Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillor Hurhangee. Councillor Stead was present as her substitute.

None.

It was confirmed that all items were marked as Part I and would therefore be considered in public.

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 21 March 2019 be approved as a correct record.

Dan Kennedy - Director, Housing, Environment, Education, Performance, Health & Wellbeing, and Sarah Phillips – School Place Planning Project Manager, updated the Committee on the Council’s School Places Planning.

The Committee was advised that officers had completed two admission rounds for primary and secondary places in September 2019. In Hillingdon, all pupils who had submitted timely applications had been offered a place on offer day, with 94.3% of residents receiving an offer for one of their preferred schools.

Figures received showed that Hillingdon was again best in west London for meeting parental first preferences, first-third, and first-sixth, for primary places. Hillingdon was better than the average of all 32 London boroughs.

Further forecasts for September suggested that demand for secondary places would increase, in line with increased demand seen across London. Regarding primary places, the number of places offered had reduced slightly, though approximately 100 applications had been received after the closing date, so figures would be more accurate once these applications had been processed.

Members asked a number of questions, including:

Regarding secondary places for Year 7, the figures showed that the majority of schools had very few places available. The government recommended that approximately 5% of places should be kept open. How were officers addressing this?

Officers recognised that places for Year 7 were tight. However, the government’s comments regarding 5% was guidance only, and officers did not expect further large numbers of applications to add to the remaining places. However, officers had agreed contingency plans with schools to provide extra places if necessary  in September or the next  year, if required. In addition, the construction of a proposed new free school, hopefully to open in 2021/22 would further help with capacity issues. Harlington School in particular was recognised as being very full, and there was an agreement in place in principle to expand the school, subject to the ongoing procurement process.

In light of comments made by the Cabinet Member for Education and Children’s Services, could the officers provide an update on the proposed new free schools?

Two new secondary schools for north of the A40 had been approved in principle by the DfE, with one school currently being considered, based on need. A suitable site for this school was being considered in line with planning requirements, and officers were reviewing options to bring the process forward, in conjunction with Members.

The report referenced planning for secondary places in September 2020. Could the officers comment on this planning?

The current Year 5 was larger than the current Year 6, and it was accepted that the current Year 6 was tight. Forecasts suggested that an additional 100 places or so would be required for 2020, though this could vary as families moved in and out of the Borough. Talks were ongoing with the schools in order to address this need.

Some extra classes were located in different schools than previously. Why was this?

Some schools had since expanded, but until their big intakes worked through, had some empty  ...  view the full minutes text for item 77.

Dalton Cenac, Highways & Traffic  Manager, Gurmeet Matharu, Principal Engineer, and Vicky Boorman, Flood and Water Management Specialist, introduced a report detailing Highways Maintenance and Flooding.

The contents of the report was summarised, key points of which included:

Highways Maintenance

·         Roads that were in need of repair were split into two categories:

o   Roads that were structurally unsound, and needed major resurfacing or reconstruction; and

o   Roads where the surface was aging and could be given a preventive treatment using a thin surface overlay.

·         Roads and pavements included in annual resurfacing programmes were prioritised primarily based on condition. In 2017, independent consultants undertook condition surveys of the ensure high network within Hillingdon, in accordance with the UKPMS national standard (United Kingdom Pavement Management System). The next survey was scheduled for later in 2019.

·         Other factors taken into consideration when deciding inclusion include potholes, trip hazards and wear/loss of surface material, service requests or reports from Councillors or residents, petitions, road hierarchy and insurance claims. Visual inspections are also carried out by engineers, to determine the most appropriate treatment.

Safety Inspections and Potholes

·         Safety inspections on all roads and pavements in the Borough were in accordance with the Council’s new Highway Safety Inspection Policy, which introduced a more risk-based approach to inspections and assessing and prioritising defects.

·         The new Policy set out consistent practices with neighbouring authorities and adjoining highways networks, and allowed the highway service to respond to defects within a proportionate timescale.

·         The frequency of inspections had increased on many roads, and two new inspectors had been appointed.

Flooding

·         The Council was a Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) under the Flood and Water Management Act, and as such had the lead on ‘local’ flood risk from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses.

·         The Environmental Agency has the lead on main rivers, reservoir flooding and strategic overview. Thames Water had responsibility for surface and foul water sewers, while Riparian Owners have responsibility for the stretch of river, stream or ditch next to their land or property.

·         The Borough contains over 32,000 gullies. Gullies in residential roads were cleaned annually, A-roads twice per year, B & C-roads once per year. 400 ‘critical gullies’ that required more regular cleansing were cleansed 4 times per year.

·         New roads are designed to remove or disperse water as quickly and efficiently as possible, which is opposite to flood alleviation objectives to delay the time of entry into the drainage system. Older roads may have less sophisticated drainage, but all roads will typically have one gully for every 200sqm of highway.

Actions during a Major Flood Event

·         During a major flooding event, the MET office will issue a water warning indicating heavy rain, and/or the Environment Agency will issue a Flood Alert. This information is distributed via an Adverse Water email to all those within the Council who may be required to take action.

·         Each Council service area has its own flood action plan, which details the resources they have available to respond, and the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78.

RESOLVED:  That the Cabinet Forward Plan be noted.

Consideration was given to the Work Programme for 2019-20.

Regarding the Committees’ suggested review into Youth Services, members were advised that this was not an appropriate topic for review at this time as officers were currently reviewing the topic as part of an ongoing BID process. It was suggested that the topic could be included as an information item at a future meeting. Members requested that the Committee be given view of any report on this matter prior to its consideration at Cabinet.

Councillor Mathers noted that the proposed review into Youth Services was a broad topic inclusive of youth engagement, consultation, early intervention and prevention services.

One suggestion for a new review topic was recycling, fly tipping and charity waste.

Members suggested that the following information items be considered on the work programme:

·         Air Quality – review follow-up;

·         Home Schooling following new Government legislation;

·         The Council’s emergency response procedure;

·         Sport and leisure services, particularly what was available, who was affected, what was planned, and what the Council reviewed in return;

·         Road Safety;

·         Music Provision and the Arts;

·         School Transport;

·         Adult Learning;

·         Parking Management Schemes;

·         Provision of services to children with Special Educational Needs at mainstream and specialist schools, including the number of pupils and the capacity available within the schools, and what is available for these pupils through the school Capital programme;

·         The Borough’s works to highlight and promotion of culture and heritage, similar to Black History Month.

RESOLVED: 

1.    That the Work Programme be noted; and

2.    That delegated authority be given to the clerk, in consultation with the Chairman, to consider and agree the information items to be added to the work programme.