Agenda and draft minutes

None.

To confirm the minutes of the previous meeting held on 12 February 2026.

RESOLVED – that the minutes of the previous meeting held on 12 February 2026 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

To review and reconfirm the Terms of Reference for the Communities Scrutiny Committee for the 2026/27 municipal year.

The Managing Solicitor: Property & Commercial introduced the report which set out for review and agreement, the Terms of Reference for the Committee, as set out at Appendix A to the report.

Members heard that each council Committee had been grated delegated authority to approve their own terms of reference at the Annual Council meeting on 21 May 2026.

It was noted that there were no proposed changes.

RESOLVED – that the Terms of Reference set out in Appendix A of the report be approved.

To approve the draft work programme for the 2026/27 municipal year.

The Managing Solicitor: Property & Commercial presented the report, which set out the work programme for the Committee for the 2026/27 municipal year.  The work programme featured several new items including the Councillors’ Pride Fund, Night-Time Economy, Tobacco and Vape Enforcement, and the Crisis Resilience Fund and Cost of Living Support.

The Managing Solicitor: Property & Commercial informed the Committee that the Social Value in Contracts item would take place in the form of a workshop and items such as the Digitisation of Registration Services would be progressed through a Task and Finish Group. An item in relation to a review of Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Support was also a new item added to the work programme, however a date for future consideration by the committee was yet to be scheduled.

RESOLVED – that the work programme for 2026/27 be approved.

To receive an update on the Council’s approach to managing road maintenance.

The Head of Highways and Engineering presented an update report building on the Traffic & Road Safety report previously presented to Committee on 28 June 2022. The report reflected the recent changes to funding arrangements, inspection and prioritisation methods undertaken by the Council, repair techniques and communication processes. The Head of Highways and Engineering provided a detailed overview of the assets managed by the local authority including 110km of A roads, 352km of footways and 555km of other public right of ways. Since 2019, £96 million had been invested into highways and transport services and a further £91m was planned for investment over the following 4 years.

The Committee were informed that the Highways Asset Management approach had been adopted to support the delivery of investment across both highway and transport infrastructure and that the Highways Team took an evidence-led and risk-based approach to identify defects and conduct repairs.

It was noted that the condition data, routine safety inspections, engineering assessments and feedback received from residents and ward Councillors contributed towards the Council’s plan to prioritise maintenance and allocate investment effectively. It was added that this approach ensured balance between reactive maintenance and proactive planned maintenance.

The Head of Highways and Engineering presented statistical data relating to pothole management and highlighted that potholes could be reported through the Telford & Wrekin Council website. It was reported that a strong right-first-time performance had been achieved with 98% of repairs completed correctly during 2025/26. The Committee also noted that the Council had explored innovative and sustainable approaches to improve the quality and longevity of highway repairs, including the use of Elastomac. It was added that to demonstrate transparency, the Highway Investment Programme was published on an annual basis.

Committee Members noted that prior to any planned work, warning signs were placed on site 2 weeks before the planned improvement and relevant officers were also informed. All planned works were published on one.network and residents were able to register with one.network to receive notifications of planned works taking place in their ward area, helping them to stay informed about upcoming activity. Members were encouraged to report issues through MyTelford and the Head of Highways and Engineering explained that reports submitted via MyTelford were tracked, enabling residents to monitor progress, receive regular updates and be provided with responses regarding the outcome of their reports.

Members were informed that pothole data was now available on the website and was regularly kept up to date. The information also showed the number of duplicate reports received, enabling residents to see when an issue had already been reported, helping to reduce duplicate submissions.

At the time of the meeting, transparency reports were in the process of being developed and would include a public-facing report as well as information submitted to the Department for Transport (DfT). A review of the current highways strategy was also being undertaken, including the consideration of future approaches to asset management and how best to maintain assets across both public sites and the highway infrastructure. Additionally,  ...  view the full minutes text for item COMSC5

None.