Agenda item

Activity and Performance Data Quarter 3

Meeting of Worcestershire Regulatory Services Board, Thursday 15th February 2018 4.30 p.m. (Item 36/17)

Minutes:

The Board considered a report that detailed Worcestershire Regulatory Services Activity and Performance Data for Quarter 3, 2017/2018. The report focused on Quarter 3 but the data enabled a comparison with previous years.

The Community Environmental Health Manager, Worcestershire Regulatory Services (WRS) introduced the report and in doing highlighted that WRS continued to tackle issues broadly across the County.

The Community Environmental Health Manager, WRS, then drew Members’ attention to some of the key points in the report, as detailed below:-

· Licensing and environmental health nuisances continued to provide greatest demand for the service which was understandable given their high profile and direct impact on the public.

· With one quarter left, the total number of food safety cases in Malvern Hills, Redditch and Wychavon had already surpassed the totals for the previous two years. Whilst this did not indicate an increase in non-compliance it did reflect an increase in food safety enquiries from businesses and the general public and a review of such cases may identify opportunities to reroute customers to alternative channels.

· The continuation of relatively high levels of nuisance work carried into Quarter 3, the high number of complex legal cases under investigation, the resignation of a member of staff to take up a new post in the Isles of Scilly and the number of staff on long term sick, had provided a challenge to resources in Quarter 3. WRS retained the services of temporary workers to cover the backlog of work and to keep up with food visits; and to address some of the food businesses identified during the Food Standards Agency audit in May 2017. This had helped to keep the service on track to achieve what was needed during the second half of the year.

· The change in weather in the autumn caused nuisance complaints to return to the usual levels through October and November although a large number were carried forward from the summer months.

· The report showed a falling trend in dog control issues across Worcestershire. This was achieved by taking action to re-home persistent stray dogs and working with owners to achieve better control; together with working alongside communities and individuals setting up their own ways of identifying stray dogs and getting them back to their owners.

· Business satisfaction remained excellent at 97.6%.

· Staff sickness was higher than in previous years at 6.27 days per full time equivalent (FTE). A large contributing factor to this had been a number of longer term health issues.

· The number of complaints against the service remained low but did increase with 9 in the third quarter taking the total to 18; however this was significantly exceeded by the number of compliments received.

Officers responded to specific questions with regard to:-

· The fines awarded by the Courts in relation to recent cases where food businesses were prosecuted in relation to various pest infestations, with Board Members being informed that the fines paid to the courts, were handed over to the Treasury, but any costs awarded by the Court in relation to the investigation or the costs of the partners legal departments went back to the relevant partner authority.

· Members were informed that an annual status report on air quality / Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs) was currently being drafted. Members were further informed that detailed information on air quality and AQMAs could be found on the WRS website.

RESOLVED:

a) that the Activity and Performance Data report for Quarter 3, 2017/2018, as detailed at Appendices A and B to the report, be noted; and

b) that Members use the contents of the Activity and Performance Data report for Quarter 3, 2017/2018, to report the relevant information to Members at each partner authority.

Supporting documents: