Agenda item

There are no matters referred to the Cabinet by other committees on this occasion

The Chair of the Scrutiny Task Group introduced the report, and began by thanking witnesses, officers, the Democratic Services team and members of the task group.  In particular, he thanked Harry Mayo and Councillor Payne for their support with this piece of work.  He said the report highlighted the stark divide between the haves and have-nots in the borough, with some areas statistically among the 10% most deprived areas in the country, and the council needs to focus on those areas to help them thrive.

The report presents 21 recommendations across diverse portfolios, and with objectives linking back to the Forward Plan. Much of the work is already being undertaken, and he would like to apply an outcome-based accountability model to measure what has been done and how lives have improved as a result.

He recognised that delivering a large number of recommendations with limited resources was daunting and that there were no quick fixes, but we have to start somewhere, and the delivery documents must be living documents which can change over time.  In the first instance, he suggested targeting some of the activities, doing them well, and seeing the positive difference they make to communities.  The report recognises that, as a lower tier authority, there are many areas CBC cannot tackle but can only hope to influence, and therefore asked Members to use their influence to lobby and encourage others – CBH, GCC, the Gloucestershire Constabulary, NHS, MP – to hold them to account, and also use the Local Government Authority to lobby central government for other changes in legislation.

With the current cost of living crisis, he realises this is doubly difficult, and said we need innovative low or no-cost strategies, urging Cabinet to look at partnering initiatives with GCC TBC and Cotswold DC.

The Leader offered massive thanks to all who took part in this great report which has thrown a lot of light on matters.  She said CBC is already doing a great deal, but here is an opportunity to measure progress and report back to Overview and Scrutiny in a year’s time.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets said many of these questions have been asked over the years but not in such detail,  There are many issues CBC cannot solve, but should do its best to alleviate, and do all it can, through partnership work where necessary.  He wholeheartedly supports the report.

The Cabinet Member for Housing was particularly drawn to the recommendations around housing and the link to working with CBH.  She said some of the points were already being addressed and she was looking forward to working with the Scrutiny Working Group to monitor and track progress.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency also congratulated Councillor Willingham and the team on a fantastic report, and put on record her thanks to the climate team, who are determined to look at how the climate budget can be invested in communities, tackling challenges such as fuel poverty and deprivation.  So far, they have managed to protect community infrastructure such as churches and community centres, and are helping to tackle fuel poverty, working towards Net Zero council homes, with the dual impact of making homes warmer and cheaper and also reducing emissions.

The Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities thanked Councillor Willingham as leader of the team, saying this report built on work already done with No Child Left Behind, the Large Enterprise Action Group, food network and partners across Cheltenham, while also looking to the future.  She said the cost of living crisis is causing real difficulties for ordinary people in all communities, and as winter approaches, this will get a lot worse.  She also thanked officers who worked through communities and with organisations to make things happen, giving more people hope for the future and a belief in CBC’s ability to get things done.

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services also thanked the Scrutiny Working Group for this welcome and sobering report, saying that inequality wasn’t just found in different parts of Cheltenham, but also in close proximity within the same area.  He welcomed the emphasis in the report on signposting and communication, as help is often available if people only knew where to ask.   He was pleased that help could be found on line and via social media, but that there were other options for the many people with internet access. 

The Leader thanked Councillor Willingham for attending, and looked forward to a progress report in a year’s time.  She asked that Cabinet’s thanks be conveyed to the cross-party working group and all officers involved in the report.