Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and introductions were made.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr James Hockney, Cllr Mike Rye and Cllr Mohammad Islam. Cllr Hockney was substituted by Cllr Paul Pratt.
Cllr Rye was substituted by Cllr Edward Smith.

Apologies for lateness were also received from Cllr Bektas Ozer.

Members of the Council are invited to identify any disclosable pecuniary, other pecuniary or non-pecuniary interests relevant to the items on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive the report of Jon Sharkey, Head of Public Realm.

RECEIVED the report of Jon Sharkey (Head of Public Realm).

Main parts of the report were highlighted which included the challenges faced in preventing fly tipping in the Borough and the work undertaken across the Council to address this issue. Additional measures had been taken to reduce fly tipping in the borough which included free larger recycling and replacement bins, easier process for residents to make requests for larger bins, IT improvements and larger capacity refuse collection vehicles. It was also advised that four additional fly-tip removal crews had now been deployed to Council Housing Estates along with three additional refuse collection crews. Information and education are also provided to residents which includes information posters in multi-languages as well as labelled bins to avoid confusion. Two dedicated Waste Enforcement Officers have also been retained, and their role includes investigating reported witnessed fly tipping/dumped waste, proactive patrols searching waste (pink bags), partnership working with the Street Cleansing Team, as well as visiting businesses and working with the Police and Resident and Ward Forums.

Despite these attempts and where fly tipping persists, Officers advised that enforcement action will then take place. This includes the issue of Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs), Statutory Notices/Warnings and these may ultimately result in prosecution through the courts. The Waste Enforcement Team have also started to utilise CCTV to assist in the investigation of waste offences and it is anticipated that greater use of CCTV will be undertaken as more cameras are brought online and this area is expanded.

Further information was provided on new initiatives and ongoing work which included targeted enforcement days, community payback, communications campaign, posts on social media and floor stencils in hot spot locations.

Questions and comments were invited from Panel members.

In response to a question regarding the ‘Free Bulky Waste’ leaflet shown on page 15 of the PowerPoint presentation,  Cllr Jewell, Cabinet Member for Environment confirmed that this had been printed in various languages. The Chair as well as Cllr Chinelo, Cabinet Member for Public Spaces, Culture & Economy suggested that this leaflet be placed in Councillors’ pigeon-holes which could then be distributed to residents by Councillors on their walkabouts and at Ward Surgeries. Action: Officers

In response to a member’s question regarding the number of FPNs issued it was confirmed that the authority had handed out more than 9,000 fly-tipping and littering fines and made 1,550 prosecutions during 2022/23. Cllr Jewell also added that Enfield Council also issues between 35 and 40 FPNs every month for spitting, which further shows the commitment to tackling people that treat the streets badly.

Further clarity was sought regarding the table on page 28 of the report, and it was agreed that following the meeting, Cllr Pratt would email his specific questions to Officers (via the Governance & Scrutiny Officer) for a detailed response, which would then be circulated to the Overview & Scrutiny Committee for information. Action: Officers

Reference was made to the Labour Group’s Manifesto pledge in 2022 of installing an extra 200 CCTV cameras  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

To receive the report of Matthew Watts, Assistant Head of Commercial Services.

(This item contains exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 (information relating to the financial or business affairs of any person – including the authority holding that information) of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, as amended).

RECEIVED the report of Matthew Watts, Assistant Head of Commercial Services.

NOTED that this report was considered in conjunction with the information in the Part 2 Agenda.

Main parts of the report were highlighted which outlined how leisure services are currently structured and delivered within the London Borough of Enfield and how the Council’s leisure offer will be managed in the future. The leisure landscape of the Borough is complex, both in terms of local authority provision, the number and variety of sports clubs, and the services provided by the private sector.

Sports and fitness facilities in Enfield are facing ongoing challenges from the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis. Leisure charity Fusion Lifestyle, which manages Arnos Pool, Bramley Bowl Centre and the council’s four leisure centres in Edmonton Green, Southbury, Enfield Wash and Southgate has been severely affected by the pandemic. Officers added that while there are some signs or recovery, Fusion’s revenues are projected to be only 65% of their pre-pandemic level, largely because those in the over-50 age group have failed to return to the centres in their previous numbers. Furthermore, since mid-December, Albany, Edmonton and Southbury leisure centres have been experiencing a significant number of maintenance faults that have impacted on the availability of the swimming pools, while air temperature has also been below acceptable levels. Detailed contract and health & safety audits have also been undertaken and additional contract management processes and scrutiny have been applied to the service to help Officers understand the management and operational situation to inform decisions regarding future service provision. To address these issues Officers advised that an improvement plan had recently been agreed with Fusion’s senior managers, which was being reviewed on a weekly basis, and it was hoped that this would bring stability back to the service.

Active Enfield, a council run programme of physical activities aimed particularly at older people has also seen a reduction in the number of people attending since the pandemic. In 2019/20, there were around 18,000 attendances, but this figure dropped to 12,000 in 2021/22. It was advised that the council expects attendances to recover to 15,000 in 2022/23 and hopes that they will return to pre-pandemic levels by 2025. But it was noted that the cost-of-living crisis is a key challenge for the service, with some residents unable to prioritise physical activity and leisure. The council aims to tackle this by keeping the cost of sessions as low as possible.

Funded projects have also been set up to boost sports and leisure provision and it was advised that the Council had secured a £10,000 grant to provide swimming lessons for people with disabilities and has received 100 applications for the programme since it launched in January. The Government has awarded the Council £440,000 to deliver a five-year ‘active through football’ programme which will work with people from Edmonton and the South-East of the borough. The scheme aims to target people with mental health difficulties and women aged over 16, who were the most  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

To note the completion of the Work Programme for 2022/23 and that the Overview and Scrutiny Committee Work Programme for 2023/24 will be discussed at the first meeting of the new municipal year.

NOTED the completion of the Work Programme For 2022/23, and that the Overview & Scrutiny Committee Work Programme for 2023/24 will be discussed at the first meeting of the new municipal year.

It was agreed that the following item be deferred to the Overview & Scrutiny Work Programme 2023/24:

·         Following merger of five NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) – Update on Enfield Borough partnership Integrated care Board/Systems.

To note the dates of the future meetings will be confirmed following Annual Council on Wednesday 10 May 2023.

NOTED that the dates of future meetings will be confirmed following Annual Council on Wednesday 10 May 2023.

The Chair thanked all Members of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee for their contributions over the past year. She also extended her thanks to the Committee Secretary, Marie Lowe for all her hard work and wished her success in her new role.

To consider passing a resolution under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972 excluding the press and public from the meeting for the items of business listed on part 2 of the agenda on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in those paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006). (Members are asked to refer to the part 2 agenda.)

AGENDA – PART 2

A resolution was passed under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972 excluding the press and public from the meeting for the items of business listed on part 2 of the agenda on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in those paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006).

Item 5 above refers.

NOTED the information in the Part 2 Report, and officer responses to Members’ queries.

AGREED that another update would come to the Overview & Scrutiny Committee as and when further information became available.