Agenda and minutes

The Chair, Councillor Colling welcomed everyone to the meeting reminding all present of the restrictions which applied during this pre-election period.

Councillor Colling thanked all those who had responded to the recent consultation on the Long Term Plan for Scarborough.  The responses were being analysed, would be the subject of a report to the Scarborough Town Board on 17 June, and then a further update to this committee in due course.

She also advised that a second bathing water summit with strategic partners had been held on 6 June.  Among the subjects discussed were McCain Foods’ investment plans (the water treatment works at Wheatcroft had been operational since February), and the significant investment Yorkshire Water would be making to improve water quality.  As already reported, the Environment Agency would be carrying out extensive testing this season that when combined with the work commissioned from Professor Grocke at Durham university would give a much deeper understanding of the causes  of the poor water quality and steps that should be taken to address this.  The Chair was pleased to report that all agencies were working closely together sharing information and learnings.  The results would be published in the autumn.  Given the significance of this issue to residents and businesses alike, the Chair advised that under the work programme item later on the agenda she would be proposing to hold a scrutiny session with stakeholders on water quality across the area when those results became available.  In reply to questions, Councillor Colling assured the meeting that the bathing water quality of the North Bay would also be considered as part of the scrutiny and that the idea was to engage with a range of different stakeholders. 

To elect a Member as Chair of the Scarborough and Whitby Area Constituency Committee for the 2024/25 municipal year.

Resolved –

That Councillor Liz Colling be appointed Chair of the committee for the 2024-25 municipal year.

Resolved –

That the Minutes of the meeting held on 22 March 2024, having been printed and circulated, be taken as read and confirmed and signed by the Chair as a correct record.

To elect a Member as Vice-Chair of the Scarborough and Whitby Area Constituency Committee for the 2024/25 municipal year.

Resolved –

That Councillor Janet Jefferson be appointed Vice-Chair of the committee for the 2024-25 municipal year.

Apologies noted (see above).

All Members are invited to declare at this point any interests they have in items appearing on this agenda, including the nature of those interests.

Councillor Janet Jefferson declared a personal interest in agenda item 9. Public Space Protection Order in Scarborough town centre, since she was Chair of Scarborough Anti Theft Group.

Councillor Roberta Swiers declared a personal interest in agenda item 8. ACC Economic Development, Regeneration, Tourism and Transport Project Development Fund Endorsements - June 2024, since the Coastal Access to Cayton Bay project was located within her division.

Members of the public may ask questions or make statements at this meeting if they have given notice to St John Harris, Principal Democratic Services Officer and supplied the text (contact details below) by midday on Tuesday, 4 June, three working days before the day of the meeting.  Each speaker should limit themselves to 3 minutes on any item.  Members of the public who have given notice will be invited to speak:-

·         at this point in the meeting if their questions/statements relate to matters which are not otherwise on the Agenda (subject to an overall time limit of 30 minutes);

·         when the relevant Agenda item is being considered if they wish to speak on a matter which is on the Agenda for this meeting.

If you are exercising your right to speak at this meeting, but do not wish to be recorded, please inform the Chairman who will instruct anyone who may be taking a recording to cease while you speak.

One public question was submitted to the committee by Bob Roberts.

Question

Has the committee been made aware of the business case and CAD drawings related to the provision of boat hoist facility and its associated benefits to the maritime community at Scarborough Harbour?

The Chair responded that Members of the committee were aware that the Council was engaged in a project to provide a boat lift at Scarborough Harbour, and that reports were to be considered by the Corporate Director of Resources to approve applications for grant aid to the UK Seafood Fund and the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority Gainshare Fund.

When prompted whether the committee had seen the business case and CAD drawings, the Chair responded no, since the only the relevant councillors and officers would consider these documents as part of the decision-making processes of the council.  Mr Roberts added that he had circulated these documents by email to the committee the previous evening.  The Chair advised that she would seek confirmation from ICT Services as to why the emails had not been received suggesting that file size could be the reason (this was later confirmed).

