Please Contact: Emma Denny
Please email: emma.denny@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Please Direct Dial on: 01263 516010
5th December 2012
A meeting of the Cabinet of North Norfolk District Council will be held in the Council Chamber at
the Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer on Thursday 13th December 2012 at 2.00 p.m.
At the discretion of the Chairman, a short break will be taken after the meeting has been running
for approximately one and a half hours. Coffee will be available in the staff restaurant at 9.30 a.m.
and at the break.
Members of the public who wish to ask a question or speak on an agenda item are requested to
arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the meeting. It will not always be possible to
accommodate requests after that time. This is to allow time for the Committee Chair to rearrange
the order of items on the agenda for the convenience of members of the public. Further information
on the procedure for public speaking can be obtained from Democratic Services, Tel: 01263
516047, Email: democraticservices@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Sheila Oxtoby
Chief Executive
To: Mr T FitzPatrick, Mrs A Fitch-Tillett, Mr T Ivory, Mr J Lee, Mr W Northam, Mr R Oliver
All other Members of the Council for information.
Members of the Management Team, appropriate Officers, Press and Public.
If you have any special requirements in order
to attend this meeting, please let us know in advance
If you would like any document in large print, audio, Braille, alternative format
or in a different language please contact us
Chief Executive: Sheila Oxtoby
Corporate Directors: Nick Baker & Steve Blatch
Tel 01263 513811 Fax 01263 515042 Minicom 01263 516005
Email districtcouncil@north-norfolk.gov.uk Web site northnorfolk.org
AGENDA
1.
TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
2.
MINUTES
(Page 1)
To approve, as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on 12
November 2012.
3.
PUBLIC QUESTIONS
To receive questions from the public, if any.
4.
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
To determine any other items of business which the Chairman decides should be
considered as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government
Act 1972.
5.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Members are asked at this stage to declare any interests that they may have in any of the
following items on the agenda. The Code of Conduct for Members requires that
declarations include the nature of the interest and whether it is a disclosable pecuniary
interest.
6.
CONSIDERATION OF ANY MATTER REFERRED TO THE CABINET BY THE
OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE OR COUNCIL FOR RECONSIDERATION
(Page 9)
To consider matters referred to the Cabinet (whether by the Overview and Scrutiny
Committee or by the Council) for reconsideration by the Cabinet in accordance with the
provisions within the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules or the Budget and Policy
Framework Procedure Rules.
At the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 21 November 2012,
following consideration of a call-in of Item 15, Cabinet 12 November, North Walsham Dual
Sports Centre by Councillor P W Moore, the following recommendations were made to
Cabinet:
DRAFT MINUTE 91: URGENT BUSINESS CALL-IN CABINET 12 NOVEMBER ITEM 15
NORTH WALSHAM DUAL USE SPORTS CENTRE
RESOLVED
That Cabinet be recommended:
1. To review all three Dual Use Sports Centres simultaneously , so that a comprehensive
total package of revised costs and prices can be brought forward for consideration as
part of the Council’s budget setting process. Resolution 5 should state ‘that negotiations
and variations to the dual use agreements with Cromer Academy and Stalham High
School will be conducted simultaneously with those relating to North Walsham High
School’
2. That Resolution 2 should be amended to read: ‘that the Council enters into negotiations
with the school(s) with a view to securing a new or varied agreement(s). That officers
should be authorised to vary the agreement(s) or if necessary negotiate a new
agreement(s) If the officers are not successful the matter will be referred back to
Cabinet for resolution’.
A copy of the full draft minute from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting is
attached at page 9. Additional documents relating to the call-in are available from
Democratic Services on request.
7.
CONSIDERATION OF REPORTS FROM THE OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEE
To consider any reports from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which may be
presented by the Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and determination of
any appropriate course of action on the issues so raised for report back to that committee.
8.
COUNCIL TAX SUPPORT WORKING PARTY
(page 12)
To receive the minutes of the Council Tax Support Working Party held on 24 October 2012
9.
PLANNING POLICY AND BUILT HERITAGE WORKING PARTY
(page 17)
To receive the minutes of the meeting of the Policy and Built Heritage Working Party held
on 12 November 2012.
The following recommendation has been made to Cabinet:
RESOLVED
That Cabinet be recommended to apply the approach outlined in the following table
to the re-use of rural buildings as dwellings in response to the National Planning
Policy Framework:
Good quality* buildings within HO9 zones – No change to adopted policy
Conversion of vacant
Allow conversion/re-use for
No change to HO9 – residential
and buildings in existing residential purposes
conversion only allowed for good
uses to dwelling(s)
quality buildings, where the
economic value of existing uses
has been considered (adequacy
of provision test) and a
contribution is made towards
affordable housing where viable.
Good quality* buildings of merit outside HO9 zones – amended position in light of
NPPF
Conversion of a
Allow conversion to
Apply HO9 criteria 3-5 (scale of
disused and redundant
residential
development, building quality, and
building to dwelling(s)
affordable housing requirements)
Seeking lifting of
Allow lifting of restriction –
Apply HO9 criteria 4 and 5 (scale
holiday restrictions to
where in non-commercial
of development and affordable
allow full residential
holiday use/second home
housing requirements)
occupancy.
use.
All Listed Buildings irrespective of location
Allow residential where it
Apply HO9 criteria 3-5 (scale of
constitutes optimum viable
development, building quality and
use (Optimum viable use
affordable housing requirements).
being the optimum use for
the building rather than a
financial viability test)
*the building is worthy of retention due to its appearance, historic, architectural or
landscape value (HO9 criterion 2)
10.
PROPOSED DESIGNATION OF LOCAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER ON LAND AT
EGMERE TO ACCOMMODATE ONSHORE SUPPORT FACILITIES RELATED TO
OFFSHORE WIND ENERGY DEVELOPMENTS OFF THE NORTH NORFOLK COAST
(page 21)
(Appendix 1 – p.25) (Appendix 2 – p.26) (Appendix 3 – p.27)
Summary:
This report proposes the designation of approximately 30
hectares of land at Egmere for future development in support of
offshore wind energy developments off the North Norfolk coast
through the use of Local Development Order powers. This would
directly support the Council’s Corporate Plan objectives of
seeking to attract new jobs and investment associated with
offshore wind energy developments to the district.
Conclusions:
The report identifies an area of land at Egmere on the B1105 road
to the south of Wells-next-the-Sea which it is felt could
accommodate new investment associated with offshore wind
energy developments where a simplified planning regime could
operate through approving a Local Development Order.
Recommendations:
Cabinet is recommended to:1. Note the contents of the report and accompanying
documents as they relate to the proposed designation of
a Local Development Order for 30 hectares of land at
Egmere, so as to accommodate new job-creating
investment in support of offshore wind energy schemes
off the North Norfolk coast.
2. Authorises officers to undertake formal consultation on
the proposed Local Development Order with statutory
bodies and consultees, local Town and Parish Councils,
the business community and general public during
January and February of 2013.
3. Requests that at the end of the consultation process a
further report is presented for consideration /
endorsement by Cabinet before seeking approval of the
Local Development Order from the Secretary of State.
11.
Cabinet member(s):
Ward(s) affected
Cllr Tom FitzPatrick, Cllr Rhodri Oliver
Primarily Walsingham, with some impact on the Priory ward
Contact Officer,
telephone number,
and e-mail:
Steve Blatch, Corporate Director
01263 516232
Steve.blatch@north-norfolk.gov.uk
2012/13 REVISED BUDGET
(page 35)
(Appendix A – p.48) (Appendix B– p.49) (Appendix C – p.75) (Appendix D – p.89)
(Appendix E – p.91)
Summary:
The base budget for 2012/13 was approved by Full Council on 22
February 2012. The budget was updated as part of the 2011/12
final accounts report for the carry forward of funding from the year
end process. The budget has continued to be monitored
throughout the year to date and reported to Members accordingly.
This report now presents for approval the 2012/13 revised budgets
for revenue and capital.
Options considered:
Not reporting the revised budget – recommending a revised budget
during the year provides an opportunity to critically review all
budgets and to ensure spend and income budgets reflect current
service plans and objectives. Due to the significant budget
movements in the year in particular the service restructurings
following the management restructure and the outcome of the pay
and grading review, this thorough review during the year provides a
mechanism to ensure the reported budget is accurate and enables
meaningful budget monitoring for the remainder of the year.
Conclusions:
The revised budget shows a small underspend of £1,398 for the
current financial year and will be transferred to the general reserve
in the year.
Recommendations: That Members agree and recommend to Full Council:
1) The revised revenue budget for 2012/13;
2) The revised transfers to and from reserves as detailed
within Appendix D;
3) A transfer of £1,398 to the general reserve;
4) The revised capital programme and associated financing
as included at Appendix E including the additional sum of
£37,084 be made available to fund refurbishment works to
the Rocket House, to include the full renewal and upgrade
of the lift system and £21,000 for the replacement scanner
and printer for the Planning service, both to be funded
from capital receipts.
5) The scale of fees and charges from 1 April 2013 included
at Appendix C.
6) That delegated authority for setting the fees and charges
for waste be given to Corporate Director, Head of
Environmental Health, Head of Finance and relevant
Cabinet Portfolio Members.
12.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To agree a revised budget for the current financial year.
Cabinet Member
Wards affected
Contact Officer
telephone number
and email:
Wyndham Northam
All
Karen Sly
01263 516243
Karen.sly@north-norfolk.gov.uk
HOUSING ALLOCATIONS SCHEME
Summary:
(page 100)
(Appendix F – p. 106) (Appendix G – p.125)
The Council has reviewed its Allocations Scheme to reflect the
changes in legislation introduced by the Localism Act and
statutory instruments. The changes ensure that the Council’s
Allocation Scheme complies with all statutory requirements whilst
also ensuring that it maximises the number of affordable dwellings
which will be occupied by households with connections to towns
and villages in North Norfolk. The new Allocations Scheme will be
delivered through the Your Choice Your Home scheme which is a
partnership between the Council and 8 Housing Associations.
Once adopted, the new Allocation Scheme will be used to allocate
properties from April 2013.
Options considered:
Conclusions:
1. Do nothing. This option was discounted as this would
mean the Council’s Allocations Scheme was not in
accordance with legislation and did not meet members’
aspirations for how affordable housing is allocated.
2. Review the allocation policy. This option was adopted as it
ensures the Council’s new Allocations Scheme reflects
changes in legislation on the operation of housing
registers. It also ensures that member’s aspirations that
the number of affordable dwellings which are allocated to
households with connections to towns and villages in
North Norfolk is maximised.
The Localism Act has introduced changes to the operation
of housing registers. The Council’s Allocations Scheme
has therefore been amended to reflect the changes and
also to meet member aspirations. The proposed new
Allocations Scheme has created 3 housing registers and
includes both qualifying and non-qualifying criteria and
introduces a new 2 Stage Approach to allocations which
will seek to maximise the number of properties allocated to
households who have connections to towns and villages in
North Norfolk. The proposed new allocation scheme has
been subject to wide consultation and now requires
adoption by the Council.
Once adopted the new
Allocations Scheme is expected to go live in April 2013
following an implementation period.
Recommendations: Cabinet recommend the adoption of the Housing Allocations
Scheme to Full Council.
13.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To ensure that the Council’s Allocations Scheme reflects the
legislative and regulatory requirements for housing registers
following a change in these requirements.
Cabinet Member:
Wards affected
Contact Officer
telephone number
and email:
Trevor Ivory
All
Nicola Turner
01263 516222
Nicola.turner@north-norfolk.gov.uk
EMPTY HOMES PILOT
(page 128)
(*Exempt Appendix 1- p.171)
* The exempt appendix is not for publication by virtue of paragraph 2 of Part I of
Schedule 12A (as amended) of the Local Government Act 1972
Summary:
In October 2011 Cabinet received a Report on Empty
Homes as classified on the Council Tax Register and
resolved to establish an Empty Homes Pilot Project to
identify a way forward in dealing with the issue of long term
empty homes in the District. This report reviews the Empty
Homes Project and its outcomes.
Options considered:
Conclusions:
N/A
The outcomes achieved through the Pilot Project to date
are as follows;
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Recommendations:
The appearance of the properties/gardens has been
enhanced by the use of the statutory notice
procedures.
Where building condition impacted negatively on
adjoining properties, this has been remedied
Debts owed to the Council have been recovered
from the property owner through the use of the
charging order procedure.
One property has been sold and the Council Tax
status changed as a result and one is currently
under repair.
A record of intervention has been developed that
would support an application for a Compulsory
Purchase Order on the properties as required.
Learning from pilot will be used in implementation of
new Empty Homes Policy.
The pilot has shown that the willingness of the
Council to use CPO powers and the use of other
enforcement powers to improve the appearance and
condition of the empty homes has achieved results,
although in one case further action is required to
ensure improvements in property condition are
maintained. This process of enforcement action as
the Council prepares the CPO case will continue.
The learning from the pilot will be used to ensure
that the new Empty Homes Policy will be able to
deliver a reduction in the number of empty homes
and the ability to use a range of enforcement powers
including the enforced sale procedure and where
appropriate and effective CPO powers.
(1) That all required enforcement action on empty
homes be directed through the Enforcement
Board.
(2) That £200,000 is ringfenced to support bringing
back into use properties through the use of
enforcement methods including enforced sale
and CPO powers.
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on to write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
ODPM Circular 06/2004 Compulsory Purchase and the Crichel Down Rules
ODPM Empty Property : Unlocking the Potential
Cabinet Member:
Wards affected
Contact Officers
telephone number
and email:
Trevor Ivory
All
Nicola Turner & Emma Duncan
01263 516222./516045
Nicola.turner@north-norfolk.gov.uk
emma.duncan@north-norfolk.gov.uk
14.
EMPTY HOMES POLICY 2012/15
Summary:
Options considered:
Conclusions:
(page 135)
(Policy Document – p.139)
The Council is committed to reducing the number of empty
homes. The Empty Homes Policy provides a policy context for
work to bring empty homes in North Norfolk back into use, the
Policy:
• Sets out why empty homes should be brought back into
use
• Details the Empty Homes Procedure and the
approaches which will be used to bring empty
properties back into use, including what advice and
support will be offered and when and what types of
enforcement action can be used.
1. Do nothing. This option was discounted as empty
homes are a wasted resource and reduction of the
number of empty homes is a priority for the Council.
2. Develop Empty Homes Policy. This option was
adopted as it will demonstrate the Council’s
commitment to reducing the number of empty homes
and set out a clear methodology for the Council’s work
in reducing the number of empty homes which is
available to officers, members and members of the
public including owners of empty homes.
At July 2012 there were 887 properties across North Norfolk
which had been empty for at least 6 months, many have been
empty for longer. Empty Homes represent a wasted resource
and can have a negative impact on the local neighbourhood.
Reducing the number of empty homes across the district is an
action within the Annual Action Plan for 2012-13. The Empty
Homes Policy provides a clear methodology for the Council’s
approach to bringing empty homes back into use. The Empty
Homes Policy is supported by the Housing Enforcement Policy
and forthcoming Housing Renewal Policy.
Recommendations: Cabinet recommend the adoption of the Empty Homes
Policy 2012-15 to Full Council.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To adopt the Empty Homes Policy which sets out the Council’s
approach to bringing empty homes back into use, what support
and advice will be provided to owners of empty homes and
when enforcement action will be taken.
Cabinet Member(s)
Wards affected:
Contact Officer :
telephone number
and email:
Cllr Trevor Ivory
All
Karen Hill
01263 516183
Karen.hill@north-norfolk.gov.uk
15.
NORTH WALSHAM RETAIL DEMAND AND CAPACITY STUDY
(page 146)
Summary:
This report outlines the findings of the North Walsham
Retail Demand and Capacity Study and its implications for
the town.
Options considered:
The proposals resulting from the recommendations in the
retail study present a possible way forward to achieve the
overall objectives for the future of North Walsham town
centre. Failure to investigate these further and follow up
with the appropriate action would amount to a possible
missed opportunity, with potentially dire consequences for
future investment in the vitality and viability of the town
centre. The only realistic alternative at present is to
develop an alternative scenario (which would require new
evidence to be sought); or to do nothing.
Conclusions:
Undertaking the further investigations necessary in pursuit
of the recommendations of the retail report will be
complementary to the objectives of the Corporate Plan and
AAP. The property consultants are already in place in
anticipation of this kind of work. Their findings will provide
the Council with the opportunity to make informed
decisions about the future strategy for North Walsham,
and the use of NNDC’s own assets.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that the Council, through its
property consultants (as appropriate), investigates the
opportunities to provide investment and development
which will support the overall vitality and viability of
North Walsham Town Centre and that any relevant
actions or interventions are brought to Cabinet at the
appropriate time for decision.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To provide the information necessary to make decisions
about future investment and development in North
Walsham
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on to write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
North Walsham Retail and Leisure Demand, Capacity and Feasibility Study – SPA
(http://www.northnorfolk.org/community/8373.asp)
Cabinet
Member(s)
Wards affected:
Contact Officer :
telephone number
and email:
Cllr T Ivory
Cllr W Northam
North Walsham Wards
Robert Young
01263 516162
Robert.young@north-norfolk.gov.uk
16.
STREET NAMING AND NUMBERING FEES
(page 151)
Summary:
This report considers the level of fees to be introduced into
the Street Naming and Numbering Service.
Conclusions:
The provision and maintenance of accurate address data is
central to many Council and external services. The Council
has invested in IT and has established efficient practices to
ensure that it meets it’s obligations under the Mapping
Services Agreement. The fees outlined in this report will
contribute towards recovering part of the costs of providing
the service.
Recommendations: 1. That the charges outlined in Table A are adopted on
the 1st of January 2013 and reviewed thereafter on an
annual basis.
2. That the charges outlined are implemented on 1st
April 2013
Cabinet Member(s)
Wards affected
Contact Officer :
telephone number
and email:
17.
Cllr Rhodri Oliver
All
Rachel Parkin
01263 516013
Rachel.parkin@north-norfolk.gov.uk
CROMER COUNCIL OFFICE IMPROVEMENTS
(page 154)
Summary
This paper brings together the business case for office
improvements which will improve customer service and
at the same time provide a financial saving for the
Council
Conclusions
The three areas of work detailed, if approved, will allow
efficiencies to be realised through better use of staff and
buildings resource. In addition, they will support the
change agenda required to deliver the Council’s
Corporate Plan and will significantly improve customer
interaction with the Council.
Recommendations
1. To delegate authority to officers, in conjunction
with the Portfolio Members for Resources and
Customer Services, to procure the necessary
building works, along with any professional input
required in respect of the customer services
improvement works.
2. That £31,500 is allocated from the Restructuring
and Invest to Save earmarked reserve to fund the
removal of the Annexe and associated works
3. To authorise officers to obtain the necessary
quotes and/or tenders to ensure the safe removal
of the annexe building and the reinstatement of
the facilities currently contained therein.
Reasons for Recommendations:
To ensure that the works are carried out by an
appropriate contractor procured within the framework
provided by the Council’s Financial Standing Orders
Cabinet Member(s)
Contact Officer :
telephone number
and email:
18.
Cllr Tom FitzPatrick, Cllr Rhodri Oliver
Nick Baker
01263 516221
nick.baker@north-norfolk.gov.uk
EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
To pass the following resolution:
“That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be
excluded from the meeting for the following item of business on the grounds that they
involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraphs _ of Part I of
Schedule 12A (as amended) to the Act.”
Agenda Item 2__
CABINET
Minutes of the meeting of the Cabinet held on Monday 12 November 2012 at the
Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at 10.00am.
Members Present:
Mrs A Fitch-Tillett
Mr T FitzPatrick
Mr T Ivory
Mr K Johnson (Chairman)
Mr J Lee
Mr W Northam
Mr R Oliver
Also attending:
Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds
Ms V Gay
Mrs P Grove-Jones
Mr P High
Mr N Lloyd
Ms B Palmer
Mr E Seward
Mr R Shepherd
Mr B Smith
Mr N Smith
Mr D Young
Officers in
Attendance:
Also in
Attendance:
61.
The Chief Executive, the Head of Finance, the Technical Accountant,
the Estates and Valuation Manager, the Policy & performance
Management Officer, the Coast and Community Partnerships
Manager and the Sports and Leisure Services Manager
The press
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
None received
62.
MINUTES
The Minutes of the meeting held on 15 October 2012 were confirmed as a correct
record and signed by the Chairman.
63.
PUBLIC QUESTIONS
None received
64.
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
The Leader informed Members that there was one item of urgent business. A request
had been received from Holt Chamber of Trade asking the Council to consider the
introduction of concessionary parking in the run-up to Christmas. The Chamber of
Trade was encouraging traders to open on Sunday during December. Cabinet had
discussed the request and it was proposed that 3 hours free parking was introduced
on the 4 Sundays prior to Christmas. It was hoped that this would encourage local
businesses to open on these Sundays and that residents would then shop locally. Mr
T FitzPatrick, Portfolio Holder for Economic Development explained that 3 hours was
considered to be a reasonable amount of time as it gave plenty of time for shoppers
Cabinet
1
1
12 November 2012
to access local stores but did not provide enough time for people to park and then
catch the train to Norwich. In response to a question from Mrs P Grove-Jones, he
confirmed that the proposal would apply to all Council car parks across the District.
65.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
None
66.
COUNCIL TAX SUPPORT WORKING PARTY
Mr G Jones, a former member of the Council Tax Support Working Party had made a
request to amend the minutes of the meeting held on 15 August 2012. The Leader
invited Mr W Northam, Chairman of the Working Party to comment on the
amendment. He said that the minutes had been approved at the last meeting on 24th
October. He explained that the proposal that Mr G Jones referred to in his
amendment had not been dismissed as alleged but that they had agreed to defer
consideration of it until after the consultation. Mr R Oliver and Mrs A ClaussenReynolds, members of the Council Tax Working Party agreed.
RESOLVED that
the minutes of the meeting of the Council Tax Support Working Party held on 15th
August 2012 be received.
67.
PLANNING POLICY AND BUILT HERITAGE WORKING PARTY
Mr R Oliver, Portfolio Holder for Planning proposed that all the recommendations,
except for Minute 24, Recommendation 5 be adopted. He proposed that
recommendation 5 ‘ That a further report on potential buildings to be added to the
Local List for Cromer be prepared’ be deferred until the peer review of the planning
service had been completed.
RESOLVED that
The minutes of the meeting of the Planning Policy and Built Heritage Working Party
held on 8th October 2012 be received and the following recommendations contained
therein adopted as follows:
MINUTE 24: CROMER CONSERVATION AREA MANAGEMENT PLAN
1.
2.
3.
4.
To adopt the Cromer Conservation Area Management Plan for statutory
planning purposes and for it to be a ‘material consideration’ in the planning
process.
To adopt the proposed boundary changes as recommended in the draft
Appraisal document, with the exception of the former railhead (Morrison’s car
park) and area around the Old Chapel, which should be retained within the
Conservation Area, and that the resultant changes be publicised in
accordance with the Planning (Listed Buildings & Conservation Areas) Act
1990.
To endorse the preparation of a further report relating to the introduction of
Article 4 Directions as and where necessary.
That the buildings identified for Local Listing be formally recognised and
recorded.
To defer the following recommendation:
Cabinet
2
2
12 November 2012
5.
That a further report on potential buildings to be added to the Local List for
Cromer be prepared
MINUTE 25: WALSINGHAM CONSERVATION AREA APPRAISAL AND
MANAGEMENT PROPOSALS
1.
2.
68.
To approve the Draft Walsingham Conservation Area Character Appraisal
and Management Proposals for public consultation purposes.
That following consultation, the amended Walsingham Conservation Area
Character Appraisal and Management Proposals be brought back to the
Working Party for consideration and subsequent adoption by Cabinet.
FINANCIAL STRATEGY 2013-14
Mr W Northam introduced this item. He explained that the report presented the
current financial forecast for the period 2013/14 to 2015/16 and provided a summary
of the key issues facing the Council in relation to Local Government finance. The
current forecast presented a funding gap for the next 3 years of up to £1.7 million.
Estimates had been made on the level of future funding, although there was still a
great deal of uncertainty on the level of grant reductions that local authorities would
be facing.
Mr W Northam outlined three key areas that could have significant financial
implications for the Council:
1.
2.
3.
Changes to the financing of local government as the formula grant
arrangements are dismantled
The imminent introduction of a localised council tax support scheme
The introduction of council tax reforms – which would give authorities new
flexibilities on the level of discounts on second homes and empty dwellings
Mr W Northam concluded by stating that the Strategy highlighted the necessity that
the efficiency savings and adjustments identified in the various workstreams needed
to be fully delivered.
Members discussed the Financial Strategy:
a) Ms V Gay sought clarification on the rules for vacant dwellings. The Chief
Executive explained that currently vacant dwellings were exempt from council tax
for 6 months. This would no longer be statutory and billing authorities would be
allowed to charge up to 100% for such dwellings from day one.
b) Mr E Seward commented that the real financial challenges for the Council were
likely to occur the year after next. Mr W Northam agreed. He said that 2015-16
would be very difficult for the Council financially.
c) Ms V Gay asked if the Council had made representations to central government
regarding the challenges facing rural councils. The Leader replied that concerns
had been raised with the local MP and central government. He added that he had
mentioned the unfair impact of the localisation of council tax support on North
Norfolk at a recent meeting at Downing Street. In response to a further question
from Ms V Gay regarding whether a response had been received from Keith
Simpson MP on the impact of council tax support, he said that he had not seen
one. Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds confirmed that she had seen a letter from Keith
Simpson on this matter. The Chief Executive reminded members that the Council
were members of SPARSE (Spending Power Analysis for Rural Councils) and
they were working with other local authorities on producing evidential work
around the rural premium. She added that the £196,000 indicative sum from the
Cabinet
3
3
12 November 2012
£100m transitional grant for council tax support had not been included within the
Financial Strategy.
It was proposed by Mr W Northam, seconded by Mr R Oliver and
RESOLVED
To note:
1) the current financial forecast for the period 2013/14 to 2015/16;
2) the current capital programme and capital funding forecasts;
3) the revised reserves statement as included at Appendix C to the report.
Reason for the Decision:
To ensure that Members are updated with the current financial position of the
authority as further work on the detailed budget for 2013/14 is completed over the
coming months.
69.
HALF YEARLY TREASURY MANAGEMENT REPORT FOR 2012/13
Mr W Northam introduced this item. He explained that in compliance with the CIPFA
Code of Practice, the report provided information on the Treasury Management
activities undertaken in the first six months of 2012/13. None of the Prudential
Indicators had been breached and a prudent approach had been taken in relation to
investment activity with priority being given to security and liquidity over yield.
Mr W Northam thanked the Technical Accountant for his hard work and support
during the year.
It was proposed by Mr W Northam, seconded by Mr R Oliver and
RECOMMENDED to Full Council
That the Half Yearly Treasury Management Report for 2012/13 be approved.
Reasons for the decision:
The recommendation was made in compliance with the CIPFA Code.
70.
BUDGET MONITORING REPORT 2012/13 – PERIOD 6
Mr W Northam introduced this item. He explained that the report summarised the
budget monitoring position for the revenue account and capital programme to the end
of September 2012. The overall position at the end of period 6 showed a forecast
underspend of £23,552 for the current financial year on the revenue account.
Mr W Northam thanked the Head of Finance for her support and hard work
throughout the year.
Members discussed the report:
1. Ms V Gay sought further information on the removal of the budget for community
transport. She was particularly concerned about the future of this budget. The
Chief Executive said that it had been funded by the Big Society Fund for the
current year, from second homes income. This funding was for one year only and
the intention was to wait for the outcome of a review of community transport
Cabinet
4
4
12 November 2012
schemes which was being undertaken by a small working party which would
report back to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The Chairman of the
Overview and Scrutiny Committee added that it was important that the working
party met as soon as possible. He added that Broadland District Council had
recommended that funding for community transport should be ring-fenced.
2. Mr D Young commented on the amount of £30,000 net received for car parking
penalty notices. He asked what the gross figure was and how it compared to
previous years. The Head of Finance agreed to respond in writing. Mr W Northam
added that the car parking contract with Borough Council of Kings Lynn and West
Norfolk began in September 2010 – under the previous administration and would
run for 5 years.
It was proposed by Mr W Northam, seconded by Mr R Oliver and
RESOLVED
1. To note the contents of the report and the current budget monitoring
position
2. That new homes bonus of £40,000 be used to fund a Community
Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Planning Policy Officer as outlined at section
2.3 of the report.
Reasons for the decision:
To update Members on the current budget monitoring position for the
Council and approve additional capital budget as outlined in the report.
71.
COMMUNITY ASSET TRANSFER POLICY
Mr R Oliver introduced this item. He explained that following a consultation period on
the draft policy and feedback from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee, an
amended version had been reported to the Asset Management Board (AMB) and the
Overview and Scrutiny Committee in September 2012. It was now being returned to
Cabinet for approval to recommend the matter to Full Council for adoption.
Members discussed the report:
Mr D Young queried why unincorporated associations which were not registered as
charities were excluded from longer leases. Mr T Ivory said that it was a legal issue.
The assets of an unincorporated association belonged to its members. In the case of
a charity, if it was dissolved then the assets would not revert to individual members
as charitable law would apply. A shorter lease for unincorporated charities would
ensure that the asset could quickly revert to the Council.
It was proposed by Mr R Oliver, seconded by Mr T Ivory and
RECOMMENDED TO FULL COUNCIL that
Council adopts the Community Asset Transfer Policy.
Reasons for the decision:
To provide the Council with a clear framework and procedural guide to assist in it
achieving a Corporate Plan ambition.
Cabinet
5
5
12 November 2012
72.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT – DELIVERY OF ANNUAL ACTION PLAN
2012/13 QUARTER 2
The Leader introduced this item. He said that the report provided a mid-year review
of the progress in delivering the Annual Action Plan 2012-13. He explained that the
delivery of the Annual Action Plan was progressing well and that areas of concern
were outlined within the report and details were given where action was being taken.
Members discussed the report:
1. Ms V Gay asked why no loans or grants had been provided under the Coastal
Pathfinder scheme as they had been made available to 90 businesses which had
signed to the Pathfinder Business Advice project. The Portfolio Holder for coastal
issues, Mrs A Fitch-Tillett said that some applications had been processed by the
Norfolk Community Foundation (NCF) but the take-up was disappointing. From
January 2013 the loans would become available to all businesses across the
district so it was anticipated that the number of applications would increase. The
Chief Executive added that the scheme would be reviewed to find out why it had
not been attractive initially, particularly as take-up for the business health check
was so popular.
2. Ms V Gay requested further information about £2.4m of funding which had been
secured from the Local Economic Partnership Growing Places Fund for
infrastructure investment at a site in North Walsham. She was interested in
whether the funding was a loan and if so, what the terms were.. Mr S Blatch,
Corporate Director, said that the New Anglia Partnership, with Suffolk County
Council in the lead, had taken over from the previous Local Enterprise
Partnership and no formal guidance had been issued regarding the terms of
loans. A meeting was scheduled for the following week with Hopkins Homes and
representatives from the LEP. Further consideration would need to be given as to
whether the Council’s Planning Policy team should lead on the development brief.
It was anticipated that a full report would be presented in January 2013. In
answer to a further question from Ms V Gay on why an additional meeting was
required, the Chief Executive said that the £2.4m loan was an incentive to bring
the scheme forward and the meeting with the LEP was to explore ways to draw
down the funding more quickly. It was important that the criteria to access the
fund were discussed and that the scheme was attractive to potential partners. Ms
V Gay requested that local members should be included in any future
discussions. Mr E Seward agreed and asked that Hopkins Homes was made
aware that the site was an eyesore within the town.
3. Mr E Seward commented on the schedule of stalled sites that was mentioned
within the report. He requested that given the large number of such sites in North
Walsham, that the schedule should be shared with Members. He also pointed out
that there were very few developments in the district where s106 agreements had
been secured. The Leader said that an agreement had recently been signed with
Victory Housing Trust for a development on a brownfield site in North Walsham.
It was proposed by Mr K Johnson, seconded by Mr W Northam and
RESOLVED
1. to note the contents of the report
2. that the rate of take-up of new designated employment land (indicator J005) be
reported on an annual basis instead of quarterly as originally agreed at Cabinet in
May 2012.
Cabinet
6
6
12 November 2012
73.
NORTH WALSHAM DUAL USE SPORTS CENTRE
Mr J Lee introduced the report. He explained that there had been a long-drawn out
process in getting to this stage but he felt that there was now a way forward for the
Dual Use Sports Centre (DUSC) in North Walsham and that the proposals would
provide better value for money for the Council as they would only pay the school the
additional costs incurred in having the school buildings open for community use. He
said that the proposed improvement to the facilities, including the provision of a multiuse games area (MUGA) were an exciting opportunity for the town. He concluded by
saying that the contracts for all the dual use sports centres were signed in 1986 and
had not been reviewed since. Things had changed considerably in the intervening
years and there was a need to review the leases for all three sports centres.
Members discussed the proposals:
a) Mr N Lloyd, local member for North Walsham North said that the proposals had
upset many people in the town and that a lot of trust had been lost, which could
make subsequent negotiations difficult. He added that the voluntary management
committee had worked in partnership with the school for 25 years and had always
exceeded their targets. He asked whether he could propose amendments to the
recommendations. The Leader said that only Cabinet Members could do this but
he agreed that Mr N Lloyd could outline his proposals. Mr N Lloyd said that North
Walsham DUSC was one of three and should not be singled out. Any proposals
should include all three sports centres and they should be considered together. If
they were treated on an equal basis then there could be lower charges in the first
year. He queried what would happen if the Council served notice on the school to
end the current Dual Use Agreement and suggested that it would be preferable to
give officers the power to vary the agreement rather than serve notice. He
concluded by saying it was not clear what the future funding level would be.
b) Mr E Seward. Local member for North Walsham North said that a key point in
moving forward was the level of support that the sports centre would receive from
the Council in the future in running the centre.
c) Mr D Young queried the incentive to the school for keeping the facility open as
they would only be receiving the actual running costs in the future.
d) Mrs P Grove-Jones said that in Stalham, public use of the Dual Use Sports
Centre was not promoted at all and this was something that could be reviewed.
e) Ms V Gay said that a petition with over 1000 signatures had been submitted in
relation to the Dual Use Sports Centre in North Walsham. There was general
disquiet within the town about the way the proposals had been brought forward
and the failure to consult with local people.
The Leader invited Mr T Ivory to respond to all the comments. Mr Ivory said that the
process had been very thorough and had included discussions with the voluntary
management committee, school governors and local members. It had taken a long
time to get to this stage and that was because the Council wanted to ensure that they
had made the right decision. The report highlighted the difference between the
charges levied at the three dual use sports centres and the premium paid by the
Council to North Walsham High school in particular. He stressed that the proposals
were not just about North Walsham but that this was the first to be addressed as the
costs were disproportionately high but also because it had a very strong voluntary
management committee in place and this was lacking in Cromer and Stalham. The
opportunity for change had originally been presented when the school completed the
Atrium and there were obvious synergies in combining its management with the dual
use sports centre.
Cabinet
7
7
12 November 2012
In response to the concern about serving notice on the school, Mr T Ivory said that
this was not the intention. The Council were seeking constructive discussions with
the school on how the public access to the DUSC could be maintained and they were
hopeful of reaching an agreement. There was a need to reserve the right to serve
notice but he was confident that it would not be necessary.
Regarding future funding, Mr Ivory said that all options were on the table. It was in
the interests of the school to reach an agreement as the funding would not continue
on the current level.
Mr Ivory concluded by saying that discussions and negotiations were moving forward
and there needed to be a settlement that would work for everyone.
It was proposed by Mr J Lee, seconded by Mr T Ivory and
RESOLVED
1. That officers are authorised to negotiate and conclude variations to the Dual
Use Agreement with the North Walsham High School to ensure that:
a. The Council pays the school only for the additional costs incurred in having
the school buildings open for community use
b. The Council assumes overall responsibility for setting all fees and charges
relating to the Dual Use Centre, in consultation with the Voluntary Management
Committee
2. That, should it be necessary to serve Notice to vary the existing or enter into a new
Agreement to be implemented by 1 April 2013, officers, with the agreement of the
relevant portfolio members, are authorised to serve the required notice on the school
to end the current Dual Use Agreement.
3. That officers are authorised to work with the Voluntary Management Committee to
improve local management of the Dual Use Centre, including the setting up of a
Community Sports Trust if this is feasible.
4. That improvements to the facilities, such as the provision of a MUGA at the Dual
Use Centre, are explored further with the school.
