Agenda Item___4___
OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY
Minutes of a special meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 04
October 2011 in the Council Chamber, Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at 9.30 am.
Members Present:
Committee:
Mr E Seward (Chairman)
Mr B Smith
Mr R Smith
Mr P Terrington
Mr G Williams
Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds
Mrs A Green
Mr P W Moore
Mr J H Perry-Warnes
Mr R Reynolds
Officers in
Attendance:
The Deputy Chief Executive and the Democratic Services Team Leader
Members in
Attendance:
Mrs V Gay, Mr P High, Mr K Johnson, Mr G Jones, Mr J Lee, Mrs A Moore,
Mr W J Northam
48 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
None
49 SUBSTITUTES
None
50 ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
None
51 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
None
52 NORTH NORFOLK DISTRICT COUNCIL CORPORATE PLANNING FRAMEWORK
The corporate plan was the overarching component of the Council’s policy framework
and would provide strategic direction through to 2015. It outlined the priorities for the
authority and the key actions which the organisation would take to achieve those
priorities. It provided the context for the budget and had been prepared alongside the
Council’s anticipated resourcing framework. With effect from April 2012, the corporate
plan would be supported by an annual action plan setting out in detail the priority
activities planned for the forthcoming year, service business plans outlining specific
service level activity across the same period and a revised performance monitoring and
reporting framework.
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04 October 2011
The Chairman suggested that the Committee considered each section of the corporate
plan in turn:
Overview
(Cabinet Agenda 03 October 2011 – pages 14 – 17)
1. A Member asked for further information regarding the relationship between the
corporate plan and the additional elements of the management and performance
framework which would be in place by April 2012. The Deputy Leader responded
that the corporate plan was the initial stage of the framework and provided an
overview which outlined the Councils’ priorities. The Member replied that he was
concerned that the Committee was being asked to approve a document without
having access to the supporting detail. The Deputy Chief Executive said that by April
2012 service priorities and plans would be in place and linked to the corporate plan.
This was the first time the Council had produced a business plan and it comprised
two strands – the strategic organisational perspective and service perspectives. She
added that the annual action plan would be published in January.
2. A concern was raised that the corporate plan was not being issued as a draft
document initially and circulated to parish and town councils and other key partners
for their comments and feedback. This had happened with the previous corporate
plan. The Deputy Leader replied that this was a very different plan to the previous
one and that the intention was to go out to the parish and town councils and explain
the Council’s priorities after the plan was published. The Deputy Chief Executive
added that the Council had conducted a survey of residents’ views in 2010 and there
had been a stakeholder event and member and staff workshops – all of these had
fed into the process of setting the priorities within the corporate plan. The Member
responded that this feedback was from a while ago and things had changed
considerably since then. He was concerned that there did not seem to an
opportunity for changes to be made to the plan. Another Member added that the
plan referred to openness and transparency but did not appear to fulfil these
promises. He felt there was enough time to consult with key partners before setting
the budget for 2012-13.
Introduction – Our shared vision
(Cabinet Agenda 03 October – pages 18-19)
1. A Member asked for clarification of the title ‘our shared vision’ he felt it wasn’t clear
who the vision was shared with and suggested that this could be elaborated on in
the opening paragraph. The Deputy Chief Executive responded that consultation
exercise that had taken place in 2010 was the basis for a shared vision. The
document had drawn on considerable knowledge from various sources and would
now be shared with all the stakeholders across North Norfolk. The Deputy Leader
added that the corporate plan was the starting point. The intention was to work
closely with key partners once the plan was approved.
2. The phrase ‘empower individuals to have a greater say’ was highlighted. A Member
felt that there did not seem to be any opportunity for people to have an input or say
on the Corporate plan itself. The Deputy Chief Executive replied that the Cabinet
had drawn on a lot of empirical evidence before preparing the plan and that the
Committee were now presented with an opportunity to suggest changes.
Jobs and the Local Economy
(Cabinet Agenda 03 October – page 20)
1. A concern was raised that high speed broadband was not listed as a priority in this
section. A Member had attended one of the public consultation events held in 2010
and broadband featured strongly as a priority. The Deputy Leader agreed that this
should be included.
