This week, the West Devon council held two key meetings: the South Hams Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Thursday, 27 June 2024, and the West Devon Overview and Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday, 25 June 2024. Below are the highlights and discussions from each meeting.

South Hams Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Housing in the South Hams

The committee reviewed the Thematic Update Housing report for June 2024. Here are the key points discussed:

• Affordable Homes Delivery: The council is set to exceed its target of delivering 300 new affordable homes in the South Hams district for the period 2019-2023.
• Housing Strategy Review: The current Housing Strategy, adopted in 2014 and running until 2026, was reviewed. The conclusion was that, while still largely fit for purpose, it should be reviewed again in 2025 to ensure it reflects the latest national and local planning policies.
• Second Homes Issue: The council is considering using a new power from the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which would allow a premium of up to 100% on Council Tax for second homes. However, guidance on implementing this power is still pending from the government.

Core Services

The committee also discussed the Thematic Update Core Services Customer Service IT report for June 2024. Key performance metrics included:

• Invoice Payments: 98% of all invoices were paid within 30 days.
• Call Handling: The council dealt with an average of 719 calls per day, with an average wait time of 6 minutes and 41 seconds, slightly above the target of 5 minutes.
• Website Performance: The council's new website, launched in June 2023, had over 1 million page views in its first 12 months.
• Digital Platform for Planning Applications: The council received £1.2 million from the government’s Local Digital Fund to develop a new digital platform for planning applications, set to launch in 2025.

Overview and Scrutiny Committee Annual Work Programme

The draft OS Annual Work Programme June 24 was considered and will be finalised at the next meeting.

West Devon Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Performance and Resources

The committee received a presentation based on the Thematic Update Performance and Resources. Key points included:

• Project Initiation: 76% of the council's key projects had not yet started, which is higher than usual for this time of year.
• Project Status: Only 9% of projects were rated as 'Red', an improvement from the previous year.

Customer Experience and Accessibility

A presentation on customer service, based on the Thematic Update Customer Experience Accessibility, was discussed. Highlights included:

• Customer Satisfaction: The recent survey showed a slight decline in customer satisfaction, attributed to the influx of new customers due to recent housing developments.

Annual Work Programme

The draft 2024/25 Committee Annual Work Programme was reviewed. Changes requested included scheduling a specific item on the climate for December and inviting a representative from the Devon and Cornwall Police to address local policing concerns.

For more detailed information, you can access the full meeting documents and reports via the provided links.