Minutes for Education, Culture and Sport Committee meeting, Feb 18 2010, 2.00PM official page

The Convener advised that item 5.1 on the agenda (Museums and Galleries Current and Future Storage Needs – ECS/09/077) had been withdrawn, to enable further consultation to take place.

The Committee resolved:-

to note the withdrawal of the item.

The Convener emphasised the positive information which was contained in the Education, Culture and Sport Service ebulletin and emphasised the usefulness of the information which was contained in the Committee Information bulletin.

The Convener went on to advise the Committee that Aberdeen Art Gallery and Museums had been awarded nearly £40,000 to purchase new display cases from the National Recognition Fund, which was administered by Museums Galleries Scotland.   It was  noted that the cases would be used later in the year to display objects in a special exhibition celebrating the 125^th anniversary of the Art Gallery.   The Convener went on to advise the Committee that the Council’s Arts Education Team had been awarded £50,000 from the Scottish Arts Council Partners Fund which supported Artists in Residence programmes and that this was the second time that the Team had received the award.

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information.

The Committee had before it a request for a deputation from Mr. Mark McEwan and Mr. Mike Morrice, which had been received on behalf of Cults Primary School Football and all schools in the Westhill and District Friendly League, Hazlewood League and School Team Leagues and had been submitted in accordance with Standing Order 10.  

The Committee resolved:-

to hear the deputation relating to article 21 of the minute, at the appropriate point in the meeting.

The Committee had before it the minute of its previous meeting of
7 January 2010. 

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to note that the information requested in article 8 resolution(ii), relating to the outturn of Out of Authority Placements for 2009/10, would be provided by officers as soon as possible;  and

(ii)        to approve the minute.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

            Councillor Collie declared an interest in the subject matter of the following article due to his appointment as a Director of Aberdeen Sports Village but did not consider it necessary to withdraw from the meeting during consideration of the item.

The Committee had before it a Statement of Committee Business and a Motions List prepared by the Acting Head of Democratic Services. 

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to remove item 3 (INEA2 Action Plan), item 6 (Learning Estates Strategy), item 7 (SQA Examination Results), item 11 (50m Pool), item 14 (Anti-Poverty Strategy), item 20 (Services in the Community), item 21 (Report to Members and Controller of Audit) and item 22 (Revision of School Capacities) from the Business Statement; 

(ii)        to remove parts of item 4 (Reporting School Performance Measures), item 5 (Quality Improvement Framework), item 13 (Review of Sports Grant Criteria) and item 19 (Additional PE Needs in Schools) from the Business Statement; 

(iii)       to refer item 17 (Walker Road Primary School Refurbishment) back to the Audit and Risk Committee and request that a report be submitted to that Committee on this issue; 

(iv)       to note that a report relating to item 10 (Community Learning Hubs) would be submitted to the Committee on 27 May, 2010; 

(v)        to note that a report on item 15 (Property Sales Investigation) would be submitted to the Committee on 15 April, 2010;  and

(vi)       to otherwise note the statements.

The Director of Education, Culture and Sport, provided an oral report to the Committee in relation to 5-14 year old attainment in Aberdeen city schools.   The Director advised that interim information on projected pupil attainment for the end of the 2009/10 session had been requested from schools and that predictions for end of year attainment levels had been asked for, based on pupil progress to date.   The information which had been received indicated that the figures for reading, writing and maths were anticipated to be slightly higher than those for a previous year, although it was noted that no comparator interim figures were available from previous years.  

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to note the information; and

(ii)               to note that a full report was due to be submitted to the Committee on 26 August 2010.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of its previous meeting, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport which provided an update on the performance of the service as at December 2009.  Attached as an appendix to the report was a performance scorecard for the original 23 key performance indicators, together with three additional measures of performance which had previously been agreed.  The scorecard showed recent performance trends as at December 2009, in relation to areas of resources management, impact, business processes and organisational development and also provided targets, where available.  The report provided details of the highlights of the performance report, which included good performance of 92% in relation to the health and safety matrix and a completion rate of 92% for internal audit recommendations.

Attached as a further appendix to the report, was more detailed information in relation to the targets noted on the performance scorecard which provided a definition of each measure, graphical representation of the performance, longer term trends of performance, an analysis of what each performance meant and recommended actions to be taken for improvement.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the trends in performance;  and

(b)       instruct that quarterly reports are presented to Committee as part of the Education, Culture and Sport Public Performance Reporting Framework.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to congratulate staff at Seaton Primary School for their recent positive HMIE report; 

(ii)        to note that the timing of performance reporting would be reviewed by the Director to ensure that indicators were being reported at the appropriate stages in the academic year;  and

(iii)       to otherwise approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 8 of the minute of its previous meeting, the Committee had before it a joint report by the City Chamberlain and the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which provided information on the current year revenue budget performance to date and also advised on any areas of risk and management action required.

The report noted that at the present time, areas of risk and potential overspend had been highlighted as:-  Out of Authority Placements;  Pupil Support Assistants;  Pupil Role Changes;  and Sports Income.  The forecast overspend combining these various areas was £1.278 million, which was a reduction of £379,000 in the forecast overspend since the previous report.  The report went on to advise that there were 46 approved savings for 2009-2010, worth a combined total of £7,928,000. Full details of the approved savings were attached as an appendix to the report, which included details of the progress to date on each saving.  It was further noted that the current forecast predicted that the service was on target to achieve the majority of these savings, with the main exception to this being in relation to Out Of Authority placements.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       consider and note the report and the information on management action and risks;  and

(b)       instruct that officers continue to review budget performance and report on service strategies as required to ensure a balanced budget.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to note that officers would confirm whether or not the relevant software programme was being used in relation to school transport;  and

(ii)        to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 9 of the minute of its previous meeting, the Committee had before it a joint report by the City Chamberlain and the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which provided an update on various projects within the Non-Housing Capital Programme which were aligned to Education, Culture and Sport Services.  Attached as an appendix to the report was a detailed list of the Non-Housing Capital Programme Project which provided the spend to date to the end of December, 2009, including forecast outturn, for each project in the budget for 2009/10.

