as a correct record.

(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. 

(Su Booth/Louis Kingdom – 07814 073884/07890 416570)

There were no appeals submitted to review decisions to restrict documents.

Members are requested to consider how they wish to deal with referrals.

Any additional referrals that have been made to this Committee up to and including the date of publication of this agenda will be reported at the meeting.

The following referral has been made:

1.          Council – 24 January 2023

At the meeting of full Council on 24 January 2023 the following motion was considered and referred to the Regeneration and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee:

Private Rented Housing in Bradford District

·       The people of the Bradford district deserve access to affordable and safe homes which are of a decent standard.

·       Constructive and professional relationships with landlords drives up standards in the private rented sector by providing opportunities for effective communication and enables issues to be dealt with quickly without needing to resort to formal enforcement action

This Council notes that:

·       A significant number of residents of the district live in homes which are privately rented and that this number has increased in recent years. The private rented housing sector has doubled in size since 2002.

·       That most private landlords provide homes of a good standard and they play a vital role in providing homes for residents of the district.

·       Local authorities have a duty under Part 1 of the Housing Act 2004 to keep housing conditions under review and identify action needed. Undertaking such reviews and subsequent action is complicated by incomplete data in the sector.

·       Much time for enforcement work is spent simply identifying landlords, agents, and properties. This erodes teams’ capacity to take enforcement action.

·       However, the Housing Standards team implementation of a triage system has dramatically increased the amount of interventions they can make, and over 1,000 improvements are undertaken every year driven by Council intervention.

·       Nonetheless poor housing conditions persist in the private rented sector. The most recent English Housing Survey data shows that 23% of private rented sector properties fail to meet the Decent Homes Standard and 13% have category 1 hazards.

·       It is estimated up to a third of Local Authorities have implemented selective licensing of Private Rented Properties and focus on areas that have been identified as hotspots for poor housing standards and significant number of rogue or criminal landlords.

·       The Council previously applied for funding to develop a business case for selective licensing, but the government refused it.

This Council further notes that:

·       The publication of the Government white paper – A fairer deal for renters - in 2022 and the plans to introduce a Renters Reform Bill in 2023 that aid Councils to better regulate and enforce housing standards and poor landlord practices.

·       The Social Housing Regulation Bill will introduce new powers and regulations to the social housing sector, some of which may be transferable and relevant to driving up standards in the private rented sector as well.

This Council therefore requests

·       That the Regeneration & Environment Scrutiny Committee hold a review of the Private Rented Sector across Bradford and the different ways of managing and improving the quality of  ...  view the full agenda text for item 65.

Resolved –

That the review on Private Rented Housing across Bradford be added to the Committee’s Work Programme.

The report of the Strategic Director, Place (Document “W”) will be submitted to the Committee to provide Members with an update on the progress of Active Bradford’s JU:MP programme.

Recommended –

That Members of the Committee note the current progress of the JU:MP programme.

(Zuby Hamard – 01274 432671)

A detailed report was presented that provided Members with an update on the progress made by the JU:MP Programme in Bradford. The report incorporated information in response to questions that had been posed by Members at a previous meeting of the Committee. The report described the highlights of the programme such as eight local JU:MP Action Groups, the creation of Active Schools as well as the research that was taking place simultaneously.

Following the report, the Committee posed several questions the details of which and the responses given are as below.

A Member asked how the programme would help build activity into the normal day, whether it would tie in with active travel and active neighbourhoods and how such a joined-up approach would work. Officers stated that active travel was important and that they were working with two active travel advisors to promote it. Officers also informed the Committee that they worked with several Mosques and Madrassahs throughout Bradford to promote physical activity.

A Member questioned how physical activity might be maintained once the project ends and whether it would leave a sustainable legacy. Officers advised Members that they encouraged sustainable habits wherever possible so they can continue after the project ends. Officers noted the progress made on changing behaviour habits to make people more active not just during the programme but in the long term. Officers also acknowledged that consultation was underway with Sport England to see if a longer-term project was possible.

The Committee sought further information regarding the investment of £11 million and whether sustainability had been built into the funding in relation to the upkeep of parks that had been developed. Officers advised Members that maintenance costs were not included in the funding received from Sport England however they worked closely with the Parks and Recreation Team to address this challenge. Peel Park was provided as an example of sustainable development. Officers highlighted the earth mounds and nature play that made the site more robust and required less upkeep.

Members asked how the programme occurred, which bodies were involved in the early stages of the programme and whether it would be expanded further. In response Members were informed that the programme could be rolled out further across the district. Officers then explained the process of the programme, they detailed the opportunity for Tier 3 funding from Sport England and the subsequent application that was submitted by Active Bradford on behalf of the local authority. Officers stated that numerous bodies worked together and were involved, in the early stages and the bid, such as Yorkshire Sports Foundation, Active Bradford, Born in Bradford.

