Agenda and minutes

Councillor David Renard, the Leader of the Council, referred to the very sad death of Jo Cox, the Labour Member of Parliament for Batley and Spen, following an attack made on her earlier in the day. Councillor Renard invited cabinet colleagues, other councillors, officers and members of the public present in the Chamber to stand and observe a minute’s silence as a sign of respect.

The Chair reminded members of the need to declare any known interests in any matters to be considered at the meeting.

To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 20^th April 2016.

Resolved – That the minutes of the meeting held on 20^th April 2016, be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

There were no public questions.

Certain items are expected to include the consideration of exempt information and the Standards Committee is, therefore, recommended to resolve "That, in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded during the discussion of the matters referred to in the items listed below, on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in the respective paragraph of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information".

Resolved – That, in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded during the discussion of the matters referred to in the item listed below, on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in the respective paragraph of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act, and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

            Item No.                     Paragraph No.                     Minute No.

               19                                      3                              19

Cabinet considered recommendations submitted by the Independent Remuneration Panel on (i) the level of Councillors’ Allowances in Swindon for 2017/2018 and future years, and (ii) a proposed amendment to the Councillors’ Allowance Scheme for 2016/17 regarding Special Responsibility Allowances associated with the Health and Wellbeing Board. It was noted that whilst the Council was required by the Local Authorities (Members Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003 to consider the recommendations of its Independent Remuneration Panel when making decisions relating to its Scheme of Councillors’ Allowances, it was not required to adopt all or any of the Panel’s recommendations.

Councillor David Renard, the Leader of the Council, introduced the report, taking the opportunity to thank Mr Keith Strickland, the Chair of the Independent Remuneration Panel, and the Panel members, for their hard work in support of the review and their preparation of the comprehensive recommendations before the Cabinet.

Resolved – (1) That Cabinet notes the thorough and comprehensive review undertaken by the Independent Remuneration Panel, and thanks the Panel Chair and its members for their work.

(2) That the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel on Councillors’ Allowances for 2017/2018 and future years, as set out in paragraph 3.5 of the report, be referred to the Council.

(3) That the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel on Councillors’ Allowances for the 2016/17 year, as set out in paragraph 3.7 of the report, be referred to the Council.

(3) That the Director of Law and Democratic Services be authorised to introduce a revised Councillors’ Allowances Scheme for 2016/2017 and 2017/2018 and future years, to be based on the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel, and as approved and adopted by the Council. 

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Russell Holland, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, and the Board Director, Resources, submitted a joint report setting out a strategic context and framing for the direction of travel of the organisation to deliver the Vision for Swindon over the next four years, within the expected financial context. It was noted that this, with the Budget strategy for 2017-18, sought to ensure that the organisation understands the financial context within which it operates and has plans to remain financially stable and underpins the Council’s ability to achieve its Vision, strategies, plans and priorities, including the Council Plan, to be considered elsewhere on this evening’s agenda.

Councillor Holland introduced the report, emphasising the unprecedented pressures on the Council, from both an increased demand for services and expected reductions in government income, as summarised in the forecast funding position (Table 1 of the report), and the scale of the challenge facing the Council over the next four years to ensure that the Council was sustainable.  He observed that even a Council Tax increase to the capping limit, in addition to the permitted 2% social care increase, would be insufficient to cover the forecast demand for care services.

Councillor David Renard, the leader of the Council, reiterated that the pressure to provide adult social care and children’s services meant that these areas could, potentially, consume 80% of the budget by 2020 and was driving the unprecedented pressures and need for organisational transformation referred to by Councillor Holland in his introduction of the report.

Resolved – (1) That the Council’s medium term context be noted and it be agreed that the contents of this report be used to engage and consult with residents, stakeholders and service users on the organisation’s strategic response.

(2) That the latest version of the Efficiency Statement, showing the financial plan for the next four years to 2020, the final version of which needs to be submitted to the Government in October 2016, be noted.

(3) That the Budget Strategy for 2017-18 be agreed.