5. That officers are authorised to negotiate and conclude variations to the Dual Use
Agreements with Cromer Academy and Stalham High School as per
recommendation 1 above.
Reasons for the decision:
To review the current arrangements for delivery of community sports facilities at this
site and ensure that the Council’s future funding of the facility will deliver a wider
package of community leisure activities within the school environment as well as
affording the a financial saving for the Council.
The Meeting closed at 11.01 am
_______________
Chairman
Cabinet
8
8
12 November 2012
Agenda item no._______6_______
OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY
Extract from draft minutes of a meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held
on 21 November 2012 in the Council Chamber, Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at
9.30 am.
91 ITEM OF URGENT BUSINESS
Call-in: Cabinet: 12 November 2012: Item 15: North Walsham Dual Use Sports
Centre
A call-in had been received from Mr P Moore in accordance with the Council’s
Constitution in respect of the Cabinet’s decision on the management of the North
Walsham DUSC. To comply with the constitutional requirement to deal with the call-in
as expeditiously as possible, the Chairman had agreed to take the matter as an item of
urgent business at this meeting. The Chief Executive summarised the advice of the
Monitoring Officer on this point. The Leader queried whether the call-in was valid as he
felt that it challenged the decisions of Cabinet rather than the process to reach those
decisions. The Chairman responded that the Monitoring Officer had confirmed that the
call-in was valid and that it was appropriate to call-in a Cabinet decision.
A note of the Cabinet decision, together with a summary of the grounds for Mr Moore’s
call-in, had been circulated to Committee Members. Mr Moore explained why he had
called in the decision with the aid of a longer written statement tabled at the meeting.
The resolution of the Cabinet was as follows:
1) That officers are authorised to negotiate and conclude variations to the Dual Use
Agreement with North Walsham High School to ensure that:
a) The Council pays the school only for the additional costs incurred in having the
school buildings open for community use.
b) The Council assumes overall responsibility for setting all fees and charges
relating to the Dual Use Centre, in consultation with the Voluntary Management
Committee
2) That, should it be necessary to serve notice to vary the existing agreement or enter
into a new agreement to be implemented by 1 April 2013 officers, with the
agreement of the relevant portfolio members, are authorised to serve the required
notice on the school to end the current Dual Use Agreement.
3) That officers are authorised to work with the Voluntary Management Committee to
improve local Management of the Dual Use Centre, including the setting up of a
Community Sports Trust if this is feasible.
4) That improvements to the facilities, such as the provision of a Multi-Use Games
Area at the Dual Use Centre, are explored further with the school.
5) That officers are authorised to negotiate and conclude variations to the Dual Use
Agreements with Cromer Academy and Stalham High School as per
recommendation (1) above.
Mr Moore sought equality of treatment across all such centres by committing the
Council to negotiate simultaneously with the Cromer and Stalham facilities with a view
to a comprehensive package of revised costs and prices being brought forward for
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
1
9
21 November 2012
consideration. He felt that the proposal was not clear as to how funding for the North
Walsham facility would continue; that the recommendation potentially harmed the
Council’s negotiations with North Walsham High School on future rents and that, in the
absence of discussion with the High School thus far, a more conciliatory approach,
setting out options on future rents, needed to be taken. In his view, the proposed
course provided insufficient clarity on the setting of fees and charges, omitting
reference to any mechanism for dealing with disputes and disagreements with the
Voluntary Management Committee.
Mr Moore proposed that the matter be referred back to Cabinet with a request that
a) All three DUSCs are reviewed simultaneously, so that a comprehensive total package
of revised costs and prices can be brought forward for consideration as part of the
Council’s budget setting process.Part (5) of the resolution should state that
negotiations and variations to the dual use agreements with Cromer Academy and
Stalham High School will be conducted simultaneously with those relating to North
Walsham High School.
b) Part (2) of the resolution should be amended to read: “That the Council enters into
negotiations with the School(s) with a view to securing a new or varied Agreement(s);
that officers should be authorised to vary the Agreement(s) or if necessary negotiate a
new Agreement(s); if the officers are not successful, the matter will be referred back
to Cabinet for resolution.”
c) It would be inappropriate for Cabinet to finalise its position regarding the future
finances of the DUSC(s) unless and until accurate financial data is provided.
The proposal was seconded by Ms Gay, who commented that the matter had suffered
from confusion and undue confidentiality.
The final part of Mr Moore’s proposal was based on the premise that three different
figures were in use. Following a response from the Chief Executive, when it became
apparent that the figures being queried comprised an initial budget figure plus
projections for the next two years, Mr Moore agreed, with the consent of his seconder, to
withdraw part (c) above from his proposal.
Mr Lee wondered how this call-in had come about, as the way in which Cabinet had
reached its decision was not being called into question. Furthermore, the questions asked
by Mr Moore had been dealt with by Cabinet and previously at Council and elsewhere.
The Cabinet was not picking on North Walsham – all three agreements were different.
The North Walsham agreement had not been looked at since 1986, since when the
Council had effectively been subsidising the school. The report to Cabinet had been
perfectly clear on finances and on officer support to the facility. Consultation with the
Voluntary Management Committee had taken place and the Council would continue to
work with that body.
Ms Uprichard stated that a petition signed by over a thousand North Walsham residents
was being presented, expressing opposition to the Council’s proposal to withdraw
funding and transfer management of the Dual Use facility. Mr Johnson pointed out that this
was now outdated, negotiations having moved on since the signatures had been collected.
Following discussion on the issue and service of notice, Mr Oliver commented that failure
to take account of these matters in the formal agreement would mean that there would be
no incentive for the school to renegotiate. This was a professional approach with the aim of
achieving the best value for money for the local taxpayer. Mr Johnson informed the
meeting that he had been to the North Walsham Town Council last week, when there had
been no dissention to what was being proposed by Cabinet.
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
2
10
21 November 2012
On being put to the Committee initially, the proposal, as amended, received 5 votes in
favour and 5 against and the motion was carried on the Chairman’s casting vote.
RESOLVED
That the decision of Cabinet be referred back in accordance with (a) and (b) above.
Overview and Scrutiny Committee
3
11
21 November 2012
Agenda Item 8
COUNCIL TAX SUPPORT WORKING PARTY
Minutes of a meeting of the Council Tax Support Working Party held on 24 October
2012 in Meeting Room 1, Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at 10.00 am.
Working Party:
Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds, Ms V Gay, Mr W Northam, Mr R Oliver
and Mr D Young.
Officers in
Attendance:
The Head of Finance, the Revenues and Benefits Services
Manager, the Benefits Manager and the Democratic Services
Officer (ED)
18
TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
None received.
19
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
None
20
MINUTES
The minutes of the meeting held on 15 August 2012 were agreed.
21
FEEDBACK FROM THE NORFOLK GROUP
The Head of Finance introduced this item. She explained that there had been a
meeting the previous Friday involving representatives from District Councils, Norfolk
County Council and the Police. The meeting focused on the announcement made the
previous day regarding a £100m transitional grant available for one year to support
local authorities in developing a sustainable council tax support scheme and assist
them in managing the impact of the funding reduction on the most vulnerable
residents.
Most local authorities within the region had completed the consultation or were close
to completion. The general feeling amongst the Norfolk Group was that although the
announcement of the grant funding was late, the schemes had not yet been finalised
so there was still an opportunity to take it into consideration. She added that the
establishment of a Hardship Fund may not be so key with the additional funding now
available.
Members discussed the update:
1. The Chairman asked if there was any information available on how other
schemes would be operating across the region. The Head of Finance said that
North Norfolk had the biggest reduction of all the authorities at 30% because of
the ratio between working age tax payers and pensioners. All authorities, with the
exception of Norwich City Council, were consulting on a reduced discount.
2. Ms V Gay commented that she had understood that it had been agreed early on
that the Norfolk authorities would work together on introducing a county-wide
Council Tax Support Working Party
1
12
24 October 2012
Agenda Item 8
scheme but that this had been discounted. The Revenues and Benefits Services
manager replied that the Norfolk authorities had agreed on certain principles but
there were difficulties in introducing a Norfolk-wide scheme – mainly due to
demographics. In response to a further question from Ms V Gay asking whether
there were difficulties in taking this approach due to political differences, the
Revenues and Benefits Services Manager reiterated that ultimately it was due to
demographic differences. She added that Government guidance was to keep the
scheme simple and this would be difficult if a shared scheme was implemented.
3. Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds asked if the schemes proposed by other Norfolk
authorities differed significantly from each other. The Revenues and Benefits
Services Manager said that they had all reduced the amount of capital taken into
consideration and taken out the second adult rebate. A few had decided to take
child benefit into account, although in some cases this would not include children
under 5.
4. Ms V Gay asked whether working age people would always be at a disadvantage
once the scheme was introduced. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager
said that they would under schemes of this kind.
22
CONSULTATION
The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager introduced this item. She explained
that the Council had undertaken a thorough consultation which included information
in the local press, a letter to all parish councils (included with the precept letter)
posters, information on the Council’s website, a letter to those likely to be affected by
the proposals, leaflets to social landlords, drop in sessions at Cromer and Fakenham
and a meeting with Victory Housing. A total of 955 people completed the survey, with
670 providing a written response to the question regarding the impact on individual
households.
Members discussed the consultation process and the responses received:
1. Ms V Gay asked whether it would be possible to see the original responses. The
Revenues and Benefits Services Manager said that although hard copies of the
responses had been retained, the Monitoring Officer had advised that the
information should not be shared as personal data was included within the
documents.
2. Mr R Oliver sought further information on the people who gave a written
response. The Revenues and Benefits Manager said that only a general
summary of the responses could be given and it was not possible to provide a
detailed analysis of the respondents themselves. . In response to a further
question from Ms V Gay regarding the number of respondents in favour of the
proposals, she confirmed that it was less than 10.
3. Mr D Young asked whether initial problems with the link on the website had been
corrected. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager confirmed that it had.
4. The Chairman commented that the large number of responses received indicated
that the consultation had been successful in reaching those affected.
5. Mr D Young was interested in responses from the parish and town councils to the
consultation as he was not aware of any of the parish councils in his ward
covering the issue in any detail. . The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager
said that only one response had been received. She added that Member Briefings
had been arranged for District Councillors to ensure that they were aware of the
proposals and could then inform their parish and town councils.
6. Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds asked whether there was any additional detail
regarding responses to the question on reducing the limit on savings to £6000.
Council Tax Support Working Party
2
13
24 October 2012
Agenda Item 8
The Revenues and Benefits Manager replied that there was no further information
available as the announcement regarding the transitional grant had superseded
many of these issues.
7. Ms V Gay queried whether the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) had responded to
the consultation. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager said that they
had been aware of the process as they had attended a workshop discussing the
localisation of council tax in Norwich. It was not possible to tell if they had
submitted a response to the Council’s consultation. Mr D Young added that he
had concerns about their involvement as the Dereham Watton and Holt CAB said
they had not been consulted.
The Benefits Manager said that under the current system, under 25 non-dependants
paid a contribution to the householder responsible for paying the council tax. At
present this reduction was a standard percentage but there was an option of making
it a standard £10 payment which would simplify matters.
Mr D Young responded by saying that £10 was a considerable sum to find from the
job seekers allowance. The Benefits Manager agreed that it could be argued that this
approach was inequitable as the amount of benefits received by people varied
widely.
Ms V Gay said that she was disappointed that she was not able to look at the original
copies of the responses. The Chairman suggested that Ms V Gay and any other
Member of the Working group could see the responses in private at NNDC so they
would have "first hand" flavour of the responses, if the Monitoring Officer was in
agreement. Ms V Gay thanked him.
The Chairman thanked officers for all their hard work on the consultation process.
23
FINANCIAL UPDATE
The Head of Finance explained that the initial savings target of £1.175m had been
based on the previous funding announcement. This had been looked at in terms of
growth and subsidies. Having taken into consideration the current caseload and the
latest growth forecast, this had now been revised down to £1.094m. However, this
figure did not take account of the proposed transitional grant. If the transitional grant
was taken into account, together with scheme reductions (as per Government
criteria) the shortfall would be revised to £634,000. There was a possibility that by
taking advantage of proposed council tax reforms the shortfall could be reduced
further to £224,000.
The Head of Finance stressed that certain criteria would have to be met to apply for
the grant and applications could not be submitted until after the 31 January 2013,
(once the scheme had been finalised). She added that as the billing authority, the
District Council must apply for the grant funding on behalf of all the major preceptors.
Members discussed the financial update:
1. Ms V Gay sought clarification that a requirement of the transitional grant was that
those currently entitled to 100% support under existing council tax benefit
arrangements would not have to pay more than 8.5% of their net council tax
liability. The Revenues and Benefits Manager confirmed that this was the case.
She added that problems might occur if a new claimant joined after 1st April or
experienced a change of circumstances. She confirmed that 2,100 people in
North Norfolk were currently in receipt of full council tax benefit. The savings of
Council Tax Support Working Party
3
14
24 October 2012
Agenda Item 8
£264,000 were an estimate as there had been very limited guidance from the
Department for Communities and Local Government.
2. The Chairman queried how the Council would bridge the shortfall if they opted to
apply for the transitional funding. The Head of Finance replied that there was an
opportunity to meet some of the shortfall via council tax reforms – in particular
second homes and an empty homes premium. This could potentially generate up
to £410,000. In response to a further question from Mr R Oliver, she confirmed
that this was based on increasing council tax liability to 95% on second homes.
3. Mr D Young said that he believed up to £506,000 could potentially flow back to
the Council if council tax on second homes was charged at 100%. He said that
even with a 100% charge there would be no disincentive to declare second
home-ownership. The extra 10% charge would gain NNDC 0.9% of council tax on
the complete stock of second homes. If second homes were subsequently misdeclared as normal residences, the Council would lose their 20% pass-back from
the County Council but we would only lose the 09.% when such mis-declarations
reached 4.5% of the total stock of current and new second homes. Since the
Council starts off by knowing the current stock, keeping a record should not be
difficult. It was likely that it would take many years before mis-declarations
reached 4.5% of the total, by which time the scheme was likely to have changed
several times. He therefore favoured a 100% charge. Ms V Gay agreed with him.
The Head of Finance said that a move to 100% council tax liability for secondhome owners could lead to more properties moving over to business rates.
Taking into account business rate relief, there was the potential that the Council
could then lose out. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager added that
there was a fluctuation in the number of second homes which should be taken
into account.
4. Ms V Gay asked why the Council needed to know how many second homes
there were in the district. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager said that
they did not if they were collecting 100% of the council tax liability, however, the
Housing team did need to know for setting policy and the allocation of resources.
The Head of Finance added that the County Council currently gave a proportion
of the second homes income back to the Council and this would be difficult to
calculate if there was no record of the number of second homes.
The Chairman reminded the Working Party that they needed to decide whether they
wished to apply for the transitional grant. It was only available for one year but this
would give them some time to consider how they could bridge the funding gap in the
future. He sought clarification as to whether the Council needed to consult with the
County Council if they decided to apply for the transitional funding and put the 8.5%
scheme in place. The Head of Finance confirmed that they would but that there was
no requirement to consult with the public again as it would be an improved scheme.
Mr D Young asked whether opting for the 8.5% scheme would over-ride all previous
calculations. The Revenues and Benefits Services Manager confirmed that this was
the case.
The Head of Finance outlined the options for the Working Party:
a) To continue with the scheme that was consulted on and take an additional
£100,000 out of the budget.
b) To apply for the transitional grant in the knowledge that it was for 1 year only and
recognising that £58,000 would need to be delivered from next year’s budget.
Council tax reforms gave the Council some discretion and could potentially
deliver additional income but the share would be minimal as the additional cost of
collection would need to be factored in.
Council Tax Support Working Party
4
15
24 October 2012
Agenda Item 8
The Chairman asked whether it was possible for calculations and scenarios to be
provided based on the transitional scheme, if the Working Party agreed in principle to
this option. The Head of Finance agreed to this.
Ms V Gay said that she felt that it was preferable to opt for the transitional scheme,
even though there was minimal detail available at this stage. She had always
advocated taking other sources of income into consideration – particularly during the
first year. Mrs A Claussen-Reynolds agreed.
The Head of Finance said that she would set out all the options for the Working Party
to consider. It should be acknowledged that the late introduction of the transitional
scheme had impacted on the timetable for approving a scheme and it may be
necessary to hold a special meeting of Cabinet, Overview and Scrutiny Committee
and Full Council in January 2013 to ensure the Council met the deadline. The
Revenues and Benefits Services Manager added that there were several other
welfare changes for working-age people being introduced over the coming months
and if the impact of this scheme could be limited in any way then it could reduce the
overall impact of the wider changes.
It was agreed that officers would need to do additional work pending further
information from the DCLG within the next two weeks. The Group expressed a
preference to recommend a scheme that would enable the Authority to access the
additional grant. The scheme would need to reflect the Government criteria, primarily
that no-one currently entitled to 100% support would pay more than 8.5% of their net
council tax liability.
The Meeting closed at 11.15 am.
Chairman
Council Tax Support Working Party
5
16
24 October 2012
Agenda Item 9
12 NOVEMBER 2012
Minutes of a meeting of the PLANNING POLICY & BUILT HERITAGE WORKING PARTY
held in the Committee Room, Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer at 2.00 pm when there
were present:
Councillors
Mrs S A Arnold (Vice-Chairman)
M J M Baker
N D Dixon
Mrs A R Green
P W High
R Oliver
D Young
Mrs P Grove-Jones – observer
Officers
Ms J Fisher – Head of Economic & Community Development
Mr M Ashwell – Planning Policy Manager
Mrs T Armitage – Senior Planning Officer
Mr P Godwin – Conservation, Design and Landscape Manager
(26)
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors B Cabbell Manners, T Ivory
and P Williams.
(27)
MINUTES
The Minutes of the meeting held on 8 October 2012 were approved as a correct
record and signed by the Chairman.
(28)
ITEMS OF URGENT BUSINESS
The Chairman stated that there were no items of urgent business which he wished to
bring before the Working Party.
(29)
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Councillor Mrs A R Green declared an interest in minute (31) as she owned barns.
(30)
Local Development Framework Progress Report
The Working Party considered item 1 of the Officers’ reports, which provided a
general update in relation to the Local Development Framework and related policy
documents and the work of the Major Development Team in relation to allocated
Development Sites.
Development Briefs
The Planning Policy Manager reported that Hopkins Homes had declined to be
involved in the Holt Development Brief. They had been contacted again regarding
this matter.
Councillor M J M Baker asked if it could be assumed that Hopkins Homes would be
building houses on their part of the site to avoid delay in completing the brief. The
Planning Policy & Built Heritage Working Party
1
17
12 November 2012
Agenda Item 9
Planning Policy Manager stated that a large amount of Hopkins’ land would be
designated as open space. He explained that the purpose of the brief was to ensure
the comprehensive, properly planned development of the land. The other landowner
was keen to deliver his part of the development and a decision would have to be
taken as to whether to progress the brief without the co-operation of Hopkins Homes
or to encourage the other landowner to submit an application without a brief.
Councillor P W High agreed with Councillor Baker that there was a need to progress
this matter as soon as possible.
Councillor Mrs S A Arnold asked if there was anything that could be done to progress
development on the HL Foods site at North Walsham. The Planning Policy Manager
stated that there was little the Council could do to force the developer to develop the
site. It had been hoped that a loan from the New Anglia LEP Growing Places Fund
would act as a catalyst for development of this site. There would be a meeting with
the LEP Board next week and if there was no timescale for development the funding
could be withdrawn.
In response to a concern raised by Councillor Arnold in respect of possible land
banking, the Planning Policy Manager stated that Hopkins Homes had five sites. The
site at Cromer was in the process of construction and he considered that in terms of
the Company’s profile, the site at North Walsham would be the lowest priority.
Councillor D Young stated that proposals for one of the allocated sites in Weybourne
did not accord with the number of dwellings in the allocation.
Planning applications and pre-application discussions
The Planning Policy Manager reported that the first completion on the site at Cromer
was expected shortly after Christmas.
Highway works in respect of the Hoveton site were due to commence today.
Councillor M J M Baker referred to Hilbre School site at Sheringham and the planning
permissions for development by Tesco which required the delivery of replacement
facilities prior to commencement of the store development. He stated that there had
been a suggestion in the press that Tesco wished to renegotiate its planning
permissions.
The Planning Policy Manager explained that the housing proposals at this site were
not connected with the development of the store. He stated that the debate related to
the specification for the community centre. Councillor R Oliver, the local Member,
explained in detail the issues relating to this case.
In response to a question by Councillor Mrs A R Green, the Planning Policy Manager
stated that whilst a layout drawing had been produced for the allocated site in Little
Snoring, there had been no developer interest.
(31)
Response to National Planning Policy Framework – Core Strategy Policy HO9
and EC2
The Working Party considered item 2 of the Officers’ reports, which discussed
the potential impacts of the publication of the National Planning Policy
Framework in relation to the Councils adopted policy on the re-use of rural
buildings and recommended a new approach to the re-use of buildings in the
Countryside as dwellings.
Planning Policy & Built Heritage Working Party
2
18
12 November 2012
Agenda Item 9
The Working Party discussed the report and raised the following issues:
• Conversion of existing holiday homes to permanent residences incur no
additional conversion costs but the value of the dwelling increases,
therefore there is no reason why the applicant should not pay a
contribution towards affordable housing.
• Is it appropriate to ask the owner of a holiday property who wants to live in
it as a permanent residence to pay a contribution? As a compromise, a
contribution as a percentage of the profit could be applied if the property
were sold within ten years of conversion to permanent residential.
(The Senior Planning Officer explained that under these circumstances a
contribution would not be required under the policy as it stands; however
this may change if a tariff were to be introduced.)
• What happens if a number of buildings in the same ownership come
forward for conversion separately or in different names?
• The above outlines the merit of considering single units.
• The same policy should apply both inside and outside the HO9 zones.
• Legal advice is needed as to whether CIL could be applied to residential
conversions as it is a levy for new build floorspace. Introduction of a tariff
on sale of the property may require a Section 106 Obligation.
• Some barns are too remote to be viable for economic uses.
• Whilst the NPPF encourages conversion of any building, it is important to
get the balance right so that any new policy approach does not jeopardise
economic uses in the Countryside.
• It is suggested that groups of five or more would require a viability test and
compliance with Policy EN8 before conversion would be considered.
• NPPF does not specify employment generating uses and there is concern
that the proposed policy approach in respect of the conversion of
commercial buildings could be open to challenge.
• The proposed policy approach is a disincentive for businesses to continue
during difficult periods. We should not be encouraging closure of
businesses.
• The viability test should apply to any commercial building.
• What expertise have we got to judge viability issues?
• Viability is difficult to judge.
• The viability test is difficult to apply in some cases. We need a solution to
enable us to make an objective decision.
• There is some protection for community uses (eg. village pubs or shops) in
the Core Strategy.
• If a business is not viable it will fail – is there a need for an additional
viability test?
• Development Committee is always being asked to deal with viability issues
and there is no policy to deal with it. Concerned about consistency.
• Single commercial holiday lets might make a reasonable rate of return and
it is difficult to judge viability.
• Owners of a single commercial holiday let could wish to convert as a
means to support themselves in later life rather than just for profit. Single
commercial holiday lets could be treated the same as non-commercial.
• There may need to be a test to assess whether applicants are genuinely
wishing to convert a single unit or if they are ‘drip feeding’ applications.
Planning Policy & Built Heritage Working Party
3
19
12 November 2012
Agenda Item 9
•
The safest route is to consider conversion of vacant buildings and those
not in economic use at the moment and those in economic use can be
reviewed at a later date.
It was proposed by Councillor P W High, seconded by Councillor D Young
and
RESOLVED
That Cabinet be recommended to apply the approach outlined in
the following table to the re-use of rural buildings as dwellings in
response to the National Planning Policy Framework:
Good quality* buildings within HO9 zones – No change to adopted
policy
Conversion of
Allow conversion/re-use No change to HO9 –
vacant and
for residential purposes residential conversion only
buildings in existing
allowed for good quality
uses to dwelling(s)
buildings, where the
economic value of existing
uses has been considered
(adequacy of provision test)
and a contribution is made
towards affordable housing
where viable.
Good quality* buildings of merit outside HO9 zones – amended position
in light of NPPF
Conversion of a
Allow conversion to
Apply HO9 criteria 3-5 (scale
disused and
residential
of development, building
redundant building
quality, and affordable
to dwelling(s)
housing requirements)
Seeking lifting of
Allow lifting of
Apply HO9 criteria 4 and 5
holiday restrictions restriction – where in
(scale of development and
to allow full
non-commercial holiday affordable housing
residential
use/second home use.
requirements)
occupancy.
All Listed Buildings irrespective of location
Allow residential where Apply HO9 criteria 3-5 (scale
it constitutes optimum
of development, building
viable use (Optimum
quality and affordable
viable use being the
housing requirements).
optimum use for the
building rather than a
financial viability test)
*the building is worthy of retention due to its appearance, historic,
architectural or landscape value (HO9 criterion 2)
The meeting closed at 3.35 pm.
Planning Policy & Built Heritage Working Party
4
20
12 November 2012
3rd December 2012
Cabinet
Agenda Item No_____10_______
Proposed designation of Local Development Order on land at Egmere to
accommodate onshore support facilities related to offshore wind energy
developments off the North Norfolk coast
Summary:
This report proposes the designation of approximately 30 hectares of
land at Egmere for future development in support of offshore wind
energy developments off the North Norfolk coast through the use of
Local Development Order powers. This would directly support the
Council’s Corporate Plan objectives of seeking to attract new jobs and
investment associated with offshore wind energy developments to the
district.
Conclusions:
The report identifies an area of land at Egmere on the B1105 road to
the south of Wells-next-the-Sea which it is felt could accommodate
new investment associated with offshore wind energy developments
where a simplified planning regime could operate through approving a
Local Development Order.
Recommendations:
Cabinet is recommended to:1. Note the contents of the report and accompanying documents as
they relate to the proposed designation of a Local Development
Order for 30 hectares of land at Egmere, so as to accommodate
new job-creating investment in support of offshore wind energy
schemes off the North Norfolk coast.
2. Authorises officers to undertake formal consultation on the
proposed Local Development Order with statutory bodies and
consultees, local Town and Parish Councils, the business
community and general public during January and February of
2013.
3. Requests that at the end of the consultation process a further
report is presented for consideration / endorsement by Cabinet
before seeking approval of the Local Development Order from the
Secretary of State.
Cabinet member(s):
Cllr Tom FitzPatrick, Cllr Rhodri Oliver
Ward(s) affected:
Primarily Walsingham, with some impact on the Priory
ward
Cllr Tom FitzPatrick
21
3rd December 2012
Cabinet
Contact Officer, telephone
number, and e-mail:
Steve Blatch, Corporate Director
Steve.blatch@north-norfolk.gov.uk
Tel:- 01263 516232
1.0
Introduction
1.1
At the meeting of Cabinet held on 16th April 2012, Cabinet received and endorsed a
report on the growing importance of and opportunities presented to the district through
the development and operation of offshore wind energy schemes off the North Norfolk
coast.
1.2
Since this report was debated, SCIRA, the developers and operators of the Sheringham
Shoal offshore wind energy development have formally celebrated the completion of
construction and commenced operation of the Sheringham Shoal development and
licensing approval has been granted for two further wind energy developments off the
North Norfolk coast – these being the Dudgeon scheme to the north of Cromer and the
Race Bank scheme to the north of Wells-next-the-Sea.
1.3
Experience of working with SCIRA over a number of years during the planning and
development of their investment has shown that significant opportunities exist for inward
investment by specialist sub-contract companies as well as for local companies and
residents to gain business and employment associated with offshore wind energy
schemes, as well as there being demand for premises and facilities by wind energy
companies and their sub-contractors within the district. Whilst during the early phases of
the development of the Sheringham Shoal scheme much of the demand for premises
was accommodated locally in Wells-next-the-Sea, as the sector has become more
established, SCIRA has chosen to develop its Operations and Maintenance facility to
serve the offshore development at Egmere, to the south of Wells. This location is seen
as being able to accommodate future development in support of offshore wind energy
developments as it lies outside of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, builds upon
an established area of employment development which is believed to have relatively few
landscape or utility constraints and enjoys good road access by delivery and staff
vehicles and visitors from the south without introducing additional volumes of traffic into
Wells.
1.4
Officers have therefore given consideration to the potential of the Egmere location to
accommodate future inward investment by companies taking forward or associated with
wind energy developments off the North Norfolk coast. This would directly support the
Council’s Corporate Plan objectives of seeking to “to increase the number of new
businesses and support the growth and expansion of existing businesses”,
through, amongst other actions, “seeking to maximise the opportunities for the
district to benefit from investment in renewable energy developments off the
North Norfolk coast”.
1.5
This report and accompanying reports / plans therefore propose the designation of land
and approval of a Local Development Order at Egmere in support of these objectives.
2.0
Background
2.1
Historically there has been very limited demand for commercial land and premises in Wellsnext-the-Sea because of the town’s relatively peripheral location, and therefore the adopted
22
3rd December 2012
Cabinet
North Norfolk Core Strategy proposed that Fakenham be the principal location in the west
of the District where new employment-related development would be accommodated. The
Core Strategy was developed in the period 2006 -2008, which preceded the approval of
large-scale wind energy developments off the North Norfolk Coast, and therefore no
provision or allocation of land was made within the Core Strategy or Site Allocations Plans
to meet the future potential needs of the offshore wind energy sector.
2.2
In light of the experience the Council has gained in recent years through the SCIRA
development and the recent licensing approvals granted to the Dudgeon and Race Bank
offshore wind energy schemes, it is reasonable to anticipate that the promoters of these
two further developments and their sub-contractors will wish to establish facilities in support
of their offshore investments within the North Norfolk area. It is therefore recommended
that the Council seeks to positively accommodate such investment through identifying land
/ premises for such businesses in the future.
2.3
The Government is also encouraging local planning authorities to create a positive
environment for businesses wishing to make investments in employment generating
projects and the District Council believes that a positive “open for business” message can
be promoted to businesses involved in the offshore wind energy sector through identifying
land and agreeing a simplified planning framework for specified types of development
through the development and approval of a Local Development Order.
3.0
The proposal
3.1
Through the relationships the Council has developed with the Wells Harbour
Commissioners and the Holkham and Walsingham Estates in recent times with regards
accommodating the project planning, construction and operational and maintenance
phases of the SCIRA / Sheringham development, the potential of the Egmere location to
accommodate future commercial and business development is recognised.
3.2
Consideration has therefore been given to allocating / designating further land at this
location for future development by businesses associated with the offshore wind energy
sector. Whilst there are some areas of vacant land and under-used premises within the
existing commercial development at Egmere, it is felt that areas of greenfield and
brownfield land should be designated for future development, so as to provide a degree of
choice to potential investors.
3.3
An area of approximately 30 hectares is therefore proposed for designation under Local
Development Order powers comprising approximately 14 hectares of previously developed
land, 14 hectares of greenfield (undeveloped) land and just over 1 hectare of land currently
under development to provide SCIRA’s operational and maintenance facilities (comprising
a two storey office block, warehouse and car parking). The existing area of development at
Egmere extends to approximately 14 hectares, of which perhaps 4 hectares offers the
potential for re-use / redevelopment; with the remaining 10 hectares largely in use.
3.4
A paper and associated plans outlining the LDO proposal are attached as an appendix to
this report.
3.5
Initial discussions regarding the proposed Local Development Order have been held with
the two principal landowners – the Holkham and Walsingham Estates and both are
supportive of the proposed LDO designation. Initial consultations have also been held with
officer colleagues in Norfolk County Council’s Environment, Economy and Transport
Department particularly with regards the need for improvements to the B1105 which passes
through the middle of the area proposed for LDO designation so as to provide safe means
of access into any development sites etc. County officers have commented that the B1105
is an appropriate road to serve the level of development proposed through the LDO and are
23
3rd December 2012
Cabinet
preparing detailed comments on potential access / egress arrangements which would be
incorporated into any public consultation on the LDO. Similarly initial discussions have
been held with the County Council’s Historic Environment Team, recognising Egmere’s
historic role as a Second World War airbase which has requested that prior to any
development a photographic record is made of any development site / existing buildings.
3.6
Given the generally positive comments made by the principal landowners and County
colleagues / consultees regarding the proposed Local Development Order, it is
recommended that officers undertake further work in developing the proposal and then
undertake formal consultation on the LDO with local communities early in the New Year,
with the objective of inviting the Secretary of State to consider approval of the Egmere
Local Development Order by the middle of 2013.
4.0
Financial Implications and Risks
5.1
There are few direct financial implications arising from the recommendations made
within this report in the short-term – other than the officer costs associated with the
further development of the LDO proposal and undertaking public consultation on the
proposal.
5.2
As further consultation is undertaken and deeper understanding gained regarding
highway issues, availability of utilities etc it might be that the Council wishes to consider
whether any investment required to bring the land forward for development under an
LDO should be met by inward investors, developers, the landowners and/or through the
Council taking some form of equity stake in any development through contributing
towards any site servicing costs. Any such model will be explored further in the coming
months and a further report presented to Cabinet for consideration.
5.3
The growth and development of the renewable energy sector and the potential
opportunities this offers to the district’s economy in terms of new investment, skilled
employment opportunities at rates of pay above those currently on offer locally, and
contract / supply chain opportunities for existing businesses, are considered to be
significant. The actions proposed in this report seek to position the Council positively in
terms of the district being able to realise the benefits of this emerging economic sector
for many years to come. In this respect it is considered that there are few if any risks,
but many potential benefits, from the actions proposed in this report in terms of bringing
quality jobs and investment to North Norfolk.
6.0
Sustainability
6.1
At a strategic level the growth of renewable energy technologies is seen as a
fundamental component of the UK energy supply mix moving forward. In this respect
the actions proposed in this report seek to place the North Norfolk District in a strong
position to benefit from the growth of this sector both within and off the coast of North
Norfolk into the future.
7.0
Equality and Diversity
7.1
This report does not raise any equality and diversity issues, but does seek to secure new
business and employment opportunities for local people in a sector where skilled
positions will offer rates of pay above the district average.
8.0
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
8.1
This report does not raise any issues relating to Crime and Disorder.
24
Greenfield Area
148,953m2
(14.8 Hectares)
Scira Site
10,074 m2
(1.0 Hectares)
Brownfield Area
141,813m2
(14.1 Hectares)
_
OS MasterMap ®
Posssible 40mph
h Zone
Gre
eenfield Area
a
Proposed Egmere
Local Development Order
Bro
ownfield Area
a
Sciira Operation
ns Site
Pottential Acces
ss Points
North Norfolk District Council
25 NR27 9EN
Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer, Norfolk,
Tel: 01263 513811 Fax: 01263 515042
+SCALE+
+USERID+
+TIMEDATE+
© Crown Copyright
and database right
2012.
Ordnance Survey
100018623
Aerial Photos
©Getmapping plc
Greenfield Area
148,953m2
(14.8 Hectares)
Scira Site
10,074 m2
(1.0 Hectares)
Brownfield Area
141,813m2
(14.1 Hectares)
_
OS MasterMap ®
Posssible 40mph
h Zone
Gre
eenfield Area
a
Proposed Egmere
Local Development Order
Bro
ownfield Area
a
Sciira Operation
ns Site
Pottential Acces
ss Points
North Norfolk District Council
26 NR27 9EN
Council Offices, Holt Road, Cromer, Norfolk,
Tel: 01263 513811 Fax: 01263 515042
+SCALE+
+USERID+
+TIMEDATE+
© Crown Copyright
and database right
2012.
Ordnance Survey
100018623
Aerial Photos
©Getmapping plc
Appendix 3
Proposed Local Development Order (LDO) for development related to the
offshore wind energy sector – Land at Egmere, North Norfolk
1.0
Introduction
1.1
A number of wind energy developments are proposed off the North Norfolk
Coast – ie the Sheringham Shoal development which is developed and will be
fully operational with effect from September 2012; together with proposals for
the Dudgeon and Race Bank schemes which have recently (June 2012)
received formal licensing approval and it is understood will be developed over
the next five years.
1.2
Whilst the majority of investment / development associated with these
schemes is offshore, each scheme requires onshore operational and
maintenance support facilities and the most convenient and cost effective
location from which to serve these developments is the Port of Wells on the
North Norfolk coast.
1.3
The development of the Sheringham Shoal offshore wind farm by SCIRA, a
partnership of Norwegian companies StatOil and Statkraft, has seen survey
and support vessels, as well as a number of sub-contract businesses, operate
out of the Port of Wells, where the Harbour Commissioners have invested in
the development of an outer harbour facility at the northern end of Beach
Road, providing operational access to the harbour for support vessels at more
states of the tide than the historic quay and harbour facilities 1.5 kilometres to
the south.
