Agenda item

Neal Barton, Policy, Performance & Partnerships Manager, introduced the annual report on the work of the Mid Sussex Partnership (MSP), the Council’s main strategic partnership involving key public sector partners that is chaired by the Leader of the Council. He provided Members with information on the work undertaken under the umbrella of the MSP in 2020/21 and the programme for the year ahead. He drew attention to the Strategic Intelligence Assessment 2021 (SIA) which noted that Mid Sussex is the joint safest district in West Sussex alongside Horsham and that crime has reduced by 4% compared with the previous year.  Future work of the partnership included consultations for further Public Space Protection Orders in other  parts of the District and the roll out of the Safe Places Pilot  following its success in East Grinstead.

The Chairman thanked the officers for the report and believed that it would be useful for all Members to have sight of the Strategic Intelligence Assessment 2021 via the Member Information Service.

A Member found the SIA to be helpful. She noted that Mid Sussex is the least deprived area in Sussex however made the point that there are pockets of deprivation in these communities. She expressed worry that access to national funding streams is perhaps easier when  an area is recognised as one of deprivation but much harder when the area as a whole is known as one of the least deprived therefore making it harder for some communities in those areas to access support. The Member felt pleased about the new CCTV cameras and asked for some feedback from the headquarters in Lewes about what they are seeing. The Member noted the recent Sarah Everard case and the issues that may be faced by   women walking alone through the many pathways in the district’s parks and open spaces, some of which are not lit well. She asked whether  areas could be subtly lit to make them safer. The Member expressed thanks that the other towns have come forward to implement the Safe Place project and asked all members to keep highlighting the places so that residents always know where they are just in case they need them.

The Policy, Performance and Partnerships Manager asked that when residents report instances of concern they state where and when it has taken place as, due to the number of cameras in operation at Lewes, they often have to look back at previous footage to ascertain a pattern of concern.

Emma Sheridan, Business Unit Leader for Community Services, Policy and Performance, acknowledged the existence of pockets of significant deprivation in the district. She confirmed that it could be  a challenge to justify funding under, or even meet the basic criteria of, many  national funding streams but that wherever possible the Council do make strong bids for funds on the basis of nested deprivation. Being in a deprived area in an otherwise affluent area can sometimes be harder than being in a widely deprived area which is a challenge the Council is conscious of. She also confirmed that she would feed back the comments of the Member to her colleagues in the Leisure & Landscapes team as they are currently looking at the parks master planning and a ‘safe by design’ concept as well as raising the issue in conversations about the Local Cycling, Walking and Infrastructure Plan.

The Vice-Chairman referred to Paragraph 54, P.12 in which sources of funding is mentioned. She noted that funding has been received from the Home Office and asked whether the funding is safeguarded and is going to be continuing and whether there are any other sources of funding.

The Business Unit Leader for Community Services, Policy and Performance confirmed that the funding derives from the Police and Crime Commissioner’s Office which has been secured for the current year and is received on an annual basis. She confirmed that it has been received for a number of years and hasn’t received any indication that its ceasing. In respect of other funding, it was confirmed that the Council continues to work as a partnership to bring in external funding where its available and have received funding variously through in-kind support from partners in the voluntary sector and increasingly in partnership with the health authorities.

A Member observed that the Council largely has a coordination role and sometimes a directional role in the Partnership however he noted that there seems to be a lack of success criteria in the work so asked how Partnership knows when it’s work has been successful.

The Business Unit Leader for Community Services, Policy and Performance explained that the Partnership assumes responsibility for the projects and each individual project depending on the nature of it will usually have a lead organisation with this  sometimes but not always  the Council,  Police or a voluntary sector organisation. She stated that its difficult in a summary annual report to go into the details of each particular project however she is happy to provide that level of detail at the Member’s request and that this is reported regularly to the MSP Board.

A Member referred to the CCTV project on Paragraph 22, P.8 and expressed an interest in attending Lewes to get a better understanding of them. She noted the drug offences on P.22 which has more than doubled and thanked Mid Sussex District Council for the helpful online training provision which modules’ covers safeguarding and county lines.

A Member enquired as to the engagement of other schools with the partnership as she noticed Haywards Heath College being part of the partnership and whether the Partnership has received any feedback from schools that are not reciprocating.

The Business Unit Leader for Community Services, Policy and Performance stated that due to the College covering the whole district they have a district wide remit and that there were a wide range of channels for school to engage with an participate in the Partnership. In addition, West Sussex Officers representing Education attend partnership meetings l. She also drew attention to the Sub-Groups and the work they do with schools some of which has not occurred recently due to the pandemic however it is restarting. She added that the Partnership was conscious of not wishing to add to the pressure put on schools to participate in meeting  however they do obtain feedback from schools when relevant.

The Chairman took Members to a vote on the recommendation contained in the report. This was approved with 13 votes in favour and 1 abstention.

RESOLVED

The Scrutiny Committee noted the work of the Mid Sussex Partnership in 2020/21 and endorsed the proposed continuing emphasis in the year ahead on the response to and recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.