Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

Members are required to notify any substitutions by midday on the day of the meeting.

Late substitutions will not be accepted and Members attending as a substitute without having given the due notice will not be able to take part in the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Lisa Nash.

Having given due notice, Councillor Caroline McDonnell substituted for Councillor Nash.

Audio recording – 3 minutes 37 seconds

Apologies were received from Councillor Lisa Nash.

Having given due notice, Councillor Caroline McDonnell substituted for Councillor Nash.  

To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on the 9 October 2024.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 9 October 2024 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Audio Recording – 4 minutes 11 seconds

Councillor Amy Allen, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Mick Debenham seconded and it was:

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 9 October 2024 were approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Climate Emergency

The Council has declared a climate emergency and is committed to achieving a target of zero carbon emissions by 2030 and helping local people and businesses to reduce their own carbon emissions.

A Cabinet Panel on the Environment has been established to engage with local people on matters relating to the climate emergency and advise the council on how to achieve these climate change objectives.

A Climate Change Implementation group of councillors and council officers meets regularly to produce plans and monitor progress. Actions taken or currently underway include switching to green energy, incentives for low emission taxis, expanding tree planting and working to cut food waste.

In addition the council is a member of the Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership, working with other councils across Hertfordshire to reduce the county’s carbon emissions and climate impact. The Council’s dedicated webpage on Climate Change includes details of the council’s climate change strategy, the work of the Cabinet Panel on the Environment and a monthly briefing on progress.

Ecological Emergency

The Council has declared an ecological emergency and is committed to addressing the ecological emergency and nature recovery by identifying appropriate areas for habitat restoration and biodiversity net gain whilst ensuring that development limits impact on existing habitats in its process.

The Council has set out to do that by a) setting measurable targets and standards for biodiversity increase, in both species and quantities, seeking to increase community engagement, b) to work with our partners to establish a Local Nature Partnership for Hertfordshire and to develop Nature Recovery Networks and Nature Recovery Strategy for Hertfordshire and c) to investigate new approaches to nature recovery such as habitat banking that deliver biodiversity objectives and provide new investment opportunities.

Declaration of Interest

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 Chair 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, wishing 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.

(1)  The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be recorded.

(2)  The Chair 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.

(3)  The Chair reminded Members that the Council had declared both a Climate Emergency and an Ecological Emergency. These are serious decisions, and mean that, as this was an emergency, all of us, Officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

Audio recording – 4 minutes 53 seconds

(1)   The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be recorded.

(2)   The Chair 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.

(3)   The Chair reminded Members that the Council had declared both a Climate Emergency and an Ecological Emergency. These are serious decisions, and mean that, as this was an emergency, all of us, Officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

Members should notify the Chair of other business which they wish to be discussed at the end of either Part I or Part II 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 Chair will decide whether any item(s) raised will be considered.

There was no other business notified.

Audio recording – 5 minutes 41 seconds

There was no other business notified.

N.B. Councillor Joe Graziano joined the Zoom call at 19:37.

To receive presentations from the following:

1)    Flooding and Adaptation Work – Sian Hoare, Operations Manager: Flood Risk and Adaptation (Herts County Council)

2)    Climate Adaptation Corporate Risk – Ellie Hollingsworth & Georgina Chapman, Policy & Strategy Team (North Herts Council)

Presentations were received from Sian Hoare, Operations Manager: Floor Risk and Adaptation – Herts County Council and Ellie Hollingsworth & Georgina Chapman, Policy & Strategy Team.

Audio recording – 20 minutes 15 seconds

The Chair invited Sian Hoare, the Operations Manager of Flood Risk and Adaptation at Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) to give a presentation on Flooding and Adaptation Work. Sian Hoare advised that:

·        Flooding was experienced in Hitchin from 22 September with a flood warning issued on 27 September and removed on 5 October.

·        Rainfall was long and intense which caused the small water courses that led to the river to become overwhelmed, creating significant fluvial and surface water flooding.

·        Homes, businesses and infrastructure were affected with 20 properties flooded internally and a further 27 flooded externally.

·        Local MPs and Councillors had supported the process to date.

·        In response to the flooding, a drop-in session for residents was set up so that residents could report on what happened as well as express their feelings about flood risk.

·        An assessment of assets along the River Purwell and clearance work were completed in partnership with the Council, the Environment Agency and the Internal Drainage Board to clear any obstructions along the river. 

