This meeting was scheduled to receive updates on the Blackpool Council's tourism performance and a range of matters relating to the committee's scrutiny work, including the adoption of their workplan for the year and updates on the progress of their prior recommendations. The committee was also scheduled to receive updates from the Executive and Cabinet Member for Economy and Built Environment on a range of projects.

It is important to note that this article only summarises what was scheduled to be discussed at the meeting, based on the documents provided to attendees. It does not describe what was actually discussed or decided.

Tourism Performance

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the performance of the tourism sector during the 2024 season to date. This report included a review of the annual marketing campaign, delivered in partnership with Merlin Entertainments and the Tourism Business Improvement District. The campaign was delivered at a total cost of £425,000, most of which was spent on TV advertising.

The report also included an update on the performance of a number of major events that took place in Blackpool during 2024, including:

• The Blackpool Air Show.
• Ride The Lights.
• The Blackpool Illuminations Switch-On.
• The Blackpool Illuminations.
• The World Fireworks Championships Blackpool.
• Lightpool Festival.
• A new event called Monster Hunt, which involved the placement of a number of giant inflatable monsters on buildings across the town.
• Christmas By The Sea.

The report also included an update on Blackpool's business tourism market.

Council Plan Performance

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the performance of the Council against a range of headline Key Performance Indicators in the Council Plan, and their relevance to the committee's remit. The report included an update on the performance of the tourism sector, and the council's employment, business support, housing and public health functions.

Housing and Homelessness Annual Report

The committee was scheduled to receive a report that included an update on the performance of the Housing and Homelessness service. This included a comparison of Blackpool's performance against a range of statutory homelessness data provided to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. The report showed that Blackpool is dealing with more pressure on homelessness than the national average, with 18% of households assessed as homeless, compared to 7% nationally. The report suggested that the financial crisis is a key driver of this, causing private rents to increase and the sector to contract as landlords had to sell their properties. This affects Blackpool in particular because of the scale of private rented accommodation in the town.

The report provided an update on the council's performance against a number of local indicators for homelessness. It stated that 82% of clients receiving tenancy support maintained a tenancy for 12 months or more; that only 9% of homeless clients re-present to the service within a 12 month period; and that the average length of time spent in temporary accommodation is only 39 days.

The report provided an update on rough sleeping in Blackpool. It stated that outreach data suggests there are likely to be between 7 and 9 people sleeping rough on any one night, and usually around 16-20 individuals found to be rough sleeping over the course of a month. The report also provided an update on the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol, stating that this year an additional 6 fixed beds had been added to existing supported housing provision.

The report provided an update on a number of national legislative changes affecting the private rented sector, including the Renters Rights Bill; the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act 2023; and the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 2022.

The report also provided an update on a number of housing developments in Blackpool, including:

• The Grange Park development of 131 new homes for affordable rent.
• The Foxhall Village development of 88 new homes, delivered by Great Places Housing Association.
• The proposed Whitegate Manor development of 25 new sheltered apartments on Whitegate Drive.
• The continued development of new properties for rent by Blackpool Housing Company, which now has a total of 730 properties for rent across the town.

Finally, the report described the council's progress on a number of other housing initiatives, including the Decent Homes Pilot, which aims to improve the quality of private rented accommodation in Blackpool, and the proposed introduction of a Selective Licensing scheme.

Engagement of Consultants

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the council's use of external consultants during the 2023/24 financial year. The report details that the council spent a total of £3,566,913.51 with external consultants during this period.

Oral Health Strategy

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the Blackpool Oral Health Strategy 2023-2028, which aims to improve oral health outcomes in Blackpool.

The report was scheduled to describe how feedback from the Adult Social Care and Health Scrutiny Committee had been incorporated into the strategy document. The report also provided a response to a number of questions raised by the committee, including:

• How people can access dental services if they are not registered with a dentist.
• How the strategy will pick up children already over the age of one who are not registered with a dentist.
• How the strategy will improve access to dentists for all and improve the services on offer.
• How to make it clearer that the e-learning courses are for practitioners and not service users.
• How to explore with primary care practitioners whether any additional links can be made with health care providers workers to better support older adults who are not in residential care or receiving care at home support with their oral health.

The report described how the strategy would be implemented. An action plan had been developed, and the actions split into four categories:

• To improve the oral health of children in Blackpool.
• To improve the oral health of vulnerable adults in Blackpool.
• To improve the oral health of vulnerable older adults in Blackpool care homes or who receive care at home.
• To improve the health of residents of all ages in Blackpool.

Executive and Cabinet Member Decisions

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the decisions that had been taken by the Executive and by individual Cabinet Members since the last meeting of the committee. The report included a summary of the following decisions:

• A decision by the Executive to endorse the Blackpool Cultural Strategy and Action Plan.
• A decision by the Executive to commit £75,000 to the Arts Council Place Partnership Fund.
• A decision by Cabinet Member for Economy and Built Environment, Councillor Mark Smith, to support bus service enhancement proposals.
• A decision by the Executive to update the council's Civil Penalties Policy.

Forward Plan

The committee was scheduled to receive a report on the content of the council's Forward Plan for the period December 2024 to March 2025. The Forward Plan sets out the decisions that are likely to be made by the Executive or by Cabinet Members over the course of the next four months.

This report included a list of items that were scheduled to be decided, and included:

• A decision to agree strategic acquisitions and investments in or adjoining the Enterprise Zone, to be considered in private.
• A decision to consider the making of a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) to assemble a site to deliver the Revoe Community Sports Village project.
• A decision to consider the making of a CPO to assemble a number of sites to deliver the Town Centre Car Parking Strategy.
• A decision to adopt the Central Housing Regeneration Area Framework.
• A decision to approve the proposed LED lighting upgrade for Bickerstaffe House.
• A decision to agree the Council Tax Reduction Scheme.
• A decision to agree the lease renewal for the Stanley Park Art Deco Cafe.

Levelling-Up Exceptions Report

The committee was scheduled to receive a verbal update on Levelling-Up in Blackpool.

Scrutiny Workplan

The committee was scheduled to consider its Workplan for 2024/25. This included the topics that the committee was scheduled to review over the course of the year. The workplan was scheduled to include the following items:

• A verbal update on Levelling Up in Blackpool, at every meeting.
• A report on tourism performance, at every other meeting.
• An update on the Growth and Prosperity Programme, at every other meeting.
• An annual report on the engagement of consultants, in November/December.
• An annual report on housing and homelessness, in November/December.
• An annual performance report, in September/October.
• A report on the Arts and Culture Plan, annually in February.

The committee was also scheduled to receive an update on the implementation of its prior recommendations. This included a discussion on the progress of a recommendation made on 4 October 2023 that the committee receive an update on the Damp and Mould Figures in Blackpool.

The workplan included a number of future work items for the committee, including:

• A deep dive review of Town Deal Funding in January 2025.
• A deep dive review of the Shared Prosperity Fund in April/May 2025.
• A deep dive review of Historic Major Projects at a later date.