Issue - meetings

Report of Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the following policies and processes are adopted:

-        The Gloucestershire Volunteering Collaborative definition of volunteering (see Section 3.1)

-        Cheltenham Borough Council’s updated Volunteer Policy (Appendix 3)

-        Template partnership agreement with constituted groups (Appendix 4)

-        Cheltenham Borough Council’s updated Volunteer Handbook (Appendix 5).

2.    authority is delegated to the Participation and Engagement Team Leader in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities and the Council’s Leadership team to keep the policy and supporting documentation under review and to make changes as necessary to reflect best practice and legal and operational requirements. 

The Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities was pleased to introduce another good and positive policy to support the work of the kind volunteers who give their time so freely across the town.  She said there are over 260 registered individuals and over 30 groups, the majority of whom support the work of the greenspace team, but also help with events and other projects in the borough, with new opportunities arising since housing services were brought back in house, and with the activities of No Child Left Behind, including the Party in the Park on 06 August this year.

She said an up-to-date and robust policy is essential to support those volunteers, and the revised policy includes the adoption of a new partnership agreement for constituted groups operating on council land under their own insurance, setting out responsibilities and commitments on both sides.  The updated volunteer handbook is a very useful tool for new and existing volunteers, and the council is also being asked to adopt the Gloucestershire Volunteering Collaborative definition of volunteering as set out in the report. 

She thanked all of Cheltenham’s volunteers for their outstanding commitment, and CBC officers who support them in their roles, adding that anyone interested in learning a new skill, sharing an existing one, or meeting new friends can find more information on how to do this by searching ‘volunteering’ on the CBC website.

The Cabinet Member for Waste, Recycling and Public Realm welcomed the report, saying anything that makes volunteering easier and safer for volunteers and officers is a good thing.  He thanked the many volunteers who support the town’s parks and greenspaces are have helped the brilliant greenspace team in achieving seven green flags and a 97% public satisfaction rate.

The Cabinet Member for Planning and Building Control thanked the Cabinet Member for Communities and Safety, saying that in his ward, a brilliant group of volunteers look after Benhall open space.  They work with the rangers, some weekly and some occasionally, and have formed a real community in the area.  He said the residents of Benhall are very pleased and grateful for all they do.

The Leader said that one of the strengths of the administration and the council’s philosophy is that it cannot do it all alone, and has consequently built up a strong volunteering ethos and great partnership relationships with volunteers across the town.  Like many other councillors, she volunteers in her own ward, and knows through first-hand experience the vital role that volunteers play in our communities. 

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the following policies and processes are adopted:

-        The Gloucestershire Volunteering Collaborative definition of volunteering (see Section 3.1)

-        Cheltenham Borough Council’s updated Volunteer Policy (Appendix 3)

-        Template partnership agreement with constituted groups (Appendix 4)

-        Cheltenham Borough Council’s updated Volunteer Handbook (Appendix 5).

2.    authority is delegated to the Participation and Engagement Team Leader in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities and the Council’s Leadership team to keep the policy and supporting documentation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8