The Overview & Scrutiny Committee of Tower Hamlets Council met on Monday 28 October 2019 to discuss improvements to the council's consultation processes, a draft transport strategy, and revisions to the gambling policy. Key decisions included the acknowledgement of the need for a more standardised and effective approach to consultation, with a commitment to training and a new online consultation hub. The committee also discussed the draft transport strategy, noting areas of support and concern, particularly from businesses regarding car dependency. The revised gambling policy was presented, with discussions focusing on its objectives and the impact of recent legislative changes.

Strengthening Consultation Processes

The committee focused significantly on the council's approach to consultation, with presentations from Mayor John Biggs and Odia. A new draft consultation handbook and an online consultation hub are being developed to improve consistency and effectiveness across the council. The aim is to move towards a more standardised, scalable, and quality-assured approach to engagement, ensuring councillors are involved earlier and that a central register of consultation activities is maintained. Training for officers and members is planned, and the process will include midway reviews.

Key points raised during the discussion included:

• Consistency in Officer Engagement: Councillor Andrew Wood questioned how consistency would be ensured across all officers, with the response highlighting the embedding of quality assurance protocols, requiring consultation mandates, and expecting councillors to be included in engagement plans.
• Timing of Consultations: Councillor Bex White raised concerns about consultations being released during holiday periods, leading to reduced public participation. The new guidance addresses this by requiring consideration of seasonal timing in the planning stages.
• Meaningful Questions and Accessibility: Councillor Tarik Khan sought assurance that consultations would ask meaningful questions and not be designed to elicit specific answers. He also enquired about the availability of non-digital feedback methods. The council confirmed that a preference for digital engagement would be balanced with the need for alternative modes of feedback, such as paper copies.
• Embedding a Culture of Consultation: Councillor Bex White asked about leadership-level efforts to embed a culture of consultation. Training for different officer levels is planned, with a focus on the importance of community feedback in shaping service delivery.
• Consultation Fatigue: The challenge of consultation fatigue was acknowledged. The new online hub aims to mitigate this by providing a central repository of information, preventing duplication of efforts, and allowing for the combination of similar consultations. A variety of engaging tools within the hub are also intended to prevent monotony.
• False Choices in Consultations: Councillor Marc Francis expressed concern about past instances where residents were presented with false choices in consultations, citing the example of day nurseries and children's centres. The council acknowledged this as bad practice and stated that the new guidance includes a section on options appraisal to ensure credible and principled option generation.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: Councillor Andrew Wood questioned how the new consultation process would be monitored and evaluated. The plan includes ongoing review of evaluations from each consultation, a formal review after a year, and the potential involvement of an external body.
• Green Spaces and Trees: Councillor Andrew Wood specifically requested that the guidance include specific guidelines for consulting widely and thoroughly on green spaces and trees, citing an instance where residents on a particular estate were not consulted about works affecting their local green area.
• Scrutiny Involvement: A recommendation was made to add scrutiny to the stakeholder list for new consultations and to receive a regular list of upcoming consultations.

Draft Transport Strategy and Parking Services

The committee reviewed a draft of the council's 20-year transport strategy, which aims to create an environment that encourages walking, cycling, and public transport use. The strategy, which will be presented to Cabinet in December, acknowledges the growing borough population and increasing vehicle numbers, with a particular focus on improving air quality.

Key discussion points included:

• Impact of Consultation Findings: Councillor Bex White asked how the consultation findings had impacted the strategy and its implementation plans. It was explained that while the core priorities are unlikely to change due to strong support, the findings will inform the underlying action plans and highlight areas needing further understanding, particularly concerning business concerns about reducing car dependency.
• Fear of Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour: Councillor Bex White raised the issue of fear of crime and anti-social behaviour as a barrier to walking, noting that public realm issues like poor lighting and graffiti contribute to this feeling. The council highlighted ongoing work to address these, including bringing waste services in-house and investing in street cleaning and graffiti removal.
• Scope of the Strategy: Councillor Andrew Wood argued that the document was more of a strategy for cycling and pedestrians than a comprehensive transport strategy, noting the limited mention of ferries, rivers, and bridges, which are crucial for the borough's connectivity. He questioned the council's stance on private railway proposals, such as the one between Canary Wharf and Euston. Councillor David Edgar defended the document as a high-level strategic framework that shapes the council's approach.
• Business Concerns: The consultation revealed that businesses were concerned about reducing car dependency, potentially impacting deliveries and customer access. Further work will be done to understand these concerns and explore solutions like cargo bike schemes.
• Bus Services: Councillor Marc Francis highlighted the deterioration of bus services in the northeast of the borough and called for more assertive engagement with Transport for London (TfL) to improve routes and address overcrowding. The council acknowledged these issues and committed to lobbying TfL.
• Driver Behaviour: The strategy aims to change driver behaviour through measures like the diesel levy and potential changes to parking permit policies. Making alternatives to driving more accessible, such as improving school routes, is also a focus.
• Parking Services: Councillor Tarik Khan noted that the parking services aspect of the strategy seemed to be missing. It was clarified that while the transport strategy provides a framework, specific parking policies would need separate development and agreement, and a more in-depth discussion on parking services could be held at a future meeting.

