WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COUNCIL

At the Meeting of West Dunbartonshire Council held in the Council Chamber, Clydebank Town Hall, Dumbarton Road, Clydebank on Wednesday, 29 April 2015 at 2.10 p.m.

Present: Provost Douglas McAllister and Councillors Denis Agnew, George Black, Jim Bollan, Jim Brown, Gail Casey, Jim Finn, William Hendrie, David McBride, Jonathan McColl, Michelle McGinty, *Patrick McGlinchey, Marie McNair, John Millar, John Mooney, Ian Murray, Lawrence O’Neill, Tommy Rainey, Gail Robertson, Martin Rooney, Kath Ryall and Hazel Sorrell.

* Attended later in the meeting.

Attending: Joyce White, Chief Executive; Angela Wilson, Executive Director of Corporate Services; Richard Cairns, Executive Director of Infrastructure and Regeneration, Chris McNeill, Head of Community Health & Care Services; Jackie Irvine, Head of Children’s Health, Care & Criminal Justice; Laura Mason, Head of Educational Services; Peter Hessett, Head of Legal, Democratic & Regulatory Services; Stephen West, Head of Finance & Resources; Peter Barry, Head of Customer & Community Services; Craig Jardine, Capital Investment Programme Manager; Joe Reilly, Business Partner and Craig Stewart, Committee Officer.

Also Attending: Chief Superintendent Helen Swann, Divisional Commander, ‘L’ Division, Police Scotland; Chief Inspector Mark Lundie, Area Commander , Police Scotland; Ms Elaine Boyd, Senior Audit Manager and Mr Laurence Slavin, Senior Auditor, Audit Scotland.

Provost Douglas McAllister in the Chair

CHAIR’S REMARKS

Prior to commencing with the business of the meeting, Provost McAllister welcomed Chief Superintendent Helen Swann and Chief Inspector Mark Lundie, Police Scotland and Ms Elaine Boyd and Mr Laurence Slavin, Audit Scotland to the meeting.

Note: Councillor McGlinchey entered the meeting at this point.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS

The Minutes of Meetings of West Dunbartonshire Council held on (a) 4 February 2015 (Ordinary); (b) 18 February 2015 (Requisitioned, adjourned to 25 February 2015); (c) 25 February 2015 (Special); and (d) 25 February 2015 (Adjourned Requisition) were submitted and approved as a correct record, subject to the

Following discussion, it was agreed to note that the Standing Item on the ‘Clyde Valley City Deal’ had not been included on the agenda for this meeting. The Council then heard a verbal update from the Executive Director of Infrastructure and Regeneration and the Chief Executive, the terms of which were noted. A question and answer session then took place, following which Council also agreed to note that a report on the ‘Clyde Valley City Deal’ would be submitted to the June Council meeting for Members’ consideration.

MINUTES OF MEETING OF WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COMMUNITY HEALTH & CARE PARTNERSHIP/SHADOW INTEGRATION JOINT BOARD

The Minutes of Meeting of the West Dunbartonshire Community Health & Care Partnership/Shadow Integration Joint Board held on 18 February 2015 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

MINUTES OF MEETING OF AUDIT & PERFORMANCE REVIEW COMMITTEE

The Minutes of Meeting of the Audit & Performance Review Committee held on 11 March 2015 were submitted and approved as a correct record, subject to the following correction:-

With regard to the item under the heading ‘Local Government Benchmarking Framework 2013/14’, it was agreed that the minute be amended to reflect that any performance indicators above 15 (i.e. 16 – 32) would be the subject of a further report to the Audit & Performance Review Committee.

PRESENTATION BY POLICE SCOTLAND – LOCAL POLICING IN WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE

A presentation was made by Chief Superintendent Helen Swann, Divisional Commander, Police Scotland, on Local Policing in West Dunbartonshire.

In noting the content of the Divisional Commander’s presentation, Members also took the opportunity to ask questions on a wide range of current and future issues in relation to policing and the impact on the community in West Dunbartonshire.

Following the presentation and the question and answer session, Provost McAllister, on behalf of Council, thanked Chief Superintendent Swann and Chief Inspector Lundie for their full response to questions and for their comprehensive presentation.

OPEN FORUM

The Council noted that no open forum questions have been submitted by members of the public.

STANDARDS COMMISSION FOR SCOTLAND: DECISION OF THE HEARING PANEL OF THE COMMISSION

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Corporate Services inviting Council to consider the decision of the Standards Commission for Scotland in respect of Councillor Black dated 5 March 2015.

Councillor Rooney, seconded by Councillor McGlinchey moved:-

Council notes the report as per the recommendation.

This Council values all Council employees and believes that in accordance with the Councillors Code of Conduct they should be treated with dignity and respect at all times.

