Meeting documents

Council
Thursday, 10th November, 2011 7.30 pm

Time: 7.30pm Place: Council Chamber, Council Offices Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City
 PRESENT: Councillor M.E. Weeks (Chairman), Councillor Joan Kirby (Vice-Chairman), Councillor A. Bardett, Councillor D.J. Barnard, Councillor David Billing, Councillor Judi Billing, Councillor Clare Body, Councillor John Booth, Councillor Tom Brindley, Councillor P.C.W. Burt, Councillor Dave Chambers, Councillor Paul Clark, Councillor Lisa Courts, Councillor Tricia Cowley, Councillor Lee Downie, Councillor Jean Green, Councillor Richard Harman, Councillor Cathryn Henry, Councillor Fiona Hill, Councillor A.F. Hunter, Councillor S.K. Jarvis, Councillor David Kearns, Councillor Lorna Kercher, Councillor Marilyn Kirkland, Councillor I.J. Knighton, Councillor David Levett, Councillor Bernard Lovewell, Councillor Paul Marment, Councillor D. Miller, Councillor Gerald Morris, Councillor M.R.M. Muir, Councillor Elliot Needham, Councillor Mrs L.A. Needham, Councillor Lawrence Oliver, Councillor Michael Paterson, Councillor Mike Rice, Councillor R.L. Shakespeare - Smith, Councillor Mrs C.P.A. Strong, Councillor R.A.C. Thake and Councillor A.D. Young.
 IN ATTENDANCE: Chief Executive, Strategic Director of Finance, Policy and Governance, Strategic Director of Customer Services, Local Development Framework Manager, Senior Lawyer, Democratic Services Manager and Committee and Member Services Manager.
 ALSO PRESENT: Alderman F.J. Smith
Elizabeth Webber (Chairman of Independent Remuneration Panel)
Samantha Murphy (Chairman - North Hertfordshire Branch of SANDS)
Claire Thompson (North Hertfordshire SANDS)
Item Description/Resolution Status Action
PART I
39 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Mrs A.G. Ashley, John Bishop, Bill Davidson, T.W. Hone, Robert Inwood, Alan Millard and Deepak Sangha.
 Noted   
40 MINUTES
Minutes

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 8 September 2011 be approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman.
 Agreed   
41 NOTIFICATION OF OTHER BUSINESS

No additional business was presented for consideration by the Council.
 Noted   
42 CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS

(1) Former Councillors Robin Wordsworth and Archie ("Bill") Kingston-Splatt

The Chairman had the sad duty to report that former Councillor Robin Wordsworth, who had represented the Knebworth Ward from 1998 to 2006, had passed away recently aged 89. During his time on the Council, former Councillor Wordsworth had served on bodies including the Southern Rural Committee, Appeals Board and Reference Board, as well as representing the Council on a variety of outside organisations. The Chairman and a number of other Members had attended the funeral.

The Chairman had the further sad duty to report that former Councillor Archie ("Bill") Kingston-Splatt, who had represented the Hitchin Highbury Ward from 1982 to 1986, had also passed away recently. During his time on the Council, former Councillor Kingston-Splatt had served on the Environmental Health and Control Committee, Highways and Transport Committee and Museum Services Sub-Committee, as well as representing the Council on a number of outside organisations.

Members and Officers stood and observed a minute's silence in memory of former Councillors Wordsworth and Kingston-Splatt.

(2) World's Biggest Coffee Morning

The Chairman advised that a total sum of £362 had been raised as the Council's contribution to the World's Biggest Coffee Morning, in aid of MacMillan Cancer Relief, held on Friday, 30 September 2011. He thanked those Members and Officers who had attended the event and for their kind cash donations for the Charity. He further thanked those staff who had made cakes for sale at the event.

(3) Civic Reception - Revised Date

The Chairman advised that the date for the Civic Reception had changed. Instead of 10 February 2012, it would now be held at 7.30pm on Friday, 2 March 2012 at the Letchworth Hall Hotel, Letchworth Lane, Letchworth Garden City.

(4) Civic Service 2011/12

The Chairman announced that the Civic Service 2011/12 would take place at 3.15pm on Sunday, 11 March 2012 at St. Mary's Church, Baldock.