(4) That the licensing fee structure set out in Appendix One to the report, be approved.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor David Renard, the Leader of the Council, Councillor Russell Holland, the Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, Councillor Keith Williams, the Cabinet Member for Streetsmart and Councillor Mary Martin, the Cabinet Member for Communities, the Board Director Resources, and Director of Law and Democratic Services submitted a joint report providing an updates on (i) progress made with the transfer of services to existing parish councils, and  (ii) the first stage of the community governance review, and setting out the future direction of travel of the Council’s “Going Local” agenda.

Councillor Renard introduced the report, explaining that it provided an assessment of progress with the Community Governance Review and feedback received to date, and proposed a way forward in relation to future engagement over what a future, democratically-elected borough could look like.  He remarked on the different levels of devolution that had already occurred with existing Parish Councils and observed that the overwhelming majority of response to Stage One of the Review had come from areas without parishes.

Councillor Mary Martin, the Cabinet Member for Communities, noted the pressures on the Council’s budgets and advised that, in her view, the proposed mechanism of the transfer of services would facilitate the Council in continuing to provide or extend services that might, otherwise, have to be reduced or removed.

Councillor Keith Williams, the Cabinet Member for Streetsmart, commented on the positive feedback from the pilot areas, noting that a parish council would be able to ensure that its available financial resource was spent only on improvements and services within the particular parish’s area.

In response to a question put by Councillor Dale Heenan, the Director of Law and Democratic Services confirmed that the process for conducting a Community Governance Review did not contain a statutory requirement for a referendum and that the Council needed to adhere to the legislation and guidance to avoid the risk of any judicial challenge.

In response to a further question put by Councillor Heenan, the Director of Law and Democratic Services agreed to inform Cabinet of the number of Borough Councillors that had responded to the Stage 1 Community Governance Review consultation.

Councillor Claire Ellis, on behalf of residents of Old Town, advised the meeting of:

• Residents’ concern about the lack of information available to reach a conclusion about the introduction of a parish, particularly since most respondents to the CGR had stated their opposition to creating parishes,
• Residents’ concern at the lack of any legislative requirement for a referendum and residents’ support for a consultative poll, even if councillors still had to make the final decision, and
• Local businesses, concern about the possible extension of the BID area or a request to pay more to support local services.

Councillor Chris Watts referred to views expressed earlier in the debate of this matter and commented that residents of areas without parishes were equally proud of their local community areas as were residents of parished areas and that residents  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

Councillor Russell Holland, Deputy leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, and the Board Director, Resources, submitted a joint report presenting to Cabinet the 2015-16 Revenue Budget out-turn, based on actual expenditure incurred during the Financial Year ending 31^st March 2016.

Councillor Holland introduced the report, reminding Cabinet of the amount of officer effort that was spent ensuring the Council continued to provide services within the budget.  He drew members’ attention to the demand-led pressures for personal care services, which had resulted in the overspend in the Commissioning  department, and emphasised that the Council remained committed to the support of vulnerable people being a priority.

Resolved – (1) That the 2015-16 Out-turn for each service area, set out in Table One and Appendix One, be noted and that it also be noted that the out-turn was delivered within Budget for the tenth year running.

(2) That it be noted that the General Fund underspend of £0.2m has been added to the Council’s transformation reserve as approved by Cabinet at its meeting on 20th April 2016 (Cabinet Minute 87(3) 2015/16 refers).

(3) That the out-turn positions for the Housing Revenue Account (HRA), Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) and Public Power Solutions Ltd (PPS) be noted.

(4) That the proposed changes to fees and charges for Licencing be agreed and that the changes to Land Charges, as set out in Appendix 3 to the report, be noted.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Russell Holland, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, and the Board Director, Resources, submitted a joint report setting out the 2015/16 Capital Programme position as at the end of March 2016.

Councillor Holland welcomed a suggestion from Councillor Dale Heenan that the Council investigate whether staff costs on particular projects could be capitalised in order to reduce pressure on the revenue budget. 

In response to a question from Councillor Toby Elliott, Councillor Heenan undertook to provide written details of the speed amelioration work on Thamesdown Drive.

Resolved – (1) That the latest 2015/16 Capital Programme position, as at financial year end, and as detailed in paragraphs 3.1 to 3.4 of the report, be noted.

(2) That the changes to the Capital Programme, detailed in paragraph 3.5 of the report, be approved.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Russell Holland, Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, and the Board Director, Resources, submitted a joint report setting out the Treasury Management performance for 2015/16.