·        The County Council had commissioned the National Flood Forum to work with the community in Hitchin to create a flood group that would eventually create a flood plan by working with the relevant partner organisations including HCC to draw up flood mitigations.

·        A debrief event of the flooding took place in which officers from North Herts Council, the County Council and the Fire Service attended, and improvements to the response process were highlighted should the event occur again.

·        Anglian Water conducted an assessment of all their assets and looked at non-return valves in their manholes to reduce flood risk and carried out a clean up of affected gardens.

·        Monthly multi-agency meetings were taking place in which Anglian Water, the County Council and North Herts Council were meeting to discuss flooding, with updates published to the County Council website.

·        A statutory Section 19 investigation was being undertaken to understand what happened and make recommendations to prevent future floods.

·        Anglian Water carried out several CCTV surveys of their network and identified areas of concern to be actioned.

·        A review of national legislation would take place over the next year to address the strengths and failings of the Flood Risk Management Cycle and where changes needed to be made at a policy level.

·        In terms of flooding adaptation, the County Council were working on this with partners at District Councils and water companies through the Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership (HCCSP), including developing a climate change risk assessment.

·        The County Council as a pilot authority for climate change had been involved in the adaptation reporting power in which they report on adaptation and how the County Council has been mitigating against the risks and impacts of climate change. This was a resource intensive process, but it had helped them to understand what to report on when it was actioned again in the future.  

Sian Hoare then invited Lynne Ceeney, the Director of Sustainability at Hertfordshire County  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To receive petitions, comments and questions from the public.

A presentation was received by the Cabinet Panel from a representative of Decarbonise Letchworth and the Chair led a discussion amongst Members and public present.

Audio recording – 1 hour 3 minutes 50 seconds

The Chair invited Julia Sonander of Decarbonise Letchworth to give a presentation on ‘Updating the Letchworth Design Principles’. Julia Sonander advised that:

·         Decarbonise Letchworth had launched a project where interested homeowners in Letchworth could provide in-depth feedback on the changes they would like to see made to the current Design Principles for Letchworth. They were in the process of compiling a draft for this feedback.

·         They would like to see the Panel use its influence to help to upgrade the Design Principles to help homeowners to achieve improved energy efficiency and carbon reduction.

·         The updates they sought respected heritage but also recognised that housing stock had to evolve for changing weather, fuel poverty, resource depletion, energy security and the health of homes. 

·         In 2000, North Herts Council adopted the Design Principles into their Supplementary Planning Guidance (SPG) for Letchworth. However, the Heritage Foundation updated their Design Principles in 2009 and again in 2015 to incorporate character areas and Homes of Special Interest, creating a policy mismatch between the Council and the Heritage Foundation.

·         The 25-year-old SPG and the 10-year-old Design Principles made it difficult for residents to install new technology in their homes such as heat pumps, car chargers, air conditioning, storage batteries and security installations. This also applied to external installations such as solar panels and external insulation which prevented improved energy efficiency and carbon reduction. 

·         They would like the Environmental Team to champion the suggested Design Principle changes that would improve the energy efficiency, energy security and healthiness of housing stock in the town.

·         They would also recommend that the Council updated their planning guidance to enable well-designed energy efficiency retrofits and the adoption of new low carbon technologies in conservation areas.

·         They would further like the Council to consider the Draft Design Principles as the basis for an updated Letchworth SPG.

The following Members, officers and members of the public asked questions and took part in the discussion:

·         Councillor Joe Graziano

·         Deolinda Eltringham

·         Councillor Amy Allen

·         Georgina Chapman

·         Councillor Claire Strong

The following points were raised as part of the discussion:

·         There was little point in improving energy efficiency by installing external insulation when solar panels could produce cheap or non-cost energy for every home. 

·         Solar panels were intermittent in their production of power and there was usually a deficit in their production in winter regardless of the roof area of a home.

·         The Council had contact with the Sustainability Officer at the Heritage Foundation and they could consider adding to the action tracker subject to wording.

·         The social housing standards to meet energy ratings meant that many houses had to be knocked down and rebuilt in the past.

·         Council officers were starting to update the design code to direct developers on their design of homes within strategic planning sites.

·         Future electricity demands would increase massively with the surge in demand for electric vehicles.

In response to questions and discussion points, Julia Sonander advised that:

·         Solar panels alone  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.