(5) Councillor Allison Ashley

The Chairman advised that he would be passing on the Council's best wishes to Councillor Allison Ashley for a swift recovery following a recent illness.

(6) Declarations of Interest

The Chairman reminded Members that, in line with the Code of Conduct, any Declarations of Interest needed to be declared immediately prior to the item in question.

(7) Chairman's Charity - SANDS

The Chairman welcomed Mrs Samantha Murphy, Chairman of the North Hertfordshire Branch of SANDS (Still Birth and Neo-natal Death Society), his chosen charity for the year, and invited her to give a presentation on the work of SANDS. Mrs Murphy was accompanied by Claire Thompson, a fellow member of North Hertfordshire SANDS.

Mrs Murphy thanked the Chairman for choosing SANDS as his charity for the year and allowing her the opportunity to address the Council about its work. SANDS related to either the death of a child 24 weeks or more in the womb, at birth, or within the first 4 weeks of life.

Mrs Murphy commented that, in the past, such losses were often unacknowledged or misunderstood. In 1978, a group of bereaved parents got together and formed SANDS as a support group. Since then over 100 local SANDS branches had been setup across the United Kingdom, covering over 70% of the nation's hospital maternity wards. Branches had also been formed in Australia and Dubai.

Mrs Murphy advised that SANDS provided a support service, both through a telephone help line, a national forum, publicity material and local groups. SANDS provided training for health care professionals, including midwives, and audited the services provided by hospitals in respect of child birth matters.

Mrs Murphy explained that North Hertfordshire SANDS had been in existence for over 25 years. It had monthly meetings, at which bereaved parents could talk, share experiences, and receive the support of others. A befriender service was also offered, providing a one to one support service to newly bereaved parents, including accompanying them to SANDS meetings if required.

Mrs Murphy concluded by stating that North Hertfordshire SANDS held various awareness raising and fund raising events throughout the year, including balloon releases, cake sales and the Hitchin Christmas Tree Festival. They had also worked with the Lister Hospital to help furnish the rooms for bereaved parents in the new Maternity Suite.

The Chairman thanked Mrs Murphy for her presentation, and announced that he would be fundraising for SANDS at his Civic Reception and Civic Service, and possibly at a yet to be arranged Charity Quiz Night.
 Noted   
43 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

No items were presented for consideration by the Council under public participation.
 Noted   
44 ITEM REFERRED FROM CABINET: 27 SEPTEMBER 2011 - SUPPLEMENTARY PLANNING DOCUMENT (SPD) - VEHICLE PARKING AT NEW DEVELOPMENTS
Report
Appendix 1
Appendix 2
Appendix 3

The Council considered the minute of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 27 September 2011, in respect of the proposed Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) - Vehicle Parking at New Developments (Minute 47 refers). A copy of the report considered by the Cabinet was included with the agenda, as were the following appendices:

Appendix 1 - Amended Vehicle Parking Provision at New Developments Supplementary Planning Document;
Appendix 2 - Vehicle Parking Provision at New Developments - Consultation Representations;
Appendix 3 - Vehicle Parking Provision at New Developments - Local Evidence Base Summary.

It was moved by Councillor Tom Brindley, seconded by Councillor Mrs L.A. Needham, and following debate, was

RESOLVED: That the Vehicle Parking Provision at New Developments Supplementary Planning Document, as set out at Appendix 1 to the report, be adopted.

REASON FOR DECISION: To support the emerging Local Development Framework Core Strategy and Development Policies.
 Agreed  Strategic Director of Planning/Housing & Enterprise
45 MEMBERS' ALLOWANCES SCHEME 2012/13
Report and Appendices A, B and C
Appendix D

The Council considered the report of the Independent Remuneration Panel in respect of a proposed Members' Allowances Scheme for 2012/13. The following appendices were submitted with the report:

Appendix A - Recommended Scheme of Allowances 2012/13;
Appendix B - Methodology;
Appendix C - Features of the Scheme;
Appendix D - Audit family/Herts Districts Comparisons.

