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Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

Venue: 1P05: Beira Room - City Hall, College Green, Bristol, BS1 5TR. View directions

Contact: Amy Rodwell  Policy Committee Officer

Items
No. Item

1.

Welcome, Introductions and Safety Information pdf icon PDF 103 KB

Minutes:

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and did a round of introductions.

2.

Apologies for Absence and Substitutions

Minutes:

There were no apologies for absence.

3.

Declarations of Interest

To note any declarations of interest from councillors. They are asked to

indicate the relevant agenda item, the nature of the interest and in particular

whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest.

 

Any declaration of interest made at the meeting which is not on the register of

interests should be notified to the Monitoring Officer for inclusion.

 

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

4.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 253 KB

Minutes:

On the motion of the Chair, seconded by Cllr Clarke, the Committee RESOLVED;

 

That the minutes of the previous meeting on 11th October be approved as a correct record.

5.

Chair's Announcements

To receive any announcements from the Chair.

Minutes:

There were no announcements from the Chair.

6.

Public Forum pdf icon PDF 241 KB

Up to 30 minutes is allowed for this item.

 

Any member of the public or councillor may participate in Public Forum. Public Forum items must relate to the remit of the committee and should be addressed to the Chair of the committee.

 

Members of the public who plan to attend a public meeting at City Hall are advised that you will be required to sign in when you arrive. Please note that you will be issued with a visitor pass which you will need to display at all times.

 

Please also note:

 

Questions

1.      Written public questions must be received by 5.00 pm, at least 3 clear working days prior to the meeting. For this meeting, this means that questions must be received at the latest by 5.00 pm on Monday 18th November 2024. Please email questions to policycommittees@bristol.gov.uk

2.      Any individual can submit up to 3 written questions.

3.      Written replies to questions will be available on the Council’s website at least one hour before the meeting.

4.      At the meeting, questioners will be permitted to ask up to 2 oral supplementary questions.

 

Statements

1.      Written statements must be received at latest by 12.00 noon, at least 2 working days prior to the meeting. For this meeting, this means that statements must be received at the latest by 12.00 noon on Wednesday 20th November 2024. Please email statements to policycommittees@bristol.gov.uk

2.      Statements, provided they are no more than 1,000 words in length, will be circulated to all committee members and will be published on the Council’s website at least one hour before the meeting.

 

Petitions

1.      Details of the wording of any petitions, and the number of signatories to petitions must be received at latest by 12.00 noon, at least 2 working days prior to the meeting. For this meeting, this means that petition details must be received at the latest by 12.00 noon on Wednesday 20th November 2024. Please email petition details to policycommittees@bristol.gov.uk

2.      At the meeting, individuals presenting petitions may be required to read out the objectives of the petition.

 

When submitting a question or statement please indicate whether you are planning to attend the meeting to present your statement ask your question

 

Minutes:

It was noted that the Committee had received 2 Public Forum questions and 1 Public Forum Statement for this meeting as follows:

 

Questions:

 

Number

Name

Subject

PQ01

Bristol Parks Forum, Len Wyatt

Period 5 Finance Outturn Report 2024/25

PQ02

David Redgewell

Director Public Health Annual Report ‘City at Night’

 

  • In response to supplementary question from David Redgewell, officers advised that they would look at taxi provision in Old Market at night.

 

Statements:

 

Number

Name

Subject

PS01

David Redgewell

Director Public Health Annual Report ‘City at Night’

 

Resolved; That the Public Forum be noted.

 

7.

Director of Public Health Annual Report 24-25 pdf icon PDF 117 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the Public Health and Communities Committee:

1.      Noted the Director of Public Health annual report at Appendix A of the report.

 

Minutes:

The Chair introduced the item noting that the Committee would discuss each chapter of the report in turn allowing opportunity for questions on each. The Chair asked the Director of Public Health to give an overview of the annual report, which the theme for 2024 was the ‘City at Night’.

 

The Director of Public Health highlighted the following points:

 

·       The Public Health Annual Report was a statutory output of the Director of Public Health (DPH) role.

·       The report was co-produced by Public Health leads and the Night Time Economy Officer, working alongside other service areas and council partners to develop the report.

