To receive the written reports of the Leader, Cabinet Members and Chairs of the Policy and Performance Committees and receive questions and answers on any of those reports in accordance with Standing Orders 10(2)(a) and 11.

The Leader of the Council presented his summary report upon matters relevant to his portfolio. He responded to a question from Councillor Green and made a number of comments including –

·  A review was taking place by Internal Audit to determine whether the Contract procedure rules had been followed correctly.

·  An external organisation (V4) had assisted the Council to identify savings of £1,500,000 in years 1, 2 and 3, at a cost to the Council of £260,000.

·  Some issues had been identified with contract procedure rules and this would be reported to the Audit and Risk Management Committee when a review had been completed.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Ann McLachlan on her Governance, Commissioning and Improvement Portfolio report. Her responses to questions from Councillors Lesley Rennie, Jeff Green and Janette Williamson including the following comments –

·  A suggestion to review the possibility of sharing training events with outside bodies with the view to reduce costs and avoid duplication was welcomed and would be explored. Best practice across the North West region could be looked at by the Member Training Steering Group.

·  Budget Proposals regarding Senior Management would be considered at December’s budget Council.

·  The Annual Governance Statement was a good news story for Wirral. The Council was now robust in its corporate governance arrangements, however, the Authority could not afford to be complacent and would continue to be scrutinised and monitored.

·  She expanded upon the proposal to establish a Corporate Compliance Unit to deal with the Council’s Internal Controls.

Questions were then invited for Councillor George Davies on the Neighbourhoods, Housing and Engagement Portfolio report. No questions were posed.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Pat Hackett on his Economy Portfolio report. His responses to questions from Councillors Stuart Kelly and Phil Gilchrist included the following comments –

·  A number of neighbourhood forums were going ahead, including in Hoylake and Devonshire Park in order to address local issues such as licensable activity. The situation in Oxton, with regards to the high numbers of licensed premises would be reviewed as part of this process.

·  In respect of proposed plans for the regeneration of Birkenhead Town Centre, discussions were still ongoing with Neptune Developments. A full consultation would take place in due course, including exhibitions and surveys.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Adrian Jones on his Support Services Portfolio report. His responses to questions from Councillors David Elderton, Adam Sykes and Jeff Green included the following comments –

·  A written response would be provided on the development of negotiations with the new owners of Tranmere Rovers in respect of the Ingleborough Road / Solar Campus proposals, which had now received planning approval.

·  Following IT outages this year the Council now had a full ‘disaster plan’ in place to prevent similar occurrences.

·  The Labour administration’s approach to redundancies was less onerous than that of the previous administration and also the current administration had made no conditions in terms of negotiations with Trades Unions.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Chris Jones on the Adult Social Care and Public Health Portfolio report. No questions were posed.

Moving onto the Leisure, Sport and Culture Portfolio report, questions were then invited for Councillor Chris Meaden. She responded to a question from Councillor Chris Blakeley and made the following comment:

·  As there was currently a consultation process under way she was not going to commit to anything at the moment regarding the libraries.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Bernie Mooney on her Environment and Sustainability Portfolio report. Her responses to questions from Councillors Chris Blakeley, Lesley Rennie (when asking her question, Councillor Rennie also declared a personal interest by virtue of her being a friend of Birkenhead Kennels), Stuart Kelly, Pat Cleary and Rob Gregson included the following comments –

·  There were 146,000 households in Wirral, 38,105 of which had subscribed to the garden waste collection service, although quite a few households did not have gardens.

·  With regards to Birkenhead Kennels, staff had expressed an interest in making use of land opposite their site to exercise the dogs. The land in question had multiple owners and had previously been developed. She informed the meeting that she would review the situation and the possibility of making use of the land and report back.

·  She would look at the issue of street cleansing in Oxton Village, with particular regard to addressing the matter of autumn leaf fall.

·  There would be some data provided in due course regarding levels of fly tipping. Biffa had reported that they could now service areas in the allotted time, suggesting that problems with fly tipping had decreased, but there would be a report on this in six months.

·  The transfer of Birkenhead Kennels to the Charity, Friends of Birkenhead Kennels, was underway and should be signed off within the week and she commended former Councillor Brian Kenny for his work on this matter.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Tony Smith on his Children and Family Services Portfolio report. His responses to questions from Councillors Denise Roberts and Treena Johnson included the following comments:

·  The proportion of young people who were NEET (Not engaged in Employment, Education of Training) reduced in 2013/14. There had been positive results for children in care who had seen an increase in gaining employment post 18. The latest data showed in 2013/14, 66 percent care leavers progressed to employment, education or training. This was a 29 percent improvement in comparison to 2011/12.

·  The percentage of children in early years foundation stage achieving a good level of development had increased to 63 per cent.

·  Percentages of looked after children achieving reading and writing had increased, however attainment in mathematics had decreased and the reasons as to why this had occurred would be reviewed.

·  He thanked all teachers, schools staff and officers for their work.

Questions were then invited for Councillor Stuart Whittingham on his Highways and Transport Portfolio report. His responses to questions from Councillors Chris Blakeley, Tony Norbury, John Salter and Harry Smith included the following comments:

·  With new developments in Wirral such as the Wirral Waters Project it was key that the Borough had a good quality transport infrastructure.

·  A written response would be provided regarding a question asked about the Heron Road, Meols scheme.

·  European funding and funding from external partners was being investigated with regard to transport improvements and he would provide an update on this in the coming months.

·  Specialised gangs of workers were carrying out works on surface dressing of roads filling in potholes.

Questions were then invited for the Policy and Performance Committee Chairs on their report. No questions were posed and it was then –

Resolved –

(1)  That each of the Cabinet Portfolio Summary reports be noted.

(2)  That the report of the Policy and Performance Committee Chairs be noted.