Meeting documents

To approve the minutes of the Cabinet held on 23 April 2019.

The minutes of the Cabinet held on 23 April 2019 were approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record. 

There were no declarations of interest.

The Cabinet received a report attaching the draft 28-Day Notice which provided a forward look at the Agenda for the next meeting of the Cabinet on 20 August 2019, at which the final business case for the Chiltern Lifestyle Centre and the appointment of the Leisure Operator would be considered. 

RESOLVED -

That the 28-Day Notice / Forward Plan of executive decisions be noted.

To note the appointments made by Council, and agree appointments made by the Cabinet.

The Cabinet received a list of appointments made by Council and made by the Cabinet.

RESOLVED

That the appointments made by Council be noted and the following Cabinet appointments be confirmed (appointment details noted in the document appended to the agenda pack):

a)    Representation of Joint Committees

b)    Outside Bodies

The Cabinet received a list of appointments made by Council and confirmed the appointments made by the Cabinet. Further, the Leader reported that in addition to Councillor J Waters having been appointed as the Council representative on the Thames Valley Police and Crime Panel, Councillor J Burton had been appointed as the substitute Council representative.

RESOLVED

That the appointments made by Council be noted and the following Cabinet appointments be confirmed (appointment details noted in the document appended to the agenda pack):

a)    Representation on Joint Committees

b)    Outside Bodies

(i)         Councillor P Martin -

Councillor P Martin reported that residents remained frustrated with the lack of co-operation from HS2 and its contractors and had continued to find it difficult to obtain answers to questions which affected their daily lives. Attempts had been made to arrange meetings with HS2 and its contractors to discuss issues.

(ii)       Councillor J Rush -

Councillor J Rush announced that the Customer Account function of the Customer Relationship Management system had gone live on 25 June 2019 and initial feedback was positive. Residents can sign up to the service through the Council’s website. Waste issues can now be reported through the account, and information could be shared with residents. Further functions will be added ahead of the commencement of Buckinghamshire Council in April 2020.

(iii)     Councillor L Walsh -

Councillor L Walsh reported that the small community grants scheme had closed to applications on 9 July 2019 and would now be assessed. The Large Projects Fund was open to applications; these would need to be submitted by midnight on the 4^th August. This fund was available for projects which would be available to all of the community and could include the provision or improvement of the built and/or natural public realm.

The Cabinet considered a report which outlined the annual performance of Council services against pre-agreed performance indicators and service objectives for the end of year 2018-19. The Annual Report for 2018/19 was also appended and could be viewed on page 51 of the reports pack. The report and appendices had been considered by both the Resources Overview and Services Overview Committees respectively.

The Cabinet noted the positive performance and congratulations were passed on to officers.

Following a query raised by a non-cabinet member, it was clarified that there had been some operational issues with waste collections which had resulted in a busy period for staff and longer than expected wait times for responses. The Leader apologised on behalf of the Council and it was confirmed that staffing was now at full capacity. It was noted that residents should also be encouraged to register for a customer account, where they were able to report issues such as a missed collection.

RESOLVED

That the performance reports be noted.

The Cabinet received a report which detailed the Treasury Management performance of the Council for 2018/19 as required by the Code of Practice on Treasury Management. The report had been considered by the Resources Overview Committee.

RESOLVED

That the Treasury Management performance for 2018/19 be noted as required by the Code of Practice on Treasury Management.

The Cabinet received a report which reported on the 2018/19 capital and repairs & renewals outturn position and requested the carry forward of unspent capital and repairs & renewals budgets.

RESOLVED

1.     That the 2018/19 capital and repairs & renewals outturn position be noted.

2.     That the capital and repairs and renewals budgets to be carried forward to 2019/20 as noted in the report be agreed.

The Cabinet received a report which reported on the 2018/19 capital and repairs and renewals outturn position and requested the carry forward of unspent capital and repairs and renewals budgets. It was clarified that whilst there had been underspend on disabled facilities grants, claims were taking a period to get through the system and the allocated amount would be spent as there remained a great need in this area. The report had been considered by the Resources Overview Committee.

RESOLVED

1.     That the 2018/19 capital and repairs and renewals outturn position be noted.

2.     That the capital and repairs and renewals budgets to be carried forward to 2019/20 as noted in the report be agreed.

The Cabinet considered a report which noted the result of the Chalfont St Giles Neighbourhood Plan Referendum. Given the referendum result was in favour of the plan, the next stage is for the Council to make the plan, following which it will become part of the Development Plan for the Chalfont St Giles Parish area.

The Cabinet considered a report which noted the result of the Chalfont St Giles Neighbourhood Plan Referendum held on 13 June 2019. The referendum result was in favour of the plan so the next stage would be for the Council to ‘make’ the plan, following which it would become part of the Development Plan for the Chalfont St Giles Parish area. 

Cabinet commended Chalfont St Giles Parish Council for the time and effort they had put in to achieving this positive result and further thanked officers for their hard work.

The Cabinet considered a report which detailed the outcome of a review of the remaining recycling centres in the district and addressed concerns that had been raised by Members through the Services Overview Committee.

RESOLVED

To agree to close 5 of the 8 sites leaving the sites in Great Missenden, Prestwood and Little Chalfont subject to further review, with the eventual aim to close all subject to a further progress report to Cabinet in three months’ time.

The Cabinet considered a report which contained the results of a review of the remaining recycling centres in the district and addressed concerns that had been raised by the Services Overview Committee.

It was noted that recycling centres were introduced before the Council provided each household with a comprehensive domestic collection service. The benefits delivered by the recycling centres in terms of useful recycling and convenience for residents were now not proportionate to the costs of operating these facilities. The material collected from recycling centres was regularly contaminated with non-recyclable waste which ended up being sent for energy recovery. The Council wished to ensure it was in the best possible position to secure good value and sustainable market opportunities. It was deemed essential to release this specialised resource in order to support front line collection services to flatted communities, an area which had seen considerable growth since the start of the current contract.