The appendix contained information on projects which were divided into separate categories, namely schools - estates;  schools- ICT;  schools – other equipment;  sports;  culture and leisure;  parks;  and other.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee consider and note the content of the report in relation to the projects outlined at appendix A. 

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which sought approval for the services’ Single Equality Policy and Action Plan for 2009-2012.  It was noted that the policy was to form part of the Council’s overall Single Equality Scheme. 

The report advised that Equalities and Human Rights legislation placed a statutory duty on the Council to produce schemes on all areas of equalities and that these were required to be published and revised on a regular basis. It was noted that the Disability Equality Scheme had been published in 2006, and that the Gender Equality Scheme and Race Equality Scheme were published in June 2007 and November 2008 respectively.  The report advised that the UK government’s Equality Bill was soon to become law and that this would bring the different areas of equalities together, which had resulted in the Council taking the opportunity at this stage to develop a Single Equality Policy which covered all statutory existing policies for all types of equalities.

The report detailed the statutory duties which the Council was bound by and provided details in terms of the policies of schools and education which further promoted the principles of equalities.  The key aims of the policies in relation to education were also detailed in the report and included increasing schools and service involvement in both local and national initiatives on diversity and equalities, and improving the knowledge and skills in reporting and dealing with any form of discriminatory incidents.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the progress made during the life of the Race, Disability and Gender policies;

(b)       approve the new Single Equality Policy and Action Plan 2009-2012;

(c)        agree that it is included in the Aberdeen City Council Single Equality Scheme published in December 2009;  and

(d)       instructs officers to implement the actions within the Action Plan 2009-2010.

The Convener moved, seconded by the Vice-Convener:-

            to approve the recommendations detailed in the report.

Councillor Farquharson, seconded by Councillor Crockett, moved as an amendment:-

            to approve the recommendations detailed in the report, with the addition of the following recommendation:- that Committee notes that the policy refers to shared values and an inclusive approach to all services.  Committee also notes that these values are not shared by all and many of those pupils who are failing to act in the accepted way within the school system should be excluded from school until their conduct reaches an acceptable level.  The failure to protect the rights of other pupils, whose education is suffering because of the behaviour of a minority of their peers, can no longer be accepted and action should be taken to ensure that the rights of the majority are protected.

In terms of Standing Order 18(1)(ii), the Convener ruled the above amendment incompetent.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the motion.

“That this Council expedites its plans to demolish the old Greenfern School site which is currently a haven for vandalism and anti social behaviour causing the residents of the area great concern.”

Background report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport

Reference was made to article 18 of the minute of the meeting of Council of 16 December 2009, wherein the undernoted motion by Councillor Ironside had initially been referred to the Housing and Environment Committee on 11 January 2010 (article 9 of the minute refers) and which had been subsequently referred to this Committee for consideration:-

            “That this Council expedites its plans to demolish the old Greenfern School site which is currently a haven for vandalism and anti-social behaviour causing the residents of the area great concern.”

The Committee had before it a background report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which outlined the options available regarding the future use of the vacated property at the Greenfern site.  The report noted that the school had been closed since the 2003/04 session when it was merged to form Kingsford School on the adjacent site. Since that time it had been held on the Education, Culture and Sport Account, as its future use was to be included in the review of the Learning (School) Estate.  The report noted that the building did not currently have any proposed use by the service, however, due to the review of the learning estate being on-going, it was noted that the site at Greenfern was a potential location for a new-build school with possible denominational provision and community facilities.  It was noted that demolition of the building would address the concerns of local residents who had expressed concern at the level of vandalism and instances of anti-social behaviour at the site and the due to the vandalism contributing to the deterioration in the condition of the building, it was noted that it would not be financially justifiable to simply upgrade the existing building.

The report set out the options which were open to the Committee in relation to the site, namely:- (a) to consider demolition of the former Greenfern Nursery/Infant School building and request associated funding from the Finance and Resources Committee;  (b) to consider retention of the cleared site at Greenfern for potential future development to provide Education, Culture and Sport Services;  and (c) to consider providing Community facilities which may include activities currently delivered at the Summerhill Centre, although it was acknowledged that an options appraisal on providing suitable local facilities was currently being carried out by Community Learning and Development.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to agree the terms of the motion;

(ii)        to indicate its support of the options set out in the report;  and

(iii)       to refer the matter to the Finance and Resources Committee, in order to allow the financial aspects of the options to be considered, and that this referral be accompanied by a report from officers.

With reference to article 12 of the minute of its previous meeting, the Committee received an oral update from the Head of Schools and Educational Establishments on the transporting of pupils as a result of the Kaimhill School to Braeside school decant.  The Committee was advised that due to the on-going bad weather, the school was still unable to greatly reduce the number of buses being used, but that walking would be encouraged once the weather improved.  The Committee was also advised by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, that the investigation into the matter was continuing and that the Committee would be advised once the investigation was complete.

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information provided by officers and the update provided in the Information Bulletin.

With reference to article 16 of the minute of meeting of the Committee of 8 October 2009, the Committee had before it a report which set out the next phase of the Learning Estate Strategy, which it was hoped would bring all schools up to a standard equivalent to that of the new 3Rs schools.  The report provided a background for the Strategy and it was noted that the overall Learning Strategy for Aberdeen was also being developed and that these two Strategies would be aligned and would work in conjunction.  It was noted that within the Council’s corporate vision, the duty to deliver modern, effective, efficient and accessible services which included quality education services, was emphasised.   The aspirations of the Strategy were outlined in the report and included issues relating to education, pupils, community involvement, disability awareness, staff and energy efficiency.

