Decisions

RESOLVED: That Councillor Daniel Allen be elected as Chair of the meeting.

RESOLVED:

(1)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee noted the report.

(2)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee made recommendations on the content of future reports and annual reviews.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To enable the Cabinet Sub-Committee to fulfil its role and responsibilities as shareholder in the local authority trading companies for property management.

RESOLVED:

(1)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee noted the report.

(2)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee made recommendations on the content of future reports and annual reviews.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To enable the Cabinet Sub-Committee to fulfil its role and responsibilities as shareholder in the local authority trading companies for CCTV.

RESOLVED:

(1)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee noted the report.

(2)   That the Cabinet Sub-Committee made recommendations on the content of future reports and annual reviews.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: To enable the Cabinet Sub-Committee to fulfil its role and responsibilities as shareholder in the local authority trading companies for building control.

There was no other business notified.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 19 March 2024 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Tamsin Thomas.

Having given due notice, and at the discretion of the Leader under standing order 5.12.1, Councillor Daniel Allen substituted for Councillor Thomas.

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

There was no public participation.

In accordance with Standing Order 4.8.11 five questions had been submitted by the required deadline set out in the Constitution.

(A)  Removal of Public Bins

Councillor Matt Barnes to Councillor Amy Allen (Executive Member for Recycling and Waste Management).

(B)  Royston Leaner Pool

Councillor Tim Johnson to Councillor Mick Debenham (Executive Member for Environment, Leisure and Green Spaces).

(C) Churchgate Regeneration

Councillor Ralph Muncer to Councillor Daniel Allen (Leader of the Council).

(D) Single Person Council Tax Discount

Councillor Ralph Muncer to CouncillorIan Albert (Executive Member for Finance and IT).

(E) Civil Enforcement Officer Roles

Councillor Ralph Muncer to Councillor Daniel Allen (Interim Executive Member for Planning and Transport).

The Chair advised that the item referred from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee would be taken with Item 9 on the agenda.

The Chair confirmed that agenda Item 8 – LGO Complaint Report had been withdrawn from the agenda.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: That the Strategic Masterplan Framework for the land East of Luton (Local Plan sites EL1, 2 & 3), attached at Appendix A, is approved and adopted as a material planning consideration for relevant planning decisions relating to the site.

REASON FOR RECOMMENDATION: To set an agreed design framework for the delivery of a strategic site within the Council’s adopted Local Plan. To accord with policy requirements of the Local Plan.

RESOLVED: Not to undertake further consultation and that no further work was undertaken on the proposed designation of a Conservation Area at Chesfield.

REASON FOR DECISION: To ensure that the historic assets within North Hertfordshire are appropriately assessed and designated to inform decision making for planning applications and in the preparation of neighbourhood plans and our Local Plan.

There were no apologies for absence.

RESOLVED: That the Cabinet supported the allocation of £73k of ring fenced MHCLG Homelessness Prevention Grant to HCC to match fund the two-year pilot of Druglink’s Supported Housing Scheme for Women.

REASON FOR DECISION: This proposal has been made in order to enable the two-year pilot to go ahead.

The Chair confirmed that the registered speakers were in attendance.

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

(2)   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.

(3)   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.

(4)   The Chair advised for the purposes of clarification that 4.8.23(a) of the Constitution did not apply to this meeting.

(5)   The Chair advised that Item 8 had been withdrawn from the agenda.

There was no other business notified.

There were three questions submitted in accordance with Standing Order 4.8.11.

Councillor Ralph Muncer to Councillor Nigel Mason, Chair of the Planning Control Committee:

(1)   What is the Council’s policy regarding the application of its powers under the Listed Building Act 1990, the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, and the Buildings Act 1984, in respect of holding building owners to account for the dilapidation of Listed Buildings, especially for registered Assets of Community Value?

(2)   In particular, if the Council becomes aware that a Listed Building or building within a Conservation Area is at risk from dilapidation, to what extent will the Council allow the building to deteriorate before exercising its power to take formal legal enforcement action under the above acts?

