Agenda item

Joanne Howells, Street Scene Enforcement Service Manager, was in attendance to answer Members’ questions in respect of the Community Payback Scheme. Apologies were received from Richard Copeland, representative of the Probation Service, who had been invited but was unable to attend.

Members asked if there were any payback schemes planned for the north of the Borough, as all listed projects seemed to be in the south. The officer replied affirmatively, stating that the Community payback scheme was open to all areas of the Borough. It was noted that at present there were 11 projects across the Borough with 13 sessions per week, completing 1185 hours of community service in February 2025 alone.

In response to Councillors’ questions regarding ideas for community payback schemes, such as painting bridges in Ruislip, it was confirmed that both Members and residents could report projects centrally through the Government website or directly to the Streets Scene Enforcement team.

Councillors asked for the number of participants in the payback scheme. It was explained that each project involved a maximum of five people supervised on-site, with repeat projects arranged as needed.

Councillors asked if the payback scheme covered canals. It was confirmed that it did, provided officers engaged with the Canals and Rivers Trust.

The Committee sought further clarification regarding the rehabilitation rates of participants. Officers did not have the information to hand but agreed to follow this up with probation services.

Members suggested that community payback participants should work in areas where they had committed crimes. It was agreed that officers would follow this up with the Probation Service. Members heard that the scheme was currently utilised for both private and unregistered alleyways.

The Committee enquired why Councillors now had to go through the Government website in order to submit project nominations. It was clarified that, if preferred, Members could still submit their nominations directly to the Street Enforcement Team who would in turn engage with the Community Payback team. Regarding the delay in reintroducing the scheme post-COVID, it was explained that officers had been approached by the Probation Service in April 2024 and had since reintroduced the process.

In response to further questions from Members, it was confirmed that the scheme had been used to maintain empty properties in the past 12 months, following legislative procedures and risk assessments. Officers had access to a live list of empty properties across the Borough and would explore the possibility of planning ahead. 

It was confirmed that no adverse reports on concerns in respect of the Community Payback Scheme had been received to date.

In respect of savings to the Council resulting from the use of the Community Payback Scheme, Members head that it was not possible to confirm this at present given the newness of the scheme. The scheme would be reviewed in approximately 12 months’ time to establish its cost effectiveness.

Councillors asked if any form of training or job opportunities had been offered to payback participants to date. Officers confirmed that they were not aware of any such initiatives, noting that the project was relatively new.

Finally, Members asked about transportation issues between Harrow and the Borough. It was confirmed that the scheme was now more locally based and had not encountered any transportation problems.

RESOLVED: That the Committee noted the information in the report and provided any feedback to officers.