Agenda and minutes

CM 52/21         

Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs Ball, Coulson, Ratcliffe and Sellis.

To approve and adopt as a correct record the Minutes of the Meeting of Council held on 30 November 2021

CM 53/21         

It was moved by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr R Cheadle and upon the motion being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Council agree the Minutes of the 30 November 2021 meeting as a true record.”

In accordance with the Code of Conduct, Members are invited to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests, Other Registerable Interests and Non-Registerable Interests including the nature and extent of such interests they may have in any items to be considered at this meeting;

CM 54/21         

The Mayor invited Members to declare any interests in the items of business to be considered during the course of the meeting, but there were none made.

CM 55/21         

(a)    Mayor’s Engagements

The Mayor made specific reference to the following upcoming Engagements:

-       A Pub Quiz that was to be held in Bridestowe on 9 March; and

-       Her Civic Dinner that had been scheduled to be held on 18 March.

By way of a reminder, all Members were invited to both Events and were asked to confirm their attendance with the Mayor.

Proposed by Cllr Ratcliffe:

            Background:

“House prices in our Borough are the least affordable in Devon, with the average house costing more than 12 times the average salary. 

There is an almost complete absence of long term rented accommodation and an ever increasing pressure on housing stock that is available due to relocation trends from urban areas into more rural locations.

West Devon Borough Council continues to deliver what is required through the Joint Local Plan, by exceeding its housing delivery targets, but this alone will not tackle the problem or deliver the types of houses local people need, where they need them at a price they can afford. 

I bring before the Council a motion to elevate the Council’s response to this crisis, to go further and do more: collectively, strategically and financially.

In proposing this motion, to declare a ‘housing crisis’ I am asking for the commitment of all members of this Council to step up to meet this challenge.  This issue should be foremost in member’s minds when engaging with our communities, debating, challenging, setting strategy and exercising your democratic decision making powers.

Motion:

That West Devon Borough Council should recognise current difficulties in the housing market and the effect on the affordability of good quality housing within the Borough and:

1.           Demonstrate our commitment to the wellbeing of homeless people in the Borough by providing quality temporary accommodation (such as is proposed at Springhill Tavistock) and reduce the need for less appropriate forms of temporary accommodation.

2.           Act where the Council has a land holding and take an interventionist approach to the housing market over the longer- term, where there is demonstrable housing need, leading to improved long term housing outcomes.

3.           Recognise the market failures locally around accommodation options for vulnerable people (exempt accommodation), work in close partnership with Devon County Council to provide alternatives – putting people before profit. At the same time lobby national government to make legislative changes to remove the incentives for unscrupulous providers and to protect the needs of this vulnerable group.

4.           Recognise the need for extra care accommodation in the Borough (such as proposed at Plymouth Rd) and ensure such schemes are supported to come forward.

5.           Actively contribute to ‘Team Devon’s’ housing task force and housing commission to build the case for affordable housing as a key priority in any pan-Devon devolution ask.

6.           Lobby government through our MPs and the LGA to review the regulation of holiday accommodation, to ensure all holiday accommodation is suitably regulated and made subject to local planning policies and taxes.  We should also appeal for an extension to the 90-day short term let legislation to be extended outside London and lobby DLUC for a separate planning class for short term lets and a proper licensing system to cater for them.

7.           As the Council moves towards a review of the JLP, aspire to the highest affordable housing threshold that is sustainable and underpin it in policy.

8.            Create a long term  ...  view the full agenda text for item CM 56

CM.56/21         

In the absence of Cllr B Ratcliffe, it was moved by Cllr N Jory and seconded by Cllr C Edmonds that:

“Background:

“House prices in our Borough are the least affordable inDevon, with the average house costing more than 12 times the average salary.

There is an almost complete absence of long term rented accommodation and an ever increasing pressure on housing stock that is available due to relocation trends from urban areas into more rural locations.  West Devon Borough Council continues to deliver what is required through the Joint Local Plan, by exceeding its housing delivery targets, but this alone will not tackle the problem or deliver the types of houses local people need, where they need them at a price they can afford.

I bring before the Council a motion to elevate the Council’s response to this crisis, to go further and do more: collectively, strategically and financially.

In proposing this motion, to declare a ‘housing crisis’ I am asking for the commitment of all members of this Council to step up to meet this challenge. This issue should be foremost in member’s minds when engaging with our communities, debating, challenging, setting strategy and exercising your democratic decision making powers.

Motion:

That West Devon Borough Council should recognise current difficulties in the housing market and the effect on the affordability of good quality housing within the Borough and:

1.      Demonstrate our commitment to the wellbeing of homeless people in the Borough by providing quality temporary accommodation (such as is proposed at Springhill Tavistock) and reduce the need for less appropriate forms of temporary accommodation;

2.      Act where the Council has a land holding and take an interventionist approach to the housing market over the longer- term, where there is demonstrable housing need, leading to improved long term housing outcomes;

3.      Recognise the market failures locally around accommodation options for vulnerable people (exempt accommodation), work in close partnership with Devon County Council to provide alternatives – putting people before profit.  At the same time lobby national government to make legislative changes to remove the incentives for unscrupulous providers and to protect the needs of this vulnerable group;

4.      Recognise the need for extra care accommodation in the Borough (such as proposed at Plymouth Rd) and ensure such schemes are supported to come forward;

5.      Actively contribute to ‘Team Devon’s’ housing task force and housing commission to build the case for affordable housing as a key priority in any pan-Devon devolution ask;

6.      Lobby government through our MPs and the LGA to review the regulation of holiday accommodation, to ensure all holiday accommodation is suitably regulated and made subject to local planning policies and taxes. We should also appeal for an extension to the 90-day short term let legislation to be extended outside London and lobby DLUC for a separate planning class for short term lets and a proper licensing system to cater for them;

7.      As the Council moves towards a review of the JLP,  ...  view the full minutes text for item CM 56

(i)              Overview & Scrutiny Committee

Meeting held on 16 November 2021

Recommendation to agree:

O&S 29 Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report 2020/21

That the Council be RECOMMENDED to adopt the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report for 2020/21.

Meeting held on 18 January 2022

Recommendation to agree:

O&S 38 Third Sector Partners – Tamar Valley AONB

That the Council be RECOMMENDED to lobby and make representations calling for the ability for the Council to insist that, where practicable and appropriate, all future developments in West Devon must be landscaped with indigenous plants. West Devon has declared both a climate change and biodiversity emergency and such an ability would fit in with West Devon’s ambition to increase safeguarding biodiversity.

(ii)            Audit Committee

Meeting held on 7 December 2021                                      

(iii)          Hub Committee

Meeting held on 7 December 2021

HC 49/21 Planning Service Improvement Plan - Phase 3

2.  Council be RECOMMENDED to delegate authority to the Head of Paid Service, in consultation with the lead Hub Committee Member for Adapting Our Built Environment and the Director of Strategic Finance, to recruit additional staffing where there is a clear and demonstrable increase in planning applications and/or demand on the service, provided that the increase in staffing can be adequately covered by the additional income generated.

HC 50/21 Month 7 Revenue Budget Monitoring Report 2021/22

2.  Council be RECOMMENDED to apply up to £80,000 from the Salary  Savings Earmarked Reserve in 2021/22 to support additional salary costs in 2021/22 (as set out in section 3.3 of the published agenda report).

HC 52/21 Draft Revenue and Capital Budget Proposals 2022/23 to

2024/25

7.   Council be RECOMMENDED to continue to be part of the Devon Business Rates Pool for 2022/23, subject to there being no announcements within the Finance Settlement (expected to be announced in mid-December), which in the opinion of the Section 151 Officer (in consultation with the Leader of the Council and the Hub Committee Member for Finance), would change this recommendation.

Meeting held on 1 February 2022

Recommendations to agree:                        

HC 60/21 Revenue and Capital Budget Proposals for 2022/23 (NB to             be considered as a standalone agenda item at Item 10 (below).

HC 63/21 Fusion Lifestyle – Leisure Contract Support Update (NB to be considered as a standalone agenda item at Item 11 (below).

HC 66/21 Local Government Act 1972 Section 109 – Kelly Parish Meeting

That Council be RECOMMENDED that the Head of Legal Services and Monitoring Officer be given Delegated Authority to make an order under section 109 of the Local Government Act 1972 granting Kelly Parish Meeting, the power to consent under section 61F of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to the whole of its parish being included in the Milton Abbot, Chillaton and Kelly Neighbourhood Plan.

(iv)          Development Management & Licensing Committee

Meeting held on 14 December 2021                                    

CM 57/21         

a.    Overview & Scrutiny Committee – 16 November 2021 and 18 January 2022

It was moved by Cllr M Ewings, seconded by Cllr J Spettigue and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Minutes of the 16 November 2021 meeting and the 18 January 2022 be received and noted, with the exception of Recommendations O&S 29 and O&S 38”.

In respect of the recommendations:

O&S 29: Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report

It was moved by Cllr M Ewings, seconded by Cllr J Spettigue and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Overview and Scrutiny Annual Report for 2020/21 be adopted.”

O&S 38: Third Sector Partners – Tamar Valley AONB

In discussion, some Members felt that the Council could not insist (through the use of the word ‘must’) that all future developments be landscaped with indigenous plants.  As a consequence, it was felt that the word ‘must’ should be replaced by the word ‘should’.

It was therefore moved by Cllr M Ewings, seconded by Cllr J Spettigue and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Council lobby and make representations calling for the ability for the Council to insist that, where practicable and appropriate, all future developments in West Devon should be landscaped with indigenous plants. West Devon has declared both a climate change and biodiversity emergency and such an ability would fit in with West Devon’s ambition to increase safeguarding biodiversity.”

b.    Audit Committee – 7 December 2021

It was moved by Cllr M Davies, seconded by Cllr M Renders and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Minutes of the 7 December 2021 meeting be received and noted, with the exception of Recommendation AC 16.”

In respect of the Recommendation:

AC 16: External Auditor Appointment

It was moved by Cllr M Davies, seconded by Cllr M Renders and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Council opts into the national arrangement for the procurement and appointment of external auditors, through Public Sector Audit Appointments, by 11 March 2022.”

c.    Hub Committee – 7 December 2021 and 1 February 2022

It was moved by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr C Edmonds and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that the Minutes of the 7 December 2021 meeting and 1 February 2022 meeting be received and noted, with the exception of Recommendations HC 49/21, HC 50/21, HC 52/21, HC 60/21, HC 63/21 and HC 66/21.”

In respect of the Recommendations:

HC 49/21: Planning Improvement Plan – Phase 3 Case Management Resources and Enforcement

It was moved by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr C Edmonds and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and “RESOLVED that authority  ...  view the full minutes text for item CM 57

CM 58/21

Consideration was given to a report that presented the Hub Committee draft recommendations on the Revenue and Capital Budget for 2022-23

In the ensuing debate, reference was made to:-

(a)    the proposal to increase Council Tax.  In light of the significant rising costs of living that were being faced by residents, some Members stated that they could not vote in favour of any proposal to increase Council Tax.  Whilst sympathetic to this viewpoint, other Members highlighted the compounding implications to the Base Budget that would be brought about through freezing Council Tax that would hamper the Council’s financial sustainability in future years;

(b)    the proportion of total Council Tax that was actually the Borough Council precept (11% of the overall bill).  In echoing the comments made by the Hub Committee, a Member felt that, as the collecting authority, there were a number of public misconceptions over the Borough Council precept.  As a result, it was felt that there was a need for the Communications Team to produce and publish messaging at the time of annual billing in an attempt to counter these misconceptions.

At the conclusion of the debate and, in accordance with statutory legislation, the Mayor then called for a recorded vote on the recommendation.  The vote was subsequently recorded as follows:-

For the motion (22):      Cllrs Blackman, Bolton, Bridgewater, Cheadle, Crozier, Davies, Edmonds, Ewings, Heyworth, Jory, Kemp, Kimber, Leech, Mott, Moyse, Pearce, Ridgers, Samuel, Southcott, Spettigue, Vachon and Yelland

Against the motion (4): Cllrs Daniel, Moody, Renders and Wood                

Abstentions (0):                                             

Absent (4):                    Cllr Ball, Coulson, Ratcliffe and Sellis

and the vote on the recommendation was therefore declared CARRIED and it was therefore “RESOLVED that the Council:

1.      set an increase in Council Tax for 2022/23 of £5 (Band D of £246.63 for 2022/23 – an increase of less than 10 pence per week or £5 per year – equates to a 2.07% increase). (This equates to a Council Tax Requirement of £5,102,220);

2.      approve the financial pressures (as shown in Appendix A of the published agenda report) that amount to £689,000;

3.      approve the net contributions to Earmarked Reserves of £209,350 (as shown in Appendix A of the published agenda report), including the proposed use of £75,000 from the Business Rates Retention Earmarked Reserve as set out in section 3.21 of the published agenda report;

4.      approve the proposed transfer of £162,850 into a Financial Stability Earmarked Reserve in 2022/23, to be available for any future financial pressures from future local government funding reforms and any other budget pressures;

5.      approve the proposed use of £150,000 of New Homes Bonus funding to fund the 2022/23 Revenue Base Budget as set out in section 3.30 of the published agenda report;

6.      approve the proposed transfer of £172,084 of the New Homes Bonus grant allocation for 2022/23 to an Affordable Housing Earmarked Reserve as a one-of contribution for 2022/23 (as set out in sections 3.30 to 3.31 of the published agenda report);  ...  view the full minutes text for item CM 58

CM 59/21       

Consideration was given to a report that provided an update on current performance levels; the recovery and business impact within the Leisure Contract; and proposed contract variations so as to mitigate those impacts.

At the discretion of the Chairman, the Fusion representative was invited to address the meeting.  In so doing, the representative emphasised the challenges that had been faced by the leisure industry since the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic.  Whilst participation and income figures remained below 2019 figures, the representative was pleased to inform that the early signs for 2022 were promising and there appeared to be greater consumer confidence in the leisure market.  In reply to a specific question, the representative stated that the recovery at Parklands had been comparatively slower than at Meadowlands Leisure Centre largely as a consequence of the greater educational focus at Parklands.

It was then proposed by Cllr T Leech, seconded by Cllr R Cheadle and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and ”RESOLVED that:

1.      the performance of the Fusion contract to date, wider market trends and the financial information on Fusion’s performance in 2021 (as first reported at its 2 November 2021 meeting) be noted;

2.      the contract variation and changes to the management fee profile (as set out in Appendix A (Table 1) of the published agenda report) be approved; and

3.      the funding of the £58,639 shortfall in income of the management fee in 2021-22 from the COVID Losses Earmarked Reserve in 2021-22 be approved.”

CM 60/21         

A report was considered that sought to delegate approval of the COVID 19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) to the Section 151 Officer, in consultation with the Leader of the Council; the Mayor; the Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the lead Hub Committee Member for Economy.

It was then proposed by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr R Cheadle and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and ”RESOLVED that authority be delegated for the approval of a scheme to administer the COVID 19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) to the Section 151 Officer, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, the Mayor, the Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Lead Hub Committee Member for Economy (the four Members of the Council’s Discretionary Business Rates and Rate Relief Panel).”

CM 61/21         

Consideration was given to a report that presented the draft Calendar of Meetings 2022/23 for approval.

It was proposed by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr R Cheadle and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and ”RESOLVED that the draft Calendar of Meetings for 2022/23 (as set out at Appendix A of the presented agenda report) be approved.”

Dated this 7^th of February 2022

Andy Bates

Chief Executive

CM 62/21         

The Council considered a report that recommended some revisions to the list of Outside Bodies for the remainder of the 2021/22 Municipal Year and asked that Members note the six-month attendance rule.

It was proposed by Cllr N Jory, seconded by Cllr R Cheadle and upon being submitted to the Meeting was declared to be CARRIED and ”RESOLVED that:

1.      Cllr P Crozier be appointed to be the Council’s representative to serve on the Tamar Valley AONB Partnership Committee for the remainder of the 2021/22 Municipal Year;

2.      Cllr P Vachon be appointed to be the Council’s representative to serve on the Tavistock College Endowment Fund Trustees for the remainder of the 2021/22 Municipal Year; and

3.      the requirement, in accordance within Section 85(1) of the Local Government Act 1972, for Members of a Local Authority to attend at least one meeting of that Authority within a six-month consecutive period, in order to avoid being disqualified as a Councillor, be noted.”