Meeting documents

Venue: The Paralympic Room - AVDC. View directions

Contact: Bill Ashton; Email: bashton@aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk; 

Items
No. Item

1.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 96 KB

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 16 October, 2018, copy attached as an appendix.

Minutes:

RESOLVED –

 

That the Minutes of 16 October, 2018 be approved as a correct record.

2.

Housing and Homelessness Strategy pdf icon PDF 5 MB

Councillor Winn

Cabinet Member for Communities

 

To consider the attached report.

 

Contact Officer:  Natalie Donhou-Morley (01296) 585233

Decision:

(a)          Decision(s)

 

(1)          That the Environment and Living Scrutiny Committee be thanked for its input to the formulation of the Strategy.

 

(2)          That Council be recommended to:

 

(a)          Adopt the Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019 – 2022 as part of the Council’s Policy Framework.

 

(b)          Authorise the Assistant Director for Community Fulfilment, after consultation with the Cabinet Member for Communities, to make any minor amendments to the Strategy as might be required to take account of the emerging initiatives.

 

(b)          Reason(s) for Decision(s)

 

To ensure that the Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019 -2022 can be published by early 2019.

 

(c)        Alternative Options Considered

 

1.            To recommend the Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019 - 2022 to Council – this option was recommended for the reasons outlined within the Cabinet report and noting that the Strategy must be published early in 2019.

 

2.            To not recommend the Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019 - 2022 to Council – this option was not recommended because the Strategy would not be able to be completed by the statutory deadline of early 2019.

 

 (d)      Relevant Scrutiny Committee

 

Environment and Living.  That Committee considered the strategy on 25 September, 2018, and were happy with the approach that had been taken to developing the new Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019-2022 and supported the document moving forward to Cabinet.  As the matter will now be considered by full Council, this item is not subject to call-in.

 

(e)        Conflicts of Interest / Dispensation(s)

 

None.

Minutes:

Local authorities had a statutory requirement under the Homelessness Act, 2002 to produce a homelessness review and strategy outlining the main causes of homelessness in their area and the strategic actions in place to tackle them.  The strategy had to be revised every five years as a minimum requirement.  The Housing and Homelessness Strategy 2019 – 20122, a copy of which had previously been circulated, had been produced following a review of the housing and homelessness needs of residents within the Vale, and outlined the Council’s plans for addressing those needs for the next three years.

 

The Council had worked with local partners including the Vale of Aylesbury Housing Trust, Aylesbury Homeless Action Group, Connection Support and Heart of Bucks.  There had been a number of changes in Central Government legislation which had impacted upon the approach taken by local authorities to prevent and deal with homelessness.  Official statistics continued to show an upward trend, with the number of homelessness acceptances and rough sleepers rising year on year since 2014.

 

As the population in Aylesbury Vale continued to rise, so did both house prices and private rents.  However, the Vale had experienced the highest increase in housing stock throughout England over the last five years and had the highest ratio of housing delivery to existing housing stock of any authority in the Cambridge/MK/Oxford corridor.  This stock increase had included the delivery of 1,546 affordable homes between 2013 and 2018.  There had been an increase of 25% in the number of applicants found as being unintentionally homeless and in priority housing need since 2013.  The biggest rise had been in families with dependent children, with the loss of tenancy being the most common for the loss of accommodation.  However, AVDC staff had prevented homelessness in respect of 1,674 cases between 2013 and 2017.

 

Compared to the national picture, the homelessness figures in Aylesbury Vale were relatively low.  However,  the Aylesbury Vale rough sleeping rate in 2017 (per 1,000 households) at 0.26, was marginally higher than the national average of 0.20.

 

Research and customer insight to inform the Strategy had begun in February, 2018 and had included interviews with customers and a survey of providers offering services to homeless people.  A consultation event had been held on 19 April, 2018 and had been attended by 41 delegates from local partnership organisations, both statutory and voluntary.  A public consultation exercise had taken place in July/August, 2018.  The strategy had been updated to reflect the consultation responses, as well as statutory policy changes.

 

The strategic vision was to ensure that those who wanted to make the Vale their home should be supported and empowered to do so.  The following key strategic priorities had been identified:-

 

·         Priority 1 – To prevent and reduce homelessness and rough sleeping.

 

·         Priority 2 – To continue to facilitate and maximise the supply of affordable housing.

 

·         Priority 3 – To respond to the on-going challenges of welfare reform.

 

·         Priority 4 – To contribute to the improvement of health and wellbeing  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

3.

Proposal for a Single CCTV Control Room Service for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes and upgrade of current AVDC CCTV Equipment pdf icon PDF 220 KB

Councillor Mrs J Ward

Cabinet Member for Civic Amenities

 

To consider the attached report.

 

Contact Officer:  Will Rysdale (01296) 585561 / Helen White (01296) 585151

Decision:

(a)          Decision(s)

 

(1)          That approval be given in principle to:-

 

(a)          The entering into a partnership agreement with Thames Valley Police for the delivery of CCTV monitoring services and subject to further details of the estimated costs (as outlined in the Cabinet report) being provided and subject to them being satisfied with the costings and the business case, authority be given to the Assistant Director for Community Fulfilment, after consultation with the Cabinet Member for Communities, to confirm the final terms of the agreement.

 

(b)          The upgrading of AVDC CCTV cameras in Aylesbury Town Centre and AVDC car parks (where required), subject to agreed costings.

 

(2)          That the possibility that additional capital expenditure might be required in connection with new cameras and the costs associated with relocation and provision of CCTV, be noted.

 

(b)          Reason(s) for Decision(s)

 

To achieve the Council’s long-term aspiration to deliver cost effective and efficient CCTV services by joining up its CCTV suite with others across Buckinghamshire.

 

(c)        Alternative Options Considered

 

1.            The Council could opt for the status quo; this would involve foregoing the financial savings and service improvements detailed in the Cabinet report, and therefore this option was not recommended.

 

2.            The Council could opt to approve the merger and upgrade to the equipment included in the public realm only, not upgrading the remainder of the CCTV equipment.

 

3.            The Council could opt to approve the merger and upgrade to the equipment required and also to upgrade the remainder of equipment on a rolling basis to spread costs.

 

(d)       Relevant Scrutiny Committee

 

Environment and Living.  That Committee considered the proposal on 25 September, 2018, and were supportive of the merger, as well as noting that capital expenditure could possibly be incurred as part of the project.

 

(e)        Conflicts of Interest / Dispensation(s)

 

None.

Minutes:

Cabinet considered a report also submitted to the Environment and Living Scrutiny Committee on 29 October and posted on the Council’s web site, setting out proposals for a single CCTV control room service for Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes and, where necessary upgrading the existing cameras.

 

The Council had for a long time aspired to deliver a cost effective and efficient CCTV monitoring service, using the latest technology, by joining up its CCTV suite with others across Buckinghamshire. The Cabinet report outlined a project designed to do just this which could save the Council in the order of £121,000 (subject to further cost analyses).  The business case for the project, prepared by Thames Valley Police had been appended to the Cabinet report.

 

The Scrutiny Committee had been supportive of the project.

 

RESOLVED –

 

(1)  That approval be given in principle to:-

 

(a)  The entering into a partnership agreement with Thames Valley Police for the delivery of CCTV monitoring services and subject to further details of the estimated costs (as outlined in the Cabinet report) being provided, and subject to them being satisfied with the costings and the business case, authority be given to the Assistant Director for Community Fulfilment, after consultation with the Cabinet Member for Communities, to confirm the final terms of the agreement.

 

(b)  The upgrading of AVDC CCTV cameras in Aylesbury Town Centre and AVDC car parks (where required), subject to agreed costings.

 

(2)  That the possibility that additional capital expenditure might be required in connection with new cameras and the costs associated with relocation and provision of CCTV, be noted.

4.

Budget Planning 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 106 KB

Councillor Mordue

Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources

 

To consider the attached report.

 

Contact Officer:  Nuala Donnelly (01296) 585164

Decision:

(a)          Decision(s)

 

(1)  That the approach proposed in the Cabinet report for developing the 2019/2020 budget and the Medium Term Financial Plan, be endorsed.

 

(2)  That approval be given to the repurposing of the business rates equalisation reserve and the interest equalisation reserve in order to provide the Council with initial financial capacity to respond to the costs of local government reorganisation.

 

(b)          Reason(s) for Decision(s)

 

To facilitate ongoing development of the budget for 2019/2020 and to ensure that appropriate provision is made for the costs of transition.

 

(c)        Alternative Options Considered

 

None as such.  The Cabinet report set out the current position and highlighted the issues that would need to be taken into account in finalising the budget for 2019/2020.

 

(d)       Relevant Scrutiny Committee

 

Finance and Services.  That Committee would be receiving a similar update at its next meeting.  The final budget proposals will be submitted to full Council in due course.

 

(e)        Conflicts of Interest / Dispensation(s)

 

None.

Minutes:

Cabinet received a report, posted in full on the Council’s web site, setting out the high level issues facing the Council in developing budget proposals for 2019/20 and in terms of updating the Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP).  The largest and most significant factor was the recent announcement of the Secretary of State that there should be a single unitary district council for the whole of Buckinghamshire (excluding Milton Keynes) with effect from 1 April 2020.  It was however too early to determine the exact implications from a budgetary point of view, although it would be prudent to make provision for transition costs.  The report also set out a timetable for agreeing the budget.

 

The report had been split into specific sections dealing with:-

 

·         The background to the development of the current MTFP and the key assumptions used in its formulation.  Reference was also made to the recent budget announcement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with particular reference to local authority spending requirements.  The report covered the risks arising from Brexit, the roll out of Universal Credit and increases in the national living wage. Reference was made to the implications of changes in the application of business rates and the significant year on year reductions in Central Government Grant.

 

·         As referred to earlier, the timetable for development of the budget.  The Government had announced that it proposed to publish the provisional finance settlement on 6 December, 2018.

 

·         The report contained a commentary on the position around Government funding and its impact on the wider landscape.  Local authority funding in England had undergone considerable upheaval in recent years.  For AVDC, reductions to Grant funding had been the most significant factor underlying historic financial planning assumptions and the Council’s current strategy of balancing the budget had been predicated on this continuing.  In this respect, the Council’s strategy around commercialism and efficiency had been proved to be correct within the context of dealing with the financial challenges being faced by the Authority.  The Government had announced a consultation exercise in relation to the future funding of local government (A Fair Funding Review).  This would affect how funding was allocated between local authorities from 2020 onwards.  Alongside this a new phase for the business rates retention programme would be introduced.

 

·         In 2016/17 the Government had introduced the concept of Negative Revenue Support Grant.  This had caused concern among councils and the secretary of State had announced that he would review this aspect of the Grant system during the forthcoming financial year.  However, he had warned that any solution would need to be found from within the existing local government funding system.  The report contained a full explanation of Negative Revenue Support Grant and its implications for AVDC.  The Government had considered a number of options for dealing with the impacts of Negative Revenue Support Grant and the report outlined those options.

 

·         The report dealt with the risks and gains associated with business rates pooling.  The Council had in the past benefited from such  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.