Agenda and minutes

The agenda and reports associated with this minute can be located at the following link:  

http://committees.aberdeencity.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=143&MId=2518&Ver=4

The Convener introduced Mrs Anne Tree (Third religious representative), and Reverend Edward McKenna McKenna (Church of Scotland religious representative) and welcomed them to their first meeting of the Committee.

The Convener advised the Committee as to a number of good news stories as follows –

• Children in Need – the Beach Ballroom had hosted the national Children in Need programme on Friday 16 November, 2012, and the event had been a huge success.
• Challenge Mum – the project had secured £1,500 funding from Cash for Kids and the Co-op, which had been used to take sixteen families to the Planet Energy exhibition at Satrosphere.
• Primary Science Quality Mark – thirteen of the city’s schools had achieved this award as recognition of a high standard of science education.
• Arts Development – the project had organised an open day as part of Luminate (Scotland’s first national Creative Ageing festival), which had offered practical suggestions of activities to use in cross generational projects.

The Convener proposed that the Committee consider those reports identified on the agenda as being for determination in private, with the press and public excluded.

Councillor McCaig, seconded by Councillor Stewart, moved as a procedural motion:

that the report at item 9.2 of today’s agenda (Community Centres – Current Issues – article 17 of this minute refers) be redacted in terms of the information relating to recommendation (d) in order that the remainder of the report be heard in public on this day.

On a division, the votes cast were as follows: for the procedural motion (11) – Councillors Cameron, Greig, Jaffrey, McCaig, May, Noble, Samarai, Stewart, and Townson, Reverend McKenna and Mrs Tree;  against the procedural motion (13) – the Convener, the Vice Convener, and Councillors Boulton, Cooney, Lesley Dunbar, Grant, Lawrence, Jean Morrison, Taylor and Young, Mr Maclean, Mr Nicoll, and Mrs Wischik; declined to vote (2) – Mr Duncan and Mr Paul.

The Committee resolved:

in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting for items 9.1 and 9.2 of the agenda (articles  16 and 17 of this minute) so as to avoid disclosure of information of the class described in the following paragraphs of Schedule 7(A) to the Act: article 16 (paragraph 9), and article 17 (paragraphs 9 and 12).

None to date.

The Committee had before it a number of requests for deputation as follows:

In relation to item 5.1 of the agenda (Progress towards Implementation of New Lease and Management Agreement) –

(1)       Andy Cowie and Alex Mess – Powis Community Centre

(2)       Paul O'Connor – Chair of Inchgarth Community Centre

(3)       Scott Beattie – Vice Chair of Inchgarth Community Centre

(4)       Phil D'Arcy, Wilma Mackland and Brian Allan - Community Learning Centres Forum 

(5)       Martin Fraser, Partner – A. C. Morrison & Richards

(6)       Sylvia Davidson

(7)       David Forbes, Chairman, Future Choices

(8)       Marie Adams, Create Aberdeen

In relation to item 9.2 of the agenda (community centres – Current Issues) –

(9)       Sylvia Davidson

The Committee was advised that requests (6) – (9) as detailed above had not been received within the terms outlined in Standing Orders, and received advice from the Legal Manager (Advice and Procurement) in relation to request (5) above. The Legal Manager advised that as officers was currently negotiating on the issues detailed in the report, that it would not be appropriate for members to hear the legal representative for the community centres, as the negotiations were an operational matter.

The Committee resolved:

(i)         to agree to hear requests (1) – (4) at the appropriate point in the agenda;

(ii)        to decline to hear Mr Fraser on this day (request (5) above); and

(iii)       to suspend Standing Order 10, and to agree to hear requests (6) – (9) at the appropriate point in the agenda.

The Committee had before it the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the minute as a correct record.

The Committee had before it a statement of pending and outstanding committee business which had been prepared by the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, 

The Committee resolved:

(i)        to remove items 6 (Pupil Support Assistants) and 10 (Library and Information Service – New Ways of Working); and

(ii)        to otherwise note the updates as contained within the statement.

With reference to article 4 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Head of Finance which advised members of the current year revenue budget performance to date for the Service, and outlined any areas of risk and management action being taken in this regard.

The Committee resolved:

(i)        to request that officers monitor the long term absence rate of teachers, and provide updates on this in future monitoring reports;

(ii)        to request officers to provide an update on status of ECS_E37 (Change the Delivery Model of Music Tuition);

(iii)       to note the forecast outturn on the revenue budget and the information on areas of risk and management action being taken; and

(iv)       to instruct officers to continue to review budget performance, and report on Service strategies.

With reference to article 8 of the minute of its meeting of 23 February, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport which detailed the capital spend to date for Service projects included within the non housing capital programme.

