Agenda and minutes

To confirm the Minutes of the Meeting held on 7 February 2017 (to be laid on the table for half-an-hour prior to the meeting).

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 7 February were confirmed and signed as a correct record.

To receive apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs Brian Adams, Kevin Deanus and Ged Hall.

To receive from members, declarations of interest in relation to any items included on the agenda for this meeting, in accordance with the Waverley Code of Local Government Conduct.

There were no declarations of interest raised under this heading.

Background Papers

Unless specified under an individual item, there are no background papers (as defined by Section 100D(5) of the Local Government Act 1972) relating to the reports in Part I of these minutes.

The report provides a review of the 2016/17 budget for the General Fund and the Housing Revenue Account against the forecast to 31 March 2017, based on the latest information available. 

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive:

1.            approves the rescheduling of £40,000 for the Replacement of the Property Terrier Database system into 2017/18;

2.            approves the rescheduling of £20,000 for the Call Management System Technology into 2017/18;

3.            approves a virement of £50,000 from the Void repairs budget, a virement of £60,000 from the Cyclical repairs budget and a virement of £140,000 from the Redecoration budget into the Responsive repairs budget;

4.            recommends to Council to approve the rescheduling of £290,000 for Windows & Doors into 2017/18;

5.            recommends to Council to approve the rescheduling of £205,000 for Health & Safety into 2017/18;

6.            recommends to Council to approve the rescheduling of £800,000 for Building Services into 2017/18;

7.            approves the rescheduling of £80,000 for Communal & Estate works into 2017/18;

8.            approves the rescheduling of £20,000 of the Professional Fees & Miscellaneous budget into 2017/18;

9.            recommends to Council to approve the rescheduling of £700,000 for Weyhill, Haslemere into 2017/18; and

10.         approves Officers applying for Planning permission to undertake window replacement works at Hillcroft, Shepherds Hill, Halsmere.

152.1       The Executive considered and noted the report reviewing the 2016/17 budget for the General Fund and Housing Revenue Account against the forecast to 31 March 2017 and

                 RESOLVED to approve

1.      the rescheduling of £40,000 for the Replacement of the Property Terrier Database system into 2017/18;

2.      the rescheduling of £20,000 for the Call Management System Technology into 2017/18;

3.      a virement of £50,000 from the Void repairs budget, a virement of £60,000 from the Cyclical repairs budget and a virement of £140,000 from the Redecoration budget into the Responsive repairs budget;

4.      the rescheduling of £80,000 for Communal & Estate works into 2017/18;

5.      the rescheduling of £20,000 of the Professional Fees & Miscellaneous budget into 2017/18;

6.      Officers applying for Planning permission to undertake window replacement works at Hillcroft, Shepherds Hill, Halsmere.

152.2       A summary of progress against revenue budget for the HRA is given in the table below. The HRA contains the day to day running cost of managing the Housing Service such as staff costs and repairs, contributions to the capital programmes and financing costs.The forecast outturn on the HRA is £93,000 overspend against budget and represents less than 0.6% of the net HRA budget of £13.6m. This is detailed in the table below.

152.3       The interest on investments has been positive so far and the expectation is that the budget will be exceeded by at least £30,000.

       i.       Responsive Repairs budget continues to come under considerable pressure this year with a potential projected overspend of £250,000. The budget is demand led and the pressure comes from a combination of additional orders from tenants as well as responding to new requests for repairs in a much more timely way. Given this pressure and the need to contain expenditure within overall budgets, officers have been actively refocusing expenditure on the highest priority repair activities while at the same time creating capacity in other non-urgent revenue and capital maintenance budgets during the year to offset this pressure.

      ii.       The void, cyclical repairs and redecoration budgets now forecast an underspend of £50,000, £60,000 and £140,000 respectively. This is partially due to reduced void properties in December, and reduced spend due to additional controls on costs being put into place. It is therefore requested that £250,000 from these budgets is vired to the responsive repairs budget to ensure repairs can continue to be carried out where required.

    iii.       Executive approval is sought to apply for Planning permission to undertake window replacement and associated works at Nos 5-12 Hillcroft, Shepherds Hill, Haslemere. GU27 2JL

152.4             As previously reported there has been less take up than planned for the EasyMove service. There is an allowance of £40,000 in the budget for EasyMove grant payments to enable residents to move into smaller, more suitable, homes. A saving of £10,000 has been previously forecast and a further £10,000 saving is estimated this financial year.

152.5             The total capital programme approved budget for 2016/17 is made up as follows:

152.6                          The table below summarises current  ...  view the full minutes text for item 152.

The purpose of this report is to provide feedback following the six week consultation period on proposals to amend Waverley’s Off-Street Parking Order.

Recommendation

It is recommended to the Council that the proposed amendments to the Parking Order, as set out at Annexe 1, be approved and approval given to publish the required notice of intention.

153.1         Waverley’s Parking Order outlines the regulations for all Off-Street parking places in the Borough. This is a necessary documentation so that customers understand how to use the car parks, and so that any breaches in usage can be penalised fairly and robustly.

153.2         Officers identified that there were several amendments within the Parking Order which were required in order to remove reference to superseded legislation and to clarify the requirements to avoid ambiguity over interpretation when dealing with appeals etc.  This review was solely related to rules of usage in the car parks. 

153.3         Annexe 1 sets out the list of significant amendments.

153.4         Having undertaken a period of six weeks of consultation, one objection was received which related to the removal of the Leisure Centres from the Parking Order.  This has been responded to, explaining that the leisure centre car parks are actually leased to and controlled by the centre operators, and therefore it is not appropriate for Waverley to specify these in the Order.

153.5         In accordance with the statutory process the Council is required to follow, and with full Council approval, a notice of intention document will be published allowing for 21 days. Based on this timetable, it would be expected that amendments to the Parking Order will come into effect from approximately 22nd May 2017.

153.6         The Executive now

RECOMMENDS that

124.      the proposed amendments to the Parking Order, as set out     at Annexe 1, be approved and approval given to publish the required notice of intention.

     [Reason: to provide feedback following the six week consultation period on proposals to amend Waverley’s Off-Street Parking Order.]

The purpose of the report is to recommend that the Dunsfold Conservation Area Appraisal (CAA) (with boundary amendments) be adopted by the Council as a material consideration and used in the determination of any application for planning permission and listed building consent within the Conservation Area (CA).

Recommendation

It is recommended to the Council that the Conservation Area Appraisal for Dunsfold be adopted as a material planning consideration, to include the following amendments to the boundary:

• Extension: War Memorial and common land between Oak Tree Lane and Mill Lane
• Extension: Garden of the Long House
• Extension & Removal: Northern tip of CA
• Removal: Southern end of Nugent Close
• Removal: Gardens of 1-4 Binhams Lea
• Extension: Winn Hall
• Extension & Removal: Garden of The White House
• Extension: Garden of Yonder Lye

154.1         Dunsfold is one of 43 Conservation Areas (CAs) in Waverley. In 2011, the Executive agreed a programme for the commencement of CAAs which has been extended to 2020. Prior to the programme 4, CAAs had been adopted. Since the programme has commenced, 11 CAAs have been adopted, and Dunsfold will be the 12th to be adopted in the programme alongside Dunsfold Church. A copy of the latest version of the CAA, amended following the consulation, is attached as Annexe 2.

154.2         The need to undertake CAAs is set out in the Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (Section 71) and is supported through saved Policy HE8 of the Waverley Local Plan and Emerging Local Plan Policy HA1.

154.3         CAAs are undertaken to identify and explain the character of the Conservation Area (CA).  This document identifies the specific qualities of the Dunsfold CA and thereby help to manage change within the area.  The Management Plan section also identifies a variety of projects that should be implemented to preserve and enhance the area.

154.4         It is considered pertinent for Waverley to undertake CAAs and this process allows for a review of the boundary and an assessment of adjacent areas to evaluate whether the boundary should be extended.

154.5         In the draft CAA prepared for consultation, fourextensions were proposed to the existing CA boundary. Additionally three areas were proposed to be removed from the CA and also two areas for part extension and part removal.            

154.6         A walkabout was conducted with the Local Councillor and representatives from the Parish Council.  A public consultation was undertaken to support the development of the CAA and to ask the public’s views of the proposed changes to the boundary. 

154.7         11 responses were received to the consultation and are summarised in a separate Consultation Statement.

154.8         Following consultation and consideration of the responses, one area (the properties Gorse View and Pondside) originally proposed for exclusion, is proposed to be retained in the CA.

154.9         Dunsfold CAA has been subject to a robust consultation process to ensure residents and interested stakeholders had the opportunity to comment.Once the document is adopted, it will be fully published to incorporate additional photographs and will be published on the Waverley website.

154.10      The Executive now

RECOMMENDS that

124.      the Conservation Area Appraisal for Dunsfold attached at Annexe 2 be adopted as a material planning consideration, to include the following amendments to the boundary:

•         Extension: War Memorial and common land between Oak           Tree Lane and Mill Lane

•         Extension: Garden of the Long House

•         Extension & Removal: Northern tip of CA

•         Removal: Southern end of Nugent Close

•         Removal: Gardens of 1-4 Binhams Lea

•         Extension: Winn Hall

•         Extension & Removal: Garden of The White House

•         Extension: Garden of Yonder Lye

[Reason: To adopt the Dunsfold Conservation Area Appraisal (CAA) (with boundary amendments) as a material consideration and used in the determination of any application for planning permission and listed building consent within  ...  view the full minutes text for item 154.

The purpose of the report is to recommend that the Dunsfold Church Conservation Area Appraisal (CAA) (with boundary amendments) be adopted by the Council as a material consideration and used in the determination of any application for planning permission and listed building consent within the Conservation Area (CA).

Recommendation

It is recommended to the Council that the Conservation Area Appraisal for Dunsfold Church be adopted as a material planning consideration, to include the following amendments to the boundary:

·        Extension:   St Mary’s Church cemetery

·        Extension:   Land at Church Close Farm

·        Removal:      Field adjacent to The Rectory

155.1       Dunsfold Church is one of 43 Conservation Areas (CAs) in Waverley. In 2011, the Executive agreed a programme for the commencement of CAAs which has been extended to 2020. Prior to the programme, 4 CAAs had been adopted. Since the programme has commenced, 11 CAAs have been adopted, Dunsfold Church will be the 13th to be adopted in the programme alongside Dunsfold.

155.2       The need to undertake CAAs is set out in the Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (Section 71) and is supported through saved Policy HE8 of the Waverley Local Plan and Emerging Local Plan Policy HA1.

155.3       CAAs are undertaken to identify and explain the character of the Conservation Area (CA).  This document will identifies the specific qualities of the Dunsfold Church CA and will thereby help to manage change within the area.  The Management Plan section also identifies a variety of projects that should be implemented to preserve and enhance the area.

155.4       It is considered pertinent for Waverley to undertake CAAs and this process allows for a review of the boundary and an assessment of adjacent areas to evaluate whether the boundary should be extended.

155.5       Two extensions are proposed to the existing CA boundary and formed part of the consultation. Additionally one area is proposed to be removed from the CA.  These are detailed within the CAA document, which is attached at Annexe 3.

155.6       A walkabout was conducted with the Local Councillor and representatives from the Parish Council.  A public consultation was undertaken to support the development of the CAA and to ask the public’s views of the proposed extensions. 

155.7       3 responses were received to the consultation and are summarised in a separate Consultation Statements. These did not result in any changes to the CAA document. Dunsfold Church CAA has been subject to a robust consultation process to ensure residents and interested stakeholders had the opportunity to comment. Once the document is adopted, it will be fully published to incorporate additional photographs and be published on the Waverley website.

155.8       The Executive now

RECOMMENDS that

124.      the Conservation Area Appraisal for Dunsfold Church, attached at Annexe 3, be adopted as a material planning consideration, to include the following amendments to the boundary:

•          Extension:           St Mary’s Church cemetery

•          Extension:           Land at Church Close Farm

•          Removal:              Field adjacent to The Rectory

[Reason: To adopt the Dunsfold Church Conservation Area Appraisal (CAA) (with boundary amendments) as a material consideration and used in the determination of any application for planning permission and listed building consent within the Conservation Area (CA).]

The background papers relating to the following items are as set out in the reports included in the original agenda papers.

To agree the forward programme of decisions for Waverley Borough Council, as attached.

RESOLVED that the Forward Programme be approved.

The purpose of the report is to provide the Executive with details of the feedback from Council tenants on the proposal to end the current arrangement with Thames Water for the collection of their water charges.  In light of this feedback and the legal and financial advice, the Executive is asked to make a decision regarding the future of the Thames Water arrangement. 

Recommendation

It is recommended that

1.            following the consultation with housing tenants, the Executive agrees to end the arrangement with Thames Water for the Council to collect water charges for council homes with no water meters so that in future tenants can pay their water charges direct;

2.            authority be delegated to the Strategic Director of Front Line Services, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Housing, to serve notice to end the arrangement with Thames Water on 30 September 2017; and

3.            the strategy, as set out in the report, be approved.

 RESOLVED that

1.       following the consultation with housing tenants, approval be given to end the arrangement with Thames Water for the Council to collect water charges for council homes with no water meters so that in future tenants can pay their water charges direct;

2.       authority be delegated to the Strategic Director of Front Line Services, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Housing, to serve notice to end the arrangement with Thames Water on 30 September 2017; and

3.       the strategy, as set out in the report, be approved.

[Reason: to provide details of the feedback from Council tenants on the proposal to end the current arrangement with Thames Water for the collection of their water charges.] 

The report provides information on complaints handling in Waverley in 2015/16, including the number of complaints received, Waverley’s performance in responding to complaints, and lessons learned.  As confirmed in the report, there was a slight decrease in the number of complaints received in 2015-16 when compared with the previous year, and an improvement in the percentage of complaints responded to within the target timescales.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive notes the performance on complaints handling in 2015/16, welcomes the comments of the Corporate Overview & Scrutiny Committee and endorses the lessons learnt.

RESOLVED that the performance on complaints handling in 2015/16 be noted and that the lessons learned be endorsed.

[Reason: To provide information on complaints handling in Waverley in 2015/16, including the number of complaints received, Waverley’s performance in responding to complaints, and lessons learned.] 

The report is in two parts. The first part summarises the complaints made to the Local Government Ombudsman about Waverley’s services in 2015/16.  The second part summarises the complaints made by Waverley’s tenants and leaseholders to the Housing Ombudsman Service which assumed responsibility for investigating complaints about a local authority’s landlord functions with effect from 1 April 2013.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive receives the information in this report and endorses the learning outcomes.

RESOLVED that the information in the report be noted and that the learning outcomes be endorsed.

[Reason: To receive a summary of the complaints made to the Local Government Ombudsman about Waverley’s services in 2015/16 and a summary of the complaints made by Waverley’s tenants and leaseholders to the Housing Ombudsman Service.]

To note the following urgent actions taken by the Executive Director after consultation with the Chairman and Vice-Chairman since the last meeting, under the provisions of Paragraph 1 of the Scheme of Delegation.  The Register of Decisions will be laid on the table half an hour before the meeting:-

i.          Urgent Tree Works

            Authority to undertake urgent tree works to the sum of £20,000, to be met from the Urgent Schemes Capital Budget for 2016/17.

ii.         Holloway Hill

            Authority for urgent works at the Holloway Hill Scout/Guide Hut, to the sum of £8,000, to be met from the Urgent Schemes Capital Budget for 2016/17.

The Executive noted the following action taken by the Executive Director after consultation with the Chairman and Vice-Chairman since its last meeting:

i.         Urgent Tree Works

            Authority to undertake urgent tree works to the sum of £20,000, to be met from the Urgent Schemes Capital Budget for 2016/17.

ii.          Holloway Hill

            Authority for urgent works at the Holloway Hill Scout/Guide Hut, to the sum of         £8,000, to be met from the Urgent Schemes Capital Budget for 2016/17.

To consider the (Exempt) report, attached.

[This item contains exempt information by virtue of which the public is likely to be excluded during the item to which the report relates, as specified in Paragraphs 2, 3 and 7 of the revised Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, namely:-

2          Information which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual

3          Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular         person (including the authority holding that information)

7          Information relating to any action taken or to be taken in connection with the prevention, investigation or prosecution of crime.

RESOLVED that the recommendation set out in the (Exempt) Annexe to these

minutes be approved.

To consider matters (if any) relating to aspects of any reports on this agenda which, it is felt, may need to be considered in Exempt session.