Issue - meetings
Memorial Safety Programme
Meeting: 20/01/2009 - Cabinet (Item 124)
124 Memorial Safety Programme 
PDF 46 KB
(Cabinet Member with Special Responsibility Councillor Kerr)
Report of Corporate Director (Community Services).
Minutes:
(Cabinet Member with Special Responsibility Councillor Kerr)
The Corporate Director (Community Services) submitted a report informing Cabinet of the options for the future of the Council’s Memorial Safety Programme.
The options, options analysis, including risk assessment, were set out in the report as follows:
|
|
Options |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
Risk Assessment |
Financial |
|
1 |
To make the Memorial Safety Team (reduced to 2 posts), permanent. |
Retains expertise to allow: § Implementation of rolling testing programme. § Ability to repair unsafe and vandalised memorials. § Ability to monitor work of private masons to ensure future compliance with standards. § Provide the necessary operational resources to deliver essential services required at the time of burial. § To carry out permanent repair to previously staked and banded memorials. § Provides extra resilience for business continuity in the event of a major incident.
|
§ Ongoing revenue costs as outlined in financial implications section. § One post made redundant
|
Ensures Council is complying with legal responsibilities and cemeteries good management. |
§ 2-man team including equipment, tools and vehicle approximately £55k/year. § In 2009/10 up to £6,000 redundancy costs required
|
|
|
Options |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
Risk Assessment |
Financial |
|
2 |
To cease the Memorial Safety Programme. |
§ Approved budget of £55K in 2009/10 would result in savings to the Council minus redundancy costs.
Approximate saving of £45K |
§ Council will be failing it its statutory duties under Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 and Owner Occupiers Liability responsibilities. § No testing programme in place. The Council would run the risk of being found guilty of maladministration should a complaint be made. § Closed churchyards not tested yet.. § Council will not be following established guidance. § Temporarily staked and banded memorials left indefinitely and thereby will present an ever increasing risk as time elapses. § Unable to monitor work of private masons.
|
§ Could lead to bad PR for Service and Council § Potential for unsafe memorials. § No defence in future litigation or claims following an accident, as recognised by Cemeteries Internal Audit Report dated 21 September 2007. § Council risks prosecution under Health & Safety and/or Corporate Manslaughter legislation. |
Redundancy costs estimated as follows: § Costs for enhanced package = £9,799.83 § Costs for statutory package = £6,584.44
All employees with more than 2 years service are entitled, in the appropriate circumstances, to redundancy payments. |
|
|
Options |
Advantages |
Disadvantages |
Risk Assessment |
Financial |
|
2 Cont. |
|
|
§ Cemeteries team’s operational flexibility will be lost leading to reduced service delivery. |
|
|
|
3 |
Support a memorial safety programme using an external contractor |
§ Testing programme would be carried out quicker. § Opportunity for Council to assess benefits of using external contractors/ partnership working to deliver part of service. |
§ Would need to engage each year to carry out testing. Also need to engage contractor to carry out any temporary re-fix. § Much more expensive than in house team option. |
§ Would need to take up references re competency. § Less control over contractor costs leading to increased cost of test and repair programme. |
Cost of permanently ... view the full minutes text for item 124 |