Agenda item

Councillor Fraser – Chair of Community Safety Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Councillor Boyce – Chair of Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Councillor Looker – Chair of Learning and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee will be in attendance to provide an overview of their committee’s work and to highlight the key achievements in 2010/11.

In accordance with the council’s Constitution, Chairs of the Scrutiny Committees were required to report to SMC on a bi-annual basis.  The Chairs of the following scrutiny committees were in attendance to provide an overview of their committee’s work and to highlight the key achievements in 2010/11.

(i)         Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Councillor Boyce informed Members that the Health Overview & Scrutiny Committee had been extremely active.  As well as holding eight full committee meetings, there had been numerous task group meetings.  Members of the community often participated at meetings under the council’s Participation Scheme, and health professionals and representatives from the voluntary sector were regular attendees.  The committee worked closely with key partners including the hospital, PCT, the Ambulance Service and York LINks.

Details were given of some of the issues that had been considered by the committee including the Department of Health “Transforming Community Services” programme. The Executive, via SMC, had referred an item on the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment to the committee and a presentation had been received on this issue.   The committee gave regular consideration to monitoring and performance reports, including reports from partner organisations.

The committee had carried out the following reviews:

·        Childhood Obesity – the recommendations of which had been generally supported by the Executive.

·        Carers – this report was due to be considered by the Executive later in the month.

Consideration had also been given to carrying out a review on issues surrounding maternity services to new mothers.  After having received a presentation on this issue, the committee had been satisfied with the responses put forward and had decided not to proceed with a review.

The committee was represented on a regional joint health committee that had been established to look at issues in respect of the national review of children’s cardiac surgery services. 

The Executive Member for Health and Adult Social Services and the Chair of SMC had attended meetings of the committee.

(ii)            Learning and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Councillor Looker explained how the remit of the Learning and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee had been extended from that of the former Education Scrutiny Committee and now included issues in respect of leisure and heritage. 

Details were given of the scrutiny review that the committee had carried out on casual play opportunities and the ways in which the committee had been involved in pre-decision/early scrutiny.   It had been particularly useful for the committee to have been able to contribute to the drawing-up of the council’s new play policy and play provision. 

The committee had also proposed to carry out a review on youth service provision but, in view of the current financial situation, it had been decided that it would be more appropriate for the committee to receive regular updates from senior officers and to work with them as the remodelling of youth service provision continued. 

As part of their monitoring role, the committee had given particular attention to the budget for Looked After Children, as expenditure on this provision was often difficult to predict.  The committee also received regular reports from York Theatre Royal and York Museums Trust.

The Executive Member for Children and Young People’s Services had attended committee meetings and responded to questions put forward by committee members.  The committee had also received briefings from officers on issues including the government’s new education policies and the possible implications for York. 

(iii)            Community Safety Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Owing to the late start of the meeting, Councillor Fraser was unable to be present to deliver a report on the work of the Community Safety Overview & Scrutiny Committee and the report was therefore deferred.

Councillors Boyce and Looker were thanked for their informative reports.

RESOLVED:            (i)            That the reports from the Chairs of the Health Overview &

Scrutiny Committee and the Learning and Culture Overview & Scrutiny Committee be noted.

(ii)That thanks be recorded to Members serving on scrutiny committees for the work that they had carried out.

REASON:      To ensure that SMC is updated on the work of scrutiny committees in accordance with the council’s Constitution.