Agenda item

There are nine questions on this report.

There were nine questions on the report, the written responses to which were circulated at the meeting.  There were nine supplemental questions.

 

There were five amendments to this report.

 

In accordance with council assembly procedure rule 1.14.9, Councillor Rebecca Lury, cabinet member for finance, business and jobs, moved the report.

 

In accordance with council assembly procedure rule 1.14.9, Councillor Nick Johnson responded to the cabinet member’s statement.

 

Councillor Jasmine Ali, seconded by Councillor Stephanie Cryan, moved Amendment A.

 

Councillor Graham Neale, seconded by Councillor Victor Chamberlain, moved Amendment B.

 

Councillor Damian O'Brien, seconded by Councillor Dan Whitehead, moved Amendment C.

 

Councillor William Houngbo, seconded by Councillor Hamish McCallum, moved Amendment D.

 

Councillor Humaira Ali, seconded by Councillor David Noakes, moved Amendment E.

 

Following debate (Councillors Kath Whittam, Cleo Soanes, Alice Macdonald, Eliza Mann, Peter Babudu, Richard Livingstone, Jane Salmon, Radha Burgess, Johnson Situ, Evelyn Akoto, Anod Al-Samerai, Helen Dennis, Jack Buck, Catherine Rose and Kieron Williams) Councillor Rebecca Lury exercised her right of reply.

 

Amendment A – Carried

 

Amendment B – Lost

 

Amendment C – Lost

 

Amendment D – Lost

 

Amendment E - Lost

 

At this juncture the clerk explained that the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, which had come into force on 25 February 2014, required a recorded vote on key budget decisions by local authorities. The regulations required a recorded vote on decisions only.  Therefore in accordance with council assembly procedure rule 1.16(4) (a roll call recorded vote), an announcement was made at the beginning and end of one minute, after which the vote was taken.

 

 

The substantive motion was put to the vote, and the votes having been recorded, the Deputy Mayor declared the result as follows:

 

In favour of the substantive motion (48):

 

Councillors Evelyn Akoto, Jasmine Ali, Peter Babudu, Maggie Browning, Jack Buck, Radha Burgess, Sunil Chopra, James Coldwell, Stephanie Cryan, Helen Dennis, Dora Dixon-Fyle, Nick Dolezal, Karl Eastham, Gavin Edwards, Paul Fleming, Tom Flynn, Renata Hamvas, Barrie Hargrove, Jon Hartley, Peter John, Eleanor Kerslake, Sarah King, Sunny Lambe, Lorraine Lauder, Richard Leeming, Richard Livingstone, Rebecca Lury, Alice Macdonald, James McAsh, Darren Merrill, Vicky Mills, Margy Newens, Jason Ochere, Victoria Olisa, Leo Pollak, Sandra Rhule, Catherine Rose, Martin Seaton, Andy Simmons, Johnson Situ, Michael Situ, Charlie Smith, Cleo Soanes, Leanne Werner, Kath Whittam, Bill Williams, Kieron Williams and Ian Wingfield.

 

Abstained (14):

 

Councillors Humaira Ali, Anood Al-Samerai, Victor Chamberlain, William Houngbo, Nick Johnson, Maria Linforth-Hall, Eliza Mann, Hamish McCallum, Adele Morris, Graham Neale, David Noakes, Damian O'Brien, Jane Salmon and Dan Whitehead..

 

Absent (1):

 

Councillor Sirajul Islam

 

The Mayor declared that the substantive motion was carried.

 

RESOLVED:

 

That Council Assembly:

 

1.  Agreed to increase the Southwark element of the council tax for 2021-21 by 1.99%.

 

2.  Agreed to use the flexibility offered by the government to support Adult Social Care through a precept equivalent to 3% of council tax on the basis that these additional funds will be used exclusively for adult social care.

 

3.  Agreed the recommendations of the 2 February 2021 cabinet for a general fund budget requirement (after specific grants) for 2020-21 of £293.120m.

