Agenda and minutes

At this point that Members are asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interests they may have in the business on this agenda.

At this point in the meeting Members were asked to declare any personal or prejudicial interests they might have in the business on this agenda or any general interests they might have within the remit of the Committee.

The Chair advised Members that a sheet would be circulated around the room and asked them to record any general interests they might have, stating that this would be included in all future agendas and updated as and when required.

The following general interests were declared:-

Councillor Aspden                       Member of the National Union of Teachers (NUT)

Employee of North Yorkshire County Council

Governor at Danesgate Centre, Fulford Cross

Councillor Brooks                        Employee of The Manchester College

Member of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATC)

Councillor D’AgorneLEA Governor at Fishergate Primary School

                                                Employee of York College, Guidance Service

Councillor DouglasMember of York Opera

Councillor Looker                        Governor of Park Grove Primary School

                                                 Governor of Canon Lee Secondary School

                                                 Company Secretary, York Theatre Royal

                                                 Member of York Museum Trust

Councillor HoggCouncil’s Lib Dem Representative on Visit York

Member of York Museums Trust

Employee of the National Railway Museum

Councillor WaudbyGovernor at Lakeside Primary School

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting of the Education Scrutiny Committee held on 6 May 2009.

RESOLVED:             That the Minutes of the meeting of the Education Scrutiny Committee held on 6 May 2009 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

At this point in the meeting members of the public who have registered their wish to speak on specific agenda items or matters within the remit of the committee can do so. Anyone who wishes to register or requires further information is requested to contact the Democracy Officer listed in the contact details at the foot of this agenda. The deadline for registering is 5 pm on Tuesday 14 July 2009.

It was reported that there had been no registrations to speak at the meeting under the Council’s Public Participation Scheme.

This report highlights the agreed changes to the Overview & Scrutiny function in York, detailing the terms of reference for the new committees and the resources available to support the function.

The Chair welcomed Members and Officers to the first meeting of the new Learning and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Members considered a report which highlighted the agreed changes to the Overview and Scrutiny function in York and detailed the terms of reference for the new committees and the resources available to support the function.

In response to a request from Councillor Aspden, the Chair agreed that he, on behalf of the Liberal Democrat Group, would attend Chair’s Briefings along with the Chair (Labour Member) and Vice Chair (Conservative Member) in order to ensure representation from the 3 main political groups and avoid the need for separate briefings from officers to the Liberal Democrat Group. 

In respect of Statutory Co-opted Members of the Committee, it was highlighted that there were currently vacancies for one Parent Governor Representative and both the Catholic and Church of England representatives. It was agreed that co-opted members would only be invited to attend meetings where educational matters were being considered, in line with legal requirements, and that on those occasions the business of the meeting would be organised so as to reduce the time they were required to be in attendance.

The Director of Learning, Culture and Children’s Services confirmed that he and the Assistant Director, Lifelong Learning and Culture, would endeavour to attend all meetings of the Committee and may be joined by other managers, depending on the nature of the subjects discussed. He also informed  the Committee that a briefing on the new scrutiny arrangements would be given to, YorOK and York@Large (the council’s relevant strategic partners), and suggested that the committee might like to invite  representatives from those bodies to future scrutiny meetings, where appropriate.

RESOLVED: (i) That the contents of the report be noted.

(ii)That Councillor Aspden be invited to attend Chair’s Briefings with officers as the Liberal Democrat Representative.

REASON:                  To inform the future work of the Committee.

This report presents the Corporate Strategy key performance indicators and actions relevant to the remit of this particular Overview & Scrutiny Committee.

Members considered a report presenting the Corporate Strategy key performance indicators and actions relevant to the remit of the Learning and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

The Scrutiny Officer circulated a revised Annex A (attached to Minutes as Annex A) which listed the performance indicators which were thought to fit within the remit of this Committee but stressed this was an ongoing piece of work and not yet complete. 

Members recognised that performance indicators were an important tool to help them decide which areas they should focus on and officers responded to questions raised  in relation to specific indicators listed at Annex A.

RESOLVED: That the contents of the report and revised Annex A be noted.

REASON:                  To inform the work of the Committee.

This report analyses the outturn performance for 2008/09 by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all of the services falling under the responsibility of the Director of Learning, Culture & Children’s Services.

Members considered a report, which analysed the outturn performance for 2008/09 by reference to the service plan, the budget and the performance indicators for all the services falling under the responsibility of the Director of Learning, Culture and Children’s Services.

