Chair to report.

The Chair outlined the virtual meeting procedure and etiquette to the Committee and attendees.

The Senior Corporate and Community Services Officer confirmed the Members and Officers that were present at the meeting.

There were no apologies for absence received.

(a) Parkwood Leisure

The Chief Executive advised that an urgent decision had been taken in April 2020 to pay Parkwood Leisure £40,000 towards losses they had incurred due to government restrictions imposed on leisure centres due to the COVID 19 pandemic.  Parkwood Leisure had submitted a further request for financial support for the month of May for a similar amount.  Parkwood had incurred costs during the closure for running costs and had requested £48,000.  The request was received too late for inclusion on the agenda.  There was national support for leisure providers and other Local Authorities were paying grants of a larger amount. The Head of Resources had reviewed the costs and it was recommended that with the Committee’s support a further urgent decision be taken to award £40,000 to Parkwood Leisure.  He was unable to confirm whether any further requests for funding would be received from Parkwood Leisure.  The dry facilities were now open and the swimming pools would be re-open in September.

The Committee supported the Chief Executive in taking an urgent decision to award £40,000 to Parkwood Leisure to cover losses experienced in the month of May due to Covid 19.

(Please telephone the Corporate and Community Services team to prepare a form for your signature before the meeting.  Interests must be re-declared when the item is called, and Councillors must leave the room if necessary).

The following declaration of interest was announced:

Report by Head of Resources (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Head of Resources (circulated previously) regarding the Performance and Financial Management Quarter 4 2019/20.

The Accountancy Services Manager highlighted the following:

·         The revenue budget for 2019/20 was approved at Council on 25 February 2019 at £12,518,000 and as at 31 December 2019, the Council was reporting a net surplus of £6,000 against the budget.

·         As at 31 March 2020 the final outturn position was a budget surplus of £241,000, which was an overall movement of £235,000 from the latest forecast at quarter 3.  The reasons for the movement were detailed in Appendix A of the report.

·         The original budget for 2019/20 included a forecast to achieve £214,000 worth of salary vacancy savings.  This was exceeded by £31,000 giving an overall actual saving of £245,000.

·         A review of procedures and processes within Works and Recycling was carried out at quarter 2 and we set targeted spend in respect of the vehicle workshop, challenging resources across all Works and Recycling services and to reduce sickness levels. As a result of these changes we factored in a targeted reduction in overtime and agency costs within the quarter 2 projections.  The quarter 3 position forecast a net deficit position of £312,000 for the services, the outturn position has shown this deficit to increase by a further £57,000 in the final quarter due to further pressure on employees, vehicle costs and tipping charges. However, the level of overspend seen in the final quarter, some of which would have been impacted by events of the last 2 weeks of March, was around 50% the level of budget variance seen in the first three quarters.

·         As at 31 December 2019 additional Business Rates income was forecast of £200,000.  The outturn position improved on this by a further £6,000 with overall business rate growth of £206,000.

·         As at 31 March 2020 the Collection Fund reserve balance was £732,620.  This was a healthy balance which provided some protection against future volatility.

·         From the revenue budget surplus of £240,615, it was proposed to set aside this amount into earmarked reserves as detailed in paragraph 4.1.8 of the report.

·         The Covid-19 pandemic has had, and will continue to have a considerable impact upon the Council.  The government’s lockdown announced on 23rd March 2020, had meant that many businesses have been forced to close, significantly impacting on the local economy and upon sources of core income to the Council.  In addition the Council had incurred additional expense ensuring the most vulnerable in our community were cared for, the homeless were kept safe during this period and ensuring that key front-line services such as collecting waste and recycling were maintained throughout the crisis.

·         These additional costs have not had a dramatic impact on the financial outturn for 2019/20 as the pandemic only started to make a notable impact upon the public and businesses in the last two weeks of March.  The impact was being felt with losses across major income sources such as parking, commercial waste,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 159.

Report by Head of Place (attached).

The Chair advised that an updated report had been published prior to the meeting today which contained some minor amendments.  He advised the Committee that the meeting would adjourn following item 9 for a short period to enable Members the opportunity to read the document.

Report by Climate Action Team, Environment and Climate Change Lead Members and Head of Place (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Climate Action Team, Environment and Climate Change Lead Members and Head of Place (circulated previously).

Councillors Leaver and Pearson as Lead Members presented the report to the Committee and highlighted the following:

·         The background and reasons for producing a draft Environment Policy. 

·         The draft Policy had been based on the Stroud policy.

·         It was a statement of intent and would underpin the environment management policy and actions for the Council.

·         Tough targets had been set, however these would be reviewed every two years.  Any targets set for greater than 10 years would not be achieved.

·         Other Councils had achieved progress as dedicated officers had been appointed.

Steve Pitcher and Taz Pollard (members of the public) addressed the Committee.

The Chief Executive advised that the appointment of officers was the responsibility of the Head of Paid Service and therefore recommendation 2.1 (e) would need to be amended to recommend the appointment to the Head of Paid Service.  He expressed concern regarding the target date of the Council becoming carbon neutral as an organisation by 2025 as it would raise expectations of the public.  The Council had competing priorities with an ever reducing pool of funds and there was a need for the Council to continue to deliver its services.  4 ½ years to become carbon neutral would be extremely difficult to achieve.  It would be difficult to know where the target was achievable until an Environment/Climate Change Officer was in post.  The post could be funded from within an existing budget.  The Devon Climate Change Declaration was originally 2050, but had now been revised to 2030.  If the 2025 target was adopted there would be a need for the Council to change its priorities and make cuts in other areas to achieve the target.  Devon County Council had officers in place working on the Devon Climate Change Declaration.

