Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of the Chairman, Councillor Caroline Reeves, and Councillor Pauline Searle.

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of the Chairman, Councillor Caroline Reeves, and Councillor Pauline Searle.

In accordance with the local Code of Conduct, a councillor is required to disclose at the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest (DPI) that they may have in respect of any matter for consideration on this agenda.  Any councillor with a DPI must notparticipate in any discussion or vote regarding that matter and they must also withdraw from the meeting immediately before consideration of the matter.

If that DPI has not been registered, the councillor must notify the Monitoring Officer of the details of the DPI within 28 days of the date of the meeting.

Councillors are further invited to disclose any non-pecuniary interest which may be relevant to any matter on this agenda, in the interests of transparency, and to confirm that it will not affect their objectivity in relation to that matter.

There were no disclosures of interest.

There were no disclosures of interest.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting of the Executive held on 27 August 2019.

The Executive approved, as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting held on 27 August 2019.  The Vice-Chairman, as the person presiding at the meeting, signed the minutes.

The Executive approved, as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting held on 27 August 2019.  The Vice-Chairman, as the person presiding at the meeting, signed the minutes.

The Deputy Leader, as Chairman, set out the new responsibilities of lead councillors as follows:

Cllr Caroline Reeves, Leader of the Council and Lead Councillor for the Environment and Sustainability across the borough, Transformation, Sustainable Transport, Economic Development and Governance.

Cllr Fiona White, Deputy Leader of the Council, Lead Councillor for Personal Health, Safety and Wellbeing.

Cllr Joss Bigmore, Lead Councillor for Finance and Assets, Customer Services.

Cllr Angela Goodwin, Lead Councillor for Housing, Access and Disability

Cllr David Goodwin, Lead Councillor for Waste, Licensing and Parking

Cllr Jan Harwood, Lead Councillor for Planning, Regeneration and Housing Delivery

Cllr Julia McShane, Lead Councillor for Community Health, Support and Wellbeing

Cllr John Rigg, Lead Councillor for Major Projects

Cllr Pauline Searle, Lead Councillor for Countryside, Rural life, and the Arts

Cllr James Steel, Lead Councillor for Tourism, Leisure and Sport

On behalf of the Leader, the Deputy Leader set out the revised portfolio responsibilities of lead councillors as follows:

Cllr Caroline Reeves, Leader of the Council and Lead Councillor for the Environment and Sustainability across the borough, Transformation, Sustainable Transport, Economic Development and Governance.

Cllr Fiona White, Deputy Leader of the Council, Lead Councillor for Personal Health, Safety and Wellbeing.

Cllr Joss Bigmore, Lead Councillor for Finance and Assets, Customer Services.

Cllr Angela Goodwin, Lead Councillor for Housing, Access and Disability

Cllr David Goodwin, Lead Councillor for Waste, Licensing and Parking

Cllr Jan Harwood, Lead Councillor for Planning, Regeneration and Housing Delivery

Cllr Julia McShane, Lead Councillor for Community Health, Support and Wellbeing

Cllr John Rigg, Lead Councillor for Major Projects

Cllr Pauline Searle, Lead Councillor for Countryside, Rural life, and the Arts

Cllr James Steel, Lead Councillor for Tourism, Leisure and Sport

Decision:

That the Executive:

(1)   Approves the revised scope of the project

(2)   Approves the Funding Strategy and appointment of fundraisers to implement the strategy

(3)   Delegates authority to adopt policies required for the Museum Accreditation to the Director of Environment in consultation with the Lead Councillor. 

(4)   Confirms its support for the applications to National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and other funding bodies as they arise.

(5)   Authorises the Director of Environment to prepare an asset disposal strategy for Castle Cottage and 39 Castle Street (Victorian School Room) and to ring-fence the capital receipts from the disposal to pay for the museum redevelopment.

(6)   Approves the establishment of a registered charity to facilitate fundraising and receive donations from Trusts and other funders

The Executive further

Recommend to Council (8 October 2019):

(1)   That a capital supplementary estimate of £11.8million to be funded by external grants and contributions from NHLF and other private trusts and donors as per the funding strategy, be approved.

