New Herts Council leader pledges to focus on SEND provision and a fresh approach to highway repairs

Cllr Steve Jarvis was elected as the new leader of the county council at a meeting of the full council on Tuesday (May 20).

And in his first speech as leader, he told councillors the Liberal Democrats had already drawn-up a 100-day plan, focussed on a 10 point plan of priority actions.

Among them, he said, would the trial of a new approach to the fixing of pot-holes – where a number of nearby pot-hole repairs would be completed at the same time.

And he highlighted plans for a ‘summit’ focussed on special needs education, that would bring together teachers.

“Many people rightly complain that, despite increased resources, Hertfordshire roads have not improved sufficiently,” he told members of the county council.

“So to begin the process of addressing that, we will launch a trial of a new approach to mend more pot-holes in a single visit – rather than coming back to fix pot-holes another day.

“It is also clear that despite the great efforts of the expanded team dealing with special educational needs and disabilities, that there is still a need to improve the experience of parents and children who rely on these services.

“There is no doubt that a national system for SEND has many defects – but we have to work with that system.

“And until such time as the government fixes it, we must strive to do the best we can within its limitations.

“So to support those who most need our help we will be bringing young people, parents, schools teachers together for a SEND summit to inform our plans to make further improvements that we need.

“These are just the first steps to show the new administration will change Hertfordshire for the better.”

In his address to the council, Cllr Jarvis said it was a “great honour” to have been elected as leader of the council.

With 32 Liberal Democrats members on the council – out of a total of 78 county councillors – the minority administration will need the support of others.

And Cllr Jarvis publicly acknowledged this – suggesting that the electoral arithmetic meant agreement may be needed “on a wider basis than it has been in the past”.

But he said electors had also made it plain that they wanted to see a change in how the county is run.

And he said it was his intention that “they should not be disappointed in that respect”.

“We want a council that people see as being on their side – doing better for the children with special needs and for the children without special needs as well actually, fixing roads and bus services and creating a greener county,” he said.

“There’s a lot to achieve and I don’t under-estimate the scale of that task.”

Cllr Jarvis was elected as leader at the meeting after receiving 42 votes. There were 13 councillors who abstained from the vote – and 22 who voted against.

Nominating Cllr Jarvis as leader of the county council, Cllr Sally Symington pointed to his long-standing experience as a Liberal Democrat and his commitment to the party’s values of liberty, equality, democracy, community, human rights, internationalism and environmentalism.

And she said this would ensure they could “deliver the will of the residents of Hertfordshire, as expressed in the ballot box on the first of May to see change”.

She also suggested Cllr Jarvis was a collaborative worker, who brought vision and integrity to all the roles he undertakes – highlighting his experience as a district councillor and county councillor.

Seconding the nomination Cllr Helen Campbell said Cllr Jarvis would lead with “integrity, transparency and drive, but also with fairness, empathy and inclusivity”.

And she said he would take the council forward in a way that is “truly progressive”.