This meeting included a variety of reports on the performance of council services, strategies, and projects. Decisions were also scheduled to be made about the adoption of new council policies and the procurement of new services, as well as about individual properties and sites.

Private Rented Sector in Lewisham Task and Finish Group Report

A report entitled 'Final Report of the Private Rented Sector in Lewisham Task and Finish Group' was presented.

The Private Rented Sector (PRS) in Lewisham Task and Finish Group was established by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee in July 2023. After collecting evidence from a range of stakeholders, the group agreed on a final report and recommendations, which were submitted to the Mayor and Cabinet for consideration. The report pack does not tell us what response was made to the report.

The Task and Finish Group recommended a variety of actions to support Lewisham's private renters. These included changes to improve awareness of Council support services and how tenants can access them.

One of the group's recommendations was for the Council to improve its website, as many tenants prefer accessing information this way.

“The Council should redesign sections of its website that provide information to renters and landlords to ensure the information is clearer, better-organised and easily accessible for both groups.”

It was also recommended that the Council improve its communication with landlords and that enforcement action against rogue landlords be made public.

The group also recommended that the Council establish a Lewisham PRS Stakeholder Forum, which would bring together key tenant and landlord organisations to address issues in the sector.

Response to Brockley Local Assembly Referral on Community Space

A report on community space in Brockley ward was presented. The report was written as a response to a referral by the Brockley Local Assembly.

The Brockley Society raised a motion at the Brockley Local Assembly on 19 October 2023 about the lack of community space in Brockley ward. The Assembly voted unanimously to pass a motion recommending that Lewisham Council:

• Adopt a policy making it more difficult for buildings being used as a community space to be used for other purposes. Buildings being used as a community space are usually classified under the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) Order 1987 as use class F2.¹ The recommendation was that the Council should apply a presumption against the change of use from F2 to any other use class.
• Adopt a policy preventing the loss of community space when a site is redeveloped.
• Require the designation of all community spaces as either designated or non-designated assets in Neighbourhood Plans.

The Brockley Local Assembly then referred these recommendations to the Mayor and Cabinet for their consideration. The report pack does not provide any information about what the Council's response was to the recommendations made by the Assembly.

Comments of the Public Accounts Select Committee on the Housing Revenue Account Budget

A report from the Public Accounts Select Committee on the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budget was presented. The Council's HRA is the ring-fenced account that contains all of the money that it spends on providing and managing its council housing.

The Committee reviewed the Council's most recent financial monitoring figures and concluded that urgent action may be needed to stabilise the HRA budget. They recommended that:

“The Council opens discussions with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government about actions which could be taken to stabilise the HRA Budget - should sufficient overspend reductions and once-off-funding not be identified.”

The report pack does not tell us what response was made to the Committee's recommendation.

Quarterly Performance Report

A report about the performance of Lewisham Council's services was presented.

The report was accompanied by a 'Corporate Performance Dashboard', which provides a summary of the performance of the Council's services during Quarter 1 of the 2024/25 financial year.

The dashboard tracks Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that have been chosen to help assess how well the Council is delivering on its Corporate Strategy 2022-2026. This strategy identifies seven corporate priorities:

• Cleaner and Greener
• A Strong Local Economy
• Quality Housing
• Children and Young People
• Safer Communities
• Open Lewisham
• Health and Wellbeing

The report pack does not tell us whether the Mayor and Cabinet made any comments about the content of the report or dashboard.

The dashboard highlighted the following as areas of improvement for Quarter 1:

Cleaner and Greener

• Percentage of household waste sent for reuse, recycling and composting. Lewisham's target is for 35% of household waste to be sent for reuse, recycling, or composting. In May 2024, only 25.8% of household waste was sent for reuse, recycling, or composting.
• Kilograms of residual household waste collected per household. The Council's target is to collect no more than 480kg of residual household waste² per household. In May 2024, 526kg of residual household waste per household was collected.
• Contamination rate of recycling. Lewisham's target is to reduce contamination of recycling to 18% or less. In May 2024, the contamination rate of recycling was 20.5%.
• New electric vehicle charging points approved or delivered. The target was to have 330 new electric vehicle charging points approved or delivered by June 2024. By June 2024, only 250 had been approved or delivered.
• New secure cycle storage facilities approved or delivered. The target was to have 260 new secure cycle storage facilities approved or delivered by June 2024. 232 had been approved or delivered by that date.