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04 October 2011
2. The Chairman asked for clarification of the phrase ‘streamline local regulatory
processes’. The Deputy Leader explained that it referred to reducing red tape for
local businesses where possible.
3. A Member was concerned that improving access to funding for local businesses was
not within the Council’s remit. She added that if the Council was considering
providing loans to businesses that this should be clarified within this section of the
corporate plan. The Deputy Chief Executive replied that previously interest-free
loans and grants had been offered to small businesses within the coastal strip and
the intention was to roll this scheme out across the District. The initial scheme had
been funded by the Pathfinder fund but there was a possibility that as the original
loans were repaid they could be re-cycled back into a community fund and the remit
widened. The Portfolio Holder – Financial Services added that it might be helpful for
the Committee to have a presentation by the Economic Development Manager on
the work his team were doing to support local businesses and create jobs. It was
agreed that this should be added to the Work Programme. In response to a further
question about the size of loans and who would qualify, the Deputy Chief Executive
said that at this stage it was just a funding toolkit and once this was developed
further it would be brought to the Committee for approval.
4. It was commented on that there was no reference to young people within this
section of the corporate plan. The Deputy Leader replied that the reference to
working closely with education and training providers implied that young people
were a priority.
5. A Member acknowledged that the intention to market the district as a year-round
destination was admirable but he felt that the infrastructure was not in place to
support this. The Deputy Leader said that there was plenty of scope for building on
the district’s existing tourism assets and that more could be done to encourage
tourists to visit in the winter months.
6. The Deputy Chief Executive informed Members that Cabinet had received a series
of presentations – including one on economic delivery and the housing strategy.
Once they were approved by Cabinet they would come to the Overview and Scrutiny
Committee and would provide further detail to underpin the corporate plan.
7. A Member suggested that tourism should be moved to the top of the list in this
section in recognition of its importance to the district.
Housing and Infrastructure
(Cabinet Agenda – 03 October, page 21)
1. The Chairman commented that there were concerns regarding the housing register
and who could be included on it. This may be something that would need to be
taken into account when the Housing Strategy was finalised.
2. A Member felt that the priority that ‘everyone in North Norfolk should have the
opportunity to buy or rent a decent home’ was too idealistic, particularly as the
private housing sector was very restricted. There was a fundamental difference
between the aims of the Councils and the reality of the planning process.
3. The issue of second homes was raised. They were not mentioned within this section
and it may be necessary to include safeguards to prevent speculative development
in the future.
4. A Member commented that within the first box ‘What we want to achieve’ there was
a reference to reducing the number of empty homes yet there was no mention of
how to achieve this in the adjacent ‘action’ box. The Deputy Leader agreed that
there appeared to be an omission. He added that compulsory purchase orders were
one of the options being considered.
5. Assurances were sought regarding affordable housing targets. It was suggested that
it might be helpful to consider different ways of encouraging developers to include
affordable homes within their schemes. The Portfolio Holder – Strategic Housing
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04 October 2011
said that the Council was willing to consider all options and was reassured by the
fact that more sites that included affordable housing were coming forward.
Coast, Countryside and Built Heritage
(Cabinet Agenda – 03 October, page 22)
1. There was a request for further information about the review of the Shoreline
Management Plan. The Deputy Leader said that Cabinet was not comfortable with
the term ‘managed retreat’ and intended to protect the coastline wherever it was
feasible. In response to a further question regarding support for community funds for
coastal defences, he said that Cabinet would consider all options.
2. A concern was raised that there was no mention of controlling development along
the foreshore. This was an issue for a lot of residents in coastal areas.
3. There was no mention of the social importance of the coast and countryside to local
residents. The opening paragraph in this section could refer to ‘enjoyment and use’
of the countryside to reflect its value to residents.
4. The management of the Broads was also an important issue for the district. If the
decision was made to allow any areas of the Broads to flood then the impact on
North Norfolk would be considerable. The Deputy Leader acknowledged this and
said the Council was entering discussions to form a wider group to share
experiences and costs regarding coastal management. It was suggested that this
could be included within the corporate plan.
