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Meeting of the Council of the City of Sheffield to be held on Wednesday 7th February, 2007
CITY OF SHEFFIELD
METROPOLITAN DISTRICT
COUNCIL SUMMONS
Notice is hereby given that a Meeting of the Council of the City of Sheffield
will be held in the Council Chamber within the Town Hall, Sheffield, on
Wednesday, 7th February, 2007, at 2.00 p.m.
PUBLIC INSPECTION OF DOCUMENTS AND ACCESS TO MEETINGS Council Meetings are open to the public. Admittance to the public gallery can be gained via the First Point Reception, Old Town Hall, Pinstone Street. Details of the business to be transacted can be viewed in advance at the First Point Reception which is open between 9.00 a.m. and 5.00 p.m. Monday – Thursday and between 9.00 a.m. and 4.45 p.m. on Friday, or you can ring on telephone no. 2734552. A copy of the Council Summons and any reports are also available on the Council’s website at www.sheffield.gov.uk. |
THE FOLLOWING BUSINESS IS PROPOSED TO BE TRANSACTED-
1. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS COUNCIL MEETING
To receive the record of the proceedings of the meeting of the Council held on 3rd January, 2007, and to approve the accuracy thereof.
2. PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS
To receive any questions or communications from the public, or communications submitted by the Lord Mayor or the Chief Executive and to pass such resolutions thereon as the Standing Orders permit and as may be deemed expedient.
3. MEMBERS' QUESTIONS
(a) Questions relating to urgent business - Standing Order No. A18(6).
(b) Supplementary questions on written questions submitted at this meeting - Standing Order No. A18(4).
(c) Questions on the discharge of the functions of the South Yorkshire Joint Authorities for Fire and Rescue, Passenger Transport, Pensions and Police - Section 41 of the Local Government Act, 1985 - Standing Order No. A18(6).
(d) Questions on the discharge of the functions of the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly –
Standing Order No. A18(6).
4. REPRESENTATION, DELEGATED AUTHORITY AND RELATED ISSUES
To consider any changes to the memberships and arrangements for meetings of Boards etc., delegated authority, and the appointment of representatives to serve on other bodies.
5. ITEMS REFERRED TO COUNCIL
CORPORATE CAPITAL STRATEGY AND 3 YEAR FORWARD CAPITAL PROGRAMME
To consider a decision which was referred by the Cabinet at its meeting held on 10th January, 2007.
HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT, REVENUE BUDGET AND RENT INCREASES 2007/08
To consider a decision which was referred by the Cabinet at its meeting held on 24th January, 2007.
MANOR AND CASTLE STOCK TRANSFER AGREEMENTS
To consider a decision which was referred by the Cabinet at its meeting held on 24th January, 2007.
6. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR GILL FURNISS
That this Council:
(a) reaffirms its commitment to working to achieve environmental excellence and a sustainable future for Sheffield;
(b) wholeheartedly welcomes ‘Sheffield Is My Planet’ week, which is taking place during the week of this Council meeting, with a series of events organised by a partnership involving Sheffield City Council, DLA Piper, Sheffield First Environment Partnership and The University of Sheffield;
(c) notes that Former US Vice President Al Gore is to make the keynote address at the global climate change conference ‘Cooling The Planet’ being held in Sheffield on the day of this Council meeting and welcomes Mr Gore to the UK’s greenest City;
(d) notes that since 2000 Al Gore, who is now an environmental adviser to the UK Government, has focused his life on an environmental crusade to save the planet from irrevocable change;
(e) believes that it is excellent for the City to host such a prestigious event which will bring leaders of regional, national and international business together to address the major climate change challenges that threaten economic sustainability; and
(f) hopes that the events that have been organised as part of ‘Sheffield Is My Planet’ week serve to highlight to the people of Sheffield the changes that we can all make to our lives to achieve a more sustainable future for our City.
7. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR SYLVIA ANGINOTTI
That this Council:
(a) believes that every parent in Sheffield is entitled to expect a quality education for their children, and that this is the basis for each individual and our City as a whole being able to achieve full potential;
(b) accordingly notes with concern that:
(i) the present administration have missed every single mainstream pupil attainment target bar one in the 2006/2007 Best Value Performance Plan;
(ii) attainment at Key Stage 2, which was recently described by the present Executive
Director, Children and Young People, as “unacceptable”, is failing to improve and the gap between Sheffield and the national average is getting wider; and
(iii) the gap between Sheffield and the national average on the percentage of pupils
gaining five or more A*- C GCSE grades is widening, both on the old measure and the new measure that includes Maths and English results;
(c) is therefore alarmed that pupil attainment is failing to reach targets at every level despite hard work from teachers, parents and pupils;
(d) believes it is vital that this Council raises its expectations of what young people across the City can achieve with the right support and encouragement, and calls for targeted intervention and support where attainment is the worst so all children and young people regardless of where they live get the best possible start in life;
(e) believes that this failure is due to the present administration, and specifically their:
(i) failure to constantly challenge convention and seek new and innovative ways to improve performance;
(ii) failure to improve partnership working within the LEA whilst also weakening the LEA family by supporting Academy and Trust Schools;
(iii) failure to support individual schools and their communities;
(iv) misguided view that the introduction of ‘Service Districts’ will solve the problem of poor pupil attainment;
(v) lack of political leadership and ambition that is so clearly needed at this time to challenge the norm rather than timidly follow Government policy that isn’t working; and
(vi) failure to deliver ongoing satisfactory and marked improvements despite increased levels of investment nationally;
(f) has no confidence in the ability of the present administration to improve the quality of education offered to Sheffield’s pupils and their parents, and believes that a step change in Education Policy is needed if the required improvements are to be achieved;
(g) directs that a “Sheffield’s Future – Improving Education” taskforce is set up with the mission of producing a radical action plan aimed at not just closing the pupil attainment gap between Sheffield and the national average at every level, but ensuring that Sheffield pupils reach their full potential and that we look to overtake the national average;
(h) directs that the taskforce should have a timescale of six months, report back to a meeting of full Council and comprising senior Council officers, key Members from each political group and representatives of parents, teachers, headteachers, local business representatives and experts on educational attainment from both Universities; the taskforce should primarily investigate the reasons behind poor educational achievement in Sheffield and look at best practice in other Local Education Authorities to move Sheffield forward; and
(i) directs the Chief Executive to report back to the next meeting of full Council outlining how the “Sheffield’s Future – Improving Education” taskforce will be facilitated.
8. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR TERRY FOX
That this Council:
(a) notes that Sheffield City Council used to operate a policy of limitation on the number of hackney carriages licensed in Sheffield, although the limitation did could not apply to private hire vehicles;
(b) further notes that in November 2000, the City Council, whilst under the control of the current main opposition group, resolved to remove the limit on the number of hackney carriages operating in the City;
(c) understands that prior to November 2000 the number of hackney carriages in Sheffield had been limited to 300, while the number of private hire vehicles in Sheffield at that time was around 1,100;
(d) notes that there are now around 710 hackney carriages, and around 1044 private hire vehicles operating in the City;
(e) notes that following an ‘Office of Fair Trading’ report of 2003, the Government announced that it considered that the removal of limitation of hackney carriage numbers to be best practice;
(f) is aware that under the Transport Act (1985) local authorities are allowed to limit the number of hackney carriages operating within their area if, and only if, they are satisfied that there would be no significant unmet demand for hackney carriages by so doing;
(g) further notes that unmet demand encompasses both on-street demand and latent demand;
(h) recognises that the Cabinet, at its meeting of 14th September, 2005, received a report of the Strategic Resources and Performance Scrutiny and Policy Development Board on the outcome of their detailed investigation into issues relating to taxis and that arising therefrom, the Licensing Board, at its meeting on 25th October, 2005, resolved that there should be no change to the current policy on hackney carriage numbers at that time;
(i) accepts that there is a considerable divergence of views on whether or not there is sufficient hackney carriage provision in the Ccity and therefore deems that an independent opinion on taxi (both hackney carriage and private hire) provision in Sheffield would be helpful; and
(j) therefore instructs the Chief Executive to commission an independent survey on taxi provision in Sheffield funded via the Local Transport Plan and report back to the appropriate body on any action which may be required.
9. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR GRAHAM OXLEY
That this Council:
(a) regrets the loss of 46 local Post Offices between 1999 and 2005 in Sheffield and notes with concern the announcement by the Government on 14th December, 2006 of Ministers' plans to close a further 2500 Post Office branches across the UK;
(b) further notes the social importance of Post Offices to the well being of both sustainable communities and individuals in Sheffield;
(c) believes that the recently announced closure programme is unnecessary and calls on the Government to:-
(i) end the branch closure programme;
(ii) remove the Royal Mail restrictions on the Post Office to open up further business opportunities for the network;
(iii) stop removing Government business from Post Offices;
(iv) carry out a review of which additional Government functions could be carried out through Post Offices; and
(v) invest in the Post Office network;
(d) welcomes the decision of the Government to withdraw its previous proposals to scrap completely the Post Office Card Account (POCA) but calls on Ministers to ensure that any replacement POCA should be open freely to all pensioners and benefit recipients who want one;
(e) calls on the Government to avoid putting pressure on current and future POCA users to switch to having benefits and pensions paid directly into bank accounts;
(f) calls on all the local Members of Parliament in Sheffield to lobby Ministers to save the Post Office from gradual demolition and to protect this vital service for the people;
(g) further calls on all the local Sheffield Members of Parliament to report back to this Council on their actions to this end, including their personal voting record on the issue for the last five years; and
(h) directs that a copy of this Motion be sent to all local Sheffield Members of Parliament, the relevant Government Ministers and the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters.
10. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR JAN WILSON
That this Council:
(a) believes that in order to best serve the interests of local people it is vital for the City Council to actively communicate with local residents;
(b) agrees with the statement contained within the report published in 2002 by the project ‘Connecting with Communities’ that:
“Councils are among the most important institutions of our society. They are there to represent the interests of all our communities. At their best, they aspire to the highest standards of service provision. They give leadership to other public, private and voluntary sector bodies in a constant striving for a better quality of life. Communications lie at the centre of these roles… Good communications is both a duty and an opportunity. A duty to reach out to all people, whoever and wherever they are, to bring them into community life. An opportunity to learn from others, to share excellence, to give direction, to celebrate success, to acknowledge weakness.”;
(c) notes that the Connecting with Communities project was set up by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, the Local Government Association, The Improvement and Development Agency and the Audit Commission, to improve communications in Local Government;
(d) notes that there are many useful ways of communicating with local people including via the Council’s website, via local radio and television stations and local print media;
(e) however further notes that there is substantial evidence to suggest that direct communications improve residents’ overall levels of feeling well-informed and involved, and believes therefore that direct communications with local people are also very important;
(f) notes the recent communications and consultation exercise ‘Your Council, Your Say’, the biggest communications exercise the Council has ever organised and notes that more than 9000 Sheffield residents took part in the exercise;
(g) notes that the three questions which local people were asked to answer as part of the communications exercise were chosen because of their relevance to the Council’s ‘Cleaner, Greener, Safer’ priorities, and because of a desire to ask residents questions about key services, so that future decisions regarding those services would be directly influenced by local people’s views; and
(h) thanks the thousands of Sheffield residents who took the time to give their views about how the Council should deliver services for local people.
11. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR ANDREW SANGAR
That this Council:
(a) recognises that recycling is a local tool in the battle against climate change as it brings benefits including less landfill and incineration, less air pollution, less energy use, reduced impacts of extracting materials and more efficient use of finite resources;
(b) therefore resolves that this Council has a responsibility to do all it can to enable the people of Sheffield to recycle via kerbside collection;
(c) notes that national and international research shows kerbside recycling is one of the most popular and successful ways that the people of Sheffield are able to recycle;
(d) believes that new ways of increasing the amount of kerbside recycling, including looking at recycling additional materials and working with local communities encouraging local employment, should be investigated in order to increase recycling rates further ; and
(e) therefore directs that the Chief Executive report back to the next meeting of full Council outlining new ways that the Council can increase kerbside recycling, specifically looking at recycling additional materials, with the aim of introducing such a scheme in Sheffield.
12. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR ANNE SMITH
That this Council:
(a) notes that sustainable and renewable energy sources are becoming increasingly important to this City, the Country and the Planet;
(b) notes that an increased number of planning applications to erect wind turbines have been received by this Council, and that more are likely to follow;
(c) further notes that Sheffield City Council has no planning guidelines against which to assess applications for wind turbines; and
(d) therefore resolves that this Council urgently draws up detailed Supplementary Planning Guidelines against which applications for wind turbines can be thoroughly and consistently assessed.
13. NOTICE OF MOTION GIVEN BY COUNCILLOR ANNE SMITH
That this Council:
(a) notes that garden grabbing by developers, is having a serious adverse effect on many rural and suburban areas of Sheffield;
(b) further notes, that this Council proudly promotes Sheffield as cleaner, greener, safer, but refuses to acknowledge that if this garden grabbing is allowed to continue, it will lead to an unprecedented loss of our green and leafy heritage and Sheffield's reputation as a green City;
(c) also notes, that as one garden site is sold off and developed, owners of neighbouring gardens often find it hard to refuse prices being offered by developers and whole roads, that were once of a green and wooded appearance, are littered with ugly blocks of flats and high density housing;
(d) further notes, that in 2000, the re-classification by Government of suburban gardens as brownfield sites, diminished them in law to the status of former industrial waste lands, therefore helping Government meet its target of 200,000 new homes to be built each year up to 2016;
(e) believes that many new developments in suburban Sheffield, are often the wrong size, the wrong shape and out of context with the surrounding area, and bear no resemblance to what the public actually want;
(f) notes that if we squander gardens, trees and green vegetation, which are so important in helping to combat climate change, we will be exacerbating the well being of future generations; and
(g) therefore resolves to:
(i) attach much higher importance to the protection of our green heritage;
(ii) put pressure on the Government to protect gardens and open spaces, by changing planning rules to give much stronger protection to green spaces and to maintaining the character of local neighbourhoods; and
(iii) at the same time give local communities a much stronger say on where new housing developments take place.
14. OBSERVATIONS
To receive observations on the minutes of the meetings of the various Council bodies for the period 16th December, 2006 to 19th January, 2007.
Dated this 30th day of January, 2007
Chief Executive
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