Agenda and minutes

The Council welcomes engagement from members of the public. To speak at this meeting please register no later than 24 hours prior to the date of the meeting via democracy@southkesteven.gov.uk

There was none.

Democratic Services presented apologies from Councillor James Denniston.

Councillor Robert Leadenham presented apologies from Councillor Pam Bosworth.

Councillor Rhea Rayside presented apologies from Councillor Kyle Abel.

Members are asked to disclose any interest in matters for consideration at the meeting.

There were none.

The minutes of the meeting held on 6 May 2026 were proposed, seconded, and AGREED as an accurate record.

The outstanding actions from the meeting held 6 May 2026 had been completed with the matters added to the Work Programme.

There were none.

The South Kesteven Health and Wellbeing Action Plan was introduced by the Physical Activity and Wellbeing Lead.

The officer outlined the following:

1.    An overview of South Kesteven’s Health and Wellbeing Action Plan and progress made to date, with future recommendations.

a.    Regular six-monthly updates had since been presented to Members of the Rural and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee highlighting the success of the bespoke South Kesteven Health and Wellbeing Action Plan. The initial twelve-month period was extended for another twelve months with a refreshed action plan developed in June 2025. The second twelve-month period had now come to an end, which led to further discussions with other district council representatives within Lincolnshire around the direction of this work.

b.    Whilst work was still being undertaken across South Kesteven, several of the actions were considered as ‘ongoing’. In addition, a number of these actions were also reported as Key Performance Indicators which were considered by the relevant scrutiny committee and therefore continuing to report on the action plan represented a duplication of work.

c.     Therefore, Members of the Rural and Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee were asked to consider ceasing the six-monthly South Kesteven Health and Wellbeing Action Plan updates. However, it was proposed that a six-monthly update on the significant work being undertaken for South Kesteven to become an Age Friendly Community continued to be reported and this report included an update on work being undertaken in relation to health and wellbeing. 

2.    An update on the progress of Age Friendly Communities work in South Kesteven. 

a.    The final stage in Step 1 of SKDC’s Age Friendly programme was to pull together the local data that had been collected over the last 12 months to create the baseline profile. The baseline profile would in turn move SKDC into Step 2: Plan Strategically. This second step would determine the vision, priorities and an action plan for South Kesteven. Section 2.16 of the report outlined the work undertaken to feed into the baseline profile.

b.    The Council also celebrated Age Without Limits Day on Wednesday 10th June, with the view in future years to collaborate with local organisations to encourage events across the district. 

c.     In support of the Age Friendly Work and interest levels from residents wanting to become a community champion, officers were exploring options to launch a Community Champion scheme/Older Persons Forum in South Kesteven. 

During discussions, the following comments were made:

-       It was confirmed that the Age Friendly Action Plan would be presented to the committee by the October meeting.

-       Members were reassured that ceasing the six-monthly updates on the South Kesteven Health and Wellbeing Action Plan was not intended to avoid scrutiny, rather to stop a duplication of work. It was also noted that partner authorities were no longer reporting.

-       The Deputy Leader confirmed the Cabinet’s view that they endorsed the recommendations within the report.

-       It was noted that the Cabinet Member for Property and Public Engagement had presented apologies for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Corporate Plan 2024-27: Key Performance Indicators Report - End-Year (Q4) 2025/26 was presented by the Cabinet Member for Corporate Governance and Licensing.

This report was the fourth of the reporting cycle and covered the period January to March 2026 (Quarter 4 2025/26).

Appendix A presented the overall performance against the eight actions being presented. Commentary by the responsible officer was provided for each action. Performance was summarised using a RAG system as follows:

Seven of the actions were rated Green. These were actions which were on or above target as planned.

One action was rated as Amber, these were those off target by less than 10% or where milestone achievement was delayed but with resolution in place to be achieved within a reasonable timeframe.

Zero actions were rated as Red. These were actions that were significantly below target.

During discussions, the following comments were made:

-       The Policy Officer was asked which KPI was the biggest concern. The Policy Officer noted that following the indication of COUN2, various adjustments to processes had been made within the Environmental Protection and Private Sector Housing Team. Following this their response rate within five working days had increased from 91% to 97%.

-       The Policy Officer highlighted an opportunity to explore the potential of increasing the target for adaptions completed annually.

-       Members endorsed the use of the colour-coded RAG system.

The Corporate Plan 2024-27: Key Performance Indicators Report - End-Year (Q4) 2025/26 was noted by the committee.

The Disabled Facilities Grant (DFG) Update was introduced by the Cabinet Member for Housing.

This report set out key information relating to disabled facility grants. This included key performance metrics such as end-to-end times, approval and completion figures, and spend position for the financial year 2025/26. This follows on from the improvements made within the team and contained a comparison of key areas since 23/24. 

There were two categories of DFGs, mandatory and discretionary. Mandatory grants were up to £30,000 and were a statutory function set by legislation. However, an additional piece of legislation allowed Local Authorities to provide discretionary grants on the condition that there was a policy which details the type of assistance which could be provided and that the policy was published. At South Kesteven District Council both mandatory and discretionary grants are offered.

The funding for DFGs was provided to South Kesteven District Council from a Government grant known as the Better Care Fund.

During discussions, the following comments were made:

-       The Environmental Health Manager confirmed that the any adaptions completed were acting on recommendations received from Occupational Therapists.

-       A Member requested step-by-step guidance for Councillors supporting residents through the process of applying for Disabled Facilities Grants. Attention was drawn to the Aids and Adaptions Policy on the Cabinet Forward Plan.

-       It was confirmed that SKDC had received fairly consistent referral numbers historically.

-       The Cabinet Member for Housing noted that the average timespan for the process of gaining the grant was 151 days in 2025/26.

-       The Cabinet Member also noted that the grants were treated on a case-by-case basis.

The Disabled Facility Grants Update was noted by the committee. 

To receive the Work Programme for 2026 – 2027

A Member asked that the Chairman, in consultation with officers, consider whether a report could be produced considering measures that SKDC could take to support individuals with dementia within the district.  

The Chairman thanked officers responsible for organising and facilitating the Community Awards celebration on 6^th June in Dysart Park.

A Member also thanked officers responsible for organising and facilitating the Big Green Week events, stating that the Canal Society had invited SK to host further events on the canal in future. It was noted that approximately £900 had been raised.

The meeting concluded at 14.53.