Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence had been received from Councillor Mike Bird (Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council), Councillor Roger Lawrence (City of Wolverhampton Council), Councillor David Vickers (Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council), Councillor Ian Ward (Birmingham City Council), Catherine Mangan (Higher Education) and Alison Tonge (Director of Commissioning, NHSE).

Apologies for absence had also been received from Dawn Baxendale (Birmingham City Council), Jan Brittan (Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council), Nick Page (Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council) and Phil Loach (West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service).

The following nominations of substitutes had been received:

Councillor Majid Mahmood for Councillor Ian Ward (Birmingham City Council);

Councillor Patrick Harley for Councillor David Vickers (Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council); and

Jaqueline Barnes for Alison Tonge (Director of Commissioning, NHSE).

Members are reminded of the need to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests they have in an item being discussed during the course of the meeting. In addition, the receipt of any gift or hospitality should be declared where the value is thought to have exceeded £25 (gifts) or £40 (hospitality).

No declarations of interest were made relative to items under consideration at the meeting.

The Chair reminded those present that the Board meeting was for participation by members only and that the subsequent Workshop on ‘Inclusive Growth and the Local Industrial Strategy’ scheduled to follow the meeting would allow for wider participation.

Resolved:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 22 February 2018 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the meeting held on 22 February 2018.

Henry Kippin introduced the report and explained that this was the first step in exploring ‘Inclusive Growth’ and on work with partners to establish the meaning of the term and how well it was distributed in the region. He added that it was a case of being open with the public on how investment and delivery of housing could be influenced. He advised on the collation of a set of tools in order to establish what the term meant to others.

Claire Spencer presented a report which detailed the first iteration of the Inclusive Growth Framework which sought to capture the positive social and environmental outcomes that the West Midlands would like to realise as a consequence of economic activity. It would move the region on from focusing on Gross Value Added (GVA) as the primary indicator of economic success: GVA becoming less and less useful at lower spatial levels and not informing the region anything regarding the consequences of or participation in economic activity.

The report provided a resource for Member Authorities and other interested organisations’ to understand how inclusive the economy of the West Midlands was and was the first of several tools to inform delivery, rather than a performance management framework. It also provided a solid basis for citizen and other stakeholder involvement in developing a definition, vision and a set of useful tools relating to ‘Inclusive Growth’.

The current definition of inclusive growth that the framework would build on was ‘a more deliberate and socially purposeful model of economic growth – measured not only by how fast or how aggressive it was; but also by how well it was created and shared across the whole population and place and by the social and environmental outcome it realised for local people.

Henry Kippin advised that a further report on this matter would be considered by the WMCA Board on 14 September 2018 and that the framework itself would be subject to rigorous testing, development and revision by the WMCA and its partners.

Councillor Majid Mahmood reported that Birmingham City Council supported the initiative but questioned whether resources were allocated appropriately. He commented that work on this initiative had already been commenced by Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council and sought an assurance that there would not be a duplication of effort. He also commented that, in his opinion, education was a key factor but was not referred to in the report. He reminded the Board of the number of higher and further education colleges including the HS2 College in the region.

The Chair advised that the intention was to bring people and organisations together and that this would be supported by the WMCA which would facilitate the model being taken forward. The intention was not that the WMCA would undertake the work on behalf of partners but how it was constructed into mainstream business and what interventions the WMCA could bring about. He emphasised that this was not to be treated as a regeneration programme but how things could  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

Henry Kippin presented a report which outlined proposals to deliver a Housing First pilot across all seven Constituent Authority areas of the WMCA.  He explained that the process, which had been tested in many cities around the world, was designed to prevent and relieve the homelessness of rough sleepers with the most complex needs. The Chair advised that the WMCA did not have any legislative powers in respect of homelessness but would co-ordinate collaborative working.

Councillor Izzi Seccombe questioned the working relationship with the Department of Work and Pensions. Henry Kippin explained that this was a test model and he would follow up on this issue. Councillor Majid Mahmood queried the appointment of BVSC to undertake project management of the mobilisation of the project and suggested that this task would have been performed better by a registered charity or housing provider. Henry Kippin advised that the intention was to establish a ‘wraparound’ service and offered to explain the proposals in detail to Councillor Mahmood outside the meeting. The Chair reminded the Board that the role of the WMCA was to act as a facilitator with the statutory duty being carried out by the seven Constituent Authorities. Councillor Patrick Harley commented that the proposed number of units to be provided in the Dudley MBC area was low and asked whether this was by choice or demand. Henry Kippin reported that this was by choice and offered to follow up this matter with Councillor Harley outside of the meeting.

Resolved:

1.    That the award of £9.6 million to the WMCA for the delivery of Housing First for the period 2018- 21 be noted;

2.    That the receipt by Birmingham City Council of £1.44 million to cover the first year of the pilot be noted;

3.    That the agreement of the Constituent Authorities to deliver 225 housing units per year for three years, in order to conduct the pilot be noted;

4.    That the principles of taking a Housing First approach to supporting people who were sleeping rough into secure accommodation be endorsed;

5.    That Henry Kippin address the issues raised by Councillors Seccombe, Mahmood and Harley.

Resolved:

That the Public Service Reform, Inclusion and Cohesion Work Programme be received and noted.

Resolved:

That the next meeting of the Public Services Reform Board be held on 11 April 2019 commencing at 10:00 hours.