Elected Members should treat all officers of the Council with courtesy at all times and should avoid being critical of officers in public.

As integral part of the acceptance of elected office, requires newly elected members to sign up to the Councillors Code of Conduct.

However, the Respondent in the Standards Commission Hearing Report claims that the local authority had provided no training on the councillors Code of Conduct. This is not accurate.

At 4.2 in the Executive Directors report clearly shows that on 11th May, 2012 Elected Members were given training on the Code of Conduct as part of the Induction Training.

In addition a copy of the guidance was in the Induction Pack provided to all Elected Members.

Furthermore, the Councillors Code of Conduct is an integral part of the Councils Standing Orders which have been reviewed on a regular basis since 2007.

Council also notes that West Dunbartonshire provides an extensive training programme for Elected Members covering a wide range of issues and the feedback form provides an opportunity for Elected Members to request training on any subject they believe may help them in carrying out their public duties.

Given the above this Council asks the Chief Executive to write to the Standards Commission detailing the efforts made by the Council to raise awareness of the code.

Furthermore the Council asks the Executive Director to add a seminar on the Councillors Code of Conduct in the 2015/16 training plan, to help reinforce the standards of behaviour for Elected Members.

As an amendment Councillor McColl, seconded by Councillor Black moved:-

That Council notes the contents of the report.

On a vote being taken, 10 Members voted for the amendment and 12 for the motion which was declared carried.

REVIEW OF COUNCIL WARDS

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Corporate Services to agree Council’s response to the Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland on their proposals for wards within West Dunbartonshire.

At this point, Provost McAllister agreed to vary the order of business and take the motion by Councillor McColl on the same subject matter.

Having heard Councillor McColl, the Council agreed:-

To instruct the Chief Legal Officer to include in our response to the latest proposals, the rest of which we accept, the following observation and suggestions:

The proposal for the boundary between wards one and two requires Alexandria Town Centre to be split in two. This not only applies to residential properties, but also to the shopping centre whereby one half of the main street would be in Lomond Ward with the other half in Leven Ward.

While this may be convenient for the purpose of population based electorate boundaries, it would cause significant logistical and administration issues for local Councillors and the Council as a whole when it comes to responsibilities and remits around town centre planning and consultations.

It should be noted that the current boundary is also anomalous in that each side of Wilson Street is in different wards and in order to access India Street in Lomond Ward, you have to enter and leave Leven Ward.

We would suggest the following changes to the boundaries, which we believe allows local communities to remain intact while preserving the integrity of the boundary redesign process with cognisance of the +/-10% population variance requirement.

The boundary to the West from the corner of Park Street and Main Street (B857) Alexandria should continue South, bearing East towards the River Leven down the centre of North Street and passing to the North of, and not encompassing, India Street.

This solves a number of issues with the current and proposed boundary on the West side of the River Leven.

• It ensures that the Alexandria Town Centre community remains whole. • It avoids complications with the main shopping centre being split down the Main Road. • It moves India Street into Leven Ward as part of the Town Centre, which it is. • There being no current or planned residential property on the North side of North Street, it moves all of Wilson Street into Lomond Ward without further complication elsewhere.

In order to meet the population variation target of +/-10% the boundary on the East side of the River Leven could be amended to bring The Lade, Oakbank Gardens and the handful of houses at the foot of Auchincarroch Road back into Lomond Ward as they are at present.

The attached maps (Appendix 1) show where we suggest the new boundary should be. They are superimposed upon LGBCS maps of the current 2007 boundaries (figure 1) and the 5 th review proposals from March 3 rd 2015 (figure 2).

From where we left off in the vicinity of India Street, the boundary should make its way to the centre of the River Leven from where it should follow the current boundary until it joins the proposed 5 th review boundary part way along Auchincarroch Road. From here we are happy that it follows the new proposed boundary.

AUTHORITY TO EXECUTE CONTRACTS WITH HUBWEST SCOTLAND LIMITED

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Infrastructure and Regeneration seeking to obtain specific delegated authority for the signature by authorised officers of the Council of the contract documentation utilised in contracts with hub West Scotland Limited (hWS) for the delivery of a number of Capital Projects.

Councillor McGlinchey, seconded by Councillor McColl moved:-

Council agrees the recommendations contained in the report as follows:

That, subject to being satisfied that the terms of the proposed contract represent an appropriate allocation of risk and Best Value for the Council, and therefore that the contracts for the development of facilities should be awarded to hWS, Peter Hessett, Head of Legal, Democratic and Regulatory Services, Alan Douglas, Manager of Legal Services, Sally Michael and Nigel Ettles, both Section Heads within Legal Services, or their successors in office, be authorised to sign the Design & Build Development Agreement (DBDA) and associated documentation, associated with the following projects:-

(a) The replacement Clydebank Leisure Centre, Queens Quay, Clydebank; (b) Dumbarton Care Home, Crosslet, Dumbarton; (c) Bellsmyre Schools Project, Howatshaws Road, Bellsmyre, Dumbarton; (d) Kilpatrick School, Mountblow Road, Clydebank; and (e) New Office Building, Church Street, Dumbarton

During consideration of this item, the Executive Director of Infrastructure and Regeneration, Capital Investment Programme Manager and the Chief Executive were heard in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions.

As an amendment Councillor Bollan, seconded by Councillor Black moved:-

That there be no further delegation to senior officers of the Council and that a sub-committee be established to make any decisions on this matter.

On a vote being taken, 2 Members voted for the amendment and 20 for the motion which was declared carried.

LOCAL SCRUTINY PLAN 2015-16

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Corporate Services providing information on the Local Scrutiny Plan for 2015-16 which has recently been published by Audit Scotland.

Councillor Rooney, seconded by Councillor McColl moved:-

That Council:-

Notes the Local Scrutiny Plan for 2015-16 and the Council actions attached at Appendix 2 of the Report.

Pass on its thanks to the Audit and Risk Manager, and his team along with the External Auditors from Audit Scotland for their work and commitment in the drawing up of this report.

This is a very positive report for West Dunbartonshire Council from Audit Scotland and reflects the hard work and dedication of our staff.

The Audit Scotland Report states: “The LAN maintains its view that the Council are continuing to make good progress and demonstrate a strong commitment to best value. There is evidence of strong leadership, a clear vision and a focus on continuous improvement. In the 2014-2017 Assurance and Improvement Plan the LAN did not identify any areas where specific scrutiny activity was required.”

This statement shows how far the council has progressed over recent years and should provide confidence to the public that we continue to improve the services we provide to them. The report from Audit Scotland does identify three areas where continued focus will be required, namely 9i) Housing & Homelessness; (ii) People Management; and (iii) Efficiency.

In terms of Efficiency, the Council like every local authority in Scotland will continue with its focus on the effective management of reducing budgets.

In relation to Housing & Homelessness, plans are in place by the department to address voids and rent arrears.

For people management the biggest challenge remains the persistently high absence rate and the Council will continue to work with the trades unions to tackle this and improve attendance.

The Local Scrutiny Plan Scorecard will allow departments to monitor progress over the coming financial year and will be scrutinised by Elected Members.

As an amendment Councillor Black, seconded by Councillor Bollan moved:-

That the Council agree the recommendations in the report to note the Local Scrutiny Plan for 2015-16 and the Council actions that were attached as Appendix 2 to the report.

On a vote being taken, 2 Members voted for the amendment and 19 for the motion which was declared carried.

Note: Councillor McNair left the meeting during consideration of this item.

GENERAL SERVICES BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 28 FEBRUARY 2015 (PERIOD 11)

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Corporate Services advising on the progress of both the General Services revenue budget 2014/15 and the approved capital programme for the period to 28 February 2015, in order to allow Members to monitor performance.

After discussion and having heard the Chief Executive, Executive Director of Corporate Services and the Head of Finance & Resources in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Council agreed:-

(1) to note that the revenue account currently shows a projected annual favourable variance of £1.048m (0.48% of the total budget); and

(2) to note that the capital account shows a projected annual favourable variance of £10.021m (23.62% of the budget) and a projected project life adverse variance £4.604m (2.25% of project life budget).

Note: Councillor Millar left the meeting during consideration of this item.

HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 28 FEBRUARY 2015 (PERIOD 11)

A report was submitted by the Executive Director of Infrastructure and Regeneration providing an update on the financial performance to 28 February 2015 (Period 11) of the HRA revenue and capital budgets.

The Council agreed:-

(1) to note the projected annual favourable revenue variance of £0.431m (1.1% of the total budget); and

(2) to note the projected favourable annual capital variance of £9.224m (21.5%), £0.736m (1.7%) of which is an underspend and £8.488m (19.8%) represents project rephasing.

NOTICES OF MOTION

(a) Motion by Councillor Gail Casey on The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, TTIP.

This Council notes that:

• The Transatlantic Trade & Investment Partnership (TTIP) is currently being negotiated by the US and the EU supposedly to pursue the interest of free trade.

• TTIP negotiations are being conducted behind closed doors between representatives of the US and EU without transparency or democratic accountability; which has been a cause of concern for the public, civil society organisations and representative organisations of the Council’s staff including Unite.

