Meeting documents

The minutes of the meetings held on 21 March 2017 and 16 May 2017 were agreed as a correct record and were signed by the Chairman.

There were no declarations of interest.

The Committee considered the 28 day forward plan and decided that there were no additional items to be added at this time.

RESOLVED

To note the 28 day Notice for Cabinet and Chiltern and South Bucks Joint Committee.

A detailed feasibility study had been completed to re-provide a combined community and leisure facility in Amersham. Agreement was sought from Members to proceed to the detailed design stage of the project. This opportunity could act as an active source of income and a £30m loan could be delivered over a 40 year period. The public consultation attracted a high level of support and further discussions would take place with stakeholders including the; current leisure provider, swimming clubs, CAB, Amersham Community Association, Gateway Disability Club, Linfield’s Nursery, Amersham Youth Club and BCC Library Service to address long term leasehold arrangements and the business proposals to enable continued operation during the development phase. The below points were highlighted by the Head of Health and Housing:

·         The revised design allowed the community centre and youth club to continue to operate during the build phase necessitating the relocation of the library. Officers from the County Council were initially supportive of the proposals but further dialogue was required.

·         Redevelopment of the centre allows for a dedicate nursery area enabling additional child spaces and hours of operation.

·         Flumes had not been included in the design due to the additional costs and the ASA recommendation of supporting play and splash pads to provide a better foundation in to swimming for children

·         Members had requested the introduction of spa and treatment rooms and with limited competition within a twenty minute drive of Amersham there was the potential to create an income stream to support the development

·         Similarly there is very little competition for children’s soft play which could be incorporated into the new facility. The squash courts had been retained in the plans.

·         Members had focused the design on meeting residents aspirations arising from the survey but also to deliver a quality facility.

·         Members were taken through the design principles which included an internal street, which could be used as a multi-purpose area, available to hold stalls, markets, fayres and a range of other events. Additional space would be available for use and could bring another source of income.

·         A land swap would be required between the District Council and Town Council to develop on part of the field on King George V Road. The Town Council were open to the idea of a land swap although further discussions were required to establish details such as the replacement play equipment and the skate park.

·         Members were advised of the income streams and expenditure costs. The main income streams had been identified as the health and fitness centre and swimming pool.

·         With the current Chiltern Pools having an operational life until 2022 any continued operation would require significant capital investment and a management fee of approximately £540k per annum. These proposals enabled a potential net surplus of £1.188m by the end of year 5.

·         Potential rental income from community organisations using the facility had not been factored in the business case.

The following items were clarified following queries raised by the Committee:

a)      Approximately 250 car parking spaces  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The draft Joint Housing Strategy (Affordable Housing and Homelessness) had been developed in view of the housing situation across the two districts and new statutory requirements that were coming in to force.

The Committee were informed that the Joint Member Housing Workshop and Affordable Housing Members Working Group had highlighted a range of issues to be included in the development of the joint strategy. The Joint Private Sector Housing Strategy and Joint Temporary Accommodation Framework had already been agreed and the Joint Housing Strategy (Affordable Housing and Homelessness) would sit alongside these documents and provide the overall strategic framework for the Council’s housing service.

The following information was clarified to the Committee:

a)      The document brought together issues that required addressing whilst making best use of current resources. The Homelessness Reduction Act would be coming in to force in 2018 and this strategy looked at responding to challenges that this could bring.

b)     Where demand required it B&B accommodation was utilised ‘out of area’, typically Hemel Hempstead and Slough although there were very few people placed out of area long term. The aim was always to keep people in the locality where they had connections.

c)      The strategy looked at ways to reengage the private rental sector whether this be by financial incentives or otherwise to provide additional affordable housing in the districts.

d)     Members asked if AirBnB was reducing the availability of private rented stock. Officers advised that in relation to the local area this was not yet fully known.

e)      In relation to a question on park homes members were advised these were mainly located in the green belt which limited expansion possibilities. The Councils would look at the idea of increasing the volume of these sites where possible and they were recognised as a cheaper source of accommodation.

f)       There was an active issue of securing affordable housing on developments which were under ten properties and work was ongoing around this with reports being brought to the Affordable Housing Members Working Group.

g)     Developments were awaited on the Governments White Paper which could impact planning. A new Housing Minister had been appointed and the Councils would react to any developments appropriately.

h)     Within the emerging local plan it was being explored whether certain sites could come out of the green belt. If certain sites were removed than the Councils could look at building affordable housing on these sites. At present there were specific circumstances that needed to be met to build on small pieces on green belt land.

Members are asked to consider and comment on the attached draft Cabinet report.