Considered – a report of the Corporate Director – Children and Young People’s Service accompanied by a presentation by Jon Holden, Head of Strategic Planning (Children and Young People’s Service) and Mark Harrison (Walked Route Assessor -

Highways and Transportation) in respect of the assessment of walked routes to school with specific reference to the route from Stainsacre to Caedmon College, Whitby (to become Whitby School).  Members were advised of the legislation and statutory guidance used to assess walked routes to school which established maximum walking distances and took into account the shortest route (including footpaths, bridleways, and other pathways) along which a child may walk in reasonable safety accompanied as necessary.  There was no expectation that children would walk and that it was for the parent to decide what arrangements would be suitable for their child.  Mr Harrison then described his assessment of the route in question which consisted of both a desktop study and a physical walk.  In accordance with the guidance his focus was on pedestrian safety in relation to the highway, topographical conditions and physical features.  The presence or not of street lighting was not a consideration.

Following the presentation, questions and comments from members concerned:

·       Children’s safety and safeguarding especially when walking the route after dark

·       The suggestion that a walking bus be used by parents

·       The acknowledgement that parents took ultimate responsibility for safeguarding their children in the context of the walk to school, and that the route should be well lit was outside the remit of Home to School Transport guidance, but was rather for the council to address as the owner of the Cinder Track

·       The acknowledgement that children would also use the busy A171 road to walk to Whitby School and the concern that they would need to be encouraged to use one of the existing signalised crossings along Helredale Road

·       The importance of positivity about the use of the Cinder Track to walk to school since a well used route would be less intimidating for children

In reply to their questions, members were advised that:

·       The statutory Home to School Transport guidance was based on normal school hours

·       Alternative routes were considered

·       All schools through Department for Education guidance were required to consider active travel alternatives including the walking bus

Resolved – that:

(i)             the report and presentation be noted;

(ii)            the use of the walking bus along the Cinder Track be promoted and encouraged;

(iii)           officers be asked to consider lighting the Cinder Track on the route in question;

(iv)           officers be asked to consider the provision of an additional pedestrian crossing on Helredale Road to help address the concerns about children’s safety; and

(v)            the committee request an update on this matter from local parents and Whitby Town Council in March 2025 (six months after the opening of the new school). 

Considered – a report of the Corporate Director of Community Development seeking the committee’s endorsement that the Corporate Director spends £66,000 of the Economic, Regeneration, Tourism and Transport Project Development Fund on the development of four schemes outlined in the report. 

Amy Thomas, Economic Service Development Manager advised that following an extensive Member engagement exercise a long list of project ideas had been established. Following preliminary research this list was refined to create a short list of the most viable schemes. More detailed scoping work was then undertaken by officers on these remaining projects in order to complete the scoping forms and associated recommendations which were contained within and attached to the report.

Ms Thomas then outlined the four schemes recommended for approval:

·       Coastal Access at Cayton Bay - £20,000

·       Offshore Economic Opportunities - £20,000

·       Active Travel / Social Prescribing Pilot Project - £15,500

·       Scarborough 400 Commemorations - £10,500

Two further projects – Scarborough Sea Pool and Briggswath to Ruswarp footpath – would be subject to further development work and would be considered by the committee in October.

Following presentation of the report, members commented on the proposals, commending the recommended projects for their economic, social, cultural and health benefits, and for the additional funding that would be leveraged through the Project Development Fund.

Questions from members concerned:

·       The timescale for the likely delivery of the Eastfield to Scarborough active travel route in light of its rejection for this fund because of the high cost involved (Councillor Tony Randerson)

·       How much additional funding would these projects attract if supported through this fund – could we be more ambitious?

·       Given its importance, could not more funding be directed to exploring offshore economic opportunities?

