Agenda item

(To receive a report from Martyn Parker, Assistant Director – Public Protection, Nicole Hilton, Assistant Director – Communities, Lee Sirdifield, Assistant Director – Corporate, Mark Baxter, Chief Fire Officer and Steven Batchelor, Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership Senior Manager, which sets out the performance of the Tier 2 Service Level Performance measures for 2022-23 – Quarter 2 that are within the remit of the Public Protection and Communities Scrutiny Committee)

The Committee considered a report from Martyn Parker, Assistant Director - Public Protection, Nicole Hilton, Assistant Director – Communities, Lee Sirdifield, Assistant Director Corporate, Mark Baxter, Chief Fire Officer and Steven Batchelor, Senior Manager, Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership, which summarised the Service Level Performance against the Success Framework 2022/23 for Quarter 2 that were within the remit of the Public Protection and Communities Scrutiny Committee.

Ryan Stacey, Assistant Chief Fire Officer and Will Mason, Head of Culture were also in attendance for this item.

During consideration of the new Power BI dashboard, some of the following comments were raised:

·       Further information was sought regarding the Friendship and Emotions workshop.  Officers agreed to forward on details of the workshop content, and when and where they were being held on to members of the Committee.  The Committee noted that all schools booked in through the co-ordinators and that workshops were offered to all schools across the county. It was noted that at the end of the previous year the workshops were online, but now there was a hybrid model as well as face to face sessions. It was highlighted that the Stay Safe Partnership was looking into how the impact of the workshops could be recorded and that this was still work in progress.  The Committee also noted that the team had contact with safeguarding officers within schools and that more work being done around emotions and healthy relationships as this had seen a rise in the number of disclosures received;

·       Whether any work was being carried out to improve Teacher/pupil relationships.  Officers advised that they were not aware of any issues, but would look into the matter raised;

·       Some concern was raised regarding safeguarding and service provision for children in travelling communities.  It was agreed that this was a matter for the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee and that information would be circulated to members of the Committee after the meeting;

·       Reassurance was sought that with the Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference (MARAC) meetings operating virtually, that no one was being missed. The Committee was advised that meetings were being held virtually as it had enabled more services to be engaged in the meeting as they found it easier. It was highlighted that a formal review of MARAC was taking place to ensure that partners abilities were being maximised.  The Committee was advised that the review was due to be completed in April 2023;

·       What had been the impact of the shortage of veterinary surgeons on inspections; and whether the in-house training had been implemented and whether any adverts had been placed in veterinary publications.  It was agreed that a response would be sought from members of staff within the trading standards team;

·       Whether any complaints had been received regarding the pricing in shops or the quality of the service. It was agreed that a response would be made available to members of the Committee;

·       Thanks were extended to the trading standards team for all the work carried out removing dangerous goods and counterfeit goods from market venues;

·       One member enquired whether libraries were still issuing CD’s and DVD’s and whether libraries were able to accept CD and DVD donations .  The Committee was advised that libraries did still issue CD’s and DVD’s and that officers would look into the donation suggestion;

·       Whether libraries were promoted to school children.  The Committee noted that libraries were promoted, and that libraries provided various events to encourage young people to use libraries.  The Committee noted that story time was well attended by young children and that promotional work was incredibly essential for the service to maintain usage;

·       Reference was made to the recent Lincoln Christmas Market and some concerns were raised regarding overcrowding, and to the general feeling that some people felt unsafe.  The Committee was advised that the points highlighted would be relayed back into the feedback session;

·       Thanks were extended to the Heritage and Libraries teams for all their hard work;

·       One member advised that Donnington library was going from strength to strength with several groups wanting to use the library outside of normal opening hours;

·       Assurance was given that there was not one library underperforming compared to another, and that the library service was being enhanced as a result of community use;

·       One member enquired whether there was still the opportunity for villages without a library to apply to have one.  Confirmation was given that was the case and that there was still some budget provision available;

·       Some concern was expressed regarding access to some libraries for children was limited due to their opening hours.  The Committee noted that as part of reviewing the successes of libraries from 2016; opening hours would be one area that would be looked at;

·       Whether training was available in Lincolnshire to help adults get jobs.  The Committee was advised that training was offered through the voluntary portal which had a range of topics such as diversity, health and safety, disability awareness etc.  It was not known however how many of the courses were qualification courses.  It was agreed that further information would be circulated to members of the Committee in this regard;

·       One member highlighted a new charity that had been set up within their area for mothers with disabled children to be able to leave them to be cared for whilst they were shopping or having a coffee.  Officers agreed to look into this after the meeting;

·       Thanks, were also extended to the Donnington fire station for supporting various events in the village;

·       An enquiry was made as to whether Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue attended Parish/Town Council meeting to promote fire safety.  It was reported that local fire crews were encouraged to engage with the local community;

·       Whether the fire service had support in place to help its staff when required.  Assurance was given that LFR staff had access to help and that there were processes in place following a critical incident, and that staff also had access to council counselling services.  It was also noted that staff were also trained to be mental health first aiders and that there was also access to a peer support team within LFR;

