To consider motions from councillors in accordance with Council procedure rule 38.
A. Motion to be proposed by Councillor James Cox, seconder to be notified:
Council Notes:
· In the latest available figures published by the ONS, The Vale of White Horse had the highest number of recorded deaths by suicide in Oxfordshire and with a rate higher than the national average.
· 2021 (the last available data year) had the highest number of deaths by suicide since records began in 2001.
· Suicide is a public health matter and every death should be considered preventable.
· The cost of living crisis is already taking a huge toll on people’s mental health. Research by the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute says that people are already feeling the crisis
· In August 2022, CEOs of multiple mental health organisations, including Mind and Samaritans, wrote to the Prime Minister noting an increase in calls and enquiries related to financial concerns and proposed a national suicide prevention strategy.
Council resolves to:
1. Join the Zero Suicide Alliance network.
2. Promote existing safeguarding and suicide prevention training and resources to all council workers and signpost to the councils wellbeing pages and Mental Health First Aiders,
3. Include appropriate signposting to suicide prevention and/or mental health support in cost of living material, on the online community hub, and in arrears letters.
4. For the Council Leader to write to local MPs informing them of the situation and asking them to lobby for the implementation of a national suicide prevention strategy.
B. Motion to be proposed by Councillor Ron Batstone, seconded by Councillor Andy Cooke:
This council is alarmed at the significant numbers of sewage flooding incidents affecting local foul and surface water systems and notes that investment does not appear to have been forthcoming from Thames Water to resolve capacity or maintenance issues to ensure that adequate sewerage systems are provided within a reasonable timeframe.
The impact of this lack of investment in the sewerage system has ranged from pipe bursts, blockages and backing up, affecting local households and buildings through to the significant (and rising) levels of raw sewage in chalk streams and local rivers. In some cases, raw sewage has been measured and monitored to be flowing into local rivers in the Vale for days on end.
This situation has now been exacerbated and brought into sharp focus in light of the recent news surrounding Thames Water in terms of its debt, financial instability and the sudden resignation of their CEO,
Council believes:
The sewerage system should have adequate capacity to ensure that local rivers and watercourses have a high water quality, minimal pollution and enhance our natural environment. They should meet the minimum standards 24/7 with accurate monitoring to demonstrate that this is being achieved.
Thames Water Limited, or in the event it has to take the company into public ownership, the Government should urgently invest in new capacity to stop sewage outflows into our water courses.
The planning system should ensure that new houses can only be occupied once sufficient capacity in the local sewerage network is in place.
Council resolves to:
1. Consider options, as part of the current Local Plan review, to ensure that adequate sewerage capacity is in place to avoid the discharge of raw sewage into rivers and watercourses before new homes are occupied and that this should be made a condition of planning consent.
2. Ask the Scrutiny Committee to consider this issue and seek to identify ways to hold Thames Water Limited to account for their infrastructure maintenance, development, progress, leak and progress against their Management Plan and planning responses
3. Ask the Leader of the Council to continue to meet with and lobby Thames Water Limited to improve their performance.
4. Ask local MPs to support national legislation to significantly speed up investment in sewerage capacity and to hold water companies to account when they fail.
5. Ask the newly appointed Nature Recovery Champion to continue to monitor local sewage discharges and related data and report on it regularly to the Leader.
Minutes:
A. Councillor James Cox moved, and Councillor Jill Rayner seconded the motion set out on the agenda.
Following debate and being put to the vote the motion was declared carried.
RESOLVED:
That Council notes:
· In the latest available figures published by the ONS, The Vale of White Horse had the highest number of recorded deaths by suicide in Oxfordshire and with a rate higher than the national average.
· 2021 (the last available data year) had the highest number of deaths by suicide since records began in 2001.
· Suicide is a public health matter and every death should be considered preventable.
· The cost of living crisis is already taking a huge toll on people’s mental health. Research by the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute says that people are already feeling the crisis
· In August 2022, CEOs of multiple mental health organisations, including Mind and Samaritans, wrote to the Prime Minister noting an increase in calls and enquiries related to financial concerns and proposed a national suicide prevention strategy.
Council resolves to:
1. Join the Zero Suicide Alliance network.
2. Promote existing safeguarding and suicide prevention training and resources to all council workers and signpost to the council’s wellbeing pages and Mental Health First Aiders,
3. Include appropriate signposting to suicide prevention and/or mental health support in cost of living material, on the online community hub, and in arrears letters.
4. For the Council Leader to write to local MPs informing them of the situation and asking them to lobby for the implementation of a national suicide prevention strategy.
B. Councillor Ron Batstone moved, and Councillor Andy Cooke seconded, a revised motion as set out below which reflected discussions between the Green and Liberal Democrat Groups
This council shares the alarm of residents at the significant numbers of sewage flooding incidents affecting local foul and surface water systems in our District and notes that adequate investment does not appear to have been forthcoming from Thames Water to resolve capacity or maintenance issues and ensure that adequate sewerage systems are provided within a reasonable timeframe.
