Agenda item

A copy of the report to be considered by the Cabinet at its meeting on 15 September is attached for the consideration of the Committee.

The Committee considered a report advising the Cabinet of the work undertaken to implement the Communities and Wellbeing Strategy 2016-2020, and of the actions that would be progressed to enable the next phase of implementation.  A copy of the report, marked ‘Agenda Item 10’ is filed with these minutes.

In his introduction to the report, the Director responded to comments and questions that had been submitted by Dr Eynon CC, the Local Member.  A copy of her submission is appended to these minutes.  With regard to enabling primary care professionals to register patients for SMART libraries, the Committee was advised that a link between the professionals in localities and libraries would be encouraged to enable them to help people register at their local library.

Regarding the future of the Century Theatre, the Director advised that the Cabinet was being recommended to approve further work, including consultation with a wide range of stakeholders, on the options for maintaining the theatre.  The outcome of consultation and proposed way forward would be presented back to this Committee and submitted to the Cabinet for approval. 

The Cabinet Lead Member, in introducing the item, confirmed the importance of the Communities and Wellbeing Service.  He felt that every proposal in the report would result in an improved service as well as efficiencies and his intention was for the service to be an exemplar.  He reminded members that SMART library technology had been piloted following best practice from elsewhere in the country.  It would be important for the Council to continue to provide a service that people wanted to use.  He encouraged members to volunteer to use the SMART library technology in order to advocate using the service.

Arising from the discussion the following points were raised:-

(i)            Members were encouraged by the results from the pilot of SMART library technology at Syston library and gave their support to the proposal to roll this out to the sixteen market town and shopping centre libraries.  Some concern was expressed regarding the safety of library users and the possibility of theft during unmanned hours but the Committee was assured that there would be CCTV installed at each library, which would be monitored by Hub Library and County Hall at weekends.  Each library would have an individual risk assessment prior to rolling out the scheme.  It was stressed that those using the SMART library technology would have to register to use the service and would need a pass to access the library out of normal hours.  An induction process would be delivered to all those taking part.  It was also noted that libraries would still be staffed at specific times, when it was known that certain groups would be more likely to be using the library, for example children and people with a disability.  A mixture of engagement and usage patterns would be considered to determine when these times were.

(ii)          Members noted the success of community managed libraries, which they felt provided an improved service with stronger links to the community.  It was suggested that consideration be given to introducing more community involvement in the libraries where SMART technology was being rolled out.

(iii)         The Committee was pleased to note the intention to continue with the mobile library service as part of the Council’s commitment to providing a comprehensive library service.  However, concern was raised around the statistics relating to the usage of the mobile library and Members agreed that it was necessary to review the current routes to ensure that it provided the most efficient service.  An impact assessment would need to be carried out to ensure that the effects of any changes to the service on particular groups such as parents of young children and older people with mobility issues were mitigated.

(iv)         It was confirmed that the library stock was centrally managed with local distribution of books and that more investment was being made in online borrowing as this was a growth area.  Members observed that most schools now had their own libraries and it would be important to liaise with schools regarding library stock.  It was suggested that there might be a possibility for the mobile library service to be removed from areas where its largest audience was school children. 

(v)          With regard to the Collections Hub, it was acknowledged that space within the current location was an issue.  It was agreed that the Hub needed to be developed in an accessible location, preferably close to the City and County boundary, but this had not yet been identified.  The Leader of the County Council  and the City Mayor had both indicated support for a location which was accessible to both County and City residents between the two authorities.  A further report would be presented to the Committee before a full business case was submitted to the Cabinet in 2018.

(vi)         Members agreed that the Green Plaque Scheme was an excellent initiative that should remain.  The Cabinet Lead Member stressed that it was the intention to continue with the Scheme, but with less intensity.  It was hoped that efficiencies could be identified in the way that the scheme operated in the future.

(vii)        It was felt that the Art in Schools collections should form part of the Communities and Wellbeing Strategy.  This would enable a further review to be undertaken with a view to consolidating the collection and achieving efficiency savings.

The following motion was moved by Mr Hunt CC and seconded by Mr Richardson CC:

            ‘That the Cabinet be recommended to approve a further review of the art collections to consolidate the collection and achieving efficiency savings’.

The motion was put and carried unanimously.

RESOLVED:-

(a)  That the comments of the Committee be forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration at its meeting on 15 September 2017

(b)  That the Cabinet be recommended to approve a further review of the art collections to consolidate the collection and achieving efficiency savings.