Agenda and minutes

Apologies had been received from Councillor David Dixon

At this point in the meeting declarations of interest are received from Members in any of the agenda items under consideration at the meeting. Members are asked to indicate:

(a) The agenda item number in which they have an interest to declare.

(b) The nature of their interest.

(c) Whether their interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest or an other interest,  (as defined in Part 2, A and B of the Code of Conduct and Rules for Registration of Interests)

Any Member who needs to clarify any matters relating to the declaration of interests is recommended to seek advice from the Council’s Monitoring Officer before the meeting to expedite dealing with the item during the meeting.

Questions submitted before the deadline will receive a reply from an appropriate Cabinet member or a promise to respond within 5 days of the meeting.  Councillors may ask one supplementary question for each question they submitted, up to a maximum of two per Councillor.

There were 12 questions from the following people: Councillors John Bull (2), Anthony Clarke (2), Tim Warren, Geoff Ward, Paul Myers; members of the public Rae Harris, Colin Currie (4).

[Copies of the questions and response, including supplementary questions and responses if any, have been placed on the Minute book as Appendix 1 and are available on the Council's website.]

The Chair observed that questions #P02 and #P04 had in fact been answered by Councillor Cherry Beath.  The Democratic Services Officer agreed to amend the sheet before publication.

Councillors and members of the public may register their intention to make a statement if they notify the subject matter of their statement before the deadline.  Statements are limited to 3 minutes each.  The speaker may then be asked by Cabinet members to answer factual questions arising out of their statement.

Clarice Corfield in a statement read by Mary Lambert [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 2 and on the Council's website] opposed the drilling for coal bed methane in the Keynsham area and gave a number of reasons for her concerns.

Laura Corfield (Transition Keynsham) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 3 and on the Council's website] spoke of her concerns about possible drilling for coal bed methane in the Keynsham area, with particular reference to its effect on land and water systems.

The Chair thanked Laura Corfield for her comments and promised to respond to her in due course.

Ben Eve (Saltford environment group) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 4 and on the Council's website] expressed his concerns about the impact which coal bed methane extraction in the Saltford area would have on the area.  He particularly emphasised the unproven safety track record of the industry and the evidence of health risks to local people.

The Chair thanked Ben Eve for his comments and promised to respond to him in due course.

Pamela Galloway (Save Our 6/7 Buses Campaign) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 5 and on the Council's website] thanked the Cabinet for the recent news that funds would be allocated to subsidise the 6/7 service.  She committed to continue to fight to save the service into the future.

Councillor Roger Symonds asked Pamela Galloway for the source of her “reliable” authority that the funding might disappear.

Pamela responded that she would research the source of that comment and would get back to Councillor Symonds in due course.

George Bailey (Radstock Action Group) in a statement read by Colin Currie [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 6 and on the Council's website] raised a number of issues relating to the sum of £500K allocated for Radstock and how it was to be used.

Colin Currie (Chair, Radstock Action Group) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 7 and on the Council's website] expressed concerns about how the membership of the Radstock and Westfield Economic Forum were appointed.  He was not convinced that the Forum would make decisions in the interests of local people.

The Chair thanked Colin Currie for his comments and promised to respond to him in due course.

Trudie Mitchell (Chair, Compton Dando Parish Council) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 8 and on the Council's website] appealed to Cabinet to bring forward plans to implement 20mph speed limits in Burnett, Queen Charlton and Chewton Keynsham; and submitted the results of a local survey showing public opinion about traffic speeds in the villages.

Cllr Brian Webber in a statement [a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 96.

On a motion from Councillor Paul Crossley, seconded by Councillor Simon Allen, it was

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 10th October 2012 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

This is a standard agenda item, to cover any reports originally placed on the Weekly list for single Member decision making, which have subsequently been the subject of a Cabinet Member requisition to the full Cabinet, under the Council’s procedural rules

This is a standing agenda item (Constitution rule 14, part 4D – Executive Procedure Rules) for matters referred by Policy Development and Scrutiny bodies.  The Chair of the relevant PDS Panel will have the right to attend and to introduce the Panel’s recommendations to Cabinet.

This report lists any Cabinet Single Member decisions taken and published since the last Cabinet meeting.  There were no such decisions on this occasion

There were none

At its meeting of 11^th July Cabinet received a report on the outcomes of the consultation process in respect of Victoria Hall and its potential future uses.  This report examines the scope for bringing the building back into use as a community facility with meeting rooms, exhibition space and relocation of the town library in to the building.

Amanda Leon in an ad hoc statement welcomed the report and agreed that Victoria Hall had the potential to become a focus in the town.