1.4
In developing the Sheringham Shoal scheme, SCIRA looked at a number of
potential site locations in and around the town of Wells-next-the-Sea on which
to establish their on-shore support facilities – ie administrative offices, control
room, staff welfare, training and warehouse facilities to support the operation
and maintenance of the offshore turbine development; before securing
consent for such facilities on a site at Egmere on the B1105, the principal
access road serving Wells-next-the Sea, approximately 5 kilometres to the
south of the town.
1.5
The Egmere site is considered to be a good location for such development as
it lies beyond the area designated as the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty; and is therefore able to accommodate new development in
support of offshore wind energy developments without creating development
pressure on the sensitive environmental designations of the North Norfolk
Coast, which supports a significant local tourism economy, as well as being
an area of significant landscape, environmental and biodiversity value.
1.6
In wishing to support the diversification of the local economy and realise the
benefits of new job-creating investment associated with the development of
offshore energy schemes off the North Norfolk Coast, North Norfolk District
Council proposes identifying an area of land at Egmere, where a Local
Development Order can be established; simplifying the planning regime for
further development associated with the licenses recently granted for the
Dudgeon and Race Bank developments. This paper therefore provides detail
of the proposed Egmere Local Development Order, as the basis for formal
consultation.
27
Appendix 3
2.0
What is a Local Development Order?
2.1
A Local Development Order (LDO) grants planning permission (subject to
conditions) for specific developments described within the Order; meaning
that it is not necessary for investors / occupiers of such developments to
submit planning applications for their proposals.
2.2
Development proposals which do not fall within the prescribed permissions /
definitions provided by the LDO will need to secure some other form of
planning permission – ie through a planning application made to North Norfolk
District Council for consideration against the adopted Local Plan for the area
– ie the North Norfolk Core Strategy incorporating Development Control
policies adopted in September 2008; or as may be granted consent under the
Town and Country Planning General Permitted Development Order (GDPO).
2.3
It is important to state that just because development proposals do not fall
within the definition of the LDO, it does not mean that they will not be
considered acceptable within the area covered by the LDO. Such proposals
will however need to be considered by the local planning authority in the
context of national and local planning policies – ie the National Planning
Policy Framework published on 27th March 2012; together with policies
contained within the adopted Local Plan.
2.4
It is proposed that the Egmere LDO will operate for an initial period of five
years from the date of its adoption; complementing the period of time over
which it is anticipated that the development of the Dudgeon and Race Bank
proposals will be developed. The operation of the LDO can however be
reviewed and extended for a further period of time, subject to further
consultation.
3.0
Proposed area to be covered by the Egmere LDO
3.1
The proposed Egmere LDO will cover an area of approximately 30 hectares;
made up of areas of brownfield and greenfield land – see attached plan and
aerial photo. The area of land proposed for designation is in at least two
principal ownerships (the Holkham and Walsingham Estates); together with a
number of small plots understood to be in other ownerships. This is intended
to provide a choice of site / premises opportunities for potential investors
providing a degree of competition and value for money for investors.
3.2
The proposed Egmere LDO lies to the east and west of the B1105 Fakenham
to Wells-next-the Sea road, approximately five kilometres south of Wells-nextthe Sea and four kilometres west of the village of Walsingham. The B1105
road is the principal access road serving Wells-next-the Sea from the A148 /
A1065 / A1067 roads at Fakenham, ten kilometres to the south. In a regional
context, Egmere is situated approximately 50 kilometres north-west of the city
of Norwich with its international airport and rail connections via the A1067;
approximately 82 and 96 kilometres from the major port facilities of Great
Yarmouth and Lowestoft via the A1067 and A47/A146 roads; and 140
kilometres from Stansted Airport via the A1065, A11 and M11.
3.3
Development of support facilities associated with the operational and
maintenance requirements of the offshore wind energy schemes at the
proposed Egmere LDO area would therefore provide an opportunity for
offshore technicians and survey personnel, as well as HGVs serving such
28
Appendix 3
operations, to be located outside of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty,
but with easy access to the port facilities at Wells-next-the-Sea. This would
mean that large volumes of additional traffic could be kept out of Wells, as
personnel and equipment accessing boats at the harbour could be
transported by minibus / dedicated support vehicles operating from facilities at
Egmere.
3.4
The Egmere site historically accommodated miscellaneous buildings
associated with a Second World War airfield to the west of the B1105 road;
but more recently has seen development of facilities supporting the wider
agricultural economy – including grain storage and drying facilities; animal
feed manufacture and distribution facilities, some of which are currently
vacant.
The wider area is in arable production; with no significant
development or land uses / settlements closer to the site than the
communities of Wells-next-the-Sea and Walsingham as detailed at paragraph
3.2 above. The historic Holkham Hall and Park lie approximately four
kilometres to the north-west of Egmere, but would not be impacted upon by
any development permitted by the LDO.
4.0
Objectives of the Egmere LDO
4.1
North Norfolk District Council has proposed designating an LDO at Egmere in
support of the significant offshore wind energy developments off the North
Norfolk Coast. Whilst the major construction / development of the offshore
wind energy developments will be supported by vessels deploying from Great
Yarmouth and Lowestoft; the Port of Wells provides the most cost-effective
location from which to base survey vessels and staff during the preconstruction survey and construction phases and in the longer term operation
of the schemes, being the closest port facility from which to deploy
operational and maintenance personnel.
4.2
The District Council wishes to secure as many economic and employment
benefits from offshore wind developments for North Norfolk as possible. The
Council and local partners, particularly the Wells Harbour Commissioners,
and the Holkham and Walsingham Estates, therefore wish to create and
promote a positive environment for inward investment by wind energy
companies and their sub-contractors through identifying appropriate land and
property opportunities, simplifying the local planning regime, co-ordinating
supply chain and cluster development and promoting skills development
amongst local people so that the opportunities to diversify and develop the
local economy presented by the offshore wind and wider renewable energy
sector are realised locally. The proposed designation of an LDO at Egmere is
a key element of the Council’s “offer” to such investors.
4.3
The aims of the LDO are therefore:•
•
designating an area of land where investment by wind energy
companies and their suppliers / sub-contractors can be directed and
accommodated in principle, where a simplified planning regime
exists for such developments
allowing permitted development rights for new developments
proposed in support of the offshore wind energy sector, subject to
compliance with the agreed Schedule of Development detailed at
Section 5.
29
Appendix 3
•
to foster inward investment and economic growth through allowing
offshore wind energy businesses and their suppliers, subcontractors and support businesses, to invest in the district and
benefit from co-location / cluster development.
4.4
In order that development within the LDO is taken forward to a reasonable
standard and promotes a positive image for the District and development of
the wider renewable energy sector in North Norfolk, the LDO is supported by
a Design Code which seeks to establish key principles for development at
Egmere. This is considered important, not only for the positive image of
renewable offshore wind energy, but also as the B1105 road through Egmere
serves as a key gateway route to the North Norfolk Coast, used by tens of
thousands of tourist visitors to the District.
4.5
The designation of the Egmere LDO will simplify the planning process for
wind energy companies and related businesses wishing to establish a
presence in North Norfolk; providing clarity and certainty around the nature
and type of development which will be considered acceptable within the LDO.
This will allow developments to be taken forward within shorter timeframes,
allowing offshore wind energy businesses and their suppliers to respond
quickly to technical issues arising in the construction and operation of the
offshore turbines and supporting infrastructure.
4.6
Other policies relevant to the Egmere LDO are the National Planning Policy
Framework and the adopted North Norfolk Core Strategy incorporating
Development Control policies.
4.7
A schedule of conditions restricting or relating to development taken forward
within the area covered by the LDO, together with the reasons for these
conditions, is detailed at Section 6 and developers and their advisors / agents
will need to give careful consideration to such conditions in the development
of proposals.
4.8
The LDO does not remove or compromise any established development /
land uses or any development proposal previously approved within the LDO
area, subject to the usual time limits set by conditions.
4.9
The LDO does not remove the need for Building Regulations approvals to be
obtained or remove the need for developers / occupiers of premises to
comply with all other legislative requirements pertaining to their occupation of
premises or their wider business operations.
4.10
Development permitted under the LDO will be the subject of continuous
monitoring by the local authority in order to safeguard the wider public interest
and monitor the effectiveness of the LDO as a policy instrument. Developers
taking forward permitted developments within the LDO area will therefore be
required to provide details of their proposals to the local planning authority in
order that details of developments can be placed on the Council’s public
register of planning applications.
4.11
Any development or breach of consent as allowed for by the permitted
development through the LDO, will be the subject of investigation under the
Council’s established Planning Enforcement procedures.
30
Appendix 3
5.0
SCHEDULE OF DEVELOPMENT PERMITTED BY THE EGMERE LOCAL
DEVELOPMENT ORDER
Description of development to be permitted under the Local Development
Order
Within the boundaries of the Egmere LDO, as shown on the Map at Appendix X,
planning permission will be granted for the following types of development:-
Developments directly supporting the operational
requirement of the offshore wind energy sector
and
maintenance
Development is permitted for the following purposes:a) Co-ordination and operation of offshore wind energy developments through
the design, development and operational phases – to include administrative
offices, operations control and monitoring facilities, staff training, briefing and
welfare facilities, warehousing and storage facilities.
b) The manufacture, assembly, storage, maintenance and servicing of plant,
machinery and components used in the generation and transmission of
electricity generated by offshore wind farm developments.
c) The decommissioning and/or disassembly of plant, machinery and
components used in the generation and transmission of electricity generated
by offshore wind farm developments.
d) The provision of technical survey and support services for the construction
and maintenance of offshore wind energy developments.
e) The provision of storage and warehousing associated with the supply of
goods and services to offshore workers through the Port of Wells.
f)
Education and training facilities in support of the offshore wind energy sector.
Subject to the following conditions / exceptions:i)
Development of a hotel, hostel or residential accommodation
ii)
Development of facilities for the take-off or landing of helicopters
iii)
Any development taken forward under the provisions of the LDO shall
comply with the requirements of the Egmere LDO Design Code
iv)
On-site parking provision shall be made in accordance with the standards
set out in Appendix C: Car Parking Standards of the adopted North
Norfolk Core Strategy, unless otherwise agreed by the Local Planning
Authority.
v)
No development shall take place which involves the removal of any trees
or hedgerows within the LDO area, unless otherwise agreed by the Local
Planning Authority.
31
Appendix 3
vi)
Prior to the commencement of any development, the developer or their
agent will inform the Local Planning Authority, using the standard forms
provided, providing general details about the nature and form of the
proposed development and confirming that it is in accordance with the
provisions of the Egmere LDO and Design Code. The information
provided shall include a site plan with the development site outlined in
red, together with plans and elevations which show the size and
appearance of the development. This information will be placed on the
Council’s public register of planning applications.
Electronic communications equipment used in support of offshore wind
energy operations
Development is permitted for the following purposes:a)
The provision and future maintenance of electronic communications
infrastructure and apparatus (ie masts, aerials, antennae and satellite
dishes) and ancillary equipment housing in support of the monitoring,
maintenance, and safe operations of offshore wind energy developments.
Subject to the following conditions / exceptions:i)
Development is not permitted for masts, aerials and antennae
exceeding ?30? (to be agreed) metres in height
ii)
Any part of the development, including equipment housing, would obscure
the sight lines of any road junction or site access / egress on to the public
highway.
iii)
Any electronic communications equipment attached to buildings shall, so
far as is practical without compromising operational effectiveness, be
located so as to minimise its effect / impact on the external appearance of
the building.
iv)
Prior to the use of any electronic communications equipment approved
under the LDO, the developer / operator shall provide to the Local
Planning Authority a certificate confirming that the development will meet
International Commission for Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP)
guidelines for exposure and that the cumulative impact of exposure from
all development within the LDO will not exceed ICNIRP guidelines.
v)
Any infrastructure and apparatus developed / erected in accordance with
the LDO provisions shall be decommissioned and removed from the land,
building or structure (eg masts) upon which it is situated after it is no
longer required.
CCTV cameras
Development is permitted for the following purposes:a)
The installation and operation of Closed Circuit Television cameras and
supporting infrastructure (poles, masts, infra-red lighting) for security
purposes.
32
Appendix 3
Subject to the following conditions / exceptions:i)
CCTV cameras permitted by the LDO shall be designed / operated in
such a way that they cannot survey / film any residential property or
garden.
ii)
Any CCTV cameras and supporting infrastructure developed / erected in
accordance with the LDO provisions shall be decommissioned and
removed from the land, building or structure upon which it is situated after
it is no longer required.
iii)
The operation of any CCTV security systems permitted under the
provisions of the LDO will be operated in accordance with xxxxxx
legislation
Boundary fences and gates
Development is permitted for the following purposes:a)
Operational development comprising the erection or installation of boundary
fencing and gates
Subject to the following conditions / exceptions:i)
Fences and gates shall not exceed 2 metres in height
ii)
Any fencing or gate permitted by the LDO should not obscure the sight
lines of any road junction or site access / egress on to the public highway.
iii)
Any gate providing vehicular access to the public highway should be set
back within the development by a distance of xx metres (to be advised
by the Highway Authority) so that it can be unlocked / opened without
obstruction of the highway.
iv)
The provision of fencing under the provisions of the LDO should seek to
minimise visual impact when viewed from the public highway or external
views, with consideration given to the planting of hedging in native
species on the outward facing aspect of the fenced development.
Photovoltaic / solar panels
Development is permitted for the following purposes:a)
The installation of photovoltaic or solar energy panels on buildings within the
Egmere LDO area
Subject to the following conditions / exceptions:i)
Any photovoltaic or solar energy panels installed on buildings in accordance
with the LDO provisions shall be decommissioned and removed from the after
it is no longer required.
33
Appendix 3
6.0
SCHEDULE OF RESTRICTIONS / CONSTRAINTS TO DEVELOPMENT
PERMITTED BY THE EGMERE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT ORDER
To be completed at Stage 2 of LDO preparation process following
consultation on key strategic issues in terms of highway access, Flood
Risk Assessment, Contaminated Land, Sustainability Appraisal etc
34
Agenda Item No______11______
2012/13 REVISED BUDGET
Summary:
The base budget for 2012/13 was approved by Full
Council on 22 February 2012. The budget was updated
as part of the 2011/12 final accounts report for the carry
forward of funding from the year end process. The
budget has continued to be monitored throughout the
year to date and reported to Members accordingly. This
report now presents for approval the 2012/13 revised
budgets for revenue and capital.
Options considered:
Not reporting the revised budget – recommending a
revised budget during the year provides an opportunity
to critically review all budgets and to ensure spend and
income budgets reflect current service plans and
objectives. Due to the significant budget movements in
the year in particular the service restructurings following
the management restructure and the outcome of the pay
and grading review, this thorough review during the year
provides a mechanism to ensure the reported budget is
accurate and enables meaningful budget monitoring for
the remainder of the year.
Conclusions:
The revised budget shows a small underspend of
£1,398 for the current financial year and will be
transferred to the general reserve in the year.
Recommendations:
That Members agree and recommend to Full
Council:
1) The revised revenue budget for 2012/13;
2) The revised transfers to and from reserves as
detailed within Appendix D;
3) A transfer of £1,398 to the general reserve;
4) The revised capital programme and associated
financing as included at Appendix E including
the additional sum of £37,084 be made available
to fund refurbishment works to the Rocket
House, to include the full renewal and upgrade
of the lift system and £21,000 for the
replacement scanner and printer for the
Planning service, both to be funded from capital
receipts.
5) The scale of fees and charges from 1 April 2013
included at Appendix C.
6) That delegated authority for setting the fees and
charges for waste be given to Corporate
Director, Head of Environmental Health, Head
of Finance and relevant Cabinet Portfolio
Members.
35
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To agree a revised budget for the current financial year.
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on the write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
Budget monitoring reports for the current year;
Financial Strategy 2013/14 to 2015/16
Cabinet Member(s)
Ward(s) affected: All
Cllr Wyndham Northam
Contact Officer, telephone number and email: Karen Sly, 01263 516243;
Karen.sly@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
This report presents the revised revenue and capital budgets for the financial
year 2012/13.
1.2
During the year financial monitoring reports have been presented to both
Cabinet and Overview and Scrutiny Committee which have identified
variances between the profiled budget and the actual expenditure and income
to date. The last monitoring report was presented to Cabinet on 12
November and Overview and Scrutiny on 21 November 2012, and covered
the period up to 30 September 2012 (period six).
1.3
This revised budget brings together the budget monitoring position plus any
further budget movements highlighted since the position was reported to
produce a revised budget position for the current financial year (2012/13).
2.
Revenue Account Budget 2012/13
2.1
Appendix A provides a high level summary of the overall financial position of
the Council for the current year. The revised budget is showing a small
underspend which will be transferred to reserves in the year. Where
movements have been made to budgets these are detailed within Appendix B
with the more significant variances highlighted within the report.
2.2
The various sub totals represent the standard reporting framework which is
presented in budget setting and reporting the financial outturn. The “Net Cost
of Services” represents the total costs of the services provided by the Council
including capital charges and the transactions relating to pensions as a result
of International Accounting Standards 19 (IAS 19). After making adjustments
to recognise Parish Precepts and other transactions, for example amounts to
be taken from and put into reserves in the year, the remaining total is the
amount to be covered by council tax and government grant as per the original
budget set in February 2012.
36
2.3
The following tables (tables 1 and 2) summarises the revised budget and the
variances at the net cost of service level, analysed across the major
expenditure/income headings. The detail within table 3 provides a
commentary on the more significant variances compared to the original
budget.
Table 1
Net cost of services
Updated
Revised
Budget
Budget 2012/13
2012/13
£
£
15,888,406
19,442,715
Variance
£
3,554,309
Non service expenditure/ income
(3,585,798)
(7,141,505)
(3,555,707)
Net budget requirement
Amount to be met from
Government Grant and Local
Taxpayers
(Surplus)/ Deficit
12,302,608
12,301,210
(1,398)
(12,302,608)
(12,302,608)
0
0
(1,398)
(1,398)
Table 2 - Subjective Analysis
Updated
Budget £
Revised
Budget £
Employees/Support Services
Premises
Transport
Supplies & Services
Transfer Payments
Income (External)
Total Direct Costs and Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Notional Charges
REFFCUS
Total Notional Charges
Total Net Costs
9,486,260
2,662,298
342,578
9,993,782
34,547,835
(45,254,659)
11,778,094
1,814,493
(256,842)
2,552,661
4,110,312
15,888,406
10,285,761
2,692,109
317,603
10,695,185
34,547,835
(45,522,184)
13,016,309
1,799,778
(282,941)
4,909,569
6,426,406
19,442,715
Variance £
799,501
29,811
(24,975)
701,402
0
(267,525)
1,238,215
(14,715)
(26,099)
2,356,908
2,316,094
3,554,309
2.4
The variance on employee costs is largely due to a number of one-offs in the
year including the implications of the pay and grading review (see also 2.6)
and the impact of restructuring where the costs have been funded from a
transfer from earmarked reserves. The significant movement on supplies and
services is due to the budget being updated to accurately reflect where
expenditure is being funded from earmarked reserves for example in relation
to the big society fund, benefits partnership and Pathfinder ongoing projects.
Other variances include where the budgets have been updated for
expenditure being funded from additional grant income. The revenue
expenditure funded from capital under statute (REFFCUS) variance reflects
the re-profiling of the capital programme for the year.
2.5
The commentary within the following table provides details of the more
significant variations between the current budget and the revised position for
37
Variance
%
8.4
1.1
(7.3)
7.0
0.0
0.6
10.5
(0.8)
10.2
92.3
56
22.4
direct costs and income, detailed analysis is provided within Appendix B
covering the main service areas of the Council. Where applicable the revised
budget takes account of costs that are chargeable to the service but are
funded from a reserve in the year. Details of these are also provided within
the following commentary.
2.6
The base budget for 2012/13 included the estimated financial implications
from the management restructure and pay and grading review. At the time of
setting the budget in February 2012 these two projects were in progress and
the details of the implications at the individual services was not known and
therefore could not be allocated to services but were included at a corporate
level of reporting. In addition, it was assumed that the pay and grading review
would be implemented from April 2012 based on the pay model included
within the original consultation document. Subsequent to setting the budget
for 2012/13 Full Council in April 2012 approved a revised pay model for
implementation in October 2012. An earmarked reserve was established to
fund one-off costs associated with the review, i.e. the implications of back
pay. Where these costs are now included within the budget for 2012/13 a
compensating entry will be made from the earmarked reserve to negate the
one-off impact in the current year. The amount that has been taken from the
reserve in the year is £394,911.
The revised budget for 2012/13 has now been updated to reflect the work on
these two projects to date and the implications included within the service
budgets where applicable and therefore variances are now explained in the
following sections of the report.
Table 3 – Service Variances 2012/13 Revised Budget
Assets and Leisure
Car Parking – The income and expenditure budgets for car parking have been
reviewed and updated to reflect the latest forecasts of all car parking income.
There are a number of budget movements compared to the base budget, the
most significant are:
• Additional income for the year compared to the level originally forecast:
• Pay and display fee income (£94,472) as a result of the new pricing
structure implemented in 2012/13
• Penalty charge notices (PCN) (£52,005).
• Additional contract management costs of £49,320. This includes
£12,746 relating to the previous financial year and £36,574 for the
current financial year of which £20,803 is due to the impact of the
increase in PCN income.
• £20,000 increase in repairs and maintenance for ticket machines.
Administration Buildings – Reduction and refund of NNDR costs totalling
£51,548 for the year. This relates to the revaluation of the Cromer and
Fakenham offices following the outcome of an appeal covering three years of
NNDR charges. This has been partly offset by £11,977 for external fees that
were incurred to carry out the work for the revaluation. An ongoing saving from
NNDR has been factored into the forward financial projections. One-off repairs
and maintenance costs of £8,000 for the disaster recovery room at Fakenham
Connect have been incurred; this is due to the pending disposal of the annexe
38
Variance –
Growth/
(Saving)
£
(72,160)
(26,596)
Table 3 – Service Variances 2012/13 Revised Budget
Variance –
Growth/
(Saving)
£
building and also reduces the proximity risk of the disaster recovery room being
so close to the main office at Cromer.
Property Services – The budget variance largely reflects the net movement in
relation to employee costs as a result of a vacant post for part of the year and
the implications of the new management structure.
(17,197)
Sports Centres – There are a number of variances now reported within the
expenditure and income budgets. The main variances are:
• Income is lower than anticipated by £13,000, mainly due to increased
participation at Stalham Sports Hall not coming into fruition as originally
anticipated, also less outreach work is being provided due to a vacant
post, although this has been offset by a saving on employee costs in
the year.
• £6,500 professional fees relating to the North Walsham Sports Centre
business case which are to be funded from the sports hall earmarked
reserve.
• Additional employee budgets totalling £18,888 which includes a saving
of £11,158 due to a vacant post and the implications of the pay and
grading review.
41,466
Leisure Complexes – Inflationary increase on the contract management fee of
£18,752 and roof repairs on the Splash facility £6,300.
25,052
Investment Properties - An income provision for service charges had been
allowed for within the accounts for the past two years; these are no longer
recoverable and therefore results in an unfavourable variance of £15,500 in the
current year. Essential lift maintenance has been required at the Rocket House
in the year resulting in an additional budget requirement of £8,000. Further
details on the Rocket House are provided within section 6.3.5 to the report.
18,937
Community and Economic Development
General Economic Development – This budget heading has now been
updated to reflect the Learning for Everyone project and also projects
previously included within the Pathfinder scheme. These are either funded from
grant or from the respective earmarked reserves.
123,592
Coast Protection – Additional external consultants to be employed for the
year to carry out work in relation to revenue maintenance and associated work.
This is funded from a virement from the Coastal Management service.
15,000
Pathfinder – Following the carry forward of the underspend at the end of the
2011/12 financial year the budgets have been updated to reflected the ongoing
pathfinder projects and integrated coastal management costs. These are fully
funded from the earmarked reserve.
95,124
Regeneration Management – The variance is largely due to employee costs
as a result of the management restructure and pay and grading review.
40,434
Local Land Charges – The budget movement reflects the additional income
16,743
39
Table 3 – Service Variances 2012/13 Revised Budget
Variance –
Growth/
(Saving)
£
that was included as part of the 2012/13 budget process which is not now
anticipated, the impact of this is reduced income of £12,000 in the current year.
In addition the revised charging structure is still to be agreed for street naming
and numbering.
Environmental Strategy – The budget movement reflects a post that has
become vacant in the year for which the remaining budget will not be utilised.
(12,565)
Community and Localism – This service now includes the projects and
grants funded as part of the Big Society/Localism agenda. The costs are
largely being funded from the second homes funding that is returned to NNDC
from NCC, and the former Local Strategic Partnership earmarked reserve.
173,717
Coastal Management – Of the variance £27,211 relates to a current vacant
post, £15,000 has been vired to coast protection consultancy expenditure and
the remainder of the variance largely reflects employee costs as a result of the
pay and grading review.
(26,624)
Customer Services
IT Support Services – The budget variance includes a saving of £27,000 from
licences following from the Civica system changes. The revised budget now
includes additional employee costs of £44,413 as a result of the pay and
grading review.
Publicity – The full year saving reflects the net position following the
introduction of advertising in Outlook. Advertising income of £21,060 has now
been included in the revised budget along with costs of £6,750.
Customer Services – The overall variance reflects a net position on employee
costs of a vacant post and the implementation costs of the pay and grading
review.
Development Management
Development Management – The budget movement variance includes
increased staff recharges from other planning areas of £22,332, a
compensation payment awarded following an ombudsman enquiry of £8,500,
employee costs of £59,486 of which £14,696 relates to temporary
appointments and £39,407 relates to one-off pay and grading costs both
funded from earmarked reserves. The Department for Communities and Local
Government announced on 14 November a planning fee increase would come
into force on 22 November 2012 of 15%. The original budget already included
£50k for a fee increase although this did not come into force as originally
planned. Despite this a large number of major applications has meant that a
predicted increase of £25,000 has been included.
Landscape – Employee costs as a result of the pay and grading
implementation of £22,165 are now reflected in the revised budget. There is
also a saving shown within employee costs due to increased staff time now
charged to development management. The revised budget includes £8,000
biodiversity expenditure to be funded from the planning earmarked reserve in
the year.
40
16,950
(14,310)
24,873
76,635
18,267
Table 3 – Service Variances 2012/13 Revised Budget
Environmental Health
Licensing – The main reason for the variance is a reduction in income of
£20,000 from general licensing income due to closed premises. This has been
partly offset by the implications from the pay and grading review.
Variance –
Growth/
(Saving)
£
14,058
Environmental Protection – The revised budget reflects one off costs of
£26,000 in relation to Briggate Mill to be funded from reserves pending
recovery of costs once land ownership has been identified. There are also
savings totalling £9,119 anticipated for the year from a number of
miscellaneous demand led budgets.
16,879
Waste Collection and Disposal – There are a number of movements within
this service area which are detailed in Appendix B, but overall there is
expected to be an increase in direct costs of £31,083. This is due in the main to
additional costs for processing and disposal of materials, the haulage charge
paid for taking waste to a transfer station instead of direct to Landfill, and a
stepped cost to the contract for trade waste. These costs have been offset by a
variation to the contract for non-processing of street sweepings and reduced
disposal costs for trade waste following a redefinition from Defra. Income is
also expected to be down by £58,625 as refunds will be made to commercial
customers following the redefinition of waste by Defra and a loss of recycling
credit income due to non-processing of street sweepings – these losses are
partly offset by additional income from a recharge for Tipping Away.
89,708
Cleansing – The base budget included £15,000 for a cleansing survey, this is
no longer required and therefore is a saving in the year. Other budget
movements include £16,950 budget transferred to waste collection to reflect
the current staffing structure.
Financial Services
Benefits – The budget reflects the expenditure on the revenues and benefits
shared services project which is funded from the partnership earmarked
reserve established as part of the 2011/12 outturn process (£265,136). Of the
remaining variance £65,713 reflects the implementation of the pay and grading
review.
Non Distributed Costs – This service includes the pension payments in
relation to past employees. Inflation chargeable on these payments is normally
contained by reductions in the payments following the death of members. Of
the variances £9,634 is due to inflation which has not been offset by reduced
payments. The remainder reflects one-off actuarial strain costs as a result of inyear officer structural changes. This one-off cost is being funded by a transfer
from the Restructuring and Invest to Save Proposals reserve.
Central Costs – Pay and grading implications are now included at the service
level.
41
(35,641)
336,967
26,099
(51,866)
(40,413)
Corporate and Democratic Core – The variance reflects the saving now
anticipated to the audit fee following from the changes to the external auditing
arrangements from 2012/13 onwards.
Organisational Development
Human Resources and Payroll – Pay and grading implementation costs of
which £15,523 funded from an earmarked reserve.
Corporate
Corporate Leadership Team – Savings as a result of the management
restructuring.
22,718
(145,225)
3.
Non Service Expenditure
3.1
The original budget for 2012/13 anticipated that a net total of £269,900 would
be earned in interest. This assumed an average balance of £26m at a rate of
1.03%.
3.2
The latest budget monitoring position reported that the rate of interest
achieved for the year to date was 0.9% from an average balance available for
investment of £25.0m suggesting a reduction compared to the budgeted level.
However it is anticipated that the original budget will still be achievable
following the decision to invest in pooled property funds (October 2012).
4.
Future Budget Forecast and Fees and Charges
4.1
Members were provided with a comprehensive overview of the current
financial projections for the period 2013/14 to 2015/16 within the Financial
Strategy document for the same period as presented to Cabinet on 12
November 2012. The Local Government Finance Bill has recently become an
Act and covers the following:
• Local retention of non-domestic rates and Revenue Support Grant
• Council Tax Support Schemes
• Council Tax Discounts
Details on each of the above were outlined within the Financial Strategy
document.
4.2
At the time of writing this revised budget report there have been no further
announcements of dates for the provisional finance settlement announcement
for 2013/14. Detailed work on setting the budget for 2013/14 is underway and
will be presented in the new calendar year once the outcome of the finance
settlement is known.
4.3
Fees and charges proposals for 2013/14 have been circulated to managers
so that income budgets can be updated as part of the budget process.
Appendix C to this report provides the detail of the proposed charges for the
forward financial year from 1 April 2013. Agreement to these charges in
advance of the approval of the budget for the 2013/14 financial year enables
Officers to make preparations for the new financial year and also enable more
accurate projections for income to be factored into the budget for 2013/14.
Any further work in this area will be reported in the Budget reports in February
2013. Trade and garden waste fees are set annually, as in previous years it is
requested that delegated authority for setting these fees is given to the
42
Corporate Director, Head of Environmental Health, Head of Finance and the
relevant Cabinet Portfolio Members.
4.4
Where applicable the proposed increase to fees and charges is generally
around 2.5% for 2013/14 or to the nearest sensible figure after allowing for
rounding. The exceptions to this are for those fees and charges which are set
by central government, for example planning and premises licence fees and
also where a contractor manages a facility on behalf of the Council as the
Council has no discretion over these prices. A number of service fees and
charges are still to be reviewed alongside the ongoing budget process.
5.
Reserves
5.1
The Council holds a number of reserves including the general reserve and
earmarked reserves. The general reserve is held as a contingency to cushion
the impact of unexpected events or emergencies and uneven cashflows
between financial years. The level of this reserve is reviewed annually in the
light of the risks that the Council is facing as part of setting the annual budget.
A number of earmarked reserves are also held for specific purposes, these
are generally indicated by the name/description of the reserve. Again these
are reviewed regularly taking into account current commitments and also to
ensure that their level and original justification is still appropriate to the
respective service areas. Where applicable previous earmarked reserves will
be released to fund expenditure in the year or if no longer required will be
reallocated to the general reserve.
5.2
Appendix D shows the opening position on each of the reserves at 1 April
2012, the planned movement (i.e. the net of transfers in and out) of the
reserve in 2012/13 and the projected closing balance at 31 March 2013. The
planned movements of the reserves for future years will be discussed in detail
with Cabinet and Corporate Leadership Team over the coming months as part
of the detailed budget discussions for 2013/14 and future years.
5.3
The commentary within Table 3 earlier in the report identifies where service
expenditure is being funded from a reserve or where a contribution is being
made to the reserve.
5.4
The projected year-end (31 March 2013) balance on the general reserve is
£1,784,794 (after transferring the small surplus). Current budget projections
for future years assume a contribution from this reserve to support (as oneoffs) the base budget of £200,000 in 2013/14 and £100,000 in 2014/15 which
will leave an anticipated balance of £1,484,794 as at 31 March 2016 against a
current recommended minimum level of £950,000. As part of the budget
report for 2013/14 a detailed review of the adequacy of the general reserve
will be carried out, early indications suggest that it would be prudent to
increase the recommended balance to reflect the significant changes to the
Local Authority Financing regime that comes into force in April 2013.
6.
Capital Programme
6.1
An updated capital programme was included as part of the Period 6 budget
monitoring report, that was presented to Cabinet on 12 November 2012. A
copy of the revised capital programme for 2012/13 is included at Appendix E.
43
6.2
There were no adjustments to the 2012/13 Capital Programme, requested as
part of the budget monitoring report for Period 6, however, a number of
changes have since been made to the profiling of expenditure between
financial years against the following schemes, although it should be noted
that neither the scheme budgets nor the sources of funding have changed.
6.2.1
Wells Sackhouse Refurbishment and Maltings Wells – These schemes are
currently on hold pending the outcome of a larger grant funding submission.
The remaining budgets of £26,723 and £100,000 respectively, are requested
to be slipped into the new financial year (2013/14), so that they may be used
for match funding purposes.
6.2.2 Housing Renovation Grants - Anticipated expenditure against Housing
Renovation Grants is in the region of £60,000 for 2012/13. The remainder of
the budget for the year, of £800,000 has been requested for slippage into
2013/14 in order to support the delivery of the Housing Renewal Policy, which
is due to go to Cabinet in January 2013, with implementation due from April
2013 onwards.
6.2.3
Disabled Facilities Grants - The payment of grants for provision of disabled
facilities is continuing, but it is not anticipated that all monies will be spent
within the current financial year. As such, it is requested that £372,578 of the
budget for 2012/13 be slipped to 2013/14.
6.2.4
Housing Associations – A revised profile of expenditure has been identified
for the individual housing projects within this scheme. Based on the amended
timetable of key dates, it has been identified that a budget of £2,022,500 is
required for this financial year, with the balance of £1,077,678 being
requested for slippage to 2013/14.
6.2.5
Strategic Housing and Choice Based Lettings System – The purchase of
additional elements of the Choice Based Lettings System is anticipated
before the end of the current financial year. Expenditure of £15,000 is
expected, with the remaining £5,000 budget being requested for slippage into
the new financial year.
6.2.6
Cromer Pier and West Prom Refurbishment Project - The scheme has been
delayed and it is therefore requested that the remaining budget identified to
be spent in 2012/13 of £99,892, be slipped into the new financial year.
6.2.7
Refurbishment Works to the Seaside Shelters – Whilst this scheme is
progressing, with work on the Marrams shelters almost complete, some works
will be undertaken in 2013/14. A request has therefore been made for
£100,000 of the budget to be slipped into the New Year.
6.2.8
Playground Improvements – Various - The majority of works in relation to
Sadlers Wood have been completed, however, there is an anticipated
balance of £3,000 which has been requested for slippage to 2013/14.
6.2.9
North Lodge Park - This scheme is currently on hold pending the outcome of
a public consultation, and as such the remaining budget of £196,283 is
requested for slippage into 2013/14.
44
6.2.10 BPR EDM Project – This budget includes work in relation to the reception
refurbishment project. The timing of the works is anticipated to slip into the
new financial year and at this time it is requested that £126,986 is slipped to
the 2013/14 capital programme of works.
6.2.11 Waste Management and Environmental Health IT System - The scheme is
being progressed, but it is anticipated that only £5,100 of the available budget
will be spent in 2012/13. The balance of £11,394 is requested for slippage
into 2013/14.
6.2.12 Probass 3 (Planning System) – The scheme is nearing completion, however
there will be a requirement to undertake some data reloads, which are
unlikely to be undertaken until the new financial year. As such slippage of
£1,910 is requested into the new financial year, in order to undertake this
work.
6.2.13 Administrative Buildings – The programme of works under this scheme has
been identified, and works will commence on the replacement fire alarm and
emergency lighting for the Cromer office accommodation in 2012/13. The
anticipated expenditure for the year is £143,500, and the balance of the
budget £131,026 is requested for slippage into the new financial year.
