Agenda and minutes

The Leader of the Council advised that Councillor Currie had sent his apologies, as his wife was ill.  On behalf of Cabinet, the Leader sent his best wishes to Mrs Currie.

To receive declarations of personal or prejudicial interests arising from business to be transacted at this meeting from:

(a)               all Members of the Cabinet; and

(b)               all other Members present.

RESOLVED:  To note that the following interest was declared:

Agenda Item 11 – Draft Admission Arrangements and Consultation Process for the 2012/13 Academic Year

During consideration of the item, Councillor Barry Macleod-Cullinane declared a personal interest in that his sister worked at Hatch End High School.  He would remain in the room to listen to the discussion on the report.

That the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 28 October 2010 be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED:  That the minutes of the meeting held on 28 October 2010, be taken as read and signed as a correct record.

To receive any petitions submitted by members of the public or Councillors.

Councillor Lurline Champagnie OBE, presented a petition signed by 118 residents of Barrow Point Avenue, Pinner.

Councillor Champagnie stated that the residents of Barrow Point Avenue felt very strongly about the state of their road.  The paving was abysmal and dangerous.  The pavements were cracked, broken and pushed up by large roots, and many people had tripped, fallen and been hurt as a result.  The kerbstones were too high and residents had their car tyres ruined when trying to park in their driveways.  The Council had compensated some residents for the ruined tyres.  Cabinet noted that the terms of reference were set out in detail in the petition.

RESOLVED:  That the petition be received and referred to the Corporate Director Community and Environment and Portfolio Holder for Environment and Community Safety for consideration.

To receive any public questions received in accordance with paragraph 16 of the Executive Procedure Rules.

Questions will be asked in the order notice of them was received and there be a time limit of 15 minutes.

RESOLVED:  To note that the following public questions had been received:

1.

To receive any Councillor questions received in accordance with paragraph 17 of the Executive Procedure Rules.

Questions will be asked in the order notice of them was received and there be a time limit of 15 minutes.

RESOLVED:  To note the following Councillor Questions had been received:

1.

2.

3.

The Leader of the Council advised that the report relating to the West London Waste Authority (WLWA) Waste Procurement Site Assessments had been deferred.

RESOLVED:  To note the contents of the Forward Plan for the period 1 November 2010 – 28 February 2011.

Report of the Corporate Director Place Shaping.

The Portfolio Holder for Planning, Development and Enterprise introduced the report on the Draft West London Waste Plan Proposed Sites and Policies Consultation Document for approval for the purposes of public consultation.

Members were informed that the Plan was one of the policy documents, which would comprise the overall Local Development Framework (LDF) for the borough and would eventually replace the Unitary Development Plan (UDP).  The Plan had been prepared jointly by the six west London boroughs of Harrow, Brent, Ealing, Hillingdon, Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames.

The Portfolio Holder added that this matter had been the subject of discussions at recent meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and Local Development Framework Panel, held on 2 and 9 November respectively, both bodies having submitted their observations to Cabinet.

RESOLVED to Recommend:  (to Council)

That the Draft West London Waste Plan: Proposed Sites and Policies Consultation Document and the associated Sustainability Appraisal for the purposes of public consultation be approved.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)               the Draft West London Waste Plan: Proposed Sites and Policies Consultation Document be noted;

(2)               it be noted that approval was also being sought to undertake consultations on the Draft West London Waste Plan:  Proposed Sites and Policies Document by five other west London Councils, namely Brent, Ealing, Hillingdon, Hounslow and Richmond upon Thames, as members of the West London Waste Authority partnership;

(3)               officers carry out a minimum six week public consultation on the Draft West London Waste Plan: Proposed Sites and Policies Consultation Document and the Sustainability Appraisal in compliance with the adopted Statement of Community Involvement, and report back to a future meeting of Cabinet on the outcome of public consultation and recommendations for changes to the Plan prior to its formal submission. 

Reasons for Decision:  To enable meaningful progress on the West London Waste Plan (WLWP) in order to meet targets set out in the current London Plan (consolidated with Alterations 2008), draft Replacement London Plan 2009, and Planning Policy Statements 10 and 12.

[Call-in does not apply to the recommendation to Council.]

Cabinet considered a reference from Council, which related to a petition, signed by 2,487 people, on parking issues in Pinner, the impact of the high charges on local businesses and urged for free ½ hour parking scheme to be introduced in line with those areas in the vicinity of Pinner.

The Leader of the Council moved that the petition be referred as evidence to the Parking Review.

RESOLVED:  That the petition with the following terms of referencebe referred as evidence to the Parking Review:

“We the undersigned request that Harrow Council urgently address the parking issues in Pinner. Local businesses are suffering as a result of the high car parking charges in comparison with other local High Streets in the area.

We urge Harrow Council to introduce ½ hour car parking scheme in Pinner car parks and meter parking areas and to reduce hourly rates to fall in line with Northwood, Ruislip and Eastcote.”

Reason for Decision:  To allow consideration of the petition as part of the proposed comprehensive review on parking.

Cabinet received a Motion falling within the remit of the Executive from Council on Harrow International Vision.  The Motion, inter alia, commented on the government’s spending plans, cuts which threatened the economic recovery, cuts in the Local Area Agreement (LAA) Reward Grant whilst suggesting that the government should take lessons from a Council that listened and led and which was committed to furthering community cohesion.

The Motion also sought the renewal of the international vision and to explore the feasibility of Harrow twinning with other countries, building an atmosphere for economic development and creating a positive environment whilst mitigating the impact of the cuts on residents by working with London Councils.

The Leader moved that the Motion be referred to the relevant Directorate and Portfolio Holder.

RESOLVED:  That the Motion be referred to the Portfolio Holder for Community and Cultural Services and Corporate Director Community and Environment for consideration and report back to a future Cabinet meeting.

Reason for Decision:  To allow all aspects of the Motion to be addressed prior to making a decision.

Report of the Director of Legal and Governance Services.

Cabinet received a report of the Director of Legal and Governance Services setting out the proposals for the Council’s Calendar of Meetings for the Municipal Year 2011/12.

RESOLVED:  That the Calendar of Meetings for the Municipal Year 2011/12 be approved.

Reasons for Decision:  To facilitate the planning and forward commitments of both Members and officers.  To allow room booking arrangements to be put in place at the earliest opportunity.

Report of the Director of Schools, Quality Assurance and Commissioning.

The Portfolio Holder for Schools and Colleges introduced the report, which informed Cabinet of the statutory proposals published in September 2010 to effect the amalgamation of Longfield Infant School and Longfield Junior School. 

The Portfolio Holder added that on 15 July, Cabinet had considered the outcome of the statutory consultation and the recommendations of the governing bodies that the two schools should amalgamate.  Cabinet had also agreed to publish the statutory proposals, which had been published on 6 September for six weeks.  He added that since the publication of the statutory proposals, noobjections had been received during the representation period.

Cabinet was informed that combining the two schools would give an opportunity to further improve educational standards by enabling planning as a coherent whole across the primary phase of the national curriculum, and provide opportunities for wider staff development and experience across the full primary phase.  The Portfolio Holder commended the report to enable the two schools to combine in September 2011.

RESOLVED:  That Longfield Infant School and Nursery be closed, the age range be extended and the capacity of Longfield Junior School be expanded, to effect the amalgamation of the two schools in September 2011.

Reasons for Decision:  To combine the two schools and to give an opportunity to further improve educational standards by enabling planning as a coherent whole across the primary phase of the national curriculum and providing greater flexibility across and between key stages. 

To comply with the statutory duty to determine the proposals within two months from the end of the representation period, which ended on 18 October 2010, having had regard to the statutory and non-statutory guidance provided by the Department for Education, rather than refer the matter to the Office of the Schools Adjudicator for determination.   

Report of the Corporate Director Schools, Quality Assurance and Commissioning.

The Portfolio Holder for Schools and Colleges introduced the report, which sought the determination of the admission arrangements for community schools.  He added that under the Schools Standards Framework Act 1998, the Council, as an education authority, was required to consult for a minimum of eight weeks between 1 November and 1 March before determining its admission arrangements.  The Act, as amended, also required each local authority to establish an Admissions Forum to provide a vehicle for admission authorities and key parties to discuss the effectiveness of local admission arrangements.