·       Some concern was express regarding LFR access into Boston when train barriers were down.  The Committee noted that this was not just an issue in Boston it was an issue across the county, as there were several level crossings.  It was reported that crews were in constant communication with the fire control room; with each vehicle having automatic location systems (GPS) fitted. If the control room was aware that a fire appliance was delayed at a crossing, the control room was able to mobilise the next nearest asset.  It was also noted that in some circumstances, the barrier was able to be lifted to allow access;

·       Some concerns were expressed relating for the need for some road signs to advise motorists to be careful in adverse weather conditions.  The Lincolnshire Road Safety (LRSP) representative agreed to speak to Highways colleagues regarding this matter;

·       One member enquired whether there was a media campaign, which advised motorist not to double park due to the access required by emergency vehicles.  Assurance was given that work was undertaken with partners in this regard;

·       The target of 10,000 home visits as referred to on page 29 of the report pack.  The Committee noted that the stretch target of 10,000 was agreed as a result of the service wanting to drive a behavioural change, by encouraging staff to apply a different approach to solving a problem, to that done previously;

·       Whether the fire service used volunteers to help with their community work.  It was noted that the service had to be careful around safeguarding issues, as they operated in a position of trust, having access to some of the most vulnerable people’s homes.  As a result, any move to using volunteers would need to looked at with a degree of caution and suitable vetting, but it was an area that would be looked into;

·       The risk implications of missing deadlines for building regulation applications.  The Committee noted that LFR always worked with building control to advise when a deadline was going to be missed.  It was reported that 95% of applications were dealt with within the 15 working days.  Those that took a little bit longer were the applications that were more complex;

·       Total fires - Whether providing training to watch managers and crew managers would help with reduce the number of incidents.  The Committee noted that training was provided to supervisory managers on the ground who were in charge of the fire engines. It was also noted that there had been a change to the regulations around fire investigation standards which would be coming into force, particularly around the collection of forensic data;

·       Congratulations were extended to LFR for all their hard work in dealing with wildfires throughout the very hot summer and whether any public information was going to be scheduled for the coming year.  It was reported that the service would be promoting the dangers of wildfires, by working with bodies and partners;

·       Whether the 2020 casualty targets had been met. It was noted that his had been a question raised at the previous meeting.  The Committee was advised that there had been a 40% reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured from 2000 to 2010.  It was highlighted that LRSP were looking to achieve another 20% reduction on top of that.  It was highlighted that this had been achieved in 2015, but the reduction had not been subsequently maintained;

·       Whether there was any anecdotal evidence of a higher percentage of traffic offences having involved foreign nationals in Lincolnshire.  It was reported that a request had been made to Lincolnshire Police, but unfortunately the 2021 census data had been delayed until January 2023.  It was expected that it would be reported back to the Committee for its March 2023 meeting;     

·       Thanks were extended to the Donnington Fire station for all their support with local events;

·       Whether the service provided any guidance regarding open fires now that colder weather was had arrived.  It was noted that the service was working with the National Fire Chief’s Council to ensure that a consistent message was delivered across the country.  Work was also ongoing with partners regarding the most vulnerable, to make sure they were able to heat their homes safely;

·       Some concern was raised regarding speeding vehicles through rural villages and to the fact that that when speeding surveys were received, they just indicated the mean speed of vehicles and did not focus on the number of vehicles that were speeding.   There was recognition to the frustrations raised, and it was emphasised that enforcement was not solely based on average speed, the average speed demonstrated the speed most vehicles were travelling.  Reassurance was given that when surveys were reviewed, consideration was given to a combination of factors for example the number of slight/serious injuries, number, and the causes; the average speed of vehicles; the number of vehicles exceeding the speed limit by a level that enforcement would commence; those exceeding the speed limit by 10 miles an hour or more.  It was highlighted that all this information provided data as to what was going on the roads in Lincolnshire.  One member advised that several villages within his electoral division were buying the flashing light speed indicators, and that these were having a huge impact;

·       Increase awareness for drivers of winter driving.  The Committee was advised that the LRSPs Communication Officer had retired, and as a result, the LRSP were not leading on the winter drink and drug driving campaign this year it was being led by Lincolnshire Police’s communication team, supported with funding from the LRSP.  It was noted that throughout the months of December and January a winter driving campaign was being undertaken;

·       The use of car horns in the vicinity of Derby Street in Boston because of the low bridge. The local member advised that there needed to be a message to advise drivers that the use of the car horn was not necessary, as there was enough room for two cars to pass.  The LRSP agreed to take the matter up with Highways colleagues;

·       The high number of killed or seriously injured casualties (445) in Lincolnshire in comparison to statistical neighbours.  The Committee was advised that excessive or inappropriate speed were contributory factors.  It was highlighted that more than 90% of collisions throughout the UK involved some form of driver error. Most being unintentional.  It was highlighted that for fatalities from last year, careless and reckless and, in a hurry had been the highest contributory factor; and failing to judge another person’s powerful speed and to look properly was second with failing to look properly coming in third. The Committee noted that the LRSP worked with statistical neighbours to share lessons learnt; and

·       Children killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions. Reassurance was given that the LRSP was doing all it could to reduce the number (24).

The Chairman on behalf of the Committee extended his thanks to the presenters.

RESOLVED

That the report presented be received and that the comments raised be taken into consideration by relevant lead officers and Executive Portfolio Holders.