Agenda item

Task and Finish Group Updates/Reports

To consider the Management Board Task and Finish Group report on Localities and Neighbourhood Working.

Minutes:

Localities and Neighbourhood Working Review

The Chair introduced the Task and Finish Group report on Localities and Neighbourhood Working and offered a vote of thanks to all those who had been involved.  Councillor Lowry offered his support to the report and its recommendations but suggested that the cost of localities working had been overlooked.  He noted that one of the recommendations was that a further review would be undertaken in 2012 and suggested that, in order to better inform the next review, the cost in officer time attributed to localities working between now and then should be recorded.

Members of the Board welcomed the report and agreed to recommend to Cabinet all of the following recommendations, subject to the inclusion of Councillor Lowry’s proposal to cost the amount of officer time spent on localities working –

(1)

 

Locality and Neighbourhood Working should be renamed Neighbourhood Working;

 

(2)

 

Locality Teams as set up as part of Locality and Neighbourhood Working arrangements in February 2010 should be discontinued. A member of the Council’s Senior Management Team (SMT) should be nominated for each Ward within the city, with designated duties with respect to support for Ward Councillors and Neighbourhood Working. The Lead Ward Councillor decision should be rescinded;

 

(3)

 

best practice protocols regarding neighbourhood meeting arrangements should be produced and shared amongst Neighbourhood Liaison Officers and newly designated SMT members with a view to promoting, implementing and monitoring consistent high quality arrangements;

 

(4)

 

the role and identity of members should be included in publicity regarding neighbourhood meetings;

 

(5)

 

Neighbourhood Liaison Officer (NLO) roles should be reviewed to ensure that skill sets of individuals match the demands of the job.  Specific training needs analysis should be carried out to ensure training and development is available where needed.  Line managers of NLOs should include the role within the NLO’s personal objectives, and seek feedback from Members at appraisal.  NLO’s and their line managers should ensure that the role is integral to, rather than in addition to their work programme, and that adequate support is available to assist them in the role;

 

(6)

 

revised arrangements should be commended to Plymouth 2020 partnership and, subject to agreement be publicised and briefed to relevant stakeholders from all agencies and to residents;

 

(7)

 

analysis of repeat issues in Neighbourhoods, and of complaints should be undertaken to ensure that the necessary learning is taking place.  This practice should be included in best practice protocols for Neighbourhood Working;

 

(8)

 

a review is undertaken by the Customers and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Panel and a report submitted to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board with respect to the role of community infrastructure and community anchor organisations in supporting neighbourhood working;

 

(9)

 

the Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board takes responsibility for ensuring that neighbourhood level interaction takes place with key health agencies;

 

(10)

 

plans are put in place to adopt the proposed boundary changes set out in the overview report;

 

(11)

 

Neighbourhood Profiles are reviewed and updated in line with the findings and recommendations of this review;

 

(12)

 

a review is undertaken of communication methods around neighbourhood working, with recommendations back to the Customers and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Panel;

 

(13)

 

the Constitution be updated to reflect revised member and officer accountability arrangements for Neighbourhoods and Wards;

 

(14)

 

a review of these arrangements is carried out as a Task and Finish Group in July 2012.

 

Supporting documents: