Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

Apologies were received from Cabinet Member for Homelessness and Regulatory Services, Mark Winn. Councillor Arif Hussain had to leave the meeting part way through and was represented by the Deputy Cabinet Member for Community Safety, Peter Brazier.

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 16 July 2024.

RESOLVED – That the Minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 16 July 2024 be approved as a correct record.

There were no declarations of interest.

The following hot topics were discussed:-

Leader

An additional meeting of Cabinet was being held on 16 September 2024 to discuss the response to the National Planning Policy Framework. The Leader  also made reference to the NPPF in his Residents Newsletter as it would have major implications for the whole County.

The Leader reported that he also attended the Wycombe Celebrates festival. He had also explored two exhibitions in conjunction with this event – the sustainably focussed Revive and Thrive visual arts show and Razwan Baig’s Islamic Art showcase. In addition, he had attended the Heritage Day at Old Amersham which was also very good.

Cabinet Member for Transport

The Cabinet Member encouraged residents to plan for their journey.  An unprecedented rise in required roadworks and other works involving external companies were affecting large sections of the county’s roads network at the present time. This meant that the potential for queues and slow-moving traffic was greatly increased. While the council could control the timing of some roadworks, it was not always possible to plan every piece of work. Utility companies often needed to repair faults or carry out upgrades to pipes and cables at very short notice. 

Live traffic updates – use the https://one.network/ website

Facebook – Buckinghamshire Highways, X - @bucks_highways

The Cabinet Member also informed Members that the new service called Village Connect; Aylesbury would complement the bus network also providing a service for those who could not easily access existing bus services. Passengers could book a journey online in advance by using an app or by telephone and the bus would pick them up at an agreed time and location nearby.

https://www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/parking-roads-and-transport/bus-passes-and-travel/book-an-on-demand-minibus-journey-village-connect-aylesbury/

Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources

The Council would shortly be undertaking some essential works in the reception area of The Gateway to improve security. Work to install the access gates in reception would begin on Monday 30 September for a period of ten days. The new access arrangements would be used on 9 October 2024.

Cabinet Member for Children’s Services and Education

The Cabinet Member reported on a wonderful event for children in care at the Waddesdon Cricket Ground organised by Inspire Bucks on 21^st August 2024. The Cabinet Member for Communities also commented that it was a first class event.

Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration

The Cabinet Member referred to the consultation on the new National Planning Policy Framework and the significant changes within the document. A report would be considered at an extra Cabinet meeting on 16 September at 10am. The proposals would boost housing supply and there would be a more permissive approach to houses in the Green Belt. Briefings had been held for Members and Town and Parish Councils.

However, the areas of greatest concern which were highlighted more fully by the Cabinet Member were:

• The proposed changes to the way in which local housing need was to be calculated, which would lead to a 42% increase in the figure for Buckinghamshire;

• The proposed changes  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Question from Councillor Stuart Wilson to Councillor Arif Hussain, Cabinet Member for Communities

Given budgetary pressures, the Community Board report notes the substantial reduction in funding from £4.9m in 2020 to £1m in 2025, resulting in a halving of the number of Community Boards and a sum of £250k for project funding.

With Community Boards and a commitment to localism being a core element of the formation of the unitary authority, can the Cabinet Member please comment on why elected Members have not been consulted on Community Board reorganisation proposals in advance of a decision (as with proposals in other portfolios such as Housing and Transport), noting peculiar arrangements such as putting the new ward of Flackwell Heath & The  Wooburns, a series of semi-rural parished villages, in the same Community Board as the unparished urban area of Wycombe, as well as communicating the changes to town and parish councils prior to either a Member briefing or this Cabinet meeting making a decision?

Question from Councillor Robin Stuchbury to Councillor Mark Winn, Cabinet Member for Homelessness and Regulatory Services and John Chilver, Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources

I would like to ask the Cabinet Members about Buckinghamshire Council's progress on an amended motion agreed upon on December 9, 2020, which emphasised the need for good quality affordable housing, including social housing, at affordable rents. The motion highlighted the importance of affordable housing for key workers such as teachers, nurses, GPs, and other council staff, and its impact on the physical, mental, and economic well-being of residents. The council called for a feasibility study to determine the business case for developing additional affordable housing, including local authority-owned social housing. I understand that a report has been commissioned on the merits of the Council directly delivering affordable housing and that a wider financial evaluation is being undertaken this Autumn. Given the earlier motion, is Buckinghamshire Council meeting its obligations under the constitution on providing good quality affordable housing, noting also the new government’s significant proposals in this area?

Question from Councillor Stuart Wilson to Councillor Arif Hussain, Cabinet Member for Communities  

“Given budgetary pressures, the Community Board report notes the substantial reduction in funding from £4.9m in 2020 to £1m in 2025, resulting in a halving of the number of Community Boards and a sum of £250k for project funding. 

With Community Boards and a commitment to localism being a core element of the formation of the unitary authority, can the Cabinet Member please comment on why elected Members have not been consulted on Community Board reorganisation proposals in advance of a decision (as with proposals in other portfolios such as Housing and Transport), noting peculiar arrangements such as putting the new ward of Flackwell Heath & The  Wooburns, a series of semi-rural parished villages, in the same Community Board as the unparished urban area of Wycombe, as well as communicating the changes to town and parish councils prior to either a Member briefing or this Cabinet meeting making a decision?” 

Response from Councillor Arif Hussain 

Thank you for raising the question.  

I’m surprised about the suggestion that elected members were not consulted about the proposed changes to community boards.  

Discussions about these changes have been ongoing for considerable time now across a wide range of audiences including elected members, stakeholders and partners.  

We’ve been very open to discussion around these changes and have made every effort to engage and seek views to inform this approach. For example, I hosted a workshop with Community Board Chairmen and Vice Chairmen in November and I wrote to all members offering 1-1 appointments with myself as Cabinet Member for Communities in December and January. I’ve promoted this at Scrutiny and Council and a number of members took these up, and others sent in comments. All these views have informed the proposals here today.   

It was also important to gather feedback from Town and Parish Councils, in accordance with our Charter, and we conducted an online survey of Town & Parish Councils in February and March. Once the Cabinet papers were published, we thought it was appropriate to send local councils a link to the Cabinet agenda so that they could see the proposals.  

The information gathered through all of these engagement opportunities has been considered and used to inform the proposals that are included in the Cabinet papers today, and the changes proposed to the Boards are within the budget envelope which has been agreed within the MTFP.  

Whenever boundaries are drawn, it is difficult to satisfy everyone and I appreciate there may be some minor tweaks that we may wish to make as we move forward. I’m happy to follow these up. 

Question from Councillor Robin Stuchbury to Councillor Mark Winn, Cabinet Member for Homelessness and Regulatory Services and Councillor John Chilver, Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources 

“I would like to ask the Cabinet Member about Buckinghamshire Council's progress on an amended motion agreed upon on December 9, 2020, which emphasised the need for good quality affordable housing, including social  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

The Leader introduced the Forward Plan and commended it to all Members of the Council and the public, as a document that gave forewarning of what reports would be discussing at forthcoming meetings.

RESOLVED – That the Cabinet Forward Plan be noted.

For Cabinet to note the Select Committee Work Programme.

The Leader introduced the Select Committee Work Programme and commended it to all Members of the Council and the public, as a document that gave forewarning of what Select Committees would be discussing at forthcoming meetings.

RESOLVED – That the Select Committee Work Programme be noted.

A review of the Community Boards had been undertaken following the outcome of the Boundary Commission Review which reduced unitary Members from 147 to 97 together with some ward boundary changes. The Council had agreed to make savings as part of the Medium Term Financial Plan which resulted in a reduced total budget of £1m from 2025/26 which included staffing, project funding and operational delivery costs. The report recommended a new model of eight Community Boards which would take effect from May 2025, immediately following the local elections.

RESOLVED - 

1)      That the establishment of 8 Community Boards effective from May 2025, in accordance with the recommendations of the recent review be AGREED.

2)      That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Communities to make changes as required to Community Board boundaries. Any changes to be reported back to Cabinet.  

A review of the Community Boards had been undertaken following the outcome of the Boundary Commission Review which reduced unitary Members from 147 to 97 together with some ward boundary changes. The Council had agreed to make savings as part of the Medium Term Financial Plan which resulted in a reduced total budget of £1m from 2025/26 which included staffing, project funding and operational delivery costs.

The report recommended a new model of eight Community Boards which would take effect from May 2025, immediately following the local elections. There was extensive engagement with Community Board Chairmen, Community Board Managers, all Members and town and parish councils. The main requirements were that the Boards aligned with the new member ward boundaries, to have balanced representation, build on their success, achieve greater alignment with the programme objectives of Opportunity Bucks and meet the MTFP savings.

The Leader commented that the Community Boards had been part of the business case for a unitary council to provide a structure to enable local members to work together and with local partners and stakeholders to identify and tackle local issues. However, due to the pressure on the budget other options needed to be considered which would build on the strengths of the current structure.