6.3
Further to the profiling amendments identified above, three further
adjustments to the 2012/13 Capital Programme are now requested as part of
this revised budget report.
6.3.1
Personal Computer Replacement Fund - Following the upgrade of Civica
OPENRevenues relating to the Council Tax, Business Rates and Benefits
systems, it has been determined that all personal computers within the
Revenues and Benefits area require replacement as a matter of urgency. To
undertake these replacements the anticipated cost is £32,348, compared to
an existing budget of £25,307. Approval is therefore sought for an additional
budget provision of £7,041 in 2012/13, to be funded from capital receipts, to
facilitate the replacement of these machines.
6.3.2
Planning Scanning and Printing Equipment – In order to enable application
plans of up to A0 size to be scanned to the Council website and to be printed
off in colour in addition to black and the Planning department requires access
to the appropriate scanner and printer. The current equipment is now over 7
years old and is becoming unreliable with engineers being called out at
additional cost each time. It is therefore recommended that funding for a
replacement scanner and printer of £21,000 be included within the revised
budget to be funded from capital receipts.
6.3.3
North Norfolk Enterprise Innovation Centre – When approval was first given to
this scheme, it was identified as a feasibility study, which following changes to
the capital regulations can no longer be taken as capital expenditure. As a
result, it is requested that this scheme is taken out of the capital programme.
As the works were to be undertaken in the North Walsham area approval is
being sought to vire £17,000 of the remaining budget to the North Walsham
Regeneration scheme, to cover the additional expenditure anticipated to be
spent within the 2012/13 financial year.
6.3.4
North Walsham Regeneration Scheme – Works have already commenced on
the North Walsham Regeneration scheme, but it is anticipated that a further
45
£17,000 will be required to cover the final costs of the scheme, which includes
the Town Centre Traffic Management works as approved at Cabinet in
October 2012. A virement is therefore requested from the North Norfolk
Enterprise Innovation Centre as identified above in paragraph 6.3.3.
6.3.5
Rocket House - At the current time there is budget available of £37,916 in
relation to capital works at the Rocket House. The Asset Management Board
has identified a series of refurbishment works required to both the building
itself and the lift mechanism. In total the estimated value of the works is
£75,000, including £50,000 for the full renewal and upgrade of the lift which
has been subject to several major breakdowns over the last 6 months.
Cabinet are requested to approve that additional budget be made available of
£37,084 to enable these works to be undertaken to be funded from the
Council’s capital receipts. This increase would bring the total budget for the
Rocket House works up to £77,084.
7.
Conclusion
7.1
The budget for 2012/13 has been updated to take account of known
variances for both expenditure and income that have been highlighted
through the budget monitoring process as well as the detailed budget process
which is underway for the 2013/14 budget. The appendices to the report
highlight the variances at the service level and the more detailed variances
have been detailed within section 2 of the report. Where applicable the
budgeted reserves movements have been updated to match spend
accordingly, for example the one-off costs as a result of the implementation of
the pay and grading review. There is currently estimated to be a small underspend for the current year and this is recommended to be transferred to the
general reserve in the year. All budgets, both revenue and capital will
continue to be monitored over the remaining periods for the current financial
year.
7.2
The capital programme has been reviewed and updated to take account of
project slippage between financial years for example where schemes have
not progressed as originally anticipated.
7.3
The detailed budgets for 2013/14 along with the detailed financial projections
for the following years continue to be worked upon and will be reported to
Members in the new year along with the outcome of the Local Government
Provisional Finance Settlement for 2013/14.
8.
Financial Implications and Risks
8.1
The financial implications are outlined in the detail of the report.
8.2
There are a number of significant income streams for which the Council’s
influence over is limited as they are demand led, for example car park fees
and planning income. Whilst the revised budget has been informed by actuals
to date along with projections which do consider current and past trends there
is still a risk that income will not be achieved as budgeted. The overall budget
position will continue to be monitored for the remainder of the financial year to
ensure that the overall budget remains achievable.
9.
Sustainability – None as a direct consequence of the report.
46
10.
Equality and Diversity - None as a direct consequence of the report.
11.
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations - None as a direct
consequence of the report.
47
APPENDIX A
GENERAL FUND SUMMARY - 2012/13 REVISED BUDGET
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
2,373,613
532,068
2,944,170
1,968,986
996,895
4,391,008
2,773,604
283,509
(375,446)
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
2,226,744
517,503
5,451,622
2,169,768
1,057,128
4,539,247
3,153,457
327,246
15,280,563 Net Cost of Services
15,888,407
19,442,715
3,554,308
1,450,222
(2,094,497)
(934,852)
(536,543)
186,632
301,684
1,538,934
(1,814,493)
(2,552,661)
(269,900)
600,000
256,842
1,538,934
(1,799,778)
(4,909,569)
(269,900)
947,441
282,941
0
14,715
(2,356,908)
0
347,441
26,099
13,647,129
15,232,784
1,585,655
(400,000)
429,180
0
0
(30,000)
538,625
0
(181,000)
(238,000)
(932,441)
445,501
0
(15,000)
(99,100)
639,625
0
(208,000)
(4,000)
0
(26,233)
(84,494)
28,500
0
(20,090)
0
0
(3,506)
(1,380)
(615,230)
611,678
(394,911)
(196,036)
(198,175)
0
(56,196)
0
9,872
0
0
(6,500)
(266,524)
(532,441)
16,321
0
(15,000)
(69,100)
101,000
0
(27,000)
(4,000)
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
(3,506)
(1,380)
(120,417)
0
(394,911)
(196,036)
(198,175)
0
(25,696)
0
(81,688)
0
0
(6,500)
(28,524)
14,388,814 Amount to be met from Government Grant and Local Taxpayers
13,841,542
13,840,144
(1,398)
(1,450,222)
(5,736,464)
(1,666,646)
(5,392,348)
(143,134)
(1,538,934)
(5,789,171)
(1,538,934)
(5,789,171)
(6,225,303)
(288,134)
(6,225,303)
(288,134)
0
0
0
0
2011/12 Actual Service Area
£
2,273,314
548,244
3,310,280
954,512
1,068,388
4,372,598
2,407,427
345,800
Assets and Leisure
Corporate
Community & Economic Development
Customer Services
Development Management
Environmental Health
Finance
Organisational Development
Savings to be Identified
Parish Precepts
Capital Charges
Reffcus
Interest Receivable
Revenue Financing for Capital
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
13,653,209 Net Operating Expenditure
Variance
£
(146,869)
(14,565)
2,507,452
200,782
60,233
148,239
379,853
43,737
375,446
Contributions to/(from) Earmarked Reserves:
(56,460)
374,285
(13,867)
(44,621)
(270,384)
0
(14,700)
166,574
5,000
(150,000)
(41,722)
116,068
(78,500)
(82,500)
(10,000)
76,400
(66,623)
0
0
28,145
0
314,488
0
(218,294)
(13,173)
(292,987)
37,837
128,184
196,036
(75,770)
907
721,282
Contribution from Capital Projects Reserve
Contribution to Capital Project Reserve
Arts and Community Projects
Asset Management
Benefits
Big Society Fund
Carbon Management
Coast Protection
Common Training
Concessionary Fares
Economic Development and Tourism
EIB Income
Elections
Environmental Health (incl Waste)
Environmental Policy
Grassed Area Deposits
Housing
Legal & Democratic Services
Local Land Charges
Local Strategic Partnership
New Homes Bonus
Organisational Development
Partnership Projects
Pathfinder
Planning Capital
Planning Revenue
Regeneration Projects
Restructuring and Invest to Save
Shared Service Partnership Projects
Sheringham Splash
Sports Equipment
Use of General Reserve
0
(26,233)
(84,494)
28,500
0
(20,090)
0
0
(494,813)
611,678
0
(30,500)
0
91,560
0
0
Collection Fund - Parishes
Collection Fund - District
Revenue Support Grant
Redistributed Business Rates
Ctax freeze grants
(14,388,814) Income from Government Grant and Local Taxpayers
0 (Surplus)/Deficit
(13,841,542) (13,841,542)
0
48
(1,398)
0
(1,398)
Appendix B
Assets & Leisure Service Area
Service
Car Parking
Markets
Industrial Estates
Surveyors Allotments
Handyman
Parklands
Administration Building Svs
Property Services
Parks & Open Spaces
Foreshore
Community Centres
Sports Centres
Leisure Complexes
Other Sports
Recreation Grounds
Pier Pavilion
Foreshore (Community)
Woodlands Management
Cromer Pier
Public Conveniences
Investment Properties
Leisure
CCTV
Total Net Costs
Capital Charges
Reffcus
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Cost of Service
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
£
£
(1,313,172) (1,357,230) (1,429,390)
24,762
15,724
16,258
(107,248)
(85,716)
(87,281)
(50)
(50)
(50)
(36,413)
(34,317)
(37,156)
(32,571)
(26,480)
(27,006)
374,193
413,849
387,253
406,218
367,513
350,316
343,650
391,017
388,048
96,234
133,197
124,179
4,811
4,189
6,189
214,311
193,382
234,848
393,809
374,393
399,445
45,129
59,451
51,789
12,108
8,086
8,086
89,837
96,377
96,897
378,759
374,763
382,287
74,518
93,109
90,411
10,589
22,829
17,829
443,556
408,256
411,739
(93,049)
(135,544)
(116,607)
141,609
145,334
143,646
145,984
150,758
157,351
1,617,574
1,569,081
(43,809)
585,463
625,522
571,369
0
126,714
20,000
1,374,545
1,356,390
1,304,520
(1,304,268) (1,347,903) (1,238,226)
(54,153)
(106,714)
(51,870)
109,677
2,273,314
49
1,612,890
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Updated
£
(72,160)
534
(1,565)
0
(2,839)
(526)
(26,596)
(17,197)
(2,969)
(9,018)
2,000
41,466
25,052
(7,662)
0
520
7,524
(2,698)
(5,000)
3,483
18,937
(1,688)
6,593
2,373,613
2,226,744
(146,869)
Appendix B
ASSETS & LEISURE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
£
Car Parking
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Markets
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
677,748
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
617,495
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
695,219
77,724 (£1,500) - Virement of overtime costs to
Markets. £20,000 - Increase in repairs &
maintenance to cover additional costs
associated with new ticket machines. £15,760 Increase in rental costs offset by additional fee
income. (£8,237) - Reduction in NNDR costs
due to revaluations. £1,552 - Additional credit
card fees due to increased payments by credit
card. £49,320 - Additional contract
management and PCN contract costs.
(1,990,920) (1,974,725) (2,124,609) (149,884) (£94,472) - Additional fee income. (£52,005) Additional PCN income. (£1,343) - Further
rental income. (£2,171) - Insurance claims
reimbursed.
(7,103)
0
143,118
14,205
0
135,080
14,205
0
125,060
(1,177,157) (1,207,945) (1,290,125)
0
0
(10,020) (£3,010) - Reduced Customer Services
recharge. (£10,380) - Reduced Property
Services recharge. £3,170 - Increased
Fakenham Connect recharge for Car Parks
Office accommodation.
(82,180)
104,744
(79,982)
54,849
79,611
93,009
(77,285)
45,980
61,704
93,543
(77,285)
46,670
62,928
(4,433)
(102,815)
40,441
18,473
(104,189)
40,441
17,642
(104,923)
29,052
44,976
47,410
51,320
(21,831)
2,135
(6,909)
(9,044)
(50)
3,321
3,271
(50)
3,370
3,320
(50)
2,930
2,880
0
(440)
(440)
82,639
82,921
80,498
(119,052)
55,241
(117,238)
57,740
(117,654)
46,040
Net Expenditure
18,828
23,423
8,884
Parklands
Gross Direct Costs
15,229
35,860
27,960
(47,800)
(62,340)
(54,966)
585
23,508
(8,478)
585
21,310
(4,585)
585
22,830
(3,591)
Industrial Estates
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Surveyors Allotments
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Handyman
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
534
0
690
1,224
(831)
(734)
(11,389) (£11,118) - Reduced depreciation charges
resulting from property revaluation.
3,910 £1,760 - Increased Property Services recharge.
£2,030 - Increased Accountancy recharge.
(2,423) (£4,000) - Virement of consumable materials
costs to Public Conveniences.
(416)
(11,700) (£16,050) - Reduced Property Services
recharge. £2,780 - Increased Depots recharge.
£3,870 - Increased Accountancy recharge.
(14,539)
(7,900) £1,500 - Virement from Industrial Estates for
increased repairs & maintenance costs.
(£10,000) - Reduction in electricity costs offset
by equivalent reduction in recoverable costs for
electricity.
7,374 £10,000 - Reduced recoverable electricity
costs, offset by reduced expenditure. (£1,666) Commission income following sale of caravans.
(£960) - Additional rental income.
0
1,520 No major variances
994
50
Appendix B
ASSETS & LEISURE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
£
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
Administration Building Svs
Gross Direct Costs
460,910
506,662
482,875
(23,787) £3,750 - Increased overtime costs, offset in
part by (£2,477) virement from standby costs
and Foreshore overtime budgets. (£51,548) Reduction in NNDR costs due to revaluation of
Cromer Offices & Fakenham Connect back to
2010/11. £4,130 - Additional NNDR costs for
Upper Sheringham Depot following delay in
disposal. £8,000 - Additional repairs &
maintenance costs for disaster recovery room
at Fakenham Connect as a result of disposing
of Annexe building. £11,977 - Additional other
fees resulting from external work undertaken
on NNDR revaluations. £2,000 - Additional
expenditure on canteen consumables.
Gross Direct Income
(86,717)
(92,813)
(95,622)
81,528
81,527
78,476
111,571
102,570
106,890
(479,846)
87,446
(539,327)
58,619
(496,624)
75,995
(2,809) (£3,708) - Increased rental for NHS Trainers
continued occupation of Cromer Offices.
(3,051) (£3,019) - Reduced depreciation following
property revaluations.
4,320 £3,130 - Increased Accountancy recharge.
Reduced recharges out reflecting lower costs
42,703 incurred.
17,376
410,750
367,513
350,316
(4,532)
0
0
13,659
0
0
176,427
180,810
179,030
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
(582,645)
0
(561,982)
0
(529,346)
0
Parks & Open Spaces
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
462,619
(118,969)
0
441,032
(50,015)
0
438,063
(50,015)
20,000
27,668
91,145
30,909
91,420
27,386
81,200
462,463
513,346
516,634
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Property Services
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(17,197) (£34,372) - Staffing changes following vacancy
and management restructure. £3,752 Additional overtime costs. £1,459 - Further
costs from Pay & Grading review. £1,000 Additional CPD training requirement. £9,282 Recruitment costs following vacancy and
management restructure. £1,504 - Additional
other fees resulting from requirement to
procure external revaluation work for final
accounts process.
0
(13,659) Reduced intangible amortisation costs following
delay in capital expenditure in relation to Asset
Management System.
(1,780) (£3,340) - Reduction in Customer Services
recharge. £6,460 - Additional Computer
Applications Team recharge. (£3,880) Reduced Admin Buildings recharge. £14,690 Accountancy recharge reflecting more accurate
time allocations. (£11,520) - Corporate
Leadership Team recharge.
32,636 Reflects lower costs incurred.
0
(2,969) (£3,539) - NNDR now paid by lessee
0
20,000 Sheringham Skate Park (reflecting requirement
to show capital expenditure on non NNDC
assets)
(3,523) No Major Variances
(10,220) (£21,720) - Lower recharge from Leisure
services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. £6,250 - Legal
work undertaken for Parks Services
3,288
51
Appendix B
ASSETS & LEISURE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Foreshore
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
96,234
133,197
130,376
(2,821) £2,197 - Increase in repairs & maintenance
costs offset by additional recoverable charges.
(£1,152) - Virement of overtime costs to Admin
Buildings. (£3,441) - Reduced staffing costs.
0
0
(6,197)
7,354
0
39,447
7,885
0
59,030
7,213
0
47,120
143,035
200,112
178,512
(6,197) (£2,197) - Increase in recoverable charges,
offset by additional repairs & maintenance
costs. (£4,000) - Additional monies received for
an insurance claim, where expenditure was
incurred in a prior year.
(672)
0
(11,910) (£3,420) - Reduced Property Services
recharge. (£11,070) - Reduced Coastal Team
recharge.
(21,600)
7,543
(2,732)
6,189
(2,000)
6,189
0
27
3,643
8,481
27
3,660
7,876
19
5,000
11,208
349,834
346,504
374,970
(135,523)
(153,122)
(140,122)
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
0
124,894
12,831
128,470
11,188
111,150
Net Expenditure
339,205
334,683
357,186
22,503
Leisure Complexes
Gross Direct Costs
402,784
374,393
399,445
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(8,975)
305,560
27,048
726,417
0
305,559
28,470
708,422
0
305,404
24,640
729,489
25,052 £6,300 - Repair and maintenance (roof repairs
to be undertaken at The Splash). £18,752 Inflation on management contract
0
(155) No Major Variances
(3,830) No Major Variances
21,067
Other Sports
Gross Direct Costs
116,869
71,088
109,289
Gross Direct Income
(71,740)
(11,637)
(57,500)
Support Service Charges
31,278
31,520
58,540
Net Expenditure
76,407
90,971
110,329
Recreation Grounds
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
12,309
(201)
520
3,109
15,737
9,086
(1,000)
520
3,120
11,726
9,086
(1,000)
285
2,740
11,111
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Community Centres
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Sports Centres
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
0
2,000 £2,000 - Reduced rental income following
transfer of properties to Wells Community
Trust.
(8)
1,340
3,332
28,466 £6,500 - Professional fees relating to business
case at North Walsham Sports Centre - funded
from the sports hall reserve. £4,000 - North
Walsham hall repairs carried out in the year.
(£11,158) - Salaries and oncosts as a result of
a vacant post. £30,046 - Pay & Grading
implementation costs.
13,000 Income from Sports Halls lower than
anticipated.
(1,643) No Major Variances
(17,320) (£5,370) - Lower recharge from Leisure
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. (£14,600) Lower recharge from Accountancy reflecting a
more accurate allocation of time.
38,201 £25,731 - Mobile Gym staff contracts extended.
£6,219 - Other expenses relating to the Mobile
Gym. This will be funded by additional grants.
£4,208 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
(45,863) (£45,863) - Contributions towards Mobile Gym
services.
27,020 £22,060 - Higher recharge from Leisure
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
19,358
0
0
(235)
(380)
(615)
Pier Pavilion
52
No Major Variances
No Major Variances
No Major Variances
No Major Variances
Appendix B
ASSETS & LEISURE SERVICE AREA
£
89,837
14,115
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
96,377
15,840
Net Expenditure
103,952
112,217
Foreshore (Community)
Gross Direct Costs
382,399
379,513
387,037
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(3,640)
31,704
410,463
(4,750)
32,290
407,053
(4,750)
31,300
413,587
Woodlands Management
Gross Direct Costs
179,730
111,709
161,473
(105,212)
(18,600)
(71,062)
1,386
81,920
157,824
1,386
79,670
174,165
1,386
79,380
171,177
26,177
38,417
34,317
(15,588)
5,232
23,824
(15,588)
5,232
470
(16,488)
5,232
6,690
39,645
28,531
29,751
451,240
410,439
426,854
Gross Direct Income
(7,684)
(2,183)
(15,115)
Capital Charges
70,217
76,380
68,262
Support Service Charges
53,444
57,980
43,830
567,217
542,616
523,831
Gross Direct Costs
Support Service Charges
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Cromer Pier
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Public Conveniences
Gross Direct Costs
Net Expenditure
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
£
96,897
520 No Major Variances
12,870
(2,970) (£2,720) - Lower recharge from Leisure
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
109,767
(2,450)
7,524 £5,000 - Emergency phone rentals, in line with
11/12 actual. £2,524 - Bathing Water Directive
2006/7/EC – requirement for provision of public
information. This is funded from general
reserve agreed roll forward as part of 11/12
closedown
0
(990) No Major Variances
6,534
49,764 £25,521 - Spend on Access to Nature project,
funded by grant. £18,325 - Emergency tree
works at Warren Woods
(52,462) (£2,000) - Additional sales of Firewood.
(£5,000) - Additional car parking income at Holt
Country Park. (£3,000) - Woodland Trust,
contract for site management at Pretty Corner.
(£42,462) - Access To Nature grant.
0
(290) No Major Variances
(2,988)
(4,100) (£5,000) - Maintenance costs lower than
expected.
(900)
0
6,220 £5,350 - Higher recharge from Coast Protection
1,220
16,415 £4,000 - Virement to repairs & maintenance
from Handyman consumable materials to
reflect where expenditure is actually incurred.
£12,932 - Additional repairs & maintenance
expenditure relating to two public
conveniences, to be offset by receipt of
insurance claim monies.
(12,932) Increase in insurance claims following
vandalism incidents in two public
conveniences, offset by additional repairs &
maintenance expenditure.
(8,118) Reduced depreciation following property
revaluations.
(14,150) (£19,670) - Reduced Property Services
recharge. £4,730 - Increased Accountancy
recharge reflecting more accurate time
allocations.
(18,785)
53
Appendix B
ASSETS & LEISURE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Investment Properties
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
119,571
89,243
100,486
(212,620)
(224,787)
(217,093)
0
126,714
0
Capital Charges
26,569
24,569
12,869
Support Service Charges
65,569
60,740
83,800
(911)
76,479
(19,938)
Leisure
Gross Direct Costs
141,609
146,034
144,346
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
0
100,168
(700)
101,260
(700)
68,610
(241,777)
(246,594)
(212,256)
0
0
0
189,041
(43,057)
195,954
(45,196)
198,645
(41,294)
25,479
70,226
9,807
68,180
9,807
66,880
241,689
228,745
234,038
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
CCTV
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
11,243 £2,200 - Additional repairs & maintenance
costs incurred for reletting of premises, offset
by virement from North Walsham Offices.
£8,000 - One off growth in repairs &
maintenance costs incurred as a result of
essential lift maintenance for the Rocket
House. £1,028 - Other fees & charges, offset in
part by other recoverable charges.
7,694 (£4,500) - Additional rental income from
Chalets and Beach Huts. £2,210 - Reduced
rental income. £10,737 - Reduction in
recoverable charges as a result of inability to
recover previous years service charges already
accrued for.
(126,714) Reduced charge following delay in capital
expenditure in relation to Wells Sackhouse and
Maltings schemes.
(11,700) Reduced depreciation following property
revaluations.
23,060 £9,260 - Increased recharge from Property
Services. £10,920 - Increased recharge from
Accountancy.
(96,417)
(1,688) (£5,000) - Savings in training, travel and
computer purchases. £3,922 - Pay & Grading
implementation costs.
0 No Major Variances
(32,650) (£24,420) - Lower recharge from Accountancy
reflecting a more accurate allocation of time.
(£9,470) - Reduced recharge from Legal
Services
34,338 Reduced recharges out reflecting lower costs
incurred.
0
2,691 No Major Variances
3,902 £3,902 - Contributions from businesses lower
than expected.
0
(1,300) £6,410 - Recharge from Fakenham Connect to
reflect the space taken by the CCTV control
room. (£3,930) - Lower recharge from
Accountancy reflecting a more accurate
allocation of time.
5,293
4,775,383 4,571,108 4,765,526 194,418
(3,157,809) (2,958,218) (3,196,445) (238,227)
0
126,714
20,000 (106,714)
585,463
625,522
571,369 (54,153)
1,374,545 1,356,390 1,304,520 (51,870)
(1,304,268) (1,347,903) (1,238,226) 109,677
2,273,314 2,373,613 2,226,744 (146,869)
54
Appendix B
Community & Economic Development Service Area
Planning Policy
Arts & Entertainments
Museums
General Economic Development
Tourism
Coast Protection
Pathfinder
Home Improvement Agency
Hsg Strategy
Regeneration Management
Local Land Charges
Environmental Strategy
Community and Localism
Coastal Management
£
(210,084)
130,296
46,510
162,668
76,169
240,042
171,091
(3,300)
(468)
133,914
40,494
99,817
144,432
160,188
£
(448,950)
120,217
40,955
104,851
62,338
533,632
0
6,300
5,620
137,669
13,390
106,711
(114,282)
120,801
£
(448,525)
120,622
40,965
228,443
62,338
548,632
95,124
6,300
5,620
178,103
30,133
94,146
59,435
94,177
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
425
405
10
123,592
0
15,000
95,124
0
0
40,434
16,743
(12,565)
173,717
(26,624)
Total Net Costs
1,191,769
689,252
1,115,513
426,261
Capital Charges
Reffcus
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
743,666
656,843
0
1,273,724
(555,722)
484,026
1,088,596
0
1,170,800
(488,500)
486,677
3,249,182
0
1,041,060
(440,810)
2,651
2,160,586
0
(129,740)
47,690
Net Cost of Service
3,310,280
2,944,174
5,451,622
2,507,448
Service
2011/12
Actual
55
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Appendix B
COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
£
Planning Policy
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
232,002
254,901
255,326
425 No Major Variances
(442,086)
100,927
(109,157)
(703,851)
102,660
(346,290)
(703,851)
103,950
(344,575)
0
1,290 No Major Variances
1,715
Arts & Entertainments
Gross Direct Costs
151,017
121,677
145,405
Gross Direct Income
(20,721)
(1,460)
(24,783)
480
40,213
480
44,080
362
26,270
170,989
164,777
147,254
Museums
Gross Direct Costs
Support Service Charges
46,510
3,837
40,955
3,940
40,965
590
Net Expenditure
50,347
44,895
41,555
General Economic Development
Gross Direct Costs
188,939
104,851
368,425
263,574 £218,967 Learning for Everyone budget funded
from a transfer from Discretionary Rate Relief
budget of £68,000 as detailed in the Big Society
Fund report in January 2012. The balance is
funded from grants and contributions. £44,607
Expenditure relating the Pathfinder Projects
funded from the reserve.
Gross Direct Income
(26,271)
0
(139,982)
(139,982) Grant Income relating to Learning for Everyone.
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
12,463
154,803
329,934
12,463
156,550
273,864
12,463
161,650
402,556
0
5,100 No Major Variances
128,692
Tourism
Gross Direct Costs
152,684
62,338
62,338
0 No Major Variances
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(76,515)
53,727
129,896
0
54,430
116,768
0
57,870
120,208
0
3,440 No Major Variances
3,440
Coast Protection
Gross Direct Costs
248,592
533,657
548,657
15,000 £15,000 - Transfer from Coastal Management
for increased use of Consultants.
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
(8,550)
466,135
0
136,140
(25)
463,366
0
183,550
(25)
466,135
0
206,350
Net Expenditure
842,317
1,180,548
1,221,117
0
2,769
0
22,800 £6,770 - Additional support from Property
Services. £11,720 - Additional charge from
Coastal Management reflection increased work
on revenue schemes.
40,569
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
56
23,728 £23,323 - Orchestras Live North Norfolk
(Trunch) and Sinfonia, Auden Theatre, Holt.
These concerts will be funded by grants and
admission fees.
(23,323) (£23,323) - Grants and admission fees to
Sinfonia, Auden Theatre, Holt
(118) No Major Variances
(17,810) (£13,840) - Lower recharge from Leisure
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. (£6,720) Lower recharge from Media and
Communications.
(17,523)
10 No Major Variances
(3,350) (£3,430) - Lower recharge from Leisure
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
(3,340)
Appendix B
COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Pathfinder
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
509,275
0
95,124
(338,184)
256,871
148,716
0
0
10,490
0
0
0
576,678
10,490
95,124
Home Improvement Agency
Gross Direct Costs
Net Expenditure
(3,300)
(3,300)
6,300
6,300
6,300
6,300
Hsg Strategy
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Support Service Charges
(468)
844,899
(188,056)
137,479
5,620
1,088,596
0
131,490
5,620
3,100,178
(50,996)
115,530
Net Expenditure
793,854
1,225,706
3,170,332
Regeneration Management
Gross Direct Costs
133,914
137,669
178,103
Support Service Charges
124,651
124,880
91,940
(258,565)
(262,549)
(270,043)
0
0
0
207,878
213,390
216,133
(167,384)
(200,000)
(186,000)
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
82,844
123,338
87,560
100,950
91,270
121,403
Environmental Strategy
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
113,357
(13,540)
7,717
35,788
117,711
(11,000)
7,717
35,710
105,146
(11,000)
7,717
24,250
Net Expenditure
143,322
150,138
126,113
Community and Localism
Gross Direct Costs
300,145
592,943
729,667
(155,713)
(707,225)
(670,232)
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Support Service Charges
0
117,630
0
130,310
200,000
84,800
Net Expenditure
262,062
16,028
344,235
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Local Land Charges
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Income
57
Explanation for Major Variances
Variance
£
95,124 Residual Pathfinder project costs and
Integrated Coastal Management costs funded
from Earmarked Reserve.
0
0
(10,490) Reduction in support costs reflecting end of
Pathfinder project.
84,634
0 No Major Variances
0
0 No Major Variances
2,011,582 Housing Capital Schemes
(50,996)
(15,960) Reduction in staff time recharged from Private
Sector Housing.
1,944,626
40,434 £31,700 Management Restructure, this service
now includes the post of Head of Community
and Economic Development. £7,987 Pay and
Grading.
(32,940) Reduction in recharges in from Corporate
Leadership team (£24,520), Media and
Communications (£4,740), Internal Audit
(£5,950)
(7,494) Net increase in costs recharged to services
supported.
0
2,743 This relates to an increase in fees charged by
the County council for transport related
searches.
14,000 £12,000 Reduced income from Land Charge
searches, £2,000 Fees for Street Naming and
Numbering not yet introduced.
3,710 No Major Variances
20,453
(12,565) Vacant post
0
0
(11,460) Lower recharge from Corporate Leadership
Team as a result of changes in duties following
the officer restructure
(24,025)
136,724 Big Society revenue projects funded from
Second Homes Money. £5,612 - Pay & Grading
implementation costs. £15,835 - Staff
transferred from another unit. £4,289 Pensions deficit funding adjustment.
36,993 £50,417 - Staff costs funded from Big Society
earmarked reserve (LSP balance). (£13,420) Community Right to Challenge Grants.
200,000 Big Society capital grants
(45,510) (£38,310) - Lower recharge from Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(£5,940) - Lower recharge from Computer
Applications Team.
328,207
Appendix B
COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
Coastal Management
Gross Direct Costs
160,188
120,801
94,177
(26,624) (£27,211) - Assistant Coastal Engineer post
unfilled. (£15,000) - Transfer of Consultancy
Budget to be utilised in Coast Protection.
£8,536 - Pay & Grading. £7,944 - Salaries &
Oncosts following a restucture to be funded
from an earmarked reserve.
Support Service Charges
136,969
105,150
76,590
(28,560) (£31,450) - Lower recharge from Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure. £13,390
- Additional charges from Legal Services.
(297,157)
(225,951)
(170,767)
0
0
0
2,440,733
(1,248,964)
844,899
(188,056)
743,666
1,273,724
(555,722)
3,310,280
2,312,813
(1,623,561)
1,088,596
0
484,026
1,170,800
(488,500)
2,944,174
2,851,386
(1,735,873)
3,300,178
(50,996)
486,677
1,041,060
(440,810)
5,451,622
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
58
55,184 Reduced recharges reflecting reduced service
cost.
0
538,573
(112,312)
2,211,582
(50,996)
2,651
(129,740)
47,690
2,507,448
Appendix B
Corporate Service Area
Service
Members Services
Corporate Leadership Team
Legal Services
Total Net Costs
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Cost of Service
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2011/12
Actual
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
£
398,713
725
612,283
(135,225)
312,643
10,889
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
386,013
845,847
317,426
£
397,988
747,508
301,754
1,549,286
1,447,250
1,323,639
(123,611)
404,522
(1,405,564)
383,620
(1,298,802)
306,600
(1,112,736)
(77,020)
186,066
548,244
532,068
517,503
(14,565)
59
Appendix B
CORPORATE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
Members Services
Gross Direct Costs
386,565
398,388
399,113
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
(552)
162,231
(400)
134,080
(400)
118,790
Net Expenditure
548,244
532,068
517,503
Corporate Leadership Team
Gross Direct Costs
845,857
747,508
612,283
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
(10)
137,618
0
143,490
0
111,120
(983,465)
(890,998)
(723,403)
0
0
0
Legal Services
Gross Direct Costs
370,932
352,804
363,693
10,889 £10,507 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
(53,506)
104,673
(51,050)
106,050
(51,050)
76,690
0
(29,360) (£33,060) - Lower recharge from the Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(422,099)
(407,804)
(389,333)
0
0
0
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
1,603,354 1,498,700 1,375,089
(54,068)
(51,450)
(51,450)
404,522
383,620
306,600
(1,405,564) (1,298,802) (1,112,736)
548,244
532,068
517,503
60
725 £8,215 - Costs associated with the officer
restructure. (£3,000) - Members' NI costs.
(£5,000) - Travel, subsistence, phone, post &
allowances.
0
(15,290) (£16,750) - Lower recharge from the Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(14,565)
(135,225) Savings as a result of management
restructuring.
0
(32,370) This reduction reflects a number of variances
which include (£20,260) Legal Services,
(£4,880) Admin Buildings and (£4,210)
Personnel Services.
167,595 Following the staff restructuring reduced costs
recharged to services.
0
18,471 Lower recharges reflecting lower costs
incurred.
0
(123,611)
0
(77,020)
186,066
(14,565)
Appendix B
Customer Services Service Area
It - Support Services
Tic'S
Private Sector Housing
Improvement Grants
Homelessness
Housing - Service Mgmt
Transport
Publicity
Graphical Info System
Media & Communications
Customer Services - Corporate
£
869,005
156,764
(350)
804,904
(414,658)
548,317
3,806
24,088
18,116
323,916
493,611
£
886,886
198,353
0
0
(533,378)
560,438
(1,580)
26,388
26,412
368,183
522,040
£
903,836
192,962
0
0
(500,155)
546,568
(1,500)
12,078
26,412
383,098
546,913
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
16,950
(5,391)
0
0
33,223
(13,870)
80
(14,310)
0
14,915
24,873
Total Net Costs
2,827,519
2,053,742
2,110,212
56,470
135,331
(526,957)
0
1,687,242
(3,168,623)
153,497
1,337,351
0
1,768,780
(3,344,385)
123,928
1,640,387
0
1,601,960
(3,306,720)
(29,569)
303,036
0
(166,820)
37,665
954,512
1,968,985
2,169,767
200,782
Service
Capital Charges
Reffcus
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Cost of Service
2011/12
Actual
61
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Appendix B
CUSTOMER SERVICES SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
It - Support Services
Gross Direct Costs
869,235
887,296
904,246
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
(230)
62,896
0
109,381
(410)
67,582
0
121,680
(410)
62,898
0
128,060
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
(1,041,282) (1,082,708) (1,094,794)
0
(6,560)
0
Tic'S
Gross Direct Costs
240,658
239,085
233,694
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
(83,894)
8,105
74,225
(40,732)
8,105
77,590
(40,732)
8,105
65,550
Net Expenditure
239,094
284,048
266,617
(350)
0
(350)
0
0
0
0
390
390
804,904
0
(526,957)
364,203
0
1,838,351
(501,000)
378,600
0
2,083,387
(443,000)
357,580
Net Expenditure
642,150
1,715,951
1,997,967
Homelessness
Gross Direct Costs
116,801
47,802
67,301
(531,459)
(581,180)
(567,456)
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
47,716
306,845
47,716
316,000
20,130
284,210
Net Expenditure
(60,097)
(169,662)
(195,815)
Housing - Service Mgmt
Gross Direct Costs
548,161
560,438
546,568
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
156
326,386
0
353,620
0
289,090
(874,944)
(241)
(914,058)
0
(835,658)
0
Private Sector Housing
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Improvement Grants
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Support Service Charges
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
62
Explanation for Major Variances
16,950 £44,413 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
(£27,000) - Reduced costs of licences offset by
increased computer line costs.
0
(4,684)
0
6,380 £14,290 - Higher recharge from Customer
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. £5,280 Recharge from Fakenham Connect to reflect
the space taken. (£ 15,330) - Lower recharge
from the Corporate Leadership Team as a
result of changes in duties following the
management restructure. £5,130 - Increase in
Internal Audit charges reflecting the 2012/13
audit plan.
(12,086) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
6,560
(5,391) (£6,000) - Savings in salaries and oncosts as a
result of vacancies.
0
0
(12,040) (£20,070) - Lower recharge from Customer
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
(17,431)
0 No Major Variances
390
390
0 No Major Variances
245,036 Housing Capital Grant Schemes
58,000
(21,020) Reduction in staff time charged from Housing
Management.
