Agenda, decisions and minutes

The minutes of the meeting held on 13 December 2016 were submitted and approved and the chairman was authorised to sign them as a correct record.

An apology for absence was reported from Councillor Steve Wallis.

Declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) by members as required under Section 31 of the Localism Act and of other interests as required by the Code of Conduct and regulation 12(2)(d) of the 2012 Access to Information Regulations.  (Please see note at end of agenda).

Declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests (DPIs) by members as required under section 31 of the Localism Act and other interests as required by the council’s code of conduct and regulation 12(2)(d) of the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012.

No declarations were made.

Ms Penny Shearer, an Eastbourne resident, asked a question concerning the council’s proposed sale of the Downland farms and the council’s intentions following the outcome of consultation.  The question was answered by the chairman who referred to the forthcoming public consultation on this matter in the Eastbourne Review.

Report of Deputy Chief Executive (Chief Finance Officer).

Cabinet lead member:  Councillor Gill Mattock.

Full council recommended to approve:

(a) General fund budget for 2016/17 (revised) and 2017/18 (original)(appendix 1 to report) including growth and savings proposals for 2017/18 (appendix 2 to report).

(b) An increase in council tax for Eastbourne Borough Council of 1.9% resulting in a ‘Band D’ charge of £232.92 for 2017/18.

(c) General fund capital programme and financing 2016/21(appendix 3 to report).

(d) Note that the council’s ‘section s.151 officer’ has ‘signed off’ budget proposals as outlined in report.

70.1 Councillor Ballard addressed the cabinet of the subject of homelessness.  She referred to the recent government announcement of £50m additional funding to councils and asked what steps were being taken by the council to secure a share of these funds.  Councillor Shuttleworth reported that the council had successfully bid for £470,000 of funding and upon the council’s ongoing work with local partners to address the problem of homelessness.

70.2 Cabinet considered the report of the deputy chief executive (and chief finance officer) setting out the general fund revenue budget proposals for 2017/18 and a rolling 3-year capital programme 2016/21.  The medium term financial strategy (MTFS) had been revised in July 2016 and the cabinet had agreed a draft 2017/18 budget proposal last December.  The MTFS and resulting draft budget had been subject to extensive consultation and previously reported to cabinet and members of the scrutiny committee.  The council’s scrutiny committee had noted the contents of the current report at their meeting on 30 January 2017.

70.3 The budget was the product of various plans and strategies as part of an integrated and corporate planning process and was linked principally to:

·         The medium term financial strategy (MTFS)

·         Asset management plans

·         The corporate plan

·         Workforce strategy

·         Treasury management strategy

·         Service plans

·         Housing revenue account business plan

·         Joint transformation programme with Lewes District Council

70.4 The chief finance officer had a legal responsibility to give positive assurances on the robustness of the estimates used in the budget and the level of reserves.  He commented that if the recommendations in his report were agreed then these assurances would prevail.  The only area to note was that part of the increased budget for income from investment property (c.£1m) was still subject to contract.  Any further actions arising from this risk would be reported to cabinet as part of the normal corporate performance monitoring.

70.5 The budget proposals included:

·         An increase in the council tax in 2016/18 of 1.9%; the first second for 6 years.

·         Dealing with reductions in government funding of £1.5m.

·         Overall savings/new income totalling £2m (13% of the net budget).

·         Efficiency savings of £0.5m (3% of the net budget).

• Inflation and unavoidable costs of £0.4m (2.5% of the net budget).

·         Other recurring service growth of £0.3m.

·         Non recurring service investments met from reserves of £0.5m.

·         General reserves averaging in excess of £4m (against a minimum recommended of £2m).

·         Capital receipts of £0.5m invested in new capital schemes.

70.6 The budget represented management of financial risks by:

·         Building on a favourable outturn position.

·         Balancing the base budget requirement without needing to use reserves for recurring expenditure.

·         Identifiable and deliverable savings with accountability and no general unidentified targets.

·         Reserves above the minimum level.

• Providing the funding required for the joint transformation programme to deliver the future savings required by the MTFS as well as capital investments in revenue generating assets.

