HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL



HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL

MINUTES of the Meeting of the County Council held at County Hall, Hertford, on Tuesday 15 May 2012.

MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE

|D Andrews |R I N Gordon |S M P Newton |A D Williams |

|D A Ashley |B N W Hammond |S O’Brien |A S M Witherick |

|J R Barfoot |K M Hastrick |R G Parker |C B Woodward |

|R H Beeching |C M Hayward |S J Pile |C B Wyatt-Lowe |

|N Bell |T C Heritage |J M Pitman(Chairman) | |

|C L Berry |D J Hewitt |A Plancey | |

|P J Bibby |F R G Hill |R G Prowse | |

|M Bright |N A Hollinghurst |I M Reay | |

|N K Brook |T W Hone |E T Roach | |

|F Button |T Hunter |R M Roberts | |

|R F Cheswright |M Hurst |P A Ruffles | |

|G R Churchard |S Johnston |A M R Searing | |

|M Cowan |B J Lamb |R L Shakespeare- Smith | |

|M S Crawley |A Lee |R H Smith | |

|T L F Douris |D B Lloyd |W A Storey | |

|D S Drury |D E Lloyd |S J Taylor | |

|K F Emsall |J Lloyd |R A C Thake | |

|W E Eynon |J K Maddern |R G Tindall | |

|M Frearson |S Markiewicz |J W A Usher | |

|D A Gates |C A Mitchell |M A Watkin | |

|S B A F H Giles-Medhurst |M D M Muir |C J White | |

| |L J Newlyn | | |

| |

|Upon consideration of the agenda for the Meeting of the County Council held on 15 May 2012, as circulated, action was taken or decisions |

|were reached as follows:- |

|1. |ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL |

| |The Chairman, being a candidate for election, left the meeting and the Vice-Chairman, D J Hewitt, took the Chair and |

| |called for nominations. |

| | |

| |J M Pitman was nominated by R I N Gordon and this was duly seconded. |

| | |

| |There being no other nominations, J M Pitman was declared ELECTED Chairman of the Council to hold office until the |

| |Annual Meeting of the Council next following. She signed the declaration of acceptance of office, thanked the |

| |Council and took the chair. |

|2. |ELECTION OF VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL |

| | |

| |The Chairman called for nominations. |

| | |

| |D J Hewitt was nominated by R I N Gordon and this was seconded. |

| |There being no other nominations, D J Hewitt was declared ELECTED Vice-Chairman of the Council to hold office until |

| |the Annual Meeting of the Council next following. He signed the declaration of acceptance of office and thanked the |

| |Council. |

|3. | |MINUTES |

| | |The minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 27 March 2012 were confirmed. |

|4. | |CHAIRMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENTS |

| |4.1 |Kareen Hastrick |

| | |The Council welcomed Kareen Hastrick to her first meeting of the Council following her election on 3 May as Member |

| | |for Meriden Tudor Division. |

| | | |

| |4.2 |Death of Former County Councillor Eric Martin |

| | |The Chairman reported the sad news that former County Councillor Eric Martin had died. Eric Martin was the|

| | |Conservative Member for Cheshunt North between 1985 and 1989, and served on the Cultural and Recreational |

| | |Facilities Committee. |

| | | |

| | |He passed away on Saturday 5 May after a long illness at the age of 81 |

| | | |

| | |The Council stood in memory of Eric Martin. |

| | | |

| |4.3 |Herts Catering – London 2012 promotion |

| | |The Council congratulated Herts Catering on their success in promoting the take up of meals in primary |

| | |schools with an Olympic themed London 2012 Gold Medal Menu Challenge. In March the meal uptake in |

| | |Hertfordshire primary schools reached an excellent 50.2% when the national average is 41.4%. |

| | |Almost 1 million meals were provided in March alone. The total for primary meals in the year was just over |

| | |8 million. |

| | | |

| |4.4 |Chairman’s Report |

| | |The Chairman referred to her circulated report listing the informal receptions she had held in the past |

| | |year. The report is attached as Annex A to these minutes. |

| | | |

| |4.5 |Caroline Tapster |

| | |The Chairman stated that this was Caroline Tapster’s last County Council as Chief Executive. |

| | | |

| | |The Council noted that Caroline Tapster was leaving at the end of the month after seventeen years at |

| | |Hertfordshire County Council, including eight years as our extremely effective and highly-regarded Chief |

| | |Executive. |

| | | |

| | |Caroline had led Hertfordshire County Council to its current position of strength, with services performing|

| | |well and public satisfaction with the council significantly higher than the national average. |

| | | |

| | |Under Caroline Tapster’s management, Hertfordshire County Council had earned its reputation as a leading |

| | |council, identifying significant efficiencies and improving services to the most vulnerable even in today’s|

| | |tough economic climate.  |

| | | |

| | |On behalf of the Council the Chairman expressed best wishes to Caroline for a healthy and long retirement. |

| |4.6 |ORDER OF BUSINESS |

| | |At the invitation of the Chairman the Council agreed to vary the order of business and take the agenda item|

| | |“Review of the Council’s Constitution and Changes to Officer Responsibilities” (see Minute 27 below) at |

| | |this point in the meeting as decisions thereon were relevant to the subsequent appointments to Committees. |

|5. | |REVIEW OF POLITICAL PROPORTIONALITY AND APPOINTMENTS TO SCRUTINY AND OTHER COMMITTEES |

| | | |

| | |The Chief Legal Officer reported that, in accordance with the rules of political proportionality, the |

| | |Council is required to allocate a majority of places on each Committee to the Conservative Group (the |

| | |present constitution of the three political groups being as follows: Conservative Group 54 members; Liberal|

| | |Democrat Group 17; Labour Group 3); and that the current allocation of places to the three political groups|

| | |on Committees was in line with the rules of political proportionality. |

| | |RESOLVED: |

| | |That the following Members be appointed to serve on the Committees of the Council for the ensuing year. |

| | |(Existing Members remain in office where there was no resolution to the contrary) |

| |Conservative Group |Liberal Democrat Group ** |Labour Group |

|Overview and Scrutiny Committee (15 [11:3:1]) |C Clapper |A S M Witherick |S J Taylor |

