Decisions

The current financial situation for all local authorities requires an ambitious and imaginative approach to service planning and the use of public assets to avoid arbitrary service reductions.

The County Council’s aim is to support strong self-reliant communities. The West Sussex Plan recognises that to make real change happen we must empower people to help themselves. We complement this ambition with a commitment to make our services more effective. Many of our buildings and the services we provide in them do not match aspirations for our community, are not fit for the future and inhibit services being delivered holistically with customers in mind.

This report describes a proposal to develop a programme to create a number of community hubs where multi-purpose, community led services can be delivered - with our partners - to improve access to services, outcomes and overall wellbeing of our communities. Hubs can bring people together from various community groups and help them build relationships and support networks. They are also a good use of local public assets and an efficient and effective use of resources.

The Community Hub Strategy aims to combine services ‘under one community roof’ for the benefit of our communities, whilst making the best use of our assets to provide existing (and new) services in fewer, cost effective buildings. This report explains the framework of principles and design aims to achieve this ambition.

To test the model it is proposed to make the first hub in Worthing Library and to pilot a range of the ideas at this site to inform future phases. Community engagement in Worthing has been undertaken and a positive response received from local people.

The report seeks to confirm the delivery of the Worthing scheme and the steps needed to achieve it, to define the scope and aims of the Community Hub Strategy and the role of a Member Group that will oversee the programme.

The Cabinet Member for Safer, Stronger Communities approves :

1)     the strategic principles underpinning the Council’s approach to   developing community hubs and set out in paragraphs 4.2-4.3.

2)  the implementation of the first community hub scheme to remodel Worthing Library.

3)  the relocation of services and temporary closure of Worthing Library for a period required to enable the timely delivery of the scheme

4)  the relocation of the registration service from Worthing Town Hall and the Children and Family Centre and Find It Out Centre to the newly remodelled community hub

5) the terms of reference of a member project board to support the development and implementation of the community hubs strategy (Appendix 1)

As part of its capital programme management, in line with the County Council’s West Sussex Asset Management Policy and Strategy, the Council continually reviews its property estate.  This includes consideration of assets which are likely to become surplus to operational requirements, i.e. no longer needed.    In addition, the Council acquires or develops assets to meet statutory and service requirements as well as the Council’s wider purposes, including investment or to promote social and economic development opportunities.  From time to time these activities give rise to decisions to purchase, dispose of or to develop an asset. 

That the Cabinet Member makes a decision that the County Council declares the land at High Titten, Amberley, set out in Appendix A, surplus to service operational requirements.

As part of its capital programme management, in line with the County Council’s West Sussex Asset Management Policy and Strategy, the Council continually reviews its property estate.  This includes consideration of assets which are likely to become surplus to operational requirements, i.e. no longer needed.    In addition, the Council acquires or develops assets to meet statutory and service requirements as well as the Council’s wider purposes, including investment or to promote social and economic development opportunities.  From time to time these activities give rise to decisions to purchase, dispose of or to develop an asset. 

This report advises on the outcome of the marketing of vacant land known as The Wallis Centre, De La Warr Road, East Grinstead, West Sussex, RH19 3BS and seeks the approval of the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources to dispose of the County Council’s freehold interest.

96.1   The Chairman of the Corporate Parenting Panel moved the report of the recent work of the Panel (pages 49 to 52).

96.2   In response to a request from Mrs Arculus the Chairman of the Panel agreed to make sure all members were aware of the date of the EPIC award ceremony in 2019.  The Chairman also agreed to circulate to all members a briefing note on corporate parenting which had been circulated to dual-hatted members following a request from Mrs Jones.

96.3   Resolved -

That the report be noted.

97.1   The Council considered a proposal that non-Executive committees should have the power to delegate functions to another local authority inthe light of a report from the Governance Committee (page 53).

97.2   Resolved –

That the terms of reference of the Governance, Standards, Planning, Rights of Way and Regulation, Audit and Accounts Committees be amended to include the delegation set out in paragraph 3 of the report.

