To receive a report from the Assistant Director, Corporate.

James Gilbert, Assistant Director - Corporate presented Members with the Performance and Governance Framework – Quarter 3 Monitoring Report 2023/24 (October to December 2023), pages 125 to 172 of the Agenda refer.

The report brought together information relating to the Council’s Performance and Governance Framework at the end of Quarter 3 2023/24.

The Assistant Director - Corporate advised Members that four questions had been received in advance of the meeting and responses were provided as follows:

·         Under the Regulatory heading, Q3 saw 557 FPNs for Litter which was double the number for Q2 which included the visitor season.  It was queried if there was an identified reason for the increase, page 135 of the Agenda refers.   The Assistant Director – Corporate explained that the figure was higher than previous quarters as the Council now had a full capacity of staff in the enforcement service.  It was further advised that the Envirocrime contract was at zero cost to the Council and was providing enforcement.

·         An explanation was requested in relation to more FPNs being paid than outstanding and noting that payment rate percentage was lower than Q1 and Q2,  page 136 of the Agenda refers.   The Assistant Director – Corporate advised that this had occurred due to the rollover from one quarter to the next and this depended on when FPN’s were issued as they were not always paid immediately.

·         Under the Leisure and Culture heading, Q3 market stall occupancy rate was lower than the previous year's Q3.   It was queried if this was a reflection of the weather and cancellation of markets, page 139 of the Agenda refers.  The Assistant Director – Corporate confirmed that no markets had taken place between the 25^th December 2023 and 1^st January 2024 due to bad weather and this had impacted upon the figures.

·         Under the Corporate heading, an explanation was requested where the staff turnover percentage for Q3 appeared significantly high, page 143 of the Agenda refers.   The Assistant Director – Corporate acknowledged that the figure for staff turnover Q3 2023/24 noted as 9.11% needed to be amended to 3%.

Members were invited to put their comments and questions forward.

·         A Member queried if questions were able to be asked on the day of the meeting.  The Chairman clarified that submitting questions in advance improved the likelihood of obtaining specific responses, however questions were still welcomed during the meeting.

·         In relation to risk, a Member queried what the ‘Identification and Suitability of future Depot Accommodation’ risk included, page 127 of the Agenda refers.   The Assistant Director – Corporate explained that additional housing developments resulted in increased waste which required more vehicles and waste capacity.  The implication was that the existing depots may not be of a suitable size to accommodate the requirements.  An update providing clarification on the risk was to be provided to the Committee at the next Meeting. 

·         On homelessness, a Member recognised that there was people who chose not to receive help and emphasised with officers who dealt with those who did not want assistance, page 131 of the Agenda refers.  It was queried if figures were available on those who did not accept assistance.  In response, the Assistant Director – Corporate explained that the Housing Team were aware who did not want to engage and advised that figures could be obtained and provided to the Committee.

·         In relation to ‘Percentage of car parking income received against agreed annual’, a Member commented that car parking policies needed to be re-examined and that free car parking should be provided to encourage people to go shopping in town centres, page 153 of the Agenda refers.  In response the Chairman advised that free parking was available in all market towns on ELDC owned land. 

A Member commented that there was a shortage in free carparking and that the issue was convenience and not the cost of parking.

The Portfolio Holder for Community Safety, Leisure and Culture, and Carbon Reduction commented that a carpark in Alford was gifted by the Council on an asset transfer and that the implementation of free parking had not impacted on footfall in shops which supported the need for a mixture of free and paid carparking options to generate a greater turnover of people.

No further comments or questions were received.

Following which it was,

RESOLVED:

That the Performance and Governance Framework Q3 2023/24 Reportbe noted.