The Cabinet Member reported that some representations had been received from Parish Councils that they would feel alienated with the new board arrangement. Therefore, Cabinet agreed that authority be delegated to make changes as required to reflect any concerns. However it was still important to keep to the new boundaries and a balanced representation.

Cabinet made the following points:-

·         There had been extensive consultation on this review. Five or more dates were offered to Members across three months.

·         The number of councillors had been reduced by a third which would impact on their capacity to be involved in a large number of meetings.

·         Community Boards were essential otherwise there would be too much of a gap between the unitary authority and 171 town and parish councils. The new proposal represented a reasonable workable solution which was affordable.

·         Each Board would have a dedicated Community Board Manager. In response to a question about whether a Parish could move to an adjacent board, the Cabinet Member reported that they would consider small changes in discussion with local members.

·         Community Boards key role should be to build partnerships supported by local Members and the Community Board Manager to help the local community.

Cabinet Members thanked officers, particularly the Community Board Managers for all their support to the Boards.

RESOLVED - 

1)      That the establishment of 8 Community Boards effective from May 2025, in accordance with the recommendations of the recent review be AGREED.

2)      That authority be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Communities to make changes as required to Community Board boundaries. Any changes to be reported back to Cabinet.  

The purpose of the report was to present the Buckinghamshire Youth Justice Plan 2024- 2025. The Youth Justice Plan provided details of progress made against statutory outcomes for children and young people. It outlined priorities, alongside potential future challenges for the partnership over the coming year. The Youth Justice Plan also highlighted the partnership arrangements and budget position.

RESOLVED that the 2024-2025 Youth Justice Plan be endorsed and recommended to Council for adoption.

The purpose of the report was to present the Buckinghamshire Youth Justice Plan 2024- 2025. The Youth Justice Plan provided details of progress made against statutory outcomes for children and young people. It outlined priorities, alongside potential future challenges for the partnership over the coming year. The Youth Justice Plan also highlighted the partnership arrangements and budget position.

Priorities included, continuing to build on the good work outlined in the 2021 inspection, focus on developing Child First ways of working and a focus on supporting positive education outcomes. Overall, the YJST continued to play a key role in preventing offending, reoffending, reducing the use of custody where appropriate, and delivering services for victims and safeguarding the most vulnerable. The latest available data showed that:

·            YJST continued to perform well against national indicatorsalthough there has been a slight increase in first time entrants from 70 children to 103 children.

·            Whilst the rate of reoffending for children in Buckinghamshire had increased, the actual number committing further offences had fallen. There were 7 children who repeat offended in the January to March 2022 cohort compared with 9 from January to March 2021. The percentage increase was a result of a reduction in the overall cohort size.

·            The custody rate in Buckinghamshire for 2023 was better than the Thames Valley, South East and National figures, and sustained the strong performance seen in 2022. In actual numbers, this represented 2 custodial sentences in both 2022 and 2023.

Some specific examples of the work completed during the year were shown below:

·            The Youth Justice Support Team (YJST) provided youth work support to 117 children across 17 schools in Buckinghamshire and delivered group work to 43 children across 4 schools on topics such as relationships, identity, drugs, and the role of the Police. Of the young people starting a youth work intervention in 2022/23, only 13 (12%) went on to enter the youth justice system within 12 months.

·            The YJST supported those at risk of entering the criminal justice system, with 42 children receiving interventions.

·            The YJST contacted 71 victims to offer intervention or signposting, based on their individual needs and supported 10 restorative conferences, where the child and the victim have had an opportunity to share their views and repair some of the harm that may have been done.

·            The YJST delivered Restorative Justice training to 67 professionals, including social workers, residential workers and teachers.

The Cabinet Member reported that the budget was very small with approximately £1000 per head which covered the professional officers, social workers, programmes and re-education and provided good value for money.

During discussion the following points were noted:-

·       Whilst it was important not to lock up young people there was the victim to think of alongside the need to reduce re-offending and reduce the use of custody. The Corporate Director referred to restorative justice where there was facilitation between the perpetrator and the victim so that the perpetrator could see the impact of their crime against the person to prevent  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

This draft Strategy updated the Buckinghamshire Council (BC) Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (2017-2022), which was adopted under the legacy Buckinghamshire County Council. The Strategy (Appendix 1) had been developed in collaboration with all relevant internal services and external partners, and set out the Council’s understanding of flood risk, the Council’s objectives and how they would be monitored and reviewed. The accompanying Action Plan (Appendix 2) described the specific measures which would be undertaken. These objectives encompassed and built on the principles of the previous Local Flood Risk Management Strategy and reflected the changes in national strategy by focussing on themes of partnership, resilience and innovation.

