Agenda and minutes

To note any changes to the membership.

1.1       It was noted that Councillor Rita Begum had permanently replaced Councillor Barbara Grahame on the Committee.

1.2       The Chairman welcomed Councillor Steve Summers (Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Customer Service), Councillor Richard Holloway (Deputy Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Customer Services) and Councillor Paul Church (Deputy Cabinet Member for Children and Young People) to the meeting.

1.3       The Chairman advised that Councillor Danny Chalkley (Cabinet Member for Children and Young People) would not be attending the meeting.  Any questions that Members had regarding his portfolio would be placed on the Committee’s Action Tracker.

1.4       The Chairman welcomed Matthew Blood, Tri-Borough Head of Virtual School and College, who was attending the meeting to take part in the Looked After Children and Care Leavers item.

To receive declarations by Members and Officers of the existence and nature of any personal or prejudicial interests in matters on this agenda.

2.1       Councillor Peter Cuthbertson declared that he was employed by PB Political Consulting and that one of their clients was the Religious Education Council of England and Wales.

2.2       No further declarations of interests in respect of items to be discussed were made, other than those noted in the circulated schedule as set out below in paragraph 2.3.

2.3       Table of Member’s interests tabled at the Committee Meeting was as follows:

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 21 April 2015.

3.         MINUTES

3.1       RESOLVED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 21 April 2015 be approved for signature by the Chairman as a true and correct record of the proceedings subject to the following amendments:

Item 8, paragraph 8.2 – Change the wording ‘highly intelligent’ to ‘many’ in the second sentence of the paragraph.

Item 9, paragraph 9.4 – Add the words after (CCIC) ‘and any other event organised for Looked After Children (LAC)’.

a)    To note the progress in implementing the Committee’s Recommendation and Action Trackers.

b)    To note the Work Programme for 2015/16.

4.         ACTION AND RECOMMENDATION TRACKERS AND COMMITTEE WORK PROGRAMME

4.1       ACTION AND RECOMMENDATION TRACKERS

4.1.1   RESOLVED:

1.    That the Action and Recommendation Trackers be noted.

2.    That the Committee congratulate the care leaver who achieved a distinction in a Master’s Degree in Astrophysics by sending her a card and gift voucher.

4.2       COMMITTEE WORK PROGRAMME

 4.2.1 RESOLVED: The Committee agreed to add the following items to their work programme:

·         Free Schools

·         The Development of the UTC

·         School Organisation Plan (Analysis of Population Trends) (Autumn)

·         The work of the Integrated Gangs Unit

·         Foster Care Recruitment

·         The impact of Tri-borough on the library service especially in relation to the digital offer available to residents.

Councillor Steve Summers (Cabinet Member for Sports, Leisure and Customer Services) to update the Committee on current and forthcoming issues in his Portfolio.

5.1       The Committee received an update from the Cabinet Member who responded to questions relating to:

·         the attendance figures for individual sport centres.

·         the procurement and re-let of the new sports and leisure facilities contract, including the focus on improvements and priorities, sport and public health outcomes and the opening hours of facilities. 

·         the award of contract to Groundwork London for delivery of the Team Westminster Flagship Volunteering Service.

·         the refurbishment of the lift at the Pimlico Library.

·         the improvement of the floodlighting at Queens Park Gardens.

·         the funding and opportunities provided by Westminster’s Volunteering Service compared with other boroughs.

·         the Council’s policy on fountains.

5.2       Councillor Ruth Bush advised that she was deeply disappointed that the charity Groundwork London had been awarded the contract for delivery of the Team Westminster Flagship Volunteering Service as her experience of them had been very negative.

5.3       ACTIONS:

1.    That a briefing note be sent to the Committee on the attendance figures for individual sport centres, including how many people attend swimming sessions.

2.    That a briefing note be sent to the Committee updating them on the timetable of the procurement and re-let of the new sports and leisure facilities contract.

3.    That a briefing note be sent to the Committee on the demographics of the people involved in different volunteering projects.

Report from Councillor Danny Chalkley (Cabinet Member for Children and Young People) updating the Committee on current and forthcoming issues in his Portfolio.

6.         QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION: CABINET MEMBER FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE

6.1       The Committee received a written update from the Cabinet Member which            covered current and forthcoming issues in his Portfolio. 

To examine the overall offer promoted by the Sports and Leisure Service.

7.         SPORTS AND LEISURE SERVICE REVIEW

7.1       The Committee received a report on the sports, leisure and physical activity opportunities in Westminster which was delivered through a mixed economy of voluntary, public, private and charitable organisations.  The Committee heard that the core areas of the Sports and Leisure Service included: Sports and Leisure facilities, PE and School Sport, Sports Development and outdoor learning (including the operation of the Sayers Croft Centre).  The Committee noted that the service generated approximately £13.5m in revenue income and attracted over four million visits to facilities and services every year.

7.2       Richard Barker, Director of Community Services and Andrew Durrant, Head of Sports and Leisure advised that the Council was responsible for the overall management of its own sports and leisure facilities and also took an active role in developing community use and opportunities in other facilities across the city.  They particularly emphasised that the offer seeks to address key issues, particularly the impact of inactivity on the health and wellbeing of residents which is a particular issue in areas of high deprivation.

7.3       The key issues that emerged from the Committee’s discussion were:

• the promotion of everyday activities to the inactive population by finding champions within these groups who could encourage and drive people to participate in sport.

• the importance of enhancing the Council’s website and marketing strategy to ensure that Westminster’s sports facilities were clearly advertised and promoted to the public and the possibility of designing on-line surveys to enable the Council to collect its own statistically data.

·         the importance of a good media strategy to promote the Summer Sports Programme for young people.

·         the Health and Wellbeing Programmes and the benefits of bringing together sports based initiatives and the retail sector to tackle the growing obesity problem in young people.

·         the availability of recreational activities such as dancing and walking and woman only provision.

• the MCC Lords School Offer and the list of schools who had signed up and booked in for some of the opportunities.

• the methodology used to provide ward estimates of the percentage of adults who participate in activity or recreation.

• the accessibility of sports and the impact of health inactivity on the health and wellbeing of residents in areas of high deprivation. 

• the need for ward councillors to share information on local activities.

7.4       The Committee noted the brief update on the redevelopment of Moberly and Jubilee Sports Centre.

7.5       ACTIONS

1.    That the briefing note listing the schools that had signed up for the MCC Lords School offer be re-circulated to the Committee.

2.    That the link for the latest ‘Sport England Profile’ for Westminster and the ‘Joint Strategy Needs Assessment’ (JSNA) for Physical Activity which was produced by Public Health in liaison with Sports and Leisure be circulated to the Committee.

3.    That the Sports and Leisure Service send the Committee their Performance Report which includes the Sports and Leisure Service’s Business Plan and data about targets, indicators and participation.

7.6       RESOLVED:

1.    The Committee welcomed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

To evaluate the work undertaken by the Council.

8.         UPDATE REPORT ON LOOKED AFTER CHILDREN AND CARE LEAVERS

8.1       The Committee received a report highlighting the role of the Corporate Parent, the educational outcomes of Looked after Children and Care Leavers, Child Exploitation and some analysis in relation to the small increase of Looked After Children numbers at the end of March 2015.

8.2       The Committee heard from Matthew Blood, Tri-Borough Head of Virtual School and College, who highlighted the educational attainment of Looked After Children.  He outlined the department’s work of promoting the benefits of education.  He further emphasised the importance of good foster placements, the difficulties and challenges faced by children in care and the particular difficulties and fundamental issues that children post 16 years of age had to overcome to live successful and fulfilling lives.

8.3       Some of the key issues that emerged from the Committee’s discussion were:

• the developments which identify those children assessed to be most at risk of child sexual exploitation (CSE) and the support packages available to ensure risks of CSE were reduced.

• the difficulty in predicting whether the increase in unaccompanied asylum seeking children would continue, remain the same or reduce in the future.

• the importance of improving the educational attainment of Looked After Children by working with schools so that they better understand the

emotional and physical difficulties that children in care had experienced.

• the action being taken when young adults go missing on receiving a negative decision on whether they could remain in the UK from the home office.

• the role of Councillors in ensuring that they fulfil their Corporate Parenting role and the practical ways that they could promote positive outcomes for Looked After Children.

• the financial implications to the Council of the changes in welfare benefits and the implications on Care Leavers.

• the importance of apprenticeship schemes for Care Leavers and linking up with businesses and the Voluntary Sector to give Care Leavers the opportunity to try a variety of jobs in different organisations. 

• the difficulty in recruiting foster carers in the Tri-Borough area and the best way(s) to target potential foster carers who have a spare bedroom and the skills to foster a Looked After Children.

• the events held for Looked After Children and Care Leavers and the possibility of all Councillors being invited to attend these events.

8.4       RESOLVED:

1.    That a greater analysis of the financial implications to the Council of the

changes in welfare benefit and their impact upon Care Leavers take place by officers of the Council.

2.    That there be an exploration of adult safeguarding risks as a result of the Care Act which should be conducted by the Tri-Borough Adult Safeguarding Team.

3.    That an updated report be brought back to the Committee which provides further information on transition assessments in partnership with Adult Services.

4.    That the Committee would explore and consider practical ways to fulfil its Corporate Parenting role.

Verbal Update (if any)

9.         EXEMPT REPORT UNDER LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972

9.1       RESOLVED: That under Section 100 (A) (4) and schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business because it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information on the grounds shown below:

            Item No           Grounds                                                          Para of Part 1 of

                                                                                                            Schedule 12A of the Act

                 9.                Information relating to an individual    

10.       UPDATE ON SAFEGUARDING ISSUES (verbal update – see agenda item 9)

10.1     The Committee received an update in relation to two cases.

11.       TERMINATION OF MEETING

11 .1    The meeting ended at 9.06pm.