Elizabeth Webber (Chairman of the Independent Remuneration Panel for 2012/13) summarised the main elements of the report as follows:

- the Panel had used the same methodology as last year;
- no increases were recommended to the levels of either the Basic Allowance or Special Responsibility Allowances (SRAs) for 2012/13, as NHDC was in line with the average of allowances paid by other Local Authorities in its audit family;
- next year, the Panel would be looking again at the methodology used to calculate the Leader of the Council's Special Responsibility Allowance, from which the level of all other SRAs were derived;
- it was recommended that an SRA be paid to the Chairman of the Finance, Audit & Risk Committee and a retrospective SRA paid to the Chairman of its predecessor body, the former Audit & Risk Committee;
- no increases were proposed to the allowances for the use of home IT equipment and Travel and Subsistence, with a small inflationary uplift for Childcare and Dependent Carers Allowance; and
- it was recommended that, where necessary, the Council should pay the £35 fee for individual Members for Data Protection registration, upon receipt of a claim for the amount paid.

Elizabeth Webber concluded by highlighting some corrections to Section 8 of the report - Financial and Risk Implications, as follows:

- Paragraph 8.2 - The proposals outlined in the Scheme represented an overall budget for 2012/13 of £328,460 (not £330,335 as set out in the report), and acceptance of the Panel's recommendations would require an increase of £3,230 (not £5,120 as stated in the report) on the amount included in the draft budget calculations; and
- Paragraph 8.3 - insertion of the word "may", so that this paragraph would now read "Adding to the base budget would increase the budget gap currently identified in the Medium Term Financial Strategy by this amount and may require additional efficiencies to be made."

The Chairman thanked Elizabeth Webber and the other Panel members for their work in producing the report.

It was moved by Councillor Mrs L.A. Needham, and seconded by Councillor Mrs C.P.A. Strong that the Scheme of Members' Allowances, as set out at Appendix A to the report, be adopted for the financial year 2012/2013.

As an amendment, it was moved by Councillor S.K. Jarvis, seconded by Councillor Paul Clark, that the words "except that the mileage rate paid shall be 46.9p per mile regardless of the engine size of the car used" be added at the end of the recommendation.

Following debate, and upon being put to the vote, this amendment was lost.

Upon the substantive motion being put to the vote, it was

RESOLVED: That the Scheme of Members' Allowances, as set out at Appendix A to the report, be adopted for the financial year 2012/2013.

REASON FOR DECISION: To comply with the requirements of Section 99 of the Local Government Act 2000, under which the Council has a duty to determine a Scheme of Members' Allowances for each financial year.
 Agreed  Democratic Services Manager
46 ELECTIONS 2012/13 - SCALE OF FEES AND CHARGES
Report
Appendix A

The Chief Executive and Returning Officer submitted a report setting out the proposed Scale of Fees and Charges for the Elections to be held during the 2012/13 Financial Year. The following document was appended to the report:

Appendix A - Proposed Scale of Fees and Charges 2012/13.

It was moved by Councillor Mrs C.P.A. Strong, seconded by Councillor Mrs L.A. Needham, and

RESOLVED: That the Scale of Fees and Charges for the employment of additional staff to assist the Returning Officer in conducting District, Town and Parish Elections, Parish Polls and Business Investment District Ballots held during the Financial Year 2012/13, as set out at Appendix A to the report, be approved.

REASON FOR DECISION: To enable the Council to set a Scale of Fees and Charges for Elections to be held during 2012/13.
 Agreed  Democratic Services Manager
47 COMMUNITY GOVERNANCE REVIEW
Report and Appendices
Map 1

The Council considered the report of the Chief Executive in respect of a proposal to undertake a Community Governance Review of the Parish of Great Ashby and the Parish of Weston. The following appendices were submitted with the report:

Appendix A - Community Governance Review - Parish of Great Ashby and Parish of Weston - Terms of Reference;
Appendix B - Community Governance Review - Parish of Great Ashby and Parish of Weston - Timetable.

The Council was advised that, upon lodging a request for the boundaries of the new parish of Great Ashby to be assimilated by Ordnance Survey, it became apparent that six dwellings described as being part of the Parish of Great Ashby, namely 22-27 Windermere Close, were technically in the Parish of Weston. Windermere Close in Great Ashby was built in 1998, without regard to parish council boundaries. This was not unusual as parish boundaries are not a planning consideration. It was understood that such issues arise on administrative boundaries throughout the Country. The result was that, notwithstanding a total sense of identity with Great Ashby, six of the dwellings in Windermere Close were actually in the Parish of Weston. This parish was centred on the village of Weston, a completely different and remote community. Now that this anomaly had been discovered, it was recommended that a parish boundary change be considered.

