The meeting scheduled for discussion the council's budget monitoring position for Quarter 2 of 2024/25, and sought approval for increases to a range of fees and charges. It also included discussion of a diverse range of policies, plans, and strategies relating to the management and use of Sandwell Council’s assets, particularly housing.

Quarter 2 Budget Monitoring 2024/25

The budget monitoring report included a summary of the council's financial position for the first six months of 2024/25. The report highlighted a projected underspend of (£2.128m) which represents 0.6% of the total annual budget. The financial position for individual directorates was also included, with both Children's Services and Adult Social Care projecting underspends. The projected underspends within these two high-spend directorates were attributed to staffing vacancies. Public Health was projecting an overspend that would be met from reserves. The report included details of both the capital programme for 2024/25 and the Council’s treasury management position.

In addition to this summary of the council's current and projected financial position, the report pack also included for discussion a request to increase a range of fees and charges from 1st January 2025. The services where increases were proposed included Registration Services, Development Planning and Building Control, and Garden Waste Collections.

The current overspends, due to under-recovery of income, mean that residents who are not using the services are subsidising the cost of them more than was intended within the budget that was set

The proposed increases to Registration Services were mostly in relation to cremations and burials income, and included the introduction of a new fee for weekend scattering of ashes, and a new charge for temporary storage of ashes when stored beyond two months.

Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme 2025/26

The report pack included for discussion proposals for Sandwell Council's Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme (LCTRS) for 2025/26. The LCTRS provides financial support with Council Tax payments to residents on low incomes. The report pack included a summary of responses to a consultation on proposals for changes to the scheme, as well as a draft policy for the new scheme. Sandwell Council’s existing scheme currently provides full support with Council Tax payments to households on the lowest incomes. One of the key proposed changes was for the introduction of a minimum Council Tax payment of 15% for working age residents. The change would not affect those in receipt of a qualifying income-related benefit (such as Universal Credit or Income Support), pensioners, or those responsible for a dependant child aged 5 or under. The report pack also included discussion of a proposal to cap the maximum support provided by the LCTRS at Council Tax Band B. The scheme for pension age applicants is set by the government, and therefore was not scheduled for discussion in the meeting.

Renewal of the West Bromwich Town Centre Public Space Protection Order

The report pack included for discussion the proposed renewal of the Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) for West Bromwich Town Centre. PSPOs are intended to deal with anti-social behaviour in public spaces. The report pack included for discussion a recommendation to extend the existing PSPO, without amendment, for a further three years. The existing order, which was introduced in August 2018, placed restrictions on behaviours including begging, street drinking, and using threatening or abusive language. The report pack included a summary of responses to a public consultation on the proposed renewal, which had found 91% of respondents to be in favour of extending the PSPO.

Overall, 153 respondents (91%) were in support of the proposed West Bromwich Town Centre PSPO

The pack also included a map of the area covered by the PSPO, as well as a draft of the new order.

Housing Asset Management and Compliance Strategy 2025 - 2030

The report pack included for discussion a draft of a new Housing Asset Management and Compliance Strategy (HAMCS) for the period 2025 to 2030. HAMCS provides a framework for Sandwell Council's ongoing management of its housing stock, including properties managed by Riverside, a housing association, under a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) agreement. The report pack highlighted the need to collect better data about the condition of the council's housing stock. It also highlighted a number of challenges facing the council in relation to housing, including the need to retrofit homes to improve energy efficiency, the requirements of new legislation relating to building safety, and the lack of funding to deliver these.

Good quality and suitable housing are essential to delivering this objective

The report pack included a summary of responses to a public consultation on the draft, as well as a summary of comments made by members of Sandwell Council's Tenants and Leaseholder Scrutiny Group during a series of workshops.

