news on Bereavement Services engagement

Dear Colleagues

 

Please find below, the link to the Bereavement Services engagement which opened yesterday.

 

http://www.kirklees.gov.uk/beta/deaths-funerals-and-memorials/bereavement-services-engagement.aspx

Please encourage anyone who has a view on this to comment.

My Kirklees Account

Great news, the “My Kirklees Account”  (Citizen Account) is live and available for use by Citizens.

This is a major step forward in how we interact with the citizens of Kirklees, once registered citizens will be able to use their account to access services at a time and place of their choosing.

 

This new account will compliment existing services and is not designed to replace existing services.    

This is digital by design and not default.

It wont leave anyone behind, those who cant use the relevant technology will still have access to the normal range of services we currently offer.

Over the coming months and years more and more things will be added to the account, we want this to be so good that citizens wont want to go anywhere else for Kirklees related services and information.
 

 If you want to register for your account, go to this link https://my.kirklees.gov.uk

 

This is the “Soft Launch”, which is the full account but only publicised at Customer Centres and when Citizens Call-In or visit the website. We will be collecting feedback from online user experience surveys, front line colleagues,  and updating the system between now and the “Full Launch” in 3 weeks time.

Full Launch will be the full scale media promotion to drive large scale signup (including an  I pad giveaway and a whole host of promotion channels)

 We want as many citizens to sign up as possible, so please sign up and encourage others to sign up for the next step in our digital journey.

 

Understanding Uber…and the rest!

 

Understanding Uber…and the rest!

 

It should be obvious why “Taxi” regulation is important, passengers are often in a vulnerable position and could be at risk from poorly maintained or uninsured vehicles or from drivers who are either poor drivers or worse. We have a high standard of drivers in Kirklees and want to keep it that way.

 

 

Uber in the UK is not the problem, they have highlighted the problem, and they are subject to the

same regulations as everyone else. The problem is that “Taxi” regulation has not kept up with technology and the changes made recently by central government make efficient safe regulation impossible.

Local Authorities issue four different licences aimed at regulating the “Taxi” trade. (Technically the word Taxi should only apply to Hackney Cabs and not to private hire, but few members of the public know the difference)

1. The Driver Licence
2. A Hackney Licence – for the car
3. A Private Hire Licence – for the car
4. An Operator’s Licence

Each licensing authority sets its own rules as to what it expects from drivers, vehicles and operators, these regulations vary across the country and the level of enforcement varies. Recent changes allow drivers to operate anywhere in the country, irrespective of where the licence is issued, which has weakened or in many cases eliminated enforcement. (For clarity; the recent changes allow Private Hire Operators to sub contract jobs to other operators including those outside their licensed area, Hackney carriages have always been able to work in another authority so long as they only undertake pre-booked journeys)

Partially due to the technology operated by Uber and partially the change to regulation that allow Hackney Cabs to operate as Private Hire anywhere in the country has effectively removed vehicle regulation for many vehicles. Local authority enforcement officers do not have the power to check drivers and vehicles not issued by their authority.

The Driver Licence

Each Local authority sets the standards it applies in issuing licences to drive “Taxis”. They can require DBS CIB checks, a clean licence, a language test, a “knowledge” test, an enhanced driving test or anything else they feel is needed in their area. They can also require drivers to take part in training sessions on such issues as disability awareness or equality awareness. Regulations as to dress may be applied and commonly the wearing of an ID badge is a requirement set out in the legislation.

Drivers are in many authorities obliged to inform the authority of any driving convictions and may be called in to explain why they should keep their licence if they get for example more than 6 points. Drivers may also be questioned as a result of complaints from the police or public.

We in Kirklees require drivers to have a special exemption certificate to refuse to carry assistance dogs, (only one has been issued).

The time taken to be issued a licence can vary greatly, presently it takes 6 months to get a licence in Leeds but only one month in Liverpool (Kirklees is about three months). A driver who is refused or loses a licence in Kirklees may apply in Penzance and be issued a licence to work in Kirklees.

