The Environment and Place Overview and Scrutiny Committee are scheduled to meet to discuss a draft position statement and action plan on plant-based diets, to scrutinise two housing-related cabinet reports, and to review and update their work plan.

Plant-based and reduced meat and dairy diets

The committee will be considering a draft position statement and action plan on plant-based and reduced meat and dairy diets. This follows questions to the council from members of the public on the council's position on plant-based diets in relation to climate change.

The draft position statement proposes that the council will:

• Prioritise plant-based eating where it has influence and it is financially viable to do so.
• Promote plant-based diets as part of its climate strategy.
• Ensure plant-based options are included in food and drink provided at council meetings, functions and offices.
• Require council-managed food outlets to provide plant-based options and seek to increase their plant-based food offering when commercially viable.
• Require plant-based options when re-tendering food contracts, excluding meat-only contracts¹.
• Require that a proportion of all food sold at major, licensed events by short-term concessions be plant-based.
• Advocate for and promote plant-based diets through appointed 'vegan champions' internal to BCP Council, alongside promotional and educational campaigns.
• Baseline, monitor and annually review the state, ongoing progress and commercial viability of plant-based food sale and consumption within BCP managed food outlets and among the wider BCP area.

A set of eleven actions have been developed to support the implementation of this position statement. These include:

• Meetings on council premises to provide at least one vegan option for all food and drink types.
• To promote a vegan day within BCP Council and schools within the BCP area.
• BCP Council operated food outlets to have at least a 20% plant-based offering across all of its outlets.
• All newly tendered major, licensed events to include at least 10% plant-based options within the overall menu offer.
• Re-tendered food contracts to include plant-based options.
• Promotional and retail guidance on plant-based diets developed and shared.
• Undertake a scoping and baselining exercise of plant-based offerings.
• Survey and adapt non-dairy milk provision in BCP Council offices.
• Appoint 'vegan champions' to deploy plant-based initiatives.
• Publish online text to promote the benefits of plant-based diets.
• Annual review and adjustment of the plant-based diet action plan.

The report notes that under the Equality Act 2010 veganism is a legally recognised protected philosophical belief, with individuals adhering to veganism entitled to certain legal protections, particularly related to workplace service provision.

Scrutiny of Housing related Cabinet reports

The committee will be scrutinising two reports relating to council housing.

BCP Homes Performance Update

The first report provides performance information on how services are delivered to council tenants. It provides an update against key performance indicators and performance against the Tenant Satisfaction Measures (TSM's) for quarter 1, 2025-26.

The services provided to council tenants and leaseholders include:

• Customer services
• Void management and lettings
• Repairs and planned maintenance to homes and communal areas
• Servicing and testing
• Neighbourhood management
• Cleaning and gardening of communal areas
• Rent collection
• Tenancy sustainment and money advice
• Sheltered housing
• Anti-social behaviour
• Tenancy management
• Complaint handling
• Resident involvement

The report includes data on a number of performance indicators, including:

• Number of voids²
• Rent collected
• Current tenant arrears
• Repairs survey results
• % of non-emergency responsive repairs completed within the landlord's target timescale
• % of emergency responsive repairs completed within the landlord's target timescale
• % of responsive repairs appointments kept
• % complaints completed on time
• % Subject Access Requests³/Freedom of Information requests responded to on time
• Number of calls to the Tenancy Advice and Repairs team
• Anti-social behaviour rate per 1,000 homes

BCP Homes Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement Report

The second report provides information on the council's handling of complaints related to the provision of landlord services to council tenants and leaseholders.

The report complies with the requirements within the Housing Ombudsman's Complaint Handling Code.pdf) that landlords must produce an Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement report for scrutiny and challenge.

The report includes:

• The annual self-assessment against the code
• A qualitative and quantitative analysis of complaint handling performance
• Any findings of non-compliance with the code by the Housing Ombudsman
• Service improvements made as a result of the learning from complaints
• Any annual report about performance from the Housing Ombudsman
• Any other relevant publications or reports produced by the Housing Ombudsman in relation to the work of the council in dealing with complaints.

During the 2024-25 financial year, 164 complaints were recorded predominantly concerning Housing Management (58.5%) and Property Maintenance (23.2%). Of these, 16.5% were upheld, 35.4% were partially upheld, and 48.2% were not upheld. Most complaints were resolved at Stage 1.

The report notes that there have been no complaint handling orders issued to the council, and there have also been no issues raised by the Ombudsman regarding previous self-assessments against the complaint handling code.

Work Plan

The committee is asked to consider and identify work priorities for publication in a Work Plan.

The current work plan includes the following items:

• Plant Based Food Options
• BCP Homes
• Waste Strategy
• Local Transport Plan
• Climate and Nature
• Redhill Paddling Pool
• Christchurch Harbour
• Achieving Carbon Emission Neutrality
• Community Owned Renewable Energy
• Temporary Accommodation Strategy
• Safer Accommodation Strategy Review
• Development of Safe Accommodation Strategy KPI's
• Update on the Implementation of the Safe Accommodation Strategy
• Pedestrian Crossing Update
• Van Life – Community Pact