The continued use of these facilities by businesses for the disposal of commercial waste needed to be addressed. On-going enforcement or a presence to police these facilities was not considered a viable option for the Joint Waste Team or its partners.

Retaining the three sites identified in the report for an interim period would allow further review and a communication programme to be produced to educate and inform local residents to support behavioural changes. Cabinet thanked the Portfolio Holder for Environment for her efforts in visiting sites and arriving at this interim solution with officers. Educating residents was identified as being key, as many residents had misinformed reasons for using recycling centres. Towns and Parishes would also be notified to ensure a consistent message was received by residents.

RESOLVED

To agree to close 5 of the 8 sites leaving the sites in Great Missenden, Prestwood and Little Chalfont subject to further review, with the eventual aim to close all subject to a further progress report to Cabinet in three months’ time.

The Cabinet received a report which considered whether the Council should support and sign the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Charter which recognised and respected the rights of people with MND.

RESOLVED

That the Council supports and signs the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Charter.

The Cabinet received a report which considered whether the Council should support and sign the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Charter which recognised and respected the rights of people with MND. The report had been considered by the Services Overview Committee.

It was recognised that the Council was already actively finding ways to support those people with Motor Neurone Disease as well as those living with other disabilities. The Cabinet agreed that no one should be disadvantaged because of a disability and supported the signing of the MND Charter.

RESOLVED

That the Council supports and signs the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Charter.

The Cabinet considered a report which provided an update on the receipt and expenditure of Section 106 Affordable Housing Contributions in accordance with the requirements of the Council’s Affordable Housing Supplementary Planning Document.

RESOLVED

1.     That the report be noted.

2.     That the following allocations of Affordable Housing Contributions be agreed:

(i)              Strategic Funding Agreement with Paradigm Housing (Various sites) = £1,000,000

(ii)            Other affordable housing schemes approved on a scheme by scheme basis = £674,045.70

The Cabinet considered a report which provided an update on the receipt and expenditure of Section 106 Affordable Housing Contributions in accordance with the requirements of the Council’s Affordable Housing Supplementary Planning Document. The report had been considered by the Services Overview Committee.

It was recognised that lack of housing was a local and national issue, with affordable housing in the area being of particular concern due to such high housing costs in the district. This also affected key worker housing, with many key workers being unable to work in the area because of a lack of affordable housing options.

RESOLVED

1.     That the report be noted.

2.     That the following allocations of Affordable Housing Contributions be agreed:

(i)              Strategic Funding Agreement with Paradigm Housing (Various sites) = £1,000,000

(ii)            Other affordable housing schemes approved on a scheme by scheme basis = £674,045.70

The Cabinet received a report which detailed the responses to the public consultation on the marked site at King George V Playing Fields and the site to the rear of the electricity substation on Chiltern Avenue (as shaded green on the appended plan) to appropriate the land from designated open space to a planning purpose, subject to the grant of planning permission.

RESOLVED

To agree that the land marked on the appended plan (appendix 2) be appropriated from open space to a planning purpose to enable the redevelopment of the Chiltern Pools, Community Hall and Nursery subject to planning permission.  

The Cabinet received a report which detailed the responses to the public consultation on the marked site at King George V Playing Fields and the site to the rear of the electricity substation on Chiltern Avenue, as shaded green on the appended plan (appendix 2), to appropriate the land from designated open space to a planning purpose, subject to the grant of planning permission.

Following the Planning Committee’s recommendation to Full Council that the revised application for the Chiltern Lifestyle Centre be approved, it would be necessary to appropriate the land to a planning purpose to enable the development to proceed.

The consultation closed on 7 June 2019. Seventeen written responses had been received and could be seen summarised in the report, sixteen responses objected to the appropriation of land, whilst one was in favour. Comments received amongst objections noted issues with a net loss of green space and loss of play and skate facilities; a loss of flumes; the land swap not being like for like; the size and mass of the proposed centre and its subsequent impact on the street scene and town as well as concerns that the new facility should only replace the existing building.

This report and the objections received had been considered by the Leisure Needs Members Working Group where it was felt that many of the concerns repeated previous comments considered by the Planning Committee or by the Cabinet at previous stages in the development of the project proposals. The working group summarised that the appropriation of the open public space for a planning purpose had arisen as a result of the assessment of suitable sites and the community request to protect existing facilities during construction and the need to protect the historic barns. The planning application had addressed the size, massing and location of the development on the site, whilst the business case had considered the needs of the community in delivering a co-located modern library, community, nursery and leisure facilities. The additional leisure and play facilities supported the overall business case which aimed to deliver a scheme at no additional cost to the tax payer. The existing facilities were not fit for purpose and the redevelopment of these facilities would enable the additional parking required as well as supporting the enabling development to deliver the project. All play facilities were to be relocated on the King George V Playing Fields and this was not considered a net loss of facilities by the Town Council but an enhancement which they welcomed.

Further, the working group noted that Fields in Trust and Amersham Town Council supported the proposals and there had been wide community support to the proposals as demonstrated through the various rounds of consultation and responses to the planning application. In relation to concerns expressed over the loss of library space, officers advised that the library service requested the size of facility in the proposed building to meet their needs with study space, meeting rooms, toilets and kitchen facilities incorporated within  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

Members are asked to note the Minutes of the following meetings of Joint Executive Committees:

RESOLVED

That the following notes from Joint Executive Committees be noted:

1.     Chiltern and South Bucks Joint Committee 1 June 2019

There are no reports from Policy Advisory Groups to note.

There had not been any reports from Policy Advisory Groups to note.