(2)   That the Council agrees to underwrite the non-NHLF fundraising target of £7.8million and notes the risks associated with doing this as set out in paragraph 8.16 of this report, in particular to agree that if there is a shortfall in external funding then the Council will need to fund it from general fund borrowing and find additional service savings in order to fund the borrowing costs.

Reason:

To inform the Executive of the work undertaken since March 2019, enable the museum to gain re-accreditation and explain the next steps with regards to fund raising, architectural and technical designs, audience development programme and Planning.

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Executive:

A.     Business as Usual (do nothing)

B.     Undertake minimal refurbishment of the existing project within existing capital budget

C.    Deliver a phased project which still requires external match funding but much reduced scale of offer.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None

The Project Manager and Director of Environment were in attendance.

The Lead Councillor for Tourism, Leisure and Sport introduced the report setting out the developments for the project since it was last considered by the Executive in March.

Whilst it was noted that the project was exciting for the town and had great vision, concern was expressed over the funding commitment being asked of Council to underwrite a budget shortfall from the General Fund should external fundraising efforts prove insufficient. It was proposed that fundraising for the project should be closely monitored to ensure all effort was made to prevent such a shortfall and, if necessary, to review the scope of the project as necessary. It was acknowledged that external funding was more difficult to obtain in the current climate than it had been in the past.

The Director of Environment informed the meeting that, to date, Executive had authorised funding of £1.6 million that would move the project to RIBA Stage 4 and was scheduled to take the project up to 2021. During this period, fundraising efforts would commence including the submission of an expression of interest for the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) bid for £4 million the result of which would be known by March 2020. A further contribution would come from the income raised by the disposal of Castle Cottage and 39 Castle Street. The Executive would be kept informed of progress.

Having considered the report, the Executive

RESOLVED:

(1)        That the revised scope of the project be approved.

(2)        That the Funding Strategy and appointment of fundraisers to implement the strategy, be approved.

(3)        That the Director of Environment, in consultation with the Lead Councillor, be authorised to adopt policies required for the Museum Accreditation. 

(4)        That support for the applications to the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and other funding bodies as they arise, be confirmed.

(5)        That the Director of Environment be authorised to prepare an asset disposal strategy for Castle Cottage and 39 Castle Street (Victorian School Room) and to ring-fence the capital receipts from the disposal to pay for the museum redevelopment.

(6)        That the establishment of a registered charity to facilitate fundraising and receive donations from Trusts and other funders, be approved.

The Executive further

Recommend:

(1)     That a capital supplementary estimate of £11.8million to be funded by external grants and contributions from NLHF and other private trusts and donors as per the funding strategy, be approved.

(2)     That the Council agrees to underwrite the non-NLHF fundraising target of £7.8million and notes the risks associated with doing this as set out in paragraph 8.16 of the report submitted to the Executive, in particular to agree that if there is a shortfall in external funding then the Council will need to fund it from general fund borrowing and find additional service savings in order to fund the borrowing costs.

Reason:

To inform the Executive of the work undertaken since March 2019, enable the museum to gain re-accreditation and explain the next  ...  view the full minutes text for item EX34

Decision:

(1)     That the proposed design brief for the Stoke Park masterplan be approved.

(2)     That the strategy for delivery be approved

(3)     That a general fund supplementary revenue estimate of £380,000 for the purpose of funding professional fees to provide the necessary technical expertise and officer resource to deliver the Stoke Park masterplan be approved and funded as follows:

·        £194,000 from the Masterplan Reserve and

·        £186,000 from the New Homes Bonus Reserve

(4)   That the Director of Environment, in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Arts, Parks and Countryside, be authorised to take all necessary steps to produce the Stoke Park masterplan for public consultation.

Reason:

To enable the delivery of the Stoke Park masterplan to be resourced and progressed.

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Executive:

Do nothing.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None

The Parks and Landscape Manager and Parks Development Officer were in attendance.

The Chairman and Deputy Leader of the council spoke to the report in the absence of the lead councillor.