The Committee resolved:

to note the current position.

The Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which requested approval for a contract to be entered into between the Council and Drugs Action, in order for this organisation to provide drugs education services in a partnership initiative with the Youth Development team.

The Committee resolved:

(i)         to approve that Drugs Action be identified as the delivery partner for this project due to the specialist nature of the work;

(ii)        to approve that a contract be entered into with Drugs Action without obtaining quotes from any other providers; and

(iii)       to approve the expenditure of £14, 918.72 from the Education, Culture and Sport budget to be paid to Drugs Action for the period from December, 2012 until July, 2013.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which updated members (1) in relation to moving community centres to the “leased” type model, and (2) on the current position of the seven community centres which had leases that were operating on the basis of tacit relocation, and were due to come to an end on 28 November, 2012.

With reference to article 4 of this minute, the Committee heard from (1) Andy Cowie and Alex Mess – Powis Community Centre, (2) Paul O'Connor – Chair of Inchgarth Community Centre, (3) Scott Beattie – Vice Chair of Inchgarth Community Centre, (4) Phil D'Arcy, Wilma Mackland and Brian Allan - Community Learning Centres Forum, (5) David Forbes, Chairman, Future Choices, (6)        Marie Adams, Create Aberdeen, and (7) Sylvia Davidson (who spoke both in relation to this item and item 9.2 of the agenda). At this juncture, Councillor McCaig asked if the Convener would consider revisiting the decision to take item 9.2 of the agenda in private, depending on the information forthcoming from Mrs Davidson. The Convener indicated that this decision would not be revisited.

Mr Cowie and Mr Mess intimated that the personable liability issue was the biggest concern for them and asked that the matter be deferred for consideration at a later date; Mr O’Connor also raised the issue of personal liability and suggested that he was being asked to sign a schedule that he had not had sight of; Mr Beattie advised that a petition had been set up online, and read out a number of the comments which had been logged in this regard; Mr D’Arcy, Ms Mackland and Mr Allan asked that all parties get back around the table for further discussions; Mr Forbes spoke about the importance of the community centres in relation to the disabled community; Ms Adams suggested that the Council was ignoring the needs of vulnerable people in the city; and Mrs Davidson requested that members take decisions on this day in the best interest of the community centres.

Members asked a number of questions of the deputations.

The Service Manager for Communities introduced the report and circulated a supplementary paper which updated members on the position of different centres in relation to signing up to the new lease agreements, and legal negotiations which had been ongoing. The supplementary paper also advised that in 2011, Ruthrieston community centre had become a leased centre, at which time the individuals involved decided to set up a new management committee to run the centre. The previous management committee, which had been responsible for running the centre prior to the transfer to the leased model took a decision at that time to dissolve and transfer all their funds to the new management committee.

In working through the paperwork involved in transferring the funds, it had emerged that the former management committee did  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

With reference to article 6 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which updated members on the ongoing work to audit the provision of community learning and development within Aberdeen, a requirement placed on Aberdeen’s Community Planning Partnership by the Scottish Government through the recently published “Strategic Guidance for Community Planning Partnerships: Community Learning and Development”.

The Committee resolved:

to note the progress of this project, and to request an update on the outcomes of the consultation and other related streams of work in April/May 2013.

With reference to article 17 of the minute of its meeting of 23 February, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which presented the views of teachers, trades unions, pupil support assistants, parents and head teachers on the reduction in pupil support assistant allocations.

The Committee resolved:

(i)         to note the outcome of the impact survey;

(ii)        to note that continuing personal development issues which were identified in the previous impact survey were being progressed;

(iii)       to instruct officers (1) to take account of the findings of the review within the overarching Review of Inclusion, and (2) to report back to a future meeting; and

(iv)       to instruct officers to investigate setting up a central fund to enable  schools to apply for additional pupil support assistant resources, subject to the Finance and Resources Committee considering this as part of the budget process.

The Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which advised as to the Council’s role within the newly funded Youth in Action Project (Promoting and Empowering Creative Resourceful, Enterprising Youngsters in Europe), and outlined the benefits that participating in the project would have on the Education, Culture and Sport Service.

The Committee resolved:

 (i)        to approve the Council’s participation in the European Commission Youth in Action programme for the project “Creative - Promoting and Empowering Creative Resourceful, Enterprising Youngsters in Europe”;

(ii)        to note the success of the Service in drawing down external funding from Europe for this initiative; and

(iii)       to request that feedback from those who attend be collated and fed back to members of this Committee.

With reference to article 12 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which presented an application for financial assistance from Aberdeen Sports Council.

