Purpose of Report
1. To update
the Joint Scrutiny Committee on the Oxfordshire Food Strategy
drafted by Good Food Oxfordshire, including the principles and
framework for delivery.
2. To outline
how the Oxfordshire Food Strategy aligns with the Councils’
aims and priorities as set out in their Corporate Plans, Climate
Action Plans, and any Council motions.
3. To outline
the next steps of the Oxfordshire Food Strategy, notably the
development of a detailed local action plan with community,
voluntary and community sector (VCS) and business partners which
will enable the council to drive forward key initiatives based on
our sphere of influence and the resources available to us.
4. To provide
an overview of the potential uses of the funding allocation
proposed by Oxfordshire County Council, to assist with the
development and implementation of the food action plan.
Corporate Objectives
5. The
Strategy supports many council priorities and aims as set out in
their Corporate Plans and Climate Action Plans (see a detailed list
at appendix two).
6. On 14 July
2022, South Oxfordshire declared a Cost of Living Emergency and
passed a
Motion addressing the food system in the district. On 13 July
2022, Vale of the White Horse passed a
Motion on the Cost of Living Crisis and on 18 May 2022 passed a
Motion addressing Food and Farming in the district. The
Oxfordshire Food Strategy is congruent with each of these
resolutions. In Vale, the council’s commitment to appoint a
Food and Farming Champion role in Vale is firmly aligned with one
of the ideas for local councils put forward in the Food Strategy to
‘appoint food champions at cabinet as conduits for food
issues and action’.
7. The
adoption of the strategy would help provide a framework for taking
forward the resolutions with multi stakeholder partners including
VCS organisations, food producers and suppliers across
Oxfordshire.
8. The Food
Strategy has been written to sit alongside the differing priorities
and commitments of the organisations involved, including district
councils. To that end, the strategy seeks to be integrated within
existing policies and programmes, whether these are organisation or
district specific, or county-wide.
Background
9. Covid-19
brought the issues of food insecurity, access to healthy,
affordable food and the impact of these on health into sharp
focus. Oxfordshire food banks saw a three-four-fold increase
in use, with a conservative estimate that around 6,000 people a
week required support to access food.
While, local community food networks across the district rose
to the challenge, working closely and constructively with our
Community Hub team, it became evident that there was a requirement
for an end-to-end strategy covering all key organisations and
stakeholders in the Oxfordshire system. The district and city
councils agreed that Oxfordshire County Council would commission
Good Food Oxfordshire to develop a food strategy for
Oxfordshire.
10.Since the
strategy was commissioned, its importance has been highlighted by
Brexit, the war in Ukraine and the worsening cost of living crisis
which have created additional strain on the food system.
11.It is now
estimated that eight to ten per cent of all households in
Oxfordshire experience food insecurity.
This equates to 20,000-25,000 households and 55,000-69,000
people. It is estimated that six-seven per cent of all
households are experiencing moderate to severe food
insecurity. This equates to 15,500-18,000 people.
12.Across the
UK, it is estimated that 50 per cent more people are now in fuel
poverty and face the choice of heating their homes or eating.
Food prices have increased by an average of 5.9 per cent.
Staples such as dairy, pasta, eggs and cooking oils have increased
at the fastest rate. The largest proportional impact of these
increases is on low-income households who are unable to switch away
from essential spending. Of course, the food banks at the
forefront of this crisis are faced with the same rising costs,
greater demand, and increasingly lower supply of staple food items.
13.Poor diets,
exacerbated by food insecurity is evident in the growing obesity
rates. Ensuring access to healthy food and education around its use
is a key intervention to counteract a range of health conditions
from Covid-19 to heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
14.The
environmental effects of our food system are also a matter of
concern as identified in the council’s corporate
objectives. According to the IPCC, food systems currently
account for between 21 and 37 per cent of total greenhouse gases
and contribute to biodiversity loss.
15.The need to
build resilience into our local food systems to ensure better
access to food has never been greater and it is these issues which
the Oxfordshire Food Strategy aims to address.
Developing the strategy
16.Oxfordshire
County Council commissioned Good Food Oxfordshire in agreement with
the city and district councils to develop a food strategy for
Oxfordshire. It is seen to be a strategy not just for councils but
for the whole food system encompassing community organisations,
food producers, businesses, institutions and individuals.
