To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillor Louis Stark.

To receive declarations of interests in respect of Table A, Table B or Other Interests from members of the committee in respect of items on the agenda.

Councillor Ivan Powell declared an interest in item 11 (New Road Strategy for Hereford) in relation to his role as Chairman of Herford Rugby Club. Councillor Powell stated he would remove himself from the meeting during the discussion on the item.

Councillor Dan Hurcomb - for the purpose of transparency - declared that he was employed by National Highways, which was referenced in the report for item 11 (New Road Strategy for Hereford).

Councillor David Hitchiner, in relation to comments he intended to make during the discussion on item 11 (New Road Strategy for Hereford), declared that his residence was 700 meters from the proposed western roundabout.

To approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 29 February 2024. 

Resolved:       That the minutes of the meeting held on 29 February 2024 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairperson.

To receive questions from members of the public.

Questions received and responses given are attached as appendix 1 to the minutes.

To receive questions from councillors.

Questions received and responses given are attached as appendix 2 to the minutes.

To receive reports from the Council’s scrutiny committees on any recommendations to the Cabinet arising from recent scrutiny committee meetings.

Three reports from scrutiny committees:

1.     Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee: Corporate Parenting Service and Corporate Parenting Board

2.     Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee: The policy, prioritisation and delivery of section 106 funding

3.     Scrutiny Management Board: Hoople Ltd

There were three reports from scrutiny committees for consideration at this meeting.

To request a response from the executive regarding recommendations arising from the meeting of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee on 12 March 2024

(a)  Recommendations of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee: Corporate Parenting Service and Corporate Parenting Board

Recommendations of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee: Corporate Parenting Service and Corporate Parenting Board

The chairperson for the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee (CYPSC) detailed that the meeting in March 2024 had focused on the Corporate Parenting Service and in particular the Corporate Parenting Board. The CYPSC felt that the workings of the board weren’t very accessible to either councillors or members of the public. It was suggested that the board’s website could provide greater accountability by including a quarterly report showing information such as the board’s progress, responsibilities and attendance records.

The second recommendation from the CYPSC related to building on and extending opportunities to write letters and cards celebrating the success of Herefordshire Council’s looked-after children.

The leader thanked the committee and stated that the recommendations would be noted and responded to by the executive in due course.

To request a response from the executive regarding the recommendations arising from the meeting of the Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee on 27 February 2024

(b)    Recommendations of the Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee: The policy, prioritisation and delivery of section 106 funding

Recommendations of the Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee: The policy, prioritisation and delivery of section 106 funding

The chairperson for the Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee (CCSC) detailed that the meeting in February 2024 had focused on scrutinising the question of section 106 contributions. The CCSC had looked at two aspects, the first was the strategic focus - the process that decided what sort of projects would go forward for consideration for section 106 funding and how the process of consultation with parishes worked. The second was looking at the implementation of spending section106 contributions.

In relation to recommendation 1 from the committee, the chairperson of CCSC highlighted concerns that the amounts for section 106 contributions had been set in a 2008 policy document, which had not specified a need for in-line with inflation increases in contributions.

The committee chairperson also highlighted the need for greater involvement with parishes and local residents in setting priorities for section106, by improving parish councillor and resident engagement with the community wish lists.

The leader thanked the committee for the recommendations and for shining a light on a important function of the council. Recommendations would be noted and responded to by the executive in due course.

To request a response from the executive regarding the recommendations arising from the meeting of the Scrutiny Management Board on 19 March 2024

(c) Recommendations of the Scrutiny Management Board: Hoople Ltd

Recommendations of the Scrutiny Management Board: Hoople Ltd

The chairperson of the Scrutiny Management Board (SMB) detailed that the meeting in March 2024 had focused on Hoople Ltd and how it operated and worked with the council, and how it was overseen. The majority of the recommendations were to the shareholder committee of the council and the SMB had been disappointed to learn that the shareholder committee had yet to meet,

The leader thanked the SMB for its recommendations. The cabinet members voted unanimously to note the recommendations and for a response to be provided in due course.