In reply, members were advised that:

·       A detailed reply would be provided to Councillor Randerson about the Eastfield to Scarborough active travel route

·       The amount of funding each project would leverage from other sources varied from case to case

·       Projects of higher indicative cost were rejected because they would exceed the fund’s budget

·       A significant body of work had already been undertaken on offshore economic opportunities. The £20k proposed was to combine these and develop a strategy and action plan with the aim of attracting commercial investment in Scarborough and Whitby harbours

Resolved – that the committee endorses that the Corporate Director, Community Development spends £66,000 of the Economic, Regeneration, Tourism and Transport Project Development Fund on the following schemes:

Coastal Access at Cayton Bay - £20,000

Offshore Economic Opportunities - £20,000

Active Travel / Social Prescribing Pilot Project - £15,500

Scarborough 400 Commemorations - £10,500

Total - £66,000

To seek the ACC’s comments on the proposed PSPO for Scarborough Town Centre (see draft PSPO and public consultation results summary attached)

Considered – details of the draft Public Space Protection Order for Scarborough town centre together with an analysis of the recently closed public consultation on the proposals.  Paul Romans, the Community Safety Manager advised that there was overwhelming public support for the proposed dual regime as evidenced in the public consultation.

In their discussion of this item, members’ questions and comments concerned:

·       The extent of the area covered by the PSPO – why had some areas been excluded?

·       The risk of displacement from a narrow section of Falsgrave Road to adjoining side streets

·       The timetable for implementation and review

·       The target hardening work in the South Cliff area

·       The impact on rough sleepers

·       The severity of this issue and the need to mitigate further detrimental impact on residents, visitors and shoppers

·       The need to change perceptions of Scarborough for the better

·       The potential effect of the shortage of public toilets on anti-social behaviour

·       The acknowledgement that this was a cross council issue which also concerned licensing, trading standards and planning

In reply to their questions, members were advised that:

·       PSPOs were just one tool in the armoury to help address this deep-seated societal problem

·       PSPOs gave the power to both Council and Police Community Support officers to issue fixed penalty notices.  These could not be issued retrospectively but only if the offender did not desist from drinking when asked to do so

·       This was not an overly punitive regime, but served more to act as a deterrent

·       The prohibition zone applied to everyone and did not discriminate against particular groups.  Additional support and referral to other services was offered to rough sleepers.

·       A relatively small number of people caused persistent problems but this number had grown significantly in recent years.  Further enforcement may be required for repeat offenders such as a Criminal Behaviour Order

·       He was happy to share anonymised data of fixed penalty notices issued to repeat offenders

·       It was unlikely that there would be displacement to side streets as a consequence of the PSPO.  Offenders tended to gather around benches and other meeting places

·       The extent of the PSPO area was based on the volume of reports of anti-social behaviour.

·       The PSPO would be implemented shortly and then subject to review in three years’ time

·       Work was undertaken in schools to address alcohol misuse among young people

·       Currently, there was a review of the community safety hub working model across the county to bring consistency of resourcing and approach including the role of North Yorkshire Police within each hub

Resolved – that the committee endorses the draft Public Space Protection Order of Scarborough Town Centre.

Considered – a report of the Assistant Chief Executive – Local Engagement which provided an update on the Stronger Communities Programme and an overview of progress made in the Scarborough and Whitby Constituency area in 2023/24.  The report divided into the core Stronger Communities programme, for example, the progress in establishing Community Anchor Organisations (CAOs) across the county, and broader Stronger Communities work, for example, to tackle food insecurity and digital exclusion, which was increasingly attaining pre-pandemic levels whilst continuing to lead on a series of large national programmes.  Locally, Flash Company Arts had been identified in Whitby and Revival North Yorkshire in the Esk Valley as the CAO, whilst SeeCHANGE, the innovative cross sector partnership funded for three years by the National Lottery Community Fund, was close to identifying a suitable CAO model for Scarborough.  SeeCHANGE was continuing to progress its work in the locality through a new community collective, improving workforce wellbeing with a range of employers, and piloting new ways of working with community groups to achieve change using participatory grants. Updates were also provided on a number of grants programmes including the North Yorkshire Local Assistance Fund and Inspire Grants, and on various projects with partners including Clear, Hold, Build in Barrowcliff and the Eastfield PACT’s Cash for Causes scheme.

