Agenda item

Report of Cabinet Member for Planning and Building Control, Councillor Mike Collins

In the absence of the Cabinet Member for Planning and Building Control, the Leader read his introduction, in which he thanked the CIL panel and officers for their hard work.  Funding is available for any group, organisation or club, towards the cost of implementing a community-based project in a non-parished area of the borough.  He set out the details as in the report, highlighting the additional funding received after the initial allocations had been proposed, and the inclusion in the recommendation of two further projects for funding.  

He thanked all the groups and organisation who have submitted a fantastic and diverse range of bids from all across the town, and invited Cabinet to confirm which projects should benefit.

Members made the following comments:

-       credit to all the organisations who have got together, researched, and submitted very thorough applications, and to officers for their hard work to ensure all the bids are viable and deliverable, and that the money will be spent in the current year;

-       the geographical spread is good, and it is great to be able to support so many excellent schemes; the map is particularly helpful in showing where investment will go;

-       thanks to the community groups in St Peter’s wards, where the projects will make great improvement to the infrastructure;

-       the recommendations for the additional money to be allocated to the Paint Festival and the Playhouse are welcome and supported;

-       there are two wards with no bids, and the council must encourage bids from those areas in future to make sure they are not left behind.  There are active community groups in these areas who should be made aware, to ensure that the same groups don’t receive the money every time. 

The Leader considered this a valid point that should be taken on board next time – this is only the second round of CIL neighbourhood allocations, and we can learn lessons and make improvements every time.  She also suggested that ward councillors have a role to play and can use their councillor knowledge to encourage bids from their areas and help anyone who wants to make one.

RESOLVED THAT:

1.            the endorsed recommendations, as set out in appendix 3 as the list of neighbourhood projects for investment, are agreed;

2.            in addition to those projects recommended by the Neighbourhood CIL Panel allocates, the following funding from the unallocated Neighbourhood CIL to:

·                     Scheme 19 – Murals by Paint Festival on Honeybourne Line £7,500

·                     Scheme 22 – Playhouse Theatre - contribution to feasibility work for capital works £9,500

is agreed, with the remaining £11,645 unspent CIL monies to form part of the allocation for a future bidding round;

3.            project agreements with the agreed projects will be entered into;

4.            the intention to launch future funding rounds, as and when the Neighbourhood Community Infrastructure fund has built up to a sufficient level, is supported. The timing of this will be informed by regular monitoring of the fund;

5.            the process used this year will be reviewed, and any best practice will be built into future bidding rounds.