RESOLVED that the Local Flood Risk Management Strategy be AGREED. 

This draft Strategy updated the Buckinghamshire Council (BC) Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (2017-2022), which was adopted under the legacy Buckinghamshire County Council. The Strategy (Appendix 1) had been developed in collaboration with all relevant internal services and external partners, and set out the Council’s understanding of flood risk, the Council’s objectives and how they would be monitored and reviewed. The accompanying Action Plan (Appendix 2) described the specific measures which would be undertaken. These objectives encompassed and built on the principles of the previous Local Flood Risk Management Strategy and reflected the changes in national strategy by focussing on themes of partnership, resilience and innovation.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment reported that the Strategy covered six years. With climate change there had been a huge increase in rainfall. The Strategy had been developed with regard to national policy and there were additional concerns with regard to the proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework. There had been partnership working with external agencies. One example was given of flooding in Chalfont St Peter to show that whilst the Council had a Strategy they did not have overall control as could be shown with recent interactions with Thames Water and the need for robust conversations.

Since the previous Strategy £3.4 million had been included in the capital programme which had leveraged £12.5 million to mitigate flood risk. There were a number of nature based solutions but there was concern about the new NPPF -if houses were built on green sites which provided natural drainage this would have a significant impact on flooding.

Cabinet made the following points:-

·         Project Groundwater was a great initiative to help residents understand flooding and practical measures to protect their own home. There were also notifications if there were any warnings in place.

·         There was close liaison with highways and proactive measures to empty gullies to reduce the number of instances where the system became overwhelmed because the ground water level was so high.

·         If the Strategy was only updated every six years it was important to ensure costs were allocated to external partners where necessary for example HS2. The Deputy Cabinet Member Peter Martin held regular meetings with HS2 and there was a live investigation with regard to Rocky Lane and the A413. He had details of drainage plans and they were keeping a close eye on the north portal site including their permitted outflows which was monitored by the Environment Agency.

RESOLVED that the Local Flood Risk Management Strategy be AGREED. 

Cabinet received a report providing an update on:

·       national and local developments relating to the Children's Services Directorate, including the key policy changes relating to safeguarding as outlined in Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023.

·       key drivers and pressures that were affecting the placement market and the availability and affordability of suitable placements. The report also highlighted the opportunities and progress on improving placement provision and reducing costs and increasing placement choice and availability for Buckinghamshire’s looked after children.

·       outcome of the Joint Targeted Area Inspection (JTAI) that took place in January 2024.

·       Children's Services transformation programme, which aimed to streamline service delivery across Early Help and Social Care, reduce handoffs and prioritise the development of supportive and enabling relationships between families and professionals.

RESOLVED that the national and local developments across the Children’s Services Directorate be NOTED.

Cabinet received a report providing an update on:

·         national and local developments relating to the Children's Services Directorate, including the key policy changes relating to safeguarding as outlined in Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023.

·         key drivers and pressures that were affecting the placement market and the availability and affordability of suitable placements. The report also highlighted the opportunities and progress on improving placement provision and reducing costs and increasing placement choice and availability for Buckinghamshire’s looked after children.

·         outcome of the Joint Targeted Area Inspection (JTAI) that took place in January 2024.

·         Children's Services transformation programme, which aimed to streamline service delivery across Early Help and Social Care, reduce handoffs and prioritise the development of supportive and enabling relationships between families and professionals.

The Cabinet Member referred to the transformational changes in the Service Area where there were now 21 locality teams to make the connections with children more local and in addition to save money. The Leader made reference to how important partnership working was in this area with various bodies, statutory and non statutory, working with the Council to ensure referrals were being dealt with effectively. Reference was made to the increased costs of the Service from £27 million to £41.2 million which devoured the budget.

In January 2024, Buckinghamshire was subject to a joint targeted area inspection (JTAI) of the multi-agency response to identification of initial need and risk. Whilst the inspection highlighted many examples of where partners are working effectively together to support children, there were a number of areas identified that needed to improve. At a similar time, the DfE published an updated version of its statutory guidance: Working Together 2023 (WT 2023), and a new national framework for children’s social care. Both documents introduce a number of changes that the local area need to make in order to be compliant with the statutory guidance by December 2024. A single plan has been developed that sets out how the BSCP would work with partners throughout 2024 in order to strengthen and mature the Partnership in line with the JTAI recommendations and WT2023 changes. The future chairing arrangements of the partnership were yet to be determined.