The Council was informed that, to mitigate against the risk of a recurrence of this in the future, a process had been agreed with the Planning Service for any future developments which may potentially straddle a parish or other boundary, to be reported to both Democratic Services to ensure that the Electoral Register was correct and to Revenues and Benefits to ensure that the property was allocated to the correct parish for Council Tax purposes.

The Council noted that Parish boundaries may now be changed by district councils. However, a Community Governance Review, must be undertaken. The Council was required to take account of statutory guidance and to establish and publish terms of reference. In doing so, the Council was able to establish terms which reflected the need for the review. The legislation warned against establishing standard terms and conditions. Therefore, to correct a technical anomaly which was not likely to affect either the governance or the electoral equality (a numerical consideration), a relatively brief process may be employed. Attention was drawn to the draft terms of reference (Appendix A) and the timetable (Appendix B) set out in the report.

The Council further noted that the parish boundary in question was also a ward boundary. Therefore, Windermere Close also straddled the boundary of the wards of Chesfield and Weston and Sandon. Should the Council determine that 22-27 Windermere Drive be included within the Parish of Great Ashby, it followed that those dwellings should also be removed from the Weston and Sandon Ward and placed within Chesfield. However, this would require a recommendation to the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.

The Council acknowledged that the parish boundary in question was also a parliamentary boundary. Therefore, Windermere Close also straddled the boundary of Hitchin and Harpenden and North East Hertfordshire. Should the Council determine that 22-27 Windermere Close be included within the Parish of Great Ashby, it followed that those dwellings should also be removed from the North East Hertfordshire Constituency and placed within the Hitchin and Harpenden Constituency. This, too, would require a recommendation to the Boundary Commission for England.

It was moved by Councillor Mrs C.P.A. Strong, seconded by Councillor Cathryn Henry, and following debate, was

RESOLVED:

(1) That a Community Governance Review of the Parishes of Great Ashby and Weston be undertaken;

(2) That the Draft Terms of Reference for the Review, as set out at Appendix A to the report, be approved;

(3) That the Chief Executive be delegated to determine the outcome of the Review;

(4) That the Corporate Legal Manager be delegated to draw up and publish a Local Implementation Order if required.

REASON FOR DECISION: To progress the Review in accordance with the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007.
 Agreed  Democratic Services Manager
48 QUESTIONS FROM MEMBERS
Report

(A) North Hertfordshire Museum and Community Facility Project - Management Agreement

In accordance with Standing Order 10.4(a), the following question had been submitted by Councillor Lawrence Oliver to Councillor Tricia Cowley (Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Community Engagement and Rural Affairs):

"When is the Agreement, between NHDC and Hitchin Town Hall Ltd for the development of Hitchin Town Hall as the new Museum Headquarters, expected to be completed and ratified by this Council?"

Councillor Cowley replied that it was anticipated that this would happen between December 2011 and January 2012, although was subject to the conclusion of negotiations on the Lease, Community Use and Development Agreements and agreement to the terms set out in these documents by Hitchin Town Hall Limited's funders, Futurebuilders England.

Whilst she was unable to comment in detail about these ongoing negotiations, Councillor Cowley was pleased to report that these were substantially complete and that the vision of a first class museum for North Hertfordshire and a vibrant and economically sustainable facility operating for and by the community, which would provide significant cash savings for council tax payers, was closer than it had ever been.

Councillor Oliver asked the following supplementary question:

"Does the Portfolio Holder agree that, after over a year since the Council agreed to move forward with the District Museum project, it is disappointing that it has taken this long to come forward with the appropriate agreements?"

Councillor Cowley replied that she was disappointed with the delays, but that this been due to extensive negotiations with Hitchin Town Hall Limited and the agreement of Futurebuilders England to proceed with the project. However, she confirmed that the project completion date of March 2014 remained unchanged.
 Noted   
49 NOTICE OF MOTIONS
Report

There were no Notice of Motions.
 Noted