Strong Local Economy

• Percentage of adults with a learning disability in paid employment. The Council's target is for 8% of adults with a learning disability to be in paid employment. As of June 2024, only 6.8% of adults with a learning disability are in paid employment.

Quality Housing

• Days to turnaround empty properties (voids). The Council aims to turnaround voids in 65 days. In June 2024 the average turnaround time was 69 days.
• Leaseholder satisfaction with service. The Council's target is to achieve at least 45% leaseholder satisfaction with its service. In June 2024 only 37.3% of leaseholders were satisfied with the service.
• Active households on the housing register. 97% of households on the housing register were active as of June 2024. The report notes that the indicator is being reviewed because the current measure simply provides information about the percentage of applications that are 'live' on the system. The intention is to change the indicator to track the percentage of households that are “assessed as being in housing need and who are awarded a banding.”
• Net additional homes provided. The Council's target is to provide 1,667 net additional homes. In 2022/23, only 487 were provided.
• Average call waiting time for landlord services (excluding repairs). The Council aims to answer calls from landlords (excluding calls about repairs) within four minutes. In June 2024 the average waiting time was 2.2 minutes.
• Average call waiting time for repairs. The Council aims to answer calls about repairs within 10 minutes. In June 2024 the average call waiting time was 6.1 minutes.
• Leaseholder Major Works - charges collected. The Council's target is to collect 40% of charges owed by leaseholders for Major Works in each year. By June 2024, 106.3% had been collected.

Children and Young People

• Rate of children in need per 10,000 children. There are 329.6 children in need per 10,000 children.
• Percentage of pupils achieving good passes in English and Maths GCSEs. The Council's target is for 69% of pupils to achieve good passes (grades 9-4) in English and Maths. In 2022/23, 63% achieved these grades.
• Average Progress 8 score. The Council's target is an average Progress 8 score of 0.11. In 2022/23, the average score was 0.01.
• Number of Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) adaptations completed. The target was for 25 DFG adaptations to be completed in Quarter 1. Only 15 were completed.
• Discretionary DFG spend. The budget for discretionary DFGs is £68,900. By the end of Quarter 1 only £15,500 had been spent.
• Mandatory DFG spend. The budget for mandatory DFGs is £188,000. By the end of Quarter 1 only £109,100 had been spent.
• Uptake of flu vaccine for people aged 65 and over. The Council's target is for 71% of people aged 65 and over to have had a flu vaccine. In 2023/24, the uptake was 58%.
• HIV diagnosed at a late stage of infection. The Council's target is to reduce late diagnosis of HIV to 39.4% or less. The proportion of people diagnosed at a late stage was 46.7% for the period 2020/22.

Corporate Health

• Council Tax collection. The Council's target is to collect 100% of Council Tax owed. By June 2024, 91% had been collected.
• Business Rates collection. The Council's target is to collect 100% of Business Rates owed. By June 2024, 88% had been collected.
• Complaints responded to within timescales. The Council aims to respond to 90% of complaints within the agreed timeframes. In June 2024, 71.3% of complaints were responded to within timescales.
• Freedom of Information requests responded to within timescales. The target is to respond to 90% of Freedom of Information (FOI) requests within the agreed timescales. In June 2024, 82.5% of FOI requests were responded to within timescales.
• Subject Access Requests responded to within timescales. The target is for 90% of Subject Access Requests (SARs)³ to be responded to within the agreed timescales. In June 2024, only 54.2% of SARs were responded to on time.
• Agency rate. The Council aims to reduce the agency rate to 15%. The agency rate for June 2024 was 19.2%.
• Turnover. The Council's target is for turnover to be 13% or less. In June 2024 the turnover rate was 9.2%.
• Average sickness days. The Council aims for the average number of sickness days to be 2.4 or less. In June 2024, the average number of sickness days per employee was 11.8.
• Ethnicity pay gap. There is an 11.3% ethnicity pay gap between White staff and staff from ethnically diverse backgrounds at Lewisham Council.
• Gender pay gap. There is a 6.1% gender pay gap between men and women working at Lewisham Council.