| |B N W Hammond |C N Brazier | |

| |F R G Hill |D T F Scudder | |

| |T Hunter | | |

| |M D M Muir | | |

| |E T Roach | | |

| |P A Ruffles | | |

| |A M R Searing | | |

| |R L Shakespeare-Smith | | |

| |R H Smith | | |

| |W A Storey | | |

| | | | |

|Four parent governor representatives: Emmanual Mensah, Sue Dixon, Fiona Sparks and David Wolstenholme-Williams; and John Sloan (Archdiocese of |

|Westminster Schools Commission) and Peter Browning (Education Board of the Diocese of St Albans) were appointed to the Overview and Scrutiny |

|Committee to serve when the Committee is dealing with Education matters). |

| |

|Health Scrutiny Committee |R H Beeching |N A Hollinghurst |S J Taylor |

|(15 [11:3:1]) * |F R G Hill |A S M Witherick | |

|(The Committee also includes 10 voting District |M Hurst |M J Frearson | |

|Council representatives) |S Johnston | | |

| |J K Maddern | | |

| |S M P Newton | | |

| |S O’Brien | | |

| |T J Price | | |

| |E T Roach | | |

| |J W A Usher | | |

| |C B Woodward | | |

|Audit Committee |N K Brook |P V Goggins |S J Taylor |

|(12 [8:3:1]) |B N W Hammond |A S M Witherick | |

| |D B Lloyd |M Cowan | |

| |S Markiewicz | | |

| |C A Mitchell | | |

| |S Quilty | | |

| |A M R Searing | | |

| |A D Williams | | |

|Development Control Committee (15 [11:3:1]) |C L Berry |G R Churchard |J Lloyd |

| |P J Bibby |D S Drury | |

| |N K Brook |C N Brazier | |

| |B N W Hammond | | |

| |M D M Muir | | |

| |S Quilty | | |

| |E T Roach | | |

| |P A Ruffles | | |

| |R L Shakespeare-Smith | | |

| |R H Smith | | |

| |J W A Usher | | |

|Development Control Committee Substitute Members|W A Storey |M J Frearson |S J Taylor |

| |J K Maddern |A S M Witherick | |

| |T L F Douris |P V Goggins | |

| |T C Heritage | | |

| |T W Hone | | |

| |C A Mitchell | | |

| |A D Williams | | |

| |J R Barfoot | | |

| |*** | | |

|Pensions Committee |M Bright |R G Parker | |

|(8 [6:2]) |N K Brook |R G Tindall | |

| |K F Emsall | | |

| |D E Lloyd | | |

| |S Markiewicz | | |

| |C A Mitchell | | |

|Standards Committee |E T Roach |P V Goggins | |

|(2 [1:1]) | | | |

| | | | |

|Employment Committee |D A Ashley |S B A F H Giles-Medhurst | |

|(5 [4:1]) |M Bright | | |

| |R I N Gordon | | |

| |D E Lloyd | | |

* The composition of the Health Scrutiny Committee was agreed with no vote against.

** Nominations from the Liberal Democrat Group were notified to the Chief Legal Officer after the meeting.

*** In exercising her delegated authority to appoint one or more Conservative substitutes for any particular meeting, the Chief Legal Officer is invited to appoint in the order shown above, unless such substitute is unavailable for that meeting.

|6. | |APPOINTMENT OF CHAIRMEN AND VICE-CHAIRMEN OF COMMITTEES |

| | |RESOLVED: |

| | |That the following members be appointed as Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen of Committees for the ensuing year, |

| | |having been proposed and seconded:- |

| |Chairman |Vice-Chairman |

|Overview and Scrutiny Committee |A M R Searing |A S M Witherick |

|Health Scrutiny Committee |S M P Newton |N A Hollinghurst |

|Audit Committee |S Quilty |A D Williams |

|Development Control Committee |R H Smith |B N W Hammond |

|Pensions Committee |D E Lloyd |S Markiewicz |

|Employment Committee |R I N Gordon |D E Lloyd |

|7. | |REPRESENTATION ON THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT ASSOCIATION AND COUNTY COUNCIL’S NETWORK |

| | |The following members, having been proposed and seconded, were APPOINTED as follows:- |

| | |R I N Gordon, D E Lloyd, R M Roberts and C J White to serve as the representatives of the County Council on|

| | |the Local Government Association General Assembly until the Annual Meeting of the Council next following. |

| | |That all the votes available to be cast by the County Council at the General Assembly of the Local |

| | |Government Association be allocated to the Conservative Group representatives present thereat. |

| | |R I N Gordon, D E Lloyd, R M Roberts, and S B A F H Giles-Medhurst to serve as the representatives of the |

| | |County Council on the Council of the County Councils’ Network. |

| | | |

|8. | |REPRESENTATION ON THE HERTFORDSHIRE POLICE AUTHORITY |

| | |The following members, having been proposed and seconded, were APPOINTED to serve on the Hertfordshire |

| | |Police Authority until the next Annual Meeting of the Council:- |

| | |C L Berry, N K Brook, K F Emsall, R I N Gordon, D E Lloyd, |

| | |S M P Newton, R H Smith, D T F Scudder, R G Tindall. |

| | | |

|9. | |PUBLIC QUESTIONS – STANDING ORDER 7 (11) |

| | |There were none. |

| | | |

|10. |PUBLIC PETITIONS – STANDING ORDER 15 |

| | |No petitions were presented to the meeting. The petitioner mentioned on the agenda had decided to submit |

| | |the petition direct to the Chief Officer via the Local Member. |

| | |

| |OFFICER REPORTS RELEVANT TO EXECUTIVE PORTFOLIOS |

|11. |LOCAL AUTHORITY MORTGAGE SCHEME |

| |The following motion proposed by D E Lloyd and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That a capital scheme to a maximum value of £12million for the Local Authority Mortgage Scheme be included |

| |in the Council’s Capital Programme for 2012/13, funded from the 2011/12 revenue underspend.” |

| | | |

|12. |TREASURY MANAGEMENT STRATEGY: |

| |The following motion proposed by D E Lloyd and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That Council approves the proposed change to the 2012/13 Lending Policy discussed in section 2 of the |

| |report, relating to: |

|exclusion of the UK from the AAA minimum long term credit rating requirement in the event of a future downgrade by |

|any of the three main credit rating agencies: Fitch, Moody’s and Standard & Poors; and |

|an addition to the Strategy to include the use of institutions in the Local Authority Mortgage Scheme (LAMS) which |