Members noted that the Harrow Admissions Forum (HAF) had considered the current admission arrangements at its meeting on 20 October and had made its recommendations to Cabinet which included amendments.  The Portfolio Holder added that the HAF would consider the outcomes of the consultation at its meeting in February 2011 and thereafter make recommendations to Cabinet in March for final determination of the admission arrangements in accordance with the statutory timescale of 15 April 2011.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)               consultation on the admission arrangements, proposed by the Harrow Admissions Forum, at Appendix 1 to the report, be commenced with the following amendments:

·                     to establish a small working group to further investigate the process for assessing parental medical claims;

·                     to clarify that medical claims would only be considered for one school;

·                     to change the measurement point for a school from the closest school gate to the centre point of the school site;

·                     to amend one of the underlying principles of the Fair Access Protocol for applications for Faith Schools to clarify that applications for Faith Schools must be supported by a Supplementary Information Form to ensure that governors had relevant supporting information to assess whether the child met their faith criterion.

(2)               consultation take place between 29 November 2010 and 28 January 2011 and involve all statutory consultees, including parents and community groups.

Reasons for Decision:  To adhere to the statutory requirement under the Schools Standards and Framework Act 1998 for admission authorities to consult for a minimum of eight weeks between 1 November 2010 and 1 March 2011.

[Call-In does not apply to this decision for the reasons stated in the report.]

Report of the Corporate Director Children’s Services.

The Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services commended the report to Cabinet, which outlined the progress made in formalising the terms of reference of Harrow’s Children in Care Council, which would be known as Beyond Limits, and, in addition, the drafting of the Harrow Pledge.  The Portfolio Holder added that, apart from a desire to meet statutory obligations, the involvement of young people in the process ought to be welcomed, and she commended the report to Cabinet.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)               the draft terms of reference of Beyond Limits, as detailed in the report,  be adopted, in particular, the interface proposals between Beyond Limits and Corporate Parenting;

(2)               the Harrow Pledge detailed in the report,as outlined by Beyond Limits, be adopted;

(3)               the appointment of two members of Beyond Limits from a pool of four, as non-voting members to the Panel on an as and when basis be approved.

Reasons for Decision:  To adhere to the following expectations on Local Authorities from ‘Care Matters -Time for Change 2007’ to:

(a)               set up Children in Care Councils as a way of ensuring that Children Looked After have a voice;

(b)               produce a Pledge which describes how, what and the way Children Looked After would be treated;

(c)               allow local Children in Care Councils to monitor the implementation of locally produced Pledges in conjunction with Corporate Parenting Panels.

To provide a Forum for Children Looked After (CLA) to participate and influence policy, and enable them to discuss issues relating to their own direct experiences of the services received.

Report of the Corporate Director Community and Environment.

The Corporate Director of Community and Environment introduced the report, which described the management of street works and set out the rationale for Harrow joining the London Permit Scheme (LoPS) and being able to issue Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs).

The Corporate Director added that the Scheme was being phased with the first phase having been implemented in January 2010.  It was expected that the second phase would be implemented during 2010/11 when a number of boroughs, including Harrow, would join the Scheme.  He added that the Scheme would also apply to Red Routes.

Cabinet noted that by joining the LoPS, the Council would be able to exercise greater control and regulation over street works and allow the Council’s network management team to be self-financing through the generation of income from permits.  The issue of FPNs would allow street works offences to be effectively enforced and improve co-ordination and a policy to regulate their use.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)               Harrow join the London Permit Scheme, subject to a successful consultation outcome by the lead London borough, Hammersmith & Fulham Council, and a successful application to the Department for Transport;

(2)               the Divisional Director Environmental Services be authorised to take all actions necessary to implement the London Permit Scheme and to vary permit fees to ensure that the fee income did not exceed the operating cost of the Scheme;

(3)               Fixed Penalty Notices be used to enforce existing street works noticing offences and improve coordination between works promoters subject to the adoption of the Policy for operation of the Scheme;

(4)               the Policy for the issuing of Fixed Penalty Notices for Street Works Noticing Offences, at appendix C to the report, be approved for consultation, and the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Community Safety be authorised to consider the results of the consultation and adopt the Policy;

(5)               the recruitment of three additional staff in the network management team to operate the London Permit Scheme be noted;

Reasons for Decision:  The London Permit Scheme and use of Fixed Penalty Notices would give greater controls to Harrow to manage street works on its road network and thereby meet the requirements of the Network Management Duty imposed on it by the Traffic Management Act 2004.