Archived decisions

10. DECLARATION OF INTEREST

Members were mindful that, where they believed they

had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any

matter to be considered at the meeting, they should

normally at the time of the debate declare their interest,

and having regard to the circumstances described in

paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's

Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the

meeting whilst the matter was discussed save for

exercising any right to speak in accordance with

Paragraph 12 of the Code.

Councillor Peter Edgar declared a personal interest - Strategy for Learning Outside the Classroom - A life member of the National Association of Headteachers.

11. MINUTES

The Minutes of the Culture and Communities Select Committee held on 9 July 2009 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

12. CHAIRMAN'S COMMUNICATIONS

a. Councillor Keith Chapman

The Chairman thanked Councillor Keith Chapman for his chairmanship of the Committee over the past four years. The Liberal Democrat Members wished that their thanks also be noted.

b. Runways End

The Chairman reminded Members that arrangements had been made for the Committee to visit the Runways End project on 18 November 2009 and urged all members to attend.

c. Budget Briefing

The Chairman reminded Members that the Committees budget briefing was to take place on 30 November 2009 and urged all Members to attend.

d. Youth Proms - Royal Albert Hall

The Chairman reported that she and Councillor Keith Chapman had attended the Youth Proms at the Royal Albert Hall on 11 November 2009. Councillor Chapman gave details of the concert and urged Members to attend future youth concerts if they had the opportunity.

13. ARTSWAY

Mark Segal, Director of ArtSway gave a presentation on the work of ArtSway giving details of the high quality exhibitions, workshops and its work with young people, older people and artists. He extended an invitation to members to visit ArtSway.

RESOLVED:

That Mark Segal be thanked for his presentation and arrangements be made for Members to visit ArtSway.

14. RENAISSANCE SOUTHEAST

The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs

presented a report providing an update on Renaissance Southeast, the museums development programme for the region and the County Council's Museums Service's role within it (Item 5 in the Minute Book).

Renaissance was the ground breaking programme to transform England's regional museums. It was enabling regional museums across the country to raise their standards and deliver real results in support of education, learning, community development and economic regeneration. The programme had received £300million since 2002, helping to make museums great centres of life and learning, which people want to visit.

In the South East, the programme was managed by the South East Museum Hub - a partnership between Hampshire County Council Museums Service (lead partner), Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust, Oxford University Museums and Royal Pavilion, Libraries and Museums, Brighton and Hove - Managing a total of 29 museums located in all of the South East's four sub-regions and attracting nearly 2 million visitors in 2008-09. The Hub had received the government investment to develop its museums as centres of excellence and as leaders of the South East region's wider museum community.

Since 2003 the Hub had focused on increasing and widening participation, developing learning opportunities for schools and adults and improving access to collections. The Hub had adopted a broader regional role since the closure of Museums, Libraries and Archive Council South East in 2008 by taking on the management of the network of Museum Development Officers, which was currently based at the Museums Service's headquarters at Chilcomb House. The Museum Development Officers provided one-to-one mentoring, advice on how to meet the Accreditation Standard, training, a small grants programme and special projects on a sub-regional basis.

Details were given of:

· the background to the Hampshire County Council Museums Service and the Renaissance South East programme

· the level of funding that the programme had brought to Hampshire

· the impact Renaissance funding had made on the performance of the County Council

· the key issues and actions being taken with regard to the management and governance of the programme, workforce planning and sub-regional working

· the future direction of the Renaissance programme in the light of the Review of Renaissance, which was published in July, Museums, Libraries and Archive Council's response to the Review and the strategic action plan for English museums.

Members expressed concern about the potential for Central Government funding on this project reducing in the future as a result of pressures on the national economy. The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs reported that the departmental management team was considering that possibility and planning options for future funding scenarios. Members requested that the Committee be kept updated on the funding issues.

RESOLVED:

That the report be received and noted and the Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs consider options to keep Members informed of the future planning in relation to potential funding changes

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15. SITES OF SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC INTEREST -

UPDATE

The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs presented a report updating the Committee on the condition of Sites of Special Scientific Interest within Hampshire (Item 6 in the Minute Book).