|do not meet the Council’s current treasury management criteria, and an extension of the term of deposit for LAMS |

|deposits to 5 years with a possibility to extend for a further 2 years. This change is solely for the purpose of |

|LAMS deposits and not a change to the current criteria for day-to-day operational activities.” |

| |REPORTS FROM THE EXECUTIVE |

|13. |LEADER OF THE COUNCIL |

| |The following motion proposed by R I N Gordon, and duly seconded, was CARRIED: |

| |“That the report of the Leader of the Council (comprising part of the report from the Executive under |

| |Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received and that the position of Key Decisions in the decision-making process |

| |shown in the current edition of the Forward Plan referred to in the report be noted.” |

|14. |EDUCATION AND SKILLS |

| |The following motion proposed by F Button, and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Education & Skills (comprising part of the report from the |

| |Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|15. |TRANSFORMATION, PERFORMANCE AND WASTE MANAGEMENT |

| |The following motion proposed by D A Ashley, and duly seconded, was CARRIED: |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Transformation, Performance and Waste Management (comprising |

| |part of the report from the Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|16. |CHILDREN’S SERVICES |

| |The following motion proposed by R M Roberts and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Children’s Services (comprising part of the report from the |

| |Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|17. |HIGHWAYS AND TRANSPORT |

| |The following motion proposed by S J Pile, and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Highways & Transport (comprising part of the report from the |

| |Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|18. |HEALTH AND ADULT CARE |

| |The following motion proposed by C Wyatt-Lowe, and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Health and Adult Care (comprising part of the report from the |

| |Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|19. |ENVIRONMENT AND COMMUNITY SAFETY |

| |The following motion proposed by R A C Thake, and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Environment and Community Safety (comprising part of the report |

| |from the Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|20. |HERTFORDSHIRE LOCAL AND LIBRARIES |

| |The following motion proposed by C M Hayward, and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Hertfordshire Local and Libraries (comprising part of the report|

| |from the Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

|21. |RESOURCES AND ECONOMIC WELLBEING |

| |The following motion proposed by D E Lloyd and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |“That the report of the Executive Member for Resources & Economic Wellbeing (comprising part of the report |

| |from the Executive under Standing Order 6(2)(h)) be received.” |

| | |

|22. |QUESTIONS TO EXECUTIVE MEMBERS |

|22.1 |N A Hollinghurst asked R I N Gordon, Leader of the Council: |

| |“In view of the following points regarding the Moor End Road fiasco and namely; a) that the Department for |

| |Transport advice was not followed; b) that the signage so was poorly located and oriented it failed to make |

| |clear the effects of the scheme and was called ‘unlawfully placed’ by the Traffic Penalty Adjudicator; and |

| |c), and especially c), that when the problems were brought to the attention of the officers and Executive |

| |Member in August 2011, and repeatedly thereafter, no action whatsoever was taken to remedy these defects. |

| |Therefore will the Leader of the Council please agree with me that steps should be taken to recover the |

| |resulting losses from the relevant Hertfordshire Highways partner, that is to say Mouchel Parkman, who |

| |designed and implemented this defective scheme?” |

| |R I N Gordon replied: |

| |“In so far as the Council is in a position to recover any costs from any third parties naturally we will seek|

| |to do so.” |

| | |

|22.2 |D E Lloyd asked R I N Gordon, Leader of the Council: |

| |“I just wondered whether or not the Leader has had time to reflect on Councillor Cowan’s earlier searching |

| |question and whether or not he has had time to work out what the answer is now and if so can he tell us?” |

| |R I N Gordon replied: |

| |“Paragraph 3.5 of my report should refer to an event on the 16th of April not of May and indeed I note should|

| |refer to the Municipal Journal not the ‘management’ journal. I apologise for both but I hope the correction |

| |is helpful.” |

| | |

|22.3 |M A Watkin asked F Button, Executive Member for Education and Skills: |

| |“Chairman would the Executive Member agree with me that when local schools or enlarged local schools are |

| |going to be occurring in Members’ Divisions that those Members’ are given due warning and notice and involved|

| |in this decision rather than discover, as has happened to me recently, that a new school is going to be |

| |opened in my area and I had no prior notice of it at all?” |

| |F Button replied: |

| |“ I’m interested to hear what Mark Watkin said. I’m not aware of any firm arrangements for any sites in |

| |Watford which have been formally agreed. I think Mr Watkin is probably aware of the pressure on places in |

| |Watford and he would have known that in order to expand the number of places the question of two form entry |

| |primary schools and the requirement for two new ones would probably not be new information to him. |

| | |

| |I think the specific question relates to a site. I’m not aware of the briefings that he has with officers. |

| |This was specifically raised at Education Panel. I am assuming he is referring to one of the sites that was |

| |on the Education Panel. And I think the procedure for that one was that it went through property in the |

| |first instance, which is probably technically correct. So as I said, I am not aware of the briefing’s he has |

| |had with officers. I too heard about it after it had been through the property side.” |

|22.4 |N Bell asked F Button, Executive Member for Education and Skills: |

| |“In relation to the same theme really - is the portfolio holder for Education confident, or can she give me |

| |any idea, that we will have two new primary schools in Watford in the next two or three years?” |

| | |

| |F Button replied: |

| |I don’t know whether this was a trick question and whether you are sitting there poised with a pen, yes you |

| |probably are. There is absolutely no doubt that officers feel very strongly that there is a need for two new|

| |two form entry schools in Watford. What I cannot guarantee to you is that suitable locations, which satisfy |

| |you and other elected representatives in Watford and the community in Watford, whether suitable locations |

| |will have gone through Watford Borough’s planning process. So I cannot guarantee where such sites will be or |

| |what the responses will be when such sites go through local issues. What I am certain is that however it |

| |will be achieved, and I can’t guarantee that it’ll be new schools, or whether it will be extensions to |

| |existing schools, - what I am certain is that the County Council will discharge its statutory duty to arrange|

| |for new and sufficient school places for primary children. |

| | |

| |I would dearly love to say the Education Panel report says that two new two form entry schools are needed, |

| |which it does. I would love to say that I can tell you the sites on which that will happen but I can’t |

| |guarantee that. I am however satisfied that the calibre of officers we have are such that we will achieve |

| |sufficient primary places in Watford for increased numbers of children there.” |

