Issue - meetings

RESOLVED – that (A) the Executive response, as set out in Essential Reference Paper ‘B’, be approved:

(B)     the Corporate Business Scrutiny Committee be invited to consider and recommend practical options for implementation by November 2011.

The Executive considered a report setting out the key findings of the Community and Public Engagement Task and Finish Group.  The report also included a proposed Executive response to the recommendations.

The Leader welcomed the report and commented that the work of the task and finish group exemplified the valuable role that scrutiny enjoyed in influencing and developing the policies of the Authority.

The Executive Member for Health, Housing and Community Support thanked the task and finish group for its work and in particular, expressed gratitude to its Chairman, Councillor M Wood.  She commented on the importance of community leadership and the need for effective communications to ensure engagement with all sections of the community. 

The Executive Member welcomed the findings and suggested that Corporate Business Scrutiny Committee should be asked to explore the options and to consider how the concepts could be turned into practice.  She emphasised that this needed to be done within existing budgets and staffing resources.

A number of Members commented on Community Voice and how unsatisfactory some of them had been.  The Executive Member responded by suggesting that greater flexibility was needed as local ward councillors would know what would be most effective in their areas.

A number of comments were also made in respect of more modern communication tools, such as Facebook and Twitter.  The Executive noted that whilst some sections of the community would prefer more traditional communication, it would be important to balance this with the need to utilise new media forms to engage with younger people.

The Executive approved the recommendations as now detailed.

RESOLVED – that (A) the Executive response, as set out in Essential Reference Paper ‘B’, be approved; and

(B)     the Corporate Business Scrutiny Committee be invited to consider and recommend practical options for implementation by November 2011.

The Chairman of the Community and Public Engagement Task and Finish Group submitted a report on the findings of the Group.  It had been set up to review the current methods used by the Council to engage with the community and the public and recommend a sustainable, cost effective framework/strategy.

The strategy would ensure that the Council fulfilled its obligation on consultation and engaged with residents at a local level to bring improved opportunities and benefits to everyone in East Herts.  The Group had also aspired to link its work with the Government’s Big Society concept.

Details of the membership, methodology and objectives were given.  External and internal expert witnesses had been interviewed.  East Herts Councillors, civic societies, voluntary organisations and residents’ associations had been surveyed and the views of parish councillors and young people had been considered.

The review looked at the Council’s role as enabler, facilitator and mediator.

Councillor M Wood, Chairman of the Group highlighted the most important recommendations at the meeting.  He also thanked the Members and Officers who had been involved in the work of the Group.  He stressed the need to revise the Community Voice format.

Councillor J O Ranger referred to a number of issues which had arisen in the Group.  These included renaming Officers involved in Community and Public engagement work as the “Communty Support Team” or similar.  This would be achieved within existing budgets.

In addition, the renaming of some grants as “Pride Grants” or even ‘Community pride Grants’ where appropriate had been suggested and this would reflect one of the council’s own priorities ‘Pride in East Herts’.  Ward Members could be involved in the “signing off” of these.  The Group had thought it essential that District Councillors were  advised in advance of all planned events in their Wards e.g. visits by the Chairman.

The timetable for reviewing progress was discussed.

The Committee decided to recommend that the Executive approve the report as now detailed.

RESOLVED – that the Executive be informed that the Corporate Business Scrutiny Committee considers that:

(A)    a revised East Herts Community and Public Engagement Strategy and Framework should be drawn up in line with the principles reflected in the report now submitted;

(B)    Senior Management should:

(1)       consider whether staff involved in this work should be renamed the “Community Support Team”;

(2)       implement the recommendations within the currently agreed budget and available Officer resources; and

(C)      the Task and Finish Group should reconvene late in September 2011 to review progress and report as necessary to the Corporate Business Scrutiny Committee, meet again in March 2012 and carry out a full review in July 2012.