Resolved – That the 2015/16 Treasury Management performance, as detailed at paragraphs 3.1 to 3.17 of the report, and Prudential Indicators shown at Appendix 1 to the report, be noted.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Oliver Donachie, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness, and the Board Director, Resources, submitted a joint report sets out the Housing Revenue Account Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) over the next 30 years.

Councillor Donachie drew Cabinet's attention to the key messages set out in paragraph 3.5 of the report, namely:

• The significant shortfall in resources available to undertake the investment required.
• The directing of investment towards maintaining homes to the Decent Homes Standard, undertaking structural repairs to the non- traditionally built stock where viable to do so, and re-categorisation of the sheltered housing stock where finances allow.

Resolved – (1) That the Medium Term Financial Plan, set out at Appendix 1 to the report, be endorsed.

(2) That it be noted that the plan will be updated annually to take into account changing policies and updated survey information.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor David Renard, the Leader of the Council, and Councillor Russell Holland, the Deputy Leader of the Council and the Cabinet Member for Finance and Corporate Services, submitted a joint report seeking Cabinet’s approval to the adoption of the Council Plan 2016-2020, outlining the work that the Council will do over the next four years towards the delivery of the Vision, the four priorities and thirty pledges. The report also introduced the Performance Dashboard, developed to ensure that residents, members, and staff were able to access information about the Council’s performance, and containing the measures and targets by which the Council’s performance against the work programme outlined in the Council plan would be tracked.

Councillor Holland acknowledged the work of members and officers to produce this plan, the aims of which would be to provide more data to residents, encourage informed debate and empower local people to suggest ideas of their own to support delivering the Plan that the Council could investigate. 

Resolved – (1) That the Council Plan, detailed in Appendix One to the report, be approved and that the Chief Executive be asked to ensure that the Council’s work programmes are aligned with the Plan.

(2) That the Head of Performance, People, and Engagement be authorised to publish and update the Performance Dashboard.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Garry Perkins, the Cabinet Member for the Economy, Regeneration and Skills, and the Board Director Resources, submitted a joint report on the specific proposals for the introduction of car parking charges at Lydiard House and Park and Coate Water Country Park, which were agreed in principle by Cabinet and Council in February 2016.  It was noted that the proposals recognised feedback from a public consultation, the results of which were outlined in the report.

The report also asked Cabinet to confirm its acceptance of a range of lease durations that might be offered by a future operator of Lydiard House and Park, recognising the need to be mindful of the designation of Lydiard as an “Asset of Community Value” under the Localism Act, which could impact on the process to be followed to transfer the running of the facility to another operator.

It was noted that these activities form part of the Council’s strategy of growing the economy and attracting new income streams and would contribute directly to the objective of securing a sustainable future for Swindon’s cultural assets, including country parks.

Councillors Keith Williams and Fionuala Foley commented on the significant level of engagement with residents and park users as part of the consultation and the willingness to amend the proposals to address issues raised, including:

• The possibility of providing dispensation to voluntary and sporting groups that use the two parks.
• Changing the proposed levels of pricing.
• Introducing separate pricing for Lydiard Park and Coate Water Park.

Resolved – (1) That it be noted that the timeline for the submission of bids for the future running of Lydiard House and Park had been extended until 8 July 2016, for the reasons detailed in paragraph 3.1 of the report.

(2) That the introduction of car parking charges at Lydiard House and Park and Coate Water Country Park from 1 July 2016, using the charging structure set out under paragraph 3.4, be approved.

(3) That a further report be brought to Cabinet in December 2016, following a review of practical issues arising from the implementation of car parking charges, to highlight any lessons learnt for future arrangements.

(4) That the current designation of Lydiard House and Park as an Asset of Community Value be noted and that it be agreed that the Council confirms to potentially interested parties that it is willing to consider a “relevant disposal” through a lease of greater than 25 years to a third party, which would trigger a 6 week ‘interim moratorium’ period during which any qualifying community group is able to express an interest in potentially running the site.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Dale Heenan, the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways, and Transport and the Head of Highways and Transport submitted a joint report seeking approval for the adoption of the Local Transport Plan Implementation Plan for 2016/17 and for the Local Transport Plan Capital Programme budget apportionment for 2016/17.