The report detailed factual performance against pre-agreed targets. Two detailed performance tables accompanied the report (Appendices A and B). The report detailed the areas where priority performance indicators had fallen below target.

Officers were congratulated on their achievements over 2016/17 and the Committee noted:

a)      Two applicants who had/were expecting children had been placed in B & B accommodation for longer than six weeks. This was partly due to a history of rent arrears with Paradigm which limited the applicants’ temporary accommodation options. The Committee were advised that in these situations the Council would aim to negotiate with Paradigm then look at working with temporary accommodation providers who provide self-contained accommodation. One of these cases had progressed since the report had been completed and an arrangement had been made with a local private landlord.

b)     The household waste sent for reuse, recycling and composting had decreased which saw the 58% target missed. This had been adjusted to a more realistic target of 53% for 2017/18. The Committee were advised that authorities who had performed well nationally were around the 50% mark and the 58% target had been deemed too high. Waste was also measured on weight which was not necessarily an appropriate indicator with many items being packaged in lighter materials. There was a range of activities planned to support this programme.

RESOLVED:

That the performance reports and annual report, which is provided in Appendix C, be noted.

Members are asked to consider and comment on the attached draft Cabinet report which will also be considered by the Healthy Communities PAG.

Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) were one of a number of new powers introduced by the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. There were currently a number of designated dog fouling areas across the district and five Designated Public Place Orders (DPPOs) with alcohol restrictions. It was being proposed that the current designated dog fouling areas were kept as they currently were while further consultation took place towards the introduction of a new PSPO. It was also being proposed that the current DPPOs were replaced by the introduction of one new PSPO which would also include restrictions on people and highways and vehicle misuse in a number of car parks.

The Committee were taken through the reasons for recommendations as outlined in the report which followed consultation with a variety of groups and organisations. The Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) fine for any offence committed under the PSPO was confirmed as a maximum amount of £100.

The available options and Corporate Implications were also outlined in the report and the Committee noted the following:

a)      Enforcement would be via the Police and other accredited bodies able to issue FPN’s, widening the capability to deal with low level anti-social behaviour.

b)     Signage would be installed in appropriate areas which would outline the ways members of the public could report offenders. It was also identified that much of the role of the Dog Warden is to talk with dog owners and educate them rather than solely looking at enforcing fines. Free dog bags were provided at both Council offices as well as at a number of Town and Parish Council offices. There had been concern around installing dispensers due to install costs and additional littering.

c)      The Committee were in agreement that a blanket PSPO would be more appropriate for car parks rather than the PSPO just covering the car parks outlined in the report. Members spoke of potential offenders moving on from these car parks listed to others which were not covered by the PSPO. The PSPO would cover the areas which did not currently meet Police powers to enforce and would also allow for Police Community Support Officers to carry out enforcement.

d)     There would be a publicity campaign around the PSPOs and any reports from members of the public would be handled in the strictest confidence.

e)      Rules for enforcement of the PSPO would be reasonable and people would not be targeted if they were not committing anti-social behaviour. The enforcement policy would take a proportionate approach and consistent partnership working would be key to making these a success.

The Committees feedback would be provided to the Police.

Members are asked to consider and comment on the attached draft Cabinet report.

The Regulators’ Code came into statutory effect on 6 April 2014. A key action required to comply with the Code was to have an enforcement policy explaining how the local authority responds to regulatory non-compliance. With the majority of services now shared across Chiltern and South Bucks District Councils it was appropriate to review the enforcement policies and publish a joint Corporate Enforcement Policy. The Policy had been out to consultation and amendments made based on the limited responses received. The draft Corporate Enforcement Policy could be seen under appendix 1.

The Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) Code of Practice and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) required local authorities to produce and publish an annual service plan that demonstrated how the authorities were working to deliver its food safety and health and safety services. The Better Regulation Delivery Officer also required local authorities to produce and publish their enforcement policies and ensured that they comply with The Regulator’s Code.

Chiltern and South Bucks District Councils had been high performing authorities and were broadly above the national average in the national Food Hygiene Rating Scheme. Around 85% of businesses improved their rating or remained the same since their last inspection. Newly opened restaurants were required to be registered and would be visited by the FSA within 28 days. The FSA were moving to a pre-opening assessment process.

The Health and Safety approach remained supportive of businesses and officers would only inspect businesses where there was a specific need, either due to local or national intelligence and the national strategic priorities.

Three fatalities were reported to Chiltern DC in 2015 which resulted in Coroner’s inquests. One company was prosecuted and a fine of £2.2 million was issued with costs awarded to the Council. As a consequence, during 2017/18, projects will be developed relating to health and safety measures to protect employees from falls from height and workplace transport accidents.

The changes to each respective policy were highlighted in the appendices provided.