Agenda, decisions and minutes

At the start of the 14 September meeting, the Leader announced that since the summons for this meeting was issued last week, the very sad news of the death of Her Majesty the Queen had been received.  However as it was not considered appropriate for discussions of the issues on the published agenda to proceed during the period of National Mourning for Her Majesty, it was proposed that the meeting be adjourned.

The Leader made a brief statement drawing attention to the history of the Queen’s visits to Winchester over the years and her tireless commitment to public service.  Cabinet then stood in one minute’s silence.

RESOLVED:

That the meeting be adjourned and reconvene on Thursday 22 September 2022 at 2.00pm

To record the names of apologies given.

Apologies were received as noted above.

To give consideration to the approval of alternative arrangements for appointments to bodies set up by Cabinet or external bodies, or the making or terminating of such appointments.

The Leader announced his appointment of Councillor Becker as Cabinet Member for Inclusion and Engagement.  As part of her role, she would also be chair of the Member’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Forum.  Councillor Clear would replace Councillor Becker as the Council’s Member Champion for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.

The Leader also reported that Councillor Thompson would have responsibility for arrangements regarding the coronation of King Charles III, expected to take place in 2023.

RESOLVED:

1.        that Councillor Becker replace Councillor Gordon-Smith as chairperson of the Member’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Forum.

2.         That Councillor Clear replace Councillor Becker as the

Council’s Member Champion For Equality, Diversity And Inclusion.

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

Note: Councillors are reminded of their obligations to declare disclosable pecuniary interests, personal and/or prejudicial interests in accordance with legislation and the Council’s Code of Conduct.

Councillors Tod and Porter both declared personal (but not prejudicial) interests in respect of various agenda items due to their roles as County Councillors.

– to note the names of members of the public wishing to speak on general matters affecting the District or on agenda items (in the case of the latter, representations will normally be received at the time of the agenda item, after the Cabinet Member’s introduction and any questions from Cabinet Members).

NB members of the public are required to register with Democratic Services three clear working days before the meeting (contact: democracy@winchester.gov.uk or 01962 848 264). 

There were no questions asked or statements made.

At the invitation of the Leader, Councillor Wallace addressed Cabinet as summarised below:

With regard to matters he had raised at the previous meeting, requested confirmation of whether the intention remained for the garden waste collection scheme to be cost neutral.  In addition, requested data in support of the statement that the new eastern park and ride site (the Vaultex site) reduces traffic into the city and supports the council’s carbon neutrality pledges.

Councillor Tod advised that the agenda item for approving minutes did not usually include matters arising but requested that a response be provided as an exception on this occasion.

Councillor Learney responded to the points raised by Councillor Wallace.

RESOLVED:

            That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 19 July 2022 be agreed as a correct record.

The Leader stated that on 14 September, he had paid tribute on behalf of Cabinet to Her Majesty the Queen who had passed away on 8 September 2022.  He thanked the council officers and contractors who had undertaken the necessary arrangements for the official period of mourning.

Councillor Ferguson announced the launch of a cost of living intervention to support households in the Winchester district who were struggling with the rapidly rising cost of living.  The £200,000 package of measures was in addition to the support being provided by central Government and had regard to the council’s local understanding of the impact of the crisis on the residents of Winchester.

Councillor Thompson announced that Winchester had recently been named by Which magazine as one of the best cities in the UK for a city break.  She emphasised the positive data received regarding increases in footfall in the city since the start of 2022.  Councillor Thompson also reported on the successful “Paralympic Personal Best” event which had taken place on 25 August at the Winchester Sport and Leisure Park and athletics track.

1.     That the updated ongoing spending programme be approved as set out in Appendix A to report CAB3360.

2.     That the Strategic Director with responsibility for CIL be authorised, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to consider inflationary impacts on projects already approved and to recommend adjustments to CIL to the Cabinet Member for Place and the Local Plan.

3.     That, in accordance with recommendation 2 above and if needed, delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Place and the Local Plan to approve supplementary capital estimates and expenditure, via a Decision Day, to existing projects for which additional funding is required due to inflation and which in total should not exceed £500,000 in aggregate.

4.     That the 2022/23 allocation of £226,452 from the Winchester City Council CIL income receipts set aside for community projects be approved as detailed in Section 11.12 of the report, and approve the expenditure under Financial Procedure Rule 7.4 for the funding of eight community led projects recommended by the Informal Panel. This includes the following specific projects;

4.1  Colden Common Boardwalk - £10,000

4.2  Colden Common cycle/pump track - £65,000

4.3  Knowle pump track - £10,000

4.4  New Alresford Allotments - £25,000

4.5  Shedfield pavilion - £50,000

4.6  Shedfield pavilion car park and access - £21,000

4.7  Wickham Recreation ground outdoor gym and access - £20,452

4.8  Winchester Barton Farm Ridge Path - £25,000

5.     That a capital budget and expenditure of £200,000 be approved of which £150,000 is to be funded from the Winchester City Council District CIL receipts for the KGV recreation ground open space/park improvements project in Winchester. This is subject to the approval of £50,000 from the Town CIL receipts going to the reconvened meeting of Winchester Town Forum on 22 September 2022 (adjourned from 15 September 2022).

6.     That, subject to the approval of £200,000 from the Town CIL receipts and subject to due diligence assessment and support of the council CIL informal panel, the sum of £800,000 to be funded from the Winchester City Council District CIL for the additional budget required to deliver the KGV Pavilion project be approved, as detailed in section 11.17 of the report.

7.     That the reallocation of funds for the Winchester City football club project be approved, previously approved on 15 September 2021. The sum of £200,000 had been allocated to the football club to take forward the project but will instead now become a council led project and the CIL monies reallocated to Winchester City Council, as landowner, as detailed in section 12.19 of the report.

8.     That an allocation of £300,000 for a further round of community bids in 2023/24 as part of the ongoing programme of community projects be approved, which will include this years’ unallocated sum of £23,548, with future arrangements beyond 2023/24 to be reviewed annually.

Councillor Porter introduced the report which sought agreement of the new projects recommended by the Informal CIL Panel after the close of the application process earlier in 2022 and to also agree the Community Infrastructure funding programme for 2022/23.

At the invitation of the Leader, Councillors Wallace and Horrill addressed Cabinet as summarised briefly below:

Councillor Wallace

Highlighted that the council had committed to tackling the climate emergency and believed that consequently all CIL projects should be assessed to ascertain the quantifiable impact on greenhouse emissions.

Councillor Horrill

Requested that all councillors have the opportunity to input into the strategic review.  Noting the recent government announcements regarding the proposed replacement of CIL with a new Infrastructure Levy queried whether the council’s review be delayed.  Queried whether the proposed £300k was sufficient for 2023/24.  Requested further justification for the amount of district CIL proposed to be allocated to the KGV pavilion project.

The Strategic Director and Cabinet Members responded to the points raised including confirming that preparatory work was being undertaken on the policy review (including consideration of the requirement for more quantitative assessment) whilst awaiting further clarification from the government.  The draft strategic review would be submitted to the appropriate Policy Committee for consideration.

With regard to the use of the district CIL receipts, Councillor Ferguson stated that analysis of the usage of the Garrison grounds and playing fields indicated that around 70% was from across the Winchester district.  It was the home of Winchester City flyers which was one of the largest female membership football teams nationally and included a large number of youth teams from across the district.

Cabinet agreed to the following for the reasons set out above and outlined in the report.

RESOLVED:

1.        That the updated ongoing spending programme be approved as set out in Appendix A to report CAB3360. That the Strategic Director with responsibility for CIL be authorised, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, to consider inflationary impacts on projects already approved and to recommend adjustments to CIL to the Cabinet Member for Place and the Local Plan.

2.        That, in accordance with recommendation 1 above and if needed, delegate authority to the Cabinet Member for Place and the Local Plan to approve supplementary capital estimates and expenditure, via a Decision Day, to existing projects for which additional funding is required due to inflation and which in total should not exceed £500,000 in aggregate.

3.        That the 2022/23 allocation of £226,452 from the Winchester City Council CIL income receipts set aside for community projects be approved as detailed in Section 11.12 of the report, and approve the expenditure under Financial Procedure Rule 7.4 for the funding of eight community led projects recommended by the Informal Panel. This includes the following specific projects;

3.1  Colden Common Boardwalk - £10,000

3.2  Colden Common cycle/pump track - £65,000

3.3  Knowle pump track - £10,000

3.4  New Alresford Allotments - £25,000

3.5  Shedfield pavilion - £50,000

3.6  Shedfield pavilion car park and access - £21,000

3.7  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

1.      That expenditure of up to £3.3m under Financial Procedural Rule 7.4 be approved, subject to Council approval of the revised budget.

