Agenda and minutes

Councillors Lillywhite, Mason and Payne had given their apologies.

No interests were declared.

Councillor Hobley declared an interest in agenda item 12- motion b as he was an employee of the British Legion. He would withdraw from the chamber for this item.

Minutes of the meeting held on 19 February 2018

The minutes of the last meeting had been circulated with the agenda.

Upon a vote it was unanimously

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on the 19 February 2018 be agreed and signed as a correct record.

The Mayor informed Members that her engagements had not been included in the previous minutes but would be added as an appendix.

The Mayor informed Members that Colin Nye, former Chief Executive had recently passed away. A minutes silence was then held. Councillors Barnes and Harman then led tributes to Mr Nye.

Members were also informed of the recent passing of Cliff Ryde, former Director at the Council.

The Mayor then wished to put on record her thanks to the retiring Councillors Helena McCloskey, Chris Ryder, Pat Thornton, Jon Walklett and Colin Hay for their contributions to the council and their local communities.

The Mayor then informed Members of her recent and upcoming engagements. These are attached as an appendix to the minutes.

The Leader also wished to pay tribute to Colin Nye.

The Leader put on record his thanks to Councillor Stennett for his contribution over the years to the Board of Gloucestershire Airport from which he was standing down following its restructure.

Thanks were given to the Cabinet Member Healthy Lifestyles and those officers involved in the event to mark International Women’s Day.

The Leader then informed Members of the recent domestic homicide review which had highlighted what could be done better in terms of safeguarding.

The Local Plan consultation was now live and would run until 9 April. He thanked those officers who were involved in the recent roadshows in the Regent Arcade.

Finally the Leader also wished to thank all retiring Members for their contributions to the Council.  

None received.  

These must be received no later than 12 noon on Tuesday 20 March 2018.

These must be received no later than 12 noon on Tuesday 20 March 2018.

Report of the Leader

The Leader introduced the report which set out progress to date in bringing forward a place vision document for Council approval following the initial vision agreed by to Council 12 months ago. It was also acknowledged that whilst Cheltenham Borough Council would take the lead in its development, the aim was for the strategy to be owned by everyone who had a stake in the success of Cheltenham. A wide range of groups had been involved in shaping the vision to date and it was an evolving process. He wished to put on record his thanks to Richard Gibson, Strategy and Engagement Manager and his team for their contributions in driving this forward.

The Leader then highlighted that the vision, ambitions and aspirations were laid down in paragraphs 2.7, 2.9 and 2.11 of the report respectively. For each ambition and for each aspiration clear action would be proposed and local partners would now work together to develop plans for how those actions could be made into a reality. He emphasised that there were two significant actions described in the document, the commitment to building more affordable housing which was the key thrust of the Joint Core Strategy and the Cyber-park which would generate employment and opportunities in the west of Cheltenham. The council could not deliver these in isolation but could play a significant role in making this happen by working in partnership.

In terms of next steps the council’s corporate strategy would translate issues from the place vision into actions for CBC. Alongside this a place governance group which will evolve out of the existing Cheltenham Strategic Leadership Group to manage the place agenda so all parties could be involved and sign up to it.

The following points were raised and responses given:

• Was the Leader confident that the council had the resources to deliver CBC’s contribution to deliver the place vision? In response the Leader explained that the senior officer restructure was being undertaken with this in mind and he emphasised that this was not solely a CBC vision but a partnership vision. He acknowledged that the council was ambitious and it would do whatever it could within the resources available.
• What method would be in place to measure the success of the outcomes ? The Leader highlighted that some indicative measures were set out in the document and also clarified that this was not for CBC to define but would be discussed in partnership with those involved.
• Could the council now progress the tourism strategy now that the place vision was submitted for council approval ? The Leader explained that the tourism strategy had not been put on hold but had been approved and Marketing Cheltenham was now up and running.
• Various strategies had been approved over the years but there should be continuity. In response the Leader said that although not all objectives had been achieved these had been important documents that had set out strategic objectives at the time . This new vision represented an  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

Report of the Leader

The Leader introduced the report and explained that the interim corporate strategy action plan set out a range of projects and initiatives where there was a current commitment. It was then proposed that a longer term corporate strategy be brought back to Council in July 2018 that would set out a longer term plan of action and a more robust performance management framework.

The Leader went on to explain that the two key strategic documents that had helped shape this year’s corporate strategy were the draft place strategy and the council’s medium term financial strategy. By aligning the corporate planning framework to the place strategy framework the council was making a statement in support of the place strategy and providing more detail about how the place aspirations would get delivered. He highlighted that the corporate strategy constituted the council’s Crime Reduction Strategy to comply with Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty which came into force in April 2011.