| | |

| |At this point in the meeting the Chairman indicated that she would allow, at this and future meetings, two |

| |questions from each Group to the Executive Member for Children’s Services: one in relation to his role as |

| |Chairman of the Shadow Health and Wellbeing Board; and the other regarding Children’s Services. |

|22.5 |R G Tindall asked R M Roberts, Executive Member for Children’s Services: |

| |“I’d like to ask Richard a question on his Health & Wellbeing Portfolio … in his response to Mark Watkin he |

| |gave the impression that it was not appropriate for elected Members to sit on the commissioning framework |

| |beneath the Board because they were specialist working groups. Although I take the view that most of the |

| |Councillors in this room work for the Council in one way or another. But if that is the case, and it is not |

| |appropriate for elected Members to sit in the framework below the Board, does that not strengthen the case |

| |for membership of the Health and Wellbeing Board to have County Councillors on it that reflect the democratic|

| |composition of this Council?” |

| |R M Roberts replied: |

| |“Well isn’t that a wasted question, Chairman, because I have answered that question earlier. Absolutely |

| |answered that question. So I am not entirely sure – you’ve had three stabs at it and I’ll give you something |

| |back. One is that I don’t have a Health and Wellbeing Portfolio. I am the Chairman of the Health and |

| |Wellbeing Board and Health for the County Council resides with Colette Wyatt-Lowe. You know that as well. |

| |This isn’t a Health and Wellbeing strategy as designed for the use of the CCG’s (Clinical Commissioning |

| |Groups) led by Doctors, this is a Health and Wellbeing Strategy for the people of Hertfordshire of which we |

| |are key contributors. I think that will suffice..” |

| | |

|22.6 |N Bell asked R M Roberts, Executive Member for Children’s Services: |

| | |

| |“Back to Children’s Services - really it’s referring a question that came up in the report actually, special |

| |educational needs and disability there’s been some talk in the media of new Government legislation on this |

| |and ideas on this. Richard Roberts can you say how many children of special educational needs we have in |

| |Hertfordshire?” |

| |R M Roberts replied: |

| |“Quite a few. I will find out and let you know, I don’t actually know the number.” |

|22.7 |S B A Giles-Medhurst asked S J Pile the Executive Member for Highways & Transport: |

| |“I know Stuart is keen to promote 20 mile an hour zones and limits in the county and indeed has said so on |

| |many occasions both in this chamber and the Highways Panel. My understanding from Government pronouncements |

| |over the last fifteen years that this is in fact guidance. In other words to inform and guide local |

| |authorities. And that since 1999 Central Government guidance from the Department of Transport is that local |

| |authorities can decide themselves on district wide or smaller area schemes. Is he aware that the extract |

| |from the DfT traffic advisory leaflet of 1999 says as follows? –‘It will be for local authority to determine |

| |whether speed limits or zones should be used. It will be for them to decide if the proposed type of speed |

| |limit is appropriate for the area, beneficial in road safety and environmental terms and important for any |

| |form of speed limit chosen does not require unreasonable levels of enforcement by the Police’. Is he further|

| |aware that some authorities, given the national coverage that ‘Twenty is Plenty’ has received, such as |

| |Lancashire County Council is implementing a programme of area wide 20 mile an hour speed limits on area by |

| |area basis and will complete this later this year. Given this will he agree to have a further report in |

| |relation to the progress particularly we have now had from the urban area of Watford for a 20 mile an hour |

| |zone for the next meeting of the Highways and Transport Panel as a way of progressing this as a model for the|

| |rest of the County Council?” |

| |S J Pile replied: |

| |“Thank you for that Stephen. I am aware of all of those things and Stephen will be aware that we have |

| |discussed this many a time at the Highway and Transport Panel and Members of this chamber will be aware that |

| |I am in favour of 20 mile an hour zones and limits but where there self enforcing- that’s the difference |

| |here. We are, as we all know, trialling a scheme in St Albans which has gone very well. We also aware of the|

| |requirement placed upon us to manage our speed limits. As we have already discussed the 20 mile an hour |

| |proposals that are coming forward for Watford - again more difficult in a wider area like that to have an |

| |area wide 20 mile an hour limit without some form of enforcement because the Police simply won’t enforce. |

| | |

| |Currently the Government is reviewing we know 20 miles an hour to make it easier for us but that is all they |

| |are doing reviewing. There is no change in the Law. There is no change in the requirement for them to be |

| |self-enforcing. |

| | |

| |Happy to bring this forward to the Panel for further discussion at the right time and my guess would be once |

| |we are part way through or at least at the end of, the St Albans trials. |

| | |

| |Happy also to discuss with officers and himself and others in Watford on their proposals to the 20 mile an |

| |hour because simply put all the evidence, the majority of the evidence shall we say, is such that not only do|

| |accidents reduce but of course we have a better air quality in our 20 mile an hour zones as well.” |

| | |

|22.8 |S J Taylor asked S J Pile Executive Member for Highways & Transport: |

| | |

| |“Is the Executive Member aware of the ongoing considerable concern in Stevenage around the part-night |

| |lighting project? We are in the middle at the moment of having the lights switched off at night in the town.|

| |In a very short space of time nearly a thousand signatures have come together on a petition, and in fact I |

| |had intended to bring it to Council today, but we are still receiving so many packs of signatures from groups|

| |of people that wanted to contribute to the petition that I will bring it forward on a future occasion. It’s |

| |not just the switching off of the street lighting that is causing concern, it is the consultation process |

| |both with Members and the public. Members got their maps very shortly before the purdah period began which |

| |meant it was very difficult for us to talk to residents about it. They were displayed in the Stevenage |

| |Council offices for as long as we could but then we had to take them down once purdah started. I do think |

| |this is deeply unsatisfactory and so do the residents of Stevenage.” |

| |S J Pile replied: |

| | |

| |“Thank you for that Sharon. Yes I am aware of the situation with maps and purdah, but I think in reality of |

| |course even for twin trackers it’s entirely up to individual Members on how they manage that process and |

| |indeed how they manage their time, particularly if they’re up for election as many were in their own |

| |district. That’s not for me to comment on how they manage their time. Just for me to say that I believe that|

| |everybody has had the same amount of time, and in reality of course, the process in Stevenage is by the |

| |nature of the design of the town, like in Watford and St Albans, a difficult one. But I am also pleased that|