282,016
19,499 VAT shelter Admin budget created, this was
previously just netted off against the income
received. Increase in B&B charges offset by
increased recoverable income.
13,724 Reduction in anticipated VAT Shelter receipts
from Victory Housing Association. Increased
recoverable income form B&B
accommodation.
(27,586)
(31,790) This variance represents a reduction in staff
time recharged from Housing Services
Management.
(26,153)
(13,870) (£28,977) Saving from a vacant post offset by
£14,472 Pay and Grading Costs.
0
(64,530) The main changes reflect reductions from the
following services (£28,600) Corporate
leadership Team, (£10,170) Legal Services,
(£7,450) Internal Audit and (£6,750)
Accountancy
78,400 Reduced costs recharged to services.
0
Appendix B
CUSTOMER SERVICES SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Transport
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
33,978
(30,172)
46,397
26,020
(27,600)
48,070
31,500
(33,000)
42,860
Net Expenditure
50,203
46,490
41,360
Publicity
Gross Direct Costs
25,588
26,388
33,138
Gross Direct Income
(1,500)
0
(21,060)
Support Service Charges
59,665
72,330
47,170
Net Expenditure
83,753
98,718
59,248
Graphical Info System
Gross Direct Costs
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
18,116
3,780
8,111
26,412
3,780
140
26,412
3,780
9,110
(30,007)
(30,332)
(39,302)
0
0
0
Media & Communications
Gross Direct Costs
333,476
375,683
390,598
14,915 £9,722 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
(9,560)
115,821
(7,500)
117,290
(7,500)
115,290
0
(2,000) (£19,510) - Lower recharge from the Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure. £19,170
- Higher recharge from Customer Services as a
result of changes in duties following the officer
restructure.
(439,737)
(485,473)
(498,388)
0
0
0
Customer Services - Corporate
Gross Direct Costs
515,130
532,040
556,913
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
(21,519)
12,834
276,208
(10,000)
26,314
283,460
(10,000)
29,015
262,650
(782,653)
(831,814)
(838,578)
0
0
0
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
3,506,047 2,721,164 2,790,370
(678,528)
(667,422)
(680,158)
0 1,838,351 2,083,387
(526,957)
(501,000)
(443,000)
135,331
153,497
123,928
1,687,242 1,768,780 1,601,960
(3,168,623) (3,344,385) (3,306,720)
954,512 1,968,985 2,169,767
63
5,480 No Major Variances
(5,400) No Major Variances
(5,210) (£5,270) - Lower recharge from Customer
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
(5,130)
6,750 £6,750 - Additional costs relating to developing
a rate card and advertising telesales work for
Outlook magazine.
(21,060) (£21,060) - Advertising income from Outlook
magazine.
(25,160) (£25,680) - Lower recharge from Media and
Communications as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(39,470)
0 No Major Variances
0
8,970 £8,890 - Higher recharge from Computer
Network & PC support.
(8,970) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
(12,915) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
24,873 (£23,259) - Salaries and oncosts are lower as a
result of vacant posts. £48,102 - Pay &
Grading implementation costs.
0
2,701
(20,810) £13,340 - Higher recharge from Computer
Applications Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(£35,500) - Lower recharge from Fakenham
Connect to reflect the space taken.
(6,764) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
69,206
(12,736)
245,036
58,000
(29,569)
(166,820)
37,665
200,782
Appendix B
Development Management Service Area
Development Management
Conservation & Design
Landscape
Building Control & Access
Planning Mgt & Comm Support
£
149,152
87,256
56,111
(58,266)
354,448
£
41,567
88,464
70,029
(66,814)
346,659
£
115,202
78,640
88,296
(73,918)
353,470
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
73,635
(9,824)
18,267
(7,104)
6,811
Total Net Costs
588,701
479,905
561,690
81,785
Capital Charges
Reffcus
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
41,018
0
0
915,206
(476,537)
44,609
0
0
932,340
(459,959)
41,017
0
0
929,820
(475,400)
(3,592)
0
0
(2,520)
(15,441)
Net Cost of Service
1,068,388
996,895
1,057,127
60,232
Service
2011/12
Actual
64
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Appendix B
DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT SERVICE 2011/12
AREA
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Development Management
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance Explanation for Major Variances
£
616,904
615,187
716,294
101,107 £22,552 Increased staff recharges from other
planning areas. £8,500 Compensation payment
following ombudsman enquiry. £14.696
Temporary staffing funded from reserves.
£44,790 Pay and Grading.
(467,752)
(573,620)
(601,092)
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
41,018
489,365
679,535
44,609
490,910
577,086
41,017
501,700
657,919
(27,472) Increase in income generated from S106 works.
(£25,000) Additional income from major
applications.
(3,592) No Major Variances
10,790 £10,770 - Corporate Leadership Team.
80,833
Conservation & Design
Gross Direct Costs
87,316
88,514
78,690
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(60)
63,151
150,407
(50)
65,590
154,054
(50)
60,930
139,570
57,107
71,029
89,296
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
(996)
81,654
137,765
(1,000)
83,860
153,889
(1,000)
84,500
172,796
Building Control & Access
Gross Direct Costs
298,786
346,836
294,444
(357,052)
(413,650)
(368,362)
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
158,941
100,675
163,680
96,866
160,760
86,842
Planning Mgt & Comm Support
Gross Direct Costs
354,448
346,659
353,470
Support Service Charges
122,095
128,300
121,930
(476,537)
(459,959)
(475,400)
6
15,000
0
Gross Direct Income
Landscape
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
1,414,561 1,468,225 1,532,194
(825,860) (988,320) (970,504)
41,018
44,609
41,017
915,206
932,340
929,820
(476,537) (459,959) (475,400)
1,068,388
996,895 1,057,127
65
(9,824) (£13,181) Increase in direct staff time charged
to Development Management. £3,000 one off
expenditure funded from reserves.
0
(4,660) No Major variances
(14,484)
18,267 (£12,000) increased staff time charged to
Development Managemet off set by £22,165
Pay and Grading costs. £8,000 Biodiversity
expenditure which has been funded from the
Planning reserve.
0
640 No Major Variances
18,907
(52,392) Savings resulting from vacancies in the
establishment and from the Pay and Grading
review outcomes.
45,288 Reduced income to reflect current market
conditions and self financing position.
(2,920) No Major Variances
(10,024)
6,811 Anticipated Restructure savings not achieved,
this will be reviewed as part of the peer review.
(6,370) (£10,510) Coprorate Leadership Team
(15,441) Net increase in costs recharged to other
planning services.
(15,000)
63,969
17,816
(3,592)
(2,520)
(15,441)
60,232
Appendix B
Environmental Health Service Area
£
348,158
335,441
0
(57,163)
21,384
23,572
396,795
53,807
237,897
910,866
738,260
57,818
70,621
£
377,059
346,505
0
(74,894)
27,436
11,063
461,851
37,572
139,276
1,079,273
734,655
26,984
84,579
£
372,229
346,505
0
(60,836)
21,188
21,302
478,730
52,930
141,579
1,168,981
694,974
26,984
85,983
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
(4,830)
0
0
14,058
(6,248)
10,239
16,879
15,358
2,303
89,708
(39,681)
0
1,404
Total Net Costs
3,137,456
3,251,359
3,350,549
99,190
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Charges Recharges
549,188
974,785
(288,831)
422,791
907,920
(191,062)
543,474
851,910
(206,686)
120,683
(56,010)
(15,624)
Net Cost of Service
4,372,598
4,391,008
4,539,247
148,239
Service
Commercial Services
Rural Sewerage Schemes
Travellers
Licensing
Street Naming
Pest Control
Environmental Protection
Dog Control
Env Health - Service Mgmt
Waste Collection and Disposal
Cleansing
Community Safety
Civil Contingencies
2011/12
Actual
66
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Appendix B
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
£
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
Commercial Services
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
371,480
(23,322)
183,579
406,493
(29,434)
171,600
401,163
(28,934)
129,000
(5,330) Employee cost savings
500 No major variances
(42,600) Reduced recharges of (£32,890) from
Environmental Health management unit,
Customer Services, Personnel, Computer
teams and Legal services offset by additional
recharge costs of £5,730 for Accountancy and
Creditors. (£17,390) Relates to changes in
duties of the Corporate Leadership Team
following the officer restructure
Net Expenditure
531,737
548,659
501,229
(47,430)
Rural Sewerage Scheme
Gross Direct Costs
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
335,441
0
335,441
346,505
0
346,505
346,505
390
346,895
Travellers
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
1,200
(1,200)
46,751
(46,751)
97,800
0
10,000
(10,000)
32,897
(32,897)
97,800
0
4,000
(4,000)
32,897
(32,897)
97,800
1,640
97,800
97,800
99,440
115,049
(172,212)
115,289
(190,183)
109,347
(170,183)
Support Service Charges
165,203
150,940
136,390
Net Expenditure
108,040
76,046
75,554
Street Naming
Gross Direct Costs
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
21,384
5,691
558
27,436
9,960
510
21,188
5,691
2,410
(6,248) Vacant post
(4,269) Depreciation
1,900 Recharges from Accountancy and Creditors
reflecting a more accurate allocation of time
Net Expenditure
27,633
37,906
29,289
(8,617)
Pest Control
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
27,425
(3,853)
6,752
30,324
15,008
(3,945)
6,080
17,143
25,247
(3,945)
7,040
28,342
10,239 Staff restructure
0
960 No major variances
11,199
Net Expenditure
Licensing
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
67
0 No variances
390
390
(6,000) Reduction in running costs
6,000 Reduction in contributions
0
0
0
1,640 Recharges from Accountancy reflecting a more
accurate allocation of time
1,640
(5,942) Employee cost savings
20,000 Reduction in general licensing income due to
closed premises
(14,550) Reduced recharges of (£11,840) from
Environmental Health management unit and
Customer Services offset by additional
recharge costs of £4,980 for Accountancy and
Creditors. (£9,550) Relates to changes in
duties of the Corporate Leadership Team
following the officer restructure
(492)
Appendix B
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
£
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
Environmental Protection
Gross Direct Costs
420,236
480,781
497,660
16,879 (£9,119) One-off savings on miscellaneous
supplies and services which are demand led.
£26,000 Demolition costs for Briggate Mill - to
be funded from Reserves pending potential
recovery of costs once land ownership has
been identified
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
(23,441)
3,600
191,356
(18,930)
3,600
176,070
(18,930)
3,600
198,830
0
0
22,760 Reduced recharges of (£9,100) from
Environmental Health management unit,
Customer Services, Computer teams and
Media offset by additional recharge costs of
£38,130 for Accountancy and Creditors, the
Web team and Legal Services reflecting latest
time allocation estimates. (£9,410) Relates to
changes in duties of the Corporate Leadership
Team following the officer restructure
Net Expenditure
591,751
641,521
681,160
39,639
Dog Control
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
55,473
(1,666)
30,860
38,072
(500)
29,900
53,430
(500)
19,750
Net Expenditure
84,667
67,472
72,680
5,208
238,370
(473)
12,482
0
38,452
140,126
(850)
11,616
0
40,170
142,229
(650)
8,317
0
56,790
2,103
200
(3,299)
0
16,620
(288,831)
0
(191,062)
0
(206,686)
0
3,753,123
(2,842,257)
4,033,601
(2,954,328)
4,064,684
(2,895,703)
Capital Charges
429,615
299,815
428,066
IAS19
Pension
Support
ServiceAdjustment
Charges
0
240,036
0
228,050
0
230,020
Env Health - Service Mgmt
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Waste Collection and Disposal
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
15,358 Staff restructure
0
(10,150) This variance relates to changes in duties of
the Corporate Leadership Team following the
officer restructure
No major variances
No major variances
Intangible amortisation
(£4,370) - Reduced recharges from Personnel
offset by additional recharge costs of £22,670
for Customer Services, Fakenham Connect
and Accountancy reflecting updated staff
allocations
(15,624) Reflects higher costs incurred
0
31,083 See Note A below
58,625 £78,056 Reduction in fee income to include
refunds following redefinition of waste by
Defra; £27,089 Loss of recycling credits from
street sweepings; (£49,000) Recharges for
Tipping away (as above)
128,251 £155,911 Embedded Leases; (£27,660)
Depreciation on vehicles
0 (£14,940) - Reduced recharges from
1,970
Personnel, Accountancy, Sundry Debtors and
Media offset by additional recharge costs of
£25,230 for Environmental Health
Management Unit. (£7,580) Relates to
changes in duties of the Corporate Leadership
Team following the officer restructure
Net Expenditure
1,580,517
1,607,138
1,827,067
68
219,929
Appendix B
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
2012/13
Updated
Revised
Budget
Budget
Variance
Explanation for Major Variances
£
£
£
£
Note A: £22,848 Additional costs for processing and disposal of materials at NEWS; £51,840 Trade waste stepped cost to Kier; (£31,353)
Variation to Kier contract for non-processing of street sweepings; £49,000 Waste haulage charge - the cost of taking waste to Caister transfer
station instead of direct to Landfill - this cost is fully recharged. (£80,272) Reduced disposal costs for trade waste following redefinition from Defra;
£6,090 Additional garden bin stock; £16,950 Budget transfer from Cleansing for staffing.
Cleansing
Gross Direct Costs
773,813
771,401
735,615
(35,786) (£15,000) Payment for NI 195 Cleansing
survey not required; (£6,204) Vacant post;
(£16,950) Budget transfer to waste collection
for staffing; £2,368 Kier contract variations
Gross Direct Income
(35,553)
(36,746)
(40,641)
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
19,943
758,203
20,480
755,135
22,500
717,474
(3,895) Additional income from recharges for dog and
litter bin empities
2,020 No major variances
(37,661)
Community Safety
Gross Direct Costs
Support Service Charges
57,818
7,969
26,984
7,830
26,984
3,420
Net Expenditure
65,787
34,814
30,404
Civil Contingencies
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
70,647
(26)
90,077
84,579
0
76,290
85,983
0
43,730
160,698
160,869
129,713
(31,156)
6,241,459
(3,104,003)
46,751
(46,751)
549,188
974,785
(288,831)
4,372,598
6,496,275
(3,244,916)
32,897
(32,897)
422,791
907,920
(191,062)
4,391,008
6,514,035
(3,163,486)
32,897
(32,897)
543,474
851,910
(206,686)
4,539,247
17,760
81,430
0
0
120,683
(56,010)
(15,624)
148,239
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Support Service Charges Recharges
Net Expenditure
69
0
(4,410) Reduced recharges from Accountancy and
Internal Audit offset by an increased recharge
from Computer Network
(4,410)
1,404 Staffing costs
0
(32,560) (£22,410) - Reduced recharges from
Environmental Health management unit,
Customer Services, Computer teams and
Media. (£10,770) Relates to changes in duties
of the Corporate Leadership Team following
the officer restructure
Appendix B
Finance Service Area
Local Taxation
Benefits
Treasury Management
Discretionary Rate Relief
Non Distributed Costs
Benefits & Revenues Mgmt
Corporate Finance
Internal Audit
Central Costs
Corporate & Democratic Core
£
168,045
(329,301)
0
62,952
369,726
71,900
576,796
99,822
44,857
331,388
£
115,400
198,967
0
68,018
256,842
72,512
573,133
105,967
97,485
347,386
£
112,041
535,934
0
68,000
282,941
86,402
580,936
105,967
45,619
306,973
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
(3,359)
336,967
0
(18)
26,099
13,890
7,803
0
(51,866)
(40,413)
Total Net Costs
1,396,185
1,835,710
2,124,813
289,103
46,567
(157,726)
2,566,442
(1,444,041)
99,048
(256,842)
2,561,360
(1,465,672)
48,313
(282,941)
2,833,420
(1,570,048)
(50,735)
(26,099)
272,060
(104,376)
2,407,427
2,773,604
3,153,557
379,953
Service
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Cost of Service
2011/12
Actual
70
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
Appendix B
FINANCE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Local Taxation
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Benefits
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
548,231
(380,186)
622,263
(506,863)
622,404
(510,363)
141 No Major Variances
(3,500) (£3,500) Business Rate referral, new burdens
grant
0
7,820 No Major Variances
4,461
6,876
425,305
600,226
15,000
434,210
564,610
15,000
442,030
569,071
35,458,628
35,305,113
35,642,080
336,967 £65,713 Employee costs including pay and
grading implementation. £265,136 Expenditure
on the revenues and benefits shared service
project this is funded from the Partnership
earmarked reserve which was established as
part of the year end process.
(35,787,929) (35,106,146) (35,106,146)
23,358
75,054
24,319
590,872
651,930
668,700
0
(50,735)
16,770 £30,030 Additional Charges from Legal
Services. £23,520 Fakenham Connect (£8,790)
Admin Buildings (£18,870) Computer
Applications Team. (£12,550) Customer
Services.
284,929
925,951
1,228,953
Treasury Management
Support Service Charges
51,712
50,430
55,820
Net Expenditure
51,712
50,430
55,820
Discretionary Rate Relief
Gross Direct Costs
62,952
68,018
68,000
(18) Budget replaced by contribution from Big
Society Fund. The original base has been
transferred to Economic Development to Match
fund staffing on Learning for Everyone.
Net Expenditure
62,952
68,018
68,000
(18)
369,726
256,842
282,941
(157,726)
0
212,000
(256,842)
0
0
(282,941)
1,600
1,600
Benefits & Revenues Mgmt
Gross Direct Costs
71,900
72,512
86,402
Support Service Charges
37,649
37,230
18,450
(109,549)
0
(109,742)
0
(104,852)
0
Corporate Finance
Gross Direct Costs
577,424
573,133
580,936
Gross Direct Income
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
(628)
16,333
0
291,693
0
8,994
0
267,750
0
8,994
0
328,330
(884,822)
0
(843,318)
6,559
(918,260)
0
99,822
11,052
105,967
11,340
105,967
3,980
(110,874)
(117,307)
(109,947)
0
0
0
Non Distributed Costs
Gross Direct Costs
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Internal Audit
Gross Direct Costs
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
71
303,002
5,390 Additional Staff time recharged from
Accountancy.
5,390
26,099 £9,634 - Inflation on Added Years payments.
£16,364 - Actuarial strain.
(26,099)
1,600 No Major Variances
1,600
13,890 Employee costs including the pay and grading
implementation.
(18,780) Reduction in recharge from Corporate
Leadership Team following restructure.
4,890
0
7,803 Employee cost including £17,301 pay and
grading implementation which is offset by
(£8,500) savings from a vacant post.
0
0
0
60,580 £17,530 Computer Applications Team. The
balance represents recharges from
accountancy to Treasury Management,
Creditors and Sundry Income.
(74,942) Additional costs recharged to Services.
(6,559)
0 No Major Variances
(7,360) (£5,420) - Lower recharge from Accountancy
reflecting a more accurate allocation of time.
7,360 Lower recharges reflecting lower costs
incurred.
0
Appendix B
FINANCE SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Central Costs
Gross Direct Costs
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
44,857
97,485
45,619
293,939
297,820
391,370
(338,796)
(395,305)
(436,989)
0
0
0
Corporate & Democratic Core
Gross Direct Costs
331,478
347,386
306,973
(40,413) (£40,000) - Net impact following changes to
external audit arrangements due to the
abolition of the Audit Commission and
additional subsidy grant audit work.
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
(90)
864,220
0
810,650
0
923,140
0
112,490 £83,530 - Higher recharge from Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure. £29,000
- Higher recharge from Environmental Health,
reflecting a more accurate allocation of time.
£12,300 - Higher recharge from Human
Resources as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. (£9,800) Lower recharge from Accountancy reflecting a
more accurate allocation of time. (£25,020) Lower recharge from Legal Services as a result
of changes in duties following the officer
restructure. £8,070 - Higher recharge from
Treasury Management
1,195,608
1,158,036
1,230,113
72,077
37,565,018 37,448,719 37,741,322
(36,168,833) (35,613,009) (35,616,509)
0
0
0
0
0
0
46,567
99,048
48,313
(157,726)
(256,842)
(282,941)
2,566,442
2,561,360
2,833,420
(1,444,041) (1,465,672) (1,570,048)
2,407,427
2,773,604
3,153,557
292,603
(3,500)
0
0
(50,735)
(26,099)
272,060
(104,376)
379,953
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Gross Direct Costs - Reffcus
Gross Direct Income - Reffcus
Capital Charges
IAS19 Pension Adjustment
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
72
(51,866) (£51,584) - Pay and Grading implementation.
These costs now feature in the relevant service
areas.
93,550 £18,780 - Higher recharge from Customer
Services as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. (£15,900) Lower recharge from Accountancy reflecting a
more accurate allocation of time. £52,600 Higher recharge from Corporate Leadership
Team as a result of changes in duties following
the officer restructure. £28,460 - Higher
recharge from Media as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(41,684) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
Appendix B
Organisational Development Service Area
Health
Personnel & Payroll Supp Svs
Insurance & Risk Management
Policy & Performance Mgt
Registration Services
(559)
320,910
276,386
131,181
230,219
0
321,800
238,229
154,456
154,609
0
349,426
238,291
155,782
156,836
Variance
2012/13
Revised to
2012/13
Base
£
0
27,626
62
1,326
2,227
Total Net Costs
958,137
869,094
900,335
31,241
270,878
(883,215)
291,980
(877,565)
367,870
(940,959)
75,890
(63,394)
345,800
283,509
327,246
43,737
Service
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Cost of Service
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
£
£
73
Appendix B
ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
SERVICE AREA
2011/12
Actual
2012/13
Updated
Budget
£
£
Health
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
2012/13
Revised
Budget
£
Variance
£
Explanation for Major Variances
3,004
(3,563)
9,284
0
0
8,410
0
0
0
8,725
8,410
0
0 No Major Variances
0
(8,410) (£8,200) - Following internal restructure this
service has been transferred to another service
area.
(8,410)
Personnel & Payroll Supp Svs
Gross Direct Costs
320,910
321,800
349,426
27,626 £22,718 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
Support Service Charges
117,111
124,340
121,300
(438,021)
(446,140)
(470,726)
0
0
0
276,769
(383)
5,050
238,879
(650)
9,190
238,941
(650)
24,780
(281,436)
(247,419)
(263,071)
0
0
0
138,614
154,456
155,782
(7,433)
32,577
0
29,550
0
51,380
(163,758)
(184,006)
(207,162)
0
0
0
463,077
(232,858)
106,856
160,888
(6,279)
120,490
163,115
(6,279)
170,410
337,075
275,099
327,246
1,202,374
(244,237)
270,878
(883,215)
345,800
876,023
(6,929)
291,980
(877,565)
283,509
907,264
(6,929)
367,870
(940,959)
327,246
Net Expenditure
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Insurance & Risk Management
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Policy & Performance Mgt
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
Registration Services
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Net Expenditure
Gross Direct Costs
Gross Direct Income
Support Service Charges
Support Service Recharges
Net Expenditure
74
(3,040) (£6,950) - Lower recharge from Corporate
Leadership Team as a result of changes in
duties following the officer restructure.
(24,586) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
62 No Major Variances
0
15,590 £17,720 - Higher recharge from Human
Resources as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
(15,652) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
1,326 (£15,835) - Staff transferred to another unit.
£18,719 - Pay & Grading implementation costs.
0
21,830 £18,040 - Higher recharge from Human
Resources as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure.
(23,156) Higher recharges reflecting higher costs
incurred.
0
2,227 No Major Variances
0 No Major Variances
49,920 £36,440 - Higher recharge from Human
Resources as a result of changes in duties
following the officer restructure. £17,880 Higher recharge from Corporate Leadership
Team.
52,147
31,241
0
75,890
(63,394)
43,737
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Assets & Leisure Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
- Runton Road
- Beach Road
- Cart Gap
- Beach Road
- Pauls Lane
- Clink Road
- Beach Road
- Station Road
- Stearmans Yard
- Beach Road
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
50p for 30
minutes only,
£1.20 per hour
thereafter
50p for 30 minutes only, £1.20 per
No Change
hour thereafter
- Cadogan Road
- Meadow
- Promenade (Disabled only)
- Albert Street
- Station Road
- Chequers
- Morris Street
- Staithe Street
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
50p for 30
minutes only,
£1.00 for the
first hour, 70p
per hour
thereafter
50p for 30 minutes only, £1.00 for
No Change
the first hour, 70p per hour
thereafter
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
50p for 30
minutes only,
£1.00 for 2
hours, 70p per
hour thereafter
50p for 30 minutes only, £1.00 for
No Change
2 hours, 70p per hour thereafter
Stalham
- Bridge Street
- The Limes
- Queens Road
- Bank Loke
- New Road
- Vicarage Street
- High Street
All P&D Car Parks (Coastal Car Park tickets transferable)
- All day ticket
T
£5.00
£0.00
0.0%
£5.00
T
£1.00
£0.00
0.0%
£1.00
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£5.00
£10.00
£6.00
£3.00
£27.50
£55.00
£200.00
£30.00
£120.00
£16.00
£65.00
N/A
£50 - £70
£25 - £35
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
N/A
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
N/A
£5.00
£10.00
£6.00
£3.00
£27.50
£55.00
£200.00
£30.00
£120.00
£16.00
£65.00
TBA
£50.00
£25.00
CAR PARKING
Pay & Display Car Parks between 08:00 - 18:00
Coastal Car Parks
Cromer
East Runton
Happisburgh
Mundesley
Overstrand
Sea Palling
Sheringham
Wells
Weybourne
Other Car Parks
Cromer
Holt
Sheringham
Wells
Fakenham
North Walsham
Pay & Display Car Parks between 18:00 - 23:00
All Car Parks
Other Charges
Coach Parking (where permitted)
Carnival Day (Runton Road)
Weekly Permit
Annual Permit
Half Year Permit
Quarter Year Permit
Residents Permit
Penalty Charge Notice
- Half day (up to 4 hours)
- All day ticket
- Per Car, Per Entry
- Per Motorcycle, Per Entry
- 3 hour permit
- 24 hour permit
- 3 hour permit
- 24 hour permit
- 3 hour permit
- 24 hour permit
- Full
- Prompt Payment
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
75
Comments
To be reviewed as part of the budget process
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Assets & Leisure Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
- April, May, June, Oct, Nov, Dec
- July, August, Sept
- Jan, Feb, March
- April - June
- July - September
- October - December
- January - March
- April - Sept
- October - March
- April - Sept
- October - March
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£20.00
£30.00
£15.00
£152.00
£234.00
£111.00
£88.00
£297.00
£153.00
£223.00
£115.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£3.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£20.00
£30.00
£15.00
£155.00
£234.00
£111.00
£88.00
£297.00
£153.00
£223.00
£115.00
- April, May, June, Nov, Dec
- July, August, Sept, Oct
- Jan, Feb, March
- April - June
- July - September
- October - December
- January - March
- April - Sept
- October - March
- April - Sept
- October - March
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£35.00
£45.00
£25.00
£338.00
£520.00
£247.00
£195.00
£660.00
£340.00
£495.00
£255.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£35.00
£45.00
£25.00
£338.00
£520.00
£247.00
£195.00
£660.00
£340.00
£495.00
£255.00
Other Charges
Full Annual Payment in Advance
Refunds - Administration Fee
New Traders Discount (conditions apply)
T
T
T
10% discount
£15.00
25% discount
£0.00
0.0%
10% discount
£15.00
25% discount
CHALETS & BEACH HUTS
Chalets
Sheringham
Old Chalets
New Chalets (incl electricity)
T
T
£650.00
£770.00
£10.00
£20.00
1.5%
2.6%
£660.00
£790.00
Cromer
West Beach
East Beach
T
T
£600.00
£650.00
£10.00
£10.00
1.7%
1.5%
£610.00
£660.00
Weekly Lets - Cromer West
Low Season
High Season
T
T
£55.00
£95.00
£0.00
£5.00
0.0%
5.3%
£55.00
£100.00
Weekly Lets - Cromer East & Sheringham
Low Season
High Season
T
T
£60.00
£110.00
£0.00
£5.00
0.0%
4.5%
£60.00
£115.00
Weekly Lets - Cromer East & Sheringham New (Serviced)
Low Season
High Season
T
T
£75.00
£135.00
£0.00
£5.00
0.0%
3.7%
£75.00
£140.00
Winter Lets
Per Month
Per Week
40 Week Lets (October - July)
40 Week Lets (October - July)
T
T
T
T
£60.00
£20.00
£450.00
£500.00
£0.00
£0.00
£15.00
£15.00
0.0%
0.0%
3.3%
3.0%
£60.00
£20.00
£465.00
£515.00
MARKETS
Site = 12' Frontage x 16' Depth
Cromer, Stalham and Sheringham (Weds) - Per Site
Weekly
Quarterly
Half Yearly (Up to 2 pitches, £ per pitch)
Half Yearly (3rd pitch +, £ per pitch)
Sheringham (Saturday) - Per Site
Weekly
Quarterly
Half Yearly (Up to 2 pitches, £ per pitch)
Half Yearly (3rd pitch +, £ per pitch)
Cromer West
Cromer East
76
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Assets & Leisure Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
Hut Sites
Cromer, Overstrand & Sheringham
One Year (Excluding Rates)
Mundesley
Mundesley - May to October
T
T
T
£205.00
£195.00
£500.00
£5.00
£5.00
£15.00
2.4%
2.6%
3.0%
£210.00
£200.00
£515.00
Huts
Weekly Lets
Low Season
High Season
T
T
£45.00
£95.00
£0.00
£5.00
0.0%
5.3%
£45.00
£100.00
T
£30.00
£0.00
0.0%
£30.00
PARKLANDS CARAVAN SITE
Site Per Year
Termination of Licence (early - mid-term)
T
£960.00
£25.00
2.6%
£985.00
HOLT COUNTRY PARK
School visits where Ranger's assistance required (Per Person)
T
£3.20
£0.10
3.1%
£3.30
T
T
£1.50
£20.00
£0.00
£0.50
0.0%
2.5%
£1.50
£20.50
T
T
£2.90
£2.40
£0.10
£0.10
3.4%
4.2%
£3.00
£2.50
Car Park
Per car per occasion
Annual Permit
(NNDC Standard Car Park Season Tickets are also valid)
MOBILE GYM
Fees for the use of the facility per session
Concessionary price per session
Admin Fee
77
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - CLT / Corporate Service Area
LEGAL SERVICES
Legal Work (exclusive of VAT charged)
Mortgage Redemption
Preparation of a new lease
Sale of land
Preparation of License
Private Mortgage
Quest re: second Mortgage
Agreement - section 18 Public Health Act 1936
Legal Work in connection with release of covenant
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
At Solicitors
Hourly Rate
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
At Solicitors Hourly Rate
78
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Customer Services Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRES
Concessionary Fares
Application processing
T
£7.00
£0.50
7.1%
£7.50
FILMING
TV drama/advertisements/feature films
Per Day
Per Hour
T
T
£512.50
£82.00
£12.50
£3.00
2.4%
3.7%
£525.00
£85.00
Documentaries and charities (depending on nature of organisation, subject and
crew size)
Per Day
Per Hour
T
T
£310.00
£52.00
£10.00
£3.00
3.2%
5.8%
£320.00
£55.00
Administration Charge (only charged where a fee and/or contract is appropriate)
Standard
Less than 7 days notice
T
T
£25.60
£51.30
-£0.60
£3.70
-2.3%
7.2%
£25.00
£55.00
Stills (specifically commercial advertising with props, etc)
T
£100 - £500
Free
Free
Parking (if required)
T
£10 - £15
£10 - £15
PHOTOCOPYING
Per Copy
Per Copy - Staff
Colour Copying (A4)
Colour Copying (A3)
Colour Copying - Staff (A4)
Colour Copying - Staff (A3)
T
T
T
T
T
T
£0.07
£0.07
£0.61
£1.21
£0.61
£1.21
Education/news/weather/student/individual photographers or 'in the interest of the district'
£100 - £500
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£0.07
£0.07
£0.61
£1.21
£0.61
£1.21
79
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Development Management Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Development Plan for North Norfolk (all prices inclusive of postage)
Core Strategy (incorporating Development Control Policies) and Proposals Map (complete set)
T
£63.30
£1.70
2.7%
£65.00
Individual Core Strategy Documents (all prices inclusive of postage)
Core Strategy (incorporating Development Control Policies)
Map Set (complete set including the Proposals Map)
Proposals Map
Map Key
CD-ROMS (contains all documents and maps)
Inspectors Report of the Core Strategy
LDF Magazine File
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£10.60
£52.80
£5.30
Free
£5.50
Free
£6.00
-£0.60
£2.20
-£0.30
-5.7%
4.2%
-5.7%
£0.00
0.0%
£0.00
0.0%
£10.00
£55.00
£5.00
Free
£5.50
Free
£6.00
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£5.30
£5.30
£5.30
£5.30
£4.20
£5.30
£4.20
£4.20
-£0.30
-£0.30
-£0.30
-£0.30
-£0.20
-£0.30
-£0.20
-£0.20
-5.7%
-5.7%
-5.7%
-5.7%
-4.8%
-5.7%
-4.8%
-4.8%
£5.00
£5.00
£5.00
£5.00
£4.00
£5.00
£4.00
£4.00
T
£5.30
-£0.30
-5.7%
£5.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
Individual Core Strategy Inset Maps (all prices inclusive of postage)
1. Cromer / Cromer Town Centre (A1)
2. Fakenham / Fakenham Town Centre (A1)
3. Holt / Holt Town Centre (A1)
4. North Walsham / North Walsham Town Centre (A1)
5. Hoveton / Hoveton Village Centre (A2)
6. Sheringham / Sheringham Town Centre (A1)
7. Stalham / Stalham Town Centre (A2)
8. Wells / Wells Town Centre (A2)
9. Briston / Melton Constable (Front) (A1)
10. Mundesley (Back)
11. Walsingham (Front) (A3)
12. Little Snoring (Back)
13. Blakeney (Front) (A3)
14. Weybourne (Back)
15. Corpusty / Saxthorpe (Front) (A3)
16. Aldborough (Back)
17. Roughton (Front) (A3)
18. Southrepps (Back)
19. Overstrand (Front) (A3)
20. Bacton (Back)
21. Happisburgh (Front) (A3)
22. Catfield (Back)
23. Ludham (Front) (A3)
24. Horning (Back)
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
T
£3.20
-£0.20
-6.3%
£3.00
Supplementary Planning Documents
Design Guide SPD
Landscape Character Assessment SPD
T
T
£15.90
£21.10
£0.10
£0.40
0.6%
1.9%
£16.00
£21.50
Other Publications and Background Studies
LDS - b/w or colour
AMR - b/w
AMR - colour
Core Strategy Sustainability Appraisal (Final)
Tourism Study - b/w
Tourism Study - colour
Landscape Character Assessment - b/w
Landscape Character Assessment - colour
Retail & Commercial Study - b/w
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
Free
£5.90
£23.10
£27.30
£17.40
£52.00
£5.90
£11.50
£8.50
£0.10
£0.90
£0.70
£0.60
£1.00
£0.10
£0.50
£0.50
1.7%
3.9%
2.6%
3.4%
1.9%
1.7%
4.3%
5.9%
Free
£6.00
£24.00
£28.00
£18.00
£53.00
£6.00
£12.00
£9.00
80
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Development Management Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
Retail & Commercial Study - colour
3 Dragons - b/w
3 Dragons - colour
Settlement Planning - b/w
Settlement Planning - colour
Rural Economy - b/w
Rural Economy - colour
Open Space Study - Volume 1
Open Space Study - Volume 2
Open Space Study - Volume 3
Open Space Study - Volume 4
Open Space Study - Complete
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£34.60
£5.90
£28.90
£5.90
£23.10
£11.50
£57.60
£9.20
£11.50
£19.60
£7.00
£52.00
£1.40
£0.10
£1.10
£0.10
£0.90
£0.50
£1.40
£0.30
£0.50
£0.40
£0.00
£1.50
4.0%
1.7%
3.8%
1.7%
3.9%
4.3%
2.4%
3.3%
4.3%
2.0%
0.0%
2.9%
£36.00
£6.00
£30.00
£6.00
£24.00
£12.00
£59.00
£9.50
£12.00
£20.00
£7.00
£53.50
T
T
T
T
£2.50
£28.00
£24.00
£2.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£2.50
£28.00
£24.00
£2.00
Part 1 Enquiries
Non National Land Information Service Search
One Parcel
National Land Information Service
First Parcel
Additional Parcels
T
T
T
T
T
£77.00
£77.00
£77.00
£66.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£77.00
£77.00
£77.00
£66.00
£15.00
Optional Enquiries
Printed
Additional
Enquiry 22
T
T
T
£15.00
£20.00
£26.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£15.00
£20.00
£26.00
T
£70.00
£0.00
0.0%
£70.00
T
£7.00
£0.00
0.0%
£7.00
T
£2.50
£0.00
0.0%
£2.50
T
£2.50
£0.00
0.0%
£2.50
T
£5.00
£0.00
0.0%
£5.00
T
T
T
T
£290.00
£300.00
£85.00
£25.00
£8.00
£25.00
£0.00
£0.00
2.8%
8.3%
0.0%
0.0%
£298.00
£325.00
£85.00
£25.00
T
T
£0.10
£0.20
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
£0.10
£0.20
High Hedges Complaint
Architects Plans A1 & A2 Sheets (per copy)
T
T
£395.00
£2.50
£10.00
£0.10
2.5%
4.0%
£405.00
£2.60
Supply of Information on Permitted Use/History
Administrative Staff - per hour
Professional Staff - per hour
T
T
£43.00
£84.00
£1.00
£2.00
2.3%
2.4%
£44.00
£86.00
LAND CHARGES
Official Search of - One Part
Official Search of - Whole
- Paper Search
- Electronic Search
- Additional Parcel
Other Fees relating to Local Land Charges
Registration of a charge in Part 11 of the Register (Light Obstruction Notice)
Filing a judgement order or application for variation or cancellation of any entry in Part 11 of the
Register (Light Obstruction Notice)
Filing a definitive certificate of the Lands Tribunal under rule 10 (3) of the Local Land Charges
Rules 1977
Inspection of documents filed under Rule 10 in respect of each parcel of land
Office copy of any entry in the Register (not including a copy or extract of any plan or document
filed pursuant to 1977 Rules)
PLANNING
Weekly list Planning Applications per annum
Preparation of Section 106 Agreement (simple)
Discharging of conditions
PLANNING - MISCELLANOUS
Misc. Photocopies (per copy)
A4 copies - per sheet
A3 copies - per sheet
Large documents - subject to negotiation
- Non householder permission
- Householder permission
81
Comments
Cost of dealing with s106 higher than current charge
Statutory Charge
Statutory Charge
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Development Management Service Area
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
Check compliance with Conditions (for Solicitors, Agents)
Administrative Staff - per hour
Professional Staff - per hour
T
T
£43.00
£84.00
£1.00
£2.00
2.3%
2.4%
£44.00
£86.00
General Research
Administrative Staff - per hour
Professional Staff - per hour
T
T
£43.00
£84.00
£1.00
£2.00
2.3%
2.4%
£44.00
£86.00
82
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Environmental Health
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
WASTE COLLECTION SERVICES
Clinical Waste - Commercial & Prescribed
Commercial Waste Bins - Collection & Hire
Commercial Recycling Bins - Collection & Hire
Prescribed Waste Bins - Collection & Hire
Prescribed Recycling Bins - Collection & Hire
Sacks - Commercial & Prescribed
Bulky Items - Commercial, Prescribed & Household
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
Prices on
Application
Prices on Application
TBC
Delegated Authority to be given as set out in the report
Garden Bin Collection - Per Annum
T
£40.04
EDUCATION & PROMOTION
(CIEH) Foundation Certificate in Food Hygiene
Resident or employed in North Norfolk
Other
T
T
£48.60
£60.00
Emergency First Aid Courses
Manual Handling (4 hours)
Manual Handling & Patient Handling (6 hours)
Specially arranged courses for businesses - held at business premises
T
T
T
T
Prices on
Application
DOG CONTROL
Environmental Protection Act - Stray Dogs
Charge when dog collected:- Release Fee (Vets fees, collection charge and kennelling charge to be added if appropriate)
T
£25.00
£0.00
0.0%
£25.00
COMMERCIAL SERVICES
Food Inspections
Unfit food inspections
Food export certificates
Sunday Trading Application for loading consent
T
T
T
£34.90
£26.70
£81.60
£1.10
£0.80
£2.40
3.2%
3.0%
2.9%
£36.00
£27.50
£84.00
- 5+ parameters
- 17 parameters
- 33 parameters
T
T
T
£25.00
£100.00
£500.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£25.00
£100.00
£500.00
- Single Private Dwelling
- Small Domestic Supplies
- Large Domestic Supplies
- Commercial or Public Small
- Commercial or Public Medium
- Commercial or Public Large
- Commercial or Public Very Large
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£100.00
£100.00
£200.00
£200.00
£300.00
£500.00
£500.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£100.00
£100.00
£200.00
£200.00
£300.00
£500.00
£500.00
T
T
T
£50.00
£100.00
£100.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£50.00
£100.00
£100.00
T
T
T
£15.70
£382.80
£823.70
£0.30
£17.20
£26.30
1.9%
4.5%
3.2%
£16.00
£400.00
£850.00
Private Water Sampling
Laboratory Analysis
Risk Assessments
Sampling - per visit
Other Investigations (e.g. Investigating failure)
Granting an authorisation to depart from the standard authorisation
Registration of Food Premises
Charge for copies of Register (or parts of)
- Single Entry
- Part of Register
- Complete Register
Comments
£1.40
£2.00
2.9%
3.3%
£50.00
£62.00
Prices on Application
83
Statutory Fee
Actual cost charged by the testing laboratory
plus any transport costs will be charged up to
the maximum shown
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Environmental Health
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION SERVICES
Register of Authorised Processes
T
£80.00
£2.00
2.5%
£82.00
Abandoned Cars
Abandoned Car release fee comprising of:
Collection Costs
+ Storage Costs (per 24 hours or part thereof)
Destroyed vehicles - disposal fee
T
T
T
£105.00
£12.00
£50.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£105.00
£12.00
£50.00
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£90.00
£170.00
£90.00
£170.00
£190.00
£190.00
£150.00
£40.00
£0.00
£40.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
44.4%
0.0%
44.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£130.00
£170.00
£130.00
£170.00
£190.00
£190.00
£150.00
T
T
T
T
£19.06
£3.00
£1.50
£36.05
£0.44
£0.00
£0.00
£0.95
2.3%
0.0%
0.0%
2.6%
£19.50
£3.00
£1.50
£37.00
TAXI LICENCE FEES
Taxi Licences
Licence to Drive Hackney Carriages or Private Hire Vehicles
Licence to Drive Hackney Carriages or Private Hire Vehicles
Hackney Carriage Vehicle Licence
Private Hire Vehicle Licence
Private Hire Operators Licence
- New Licence valid for 1 year
- New Licence valid for 3 years
- Renewal valid for 1 year
- Renewal valid for 3 years
- New or Renewal valid for 1 year
- New or Renewal valid for 1 year
- New or Renewal valid for 5 years
Taxi Licence Charges
Replacement badge (including name or address change)
Replacement drivers badge holder with lanyard
Windscreen pouches (additional or replacement)
Replacement plate for vehicle
Vehicle Inspection full initial test (if undertaken other than at a time of licensing or relicensing
vehicle)
Vehicle Inspection re-test following failure of initial test
Meter test or retest undertaken separate to full vehicle inspection
Comments
As recommended by L&A committee - 21/5/12
As recommended by L&A committee - 21/5/12
T
£52.80
£12.12
23.0%
£64.92
T
T
£12.00
£24.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
£12.00
£24.00
T
£44.00
£0.00
0.0%
£44.00
T
£30.00
£10.00
33.3%
£40.00
Premises Licences (Alcohol)
Premises Licences, under the Licensing Act 2003, are based on bands determined by the
non-domestic rateable value of the property concerned.