Gatwick Airport Limited (GAL) has revised the non-statutory Gatwick Airport Master Plan, setting out its vision about how the airport can meet growing demand for air travel and deliver global connections into the early 2030s.  The draft of the new Master Plan was published for comment on 18 October 2018 for 12 weeks until 10 January 2019. 

The new Master Plan, which will replace the current 2012 Master Plan, explains how Gatwick would develop and grow, balancing economic growth and environmental impact.  It sets out the plan for the next five years together with three growth scenarios looking 5-15 years ahead to 2032.  The scenarios, which could be taken forward separately or in combination, are: increase capacity using the existing main runway; bring the existing standby (or emergency) runway into routine use alongside the main runway; and continue to safeguard land for an additional runway to the south (while not actively pursuing one at this stage).

GAL considers that the proposals are in line with the Government’s policy for making best use of existing runways and that it will deliver highly-productive, incremental new capacity with minimal environmental impact, to complement expansion schemes at other airports across the South East (including a third runway at Heathrow).

The draft Master Plan also contains environmental information as well as information on economic and employment strategies and community engagement strategies.  A number of questions have been posed by GAL as part of the consultation.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Infrastructure has approved the County Council’s response to the consultation on the Gatwick Airport draft Master Plan 2018 (attached as Appendix B to the report).

The Highway Maintenance Contract is used to deliver a range of statutory highway maintenance services and the existing, interim, contract will expire before a new contract can be put in place. The contract needs to be extended to allow the procurement of a new contract or contracts to be effectively processed and completed.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Infrastructure has approved;

1)           the extension of the current interim highway maintenance term contract with Balfour Beatty Living Places to 31^st March 2020; and

2)           the delegation of authority to the Director of Highways and Transport to finalise the terms of the contract extension, and to extend the contract further if necessary, in accordance with the Council’s Standing Orders on Procurement and Contracts.

The Highways Maintenance Term Contract is used to deliver a range of statutory highways maintenance services and the existing contract expires on 31 March 2019. The length and scope of the contract and the detailed terms will be developed using a commissioning based approach.

The Cabinet Member for Highways and Infrastructure has approved;

1)      The commencement of a procurement process to procure a Highways Maintenance Term Contract, or set of contracts, to commence on expiry of the interim contract (with any required extensions); and

2)      To delegate authority to the Director of Highways and Transport to finalise the terms of and award the Highway Maintenance Term Contract, or set of contracts at the conclusion of the procurement process, and to extend if appropriate in accordance with the County Council’s Standing Orders on Procurement and Contracts.

The County Council must increase recycling and reduce the amount of residual waste. In order to increase the recycling rate the Council needs, together with district and borough partners, to work differently to make sure as much as possible is removed from the waste stream. By changing the way recycling services are funded, the aim is to drive change in the amount and variety of material collected for recycling. The County Council is working closely with district and borough partners to ensure this change has the desired effect and works towards a cleaner, greener, West Sussex.

It is recommended that:

(1) The County Council formally notifies all of the County’s District and Borough Councils of the termination of the current Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) funding arrangement.

(2) The County Council proposes a payment to be made to waste collection authorities of £61.12 per tonne for the financial year commencing 1^st April 2019.

(2) The Director of Energy Waste and Environment is authorised to work with District and Borough partners on an alternative approach to any payments related to improved recycling performance from 2020/21. This is to take into account:-

(a) Changes in producer responsibility funding for household recycling collection and processing signalled in the Government’s Policy Paper "Our Waste, Our Resources, a Strategy for England" (published on 18 December 2018);

(b) Any proposals that emerge from discussing performance improvements with the D&B partners;

(c) statutory obligations; and

(d) Overall affordability, given the County Council’s projected financial position. 

(3) Authority is delegated to the Director of Law and Assurance to settle arrangements for the removal of references to the MoU in the Materials Resource Management Contract and the Recycling and Waste Handling Contract.

The report has been amended to take account of matters raised at the Environment Communities and Fire Select Committee at its meeting on 14 January 2019.