 

The New Youth Deal: no young person in Southwark should be left behind

 

Council assembly noted:

 

4.  Southwark is a youthful borough with a large diverse population of children and young people who make up over 20% of the total population. We have nearly 50,000 children between the ages of 11-19.

 

5.  Young people in the borough have been disproportionately hit by the economic effects of Covid-19 and the poor decision making of our government, with those under 25 in the UK over twice as likely to have lost their job due to the pandemic as over 25s. 

 

6.  Young people have been hit with a growing mental health crisis, with one in four in the UK currently feeling ‘unable to cope’, according to the Prince’s Trust. The combined impact of extortionate university fees, stagnating wages and unaffordable housing is leaving many young people feeling that a better life is out of reach.

 

7.  More than 200 young people have accessed Southwark’s new free mental health drop in service for children and young people, The Nest, since it opened online in April and physically opened the doors in August 2020.

 

Council assembly further noted:

 

8.  That the council has numerous distinct funding channels which empower, support and incentivise young people to be their best, including:

 

a.  Southwark Works – of which £390,000 is allocated annually for employment work with young people

b.  Southwark Scholars – the annual commitment of £525k spent paying for young people from low income backgrounds to attend University

c.  Positive Future for Young People Fund -- £600k made up of the previous Youth and Play Grant Scheme at £100k, and the Positive Futures Fund which provided £500,000 in 2020-21 to provide inspiring opportunities for young people that divert them away from crime

d.  Paid Internships – which the council funds £150,000 worth of for young people

e.  Mental Health support - £2.5 million towards our offer for children, young people and families, with a focus on prevention.

 

9.  That on 8 December 2020 Cabinet approved the Strategic Review of Youth Services report, seeking to ‘ensure that the voices of young people are at the heart of future decision-making’. This amendment is a result of the report’s recommendations.

 

Council assembly therefore resolved to:

 

10.  Launch a New Youth Deal to make sure no young person is left behind during and after the pandemic, by promoting young people’s mental health and wellbeing and enabling young people to access education, training and jobs.

 

11.  Create a new Youth Parliament made of up young people who live in Southwark; this Youth Parliament will have ultimate oversight of the New Youth Deal and the money that is spent on young people in the borough.

 

12.  Consolidate all the funding streams listed above (in point 5) into a single fund titled the New Youth Deal and dedicate an additional £100,000 for resources and support to co-ordinate the new role of the Youth Parliament and this new way of working.

 

13.  Dedicate £100k towards carrying out the other recommendations of the aforementioned Youth Review as part of the New Youth Deal.

 

14.  Establish a committee to be led by the Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Education, and include the Cabinet Member for Finance and the Cabinet Member for Public Health and Community Safety. The committee will facilitate this move to put young people in control of their funding and of their futures.

 

15.  In light of growing mental health pressures due to Covid, and the increased demand across the borough for mental health services, the council will commit £200,000 to expanding the free mental health drop in service (The Nest) to Southwark schools. This will become part of our commitment to support 100% of children and young people with mental health needs.

 

16.  This £200,000 will be the first priority of all new Covid grant money allocated to the council in the new financial year, and in the event that this funding is not available then the Strategic Director of Finance and Governance will be asked to make appropriate provision from earmarked reserves.

 

Reinstating the Pioneers Fund

 

Council assembly noted:

 

17.  That the Southwark Pioneers Fund was launched in 2019 as a way of finding and elevating the entrepreneurs of the future. The scheme was an opportunity for residents to start or grow social enterprises or businesses delivering positive and innovative social outcomes for Southwark resident.

 

18.  That the scheme delivered one round of funding totalling £49,597 before Covid-19 struck and the money was repurposed as an emergency business hardship fund.

 

Council assembly resolved to:

 

19.  Reinstate the Southwark Pioneers Fund at a cost of £950,000, in order to support the borough’s economic renewal post-Covid.