The meeting heard how important Stoke Park was to the town and how it supported a wide variety of recreational and wellbeing activities. It had received the Green Flag Award for the past ten years. Looking to the future, a diversity of new uses were being proposed whilst securing protection and preservation of the park because of its value as a green space. It was noted that although the costs proposed in the report were significant, it was important to ensure that the resources were available to produce a plan for such an important asset.

The Executive agreed the costs weighed well against the value the park provides.

Accordingly, the Executive

RESOLVED:

(1)     That the proposed design brief for the Stoke Park masterplan be approved.

(2)     That the strategy for delivery be approved

(3)     That a general fund supplementary revenue estimate of £380,000 for the purpose of funding professional fees to provide the necessary technical expertise and officer resource to deliver the Stoke Park masterplan be approved and funded as follows:

·        £194,000 from the Masterplan Reserve and

·        £186,000 from the New Homes Bonus Reserve

(4)   That the Director of Environment, in consultation with the Lead Councillor for Countryside, Rural Life and the Arts, be authorised to take all necessary steps to produce the Stoke Park masterplan for public consultation.

Reason:

To enable the delivery of the Stoke Park masterplan to be resourced and progressed.

Decision:

(1)     That the Guildford Town Centre Views Supplementary Planning Document, as set out as Appendix 1 to this report, be adopted as a Local Development Document.

(2)     That the Director of Planning and Regeneration be authorised, in consultation with the appropriate Lead Councillor, to make such minor alterations to improve the clarity of the adopted Supplementary Planning Document as she may deem necessary.

Reasons:

·        To enable the adoption of the SPD as a Local Development Document and will add weight to this guidance as a material consideration in the assessment of planning applications. 

·        To allow for minor modifications to the SPD should they be necessary prior to publication.   

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Executive:

To not adopt the SPD.

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None

The Director of Planning and Regeneration was in attendance.

The Lead Councillor for Planning, Regeneration and Housing Delivery introduced the report.

It was explained that this SPD would always be developing. It was described as a ‘living’ document, but that the version presented was most appropriate for the present. The standard of the work involved in producing the SPD was praised. The value of the SPD had been recognised recently in an important planning appeal case. The new lead councillor for Major Projects welcomed the document as a flexible tool to support planning decision-making.

Non-Executive member comments had suggested the document might have shown more emphasis on the town’s green surroundings and that there might have been an earlier process for consultation. The meeting was informed that the process for consultation of the SPD was set out in the report and included consideration by the Place Making and Innovation Executive Advisory Board on two occasions and had been subject to a four-week public consultation. Reference was also drawn to where green space features in the SPD.

The Executive

RESOLVED: 

(1)     That the Guildford Town Centre Views Supplementary Planning Document, as set out as Appendix 1 to the report submitted to the Executive, be adopted as a Local Development Document.

(2)     That the Director of Planning and Regeneration be authorised, in consultation with the appropriate Lead Councillor, to make such minor alterations to improve the clarity of the adopted Supplementary Planning Document as she may deem necessary.

Reasons:

·        To enable the adoption of the SPD as a Local Development Document and will add weight to this guidance as a material consideration in the assessment of planning applications. 

·        To allow for minor modifications to the SPD should they be necessary prior to publication.   

Decision:

That the Joint Enforcement Team be made permanent and that opportunities be explored to expand the team as part of the Future Guildford work programme.

Reason:

To continue the work of the JET and seek to expand capacity within the Future Guildford programme to address enforcement issues and other anti-social behaviour the Council considers is important to residents.

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Executive:

i)         Cease the JET

ii)        Temporarily extend the team

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None

The Waste, Parking and Fleet Services Manager and Director of Environment were in attendance.

The Chair and the Deputy Lead Councillor as lead councillor for Personal Health, Safety and Wellbeing introduced the report.

Setting up the Joint Enforcement Team (JET) was described as a credit to the previous administration and it was praised for its work.

There were some concerns raised during non-Executive member questions regarding business waste. Officers were unaware of the issues raised but asked for further information to be provided outside of the meeting.

The Executive

RESOLVED: That the Joint Enforcement Team be made permanent and that opportunities be explored to expand the team as part of the Future Guildford work programme.

Reason:

To continue the work of the JET and seek to expand capacity within the Future Guildford programme to address enforcement issues and other anti-social behaviour the Council considers is important to residents.