• TTIP would open up access to government procurement markets and eliminate preferential treatment to local suppliers and introduce investment protection provisions that include Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanisms which would allow investors to challenge state actions which they perceive as threatening to their investment.

• ISDS mechanisms allow for disputes between investors and governments to be heard by a panel of “experts” rather than resolved in the host state’s courts; the United Nations Conference on Trade & Development (UNCTD) recently explained that “foreign investors have recently used ISDS claims to challenge measures adopted by states in the public interest (for example, policies to promote social equality, foster environment protection or protect public health).”

This Council believes that:

• The likely outcomes of TTIP will be catastrophic for public services as US and EU representatives are negotiating to hand over the right to regulate in the public interest with transparency and accountability to their electorates.

• The ISDS mechanism would make it very hard, if not impossible, for any government to reverse liberalisation and privatisation without being sued by foreign investors; so whatever voters actually wanted, the trade treaty would place major barriers in the way of government giving expression to the democratic will.

This Council resolves:

• To write to the Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Business, Innovation & Skills raising our serious concerns about TTIP.

• To write to COSLA to urge them to alert all Scottish local authorities of the potential dangers of TTIP.

• Offer support to the campaign by Unite which is drawing attention to the potential impact of TTIP.

The Council agreed to approve the above motion.

(b) Motion by Councillor Jim Bollan on Strathclyde Pension Fund Investment

Council agrees to encourage the members of the Strathclyde Pension Fund Committee not to invest any funds in Lockheed Martin the largest military contractor in the World who manufacture Trident, Cluster Bombs and F-16 Fighter Jets or Raytheon who sell weapons to the Israeli Government. Raytheon weapons were used by Israel in the 2014 invasion of Gaza during which 2,000 Palestinians were killed.

Council calls on the Strathclyde Pension Fund to invest in ventures where the yield to the fund is similar or higher, but where the venture is constructive rather than destructive.

The Council agreed to approve the above motion.

(c) Motion by Councillor David McBride on Support for the continuity of Police HQ at Dumbarton

Councillor McBride, seconded by Councillor Agnew, moved:-

Council notes the financial challenges faced by Police Scotland following the merger of local police forces and the creation of the national force. Despite significant cost cutting Police Scotland are still faced with making millions of pounds worth of cuts. In 2014 Police Scotland closed Garelochhead Police Station and reduced the opening times for Dumbarton Police Station. In addition they closed Alexandria Police Station in March 2014 and promised that investment in IT systems in the One-Stop-Shop would allow Police officers to operate from these premises.

At present Police officers only hold “surgeries” in the One-Stop-Shop for 9 hours per week. It is noted however that a Schedule of Terms was recently agreed with Police Scotland for the use of the upper floor accommodation of the One Stop Shop in Alexandria and legal have now been instructed to conclude the transaction.

The new proposal is the planned merger of Dunbartonshire Division (L) with Renfrewshire & Inverclyde Division (K) of Police Scotland. The proposed merger would create one of the largest police divisions in Scotland covering 3,100 square miles and 450,000 people. However the proposals take no account of the geography of the area and there is little evidence to suggest that the centralisation of these services would strengthen local policing as proposed.

In addition the proposed merger has caused a significant level of concern amongst local people with over 1,500 people signing a petition against the proposed merger.

This Council fully understands the public desire to retain local services and specifically the desire of local people to save Dumbarton Police HQ. Therefore the Council calls on Police Scotland to guarantee that Dumbarton Police HQ will be retained so that local police officers continue with the same level of facilities and can start and end their shift there.

As an amendment, Councillor McColl, seconded by Councillor Hendrie, moved:-

Despite the financial challenges, Council notes that Police Scotland have not reduced levels of service and indeed congratulates Police Scotland and the local divisional commander, on falling crime rates, increased confidence in the police and reducing the fear of crime in our communities.

Council notes that the police are continuing to consult with communities and local stakeholders and as part of that process, we agree that there are 4 key conditions that must be met if any merger plans come to fruition.

1. Any merger must not have a negative impact on local police numbers. 2. Any merger must not have a negative impact on day to day operations. 3. There must be publicly accessible police desks serving the Vale of Leven, Dumbarton and Clydebank communities. 4. There must not be any impediment to local officers carrying out their duties, including arrangements for the start and finish of shifts and on- duty local office access.

It should be noted that rather than properly represent her constituents, the local Labour MSP for Dumbarton has chosen instead to scaremonger and create sensationalist press articles to help facilitate some manufactured concern from the Labour Westminster candidate and this Council believes that is unacceptable.

Council notes that SNP and other Councillors as well as SNP MSPs have instead chosen to focus our efforts on lobbying Police Scotland on the above four points both locally and at a nation level and Council calls on the Administration to join these efforts to present a united front on this important issue.

