Agenda, decisions and minutes

There were none.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 7 March 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 20 March were approved as a true record by those Members who were present, and signed accordingly.

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

No public questions, Member questions or petitions had been received.

The following motion and amendment, were referred by Council (20 March 2023) to Cabinet:

Motion: To establish a Cheltenham Youth Council

Amendment: To refer the issue of mechanisms by which we can further involve young people in Cheltenham Borough Council life to Cabinet and the relevant Cabinet Member (Safety and Communities) to explore feasible additional outreach and inclusion options – with a youth council or youth forum as options to be costed and considered.

The Leader asked the Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities to prepare an outline of the process and mechanisms, including a timeline, by which CBC can further involve young people, and to bring this to the next Cabinet meeting in May.

The Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities confirmed that she was already working towards reporting back to the July Council meeting, but would be happy to outline the process to Cabinet in May.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Customer & Regulatory Services

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services introduced his report, reminding Members that the subject of CCTV in licensed vehicles has been raised at Cabinet before, not only for the protection of vulnerable passengers, but also for drivers, to be used as evidence in the event of any allegations against them.  The response to consultation was modest in scale but overwhelmingly positive, and he asked that this be noted, and officers be given the green light to proceed to the next step, as set out in the recommendation. 

There were no comments from Members.  The Chair moved to the vote, where it was unanimously

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the consultation feedback be noted;

2.    further consultation on the installation of CCTV in licensed vehicles under the following scope be approved, by:

a.      developing a set of technical specifications and requirements   relating to approved CCTV recording equipment in licensed vehicles;

b.      developing of a policy setting out the authority’s requirements, scope and implementation arrangements;

c.      undertaking further, formal consultation on a. and b. above with the licensed trade and key stakeholder most affected, or impacted, by the proposed policy.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Customer & Regulatory Services

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services introduced his report, saying that a robust approach was needed to strike a balance between unwelcome graffiti and street art, particularly that resulting from the Cheltenham Paint Festival which is shown to lift an area and contribute to well-being. Helpful feedback to the consultation had been provided by the police, Civic Society, and Paint Festival organisers, including Andy Davies, who suggested the overall change in the title to include ‘unauthorised or unwelcome’, and that this should not apply to graffiti which caused political offence, which was not an unreasonable subject.  He recommended the policy to Cabinet, with immediate effect.

The Cabinet Member for Housing also thought the inclusion of ‘unauthorised and unwelcome’ in the title of the policy was appropriate – it was important to get rid of unwelcome graffiti as soon as possible, but also to protect great pieces of street art.

With no further comments, the vote was taken where it was

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    consultation feedback be noted; 

2.    the proposed graffiti policy, ‘Statement of Policy regarding Unauthorised or Unwelcome Graffiti’, as at Appendix 3 of the report, be adopted, with immediate effect.

Report of the Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing said this was a very positive report, bringing together the many different organisations which contribute to cultural life across the town in a cultural strategy based on partnership and collaboration.  Working with the digital sector, it will drive the visitor economy and contribute to the council’s net zero goals, and while CBC is not responsible for delivering the strategy, it is at the centre of many aspects.  He thanked officers, in particular Richard Gibson, for their continued support in developing the strategy, which would be monitored on an annual basis through Overview and Scrutiny, so ensuring Member involvement.  He also thanked Ali Mawle, the Chair of Cheltenham Culture Board, and the Cabinet Member for Housing, who had started the process in her previous role, and looked forward to the positive impact the strategy will have.  

The Cabinet Member for Housing said it had been a joy working with the Culture Board in her previous role, which represented a broad range of cultural activities across the borough.  The consultation had resulted in an impressive 950 responses, and although Cheltenham is known as the festivals town, there are still gaps for improvement – and the culture strategy will provide a guide to where we can do better, collectively.

The Leader added that everyone knows how important culture is in Cheltenham, and the different organisations in the Culture Board will streamline and lead from grass roots up to improve and inspire. They are the right people to lead the process, but it is important for the council to support their ambitions, as a facilitator rather than a deliverer. Culture strategy isn’t just about the arts, painting, and theatre, but also about leisure time, sports and recreation, and it important that the people involved are from a diverse range of backgrounds.

She invited Members to vote, where it was unanimously

RESOLVED THAT:

1.            the final culture strategy, attached at Appendix 2, be endorsed;

2.            the council will work alongside partners on the Cheltenham Culture Board to develop a robust 12-month action plan;

3.            it be noted that the Borough Council will be involved in working with partners to deliver the outcomes in the action plan and is providing support in the form of one-off funding for a co-ordinator, but that the Cheltenham Culture Board is a distinct entity in itself.

Report of the Leader

The Leader said Members had already had already had the opportunity to comment on the business plan at an earlier presentation, and it had also been examined at Overview and Scrutiny Committee.  She said the level of consultation and amount of effort put in by Ubico is to be applauded, leaving Members feeling well informed and always answering questions.

The Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets drew attention to the huge amount of work that Ubico carries out, as shown in the business plan, and was particularly pleased with how they align with CBC’s values, with golden threads running through their work with climate change and people.  He said CBC can feel proud that it was at the forefront when Ubico was created, and now it is a county-wide business.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing said it was worth noting the contribution Ubico was making towards out climate goals through technology, fuels and recycling.