Open Lewisham

• Library visits per 1,000 residents. The target for library visits per 1,000 residents is 370. In June 2024 there were 336 visits per 1,000 residents.

Social Value Report

A report entitled 'Social Value Report 2023-24' was presented.

This report provided an overview of the social value generated in Lewisham during the financial year 2023/24 through the Council's Social Value Policy.

Public bodies have been legally required since 2013 to consider the social value that could be generated through their procurement processes. Social value is a way for the Council to secure wider benefits for Lewisham, such as jobs, training opportunities, or environmental improvements, through how it awards contracts.

The report noted that in the 2023/24 financial year, the Council secured 336 employment opportunities for Lewisham residents through its contracts. The report pack does not provide any information about how many of these opportunities were actually taken up.

The report also noted that 194 young people received an opportunity through council contracts in 2023/24, with these opportunities including 110 employment opportunities, careers advice, and employability workshops. Again, the report pack does not provide any information about how many of these opportunities were taken up.

Catford Regeneration Partnership Limited Business Plan

A report about the Catford Regeneration Partnership Limited (CRPL) was presented.

CRPL is a company that was created by Lewisham Council in 2010 to acquire and regenerate property in Catford. Lewisham Council is the sole shareholder in CRPL.

The report introduced CRPL's Business Plan for 2024–2027. The report pack does not tell us whether the Mayor and Cabinet approved the plan.

The plan outlined how CRPL would manage and operate its assets, including the Catford Shopping Centre.

The report requested that the Council provide additional investment to CRPL, as the company is currently unable to repay the loan that the Council has already provided to it.

“note that the current loan agreement conditions on repayment are not being met and agree to amend the loan agreement such that the Company can re-pay the loan flexibly, including capitalising the interest payment on to the loan in full for 5 years (circa £700k per year).”

The report pack does not tell us whether this investment was approved.

Temporary Accommodation Protection of Belongings Policy

A new policy for protecting the belongings of homeless applicants was presented.

The report outlined changes to how the Council would provide storage services to homeless applicants when they move into temporary accommodation. The report pack does not tell us whether the new policy was adopted.

Under the proposed policy, the Council would only provide storage where applicants are unable to make their own arrangements. Applicants would also be required to pay for the cost of the storage and removal services, and these services would only be provided for a reasonable length of time.

The policy changes were proposed to reduce the cost of providing storage services to homeless families.

Milford Towers

A report entitled 'Extension of Notting Hill Genesis Leases at Milford Towers and Proposed New Management Arrangements' was presented.

Milford Towers is a block of flats in Catford. The Council owns the freehold of the block, and the properties are held in the Council's HRA. Most of the flats in the block are leased to Notting Hill Genesis, a Housing Association, who rent these flats out as intermediate rent accommodation.

The Notting Hill Genesis leases at Milford Towers are due to expire on 14 November 2024. The report pack does not include any information about what is to happen to these leases, simply requesting that the Mayor and Cabinet:

“delegate authority to the Executive Director of Housing, in consultation with the Executive Director of Finance, Digital and Corporate Resources and the Director of Law and Corporate Governance to enter into the most optimal leasing arrangement for the flats, taking into account the future redevelopment of Catford.”

The report pack does not tell us whether this authority was delegated, or what decision has been made about the leases.

New Strategic Youth Offer and Strategy

A report entitled 'Proposal for a New Strategic Youth Offer and Strategy' was presented by Simon Whitlock, Head of Service Children and Young People Joint Commissioning.

The report included details about how Lewisham Council intends to improve its youth services. The report pack does not tell us whether any of these recommendations were approved.