The report recommended:

that the Committee –

(a)       does not award a Sports Grant to Aberdeen Sports Council at this time;

(b)       instructs officers to continue to work with Aberdeen Sports Council to develop their capacity to meet the Council’s grant requirements;

(c)       notes that should the identified areas for development be achieved and the Council’s requirements be met, Aberdeen Sports Council will be eligible to reapply for a Sports Grant; and

(d)       approves the allocation of £4,500, from the Sports Grants budget, towards a Interim Coach and Volunteer Development Grant Programme, to be administered by the Council, in order to ensure that this support is maintained.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved:

            that the report’s recommendations be approved.

Councillor Greig, seconded by Councillor McCaig, moved as an amendment:

            that Aberdeen Sports Council’s request for financial assistance be approved.

On a division, the votes cast were as follows: for the motion (11) – the Convener; the Vice Convener; and Councillors Boulton, Cooney, Lesley Dunbar, Lawrence, Jean Morrison, Taylor and Young; Mr Maclean and Mr Nicoll; for the amendment (7) – Councillors Cameron, Greig, McCaig, May, Noble, Samarai, and Townson; declined to vote (3) – Reverend McKenna, Mrs Tree and Mrs Wischik; absent from the division (5) – Councillors Grant, Jaffrey and Stewart, Mr Duncan and Mr Paul.

The Committee resolved

(i)         to approve the successful motion; and

(ii)        to request that in future, external members of the Committee be provided with access to all papers placed in the members’ lounge.

With reference to article 15 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which provided members with a summary of performance of the Service up to 30 September, 2012.

Members were circulated a replacement document for pages 211 and 212 of the report, which provided an update on the reports of violence against school staff in 2011/12.

The Committee resolved

(i)         to approve the performance report for the period up to 30 September, 2012;

(ii)        to approve the briefing note on the Scottish Qualification Authority attainment 2011/12;

(iii)       to approve the briefing note on violent incidents against Aberdeen city school staff in 2011/12; and

(iv)       to request that officers provide members with information on comparator authorities.

In terms of the decision taken at article 3 of this minute, the following items were considered with the press and public excluded.

With reference to article 16 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, the Committee heard from the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport and the General Manager – Asset Manager who provided an update on the potential site for the new school with provision for children with additional support needs.

Members noted the intention of officers to report to the appropriate committee at the earliest possible date.

The Committee resolved

to note the update provided by the Acting Director and General Manager – Asset Management.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of its previous meeting of 20 September, 2012, and article 10 of this minute, the Committee had before it a report by the Acting Director of Education, Culture and Sport which advised members on a number of operational issues in relation to a number of community centres.

The report recommended:

that the Committee –

(a)       instructs officers to work with the existing Woodside community centre management committee to strengthen their capacity, or if there is no evidence of any management committee at this location, to put in place support to develop a new management committee which can input into the development of the programme within the community wing of Woodside Fountain Centre;

(b)       agrees that due to the multiple occupancy of the building, the community wing of Woodside Fountain Centre, Woodside community centre, will not transfer to the new leased centre model, but will revert to the responsibility of the Council, with a local management committee inputting into the programming of the community wing within the building;

(c)        agrees that the management committees connected to the Woodside community centre will be provided with a grant of £625 per year, for the purpose of purchasing indemnity insurance, and public liability and employers insurances;

(d)       instructs officers to consult with the management committees for Cummings Park community centre and Henry Rae community centre on a proposal to merge these two community centres, and report back to this committee on the outcome of the consultation; and

(e)       declares Woodside Burgh Hall surplus to the requirements of the Education, Culture and Sport Service.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved:

            that the report’s recommendations be approved.

Councillor Townson, seconded by Councillor McCaig, moved as an amendment:

            that the Committee: 

(1)       instructs officers to work with the existing Woodside community centre management committee and fully support them in transition to the new leased model status;

(2)       recognises the successful multiple occupancy of the Woodside Fountain Centre and the value of the Woodside community centre management committee maximising usage of the majority of the floor space in the building and voluntarily running with great enthusiasm and commitment, an extensive programme such committee being the mainstay of the general running of the building;

(3)       instructs officers to expedite Woodside community centre management committee applying for full development grant entitlement to ensure continuation of such great voluntary works;

(4)       in respect of Cumming Park community centre and Henry Rae community centre, in the light of serious failings at both centres, to instruct officers to support volunteers to rebuild their confidence and the capacity of such volunteers to continue to operate as leased community centres as separate entities serving their respective communities at their existing locations;

(5)       to declare Woodside Burgh Hall surplus to the requirements of the Education, Culture and Sport Service.

On a division, the votes cast were as follows: for the motion (14) – the Convener, the Vice Convener, and Councillors Boulton, Cooney Lesley Dunbar, Lawrence, Jean  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.