70.7 The underlying methods of local government financing had changed significantly in recent years including the wrapping up of grants in the base ‘standard  ...  view the full minutes text for item 70.

Report of Deputy Chief Executive (Chief Finance Officer).

Cabinet lead member:  Councillor Gill Mattock.

Full council recommended to approve:

(a) Treasury management strategy and annual investment strategy as set out in report.

(b) Methodology for calculating the minimum revenue provision (para. 2.3 of report).

(c) Prudential and treasury indicators as set out in report.

(d) Specified and non-specified investment categories (appendix 2 to report).

71.1 Cabinet considered the report of the deputy chief executive (and chief finance officer) seeking approval to the council’s borrowing and investment strategies in line with legislative and other regulatory requirements as described in the report.  The council was required to receive and approve, the prudential and treasury indicators and treasury strategy as part of the budget setting process each year. This covered:

·         The capital plans (including prudential indicators).

·         A minimum revenue provision policy (how residual capital expenditure was charged to revenue over time).

·         The treasury management strategy (how the investments and borrowings were to be organised) including treasury indicators.

·         An investment strategy (the parameters on how investments were to be managed).

71.2* Resolved (budget and policy framework): That full council, at their meeting on 22 February 2017, be recommended to approve the following:

(a) The treasury management strategy and annual investment strategy as set out in the report;

(b) the methodology for calculating the minimum revenue provision set out at paragraph 2.3 of the report;

(c) the prudential and treasury indicators as set out in the report; and

(d) the specified and non-specified investment categories listed in appendix 2 to the report.

Report of Deputy Chief Executive (Chief Finance Officer) and Director of Service Delivery.

Cabinet lead members:  Councillors Alan Shuttleworth and Gill Mattock.

Full council be recommended to approve:

(a) HRA budget 2017/18 and revised 2016/17 (appendix 1 to report).

(b) Social and affordable rents (including shared ownership) decreased by 1% in line with change in government policy.

(c) Service charges for general needs properties increased by 2.49%.

(d) Service charges for older persons’ sheltered accommodation decreased by 7.14% to reflect reduction in actual costs as well as notification of reduction in heating and water costs.

(e) Support charge for sheltered housing residents remain at £7.50 per unit, per week.

(f) Heating costs set at a level designed to recover estimated actual cost.

(g) Water charges set at level designed to recover estimated cost of metered consumption.

(h) Garage rents not increased to improve increasing garage voids.

(i) Scheme to move new garage tenancies to market rent values for 2017/18 financial year to be examined.

(j) Delegated authority granted to director of service delivery, in consultation with lead cabinet members for community services and finance and the financial services manager, to finalise Eastbourne Homes’ management fee and delivery plan.

(k) HRA capital programme (appendix 2 to report) approved.

72.1 Cabinet considered the report of the deputy chief executive (and chief finance officer) and director of service delivery in respect of the rents, service charges and heating costs to be set for all of the council’s housing tenants.  The report outlined the revenue account budget proposals for 2017/18 and housing capital programme 2017/20 and arrangements for agreeing Eastbourne Homes Limited’s (EHL) management fee and delivery plan.  The report reflected the recommendations made by Eastbourne Homes Limited in relation to the increase in rent levels, service and other charges.

72.2 The HRA was a statutory ring-fenced account that represented all landlord functions.  The HRA was required to be self-financing, which meant that expenditure had to be entirely supported from rental and other income. The main tool for the future financial management of the HRA was the 30-year business plan.

72.3 The business plan was last reported to cabinet in December 2015 and at that time outlined the financial implications of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 and the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016.  This included the proposals for a 4 year 1% decrease in rents, pay to stay and high value council house levy.  The business plan had since been updated to reflect the 2016/17 approved budget.  At the time the business plan had been updated there was still considerable uncertainty over the pay to stay and high value council house levy.  A ministerial statement made on 21 November 2016 announced that the government had reviewed the pay to stay policy and decided that it would not be introduced on a compulsory basis as originally planned.

72.4 The budget proposals did not include the impact of the high value council house levy, as the government had not yet issued any consultation proposals or a start date on which to model potential impacts. Government messages on this policy had been mixed, but it would appear unlikely that this would be implemented before the end of this financial year.  The impacts of this policy were substantial and should the government bring forward proposals, the business plan would be updated and reported back to members.

