Chris Lee provided an introduction to the item and highlighted that the majority of reds on the performance data were linked to an increase in volumes of waste over the last year. The council have subsequently had to send more waste to landfill. The proportion of waste however remains stagnant. There has also been an increase in fly tipping. This is a national trend and a report from DEFRA shows this to be the case. In addition there is a customer satisfaction issue as there is a perception amongst residents about cleanliness.

Councillor Stan Anderson asked if an increase in bulky waste collection might tackle the increase in fly tipping. Chris Lee explained that it would be difficult to state what the impact would be. Councillor Russell Makin asked what was being done to try to reduce residents fly tipping. Chris Lee informed the Panel that advice and guidance had been issued to households to try and change behaviour and where this persists the council will take action.

Councillor Abigail Jones asked what the turnaround time was between a resident requesting a bulky waste collection and the actual collection. Cormac Stokes explained that there had been problems in the early summer and extra vehicles were put on to respond to demand. The council is now back to its regular collection schedule. Bulky waste is collected on the same day as other waste and the turnaround time is normally within a week.

Councillor David Dean added that we need to be clear with residents about all types of waste collection, including recycling, to encourage them not to fly tip and to increase the rates of recycling. He also asked if putting all waste in a black bag to be sorted was the answer. Cormac Stokes explained that whilst the council would like to encourage people to recycle, they would have difficulty enforcing what people put into black sacks and there would be an additional cost for officer time sorting this waste.

Councillor Ross Garrod asked about the target relating to outdoor events income and why performance in this area didn’t appear to be on track due to the income standing at £2023.00 only. Chris Lee explained that the income for the service can come in at different times each month and therefore this is not reflective of the actual income to date. The department do achieve this income target annually.

Councillor Ross Garrod asked about the income target for Merton Adult Education. Yvonne Tomlin explained that there had been changes to the funding method for the service and that the income profile did not reflect the income achieved this year. However, a slight underachievement of income was expected due to issues regarding match funding.

Councillor Ross Garrod asked if the reduction in the grant for the service had been scaled back nationally. Yvonne Tomlin confirmed that this was the case.

Councillor John Sargeant stated that he was aware that the underperformance against the indicators for planning was reflective of a service that, in the past, had insufficient resources allocated to it and a high staff turnover which has negatively impacted on what can be achieved. He asked if this was still the case.

James McGinlay explained that additional resources had been put into the development control team due to an increase in the volume of applications. Performance has started to pick up in this area; however, the department will continue to monitor this. Councillor John Sargeant asked if these resources were available for the longer term. James McGinlay confirmed that resources had been allocated for a two year period at this stage. It is difficult to recruit and there is a high turnover of staff. However, the financial commitment for staffing has been made within the budget.

RESOLVED: Panel noted the performance data tabled.