The County Council managed 2,012 hectares (4972 acres) of Sites of Special Scientific Interest, around 2% of the total in Hampshire. The Sites of Special Scientific Interest were the country's very best wildlife and geographical sites. They included some of the most spectacular and beautiful habitats; wetlands teeming with wading birds, winding chalk rivers and flower-rich meadows. The condition of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest land in England was assessed by Natural England, using categories agreed across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland through the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. There were six reportable condition categories: Favourable; Unfavourable Recovering; Unfavourable No Change; Unfavourable Declining; Part Destroyed and Destroyed.

It was the Government's Public Service Agreement target to have 95% of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Favourable or Recovering condition by 2010. The area of Sites of Special Scientific Interest assessed to be in Favourable or Unfavourable Recovering condition was said to be in the Government's Public Service Agreement Target Status. The County Council had adopted this same target within the Corporate Biodiversity Action Plan. The Countryside Service managed all bar 21.6 hectares (53.4 acres) of the 2012 hectares managed by the County Council. The condition of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest units as assessed by Natural England were monitored to enable reporting against the Corporate Biodiversity Action Plan target.

During 2008 several of the coastal Sites of Special Scientific Interest units were downgraded from Favourable to Unfavourable No Change, taking them out of the Government's Public Service Agreement Target Status. This was due to coastal squeeze, where changes in the area of habitats such as salt marsh caused by rising sea levels is restricted by coastal defences, and excessive growth of algae, caused by nutrient enrichment. Details were given about those Sites of Special Scientific Interest that were considered part destroyed - Shortheath Common, and those that were considered unfavourable declining - Yateley Common, Basingstoke Canal and Calshot and the reasons for the classifications. Since June 2009 three sites had been upgraded - Broxhead Common, Butser Hill and Lymington and Keyhaven, details were given of the work that had taken place to achieve the upgrades.

Of the County Council managed Sites of Special Scientific Interest units, 765.5 hectares (1891.6 acres) were coastal and 337.7 hectares (834.5 acres) laid between high and low tide; 38.0% and 16.8% of the total respectively. These areas were particularly susceptible to sea level rise and any coastal water quality issues. These areas were among those being considered within the County Council's Coastal Adaptation Strategy. Any progress with these areas would be by long term solutions such as managed retreat. There was good progress where effective land management could be applied to individual sites, with a rise from 74.2% to 78.4% in PSA Target Status, from June to October 2009. There was also the prospect of continued good management resulting in significant changes in the near future. If Yateley Common Country Park and Basingstoke Canal were upgraded from Unfavourable Declining to Unfavourable Recovering, this could result in 87.5% of the County Council's Sites of Special Scientific Interest being in Government's Public Service Agreement Target Status. Such changes would ultimately rely on assessment and resulting decisions taken by Natural England.

Members expressed an interest in visiting some Sites of Special Scientific Interest and requested a map showing where the sites managed by the County Council were located. Members also requested that in future the figures regarding % of sites in target status be separated out into coastal and non coastal sites, to demonstrate the advances that have been made in the areas the County Council has more control over.

RESOLVED

That the report be received and noted and

arrangements be made for Members to visit some of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest managed by the County Council.

16. STRATEGIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF VISUAL

ARTS AND LITERATURE

The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs presented a report on the development of the fields of visual arts and literature (Item 7 in the Minute Book).

Details were given about the:

· Literature Development Strategy which by 2012 would create an environment whereby readers of all ages where adventurous in their reading habits, comfortable in trying new writers genres and sharing their reading widely. It would enable writers to feel supported and find outlets for their work, the spoken word to become more prominent in festivals and performance programmes across the County and develop audiences for ongoing literature activities.

· Visual Arts Development Strategy with which, by 2015, Hampshire would be recognised as a county where people of all ages would have the opportunity to experience high level art and craft in a variety of settings, the County Council would commission new work in response to the unique environment that Hampshire offered, there would be a vibrant and active artist community and there would be a diverse and engaged audience.

RESOLVED:

That the report be received and noted and the Executive Member for Culture and Recreation be RECOMMENDED to approve the strategy for the development of the visual arts and literature.