72.5 The HRA revenue budget (appendix 1 to the report) had been produced based on the policies set out in the HRA 30-year business plan and showed an overall surplus of £449,000 for 2016/17.  The budget was performing better than expected due to various initiatives to control expenditure, including a reduction in the management fee payable to EHL, lower than anticipated interest rates and higher rental income from affordable rents.  The 30 year business plan and the HRA budget policy allowed for a contribution into the housing regeneration and investment reserves to meet future major works demands and other strategic housing related outcomes.  This was set at £924,000 for 2016/17, and £500,000 for 2017/18.  This would be reviewed again when the business plan was updated in the autumn.  The major repairs reserve was funded from cash backed depreciation of £4m plus inflation per year and was expected  ...  view the full minutes text for item 72.

Report of Director of Regeneration and Planning.

Lead cabinet member:  Councillor Steve Wallis.

(1) Tourist accommodation retention SPD (appendix 4 to report), endorsed and full council recommended to adopt the document.

(2) Full council recommended to revoke the assessment of financial viability of tourist accommodation supplementary planning guidance(appendix 5 to report).

(3) Full council recommended that any minor or technical adjustments found necessary in the tourist accommodation retention SPD be delegated to director of regeneration and planning in consultation with lead cabinet member.

(4) Terms of reference for a tourist accommodation consultative group(appendix 3 to report) agreed.

73.1 Cabinet considered the report of the director of regeneration and planning considering the need for a change of planning policy approach to tourist accommodation as a result of changes in the tourism market and visitor behaviour.  The formulation of new planning policy could only take place through a local plan. As the next local plan was not due to be adopted until 2019, it was not possible to create a new policy for tourist accommodation at this current time, however, the production of a new supplementary planning document would allow a new interpretation of the existing policy, which would allow a new policy position to be provided.

73.2 Eastbourne was one of the largest providers of tourist accommodation in the south east outside London, and had the 26th highest supply of hotel rooms in the country.  Eastbourne had a significant stock of tourist accommodation, including 46 hotels, 60 guesthouses and 144 self-catering units, amounting to approximately 3,500 bedrooms.  Over 90% of Eastbourne’s hotels and guesthouses/B&Bs were located within the area along the seafront defined as the tourist accommodation area.  The majority of the rooms (81%) were located within hotels.  Although there was one 5-star and two 4-star hotels in Eastbourne, the majority of supply was concentrated towards the lower end of the market in the 3-star, 2-star and budget categories. 

73.3 Since 2008, there had been a change in tourist behaviour and trends, with a focus on multiple breaks for shorter durations, and increasing expectations of quality of accommodation.  This had led to a decrease in the proportion of trips to seaside destinations, as the tourist accommodation in these locations was often not up to the quality and standard that modern-day visitors expected.  The conclusion of a tourist accommodation study undertaken in 2015 was that there was a need to rebalance and diversify the supply of tourist accommodation with future emphasis on quality rather than quantity.  This would allow Eastbourne’s tourist accommodation to develop more organically and in turn appeal to and attract new markets.  A rebalancing of the supply required a more flexible approach to managing the tourist accommodation.  In order to allow the gradual reduction of poor quality stock in more secondary locations and help stimulate investment in better quality accommodation, appealing to a broader range of visitors, a change of policy approach was required.

73.4 The new planning policy position would help the tourist accommodation stock remain fit for purpose and meet the requirements of current and future visitors.  A tourist accommodation retention SPD had therefore been published for consultation between 23 September and 4 November 2016.  A total of 17 representations were submitted from 10 respondents.  A full list of the representations received and responses was provided as appendix 1 to the report.  It was not considered that any of the representations raised any major issues, although some minor amendments were proposed to the SPD.  A schedule of changes to the draft SPD was provided as appendix 2 to the report.

73.5 The formation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 73.

Report of Director of Regeneration and Planning.

Lead cabinet member:  Councillor Steve Wallis.

(1) Full council recommended to adopt LDS 2017-2020 (appendix 1 to report).

(2) Any minor or technical adjustments to LDS found necessary delegated to director of regeneration and planning in consultation with lead cabinet member.