Members inquired about the funding (£10,000) given to schools, how it had been spent and if any case studies were available to show the impact it had. Officers told Members that in-depth research was underway, and the aim was to embed active lifestyles into the school. The research would include an audit of the school day which would demonstrate how and where active learning had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 66.

The report of the Strategic Director, Place (Document “X”) will be submitted to the Committee to provide Members with an update on progress following Bradford’s designation as UK City of Culture 2025.

Recommended –

1)         That the Overview &Scrutiny Committee note the content of this report.

2)         That a further report be presented for consideration by the Committee at its’ meeting of April 2023.

(Nicola Greenan – 01274 431301)

Officers summarised the report and gave a detailed presentation which provided the Committee with an update on the progress following Bradford’s designation as UK City of Culture 2025. Officers highlighted the challenges that Bradford faced due to the geographic scale of the district, the largest UK City of Culture, as well as the impact of COVID which meant that the timeframe to deliver was shortened. Officers highlighted the need to work collaboratively. The presentation informed the Committee of the various themes that were driving the City of Culture preparations. Officers highlighted the necessity of public engagement in the build up to 2025 through various projects such as Taste:BD (food and drink festival) and BD: Is LiT (light festival). The presentation stressed the impacts that the year of culture was predicted to have such as 15.5 million visitors, roughly 7000 jobs created, and officers were optimistic about the return on investment. Officers informed Members that the recruitment of 4000 volunteers had started, and that Members would be kept updated with any further progress.

The Committee agreed with Officers regarding the potential brought by City of Culture and stressed the importance of working with the community and other partners to ensure district readiness and engagement. The Chair gave Members the opportunity to ask questions, the details of which and the responses given are as below.

A Member queried how it would be ensured that all the district feels the impact of the City of Culture and how this might happen. Officers informed the Committee that they intended to work with all 30 wards in Bradford, they would embed artists in the community to give the opportunity for engagement. Officers also noted the planned engagement from schools across the Bradford district. Further to this point Members stated that there was a need to ensure that all voices within the community are heard hence the importance to engage with communities and Councillors. Officers echoed the sentiments of the Committee and assured Members that engagement was a priority, and that Members could assist by encouraging engagement within their own wards.

A Member described the routes into the city via train and highlighted the litter accumulation and asked what could be done about this. Officers told the Committee that they were dependent on other partners, but dialogue was taking place with Network Rail to find a solution. Officers added that conversations were underway with Northern Rail to look at train schedules to ensure they will meet the demands for inflated passenger numbers due to a predicted increase in visitors due to City of Culture.

Members asked if the City of Culture would reach beyond Bradford Central for example would it celebrate the 250-year anniversary of Five Rise Locks. Officers informed Members that conversation was underway with Canal and Rivers Trust to look at how the history of Bradford’s canals might be celebrated. Officers stated that the recognition of the history of Bradford was important and had the potential to draw more visitors.

Members of the Committee  ...  view the full minutes text for item 67.

The report of the Strategic Director, Place (Document “Y”) will be submitted to the Committee to provide Members with an overview of the procurement strategy for the appointment of a contractor to construct a Leisure, Community and Wellbeing Centre on Squire Lane in Bradford.

Recommended –

That the report be noted.

(Ian Smart – 01274 431735)

Officers provided the Committee with a summary of the report that provided an overview of the procurement strategy for the appointment of a contractor to construct a Leisure, Community and Wellbeing Centre on Squire Lane in Bradford. Officers told the Committee that the third option, Design & Build Contract Two Stage Tender Process, set out in the report was the preferred option. The Committee were also informed that approval to progress to Stage 3 had been received from Executive.

Members referenced inflation and asked whether officers remained confident that the project could be delivered within the proposed budget or if it would need to be updated to reflect the increased costs. Officers told the Committee that they remained confident that the project could be delivered within budget. Officers acknowledged the risk brought by inflation but assured Members that costs would be monitored closely at every stage.

Members of the Committee asked about the planned engagement process with the community and what areas it would encompass. Officers advised that the plan was to engage as widely as possible to maximise the amount of feedback. The Committee concurred with the importance of engagement and agreed that it would be beneficial to engage with not just the closest wards.

Members queried the impacts of greenhouse gases as well as the impacts of increased traffic due to people driving to the facility. Officers informed the Committee that information regarding greenhouse gases and traffic could be brought in a further report in the future. Officers told Members that attempts would be made to incentivise people to walk to the facility, but parking facilities would be necessary.

Resolved –

1.    That the report be noted.

2.    That a progress update on the development of the Squire Lane health and wellbeing facility be presented to the Committee in twelve months’ time.

Action: Strategic Director, Place

The report of the Chair of the Regeneration and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee, (Document “Z”) will be submitted to provide Members with an update to the Work Programme.

Recommended –

That the Work programme 2022-23 continues to be regularly reviewed during the year.

(Caroline Coombes - 07970 413828)

The Work Programme was briefly discussed.

Resolved –

That a review of the Private Rented Sector across Bradford be added to the Work Programme.