Members congratulated the Stronger Communities team on their extensive work across the locality.

In reply to a question about support provided to people whose applications to the North Yorkshire Local Assistance Fund were rejected, Karen Atkinson, Communities Locality Lead advised that a package of support was offered to these individuals around their need to try and tackle the root causes. 

Resolved – that the committee

i)               notes the content of the report, outlining progress of the Stronger Communities Programme in 2023/24; and

ii)              agrees to an annual update on the activity of the Localities service.

Considered – a report of the Corporate Director Health and Adult Services accompanied by a presentation by Angela Crossland, Head of Healthier Lives Community and Economy, Public Health Team in respect of the results of the recent Let’s Talk Food public survey which had focused on residents’ experiences around accessing healthy food and food waste.

In the ensuing discussion, members’ comments and questions concerned:

·       How a healthy diet was promoted through the survey

·       The low response rate in the Scarborough and Whitby area and how this work would impact on deprived communities

·       The rise of ‘dark kitchens’ which primarily served customers through online orders

·       How to address the proliferation of fast food outlets for example through the planning system

·       The review of the weight management service which could lead to a deterioration in quality (Councillor Eric Broadbent)

In response, Ms Crossland advised that:

·       There were various descriptors in the survey of what constituted a healthy diet

·       Her team had led on the review of the weight management service and its future design.  She offered to discuss the review in more detail with Councillor Broadbent.

·       Her service did not have much control over the survey response rate.  However, the survey was only the first step.  Work would now turn to specific focus groups with stakeholders across the food spectrum including food pantries and partnerships, supermarkets and farmers with a view to identifying actions to reduce food inequalities. 

·       Her service was also working with other council services including Localities, Trading Standards and Planning (through the new Local Plan) to try and address the problems created by dark kitchens and concentrations of fast food outlets

·       She would provide further updates to members through a webinar after the focus group work had completed.

The Chair advised that she would raise how the proliferation of takeaways could be addressed by the new Local Plan through her membership of the Local Plan Working Group and then would report back to the committee.

Resolved – that the report and presentation be noted.

Considered -

The latest draft of the committee’s work programme for 2024-25.  The following addtions were agreed:

(i)             Scrutiny session on bathing water quality – special meeting of the committee to be arranged after the results of this year’s investigations were published – the Chair and Principal Democratic Services Officer to draw up a draft witness package for discussion with the committee at an informal monthly briefing.

(ii)            Invite Simon Morritt, Chief Executive of York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust to address the committee on Hospital travel and attendance data – missed appointments in areas of deprivation – date to be confirmed

(iii)           Invite Paul Romans, Community Safety Manager, to provide an update on the countywide review of the Community Safety Hub working model and its implications for the local area

(iv)           Invite Scarborough and Whitby Youth Councils to address the committee on their hopes and aspirations for the two towns – date to be confirmed

(v)            Update on operation of Scarborough, Whitby and Staithes harbours – meeting on 3 October 2024 (subject to confirmation)

(vi)           Beyond Housing Investment, Repair and Regeneration Plan update in the Scarborough and Whitby area – date to be confirmed

Councillor David Jeffels raised the idea of an environmental improvements scheme in Scarborough and Whitby to be funded by the recently approved increase in parking charges.  It was agreed that the Principal Democratic Services Officer would explore the feasibility of this idea with officers and report back to the committee.

Resolved - That the Principal Democratic Services Officer update the work programme to reflect the decisions made during the meeting.

Any other items which the Chair agrees should be considered as a matter of urgency because of special circumstances

There was no urgent business.

3 October 2024

Thursday, 3 October 2024