In relation to the principles of the Strategy, the report advised that the Scottish Government’s revised School Estate Strategy included a number of guiding principles and objectives for future planning and action.  The local principles of the Strategy were detailed in the report and it was noted that there was a strong connection between national and local principles, with additional local principles also being identified.  The planning of the Learning Estate Strategy was advised as being implemented through a revised School Estate Management Plan (SEMP) which would outline strategic information about the future of school estates and would include strategic information about specific schools, some of which could be accessible for parents.  The report went on to note that any decision to close or amalgamate a school would be based on sound evidence when it was seen as being the best option and that consideration would be made to find an alternative to closure arising from increased house building or regeneration in an area.  The knock-on effect of the closure of primary schools on a secondary school in that catchment area would also be considered, including consideration of ensuring a social mix in each catchment area.  The report went on to advise that it was proposed that a School Review Group be established, which would meet to consider the options available to any school which fell under the criteria which were detailed in the report.  It was noted that the Group would be responsible for evaluating the long-term sustainability of each school where a review had been triggered according to the criteria, and that the Review Group would consider all relevant factors and make recommendations on the most appropriate course of action to address the issues, including consideration of the status quo for that individual school.  The report advised that it was intended that the Group consist of Elected Members, which would be identified from the Committee and also would combine Local Members; Officers; Parent Representatives; and Head Teachers.

The report went on to emphasise the importance of communication and consultation with stakeholders in order to allow them to understand the need for change and to involve them in the decision making process.  Consultation had been undertaken in the summer of 2009, however, it was noted that further engagement with key stakeholders was proposed, which would provide opportunities to clarify the range of options available to manage the estate. The report went on to explain that the informal consultation was expected to lead to a formal proposal, or a series of options, on which statutory consultation would then be undertaken.  The legislation and publications which governed school closures were detailed in the report and a summary of the main core themes of a new piece of legislation, namely the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act, which received Royal Assent in January 2010 and was to be implemented in the near future, was contained in an appendix to the report.

The budgetary impact for the Learning Estate Strategy was discussed in the report, and it was noted that the extent of the current budgetary challenge for all public services had been acknowledged and that it was likely that this would continue for the foreseeable future.  The report advised that any learning would need to contribute to an affordable overall Service and that the Service re-design and other measures had brought some areas of spending more in line with that of comparator Local Authorities.   The report went on to acknowledge that the work required to bring all schools up to a standard equivalent to that of the 3Rs schools would have to be phased and would take place over a number of years.  The way in which an order of priority for addressing issues within existing buildings and grounds, based upon sufficiency, suitability and condition, was detailed in the report.  Proposals for the Learning Estate for the short term (0-2 years), medium term (3-5 years) and long term (6-10 years and beyond) were detailed in the report.

Various appendices were attached to the report and available in the members library, namely, Appendix 1 – Building Better Schools:  Investing in Scotland’s Future;  Appendix 2 – Briefing Framework for Primary School Projects (Building Bulletin 99);  Appendix 3 – National Principles, extract from Building Better Schools:  Investing in Scotland’s Future;  Appendix 4 – Summary of Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act, 2010;  Appendix 5 – Net Local Authority Spending;  Appendix 6 – Suitability Core Factor, Scotland’s School Estate;  Appendix 7 – Primary and Secondary School Data relating to schools with and without temporary accommodation;  Appendix 8 – Immediate Draft Timeline.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the content of the report:

(b)       endorse the principles described in Section 6.4 of the report which underpin the effective management of a sustainable Learning Estate over the short (0-2 years), medium term (3-5 years) and long term (6-10 years and beyond); 

(c)        instruct officers to proceed with widespread consultation on the school estate as described in section 6.5; 

(d)       confirms the establishment forthwith of a schools review group as described in section 6.5.1 of the report;

(e)       confirms the timeline for the development of a Learning Estate Strategy;  and

(f)         instructs officers to report to Committee on and seek approval for outcomes of these proposals over the forthcoming two years.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

With reference to article 8 of the minute of meeting of the Policy and Strategy (Education) Committee of 28 April 2009, the Committee had before it a report which updated progress on the Inspection of Education Authorities (INEA2) and quality improvement since the last update.    The report provided a background to the INEA2 Action Plan and noted that previous reports on the issue had outlined detailed work against the key objectives and main points for action which had been identified by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education in May, 2007.   The report noted that a formal HMIE visit to review the education functions of the Council was to take place in 2010, and the report set out the plans for quality improvement and self evaluation throughout the Service. 

The report went on to advise that there were a number of approaches to quality improvement which used the Quality Indicator model developed by HMIE as the basis for self evaluation.   The report detailed the various approaches which were in use throughout the Education, Culture and Sports Service as part of the Quality Improvement process which included:-  INEA2 progress reporting, including educational psychology services;  introducing the concept of validated self evaluation;  integrated approaches to self evaluation for child protection and for children’s services;  introducing new arrangements for self evaluation using ‘How Good is Our Culture and Sport?’;  introducing a self evaluation using the Public Library Quality Improvement Matrix;  and linking to other quality improvement approaches such as How Good is Our School and How Good is our Community Learning and Development and ultimately, How Good is our Council?.   The report went on to provide details of these various approaches and it was noted that from February, 2010 onwards, the service would carry out further work to evaluate the impact of the work of the service.   The report further advised that on a rolling programme, the service was to take a more in-depth look at aspects of service delivery, which would be identified in the Service Plan which was currently being developed for 2010 to 2013.  

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the INEA2 update and instruct officers to prepare a final statement of INEA2 progress linked to the new service plan objectives and learning strategy themes for June 2010; 

(b)       note the integrated approach to introduce validated self evaluation across services within Education, Culture and Sport;  and

(c)        instruct that updates on service outcomes were reported to Committee as part of regular performance reports and through Service Plan reporting.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which set out a framework to plan the effective management of a move from one building to another, as a result of renovation, new building or other planned changes to provision.   The report noted that a clear plan was required to allow any move to take place as effectively as possible, and that the protocol provided advice as to how this could be achieved, although it did not provide advice on any move necessitated as a result of a sudden or emergency change to provision.   Due to the individual circumstances of each move, the report noted that the protocol, and associated documents, were to be treated as advice and guidance and not as prescriptive documents.