The impact of this lack of investment in the sewerage system has ranged from pipe bursts, blockages and backing up, affecting local households and buildings through to the significant (and rising) levels of raw sewage in chalk streams and local rivers.
In the last three years, Thames Water’s own records show that they have dumped raw sewage into waterways in the Vale of White Horse for nearly 15,000 hours, during 1352 separate events, from the district’s 12 sewage treatment works. These locations include rare chalk streams, delicate river ecosystems, SSSI nature reserves and open streams within our villages.
This council recognises the huge amount of work that the council has already undertaken, alongside the efforts of campaigners and local members to raise awareness of this issue, and notes that it has been brought into sharp focus in light of the recent news surrounding Thames Water in terms of its debt, financial instability and the sudden resignation of their Chief Executive, Sarah Bentley.
Council believes:
Council resolves to:
1. Ask the Leader to write to Thames Water and request the full extent of Thames Water’s plans to upgrade sewage treatment works in the Vale over the next five, ten and fifteen years.
2. Consider options, as part of the development of the Joint Local Plan, to ensure that adequate sewerage capacity is in place to avoid the discharge of raw sewage into rivers and watercourses before new homes are occupied and whether this can be made a condition of any planning consent.
3. Request that District Council planning officers include in all reports relating to major development a section that outlines the potential effects a development may have on sewage outflow into watercourses, or to note if such information has not been made available to the Council by the developer.
4. Ask the Scrutiny Committee to consider this issue and seek to identify ways to hold Thames Water Limited to account for their infrastructure maintenance, development, progress, leak and progress against their Management Plan and planning responses.
5. Ask the Leader of the Council to continue to meet with and urge Thames Water to improve their performance.
6. Ask the Leader of the Council to write to local MPs to support national legislation to significantly speed up investment in sewerage capacity and to hold water companies to account when they fail.
7. Invite the newly appointed Nature Recovery Champion to work with officers to understand how the council monitors local sewage discharges and related data and report on it regularly to the Leader.
Councillor Foxhall reported that the sources for the information set out in paragraph three of the motion were compiled from available data available in the following places:
- Rivers Trust “Is My River Fit to Play In” interactive map: Is my river fit to play in? (arcgis.com)
- Event Duration Monitoring Storm Overflow Monitor Annual Returns: Defra Data Services Platform
Following debate and being put to the vote the motion was declared carried.
RESOLVED:
That this council shares the alarm of residents at the significant numbers of sewage flooding incidents affecting local foul and surface water systems in our District and notes that adequate investment does not appear to have been forthcoming from Thames Water to resolve capacity or maintenance issues and ensure that adequate sewerage systems are provided within a reasonable timeframe.
The impact of this lack of investment in the sewerage system has ranged from pipe bursts, blockages and backing up, affecting local households and buildings through to the significant (and rising) levels of raw sewage in chalk streams and local rivers.
In the last three years, Thames Water’s own records show that they have dumped raw sewage into waterways in the Vale of White Horse for nearly 15,000 hours, during 1352 separate events, from the District’s 12 sewage treatment works. These locations include rare chalk streams, delicate river ecosystems, SSSI nature reserves and open streams within our villages[1].
This council recognises the huge amount of work that the council has already undertaken, alongside the efforts of campaigners and local members to raise awareness of this issue, and notes that it has been brought into sharp focus in light of the recent news surrounding Thames Water in terms of its debt, financial instability and the sudden resignation of their Chief Executive, Sarah Bentley.
Council believes:
Council resolves to:
1. Ask the Leader to write to Thames Water and request the full extent of Thames Water’s plans to upgrade sewage treatment works in the Vale over the next five, ten and fifteen years.
2. Consider options, as part of the development of the Joint Local Plan, to ensure that adequate sewerage capacity is in place to avoid the discharge of raw sewage into rivers and watercourses before new homes are occupied and whether this can be made a condition of any planning consent.
3. Request that District Council planning officers include in all reports relating to major development a section that outlines the potential effects a development may have on sewage outflow into watercourses, or to note if such information has not been made available to the Council by the developer.
4. Ask the Scrutiny Committee to consider this issue and seek to identify ways to hold Thames Water Limited to account for their infrastructure maintenance, development, progress, leak and progress against their Management Plan and planning responses.
5. Ask the Leader of the Council to continue to meet with and urge Thames Water to improve their performance.
6. Ask the Leader of the Council to write to local MPs to support national legislation to significantly speed up investment in sewerage capacity and to hold water companies to account when they fail.
7. Invite the newly appointed Nature Recovery Champion to work with officers to understand how the council monitors local sewage discharges and related data and report on it regularly to the Leader.
- [1] Rivers Trust “Is My River Fit to Play In” interactive map: Is my river fit to play in? (arcgis.com)
- Event Duration Monitoring Storm Overflow Monitor Annual Returns: Defra Data Services Platform