74.1 Councillor Jenkins addressed the cabinet and thanked officers for their work in preparing the report.  He noted the recently published government white paper and expressed concern that Eastbourne would find it difficult to find additional land for new housing given the physical constraints of sea and Downs.  He believed the council was unfairly penalised when sites with existing planning consent were not developed.  He also expressed concern at potential changes to the community infrastructure levy (CIL) arrangements.

74.2 Cabinet considered the report of the director of regeneration and planning concerning the local development scheme (LDS); the council’s timetable for the production of planning policy documents.  The LDS covered a 3-year period from 2017-2020 and outlined the planning documents to be produced with the key dates and milestones.  The LDS must be made publicly available and kept up-to-date.

74.3 The current LDS (February 2016) was no longer up-to-date and needed to be revised to take into account changes in circumstance and timetable relating to local plan production.  A new LDS had been prepared, covering the period 2017-2020.  This focused on the production of a new local plan, which was anticipated to be adopted towards the end of 2019.

74.4* Resolved: (budget and policy framework): (1) That full council, at their meeting on 22 February 2017, be recommended to adopt the local development scheme 2017-2020 as set out in appendix 1 to the report.

(2) That any minor or technical adjustments to the local development scheme found necessary be delegated to the director of regeneration and planning in consultation with the lead cabinet member.

Report of Director of Service Delivery.

Lead Cabinet member:  Councillor Alan Shuttleworth.

Director of service delivery, in consultation with lead cabinet member, given delegated authority to set up an Eastbourne local lottery in line with the proposals set out in report, including engagement of an external lottery manager and an on-line weekly draw of £1 tickets.

75.1 Councillor Freebody addressed the cabinet on his concerns at the possible impact a council run lottery could have upon existing local charity lotteries, asked about take-up levels of other council lotteries and for clarification about the type of lottery operation proposed.  He also asked if schemes such as this could be seen as encouraging gambling.  The chairman replied saying he believed the planned lottery would allow many smaller local charities the opportunity of participating in this type of fund raising.  He mentioned that Aylesbury Vale’s lottery currently benefited some 138 local causes and the number was growing.  He did not believe that the proposed lottery would encourage problem gambling.

75.2 Cabinet considered the report of the director of service delivery proposing the launch of an online Eastbourne local lottery to help fund discretionary support for community organisations and to enable good causes to raise funds directly.  A local authority was allowed to run a lottery to raise funds to cover anything for which it has the power to incur expenditure (for example, local community projects, arts centres or parks and leisure facilities) and must be licensed by the Gambling Commission under the Gambling Act 2005.

75.3 Due to the costs of distribution and sales the lottery would need to be operated online and the suggested model would operate at two levels:-

Eastbourne lottery – operating council-wide with profits generated distributed through existing mechanisms to local good causes. Players selecting this option would not specify a group to benefit from the proceeds and the funding would be distributed by the council to existing council funding commitments.

Specific Eastbourne good causes – this version would enable groups to ‘sign-up’ to take part in the lottery specifically raising the 50% share for their good cause.  By signing up they will have their own web page for the lottery helping them engage with players and raising income.  Players buying tickets through specific web pages would know that the profits were for that specific good cause.  This option removes a hurdle for groups who might struggle otherwise to take part in their own lotteries for example, holding licences and setting up the necessary infrastructure.  The proposed criteria to be used in deciding whether or not to allow organisations to become part of the lottery with given in appendix 1 to the report.

75.4 There were two options for the delivery of the lottery, either in-house or through an external lottery manager (ELM).  Based on the lack of in-house expertise the preferred option was to engage an ELM.  Based on the advice given in the report, it was proposed that the Eastbourne lottery would provide a weekly draw of £1tickets and two modes of operation – specific good cause or no specific good cause.

75.5 Resolved (key decision): That the director of service delivery, in consultation with the lead cabinet member, be given delegated authority to set up an Eastbourne local lottery in line with the proposals set out in the report, including the engagement  ...  view the full minutes text for item 75.

Report of Assistant Director of Human Resources and Organisational Development.   Cabinet lead member: Councillor Troy Tester.

Full council recommended to approve the policy.