Officers responded to Members queries regarding both the financial and performance positions detailed in the report.  

In response to a comment from Members on savings on home to school transport, the Director of Learning, Culture and Children’s Services confirmed that progress had been achieved through a partnership with Northgate Kendric Ash, improvements with route planning, the commissioning of new contracts and improved contracts resulting in improved efficiency of services.

RESOLVED:             That the outturn position detailed in the report be noted.

REASON:                  To update the Committee on the outturn position for 2008/09 and highlight any areas of concern suitable for scrutiny review.

This report is to inform the Scrutiny Committee of the progress and performance of the York Theatre Royal under the current Service Level Agreement (SLA) which runs to March 2012.

Members considered a report which informed them of the progress and performance of the York Theatre Royal under the current Service Level Agreement which runs to March 2012.

The Chief Executive of York Theatre Royal updated Members on the progress made by York Theatre Royal in the six months since the last report was presented to the Executive Member Advisory Panel in December 2008. He highlighted various aspects of the theatre’s programme, learning and development partnerships, performance issues, marketing and audience development, financial situation and the future outlook.

He answered and provided more information in relation to Members specific queries on working with local amateur dramatic companies, working with young people and the “Takeover” Scheme, future plans for the development of the cultural quarter, and attracting new customers.

RESOLVED:             That the performance of York Theatre Royal be noted.

REASON:                  To fulfil the Council’s role under the Service Level Agreement and update Members on recent progress and performance.

This report updates members on the current progress of the York Museums Trust (YMT) towards meeting the targets agreed in the Partnership Delivery Plan.  The York Museums Trust’s full report is at Annex A.

Members considered a report, which updated them on the current progress of the York Museums Trust (YMT) towards meeting the targets agreed in the Partnership Delivery Plan.

The Chief Executive of York Musuems Trust circulated a folder of information for Members to take away with them. She introduced the report and  summarised the progress made towards the 7 major targets outlined in the Partnership Delivery Plan (PDP) which were. These were:- stabilising visitor figures; delivering new income streams; new exhibitions and interpretative Service; creating and Education Strategy;  increasing use and involvement by residents; achieving high visitor satisfaction and ensuring the cataloguing of the collection.

She highlighted key achievements of the YMT in these areas during the past year. She answered Members queries in relation to specific issues including the Gallery of Pots at the Art Gallery, the introduction of a permanent Garden Manager Post for the Museum Gardens, the aim of which was to improve horticultural and botanical status of the gardens, and the long term ambition to use the part of the museum gardens as a public space with programmed activities. She advised Members that they had been surprised and delighted to recently be awarded a prize under the conservation category at York Design Awards for the Art Gallery’s South Gallery.

RESOLVED: That the performance of the York Museums Trust be noted.

REASON:                  To fulfil the Council’s role under the Partnership Delivery Plan and update Members on recent progress.

The Scrutiny Officer circulated a workplan for the Learning and Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee for the Civic year 2009-10 and a summary of items which were listed on the Executive Forward Plan for decision by the Executive and by the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services and the Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Social Inclusion (attached to Minutes as Annex B).

Members and officers discussed how the Committee would operate and looked at different ways of undertaking scrutiny reviews such as carrying out  high level policy reviews or area reviews i.e. by taking a snapshot view or an in depth look at issues that affect people in one area of the city, or by comparing two different areas of the city. They agreed the following:-

• Importance of remaining focused on piece of work being undertaken
• Need to get balance correct between receiving updates, such as from the York Theatre Royal and York Museums Trust, and undertaking scrutiny reviews.
• Need to receive updates on the implementation of  recommendations arising from previously completed scrutiny reviews.
• To meet informally between formal meetings and add extra formal meeting dates if required, in order to increase the amount of review work undertaken within a municipal year
• To consider topics previously suggested for future reviews i.e. Extended Services for 14-18 year olds and 14 to 19 diplomas.
• Further suggestions for future reviews were needed– each group was asked to provide two suggestions– one priority and one second choice.

Members discussed the plan for the next meeting on 1 October 2009 and agreed to invite the Chairs of York@Large and the Yor OK Board. ¹

RESOLVED:             (i)         That the revised workplan be agreed.

(ii)That the Forward Plan items for the Executive, the Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services and Executive Member for Leisure, Culture and Social Inclusion be noted.

(iii)That each political group will submit 2 possible topics for future scrutiny review.

REASON:                  To progress the Committee’s workplan.