Following the adjournment of the meeting, the Committee agreed to consider the report regarding North Devon Launchpad 2030 – Covid 19 Recovery Strategy as only minor amendments had been made.

The Committee considered a report by the Head of Place (circulated previously) regarding the North Devon Launchpad 2030 – Covid 19 Recovery Strategy.

The Head of Place advised that only minor amendments had been made to the report following responses received from the Senior Management Team and updates had been made to statistics and dates.  The section regarding governance partnership arrangements had been largely removed from the report and had been replaced by the inclusion of general terms for governance and roles.

Report by Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer (circulated previously) regarding the allocation of section 106 public open space funds towards a project in Bickington.

The Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer highlighted the following:

·       Currently Babbages play area was closed due to the safety of the play equipment.

·       Fremington Parish Council had undertaken consultation and identified equipment as detailed in paragraph 4.1 of the report.

·       The project would be fully funded by section 106 contributions as detailed in paragraph 5.1 of the report.

Report by Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer (circulated previously) regarding the allocation of section 106 public open space funds towards a project in South Molton.

The Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer highlighted the following:

·       The project would enhance the footpaths around the recreation ground and community woodlands. 

·       South Molton Town Council was the owner of the vast amount of open space in South Molton.

·       The existing footpath was relatively narrow and in poor condition which created difficulty for members of the community such as push chair and wheelchair users to use safely.

·       The funding details were contained in paragraph 5.1 of the report.

Councillor Worden declared a personal interest as a member of South Molton Town Council.  He advised that the footpath area became wet and the footpath had not been previously constructed to a sufficient standard for access for push chair and wheelchair users.

Report by Head of Place (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Head of Place (circulated previously) regarding the Lee Bay Hotel site design guide.

The Planning Policy Officer highlighted the following:

·         The Lee Bay Hotel had been disused since it ceased trading in 2005. 

·         A planning application for development of the site was refused in 2019.  The Planning Committee as part of the decision for refusal resolved that a design guide be prepared to provide guidance for the type and scale of redevelopment that would be acceptable on this site.

·         A design guide could not be considered as a formal supplementary planning document, however it could be agreed for use as a material planning consideration.

·         In view of the range of landscape and heritage constraints affecting this site, the design guide was prepared in partnership with the AONB Manager and the Council’s Conservation Officer.  It was also shared with Lee and Lincombe Residents Association, Ilfracombe Town Council and the site developer, with amendments made as a result of the comments received.

·         The Design Guide identifies the types of scale of development that were considered suitable for the site.

Report by Affordable Housing Service Lead (attached).

The Committee considered and noted a report by the Affordable Housing Service Lead (circulated previously) regarding an update on the progress being made in community-led housing in North Devon.

The Head of Environmental Health and Housing advised that five community land trusts had been established and 57 units of accommodation had been provided.  The social value was greater than in a more urban setting.

Joint report by Head of Place and Senior Regeneration Officer (attached).

The Committee considered a joint report by the Head of Place and Senior Regeneration Officer (circulated previously) regarding “nil cost” electric vehicle charging solutions.

The Senior Regeneration Officer highlighted the following:

·         On 6 January 2020, the Committee resolved that the Parking Manager investigate “nil cost” alternative Electric Vehicle charging solutions to the DELETTI agreement.

·         Suppliers of rapid chargers were requesting lease arrangements of 7-20 years.  Parking Services have therefore chosen car parks which they do not envisage a future change of use.  19 car parks had been identified and put forward as detailed in Appendix B.

In response to questions, the Senior Regeneration Officer advised the following:

·         The list of car parks would be put forward to the supplier and they would then undertake a desk top survey.  They would take into account the amount of electricity that could be supplied to the site.  Therefore, chargers would not be necessarily installed in all of the car parks put forward and some would be ruled out.

·         Only rapid chargers would be installed which would take 30-60 minutes.  Other solutions for fast and slower charges would be investigated further in the future.

·         If the Council selected a profit share scheme, the supplier would receive the net profit and the Council would receive a share of the profit or rent.

·         All costs would be met by the supplier and the Council would not incur any costs.  The Council might experience a slight decrease in car park income.

·         The Council would use the DELETTI contract and could include a requirement to remove infrastructure at the end of the contract.

·         The Parking Service had requested that a maximum of one charger is included within each car park.

·         As the suppliers are private investors, there was a limit to how many chargers they could provide.  However some suppliers had advised that they would provide additional chargers if there was demand.

The Head of Place advised that the Climate Action Team could consider the provision of electric charging solutions in other areas and how to include this within planning policies.

In response to a question, the Head of Resources advised that the Council had not yet paid the £12,000 to Devon County Council as part of the collaboration agreement.  He would confirm the position and report back to Members.

The Project, Procurement and Open Space Officer advised that live competitive tenders could not be reported to a formal meeting of the  Committee.

To note the urgent decisions that have been made by the Chief Executive in accordance with paragraph 3.48, Annexe 2, Part 3 of the Constitution (attached).

The Committee noted the urgent decisions that had been made by the Chief Executive in accordance with paragraph 3.48, Annex 2, Part 3 of the Constitution (circulated previously) regarding pavement licensing (constitution) and pavement licensing (fee).