Agenda and minutes

To record the names of apologies given and Deputy Members who are attending the meeting.

Apologies were received from Councillor Langford-Smith, with Councillor Godfrey deputising as noted above.   Councillor Langford-Smith was in attendance at the meeting from approximately 7pm to observe proceedings and took no part in the debate or decisions made.

RESOLVED:

          That Councillor Morris be appointed as the vice-chairperson of the committee for the 2025/26 municipal year.

·       3 December 2025 at 6.30pm

RESOLVED:

          That the date and time of future meetings of the committee be noted.

To receive any disclosure of interests from Members or Officers in matters to be discussed.

Note: Councillors are reminded of their obligations to declare disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs), other registerable interests (ORIs) and non-registerable interests (NRIs) in accordance with the Council’s Code of Conduct.

Councillor Wallace declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in respect of various items on the agenda due to his role as a Hampshire County Councillor.  Councillor Pett also declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in respect of various items on the agenda due to his role on the South Downs National Park Authority.   However, as there was no material conflict of interest, they remained in the room, spoke and voted under the dispensation granted on behalf of the Audit and Governance Committee to participate and vote in all matters which might have a County Council and South Downs National Park involvement.

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RESOLVED:

          That the minutes of the previous meeting held 6 December 2023 be agreed as a correct record.

To receive and note questions asked and statements made from members of the public on issues relating to the responsibility of this Committee.

Patrick Davies spoke regarding report LR594 as summarised briefly below.

Mr Davies expressed concern about the potential additional costs and increased bureaucracy in creating a town council for Winchester.  He considered it would be contrary to the purpose of local government reorganisation, which was to streamline and clarify local services in a new unitary authority, and ran the risk of alienating neighbouring local authorities.  He believed that the alternative option of creating a charter trustees for the Winchester town area should be pursued instead.

The Cabinet Member for Recycling and Public Protection and the Licensing Manager introduced the report and drew members’ attention to the proposed changes as summarised in paragraph 11.5 of the report.  The Licensing Manager clarified that if the Highways Authority made significant comments, these would be considered by herself in consultation with the Service Lead for Public Protection and the chairperson.

At the invitation of the chairperson, Councillor Batho addressed the committee as summarised briefly below.

Councillor Batho supported the proposed review and queried whether it would be possible to require premises to display a notice showing the area licenced.

In response, the Licensing Manager suggested that an alternative proposal could be to require licensed premises to train staff on the area of the licence.  This would reduce the potential for practical issues in displaying a notice and also additional possible additional enforcement work for officers.  Members believed that this would help address any issues with premises not adhering to the licenced area.  Councillor Cramoysan suggested that members feedback any potential issues on the operation of the revised licence and a further review could be undertaken at a future date if required. 

The Licensing Manager responded to questions from the committee on the proposal as outlined in the report.

RESOLVED:

1.             That the amendments to the Draft Pavement Licensing Policy be agreed as set out at Appendix 1 of the report to ensure that it reflects the current Government guidance, and;

2.             That the Licensing Manager be authorised to consult Hampshire County Council, as the Highways Authority, on the amendments to the revised Policy. If the Highways Authority have no significant comments, that the revised Policy will be implemented with effect from 1 August 2025.

The Director (Legal) introduced the report and highlighted that the draft terms of reference for the CGR would require approval by an additional meeting of the committee in September 2025.  The primary purpose of this report was to agree the establishment of a member task and finish working group and formal consultation would commence following approval of the terms of reference.  The Director (Legal) requested an addition to the report’s recommendations to grant authority to appoint the members of the task and finish group to himself in consultation with the committee chairperson.  This was agreed as set out in resolution 3 below.

At the invitation of the chairperson, Councillors Horrill and Batho addressed the committee as summarised briefly below.

Councillor Horrill

Councillor Horrill stated that she was supportive of the request to undertake a CGR for the unparished sections of the Winchester Town area but had concerns about this being expanded to areas of the district which were already parished.  She highlighted the potential shortage of officer availability and considered this would better be prioritised to assist with other areas of the district which might potentially be impacted by the wider Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).  She requested that other options for preserving the mayoralty be investigated and that the terms of reference for the CGR be restricted to the town unparished areas.

Councillor Batho

Councillor Batho emphasised that the Winchester Town Forum’s request for a CGR was a direct result following on from the government’s LGR proposals and the purpose was to address to consequential democratic representation deficit for residents in the unparished areas.  As part of this review, he considered it sensible for residents of some areas bordering the unparished town areas to be consulted on whether they should be included.  He also highlighted the importance of ensuring the mayoralty was preserved,

Councillor Becker responded to the comments made by both councillors, in addition to those made by Patrick Davies during public participation.

Councillor Becker and the Director (Legal) also responded to questions from committee members, including on the role of the committee in the CGR process, the potential costs of the review process and that the final decision would be taken by full Council.  It was noted that an additional committee meeting would be required in September to consider the draft terms of reference for the CGR.  NB Subsequent to the meeting, this date was agreed for 29 September 2025.

RESOLVED:

1.             That the contents of the report be noted, acknowledging the potential for a Community Governance Review in the Winchester town area and the broad implications associated with such a review.

2.             That a Task and Finish group of 6 members be established to be formed of 2 members of the Town Forum  plus 4 other members to include representation from all 3 political groups. This group will be responsible for providing member oversight and guidance during the initial stages of the Community Governance Review, working closely with the officer project team.

That authority be delegated  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.