Decision details

A list of topics falling under the remit of the Places Advisory Panel had been included on the agenda and the Panel was invited to establish a number of Task Groups to consider each subject.

To assist the work of the Groups it was suggested that the Panel might find it beneficial to undertake a tour of east Cheshire to address any knowledge gap and to allow Councillors to gain a better understanding of the area; a proposal which was supported by the Members.

In considering its Work Programme, Members of the Panel raised the following issues:

Meetings of the three Advisory Panels (People, Places and Performance and Capacity) had been scheduled for July, with each Panel being invited to conduct its work by means of the appointment of Task Groups. Given the cross-cutting nature of the topics under review by the Panels.  Councillor Brown requested that a composite schedule of Task Group appointments be created and circulated to all three Panels; setting out the remit of each Task Group, its membership and the officer appointed as its lead.

As the list of topics highlighted on the agenda was not comprehensive, the Panel was invited to nominate additional areas for inclusion into the work programme.

The additional topics put forward by the Panel were –

The structure of the Task Groups was briefly debated.  Councillor Gilliland stated that, to ensure the optimum use of the Panel’s time, appropriate subjects could be brought together under a general heading with a minimum of four individuals appointed to each Group.

Of the topics proposed, the Panel concluded that climate change was an issue which should be ingrained within the culture of the authority from its inception and therefore did not require consideration by a Task Group.   The assimilation of climate change objectives into the ethos of the Council could be demonstrated by Cheshire East becoming a signatory to the Nottingham Declaration on Climate Change and by the achievement of relevant environmental standards.

Having identified the subjects for review, Members deliberated on the way forward with regards to amalgamating the topics into a manageable work programme.

RESOLVED

That the following Task Groups be formed, with the following remit and membership and the Chairman attend those Task Group meetings where he is not a member wherever possible:

To complete the process, the Block Lead for Places undertook to identify a lead officer for each of the Task Groups.  Those present noted that meetings of the Groups would be informal and held in private.  This would enable Members to discuss issues freely without the need to exclude press and public as and when confidential issues were being considered.  Meetings of the Advisory Panel, to which the Task Groups would report would however, be held in public.