The report included a decant responsibility matrix and programme, which was set out to provide a reminder to all parties involved in a move of the principle steps towards a decant, who was responsible for each task and the timescales involved.   The decant programme set the tasks against each project calendar, however, it was noted that the timescales could be shorter due to the needs of individual projects.   The report went on to outline the risk assessment template and ICT dimensions, and noted that all the documents involved in the effective moving protocol would be updated as feedback from schools was received after each decant had taken place and an evaluation had been completed.

Attached as appendices to the report were a copy of the decant responsibility matrix, including an acronym summary; a risk assessment template; and ICT dimension information.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)       note the content of the report;  and

(b)       endorse the effective moving protocol for schools and other learning establishments.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which provided details on the rise in the number of data zones in the bottom 15% in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) 2009, in the education, skills and training domain.  

The report provided a background to the SIMD, which was used to provide an overview of multiple deprivation across Scotland and the method had been used to track multiple deprivation since the development of the first Index in 2004.  The report explained that the information in the most recent updates to the Index was based mainly around data from 2008, and while it was noted that the economic situation had changed since that time, it was still seen to be a valid picture of the distribution of deprivation.   It was noted that the Index looked beyond the economic

situation, and covered a range of other life circumstances of the people of Scotland including income, employment, health, education, access to services and housing and crime which could take longer to change.  

The SIMD indicators in relation to the education, skills and training domain for 2006 and 2009 were listed and compared in the report and it was noted that one indicator had been changed between the 2006 results and the 2009 results.   It was explained that absolute change could not be measured by using the SIMD information, however, individual indicators could be used for this purpose.  It was highlighted that the SIMD provided a relative measure of deprivation, and that changes in other parts of Scotland could affect the rankings of Aberdeen’s data zones even when there had been little or no change in the actual incidence of local deprivation within the city.   Information relating to the national change in the education domain was included in the report, and specific details for Aberdeen City were also provided.

In relation to the Aberdeen City information which had changed within the education domain since the SIMD in 2006, the report included tabulated information relating to the deprived data zones within the city, which were noted as mainly being located in the St. Machar Academy and Northfield Academy catchment areas.  The other eight deprived data zones were listed as being located in the Torry Academy, Kincorth Academy and Aberdeen Grammar School zones.   An overall analysis of the tariff scores within the education, skills and training domain showed that there was no significant upward or downward trend in the average tariff scores of the highest 80% in Aberdeen, Scotland or comparator authorities;  there was no significant difference between the average tariff scores for the lowest 20% in Aberdeen and Scotland for 2005 to 2008;  and the average tariff score of the highest 80% in Scotland and comparator authorities increased between 2005 and 2008.   Information on the research which had been undertaken relating to the links between the many factors associated with living in deprivation and educational attainment was detailed in the report and an analysis of the characteristics of the bottom 20% had also been well established by numerous studies.   Details relating to Early Years and Early Intervention as well as Education and Lifelong Learning were also provided in the report.   Attached as an appendix to the report was a table which showed the Aberdeen data zones in the most deprived 0-5%, 5-10%, and 10 – 15% bands in Scotland.  

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the content of the report; 

(b)       instruct officers to contribute to the draft anti-poverty strategy particularly in relation to identifying further actions required;  and

(c)        receive a further report outlining the strategy for closing the gap in attainment.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which provided a summary of the key facts of the School Leavers Destinations report at an Aberdeen City level, as well as providing the local context and clarification on the actions being taken forward to address the challenges through the development and implementation of the Aberdeen City More Choices More Chances Strategy and Action Plan.   A background to the More Choices, More Chances initiative and strategy was provided in the report and it was noted that the School Leavers Destination report for Aberdeen City provided robust local data to enable the More Choices More Chances Partnership to measure success locally and to assess progress against national comparator data.

The report advised that within Aberdeen City in 2008–09, the overall percentage of school leavers entering a positive destination was 82.7%, which represented a fall of 2.9% on last year and was below the national result of 85.7%.   The report explained, however, that the proportion of young people entering further and higher education had reached its highest level in a decade and that the percentage of school leavers entering higher education had risen by 1.3% in comparison to 1999-2000.    A breakdown and analysis of the data relating to Aberdeen City and the school leavers destination report was included within the report before the Committee and it was noted that Aberdeen had a higher proportion of young people entering into higher education at 37.1%, which was higher than the national average of 34.9% and the second highest rate out of the HMIE comparators.   The destination data for individual schools across the city was included in the report, as well as information relating to the data zones within the city which had the highest number of school leavers and a breakdown of the destination data by stage of leaving.   Information relating to special schools was also included in the report as well as a chart which showed the destinations of looked after children.  

The report went on to provide a progress update in relation to the More Choices More Chances agenda since May, 2009, and the report advised that in July, 2009 funding had been successfully obtained from the Scottish Government to establish 1.5 fixed term posts within the integrated Children’s Services Team to take forward the 16+ Learning Choices workstream.   Throughout August and September 2009, the report advised that briefing sessions had been undertaken with all secondary and special schools and the Community Learning and Development Team which had led to a programme of work being developed and delivered by December 2009.   Details of the programme were listed in the report and included amongst other things, an agreed 16+ implementation timeline for the city.   Details of the 16+ Learning Choices programme were also provided, which included early identification of individuals at risk of moving into negative destinations prior to the statutory school leaving age and the early assessment and support for young people with additional support needs due to their over-representation in the negative cohort statistics.  

