Minutes 14/2/11

SACC meeting Monday 14 February 2011

Minutes

1.    Apologies for absence received from Celia Watson, Danny McGowan and David Evans

2.     Matters arising from the minutes of the last meeting

It was asked to be noted that Sefton Council don’t set the business rates for Southport and that Jean Gould is not a trainer for Carers UK. Also, the minutes gave the impression that Celia was at the meeting when she was not.

3.    Committee roles

It was thought that we should split into small committees to mirror the council Cabinet. The committees are Children’s Services, Corporate Services, Environmental, Communities, Leisure and Tourism, Performance and Governance, Regeneration, Health & Social Care, Technical Services. The role of the committee members would be to dig about to find what each department at the council is doing, to be the go-to person for that area for the main SACC group, and to seek out other groups working against cuts in those areas and work with them

Eg Leisure Services would deal with pollution washed up onto Southport shore from drilling rigs.

Corporate Services would look at the way private contracts are handed out.

One or two people in each area should be responsible for the minutiae and report back to the central group. The dialogue with other groups is becoming too much for Kat to handle on her own so others need to take that on. Stuart will contact Southport CARES as Kat has not heard back from them for a while.

It was felt that there were not enough people at the meeting to fill the nine committees so Kat is going to try to encourage other contributors who may be suitable for the roles to attend future meetings and form the sub-committees. She will do a list of each committee, who might be suitable and the contacts she already has.

No contacts in Technical Services – maybe Mr Waldon or Dave Marron at the council could help.

How often will committees meet? Monthly, a couple of weeks before main SACC meeting.

Nina expressed interest in Children’s Services and Health & Social Care. Perhaps Gemma or Sarah from Save Sefton’s Children’s Centres could lead Children’s committee.

Phil Riley – Corporate Services

Environmental – Greens? Kat will approach them.

Regeneration – Tom?

Communities would involve charities, community groups and community spirit.

Committees would get a main strategy from SACC then organise themselves. We pick up local issues and put pressure on the council, to help constructively and maybe use national umbrella anti-cuts groups or Taxpayers Alliance.

Strategies – to enter dialogue with representatives at local council level and national government level. It was felt that we could do more locally and it may be too much to ask others to travel to London, for example. Maybe better to effect change through our MP/council. Everyone should do what they are comfortable with.

4.    Other matters

The youth centres group will put in petition and make speech to council cabinet on 24 Jan. Will also make speech to council on March 3. You need 2790 signatures to go to full council and further 25 to go to Cabinet. Is that democratic? They keep changing the rules. Nina will put in a Freedom Of Information request: What are the rules regarding submission of petitions to the council? What are the powers to change those rules, how much notice should the public have; what is the Code of Practice.

Lots of people are taking voluntary redundancy from the council in March so some contacts may go. Look out for people being re-employed by the council after taking redundancy. Our contacts are more usually union officials in council workplaces who feel happier to speak. But it may be better to focus on things that are in the public domain so as not to expose contacts.

A motion was put forward by Phil, seconded by Tom, for ideas for defending our public libraries. Eg in Churchtown could the library be put in the museum to save both?