The Leader then highlighted that the council would drive forward and provide leadership on many issues (but not all) in the plan. He explained that the Cheltenham Transport Plan had been part of the vision for the town for a long time and would come to fruition this year with the reconnection of the High Street as a trial in June. This would provide economic and environmental benefits for the town. There was much work to be done and any consequences arising from this would have to be managed and would take a high profile in the next plan.

The corporate plan also incorporated elements of the MTFS and highlighted a number of investment opportunities.

The following points were raised by Members and responses given :

• Boots Corner-the Cabinet Member Development and Safety stated that this represented 8 years of work and had been welcomed by businesses in the town and facilitated by a government grant of £6 million. Phases 1-3 of the Cheltenham Transport Plan were complete and had satisfied the predictions of the County Council’s traffic modelling. There was no reason to believe that phase 4, i.e. the closure of Boots Corner would not be successful. If it did then remedial action would be taken and changes introduced accordingly. On a point of personal explanation the Member explained that large pedestrian spaces were not always beneficial to those with visual impairments and the Leader agreed that various groups needed to be involved to ensure the area was accessible for all.
• It was requested that there be a more joined up approach between the  Mayor’s role as an ambassador for Cheltenham and the BID and Marketing Cheltenham. The Leader explained that Marketing Cheltenham was relatively new and one of its early tasks was to coordinate a list of events as they were currently not easy to access.
• Town centre CCTV-The Cabinet Member Development and Safety confirmed that CCTV would be undergoing a £260k upgrade and was currently in the procurement  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Report of the Cabinet Member Corporate Services

The Cabinet Member Corporate Services introduced the report which proposed the diary of Council meetings for September 2018 to August 2019. He confirmed there had been no policy changes since last year.

A Member raised the issue of holding meetings in school holidays which proved difficult for those with school aged children. In response the Cabinet Member said that whilst  the aim was to avoid scheduling meetings in half terms, Christmas and August it was  very difficult to avoid other school holidays due to the amount of council business.

RESOLVED (unanimously) THAT

The draft Council diary of meetings for September 2018-August 2019 be approved.

Motion A

Proposed by: Councillor McKinlay and seconded by: Councillor Jordan

This Council welcomes the proposals by Highways England to improve the Highway at the “missing link” on the A417 at the Air Balloon, and believes that this development is vital to improve road access to the south of Cheltenham.

The Council recognises that Highways England are promoting two options, 12 and 30 in their consultation documentation.

Having considered the options this Council formally resolves

1. To support option 30 as the most effective way to tackle the current traffic problems on the A417.

2. Requests the Cabinet Member Development and Safety to formally respond to the consultation communicating the Council’s support for option 30.

As proposer of the motion, Councillor McKinlay offered members a brief explanation as to the background to this issue.  The Government had launched a consultation for the A417 “missing link” which would close on the 29 March.  He would ordinarily have put a response in his own name, but given the importance of the issue and the timeliness of this meeting, he had instead decided to raise the issue at Council.  He did stress however, that this did not prevent members from responding as an individual.  Members would be aware that the “missing link” had been a major bone of contention and the subject of lots of lobbying for some years and Highways England had finally undertaken an options appraisal.  Having narrowed 30 options down to 2, options 12 and 30, Highways England had said that whilst option 12 was cheaper, option 30 offered better value for money and though both options would result in a safe and reliable route, option 12 would have periods of reduced flow, whereas option 30 would be free-flowing.  Cotswold District Council had supported option 30 and Gloucestershire County Council would also be asked to endorse number 30 as the preferred option when they met on the 28 March.  In closing, Councillor McKinlay hoped that members would support this motion which represented the best resolution to a longstanding issue.

Councillor Jordan had been happy to act as seconder to the motion as he felt that the A417 should have been addressed at the same time as the Cirencester bypass.  This was not something that could be funded locally and therefore a unified message would be key and assuming members were support of the motion, a joint letter would also be submitted.

Members who spoke in support of the motion did so because they acknowledged that unified county-wide response would make for a stronger case and ultimately improve the chances of getting the desired outcome: investment which was long overdue. 

A member representative of the Cotswolds Conservation Board highlighted that this group had a conflicting view and had voted in favour (FOR: 19 / AGAINST: 9) of the inclusion of a tunnel option, which he hoped would not derail the process.  Another member, whilst fully intending to support the motion, did query why tunnel options had been dismissed by Highways England, for any  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

There were no urgent items requiring a decision.