To consider the above report.

Anna Robinson, Strategy and Performance Manager stated it was the first full quarterly report for 2018/19. Members noted all five KPIs for the Highways, Transport and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel areas were on target.

There were eight measures for 2017/18 and four had been met, three were almost met and one was unmet. The commentary for those KPIs were detailed in appendix B of the report. New measures had been included in the report before Panel and paragraphs 2.4 and 2.5 of the report listed the differences and changes; and although it was only three months into the new municipal year, all KPIs were on target to be met.

The Chairman asked for more information regarding the number of cycling trips between Windsor and Maidenhead as the target was still showing as red. He wanted to know where the Borough was failing in increasing the number of cyclists. Chris Wheeler, Strategic Asset Management Principal responded the survey carried out was an annual snapshot and a number of factors could affect the figures on the day the survey was carried out. It was difficult to know what impacted the figures; however, the Cycle Forum was investigating the causes of reduced cycling rates and capital bids had been submitted to improved and encourage cycling in the Borough. The bids would help improve cycle parking facilities and cycle routes and could also support people in purchasing bikes and provide Bike Ability training programmes in schools. The Chairman stated the Highways, Transport and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel set up a task and finish group to try and improve cycling in the Borough. The recommendations were produced in a report based on the findings of the task and finish group. He suggested officers looked at the report to help improve cycling in the Borough.

Councillor Hunt asked how many claims had been made against the Council with regards to defects in road surfaces. The Strategic Asset Management Principal said he did not have that information to had but, he would find out and pass the information onto Councillors. He added the Borough had a good history of defending claims but would get the exact figures of claims submitted and claims paid out.

v  Action – The Strategic Asset Management Principal to confirm to Councillors of the Panel the number of claims made against the Council with regards to defective roads, and how many were successful, including the values of those claims paid out.

Councillor Quick stated on page 12, paragraph 4.3.2 referred to cycling trips between Windsor and Maidenhead Town Centres. She wanted to know how the survey was carried out. The Strategic Asset Management Principal said he did not have the exact details, however, he would circulated the details of how the survey was carried out to Members once he had received it.

v  Action – The Strategic Asset Management Principal to circulated details of how the cycling survey was carried out to Members.

Councillor Sharpe said the target for fly tipping was up to 500 instances for fly tipping in the Borough and the target stayed red up to 200, but over 200 the target turned green. He asked how that was measured as he felt 200 instances of fly tipping was a lot and the south of the Borough was suffering greatly since the waste and recycling centre had closed in Bracknell. The Strategy and Performance Manager stated in 2017/18 the target had been set at 570 incidents but, by the end of the year there had been 623 incidents. Therefore, the target for 2018/19 had been set at 623, and so far the Borough was doing well and there were indications fly tipping was not getting any worse. Councillor Sharpe stated the target was set at 623 and the Borough was already at 200 which was a third of the whole target in the first quarter of the year. The Strategic Asset Management Principal explained there was an issue in the way the figures were captured and what was classed as fly tipping. Some less well used sites for recycling had been removed and other sites that were being changed, such as the large recycling container at Sutherland Grange in Windsor. CCTV was also being installed at Sutherland Grange to combat the regular fly tipping that took place there. He added the Borough was also providing information for that that were unaware that their activities were classed as fly tipping. The Strategy and Performance Manager confirmed that the KPI for fly tipping covered the whole Borough and not just specific areas. Councillor Da Costa said the CCTV and new bins at Sutherland Grange were welcomed and asked what the budget was for the new measures. The Strategic Asset Management Principal confirmed there was an element of the budget in the highways contract and there was some budget from the recycling service area. The main aim was to reduce fly tipping and clear up where fly tipping had occurred. The Borough was also providing new signage to help combat the problem.

Councillor Hunt asked what type of things are being dumped. The Strategic Asset Management Principal responded it was all different types and for various reasons, some people did not want to pay to dispose of their waste, some did not want to take their waste to the right place and some people were leaving household waste instead of using their weekly bin collections. He went on to say there were a number of different solutions to the issue, for example a campaign could be run to help residents understand what can be left at the recycling centres and provide education. In terms of trades people dumping waste, the solution was to catch and prosecute them. Councillor Hunt stated people dumping household waste were unlikely to go onto the Council’s website to look for information on what could be taken at waste and recycling centres. She suggested advertising tips on how to safely and correctly dispose of waste in the Around the Royal Borough publication. Councillor Sharma said there was a website dedicated to the collection of large household items for a fee and that people should use that service instead of fly tipping.

The Strategy and Performance Manager explained to Members that the Borough was slightly down on how much waste was recycled compared to last year. Councillor Shelim suggested getting involved with local schools to teach pupils what could and could not be recycled. The Chairman stated the Panel needed more data on how the Council was performing including the methodology used and information on how KPIs were measured. The Strategy and Performance Manager explained that although the percentages recycled were slightly down on last year, the tonnage collected had actually increased. Councillor Da Costa said it would be great to get the information on the methodology used and he asked for a measure on improving pavements.

Councillor Da Costa stated a number of dashboards were not being reported on. He queried if the Council were receiving more complaints. The Strategy and Performance Manager confirmed that complaints were reported on bi-annually and an update on complaints would be available in the second quarter of the year. She added that the most complaints received were for front facing services such as Highways, the Customer Services Centre and Planning. She had been looking at how the Council responded to complaints, timescales and how many were upheld or not upheld and so there was a lot of work going on.

Councillor E. Wilson stated the performance data was about the performance of the whole Council and not individual wards. He queried what happened with the data and if it informed policy. The Strategy and Performance Manager responded some measures might not be perfect and a lot of work was ongoing to improve how the Council worked and to make the Council work smarter. The Chairman said it was useful for the benefit of the Panel to compare the data with neighbouring authorities and the national picture. The Strategy and Performance Manager stated that was being worked on. It was easy to do that with Adult and Children’s Services as they had statutory obligations that could easily be measured and compared. However, it was difficult to compare other measures and Council functions as Councils all report their measure differently. The Strategic Asset Management Principal said the Council was benchmarking Highways and Transport as the Borough was part of a national survey which meant measures could be broken down and all elements could be seen.

RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY: That the Highways, Transport and Environment Overview and Scrutiny Panel noted the report and:

i)             Endorsed the 2018/19 Performance Management Framework, including adjustments made to it outlined in 2.4, 2.5 and appendix A.

ii)            Requested relevant Lead Members and Heads of Service focus effort to improve performance in areas of current underperformance.