Agenda and minutes
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Contact: Amanda Scarce
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To receive apologies for absence Minutes: There were no apologies for absence.
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Declarations of Interest To invite Councillors to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Other Disclosable Interests they may have in items on the agenda, and to confirm the nature of those interests. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest on this occasion.
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Minutes: The minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 26th February 2020 were submitted.
RESOLVED that the minutes of the Cabinet meeting held on 26th February 2020 were approved as a correct record.
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Minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Board held on 10th February 2020 (a) To receive and note the minutes (b) To consider any recommendations contained within the minutes Minutes: It was noted that the recommendations detailed in the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Board held on 10th February 2020 would be considered separately, as part of the next item on the agenda (Minute No 5/2020 refers).
It was noted that there was a recommendation from the Overview and scrutiny Board meeting held on 2nd June, to be tabled under Minute No. 86/2020 in respect of the Discretionary Business Rates Grant Scheme.
RESOLVED that the minutes of the Overview and Scrutiny Board held on 10th February 2020 be noted.
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Bromsgrove Overview and Scrutiny Board - Sporting Task Group Additional documents: Minutes: Officers apologised for the error in the heading on the cover report for this item and confirmed that it was the Overview and Scrutiny Board Task Group for Bromsgrove Sporting which was being considered.
The Leader invited Councillor M Thompson, who had chaired the Task Group to present the report and recommendations.
Councillor Thompson thanked the Leader for the opportunity to present this report. He provided background information and reminded Members that the Task Group had originated from a topic proposal put forward by former Councillor Chris Bloore. The aim was to assist Bromsgrove Sporting to develop the Club further, bearing in mind that the ground had been gifted to this Council and the Council would therefore benefit from any improvements made. Councillor Thompson also highlighted the potential economic benefits to the town centre from the growth of Bromsgrove Sporting. The Group had interviewed a number of witnesses, including representatives from Bromsgrove Sporting and had considered data from a number of clubs. It was acknowledged that a reduction in the rent paid by Bromsgrove Sporting was not possible, however recommendation 1 would allow for this to be addressed through Bromsgrove Sporting putting forward a business case for funding. Recommendation 2 was in respect of the lease and it was explained to Members that under the current terms of the lease this restricted the availability of match funding from such organisations as the Football Association. By changing the terms of the lease this would be addressed and would allow for even further investment in the ground.
The Executive Director, Finance and Resources, who had supported the Task Group explained that any funding would be subject to a robust business case being submitted by Bromsgrove Sporting and this would be considered in the same way as any other project bid and be submitted to both Cabinet and Council for approval. The onus would initially be with Bromsgrove Sporting to provide that business case and supporting evidence for consideration.
RESOLVED:
(a) that the recommendations contained in the report be agreed; and
(b) that an Executive Response to the Overview and Scrutiny Board report and recommendations will be provided.
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Anti Social Behaviour Policy Additional documents: Minutes: The Head of Community and Housing Services presented the report and explained that Under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, the Council has a statutory duty to work with the police and other partner agencies to reduce crime, anti-social behaviour (ASB) and re-offending in its area. Section 17 of the Act also places a duty on the Council to do all that it reasonably can to prevent crime, disorder and ASB.
The draft ASB policy outlined how the Council would tackle anti-social behaviour, through a framework of prevention, early intervention, support and enforcement. A number of changes were reflected in the policy revision; including an updated definition of ASB in line with legislative changes, clarification on what is considered ASB, enhanced case management procedures and risk assessment processes and updated details about the tools and remedies available to address ASB.
It was noted that the draft ASB policy replaced all previous ASB policies and guidance. It was also noted that failure to manage ASB within communities presented a high reputational risk to the Council. This was significantly mitigated by having a robust policy and agreed procedures in place.
Members discussed concerns in there ward around what appeared to be an increase in ASB and questioned whether additional funding would be made available for what appeared to be an escalating problem. The Head of Community and Housing Services explained that the policy did not allow for additional staff but advised that the problems covered a number of teams across the Council, and the focus of the Community Safety Team was in respect of early interventions, often through working within the schools.
RESOLVED:
a) that the draft ASB policy (as set out at Appendix A)be adopted; and
b) that the Head of Housing and Community Services be given delegated authority to update and amend the policy in line with any new legislation and guidance, as and when required.
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Discretionary Business Rates Grant Additional documents:
Minutes: The Executive Director, Finance and Resources introduced the item and provided background information in respect of the grants which had previously been available at the onset of the Covid-19 lockdown. The Council had previously been awarded approximately £21m which had been distributed to nearly 2k business. It had become apparent that not all those businesses which had suffered as a consequence of Covid-19 had been eligible for the original grants. Central Government therefore announced an additional fund of approximately 5% (of the original grant), the Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund, on 1 May 2020 and published guidance for local authorities on 13 May 2020, together with appropriate guidance. This further scheme provided financial support to businesses impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and was in addition to the two existing schemes administered by local authorities: the Small Business Grants Fund and the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grants Fund. The Government has announced three mandatory criteria for support under the scheme; · The business must have been trading on 11th March 2020. · The business must not be eligible or have received support under the other Covid-19 support schemes. · The business must not be in administration, insolvent or have had an order to strike off made.
The Government had advised that payments under the scheme should be targeted at small and micro businesses. Section 3.11 of the report showed the proposed targeted areas of allocation, which was broken down into three priority areas, with an estimate of the number of eligible businesses under each priority group and the grant amount per business. The Executive Director Finance and Resources provided detail around each of these priorities and the businesses they were aimed at reaching. The total was around 93 businesses. It was confirmed that the Council needed to take a consistent approach when paying out the grants when following the Government guidance.
The Revenue Services Manager ran through the scheme and explained that there were three mandatory criteria set by the Government for the scheme, details of which were provided and included not already having received funding from the existing schemes. People that were self employed but had fixed property costs could make an application under the discretionary grants scheme. Within the guidance the Government had asked the Councils to prioritise support to four types of business, market traders with regular market pitches, small Bed and Breakfast establishments that appeared in Council Tax (and not non domestic rates) usually accommodating few than seven people and the owner lives at the premises; charities which occupy one small property in England and businesses in shared offices. The Government had made it clear that the intention of the scheme was to support small and micro businesses for the purpose of meeting their fixed property costs. In Bromsgrove the scheme has therefore been targeted towards those smaller businesses and aimed at people with a fixed property cost. The scheme therefore was intended to create a hierarchy of businesses in order for the relief to be awarded as per ... view the full minutes text for item 7/2020 |