The purpose of this report is to approve the Herefordshire & Worcestershire All-Age Autism Strategy (2024-29).

The cabinet member for adults, health and wellbeing provided an overview of the background legislation, explaining that the autism Act of 2009 was the only disability-specific legislation in England. It provided statutory guidance supporting the NHS and local authorities in implementing a local strategy to improve: staff training, identification and diagnosis and transition planning when people moved from children to adult services, employment and criminal justice.

The cabinet member highlighted that in September 2022, work had started on an all-age strategy, in line with the National Autism Strategy, for the Integrated Care System (ICS) in Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Initial co-production of work across the two counties had involved: autistic people, carers and professionals, workshops and online surveys (with over 400 responses received).

A breakdown of the strategy priorities (as set out in para 7 of the main report) was provided and it was explained that progress would be monitored at the ICS Developing Services for Autistic People Board with oversight from the ICS Learning Disability and Autism Programme Assurance Board, with annual reports being presented to the Health and Well-being Boards in both counties.

The strategy aimed to deliver positive outcomes and improve lives in a number of different areas across local communities. The strategy would provide the platform to elevate the profile of autism and would aim to facilitate significant and meaningful change by enabling the best start in life for children and good mental well-being throughout life.

Cabinet members praised the manner in which personalised knowledge and a focus on lived experience underpinned and enriched the strategy.

Group leaders welcomed and supported the strategy and praised the emphasis that it placed on: the voice of the individual, lived experience and references to academic studies / sources. The accessible and readable format of the report was also welcomed.

A number of suggestions were put forward by group leaders, including numbering rather than bullet pointing high level aims and key actions. A request that the strategy be followed up with an implementation plan was also made.

In response to the suggestions the cabinet member stated that bullet points would be replaced with numbering, if that was the preference. It was also explained that a detailed delivery/implementation plan was already in the pipeline.

The cabinet member for adults, health and wellbeing answered a final question from the cabinet members about how the strategy might help people experiencing issues between diagnosis and accessing services. It was explained that autism assessments were carried out by NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Health and Care Trust and that actions to reduce waiting times were contained in the aims of the strategy.

It was unanimously resolved that:

Cabinet

(1)  Approves the Herefordshire and Worcestershire All Age Autism strategy, and

(2)  Delegated authority be given to the Corporate Director for Community Wellbeing and the Corporate Director for Children and Young People to take all operational decisions that fall within the responsibility of Herefordshire Council to complete, as set out within this strategy.

To agree an increase in value offered as an investment to Wye Valley Trust to enable the development of an Education Centre at Hereford County Hospital. To further explore options around a strategic investment partnership and bring a business case back to cabinet for approval in Autumn 2024.

The cabinet member for economy and growth provided an overview and update on the progress of the work to develop the education centre at the county hospital in Hereford. It was highlighted that officers from both Herefordshire Council and the Wye Valley Trust had been working together to deliver a full business case in the autumn. The project was an enabler for economic growth, providing an exemplar state-of-the-art teaching facility that would play a critical part in upskilling staff and supporting Herefordshire Council and the Wye Valley Trust to recruit and retrain staff.

The cabinet member for economy and growth highlighted there was greater clarity around the build costs and that Wye Valley Trust had been engaging with NHS England to increase the trust’s CDEL limit.

It was also highlighted that whilst the centre would not be an asset of Herefordshire Council (as stated in the papers), the council would be working with the trust to minimize any environmental impact.

The cabinet member for finance and corporate services supported the project and described it as a win win/no brainer, which would grow the economy and create a highly qualified workforce, whilst being revenue neutral.

Group leaders acknowledged the importance of supporting investment in skills development within the health service, but raised concerns about the increasing costs involved with the project. It was noted that the over the last 8 months, the estimated overall cost of the work had increased by 60% from the original £10.5 million. The loan requested from Herefordshire Council had risen from £6 million to £15 million, whilst during the same period the Wye Valley Trust component appeared to have nearly halved from £4.5 million to £2.5 million.