17.The
Oxfordshire Food Strategy has been developed using a
multi-stakeholder approach, including the Oxfordshire city and
district councils, representatives from Oxfordshire community
sector groups, local food producers and other major institutions,
brought together by Good Food Oxfordshire. It has been created in
partnership because it is recognised that to address the challenges
of food poverty, food supply, climate change and public health
tipping points we need a whole system approach to maximise the
benefits.
18.Good Food
Oxfordshire has drawn on research
into food insecurity, the impact of food on health, the
environmental impact of the food system and the local food picture
to develop the strategy.
19.Public and
stakeholder engagement has played an integral role in developing
the strategy. Initial engagement including initial
consultation with Oxfordshire local authorities took place between
August and October 2021. This included one-to-one meetings, round
table events and related discussion forums, including the Health
Improvement Board and Climate Action Programme Board. A
timeline of engagement and research events as well as the papers
consulted is published on the Good Food Oxfordshire website (see
appendix three). Events included:
a.
Healthy Weight Community Insights Programme attended by 146 people
including over 50 organisations.
b.
Oxfordshire Schools Food Workshop attended by more than 40 people
representing schools, councils, communities and caterers.
c.
Regular Community Food Network Meetings with over 80 local
organisations are part of the Community Food Networks (CFNs). These
include foodbanks, community larders and fridges as well as local
advice services, councils and other VCS organisations.
20.It is
recognised that there is a necessity for much more substantial
engagement at a local district level in the development of more
detailed local action plans which would form the second part of
this work.
The Strategy
21.The
Oxfordshire Food Strategy put forward is envisioned as a
‘first step towards drawing together the many strands of work
that are already happening across the county and seeing them as a
coherent whole’.
22.It aims to
tackle the challenges of health and wellbeing; climate change and
biodiversity; fair incomes and employment; and to facilitate a
vibrant and sustainable food system allowing all residents equal
opportunity to access healthy food all year long. The strategy
(attached as appendix one) seeks to identify priority areas for
action, links to existing initiatives and policy and showcases
examples of excellence that can be learnt from and built upon.
23.It seeks to
address the issue of food insecurity by supporting more locally
produced and sustainable food, allowing all residents equal
opportunity to access healthy food all year round, through
education to minimise food waste or grow their own, and through
accessing food banks or community larder schemes. There are longer
term ambitions within the strategy to grow Oxfordshire’s
local food economy through local enterprises, local jobs and local
wealth generation.
24. This high-level vision
seeks to achieve these aims through the following ambitions:
a) Food
justice: healthy and sustainable food is affordable and accessible
to everyone
b)
Sustainable food economy: local food businesses flourish, with more
productions, more outlets, more employment and better standards for
workers
c) Good food
movement: more people can enjoy and engage with healthy,
sustainable food and ‘good food for everyone’ is part
of our culture
d) Food for
the planet: we waste less food and the food that we do produce,
consume and waste has a less negative impact on the planet
e)
Sustainable supply chains: more locally produced, sustainable food
is bought and consumed locally, and supply chains are more
resilient
f)
Governance and strategy: continue, evaluate and strengthen existing
initiatives. Build foundations for new initiatives. Establish
enablers to manage and monitor progress.
25.The next
stage (referred to in the strategy as Part Two), is where the
detail and actions will lie and where the council has the
opportunity to lead the development of and have meaningful input
into a future local action plans with partners.
Next Steps – Action Plan Development
26.As a next
step, should Cabinets agree the strategy, we would be invited to
develop an action plan with other key stakeholders across our
district, drawing on further consultation and engagement with local
communities, farmers, food businesses and town and parish
councils. Actions could include:
·
communications and marketing
·
practical support such as identifying opportunities or providing
access to green spaces for community gardens
·
provision of local business support to address food waste
·
supporting infrastructure, guidance and access to funding for
Community Food Services
·
exploring locally sourced food options and any other ideas or initiatives we wish to
explore.
27. To help facilitate this, Oxfordshire
County Council agreed to allocate £250,000 of funding to all
district and city councils to deliver actions that will directly
impact accessibility to food. The actual amount for South and
Vale is expected to be in the region of £30-40,000 per
council. The funding will be allocated per District/City
Council, using a previously established DWP formula, which is based
on population weighted by deprivation as measured by the index of
multiple deprivation index. The funding can be used
internally by each council or directed towards community groups
within each district’s area. Full engagement within the
development process of the strategy can ensure that the actions
proposed are in support of our priorities and the specific needs of
our districts.
28. The funding on offer cannot be used
to resource personnel. However, there is both policy resource
within the community hub and resource from Good Food Oxfordshire
(funded by Oxfordshire County Council) who will help to form, drive
and collate the action plans. This should be sufficient to create a
meaningful action plan.