(3)   If the owner’s maintenance of a Listed Building falls below the Council’s minimum standard requirement (as in (2) above), and indeed the minimum standard required by legislation, how much time will the Council give the owner to restore the building to comply with informal requests and comply with statutory requirements before taking formal legal action to protect the historic building?

The Principal Planning Officer (Conservation and Enforcement) provided an update on the Planning Enforcement Quarterly Report.

RESOLVED: That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the said Act (as amended).

The Development and Conservation Manager provided an update on Planning Appeals.

RESOLVED: That application 23/02895/OP be GRANTED planning permission subject to the reasons and conditions set out in the report of the Development and Conservation Manager with the removal of Condition 13, the amendments to Conditions 11,12 and 14 as set out in the supplementary document and the relevant renumbering of existing conditions.

“Condition 11:

Landscape and Ecological Management Plan (LEMP)

‘Prior to commencement of the development, a Landscape and Ecological Management Plan shall be prepared, detailing how biodiversity will be incorporate within the development scheme and managed/monitored long-term. This should include details regarding who will have the management responsibilities. The plan shall include details of the landscaping proposed to achieve measurable gains to biodiversity, as well as a graphical plan which sets out the number, type and position of ecological enhancement features to be incorporated into the design scheme. This plan shall be submitted to the Local Planning Authority for written approval to demonstrate the expectations of the NPPF and Local Policy in achieving overall measurable net gains for biodiversity. The development shall be carried out in accordance with the approved plan unless otherwise agreed in writing with the Local Planning Authority.

Reason: To ensure sensible working practices which protect ecology on and adjacent to this site, in accordance with Policy NE4: Biodiversity and Geological Sites.

Condition 12

Construction Environment Management Plan (CEMP)

No development shall take place until a Construction Environmental Management Plan (CEMP) for biodiversity has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority. The CEMP shall include the following:

a)    Risk assessment of potentially damaging construction activities.

b)    Practical measures (both physical measures and sensitive working practices) to avoid or reduce impacts during construction (may be provided as a set of method statements). This must include:

i.                Best practice measures to ensure the protection of retained vegetation during construction;

ii.              Best practice measures to ensure any invasive species listed on Schedule 9 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 encountered within the site will be removed and disposed of as controlled waste;

iii.             A precautionary working method for hedgehogs.

c)     The location and timings of sensitive works to avoid harm to nesting birds.

d)    Details of a translocation programme for slow-worms.

The CEMP should include a statement to the effect that if any protected species are encountered during any stage of the development, then works must cease immediately and advice be sought from a suitably qualified ecologist on how best to proceed. Development shall proceed in accordance with the approved CEMP, unless otherwise agreed in writing by the Local Planning Authority.

Reason: To ensure sensible working practices which protect ecology on and adjacent to this site, in accordance with Policy NE4: Biodiversity and Geological Sites.

Condition 13:

Lighting Strategy

No development shall take place until an external lighting scheme has been submitted to and approved in writing by the Local Planning Authority. This scheme should follow guidance from the Bat Conservation Trust and Institution of Lighting Professionals (2023), and be designed to minimise light spill, in particular directing light away from boundary vegetation to ensure that dark corridors remain for use by wildlife as well as directing lighting away from potential roost / nesting sites. This should be accompanied by a short statement from a suitably qualified ecologist showing how the design meets the level of protection required.

Reason: To ensure protected species are not disturbed by the development in accordance with National Legislation (Conservation of Habitats and Species (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended)) and Local Planning Policy NE4 – Biodiversity and geological sites.”

RESOLVED: That application 22/02675/FP be GRANTED planning permission subject to the reasons and conditions set out in the report of the Development and Conservation Manager.

The Chair confirmed that the registered speakers were in attendance.

(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 clarified matters for the registered speakers.

(4)   The Chair advised that Section 4.8.23(a) of the Constitution applied to the meeting.

There was no other business notified.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meetings of the Committee held on 10 October 2024 and 24 October 2024 be approved as true records of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Elizabeth Dennis.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL:

(1)   Following the Full Council decision not to adopt the masterplan in July 2024, the additional information and clarification in this report is noted.

(2)   The Strategic Masterplan Framework for North Stevenage, attached at Appendix B, is approved and adopted as a material planning consideration for relevant planning decisions relating to the site.

