Councillors Edwards and Pearson presented the
following progress reports on priorities as the respective Leader
of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Support Services:-
Leader
The Leader presented the priorities for
2016/17.
In response to Members’
questions, the Leader reported the following updates:-
·
progress made in respect of devolution with the
Heart of the South West partners had halted, in part due to outcome
of the General Election. Work had
continued on a draft Productivity Plan and a draft Terms of
Reference which had been released for the Heart of the South West
Joint Committee to consider. He also noted the comment on the
importance of safeguarding jobs for the future.
·
there had been several meetings in respect of the
Council’s new approach to deliver housing and commercial
schemes, and proposed formation of a development company. A report
would come before Members in due course for consideration.
Support Services
The
Portfolio Holder for Support Services reported the following
updates:-
- the innovative and sensitive use of
new technology which enhanced communication with local residents,
businesses and the general public in the days after the fire at the
Royal Clarence Hotel last October. He
advised that the Communications team received an award from the
Chartered Institute of Public Relations Excellence Awards 2017, in
the Issues, Crisis or Reputational Management category for
exemplary public service work with limited resources. The small
team managing energy saving projects had also received a number of
accolades and awards for energy management. He felt that the awards
for both were testament to the investment made in better
communications across the Council.
- the Council’s investment and
the commitment by the team involved in bringing forward the Channel
Shift initiative, and similarly that team had received an award
from the Society of Information Technology Managers (SOCITM) in
part in recognition for the experience of users contacting the City
Council with the development of the ‘click to call’
functionality. This was considered particularly important as the
Council’s web site received a million hits a year.
A Member wished to endorse the Portfolio
Holder’s comments that the City Council’s web site was
easy to navigate.
The Portfolio Holder for
Support Services also responded to Members’ questions, as
follows:-
- following a resolution by Council,
the live streaming of Committee meetings was being investigated by
the Democratic Services and the Communications team, to consider
ways in which to further engage the public, and a number of options
would be considered. The Communications
team were working on developing a live stream platform using iPhone
technology equipment, to ensure that the essence of the meeting was
captured and every effort would be made to make it as visually
engaging as possible. A further live
streaming of a Council meeting would take place as soon as
possible, but certainly following the next cycle of Committee
meetings. He agreed that there should
be a notice or advice given to ensure everyone was aware that
filming was taking place to ensure that conversations could not be
captured unwittingly.
Corporate Services Scrutiny Committee noted
the reports of the Leader and Portfolio Holder for Support
Services.