Our focus must be ensuring that local crime rates continue to fall and local policing is properly supported rather than worrying about where senior managers’ offices are located.

On a vote being taken, 5 Members voted for the amendment and 14 for the motion which was declared carried.

(d) Motion by Councillor Jonathan McColl - Council Tax on Unoccupied Properties

Council notes the decision to exercise our right under the Local Government Finance (Unoccupied Properties, etc.) (Scotland) Act and related legislation to charge double Council Tax on empty homes, under certain circumstances, in an effort to reduce the number of unoccupied properties in West Dunbartonshire.

The Council's policy has been in force since April 2014 and we agree that it is appropriate to review its operation and impact on both the number of empty homes and Council Finances.

Councillors have received a number of ward enquiries from people adversely affected by the policy, despite doing everything in their power to occupy property in their ownership. The department are aware and sympathetic to these issues, however find their hands tied as they have no discretionary powers under the policy as set.

Therefore, Council instructs officers to bring a report to June Council to allow us to review the first year of operation and with recommendations as to how

Council may amend the policy to allow our professional officers to exercise discretion in its application.

The Council agreed to approve the above motion.

(e) Motion by Councillor George Black – Recruitment & Individual Performance Committee

Prior to consideration of the motion, the Council heard the Legal Officer advise to the effect that if the motion were passed there was a material risk the Council would be in breach of the Data Protection Act.

Councillor Black, then moved:-

Given that the make up of the Recruitment & Individual Performance Management Committee is not representative of the Council and does not reflect its make up.

This council is resolved in the interest of transparency that the overview of the Chief Executive's performance evaluation 14/15 and the proposed personal performance objectives and targets for 15/16 be made available to all elected members for information purposes.

This information should also include the performance, evaluation and targets set by the Chief Executive for the members of The Corporate Management team

Councillor McColl asked if Councillor Black would accept an addendum to his motion to add in after the sentence “.for information purposes” the words “subject to compliance with the Data Protection Act, and advice that we should seek from the Information Commissioner”. Councillor Black confirmed his acceptance to the addendum to the motion, which was then seconded by Councillor McColl.

As an amendment Councillor Agnew, seconded by Councillor Rooney, moved:-

That any decision to change the way the Recruitment and Individual Performance Management Committee carried out its work, would set a precedent, in terms of confidentiality, etc., and the Council should note the terms of the motion but takes no action.

On a vote being taken, 12 Members voted for the amendment and 7 for the motion which was declared carried.

Note: Councillor Finn left the meeting during consideration of the above item and did not take part in the vote.

(f) Motion by Councillor George Black –Request to deliver sustainable strategy

Councillor Black, seconded by Councillor Agnew moved:-

This Council charges the Corporate manage team to deliver a sustainable strategy with clear milestones which will remove this Council from the position it is currently in on the table of Scottish local authorities. It further recognises that we have not maintained or improved our ranking in these benchmarking tools but we have in fact dropped to last place.

This strategy should be worked up as a matter of urgency, with progress reported to all members monthly after the first quarter.

As an amendment, Councillor Rooney, seconded by Councillor McGlinchey, moved:-

Council notes that the Local Government Benchmarking Framework (LGBF) is one on many tools used to assess the performance of West Dunbartonshire Council, alongside indicators showing progress in delivering the strategic plan and supporting strategies, annual reporting of the Statutory Performance Indicator (SPI) suite and public performance reporting.

The 5 strategic priorities of the Council are supported by a balanced scorecard of 38 Performance Indicators, covering the priorities themselves and the success factors for their delivery. The SPI 1&2 suites contain a further 87 Performance Indicators, addressing a range of service areas. The Local Government Benchmarking Framework compliments and enhances the full range of performance data regularly used internally by the Council.

The organisational planning framework informs the development of departmental plans based on (i) information from benchmarking; (ii) wider service performance information; (iii) customer and employee feedback; (iv) financial information; and (v) workforce planning. This is underpinned by a robust approach to PDP and enhanced by our Be the Best strategy. The Be the Best strategy is also supported by a Performance Information suite to evidence performance – covering employee and resident satisfaction, processes and performance against target for the full range of Performance Indicators outlined above.

Performance against the Performance Indicators in department plans is reviewed regularly and an appraisal made of current progress at each year end point against future targets i.e. those set for 2017 delivery in the case of the strategic plan. This regular review feeds in to the planning cycle for the Council and also allows us to take prompt remedial actions where required.

The Local Government Benchmarking Framework is intended as a tool to help identify areas which require further focus, and that this work is carried out collaboratively through family groups of Local Authorities. The indicators within the Local Government Benchmarking Framework are used by each service area and directorate to inform future planning and any improvement actions required are embedded with service and department plans.