Procurement of Stock Condition Surveys to Remaining 50% of Council Housing Stock

This report pack item sought approval for the procurement of stock condition surveys in relation to 14,000 properties within Sandwell Council’s housing stock. The stock condition survey programme is being delivered in order for the council to meet the requirements of the Regulator of Social Housing’s Consumer Standards, particularly the requirement to demonstrate an up-to-date understanding of the condition of its housing stock. The council had been censured by the RSH for its lack of an up-to-date understanding of the condition of its stock, receiving a ‘C3’ Regulatory Judgement on 30 October 2024.

…has been unable to provide evidence that it has a sufficient understanding of its homes to deliver the outcomes in the Safety and Quality Standard and we cannot be assured that the council is providing homes of decent quality to its tenants….

Surveys in relation to 9,000 properties had already been commissioned in August 2024, and this report pack item sought approval for the remaining 14,000. The report pack included for discussion a proposal to award the contract for the remaining 14,000 surveys to Ridge and Partners LLP, the contractor that is currently delivering the first 9,000 surveys.

The Review of Council Housing Rents and Housing Related Property Charges

The report pack included for discussion proposals for increases to council housing rents and a range of related service charges from April 2025.

The council must achieve the right balance between supporting tenants to mitigate the continued cost of living pressures and protecting the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) to ensure we can continue to provide affordable social housing for our residents.

It was proposed to increase rents by 2.7%, which represents the September 2024 CPI of 1.7% plus 1%. The report pack included details of the proposed increase for a range of property types, as well as analysis of the impact of the proposed increase on tenants who are in receipt of Housing Benefit or Universal Credit. The report pack also included for discussion proposals to increase a range of service charges for council housing, including cleaning, security, and aerial services. It was proposed to introduce a new weekly service charge of £2.26 to properties using a shared laundry facility. It was proposed to increase heating charges by 20% in six blocks where heating is provided through a shared scheme.

The report also included details of proposed increases to:

• Fees for the council’s traveller site at Hills View, Tipton.
• Rental charges for garage sites.
• The annual management fee paid by leaseholders.

Designation of Nature Conservation Sites

The report pack included for discussion a proposal to make changes to the designation of a number of Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) and Sites of Local Importance for Nature Conservation (SLINC). SINCs and SLINCs are areas of land designated by local councils because they have been identified as having value for nature conservation. The proposed changes included extensions, deletions, and reconfirmations. All of the sites that were included for discussion have existing designations, and the proposed changes were made following ecological surveys. The areas surveyed included:

• Land at Victory Avenue
• Shaw Street
• Princes End Disused Railway
• Darby End Disused Railway
• Balls Hill Branch Canal
• M5 Embankment
• Waterfall Lane
• Land off Factory Road

The proposed changes to designations had been endorsed by the Birmingham and Black Country Local Sites Partnership. The report pack included maps showing the proposed changes to the designation of each of the sites.

Regeneration Performance Report

The report pack included an update on the council's Regeneration Programme, which was initially agreed by Cabinet on 23 March 2022.

The Regeneration project pipeline now comprises 67 live projects, in addition to the 16 projects that are now complete, bringing the estimated total investment value to £3bn by 2027

The report pack provided details of the progress, risk and social value generated by the 67 projects currently being delivered within the programme. The Regeneration Programme comprises a number of individual projects, including several projects funded through the government's Towns Fund programme for Rowley Regis, Smethwick, and West Bromwich. The report pack also provided an update on the Sandwell Business Growth Plan for Quarters 1 & 2 of 2024/25.

Authority to procure a Sandwell Carers Support Service

The report pack included for discussion a proposal to commission a new Carers Support Service. The proposed service would be intended to support carers by providing a single point of access for information and advice, as well as signposting to specialist support services.

The Care Act 2014 placed a duty on all Councils to consider the needs of carers on equal footing to the person receiving care and support.

The report pack provided a summary of responses to engagement work undertaken to inform the design of the service. The report also included for discussion a recommendation to authorise the council's Director for Adult Social Care to award a contract for the service.