| |Labour Members, the majority of them in the area, are engaging with us for the benefit of residents. Happy |

| |to look at any specific issues but really that’s all I have to say at this time.” |

|22.9 |W A Storey asked S J Pile, Executive Member for Highways & Transport |

| |“Bearing in mind the unusual circumstances where a Highways Department ends up constructing a structure |

| |underneath a running railway line, which is unusual, and produces an enormous number of complications which |

| |aren’t common to ordinary highways work, and add to that the fact that work has to be done at Christmas, when|

| |the construction industry is normally shut down for a fortnight, whether it would be appropriate for the |

| |Executive Member on our behalf to congratulate the officers and contractors who carried out the Royston |

| |underpass so satisfactorily for us?” |

| |S J Pile replied: |

| |“Happy to do that of course. This was broadcast well and live on the web over that period of time so many |

| |will have actually seen what we did. Slight overrun I think at the very end of the scheme because of some |

| |unforeseen problems in the area, but the scheme was completed on time, on budget and as I said will open on 6|

| |June.” |

| | |

|22.10 | R G Tindall asked C B Wyatt-Lowe, Executive Member for Health & Adult Care |

| |“Can I first of all in thanking Colette for the detail on the new Blue Badge Scheme. Can I ask her if she is|

| |aware that staff have reported to individual residents of mine, or an individual resident, that the new |

| |badges are not despatched to the recipient until 3 days before the expiry of the old badge? This is new |

| |information certainly to me and I believe others, and given that these new badges are issued by second class |

| |post it therefore is almost certain that the badge is not likely to arrive until after the old badge has |

| |expired. If this information from the public is correct and it is coming from the blue badge team, would she|

| |agree with me that this is a nonsense for the whole scheme and that action should be taken or at least the |

| |attempt to be taken to despatch the badge to the recipients as soon as they are prepared and ready?” |

| |C B Wyatt-Lowe replied |

| |“Thank you Ron and thank you for passing on the email from the resident concerned. First of all before we go|

| |any further with this I would like to talk very briefly about the work of the Blue Badge Team. They have |

| |been under tremendous pressure, a lot of criticism initially about how they were handling calls and that has |

| |been addressed. We have put new members of staff in there to help deal with what is a very onerous system |

| |and we are still working through the associated workload with that, but I think it would be very unhelpful, |

| |because in my view the team are almost being pilloried for things that are outside their control and I think |

| |we should be supporting them in a way that perhaps isn’t always apparent with these continued references to |

| |the blue badge system where so much of what happens is outside their control. For example, last week they |

| |were working on the renewals, they were working on renewals from 21 May which should be going out shortly, |

| |the National Database broke down on Friday so that inevitably means that there will probably be a delay for |

| |some of those badge holders. We are currently advertising 6-8-10 weeks you know flexibly, because of the |

| |nature of the checks that now have to take place, and I guess the email that you sent me illustrates |

| |perfectly the issues that they have to deal with. The gentleman’s badge is not due for renewal until 26 |

| |June. He applied in March. He then phoned up to make sure it had been received. He then phoned up to make |

| |sure that it was still going through. It does tell you in the guidance notes that as soon as your cheque has|

| |cleared that automatically tells you that your application has been received. So you have seen that email |

| |and it is very clear that a lot of staff time was spent on dealing with that issue. Ron I have forgotten the |

| |point of your question what was it? |

| |R G Tindall provided clarification as follows: |

| |“I do recognise the difficulties of the staff team in all this, but my main thrust was that the despatches of|

| |the new badge, which I do accept is not council staff, despatching it three days before they are needed which|

| |is certainly far less than is necessary.” |

| |C B Wyatt-Lowe continued: |

| |“The badges are issued by the National Issuing office and we have no control over that if it is correct, and |

| |I am trying to find out at the moment because I have received information that is not quite clear on that |

| |point. So I will be going back. If it is only three days and if they are persisting in using second class |

| |post, then clearly that is something that does need to be addressed and we will be making a very robust |

| |representation to them that that is something that they should be looking at in the interest of residents. |

| | |

| |Can I also say to Members that if you have a resident who desperately needs a badge, say for example someone |

| |who has got shortened live expectancy and so on, there is a fast track scheme that can help them get there |

| |but that is for critical cases only. It is not just because it is a matter of convenience. But of course |

| |with any fast track system, if you swamp it with spurious requests then it cannot perform the function which |

| |it is there for. So we do have a system. Members who have had problems have accessed that system. We can |

| |get things through quickly if there is a real urgent critical need.” |

| | |

|22.11 |S J Taylor asked C B Wyatt-Lowe, Executive Member for Health & Adult Care |

| |“I received a really helpful briefing about the proposed move of one of the elderly people’s homes in my |

| |division and I just wanted to make sure that when we are proposing such moves, we do consult both with the |

| |carers of the people that live in the homes, the local district members, as well as the County Councillors |

| |for that division. It is very helpful if the wider community can be made aware so that they can try and help |

| |with some of the concerns that may be experienced by the residents.” |

| |C B Wyatt-Lowe replied: |

| |“I completely agree with you I think we should be making sure that all those concerned with the care of the |

| |elderly residents, those directly associated which is the carers and their families, and also local members |

| |and county council members. As you know, thank you for your compliment, we do do everything that we can. We |

| |will ensure that we continue the practices that we already have in place which is why consultation takes |

| |place and going back to Malcolm’s point, we will be doing everything we can to make sure that those |

| |consultations take place at as earlier point as possible.” |

| | |

|22.12 |D B Lloyd asked C M Hayward, Executive Member for Hertfordshire Local & Libraries |

| |“We were pleased to see the way the covenant with the Armed Forces has been developed and introduced, and |

| |therefore it is rather sad to learn through the national media that members of the Armed Forces when they go |

| |out are being abused and are being spat at. There is no evidence that that is happening in Hertfordshire and|

| |I suspect our Armed Forces would not necessarily report it. But through the Executive Member I would like to|

| |ask that we encourage people to report such disgusting behaviour and also the Police to take very firm action|

| |against those who behave in that manner.” |

| |C M Hayward replied: |

| |“Thank you Madam Chairman and Bernard. Thank you very much for drawing the Chamber’s attention to such |