While the most recent publication of the Local Government Benchmarking Framework, for financial year 2013/14, was presented to the Audit &

Performance Review Committee on 11 th March clearly shows room for improvement. However, it should be noted that West Dunbartonshire Council was actually above the Scottish average for 31 of the 60 indicators published and saw improved year on year ranking in 28 of those indicators. Details of the Local Government Benchmarking Framework are attached to this Motion.

Council therefore agrees that the approach outlined above ensures that we are focused on continuously improving our performance as an organisation and on delivering best value services. Use of the benchmarking data, alongside all other data, is embedded in the strategic approach to planning and performance already in place for the organisation.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT BENCHMARKING PERFORMANCE 2013/14

Of the 60 Performance Indicators the Council performed above the Scottish average on 32 and below the average on 28 Performance Indicators.

In 2013/14 our ranking improved on 29 Performance Indicators and fell on 22 with 7 showing no change and the introduction of 2 new Performance Indicators with no data for 2013/14.

The Council uses the data to focus on continuous improvement and to inform the Departmental Plans.

Children’s Services • CHN1 Cost Per Primary School Pupil: WDC spends £5,473.4 per pupil compared to the Scottish average of £4,749.59. WDC spends £723.81 more per pupil. • CNH2 Cost Per Secondary School Pupil: WDC spends £6,586.57 per pupil compared to the Scottish average of £6,523.31. WDC spends £63.26 more per pupil. • CHN3 Cost Per Pre-School: WDC spends £3,644.24 per child compared to the Scottish average of £2,998.58. WDC spends £645.66more per pupil. • CHN4 Percentage of Pupils gaining 5 plus awards at level 5: WDC pupils achieved 32.44% compared to the Scottish average of 39.28%. WDC ranked 29 out of 32 Councils. • CHN5 Percentage of Pupils gaining 5 plus awards at level 6: WDC pupils achieved 24.49% compared to the Scottish average of 28.08%. WDC ranked 26 out of 32 Councils. This is an improvement on 2012/13 where we were ranked 31 out of 32. • CHN6 Percentage of Pupils from Deprived Areas Gaining 5+ Awards at Level 5 (SIMD) WDC 22.8% compared to a Scottish average of 19.52%. WDC is ranked 6 th best out of 32 Councils in Scotland. • CHN7 Percentage of Pupils from Deprived Areas Gaining 5+ Awards at Level 6 (SIMD) WDC 17.83% compared to the Scottish average of 12.59%. WDC is ranked 3 rd best out of 32 Councils in Scotland.

• CHN8a The Gross Cost of "Children Looked After" in Residential Based Services per Child per Week WDC £1,994.98 compared to the Scottish average of £2,928.15. WDC spends £933.17 less per week on Residential Care than the Scottish average. • CHN8b The Gross Cost of "Children Looked After" in a Community Setting per Child per Week WDC £144 compared to the Scottish average of £250. WDC spends £106 less per week on Community Care than the Scottish average. • CHN9 Balance of Care for looked after children: Percentage of children being looked after in the Community WDC 87% compared to the Scottish average of 91%. WDC is 4% below Scottish average on this PI. • CHN 10 Percentage of Adults Satisfied with Local Schools WDC 86% compared to the Scottish average of 81%. WDC is 5% above the Scottish average for this PI. • CHN11 Proportion of Pupils Entering Positive Destinations WDC 90.10% compared to the Scottish average of 92.3%. WDC is 2.2% below Scottish average on this PI.

Corporate Services • CORP1 Support services as a percentage of Total Gross expenditure WDC is 3.36% compared to the Scottish average of 5.13%. WDC is ranked third best in Scotland. • CORP2 Cost of Democratic Core per 1,000 population WDC £36,655.16 compared to the Scottish average of £32,076.88. WDC spends £4,578.28 more on democratic services and is third in Scotland. • CORP3b The percentage of the highest paid 5% of employees who are women WDC 55.32% compared to the Scottish average of 50.7. WDC is third highest is Scotland. • CORP4 The cost per dwelling of collecting Council Tax WDC 13.31 compared to the Scottish average of 12.13%. Collection of Council tax costs £1.18 more per home and is ranked 21 out of 32. In 2012 we were ranked 24 out of 32. • CORP5b2 (Domestic Noise) Average time (hours) between time of complaint and attendance on site, for those requiring attendance on site WDC 0.35 hours compared to the Scottish average of 80.73 hours. WDC is ranked number 1 in Scotland and is significantly above the Scottish average. • CORP6 Sickness Absence Days per Employee WDC 11.38 days compared to the Scottish average of 9.24 days. WDC had the worst absence record in Scotland. • CORP7 Percentage of income due from Council Tax received by the end of the year WDC 94.52% compared to the Scottish average of 95.16%. WDC is ranked 24 out of 32 Councils.