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)       agree to receive regular updates on performance against the (A) school leaver destinations (annually); and (B) implementation of 16+ learning choices (bi-annually for summer and winter leaver cohorts) to the Committee within the standing item of the performance report;

(b)       instruct officers to continue to report on progress against the ‘school leaver destinations’ indicators within the Single Outcome Agreement to the Corporate Policy and Performance Committee on an annual basis;  and

(c)        note the submission of the Aberdeen City More Choices More Chances Strategy 2010-2013 to this Committee on 15 April, 2010.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which related to the future of the former Carden School, on the Dyce Primary campus, which had been closed in session 2002/03.   It was noted that since the vacated building had closed, it had had various uses including some community use but was currently being used as a temporary store for equipment relating to the 3Rs project.   The equipment which was currently being stored there was due to be moved by the end of March, 2010 and the report advised that the building was not currently in a good state of repair and that there was some damage due to water penetration.   The report went on to advise that there was currently no proposed use for the building by the Education, Culture and Sport Service and that although the review of the Learning Estate was on-going, the condition of the property would not allow immediate use without significant expenditure to bring it up to a satisfactory standard.  The report therefore advised that the school was now deemed to be surplus to the requirements of the Service.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the content of the report;  and

(b)       declare the former Carden School building at Dyce Primary School campus surplus to requirements and confirm its removal from the Education, Culture and Sport Account. 

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations in the report and remit the matter to the Finance and Resources Committee to allow the future of the site to be considered.

With reference to article 10 of the minute of meeting of the Committee of 24 November 2009, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which brought forward one application for financial assistance from sports organisations within the City.  The report advised that should the recommendation be approved, a balance of £32,526 would remain in the sports budget for the year 2009/10.

The Committee resolved:-

to award funding of £5000 to the Royal Caledonian Curling club in order to assist with funding the position of a Curling Development Officer, based at Curl Aberdeen.

With reference to article 11 of the minute of its previous meeting, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which brought forward five applications from the Council’s Grant Support for Interim Travel Arrangements, as follows:-

Activity/Applicant

Nature of Support

Amount Requested

Jenny Findlay – Ice hockey

Travel costs involved in attendance at supported coaching sessions in Elgin by a junior athlete

(April – November 2009)

£300

Allan Lilly – Ice Skating

Travel costs involved in attendance at supported coaching sessions in Dundee by a junior athlete (April – December 2009)

£300

Carole Keith – Ice Skating

Travel costs involved in attendance at supported coaching sessions in Dundee by a junior athlete (June – October 2009)

£300

Karen Ayrton – Ice Skating

Travel costs involved in attendance at supported coaching sessions in Edinburgh by a junior athlete (April – November 2009)

£300

Terry McDonald – Ice Skating

Travel costs involved in attendance at supported coaching sessions in Edinburgh by a junior athlete (April – November 2009)

£300

The report outlined that should the applications be approved, a total of £16,340 from the annual travel grants budget would now be allocated, leaving a balance of £8660 which would be regarded as a saving against the corporate budget for 2009/10.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the travel funding applications.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

Councillor Kevin Stewart declared a non pecuniary interest in the following article by virtue of his membership of UNISON.  Councillors Fletcher and John West declared non pecuniary interests by virtue of their appointment as Directors of Sports Aberdeen.  Councillors Fletcher and Collie declared non pecuniary interests as Directors of Aberdeen Sports Village.  None of the Councillors referred to considered that the nature of their interests required them to withdraw from the meeting during consideration of the item.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which provided an update on the progress of the bookings and lettings review and set out the terms of the revised Bookings and Letting Policy and Procedures for approval.  The report advised that the Bookings and Lettings Policy and Procedures had been an area of development which had been scheduled for completion for several years and that the current Letting of Educational Establishment Policy had been in operation since 2000.

With reference to article 17 of the minute of Council meeting of 13 February 2008, where the Sports Transformation Strategy had been approved, the report noted the key elements of the Transformation which related to the Bookings and Lettings review as follows:- (1) Implement a single integrated bookings system; (2) Progress the procurement of a Leisure Management System as a priority; (3) Investigate the options for deployment of janitorial cover; (4) Investigate different options for staffing facilities where appropriate; (5) Rationalise venues available for hire through a strategic approach to the administration of bookings; (6) Develop and implement a standardised charging system based on type/category of facility; (7) Develop a charging policy which defines user categories and priorities; (8) Standardise quality assurance requirements of groups applying for facilities; (9) Sign up to 2006 Accord for the Protection of Children in Scottish Sport by 2009; and (10) Carry out and implement an Access to Leisure Review.

The report before the Committee then advised that the proposed timescale for implementation was August 2010 in order to coincide with the start of the new academic year for educational establishments.  It would also enable the new Sports Trust, Sport Aberdeen to be fully established prior to implementation, as they would manage the bookings and lettings for both sports and educational establishments.

The report advised that as well as the Transformation Programme, an external audit in 2008 and an internal audit in 2009 had highlighted recommendations relating to the lettings process.  Since November 2009, it was noted that an officer Working Group had been looking at the Bookings and Lettings Review and were ensuring that work was being carried out in line with the timeline which had been drawn up.  Details of the consultation process were provided and had included two workshops for the Education, Culture and Sport Committee; two open consultation meetings with the general public; engagement with primary Head Teachers, as well as primary and secondary Head Teachers participating in the Working Group; consultation with Aberdeen Sports Council, Active Schools and Active Communities; and early discussions with Trade Unions in relation to janitorial staffing.  The report went into depth in describing the proposal, rationale and the consultation undertaken in regards to all ten areas identified within the Transformation Strategy and also noted the feedback received following the consultation process.  Appended to the report was a list of the proposed charges for revised Bookings and Lettings Policy as at 18 February 2010 which summarised the current education rate, the proposed standard letting rate based on current Sports Charges and additional information.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee agree –

(a)       that both the Sports Bookings and Educational Lettings system be brought together into a single more customer focused, integrated system;

(b)       that officers continue to explore options to progress the procurement of an electronic Leisure Management System;

(c)        that officers progress discussions with staff and Trade Unions about options for the deployment of janitorial cover, and bring a further report to a future meeting of the Committee;