29. If agreed, the officer
representation on the local steering group from the council will
liaise with a working party of officers within the council from
relevant internal teams such as Economic Development, Environmental
Health, Community Wellbeing, Waste and Property.
30.A draft
timeline is set out below:
|
Date:
|
Action
|
|
7 November
2022
|
Food Strategy
considered by Joint South and Vale Scrutiny Committee
|
|
1 December
2022
|
Strategy taken
to South Cabinet for endorsement
|
|
2 December
2022
|
Strategy taken
to Vale Cabinet for endorsement
|
|
December 2022/
January 2023
|
Development of
terms of reference for local action plan groups
|
|
February -
March 2023
|
Development of
local area action plans
|
|
July 2023
|
Part 2 - Local
food strategy action plans to Scrutiny Committee for comment and
recommendations to Cabinet.
Part 2 –
Local food strategy action plans proposal to relevant Cabinet for
approval.
|
Climate and ecological impact implications
31. The ambition ‘Food for the
planet’ is specifically designed to focus on reducing food
waste and reducing the carbon impact that food consumption has in
the county
32. The ‘sustainable supply
chains’ ambition will also seek to encourage the development
of local, sustainable supply chains which will support local
producers and reduce the carbon impact of food supply.
33. Both Councils Climate Action Plans
includes an action OP12, to ‘Partner with Good Food
Oxfordshire to support their Good Food Strategy for Oxfordshire,
ensuring climate considerations are included throughout the
strategy’, therefore engagement with the Strategy would meet
the spirit of this action and work towards the overall aim becoming
carbon neutral district by 2030/2045.
Financial Implications
34. Note the proposed grant allocation
from Oxfordshire County Council that is outlined in paragraph 27 of
this report. Expenditure will be kept within the grant
allocation received from Oxfordshire County Council with no
additional costs to the council budget. Any further cost
implications will be developed in the local food strategy action
plan and reported as part of a separate report.
35. It is accepted that, prior to the
action plans being developed it is not possible to know whether
this figure will cover all actions which impact accessibility to
food, and it is not allocated with this expectation. Rather it is a
contribution to be borne in mind while plans are being developed
alongside any other funds from contributing partners existing
budgets or fund-raising campaigns.
Legal Implications
36. There is no legal obligation to
adopt the Oxfordshire Food Strategy. However, not supporting
the strategy and not participating in its implementation may see
the Councils’ miss out on funding that could support work to
tackle food poverty and other food related issues in the
districts.
37. Supporting principles of the
Oxfordshire Food Strategy neither imposes nor infers any additional
obligations on the council and it is therefore considered that
there are no legal implications in adopting the strategy.
Risks
38. Given the councils’ commitment
to support residents during the cost-of-living crisis and the
Climate Emergency declarations, not adopting a strategy which
mirrors and is in alignment with these commitments could pose both
a reputational risk and questions around the councils’
commitment to act.
39. Not supporting the strategy, when it
is enacted by others, entails a further possible reputational
risk.
40.Not
supporting the strategy may also risk the council’s being
excluded from the benefits of future collaborations including the
opportunity to develop the Local Food action plans with local
stakeholders.
41. Exclusion from developing the food
action plans could also prevent access to funding on offer which
could be used to develop and support work in the districts for
which there would otherwise not be a budget.
42. There is a risk that trying to
create a ‘one-size-fits-all’ strategy will mean that
the different food related challenges across the county are not
sufficiently appreciated. This should be addressed in Part 2 as
partners seek to develop action plans to address challenges at a
local level. However, if the strategy is not endorsed the
opportunity to work with community partners and influence this work
could be lost.
Other Implications
43. There are not considered to be any
other implications beyond those set out above.
Conclusion
44. The Oxfordshire Food Strategy is a
first step in the development and facilitation of work around
Sustainable Food and the Cost-of-Living emergency in both districts
which meets many corporate and climate objectives and seeks to help
residents struggling to access food.
45. The strategy confers no obligations
on the councils, but it does offer the opportunity to develop work
which is line with many of the councils’ priorities.
46. Joint Scrutiny Committee is
therefore asked for comments on these proposals for Cabinet’s
to consider before endorsing the strategy.
Background Papers
Appendix 1: The
Oxfordshire Food Strategy - 2022
Appendix 2
– Corporate Plan and Climate Action Plan objectives
Appendix 3:
Oxfordshire Food Strategy Appendices