Councillor Heenan introduced the report, setting out how it confirmed receipt of £3.9m of government grant along with identifying a pool of schemes on which that money could be spent over the next three years.  He added that, if Cabinet approved the recommendations, the Head of Highways and Transport would consult with him to  prioritise those schemes set out in the appendix to the main report.

Councillor Heenan advised that the report also sought support to make a submission to the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership (SWLEP) for £1.27m to support work on the proposed Thamesdown Drive Extension, for which the substantive business case had already been prepared.  Councillor Heenan explained that the additional funding would be used to pay for the detailed design work, ecological and environmental impact assessments along with preparing the planning application.

Councillor David Renard, the leader of the Council, informed the meeting that this submission would be considered by the SWLEP Board at its July 2016 meeting.

Resolved – (1) That the Local Transport Plan (LTP) Implementation Plan for 2016/17 be approved.

(2) That the Local Transport Plan Capital Programme budget categories and total spend for 2016/17, as detailed in Tables 1 to 7 of the Implementation Plan attached as Appendix 3 to the report, be approved.

(3) That, subject to approval of the Local Transport Plan Implementation Plan by Council :

(a) the Head of Highways and Transport, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways, and Transport, be authorised to:

(i)         prioritise schemes in accordance with Vision for Swindon priorities,

(ii)        approve scheme progression in accordance with the updated Protocol (attached to the report at Appendix 2 and originally approved by the Cabinet in July 2010),

(iii)       amend the Protocol to reflect changing job titles and organisational restructuring,

(iv)       vary allocations between different budget categories,

(v)        approve variations in scheme costs,

(vi)       add/substitute schemes, provided expenditure is contained within the approved total budget, and

(viii)     vary the allocation of the £200k of previous funding set out in paragraphs 3.10 and 3.11 such that it is returned to the Council’s reserves to be used for Corporate priorities.

            (b) the Sustainable Travel Transition Year revenue funding budget categories and allocations for 2016/17, as detailed in table 8 of Appendix 3 to the report, be approved and the Head of Highways and Transport, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways, and Transport, be authorised to amend budget allocations between the package elements where necessary to ensure delivery of the projects set out in the bid document.

            (c ) the Head of Highways and Transport, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways and Transport, be authorised to work with the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.

(Report to follow)

Councillor Dale Heenan, the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways, and Transport, and the Head of Highways and Transport, submitted a joint report on proposed revisions to the Local Bus Strategy for Swindon Borough Council, and informing of (a) bus service revisions and reductions being proposed in line with the proposed revised draft Local Bus Strategy required to meet revenue support funding budget pressures, following the Council’s decision to remove £100k from the revenue support budget of £267k in 2016-17, (b) the approach, in line with the proposed revised draft Local Bus Strategy, for mitigating revenue support funding changes, (c) proposed service revision and review of Dial a Ride and Community Transport following the Council’s decision to reduce the Community Transport budget of £313.5k by £100k in 2016-17, in line with the revised draft Local Bus Strategy, and (d) the development of a single consultation document, based on the revised draft Local Bus Strategy (Appendix 1) aligned with details of the Public Transport Contracts (Appendix 2) and Examples of the Proposed BusLink Community Transport Hub Services (Appendix 3), that would be the basis of consultation on the strategy and its implications.

Councillor Heenan introduced the report, commenting that the proposals were a continuation of issues raised during the 2016/17 Budget process. He advised that the intention was to commence a consultation on proposed changes to the Council’s Bus Strategy in order to seek a bus network that consisted entirely of commercial routes.  The savings achieved would be used to support bus link and hub projects to enable residents in villages and parts of the Borough not served by commercial bus services to reach key public services such as the hospital, or places where they could interconnect with public  transport.  Councillor Heenan added that the final Bus Strategy and proposals would return to Cabinet for consideration in the autumn.

Resolved – (1) That the use for public consultation of the draft revised Local Bus Strategy, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report, and its implications for local bus services, as set out in Appendices 2 and 3, be noted and that the proposed service revision and its implications for Dial a Ride and Community Transport be also noted.

(2) That the Head of Highways and Transport, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Sustainability, Highways and Transport, be authorised to finalise the public consultation document and to carry out the public consultation on the draft revised Local Bus Strategy and it’s implications.