(d)       that officers develop alternative options for staffing facilities, in the event that full janitorial cover is not possible, and bring these options in a further report to a future meeting of the Committee;

(e)       that, wherever possible, lets are allocated into a reduced number of buildings, in line with principles set out in section 5 of the report;

(f)         that Charging Categories based on the size and type of the facility being used, are introduced for use in all sports and educational establishments, as set out in section 6 of the report;

(g)       that charges are applied in line with the Charging Rates relative to the majority nature of the Group using the facility as set out in section 7 of the report;

(h)        that applications for Lets be considered in line with the Access Priorities set out in section 7 of the report;

(i)         that all groups hiring facilities for coaching and tuition purposes be required to provide evidence of insurance and coaching qualifications, within a 2 year period;

(j)         that the Council and Sport Aberdeen sign up to the 2006 Accord, as a means of demonstrating best practice in relation to the protection of children within facilities operated through the revised Bookings and Lettings System;

(k)        that officers report to a future meeting of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee on the outcome of a review of the Access to Leisure Scheme;

(l)         that 10% of the income for use of Schools and Community Centres is paid to the establishments, in recognition of the additional costs resulting from external lets;

(m)      that officers report to a future meeting of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee on the outcome of a review of the Corporate Budget; and

(n)        that the revised Bookings and Lettings policy and procedures be progressed in time for implementation in August 2010.

As agreed earlier in the meeting (article 3 refers), the Committee received a deputation from Mr Mike Morrice and Mark McEwan, who were volunteer coaches for Cults Primary School Football team but who also represented all schools involved in the Westhill and District Friendly League and School Team Leagues, as well as representing the views of a number of Boys Clubs.  Both Mr Morrice and Mr McEwan spoke in depth about their concerns in relation to the proposed lettings review.  With regards to the current winter weather, the importance of school gym use for local clubs was highlighted and the difficulty of securing bookings at new popular facilities such as Aberdeen Sports Village and Cults Academy was raised.  The possibility of floodlighting more outdoor pitches was also raised by the deputation, as this would reduce the need for buildings to be opened outwith normal hours.  In relation to the proposed increases in charges, the deputation were concerned that some groups across the city could be disadvantaged by any increase, which would impact on participation levels, due to some participants no longer being able to afford the charges.  The deputation then answered questions from members of the Committee and the Committee thanked them for their presentation. 

The convener, seconded by the Vice-Convener, moved:-

(1)      to approve recommendations 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13 and 14 as detailed in the report;

(2)       in relation to recommendation 2 of the report, to receive a report back on this matter;

(3)       that wherever possible, lets are allocated into a reduced number of buildings;

(4)       that all external groups hiring facilities for coaching and tuition purposes be required to provide evidence of insurance and coaching qualifications within a two year period;

(5)       that the Council and Sport Aberdeen consider signing up to the 2006 Accord, as a means of demonstrating best practise in relation to the protection of children within facilities operated through the revised Bookings and Lettings System;

(6)       that varying charges be applied to those living outwith the city boundary by using an Accord Card or Visiting Accord Card; and

(7)       that the Committee receive oral updates at each meeting on the Bookings and Lettings review and the progress of its implementation.

Councillor Laing, seconded by Councillor Cooney, moved as an amendment:-

that the report be deferred until all issues had been resolved and full consultation had been carried out with staff and Trade Unions on the staffing of establishments.

On a division, there voted:-  for the motion (15) – The Convener; the Vice Convener; and Councillors Boulton, Corall, Fletcher, McCaig, Noble, Reynolds, Robertson, Jennifer Stewart, Kevin Stewart, Wisely and John West; and Mrs Abdullah, and Mr P. Campbell;  for the amendment (6)  Councillors Crockett, Collie, Cooney and Laing; and Mr G. Bruce and Mr S. Duncan; absent from the division (1) – Councillor Farquharson.

The Committee resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which outlined proposals in the Scottish Government’s Legacy Plan for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and advised of the need for the Committee to consider those elements of the plan that are relevant to Education, Culture and Sport activity within the City.

The report advised that the Scottish Government published A Games Legacy for Scotland on 1 September 2009, following extensive consultation, in order to maximise the benefits of the Commonwealth Games for the whole of Scotland and also considered the potential benefits of the Olympic Games being held in London in 2012.  The Plan set out how the sporting, educational, economic, cultural and health benefits of the Games could make Scotland (a) Active, (b) Connected, (c) Flourishing and (d) Sustainable and set out forty five initiatives under these themes.

The report outlined that in relation to the “Active Scotland theme” two major initiatives were proposed;  Action Nation aimed at encouraging more people to exercise more often thereby improving their health, and also the establishment of a network of Community Sports Hubs designed to make sporting opportunities more accessible and to build the capacity of local sports clubs.  Since the Legacy Plan was established in 2009, the Scottish Government had been working with a range of national agencies and local authority bodies to develop plans for implementing the Active Scotland and Community Sports Hubs initiatives.  Discussions had taken place with NHS Grampian and Aberdeenshire Council to develop a co-ordinated approach in the north east, to provide information about local opportunities, giving advice and support to those who wish to start exercising regularly on what was suitable for them and organising events to motivate people and sustain their interest.

In relation to the theme of Connected Scotland the report advised that the Games would be used to promote Curriculum for Excellence in schools through learning programmes, and that Learning Teaching Scotland would develop learning and teaching materials for the Games to share with Local Authorities including proposals for the use of GLOW.  The Scottish Arts Council would lead work to develop a high quality cultural and artistic programme across Scotland incorporating London 2012 and Glasgow 2014 and initial discussions had taken place with the Scottish Arts Council and BP Aberdeen in order to seek to maximise the impact of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad and specifically to create a programme within Aberdeen City for ‘Open Weekend’ in July 2010. 