The report was written in response to the Council's own recent review of its youth provision and to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee's recently published report of its 'Youth Review Task and Finish Group'.

The Task and Finish Group recommended that the Council take a more strategic approach to youth provision. They recommended that the Council establish itself as the strategic lead for youth provision in the borough, and that it begin working with stakeholders to produce a new five-year Youth Strategy.

In response to this recommendation, the report described the work that has taken place to develop a new framework for a 'Strategic Youth Offer', and outlined a proposal to develop a five-year Youth Strategy.

The report recommended that the Council bring in-house the youth services currently being provided by Youth First. Youth First are an employee-owned mutual organisation who have been providing youth services in Lewisham since 2016.

“Approve the proposal to insource the Youth Service provision (currently provided by Youth First) from 1 April 2025 and redesign it to align with the new Strategic Youth Offer from 1 July 2025.”

The report argued that insourcing youth services would provide:

“Improved Service Quality and Accountability: Insourcing allows for greater control over service delivery standards, ensuring that youth services are consistently high quality and aligned with the borough’s priorities. With direct oversight, the borough can swiftly respond to emerging issues and adapt services to changing needs.”

Procurement of Electric Vehicle Charge Point Operator

A report entitled 'Approval to procure electric vehicle charge point operator and maintenance for Sustainable Streets Scheme' was presented.

This report requested approval for the procurement of a new contract to install and maintain electric vehicle charge points. The report pack does not tell us whether this approval was granted.

The new charge points would be used to deliver the Council's 'Sustainable Streets' programme. Sustainable Streets is the Council's programme for reducing car use and increasing walking and cycling.

It was recommended that the Council use the NEPO framework for electric vehicle charge point infrastructure to procure the new service. NEPO is an organisation that provides procurement services to local authorities in the North East of England, Yorkshire and Humber.

“Approve the use of the NEPO232 Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure to procure the installation and maintenance of electric vehicle charge points for the Sustainable Streets scheme; Housing estates (if needed); and in areas of high requests.”

The report pack does not tell us which Supplier was chosen, but it does indicate that the following Suppliers were on the framework:

• Apcoa Parking (UK) Limited
• Zest Eco Ltd
• Connected Kerb Limited
• Ubitricity Distributed Energy Systems UK Limited
• Amp EV Limited
• Liberty Charge Limited t/a Believ
• Equans EV Solutions Limited
• Swarco Smart Charging Limited

Procurement of Garden Waste Disposal Contract

A report entitled 'Approval to procure a contract for a garden waste disposal and treatment service' was presented.

This report requested approval for the Council to begin procuring a new contract for garden waste disposal. The report pack does not tell us whether this approval was granted.

The report explained that the current garden waste contract is due to expire in April 2025, and that the Council is required to find a new Supplier.

General Fund Disposals

A report entitled 'General Fund Disposals' was presented.

The report included a proposal to dispose of four Council assets:

• (Former) Bankfoot neighbourhood office at 1 Bankfoot Road. The building was previously used as a neighbourhood office, but it is currently being used as storage by a contractor.
• Coroners Court and Mortuary at 8 Ladywell Road. These buildings were constructed in the 1890s and are Grade II listed. They have been vacant for some time and are being occupied by guardians.
• Trundleys, which is an industrial site at 160 Trundleys Road. The report notes that the site is sometimes referred to as 'Juno Way'.
• Mountsfield Park Lodge at Stainton Road, which is an office building on the edge of Mountsfield Park. The building is currently being used by Glendale, the Council's parks maintenance contractor, as office space.

The report recommended that the Council declare all four assets surplus to requirements and approve their disposal.

“Declare surplus and approve the disposal of four sites (as set out in the body of the report) and delegate authority to the Executive Director for Corporate Resources, in consultation with the Executive Director for Place, and the Director of Law and Corporate Governance, to agree specific sale terms.”

The report pack does not tell us whether these disposals were approved.

Exclusion of the Press and Public

Finally, a recommendation was made to exclude the press and public from the remainder of the meeting. The report pack does not tell us whether this recommendation was approved.