| |appalling acts. I do condemn such acts of abuse of Her Majesty’s Forces. I don’t believe that they are |

| |prevalent in Hertfordshire as you suggest but certainly if they are taking place, you are quite right we |

| |should encourage the reporting of that behaviour and we should also encourage the police force to deal with |

| |it extremely firmly. We want none of that sort of behaviour in Hertfordshire and I hope we would deal with |

| |it very firmly indeed if indeed it arises.” |

| | |

|22.13 |M Cowan asked D E Lloyd, Executive Member for Resources and Economic Well being |

| |“A few months ago officers in the environment team put forward a bid to the government’s better bus fund to |

| |provide pump priming for an east/west bus route from Watford through to Stansted to meet a very long held |

| |aspiration of this County Council through its public transport policies. In the end it was turned down, we |

| |are yet to know the reasons, but the report produced a benefit cost ration over 6 which is quite phenomenal |

| |for a scheme like this and suggested that within two years no further support would be needed. However one |

| |can’t help feeling that one of the reasons that it may have been turned down was that no financial support |

| |was being offered by this council, or indeed by Stansted Airport at this point. I wonder whether in the hope|

| |that the bid will be resubmitted once we are able to learn the reasons why it was unsuccessful whether the |

| |Executive Member will be able to ensure there is some financial support available if this is felt to be |

| |what’s required for this project to be successful going forward.” |

| |D E Lloyd replied |

| |”As ever if a bid is submitted for anything we will look at all the financial implications when they come up |

| |and see what they mean exactly, but until we know the reasons that a bid wasn’t accepted last time round it |

| |would not be appropriate to promise some support which might not actually be required.” |

| | |

|22.14 |R M Roberts asked D E Lloyd, Executive Member for Resources and Economic Well being |

| |“Chairman, could I take this opportunity, a very interesting report David has interesting things in your |

| |report. Can I take this opportunity to welcome the appointment of Jim MacManus as the Director of Public |

| |Health and he will be an integral part of the transfer of public health to us in Local Government in April |

| |2013.” |

| |D E Lloyd replied |

| |“I am grateful for that question and I support the thrust of it.” |

| |Questions to the Leader or Executive Members from Members who do not belong to a political group (Standing |

| |Order 7 (4)) |

| |There were none. |

| | |

| |Written questions to Executive Members – Standing Order 7 (6) |

| |Written notice of a question from I Brandon had been received. |

| |The question and reply are set out in Annex B to these minutes. |

| | |

|23. |REPORT OF THE HEALTH SCRUTINY COMMITTEE |

| | |The following motion proposed by S M P Newton and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| | |“That the report of the Health Scrutiny Committee be received” |

|24. |REPORT FROM COUNTY COUNCILLOR MEMBERS OF THE POLICE AUTHORITY |

| |The Council received a report from County Councillor members of the Hertfordshire Police Authority, under |

| |Standing Order 8 presented by the Chairman of the Police Authority, D E Lloyd. |

| | |

|25. |QUESTIONS: HERTFORDSHIRE POLICE AUTHORITY – STANDING ORDER 7 (7) |

| |J Lloyd asked D E Lloyd, Chairman of the Police Authority |

| |“I note that all crime levels were down by 6.3% which amounted to 4,212 fewer crimes. If that is the case |

| |then according to your figures 66,857 were committed in Hertfordshire last year. With a detection rate of |

| |34.7% that means 43,658 crimes went undetected. Of the 23,199 crimes that were detected in Hertfordshire |

| |could you please advise me of the split between serious and non-serious crime?” |

| |D E Lloyd replied |

| | |

| |“I haven’t got that information down to the last one in front of me but what I would say is that one of the |

| |difficulties in responding to a question like that is it doesn’t take account of the fact that we have had |

| |one of the best years in policing possibly. Crime has continued to fall and in fact my hand on the figures |

| |now says that all crime is down 12% again this year. Further to what you have been talking about sanction |

| |detection rates at 38%, and those crimes which you claim haven’t yet been detected, it is a question of |

| |haven’t yet been detected, but it still will be looked at. So I will give you an exact split should you wish|

| |and you might remind me by email so that I can then forward it for the correct split. OK?” |

| | |

|26. |LOCALISM ACT – STANDARDS |

| |The following motion proposed by R I N Gordon and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |That Council agrees that:- |

| | |

| |As from the date that the relevant provisions of the Localism Act 2011 are brought into force:- |

| | |

| |that the template code of conduct prepared by the Department of Communities and Local Government be approved |

| |subject to amendments needed to reflect the pending regulations concerning Disclosable Pecuniary Interests; |

| | |

| |that the Chief Legal Officer be authorised to make amendments to the Code of Practice for Councillors and |

| |Officers Involved in the Planning Process to reflect the decision in (i) above; |

| |that the arrangements for dealing with allegations of failure to comply with the Code of Conduct as set out |

| |in the report should be adopted and in particular that:- |

| | |

| |the County Council establish a new Standards Committee comprising five members and there be delegated to the |

| |Committee the matters mentioned in Appendix 1 of the report. |

| | |

| |the initial members of the Committee will be appointed by the Chief Legal Officer after consultation with |

| |Group Leaders. |

| | |

| |there be delegated to the Chief Legal Officer and the Chief Executive and Director of Environment the |

| |matters referred to in Appendix 1of the report; and |

| | |

| |that the Chief Legal Officer be authorised to make any amendments necessary to ensure that the changes |

| |mentioned in (i) – (iii) above are reflected consistently throughout the Constitution. |

|27. |REVIEW OF THE COUNCIL’S CONSTITUTION AND CHANGES TO OFFICER RESPONSIBILITIES |

| |The following motion proposed by R I N Gordon and duly seconded, was CARRIED:- |

| |That Council:- |

| | |

| |designates the statutory posts in the new structure as follows:- |

| |Chief Executive and Director of Environment – Head of Paid Service |

| |Deputy Director Environment Highways and Transport (operations) – Traffic Manager; |

| | |

| |approves the proposed changes to the Constitution as set out in the report and the addendum to the report; |

| | |

| |authorises the Chief Legal Officer to make any amendments necessary to ensure that the changes mentioned in |

| |(a) and (b) above are reflected consistently throughout the Constitution; and |

| | |

| |agrees to vary Annex 6 Standing Order 1(2) so that in 2012 an ordinary meeting of the Council can be held on |

| |a weekday in October or November on a date to be determined by the Chairman in consultation with Group |

| |Leaders, such meeting to be in lieu of the meeting scheduled for 27 November 2012. |

|28. |ITEMS OF BUSINESS REQUESTED BY MEMBERS UNDER STANDING ORDER 6 (2) (m) |

| |There were none. |

|29. |NOTICES OF MOTION – STANDING ORDER 9 (5) |

| |R G Tindall withdrew the motion printed on the agenda. |

| | |

KATHRYN PETTITT

Chief Legal Officer

ANNEX A

Chairman’s Report

Due to the difficult financial times the County Council is experiencing, I decided not to host a Garden Party last year, instead hosting just one Garden Party during my term as Chairman.

