Agenda item

Report of the Leader

The Leader of the Council introduced the report, and emphasised the importance of a local ‘new deal’ for Cheltenham to help create a clear framework setting out how the council could ensure that Cheltenham is an even better place to live, work and visit after Covid-19. Local and national partners would be consulted on this plan for their views and commitment. He thanked Darren Knight, Executive Director People and Change, for his contribution to the report on this topic, and praised the collective and sustained effort of organisations and individuals across Cheltenham at this time. He stressed the need to capture and maintain the good things happening now, such as community support, community spirit and significant increases in walking and cycling. Conversely, he noted that public transport had naturally suffered due to government advice on social distancing, but would continue to be extremely important in the future.

The Leader added added that CBC intended to continue working on its major projects, including Golden Valley, Cyber Central and Phase 2 of the High Street upgrade. He highlighted the importance of the council’s affordable homes program, working alongside CBH. CBC must continue to work closely with its county council and district council colleagues. He praised the Cheltenham Development Task Force, which has been successful in recent years partly due to its flexible public-private approach. The task force now needs to be reformatted and refocused to aid the recovery effort.

He acknowledged that the uncertainty surrounding finance was unavoidable. A total of £1.2m has been received from central government, but when compared to the approximate loss of a million pounds a month due to loss of income and associated costs, it was clear that this did not solve the problem.

The Cabinet Member Healthy Lifestyles added that discussions with colleagues in Europe indicated that Cheltenham was ahead of the game in terms of working proactively to ensure recovery. She added that the future of young people in the town was a key priority, and programs to support house building and youth employment would ensure that progress was maintained over time.

The Cabinet Member Finance stressed the need to work alongside central government to seize opportunities to rebuild and avoid a further period of austerity. She added that the strategy took into account the need for tailored responses to particular crises, such as the possibility of fast-tracking infrastructure projects to aid recovery and create jobs. The recovery environment could offer an opportunity to renew and reset services, and could lead to a reconsideration of how the council’s investments were prioritised, in order to support innovation. It was worth being ambitious, but without the support of central government there would be hard choices to make.

The Cabinet Member Corporate Services praised the strategy’s consideration of the council’s carbon neutral Cheltenham commitment, noting that it would be easy to treat it as a luxury when things were going well, rather than as a cornerstone of future development. He praised the use of smart-working capabilities to ensure the council remains effective and responsive.

The Cabinet Member Housing endorsed the strategy and noted how quickly the situation had changed enormously, but praised the proactive and positive steps towards recovery. The council’s core priorities have not changed, but the environment in which they must approach them certainly has.

The Cabinet Member Development and Safety emphasised that the strategy is a living document, with the Cyber Central section in particular referring to work that is currently taking place. Covid-19 remained a serious threat, but it also offered an opportunity to restart Cheltenham’s economy in a different way, with different mindsets.

The Leader of the Council thanked Members for their contributions, and stressed the importance of climate change being a theme throughout the strategy.

RESOLVED THAT:

1. The extraordinary collective and sustained effort of organisations, communities and individuals across Cheltenham to respond to Covid-19 be recognised;

2. The Covid-19 Recovery Strategy in Appendix A be noted;

3. Any changes to the draft strategy be recommended;

4. It be recommended that a consultation is undertaken with key local and national partners on the Draft Recovery Plan, and that a final strategy is brought back to a future Cabinet Meeting for formal agreement.