17. HARD TO REACH GROUPS

The Chief Executive presented the Cabinet's response to the recommendations of the Hard to Reach Review Panel (Item 8 in the Minute Book). The Cabinet had welcomed the report and its general approach had been praised. It had, however, expressed an interest in how the ideas in the report might be implemented and in particular it requested further work to be undertaken in relation to:

Recommendation 2

That Hampshire County Council as a lead provider organisation, explores with partners the feasibility of developing a (possibly virtual) provider community co-ordination function with a view to mapping contact / relationships between individuals and provider silos. To manage the ground between silos and customers, more information about relationship patterns seems essential.

Recommendation 6

That staff, particularly in trusted services such as Libraries, primary care or the Fire and Rescue service, be trained to engage with customers/clients or signpost other provider services (including multiple signposting) as neutral brokers in appropriate circumstances. Opportunities to ask people questions about perceived barriers or reluctance to access services should also be explored and recorded for system learning.

Recommendation 8

That consideration be given to establishing a Hampshire-wide intelligence unit, funded by major statutory organisations (possibly through the consolidation of existing expertise in departments and organisations as a virtual resource) to be made available to the whole partner provider community to support management of the territory between silos and residents, as well as access to services by all Hampshire people, including the hard to reach.

It was agreed that the officers should give further consideration as to how these recommendations could be implemented and report back to a future meeting of the Committee to enable members to consider a response to the Cabinet.

RESOLVED:

That the officers give further consideration as to how recommendations 2, 6 and 8 could be implemented and report back to a future meeting of the Committee to enable members to consider a response to the Cabinet.

18. STRATEGY FOR LEARNING OUTSIDE THE

CLASSROOM

The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs presented a report on the strategy and initial publication with respect to Cultural Communities and Rural Affairs engagement with children, schools and young people

(Item 9 in the Minute Book).

In November 2008 the Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs set up a cross cutting or thematic working group to look at current Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs engagement with schools and education. The intention was to create a situation whereby County Council schools looking for out of classroom opportunities would automatically turn first to Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs services across the board.

The group developed a programme which, after an initial audit of current work, began to put in place a strategy for engaging with schools. Working in close partnership with Children's Services and to help shape this, a conference of all Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs `learning staff' was programmed for March 2009, at Milestones, to permit debate and develop ideas and content for a proposed Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs `offer' to schools. Following this, the group spent the summer creating the initial project outcome, a hard copy description of the proposed Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs Offer. This was modelled on the Department for Children's Schools and Families own national manifesto for Learning Outside the Classroom, which schools were currently engaging with and which gave a clear opportunity to provide a holistic approach from across Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs.

Consultation was carried out with colleagues within Children's Services and a group of Head Teachers. This document, shown as Appendix 1 to the report was now set to be printed and would be issued to all schools and young people groups within Hampshire. Headteacher conferences would be targeted as points of direct contact and the communication systems within Children's Services will be utilised. Close partnership working with Children's Services would continue, via the Outdoor Education, Sport and PE Service and through contact with other colleagues involved in Learning outside the Classroom, including Extended Schools and Building Schools for the Future.

Members commented that they were impressed by the document detailing the Learning Outside the Classroom offer, and they endorsed the ideas it contained.

RESOLVED;

That the report be received and noted and the Executive Member for Culture and Recreation be RECOMMENDED to approve the strategy for learning outside the classroom and its publication.

19. WORK PROGRAMME

The Chief Executive presented the Committee's Work Programme (Item 10 in the Minute Book).

RESOLVED:

That the Committee's Work Programme be approved

subject to the issues raised at this meeting.

Scrutiny Officer to liaise with Mark Segal and the Arts Service to make arrangements for the Committee to visit ArtSway

The Director of Culture, Communities and Rural Affairs consider options to keep Members informed of the future planning in relation to potential funding changes

The Scrutiny Officer to arrange with the Countryside Service to make arrangements for members to visit some of the Sites of Special Scientific Interest

The Executive Member for Culture & Recreation be RECOMMENDED to approve the strategy for the development of the visual arts and literature.

The officers give further consideration as to how recommendations 2, 6 and 8 could be implemented and report back to a future meeting of the Committee to enable members to consider a response to the Cabinet

The Executive member for Culture and Recreation be RECOMMENDED to approve the strategy for learning outside the classroom and its publication.

The work programme be updated.