Agenda and minutes

To confirm the Minutes of the Meeting held on 5 February 2019.

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 5 February 2019 were confirmed and signed as a correct record.

To receive apologies for absence.

There were no apologies for absence.

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.

Cllrs Julia Potts, Ged Hall, Andrew Bolton, Jim Edwards, Jenny Else, Carole King and Chris Storey all declared a non-pecuniary interest in relation to Agenda Item 14 (Property Matter – Sale of Freehold), as they were acquainted with the leaseholder applying to purchase the freehold of the land.

The Chairman to respond to any questions received from members of the public for which notice has been given in accordance with Procedure Rule 10.

The deadline for receipt of questions is 5pm on Tuesday 5 March 2019.

There were no questions.

The Chairman to respond to any questions received from Members in accordance with Procedure Rule 11.

The deadline for receipt of questions is 5pm on Tuesday 5 March 2019.

There were no questions.

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 Corporate Strategy 2018-23 states that we will explore “the nature of ‘Place Shaping’ and the benefits it affords to our varied communities”. This report sets out our proposed approach to ‘place-shaping’ in the borough, drawing on the Council’s agreed strategies, and recommends that a Place-Shaping Reserve be established to fund place-shaping projects.

82.1    The Leader introduced the report setting out the Council’s proposed approach to ‘place-shaping in the borough, drawing on the Council’s agreed Corporate Strategy 2018-23, the Local Plan Part 1 2018/32, Economic Development Strategy 2018-32, Housing Strategy 2018-23, and adopted and emerging Neighbourhood Plans.

82.2    The approach would bring together all three tiers of local government, and other local stakeholders to build consensus on a strategic vision for local communities. Initial informal conversations with stakeholders in Farnham indicated that there was an appetite to bring together various schemes and ambitions in one strategic project, to address traffic and air quality challenges, the role of education providers, and Farnham’s distinctive heritage and cultural assets.

82.3    Whilst the initial focus of the place-shaping initiative would be Farnham, Waverley’s largest settlement, there was interest from Cranleigh, Godalming and Haslemere in seeing how the approach could address the various development challenges that they face.

82.4    The establishment of a Place-Shaping Fund would enable the next stage of the Farnham Masterplanning project to progress, and the Leader commended the initiative to the Executive and Council.

82.5    The Executive RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to Council that up to £250,000 of the one-off financial gain from Waverley’s participation in the 2018/19 business rate pilot be earmarked to establish a new Place-Shaping Fund.

[Reason: to support the Council’s place-shaping initiative for Waverley, including the next steps for the Farnham Masterplanning project.]

To seek approval of the overarching Capital Strategy which brings together the Council’s detailed policies, procedures and plans relating to cash investments and property assets.  This report also seeks approval of the Treasury Management Framework for 2019/2020 which is an integral part of the Capital Strategy and a statutory requirement.

Recommendation

That the Executive recommends to Council that it approves:

1)    the Capital Strategy for 2019/20;

2)    the Prudential Indicators; and

3)    the Treasury Management Framework for 2019/20.

83.1    Cllr Ged Hall, Portfolio Holder for Finance, introduced the Capital Strategy, including the Treasury Management Framework for 2019/20 and statement of Prudential Indicators. The Capital Strategy brought together the Council’s detailed policies, procedures and plans relating to cash investments and property assets. The Treasury Management Framework covered all of the council’s treasury activity, including the management of the council’s monetary investment and cash flows, its banking, money market transactions and borrowing.

83.2    There was little change from last year. The Value for Money and Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny had made some helpful suggestions to add clarity to certain parts of the documents, and these had been addressed in the revised versions before the Executive, which he recommended be endorsed to Council for approval.

83.3    Having considered the comments of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the Executive RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to Council that it approves:

1)    the Capital Strategy for 2019/20;

2)    the Prudential Indicators; and

3)    the Treasury Management Framework for 2019/20.

[Reason: to approve the over-arching Capital Strategy, which brings together the Council’s detailed policies, procedures and plans relating to cash investments and property assets; and the Treasury Management Framework and Prudential Indicators for 2019/20.]

On 11 December 2018, Council approved outline governance arrangements for the allocation of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) receipts to enable the delivery of specific infrastructure projects that will support and mitigate impact of development in the Borough over the Local Plan period.

Recommendation

That subject to consideration of comments of Value for Money & Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the Executive recommends to Council that:

1.         The CIL Advisory Board Terms of Reference as set out at Annexe 1 are endorsed.

2.         The draft evaluation and scoring framework for assessment of bids for funding from the Strategic CIL Fund as set out at Annexe 2, are agreed.

3.         The Strategic CIL Fund is ‘bottom-sliced’ to create a Community CIL Fund of 10% of the Strategic CIL Fund receipts, for funding low-value but desirable community infrastructure projects on application from parish councils, with priority being given to bids from parish councils with relatively low Neighbourhood CIL Fund receipts.

4.         The delegation to the Executive to approve bids for allocation of Strategic CIL Funding, on the recommendation of the CIL Advisory Board is subject to an upper limit of £2.5m, above which approval reverts to Council.

5.         Delegated authority is given to the CIL Advisory Board to make revisions to the governance arrangements, subject to an annual report to the Executive and Council.

84.1    Cllr Kevin Deanus reminded the Executive that in December 2018, Council had approved outline governance arrangements for the allocation of CIL receipts to enable the delivery of specific infrastructure projects that would support and mitigate the impact of development in the Borough, including the establishment of the CIL Advisory Board.

84.2    The CIL Advisory Board had held its first meeting and considered the criteria and scoring framework for evaluating bids for funding from the Strategic CIL fund, allocation of CIL receipts to a Communities CIL Fund, and the threshold for the delegation to the Executive on awards of CIL funds.

84.3    The proposals of the CIL Advisory Board had been considered by the Value for Money and Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny Committee which had been broadly supportive, although the Overview & Scrutiny Committee preferred that any changes to the governance arrangements be subject to the usual scrutiny review rather than delegated to the CIL Advisory Board.

84.4    Cllr Deanus proposed that recommendation 5 to the Executive be amended to incorporate the wording proposed by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, as shown at the top of page 57 of the agenda pack. It was duly seconded and agreed to accept the amended recommendation. 

84.5    Having considered the comments of the Value for Money and Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the Executive RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to Council that:

1.         The CIL Advisory Board Terms of Reference as set out at Annexe 1,  are approved.

2.         The draft evaluation and scoring framework for assessment of bids for funding from the Strategic CIL Fund as set out at Annexe 2, is agreed.

3.         The Strategic CIL Fund is ‘bottom-sliced’ to create a Community CIL Fund of 10% of the Strategic CIL Fund receipts, for funding low-value but desirable community infrastructure projects on application from parish councils, with priority being given to bids from parish councils with relatively low Neighbourhood CIL Fund receipts.

4.         The delegation to the Executive to approve bids for allocation of Strategic CIL Funding, on the recommendation of the CIL Advisory Board is subject to an upper limit of £2.5m, above which approval reverts to Council.

5.         Delegated authority is given to the CIL Advisory Board to propose revisions to the governance arrangements that would be subject to the usual scrutiny process and an annual report to the Executive and Council.

[Reason: to approve the governance arrangements for allocation of CIL receipts to specific projects to enable the delivery of infrastructure that will support and mitigate impact of development in the Borough over the Local Plan period.]

This report presents the findings of the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee in-depth review of the structure to deliver the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). The report is set out at Annexe 1.

Recommendation

That the Executive considers and endorses the recommendations set out in the report.

85.1     Cllr Wyatt Ramsdale, Vice-Chairman of Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee, presented the Overview & Scrutiny’s report on its review of the structures to deliver the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). The review had been initiated before the Council’s governance arrangements for (CIL) had been articulated. As Waverley’s arrangements for CIL governance had developed, the focus of the Task & Finish Group had been on supporting that work from an end-user perspective and ensuring that there was broad engagement from key elected stakeholders at parish, district and county council level with the review of the Infrastructure Delivery Plan.

85.2     There were 18 recommendations, which were directed to the CIL Advisory Board for consideration as that Board continued its work on the implementation of CIL. A key issue for Scrutiny members had been the need for transparency in reporting on CIL monies received and the projects to which CIL receipts were allocated.

85.3     Cllr Deanus, Portfolio Holder for Planning Operations, thanked the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee for their detailed consideration of the CIL arrangements and their recommendations which would be considered by the CIL Advisory Board. He agreed that transparency about CIL receipts and what CIL was spent on was very important, and the intention was that the IT system for CIL would support on-line reporting that could be interrogated by members of the public. Cllr Deanus recommended that the report of the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee be endorsed.

85.4     The Executive thanked the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee for their report, and RESOLVED that the recommendations from the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee on arrangements to support the use of CIL monies be endorsed.

[Reason: to support the governance arrangements for allocation of CIL receipts to specific projects to enable the delivery of infrastructure that will support and mitigate impact of development in the Borough over the Local Plan period.]

To update members on the progress made in delivery of new affordable Council homes through the acquisition of property under Section 106 (S106) Agreements and development of shared ownership properties to help to ensure that the tenure mix of housing meets the identified need.

To request that a budget allocation for acquisition, works and fees associated with delivery of 5 new affordable homes on the CALA Amlets Way development in Cranleigh as set out in Exempt Annexe 1

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive:

·         Notes the progress made in delivery of new affordable Council homes through the acquisition of property under Section 106 (S106) Agreements and delivery of shared ownership homes to offer another tenure to further support delivery of new homes which meet the needs of its residents.

·         Agrees a budget allocation for acquisition, works and fees associated with delivery of 5 new affordable homes on the CALA Amlets Way development in Cranleigh as set out in Exempt Annexe 2.

·         Delegates authority to the Strategic Director (Chief Finance Officer), in consultation with Portfolio Holder for Finance and Portfolio Holder for Housing Services, to enter into a contract with CALA Homes.

·         Agrees to delegate authority to the Head of Strategic Housing and Delivery, in consultation with Strategic Director (Chief Finance Officer) and Portfolio Holders for Finance and Housing Services, to allocate the remaining S106 budget when other opportunities to acquire new homes on developer sites.

86.1    Cllr Carole King, Portfolio Holder for Housing updated the Executive on the progress made in delivering new affordable Council homes through the acquisition of property under Section 106 Agreements, and the development of shared ownership properties to help to ensure that the tenure mix of housing meets the identified need.

86.2    The Council had been invited by CALA Management Ltd to make an offer to acquire five new homes on their development site off Amlets Lane in Cranleigh. The invitation was in relation to two 2-bed houses for affordable rent and three 3-bed houses for shared ownership. The timescale for completion of the build was December 2019, and a specification had been agreed with CALA that reflected the finish of homes developed by Waverley and provision of standard fittings in a shared ownership property.

86.3    A budget of £3.5m for delivery of new affordable homes through acquisition of property under S106 Agreements had been approved within the New Affordable Housing Reserve as part of the HRA Business Plan, and the purchase of the five homes from CALA would be met from this reserve, as set out in the Exempt Annexe to the agenda report.

86.4    This was an exciting step for Waverley, and would help to meet the urgent need for more affordable housing of different tenure types across Waverley.

86.5    The Executive RESOLVED to:

1.         note the progress made in delivery of new affordable Council homes through the acquisition of property under Section 106 (S106) Agreements and delivery of shared ownership homes to offer another tenure to further support delivery of new homes which meet the needs of its residents.

2.         agree a budget allocation for acquisition, works and fees associated with delivery of 5 new affordable homes on the CALA Amlets Way development in Cranleigh as set out in Exempt Annexe 2 of the agenda report.

3.         delegate authority to the Strategic Director (Chief Finance Officer), in consultation with Portfolio Holder for Finance and Portfolio Holder for Housing Services, to enter into a contract with CALA Homes.

4.         delegate authority to the Head of Strategic Housing and Delivery, in consultation with Strategic Director (Chief Finance Officer) and Portfolio Holder for Finance and the Portfolio Holder for Housing Services, to allocate the remaining S106 budget when other opportunities to acquire new homes on developer sites.

[Reason: to progress the delivery of new affordable homes in Waverley through the use of S106 sites.]

Following the publication in August 2018 of the Government’s Green Paper ‘A new deal for social housing’, the Housing O&S Committee set up a Task and Finish group in September 2018 to identify if there was any existing prejudice against social housing within the borough and to understand how tenants view their homes in order to develop services to both promote pride, and tackle causes of any stigma.

This report details the findings of the study, relates them to the national social housing debate and lists the recommendations made by the Group. The report can be found at appendix 1 and appendix 2 lists the recommendations, their owners and target completion date.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive:

1.            Accepts the report, and

2.         Agrees the recommendations set out in the report relating to ‘Housing Services’, ‘Estate Appearance’, ‘Types of Tenancies’, ‘Communication and Promotion’, further use of the data and ongoing data gathering.

87.1    Cllr Richard Seaborne presented the report of the Housing Overview & Scrutiny Committee that had explored perceptions of prejudice against social housing within the borough, and how tenants view their homes. The review had been initiated following the publication in 2018 of the Government Green Paper A New Deal for Social Housing, which included a chapter on tackling stigma and celebrating thriving communities.

87.2    The scrutiny review had benefited from good cross-party working by members and engagement with officers and the Tenants Panel. There had been a willingness by all to complete the work swiftly, including collection of a considerable amount of primary evidence through on-line surveys and tenant drop-in sessions. The support and hard work of the Scrutiny Officer, Yasmine Makin, had been crucial to the quality of the research undertaken and its timely completion.

87.3    The findings showed that there is a positive perception of social housing in Waverley, but a lack of understanding around eligibility for social housing and the allocation policy, and the economic activity of social housing tenants. There were 18 recommendations set out in the report that addressed issues raised by the research, to ensure that the services delivered to tenants continued to improve and to increase awareness of eligibility for social housing and how it is allocated.

87.4    Cllr King, Portfolio for Housing, commended Overview & Scrutiny members and officers for their excellent report, and important recommendations. Some of these supported work that was already underway in Housing but there was also new work to be carried out and more data to be gathered.

87.5    Executive members expressed some disappointment in the finding that social housing could be identified by its external appearance. However, it was recognised that it was only comparatively recently that there had been an emphasis on social housing being built to the same design as market housing; and Waverley’s installation of solar panels on a significant proportion of its housing stock also made them stand out in the street scene.

87.6    The Executive thanked the Housing Overview & Scrutiny Committee for their report, and RESOLVED to agree the recommendations set out in the report relating to ‘Housing Services’, ‘Estate Appearance’, ‘Types of Tenancies’, ‘Communication and Promotion’, further use of the data and ongoing data gathering.

[Reason: to improve and develop services for Waverley housing tenants to mitigate the effects of stigma associated with social housing, and to communicate and educate residents about the vital role and value of social housing.]

A Peer Review of the Planning Decision Making Process was carried out by the Local Government Association in July 2018 at Annexe 1.  This followed an action from the current Planning Service Plan 2018/19.  The Review also included a review of customer engagement within the Planning Service following adoption of the Development Management Improvement Plan in 2018.

The report summarises the findings of the Review and its recommendations.  It includes a draft action plan at Annexe 2 which seeks to address the recommendations of the Review.  An All Member Workshop  was held in December 2018 intended to elicit views from Councillors in relation to the draft Action Plan.  The feedback from that Briefing is attached at Annexe 3.

Recommendation

That the Executive notes the actions arising from the Peer Review recommendations, which have been subsumed into the Planning Service Plan for 2019/20.

88.1     Cllr Kevin Deanus introduced the Action Plan that had been developed in response to the findings and recommendations of the LGA Peer Review into Planning Decision-taking and Stakeholder Engagement undertaken in 2018. The action plan had been discussed at an all-Member briefing, and again at the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee. The Overview & Scrutiny’s comments were set out within the agenda report.

88.2     The actions set out in the action plan had now been subsumed into the Service Plan for the Planning Service for 2019/20, which was on the Executive agenda for approval.

88.3     The Executive thanked the Environment Overview & Scrutiny Committee for their observations and RESOLVED to note the actions arising from the recommendations of the Review of Planning Decision-taking and Stakeholder Engagement, which had been subsumed into the Planning Service Plan for 2019/20.

[Reason: to agree the actions identified to respond to the recommendations of the Planning Peer Review team.]

This report presents the Service Plans for 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2022. Service Plans set out the work of the Council within the service areas and show how the Council’s corporate objectives will be delivered. The Plans form an important element of the Council’s overall performance management framework by linking Corporate Strategy objectives through service plan actions into individual performance targets.

Recommendation

It is recommended that the Executive, subject to consideration of the observations and recommendations of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees, approves the Service Plans for 2019-22.

89.1     The Leader presented the Service Pans for 1 April 2019 – 31 March 2022, which set out the work of the Council within the service areas and showed how the Council’s corporate objectives would be delivered. The Plans formed an important element of the Council’s overall performance management framework by linking Corporate Strategy objectives through service plan actions into individual performance targets.

89.2     The Service Plans had been reviewed by the relevant Overview & Scrutiny Committees, which had endorsed the proposed plans.

89.3     The Executive RESOLVED to approve the Service Plans 2019/20.

 [Reason: to agree the detailed service plans for the delivery of Corporate Strategy objectives.]

The long leaseholders of a Council-owned property in Farnham have served a noticeon the Council under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 (“the 1967 Act”) to purchase the freehold of the house and premises.  Leaseholders have a legal right under the 1967 Act to buy the freehold of their house if they meet certain qualifying criteria. If the leaseholder qualifies under the 1967 Act and follows the correct procedure they can force the freehold owner to sell them the freehold.

The purpose of this report is to seek Council approval to sell the freehold to the current leaseholders on the terms set out in the Exempt Annexe 1.

Recommendation

That subject to the observations of the Value for Money & Customer Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, the Executive approves the recommendation to follow Option 1 which is the sale of the freehold land on the terms set out in Exempt Annexe 1.

90.1     The Leader introduced the proposal to sell the freehold of a council-owned property in Farnham. The long leaseholders had served a notice on the Council under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 to purchase the freehold of the house and premises. Leaseholders had a legal right under the 1967 Act to buy the freehold of their house if they submitted a qualifying application and followed the correct procedure.

90.2     The proposal had been reviewed by the Value for Money and Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny Committee, which had endorsed the recommended action.

90.3     Having considered the comments of the Value for Money and Customer Service Overview & Scrutiny Committee, the Executive RESOLVED to approve the sale of the freehold of the land, on the terms set out in the Exempt Annexe 1.

[Reason: to satisfy the requirements of the Notice served on the Council under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 to purchase the freehold of the house and premises.]

To consider the following recommendation on the motion of the Chairman:-

Recommendation

That, pursuant to Procedure Rule 20, and in accordance with Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item(s) on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during these items, there would be disclosure to them of exempt information (as defined by Section 100I of the Act) of the description specified at the meeting in the revised Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972.

At 6.30pm, the Executive RESOLVED that, pursuant to Procedure Rule 20, and in accordance with Section 100A (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of the following item on the grounds that it was likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during the item, there would be disclosure to them of exempt information (as defined by Section 100I of the Act) of the description specified in Paragraphs 2, 3 and 7 of the revised Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, namely:

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

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.

The attached report requests a supplementary estimate to meet various costs.

This report 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 the following paragraphs of the revised Part 1 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.

Recommendation    

That the Executive approves a Supplementary Estimate of £84,000 to meet the costs detailed in the Exempt report.

92.1     The Executive RESOLVED to approve a Supplementary Estimate of £84,000 to meet the unexpected and unavoidable costs, as detailed in the Exempt report.

[Reason: to meet unexpected and unavoidable costs.]