Agenda, decisions and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillors Atherstone, Clucas and Jeffries.

There were none.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 4 April 2023

The minutes of the meeting held on 04 April 2023 were approved unanimously and signed as a true record.

Questions must be received no later than 12 noon on the seventh working day before the date of the meeting

There were no public or Member questions or petitions on this occasion.

The Leader said that, as requested, the Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities has provided an outline for developing options to further improve engagement with young people and add value to work currently undertaken by the council. She confirmed that further detail will be provided in July.  

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being said a lot of good work to engage with young people is already taking place, but it is good that the options appraisal includes a map to bring together future work and engage further.  The Cabinet Member for Cyber, Regeneration and Commercial Income agreed, saying this was a positive step to explore further work already being done.

No vote was required.  The Briefing Note was noted.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services introduced the report, saying an enormous amount of excellent work had gone into it, for which he thanked officers. Although air quality in Cheltenham is generally good, it is an important issue and the report presents an Air Quality Action Plan for the whole town, together with a plan for a specific area around Poole Way, identified in 2019 as falling below the expected national standard and now designated an Air Quality Management Area. The former Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency made a clear commitment for the council to take concrete actions, including smoke control zones, schools quality projects to protect small children, steps to take the most polluting taxis off the road with a clean fleet by 2030.  A lot of the work will be undertaken with partners such as the NHS and GCC as the highways authority – road traffic is overwhelmingly the biggest contributor to air pollution – and there is a clear commitment to keep monitoring air quality across the town, working continually towards improving it and people’s health. He commended the report to Cabinet, and asked them to approve the Air Quality report, and Bureau Veritas management plan and modelling study.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being said this was a good report, with 16 action points, some for Cheltenham alone and some to be undertaken with partners.  He noted the legislative quirk that CBC is reliant on the county council – run by a different political party - as the authority with the power to implement some of the action points; it has made some progress but is not moving far enough to make big changes.   He paid tribute to Clean Air Cheltenham, who pushed for a plan for the whole of Cheltenham, not just the small area in breach of NO2 levels, and commended the report.

The Cabinet Member for Cyber, Regeneration and Commercial Income was delighted to note that Golden Valley was mentioned in the report, saying how important it was the do things properly from the start.  The transport hub currently under construction in west Cheltenham would make a big difference, and these green developments can be showcased to other authorities embarking on similar plans.

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the draft Air Quality Action Plan attached be approved;

2.    the Bureau Veritas Air Quality Action Plan be approved;

3.    the Bureau Veritas Modelling Study be approved.

Report of the Corporate Director and Monitoring Officer

The Leader introduced the report of the Monitoring Officer, saying that as part of the council’s legislative and governance framework, it is required to demonstrate its compliance with data protection legislation and must put in place appropriate technical and organisational measures to demonstrate this.  The report brings forward a suite of documents which seek to set out the council’s policy position in this area – the information governance framework setting out the council’s overall approach and the associated policies.  Once approved, the council will implement the action plan and ensure that the policies are fully embedded and observed, with assurance provided by the Corporate Governance Group and via the audit process.  ,

There were no Member comments on this item.

RESOLVED THAT:

The following policies are adopted, with effect from 01 June 2023:

1.    Information Governance Framework

2.    Data Protection Policy

3.    Data Protection Impact Assessment Policy

4.    Anonymisation and Pseudonymisation Policy

5.    Data Quality Policy

6.    Data Retention Policy

Report of the Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services

The Leader said this application was for a renewal of the original application, granted in 2017.  The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services explained further that the council was obliged to check the forum complied with regulations before recommending approval for a second time.  He stressed the importance of handing real power back to local communities, introduced by the coalition government in 2011, which was taken up widely in parished, rural and affluent areas, but notably less so in urban, less well-off areas.  It was a matter of great pride that this unparished area, and one of Cheltenham’s least well-off areas, had really grasped the nettle of neighbourhood planning and put an enormous amount of work into it. 

He added that the neighbourhood forum area was based on Hesters Way ward, which made engagement with borough councillors easy.  The slight changes being made to ward boundaries will result in small numbers of residents moving between Hesters Way, Springbank and Benhall/Reddings wards; a formal letter will be sent to the Neighbourhood Forum, requesting that they look at the boundaries and engage with the borough councillors in adjacent wards.

This is a very positive step, recognising the work done in the Hesters Way community to engage in the decision-making process which will affect the lives of local people for many years to come.  He is proud to recommend the report to Cabinet.

The Cabinet Member for Cyber, Regeneration and Commercial Income said the report makes very good reading, and agreed that it will be excellent for the community as a whole.  As ward member for Benhall and The Reddings, he looked forward to engaging with the Neighbourhood Forum.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being welcomed decisions being made at the most local level, not just in parished areas but in less affluent parts of town.  He welcomed this important proposal, and would like to see more unparished areas doing the same to strengthen their communities.

The Leader said she was a strong believer in ‘bottom-up’ communities, asking communities how they want to engage.  Not all wards have the capacity to do this, and Hesters Way is lucky to have a community resource centre to take the lead.

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the designation of the Hesters Way Neighbourhood Development Forum as neighbourhood forum for the Hesters Way Neighbourhood Development Forum Area be approved;

2.    The Director of Community & Economic Development will formally write to Hesters Way Neighbourhood Development Forum to recommend that they consider reviewing the designated Neighbourhood Area to fully assess the impacts of the future boundary changes, including engagement with Benhall & The Reddings and Springbank ward councillors.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency

The Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency introduced the report which, she said, spoke for itself, going into great detail on the importance of working with partners across Gloucestershire to make sure biodiversity projects are delivered and funding is spent within the county. She added that it was great to see the climate impact assessment wheel included in the report – it is a great tool – and said in this case the council would continue work to ensure sustainable transport options improve. She commended her report as a strong investment in Cheltenham’s biodiverse future.

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services welcomed the report, saying scientists acknowledge that the biodiversity crisis is as serious as the climate crisis. He said that the commitment to off-set biodiversity loss  was sometimes a cover, and was a challenge in urban areas, but Gloucestershire counties have agreed to prioritise off-setting in the statement of common ground.  Cheltenham has a strong commitment to achieving biodiversity net gain – an SPD is included in the corporate plan – and taking this report as a starting point to push the agenda, CBC could be recognised as one of the greenest local authorities in the country.  

The Cabinet Member for Waste and Recycling and Street Services said CBC is taking steps all the time to increase biodiversity, with many of the town’s parks keeping areas unmown to encourage biodiversity.  He is also looking to amend the schedule for grass cutting, following No-Mow May, reducing mowing in a careful way, deliberately designed to increase biodiversity.

The Leader was pleased to see the climate assessment wheel in the report; it applies to every report, and CBC can be proud that it is recognised nationally as good practice and will be rolled out around the country.  She said the Memorandum of Understanding covered several districts and partnerships working closely and across political divides to the benefit of all.  It is good that these significant issues are being faced, and she hoped other parts of the country would follow Gloucestershire’s example.

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the principle of continued co-operation on Biodiversity Net Gain through the Gloucestershire Nature and Climate Fund be approved. Whilst it will not be the only option available to developers unable to provide the required minimum 10% biodiversity uplift on-site, GNCF is designed to provide a robust off-site option for retaining developer investment in BNG within the county;

2.    authority is delegated to the Cabinet member for Climate Emergency to sign the Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the authority.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency congratulated the continued work of the Cheltenham Zero partnership, which was coming on in leaps and bounds, supporting local businesses, with workshops hosted at the Municipal Offices.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Well-being reported on the following issues:

-       #FeedCheltenham leisure cards have been launched, entitling the holder to 12 gym, swim or fitness sessions at Leisure@, as well as further discounts;

-       the proposed Honeybourne Line extension, funded by the DfT, has hit the buffers, as there is not enough money to deliver at present.  This partnership work will hopefully get back on track in the future;

-       he has recently attended:

 -  a question and answer session with Cheltenham Education Partnership at the   University of Gloucestershire, covering migration, climate emergency and the   cost of living, among other things;

 -  an interesting afternoon at Cheltenham Bowls Club;

 -  a fundraiser event for Lansdown Art Studios, a community interest company   looking for new premises to guarantee its future, held at the Royal Oak in Prestbury, who are looking for new premises.

The Leader said that following the recent local elections, she had reached out to Cotswold and Tewkesbury councils, and will do the same with Gloucester and Stroud.  She said leaders from all Gloucestershire councils meet every eight weeks to discuss issues affecting the county.  She also reported an enjoyable visit to Whaddon Bowls Club over the bank holiday weekend.

The Cabinet Members for Customer and Regulatory Services, Waste and Recycling and Street Services, and Cyber, Regeneration and Economic Development did not have any updates.

The Cabinet Member for Waste, Recycling and Street Services reported on three decisions, taken in line with previously approved plan for a phased renewal of the fleet:  

Award of contract to Dennis Eagle Ltd for the supply of refuse collection vehicle

To award a contract to Motus Commercials Ltd to supply 1 x Isuzu CWS Recycling Stillage Vehicle

To award a contract to Motus Commercials Ltd for to supply of two 3.5 Fiat Ducato Chassis Cabs

The Cabinet Member for Cyber, Regeneration and Commercial Income reported the following decision, which was taken to mitigate challenges going forward, in view of the complex nature of the development site, with Grade II listed buildings attached, services just below the surface, and highways constraints.   

To engage Willmott Dixon to deliver the redevelopment scheme and 232-242 and 254 High street, and Gleeds to provide project and cost management services

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services said community alarms are literally lifelines for many people, giving them confidence in independent living.  The majority are analogue, but with a digital switchover due to complete in 2025, this timely move, in conjunction with the Gloucestershire Strategic Housing Partnership Fund , will ensure all equipment is replaced in a timely manner.

To accept the funding of £245,986 from the Gloucestershire Strategic Housing Partnership to CBC to facilitate the funding and installation of new digital Lifeline equipment

The Leader:

To appoint an interim Accountable Manager for Gloucestershire Airport, in the absence of the Managing Director

Cabinet Member for Economic Development Culture, Tourism and Well-being

To award a contract for the delivery and management of Cheltenham Ice Rink to S3K Ltd

The Leader also reported the following:

Cabinet Member for Housing’s decision

To approve the Local Lettings Plan

Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets’ decision

To close Town Centre East Car Park on 29^th and 30^th July for some redecoration as part of the Cheltenham Paint Festival

The Cabinet is recommended to approve the following resolution:-

“That in accordance with Section 100A(4) Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the remaining agenda items as it is likely that, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, if members of the public are present there will be disclosed to them exempt information as defined in paragraph 5, Part (1) Schedule (12A) Local Government Act 1972, namely:

Paragraph 5: Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings

RESOLVED THAT:

-       In accordance with Section 100A(4) Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the remaining agenda items as it is likely that, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, if members of the public are present there will be disclosed to them exempt information as defined in Paragraph 5, Par (1) Schedule (12A) Local Government Act 1972, namely:

Paragraph 5:  Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings.

Report of Cabinet Member for Cyber, Regeneration and Commercial Income

RESOLVED THAT:

-       the recommendations are approved.