The Environment and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee of Islington Council met on 16 April 2024. The committee heard annual updates from the North London Waste Authority and from Islington Council's Library and Heritage Service and Employment and Skills service. The committee also approved its draft recommendations on active travel in the borough.

North London Waste Authority annual update

Martin Capstick, Managing Director of the North London Waste Authority (NLWA), provided an annual update to the committee. Mr Capstick described how the NLWA is working with the council and other boroughs to reduce waste, promote reuse and recycling.

Councillor Russell questioned how the NLWA plans to deal with a potential reduction in the amount of residual waste produced by its constituent boroughs, as the new Energy Recovery Facility at the Edmonton EcoPark is designed to operate with a much lower capacity than the authority currently produces. Mr Capstick responded:

In the event that we are in a situation where together we have succeeded in very significantly reducing the waste volume we've moved London to an enormously different level of circular economy ... that would be a small price to pay in the overall context of a successful kind of transformation of the economy.

Councillor Gilgunn asked if the NLWA had resolved a dispute regarding Unite the Union's request to appoint its own shop stewards to the Edmonton EcoPark site, where the NLWA's contractor Acciona is building a new Energy Recovery Facility. Mr Capstick responded that while Unite is able to appoint its own company shop stewards, an ongoing disagreement exists regarding the appointment of a site-wide convenor. The NLWA expects Acciona, as the employer, to have a role in the convenor's appointment, as they will be an Acciona employee. Unite's position is that Acciona should have no role in the convenor's appointment. Mr Capstick said:

We are encouraging them to continue to have a dialogue because it must be possible to find a way you know a process that works for people but we can't specify or dictate what that must be.

Councillor Jeapes asked about the provision of community composting facilities in Islington. Councillor Champion, the Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality and Transport, said that whilst the council supports and encourages community composting, it is not aware of any sites that could be expanded or opened for public access.

Libraries and Heritage performance report

Councillor Khondoker, the Executive Member for Equalities, Culture and Inclusion, and Akeylar Ahmed, Assistant Director of Community Learning, Libraries and Youth, presented the Library and Heritage service's Quarter 3 performance report. The report showed an overall rise in the use of the borough's libraries. The committee noted the report.

Councillor Weekes asked about progress on the introduction of card payment systems in libraries. Councillor Khondoker confirmed that she had given in-principle agreement in early March for the scheme to proceed using Barclays, the council's bank. However, it was noted that as the council is currently engaged in a procurement process to choose its banking provider for the next contract period, this may result in a delay to the installation of the payment systems.

Councillor Zammit asked about the demographics of library users and if it would be possible to determine if residents are travelling to libraries outside of their immediate neighbourhoods. Councillor Khondoker said that this is difficult to determine as, whilst residents provide their home address when registering for a library card, they are able to use any library in the borough and the closest library to their address may not be their preferred branch.

Councillor Russell asked if the upcoming review of the Library Service will consider changes to library opening hours. Councillor Khondoker and Ms Ahmed confirmed that this will be considered but that it is likely to be a balancing act between providing wider access and the available resources.

Employment and Skills performance report

Councillor Bell-Bradford, Executive Member for Inclusive Economy and Jobs, presented the Employment and Skills service's Quarter 3 performance report. Councillor Bell-Bradford noted the success of the service in exceeding its target to get 5,000 Islington residents into work by 2026, having already supported 4,100 residents into work. The committee noted the report.

Councillor Hayes asked if there is a definition of a good job , in reference to recent GLA-funded programmes. Councillor Bell-Bradford said that whilst there is not a formal GLA definition, a good job is considered to be one with good terms and conditions, including flexibility and family-friendly hours.

Councillor Zammit asked about the council's commitment to creating more apprenticeships in the cultural sector. Councillor Bell-Bradford confirmed that this remains a priority and that officers are working towards developing a programme of cultural apprenticeships and will be able to provide more information after the summer.

Councillor Jeapes asked about the council's progress in helping residents access green jobs. Councillor Bell-Bradford responded:

There probably too many initiatives and we're not very good at working out which ones the most high impact.

Councillor Bell-Bradford confirmed that the council is reviewing its initiatives in this area and will be working to identify those with the most impact.

Councillor Bell-Bradford provided the committee with more detailed information on the calculation of social value used to demonstrate the financial impact of the council's iWork employment support service, and provided a breakdown of how the budget for the Islington Childcare Bursary scheme has been allocated.

Active travel recommendations

The committee reviewed and approved its draft recommendations on active travel in the borough, with some minor amendments.

The committee noted the need to amend Recommendation 2 in the Maintenance theme to ensure that pavement repairs are prioritised according to their impact on pedestrians. This followed concerns raised by Councillor Hayes that a focus on repairing the very worst pavements may neglect frequently-used pavements that are in need of repair, but which are not considered the worst in the borough.

The committee also noted the need to amend Recommendation 2 in the theme Equal access for cycling to account for the evidence it received about the role of infrastructure in supporting residents to take up cycling. This followed a request from Councillor Russell for the recommendations to reflect that infrastructure improvements are necessary for many residents to be able to choose to cycle.

Councillor Russell also requested that the committee amend Recommendation 2 in the theme Relationships between people walking and cycling to remove the emphasis on enforcement and punishment of cyclists who ride on pavements. This followed evidence from Ashwin Brabou, Islington Council's Head of Transport Strategy and Air Quality, that the council's current approach to this issue is to work with the police to provide stop and advise sessions, rather than to pursue enforcement action against cyclists. Councillor Russell also requested that the recommendation be amended to reflect concerns about the safety of food delivery riders, and that efforts should be made to support these workers.

The committee delegated wording of the final recommendations to council officers.

Workplan

The committee noted the proposed amendments to its Workplan for the 2023-24 municipal year.