(3) That a report detailing the results of the public consultation be submitted to the meeting of the Cabinet in September 2016.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Keith Williams, the Cabinet Member for StreetSmart, and the Head of StreetSmart, submitted a joint report setting out proposed changes to the Waste and Recycling Service during the third quarter of 2016/17, to enable service improvements and efficiency savings to be made in waste and recycling collections. It was noted that the proposed changes to the service would impact some households, where their collection day would change, and that consultation with staff and unions would be undertaken where any proposed changes were likely to impact staff.

Councillor Williams introduced the report and explained that the changes would involve reducing the number of vehicles and contract workers, but that no permanent posts would be made redundant.  He advised Cabinet that around two thirds of properties in the Borough would be affected by the changes in the collection schedules from the Autumn but that a communications plan had been prepared to ensure  timely and repeated advice to residents so as to minimise any possible disruption or misunderstanding.

Resolved – That the Head of StreetSmart be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for StreetSmart, to implement changes to the Waste and Recycling collection service during 2016/17. 

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Toby Elliott, the Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning, and the Board Director, Service Delivery, submitted a joint report concerning the New Eastern Villages (NEV) development area and proposing that the Council should use its compulsory purchase powers (CPO) to acquire any land falling within the area shown on the plan at Appendix 2 to the report, which it has been unable to acquire by private treaty, and which is necessary for the provision of an item or items of infrastructure and in order to achieve the proper planning of the area. Cabinet was advised that it was considered to be extremely important that the Council makes its position very clear at this early stage that it will use its CPO powers where purchase by agreement is not possible.

Councillor Elliott introduced the report, explaining that the New Eastern Villages scheme was the largest greenfield housing expansion project in the UK.  He added that the Council was seeking to ensure that this development had adequate infrastructure, for which the CPO powers would be a useful tool to be used only in the last resort.  He set out details of the extensive engagement that had already occurred as well as informing Cabinet about a major event with stakeholders in July at which he hoped to secure progress without using the CPO powers.

Following his introduction of the report, Councillor Elliott responded to comments from Councillor Dale Heenan, who endorsed the approach as a means of indicating the Council’s commitment to the development, and Councillor Russell Holland, whom he undertook to involve fully so that residents’ concerns about any possible loss of access from Ermin Street could be addressed.

Resolved – (1) That the Head of Property Assets, in consultation with the Board Director, Service Delivery, the Director of Law and Democratic Services, the Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and all relevant stakeholders, be authorised to:

(a)  identify and compile a list of specific areas of land within the area shown on the plan at Appendix 2 to the report, which are required for the purpose of the delivery of necessary infrastructure and in order to achieve the proper planning of the NEV area; and

(b)  subject to obtaining the necessary authority, depending on purchase price, to undertake negotiations with the owners of relevant interests in the said areas of land with a view to achieving purchase by private treaty.

(2) That the Director of Law and Democratic Services, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and the Head of Property Assets, be authorised to complete such transactions, on such terms as he considers necessary to protect the Council’s interests.

(3) That, in the event that purchase by private treaty proves unachievable, a report (or reports) be brought to the Cabinet to seek authority for the Director of Law and Democratic Services to make any necessary Compulsory Purchase Order(s).

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.

Councillor Garry Perkins, the Cabinet Member for Economy, Regeneration and Skills, and the Chief Executive, submitted a joint report regarding a regeneration opportunity at the Cheney Manor Industrial Estate.

Councillor Perkins introduced the report, setting out its intention to provide much-needed investment to improve the quality of a Council-owned industrial estate unit.  He added that these refurbishments would be paid for through a 20 year agreement with the present tenant, an engineering firm that was seeking to expand its workforce. 

Resolved – That the Director of Law and Democratic Services, in consultation with the Board Director for Resources and Head of Property Assets, be authorised to enter into all necessary documentation, on such terms as he considers necessary to protect the Council’s interests, to enable the grant of a lease of Council owned premises at Cheney Manor as detailed in the main body of the report and as identified in the plan appended to the report, and on the basis that the Council funds further landlord improvements, up to the cost identified in the report, in accordance with the financial arrangements  also detailed in the report.

The reasons for the decision and alternative options are as set out in the report to the meeting.