In relation to the theme of Sustainable Scotland the report advised that  initiatives proposed under this theme related mainly to rejuvenation of the east end of Glasgow and regeneration projects which could act as exemplars for the rest of Scotland.  Opportunities would exist for Scottish businesses to tender for contracts associated with The Games, and at present this was being progressed locally by the Director of Enterprise, Planning and Infrastructure.  The report went on to advise that £70 million in contracts had been advertised so far with 70% of those invited to tender being Scottish companies and of contracts awarded so far all had been awarded to Scottish companies.  In relation to Flourishing Scotland, the report advised that in addition to plans to promote business opportunities there were proposals to encourage volunteering, and the Scottish Qualifications Authority were working towards developing an accredited Volunteering qualification/award as part of a programme aimed at ensuring those furthest from the workplace had the opportunity to benefit from the Games.

In relation to other proposals, the report advised that plans had been drawn up by Young Scot in partnership with other agencies to encourage young people’s involvement through three initiatives:-  (a) Youth engagement – creating opportunities for young people to be involved in local activities and ensuring effective links between young people and local authority legacy leads;   (b) Young Legacy Ambassadors – young people to play an active role in promoting the legacy to their peers and other people in their communities;  and (c) Showcasing young people – Work to promote a positive image of our young people and recognise the valuable input they have in our communities.  The report also outlined that volunteering was a key requirement across all four themes and the Games would not only provide an opportunity for people to volunteer to help deliver the Games but also to highlight the value of volunteering and the benefits it could bring to the individual and the beneficiaries. 

Attached to the report was (a) the Active Nations programme proposals for Scotland; (b) a summary on Community Sports Hubs which outlined the definition of  a Community Sports Hub and also detailed the aims and objectives of each Hub; and (c) information on the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games Flag Handover Ceremony which advised that on 14 October 2010 within the closing ceremony of the Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games, Glasgow and Scotland would make the first public statements to the Commonwealth and the world by presenting a handover ceremony that would set the scene for the four years leading up to the delivery of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.  

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)       note the proposals outlined in A Games Legacy for Scotland and the work done to date;

(b)       endorse that the development of a local legacy plan and associated initiatives be driven forward in partnership with relevant local and national partners, including the Cultural and Active Aberdeen Forums;

(c)        agree that further reports be brought forward in due course on how the initiatives could be supported and developed in Aberdeen City;

(d)       support in principle the involvement of local participants in the Mass Cast Delhi 2010 Flag Handover ceremony; and

(e)       refer to the Finance and Resources Committee a request that Aberdeen City Council support up to 4 individuals to participate in Mass Cast by funding a maximum of £2,000 per participant through the Common Good budget in 2010/11.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve recommendations (a), (b) and (c).

With reference to article 13 of the minute of meeting of the Committee of 24 November 2009, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which sought approval of the Managing Redundancy Policy in respect of teaching staff.

The report advised that the existing Aberdeen City Council Managing Redundancy Policy had not previously been agreed as applying to teaching staff, with reductions in the requirement for teachers being managed through the Compulsory Transfer for Teachers and Early Retirement for Teaching Staff procedures or by holding staff in excess within schools.  The report went on to outline that with the current financial situation within the Council, combined with the Council’s commitment to ensure best value, it was no longer possible for excess staff to be held where the requirement for the work had diminished and it was also not equitable for the Managing Redundancy Policy to only apply to certain groups of staff.

Appended to the report was the draft Managing Redundancy Policy which had been agreed at the Local Negotiating Committee for Teachers on 5 February 2010.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approves the application of the Policy to teaching staff.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendation.

With reference to article 27 of the minute of meeting of the Finance and Resources Committee of 10 December 2009, the Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which sought approval for changes to the existing Early Retirement Policy for Teachers, and to introduce Voluntary Severance for teachers.  It was noted that the revised policy and benefits had been agreed at the Local Negotiating Committee for Teachers on 5 February 2010.

The report advised that the proposed Voluntary Severance/Early Retirement policy allowed all permanent teachers with over two years continuous service, to express an interest in voluntary severance and those in the Scottish Teachers’ Superannuation Scheme (STSS) would have the option to choose early retirement if they could access their pension benefits immediately.  The report outlined that the current Early Retirement for Teachers Policy provided for Scottish Teachers’ Superannuation Scheme members aged 50 and over to have their pensionable service enhanced by up to 10 years where this would result in a saving to the Authority, however in line with the current  financial circumstances it was no longer affordable for the council.  Appended to the report was a draft Voluntary Severance/Early Retirement Policy and Benefits for Teachers.

The report also summarised the provisions and compensatory benefits provided by the proposed scheme, as follows:-

Option One – Voluntary Severance

• Employees qualify regardless of age or whether they are members of STSS
• Applies on redundancy and efficiency of service grounds
• Full costs of the employee’s release need to be recouped over a 5 year period
• A one-off voluntary severance payment, calculated as follows:
• •  based on employee’s age and continuous length of service using the ready reckoner at appendix 1 of the proposed policy
  • number of weeks on ready reckoner multiplied by the employee’s basic weekly pay up to statutory maximum for redundancy (currently £380 per week);
  • for employees whose basic weekly pay exceeds statutory maximum their weekly pay for the calculation would be the statutory maximum payment plus 33% of the difference between their basic pay and the statutory maximum; and
  • a severance payment would include any statutory redundancy payment to which the employee would have been entitled.

