Agenda item
Minutes:
The following hot topics were reported:-
Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing
The Cabinet Member reported that there had been a good response to the consultation on the Autism Strategy. The consultation ended on 24 September 2023.
https://familyinfo.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/news/the-autism-strategy-consultation-is-live/
Reference was made to the launch of the transfer of care hub which would help people get out of hospital as soon as they were medically ready and would, wherever possible, return them home or to an appropriate setting. Anybody requiring ongoing care would be able to access the right care, in the right place, at the right time. This should help manage patient flow for those fit for discharge. The Leader welcomed this initiative and commented that it was important to get patients out of hospital as soon as possible to stop them becoming ‘deconditioned’ to independent living.
Cabinet Member for Education and Childrens Services
Buckinghamshire Council was aware that three schools within the county were on the Department for Education RAAC list that had been published this week. The Council had been supporting these schools which were academies, meaning the Council did not have responsibility for maintaining and managing their sites. All settings were able to continue face to face learning for all students with no disruption to usual teaching.
Of the three Buckinghamshire schools on the DfE list:
Waddesdon School, Waddesdon (academy) - the school has had a structural survey this week and RAAC had only been identified as being present in the restaurant area. It meant all teaching blocks were open and the school was returning to full face to face learning as always planned at the start of the new academic year for all year groups
St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School, Chalfont St Peter (academy) - the school had already undertaken remediation works and was fully open with no disruption to normal teaching arrangements
St Michael’s Catholic School, High Wycombe (academy) - the school had informed the Council that RAAC was previously identified on site and remedial works were underway with arrangements already in place to teach students in temporary blocks on site as required, so there was no disruption to normal teaching arrangements.
The Cabinet Member reported that all maintained schools had completed their surveys, but academies were still completing theirs. The Leader reported that this was good news that schools did not have to return to remote learning and thanked the Cabinet and Local Members for their support in this area.
Cabinet Member for Transport
The Cabinet Member referred to pupils going back to school and commented that Buckinghamshire was top of the national league table with 60 schools having well used travel plans which impacted on 25,000 pupils and reported that home to school transport at the beginning of the school year had started well including the support of school crossing patrollers.
The Cabinet Member also paid tribute to the teams working on the road network with 20,000 potholes fixed and also work was well underway on the larger, capital intensive carriageway re-surfacing programme which had continued apace over the summer. 66 surfacing schemes were fully complete out of the 216 that have been planned during the year, with another 51 schemes already fully designed and programmed to start and over 90 more being developed for later in the year. He would provide a further update at the Council meeting. The Leader congratulated him on the new contract arrangements which were delivering well. He commented that he and the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment had visited the control hub for Buckinghamshire highways and had been impressed with the information that was provided real time.
Cabinet Member for Homelessness and Regulatory Services
An investigation carried out by Buckinghamshire Council into illegal dog breeding and animal cruelty had led to the prosecution and conviction of two individuals.
Hammad Javaid of Charmfield Road, Aylesbury and Louise Lane of Upland Avenue, Chesham, were sentenced in relation to a number of offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, having previously pleaded guilty.
After receiving information from the RSPCA and concerned members of the public indicating that illegal dog breeding was taking place at a property on Charmfield Road in Aylesbury, licensing officers from Buckinghamshire Council obtained warrants to search the property and another property on Bateman Drive in Aylesbury.
On 1 September 2021, a search of the property at Bateman Drive found 24 bull breed dogs kept in squalid conditions within the house and kennels in the back garden. Under veterinary advice, nine dogs, two of which were pregnant, were taken into possession by the council. On 6 September 2021, the RSPCA returned to Bateman Drive after receiving reports that the remaining dogs had been fighting in the garden. Officers found that the dogs had been left loose and unattended in the garden. The dogs had started to fight with each other, sadly resulting in the death of two dogs. The remaining 13 dogs were removed by the RSPCA.
Evidence obtained during the council’s searches, including forensic analysis of digital devices seized at the properties, revealed Ms Lane’s involvement in the illegal activity. Evidence also showed that dogs had been intensively bred, in several cases having had two litters in less than a year and had been subjected to repeated caesarean sections.
Mr Javaid pleaded guilty to charges of unlicensed dog breeding, tail docking, three charges of causing unnecessary suffering and one charge of failing to ensure animal welfare, brought by Buckinghamshire Council. In addition, he pleaded guilty to two further charges of causing unnecessary suffering brought by the RSPCA. Ms Lane pleaded guilty to charges of unlicensed dog breeding, two charges of causing unnecessary suffering and one charge of failing to ensure animal welfare, brought by Buckinghamshire Council.
Both defendants were sentenced at Amersham Law Courts on 11 September 2023. Hammad Javaid received a total sentence of 20 months imprisonment. Louise Lane was sentenced to a total of 6 months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months, together with 100 hours community service and 25 Rehabilitation Activity Requirement (RAR) days. She was also required to pay £500 towards the Council’s costs in bringing the case. Both defendants were banned by the Court from keeping dogs in the future.
The dogs removed from Bateman Drive, and the puppies that were subsequently born, were cared for by the RSPCA and Appledown Rescue and Rehoming Kennels. With assistance from these charities, all the dogs have now been successfully rehomed.
Leader
The Leader reported that the Government was withdrawing funding for the Local Enterprise Partnership business support network and a decision was awaited on how economic development would be delivered in the future. Once the policy was clear a future report would be brought back to Cabinet.