The fees relating to applications for premises licences, club premises certificates and variations
or conversions to existing licences are:
Band
Non-domestic rateable value
A
£0 - £4,300
B
£4,301 - £33,000
C
£33,001 - £87,000
D
£87,001 - £125,000
E
£125,001 and over
T
T
T
T
T
£100.00
£190.00
£315.00
£450.00
£635.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£100.00
£190.00
£315.00
£450.00
£635.00
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Annual charges relating to the above are:
Band
A
B
C
D
E
Non-domestic rateable value
£0 - £4,300
£4,301 - £33,000
£33,001 - £87,000
£87,001 - £125,000
£125,001 and over
T
T
T
T
T
£70.00
£180.00
£295.00
£320.00
£350.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£70.00
£180.00
£295.00
£320.00
£350.00
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Premises applying to vary conditions in relation to the sale of alcohol during transition will be
charged a supplementary fee, according to their fee band:
Band
Non-domestic rateable value
A
£0 - £4,300
B
£4,301 - £33,000
T
T
£20.00
£60.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
£20.00
£60.00
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Other Charges
Criminal Records Bureau Enhanced check
OTHER LICENSING
Permits for Goods and Amenities on the Highway
- Application Fee
84
Current charge as set by the CRB
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Environmental Health
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
C
D
E
£33,001 - £87,000
£87,001 - £125,000
£125,001 and over
T
T
T
£80.00
£100.00
£120.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£80.00
£100.00
£120.00
Personal Licence
- Initial Fee
T
£37.00
£0.00
0.0%
£37.00
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
Subject to changes in legislation
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£10.00
£10.50
£10.50
£23.00
£23.00
£23.00
£315.00
£10.50
£10.50
£10.50
£21.00
£10.50
£10.50
£10.50
£21.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£10.00
£10.50
£10.50
£23.00
£23.00
£23.00
£315.00
£10.50
£10.50
£10.50
£21.00
£10.50
£10.50
£10.50
£21.00
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
Set by Statute
- New Application
- Annual Fee
- Application to Vary
- Application to Transfer
- Application to Reinstatement
- Application for Prov. Statement
- Application (Prov. State Holders)
- Copy Licence
- Notification of Change
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£2,522.80
£505.70
£1,261.40
£1,011.30
£1,011.30
£2,522.80
£1,011.30
£25.00
£50.00
£77.20
£14.30
£38.60
£38.70
£38.70
£77.20
£38.70
£0.00
£0.00
3.1%
2.8%
3.1%
3.8%
3.8%
3.1%
3.8%
0.0%
0.0%
£2,600.00
£520.00
£1,300.00
£1,050.00
£1,050.00
£2,600.00
£1,050.00
£25.00
£50.00
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
- New Application
- Annual Fee
- Application to Vary
- Application to Transfer
- Application to Reinstatement
- Application for Prov. Statement
- Application (Prov. State Holders)
- Copy Licence
- Notification of Change
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£1,261.40
£842.80
£1,044.00
£799.50
£799.50
£2,104.20
£799.50
£25.00
£50.00
£38.60
£27.20
£26.00
£20.50
£20.50
£55.80
£20.50
£0.00
£0.00
3.1%
3.2%
2.5%
2.6%
2.6%
2.7%
2.6%
0.0%
0.0%
£1,300.00
£870.00
£1,070.00
£820.00
£820.00
£2,160.00
£820.00
£25.00
£50.00
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
- New Application
- Annual Fee
T
T
£1,685.50
£630.70
£64.50
£19.30
3.8%
3.1%
£1,750.00
£650.00
Additional Fees and Charges
Supply of copies of information contained in the register
Application for copy of licence or summary on theft, loss etc of premises licence or summary
Notification of change of name or address (holder of premises licence)
Application to vary to specify individual as premises supervisor
Application to transfer premises licence
Interim authority notice
Application for making of a provisional statement
Application for copy of certificate or summary on theft, loss etc of certificate or summary
Notification of change of name or alteration of club rules
Change of relevant registered address of club
Temporary event notices
Application for copy of notice on theft, loss etc of temporary notice
Application for copy of notice on theft, loss etc of personal licence
Notification of change of name or address (personal licence)
Notice of interest in any premises
Premises Licence Fees - Gambling Act 2005
Betting Premises (excluding tracks)
Tracks
Family Entertainment Centres
85
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Environmental Health
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
- Application to Vary
- Application to Transfer
- Application to Reinstatement
- Application for Prov. Statement
- Application (Prov. State Holders)
- Copy Licence
- Notification of Change
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£842.80
£799.50
£799.50
£1,681.00
£799.50
£25.00
£50.00
£27.20
£20.50
£20.50
£69.00
£20.50
£0.00
£0.00
3.2%
2.6%
2.6%
4.1%
2.6%
0.0%
0.0%
£870.00
£820.00
£820.00
£1,750.00
£820.00
£25.00
£50.00
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
- New Application
- Annual Fee
- Application to Vary
- Application to Transfer
- Application to Reinstatement
- Application for Prov. Statement
- Application (Prov. State Holders)
- Copy Licence
- Notification of Change
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£1,685.50
£842.80
£842.80
£1,011.30
£1,011.30
£1,681.00
£1,011.30
£25.00
£50.00
£64.50
£27.20
£27.20
£38.70
£38.70
£69.00
£38.70
£0.00
£0.00
3.8%
3.2%
3.2%
3.8%
3.8%
4.1%
3.8%
0.0%
0.0%
£1,750.00
£870.00
£870.00
£1,050.00
£1,050.00
£1,750.00
£1,050.00
£25.00
£50.00
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
- Application Fee
- Change of Name
- Copy of Permit
T
T
T
£300.00
£25.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£300.00
£25.00
£15.00
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
Maximum set by statute
Prize Gaming
- Application Fee
- Annual Fee
- Change of Name
- Copy of Permit
T
T
T
T
£300.00
£300.00
£25.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£300.00
£300.00
£25.00
£15.00
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
Small Lottery Society
- Application Fee
- Annual Fee
- Change of Name
- Copy of Permit
T
T
T
T
£40.00
£20.00
£25.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£40.00
£20.00
£25.00
£15.00
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
Club Gaming
- Application Fee Gaming Permit
- Application Fee Machine Permit
- Annual Fee
- Change of Name
- Copy of Permit
T
T
T
T
T
£200.00
£200.00
£50.00
£25.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£200.00
£200.00
£50.00
£25.00
£15.00
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
License Premises Gaming Machine Permit
- Application Fee (2 or less)
- Application Fee (3 or more)
- Annual Fee
- Change of Name
- Copy of Permit
T
T
T
T
T
£50.00
£150.00
£50.00
£25.00
£15.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
£0.00
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
£50.00
£150.00
£50.00
£25.00
£15.00
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
Maximum
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
set by statute
- Registration
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£65.00
£30.00
£80.00
£1,685.80
£2,522.80
Free
£65.00
£110.00
£145.00
£110.00
£1.60
£10.00
2.5%
33.3%
£64.20
£77.20
3.8%
3.1%
£2.00
£5.00
£5.00
£5.00
3.1%
4.5%
3.4%
4.5%
£66.60
£40.00
TBC
£1,750.00
£2,600.00
Free
£67.00
£115.00
£150.00
£115.00
Adult Gaming Centre
Permits
Family Entertainment Centres
Licences and certificates of suitability
Body Piercing
Goods & Amenities on the Highway
Motor Salvage Operator
Sex Establishment
Sexual Entertainment Venue
Street Trading Consents
Animal Boarding
Dangerous Wild Animals (and vet fees where appropriate)
Dog Breeding (and vet fees where appropriate)
- 3 years
- Non profit
- Commercial
- New/Renewal
- New/Renewal
- New/Renewal
86
Comments
Check legislation
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Environmental Health
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
Pet Shop
Riding Establishment (and vet fees where appropriate)
T
T
T
T
T
T
£110.00
£155.00
£155.00
£44.00
Free
£155.00
£5.00
£45.00
£5.00
£0.00
4.5%
29.0%
3.2%
0.0%
£45.00
29.0%
£115.00
£200.00
£160.00
£44.00
Free
£200.00
Zoo (and vet fees where appropriate)
- New/Renewal
- New/Renewal
- Variation
- CRB Per Person - Employee
- CRB Per Person - Volunteer
- New/Renewal
87
Comments
Appendix C
Fees and Charges - Organisational Development
V
A
T
2012/13
Charge
£:p
Actual
Increase
Proposed
%
Increase
Proposed
Charge
2013/14
ELECTIONS
Statutory Charges
Edited Register of Electors - Printed Copy - Basic Charge (per first 1,000 names)
Printed copy as above, extra 1,000 names or part thereof
Edited Register of Electors - Data Form - Basic Charge (per first 1,000 names)
Data form as above, extra 1,000 names or part thereof
Full Register and monthly updates - Printed Copy - Basic Charge (per first 1,000 names)
Printed copy as above, extra 1,000 names or part thereof
Full Register and monthly updates - Data Form - Basic Charge (per first 1,000 names)
Data form as above, extra 1,000 names or part thereof
Marked Registers - Printed Copy - Basic Charge
Printed copy of Marked Registers - 1,000 names or part thereof
Data form of Marked Registers - 1,000 names or part thereof
Overseas Elector List - Printed Copy - Basic Charge (per first 100 names)
Printed copy as above, extra 100 names or part thereof
Overseas Elector List - Data Form - Basic Charge (per first 100 names)
Data form as above, extra 100 names or part thereof
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
T
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
£10.00
£2.00
£1.00
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
£0.40
£0.10
£0.50
£0.00
£0.40
£0.10
£0.50
£0.00
£0.30
£0.10
£0.00
£0.40
£0.10
£0.50
£0.00
2.7%
2.0%
2.3%
0.0%
2.7%
2.0%
2.3%
0.0%
3.0%
5.0%
0.0%
2.7%
2.0%
2.3%
0.0%
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
£10.00
£2.00
£1.00
£15.00
£5.00
£21.50
£1.50
Non Statutory Charges
Certificate of Registration
T
£12.00
£0.30
2.5%
£12.50
88
Comments
Appendix D
Reserves Statement - 2012/13 Revised Budget
Reserve
Balance at
1/4/2012
Purpose and Use of Reserve
£
General Fund General Reserve
A working balance and contingency, current recommended
balance is £950,000. This also includes the rellocation of a
number of previously earmarked reserves to be used over
the next three years.
Revised Budget
Balance at
2012/13
31/3/2013
Movement
£
2,049,920
£
(266,524) 1,783,396
0
Earmarked Reserves:
0
Capital Projects
To provide funding for capital developments and purchase of
major assets. This includes the VAT Shelter Receipt.
1,819,469
Asset Management
To support improvements to our existing assets as identified
through the Asset Management Plan.
26,669
(15,000)
11,669
Benefits
To be used to mitigate any claw back by the Department of
Works and Pensions following final subsidy determination.
Timing of the use will depend on audited subsidy claims.
640,242
(99,100)
541,142
Big Society Fund
To support projects that communities identify where they will
make a difference to the economic and social wellbeing of
the area. Funded by a proportion of NCC element of second
homes council tax. Annual contributions to and from the
reserve will be determined as part of the budget process.
0
639,625
639,625
Carbon
Management
To fund revenue invest to save initiatives and projects within
the Carbon Management Plan.
21,180
0
21,180
Coast Protection
To support the ongoing coast protection maintenance
programme.
208,000
(208,000)
0
Common Training
To deliver the corporate training programme. Training and
development programmes are sometimes not completed in
the year but are committed and therefore funding is carried
forward in an earmarked reserve.
32,000
(4,000)
28,000
Economic
Development and
Tourism
Earmarked from previous underspends on Economic
Development and Tourism Budgets along with funding
earmarked for Learning for Everyone.
55,072
(26,233)
28,839
Election Reserve
Established to meet costs associated with district council
elections, to smooth the impact between financial years.
1,500
28,500
30,000
Environmental
Policy
Earmarking of a previous underspend to meet future costs of
environmental policy initiatives.
20,090
(20,090)
0
Housing
Previously earmarked for stock condition survey and
housing needs assessment.
242,000
0
242,000
89
(486,940) 1,332,529
Appendix D
Reserves Statement - 2012/13 Revised Budget
Reserve
Balance at
1/4/2012
Purpose and Use of Reserve
£
Investment Income:
The council disposed of its EIB bonds for a gain in 2011/12.
European
This reserve is required for accounting purposes to transfer
Investment bank
the part of the gain that relates to 2012/13.
(EIB) Premium
Land Charges
To Mitigate the impact of potential income reductions.
Legal & Democratic One off funding for Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) work
and to undertake a review of the Constitution.
Services
Revised Budget
Balance at
2012/13
31/3/2013
Movement
£
£
116,068
(84,494)
31,574
50,356
(1,380)
48,976
46,599
(3,506)
43,093
Local Strategic
Partnership
Earmarked underspends on the LSP for outstanding
commitments and liabilities.
671,958
(615,230)
56,728
LSVT Reserve
To meet the cost of successful warranty claims not covered
by bonds and insurance following the housing stock transfer.
435,000
0
435,000
New Homes Bonus
Established for supporting communities with future growth
and development.
0
611,678
611,678
Organisational
Development
To provide funding for organisation development to create
capacity within the organisation and address anomalies
within the pay structure.
494,488
(394,911)
99,577
196,036
(196,036)
0
This reflects the balance of Funding as at 31/03/12 on the
Partnership Budgets Revenues and Benefits Partnership project. This will be
utilised in 2012/13
Pathfinder
To help Coastal Communities adapt to coastal changes.
404,000
(198,175)
205,825
Planning - Revenue
Previously unspent HPDG for use on related revenue
projects, timing to be confirmed.
110,835
(56,196)
54,639
Regeneration
Projects
Carry forward of underspends relating to
Regeneration Projects.
37,837
0
37,837
Restructuring &
Invest to Save
Proposals
To fund one-off redundancy and pension strain costs and
invest to save initiatives. Transfers from this reserve will be
allocated against savings proposals as business cases are
approved. Timing of the use of this resrve will depend on
when business cases are approved.
468,216
9,872
478,088
Sports Hall
To support renewals for sports hall equipment. Amount
Equipment & Sports transferred in the year represents over or under
achievement of income target.
Facilities
23,339
(6,500)
16,839
The pier
To be used to support the costs of works to Cromer pier.
15,000
0
15,000
Whistle blowing
Commissioning investigation activity as required.
10,000
0
10,000
Total Reserves
8,195,874
90
(1,392,640) 6,803,234
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
Jobs and the Local Economy
Fakenham Industrial Estate
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
140,000
50,000
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
50,000
Public Conveniences Improvements - Phase
1 and 2, and Mundesley Prom PC Upgrade
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
425,000
6,736
0
0
10,295
39,705
39,705
0
0
277,068
147,932
147,932
0
0
389,246
15,419
15,419
0
0
87,674
14,336
14,336
0
0
234,946
3,054
3,054
0
0
39,672
11,328
11,328
0
0
425,000
404,665
404,665
Cromer Red Lion Toilet Refurbishment
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
RCCO
102,010
Car Park Ticket Machines
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
238,000
Asbestos Works
Financed by;
6,736
140,000
North Norfolk Enterprise Innovation Centre
Fakenham Factory Extension
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
133,264
90,095
11,915
238,000
51,000
91
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
51,000
Rocket House
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
40,000
Wells Sackhouse Refurbishment
Financed by;
Other Contributions
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
71,752
1,469
38,531
38,531
0
0
45,029
26,723
0
26,723
0
0
100,000
0
100,000
0
111,395
0
0
0
0
58,917
49,401
49,401
0
0
20,989
106,011
106,011
0
0
40,000
27,752
44,000
Maltings Wells
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
100,000
Car Park Environmental Improvements
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
111,395
Carbon Reduction Scheme
Financed by;
NNDC (Cap Receipts - Carbon Reduction
Fund)
108,318
Sheringham East Prom Public
Conveniences
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
100,000
111,395
108,318
127,000
127,000
92
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Sheringham Little Theatre
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Car Park Resurfacing and Refurbishment
Financed by;
NNCD (Capital Receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
0
45,000
45,000
0
0
0
181,681
181,681
0
0
1,409,964
785,857
659,134
126,723
0
860,809
60,809
1,355,000
0
860,809
60,809
1,355,000
0
1,222,578
850,000
1,072,578
0
443,000
779,578
443,000
407,000
443,000
629,578
0
0
3,100,178
2,022,500
1,477,678
0
2,128,568
920,614
50,996
1,050,890
920,614
50,996
1,077,678
400,000
0
0
0
0
45,000
45,000
181,681
181,681
2,195,821
Housing and Infrastructure
Housing Renovation Grants
Private Sector Renewal Grants
Annual programme
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Disabled Facilities Grants
Financed by;
Specified Capital Grant
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Housing Associations
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
NNDC (Capital Projects Reserve)
Affordable Housing Contributions
Annual programme
93
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Strategic Housing & Choice Based Lettings
System
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital receipts)
Capital Projects Reserve
Empty Homes
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
120,650
100,650
113,950
6,700
0
200,000
200,000
20,000
15,000
5,000
0
16,000
4,000
11,000
4,000
5,000
0
0
0
200,000
200,000
0
0
200,000
200,000
0
0
320,650
100,650
5,403,565
3,148,309
3,910,256
0
1,409,000
1,062,593
346,407
346,407
0
0
36,897
3,126
3,126
0
0
81,395
1,337,236
1,337,236
0
0
Coast, Countryside and Built Heritage
Gypsy and Traveller Short Stay Stopping
Facilities
Financed by:
Grant
Sheringham Beach Handrails
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Projects Reserve)
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Cromer Pier Structural Works - Phase 2
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
1,409,000
40,023
5,023
35,000
1,418,631
1,418,631
94
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Sheringham Promenade Lighting
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Other Contributions
Cromer Pier and West Prom Refurbishment
Project
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Refurbishment Works to the Seaside
Shelters
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Cromer Coast Protection Scheme 982 and
SEA
Financed by:
Environment Agency Grant
SMP Preparation of Common Version for
Approval and Other Additional Studies
Financed by:
Environment Agency Grant
Pathfinder Project
Financed by:
DEFRA Grant
Cromer to Winterton Scheme
Financed by:
Environment Agency Grant
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
78,000
10,609
67,391
67,391
0
0
76
99,924
32
199,892
0
0
155,000
55,000
100,000
0
188,717
4,768,283
4,768,283
5,000,000
443,000
128,230
2,770
2,770
0
0
1,508,839
458,176
458,176
0
0
0
110,000
110,000
0
0
45,000
33,000
200,000
200,000
155,000
155,000
10,400,000
10,400,000
131,000
131,000
1,967,015
1,967,015
110,000
110,000
95
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
0
60,000
60,000
0
0
15,968,669
3,017,356
7,408,313
7,208,421
5,299,892
443,000
Playground Improvements - Various
Financed by:
Contributions
Grant
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
276,057
245,257
30,800
27,800
3,000
0
North Lodge Park
Financed by;
NNCD (Capital Receipts)
197,000
0
197,000
717
196,283
0
Sheringham Skate Park
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
20,000
0
20,000
20,000
0
0
Big Society Fund
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
200,000
0
200,000
200,000
0
0
17,045
52,955
52,955
0
0
6,918
61,082
61,082
0
0
Coastal Erosion Assistance
Financed by:
Government Grant
60,000
60,000
Localism
51,679
222,561
1,817
197,000
20,000
200,000
North Walsham Regeneration Schemes
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
70,000
North Walsham Public Conveniences
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
68,000
70,000
68,000
96
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
North Walsham Car Park Environmental Improvements
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
40,775
0
0
0
0
871,832
309,995
561,837
362,554
199,283
0
99,600
73,775
25,825
25,825
0
0
79,690
193,010
193,010
0
0
280,802
141,986
15,000
126,986
0
97,995
25,307
25,307
0
0
215,933
16,494
5,100
11,394
0
40,775
40,775
Delivering the Vision
Street Signs Improvement Programme
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Grant
95,500
4,100
Trade Waste Bins/ Waste Vehicle
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
LPSA Grant
272,700
BPR EDM Project
Financed by;
Planning Delivery Grant/Housing and Planning
Delivery Grant
Capital Projects Reserve
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
422,788
Personal Computer Replacement Fund
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
NNDC (RCCO)
123,302
Waste Management & Environmental Health
IT System
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
194,784
77,916
16,682
5,967
400,139
100,033
23,269
232,427
131,514
97
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
WPEG Grant
DEFRA Grant
83,486
17,427
Asset Management Computer System
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Projects Reserve)
NNDC (Asset Management Reserve)
75,000
Probass 3
Financed by:
Planning Delivery Grant/Housing and Planning
Delivery Grant
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
34,010
Procurement for Upgrade of Civica System
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Other Grants (RIEP)
DWP Performance Standards Fund
306,156
e-Financials Financial Management System
Software Upgrade
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
52,173
22,827
22,827
0
0
24,075
9,935
8,025
1,910
0
37,679
268,477
268,477
0
0
0
33,000
33,000
0
0
474
274,526
143,500
131,026
0
18,782
6,218
6,218
0
0
60,000
15,000
5,600
28,410
210,947
53,800
41,409
33,000
33,000
Administrative Buildings
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
275,000
Fakenham Connect
Financed by;
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
25,000
275,000
25,000
98
Appendix E
GENERAL FUND CAPITAL PROGRAMME
Scheme
Scheme Total
Current Estimate
Pre 31/3/12 Actual Updated Budget
Expenditure
at P6
£
Fakenham Community Centre
Financed by:
NNDC (Capital Receipts)
Revised Budget
2012/13
Updated Budget
13/14
Updated Budget
14/15
£
36,280
8,720
8,720
0
0
1,943,983
917,658
1,026,325
755,009
271,316
0
21,300,955
5,755,623
15,185,897
12,133,427
9,807,470
443,000
4,941,053
458,176
443,000
474,863
50,996
63,800
15,000
0
932,441
7,806,568
4,941,053
458,176
443,000
474,863
50,996
60,800
15,000
0
932,441
4,757,098
5,000,000
0
443,000
0
0
3,000
0
0
400,000
3,961,470
443,000
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
15,185,897
12,133,427
9,807,470
443,000
45,000
45,000
Capital Programme Financing
Environment Agency Grant
DEFRA Grant
Disabled Facilities Grants
Other Grants
Affordable Housing Contributions
Other Contributions
Asset Management Reserve
Revenue Contribution to Capital (RCCO)
Capital Project Reserve
Capital Receipts
TOTAL FINANCING
99
Agenda Item No____12________
Housing Allocations Scheme
Summary:
Options considered:
Conclusions:
The Council has reviewed its Allocations Scheme
to reflect the changes in legislation introduced by
the Localism Act and statutory instruments. The
changes ensure that the Council’s Allocation
Scheme complies with all statutory requirements
whilst also ensuring that it maximises the number
of affordable dwellings which will be occupied by
households with connections to towns and
villages in North Norfolk. The new Allocations
Scheme will be delivered through the Your
Choice Your Home scheme which is a
partnership between the Council and 8 Housing
Associations. Once adopted, the new Allocation
Scheme will be used to allocate properties from
April 2013.
1. Do nothing. This option was discounted
as this would mean the Council’s
Allocations Scheme was not in
accordance with legislation and did not
meet members’ aspirations for how
affordable housing is allocated.
2. Review the allocation policy. This option
was adopted as it ensures the Council’s
new Allocations Scheme reflects changes
in legislation on the operation of housing
registers. It also ensures that member’s
aspirations that the number of affordable
dwellings which are allocated to
households with connections to towns and
villages in North Norfolk is maximised.
The Localism Act has introduced changes
to the operation of housing registers. The
Council’s
Allocations
Scheme
has
therefore been amended to reflect the
changes and also to meet member
aspirations.
The
proposed
new
Allocations Scheme has created 3 housing
registers and includes both qualifying and
non-qualifying criteria and introduces a
new 2 Stage Approach to allocations
which will seek to maximise the number of
properties allocated to households who
have connections to towns and villages in
North Norfolk.
The proposed new
allocation scheme has been subject to
100
wide consultation and now requires
adoption by the Council. Once adopted
the new Allocations Scheme is expected
to go live in April 2013 following an
implementation period.
Recommendations:
Cabinet recommend the adoption of the
Housing Allocations Scheme to Full Council.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To ensure that the Council’s Allocations Scheme
reflects the legislative and regulatory
requirements for housing registers following a
change in these requirements.
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on the write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
Housing Allocations Scheme
Housing Act 1996 as amended by Localism Act 2011
Allocation of accommodation: guidance for local housing authorities in England, CLG, June
2012
Cabinet Member(s): Trevor Ivory
Ward(s) affected All
Contact Officer, telephone number and email: Nicola Turner, 01263 516222,
nicola.turner@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
The Localism Act 2011 introduced a number of changes to Part VI of
the Housing Act 1996 which sets out how housing registers should
operate. In January 2012 the Communities and Local Government
issued a consultation document setting out guidance on the allocation
of accommodation. In June 2012 the final guidance was issued and
all Council’s must have regard to the guidance when allocating
housing either directly into a property owned by a Housing Authority
or through the use of nominations, this guidance replaced all previous
statutory guidance. The Council is not stock holding and nominations
are made through the Your Choice Your Home scheme in accordance
with the current Choice Based Lettings Policy and Housing Register
Policy.
1.2
The changes made through the Localism Act and introduced through
statutory regulations include the following changes:
• Removed the requirement to have an open register
• Allows Local Authorities to use qualifying and non-qualifying
criteria which determines eligibility to join the housing register
• Allows tenants to move outside of the housing register where
they do not meet the reasonable preference criteria.
101
•
Removed the ability to disqualify some applicants through lack
of local connection in some circumstances (armed forces
covenant).
Although a number of changes were made, the following principles
were retained:
• Requirement to give reasonable preference to those in the
reasonable preference groups over those that are not
• Requirement that all those in the reasonable preference group
irrespective of whether they fall in more than one group do
receive reasonable preference
• A statement on applicant choice must be included in the
allocation scheme.
1.3
Members are concerned that more affordable housing should be
allocated to households who have strong connections to towns and
villages in North Norfolk.
1.4
The Your Choice Your Home scheme is a partnership of the Council
and 8 Housing Association Partners who together operate the
scheme. The housing register is contained on an IT system provided
by Locata (Housing Services) and the Housing Association Partners
have access to the IT system in order to create property adverts and
allocate properties. The costs of the Your Choice Your Home scheme
are shared with the Housing Associations contributing 40% of the
scheme costs. The scheme is overseen by the Partnership Board
which agrees the scheme budget and changes to the scheme, the
Partnership Board consists of the Council and the 3 largest stock
holding Housing Associations in North Norfolk: Victory Housing Trust,
Broadland Housing Association and Flagship Housing Group.
1.5
Introducing a new Allocations Scheme which includes a new Local
Allocations Agreement (see 2.4 below) will require a change to the
current IT system, a cost for these changes has been requested but is
expected to be in the region of £9000.
2.
Housing Allocations Scheme – Main principles
2.1
The proposed Housing Allocations Scheme has been designed to
reflect the changes in legislation and regulation whilst also meeting
members aspiration that the allocation scheme increases the number
of affordable dwellings which are allocated to households who have
connections to towns and villages in North Norfolk.
2.2
The main principles of the Allocations Scheme are the creation of 3
new registers through which affordable housing will be allocated:
•
•
•
2.3
Housing Register – contains those in the most urgent housing
need (those who meet the reasonable preference criteria)
Housing Options Register – contains other applicants who can
be considered for a range of housing options
Transfer Register – contains Housing Associations tenants
who live in North Norfolk (although tenants in urgent housing
need will be on the Housing Register).
When an affordable dwelling becomes available for occupation the
property will be advertised through the Your Choice Your Home
scheme and all applicants irrespective of which register they are on
102
will be able to bid as long as they are eligible for the property size and
type. The property will then be allocated using a new 2 Stage
Approach. At Stage 1, only applicants on the Housing Register will be
eligible to be considered. If there is no one suitable on the Housing
Register, all bids will then be considered and the property will be
allocated to the applicant with the strongest local connection as
defined using a new Local Allocations Agreement.
2.4
The Local Allocations Agreement will replace the current Local
Lettings Agreement and provides a clear cascade of which
connections will provide the strongest connections to towns and
villages in North Norfolk. A threshold approach is used and where
more than one applicant meets the same criteria, the decision as to
which applicant should be offered the property is determined by Band
and then relevant date.
2.5
Properties on Exception Housing Schemes which are already subject
to local connection criteria will be let in accordance with Stage 2 of the
allocation process (stage 1 does not apply).
2.6
Transfers have been retained within the Allocations Scheme as it
offers the most flexibility and transparency. Housing Associations will
be able to specify up to 20% of all vacancies as priority for tenants
(the transfer quota). When a property subject to the transfer quota
has been advertised, initially only tenants will be eligible to be
considered, if the property is not let to a tenant, the property will then
be allocated using the 2 Stage Approach.
2.7
A copy of the proposed new Allocations Scheme for North Norfolk is
attached at Appendix F. The Housing Allocation Scheme details the
qualifying and non-qualifying criteria for the 3 registers, property
eligibility, applicant choice, support available and has a number of
appendices providing more information including diagrams which set
out the allocation process for the transfer quota and the 2 Stage
Approach.