In terms of positive news there were 19 foster carers working through the process which was a result of an excellent campaign.  3 new children’s homes had been completed which were smaller units for children with complex needs. It was difficult to match too many children with high needs in one building. Other proposals included a 4 bedded assessment facility which would help allow social workers to understand the need of the child. A further report would be submitted to Cabinet on expediating phase 2 of children’s home project and hopefully further positive news would be announced on the regional care collaborative to help the marketplace which was a reform of the previous government.

In terms of new proposals from Government it was understood that services for children with SEND might change with schools being more inclusive which  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

This item was deferred to the next meeting to allow adequate time to discuss it.

This item was deferred to the October Cabinet as there was not sufficient time to discuss it.

In the Cabinet Paper dated 12th December 2023 it was decided that King George V House in Amersham should be disposed of as it was now surplus to requirement. Knight Frank have acted as agent (selected through a tender process), and the site was marketed in April and May 2024. Initial bids were received and 10 of the 20 developers who submitted a bid were invited to a 2nd round of bidding. Best and Final offers were received. A full schedule of the offers received could be seen in the Confidential Appendix.

The site was within the Chiltern Beechwoods Special Area of Conservation zone of influence and therefore any development that resulted in additional homes would need to provide Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace. The Council was currently negotiating on a potential solution for this, but it was not finalised. Any SANG credits not attributed to the KGVH disposal could be sold to other developers to release other housing sites and to realise capital receipt (amount to be determined).

The site currently occupied by Buckinghamshire Council’s King George V House former offices was an established employment location suitable for redevelopment. The Local Planning Authority was supportive in principle of brownfield development in existing town centres, which brought regeneration benefits to an area. The original planning permission for KGVH contained a condition that, despite the site having previously been residential, the site should be retained for employment use if it ceased to be used as a civic building. Any conversion of the site to residential would require a modification to this condition. Officers anticipated that applications from the buyer would be policy compliant, particularly in regards to affordable housing.

One representation was considered by Cabinet Members in exempt session.

RESOLVED -

1. That the offer detailed in the Confidential Annex which realises the best value for the site when taking into account delivery risk and net present value be accepted. 

2. That authority be delegated to the Service Director of Commercial Property & Regeneration to negotiate Heads of Terms in line with the offer received and instruct Legal to deal with the conveyancing process through to completion. 

In the Cabinet Paper dated 12th December 2023 it was decided that King George V House in Amersham should be disposed of as it was now surplus to requirement. Knight Frank have acted as agent (selected through a tender process), and the site was marketed in April and May 2024. Initial bids were received and 10 of the 20 developers who submitted a bid were invited to a 2nd round of bidding. Best and Final offers were received. A full schedule of the offers received could be seen in the Confidential Appendix.

The site was within the Chiltern Beechwoods Special Area of Conservation zone of influence and therefore any development that resulted in additional homes would need to provide Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace. The Council was currently negotiating on a potential solution for this, but it was not finalised. Any SANG credits not attributed to the KGVH disposal could be sold to other developers to release other housing sites and to realise capital receipt (amount to be determined).

The site currently occupied by Buckinghamshire Council’s King George V House former offices was an established employment location suitable for redevelopment. The Local Planning Authority was supportive in principle of brownfield development in existing town centres, which brought regeneration benefits to an area. The original planning permission for KGVH contained a condition that, despite the site having previously been residential, the site should be retained for employment use if it ceased to be used as a civic building. Any conversion of the site to residential would require a modification to this condition. Officers anticipated that applications from the buyer would be policy compliant, particularly in regards to affordable housing.

A further bid had been submitted outside of the procurement period.

RESOLVED -

1. That the offer detailed in the Confidential Annex which realises the best value for the site when taking into account delivery risk and net present value be accepted. 

2. That authority be delegated to the Service Director of Commercial Property & Regeneration to negotiate Heads of Terms in line with the offer received and instruct Legal to deal with the conveyancing process through to completion. 

To resolve that under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Act.

RESOLVED –

That under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part I of Schedule 12A of the Act.

Confidential appendices – King George V House disposal

Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information) (Paragraph 3, Part 1 of Schedule 12A, Local Government Act 1972) (The need to maintain the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure, because disclosure could prejudice the Council’s position in any future process or negotiations)

RESOLVED –

That the confidential Minutes of the Cabinet meeting held 16 July 2024 be approved as a correct record.

The confidential appendices were considered.

16 September at 10am and 8 October 2024 at 10am.

16 September at 10am and 8 October 2024 at 10am.