_Agenda
North Lanarkshire Council · 15 December 2022
Back to Council — 15 December 2022 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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AGENDA (1) Declarations of Interest in terms of the Ethical Standards in Public Life Etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 (2) Minutes of Meetings of Committees, Sub-Committees and Panels - Cycle 4 Submit volume of minutes of meetings of committees, sub-committees and panels for cycle 4 for approval in terms of standing order number 21(copy to follow) (3) Membership of Committees, Sub-Committees, Panels and Outside Bodies Submit proposed amendments to Membership of Committees, Sub-Committees, Panels and Outside Bodies (copy to follow) (4) Use of Proxy Votes by Elected Members Absent Due to Family Leave (page 7 - 12) Submit report by the Head of Legal and Democratic Solutions providing clarification on the use of Proxy Votes at Council meetings for elected members who may be absent due to family leave (copy herewith) (5) Remit from Education, Children and Families Committee held on 22 November 2022 - Appointment of Teacher Representative (page 13 - 18) Submit report by the Head of Legal and Democratic Solutions seeking approval to appoint a Teacher Representative for the Primary Sector (copy herewith) (6) Home to School Transport Provision - Review (page 19 - 46) Submit report by the Head of Education (North) providing details of the contents of a preliminary internal review of home to school transport by the Council and the preliminary joint review by the Council/SPT (copy herewith) NOTICE OF MOTIONS (7) Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor A Stubbs and Councillor Larson “This Council agrees to carry out a full consultation to include, but not necessarily limited to, Pupils, Pupil Councils, Parents, Parent Councils, Teachers, Teachers' Unions, Support Staff and Support Staff Unions seeking opinion on the current school holiday cycles. The consultation should seek views on the possibility of reducing the summer break and increasing the October break to two weeks, the February break to one week and/or an extension to the Christmas break, as well as any other proposals from stakeholders. The consultation should be completed, and a report brought to the Council meeting in June 2023. It is acknowledged that any change to school holiday cycles as a result of this consultation would likely not be in place until at least the 2024/25 academic year”
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2 (8) Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Mitchell and Councillor Toner “North Lanarkshire Council recognises that menstruation is a subject that continues to suffer great stigma especially in the workplace, which in turn is damaging to the needs of people who menstruate. This Council further recognises that conditions such as PCOS, endometriosis and other abnormal menstruation conditions with debilitating symptoms are incredibly common but often remain hidden by individuals out of fear or embarrassment. As a major employer, the Council has a duty to ensure that there is sufficient training, guidance, safe spaces and accessible resources to ensure that both employees and users of council services, for example young people in schools, feel supported and ensure their employment or academic performance is not affected. The Council recognises that the majority of their workforce are women, many of whom will menstruate for much of their lives, and so support for those who menstruate should be commonplace. This Council will investigate the feasibility and consequences of implementing a menstruation policy for both workplaces and schools. Such policy should consider suitable training and ample resources be in place for managers and teachers to support those who menstruate without stigma or embarrassment. Further, guidance will be considered which seeks to allow for suitable adjustments to be made for pupils and employees who menstruate, for example, a right to paid leave or time away from education for up to 3 days with prior medical agreement where required. Subsequently, findings and recommendations will be brought to the Wellbeing and Tackling Poverty Committee by Autumn 2023. Menstruation and bleeding should not disadvantage any individual, and North Lanarkshire Council commits to supporting those who do so by destigmatising the pain and challenges that often comes with menstruation” (9) Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Fotheringham and Councillor Toner “North Lanarkshire Council agrees that schools must consider the current cost of living crisis when organising ‘educational’ trips to prevent widening of the attainment gap; organised excursions, particularly abroad, must provide educational benefit and affordability to all families” (10) Notice of Motions submitted by Councillor Smith and Councillor Hughes This Council recognises the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals, families, workers, and communities throughout North Lanarkshire, with 2,261 people in North Lanarkshire having either died directly from COVID-19 or with COVID-19 as an underlying cause of death between 1st March 2020 and 31st October 2022. This Council reiterates its support for the Remembering Together project, managed by Greenspace Scotland and funded by the Scottish Government, which will result in memorial projects in each local authority across Scotland, aiming to bring together communities and artists in reflection, hope, and healing in commemoration and remembrance. This Council notes the Country Parks for the Future paper presented to the Environment and Transportation Committee meeting on 9th February 2022, where Strathclyde Country Park was “proposed as the location for North Lanarkshire’s Covid Memorial”, however also notes no alternative options were presented to committee. Initial public consultation has taken place throughout North Lanarkshire ahead of design proposals being prepared around March 2023, with a further round of consultation to follow before procurement, and with the intention for the memorial to be installed late summer/autumn 2023.
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3 This Council also notes the progress and options being implemented for Covid commemoration in other local authorities, including East Dunbartonshire Council where it has been acknowledged and agreed that one memorial would not be appropriate in representing communities with very different identities and “a trail of smaller memorials that have their own identity but are linked could be one way to have a Covid memorial that represents a wide range of experiences”. This Council agrees to utilise the information and feedback from the public consultation work already completed to arrange for the design and installation of one Covid memorial within each Community Board area, to better represent the experiences and identities of communities across North Lanarkshire and to ensure any memorial and acts of remembrance can be more accessible and visible to the wider population. Further information will be presented to the Community Board meetings in quarter 1 of 2023 and to the Environment and Climate Change Committee meeting on 8th February 2023” (11) Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Carragher and Councillor Keltie “This Council agrees that all North Lanarkshire Council tenants will be contacted by letter or email (if email address held) to request any concerns they may have in relation to mould, damp or condensation within their home. This Council agrees the wording of this correspondence will be formulated in consultation with the Leaders of political groups. This Council will investigate all reports and commence immediate works to rectify any issues found. To monitor progress, updates will be submitted to the Housing committee with the aim of this exercise being completed by the summer of 2023” (12) Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Logue and Councillor Kelly “Council agrees that standing order 31 be amended, as undernoted:- Any Motion, Amendment or Composite shall be required to meet the criteria of Competency, Relevancy and Affordability. Prior to submission, any of the aforementioned must contain full details of (i) associated costs and (ii) how such costs will be funded. In addition, whilst recognising that the Council has an annual fixed limited budget, any consequential detriment to previously agreed commitments also requires to be highlighted (This to be verified by the Section 95 Officer, or another officer delegated by them for that purpose). Any Motion, Amendment or Composite that fails to demonstrate the above shall be deemed by the Provost as not competent in accordance with Standing Orders 23 and 24” QUESTIONS (13) Questions Received in Terms of Standing Order 51 (page 47 - 47) Submit three Questions Received in Terms of Standing Order 51 (copy herewith)