Recommend (to full Council on 8 October 2019):

That the proposed timetable of Council and Committee meetings for the 2020-21 municipal year, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report submitted to the Executive, be approved.

Reason:

To assist with the preparation of individual committee work programmes.

The Executiveconsidered a suggested timetable of Council and committee meetings for the 2020-21 municipal year and

RECOMMEND: That the proposed timetable of Council and Committee meetings for the 2020-21 municipal year, as set out in Appendix 1 to the report submitted to the Executive, be approved.

Reason:

To assist with the preparation of individual committee work programmes.

That no nomination be submitted.

Reason:

As no councillor nominations were received to be considered by the Surrey Leaders’ Group.

As no nominations in respect of the appointments had been received, the Executive agreed that no nominations be submitted.

That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), the public be excluded from the meeting for consideration of the business contained in agenda item 25 on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in paragraphs 1 and 4 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act, and the business contained in the item of urgent business (agenda item 26) on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in paragraphs 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act.

Executive decided:

That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), the public be excluded from the meeting for consideration of the business contained in agenda item 12 on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in paragraphs 1 and 4 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act.

The Executive

RESOLVED: That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended), the public be excluded from the meeting for consideration of the business referred to in Minute EX41 below on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information, as defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act.

Decision:

1.    The Executive considered all the options in the committee report and agreed to accept the grant from Homes England as set out in Option1, but to proceed with Options 1 and 2 if necessary.

2.    To transfer £600,000 from the provisionally agreed HIF funding from the provisional to the approved capital programme to complete the pre-construction phase due to increasing costs associated with the increasing complexity of the Scheme.

3.    To authorise the Director of Planning and Regeneration, in consultation with the Lead Councillor(s), to progress the Scheme from planning permission stage to preconstruction and to engage with suppliers to continue implementation of the Scheme as outlined in the report.

Reason for Decision:

To enter into an agreement for the Housing Infrastructure Fund with Homes England in connection with a major project.

Reasons for urgency:

Homes England placed a deadline of 30 September 2019 on the Council accepting a funding agreement.  Specific terms attached to the funding agreement were only received on 5 September 2019 and the final closing date for LEP Expressions of Interest was 29 August 2019. It was only after this date that the Council was able to confirm that there is no LEP funding for this project.  It could not therefore have been foreseen that a report to the Executive would be required on 24 September 2019 with notice of intention to make the key decision in private session given 28 days in advance.

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Executive:

The executive agreed not to proceed with Options (a), (b) and (c).

Details of any conflict of interest declared by the acting Leader or lead councillors and any dispensation granted:

None

The Director of Planning and Regeneration, the Director of Finance and the Project Manager for Major Projects were in attendance.

The Lead Councillor or Finance and Assets, Customer Services introduced the report.

The Executive considered a report concerning the options open to the Council with regard to funding proposals to deliver a new road and road bridge over the railway line at Ash to allow the level crossing to be closed and be replaced with a footbridge suitable for all users.

Having considered all the options in the report, the Executive

RESOLVED:

(1)     To accept the grant from Homes England as set out in Option 1, but to proceed with Options 1 and 2 if necessary.

(2)        To transfer £600,000 from the provisionally agreed HIF funding from the provisional to the approved capital programme to complete the pre-construction phase due to increasing costs associated with the increasing complexity of the Scheme.

(3)        To authorise the Director of Planning and Regeneration, in consultation with the appropriate lead councillor(s), to progress the Scheme from planning permission stage to preconstruction and to engage with suppliers to continue implementation of the Scheme as outlined in the report.

Reason for Decision:

To enter into an agreement for the Housing Infrastructure Fund with Homes England in connection with a major project.

Reasons for urgency:

Homes England had placed a deadline of 30 September 2019 on the Council accepting a funding agreement.  Specific terms attached to the funding agreement were only received on 5 September 2019 and the closing date for LEP Expressions of Interest was 29 August 2019. It was only after this date that the Council was able to confirm that there was no LEP funding for this project.  It could not therefore have been foreseen that a report to the Executive would be required on 24 September 2019 with notice of intention to make the key decision in private session given 28 days in advance.