• CORP8 Percentage of invoices sampled that were paid within 30 days WDC 86.61% compared to the Scottish average of 91.93%. WDC is ranked 28 out of 32 Councils.

Social Work Services • SW1 Older Persons (Over65) Home Care Costs per Hour WDC £18.47 compared to the Scottish average of £20.25. WDC is ranked 9 th in Scotland. • SW2 SDS spend on adults 18+ as a percentage of total social work spend on adults 18+ WDC 1.39% compared to the Scottish average of 6.4%. WDC is ranked 26 th in Scotland. • SW3 Percentage of people 65+ with intensive needs receiving care at home WDC 40.71% compared to the Scottish average of 34.74%. WDC is ranked 8th in Scotland. • SW4 Percentage of Adults satisfied with social care or social work services WDC 68 % compared to the Scottish average of 55%. WDC is ranked 9 th best in Scotland. • SW5 Average weekly cost per resident WDC £415.97 compared to the Scottish average of £367.96. The council was £48.01 per week more than the Scottish average and was ranked 25 out of 32.

Culture & Leisure Services • C&L1 Cost per attendance at Sports facilities WDC £3.13 compared to the Scottish average of £3.84. WDC is ranked 15 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L2 Cost Per Library Visit WDC £2.85 compared to the Scottish average of £2.71. WDC is ranked 12 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L3 Cost of Museums per Visit WDC £2.10 compared to the Scottish average of £3.72. WDC is ranked 6 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L4 Cost of Parks& Open Spaces per 1,000 Population WDC spends £50,695.91 compared to the Scottish average of £30,785.70. The Council spends £19,910.21 more per 1,000 population on parks and open spaces than the Scottish average. • C&L5a Percentage of adults satisfied with libraries WDC 85% compared to the Scottish average of 81%. WDC is ranked 13 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L5b Percentage of adults satisfied with parks and open spaces WDC 88% compared to the Scottish average of 86%. WDC is ranked 15 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L5c Percentage of adults satisfied with museums and galleries WDC 71% compared to the Scottish average of 76%. WDC is ranked 18 th out of 32 Councils. • C&L5d Percentage of adults satisfied with leisure facilities WDC 69% compared to the Scottish average of 78%. WDC is ranked 27 th out of 32 Councils. In 2012 we were ranked 30 out of 32.

Environmental Services

• ENV1 Gross cost of Waste collection per premises WDC £54.96 compared to the Scottish average of £79.88. WDC is ranked 2 nd out of 32 Councils. • ENV1a Net cost per Waste collection per premises WDC £37.70 compared to the Scottish average of £61.29. WDC is ranked 3 rd out of 32 Councils. • ENV2 Gross cost per Waste disposal per premises WDC £120.26 compared to the Scottish average of £108.76. WDC is ranked 23 rd out of 32 Councils. • ENV2a Net cost per waste disposal premises WDC £110.16 compared to the Scottish average of £91.8. WDC is ranked 26 rd out of 32 Councils. • ENV3a Net cost of street cleaning per 1,000 population WDC £29,317.45 compared to the Scottish average of £15,617.06. WDC spent £13,700.39 more per 1,000 population on street cleaning that the Scottish average. • ENV3c Cleanliness Score (Percentage Acceptable ) WDC 97.8% compared to the Scottish average of 96.1%. WDC is ranked 10 th out of 32 Councils. In 2012 we were ranked 23 out of 32. • ENV4a Cost of maintenance per kilometre of roads WDC £21,090.72 compared to the Scottish average of £6,058.42. WDC spends £15,032.30 more per kilometre on maintenance of roads than the Scottish average. • ENV4b Percentage of A class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment WDC 24.75% compared to the Scottish average of 28.7%. WDC is ranked 13 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV4c Percentage of B class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment WDC 29.43% compared to the Scottish average of 35.2%. WDC is ranked 16 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV4d Percentage of C class roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment WDC 42.39% compared to the Scottish average of 36.6%. WDC is ranked 24 th out of 32 Councils for this PI. • ENV4e Percentage of unclassified roads that should be considered for maintenance treatment WDC 37.37% compared to the Scottish average of 39.4%. WDC is ranked 17 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV5 Cost of trading standards and environmental health per 1,000 population WDC £21,300.52 compared to the Scottish average of £23,866.29. WDC is ranked 16 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV5a Cost of trading standards per 1,000 population WDC £3,741.23 compared to the Scottish average of £5,584.59. WDC is ranked 7 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV5b Cost of environmental health per 1,000 population WDC £ 17,559.29 compared to the Scottish average of £18,301.71. WDC is ranked 18 th out of 32 Councils. • ENV6 The percentage of total waste arising that is recycled WDC 44.01% compared to the Scottish average of 42.2%. WDC is ranked 16 th out of 32 Councils.