Members moved to the vote, where they unanimously  

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the Ubico Business Plan 2023-2024 be noted;

2.    it be noted that the Leader of the Council, as shareholder representative, proposes to sign the written resolution to approve the Ubico Business Plan 2023-2024 in due course.       

Report of the Cabinet Member for Waste, Recycling and Street Services

The Cabinet Memberfor Waste, Recycling and Street Services recommended the report to Cabinet, and thanked all officers who had worked on this important project, which he was proud to have been part of, in securing funding from Gloucestershire County Council. He said the final design promotes fairness, and increases the provision Changing Places toilets, for those with severe disabilities,  on the south side of the town, in a park well-used for cultural events.  These facilities will complement Changing Places toilets currently found on the north side of the town centre in John Lewis store and Pittville Park, and it is hoped that further facilities will be provided in the future.  The design also doubles the number of standard disabled toilets, provides more female toilets, and two gender-neutral toilets, and general refurbishment of an important toilet block.  He commended the report to colleagues and hoped they would support the recommendations and move the project forward.

The Cabinet Member for Housing was particularly pleased to see an equal number of female and male toilets, gender-neutral toilets, and family room in both the female and male areas, all of which provided equality and equity.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeingsaid that a lot of places which welcome new visitors invest in upgrading toilets and making them more accessible, because this is something that people really value – the lack of good facilities can be a disincentive to visitors.  He hoped that the quality and provision of facilities can be expanded going forward, but the proposed toilets are in a flagship area, used by a lot of visitors, and Cheltenham can be proud of providing equity, equality and accessibility. 

The Leader also thanked the Cabinet Member for Waste, Recycling and Street Services for pushing ahead with this, noting that the council doesn’t have to provide public toilets, but has made the decision to invest where it can.  Given the current financial situation, it cannot refurbish all its facilities, but has listened to resident and businesses and set priorities on where to invest its limited financial resources.  These toilets will be a very welcome addition.

She invited Members to vote, where it was unanimously

RESOLVED THAT:

1.    the final concept for the Montpellier Gardens toilets as described in the report and at Appendix 2 be approved;

2.    authority be delegated to the Director of Finance, Assets and Regeneration, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Waste, Recycling and Street Services and the Borough Solicitor, to undertake the procurement and award the contract for a construction contractor to deliver the design.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency welcomed the Leader back after her recent operation.  She said the carbon footprint report had been taken to Council and received great acclaim and highlighted the meaningful and impressive progress the authority is making, having listened to residents.  She also reported that the Cheltenham Zero partnership is helping small and medium enterprises to understand and reduce their carbon footprint, and make a strong contribution.  In anticipation of his own briefing, she thanked the Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets for his support in claiming a grant for a heat pump at Leisure @, showing that the council is putting in every effort to protect the things that people love.

The Cabinet Member for Customer and Regulatory Services said that there were still small pots of unspent Covid funding, locally under the control of the Director for Public Health in Gloucestershire, and the Public Protection team had applied for permission to use some of this on a project to raise awareness of air quality issues among pupils, families and staff in schools. This dovetails with the Air Quality Action Plan due to come to Cabinet later this year.   It was a neat use of the money, as Covid is a respiratory disease, and poor air quality contributes to hospital admissions.  He congratulated Louis Krog and Bernadette Reed for securing the funding, and also paid tribute to Louis, who is performing brilliantly in his new role as Head of Public Protection, not least producing two reports for tonight’s Cabinet whilst coping with all the additional workload arising from Race Week.

The Cabinet Member for Safety and Communities also wanted to thank officers, for arranging Sunday’s event in Pittville Park, where 560 children enjoyed the day, and a range of events over the coming months which will benefit several thousand children by the end of the summer.  She thanked Tracey Brown and the team for making this happen, and Kelly Patterson for securing £21k to work with three schools in trying to prevent young people from being excluded, thus giving them a better view of themselves and the town, and education to fulfil their potential and dreams.  It is a great feeling to be able to share what Cheltenham is doing with other local authorities across the country, and thanked officers for the unique work being done and help being given to children and the difference it is going to make.  It was important that that all the successes should be evaluated at the end of the year and how this can be built on for the future.

The Leader was pleased to note that children on free school meals were able to apply in advance to have lunch at the Pittville Park event, and Cabinet Member confirmed that this was built into all the events planned for the next six months, to ensure that all the children were able to enjoy the day.

The Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing congratulated the CYNAM  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

Cabinet Members were invited to brief colleagues on decisions they had made since the last meeting of Cabinet:

1.    21 March 2023: Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets (Deputy Leader)

Appointments to Outside Bodies

2.    23 March 2023: Leader

Extension of the term of Gloucestershire Economic Growth Joint Committee

3.    29 March 2023: Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing

To agree to grant funding of £150k from NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board

4.    29 March 2023: Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Culture, Tourism and Wellbeing

To approve the award of grant funding for the Cheltenham Health and Wellbeing fund

5.    04 April 2023:  Cabinet Member for Finance and Assets

To accept funding to install a heat pump solution at Leisure at Cheltenham recreation centre