Agenda and minutes

7.1             An apology for absence was received from Councillor Mrs M A Gore.  

8.1             The Committee’s attention was drawn to the Tewkesbury Borough Council Code of Conduct which was adopted by the Council on 26 June 2012 and took effect from 1 July 2012.

8.2             There were no declarations of interest made on this occasion.

To approve the Minutes of the meeting held on 21 February 2017 and of the Extraordinary meeting held on 13 March 2017.

9.1             The Minutes of the meeting held on 21 February 2017, and of the Extraordinary meeting held on 13 March 2017, copies of which had been circulated, were approved as correct records and signed by the Mayor.  

10.1           The evacuation procedure, as noted on the Agenda, was advised to those present.  

10.2           The Mayor thanked all those that had attended his Mayor Making Ceremony on 9 May and indicated that he was extremely proud to have been chosen to serve the Borough as its Mayor for the forthcoming Municipal Year.

a)   To receive any questions, deputations or petitions submitted under Council Rule of Procedure.12.

(The deadline for public participation submissions for this meeting is 10 May 2017).

b)   To receive any petitions submitted under the Council’s Petitions Scheme.

11.1           There were no items from members of the public on this occasion.  

To receive any questions submitted under Rule of Procedure 13. Any items received will be circulated on 16 May 2017.

(Any questions must be submitted in writing to Democratic Services by, not later than, 10.00am on the working day immediately preceding the date of the meeting).

12.1           There were no Member questions on this occasion.  

To receive a ‘State of the Borough’ presentation from the Leader of the Council, Councillor R J E Vines.  

13.1           The Mayor invited the Leader of the Council, Councillor R J E Vines, to present his ‘State of the Borough’ report.

13.2           The presentation covered the following key points:  

·           Introduction – 2017 had been a really successful and challenging year and had marked the end of the first year of the new Council Plan. Against a backdrop of financial pressures, the Council had made significant changes whilst continuing to deliver services that cost less but provided the same level of support for customers.

·           Year One Refresh – Finances and Resources – 2016/17 saw the Council face further challenges but also saw it change the way it thought about generating income for the Council and its services. The leisure centre had provided an income of £150,000 since May 2016 through management fees; a new commercial strategy had been developed which included a £14 million property investment providing an annual income of £430,000; a new corporate website had been designed and launched which was exceptional value for money at £150 per year compared to the previous annual cost of £13,600; £8,000 had been saved on annual electrical costs since the installation of solar panels on the building; a new £3.5 million waste and recycling fleet had been procured – with the new vehicles being more efficient and able to collect more waste so were future proofed for growth in the Borough; a strategic management review had been implemented, including the appointment of a new Deputy Chief Executive and two new Heads of Service; and, alongside all those achievements, Council Tax remained the fifth lowest in the country.

·           Year One Refresh – Economic Development – An economic assessment and employment land review had been carried out within the Borough. External funding had been secured and a consultant had been appointed to develop a vision for Junction 9 of the M5. The Council had been successful in gaining £377,000 worth of funding from the Local Enterprise Partnership to host a business growth hub at the Public Services Centre which would be the first of its kind in the County. The Council had also been successful with regeneration projects within Tewkesbury Town including a new signage project and the completion of the Riverside Walk. In addition, a new website for businesses in Tewkesbury had been launched along with a new investment prospectus which showed the benefits of investing within Tewkesbury Borough. 

·           Year One Refresh – Housing – The main modifications for the Joint Core Strategy had been approved by the three Councils (Tewkesbury Borough, Cheltenham Borough and Gloucester City) and all responses from the consultations had been sent to the Inspector for consideration; public examination hearings would be held in the summer. With 13 Neighbourhood Plans now being developed the Council continued to provide support to Town and Parish Councils for their development. A new housing and homelessness strategy for 2016/20 had been adopted and, in 2016/17, the Council had delivered 197 affordable homes which was above its target of 150. The Council had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

To consider the Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s Annual Report.  

