Agenda and draft minutes

None.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the above meeting, having been circulated, be approved as a correct record.

Councillor Creamer declared a non-pecuniary interest in item 4 to the agenda as a Member of the Carlton Town Board.

Report of the Assistant Director for Economic Growth and Regeneration

The Assistant Director for Economic Growth and Development introduced a report, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, updating Members on the work of the Carlton Town Board.

It was noted that the Council had been notified in March 2024 that the extension of the Long Term Plan for Towns (LTPFT) funding programme would include Carlton. The programme was then paused in December 2024, with new guidance issued in March 2025 requiring the submission of a 10-year Regeneration Plan and 4-year Investment Plan by November 2025. It was further noted that the 1 April 2026 would be the start date for funding and as such, Cabinet approved arrangements for the creation of the Greater Carlton Neighbourhood Board, appointing David Stewart as Chair to develop the appropriate processes that would ensure compliance with the £20 million funding award.

Members noted that 727 participants completed a survey as part of a community consultation exercise between 15 July and 30 August 2024 with the purpose of gaining feedback that would support the Board in deciding how the Greater Carlton Long Term Plan for Towns funding should be spent. Further consultation took place targeting young people, high street businesses and larger employers through dedicated workshops. It was noted that the common themes in the feedback from consultation included:

• Improvement of public and green spaces.
• Support for local businesses
• Improvement of sports and leisure facilities
• Increase in community events and spaces
• Improvements in infrastructure maintenance and connectivity
• Measures to increase safety and security.

Members noted that in October 2025, the Board met and approved the final proposals for the ’10 year Regeneration Plan’ and ‘4 year Investment Plan’ which would focus on Skills and Learning, Youth and Aspirations, Health and Wellbeing, Local Economy and Business Growth, and Safety and Feelings of Safety. It was confirmed that both plans were successfully submitted ahead of the 29 November 2025 deadline, receiving positive feedback from the Ministry of Housing, communities and Local Government (MHCLG) and the East Midlands Combined County Authority.

It was noted that the Carlton Town Board would commence recruitment of a programme manager to determine and develop project specifications and that preparation would soon take place for procurement and risk management ahead of the April 2026 start date for the delivery of the programme.

Members were then given the opportunity to ask questions.

Members asked officers to clarify the role of Gedling Borough Council on the Carlton Town Board.

It was noted that Gedling Borough Council had acted as the Accountable Body for the neighbourhood board and as such, the Council ensured compliance with the guidance set out by government. It was highlighted that decisions were made by the Board and the role of the Council had been to ensure that the makeup of the board, the way in which meetings were conducted, and the priorities and projects identified by the board complied with the guidance set out by government.

Members queried how many people had applied to be on the board and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer

The Deputy Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer introduced a report, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, informing Members of the receipt of the Annual review letter from the office of the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) and the complaints dealt with by the Council through the internal complaint’s procedure during the year 2024/25.

RESOLVED to:

Note the details of the Annual Review letter from the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman and the information in relation to the number of complaints dealt with by the Council through the internal complaint’s procedure in 2024/25.

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive, Monitoring Officer, and Contact and Procurement Manager.

Consideration was given to a report of the Deputy Chief Executive and Monitoring Officer, and Contract and Procurement Manager, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, seeking views on the Council’s Social Value Policy approach 2025-27 prior to submission to Cabinet for approval.

Members queried whether bids would be graded to demonstrate why one submission had scored higher than another in relation to the social value element, and whether the delivery of social value outcomes would be monitored to ensure they had been achieved.

It was noted that an evaluation matrix would be applied to each bid, based on the aspects being assessed. Social value would therefore form part of the contractual requirements, and contractors would be expected to deliver against the stated social value commitments.

RESOLVED to:

Note the report.

Report of the Senior Leadership Team.

Councillor Whiting left the meeting.

Consideration was given to a report of the Senior Leadership team, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, informing Members in summary of the position against Performance Indicators and Annual Delivery Plan Actions in Quarter 2 of 2025/26.

Members queried the 80 MP letters received, which had been an increase of 18%, and whether the council had seen a general theme to those letters.

It was noted that this information can be circulated to Members after the meeting.

RESOLVED to:

1)    Note the progress against Improvement Performance Indicators for quarter 2 of 2025/26; and

2)    Note the progress against Annual Delivery Actions.

Report of the Chief Finance and Section 151 Officer.

Consideration was given to a report of the Chief Finance and Section 151 Officer, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, updating members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on the current level of assurance that can be provided against each risk.

RESOLVED to:

Note the report.

Report of the Democratic Services Manager.

The Democratic Services Manager introduced a report, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, providing an update on the scrutiny work programme.

Consideration was given to the approach the Committee wished to take when conducting scrutiny of the Council’s processes, Portfolio Holder updates, partnership reviews, working groups, and related activities.

Members requested that, when presentations were scheduled to be delivered, copies be provided in advance of the meeting to allow sufficient time to review the information and prepare questions.

Members suggested the introduction of further structure to Portfolio Holder updates, including the use of time limits and upfront lists of the work each Portfolio Holder had undertaken since their last update, in order to give the committee the opportunity to scrutinise the activities they have carried out.

Members expressed an interest in hearing which areas of the portfolios carried the highest risk, or where improvements could be made, including options for potential improvement.

They also agreed to allocating time at the end of each meeting to identify and determine which aspects of the next Portfolio Holder area Members wished to focus on.

Members queried whether consideration could be given to arranging a meeting between the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Cabinet, and officers to understand how the Council would engage with other authorities and to hear how the new authority would prioritise the needs of its new communities.

Members expressed an interest in hearing about the events planned for the upcoming year, including receiving a calendar indicating the wards in which they would take place, so that Members could assist with promoting them.

RESOLVED to:

Note the report.

None.