Minutes:
The minutes of the Executive of 9 April 2019 were presented by the Leader, Councillor Edwards, and taken as read.
In respect of Minute No. 41 (Exeter City Council Cleaning Tender Award Report) the Portfolio Holder Support Services referred to the Living Wage milestone having been reached, in respect of both employees of the City Council, those staff employed as part of the new cleaning contract at the Civic Centre, as well to a number of employers across Exeter all of whom paid the living wage. The Leader agreed with the Portfolio Holder Support Services that the City Council had led by example and remarked that wages had risen in the city, with a number of employers now paying higher wages to their staff.
In respect of Minute No. 42 (Overview of Revenue Budget), Councillor Prowse sought clarity on the contract procurement process by the City Council, in particular the recommendation for a supplementary budget of £30,000 for the Housing Needs Survey and the reliance on external consultants for this. The Leader confirmed that this was an important piece of work and external consultants would be used to carry out the survey to establish the need, rather than rely on the information from the waiting list.
In respect of Minute No. 43 (Capital Monitoring), the Leader moved and the Deputy Leader seconded the recommendations and they were carried.
In respect of Minute No. 44 (Updates to the Scheme of Delegation), the Leader moved and the Deputy Leader seconded the recommendations and they were carried.
In respect of Minute No. 45 (Results of the Consultation on Public Toilets), Referring to the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) Councillor Musgrave raised the issue of the impact of the closure of public toilets such as Musgrave Row on residents as well as the homeless and street attached. He referred to the lack of toilet facilities and expressed his disappointment in the change in commitment to keep the toilets open beyond 7pm. He had asked the Section 151 Officer for information on the cost of keeping Musgrave Row open which was £4,886, with £4,500 of ongoing costs. He believed that the Musgrave Row toilets should remain open and the funding to be found from the budget, possibly utilising money earmarked for consultation. The Leader confirmed that the matter had gone out to public consultation, the proposal identified as vital to help save £60,000. He undertook to seek from officers, options for ensuring the homeless community were not disadvantaged by the toilet closures.
Councillor Mrs Henson asked about the impact on sports facilities across the city and urged reconsideration of the proposals. The Leader stated that toilets would remain in the sports parks.
Councillor Newby also expressed concern regarding the intended closure of the public toilets in Fore Street, Topsham, which would impact particularly on the elderly, suggesting that the closure so close to the Bank Holiday weekend was a miscalculation. The toilets in Topsham required little maintenance and had not been the target for any vandalism and he asked the Leader to look at this closure again. Councillor Leadbetter suggested Topsham’s toilets could be operated by the community as a community asset. The Leader stated that he would look at the comments and referred to schemes in other parts of the country where people tended to use shops rather than public toilets.
Councillor Mitchell referred to previous meetings of a Community Toilets Group which had been set up which had included visits to other cities to look at their community toilet schemes. He asked the Leader to look at the work that had already been done in those cities across the country as well as best practice. The Leader felt it would be important to encourage community groups and businesses to advertise use of their toilets.
In respect of Minute No. 48 (Democratic and Civic Support Staffing), Councillor Sills referred to the support given by staff in his role as a Scrutiny Committee Chair and he hoped that this support could be continued in spite of the current financial challenge. The Leader responded and referred to the £2.5 million savings that would have to be made, as well as ensuring that all services continued to meet the needs of the Council.
RESOLVED that the minutes of Executive held on 9 April 2019 be received and where appropriate, adopted.