To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday, 20 June 2023.

Decision: That the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 20 June 2023, be approved as a correct record.

Report of the Director of Public Health and the Age Friendly Manchester Programme Lead.

The new Age Friendly Strategy Manchester: A City for Life 2023–28 Strategy builds on previous progress, provides a series of responses to the ongoing impact felt by some older people to the pandemic and the struggles faced by the cost-of-living crisis for many people aged over 50. It outlines a series of priorities and commitments to drive better outcomes so that more people can age well in place with increased financial security.

The committee considered a report of the Director of Public Health and the Age Friendly Manchester Programme Lead which described how the new Age Friendly Strategy Manchester: A City for Life 2023– 28 built on previous progress, provided a series of responses to the ongoing impact felt by some older people to the pandemic and the struggles faced by the cost-of-living crisis for many people aged over 50 and outlined a series of priorities and commitments to drive better outcomes.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Providing an introduction and background;
• Key statistics around age, population, life expectancy and unemployment amongst over 50s;
• How the refreshed Strategy was developed;
• How the refreshed Strategy aligned with the Council’s priorities and other key strategies;
• The themes of the refreshed Strategy:
  • Being heard and age equity;
  • Age friendly neighbourhoods where we can all age in peace;
  • Age friendly services which will support us to age well; and
  • Work and money
• An initial 18-month delivery plan was being developed; and
• How progress would be monitored.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussion included:

• Welcoming the refresh;
• Expressing concern that not all complexities and intersectionalities experienced by older people were reflected in the report;
• The different experiences and challenges faced by 50-year-olds and 80-year-olds;
• The need for more flexibility with regards to rightsizing;
• That the impact on Age Friendly should be included in all committee reports;
• The experiences of older people in the LGBTQ+ community;
• Requesting further information on the delivery plan;
• Requesting background information on the disproportionate effects of age on different groups;
• Querying what activities and services were provided for older people in each ward;
• How the work of the Strategy linked with the Council’s Highways service to improve existing highways, public spaces and access;
• What was being done to help older people with the cost-of-living crisis;
• Whether all libraries were accessible by bus;
• Whether increased public toilet provisions would be included in the delivery plan; and
• Requesting further information on the findings of the research undertaken by Manchester University in collaboration with Age Friendly Manchester on the impacts of the pandemic on older people living in areas of multiple deprivation.

The Programme Lead – Age Friendly Manchester explained that the refreshed Strategy provided the vision for the next five years with four key themes. He stated that extensive consultation with older people had been undertaken and built on the progress made over the past 20 years. He stated that the Strategy provided practical responses to the lived experience of older people, such as the cost-of-living crisis and the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Executive Member for Healthy Manchester and Adult Social Care stated that communities were defined by their older people and thanked officers for their work on this and residents for their involvement and engagement. He also wished to place on record his thanks to former Councillor Eddy Newman who had driven this work in his former role as Lead Member for Age Friendly  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.

Report of the Strategic Director – Neighbourhoods.

This report provides a context for the current operating environment for events and how the ongoing development of the events programme continues to align with the City Council’s Event Strategy. Additional insight is provided on the Community Events programme - how it is facilitated and funded and how that is reflected in the geographic spread of activity – alongside updates on the progress made against previously identified areas of development and improvement to support community events.

The committee considered a report of the Strategic Director (Neighbourhoods) which provided a context for the current operating environment for events and how the ongoing development of the events programme continues to align with the City Council’s Events Strategy. It provided additional insight on the Community Events programme and updates on the progress made against previously identified areas of development and improvement to support community events.

Key points and themes within the report included:

• Providing an introduction and background to the Manchester Events Strategy;
• The event programme for 2023;
• The Community Events Fund (CEF) Programme, and the challenges faced by this;
• The funding and geographic spread of the Community Events Programme;
• The eligibility criteria for Community Events Funding;
• Confirmation that bonfire and firework events would not be reinstated going forward;
• How sustainability was considered at events funded by the CEF; and
• Work would be undertaken withthe Equalities, Diversity, and Inclusion team to progress to identify how the staging of events can potentially impact on people with protected characteristics who are beyond the event footprint and may fall outside of the direct responsibility of the event organiser.

Key points and queries that arose from the committee’s discussions included:

• Welcoming the Council’s support of community events;
• Requesting clarification on a number of events listed in the report which received CEF funding but did not appear to meet the criteria for such funding;
• How external businesses and traders attending events are encouraged to comply with the Council’s commitment to reducing single-use plastics;
• The need to strengthen sustainability requirements for events, noting that there is no requirement to acknowledge the Sustainability Check when booking Council-owned land for events;
• Whether there would be a public awareness campaign on upcoming legislation to ban retailers, takeaways, food vendors and the hospitability industry providing single-use cutlery, plates and bowls;
• How the geographic spread of events within the city could be improved;
•  What events will be included in the programme of autumn and winter activities to replace bonfire displays;
• How income generated by events benefits local communities;
• The need to hold more free events and to diversify the locations where these events are held;
• Why Pride events were included within the report, given that major events fall under the remit of the Economy and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee;
• What local events are delivered in individual neighbourhoods; and
• How many events received CEF funding recurrently and whether this impacted the ability for new events to benefit from this funding.

The Executive Member for Skills, Employment and Leisure explained that the Council’s Events Strategy was adopted in 2019 and acknowledged the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and cost-of-living crisis on events across the city. He stated that this had changed the types of and opportunities for events taking place in Manchester and the capacity and venue offers in the city.

The Head of Events Development explained that 13 of the events listed within the report were funded by CEF with the remainder funded or facilitated through other mechanisms. He stated that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

Report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit.

The monthly report includes the recommendations monitor, relevant key decisions, the Committee’s work programme and any items for information.

The committee considered a report of the Governance and Scrutiny Support Unit which contained a list of key decisions yet to be taken within the Committee’s remit, responses to previous recommendations and the Committee’s work programme, which the Committee was asked to approve.

Members requested that the work programme for September’s meeting be amended to provide a more detailed scope on the Communities of Identity report and to request that information on how the Council engaged with the student population to promote and ensure their safety be provided in the Community Safety Strategy report. These requests would be relayed to officers.

A query was also raised regarding the date of the first meeting of the committee’s Task and Finish Group on crime and antisocial behaviour. Members were advised in response that the Committee Officer would email them outside of the meeting for their availability and that the first meeting would be held in September.

Decision:

That the report be noted, and the work programme agreed.