Agenda item

The Leader of the Council presented a Statement outlining his recent work since the previous meeting of the Council.

 

Update from COVID-19 Member Led Local Outbreak Control Board

(Paragraph 1 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Peters and Cllr Snape paid tribute to the hard work of the County Council and the NHS in tackling the Covid pandemic in their respective areas and for the roll-out of the vaccination programme.  Cllr Snape did however express concern about the impact of the pandemic on access to GP services with many residents being unable to get face-to-face consultations with their GP.  In response, Cllr McMahon indicated that this was a complex issue and that, due to the pandemic, GP surgery waiting rooms were not the place for vulnerable people to be.  He added that the “productivity” of surgeries had fallen as a consequence of them needing to be Covid secure.

 

Cllr Charlotte Atkins and Cllr Woodward expressed their concerns about the poor performance of the national Test and Trace system and indicated that it provided poor value for money and that contact tracing could be more effectively carried out by local public health teams. 

 

Cllr Winnington praised the work of Nexus Cares in supporting lateral flow testing across the County.  He also paid tribute to the NHS in respect of the roll-out of the vaccination programme in Staffordshire.

 

Cllr Flunder enquired as to what more could be done to support care homes and, in particular, to work towards relatives of residents being given increased access to visit their loved ones.

 

In response to issues raised by Members, Cllr McMahon indicated that infection rates across Staffordshire were falling and that vaccination rates in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, with over 500,000 people being vaccinated to date, were higher than in any other parts of the Country.  He also added that he was heartened by the fall in hospital admissions due to Covid.  With regard to Test and Trace, Cllr McMahon stated that he agreed with Cllrs Charlotte Atkins and Woodward that this could be undertaken more effectively locally and that the Leader of the Council had written to the Government to ask for more local autonomy in responding to the pandemic.

 

Staffordshire Means Back to Business: Investing in our Economy

(Paragraph 2 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Winnington spoke about the work of the Council’s Destination Management Partnership and the opportunities to relaunch the tourism and hospitality sectors in the County as many people would be taking “staycations”.

 

Cllr Deaville and Cllr Pert added that they supported the investment in the Destination Management Partnership and the many initiatives that the Council had introduced to support the Staffordshire economy.

 

Cllr Philip White thanked Members for their comments and added that unemployment rates in the County remained low.  He also referred to the creation of new jobs including at JCB and on the i54 site in South Staffordshire.  He added that the proposed creation of a freeport at East Midlands airport would also have a beneficial impact on A38/A50 corridor in Staffordshire.

 

Climate Change Strategic Development Framework

(Paragraph 3 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Brookes, Cllr Philip Atkins and Cllr Winnington referred to the valuable contribution the agricultural sector made to the UK economy, what farmers were doing to tackle climate change, and the plans for the sector to become carbon neutral.  Cllr Philip Atkins also spoke about the need for reforms to the planning system to enable farmers to diversify more easily.

 

Cllr Charlotte Atkins enquired as to which key stakeholders the Council had been working with in respect of its climate agenda and whether this included Keele University.  In response, Cllr Jessel confirmed that she had recently met with representatives from Keele University to discuss how the University, the County Council and other partners could continue to work together to drive forward the climate change agenda.

 

Cllr Flunder expressed his thanks to Cllr Jessel for attending the recent Parish Council Assembly in the Staffordshire Moorlands at which she spoke about what the County Council was doing, in partnership with others, to tackle climate change.

 

Cllr Woodward spoke about the role of Members in being local champions to promote “act local – think global”.  She also referred to the pledges Members had been asked to make as to how they, individually, would help to address the issue of climate change.  In response, Cllr Jessel indicated that it was proposed as part of the annual report on what had been achieved in respect of the climate change agenda, Members would be invited to indicate what action they had taken in respect of the pledges they had made.

 

Cllr Woodward also enquired as to the take up of the grant funding made available to local communities by the County Council for climate change related initiatives.  In response, Cllr Jessel indicated that the initiative had been well received, that take-up of the grant funding had been high, and that it had helped raise awareness of the need for change.

 

Implementation of the Updated Staffordshire County Council Education Infrastructure Contributions Policy (SEICP)

(Paragraph 4 of the Statement)

 

In response to a question from Cllr Robinson in relation to developers paying their fair share towards the provision of new schools or additional school places, Cllr Price indicated that the new SEICP follows government guidance issued in 2019 and permits the County Council to obtain larger S106 contributions from developers than previously.   Cllr Price also referred to the Schools Capital programme for 2021/22 which had recently been agreed by the Cabinet and provided for the construction of a number of new schools.

 

Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Strategy 2021-26

(Paragraph 5 of the Statement)

 

Several Members expressed their support for the strategy and praised the SEND provision across the County.  Cllr Price thanked Members for their comments and outlined how the strategy had been developed and the consultation which had taken place with stakeholders. 

 

Staffordshire History Centre: National Lottery Heritage Fund – Round Two Submission

(Paragraph 6 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Price, Cllr Trowbridge, and Cllr Francis expressed their support for the project and commented on the benefits the investment would bring to Stafford and to the County as a whole.

 

Digital First - Update and Plan for the Digital Principle

(Paragraph 7 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Robinson and Cllr Charlotte Atkins spoke about the potential impact of “Digital First” on those who did not have access to a computer or smart device or struggled with IT or to get on-line.  Cllr Atkins also indicated that it was important that the proposals did not disenfranchise those residents who did not have access to IT.  In response, Cllr Bryan Jones referred to the training and support which was available to residents via the Library Service.

 

Cllr Robinson also expressed the view that improvements needed to be made to the MyStaffs App to make it easier to use.  Cllr Brookes added that although the App was useful for reporting highways defects such as potholes, it did not inform the person who submitted the report of the outcome.

 

Cllr Bryan Jones and Cllr Sutherland referred to the vital role that “digital” had played during the Covid pandemic; how it was improving access to services; how it was saving the County Council money and how it aimed to improve the customer experience.  They acknowledge however that use of the technology did have its pitfalls and that these needed to be addressed. 

 

Integrated Performance Report 2020-21 – Quarter 3

(Paragraph 8 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Robinson enquired as to whether the Council would receive all of the funding promised by Central Government to respond to the Covid pandemic.  In response, Cllr Alan White referred to the tremendous amount of funding already provided to local councils by Central Government.  He also outlined some of the initiatives introduced by the Government to help individuals and businesses such as the furlough scheme.

 

Cllr Sutton spoke about a number of the Council’s initiatives aimed at helping children and families such as the Building Resilient Families and Communities Programme and the Covid Winter Warmth project.

 

Supportive Communities – Update and Delivery Plan 2021/22

(Paragraph 9 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Charlotte Atkins referred to a recent Freedom of Information request which had highlighted that Staffordshire had turned down the highest number of social care requests of the 19 local authorities surveyed.  She enquired as to what impact this would have on community groups in the County and also whether the County Council was carrying out an audit of these groups to capture the range of services they provided.  In response, Cllr McMahon indicated that, in Staffordshire, Care Act Assessments were carried out very early on – at the first point of contact – and the data in the FOI request was like comparing apples and oranges.

 

Cllr Woodward enquired as to how the Community Help Points were working, who they referred individuals on to and whether the requests made to Help Points were captured.  In response, Cllr McMahon indicated that the 18 Community Help Points signposted individuals to local community groups where they were able to do so.  He added that training for community groups was available through Support Staffordshire.  With regard to Cllr Charlotte Atkins’ question as to whether the County Council was carrying out an audit of community groups to capture the range of services they provided; and Cllr Woodward’s question concerning whether the requests made to Help Points were captured, Cllr McMahon undertook to raise these matters with the Director for Health and Care to see what could be done.