This also causes an enforcement problem. Kirklees Officers do not have the powers to enforce Penzance rules in Kirklees and the driver is not subject to Kirklees rules.

York recently experienced a car registered in Bradford, driven by a driver licenced by Transport for London operating daily in York.

The Hackney Licence

A Hackney licence is licence to “Ply for Hire” that is to operate from a rank or pick up from anywhere. A Hackney cab does not have to be pre-booked. Each authority can decide what cars can operate and what the livery should be, colour and markings. What licences and information should be displayed, what metering should be used and what the fair scale is. Authorities can also decide how old vehicles can operate and any other safety issues. Kirklees ban tinted windows for both Hackney and Private Hire on the grounds of passenger safety, some authorities are insisting on cctv in their cabs. Some authorities are considering banning diesel vehicles and many set air quality standards.

A big difference between Hackney and Private Hire is that authorities are allowed to limit the number of Hackney plates they issue. (If they carry out an unmet demand survey) The purpose of this was originally to protect the trade from over supply, to make the trade more stable, an unfortunate consequence of this was to create a “market” in plates. In some areas plates can cost up to £40,000. Owners rarely surrender plates they just sell them on. Some areas such as Rosendale, a small Lancashire authority can choose not to set limits and issue many licences to cars that never operate in Rosendale.

The change in regulations allows cars registered in one authority as Hackney Cabs to work in any other authority as Private Hire, this allows drivers to avoid effective control over condition, age and signage, allowing unmarked cars to act as private hire vehicles, with the obvious dangers this creates. We had a long battle with the trade in Kirklees to ban magnetic door signs for this reason.   

Private Hire

A Private Hire journey must be pre-booked through an operator; they cannot use Taxi Ranks or pick up from the street, unless booked. The fair is not regulated and meters are not compulsory. Local authorities can define the livery, age and type of vehicle and can check and test vehicles at any time, but only if registered in their own area, hence the problem. In the past there would be no point in ringing a London Taxi firm to book a cab in Kirklees, but the Uber App books you the nearest Uber car, irrespective of where it is licenced, so Kirklees registered drivers can take their Kirklees registered cabs to wherever the profit is, be that Leeds, London or St. Ives. Once out of Kirklees they are away from our enforcement officers.

Operator’s Licence

As explained above, all private hire vehicles must be booked through an operator. An Operator’s licence may cover one car (such as the sole operator on my street operating an Airport shuttle) to the 40,000 cars operated in London by Uber. The operator is supposed to check that the drivers it operates, and these are usually self-employed, are licensed, that the cars are licenced and insured. They are also supposed to keep a record of all journeys, when booked, be whom, who the allocated driver is and where the pick-up is. Uber with their App have this to a tee, as have all the operators who use computer bookings systems, not all have booking systems though our officers say it is not a problem.

The recent court case as to whether drivers are employed, or self-employed concerning UBER probably applies to 99% of drivers, very few operators employ drivers or own cars, drivers pay them a fee for the booking and can get very different levels of support for the fee.

Quick fixes

Locally we are trying to rationalise regulations across West Yorkshire, we are empowering officers to regulate each other’s drivers and vehicles and we are sharing information. This does not protect us from cars or drivers from outside the area.

Government regulation

What is needed is a review of the regulations a few small changes could make a big difference.

1. A national Driver Data Base that records convictions and all disciplinary actions against drivers, that is available to all licensing authorities and enforcement officers. It essentially should include a photograph.
2. All Private Hire Journeys should be required to be booked from an operator registered in the area of either the pick-up or drop-off point of the journey.
3. Hackney Cabs should not be able to operate outside of the area they are registered in as private hire vehicles.
4. All authorities should be given the powers to check any driver or vehicle operating in their area.
5. The introduction of a National convictions policy, so that all areas are working to the same standard.