Councillor Eleanor Jackson in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 10 and on the Council's website] cautiously welcomed the proposals and made some suggestions for developing its use, including a request that Radstock Youth Club and Radstock in Bloom be allowed use of the garden.  She reserved her congratulations until the refurbishment had been completed.

Councillor Charles Gerrish in an ad hoc statement welcomed the proposals but observed that the revenue shortfall was understated and should read £49K, not £24K.  He asked for the error to be corrected.

Leslie Mansell (Chair, Radstock Town Council) in an ad hoc statement welcomed the report and the Cabinet’s commitment to the long-overdue refurbishment of Victoria Hall.

Councillor David Bellotti in proposing the item, said that the proposals would give the hall a 20-30 year life.  He was excited about the plans for a community library with refreshments and Wi-Fi facilities.  The consultation had brought out lots of ideas – not all possible.  He expressed his disappointment that it had not been possible to fit in a full-size snooker table despite investigating a number of possible floor layouts.  He was delighted however that the building would be fully accessible, with a lift to the upper floor.  The total anticipated cost of £800K would be partly met from £160K from the Radstock Regeneration funds, £125K from the sale of the Library site, and another sum from the potential sale of the old caretaker house.

Councillor Simon Allen in seconding the proposals said he was very proud that Cabinet had reached this point.  He felt that the renovation of the hall would put the heart back into Radstock.

Councillor Cherry Beath observed that the proposals were evidence that Cabinet was willing to deal with difficult long-standing issues.  She committed to working closely with the Economic Forum and the Town Council to ensure the best outcome for the town.

On a motion from Councillor David Bellotti, seconded by Councillor Simon Allen, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To NOTE the outcomes of the feasibility study;

(2) To AGREE that Work is progressed on determining the viability of implementing a scheme for the relocation of the library, creation of community facilities with meeting room and exhibition space, accessed by a new lift;

(3) To AUTHORISE the Chief Property Officer to finalise the preferred scheme for the development of Victoria Hall in consultation with Cabinet Member for Community Resources and Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods and subject to:

·  A business plan being completed for the facility, which includes the library relocation,  and which will be subject to the approval of the Section 151 Officer;

·  The sources of additional revenue liability resulting from any additional running costs being identified. Any additional revenue costs will represent a funding pressure for 2013/14 and prudent provision is being included in the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 101.

This report presents the second monitoring information for the Authority as a whole for the financial year 2012/13 to the end of September 2012. The report also includes a number of budget transfer requests for both revenue and capital that require Cabinet agreement or are reported for information purposes as prescribed by the Budget Management Scheme

On a motion from Councillor David Bellotti, seconded by Councillor Paul Crossley, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To NOTE the projected outturn position for 2012/13 and accompanying information;

(2) To ASK Strategic Directors to continue to work towards managing within budget in the current year for their respective service areas, and to manage below budget where possible by not committing unnecessary expenditure, through tight budgetary control;

(3) To NOTE the capital expenditure position for the Council in the financial year to the end of September and the year end projections;

(4) To AGREE the revenue virements listed for approval in the report; and

(5) To NOTE the changes in the capital programme.

This report gives details of performance against the Council's Treasury Management Strategy and Annual Investment Plan 2012/13 for the first 6 months of 2012/13

On a motion from Councillor David Bellotti, seconded by Councillor Paul Crossley, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To NOTE the Treasury Management Report to 30th September 2012, prepared in accordance with the CIPFA Treasury Code of Practice;

(2) To NOTE the Treasury Management Indicators to 30th September 2012; and

(3) To REFER the Treasury Management Report and attached appendices to November Council and December Corporate Audit Committee.

[Councillor David Bellotti gave his apologies and left the meeting at this point]

Adoption of the Bath World Heritage Site Setting Supplementary Planning Document following amendments arising from the public consultation

Peter Duppa-Miller (Clerk, Combe Hay Parish Council) in an ad hoc statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 11 and on the Council's website] urged Cabinet to adopt the SPD.

Councillor Tim Ball in proposing the item, thanked the officers for the hard work undertaken during the consultation.  Now that the consultation period had ended, he asked Cabinet to adopt the policy.

Councillor Cherry Beath felt that the SPD would be very important in the Council’s aim to protect the setting of the city.

Councillor Roger Symonds agreed, and observed that the buffer zone around the city and the tremendous surroundings were worth protecting.

On a motion from Councillor Tim Ball, seconded by Councillor Cherry Beath, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To APPROVE the changes to the Draft City of Bath World Heritage Site Setting Supplementary Planning Document for adoption  as a SPD to policies BH.1 of the Bath and North East Somerset Council Local Plan and B4 of the Core Strategy once it is adopted; and

(2) To DELEGATE authority to the Divisional Director for Planning and Transport Development, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Homes and Planning, to make minor text changes and minor design changes to the layout, if required, and for the inclusion of the rest of the appendices and changes to the selection of photos to the SPD.

