Agenda and minutes

To note any changes in the membership of the Sub-Committee made in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.3.

The apologies of Councillor Coombs were noted. Councillor McEwing was noted as the substitute for Councillor Coombs for the purposes of the meeting.

To elect the Chair and Vice Chair for the Municipal Year 2021-2022.

RESOLVED that Councillor Vaughan be elected as Chair for the purposes of the Inquiry and Councillor Rayment be elected as Vice Chair.

Report of the Director of Legal and Business Operations inviting the Panel to note the Terms of Reference and to amend and approve a final version of the outline inquiry project plan.

RESOLVED that the Inquiry Panel approved the Terms of Reference, and the final version of the outline inquiry project plan, as presented in the Report of the Director of Legal and Business Operations.

Report of the Director of Legal and Business Operations requesting that the Panel consider the comments made by the invited guests and use the information provided as evidence in the review.

The panel considered the report of the Director of Legal and Business Operations requesting that the Panel consider the comments made by the invited guests and use the information provided as evidence in the review.

Summary of information provided:

Accessible Southampton - Guy Van Dichele, Executive Director of Wellbeing (Health & Adults), Southampton City Council

·  A presentation was delivered by Guy Van Dichele, outlining the importance of the inquiry for the City Council and the City of Southampton.

·  Key points raised in the presentation included the following:

o  Accessibility is the key to inclusive cities. People are excluded further if cities are planned and designed poorly.

o  The same walk through Southampton may be very different for people – someone without mobility problems will hardly notice the obstacles – By contrast a resident with disabilities may take the same journey as above but have a tortuous experience, and in many cases, it will become impossible to overcome.

o  Not enabling people to leave their home causes social isolation – social isolation is a killer.

o  You make cities accessible by:

§  Working with people and understanding their needs

§  Designing the city following best practice guidelines

§  Understanding what is available already

§  Recognising that not all accessibility is physical – it can be about information / digital

§  Using informed Accessible Impact Assessments when making decisions (SCC has a duty to undertake Equality Impact Assessments when developing policies or changing policies – This includes impact on Disabled People).

o  We are probably at different levels of understanding of our environment for people – this understanding is growing and needs to continue to evolve.

o  Everyone in the Council has a responsibility for accessibility at some level, Work needs to be done to create a culture of accessibility and inclusivity.

o  As a Council we need to create tools to help our workforce plan to enable improvements to accessibility.

o  Good practice exists in Southampton but more needs to be done to improve the accessibility of the built environment.

o  Investment in the infrastructure to make it accessible will deliver a financial return to the city. Spectrum CIL estimate that there are approximately 37,500 Disabled People in Southampton. This number is forecast to grow significantly over the next 20 years. 

o  The developing Local Plan has the potential to have a positive impact on accessibility, including the accessibility of new housing to be built in the city.

o  Partnership and place are key, everybody has a role to play.

Accessibility and a guide to best practice – Anna Nelson, Chief Executive and David Livermore, Director of Business Development at AccessAble

·  A presentation was delivered by Anna Nelson and David Livermore providing an overview of the key features of an accessible city.

·  Key points raised in the presentation included the following:

o  14.1m Disabled People in the UK; 4.5m carers; 1 in 4 households affected by disability; 45% of people aged 65+ have a disability; Potential UK audience of 18m; £274bn estimated  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.