Localism
(Cabinet Agenda – 03 October, page 23)
1. A Member commented that the first box in this section seemed to be attacking the
Local Area Partnerships. He suggested that it could be reworded to be more subtle
and less aggressive while still achieving the original stated objective.
2. It was suggested that there should be more information provided about the Big
Society Fund and how it would be financed. The Deputy Chief Executive replied that
a paper was being prepared on Localism and this would explain the Big Society
Fund and the governance arrangements. In response to a further question regarding
whether the funding would come from the County Council, the Deputy Chief
Executive said that all options were being explored, including second homes
income.
3. A Member expressed a concern that there was little willingness for people to get
involved in volunteering and this could have an impact on the ability to achieve the
objectives within the Localism section of the corporate plan. The Deputy Leader
replied that he believed the Big Society was thriving in North Norfolk and the
creation of a fund would help encourage it to spread further.
4. The issue of parish and town councils offering to take over income-generating
services such as car parks was raised. The Council would need to consider at some
point whether there were some services that should be retained at district level.
5. A Member commented that the Council’s decision to review funding for the Local
Area Partnerships could threaten their future. He felt that they could make a vital
contribution to delivering the Big Society agenda and that this should be
acknowledged within the corporate plan.
6. The Chairman said that for many people their main contact with the issue of localism
would be via the planning process and that it may be a good idea for the corporate
plan to elaborate further on the issue of neighbourhood plans to acknowledge this.
The Deputy Chief Executive said that the Council are interested in piloting
neighbourhood plans in the near future. It was agreed that the Committee would like
to receive updates on any developments on this issue
AGREED
To receive updates on the development of neighbourhood plans
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Delivering the Vision
(Cabinet Agenda – 03 October, page 24)
The Chairman outlined how the Committee’s comments would be fed back to Cabinet.
An initial list of comments from the meeting would be drawn up and once this was
approved by the Chairman and Vice-Chairman it would be circulated to Cabinet
Members. It was hoped that Cabinet would be able to provide a written response to the
initial comments prior to the next meeting of Full Council on 19 October 2011. The
Deputy Chief Executive added that additional changes could be recommended by Full
Council.
1. A Member commended the corporate plan for including a provision to encourage
and reward staff for finding innovative ways to deliver higher quality services more
efficiently. He felt that this may help to restore any goodwill that had been lost during
the pay and grading review.
2. The last listing in this section which referred to delivering efficiencies was the most
important and should be moved to the top to reflect this.
3. The Chairman commented that the priorities of local communities may not always be
the same as those of the Council and it might be better to state ‘prioritise services
and functions in line with the needs of our communities’ rather than ‘wishes of our
communities’.
It was agreed that Appendix B to the corporate plan, Financial Plan update 2011/12 –
2014/15 would be considered by the Committee at the meeting on 16 November 2011.
A few initial comments were made:
1. There was a concern about the phrase ‘ to tackle abuses of the planning system,
such as making deliberately misleading planning applications’, a Member felt that it
was not clear what this meant and how it was possible to make such a planning
application. The Deputy Chief Executive said that the phrase formed part of one of
the objectives of the Localism Bill regarding the strengthening of enforcement rules.
It was hoped that further detail would be provided when the Localism Bill was
passed.
2. A Member queried the projected 2% turnover of staff at the Council. The Deputy
Chief Executive said that this had been included in the forecasts for 7 years now and
she felt that it was still a viable level. In response to a further question regarding the
total amount of projected savings, she confirmed that budgeted savings across the
service areas were in addition to the overall savings of £3.5m.
In conclusion, the Committee agreed that their main concern was that the corporate plan
was not being issued as a draft document and that there was no consultation with key
partners.
RESOLVED
To recommend to Full Council that the decision to approve the corporate plan is
deferred to allow consultation with parish and town councils and other key partners
on the key priorities and actions
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04 October 2011
The meeting concluded at 11.55am
_________________________
Chairman
Special Overview and Scrutiny Committee
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04 October 2011