Agenda, decisions and minutes

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the District Executive meeting held on 5th October 2017.

The minutes of the District Executive meeting held on 5^th October 2017, copies of which had been circulated, were taken as read and, having been approved as a correct record, were signed by the Chairman.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Henry Hobhouse and Alex Parmley, Chief Executive.

In accordance with the Council's current Code of Conduct (as amended 26 February 2015), which includes all the provisions relating to Disclosable Pecuniary Interests (DPI), personal and prejudicial interests, Members are asked to declare any DPI and also any personal interests (and whether or not such personal interests are also "prejudicial") in relation to any matter on the Agenda for this meeting.

Members are reminded that they need to declare the fact that they are also a member of a County, Town or Parish Council as a Personal Interest. Where you are also a member of Somerset County Council and/or a Town or Parish Council within South Somerset you must declare a prejudicial interest in any business on the agenda where there is a financial benefit or gain or advantage to Somerset County Council and/or a Town or Parish Council which would be at the cost or to the financial disadvantage of South Somerset District Council. 

There were no declarations of interest made.

There were no members of the public present.

The Chairman reported that Somerset County Council had reacted swiftly following the sudden closure of the Nippy Bus company.  School transport had been arranged within 24 hours but the demand responsive transport was still an issue and it was hoped that this could be picked up by the voluntary services.

The Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture introduced Katherine Nolan, manager of SPARK, who provided a presentation on the work of SPARK during the past financial year with a particular focus on their impact and achievements.  She highlighted:-

·         In April 2016, the South Somerset Association for Voluntary Action (SSVCA) had joined with Mendip Community Support (MCS) and rebranded as SPARK.

·         They offered guidance and support to groups and provide a volunteer brokerage service across South Somerset, Sedgemoor and Mendip.

·         271 new volunteers had registered and they had invested in a new volunteer database.

·         200 people attended a Lets End Loneliness event.

·         They had 82 different volunteering opportunities.

·         They had carried out 300 DBS checks.

·         They held 8 forums which were an opportunity for community groups to get together and discuss issues.

·         They had worked with students at Yeovil College to design a webpage. 

She concluded that SSDC was their core funding organisation and although they had attracted funding for other projects, it was the core funding which enabled them to continue their partnership work. 

The Communities Lead confirmed that Area Development officers worked closely with SPARK and often referred cases to them.  She also noted that the number of volunteers was reducing and there was a need to capture younger volunteers.

The Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture confirmed that the funding was essential and SSDC would continue to support the organisation.  At the conclusion of the debate, the Chairman thanked the manager of SPARK for her interesting and informative presentation.  It was suggested that each Area Committee would benefit from also hearing the presentation and the Chairman agreed to leave that decision to each Area Chairman.

The Portfolio Holder for Finance and Legal Services introduced the report and advised that this was the mid-year review of the councils revenue budgets.  He noted there had been some initial difficulties with the Westland Complex as some start-up costs below £10,000 had to be funded from revenue rather than capital and that a revised business plan for the complex would be presented to District Executive in December.  He also drew attention to the Council Tax support budget, the Council Tax hardship scheme and the current collection rate.  He confirmed that the General Fund balances were sufficient to cover the council’s assessed risk and he noted the future risks of New Homes Bonus and the UK exit from the EU.

In response to questions from the Scrutiny Committee, the Finance Manager confirmed that the quarterly council tax and business rates collection rates were submitted to the Government.  She also agreed to provide further information on the cost of operating the canteen in Brympton Way offices. 

Councillor Nick Weeks advised that he would be meeting with Building Control officers to discuss their budget shortfall and any proposal to address this. 

At the conclusion of the debate, Members were content to confirm the recommendations of the report.

The Portfolio Holder for Finance and Legal Services introduced the report and advised that the capital budget had changed following agreement of the Council’s Commercial Strategy.  There was now a property investment acquisition fund and the progress of capital projects was listed in the report.

In response to questions from Members, the Finance Manager confirmed that the Somerset Waste Partnership were repaying their loan as agreed.  Some minor amendments to the presentation of the figures in the report was also noted. 

The Portfolio Holder for Finance and Legal Services confirmed that any investment in market housing would be opportunity driven when an appropriate property or scheme came forward.  The Director for Support Services also confirmed that the Home Farm site in Somerton was being monitored by Building Control officers but was not currently deteriorating. 

At the conclusion of the debate, Members were content to confirm the recommendations of the report.

The Portfolio Holder for Environment and Economic Development advised that work on the extension to the Innovation Centre was due to commence in late November and the proposal to install 44 PV panels on the roof of the new building would generate 8.4% return on investment. 

In response to questions from Members, the Portfolio Holder confirmed that:-

·         The panels would be in the ownership of SSDC whereas the Innovation Centre building was a consortium between the HCA and Somerset County Council.

·         The electricity generated would be used by the businesses at the Innovation Centre.

The Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee confirmed that their technical questions had been answered by the Portfolio Holder at their meeting.   

During discussion it was noted that the Government were not currently looking at revising Feed In Tariff (FIT) targets and it was also proposed that SSDC could look at joining with developers to install PV panels on new build properties in the future.

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At the conclusion of the debate, Members were content to confirm the funding for the installation of a photovoltaic array on the roof of the Yeovil innovation Centre extension.

The Portfolio Holder for Area West and Democratic Services advised that the request had been received from the Parish Council top amend their name and increased the number of parish councillors.

The Chairman of the Scrutiny Committee said they had acknowledged the parish council wished to change its name and the reasons why. However, they did note that the number of councillors requested seemed high for a parish of its size, and the reason for the increase in councillors did not appear to be based on population or representation.

There was no debate and Members agreed to propose the request to Full Council.

The following addition to the Forward Plan was noted:

·         Heart of the South West Joint Committee – Dec 2017

·         Refresh of the Council Plan to be included within the Medium Term Financial Plan report – Dec 2017

The following new consultations were noted:-

• Improving access to social housing for victims of domestic abuse - DCLG Consultation

·         Funding for supported housing – two consultations covering housing costs for sheltered and extra care accommodation, and one on housing costs for short-term supported accommodation

Members noted that the next scheduled meeting of the District Executive would take place on Thursday 7^th December 2017 in the Council Chamber, Council Offices, Brympton Way, Yeovil commencing at 9.30 a.m.

The Chairman explained the reasons for the original purchase of the building and the subsequent decision to sell.

The Director - Commercial Services and Income Generation, outlined the reasons for the sale of the property. 

At the conclusion of the debate, Members were content to note the urgent decision taken by the Chief Executive in consultation with the Leader and Area South Chairman.