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS:

(1)   To facilitate the delivery of a strategic site within the Council’s adopted Local Plan.

(2)   To accord with policy requirements of the Local Plan.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL:  That the Strategic Masterplan Framework for the land North-East of Great Ashby (Local Plan site GA2), attached at Appendix A, is approved and adopted as a material planning consideration for relevant planning decisions relating to the site.

REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATION:  

(1)   To set an agreed design framework for the delivery of a strategic site within the Council’s adopted Local Plan.

(2)    To accord with policy requirements of the Local Plan.

The Chair advised that the item referred from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee would be taken with Item 7 on the agenda.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

(1)   Approved the extension of the agreement between Herts Careline and HCC for a period of five years to run from 01 April 2026 to 31 March 2031. This contract will be delivered by way of delegation from HCC to NHC.

(2)   Delegated the operational contractual arrangements and final sign off of the agreement to the Service Director Customers, in consultation with the Executive Member for Community and Partnerships.

REASON FOR DECISIONS:  The existing partnership between Careline and HCC works very well. An extension of the contract will enable us to continue to build on the positive relationship to the benefit of service users across Hertfordshire.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet approved that public consultation can be undertaken for the submission version of the Codicote Neighbourhood Plan.

REASON FOR DECISION:  To enable public consultation on the proposed submission Codicote Neighbourhood Plan 2022 – 2035 to take place before the Neighbourhood Plan is submitted for examination by an independent examiner.

There was no public participation at the meeting.

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

(2)   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.

(3)   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.

(4)   The Chair advised for the purposes of clarification that 4.8.23(a) of the Constitution did not apply to this meeting.

There was no other business notified.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 10 September 2024 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Tamsin Thomas.

RESOLVED:  That Cabinet:

(1)   Noted the current projected costs, advantages and disadvantages of each option.

(2)   Approved use of £30k of the allocated £4m budget in the current capital programme for this project to develop more detail on the costs of Option D and to acquire the necessary details for a planning application to be made.

(3)   Approved use of £20k of the allocated £4m budget in the current capital programme for this project to develop more detail on the costs of Option E, should a suitable property become available.

(4)   Considered and gave approval for officers to apply for grant funding towards the investigations mentioned in 2.2 and 2.3 and recognise the need to align investigations with grant funding timetables in this instance.

(5)   Resolved to discount options A, B and G and recommend that they are no longer developed or explored further.

(6)   Indicated that Options C, F and H outlined within the report should be pursued further.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

(1)   Officers do not have the capacity or financial budget to progress all 8 options to an advanced stage and some early decisions are required in order to focus time and budget on pursuing the most advantageous options based on the best information available to officers and members at the present time.

(2)   In addition, the pursuit of greater detail on a number of the options will require expenditure on external reports and consultants which officers are seeking Cabinets approval to progress. Estimated figures are included in the main body of the report which can be found in Appendix 1 and are summarised in the Executive Summary Grid in Appendix 2.

RESOLVED: That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the said Act (as amended).

RESOLVED: That the Cabinet Sub-Committee (Council Charities):

(1)   Approved the information required by the Charities Commission for the four registered charities, so that the returns can be submitted prior to the 31st January 2025 deadline.

(2)   Notes the requirement for those charities with gross income of more than £25k in their financial year to have their accounts independently examined and, as this applies to King George’s Field and Hitchin Town Hall Gymnasium and Workmans Hall, instructs this to be undertaken for those accounts for 2023/24. This will be undertaken by the Shared Internal Audit Service (SIAS).

(3)   Delegated to the Service Director: Resources, in consultation with the Chair of the Sub-Committee, authority to provide the required information to the Charity Commission to rectify the position in relation to the Mrs Howard Memorial Hall charity.

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

(1)   To facilitate the submission of approved returns to the Charities Commission.

(2)   To rectify the position in relation to the Mrs Howard Memorial Hall Charity.

RESOLVED: That Councillor Amy Allen be elected as Chair of the meeting.

There was no public participation.

(1)        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.

There was no other business notified.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 14 November 2023 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

There were no apologies for absence received.