However, I did not want to miss out on meeting and thanking the voluntary organisations and members of County Council staff who have worked tirelessly throughout the year. I therefore asked each of you (councillors), chief officers and the Lieutenancy to put forward individuals, organisations and members of staff whom you felt deserved recognition for their dedication and hard work, and as a result I had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people and find out about the fascinating work they are undertaking all for the benefit of Hertfordshire’s residents.

17 and 18 October

ADD-vance is a constituted voluntary organisation in Hertfordshire to support and empower adults, children and families with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and related conditions.

HMP The Mount Prison, on the outskirts of Bovingdon. The Mount is a Category C prison for men. The regime at the prison includes full and part-time education, workshops, training courses, farms and gardens, and a works department. Other features include listener groups (community based project to keep juveniles out of prison), a job skills course, and prisoner driven drug free meetings.

St Albans & Hertsmere and Welwyn Hatfield Women’s Refuges which aim to provide a safe comfortable, conflict free environment for women and women with children who are suffering domestic abuse. They provide advice and support on available options so as to enable a woman to make informed choices, feel more confident and take control of her and her children's lives and future.

Youthtalk, based in St Albans, provides a free and confidential counselling service to children and young people who may have concerns including family problems, lack of confidence, abuse, racism, sexism and bullying.

1 November

Hertfordshire is proud to be a host county for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the reception was an opportunity to recognise the achievements of those companies who have won a London 2012 contract. The reception brought companies together and provided an opportunity for them to share experiences and learn more about the work of the Hertfordshire is Ready for Winners Partnership.

The companies to have won London 2012 contracts range from a soft furnishing fabrics company to a provider of energy efficient heating systems.

1 December

Former Waste Procurement Team - They were disbanded immediately after the contract was signed so a reception was the chance to say a more formal thank you.

12 December

A reception for members of staff who received the “You’re a Star” award during 2011.

In an organisation like Hertfordshire, I believe that our people are our greatest assets. Without our staff none of the excellent services that so many residents depend on, day in day out, would be possible, so it’s important that the hard work and dedication of our staff is recognised. And it is in these challenging and uncertain times that recognising the contributions of the organisation's greatest assets – its people – is vital.

14 December

Facilities and Post Room staff. I particularly wanted to say a ‘thank you’ to the members of staff behind the scenes who keep County Hall running.

16 January

The Community Safety Unit at Farnham House for their excellent multi-agency working between the Unit (Drugs & Alcohol, Domestic violence etc) Police, Fire, Probation and CPS.

The Unit, being a joint partnership unit between Hertfordshire County Council (including Hertfordshire Fire and Rescue Service) and Hertfordshire Constabulary is the first of its kind in the country, and it is excellent to see partners in Hertfordshire once again leading the way.

By having these key organisations work so closely together, the Unit is able to provide a joined up approach to effectively deal with the issues that affect people’s lives. Ideas, best practice and resources are all shared, saving time and money, which is a very positive outcome for the county and the best use of public monies.

13 March

Corporate Communications - Last year the team went through a reorganisation, reducing numbers, a change in senior managers, and the introduction of new ways of working. The reorganisation has provided the opportunity for new talent to shine through and greater energy and ideas to flourish.  

22 March

I met with staff involved with Transformation Programme: Workstream Managers, Lead Officers for finance, HR, IT etc and departmental representatives – the "core team" that support Roger Barrett as Programme Manager and Mike Parsons. 

The transformation programme has been in place to support reduction in the cost of running the Council since early 2010.   The way in which the programme has been led and managed has seen us maintain services to the citizens of Hertfordshire.   Innovation and openness to change by all staff across the organisation has really helped to deliver efficiencies in what we do and, where necessary, to re-shape the structure of the organisation.

5 April

I wanted to congratulate Wendy Kemp on winning the Eastern Region Final of the School Chef of the Year Competition, and thank the Herts Catering Team for all their hard work over the past year.

Wendy, the cook at Malvern Way Infant and Nursery School, represented Hertfordshire County Council's catering service at the eastern regional heat, on 9 February. Each contestant had to create a tasty and nutritious main course and dessert suitable for an 11-year-old-pupil for no more than £1.50 per head. Wendy’s imaginative ‘East meets West’ menu won her the Eastern Region title, and she will go on to the national final on 23 May.

Hertfordshire Catering also won The London 2012 Inspired Mark for their Gold Medal menu Challenge.

The programme, which ran for 2 weeks, offered a different daily menu, themed to one of the Olympic nations. Enormous care was taken to get the menus right. The marketing team had attended cook meetings for over a year and meal ideas were tested on pupils – guaranteeing winning menus.

As a result of the Gold Medal Challenge Menu, Hertfordshire Catering’s March 2012 figures indicated a meal take-up of over 50% for the first time ever, with a staggering 40,000 extra meals served during the month. Over 30,000 extra meals were served during the promotion, and then a further 10,000 (circa) meals were served during the remainder of the month, speaking volumes for the sustainability of the scheme.

The total meals served during March alone was just under the

one million mark.

25 April

The British Canoe Union were formally welcomed to Hertfordshire on 25 April. The British Olympic Association confirmed the BCU's slalom team on the very same day, so it was wonderful that Hertfordshire County Council had the opportunity to congratulate the team on the day the athletes (Lizzie Neave, David Florence, Richard Hounslow, Tim Baillie, and Etienne Stott) were selected and we wish them well for the 2012 Games.