Concerns were raised that by the time the business case was available, costs could have potentially doubled again and several questions were asked in relation to establishing what factors had driven up the costs of the project. The wording of the report’s terminology of an increase in value of the investment was noted as being unhelpfully bureaucratic.

Group leaders asked if similar projects had been operated elsewhere in the country and if they had been successful.

Group leaders also sought clarity as to whether the recommendation in the report was seeking approval for the increased costs of the project or for it to be noted.

Clarity was sought about the repayment terms and a question was asked about why the Wye Valley Trust was using the Council as a ‘middle person’ for a loan, when the money would still appear to be included in CDEL, rather than borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board.

The cabinet member for economy and growth, explained in response to questions from group leaders, that the Wye Valley Trust had assessed the project and was reporting a cost of £17.5 million, but that this was pending a full business case, which would be available in the autumn. The cabinet was not seeking to approve the loan today and was noting progress.

The cabinet member  ...  view the full minutes text for item 107.

To share the feedback letter from Ofsted following their fourth Monitoring Visit conducted on 21 - 22 February 2024.

The leader opened the discussion by thanking the departing corporate director of children and young people for his hard work and dedication over what had been an extremely challenging two year period.

The cabinet member for children and young people provided an overview of the feedback from Ofsted following its fourth monitoring visit to Hereford’s Children’s Services on 21 and 22 February 2024.

It was explained that the areas covered by the visit were: children in care aged 16 and 17 years old, and care leavers. The Ofsted inspectors had acknowledged that improvements continued to be made, but noted that the pace of change wasn’t swift enough and the quality of practice needed to be more consistent.

The cabinet member for children and young people pointed out that two member briefings - regarding the Ofsted feedback - had been delivered on 27 March and that questions and observations from members had been recorded and would be reflected on.

It was pointed out that during the member briefings, discussions had taken place about contributions from partners, and the need to work with and challenge partners to improve the timeliness of service deliveries.

The cabinet member for children and young people read out the headline findings as detailed in Appendix A of the report.

The inspectors had acknowledged that significant additional funding had been put into the service and agreed for the next few years, but that this had not yet resulted in significant improvement.

It was highlighted that Ofsted inspectors had provided verbal feedback prior to the formal report and the service had already started to respond to this.

The cabinet member pointed out that the improvement plan, which responded to the findings of the inspection of local authority children services in July 2022, had been reviewed and a draft refresh of the plan for the year 2024/25 had been presented and considered by the Improvement Board and its members on the 20th of March 2024, with a view to presenting the refreshed plan at the cabinet meeting on 25 April 2024. 

Cabinet members had no questions regarding the report.

Group leaders expressed disappointment at the report and felt that it was another case of one step forward and one step back. It was noted that money, time, thought and effort had been put in to improving the service, but unfortunately this had not appeared to have changed things on the ground.

The group leaders praised the proactive engagement of the cabinet member for children and young people with families and within the directorate. There was also praise for the swift actions taken by the service in response to issues flagged up as requiring immediate action by the inspectors.

Concerns were raised about the quality of managerial guidance and direction given to personal advisors (PAs) and a question was asked about progress being made in relation to partnership working.

The Leader of the Council thanked the group leaders for their comments.

The cabinet member for children and young people responded to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 108.

Report to follow.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure gave an overview of the report, in which it was explained that the Local Transport Plan had had a rocky start due to the delay and subsequent cancellation of a new Department of Transport process document.

The link and connectivity between the Local Plan and the Local Transport Plan was highlighted. Referring to the key considerations in the main report, the cabinet member also noted the alignment between the Local Transport Plan and other strategies such as the Big Economic Plan and the joint Health and Well-being Strategy.

It was pointed out that producing a Local Transport Plan was a statutory requirement that needed to be met in order to secure funding from the Department of Transport.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure explained that it was hoped the Local Transport Plan would be coming forward in late summer for consideration and drew attention to and read out the recommended objectives of the plan as set out in para 19 of the main report.