2.      That authority be delegated to undertake value engineering with all bidders to ensure the new build KGV Pavilion is built within the revised £3.3m budget, but if necessary authority be delegated to the Strategic Director: Services to undertake a new procurement exercise to obtain bids by contractors for the new build KGV Pavilion.

3.     That authority be delegated to the Strategic Director - Services to appoint the relevant contractors and to negotiate and agree contractual heads of terms with the contract appointment.

4.     That authority be delegated to the Service Lead: Legal to prepare and enter into all relevant agreements, negotiate the contractual agreements and see them to completion to enable the proposed new build KGV Pavilion. 

That it be recommended to Council:*

5.     To approve an additional capitalbudget of £1m funded from CIL (Town Forum £200k, District £800k CAB 3360 refers) to enable the proposed new build KGV Pavilion, bringing the total budget for this project to £3.3m.

*NB Council decisions are not subject to call-in.

Councillor Ferguson introduced the report, highlighting the importance of the pavilion to the Winchester City Flyers and other local teams from across the district, in addition to its wider use by the local community.  The request for additional budget was due to the national inflationary increases significantly raising the cost of materials and labour and these increases were expected to continue.

At the invitation of the Leader, Councillor Horrill addressed Cabinet as summarised briefly below:

Supported the proposals for the new pavilion in principle but highlighted the large budget involved and queried whether alternative options had been considered?  Requested that possible options for alternative grants and funding be investigated at the same time as the project progressed. Regarding the future governance of the pavilion, asked how open access could be assured? Thanked cabinet for the response to her queries regarding the allocation of district community infrastructure levy (CIL) under the previous agenda item. 

Councillor Ferguson and the Corporate Property Surveyor responded to the points raised above including confirming that alternative options considered were set out in previous reports, including reducing the size of the building.  However this would also result in additional costs and the resulting building might not fulfil the requirements of the football and cricket teams.  It was confirmed that options for additional funding sources were being pursued and that a local community group would be established to take part in the future governance of the pavilion. 

Cabinet noted that at its reconvened meeting that evening, Winchester Town Forum was also being asked to agree an additional £200,000 Town CIL funding towards the pavilion project, bringing the total funding from Town CIL to £450,000.

Cabinet agreed to the following for the reasons set out above and outlined in the report.

recommended (to council):

To approve an additional capitalbudget of £1m funded from CIL (Town Forum £200k, District £800k CAB 3360 refers) to enable the proposed new build KGV Pavilion, bringing the total budget for this project to £3.3m.

RESOLVED:

1.           That expenditure of up to £3.3m under Financial Procedural Rule 7.4 be approved, subject to Council approval of the revised budget.

2.           That authority be delegated to undertake value engineering with all bidders to ensure the new build KGV Pavilion is built within the revised £3.3m budget, but if necessary authority be delegated to the Strategic Director: Services to undertake a new procurement exercise to obtain bids by contractors for the new build KGV Pavilion.

Councillor Tod introduced the report noting that the Performance Panel had considered the report in detail (minutes contained as appendix 5 to the report) and that all Cabinet Members had the opportunity to speak directly to the officers concerned regarding their area of responsibility

At the invitation of the Leader, Councillor Horrill addressed Cabinet as chair of the Performance Panel, summarised briefly below.

Thanked the officers involved in preparing the report and responding to questions from the Panel for their work.  At the Panel meeting, some concern had been expressed regarding the current risk to the council’s budget due to the ongoing national economic situation.

Councillor Tod advised that an additional Cabinet meeting would be held on 15 November 2022 to consider the council’s medium term financial strategy and budget options.

Cabinet agreed to the following for the reasons set out above and outlined in the report.

RESOLVED:

That the progress achieved during Q1 of 2022/23 be noted and the contents of the report be endorsed.

Cabinet noted that, as announced above, the report on the medium-term financial strategy and budget options would be considered by the additional Cabinet meeting on 15 November, rather than on 18 October as originally suggested.

RESOLVED:

  That, subject to noting the change above, the list of future items as set out in the Forward Plan for October 2022, be noted.