Agenda and minutes

To declare any personal / prejudicial interests for the purpose of Section 81(3) of the Local Government Act 2000 and paragraphs 8 to 12 of the Members Code of Conduct.

There were no declarations of interest.

An apology for absence was submitted on behalf of Councillor Mulherin.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting of the Scrutiny Board (Leisure) held on 16th April 2007.

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting held on 16 April 2007 be approved as a correct record.

To note the minutes of the Executive Board held on 4 April 2007.

Further to Minute no. 227 – City Centre Swimming, a Member requested further information regarding the opening times for public use of the swimming facility at the University campus, in view of the Council’s financial contribution.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the minutes of the Executive Board held on 4 April 2007 be noted.

(b)  That further information be sought regarding the opening times for public use of the swimming facility at the University Campus.

To note the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meetings held on 5 March and 2 April 2007.

RESOLVED - That the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny meetings held on 5 March and 2 April 2007 be noted.

To receive and consider the report of the Head of Scrutiny and Member Development which detaisl performance information for Quarter 4 2006/07.

The Head of Scrutiny and Member Development submitted a report which detailed performance information for Quarter 4 2006/07.

The Chair introduced the following to the meeting:

• Ed Mylan, Head of Finance, Learning and Leisure Department
• Mark Kinnaird, Head of Policy and Performance, Learning and Leisure Department
• Joedy Greenhough, Principal Policy and Performance Officer

Ed Mylan referred to the report and its appendices and informed Members that they presented a range of performance indicators for culture and leisure within the Council.  These indicators included national and local targets and were used to drive improvement, for measuring performance for the Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA) and for budget, human resources and IT planning.

Mike Kinnaird explained the terminology detailed in the report and how the indicators linked to Best Value, CPA, Local Area Agreement (LAA) and the Council Plan.  He reported that matters relating to the LAA would take on increasing significance and drew Members’ attention to the table in paragraph 2.1 of the report which summarised the Council’s predicted CPA scores for February 2008.  He informed the Board of Audit Commission consultation proposals to remove some indicators which if implemented could improve the Culture Block for a 2 to a 3 star rating in Leeds.

In summary and in response to Members’ questions,  the following issues were discussed:

• Some indicators could not be recorded on a quarterly basis as information was not collected or able to be collected on a quarterly basis.
• The Executive Member for Leisure would be available upon request for future meetings and had sent apologies as he was unable to attend this meeting.  The Director of City Development and Chief Officers would also be attending future meetings when necessary.
• In response to a question of how the Council could challenge an inappropriate performance indicator and what the associated costs were, it was reported that such issues could be raised with the Audit Commission.  Issues were often raised in conjunction with other authorities, where one authority would represent a group, thus saving on costs in terms of officer time.
• It was reported that different measures were used to record visitors to events and establishments such as libraries and galleries.  Typical methods of gathering this information included levels of tickets sales, borrowing of items and the use of magic eye systems to count visitors.

The Chair thanked Ed Mylan, Mark Kinnaird and Joedy Greenhough for their attendance.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

To receive and consider the report of the Head of Scrutiny and Member Development which proposes guidelines for the development of a work programme for the Culture and Leisure Scrutiny Board.

The Head of Scrutiny and Member Development submitted a report which detailed proposed guidelines for the development of a work programme for the Scrutiny Board (Culture and Leisure).  Details of items that fell within the Board’s remit from the Council’s Forward Plan of Key Decisions was also appended to the report.

Members discussed the issue of receiving quarterly reports on the following Leisure developments:

• Opera North/Grand Theatre Development
• Grand Theatre Finances and Governance
• New Museums
• New Swimming Pool
• Lift at the Library
• Art Gallery
• Roundhay Mansion

Further issues discussed included the proposed inquiry into the Middleton Park Equestrian Centre, the possibility of conducting an inquiry into the Council’s Music Programme, the impact of the International Indian Film Awards and the Leeds Mela.

RESOLVED –

(a)  That the Board receives quarterly reports on the Leisure developments discussed.

(b)  That the details of the Board’s Work Programme be agreed.

Monday, 16 July 2007 at 10.00 a.m. (Pre-meeting for Members at 09.30 a.m.).

Monday, 16 July 2007 at 10.00 a.m. (pre-meeting for Members at 09.30 a.m.).