14.1           Attention was drawn to the report, circulated at Pages No. 16-39, which set out the draft Annual Overview and Scrutiny Report 2016/17. Members were asked to consider and adopt the report.  

14.2           The Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Councillor P W Awford, was pleased to present the 2016/17 Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report. He explained that this had been another productive year for the Committee as could be seen from the report, it had scrutinised, challenged, reviewed and received presentations across all aspects of the Council’s business and priorities. In particular, the Committee, through its Working Groups, had supported the development of key strategies including the Housing and Homelessness Strategy and the Economic Development and Tourism Strategy – both of which were strategic priorities – this was scrutiny adding real value and demonstrating effective partnership working with officers. In addition, a Working Group had reviewed the Scheme of Public Participation at Planning Committee and concluded that this was a valued asset which supported openness and transparency so the scheme was now a permanent arrangement. The Committee had also continued to monitor activity which was close to the hearts of Members and its communities; such as enviro-crimes, Ubico, flood risk management and overall delivery of the Council’s priorities.  The Overview and Scrutiny Committee was also keen to learn about others and, during the course of the year, had received informative presentations from key partners such as the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, Healthwatch Gloucestershire and Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service. It was also a Committee that was not frightened to challenge itself and it had received feedback from an independent assessor on its effectiveness – moving forward it was felt to be important that the value of the Committee continued to be maximised. Looking ahead, the Chair felt sure the Committee would add even greater value to support the Council in its future challenges and, through the work of the Committee, this would have a positive impact on its communities.

14.3           A Member noted the use of the word ‘Chairman’ rather than ‘Chair’ within the report and it was agreed that this would be amended.

14.4           The Chair thanked his Vice-Chair, and the Officers and Members that had supported the Committee, for their hard work over the past year. Accordingly, it was

                  RESOLVED          That, subject to the amendment of the use of the term                                        ‘Chairman’ to ‘Chair’, the Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s                                 2016/17 Annual Report be ADOPTED.

To elect a Leader of the Council (who will also be the Chair of the Executive Committee) for the ensuing Municipal Year.  

15.1           Upon being proposed and seconded it was

                  RESOLVED          That Councillor D J Waters be elected as Leader of the                                      Council, and therefore Chair of the Executive Committee, for                                 the ensuing Municipal Year.  

15.2           Councillor Waters thanked the Council for the appointment and indicated that he intended to do his best for the Borough during the year ahead. Councillor Waters offered his thanks to the previous Leader, Councillor Vines, for his leadership during the time he had been Leader of the Council noting that the Council had been in engagement when he had taken over but he had turned this around and the Council was now in a great position going forward. He knew there would be more challenges ahead, particularly in terms of making savings and improving income streams and growth, but also in ensuring the Council had an ambition to grow and become a leader in business and development. He hoped he would be able to take the Council forward through that phase as its Leader.

15.3           A Member expressed his thanks to Councillor Vines for his leadership over the past ten years. He indicated that the service provided by Councillor Vines had been exceptional; he was a friendly, approachable and professional character and he felt that his calmness and ease of speaking had been, and would continue to be, a great asset to the Council.

To elect the Deputy Leader of the Council (who will also be the Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee) for the ensuing Municipal Year.  

16.1           Upon being proposed and seconded it was

                  RESOLVED          That Councillor R A Bird be elected as Deputy Leader of the                              Council, and therefore Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee,                              for the ensuing Municipal Year.  

16.2           Councillor Bird thanked the Council for its confidence in him and undertook to offer his full commitment in supporting the Leader to achieve the Council’s aims and ambitions. 

Any papers available prior to the meeting will be circulated to all Members.

1.      To determine the Membership of the:

• Executive Committee
• Overview and Scrutiny Committee
• Audit Committee
• Planning Committee
• Licensing Committee
• Standards Committee
• Ad-hoc Committees

o  Employee Appeals Committee;

o  Employee Appointments Committee;

o  Housing Allocations and Homelessness Review Committee; and Panels and Liaison Groups as follows:

o  Gloucestershire Police and Crime Panel;

o  Shared Legal Services Joint Monitoring and Liaison Group; and

o  Shared Building Control Joint Monitoring and Liaison Group.

