northlincs.gov.uk

80              (31) ROUGH SLEEPERS UPDATE – The Director of Places submitted a report updating the Cabinet Member on the current level of rough sleeping in North Lincolnshire.

Rough sleeping remained the most visible and damaging symptom of homelessness.  In 1988, the Government set a target to reduce the number of rough sleepers by two thirds within four years.  To achieve this, in 1999 they launched ‘Coming in from the Cold’, their strategy for tackling rough sleeping, which set out detailed plans for meeting the target.

The current Government was committed to reducing rough sleeping to as near zero as possible.

Progress against the target was measured by a single night’s street count in areas where there is a known, or suspected, rough sleeping problem.  Counts had taken place in most council areas since 1997.  The results have helped to establish robust annual estimates of people sleeping rough across England.

Since 1997, local strategies had been developed in all areas with a significant rough sleeping problem (more than 10 rough sleepers identified).  The count helped inform the continuing development of such strategies, measured their success and identified gaps in services.

Councils could now submit a robust estimate of the number of people rough sleeping on a typical night, rather than an actual physical count.  To do so, they had to consult with and gather information from all agencies dealing with rough sleepers in their area, including the local community.

The report gave details of rough sleeping figures within North Lincolnshire, including information on regional data.  Details were also provided on the work that was currently being carried out in North Lincolnshire to continue to reduce the number of rough sleepers in the county.

Resolved – That the report be noted.

81              (32) NO SECOND NIGHT OUT INITIATIVE – The Director of Places submitted a report providing the Cabinet Member with information related to the ‘No Second Night Out’ initiative, and presenting options regarding the scheme.

‘No Second Night Out’ (NSNO) was a government led initiative aimed at reducing rough sleeping.  The scheme aimed to ensure that no new rough sleeper spent a second night sleeping on the street.  In doing so, it aimed to stop them becoming entrenched in the rough sleeping culture.  The initiative began in London in 2011 (before the Olympics) and had now been rolled out across the country.

The government were currently preparing a ‘heat map’ for publication showing councils who had formally adopted the NSNO initiative (green), those who were seriously considering adopting a formal NSNO plan (orange) and those that were not planning to do anything in regard to NSNO (red).  Currently, North Lincolnshire would show as orange on the heat map as the council considers whether to adopt a formal NSNO plan.

Resolved – (a) That Option 1, as set out in the report at paragraph 3.1 of the report, that further analysis be undertaken on the benefits of adopting a formal ‘No Second Night Out’ policy, following consultation with neighbouring authorities to consider progressing the matter further, be approved, and (b) the a further report on the matter be submitted to the Cabinet Member for consideration his next briefing.

82              (33) THE GOLD STANDARD SCHEME FOR HOMELESSNESS SERVICES – The Director of Places submitted a report updating the Cabinet Member on the Gold Standard initiative for homelessness services and the progress of the Housing Advice Team towards achieving the standard.

In April 2013 the government announced a new support and training scheme for homelessness services called the Gold Standard.  The standard required councils to pledge to “strive for continuous improvement in front line housing services” through peer review, expert support and professional training.  The National Practitioner Support Services Team with the National Homelessness Advice Service administered the standard.

The National Homelessness Advice Service was a partnership between Shelter and Citizens Advice.  The Gold Standard was based on the ten local authority challenges set out by the Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness.

Expert help was available to provide support, together with free training on more complex areas.  Participating councils benchmarked against neighbouring authorities.  They learnt from examples of good practice to achieve the gold award together.

An online toolkit was available to help councils identify areas for improvement and expert tailored support to make services run more efficiently.

The report gave details of a number of key commitments that had to be met in order to attain the Gold Standard.

Resolved – That the report be noted.

83              (34) CULTURAL SERVICES – PERFORMANCE UPDATE – The Director of Places submitted a report advising the Cabinet Member of recent performance and service improvements across Cultural Services.

Cultural Services had put into effect a number of service developments with additional investments and improved visitor statistics.

The report gave details on the following:

·         Visitor Numbers

·         Normanby Product Improvements

·         Exhibitions

·         Promotional Activity, and

·         Future Events.

Resolved – (a) That the report be noted, and (b) that the increase in visitor numbers and improvements to services outlined in the report, be welcomed.

The corresponding report of the following item (Minute 84 refers) contains exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

84              (35) PROPERTY TRANSACTION SCHEDULE – The Director of Places submitted a report for consideration, and where necessary, approval of a schedule containing the terms of all recently negotiated property transactions.

The schedule covered both operational and commercial property.

Resolved – That the schedule appended to the report be approved.

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Where there is no report this is because it is exempt, as it contains information which is considered to be of a confidential nature, as detailed in the Local Government (Access to Information) Act.