Agenda item

Cabinet Champions

To receive reports from the three Cabinet Champions on their work during the 2021/22 Municipal Year. The Champions are as follows:

 

·         Equalities - Cllr Abul Chowdhury

·         Health and Wellbeing – Cllr Mara Makunura

·         Armed Forces – Cllr Jacqui Vosper

Minutes:

The Committee welcomed the three Cabinet Champions, Cllr Abul Chowdhury (Equalities and Diversity Champion), Cllr Jacqui Vosper (Armed Forces Champion) and Cllr Mara Makunura (Health and Wellbeing Champion) who had been invited to give reports on their work during the 2021/22 Municipal Year.

 

(1)  Equalities and Diversity Champion – Cllr Chowdhury gave an overview of some of the work he had been carrying out during the year, to help build relations with the Borough’s diverse communities, increase access to services and instil trust.

 

·         A range of meetings with different community groups had been undertaken to hear their stories and experiences about living locally and accessing local services. Groups represented were from the Nepalese, Fijian, the Cameroon, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Muslim communities and several local church groups representing other BAME communities.

 

·         Issues identified at these meetings were generally around funding and grant assistance to carry out activities within the different communities, Cllr Chowdhury had been able to signpost groups to funding and grant schemes through the Council’s networks.

 

·         More complex issues had also emerged for some individuals within these diverse communities, including suitable housing – large enough properties to house large families and understanding of the English language to access services digitally. Cllr Chowdhury reported that he had frequently been called on to assist members of the communities with day to day tasks relating to language or digital access and was in discussion with Officers on how the community could be supported more with these issues.

 

·         It was also noted that several cases of discrimination had been reported during the Municipal Year via the Champion and, with Officer support, those affected had been guided and supported.

 

(2)  Armed Forces Champion – Cllr Vosper reported on the activities carried out as part of her role:

 

·         It was noted that the Armed Forces Act had received Royal Accent which enshrined the Armed Forces Covenant in law. Cllr Vosper had been involved in the development of the provisions contained in the Act through her work in the All Party Armed Forces Covenant Legislation Parliamentary Group.

 

·         A review was underway of the structure and working arrangements of the  North Hampshire Covenant Partnership. It was felt that a conference could be held 1-2 times a year which would be attended by a range of stakeholders within the military and civilian communities.

 

·         Through the response to the pandemic, joint working between the Military, Council and NHS had enabled improved engagement with service personnel and their dependents.

 

·         It was reported that the Veterans’ Hubs in both Aldershot and Farnborough had recently reopened. Through working with the Veteran’s Hub in Camberley lessons had been learnt to help improve attendance and identify activities to be carried out locally. Cllr Vosper advised that veterans were often difficult to locate as they didn’t want to be found. Work was underway to identify service personnel coming up to retirement/leaving the armed forces to allow for early engagement.

 

·         The Garrison Community Hub had recently been refurbished, the idea for the hub was to become a centre for local civilian and military communities to come together.

 

·         Cllr Vosper reported on the school examination achievements of military children. It was noted that, at secondary school, achievement levels were in line with children from non-military backgrounds, with the exception of GCSE English grades, which were lower and at A-level, grades dropped by 10-15% overall. It was also noted that military children attending state schools were less likely to go on to university then their non-military counterparts. Cllr Vosper felt that these statistics should be better understood.

 

The Committee were also advised of an initiative to introduce “Pupil Passports” for military children which would detail their education to assist when moving between schools.

 

·         Cllr Vosper had attended a number of events during the year, these included:

 

o   The Cameroon Festival

o   The Bula Festival

o   Remembrance Sunday events

o   The Community Carol Services – an event organised jointly between the Council and the Garrison

o   The 50th Anniversary on the IRA bombing of the Officers’ Mess in Aldershot

 

(3)  Health and Wellbeing Champion – Cllr Makunura advised on the focus of her role:

 

·         A range of initiatives had been worked on, in conjunction with Council Officers and key organisations such as Citizens’ Advice and Rushmoor Voluntary Services. These included:

 

o   Health and wellbeing signposting

o   The Grub Hub

o   Increased physical activity

o   Community gardens and Men’s Shed

 

·         Cllr Makunura reported on the work undertaken to establish the Rushmoor Accessibility Access Group. Working with key community groups, the Group had been established to raise the profile and awareness of access and inclusion. The Group’s aim would be to represent the views of people with disabilities and accessibility issues  in order to provide support and advice on key work areas  such as planning, and regeneration. Cllr Makunura had been keen to develop the work of the Group further to deliver improvements for people with disabilities. A number of initiatives had been identified for 2022/23, should the role continue, these were:

 

o   Accessibility at polling stations

o   Increased interaction and communication about access issues with local organisations and businesses

o   Improved local environment to ensure equal access for all

 

·         In response to the pandemic, joint working with the NHS and local Primary Care Networks had enabled improved engagement and partnership working.

 

·         A number of events have been held throughout the year, these included:

 

o   Delivery of the Heritage Trails and promotion of community walks

o   The “We Can Do It” campaign to promote physical activity

o   Wellness walks to encourage social interaction and reduce loneliness

 

·         Forthcoming activities included The Garrison Community Health Fair on 26th May, 2022 and a project within schools to help address mental health issues supported by B&Q

 

The Committee discussed the activities of the Champions and a number of suggestions were made, including:

 

·         Consideration be given to attendance at the first meeting of the Committee in the new Municipal Year, to outline plans for the forthcoming year to assist Members to measure effectiveness of the roles and set performance - these would then be reviewed at the last meeting of the Municipal Year

·         Consideration be given to change the name to “Council Champion”

·         More liaison between Champions and Shadow Champions

·         Greater communication with all Members on the work being undertaken, in particular with Ward Members when work impacted their Ward

 

In response to a query regard the Rushmoor Accessibility Access Group it was agreed that elected Members be given the opportunity to attend and raise awareness of the Group. It was noted that the Head of Economy, Planning and Strategic Housing had also been approached to add the Group to the list of consultees for planning matters.

 

The Chairman thanked the Cabinet Champions for their reports And it was agreed that the arrangements would be discussed at the next meeting of the Progress Group.