2.      In accordance with the Constitution, to receive a report from the Leader of the Council and take any action necessary.

3.      To determine:

a.  the Outside Bodies to which the Council should make appointments and the representation on those Bodies.

b. To delegate authority to the Borough Solicitor, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, to nominate other Members to attend a meeting of an outside body in the event that the nominated Member or their representative is unable to attend. 

4.      The Council will at this stage adjourn for a brief period to allow each Committee, as set out below, to hold a formal meeting to conduct the business set out in the enclosed Agenda: 

1.     Overview and Scrutiny Committee                                  

2.     Audit Committee                                                      

3.     Planning Committee                                                 

4.     Licensing Committee 

5.    Standards Committee     

                  Membership of Committees 2017/18

17.1           Upon being proposed and seconded it was

RESOLVED          That the following Committee Memberships be AGREED:  

 Report of the Leader of the Council

17.2           The Leader of the Council indicated that, as part of the Constitution, he was required to report at the Annual Council meeting on the number of Lead Members and scope of their Portfolios for the coming year, the number of Specialist Members and the specialist areas to be covered, and any other matters in relation to the political management of the Council. He proposed that there should be no change to the current arrangements in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17.

To appoint three Members of the Council as Trustees of the Mayor of Tewkesbury’s Appeal Fund for the ensuing Municipal Year. The Trustees for 2016/17 were:

Councillors P W Awford, J R Mason and D J Waters.

The Mayor and Chief Executive are automatically Trustees and as such Councillor Turbyfield cannot be one of the named Trustees for this year.

NB: The Fund is officially called the Mayor of Tewkesbury’s Appeal Fund but this does of course refer to Tewkesbury Borough.  

18.1           It was proposed, seconded and

                  RESOLVED          That Councillors P W Awford, J R Mason and D J Waters be                             appointed as Trustees of the Mayor of Tewkesbury’s Appeal                                   Fund for 2017/18.  

At its meeting on 26 April 2017 the Executive Committee considered a report which detailed the year two refresh of the Council Plan and RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL that the Council Plan refresh be ADOPTED.

19.1           At its meeting on 1 February 2017, the Executive Committee had considered a report which detailed the year two refresh of the 2016/20 Council Plan. The Executive Committee had recommended to Council that the Council Plan refresh be adopted.

19.2           The report which was considered by the Executive Committee had been circulated with the Agenda for the current meeting at Pages No. 45-69. 

19.3           The recommendation was proposed by the Vice-Chair of the Executive Committee. He indicated that the Council Plan was a rolling programme with the only real changes being actions that had now been delivered being replaced with new actions which were needed to help the Council achieve its objectives.

19.4           During the discussion which ensued, a Member advised that he was happy to approve the refresh of the Plan but there was one area upon which he would like clarification. He indicated that one of the priorities was to maximise growth at the M5 junctions within the Borough and he questioned how this could be achieved in practice, particularly with regard to the planning process. In response, he was advised that economic development was a key issue for the Council and, in planning terms, policies in the Joint Core Strategy and Tewkesbury Borough Plan needed to align; however, the Council Plan was not a planning policy. The Chief Executive explained that the Council delivered on its Council Plan though its own Policy framework and this was closely linked to the national policy framework; the Joint Core Strategy and Borough Plan would be the decision-making framework which was used by Members at Planning Committee. The Council Plan was supported by a whole range of policies and Pages No. 5 and 7 of the Plan showed how it aligned to the Joint Core Strategy and Borough Plan.