Revised Gambling Policy

The committee reviewed the council's revised gambling policy, which is due for adoption by the full council in December 2019. The policy aims to prevent gambling from being a source of crime, ensure it is fair and open, and protect vulnerable people.

Key points discussed included:

• Legislative Changes: Many of the policy changes reflect updates in the law and align with the framework set by the Gambling Commission.
• Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBTs): The council supported the campaign to reduce the stake and prize money for FOBTs, which has now been implemented. This is expected to lead to a reduction in betting shops, with William Hill already announcing closures in the borough.
• Aspirational Policies and Appeals: Councillor Eve McQuillan raised concerns about the council's ability to uphold its policy due to the threat of legal appeals. It was noted that the policy includes commitments to work with premises to identify and prevent the exploitation of children and vulnerable adults.
• Definition of Near To : Councillor Eve McQuillan questioned the lack of a defined distance for near to in the policy, which could be an issue when considering new betting shop applications, particularly near schools or hostels. It was explained that defining a specific distance could limit the council's decision-making flexibility.
• Number of Betting Shops: Tower Hamlets has an estimated 80 betting shops, which is considered a significant number for its population size, though slightly fewer than neighbouring Newham.
• Prevention of New Shops: The council believes its current policy framework has been successful in discouraging new applications, and the reduction in FOBT stakes is expected to further decrease their numbers.
• Risk Assessments and Risk Maps: In response to a question about risk assessments requested from gambling operators and the creation of risk maps, it was stated that while specific numbers of risk assessments were not available, underage sales test purchases are conducted. Ward profiles have been created, which provide a breakdown of dynamics within each ward, serving a similar purpose to a borough-wide risk map.

Pre-Decision Scrutiny Questions

The committee discussed pre-decision scrutiny questions that would be forwarded to the Cabinet. These included issues related to the Rains school, the Local Community Fund (LCF), and the play strategy. Concerns were raised about the consultation process for Rains school, with a view that it had fallen short of established principles. Questions were also raised about the funding sources for the LCF and the timeline for the promised play strategy.

Updates from Scrutiny Leads

Scrutiny leads provided updates on their work:

• Councillor Dipa Das: Reported on work examining market spaces and allocations, with a future meeting planned to discuss housing allocations with Councillor John.
• Councillor Tarik Khan: Provided an update on budget discussions, including support plan sessions on premises charges, rent schemes, and budget mitigations. He noted that the Quarter 2 budget and performance out-turn reports would be discussed at the next meeting.
• Councillor Bex White: Shared insights from a visit to a recycling plant, discussions on behaviour change, and assurances about the destination of recycled materials. She also reported on a productive challenge session regarding community safety and a review of the customer journey for anti-social behaviour reporting.
• Councillor Sufia Alam (via written update): Apologies were noted, and a written update will be provided.
• Councillor Kahar Chowdhury (via verbal update): Will be chairing the Health and Adults Scrutiny Subcommittee, which will discuss social care charging and meals on wheels. Concerns were raised about the lack of detail and alternatives presented for potential cuts to the meals on wheels service.
• Councillor Marc Francis (via verbal update): Highlighted the need for information and reports on the meals on wheels issue and noted that the Safeguarding Adults Board and Homelessness Action Plan have gone to Cabinet.
• Councillor James King (Chair): Announced the completion of the selection process for two resident co-opted members to the committee, with appointments to be ratified at the next meeting.

Any Other Business

• Report Distribution: Councillor Andrew Wood raised a complaint about the late distribution of detailed reports, making it difficult to prepare questions within the given deadlines.
• Minutes Accuracy: Councillor Andrew Wood sought clarification on the wording of a point in the previous meeting's minutes regarding how targets had been developed.
• Mayor's Attendance: It was noted that the Mayor would be sending a deputy to the next meeting, and a request was made for advance information on how targets are set and changed.