Proposals to restructure and reduce numbers of South Tyneside's Community Area Forums withdrawn, council leader confirms

South Tyneside Council currently has five CAFs which are public forums attended by councillors and residents involving discussions on crime and housing, as well as presentations from local groups and decisions on funding.

As part of an annual review of the council’s constitution, it was proposed to rename the CAFs, reduce the number from five to four and to redistribute council wards to the new areas, 'north, south, east and west'.

The proposals were last discussed in public at a meeting of South Tyneside Council’s Constitution Committee on March 22, 2023, where some concerns were raised.

Councillor Glenn Thompson, independent councillor, said the proposals should be based on data and 'guiding evidence' and suggested the CAF restructure was politically-motivated.

This included claims of a “cynical political manoeuvre by the Labour Group to ensure they effectively dissolve the Riverside CAF”, which had a majority of opposition councillors following recent elections.

Councillor David Francis, Green Party Group leader on the council, also criticised the proposals on social media after the meeting, with concerns raised about the impact on local democracy.

The Constitution Committee agreed to the CAF restructure recommendation at the time, as part of a package of changes to the constitution, with the final decision due at South Tyneside Council's annual meeting.

At the council meeting on Tuesday, May 16, council leader councillor Tracey Dixon said  that “after a period of reflection”, the recommendation around the CAF restructure would be withdrawn.

Cllr Dixon, who is also chair of the council’s Constitution Committee, said the decision was linked to an ongoing process around potential changes to South Tyneside’s political map.

This includes the Local Government Boundary Commission for England's consultation on the boundaries of electoral wards in the borough.

Cllr Dixon told the meeting: “I'm not moving the proposal to reduce the number of CAFs to four.

“I previously stressed the importance of engaging and listening, seeking to understand is one of our proud values.

“It’s no secret that some of you have expressed concerns about the suggested reduction.

“I’m also very mindful that the Local Government Boundary Commission is reviewing the electoral and boundary arrangements of councils to make sure that they’re fair, and this includes the electoral review of South Tyneside".

Cllr Dixon said the commission had decided the number of councillors in South Tyneside should remain at 54, but that a consultation was still ongoing and that findings and "the insight would be beneficial to our thinking around CAFs”.

Councillor David Francis, leader of the council's main opposition Green Party Group, said he was “very pleased” to see the CAF restructure proposal withdrawn.

Cllr Francis continued: “I think that's good for local democracy and it’s good in terms of public perception of what we do in the council”.

Although councillors welcomed the CAF restructure proposals being withdrawn by the council's ruling Labour Group, some were still critical of the timing of the announcement and potential costs involved.

Cllr Glenn Thompson, independent councillor and former opposition leader, suggested the Labour Group had “overridden” the Constitution Committee by withdrawing the CAF restructure.

Cllr Thompson continued: “We went into this proposal from the Labour Group with no due diligence, due diligence that would have covered the very boundary considerations that have been mentioned by Cllr Dixon.

“No data, no supporting evidence, blindly pushed through at the last minute at significant cost, complete chaos with I’m sure, a very significant cost.

“The only saving grace here is that the CAF restructure is not going ahead”.

Councillor Audrey Huntley, deputy council leader, stressed the Local Government Boundary Commission "had not came back" to the council at the point the CAF restructure was originally discussed.

Cllr Huntley said: “When it became apparent that we would actually be in a position of changing it all again possibly in two years time, we took the decision as a group to actually come back to council and say maybe it’s not the right time to do it”.

The deputy leader also suggested Cllr Thompson, as an opposition councillor, could have made representations in the boundary commission consultation.

Councillor Pat Hay, who has sat on the Constitution Committee, added: “We are a democratic council, we truly believe in inclusivity and we do have opposition members that sat on the Constitution Committee.

“I take on board some of the points that have been made but thinking about it logically, I’m sure every elected member within this chamber would agree it would be pointless changing the CAFs going from five to four, when we’re going to be undertaking a process with the boundary changes.

“That’s been going on for a while but we have only just had notification of that”.

After being put to a named vote the updated Constitution, with the CAF restructure proposals withdrawn, was agreed.

This included a vote of 35 in favour, 12 against and three abstentions.