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(i)       to thank the Council
staff, residents, community groups, businesses, and others for
their actions in tackling the recent exceptional period of cold and
snowy weather;
(ii)       to note that Council
staff Teams worked around the clock to grit and clear roads and
pavements during the recent cold weather;
(iii)      to welcome officers’
action in hiring 31 private contractor diggers to assist with snow
clearing in side streets;
(iv)      to recognise the impact
the snow had on Council services, including education and refuse
collection, and the impact that in turn had on residents and
businesses;
(v)      to recognise that, while
it is too early to be able to make a link to this extreme weather
event, climate change, including the increase in freeze / thaw
cycles, has put additional pressure on the Council’s winter
maintenance operations; and
(vi)      to agree to instruct the
Chief Officer - Operations to report to the Net Zero, Environment,
and Transport Committee to consider what resources would help Roads
Operations meet extreme weather challenges, including what further
support and assistance might be offered to local community
resilience groups for all types of extreme weather events and
provide a "lessons learned” report for inclusion in future
winter resilience planning.