76.1 Cabinet considered the report of the assistant director of human resources and organisational development.  Eastbourne and Lewes councils had jointly committed to bringing their policies and procedures together as part of the joint transformation programme (JTP) which was an important step towards aligning the councils people and business practices.  This proposed new policy had taken the best aspects of Eastbourne and Lewes’s current change management policies and pulled them together into an updated version which was now fit to support the organisations through the next period of change. 

76.2 A copy of the policy was appended to the report.  The council’s joint staff committee had agreed this policy at a meeting in November 2016. 

76.3* Resolved: That full council at their meeting on 22 February 2017 be recommended to approve the policy.

The Chief Executive considers that discussion of the following items is likely to disclose exempt information as defined in Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 and may therefore need to take place in private session.  The exempt information reasons are shown beneath the items listed below or within the open part of the minutes.  Furthermore, in relation to paragraph 10 of Schedule 12A, it is considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. (The requisite notices having been given under regulation 5 of the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012.)

(Note: Exempt papers are printed on pink paper).

Resolved:  That the public be excluded from the remainder of the meeting as otherwise there was a likelihood of disclosure to them of exempt information as defined in schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972.  The relevant paragraph of schedule 12A and a description of the exempt information is shown beneath the item below.  (The requisite notice having been given under regulation 5 of the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012.)

Report of Director of Service Delivery.

Cabinet lead member: Councillor Alan Shuttleworth.

Exempt information reason 3.  Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information).

Proposals for award of small grants as recommended by grants task group and set out in report approved.

(2) Reasons given by task group for allocation of funding based on assessment against the criteria in council’s community and housing grants policy endorsed.

(3) Noted that above decisions subject to approval by full council of the council’s budget for 2017/18.

(4) Priorities for award of small grants in 2018/19 agreed.

(5) Reduction in the maximum grant level (upper limit of £5,000 per application, replacing the current limit of £10,000) approved and revised policy (appendix A to report) endorsed.

78.1 Cabinet considered the report of the director of service delivery on the small grants element of the community grants programme.  It was proposed that a budget of £60,000 continue to be made available.  Given the financial constraints on the council at present, the proposed budget continued to protect the voluntary and community sector as a whole from significant reductions in spending on their activities by this council.

78.2 In addition to the small grants programme, cabinet had previously agreed major grants for the three years to 2018/19 as follows:

78.3 It was reported that the council also supported voluntary and community organisations in a variety of other ways including:

·         The award of rent support grants to some organisations occupying council properties to the value of £142,795. 

·         Discretionary rate relief awards to voluntary and community sector occupying premises in the town with a budget in 2016/17 of £145,598.

·         Allocation of £90,000 each year to the council’s devolved ward budget scheme, with ward councillors were able spend up to £10,000 on quick fix one-off works or initiatives to improve the lives of local residents. Local residents could make suggestions on how this money should be spent by contacting their local councillor.

In total the council’s direct support to voluntary and community organisations amounted to approximately £621,000 at a time when spending in other areas had been significantly reduced.

78.4 The current housing and community grants policy agreed by cabinet in 2015 set out the eligibility criteria for applications. These were designed to reflect the limited budget available and the wide demand for funding within the voluntary and community sector. The aim is to encourage volunteering and support the work of the voluntary and community sector in Eastbourne and new initiatives to meet local needs.  Applications for large capital items could not be considered.  Similarly applications for services which duplicated existing services and were available and funded elsewhere were ineligible. There must also be a clear financial need for funding and organisations with large unrestricted reserves or which made a significant surplus could not be funded.  The policy also excluded any organisation which itself awarded grants to other organisations.  Applicants are also required to have adequate governance and equality policies in place.  Applicants were also required to have adequate governance, equality, safeguarding and health and safety policies in place as well as insurance covering their activities.

78.5 Submissions of interest were invited for projects which would address the following agreed priorities:

·         Projects designed to promote inclusion and the needs of those communities and groups protected under current equality legislation.

• Projects which provide mental health services with a particular focus on young people.
• Projects to reduce social isolation in vulnerable people.
• Community buildings – one off small grants to help voluntary organisations increase the involvement of local residents as volunteers to help run the buildings and/ or  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78.