Option Two (A) – Early Retirement on the grounds of Redundancy

• Employee qualifies if they are a member of STSS and can immediately access their pension benefits
• Applies only where a redundancy situation is identified
• Full cost of the employee’s release needs to be recouped over a 5 year period
• Benefit for employee is that they can immediately access their pension benefits based on their pensionable service and contributions without reduction, plus
• A one-off voluntary redundancy payment, calculated as follows

o       based on employee’s age and continuous length of service using the ready reckoner at appendix 2 of proposed policy;

o       number of weeks on ready reckoner multiplied by the employee’s basic weekly pay up to statutory maximum for redundancy (currently £380 per week);

o       for employees whose basic weekly pay exceeds statutory maximum, their weekly pay for the calculation will be the statutory maximum plus 33% of the difference between their basic pay and the statutory maximum;

Option Two (B)– Early retirement on the grounds of efficiency of the service

·      Employee qualifies if they are a member of STSS and can immediately access their pension benefits

·                                                                                                      Applies where a business efficiency can be achieved

·                                                                                                      Full cost of the employee’s release need to be recouped over a five year period

·                                                                                                      No one-off compensatory payment applies

Option Three – Employee Requested Early Retirement

• Employee qualifies if they are a member of STSS and can access their pension benefits
• Applies where no redundancy situation or where no service efficiency applies
• Applies where there is no cost to the employer; and
• Employee can immediately access their pension benefits based on their pensionable service and contributions but benefits will be actuarially reduced and no one-off payment applies.

The report further advised that the proposals highlighted in appendix 1 should be introduced on a phased basis and it would allow reduced costs associated with the existing scheme.

The report concluded by highlighting the revisions to pension discretions and advised that the enhancement to pension years was a discretion to be determined by the employer under Part V of the Teachers’ (Compensation for Redundancy and Premature Retirement) Regulations 1997.  It was noted that the final policy proposals would mean that the Council as an employer would choose not to enhance pension years in normal circumstances.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)       approve the provisions for new Voluntary Severance/Early Retirement Policy for Teachers as detailed in appendix 1

(b)       approve the replacement of current provisions of the Early Retirement Policy for Teachers with the new provisions with immediate effect

(c)        approve the introduction of the compensatory benefits that are provided in the proposed Voluntary Severance/Early Retirement Policy to be phased in up to 31 March 2011, as per the arrangements detailed in section 6.4 of the report; and

(d)       approve amendments to the scheme of pensions discretions detailed in Section 6.7 of the report, to reflect the changes within the voluntary severance/early retirement scheme including the phased implementation of the revised compensatory benefits

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations.

The Committee had before it a report by the Director of Education, Culture and Sport, which sought to ensure equality across staff groups in terms of entitlements under the Essential Car User Scheme.

The report advised that currently there was a scheme in place for all other Council employees and in order to ensure equality across staff groups it was important that the same Essential Car User Scheme be applied to all employees including teachers.

The report highlighted that at present, 25 staff were on Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) terms and conditions of employment and were in receipt of the existing car user allowance.  The report noted that it was estimated that a saving in the region of 32% per annum could be accrued under the revised scheme.  The report also advised that the new scheme had been approved by the Local Negotiating Committee for Teachers on 5 February 2010.

Attached to the report was the Revised Essential Car User Scheme which highlighted where Essential Car User Status (ECU) would be applied and identified four varying levels of ECU.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee approve the Essential Car User Scheme for those covered by Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) terms and conditions of employment.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)         to request that the Finance and Resources Committee investigate the issue of Essential Car Users Schemes for all staff and in particular, the issue of lump sum payments; and

(ii)        to otherwise approve the recommendation.

The Committee had before it a Business Case by the Head of Service, Citywide lead for Culture, Communities and Sport, which sought approval to create a zero hours post of cook within the Cromdale Outdoor Centre, a residential facility, sleeping up to 36 and extensively used by Aberdeen groups on residential activity weeks and weekends.

The business case sought approval for the establishment of a zero hours cook on a permanent basis, established on salary grade 9.  All costs associated with the extension of duties would be found within existing resources and costs relating to wages/hours worked would be recharged to the visiting group.  It was noted that there would be no impact on a full year’s revenue/capital budget but anticipated attracting more service users and consequently generating more income.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the business case.

Referred by the meeting of the Culture and Leisure Trust monitoring Working Group of 18 January, 2010.

EXEMPT INFORMATION

The Committee resolved in terms of Section 50(A)(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 to exclude the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the following items of business so as to avoid disclosure of exempt information of the class described in the following paragraphs of Schedule 7(A) to the Act:-  article 27 (paragraph 8) and article 28 (paragraph 1).

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

Councillor Jennifer Stewart declared an interest in the following article by virtue of her appointment as a Board Member of Satrosphere.  She did not consider that the nature of her interest required her to leave the meeting during consideration of the item.

With reference to article 24 of the minute of its meeting of 24 November 2009, the Committee had before it, by way of remit, a minute extract from the Culture and Leisure Trust Monitoring Working Group, (article 7 of the minute of meeting of 18 January 2010) and a report which brought forward a summary assessment of the operational structures of Satrosphere Ltd, currently funded by the Council, and provided an overview of core issues relating both to the management of the organisation and its Directorship.

The Culture and Leisure Trust Monitoring Working Group had resolved:-

(i)         to note the report

(ii)        to instruct officers to both highlight and to discuss with the Board and elected members of Satrosphere Ltd potential areas for improvement as highlighted in the report; and

(iii)       to remit the report and any further recommendations arising from the Group’s consideration to the next meeting of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations contained within the report.

The Committee had before it a business case prepared by Community Learning Development Officer, which sought agreement on the redesign of the permanent post of Dialogue Youth Clerical Assistant.

The business case outlined that the position required a change in job title to Information and Grants Administrator to more accurately reflect the job purpose and it also included the redesign of the job description to absorb essential and additional tasks relating to the management of the Youth Activities Grants Fund.  The post would also change to salary grade 10, with the maximum salary costs totalling £28,216.00 including on costs.

The business case advised that the administration of the Youth Activities Grants Fund constituted part of the duties of a Development Officer post, which had been removed from the service structure on the grounds of efficiency and aspects of the work of the grants scheme, had been carried out by the Clerical Assistant in the Dialogue Youth Information Service, who to date had been receiving additional responsibility payment.  The business case also detailed a number of additional tasks that would form part of the role of the post.

The business case recommended:-

that the Committee agree the job title, job description and to agree in principle, to the regrading of the job.

The Committee resolved:

to approve the business case and refer the funding of the regrading of the job to the Finance and Resources Committee.

-  ANDREW MAY, Convener.