Agenda, decisions and minutes
PDF 208 KBVenue: Council Chamber, Council Offices. Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City
Contact: Hilary Dineen (01462) 474353 Email: hilary.dineen@north-herts.gov.uk
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APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Decision: Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Faye Frost and David Barnard. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of item – 24 seconds
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Faye Frost and David Barnard. |
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MINUTES - 14 JUNE 2018 To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of this Committee held on the 14 June 2018.
The Minutes will be published on 30 November 2018 Decision: RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 14 June 2018 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman. Minutes: Audio Recording – Start of Item – 39 seconds
RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 14 June 2018 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman. |
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MINUTES - 13 SEPTEMBER 2018 To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of this Committee held on the 13 September 2018.
The Minutes will be published on 30 November 2018. Decision: RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 13 September 2018 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman.
Minutes: Audio Recording – Start of Item – 53 seconds
RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 13 September 2018 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chairman. |
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NOTIFICATION OF OTHER BUSINESS Members should notify the Chairman of other business which they wish to be discussed by the Committee at the end of the business set out in the agenda. They must state the circumstances which they consider justify the business being considered as a matter of urgency.
The Chairman will decide whether any item(s) raised will be considered. Decision: There was no other business notified. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item - 1 minute 12 seconds
There was no other business notified. |
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CHAIRMAN'S ANNOUNCEMENTS Members are reminded that any declarations of interest in respect of any business set out in the agenda, should be declared as either a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest or Declarable Interest and are required to notify the Chairman of the nature of any interest declared at the commencement of the relevant item on the agenda. Members declaring a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest must withdraw from the meeting for the duration of the item. Members declaring a Declarable Interest, wished to exercise a ‘Councillor Speaking Right’, must declare this at the same time as the interest, move to the public area before speaking to the item and then must leave the room before the debate and vote. Decision: (1) The Chairman welcomed those present at the meeting, especially those who had attended to give a presentation;
(2) The Chairman welcomed Councillor David Levett (Executive Member for Planning, Enterprise and Transport) who would be giving a presentation regarding the Local Plan;
(3) The Chairman advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be audio recorded;
(4) The Chairman drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and 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. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of item – 1 minute 17 seconds
(1) The Chairman welcomed those present at the meeting, especially those who had attended to give a presentation;
(2) The Chairman welcomed Councillor David Levett (Executive Member for Planning, Enterprise and Transport) who would be giving a presentation regarding the Local Plan;
(3) The Chairman advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be audio recorded;
(4) The Chairman drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and 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. |
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - WASTE NOT WANT NOT Decision: Mr Hal Fowler, Waste Not Want Not, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding the work undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee.
The Chairman thanked Mr Fowler for his presentation. Minutes: Audio Recording – Start of Item – 1 minute 58 seconds
Mr Hal Fowler, Waste Not Want Not, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding the work undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee.
In response to questions from members, Mr Fowler responded:
· Due to funding received for wheelchair accessible toilet, this has enabled people to stay for a whole day rather than just one hour; · Grown due to support from Southern Rural Committee; · Disadvantaged groups who benefited were more diverse; · Wheelchair drop-off area was due to be installed in January; · Open day was being held in March to promote the service; · Wheelchair users, on day release from hospital, were given voluntary managerial positions with excellent results.
The Chairman thanked Mr Fowler for his presentation. |
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - KIMPTON HISTORY GROUP Decision: Mr John Pollington, Kimpton History Group, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding the work they had undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee.
The Chairman thanked Mr Pollington for his presentation. Minutes: Audio Recording – Start time of Item – 7 minutes and 52 seconds
John Pollington, from Kimpton History Group thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding the work undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee. Mr Pollington sent apologies on behalf of the Chairman who was away.
· A grant of £980 was received by Kimpton History Group for the design and printing of a heritage trail map in leaflet form for the village. The intention was to make the history of Kimpton more accessible and vibrant and visitors. · Wanted to have it ready for Kimpton May Festival. The map was designed and produced by Paul Martin Associates who produced it within budget and on time. · An extra £90 was paid from their own funds to enable them to double the quantity of leaflets printed; · It was well received by the villagers and visitors and was available free of charge at the Post Office and Stores, in the pub and in the parish church; · Thanks to the grant, many villages and visitors had been able to explore the history of the village;
In response to questions from members, Mr Pollington responded:
· The leaflets were kept in display boxes at the three most popular locations; · The availability of the leaflets had not yet been advertised on the Facebook pages however Mr Pollington agreed that this would be a good idea;
The Chairman thanked Mr Pollington for his presentation. |
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - ICKLEFORD SPORTS CLUB Decision: Ms Rowena Birdsey, Ickleford Sports Club, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee regarding the work undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee.
The Chairman thanked Ms Birdsey for her presentation. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 11 minutes and 51 seconds
Ms Rowena Birdsey, Secretary of Ickleford Sports Club, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee regarding the work undertaken following a previous award of grant funding from the Committee.
· Sports were available to lots of users at the club and included football, cricket, petanque, squash courts in addition to others; · Management of the facility was done by charging rents to the various sections and the bar was thriving; · The Club was built in the 1970’s. Maintenance had been done however there were occasional times when funds were not available for larger repairs; · The front path was dangerous so they applied for a grant of £950 which was approved and whole path was replaced the week after money had been received; · The facility was being managed without the assistance of national monies; · 12,000, over 800 members, people were using the facility annually;
In response to questions from members, Rowena Birdsey responded:
· The access route area was thought to be cracked due to tree roots rather than delivery vehicles however posts were going to be erected just in case; · The branches had been chopped back when the area was re-laid however they were not going to cut down the trees; · Access was needed by emergency vehicles and they would come in the other way;
The Chairman thanked Ms Birdsey for her presentation. |
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - KIMPTON PRE-SCHOOL Decision: Mr Mike Newman, Kimpton Pre-School, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding their grant application.
The Chairman thanked Mr Newman for his presentation. Minutes: Audio Recording – Start of Item – 18 minutes and 20 seconds
Mr Mike Newman, Chairman of Kimpton Pre-School Management Committee, thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee and gave a verbal presentation regarding their grant application.
· Pre-school run by a group of 7 parents and ex-parents; · Funds were needed for IT. They were reliant on EYFS and Herts for Learning to send information. Had to be sent to one of the parents to reformat the document to enable it to be read; · Voted outstanding OFSTED premises from 2015-16. The pre-school was the only place for 2-3 year olds to go within Kimpton. Very little childcare support was now in Kimpton; · No external funding was received; · Fundraising events were not done in the pre-school as the terms of the Lease prevented them from holding these events on site after 4pm Monday to Friday during term time; · Stalls were used at the Christmas fair or other events during the year; · Learning journals (a milestone of how children learn), were needed for the children and were an OFSTED requirement. They would like four Kindle Fire tablets because of their reliability and were cheaper than other brands; · Online system called Tapestry, industry standard across pre-schools and nursery schools. If Tapestry was available, the parents would have access to this system at any time and could be handed straight over to the nursery/reception school when the time came; · £500/year was spent on printing; · PC needed to be upgraded and a projector screen was also needed. One of the parents worked for a company that did IT fit-outs for schools and various secondary schools gifted old PC’s to a worthy cause. They had been given a projector worth £700 however they needed a screen to put it on; · There was a strong commitment to Prevent, a Government system to ensure radicalisation did not happen at any point in a child’s life. The pre-school manager was a practicing Muslim and was keen to share her own background and beliefs which would give an opportunity to show videos and do more interactive activities for the children; · There was only one intake into nursery annually;
In response to questions from members including Councillors Bishop and Tyler , Mike Newman responded as follows:
· There were four paid staff who were paid with the money earned from funded 2 and 3 year olds and non-funded 2 year olds covered everything. This meant that under government regulations, children had a right to start education of some form in a structured format from the age of 2½. Parents could apply for up to 15 hours/week until the age of 3 and from the January of their 3rd birthday they could move up to 30 hours’ worth of government funding. The fewer children in the pre-school the less money available and no central core funding was available because Kimpton pre-school, unlike nursery was effectively private; · Parents were charged £16.50 per session; · The nursery only took children ... view the full minutes text for item 40. |
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PUBLIC PARTICIPATION - BREACHWOOD GREEN PRE-SCHOOL Decision: The Senior Communities Officer advised that the Breachwood Green Pre-School were holding their Carol Concert this evening and therefore were unable to attend to address the Committee. Minutes: The Senior Communities Officer advised that the Breachwood Green Pre-School were holding their Carol Concert that evening and therefore were unable to attend to address the Committee. |
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GRANTS & COMMUNITY UPDATE REPORT OF THE COMMUNITIES MANAGER
To update the Committee on the activities and actions of the Communities Officer, to advise on the current expenditure and balances of the delegated budgets and to consider applications for grant funding. Additional documents: Decision: Audio recording – Start of Item – 45 minutes and 10 seconds
The Senior Communities Manager presented the report entitled Grants and Community Update and drew attention to the following:
Chairman’s Volunteer Awards
The Awards were now open for nominations on the NHDC website. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 45 minutes and 10 seconds
The Senior Communities Manager presented the report entitled Grants and Community Update and drew attention to the following:
Chairman’s Volunteer Awards
The Awards were now open for nominations on the NHDC website. |
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GRANT APPLICATION - BREACHWOOD GREEN PRE-SCHOOL Decision: RESOLVED: That grant funding of £250 be awarded to Breachwood Green Pre-School from the 2017/18 Development Budget for the purchase of furniture.
REASON FOR DECISION:To improve services provided by local organisations and groups which are accessed by the community. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 34 minutes and 7 seconds
GRANT APPLICATION: BREACHWOOD GREEN PRE-SCHOOL
ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS Regarding alternative options there were none proposed other than those detailed in the report.
RESOLVED:
That grant funding of £250 be awarded to Breachwood Green Pre-School. This would come from Faye Frost’s ward budget.
Under the constitution, individual members were unable to make decisions on funding as it was not their budget. All funding had to come through an officer and had to be recommended. Groups would need to speak to their ward members and if it came through the ward member, the Committee would need to agree funding jointly. A completed application form was required and they needed to be compliant with all the relevant grant criteria.
REASON FOR DECISION:
To improve services provided by local organisations and groups which are accessed by the community. |
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GRANT APPLICATION - KIMPTON PRE-SCHOOL Decision: RESOLVED:
(1) That grant funding of £619 be awarded to Kimpton Pre-School from the 2017/18 Development Budget for the purchase of IT equipment;
(2) That, subject to (3) below, grant funding of £1.467 be awarded to Kimpton Pre-School from the 2018/19 Development Budget for the purchase of IT equipment;
(3) That, should suitable equipment be sourced from the NHDC Charity Giveaway Day, the amount of funds awarded in (2) above be reduced accordingly.
REASON FOR DECISION: To improve services provided by local organisations and groups which are accessed by the community. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 41 minutes and 32 seconds
GRANT APPLICATION: KIMPTON PRE-SCHOOL
ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS Regarding alternative options there were none proposed other than those detailed in the report.
RESOLVED:
(1) That grant funding of £619 was awarded to Kimpton Pre-School from the 2017/18 Development Budget for the purchase of IT equipment;
(2) That, subject to (3) below, grant funding of £1.467 would be awarded to Kimpton Pre-School from the 2018/19 Development Budget for the purchase of IT equipment;
(3) That, should suitable equipment be sourced from the NHDC Charity Giveaway Day, the amount of funds awarded in (2) above be reduced accordingly.
(4) Should an ex-Council projector screen be found and was suitable, the cost would be reduced otherwise the full amount would be awarded;
REASON FOR DECISION:
To improve services provided by local organisations and groups which are accessed by the community. |
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LOCAL PLAN UPDATE To receive a presentation from Councillor David Levett, Executive Member for Planning, Enterprise and Transport regading the Local Plan. Decision: Councillor David Levett, Executive Member for Planning, Enterprise and Transport, thanked the Chairman for inviting him to address the Committee and gave a PowerPoint presentation regarding the current status of the Local Plan and the expected timetable for future progress.
The Chairman thanked Councillor Levett for his presentation. Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 46 minutes and 7 seconds
Councillor David Levett, Executive Member for Planning, Enterprise and Transport, thanked the Chairman for inviting him to address the Committee and gave a PowerPoint presentation regarding the current status of the Local Plan and the expected timetable for future progress.
The Chairman thanked Councillor Levett for his presentation.
Background:
· ‘Preferred Options’ document approved for consultation on 24/11/2014 which ran from 18/12/2014 – 05/02/2015; · 8,382 responses – 15,500 individual comments from those responses; · There were major revisions and a submission version was approved for consultation on 11/04/2017. The consultation period ran from 19/10/2016 – 30/11/2016. There were 2,459 responses and 5,675 individual representations; · Public Hearing with an Inspector in Letchworth. Originally scheduled for 8 days however there were 28 days of hearings in total which ran between November 2017 to March 2018; · There were 400 representations and included input from the public, councillors and MP’s, developer’s landowners, neighbouring authorities, health, education, transport, environmental authorities, various pressure groups, parish and town councils and public bodies; · During the Hearing additional work and background information was requested by the Inspector and extra work was volunteered to give extra substance and explain things in more clarity. This was submitted in June 2018. Updates followed as there were two legislative changes and information in local plans, particularly regarding environmental assessment that meant extra work was required; · Inspector requested further clarification following these which were submitted in November 2018; · Inspector’s main modifications and supporting documents were published on 19th November 2018; · Special Cabinet meeting scheduled for 10th December 2018 at 3pm which was to grant approval for consultation on the following:
· Inspector’s proposed main modifications to the plan;
· A sustainability appraisal which looked at those modification in context and made sure that the plan was still viable;
· There were some additional documents which were submitted to the Inspector as requested by him;
· All these documents were located on the main council website under local plan;
· The consultation, assuming approved by Cabinet was on 10th December 2018, ran for six weeks from 3rd January 2019 to 14th February 2019. Due to the volume of the documentation, plenty of time was given for everyone to go through it prior to the full consultation process;
What had not changed:
· Fundamentally the same plan was approved for submission by full Council in April 2017. There were no changes to the housing requirement had not changed. The identified need still needed to be met in full. A reasonable contribution needed to fulfil Luton’s unmet housing needs and Stevenage’s employment needs;
· The land marked as greenbelt release, was to be released from the greenbelt. A large area however was designated around Offley and Whitwell between Hitchin and Luton which stopped the encroachment into North Herts as new greenbelt. This was being pushed to be included as it was extremely rare to put new greenbelt in. The Inspector accepted that and included extra greenbelt. The result was that ... view the full minutes text for item 45. |
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WARD MATTERS AND OUTSIDE ORGANISATIONS - MEMBERS' REPORTS To receive any oral reports from Members regarding Ward matters and Outside Organisations. Decision: Audio recording – Start of Item – 1 hour, 27 minutes and 47 seconds
The following issues wee discussed:
· Universal Credit Rollout: · Holwell Against CALA Traffic Action Group Minutes: Audio recording – Start of Item – 1 hour, 27 minutes and 47 seconds
Universal Credit Rollout:
The government had made various amounts of significant funds available in the Universal Credit rollout. The County Council was, at the Health & Social Care Review Meeting, going to be looking at how they would be supporting people with the transfer into Universal Credit and their social care and looking at integration taking place between the NHS and those in social care. It would impact on the Council in assisted living as they were a ‘careline’ so these things would be examined and looked at and a report would be given at the next meeting.
Holwell Against CALA Traffic Action Group:
Councillor Spencer-Smith had a meeting with well-known pressure group Holwell Against CALA Traffic Action Group regarding the huge number of vehicles going through Holwell to build the site in Pirton. The land around village hall had to be re-turfed due to vehicles passing through and wooden posts had been strategically placed just to protect the area. Problem was due to the road being so narrow and rights of way. |
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