Jane Pitman OBE DL

Chairman of the Council

May 2012

ANNEX B

WRITTEN QUESTIONS TO EXECUTIVE MEMBERS – STANDING ORDER 7 (6)

1. Written question from I Brandon to S Pile, Executive Member for Highways and Transport:

“How many complaints has the council received regarding the part-night street lighting scheme thus far and could the figures be broken down by borough or, if possible, by division?”

S Pile has replied as follows:

“Between the start of the implementation works for part-night lighting in June 2011 and end of April 2012, the Customer Service Centre (CSC) has recorded 1,752 enquiry calls on the matter. The Customer Services Manager has dealt with 350 escalated emails (i.e. emails that cannot be dealt with by CSC staff) and there have been 200 letters.  These figures are county-wide totals and cannot be broken down by borough or division. 

The CSC does not record the initial emails by subject matter to the level of PNL and no figures are available. 

It should be noted that council's formal complaints procedure specifically excludes complaints over policy and that part-night lighting is council policy.”  

Minute 22.6 refers

|Cabinet Member | |

|Children’s Services |Richard Roberts |

| |County Councillor |

| | |

| |County Hall |

| |Postal Point: CH0147 |

| |Pegs Lane |

| |Hertford |

| |SG13 8DE |

| | |

| |Tel 01992 556557 |

| |Fax 01992 556575 |

| | |

| |email: richard.roberts@.uk |

25 May 2012

Dear Nigel

Thank you for the question you asked at the recent County Council meeting.

The position in January 2012, when the 'count' is done was as follows:

|Total pupils in Hertfordshire schools |179,971 |

|Nb 1 | |

|Pupils at ‘School Action’ (see overleaf) |17,612 |

|Nb 2 | |

|Pupils at ‘School Action Plus’ |9,870 |

|Nb 3 | |

|Pupils with Statements of SEN |3,749 |

|Nb 4 | |

Nb 1 These figures are all based on where pupils go to school, not where they live, as required by the Government. So a small number of pupils from neighbouring authorities are included.

Nb 2 These pupils are identified by schools as needing additional provision or support using the schools own resources.

Nb 3 These pupils are also identified by schools but need support from services outside the school.

You may be aware that the Government intends to replace School Action and School Action Plus with a new single school-based SEN category for pupils whose needs exceed what is normally available in schools.

Nb 4 The Government is also proposing to replace Statements of SEN with a single Education, Health and Care plan.

I hope this information helps you.

Yours sincerely,

[pic]

Richard Roberts

School Action

If a child does not make progress through the school's normal teaching arrangements, the teacher will discuss this with parents and will also talk to the school Special Educational needs Co-ordinator (SENCO)

An Individual Education Plan (IEP) (or another planning and review document) may be drawn up which will include information about:

• short term targets

• teaching methods

• any additional resources

• when the plan is to be reviewed

For younger children there is a similar process called "Early Years Action" which involves staff from any early years setting that he or she attends.

School Action Plus

When a child does not make adequate progress at School Action, the school may need to seek additional help or advice from an outside specialist such as an educational psychologist or advisory teacher. This level of intervention is called "School Action Plus".

A parallel process operates for pre-school children known as "Early Years

Action Plus"

Statutory Assessment

A small number of children do not make sufficient progress at School Action Plus and need further specialist assessment and/or help. The school or the parent may request that the Local Authority undertakes a statutory assessment.

This is a legal process which must follow procedures and timescales set out in the 1996 Education Act and 2001 SEN Code of Practice. In Hertfordshire we have made sure that funds and services are provided in schools and other settings so that as many children and young people as possible can have their needs effectively met at School Action and School Action Plus without the need for a Statutory Assessment

Statements

In the small number of cases where a statutory assessment is necessary we may decide we need to write down all the information we have collected in a document called a Statement of Special Educational Needs. A statement will describe all a child's Special Educational Needs and the help that the child should receive.

A Statement of Special Educational Needs is a legal document, and must be reviewed at least annually

Minute 25 refers

| |Tel: 01992 556600 |

|County Councillor John Lloyd |Fax: 01992 555625 |

| | |

| |My ref: DL/JH |

| | |

| |Date: 25 May 2012 |

Dear Cllr Lloyd,

In answer to the question you put to me at Council on Tuesday 15 May, I now have the following answer.

• For year April 2011 to March 2012 Hertfordshire Constabulary recorded 62,251 crimes in the county.

• The sanction detection rate for April 2011 to March 2012 was 34.7% for all recorded crime.

The Home Office define about 150 individual crime offences.  They also define crime groupings.  Three of these groups define ‘serious’ crime and have the following definitions:

Serious Violent Crime – include (but not limited to) the offences of murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, causing death by dangerous driving, grievous bodily harm, wounding or carrying out act to endanger life.

Serious Sexual Offences – include (but not limited to) the offences of rape (various age and gender categories), indecent assault, trafficking for sexual exploitation.

Serious Acquisitive Crime – burglary in a dwelling, aggravated burglary in a dwelling, aggravated vehicle taking, theft from vehicle, theft or unauthorised taking of a motor vehicle, robbery of business property and robbery of personal property.

The Constabulary’s sanction detection rates for these three crime groupings for year 2011/12 were:

Serious Violent Crime 54.5%

Serious Sexual Offences 33.6%

Serious Acquisitive Crime 15.1%

This performance can be compared to other forces using Hertfordshire Constabulary’s Most Similar Force (*MSF) comparisons.  The following are Hertfordshire Constabulary’s MSF positions:

Serious Violent Crime ranked 3rd

Serious Sexual Offences ranked 3rd

Serious Acquisitive Crime ranked 4th

Hertfordshire Constabulary was ranked 1st for All Crime sanctions detections within its MSF group.  Nationally it was 9th place out of the 43 police forces in England and Wales for the period April 2011 to Dec 2011 for All Crime sanction detections. This shows the Constabulary’s performance in this area is in the top quartile in the country.

*MSF is a group of police forces defined by the Home Office with similar socio-demographic characteristics to Hertfordshire. The grouping enables us to put performance into context by allowing like-with-like comparisons. The other forces in our MSF are; Bedfordshire, Essex, Kent, Sussex, Hampshire, Avon & Somerset and Thames Valley. Rankings for recorded crimes are usually based on 3 month rolling number of crimes per 1,000 population. Detection rates are usually based on a rolling 12 month percentage.

Yours sincerely,

David Lloyd

Chairman

-----------------------

Councillor Nigel Bell

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