Agenda item

Cabinet will receive the following Scrutiny reports:-

Education and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee report on School Catering Service and Corporate Cleaning Contract.

People Overview and Scrutiny Committee report on Oxfordshire Employment Services.

Performance and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee Reports on:-

a)    Hire Bike and Scooter Update

b)    Our People and Culture Strategy Update

Councillor Liz Brighouse, Chair of the Education Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee. presented the reports concerning school catering services and the corporate cleaning contract. The catering service had been previously run by Carillion and returned to the council in 2018. The committee emphasised concerns about ensuring quality food in smaller and rural schools, protecting staff rights and conditions during contract transitions, and avoiding redundancies.

Councillor Tanya Overton, Deputy Chair of the People Overview and Scrutiny Committee presented the report on Oxfordshire Employment Services. Recommendations included increasing employer engagement through an accreditation scheme promoting inclusive employment practices and expanding the programme target to 2,500 individuals. The report underscored employment as a route to independence and a preventative health measure.

Councillor Glynis Phillips, Chair of the Performance and Corporate Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, presented the report on Our People and Culture Strategy. Recommendations included requesting more granular sickness absence data to better target interventions and suggestions for optimising apprenticeship levy spending, including funding apprenticeships externally, especially in the voluntary sector. The committee also recommended maintaining good relations with unions and involving them in the Strategy. Additionally, the committee suggested discussing changes to the employee engagement survey at the Employment and Joint Consultative Committee.

Councillor Phillips also presented the report on the e-bike and e-scooter contract. Recommendations included writing to the Department of Transport for clarity on the trial’s end date, conducting local evaluations of the trial’s impact—especially on bus usage, increasing the availability of e-bikes and scooters using park and ride facilities, and considering the use of on-road parking spaces to reduce pavement clutter caused by abandoned vehicles

Cabinet received the reports and will respond in due course.