Conclusion

The current system is not working and is putting passengers at risk. The vast majority of drivers operate well maintained vehicles safely. Many people, particularly non car owners are reliant on what in the majority of cases is a cheap efficient system. We cannot afford to let the system fall into disrepute as a result of poor regulations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stats Just Out of Interest

Stats Just Out of Interest

1.    Fixed Penalty Notices issued for littering:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        = 76

      4 April 17 to 4 October 17        = 4104

 

      Fixed Penalty Notices issued for dog fouling:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        =  4

4 April 17 to 4 October 17        = 36

 

      Fixed Penalty Notices issued for other offences:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        = 47

4 April 17 to 4 October 17        = 31

 

2.    Fixed Penalty Notices paid for littering:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        =  48

4 April 17 to 4 October 17        =  3027

 

Fixed Penalty Notices paid for dog fouling:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        = 2

4 April 17 to 4 October 17        = 20

 

Fixed Penalty Notices paid for other offences:

4 April 16 to 4 October 16        = 10

4 April 17 to 4 October 17        = 12

 

3.    Prosecutions made for non-payment of Fixed Penalty Notices for littering

4 April 16 to October 16           = 0

4 April 17 to October 17           = 139

 

Prosecutions made for non-payment of Fixed Penalty Notices for dog fouling

4 April 16 to October 16           = 0

4 April 17 to October 17           = 0

 

Prosecutions made for non-payment of Fixed Penalty Notices for other offences

4 April 16 to October 16           =  3

4 April 17 to October 17           =  0

 

Annual Report 2016-2017: Cllr Musarrat Khan

It has been a challenging and interesting year, not to mention a privilege and honour to serve Kirklees. I have continued to represent the Dalton Ward at Council and was delighted to be assigned the position of portfolio holder for Highways & Neighbourhoods.

In terms of my role as Dalton Ward councillor my priority has been to explore how we can mitigate against the impact of government cuts by supporting residents and community groups to expand and continue to provide community based services. This year the Council has to save £1m a week to survive the devastating onslaught of government cuts. This does not come without its challenges. The relationship between residents, Officers and Councillors is central to facilitating and shaping this new landscape. On a ward level I have encouraged a sharing of resources and cooperation across different community groups and individuals. The growing sense of pride and ownership in the area is apparent.  

Ward meetings have been very well attended by residents and groups, and with the support of our dedicated officers two new groups have formed to represent different interests across the ward. Numerous groups have received support to continue delivering much needed community facilities.

I set up a virtual group on social media for the purpose of enhancing communication across the Ward and to provide a platform for residents and community groups to share information regarding wider opportunities, local events and resources. This virtual group is now administered by residents and membership is steadily growing.

Residents are increasingly using social media to contact me with regards to casework. The casework appears to be rising steadily as Council services are in a flux of transformation and change. Casework has included a wide range of issues such as missed bin collections, fly tipping, littering, anti-social behaviour, highways maintenance, parking problems, school transport and admissions, neighbourly disputes, housing and benefits issues. I continue to deliver street surgeries on Saturday mornings.

I have been astounded and impressed with the dedication and commitment of the volunteers at HD1 Team, HD1 Summer Camp, Summer Dalton Lunch Club and Estella Youth Group. There feels to be a real re-invigoration of community activity in the Rawthorpe and Dalton area. I cannot thank residents enough and I thoroughly enjoyed my visits to their projects.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank KNH and Council officers for facilitating litter picking events in the area and a special thank you for the volunteers at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for helping us ‘clean-up’ Rawthorpe.

 

The challenges for me and the communities I represent this year will be to strengthen the governance of newly formed and ensure continuation of existing provision. There are number of hurdles and challenges which require some collaborative solutions. I am confident that my colleagues and I can move this work forward in line with our shared vision and aspirations for the area. Following the unfortunate incidents involving gun crime in the area, my colleagues and I met with the Chief Inspector to ensure additional resources were being allocated to the area. The safety and sense of security is high on my priorities and I will be working alongside officers to ensure all parts of the Ward receive as much input to reduce crime as possible.

The best news this year was Huddersfield Town’s promotion to the Premier League after a tense play-off match against Reading. This brings with it huge opportunities in terms of investment in Huddersfield and firmly places the town on the map. This development will contribute to the invigoration of the local economy and create employment opportunities. However, this promotion also brings with it challenges for the neighbouring residents around the stadium. I will continue to work with our Parking, Street Cleansing, Highways and Licensing Departments to ensure that parking, trading and littering regulations are enforced and the area as a whole is enhanced visually and environmentally. I will continue to support residents with the view to resolving concerns and to ensure that resident’s voices are heard within the context of future developments. Where opportunities rise I will continue to facilitate stronger links between the residents and businesses within the Ward with the view to strengthening corporate social responsibility. I have represented the views of residents at various consultations including EIP, Children Centre consultation, Library Services, Ward Assets, Parks maintenance and play strategy.

I have attended a number of Local Community Group and Organisations such as:

• Kirkheaton Future
• Rawthorpe TRA
• Dalton & Dearne TRA
• Yetton Together
• Rawthorpe Community Association
• HD1 Team
• Moldgreen Reformed Church

Council Meetings and Committees  attended

• Annual Council
• Council
• Huddersfield Planning Committee
• District Committee
• Cabinet
• Cabinet Local Issues

Other Council Meetings attended

• Members security panel
• Kirklees Youth Council
• Annual Learning Summit
• Democracy Commission’s Local Democracy Training – delivering to Schools

In my role as Cabinet members I have visited a number of services, Council sites and shadowed the work of teams under the Place directorate. These include:

• Lockwood cemetery, Dewsbury cemetery & Edgerton Cemetery
• Kirklees South parks Team
• Kirklees North Parks Team
• Batley and Dewsbury Highways Depots
• Honley depot
• Highways Maintenance
• Refuse collection depots in Huddersfield and Dewsbury
• Suez Waste Management Site
• Road Safety Team
• CCTV team
• Fleet Management services
• Environmental Health Services and Food Safety Team
• Noise abatement team

I have also met with a wide range of voluntary, community and campaign groups such as:

• Dewsbury Burial Committee
• Indian Muslim Welfare Burial Committee
• PROWs Forum
• Brake
• Marsh Community Forum
• Kirklees Cycling Group
• Men in Sheds
• S2R
• Joint Area TRA Forum
• Saad Foundation
• River 2015
• DASH

I have undertaken numerous site visits with Officers and councillors from across the political sphere to better understand locality based issues and support resolutions. I have dealt with wide ranging casework from across the Local Authority.
 
Looking after the roads and highways infrastructure in Kirklees is a huge challenge for the Council. The main challenges the Council face are not only cuts to the funding allocated from central Government, which have been reduced year on year since 2010, but also the additional restrictions placed on them by Government in terms of their efficiency programme.  Money from Government is allocated according to lengths of the different types of road and not factors such as population and typography – these factors contribute negatively to authorities such as Kirklees. The Government’s formula generally works in favour of rural areas, yet more revenue is generated in urban areas in the form fuel tax and vehicle tax rates.   
Highways funding from Government remains insufficient for the council to reduce the backlog of road repairs and the council has to make tough decisions on which roads to repair first, balancing the need to invest in both the most dilapidated roads and prevent others from deteriorating too much to make the best use of the funding that is available.
However, despite these challenges the Council has managed to significantly reduce its backlog of pothole repairs using cost effective and innovative techniques. 

I have met with and advocated on behalf of Burial Committees, ensuring that burial options in line with preferences are delivered where possible. Whilst some issues have been resolved there are, however, a number appending developments within bereavement services which require on going attention. The Council’s first natural burial ground successfully secured planning permission. The ethos of natural burials is to be as environmentally friendly as possible. In line with my commitment to the environment I will champion a food waste reduction scheme.

The prestigious Green Flag awards have once again been awarded to Greenhead Park and Beaumont Park in Huddersfield, Crow Nest Park in Dewsbury, Oakwell Hall Country Park in Birstall and Wilton Park in Batley. Well done and thank you to all of our colleagues and volunteers who work hard to keep our parks looking so beautiful.