·       The report for 2024 was focused on the health and wellbeing of Bristol citizens that were active at night, both for work, leisure or anything else.

·       It was noted that 41% of employment in Bristol was at night, and of these people, 40% were under the age of 24, 15% were Black and Minority Ethnic, and 50% were Male.

·       The recommendations in the annual report included 4 priorities for work going forwards.

 

Summary of main points raised/noted in discussion of this item:

 

  • Members raised concerns around the number of council employees working at night and the support provided, particularly regarding mental health impacts and support for women’s safety. Officers advised that they liaise with HR colleagues on this to identify key actions.
  • The Chair suggested that the Committee receive an update on support available for nighttime and early morning workers. Action.
  • There was a discussion around the importance of festivals in Bristol’s nighttime economy and Members were interested in the health, safety and environmental impacts.
  • Officers advised that health and safety was a priority and was embedded into the process, and that they were promoting greener events and working to improve the infrastructure to support more sustainable practices.
  • Members were interested in how Bristol compares to the other core cities and officers advised this could be picked up as part of upcoming surveys.
  • It was noted that the city continued to attract high profile events, and the calendar for 2025 was now fully booked. The Chair continues to receive regular updates the events schedule.
  • Members noted the cross cutting nature of the report and suggested that it be circulated to all Councillors.
  • Discussion on health and safety for night workers, referencing evidence from the TUC report on biological and social impacts of shift work.
  • Members raised concerns on wage theft and exploitation of workers in the nighttime economy, as well as workers’ rights, particularly those with 0-hour contracts.
  • Officers noted that the South West TUC was a key partner for fair treatment of workers and their recent report findings would be shared with relevant stakeholders.
  • Members were interested in promoting healthy meal options and ensuring breaks for workers and noted that healthy food options were often less available at night.
  • There was a discussion around access to food in areas of deprivation in the city, and how this linked to nighttime workers.
  • There was a discussion around the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

8.

Finance Report Update P5 2024/25 pdf icon PDF 143 KB

Additional documents:

Decision:

That the Committee for Public Health and Communities noted:

1.      The Public Health and Communities General Fund forecast outturn revenue position of a balanced position with no variance to budget at Q2/P5 2024/25.

2.      The breakeven position on Public Health Grant funded services (Appendix A1).

3.      The forecast underspend of £1.7 million against the Capital Programme revised budget 2024/25. (Appendix A1)

Minutes:

The Committee received an update on the financial forecast at period 5 / Quarter 2 against the budget within the remit of the Public Health & Communities Policy Committee.

 

Summary of main points raised/noted in discussion of this item:

 

  • The Chair noted that whilst the net position of the budget is reported at £14.2m, the Committee had oversight of around £94m.
  • Officers noted that there was no significant change in the budget position within the Management of Place division since the last report, however Members should expect to see the figures change slightly in the next finance report to reflect the Committee’s recent decision on the updated allotment fees and charges.
  • Officers noted that the Public Health budget was largely grant funded, but the general fund was forecasted at £6.4m.
  • There was a discussion around the risks and opportunities table which Members found difficult to understand scoring matrix. Officers acknowledged this and agreed to look at how this information could be better presented in future.
  • Officers advised that service had invested in domestic abuse services as it was a prominent issue in the city, which was partly grant funded along with contributions from the general fund.
  • The Chair noted that an additional point had been included in the report at the request of lead Members on the number of maintained parks and green spaces in the city, which was a total of 434.
  • Members asked about the risk relating to additional income targets to be found within the parks service, and officers advised that this was allocated to cafes income.
  • Members urged that any savings identified be more realistic as the target for the parks service was unachievable, especially given the lack of advertising.
  • The Chair highlighted the delay in expenditure for South Bristol Cemetery following the Committee’s recent decision on the expansion.

 

The Committee RESOLVED to note;

 

  1. The Public Health and Communities General Fund forecast outturn revenue position of a balanced position with no variance to budget at Q2/P5 2024/25.
  2. The breakeven position on Public Health Grant funded services (Appendix A1).
  3. The forecast underspend of £1.7 million against the Capital Programme revised budget 2024/25. (Appendix A1).