ROUND THE COUNCILS PENDLE:
CONWY: 12-MONTH RULE CONSIDERED
Pendle Borough Council is reviewing its taxi licensing policies, with a focus on driver qualifications, vehicle safety and enforcement procedures. The review comes after recent spot checks
revealed
“unacceptably high failure rates” of some taxis. Proposals for change: • Mobile app for driver/vehicle management: Drivers might be required to use a mobile app for regular vehicle checks, maintenance
training
reminders, and tracking penalty points/license reviews.
• Enhanced vehicle inspection facilities: Investment in facilities to conduct more thorough taxi inspections is being considered.
• Tougher enforcement approach: Some councillors advocate for a stricter approach to licensing enforcement, prioritising public safety.
• More cooperative approach: Other councillors favour a more collaborative approach with the taxi trade, fostering a sense of partnership.
A key area of debate is the current policy preventing a re-application for a taxi licence within 12 months of refusal or revocation (policy 5.4). • Arguments for removal: some councillors, including Faraz Ahmed, believe the rule lacks flexibility and may hinder potentially reformed applicants. They argue council decisions might not always be infallible.
• Arguments for modification: The report acknow- ledges some potential merit in allowing some discretion. A recommendation suggests changing the wording from “must wait 12 months’ to “will not normally be granted until 12 months” has passed.
Council response: The report defends the current 12-month rule, citing its effectiveness in preventing frivolous re- applications and maintaining consistency in the decision-making process. It highlights the council’s strong track record in court challenges to licensing decisions. The Pendle Council executive will review the report at its next meeting and determine the final policy direction.
This decision will likely influence the working relationship between the council and the taxi trade in Pendle.
PHTM AUGUST 2024 UNLICENSED DRIVER CONTINUED WORKING
A Conwy Council governance and audit meeting on Monday 22 July, revealed a critical failing that allowed a taxi driver whose licence had been revoked to continue transporting children to school. Cllr Tom Montgomery raised concerns about “safeguarding issues” affecting school taxis during a discussion on internal performance. He revealed a taxi driver, whose licence had been withdrawn by the licensing committee, was able to continue working “possibly for years” due to the licence not being surrendered. The nature of the driver’s licence revocation raises further questions about the potential risk posed to children. Cllr Montgomery said that a promised report from the council’s cabinet explaining this lapse in procedure had not been delivered since December 2021. Conwy’s transport manager, Andrew Dawson, acknowledged the mistake as “human error” and assured the council that procedures to verify driver licences have been significantly tightened since the incident. He clarified that these checks apply to drivers directly employed by the council’s school transport programme. Cllr. Montgomery said he would pursue the matter outside of the meeting.
BOLTON: FREE TRAINING DEADLINE APPROACHES
Bolton taxi drivers are urged to sign up for free safeguarding and disability awareness training before the deadline on October 31st, 2024. “There’s still over twelve weeks to sign up and get the online training completed,” said Cllr Sue Haworth, Bolton Council’s cabinet member for regulatory services. The training covers recognising signs of abuse, human trafficking, and best practices for safeguarding vulnerable adults, children, and young people. Originally planned for completion by the end of 2023, only around a third of Bolton’s roughly 1,500 taxi drivers had finished the programme by then. As a result, the deadline for free enrollment has been extended to October 31st, 2024 Drivers who are left untrained after this date will need to pay a charge to complete the mandatory training when renewing their licences.
55
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