 

Covid-19 Lockdown Anniversary

(Paragraph 10 of the Statement)

 

Several Members praised the contribution made by the Council and its officers in responding to the Covid pandemic.  Cllr Jessel also paid tribute to key workers, including those employed in supermarkets and local shops for the vital roles they had played.  She, together with Cllr Dave Jones also praised UK scientists for their speed in developing and producing the Covid vaccine.  Cllr Jones also asked that the Leader of the Council call on the Government to provide a monument at the National Memorial Arboretum to recognise the losses as a result of Covid.  In response, Cllr Alan White indicated that he would be happy to do so when the time was right.

 

Cllr Philip White referred to the hidden impact of the pandemic such as its effect on people’s mental health.

 

Cllr Clarke expressed his concern at a recent press article which highlighted the number of staff employed in hospitals who had refused to be vaccinated.  In response, Cllr McMahon explained that NHS staff took a lateral flow test twice per week and that efforts were being made to persuade the hard to reach groups to be vaccinated.

 

Schools

(Paragraph 11 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Pullen, Cllr Woodward, Cllr Sutton and Cllr Oates paid tribute to teachers for their hard work during the pandemic including opening schools for vulnerable children and the children of key workers and providing on-line lessons for those pupils studying at home.  Cllr Woodward also stressed the importance of Members of the Council being school governors in order to aid better communication with schools.  In response, Cllr Philip White stated that he agreed that there were benefits in Members being school governors and would raise this issue to see if it could be included in the induction programme for Members following the County Council elections in May.  Cllr Sutton also paid tribute to the contribution made by the nursery sector and early years providers; and Cllr Edgeller added her thanks to those working in Special Schools.

 

Cllr Hussain expressed the view that the Covid pandemic had exposed issues around inequalities in education such as being unable to access remote learning which, in turn, had resulted in some pupils being up to seven months behind their peers.  He called for extensive help to support those who were most disadvantaged.

 

Cllr Price also outlined the action taken by schools to ensure that pupils could return to the classroom in a Covid safe environment including the lateral flow testing of children.  He added that he supported Cllr Woodward’s comments in relation to Members being encouraged to become school governors.  Cllr Price also referred to the funding and other support being made available to support pupils to catch-up on their missed education.

 

Hospitality Sector

(Paragraph 12 of the Statement)

 

Several Members referred to the impact of the Covid pandemic on the hospitality and tourism sectors within Staffordshire and the need to promote the County as a visitor attraction.  Cllr Smith added that he would welcome any support the Council could give in respect of the bid for the re-opening of a passenger rail service between Lichfield and Derby, providing a link to the National Memorial Arboretum and other visitor attractions in and around Lichfield.  In response, Cllr Philip White indicated that the Cabinet, at its meeting on 17 March 2021, approved proposals to enhance assistance to the Destination Management Partnership (DMP), both immediately and for the longer term to lead a transformation of our visitor economy and its businesses.  Cllr White added that the Council also supported the bid for the re-opening of the passenger rail service between Lichfield and Derby.

 

Cllr Flunder also spoke about the impact of the pandemic on the events industry and several other members referred to ongoing work to promote tourism in their respective areas once the social distancing restrictions were relaxed.

 

Cllr Woodward and Cllr Philip Atkins paid tribute to those businesses who had taken the initiative to diversify during the pandemic such as by providing take-away services, and also those who had helped their local communities.

 

Staffordshire Day

(Paragraph 13 of the Statement)

 

Cllr Adams, Cllr Winnington, Cllr Philip White and Cllr Wilson referred to the opportunities Staffordshire Day provided to celebrate the county, from its rich heritage and culture to its stunning locations and places to visit.  Cllr Winnington also suggested that, in the future, Staffordshire Day could be used as a celebration to the people the County had lost. Cllr Philip White added that this year, being mindful of the pandemic, the Council has had to be creative about how it can mark the day and, as a result, this year will see the first ever Staffordshire Day Film Competition which will give film makers of all levels the chance to get involved and tell their Staffordshire story.

 

RESOLVED – That the Statement of the Leader of the Council be received.