Endorsement of the Green Infrastructure Strategy for Bath & NE Somerset following amendments arising from consultation in May 2012

Virginia Williamson (Convenor, Transition Bath Food Group) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 12 and on the Council's website] referred to the fact that although DEFRA included agriculture within its definition of green infrastructure, the B&NES document seemed to ignore the role of agriculture despite being a substantially agricultural area.

Councillor Peter Anketell-Jones in an ad hoc statement welcomed the new strategy but warned that measuring “growth” and “progress” would always lead to more tarmac.  He asked why the Park and Ride sites could not be included in the document, so as to encourage planting, wildlife and access to the countryside.

Peter Duppa-Miller (Secretary, Local Councils Association) in an ad hoc statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 13 and on the Council's website] asked the Cabinet to endorse the amended strategy.

Councillor Paul Crossley in proposing the item, thanked Councillor Peter Anketell-Jones for his suggestion about the inclusion of Park and Ride sites.

Councillor Tim Ball seconded the proposal.  He referred to the comments made by Virginia Williamson by saying that he felt the need for food was outside the remit of a green infrastructure strategy.  He was pleased to report however that the PCT had appointed a Food Project Officer which he felt was the right way to tackle the issue.

Councillor Roger Symonds observed that the document would form an important part of the Core Strategy.  He reminded the meeting that Bath had been the site of the very first farmers’ market in the whole country and that it was still going strong.

Councillor Cherry Beath agreed that local food sourcing was very important.  She reported that in Combe Down the local people had planted an edible landscape and had taken other initiatives to improve the area.

Councillor Dine Romero also reported the planning in Southdown of blackthorn and apple trees.  Some local schools were using local produce in their kitchens where possible and in some cases that was coming from the school’s own garden, grown by the pupils.

On a motion from Councillor Paul Crossley, seconded by Councillor Tim Ball, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To APPROVE the Green Infrastructure Strategy “Valuing people, place and nature” for the Bath and North East Somerset area;

(2) To SUPPORT delivery of the Strategy by championing Green Infrastructure and commend the Strategy to the partners and stakeholders who have shaped it and invite them to continue to work with the Council to develop and deliver the action plan; and

(3) To DELEGATE authority to the Divisional Director for Planning and Transport Development, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, to make minor text changes and minor design changes to the layout, if required, and for the inclusion of the rest of the appendices and changes to the selection of photos to the Strategy.

This policy articulates how Housing Services will protect the health, safety and welfare of residents by enforcing minimum housing standards.  It updates the existing enforcement policy and introduces a new streamlined enforcement process.

Councillor Eleanor Jackson (Chair of the Housing and Major Projects Policy Development and Scrutiny Panel) in an ad hoc statement welcomed the policy and congratulated officers and Councillor Tim Ball for bringing the proposals to Cabinet.

Councillor Tim Ball in proposing the item, emphasised that the policy was not in fact based only on enforcement, but was a means of ensuring decent housing.  It would enable the Council to deal with the problem of empty homes.

Councillor Paul Crossley seconded the proposal.

On a motion from Councillor Tim Ball, seconded by Councillor Paul Crossley, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To ADOPT the revised enforcement policy.

Cabinet are asked to approve the Council's Corporate Parenting Strategy setting out how it will act as a good corporate parent and promote good outcomes for children and young people in and moving on from care

Councillor Anthony Clarke expressed his support for the proposals but cautioned Cabinet to avoid the centrally driven pressure to put more children into care.  He supported the improvement of support offered during the transition between care and adult life.

Councillor Dine Romero in proposing the item noted the concerns expressed by Councillor Clarke.  She assured him that each child had a bespoke package of services, tailored to their needs.  An audit had shown that the authority has spent less on some areas of corporate parenting than many other authorities, yet has ensured that during the last 8 years not a single young person has needed to be taken back into care after adoption.

Councillor Tim Ball seconded the proposal.  He observed that he was a special guardian of 3 children but received no financial support from the authority.  He emphasised that no child should ever be raced into adoption – the arrangements must be what is right for the child.  It was a tragedy when a child having once been adopted had to be taken back into the system.

Councillor Paul Crossley said that the priority would always be to work with families.  He praised the leadership given by Ashley Ayre (Strategic Director – People).  He referred to paragraph 6 of the strategy, which dealt with the issues of moving on from care, in particular the fact that 55% of young people leaving care are in education, employment or training compared to 95% of the general population of the same age.  He stressed that this was an area which would need action to break the cycle.

