Agenda item

To receive an update on the new enforcement and safety service

The Committee considered a presentation, set out in agenda pages 33 to 44, which gave an update on the new enforcement and safety service.

The presentation gave an update on recruitment to the new service, noting that 30.6 full-time-equivalent (FTE) roles had been filled, with 3 FTE roles outstanding. The presentation noted that services to be provided by the new service included environmental health, pollution control, and antisocial behaviour, whilst services such as trading standards and farm animal welfare would be purchased from West Berkshire Council. The project had a go-live date of 1 April 2022, and phase 2 of the project was planned which included a new problem-solving approach to antisocial behaviour and procurement of a modern computer system to drive automation and service improvement.

Bill Soane (Executive Member for Neighbourhood and Communities) and Ed Shaylor (Head of Enforcement and Safety) attended the meeting to answer Member queries.

During the ensuing discussion, Members raised the following points and queries:

·         It was noted that enforcement officers would work in 8-hour shift patterns.

·         Would enforcement officers be on duty past 2am in areas where bars and pubs had licences to stay open until 3am? Officer response - Officers had the ability to check the licencing conditions of establishments across the Borough, however they were civilians and did not have the arrest powers of police officers. Evidence could be gathered such as where broken glass was originating from and then a case could be built via the licensing route.

·         Would there be any final payment due to the Public Protection Partnership? Officer response – All details would be provided in the Executive papers which were due to be considered on Thursday 31^st March 2022.

·         It was noted that issues relating to commercial processes, construction sites and water supplies were covered by environmental permits for some commercial processes.

·         Which staff would handle private housing, the rented sector, and caravan and home parks? Officer response – There was a residential and environmental team who would inspect private rented properties and houses of multiple occupation in addition to mobile home and caravan parks.

·         If a resident needed to report a foul-smelling bonfire, would they be able to call the enforcement team or email them? Officer response – Residents could email the team directly which would be sent through to officer’s smart phones to be dealt with in the field. There was an out of hours service whereby a resident could ring, and the operator would note the details and write an email to the enforcement officers. Officers would be dealing with issues in the field and would therefore not be able to take calls whilst dealing with an ongoing issue.

·         How many officers would be in the field at any one time? Officer response – There were 10 officers altogether, with two being in the field during weekends and evenings. Most weekdays, possibly excluding Mondays, there might be between 4 to 6 officers in the field, whilst all officers might be working some days where training was required.

·         Who should be contacted in the event of groups playing loud music from their cars late at night whilst generally acting in an antisocial manner? Officer response – If crimes were being committed it would be more appropriate to ring the police, however if there was no specific crimes but drugs or alcohol were involved then officers may be hesitant as they would have to risk assess if it was safe to approach. Where it was safe to approach, officers would engage in consultation with individuals.

·         It was noted that this process had been a large piece of work completed over a 12-month period, which had been undertaken to provide a better service for residents. Officers should be commended for their commitment to delivery of this service over a short period of time.

RESOLVED That:

1)      Bill Soane and Ed Shaylor be thanked for attending the meeting;

2)      The new enforcement and safety service be reviewed during the next municipal year to assess the initial successes and challenges that had been realised.