 

In terms of meeting budgetary demands the services under the Highways & Neighbourhood portfolio have risen to the challenges by maximising on efficiency by utilising advanced technology and restructuring services to meet savings targets. There are a number of new initiatives currently being explored as we strive to deliver high quality value for money services. In the coming year I will be commencing new challenges as a joint portfolio holder for Corporate (Environment, Place & Customer Contact Services).
Training or learning I have undertaken:
In –House New Council training 

• LGA Your Leadership Offer
• District Committee Budget
• LGA New Demands New Leadership
• Comoodle and the Wider Sharing Economy
• An Introduction to Kompass
• LGA Personal Resilience
• From Equality to Inclusion
• LGA Councillor/Officer Relationships
• LGA Councillors – Communication
• LGA Information and Intelligence
• Introduction to observatory

This year I also completed the NAC Certificate for Councillors, LGA Leadership Essentials: Finance and attended the Highways England – Planning Future Investment in England’s Strategic Roads

Dull Devo Deal or No Deal - slammed....by Lord O'Neill

Dull devo proposals slammed

By Dan Peters | 04 October 2017

Just a handful of the 38 devolution proposals put forward from cities, towns and counties across the UK two years ago actually reached top politicians, a former Treasury minister has revealed.

Speaking at a recent conference hosted by the Southern Policy Centre think-tank, former commercial secretary to the Treasury, Lord O’Neill, admitted that ‘not many of them actually got beyond officials to the attention of the ministers and close advisers that were involved’.

Proposals were submitted through the Department for Communities and Local Government but the ex-minister suggested only a very small number actually reached his desk in the Treasury.

Lord O’Neill said one reason for this was ‘not that many had things that stood out that made them look particularly interesting’.

He said: ‘A lot of people would just come along and say: “Can you give us our GVA version of money that you gave to Sheffield?” What, that’s it? What is it you really want to do?’

Lord O’Neill said he was ‘sympathetic’ to frustrations that the Government’s approach to devolution was too focused on urban areas but defended the stance.

He continued: ‘If you want to make a difference nationally, by definition the places you have got to give the biggest amount of early attention to are the urban ones, which makes many people who are not in urban areas, say: “What about us?”

‘But, if you are approaching this from trying to change the national economy, it is reality that you must give primary attention to the urban areas.’

Lord O’Neill also blamed politics for the failure of a number of regions to elect a mayor.

He added: ‘There were at least two urban-based deals that didn’t happen, because of Conservative Party politics. It would be dressed up for other reasons publicly, but that’s why it didn’t happen.

‘The other big place where we never got a deal – and it’s sort of ridiculous – is Leeds. It gets dressed up in all sorts of crazy things, but it is because of the marginal Tory, or what is perceived to be marginal Tory seats in West Yorkshire.’

 

Just thought it was worth giving this a wider audience, what we have been saying in West Yorkshire for the past couple of years.

 

 

Care Home Shortfall

Nine out of ten councils face care home place shortfall

A new study warns that 87% of councils risk running out of care home places over the next five years. According to Which?, a shortfall of 42,000 beds will be imminent by 2022 unless more homes are built. Fourteen local authorities face a 25% shortfall - half in London boroughs - and just 20 out of the 150 council areas are on track to keep up with demand.

The worst-hit area - Bracknell Forest in Berkshire - faces a shortfall of 53%, while Devon will have the largest shortage in terms of the number of beds, with a projected 1,921. Izzi Seccombe, from the Local Government Association, said: “These findings reinforce our warning about the urgent need to reform adult social care and deliver a long-term sustainable solution.”

Responding to the study a Department of Health spokesman comments: "High quality care isn't just about care home beds – 61% of people are cared for in their own home and since 2010 there has been a growth in home care agencies of more than 3,000 - a 53% increase. We've given local authorities in England an extra £2bn boost over the next three years to maintain access for our growing ageing population and to put the social care sector on a sustainable footing for the future."

The Governments response was to announce a short term (three year) "patch" that was not only too late, too little but too short lived.