The final appendix is the new Local Allocations
Agreement.
3.
Consultation
3.1
The principles of the new Allocations Scheme have been discussed
with Cabinet and also with the partners in the Your Choice Your
Home. Wider consultation has been carried out with stakeholders in
the scheme:
•
Applicants were sent a questionnaire asking for views on a
number of potential changes to the scheme in the spring.
•
All North Norfolk Councillors were invited to attend a workshop
on 4 October at which the principles of the scheme were
discussed
•
All Town and Parish Councils in North Norfolk were sent an
invitation to attend a workshop on 8 October at which the
principles of the scheme were discussed
•
Your Choice Your Home partners and members of the
Stakeholder Group (voluntary and statutory organisations)
along with Councillors and Town and Parish Councils were
sent a copy of the proposed Allocations Scheme and asked for
103
their comments.
November.
The deadline for comments was 16
3.2
A number of responses were received to the consultation, Appendix G
shows who responded, the comments made and whether any
changes were required to the Allocations Scheme as a result of the
consultation response. The only change required was the addition of
an explanation on what constitutes a connection to North Norfolk
under the Housing Act 1996 Part VI. This change has been made. A
couple of other minor changes have also been made to the
Allocations Scheme to provide additional clarity.
4
Implementation
4.1
Once the Housing Allocations Scheme has been adopted by Full
Council, the implementation stage will commence. This will require
the re-registration of applicants on the current housing register and
assessment under the new criteria. This will also include the
amendment of the IT system and testing. It is anticipated that the new
allocation scheme will go live in April 2013.
5
Review and Monitoring
5.1
The new Allocations Scheme will be reviewed a year after
implementation to ensure that it is delivering the required outcomes.
5.2
On an annual basis, a review of all allocations made through the
scheme will be carried out to identify:
•
Number of properties allocated at Stage 1
•
Number of properties allocated at Stage 2
•
Number of all properties which were allocated to someone
with a connection to a town or village in North Norfolk.
6
Options Considered
6.1
Option 1: Do nothing. This option was discounted as this would
mean the Council’s Allocations Scheme was not in accordance with
legislation and did not meet members’ aspirations for how affordable
housing is allocated.
6.2
Option 2: Review the allocation policy. This option was adopted as it
ensures the Council’s new Allocations Scheme reflects changes in
legislation on the operation of housing registers. It also ensures that
member’s aspirations that the number of affordable dwellings which
are allocated to households with connections to towns and villages in
North Norfolk is maximised.
7
Conclusions
The Localism Act has introduced changes to the operation of housing
registers. The Council’s Allocations Scheme has therefore been
amended to reflect the changes and also to meet member aspirations.
The proposed new allocation scheme has created 3 housing registers
and includes both qualifying and non-qualifying criteria and introduces
a new 2 Stage Approach which will seek to maximise the number of
properties allocated to households who have connections to towns
and villages in North Norfolk. The proposed new Allocations Scheme
104
has been subject to wide consultation and now requires adoption by
the Council. Once adopted the new Allocations Scheme is expected
to go live in April 2013 following an implementation period.
8
Implications and Risks
The development and adoption of the new Allocations Scheme
ensures that the allocation of affordable housing will be in accordance
with all legislative and regulatory requirements. Replacing the current
Local Lettings Agreement with the proposed Local Allocations
Agreement will address a concern identified with the current Local
Lettings Agreement.
9
Financial Implications and Risks
It is expected that the costs to amend the IT system will be in the
region of £9000. The Partnership Board will be requested to
contribute towards this cost on the basis of the current cost sharing
arrangements where Housing Association Partners pay 40% of the
Your Choice Your Home scheme costs.
10
Sustainability
There are no specific sustainability issues related to the Allocations
Scheme.
11
Equality and Diversity
An equality impact assessment has been carried out on the Local
Lettings Agreement and did identify a concern with the Local Lettings
Agreement which has been addressed in the development of the new
Local Allocations Agreement.
12
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
There are no specific Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
related to the Allocations Scheme. However, the Allocations Scheme
does allow us to state that where an applicant has been guilty of
behaviour serious enough to make them unsuitable to be a tenant we
can disqualify them so they are unable to join a housing register until
such time as it can be shown that they would be suitable to be a
tenant.
105
North Norfolk District Council
PROPOSED Housing Allocations Scheme
Background
This Allocations Scheme has been developed in accordance with the Housing Act 1996 Part
VI as amended by the Localism Act 2011. The scheme has been developed to utilise the
flexibilities afforded by the Localism Act 2011 to achieve the Council’s ambition that ‘everyone
in North Norfolk should have the opportunity to buy or rent a decent home at a price they can
afford in a community where they want to live or work’. The scheme has also been developed
in line with the Council’s Housing Strategy objectives to make best use of the existing housing
stock and support vulnerable residents to live independently in the community.
The Council does not have any housing stock and this allocations scheme has been
developed primarily for the purpose of providing nominations to housing associations with
affordable housing stock in the district including for social rent, affordable rent and low cost
home ownership. The Council will also use the principles of the scheme to provide
‘nominations’ to private landlords as part of a scheme which seeks to assist residents with
access to a range of options across a range of products and tenures.
Introduction
This scheme has been developed in partnership with housing associations with housing stock
in the district. The scheme will be administered by the Council through the North Norfolk Your
Choice Your Home scheme, the Choice Based Lettings scheme, introduced in September
2009 albeit with changes to reflect the new Allocations Scheme.
A wide range of stakeholders including applicants, tenants, statutory agencies, voluntary and
community organisations, Ward Members and Town and Parish Councils were consulted on
the Allocations Scheme at a draft stage or on the principles of the scheme.
The scheme will include the following;
•
•
•
Housing Register which will include only those applicants in the very highest levels of
housing need who will be given overall preference for social and affordable rented
properties. Applicants on the Housing Register can also be considered for housing on
exception housing schemes, low cost home ownership products and privately rented
accommodation
Housing Options Register which will include applicants in lower levels of housing
need who can be considered for any social and affordable rent properties not required
for those applicants on the Housing Register, housing on exception housing schemes,
low cost home ownership products and privately rented accommodation
Transfer Register which will include all tenants in social or affordable rented
properties in the North Norfolk district who want to transfer (other than those who are
eligible to join the Housing Register due to their high level of housing need).
Transferring tenants will be given preference for up to 20% of advertised properties but
otherwise tenants can be considered for any social and affordable rent properties not
1
106
required for those applicants on the Housing Register, housing on exception housing
schemes, low cost home ownership products and privately rented accommodation.
Housing Register
Only applicants that have a level of housing need that meets one of the Government’s
reasonable preference criteria will generally be eligible to join the Housing Register. There
may be exceptions where the Council has a statutory duty to house a household and where
they do not have a level of housing need that meets one of the Government’s reasonable
preference criteria e.g. as a result of the need to house a household through the Rent
Agriculture Act 1976.
The Government can through regulation make changes to the reasonable preference criteria.
The Council considers that some of the reasonable preference criteria should receive a higher
level of priority for housing than others and the Housing Register will therefore incorporate 3
levels of priority; Priority Band, Band 1 and Band 2. The current reasonable preference
criteria and the level of priority they will be given is detailed at appendix 2. An applicant could
be demoted from Band 1 to Band 2 if they have not bid for properties which were considered
suitable and could have met their housing needs including low cost home ownership products
and privately rented properties and in certain circumstances e.g. applicants accepted as
homeless, the Council will submit bids on behalf of applicants after a reasonable period has
elapsed (generally considered to be 6 bidding cycles or 6 weeks) including for privately rented
properties.
The Council will require there to be substantial evidence to demonstrate that an applicant
meets one of the reasonable preference criteria and would expect that in most cases there
would be verification and support from a statutory agency. Only those applicants who have
the very highest level of housing need will be placed in the Priority Band to recognise that
they have an immediate or urgent need to be housed and this will be determined by a majority
view of the partners to the scheme through the Virtual Review Group. An applicant could be
demoted from the Priority Band by the Virtual Review Group if they have not bid for properties
which were considered suitable and could have met their housing needs.
Additional preference will be given to applicants on the Housing Register who have a local
connection to the North Norfolk District (as defined in the Housing Act 1996, Part VI). An
applicant will have a local connection if they have:
• Lived in the North Norfolk District Council area for 6 out of the last 12 months or 3
years out of the last 5 years or
• If they work in the North Norfolk District Council area or
• They have a family member who has lived in the North Norfolk District Council for (at
least) 5 years.
The length of time an applicant has been in their Band on the Housing Register will also be
used where necessary to determine preference between applicants in a Band when being
shortlisted to be considered for an allocation of housing.
The Government requires that members, and some former members, of the Armed Forces
and their families are not penalised by any requirement to have a local connection, the
Council will therefore give any such applicant who does not have a local connection an
automatic local connection. The Government also requires that such applicants are given
additional preference for consideration for an allocation of affordable housing, the Council
2
107
considers that backdating the relevant date for applicants who meet this criteria by 3 months
will meet this requirement i.e. if the relevant date would normally be 01/12/2012 the relevant
date would be amended to 01/09/2012.
The Council will use its discretion to give an automatic local connection to other applicants
where appropriate e.g. applicants fleeing domestic violence where their local connections are
in areas in which they would not be safe and applicants who are leaving care where the care
placement was out of district but where the applicant wants to return to the district due to
previous residence or family connections.
Applicants on the Housing Register will be given overall preference for social and affordable
rented properties with the exception of those for which preference is given to existing tenants
of social and affordable housing and properties on exception housing schemes. Applicants on
the Housing Register can also be considered for social and affordable rented housing on
exception housing schemes, low cost home ownership products and privately rented
accommodation but will not be given overall preference and will be considered alongside
applicants on the Housing Options Register and Transfer Register either in accordance with
the Local Allocations Agreement or having consideration to affordability and sustainability.
Shortlisting for consideration for an allocation of social and affordable rented housing from the
Housing Register will be as follows;
•
•
•
Band (Priority Band, Band 1, Band 2)
Local connection
Relevant date
(i.e. applicants in Priority Band with a local connection will be considered ahead of those in
Priority Band without a connection and the applicant with the longest relevant date will be
considered first, applicants in Band 1 will be considered after those in the Priority Band).
Properties will be advertised and initial preference will be given to households on the Housing
Register, this is Stage 1 of the allocation process. Where a property which has been
advertised has not been allocated to an applicant on the Housing Register, Stage 2 of the
allocation process will be used and all bidders (those on the Housing Register, Housing
Options Register and Transfer Register) will be considered and the property will be allocated
using the Local Allocations Agreement and bidders will be shortlisted by:
•
•
•
Strongest connection to the parish in which the property is located or the adjoining
parishes as determined by the Local Allocations Agreement
Band
Relevant Date
The only exception to the above will be where a property has been adapted and where there
is a wish to see the property offered to an applicant who would benefit from the adaptation or
where the housing association wishes to assess the suitability of prospective tenants for the
property as a means of addressing particular issues. In both cases the advert for any
available property will clearly state this and this will enable housing associations to overlook
shortlisted applicants as appropriate. The reasons for overlooking shortlisted applicants will
be clearly stated on the Your Choice Your Home system. Housing associations will not be
3
108
able to overlook applicants on the Housing Register however in favour of an applicant on the
Housing Options Register or the Transfer Register. It is likely that if an applicant had a strong
need for an adapted property that they would be on the Housing Register. If it is not possible
to identify an applicant on the Housing Register who requires an adapted property, the
property will revert to a normal let and will be let using the 2 Stage Approach.
For a diagram showing the 2 Stage approach see Appendix 4.
Housing Options Register
The Housing Options Register will include applicants in lower levels of housing need who can
be considered for any social and affordable rent properties not required for those applicants
on the Housing Register and, housing on exception housing schemes. Applicants on the
Housing Options Register can also be considered for low cost home ownership products and
privately rented accommodation alongside applicants on the Housing Register and Transfer
Register having consideration to affordability and sustainability. Applicants on the Housing
Options Register will not be placed in Bands according to housing need but instead
shortlisting for consideration for an allocation of social and affordable rented housing from the
Housing Options Register will be in accordance with the Local Allocations Agreement. The
Local Allocations Agreement prioritises applicants in housing need who have connections to
the towns and villages of North Norfolk including residence, employment and family
residence. Thresholds are used to identify what level of connection the applicant has.
Shortlisting using the Local Allocations Agreement will be as follows:
• Connection
• Relevant Date
The Government requires that members, and some former members, of the Armed Forces
and their families (Appendix 3) are not penalised by any requirement to have a local
connection. The Council will, where appropriate, offer such applicants who do not have a local
connection (at the time of application only) the opportunity to identify a town or village where
they would like to live and they will be given priority for an allocation of a property which would
be equivalent to an A connection. The Government also requests that such applicants are
given additional preference for consideration for an allocation of affordable housing, the
Council considers that backdating the relevant date for applicants who meet this criteria by 3
months will meet this requirement i.e. if the relevant date would normally be 01/12/2012 the
relevant date would be amended to 01/09/2012.
Transfer Register
The Transfer Register will include all tenants in social or affordable rented properties in the
North Norfolk district who want to transfer (other than those who are eligible to join the
Housing Register due to their high level of housing need). Transferring tenants will be given
preference for up to 20% of advertised properties but otherwise tenants can be considered for
any social and affordable rent properties not required for those applicants on the Housing
Register, housing on exception housing schemes, low cost home ownership products and
privately rented accommodation.
On moving to another property the tenant will have to give their landlord vacant possession of
their current property which can then be made available for allocation to another household
unless the landlord has identified the property for withdrawal from stock for redevelopment or
disposal. The tenant cannot join the Transfer Register if they are intending to move and leave
members of their household including a joint tenant to continue to live in the property. In such
4
109
cases the tenant would need to liaise with their landlord and agree to give up their rights to
the tenancy and apply to join the Housing Register or Housing Options Register.
Housing associations will have the flexibility to develop their own policies to decide what
factors they will use to allocate properties included in the 20% quota. Housing associations
will however be expected to publish their policies and operate in a fair and transparent way,
being held accountable for all decisions.
Properties subject to the transfer quota will be advertised and initial preference will be given
to households on the Transfer Register, where a property is not allocated to an applicant on
the Transfer Register, all bidders (not just those on the Transfer Register) will then be eligible
and the property will be let using the 2 Stage Approach (see Appendix 4).
Housing associations will also be able to use their transfer quota to identify properties for
Direct Lets which enable them to achieve organisational objectives although this needs to be
in balance with meeting the housing needs and aspirations of tenants in housing association
properties (regardless of landlord) across the district. Requests for Direct Lets will be
considered by the Virtual Review Group.
Who can join the Housing Register? - Qualification criteria
Reasonable preference criteria
Only applicants who are assessed as having a housing need which is covered by the
Government’s reasonable preference criteria will be able to join the Housing Register in
addition to applicants for whom the Council has a statutory duty to house and which are not
covered within the reasonable preference criteria (with the exception of applicants who would
otherwise be disqualified).
All other applicants (with the exception of applicants who would otherwise be disqualified) will
be able to join the Housing Options Register or the Transfer Register.
Who can join the Transfer Register? – Qualification criteria
Only applicants who are currently tenants of social and affordable rented housing in the North
Norfolk District Council area can join the Transfer Register.
Who cannot join the Housing Register, Housing Options Register and Transfer
Register? - Non-qualification criteria
Applicants who fall into one of the categories below either will or may be disqualified from
joining the Housing Register, Housing Options Register or Transfer Register.
Immigration status
A person who is ineligible because of their immigration status cannot be allocated a tenancy
and therefore will not be accepted on to any of the Housing Registers.
Unsuitable to be a tenant
The Council reserves the right to disqualify an applicant or applicants where they or a
member of their household has been guilty of unacceptable behaviour serious enough to
make them unsuitable to be a tenant including anti-social behaviour, significant rent arrears,
the provision of false or misleading information and intimidation of other applicants who might
bid for specific properties. The applicant can be disqualified at any time including on
application, on receipt of any information which would demonstrate that the applicant was
5
110
unsuitable to be a tenant or on being considered for an allocation of a property. The applicant
will be able to appeal against the decision that they are unsuitable to be a tenant and are
disqualified from joining a housing register. An applicant can apply to join a housing register
at a later date providing that they can demonstrate that their circumstances or behaviour has
changed such that they now would be suitable to be a tenant.
Applicants under the age of 18 not supported by Children’s Services
The Council will only accept 16 and 17 year olds on to the Housing Register where they are
estranged from their parents and where they have been assessed by Children’s Services as
being capable of living independently with support.
Non provision of information
The Council will wish to verify the housing circumstances of applicants from time to time and
will require the co-operation of the applicant in doing so. Any applicant who does not provide
information which is reasonably requested in order to assess their level of housing need,
connection or links to a town or village or suitability for an allocation of a property may be
disqualified and their housing application will be cancelled.
Worsening of housing circumstances in order to qualify to join the Housing Register or
Housing Options Register
Where there is evidence that an applicant has deliberately worsened their housing
circumstances in order to qualify to join the Housing Register the Council may disqualify the
applicant. This would not apply to applicants who have been deemed to be intentionally
homeless.
Sufficient resources to rent or purchase a suitable property on the Housing Market
All applicants will be subject to a test of their means including income, capital and assets to
determine whether they can afford to meet their need for housing on the housing market
either by renting or buying a property. It is not possible to identify levels beyond which an
applicant would be disqualified because this would vary depending on the household’s needs
and where they needed to live.
The test applied to applicants for the Housing Register would be more stringent than for the
Housing Options Register.
The Council may disregard any lump sum received in compensation for an injury or disability.
Non engagement with services providing support
Applicants with complex needs will invariably require support from statutory agencies to
enable them to sustain living independently within the community. Where an applicant is not
engaging with the support provided the applicant may be disqualified. The Council will decide
whether or not they believe an applicant to have mental capacity, applicants not considered to
have mental capacity and who are not adequately supported will also be disqualified.
Residents of supported housing
Applicants who are resident in supported housing will only be accepted on to the Housing
Register when confirmation is received from the support provider that the applicant is ready
for independent living.
6
111
Consideration should be given to whether an applicant qualifies for an allocation both at the
time of the initial application and when considering making an allocation particularly where a
long time has elapsed since the application was made. In the case of an allocation to two or
more persons jointly, at least one of the applicants/prospective tenants must be a qualifying
person and all of them must be eligible.
Dealing with exceptional cases
The Council will use its discretion to dis-apply these criteria in the case of individual
applicants where there are exceptional circumstances.
Local Allocations Agreement
The Local Allocations Agreement will be used to allocate all properties on exception housing
schemes and all other properties which are not allocated at Stage 1 of the 2 stage approach
(See Appendix 4).
The Local Allocations Agreement (Appendix 5) includes 7 criteria which provide a basis for
determining preference between applicants for affordable housing including low cost home
ownership products. The Local Allocations Agreement prioritises applicants in housing need
who have connections to towns and villages in North Norfolk through residence, employment
and family residence. In the event that there are no applicants with these links consideration
can be given to allocating a property to an applicant who has a wish to live in a particular town
or village but who does not have a connection. This is to ensure that a property can be rented
or sold to ensure that any financial loss to the housing provider is minimised and to ensure
that properties are not left empty for longer than necessary. The Council may request that a
property is re-advertised to seek an applicant with links to a town or village rather than an
allocation being made to an applicant without such links.
What type of properties can households bid for?
The Government is of the view that the bedroom standard is an appropriate measure of
overcrowding for allocation purposes and recommends that all housing authorities should
adopt this as a minimum. It would be sensible therefore to use this or something more
generous to determine what size of property applicants can bid for. The bedroom standard
however is not used for assessing the amount of Local Housing Allowance that a tenant can
receive towards meeting their rent. The Council has decided to use criteria using the best of
both the bedroom standard and Local Housing Allowance criteria for both determining
property eligibility and assessing housing need based on overcrowding. This may mean that
applicants dependent on Local Housing Allowance might be overlooked by landlords for
certain properties. This approach however ensures that those who are not dependent on
Local Housing Allowance can be considered for properties which will be more suited to their
household composition and which will provide an incentive to applicants to be financially
independent. The criteria that will be used are as follows:
•
•
•
•
•
A bedroom per adult couple
A bedroom for any other adult aged 16 or over
A bedroom for any two children regardless of sex aged under 10
A bedroom for any two children of the same sex aged between 10 and 16
A bedroom for any other child
Applicants will be advised of the size and type of property that they will be able to bid for. A
housing association may have its own allocations policy however and this may vary from the
7
112
above requirement. A housing association may not offer a tenancy to a prospective tenant
which would result in overcrowding. In addition a housing association will wish to ensure that
any tenancy is sustainable and may, where it has concerns about the affordability of a
property for a prospective tenant, decide not to allocate the property to that applicant and
move to the next applicant on the shortlist. There are likely to be particular concerns where an
applicant has bid for a property which is larger than their requirement but whom is dependent
on Local Housing Allowance either in full or part to pay the rent or whom could be dependent
on Local Housing Allowance at some point in the future.
The number of bedrooms required by an applicant who has access to children, for allocation
purposes, will be determined having consideration to the frequency of visits and the ages and
sexes of the children. Such children may be disregarded in the assessment for the Local
Housing Allowance.
Foster children and overnight carers will be included in the assessment of the applicant’s
bedroom requirement for allocation purposes (subject to support from Children’s Services or
confirmation of the requirement for an overnight carer from an appropriate source) but may
not be included in the assessment for the Local Housing Allowance. Such applicants might be
eligible for Discretionary Housing Payments however these are not available on an on-going
basis and therefore careful consideration will need to be given to the affordability and
sustainability of social, affordable and privately rented accommodation for such households of
working age when being considered for such properties.
A housing association may with the agreement of the Council apply a Local Lettings
Agreement which may result in different property eligibility being applied to a scheme or group
of properties for a set period of time in order to address a particular issue. If this is the case
this will be clearly detailed on the advert for any available property. The housing association
will still wish to ensure that the tenancy will be sustainable for any prospective tenant.
This property eligibility only applies to affordable rent and social rent and private rented
properties.
Sheltered Housing
Applicants for sheltered housing will have to demonstrate that they will benefit from the
support offered to tenants in this type of housing either on becoming a tenant or at some point
in the foreseeable future. Applicants will generally be over 60 years of age but in some
circumstances could be younger.
Housing with Care
Applicants for Housing with Care will have to be over the age of 60 and have a need for both
housing and care. The need for housing will be assessed by the Council and the need for
care will be assessed by the Social Services authority. Applicants accepted as needing
Housing with Care will be placed in Band 1 on the Housing Register.
All shortlisted applicants will be considered for a vacancy and preference will be given to
applicants based on a number of factors including the level of housing need, the level of care
need and the ability of the care provider to meet the care needs of the applicant balanced
against the needs of existing residents within the scheme. Allocations will be made by the
landlord having considered the views of the housing authority, the Social Services authority
and the care provider in respect of the factors outlined. Applicants with a connection to North
8
113
Norfolk will be given preference followed by applicants with a connection to Norfolk and finally
other applicants.
What level of choice will applicants have regarding properties they can bid for?
Applicants will be able to bid for an unlimited number of advertised properties in any location
subject to ‘property eligibility’ criteria as outlined above. An applicant will be able to bid for
eligible properties although they may not be considered for such properties at the initial
shortlisting stage (for example their bid may only be considered at Stage 2 of the 2 Stage
Approach). Information on the type and location of affordable housing stock in the district and
the availability of such properties over the last 5 years will be provided on the Council’s
website through the ‘What and Where’ tool. This will assist applicants in deciding which
properties to bid for. Feedback on allocated properties will be provided on a regular basis
through the Council’s website, the Your Choice Your Home website and the Your Choice
Your Home Newsletter. Available properties will be advertised on a weekly basis through the
Your Choice Your Home website.
What support will vulnerable applicants receive?
Vulnerable applicants will be able to request help with completing their application. The
Council will submit bids on behalf of vulnerable applicants where they are unable to secure
help from a support worker or family or friends. The Council will undertake some monitoring of
bidding behaviour and will contact applicants on the Housing Register who have not made
any bids over the course of a year and where there has been no contact with the Council to
check that they understand how the scheme works.
How will applicants know if they can be allocated a property?
Shortlisting for advertised properties will be undertaken by the landlord of the property in most
cases and applicants at the top of the shortlist will be contacted as soon as possible after the
closing of the bid round. Landlords would hope to allocate the property as soon as possible
and would therefore prefer to contact shortlisted applicants by phone. Most landlords will want
to visit shortlisted applicants at home to verify their circumstances and to arrange for the
applicant to view the property before making an offer. Once an offer is made the landlord
would want the applicant to decide if they want the property and then move into the property
as soon as possible. Applicants bidding for properties need to be prepared to move at very
short notice, but the timescale must be reasonable, especially if the applicant is vulnerable.
Each landlord will be responsible and accountable for the shortlisting and allocation decisions
that they make and will be responsible for dealing with any complaints from applicants as a
result. If a landlord overlooks an applicant on the shortlist or does not offer a property to a
shortlisted applicant the reason for the decision will be recorded on the Your Choice Your
Home system. The Council will undertake some monitoring to ensure that landlords are
operating in accordance with the Allocations Scheme. Any issues with the operation of the
scheme will be discussed with individual landlords directly or through the Operational Group
and Partnership Board as appropriate.
If at the shortlisting stage it is identified that the applicant’s circumstances have changed they
will be overlooked and the landlord will notify the Council. The Council will then contact the
applicant to request that a new housing application is completed to enable an assessment of
the new circumstances to be undertaken as this may result in an applicant being placed on a
different register or given a different level of priority.
9
114
If at the shortlisting stage an applicant is deemed to be unsuitable to be a tenant by a landlord
the applicant should be told and notified of the reasons for this decision. The applicant will be
able to appeal against the decision. The Council should be notified of any such decisions and
will then decide if the applicant should remain on the Register or if they should be disqualified.
Attempts will be made to contact shortlisted applicants however if an applicant cannot be
contacted or does not respond to messages or letters they will be overlooked. The Council
will be notified and will attempt to establish contact, if no contact can be established the
applicant will be removed from the register.
If an applicant is shortlisted for more than one property they will be asked to state a
preference, where possible the applicant will be able to view all of the properties before being
asked to make a decision unless this will result in an unacceptable delay in a property being
allocated. Where the properties are owned by more than one landlord the landlords will liaise
with each other and the applicant to agree a way forward.
Equality and Diversity
The Council is committed to ensuring equality and the promotion of diversity and will seek to
ensure that applicants are not discriminated against on the basis of race, ethnic origin,
culture, religion, gender, sexual orientation or disability. An Equality Impact Assessment has
been undertaken of the Allocations Scheme and monitoring of the scheme will be undertaken
to ensure its fair implementation.
Monitoring and Review
The Council will undertake monitoring of the scheme and the information gathered will inform
future reviews of the scheme.
The Council will deliver and develop the scheme partnership with landlords with properties in
in the district which are to be allocated through the scheme. Stakeholders, applicants and
tenants will be notified of any significant changes to the scheme.
10
115
Appendix 1 – Housing Associations with properties in North Norfolk allocated under
the scheme
Broadland Housing
Cotman Housing Association (including Places for People)
Flagship Housing Group
Guinness Trust
Habinteg Housing Association
Hanover Housing Association
Hastoe Housing Association
Housing 21
Orbit East
Riverside Housing
Victory Housing Trust
Wherry Housing Association
11
116
Appendix 2 – Reasonable Preference Criteria
Band 1
• Applicants accepted by North Norfolk District Council as homeless within the meaning of
Part 7 of the 1996 Housing Act (see appendix 3 for further guidance)
• Applicants occupying insanitary or otherwise living in unsatisfactory housing conditions
(see appendix 3 for further guidance)
• Applicants occupying a properties lacking more than one bedroom of their assessed need
• Applicants who need to move on medical or welfare grounds (including grounds relating
to a disability)
• Applicants who need to move to a particular locality in the North Norfolk District Council
area, where failure to meet that need would cause hardship to themselves or others
Band 2
• Applicants who are homeless (other than those accepted as homeless by North Norfolk
District Council) within the meaning of Part 7 of the 1996 Housing Act including people
owed a duty by any housing authority or who are occupying accommodation secured by
any housing authority under Part 7 of the 1996 Housing Act
• Applicants occupying properties lacking one bedroom of their assessed need
12
117
Appendix 3 – Additional Guidance for the Housing Register
Priority Band
Requests to assist in the rehousing of households under the National Witness Mobility
Scheme will where appropriate be accepted and automatically placed in the Priority Band
without reference to the Virtual Review Group.
Homeless Households
Homeless households in Band 1 could be moved to Band 2 if they refuse an offer of suitable
alternative accommodation including an offer of a privately rented property.
Households living in insanitary or otherwise unsatisfactory housing
These factors will be assessed by the Council in accordance with the Housing, Health and
Safety Rating System. An applicant will only be placed in Band 1 on the Housing Register
where a Category 1 hazard has been identified in the property they rent and where it is not
possible or practical to reduce this to at least a high level Category 2 hazard. The Council will
where necessary and appropriate take enforcement action in accordance with the Council’s
Enforcement Policy. In the case of overcrowding regard will be given to the Bedroom
Standard and the Housing Act 1985 when deciding if an applicant should be placed in Band 1
or Band 2. Where the applicant is an owner-occupier careful consideration will be given to
whether the applicant qualifies to join the register, this will be dependent upon the number
and severity of any hazards and the ability of the owner to resolve the issues or the ability of
the owner to meet their housing needs in the housing market. Decisions to place an applicant
on the Housing Register as a result of these 3 factors will need to be supported by the senior
officer with responsibility for the Housing Enforcement function.
Officers with responsibility for enforcement of Housing Standards and officers with
responsibility for Housing Options should work holistically to assist tenants and owners to
improve their housing circumstances and to ensure that such properties are improved or are
not available for other occupants.
This aspect of the policy has been developed to ensure that applicants do not move into poor
standard properties with a view to receiving priority for rehousing and to ensure that landlords
do not avoid their responsibilities to maintain their properties.
People who need to move on medical or welfare grounds
The Council will give priority to applicants who are foster carers or approved to adopt to move
to more suitable accommodation to enable them to accommodate a Looked After
Child/Children who was previously looked after by the local authority, to include Special
Guardians, holders of a Residence Order and family/friend carers who have taken on the care
of a child/children because the parents are unable to provide care. In all cases, support from
Children’s Services will be required.
Members of the Armed Forces
The Government requires that members and some former members of the Armed Forces and
their families (see below) are not penalised by any requirement to have a local connection
and that such applicants who fall into one or more of the reasonable preference criteria and
who have urgent housing needs are given additional preference for consideration for an
allocation of affordable housing. In addition Government has requested that such applicants
13
118
are also given additional priority for an allocation of affordable housing where they do not
have urgent housing needs.
This applies to:
• Former members of the Armed Forces
• Serving members of the Armed Forces who need to move because of a serious injury,
medical condition or disability sustained as a result of their service
• Bereaved spouses and civil partners of members of the Armed Forces leaving
Services Family Accommodation following the death of their spouse or partner
• Serving or former members of the Reserve Forces who need to move because of a
serious injury, medical condition or disability sustained as a result of their service.
Evidence of eligibility will be required.
14
119
Appendix 4 – The 2 Stage Approach to Allocations
A new 2 Stage Approach will be used to allocate properties. The diagrams below show how
the 2 Stage Approach will work for properties which are and are not subject to the transfer
quota.
Properties which are NOT subject to the transfer quota:
15
120
Properties which ARE subject to the transfer quota:
16
121
Appendix 5 - Local Allocations Agreement
The Local Allocations Agreement will be used to allocate all properties on exception housing
schemes and all other properties which are allocated through Stage 2 of the 2 Stage
Approach (see Appendix 4).
The Local Allocations Agreement includes 7 criteria which provide a basis for determining
preference between applicants for affordable housing including low cost home ownership
products. The criteria cover links based on residence, employment and family residence to
the villages and towns in North Norfolk. In the event that there are no applicants with these
links consideration can be given to allocating a property to an applicant who has a wish to live
in a particular town or village but who does not have a connection. This is to ensure that a
property can be rented or sold to ensure that any financial loss to the housing provider is
minimised and to ensure that properties are not left empty for longer than necessary. The
Council may request that a property is re-advertised to seek an applicant with links to a town
or village rather than an allocation being made to an applicant without such links.
The Local Allocations Agreement gives preference to applicants with strong links to the town
or village in which the property being allocated is located and the adjoining parishes equally.
This is because there will be some towns or villages which have very little affordable housing
stock and some towns and villages where it will not be possible to develop new affordable
housing because of constraints including sensitive local environments, coastal erosion,
flooding and lack of available land. It is essential that applicants with strong links to such
towns and villages are not disadvantaged as a result.
Properties on an Exception Housing Scheme will be advertised through the Your Choice Your
Home scheme with the LC symbol and the towns and villages to which strong links apply will
be clearly listed. Any applicant on one of the three registers can apply and shortlisting will be
undertaken based on the strength of connection in conjunction with the level of housing need
where applicable and the length of time waiting.
The Agreement refers to parish which is applicable to both towns and villages in the area,
although where a town is an adjacent parish to a parish with a vacant property the town is not
treated as an adjoining parish.
The criteria form a cascade with the strongest connection being an A connection and the
weakest connection being a G connection as shown below:
A
An applicant meeting this criterion will have lived in the parish or adjoining parishes for at
least 3 consecutive years at the point of allocation and have at least one of the following
criteria:
• Lived for at least 5 years at any time in the parish or adjoining parishes OR
• Are employed in the parish or adjoining parish (permanent employment of at least 12
months and 16 hours per week) OR
• Have a family member who has lived for at least 5 consecutive years in the parish or
adjoining parish at the point of allocation
17
122
B
An applicant meeting this criterion will have lived in the parish or adjoining parishes for at
least 3 consecutive years at the point of allocation and have at least one of the following
criteria:
• Are employed in the parish or adjoining parish (permanent employment of less than 12
months and 16 hours per week) OR
• Have a family member who has lived for at least 3 consecutive years in the parish or
adjoining parish at the point of allocation
C
An applicant meeting this criterion will meet at least one of the following criteria:
• Lived for at least 5 years at any time in the parish or adjoining parishes OR
• Are employed in the parish or adjoining parish (permanent employment of at least 12
months and 16 hours per week) OR
• Have a family member who has lived for at least 5 consecutive years in the parish or
adjoining parish at the point of allocation
D
An applicant meeting this criterion will meet at least one of the following criteria:
• Lived for at least 3 years at any time in the parish or adjoining parishes OR
• Are employed in the parish or adjoining parish (permanent employment of less than 12
months and 16 hours per week) OR
• Have a family member who has lived for at least 3 consecutive years in the parish or
adjoining parish at the point of allocation
E
An applicant meeting this criterion will meet at least one of the following criteria:
• Lived for at least 12 months at any time in the parish or the adjoining parishes OR
• Are employed in the parish or adjoining parish (temporary employment or permanent
employment of less than 16 hours per week) OR
• Have a family member who has lived for at least 12 consecutive months in the parish
or adjoining parish at the point of allocation
F
An applicant meeting this criterion wants to live in the parish and has a connection to North
Norfolk as defined by the Housing Act 1996, Part VII.
G
An applicant meeting this criterion wants to live in the parish but does not have a connection
to North Norfolk.
The criteria above reflect the need to give priority by current residence, former residence,
employment and family connections. Family connections relate to a close family member and
the Council will have discretion to decide who a close family member is and will take into
account the particular family circumstances and strength of relationships/dependence.
18
123
The Council in some exceptional cases will consider whether an applicant’s local connection
to a town or village should be increased, such cases will be considered on their merits at the
Council’s discretion.
19
124
Respondee
Comment Made
Response
Housing Options Team
Need to make clear the local connection criteria used for
connection to North Norfolk.
Amend Allocations Scheme to
include explanation.
No changes to Allocations
Scheme required re
implementation comments.
No changes to Allocations
Scheme required.
Other comments related to implementation.
Wells-next-the-Sea Town
Council (2 responses)
Are supportive of the new scheme as outlined in the
consultation documents.
Proposed new allocations scheme is good as it now
reflects more accurately what is happening on the ground.
The real problem we face is a severe shortage of housing
of all tenures that is affordable to our residents. This
scheme does not address that issue but does explain how
a scarce resource will be allocated.
My view is I support the scheme as it is the best answer to
the problem we face.
I am very pleased that you have not withdrawn support
from people on the list by their removal. There is a real
housing need and residents require support and advice
and it is good that you will still be requiring that.