On a motion from Councillor Dine Romero, seconded by Councillor Tim Ball, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To APPROVE the Corporate Parenting Strategy.

Following the implementation of the Snow Warden Pilot Scheme carried out across winter 2011/12, the Cabinet requested a review of the scheme and to seek agreement on arrangements for the winter 2012/13.

Councillor Charles Gerrish in an ad hoc statement supported the proposals but pointed out that the cold season had started earlier than anticipated for 2 consecutive years.  He asked Cabinet to reconsider the forecasting service being used, which had not always given adequate snow warnings.

Councillor Anthony Clarke said how confident the residents of Camden were after they had been provided with grit and salt on their steep roads.

Peter Duppa-Miller (Secretary, Local Councils Association) in an ad hoc statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 14 and on the Council's website] asked the Cabinet to continue the snow warden pilot scheme for the coming winter and to approve the winter service policy.

Councillor Roger Symonds moved the recommendations.  He agreed to reconsider the forecasting sourcing in the light of the comments made by Councillor Gerrish.

Councillor Cherry Beath seconded the proposals.

Councillor Dine Romero asked whether it was too late to add extra snow wardens to the scheme, because she knew of some willing volunteers in her own ward.

Councillor Paul Crossley agreed with Councillor Gerrish that the forecasting needed to be improved.  This had been the only cause of complaints.  He said that extra volunteers could be included but their training would need to be funded by the local Ward members from their Ward Member Initiative funds.

On a motion from Councillor Roger Symonds, seconded by Councillor Cherry Beath, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To AGREE that the existing Snow Warden Pilot Scheme is continued across the winter 2012/13; and

(2) To AGREE that the arrangements for the Highway Winter Service during winter 2012/13 continue as set out in the Policy approved by Cabinet on 14th September 2011.

The Tenancy Strategy sets out local needs that registered providers of social housing must have regard to in formulating policies relating to the kinds of tenancies they grant and the length of term, where tenancies of a certain term are granted

Councillor Tim Ball in proposing the item, explained that the report was a result of the Localism Act.  Although he took no pleasure in bringing the paper to Cabinet, it was required by law.  He said that the effect of the proposals would be that all tenancies would in future be fixed-term and that rents would be fixed at 80% of the market rate.

Councillor Roger Symonds seconded the proposal although he agreed with Councillor Ball that he took no pleasure in this.

On a motion from Councillor Tim Ball, seconded by Councillor Roger Symonds it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To ADOPT the Tenancy Strategy.

The Allocations Scheme articulates how priority for social housing is determined.  The revised scheme responds to the Localism Act which gave new freedoms permitting the council to restrict access and meet local housing need better.  The proposed revised scheme takes account of statutory guidance published in June 2012.

Councillor Simon Allen in proposing the item, said that the revised scheme would be more transparent and fairer.  It would enable people to move to smaller homes and in so doing would free up larger homes and reduce the waiting list.

Councillor Tim Ball seconded the proposal.

On a motion from Councillor Simon Allen, seconded by Councillor Tim Ball, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To ADOPT the revised allocation policy; and

(2) To AGREE that the policy is implemented in phases starting 1st January and to be fully implemented by 1st July 2013.

The purpose of this report is to draw members’ attention to the activities of the Safety Advisory Group for Events to date during 2012, to review the first year of operation of the Group and to deliver the Chair's Annual Report to Cabinet.

Councillor Roger Symonds in proposing the item, said it was important that event organisers must know what is required of them.  The SAGE group were making that possible.  He welcomed this, the first annual report.

Councillor Cherry Beath in seconding the proposal said that the report explained the value of the SAGE group.  The year just past had been an excellent year for the group to operate, because of the Jubilee celebrations and Olympic events.

Councillor Paul Crossley asked that Cabinet’s thanks be passed to Geoff Dicker (Senior Health and Safety Adviser) and the rest of the SAGE team.

On a motion from Councillor Roger Symonds, seconded by Councillor Paul Crossley, it was

RESOLVED (unanimously)

(1) To RECONFIRM s.101 of the Events Policy which states “If it is the collective view of the SAGE that the event should not go ahead then this will be communicated to the Public Protection Service Manager and Divisional Director of Environmental Services who will formally write to the event organiser. Each SAGE member retains the right to object to any event”; and

(2) To AMEND the Events Policy (November 2011) to include the following paragraph:

"6.2. The SAGE chair will have the discretion to determine which events are considered by the SAGE - based on risk. This decision will be dependent, amongst other things, on the nature of the event, location, participants and includes events which are likely to cause significant disruption to traffic and parking arrangements.  This risk based provision will be exercised following consultation with other members of the SAGE where necessary."