• ENV7a % of adults satisfied with refuse collection WDC 82% compared to the Scottish average of 83%. WDC is ranked 22 th out of 32 Councils. In 2012 WDC was ranked 25 out of 32 Councils. • ENV7b % of adults satisfied with street cleaning WDC 81% compared to the Scottish average of 74%. WDC is ranked 7 th out of 32 Councils. In 2012 WDC was ranked 29 out of 32 Councils.

Housing Services • HSN1a Current tenants' arrears as a percentage of net rent due - New PI – no data. • HSN1b Gross rent arrears (all tenants) as at 31 March each year as a percentage of rent due for the reporting year WDC 8.6% compared to the Scottish average of 5.51%. WDC is ranked 24 th out of 32 Councils. • HSN2 Percentage of rent due in the year that was lost due to voids WDC 1.45% compared to the Scottish average of 1.31%. WDC is ranked 16 th out of 32 Councils. In 2012 we were ranked 23rd out of 32 Councils. • HSN3 Percentage of dwellings meeting SHQS WDC 83.49% compared to the Scottish average of 83.67%. WDC was ranked 14 th in Scotland. In 2012 we were ranked 27 th in Scotland. • HSN4a Percentage of repairs completed within target times - New PI – no data. • HSN4b Average time taken to complete non-emergency repairs WDC 8.67 days compared to the Scottish average of 10.17 days. WDC is ranked 10 th in Scotland for time to complete non-emergency repairs. • HSN5 Percentage of council dwellings that are energy efficient WDC 95.48% compared to the Scottish average of 88.83%. WDC is ranked 12 th in Scotland for energy efficient homes. In 2014 we were 24 th in Scotland.

Corporate Asset • CORP-ASSET1 Proportion of operational buildings that are suitable for their current use WDC 87.06% compared to the Scottish average of 78.21%. WDC was 13 th best in Scotland for this PI. • CORP-ASSET2 Proportion of internal floor area of operational buildings in satisfactory condition WDC 50.54% compared to the Scottish average of 80.92%. WDC is ranked 31 out of 32 for this PI.

Economic Development • ECON1 Percentage of Unemployed People Assisted into work from Council operated / funded Employability Programmes. WDC achieved 22.5% compared to the Scottish average of 12.58%. WDC was ranked 2 nd best in Scotland for this PI.

On a vote being taken, 11 Members voted for the amendment and 8 for the motion. Accordingly, the amendment was declared carried.

(g) Motion by Councillor Jim Bollan – Request for independent investigation

Councillor Bollan, moved:-

Council calls for a completely independent detailed investigation into all the circumstances surrounding any and all contacts the late Katrien Praats had with any WDC Council services in the months prior to her tragic death in January 2015. A relevant third party should be employed by WDC to recruit and appoint the person/organisation that will carry out this investigation."

Councillor McColl asked if Councillor Bollan would accept an addendum to his motion that the former Chair of the Social Work Complaints Review Sub-Committee, Rev. Ian Miller, be approached to appoint a person/organisation to carry out the investigation. Councillor Bollan confirmed his acceptance to the addendum to the motion, which was then seconded by Councillor McColl.

As an amendment Councillor McGinty, seconded by Councillor Sorrell, moved:-

This Council expresses its deepest sympathy to the family of Katrien Praats following her tragic death.

We recognise that any death under these circumstances is hard to understand and the loss of someone in the prime of their life is always felt so deeply.

The Council has professional officers who are very experienced in carrying out complex investigations with sympathy and the understanding of everyone’s needs.

We have full confidence in the internal investigation undertaken by the council into this tragic matter.

We are also confident that Police Scotland has carried out their own investigation into this matter under the direction of the Crown Office.

A full report was submitted to the fatalities unit for their consideration and conclusion.

Their decision was that no F.A.I was to be held. The family of Katrien have been kept fully informed and have accepted this

Both of these enquiries will generate the appropriate lessons-learned and we ask officers to ensure these are implemented as soon as possible.

On a vote being taken, 10 Members voted for the amendment and 8 for the motion. Accordingly, the amendment was declared carried.

The meeting closed at 8.35 p.m.

Appendix 1

Figure 1 – WDC Proposal for Lomond Leven Boundary on Current 2007 Boundary

Figure 2 – WDC Proposal for Lomond Leven Boundary on Latest LGBCS 5 th Review Map