Minutes of the North West Scrutiny Support Officers’ Network

Friday, 13th November 2009

Blackburn Town Hall (Council Chamber)

Present:

Blackburn with Darwen - Ben Aspinall (Chair)
Blackpool - Steve Sienkiewicz and Laura Latham
Burnley BC - Eric Dickinson
Bury MBC - Leigh Webb and Julie Edwards
CfPS / IDeA - Su Turner
Cheshire East Council - Katie Smith, Mark Nedderman and Denise French
Chorley Council - Ruth Rimmington
Cheshire West and Chester Council - David Jones
Fylde BC - Annie Womack
GMPA - Roland Howard
Halton BC - Alex Villers
Hyndburn BC - Helen Gee and Ben Caulfield
Knowsley MBC - Hannah Easby
Lancashire County Council - Wendy Broadley
Lancaster City - Jane Glenton
Manchester City Council - Courtney Brightwell and Carolyn Whewell
NHS Sefton - Katie Dutton
NWEO - Sue Baxendale
Oldham MBC - Sangita Patel
Pendle BC - Kath Haydock
Ribble Valley BC - Bill Alker
St Helens Council - Joanne Heron
Salford MBC - Karen Lucas
Sefton Council - Ruth Appleby, Ian Barton and Debbie Campbell
Stockport MBC - Gaynor Alexander
Tameside MBC - Howard Boots, Gina Murphy and Nicola Hine
Warrington BC - Helen Stanley
Wirral Council - Alan Veitch
Wyre BC - Sharon Marsh

Apologies:

AGMA - Dave Fletcher
Blackburn with Darwen - John Addison
Bolton MBC - Sabeena Wootton
Halton BC - Emma Bragger
Liverpool City Council - Joan Leonard
NHS North West - Chris Joseph
Rochdale MBC - Peter Jones
Rossendale BC - Patricia Couch
Salford MBC - Karen Dainty, Carole Chapman and Linda Sharples
South Ribble Borough Council - Darren Cranshaw
Stockport MBC - Nicola Ward and Steve Callender
Warrington BC - Julian Joinson, Alison Williams and Julia Sykes
West Lancashire Borough Council - Jacky Denning and Cathryn Jackson

1. Notes of the Last Meeting

The notes of the previous meeting of the network, held on 10th July 2009 were agreed as a true and accurate record.

The agenda items were sequentially changed in order that Items 2 and 3 could be presented together.

2. Implementing a Successful Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP)

Ben Aspinall, Scrutiny and Elections Support Manager at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council gave a presentation on Implementing a successful Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership. The presentation included:

• Who the responsible authorities were.
• Who the co-operating bodies were.
• How scrutiny and community safety worked together, ie:
  • Well founded relationships
  • The scrutiny role – accountability
  • Selling the scrutiny brand
  • Positive relationships
  • End product remaining strategic
  • The speed of change
• Who accounts to who.
• Duty to involve - focus on the outcome not the process
• Performance framework:
  • Benchmarks
  • Only a player – not directly focussed on Council function
• Information (sharing, format, storage, usage, disposal):
  • All partners do not use the same systems/servers
  • How can you use information from the CDRP
  • Data security

The presentation was followed with a question and answer session.

3. Health Inequalities Programme and North West Employers Organistion (NWEO) Additional Funds

Su Turner (Principal Consultant at the Centre for Public Scrutiny and the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) Healthy Communities Team) began by outlining the programme for tackling health inequalities and the timetable involved. She hoped that the meeting would produce some ideas for developing bids for the North West.

The CfPS/IDeA were looking to highlight four Scrutiny Development Areas and produce Scrutiny Resource Kits.

The deadline for applications was 15th December. The Development Areas would be identified in January 2010, followed by scoping meetings in February 2010. From March to November 2010 the pilots would carry out reviews, culminating in the national launch of the resource kit and evaluation in early 2011.

Sue Baxendale (North West Employers Organisation) then explained about the NWEO Member Development Gateway securing Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnership (RIEP) funding for 2009/10 to support a number of member related projects; one of the key areas being the role of scrutiny in tackling health inequalities. The NWEO felt that working with the CfPS initiative could improve the national bid. They felt a number of councils working together on a bid, rather than alone would highlight issues that were key to all areas involved and strengthen the bid.

They were looking to find two bids to showcase good practice in the North West and wanted project examples from the meeting.

Each bid would require a lead authority and it was noted that although a number of councils will be going through elections in May, the project needed to continue through until the end, even if there is a change of political leadership.

The meeting broke into small groups to discuss areas which were felt to highlight inequalities in health. Examples suggested included:

• Teenage conception
• Alcohol
• Infant mortality / breast feeding
• Life expectancy
• Unemployment
• Smoking
• Physical activity
• More affluent areas still scoring red on health inequalities

Interested authorities should contact Su Turner to confirm their intention of completing the bid, either directly or via Gina Murphy.

Sue Baxendale also made note of further funding available via RIEP to scope out a regional review on worklessness. This would be co-ordinated centrally through the NWEO Members Gateway.

4. Chair of the North West Scrutiny Support Officers' Network

The meeting was invited to appoint a replacement for the Chair of the Network and a representative on the National Networks Forum (due to Howard Boots retiring at the end of March 2010).

Howard outlined the importance of the National Networks Forum and the need for the North West to be represented by someone able to speak and act with authority and knowledge on behalf of the members of this Network.

It was agreed that Steve Sienkiewicz, Blackpool Borough Council, be appointed as Chair of the Network and the Network’s representative on the Scrutiny Networks National Forum.

Steve thanked Howard on behalf of the Network for the massive contribution that he had made in promoting and working with and on behalf of the Network from its inception.

Gina Murphy will notify Ed Hammond, CfPS, of the appointment.

5. Items for Future Agendas

Proposed items for future agendas included:

• David Crausby, MP (Chair of the North West Select Committee) had been invited to the next meeting to talk to members about how he sees regional select committees operating.
• A presentation on City Region Scrutiny – AGMA from Steve Callender, Stockport.
• Laura Latham from Blackpool Council suggested presenting an item on the Joint Roles of Scrutiny and Democratic Services and the Association of Democratic Service Officers (ADSO).
• Round up on efficiency savings and the impact on the scrutiny function. How are we going to do things differently with less? The positive/dynamic/creative solutions.

6. Any Other Business

Howard Boots informed the meeting that Dave Fletcher from the AGMA Policy and Research Unit in Wigan was taking early retirement. If anyone wanted to send Dave their best wishes, his email address could be obtained from Howard.

7. Arrangements for the Next Meeting

The next meeting of the Network will take place on Friday, 19th March 2010, from 10.00am (for a 10.30am start) in Committee Room 1, Tameside Council, Council Offices, Wellington Road, Ashton-under-Lyne OL6 6DL.