19.5           Another Member referred to the statistics included within the document at Page No. 3 of the plan, and questioned whether they needed to be refreshed. She also queried whether the pictures would be refreshed and whether weblinks could be included in the document so that, when other plans and policies were referenced, they could be accessed easily. In response, she was advised that the statistics were up to date, that the pictures had been refreshed and that the idea of adding weblinks to the document was a good suggestion. In terms of the Council’s policy on commercial investments, a Member indicated that it would be useful to understand the yield for all investments made, and proposed to be made, on an annual basis. In response, the Chief Executive explained that those figures were provided to the Council and the appropriate Committees, and monitored through the Transform Working Group and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, but they would not be put into the Council Plan as it was a high level document which did not contain commercially sensitive information. 

19.6           Accordingly, it was

                  RESOLVED          That the Council Plan refresh be ADOPTED.

To consider the progress to date in exploring the whole of the Battlefield as a heritage, cultural and economic asset for the Borough and to agree that officers meet with Historic England and other partners to explore utilising the Battlefield as a cultural and heritage asset; that officers continue to work through the preparation of the Borough Plan to ensure the wider Battlefield area is recognised in planning policy; and that future progress be reported to the Executive Committee.

20.1           The report of the Head of Development Services, circulated at Pages No. 70-81, outlined the progress to date in exploring the whole of the Battlefield as a heritage, cultural and economic asset for the Borough. Members were asked to request that Officers meet with Historic England and other partners to explore utilising the Battlefield as a cultural and heritage asset; to request that Officers continue to work through the preparation of the Borough Plan to ensure the wider battlefield area was recognised in planning policy; and to ask that future progress be reported to the Executive Committee.

20.2           The Deputy Chief Executive advised that, in December 2016, a petition had been received from the Tewkesbury Battlefield Society which asked that the Council communicate to the governors of Tewkesbury School its disagreement with its decision not to sell the Gastons to the Tewkesbury Battlefield Society; to make clear that any aspiration to sell the Gastons for development purposes was wholly inappropriate given its historical significance and would be vigorously opposed if this was attempted by the Trustees; and to consider formally designating the Gastons in the Local Plan as the intended site for the future creation of a Heritage Park for Tewkesbury and to work with the Society and residents to deliver that objective. At its meeting in January 2017, the Council had considered that petition and agreed that it was committed to the principle of developing the whole of the Tewkesbury Battlefield as a heritage, cultural and economic asset for the Borough. It had also requested that Officers considered the issues raised by the petition through a) the Borough Plan and other planning processes including supplementary planning guidance and enforcement and b) by exploring, with Tewkesbury Battlefield Society, the Tewkesbury School Trust and landowners, the potential for improving the Battlefield as a cultural and heritage asset; and that an update report be presented to the Council within three months.

20.3           Members were advised that Page No. 72 of the Council report detailed the current and proposed planning protection. The Gastons, together with the wider Battle of Tewkesbury 1471 area, was subject to saved policy HEN24, together with other saved policies contained within the adopted Borough Plan and the guidance contained within the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). Paragraph 132 of the NPPF stated that assets such as Battlefields were areas of highest significance and should be protected, any proposals for development within the Battlefield would be judged against those policies, with proposals having to have regard to the conservation of the historic landscape, demonstrate they respected the character of the registered site and generally retained its character. Wider designation of the Battlefield in its promotion as a cultural and heritage asset would be considered through a policy designation in the Tewkesbury Borough Plan review. The existing saved HEN24 of the Tewkesbury Borough Plan was a policy of protection – this obviously had an important role to play in terms of preventing unacceptable development in the area – and any  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

21.1           The Chairman proposed, and it was

                  RESOLVED:         That, under Section 100(A)(4) of the Local Government Act                               1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following                              items on the grounds that they involve the likely discussion of                                     exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the                               Act.    

To approve the Separate Minutes of the meeting held on 21 February 2017 and of the Extraordinary meeting held on 13 March 2017.  

22.1           The separate Minutes of the meeting held on 21 February 2017, and of the Extraordinary meeting held on 13 March 2017, copies of which had been circulated, were approved as correct records and signed by the Mayor.