Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Spear and Williams.

RESOLVED, that the minutes of the meetings held on 2^nd July and 18^th July 2024 (circulated previously) be approved as correct records and signed by the Chair.

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. A declaration of interest under the Code of Conduct will be a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest, an Other Registrable Interest or a Non-Registrable Interest.  If the item directly relates to your interest you must declare the interest and leave the room for the item, save in the case of Other Registrable Interests or Non-Registrable Interests where you may first speak on the item as a member of the public if provision has been made for the public to speak.  If the matter does not directly relate to your interest but still affects it then you must consider whether you are affected to a greater extent than most people and whether a reasonable person would consider your judgement to be clouded, if you are then you must leave the room for the item (although you may speak as a member of the public if provision has been made for the public to speak) or, if you are not, then you can declare the interest but still take part).

There were no declarations of interest announced.

Councillor Spear: The Committee sent their best wishes to the Chair of the Committee and wished her well in her recovery.

Cyber Security training – Boxphish: The Chair reminded Members that as part of the Members Agreement that all Members signed up to following the elections in 2023, all Members had now been enrolled onto the Council’s Cyber Security training platform.

Courses would be issued on a monthly basis and Members had already received their first two emails, which each contains a short video that they must watch and then complete the five multiple choice questions.

Each course takes a total of 10 minutes to complete and Members need to achieve 80% to pass each course.

The Committee was advised that training was ongoing and compulsory for each elected member and linked directly to their role as a North Devon Councillor and also had the full support and endorsement of the Senior Management Team.

Report by the Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive to Strategy and Resources on 5^th August 2024 (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive (circulated previously) regarding the Performance and Financial Management for Quarter 1 of 2024/25 together with Minute Extract of Strategy and Resources on 1st July 2024 (circulated previously).

The Finance Manager highlighted the following:

• The revenue budget for 2024/25 was approved at Council on 21^st February 2024 at £16,432,690.
• As at 30^th June 2024, the latest forecast net budget was £16,419,690, which produced a budget surplus of £13,000. Details were shown in “Appendix A – Variations in the Revenue Budget” of the report.
• The original budget for 2024/25 included a forecast to achieve £250,000 worth of salary vacancy savings. The current position forecasted that the Council would achieve £143,000 based on known vacancies to date, but it was anticipated that the budget of £250,000 would be achieved by the end of the financial year.
• The National pay award was currently being considered by the Unions; however if the 2024-25 pay award exceeded the budgeted 4% included in the original budget then the Council would look to fund any shortfall from the Budget Management reserve, which currently had a balance of £528,627.
• As at 1^st April 2024 the Collection Fund reserve balance held was £1,790,180. This earmarked reserve was created to deal with the timing impacts of the Collection Fund (Business Rates), which ensured the revenue budget was not unduly affected in the year the taxes were collected. Collection Fund deficits/surpluses were reversed out to bring the revenue account back to the budgeted figure for the year; the deficits/surpluses were recovered/distributed in the following financial years. This reserve included a £1,246,078 balance that would be utilised in 2024/25 (£1,012,856) and 2025/26 (£233,222) to mitigate timing differences of business rate reliefs awarded in 2023/24 that from an accounting perspective impact over the next two financial years; thus leaving the fund reserve with a residue balance of £544,105 protection against future volatility.
• At the 30^th June 2024 total external borrowing was £6,000,000. The timing of any future borrowing was dependent on how the Authority managed its treasury activity.
• Due to project spend slippages in the Capital programme and using the cash flow balances for internal borrowing, an estimated reduction in borrowing costs and a potential underspend of £100,000 on the interest payable revenue budget.
• As part of the 2023/24 outturn the Council contributed an additional £250,000 into the insurance reserve to mitigate against higher costs in 2024/25 and beyond, the reserve currently had a balance of £347,500 and officers planned to use £220,000 from the reserve to offset the increased insurance costs in the year 2024/25. This left a balance of £127,500 in the reserve to help mitigate against future years costs.
• Pay and display income was slightly lower than anticipated with an estimated reduction for the year of around £120,000.
• Movement in reserves and balances was attached to the report at Appendix B.
• Strategic Contingency Reserve movements and commitments were attached at Appendix C.
• The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 34.

The Committee considered and discussed the ongoing progress of actions from the special meetings of the Committee.

The Chair advised that there was a requirement for a more structured and focussed way to manage and report upon progress of each special meeting.

a)    Water quality within the North Devon area held on 29^th February 2024:

The Committee considered the previous update provided by Councillor Jones on 2^nd July 2024.

Councillor Jones advised that since his last update there had not been a huge amount of progress. The meeting with members from Torridge  District Council was delayed due to the General Election. He added that if any additional Members wished to be part of the working group they were more than welcome to join.

He advised that he would organise a meeting with the working group to catch up on the progress made to date and to discuss a proposed way forward. He added that he would be attending a Westcountry Rivers Trust conference that forthcoming weekend together with a few fellow Members.

He was also due to meet with the local MP to discuss water and pollution issues within the North Devon area.

Councillor Jones provide an update in relation to the following:

·       Regular testing had continued on Little Dart catchment and the samples had continued to indicate the presence of phosphates. The Environment Agency had investigated the findings and whilst there had been no follow up response, he had observed that there was now a cover over the slurry pit in the valley and the most recent tests were now running clear. 

·       There had been challenges regarding the detection of phosphates from testing undertaken beneath Rackenford Sewage Treatment works. South West Water had investigated the findings but had concluded that there was no issue. However, their testing processes were designed to detect ammonia, whilst the kits that had been used to detect the issue were designed to look for phosphates.

This issue would be followed up with the Westcountry Rivers Trust.

·       On 26^th October 2024 there was a “March for Clean Water” being held in London, which Councillor Jones would be attending.

·       Pharmaceutical levels in rivers up on Exmoor were the highest in the country.

·       The outcomes of the special meeting held on 29^th February 2024 should be feed into the development of the new Local Plan and the actions from the meeting should be sent to the Local MP.

In response to concerns regarding planning applications that were grant depended and farmers concerns that they would lose their grants due to delay. The Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive advised that any applications that were grant dependent should be clearly stated on the application. He added that by making this clear on the application the team could ensure that any applications of that nature were drawn out and dealt with accordingly.

b)    Agriculture within the North Devon area held on 23^rd May 2024: To consider the impact of agriculture within the North  ...  view the full minutes text for item 35.

The Committee considered the work programme for 2024/25 (circulated previously).

Councillor Wilson, Lead Member for the GP Surgeries and Health Inequalities working group advised that she would convene a meeting of the working group within the next two weeks to discuss a way forward.

The Committee agreed that the meeting would be held sometime in November 2024.

The Members noted that the special meeting regarding transport and infrastructure would be held in March 2025 and was to be led by Councillor Worden.

The Clerk advised that in addition to the contact details for the person that she had already received, in order to begin arrangements for the special meeting in relation to GPs and Health Inequality she would require a full list of contacts for those witnesses that the working group wished to invite.

RESOLVED, that the work programme for 2024/25 be noted.

Nil.