The cabinet members welcomed the inclusion of objective (III) at para 19, which focused on tackling climate change and protecting and enhancing the natural built environment. The alignment of environmental themes running through many large plans and the focus on environmental impact at para 21 and 22 were also supported.

The cabinet members noted that objective (I) at para 19 regarding supporting a thriving and prosperous economy, chimed with the views of speakers at last year’s County Council Conference, who had suggested that infrastructure was fundamental to growth.   

Group leaders discussed the order of the objectives in the report. There was support for a thriving and prosperous economy, but it was felt that the objectives didn’t focus heavily enough on people and how transport needs and requirements varied around the county. It was felt that issues such as road safety/reducing road deaths and climate change should be highlighted more specifically within the plan.

Group leaders felt that stronger language in relation to climate change and commitments to net zero was required to ensure that the Local Transport Plan was compatible with national policy.

Disappointment was expressed about the apparent side-lining of recommendations from the Connected Communities Scrutiny Committee (CCSC) regarding engagement with stakeholders on the Local Transport Plan. It was stressed that there was a need to actively reach out and listen to people from across the county about what they needed from strategy documents.

It was noted that there were aspects of each of the recommended objectives that contributed to delivering sustainable communities and there was a need for articulation on how the Local Transport Plan could achieve this ambition.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure clarified that the objectives within the report were not listed in any particular order of importance. It was also stated that meeting all of the differing transport needs of residents around the county would be difficult to achieve, but that the plan would aim to meet as many of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 109.

The report seeks Cabinet’s agreement to the revised priorities within the Hereford Transport Strategy and to agree to draw down investment in new road infrastructure to improve network resilience and support the growth and development of Herefordshire in accordance with the current Local Transport Plan and Core Strategy policy frameworks.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure provided background information and an overview of the report. It was explained that traffic congestion had been a problem in Hereford for many years, causing journey unreliability and negatively impacting the local economy, environment and health of local residents.

It was noted that the problems were recognised by the Council, Midlands Connect (the sub regional transport body) and National Highways (which was responsible for the A49).

It was highlighted that the official diversion route in the event of the closure of Greyfriars Bridge was 38 miles long, which created issues with network resilience far wider than the city itself.

It was also highlighted that the Herefordshire Economic Plan stated that the county had the lowest productivity of any county in England. Wages were 16% below the national average and traffic congestion created increased costs for business, discouraged investment and created difficulties for residents in accessing training, work, leisure and other services.

The cabinet member pointed out that the draft Local Plan had identified a need for thousands of new homes in the city and additional employment land to support the economy, but highway capacity limits were restricting the full development of key sites.

It was stated that congestion on the A49 splits the city in two and that a road link would be an essential part of transport package that would include active travel measures.

The cabinet member pointed out that any new road would need to support Cabinet’s objectives to: deliver economic benefits, improve network resilience, detrunk the existing A49, deliver traffic benefits, support city centre improvements and support the draft Local Plan.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure acknowledged the undoubted merits of the strategic outline business case for the Eastern River Crossing and Link Road. However, following like-for-like comparisons carried out by officers and consultants, the Hereford Western Bypass remained Council policy and the report showed the Western Bypass to be more effective than the Eastern Crossing in addressing the Cabinet’s objectives.

The Council was currently in the design and deliver stage for a number of grant funded active travel measures throughout the city, these measures would provide greater choice in how to travel, but would not improve the capacity or resilience of the road network. It was stated that the measure would benefit greatly from the detrunking of the A49, which would only be achievable through the adoption of the proposed Western Bypass.

The cabinet member for transport and infrastructure concluded by pointing out that the report identified both capital and revenue funding to progress both phases of the Hereford Western Bypass. Additionally, the Council had recently been notified of its allocation of over £100 million of local transport funding over a seven year period and was currently engaged with the Department of Transport on how to progress the scheme.

Cabinet members were invited to comment:

The cabinet member for economy and growth supported the strategy and felt that it would resolve road congestion issues, allow for affordable  ...  view the full minutes text for item 110.