Decisions

To consider an amendment to the capital programme for the construction of a permanent bulking bay at the Doman Road Depot.

The Executive was informed that in 2009 the Council had built a temporary structure at the Doman Road Depot to bulk Dry Mixed Recycling prior to haulage to a Material Recycling Facility.

The structure had recently been inspected and found to be unsafe. The surveyor had recommended that it should be replaced with a more permanent structure.

The estimated cost of building a permanent structure was £270,000, which was significantly less than the combined costs of carrying out repairs to the existing structure and conducting weekly safety inspections that would be required if this option was pursued.

The Executive noted the commercial benefits of replacing the existing structure with a permanent facility. This included a request from Surrey County Council, as the Waste Disposal Authority, for the Doman Road Depot to be used as a tipping point for recycling from Waverley BC for a period of 2 years while a new transfer station at Slyfield, Guildford was being built; this opportunity would raise an additional income of £100,000 over 2 years. There was also the potential of income from the collection and bulking of commercial waste in Surrey Heath.

RESOLVED that the temporary structure at the Doman Road Depot for bulk Dry Mixed Recycling prior to haulage to a Material Recycling Facility be replaced with a more permanent structure.

RECOMMENDED to Council that the capital programme be increased by £270,000 to include the construction of a permanent bulking bay at the Doman Road Depot.

The Council was required to have an Allocation Policy setting out who was eligible to be considered for social housing and how eligible households would be prioritised. New legislation in respect of homelessness duties and a corporate need to look at ICT systems had prompted a full review of the operation and effectiveness of the current Allocation Policy.

The current Allocation Policy prioritised each application by points awarded for various housing need and local factors, with the accumulative points score giving applicants their priority on the Housing Register. The draft Allocation Policy removed this in favour of a banding system, where groups of households with similar need characteristics were placed together in ‘band’ and then prioritised in date order.

It was suggested that banding offered a more transparent framework for applicants and would reduce the administrative burden on the Housing Solutions Team, freeing up case officers to do more proactive homeless prevention work.

Concerns were expressed by some Members about a number of aspects of the draft Allocation Policy, in particular relating to the proposed limit of one offer for applicants falling into certain categories within the bandings; it therefore suggested that the item be deferred until the next meeting in order to review the wording in the draft policy, when there would also be an opportunity to consider it alongside the draft Homelessness Strategy.

The Executive agreed to adopt the draft Allocation Policy. However, the Policy would be kept under review and meetings between Members raising concerns, the Portfolio Holder, and relevant officers would be undertaken to address these matters.

RESOLVED that the draft Allocations Policy setting out the framework for the allocation of housing association homes in the Borough, as set out at Annex B to the agenda report, be implemented but kept under regular review in light of concerns regarding the intention, interpretation and impact of the Policy in relation to its application to specific cases and further legislative or regulatory changes.

The Executive received a report detailing the capital outturn for 2018/19 and requesting approval for any carry forward of budgets into the 2019/20Capital Programme. Actual capital expenditure during 2018/19 had been £52.131 m.

RECOMMENDED to Full Council that

(i)        the carry forward budget provision of £36,026,300 from 2018/19 into 2019/20 be approved;

(ii)      the revised 2019/20 Capital Programme of £38,374,300 be noted;

(iii)     an increased operational boundary and authorised borrowing limits following the decision to build a replacement leisure centre of £245m and £250m be approved; and

(iv)     a revised set of Prudential Indicators for 2019/20 to 2021/22 be approved, as follows:

The Executive RESOLVED to note that the Capital Financing Requirement for Council, as at 31 March 2020, be estimated to be £225m and as such a Minimum Revenue Payment of £2.5m is required.

To receive the half-yearly report on Community Infrastructure Levy funds.

The Council had been collecting Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding since the Charging Schedule had come into effect on 1 December 2014.  The CIL Regulations required the Council, as the collecting authority, to pay money over to the parishes, decide how to use the Fund, and to publish details of its CIL income and expenditure.

The Council had received a total of £1,251,433.76 for the reporting period 1October 2018 to 31 March 2019. The Executive was advised that monies due to parishes on 1 April 2019 had been as follows:

·         Chobham -  £7,017.91

·         West End -  £85,493.31

·         Windlesham - £35,184.06

It was noted that the Windlesham Neighbourhood Plan had been made by the Council on 12 June 2019 and therefore 25% of any CIL receipts generated from development within the neighbourhood area would in future be passed to Windlesham Parish Council

In March 2015, the Executive had agreed that a 15% proportion would also be made available to spend for non-parished areas according to local priorities.  The amount collected within these areas had been as follows:

·         Heatherside - £7,396.95

·         St Michaels - £3,515.03

·         Town – 13,916.86

It was proposed that Ward Councillors for the non-parished areas be asked to submit suggestions and bids for projects.  Ward Councillors could also choose to save the money to roll forward to fund larger projects or combine across wards for jointly beneficial projects. Local projects would then be put forward for funding in combination with any project taken forward from any remaining Planning Infrastructure Contributions.

The Executive noted suggestions raised by some Members regarding the introduction of a process to allow ward councillors to apply for funding from developments in adjoining wards, as it was recognised that these developments could impact upon their wards. It was, however, advised that the CIL Regulations were expected to change in the near future and this could provide an opportunity for a full review the process, including the percentage allocations to wards.

RESOLVED

(i)        to note the CIL monies received;

(ii)      to note that in the light of the anticipated changes in the CIL Regulations, the allocation of CIL monies other than on a ward basis be considered as part of a further review;

(iii)     that Ward Councillors for the non-parished areas be asked to submit to the CIL Governance Panel ideas for spending CIL generated income within their wards;and

(iv)     that the remaining CIL contributions held by the Council be retained for spending to support key priorities.

The Executive received a report detailing the Council’s performance in 2018/19.

Members agreed that the target for the collection of Council Tax and Business Rates should be amended to 99.25%.

It was agreed to circulate information on the sites where the sports pitch income was being obtained and where there were revenue opportunities which were not currently being realised. It was also agreed to share figures on food premises which were achieving a 5* hygiene rating.

RESOLVED that

(i)        the 2018/19 End of Year Report be noted; and

(ii)      the future target for the collection of Business Rates and Council Tax be amended to 99.25%.

The Executive noted the Council’s financial position as at 31 March 2019.

RESOLVED to note the Financial Performance for the year 2018/19 and the General Fund Capital and Revenue balances 2018 to 2020.

To receive the notes of the Executive working group meetings  in the past 6 months.