Issue - meetings

To receive an update on the discussions in respect of the Wormington Village Hall grant following the decision of Executive Committee on 8 January 2020. 

That the grant offer of £57,700 previously made to Wormington Village Society be WITHDRAWN.  

55.1          The report of the Head of Finance and Asset Management, circulated separately at Pages No. 1-4, set out discussions with both Wormington Village Society and the Chair of Dumbleton Parish Council and recommended the withdrawal of the offer of a community grant to Wormington Village Society. The Executive Committee was asked to approve the withdrawal of the £57,700 offer to the Society.

55.2          The Head of Finance and Asset Management explained that in January 2020, Members had received an annual update on capital grant schemes which remained outstanding and one of the updates presented was a grant offer to Wormington Village Society to support the development of a village hall in Wormington. The grant had been awarded in March 2013 and, since the offer had been made, the Wormington Village Society had been in discussion with Dumbleton Parish Council regarding the use of land where it was intended to build the new village hall. The land identified was in the ownership of Dumbleton Parish Council and, following the receipt of independent legal advice, a number of constraints had been identified by the Parish Council in relation to the use of the land for the proposed village hall which meant the scheme had been unable to proceed. Several meetings and exchanges of correspondence had taken place between the two parties, but no agreement had been reached. At the meeting in January, Members had agreed to a six-month extension to the grant to allow the Deputy Chief Executive to engage with the parties concerned to try and move the project forward; however, it had become clear from the outcome of those discussions that Dumbleton Parish Council had a firm position, supported by independent legal advice, and would not deviate from the advice given. With that in mind, the Deputy Chief Executive could not see how the proposed village hall project could progress.

55.3          During the discussion which ensued, Members agreed that seven years was plenty of time for the grant to have been available and the project to move forward so it seemed fair to withdraw it at this stage given no agreement could be reached. A Member questioned whether the money would be available for other community groups to bid for and, in response, the Head of Finance and Asset Management confirmed that the money was capital funding and as such could not be used for strengthening the COVID-19 community funding. The funding would sit in the capital programme unless the Council made a decision to remove it and it could remain there for as long as required. The Council’s Community Funding Officer would be able to understand if there were any projects out there that could benefit from the money and Members would be able to direct appropriate projects to it.

55.4          Upon being proposed and seconded, it was