Young People’s
Accommodation
Transitions Strategy
Development Manager
We welcome the naming of care-leavers in the allocations
policy as a group of people who could return to the area
with a local connection having being placed away by
Children’s Services. It is also very welcome to see that
applicants to the housing register will be accepted for
under 18s where Children’s Services support their
application to live independently.
It is also helpful to see priority to foster carers and those
approved to adopt.
Where there is the risk of demotion from band 1 to 2 due
to non-bidding we would be hopeful that individual
circumstances would be taken into account at what are
125
No changes to Allocations
Scheme required.
Concerns re young people and
demotion and offers of
accommodation are noted and are
covered in allocations scheme
(timescales for accepting an offer
and moving must be reasonable,
especially if the applicant is
vulnerable. This can be reinforced
in operating guidance.
Northrepps Parish
Council
often stressful and difficult transitional times for a careleaver. The same consideration would be helpful when a
young care-leaver is feeling pressure to accept an offer of
housing. In this situation also it is helpful to understand
their individual circumstances and the importance of
making the right decision the first time.
Members ask that all forms are clear and simple for
applicants to complete with no ambiguous questions.
Fakenham Town Council
A comment received from one Councillor under the Local
Allocations Agreement is a request to consider
connections over boundaries in Districts i.e. Great
Ryburgh in North Norfolk and Colkirk in Breckland
(adjoining parishes).
Blakeney Parish Council
The members of Blakeney Parish Council support the
District Council’s proposals, within the suggested scheme,
and we look forward to seeing how this works for real in
due course. Thank you for continued efforts with regard
affordable housing for local people.
126
No changes to Allocations
Scheme required.
Such an approach could be
contentious where a resident in an
adjoining parish had no
connection to North Norfolk other
than their residence in a parish
which adjoins a North Norfolk
parish. Changing the Local
Allocations Agreement in this way
could mean a household with a
connection to North Norfolk could
miss out on the offer of an
affordable home to a household
who has no connection to North
Norfolk but simply lives in an
adjoining parish. This would be
contrary to the ethos of changing
the allocations scheme and on this
basis, no change to the
Allocations Scheme is proposed.
No changes to Allocations
Scheme required.
127
Agenda Item No____13________
EMPTY HOMES PILOT PROJECT: REVIEW
Summary:
In October 2011 Cabinet received a Report on Empty
Homes as classified on the Council Tax Register and
resolved to establish an Empty Homes Pilot Project to
identify a way forward in dealing with the issue of long
term empty homes in the District. This report reviews
the Empty Homes Project and its outcomes.
Options considered:
Conclusions:
N/A
The outcomes achieved through the Pilot Project to
date are as follows;
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Recommendations:
The appearance of the properties/gardens has
been enhanced by the use of the statutory notice
procedures.
Where building condition impacted negatively on
adjoining properties, this has been remedied
Debts owed to the Council have been recovered
from the property owner through the use of the
charging order procedure.
One property has been brought back into use
and one is currently under repair.
A record of intervention has been developed that
would support an application for a Compulsory
Purchase Order on the properties as required.
Learning from the pilot will be used in the
implementation of the new Empty Homes Policy.
The pilot has shown that the willingness of the
Council to use CPO powers and the use of other
enforcement powers to improve the appearance
and condition of the empty homes has achieved
results, although in one case further action is
required to ensure improvements in property
condition are maintained. This process of
enforcement action as the Council prepares the
CPO case will continue.
The learning from the pilot will be used to ensure
that the new Empty Homes Policy will be able to
deliver a reduction in the number of empty
homes and the ability to use a range of
enforcement powers including the enforced sale
procedure and where appropriate and effective
CPO powers.
(1) That an Empty Homes Board, led by the
Portfolio Holder for Housing is established.
128
(2) That £200,000 is ringfenced to support bringing
properties back into use through the use of
enforcement methods including enforced sale
and CPO powers.
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on to write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
ODPM Circular 06/2004 Compulsory Purchase and the Crichel Down Rules
ODPM Empty Property : Unlocking the Potential
Report to Cabinet: 31/10/11 Action on Empty Homes
Cabinet Member:
Wards affected
Contact Officers
telephone number
and email:
Trevor Ivory
All
Nicola Turner & Emma Duncan
01263 516222./516045
Nicola.turner@north-norfolk.gov.uk
emma.duncan@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
On 31 October 2011 Cabinet considered the issues surrounding long term
empty properties in the District in response to statements made at a national
level by Ministers regarding the wasted resource represented by long term
empty properties. The report proposed that a small scale pilot project be
undertaken to attempt to bring properties back into use where an informal
approach had not succeeded and in particular to “establish whether the
Authority’s preparedness to use such [statutory] powers can bring
about positive outcomes in a community through direct intervention
and/or encouraging the owners of other long term empty properties to
address the issue themselves”. The Council identified 3 properties in
Weybourne for the pilot and, if other options to bring those properties back
into use failed, authorised the use of Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO)
powers. This report is a review of the work undertaken to date and outcomes
achieved by the pilot project to date.
2.
The Project
2.1
Project Key Objectives
The following objectives were identified for the pilot project;
•
•
•
•
•
2.2
To enhance the appearance of the properties/gardens thus reducing their
negative impact on neighbours and the wider community/neighbourhood.
To address issues relating to defects in the buildings affecting adjoining
owners.
To recover any debt owed by the property owner to the Council where
possible.
To bring the properties back into use.
To produce a record of intervention that would support any future application
for a Compulsory Purchase Order.
The properties selected for the pilot
129
The properties had been empty for periods ranging between a year and 16
years at the time of the report to Cabinet. The properties were externally in a
relatively poor condition and this was generating complaints from neighbours.
Although the Council had made contact with the owner, limited formal or
informal action had been taken in respect of the individual properties.
3. Approach Adopted
3.1
Following the Guidance issued by the Secretary of State (ODPM Circular
06/2004) an incremental approach to bringing the empty properties back into
use was adopted to ensure that there was a sufficient evidence base for any
CPO application made.
3.2
This involves moving through informal methods (letters/discussions) to formal
action using the full breadth of the Council’s statutory powers (s215 notices,
Building Act Notices, Prevention of Damage by Pests Notices and Housing
Act Notices) and finally taking legal proceedings to force a property to be
brought back into use (ie enforced sale or compulsory purchase).
3.3
This methodology was adopted for several reasons;
a) Not all properties are empty through a deliberate act by the owner, some
are empty because the owner is perhaps unwell or elderly. Alternatively
some properties remain empty because of commercial considerations by
developers.
b) Taking an incremental approach is cost-effective and efficient rather than
taking expensive proceedings immediately a resolution can often be
achieved in other ways.
c) Ensures that owners are treated equitably and encouraged to bring
properties back into use themselves.
d) When making a CPO the Council is required to demonstrate that it is a
“last resort” i. Furthermore the Guidance referred to above makes it clear
that “authorities will first wish to encourage the owner to restore the
property to full occupation. When considering whether to confirm a
compulsory purchase order the Secretary of State will normally wish
to know how long the property has been vacant; what steps the
authority has taken to encourage the owner to bring it into
acceptable use; the outcome; and what works have been carried out
by the owner towards it’s reuse for housing purposes”.
4. Action Taken To Date
4.1
In line with the ODPM guidance a number of teams were required to exercise
their powers through the pilot project to address the problems creatively and
encourage the owner to improve the condition of the properties so that the
properties could be brought back into use.
4.2
November/ December 2011
130
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
4.3
January/ February 2012
•
•
•
•
•
•
4.4
Compliance time for Requisition for Information notices expires.
Owners return Requisition for Information following threat of prosecution.
Housing Team make inspections to determine whether the property is
adversely affecting the immediate neighbours and identify work to a
property that needs to be completed following consultation with adjoining
property owner.
Owners undertake work to all three properties including - tidying up
gardens, repairs chimneys, installs new windows/doors.
Owner notifies the Council that one of the properties is his elderly
mother's former home and that he will contest any CPO.
Owners appeal s215 notices.
March/April 2012
•
•
•
4.5
Owners contacted and advised about condition of the property and CPO
process to be taken if properties not brought back into use.
Referencing process for CPO started (identifying all interests in the land
by serving notices)
Entries placed on Land Charges Register to alert any potential purchasers
of the properties as to the Council’s intentions.
Office Copy entries obtained to check for legal/beneficial owners and any
entries that may be relevant to the valuation.
Plans prepared for Orders.
Valuation obtained.
Owner advises Council that he intends to bring one of the properties back
into use and apply for planning permission to develop the adjacent piece
of land.
Owner of another of the properties sells it and it becomes occupied with
new occupant paying council tax.
Requisition for Information served on all persons with an interest in the
properties.
Owner fails to return notices and is advised of criminal sanctions.
s215 (untidy land) Notices served requiring general clearance of land and
exterior decoration on all 3 properties.
Following the owner accruing a debt to the Council (£2000+) an
application is made to the Court for a charging order which would give the
Council a power of sale over one of the properties and an Interim
charging order was granted by the County Court and registered (subject
to an objection) at the Land Registry.
The Order was discharged by the owner with full payment of debt and
Council’s legal costs.
Letter sent to the Parish Council to establish their ownership of land
adjoining one of the properties and whether they had granted consent for
the storage of old cars and a caravan on the land.
July 2012
•
Appeal against S215 notices heard before the District Judge. The Council
successfully defends the appeal and is awarded costs.
131
4.6
August 2012 to date
•
•
Repair works are currently being undertaken internally to one of the
properties.
Further S215 notice being prepared for another of the properties following
a deterioration of the condition of the garden.
4.7
Two of the properties had been unoccupied and in a poor state of repair for a
considerable number of years. The third had generated complaints from
neighbours of the property about its appearance.
4.8
It is evident from the action taken by the Council through the pilot project that
the owner(s) of the properties are only occupying and improving properties
because of the enforcement action taken and threat of enforced sale/CPO
since October 2011. The owner(s) have improved the appearance of the
properties, undertaken major repairs and one of the properties has been
occupied with the occupier paying council tax. The owners whose properties
share a party wall with two of the properties also have benefited from the
repair works done to the properties and the appearance of the properties in
the village has been improved.
4.8
An added benefit is that the Council has collected a substantial debt from a
person whom would otherwise been unlikely to pay in full.
5.0
Further Proposed Action
5.1
Property 1
This property has been brought back into use following the use of
enforcement powers and new windows and doors and other small works
undertaken. Council Tax is being paid on this property by the occupant and as
this property has been brought into use, will qualify as counting towards any
calculation as to whether New Homes Bonus is due to the Council following a
reduction in the number of empty homes.
The potential deterioration of the property remains a concern however it can
be appropriately dealt with by the use of S215 Notices. A neighbour has
raised concerns that the property is not in fact occupied and has remained
empty despite the works that have taken place and the change of ownership.
The Council is currently assessing ways of dealing with this issue. (see
exempt annexe)
5.2
Property 2
The external appearance has been improved through the issue of
enforcement measures resulting in replacement windows and doors being
fitted (see exempt report) The land has been cleared of vehicles (apart from
132
one caravan which has been cleaned), gas cannisters and other rubbish and
the garden and adjacent land are now maintained. The windows and doors
have been replaced completely.
The Council is considering further enforcement methods (see exempt annexe)
5.3
Property 3
The property is sited within a Conservation Area. Substantial repairs were
effected quickly following formal intervention, including chimney and party wall
repairs. The garden was cleared and rear windows and doors replaced. (see
exempt annexe) Further repair work is ongoing at the present time.
5.4
Action will continue on these 3 properties to ensure all are occupied (see
exempt report) and it is possible that this will result in applications for a CPO
being made. Whilst this work has been undertaken as part of a pilot, it is now
appropriate to mainstream the use of CPO powers as the ability to use this
power has been shown through the pilot to be an effective tool when
combined with other enforcement powers. The use of CPO has been included
in the new Empty Homes Policy (to be considered by Cabinet on 3
December).
On this basis, the £200,000 of unspent Housing Renewal
Budget for 2011/12 which was identified in the Cabinet report on 31 October
2011 to support the CPO pilot will now need to be maintained in order to
support ongoing work on enforcement including enforced sale and CPO’s.
6
Conclusion
6.1
The project outcomes are as follows;
•
•
•
•
•
The appearance of the properties/gardens has been enhanced by the use of
the statutory notice procedures.
Where building condition impacted negatively on adjoining properties, this has
been remedied.
Debts owed to the Council have been recovered from the property owner
through the use of the charging order procedure. One property has been
brought back into use and one is currently under repair.
A record of intervention has been developed that would support an
application for a Compulsory Purchase Order on the properties as required.
Learning from pilot will be used in implementation of new Empty Homes
Policy.
6.2
The pilot has shown that the willingness of the Council to use CPO powers
and the use of other enforcement powers to improve the appearance and
condition of the empty homes has achieved results, although in one case
further action is required to ensure improvements in property condition are
maintained. This process of enforcement action as the Council prepares the
CPO case will continue.
6.3
The learning from the pilot will be used to ensure that the new Empty Homes
Policy will be able to deliver a reduction in the number of empty homes and
the ability to use a range of enforcement powers and also to be able to
133
pursue the application for CPO is a key component of the Council’s approach
to bringing empty homes back into use as the willingness to take such action
is an effective deterrent.
6.4
It is also recommended that an Empty Homes Board be established led by
the Portfolio Holder Councillor Ivory, to meet on a monthly basis, to deliver
this part of the Council’s Corporate Plan. It is envisaged that the Board would
consist of the all officers from the various disciplines within the Council and
the Board would be able to consider individual properties on a case by case
basis. This would ensure that when considering how to most effectively bring
properties back into use that the Council is able to use all of the enforcement
powers it has it its disposal.
7.
Financial Implications and Risks
The project has ensured a substantial debt has been cleared immediately,
when this would not have otherwise have happened. The Council has also
recovered its legal costs from the owner (s). In pursuing the use of CPO
powers the Council will consider the risks and financial implications of
applications for a CPO on a case by case basis.
8.
Sustainability
Bringing properties back into use is highly sustainable. The additional Council
Tax Payments being made bring additional revenue to the Council.
9.
Equality and Diversity
The project identified that in some circumstances that equality and diversity
issues may be engaged in respect of the ability of some elderly residents to
maintain and manage property if they are absent from it.
10.
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
Improving the appearance of these properties and /or bringing them back into
use discourages anti social behaviour and addresses the concerns of the
community.
i
ODPM Circular 06/2004 p42 “Compulsory purchase of empty properties may be justified as a last
resort in situations where it appears to be no other prospect of a suitable property being brought back
into residential use. Authorities will first wish to encourage the owner to restore the property to full
occupation. When considering whether to confirm a compulsory purchase order the Sec
134
Agenda Item No____14________
Empty Homes Policy 2012/15
Summary:
Options considered:
The Council is committed to reducing the number of
empty homes. The Empty Homes Policy provides a
policy context for work to bring empty homes in North
Norfolk back into use, the Policy:
• Sets out why empty homes should be brought
back into use
• Details the Empty Homes Procedure and the
approaches which will be used to bring empty
properties back into use, including what advice
and support will be offered and when and what
types of enforcement action can be used.
1. Do nothing. This option was discounted as
empty homes are a wasted resource and
reduction of the number of empty homes is a
priority for the Council.
2. Develop Empty Homes Policy. This option was
adopted as it will demonstrate the Council’s
commitment to reducing the number of empty
homes and set out a clear methodology for the
Council’s work in reducing the number of empty
homes which is available to officers, members
and members of the public including owners of
empty homes.
Conclusions:
At July 2012 there were 887 properties across North
Norfolk which had been empty for at least 6 months,
many have been empty for longer. Empty Homes
represent a wasted resource and can have a negative
impact on the local neighbourhood. Reducing the
number of empty homes across the district is an action
within the Annual Action Plan for 2012-13. The Empty
Homes Policy provides a clear methodology for the
Council’s approach to bringing empty homes back into
use. The Empty Homes Policy is supported by the
Housing Enforcement Policy and forthcoming Housing
Renewal Policy.
Recommendations:
Cabinet recommend the adoption of the Empty
Homes Policy 2012-15 to Full Council.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To adopt the Empty Homes Policy which sets out the
Council’s approach to bringing empty homes back into
use, what support and advice will be provided to owners
of empty homes and when enforcement action will be
taken.
135
Cabinet Member(s)
Ward(s) affected All
Contact Officer, telephone number and email: Karen Hill, 01263 516183,
Karen.hill@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
At July 2012 there were 887 properties across North Norfolk which had been
empty for at least 6 months, many will have been empty for longer. Empty
Homes are a wasted resource as there is a large need and demand for
housing in North Norfolk. The longer a property is left empty, the more it will
cost to bring the property back into use as the condition of the property
deteriorates. When the condition of a property deteriorates and gardens
become neglected it can have a negative impact on the neighbours and
neighbourhood. Bringing empty homes back into use can therefore have a
positive impact on neighbourhoods and increase the supply of housing
available in the district when they are let or sold.
1.2
The reduction of the number of empty homes is a priority for the Council and
reducing the number of empty homes supports the Council’s ambition that
“everyone in North Norfolk should have the opportunity to buy or rent a
decent home at a price they can afford, in a community where they want to
live or work.”
1.3
The development of the Empty Homes Policy supports the Council’s ambition
and also the action in the Corporate Action Plan 2012-13 to reduce the
number of empty homes.
1.4
Properties which have been empty for less than 6 months are subject to a
Council Tax exemption, once a property has been empty for 6 months or
more the exemption is removed and the full charge applies. The Government
has introduced new rules which will remove this exemption and instead
provide Councils with the power to offer a discretionary discount of up to
100% of the Council Tax charge. For properties which have been vacant for
6 months or longer, the discretion to apply a discount of up to 50% of the
charge will remain (although North Norfolk District Council does not use this
discretion) and an additional discretionary power will allow after a property
has been empty for 2 years Councils to apply a premium of up to 50% to the
Council Tax charge. Cabinet will consider the use of these discretionary
powers in the New Year.
2.
Empty Homes Policy
2.1
The Empty Homes Policy is the main document which sets out the Council’s
approach to bringing empty homes back into use, it is supported by the
Housing Enforcement Policy (also being considered by Cabinet) and the
Housing Renewal Policy (which will be considered by Cabinet in January
2013). Together these documents set out the advice and assistance which
will be provided to owners of empty homes and when and what powers of
136
enforcement will be considered and used in order to bring empty homes back
into use.
2.2
The Empty Homes Policy has been designed as a document which will be
used by officers, members and members of the public and which sets out:
• What an empty home is
• Why a property becomes an empty home
• Why it matters that a property is empty
• How empty homes will be identified
• The procedure which will be used to bring empty homes back into use
• The advice and assistance which will be offered, including financial
support
• When and how enforcement action will be taken.
• Monitoring arrangements.
2.3
The Empty Homes Procedure includes a flowchart which details the actions
which the Council will take to bring an empty property back into use. When a
property is identified as being empty for 6 or more months the Council will
send an initial letter, this first letter is designed to establish the owner’s
intentions for the property and when the property will be brought back into
use. Responses to this letter will enable the Council to offer appropriate
advice and assistance as detailed in the Empty Homes Policy. Any
enforcement action taken, will be where the owner has failed to bring the
property back into use within a reasonable period, enforcement action will not
be an initial action but an action when other actions have been unsuccessful
in bringing the property back into use.
3.
Options Considered
3.1
Option 1: Do nothing. This option was discounted as empty homes are a
wasted resource and reduction of the number of empty homes is a priority for
the Council.
3.2
Option 2: Develop Empty Homes Policy. This option was adopted as it will
demonstrate the Council’s commitment to reducing the number of empty
homes and set out a clear methodology for the Council’s work in reducing the
number of empty homes which is available to officers, members and
members of the public including owners of empty homes.
4.
Conclusion
3.1
At July 2012 there were 887 properties across North Norfolk which had been
empty for at least 6 months, many have been empty for longer. Empty
Homes represent a wasted resource and can have a negative impact on the
local neighbourhood. Reducing the number of empty homes across the
district is an action within the Annual Action Plan for 2012-13. The Empty
Homes Policy provides a clear methodology for the Council’s approach to
bringing empty homes back into use. The Empty Homes Policy is supported
by the Housing Enforcement Policy and forthcoming Housing Renewal Policy.
5.
Implications and Risks
The development and adoption of an Empty Homes Policy sends a clear
message to owners of empty homes of the Council’s approach to bringing
empty homes back into use, including that the Council will take enforcement
action, where required to ensure empty homes are brought back into use.
137
The use of enforcement action will be considered on a case by case basis,
considering the implications and risks of such an approach. The use of
enforcement action will be supported by the adoption of the Empty Homes
Policy and also the Housing Enforcement Policy.
6.
Financial Implications and Risks
There are no financial implications related to the adoption of the Empty
Homes Policy, although the provision of Empty Homes Loans would have
some financial implications for the Council, the approach to the provision of
loans and identification of and mitigation of risk will be considered and
addressed through the Housing Renewal Policy. Where the Council takes
enforcement action, including carrying out works in default and the use of
Compulsory Purchase Orders, there will be a financial cost and the costs will
be considered against the ability to recoup the Council’s costs and the
implications of not taking enforcement action.
7.
Sustainability
Empty homes are a wasted resource and bringing empty homes back into use
will reduce demand and the need for additional new homes to be built. When
properties are brought back into use, some will require improvement works
which will in most cases result in improvements in energy efficiency.
8.
Equality and Diversity
There are no specific equality and diversity implications related to the Empty
Homes Policy.
9.
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
There are no specific Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations related to
the Empty Homes Policy. However, bringing empty homes back into use
could have a positive impact on neighbourhoods by reducing opportunities for
crime and disorder.
138
North Norfolk Empty Homes Policy 2012-2015
Foreword
The Council has set itself an ambition that ‘everyone in North Norfolk should
have the opportunity to buy or rent a decent home at a price they can afford,
in a community where they want to live or work’.
This requires that the existing housing stock in North Norfolk is used efficiently
and effectively and that the number of properties which are empty is
minimised to increase the supply of housing to meet housing need and
housing demand.
Properties become empty for a number of reasons and most are reoccupied
within a short period of time, however, across North Norfolk in July 2012 there
were 887 properties which had been empty for a period of at least 6 months.
These empty homes are the focus of this Empty Homes Policy as many will
be empty for longer than they need to be or will not be brought back into use
without the provision of advice, support or enforcement action. The Council
has set a target to reduce the number of empty homes by 200 between April
2012 and March 2015 and this Policy sets out the approach the Council will
adopt in order to meet this target.
What is an Empty Home?
An empty home is a property which is empty of people and
furniture/possessions, as some properties will only be empty for a short time
before they are reoccupied this policy focuses on properties which have been
empty for at least 6 months, although many have been empty for significantly
longer.
Why does a property become an empty home?
There are many reasons why a property becomes empty and is not brought
back into use:
• Owner is in residential care and would wish to return (but often is
unable to do so)
• Reluctance to let or sell the property
• Unclear ownership or probate issues
• Being marketed for sale or rent at unrealistic asking price
• Property needs repair, improvement, refurbishment or complete
redevelopment
• Property has been abandoned.
Why does it matter if a property is empty?
There is a large need and demand for housing in North Norfolk and empty
properties which could otherwise be made available for sale or rent are a
139
wasted resource. In many cases, the longer a property is left empty the more
money it will cost to bring it back into use as the condition of the property
deteriorates, making it increasingly difficult for some owners to be able to
afford to bring a property back into use and so the property remains empty
and continues to deteriorate. Properties in a poor condition will be attractive
to some potential purchasers as they provide the opportunity to improve the
property in their own way and so poor condition does not have to prevent a
property being sold and then brought back into use. The deterioration of
properties and in particular the neglect of gardens can have a negative impact
on the local area and the amenity of neighbouring properties. This may
adversely affect the health and wellbeing of neighbours and in some cases
make it difficult for them to find a buyer or tenant for their property or
adversely affect the price they can achieve.
Taking action to bring empty homes back into use therefore has a number of
benefits, it maximises the value of the empty home for the owner, it ensures
another property is occupied and can improve the appearance of the property
as well as the amenity of the area.
The Council will through this Policy offer advice and support to owners of
empty homes to enable the properties to be brought back into use. Where
owners do not work with the Council to bring their properties back into use in
a reasonable period, enforcement action will be considered and is likely to be
taken.
Identifying Empty Homes
The Council will use a range of information to identify empty homes. This will
include using Council Tax information to identify properties which have been
empty for at least 6 months as well as information provided by partner
agencies and officers. Members of the public can also advise the Council of
empty properties and all complaints will be investigated.
There have been instances where the Council’s information has shown that a
property is empty but in fact the property has been occupied. This has tended
to occur when the owner is paying full Council Tax on the property because
the period of exemption has expired and they did not realise that there was a
need to provide an update to the Council. Where this is found the owner will
be asked to notify the Council Tax Department that the property is now
occupied which will allow for the records to be corrected and taken off the
empty property list.
Empty Homes Procedure
Appendix 1 sets out the Council’s approach to bringing empty properties back
into use which will be applied consistently and fairly. The Council’s approach
is to support owners through the provision of advice and assistance (which
may include financial assistance see below) but that enforcement action will
be taken when required to ensure empty homes are brought back into use.
140
Advice and Assistance
The Council will provide information and advice to owners of empty homes to
enable them to bring the property back into use as quickly as possible.
Options to bring the property back into use, for example by selling the
property as is, improving the property and selling or by renting the property
will be discussed and where repair or improvement works are required a
reasonable period for such works to be carried out will be agreed with the
owner. Where a reasonable period for repair, improvement, refurbishment or
redevelopment works have been agreed, the Council will take no further
action to bring the property back into use. If however, these timescales are
not kept, enforcement action will be considered.
Specific support will be offered such as:
• Advertising of property for sale through the Empty Property
Matching Service.
• Identification of potential purchasers through the Empty Property
Matching Service.
• Support to privately rent the property including advertising
through the Council’s Your Choice Your Home scheme and
provision of a guide to privately renting (a charge applies).
• Provision of financial assistance to bring properties back into
use.
Financial Assistance
In some cases, the Council may be able, subject to available resources, to
support owners to bring empty properties back into use through the provision
of an Empty Home Loan. The loan will provide a contribution towards some
or all of the costs required to bring the property back into a state of good
repair. The loan will be discretionary and be subject to an inspection of the
property to identify the works which must be carried out before the property
can be reoccupied. To receive a loan, the owner of the property must agree
to carry out all the required works and bring the property back into use within
an agreed timescale.
For more information on the Empty Home Loan see the Housing Renewal
Policy.
Enforcement Action
The Housing Enforcement Policy sets out the Council’s approach to
enforcement activity required to improve dwelling condition. This Policy also
identifies that the Council will, where appropriate, use Compulsory Purchase
Orders, Interim Empty Dwelling Management Orders and Empty Dwelling
Management Orders or seek an Enforced Sale of a property in order to
ensure a property is brought back into use. The Council will also use, as
required, other available powers to improve the condition of the property.
Enforcement action will be carried out fairly, consistently and proportionately.
141
The Housing Act 1985 allows Councils to apply to the Secretary of State to
compulsory purchase empty homes. This power will only be used where the
owner of an empty home either cannot be traced or proved, or where the
owner is unwilling or unable to bring the empty home back into use within a
reasonable timescale. Where the Council applies for a Compulsory Purchase
Order, the owner has the right to contest the order, if the order is contested
the Secretary of State will provide the opportunity for the owner to explain why
the property should not be compulsory purchased. The final decision as to
whether the order should be granted would be decided by an independent
Government appointed inspector.
The Housing Act 2004 allows the Council to apply to the Residential Property
Tribunal for an Interim Empty Dwelling Management Order (IEDMO) followed
by an Empty Dwelling Management Order. This allows the Council to take
management of the property (but not ownership) for a period of up to 7 years.
At the end of the period another order can be applied for. The order requires
the Council to bring the property back into use and pass any surplus rental
income (once the Council has recovered its costs) to the owner.
The Council will also consider enforcement action using the following powers
as required:
• Buildings Act 1984 s77 & 78 – this allows the Council to require an
owner to make their property safe or in an emergency carry out works
in place of the owner to make the property safe.
• Housing Act 1985 s265 – this allows the council to demolish a property
if it cannot be repaired.
• Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 s29 – this
allows the Council to take action to secure a property which is
insecure.
• Prevention of Damage by Pests Act 1949 – allows the Council to
require and undertake works on behalf of an owner or occupier to
prevent damage to buildings being caused by rats and mice (can
include works to property or gardens).
• Public Health Act 1936– allows the Local Authority to require and
undertake works on behalf of an owner or occupier to improve filthy
and verminous properties.
• Town and Country Planning Act 1990 s215 – this allows the Council to
take action to require improvement of an unsightly building (including
gardens).
Where the Council is owed money on an empty home (through non-payment
of Council Tax or where works have been carried out by the Council on behalf
of the owner using one of the powers above or any other power available to
the Council) the Council can seek an order to require that the property is sold
in order to recover what it is owed. Any surplus monies are then paid to the
owner.
142
Monitoring and Review
The number of empty homes will be reported quarterly, along with the number
of empty homes at each stage of being brought back into use as set out in this
procedure through the Council’s Performance Monitoring arrangements.
September 2012
143
Appendix A
Empty Homes Procedure
This procedure sets out the actions the Council will take in order to bring
empty homes back into use.
The Council will consider on a monthly basis a list of homes which have been
empty (unfurnished and unoccupied) for a period of at least 6 months and will
consider on a monthly basis what action is required. The flowchart at the end
of this procedure sets out the actions the Council will take.
Where properties are identified through contact with the owner as being
incorrectly identified on the Council Tax system as empty, the Council will
liaise with the owner to correct the information held.
Support to Owners
The Council will offer advice and support to owners to assist them in bringing
empty homes back into use. This support will include:
• Information pack on renting property, support to rent property
including through advertising through the Your Choice Your
Home scheme (fee applies).
• Advertising of property for sale through Empty Property
Matching Service
• Provision of financial assistance to bring properties back into
use as set out in the Empty Homes Policy.
Monitoring and Review
The number of empty homes will be reported quarterly, along with the number
of empty homes at each stage of being brought back into use as set out in this
procedure.
144
Stage 1: Send an initial letter requesting details of the owner's intentions for the property. Response? No Yes Stage 2: Send letter 2 if no response is received from the initial letter. Response? No Yes Stage 3: Send letter 3 if no response to initial and second letter. Response? No Yes Consider response (see note below) Consider response (see note below) Consider response (see note below) Stage 4: Visit property to ascertain condition of property and impact of the empty home on neighbours and neighbourhood. Stage 5: Send enforcement letter if no response following stages 1‐3 or if timescale for bringing property back into use is not reasonable, advising that if owner does not respond providing details of how and when property will be returned into use enforcement action will be taken. Response? No Yes Consider response Stage 6: Take appropriate enforcement action (see Empty Homes Policy and Enforcement Policy). Note: When considering the response from the owner that the property is being brought back into use, consider whether the timescale for the works is reasonable based on the extent of works needed to bring the property back into use, then suspend action for 3 or 6 months (or longer as required on a case by case basis) to allow works to be completed. At end of suspension contact owner to establish if property has been brought back into use, if not go to Stage 4 or where Stage 5 has already been reached, go to Stage 6. 145
Agenda Item No_____15_______
NORTH WALSHAM RETAIL AND LEISURE DEMAND, CAPACITY AND
FEASIBILITY STUDY
Summary:
This report outlines the findings of the North Walsham
Retail Demand and Capacity Study and its implications
for the town.
Options considered:
The proposals resulting from the recommendations in
the retail study present a possible way forward to
achieve the overall objectives for the future of North
Walsham town centre. Failure to investigate these
further and follow up with the appropriate action would
amount to a possible missed opportunity, with
potentially dire consequences for future investment in
the vitality and viability of the town centre. The only
realistic alternative at present is to develop an
alternative scenario (which would require new evidence
to be sought); or to do nothing.
Conclusions:
Undertaking the further investigations necessary in
pursuit of the recommendations of the retail report will
be complementary to the objectives of the Corporate
Plan and AAP. The property consultants are already in
place in anticipation of this kind of work. Their findings
will provide the Council with the opportunity to make
informed decisions about the future strategy for North
Walsham, and the use of NNDC’s own assets.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that the Council, through its
property consultants (as appropriate), investigates
the opportunities to provide investment and
development which will support the overall vitality
and viability of North Walsham Town Centre and
that any relevant actions or interventions are
brought to Cabinet at the appropriate time for
decision.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To provide the information necessary to make decisions
about future investment and development in North
Walsham
LIST OF BACKGROUND PAPERS AS REQUIRED BY LAW
(Papers relied on the write the report and which do not contain exempt information)
NNDC Cabinet Papers – March 2012
North Walsham Retail and Leisure Demand, Capacity and Feasibility Study – SPA
(http://www.northnorfolk.org/community/8373.asp)
146
Cabinet Member(s)
Ward(s) affected
Cllr T Ivory
North Walsham Wards
Cllr W Northam
Contact Officer, telephone number and email:
R Young ex. 516162 robert.young@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
In response to a recognition of the problems faced by North Walsham town
centre, voiced through the North Walsham Leadership of Place initiative,
Cabinet considered a report (in March 2012) which recommended that
evidence should be gathered and resources used to help realise opportunities
for the town in order to:
i) reinvigorate North Walsham Town centre, reducing the number of
vacant units and increasing the presence of multiple retailers;
ii) make more effective use of key town centre sites, potentially including
St. Nicholas’s Court precinct, Vicarage Street car park, New Road car
park, Bank Loke/ Black Swan Loke and other land and buildings
owned by NNDC; and
iii) establish a dialogue with owners of key town centre businesses to
identify synergy between their aspirations and those of NNDC and
other stakeholders.
1.2
In order to take this forward Cabinet resolved to:
a. Commission a retail demand and capacity study to determine:
• The actual demand for new development of retail outlets within the
town and its catchment (both at the present day and in the
foreseeable future) and what factors might influence that demand
• The demand for new development of commercial leisure/ food &
drink outlets within the town and its catchment
• The capacity of the town centre to accommodate such development
either through the redevelopment of sites or the re-use/ adaptation
of existing buildings,
b. Procure a property advisor for the Council to work ‘collaboratively’ with
to help to unlock potential and realise opportunities (with North
Walsham identified as a specified project) by:
• advising on the realistic options for various sites and what
measures the Council might take in helping to realise them
• advising on the optimum use of sites within the Council’s control, to
assist with meeting the objectives for the various localities
• advising on ways in which the Council can effectively use its assets
or its statutory powers and influence to facilitate investment and
development opportunities involving its own and third party land
• acting on behalf of the Council in negotiations with landowners,
developers, retailers and commercial operators in relation to
acquisitions, disposals and other property transactions
• realising public and private sector development and investment
opportunities and where appropriate assisting in the establishment
of partnerships to deliver these
147
1.3
Consequently both the retail consultant (SPA Ltd.) and property consultant
(Aspinal Verdi) were procured. The findings of the retail study have been
received and these were reported to the Leadership of Place steering Group
(at its meeting on 15 October). The report has been published on the
Council’s website and a news release was issued, resulting in front page
coverage in the North Norfolk News (1st November edition).
1.4
The retail study raises many significant issues for the town and includes
recommendations which require further investigations. A summary of the
report’s findings is included below and its implications for NNDC have been
highlighted. It is obviously too soon to be able to make recommendations
about a course of action; however, Cabinet’s approval to undertake the
further investigations necessary to determine a future direction for North
Walsham is sought.
2.
Summary of the key findings of retail report and its implications
2.1
The report set out to determine:
• The demand for new development of retail stores within North
Walsham and what factors might influence that demand
• The ability of North Walsham town centre to accommodate such
development either through the redevelopment of sites or the reuse / adaptation of existing buildings
• The opportunity for commercially viable development to deliver
improvements to North Walsham town centre, and any obstacles to
realising these
2.2
Soundings with retailers and leisure operators in relation to North Walsham
during the study indicate:
• Supermarkets are interested in North Walsham and in the town
centre if a suitable site can be created; the interest in the town is
already manifest in the Waitrose proposal and in the interest being
expressed on behalf of other supermarkets, albeit out-of-centre.
• Many national names operate large but limited number of stores;
they reckon to achieve sufficient national coverage by being
represented in major towns and cities; many of the fashion chains
fall into this category and they are not likely to consider North
Walsham positively. The situation of North Walsham can be
illustrated from the current list of requirements for East Anglia: there
are currently no national retailer requirements for the town.
• Operators that seek wider representation include Costa, Greggs,
Poundland and QS; Boots are understood to be looking for a larger
store in North Walsham. All of these are possible candidates for
space in North Walsham.
• Regional and local chains, such as Hughes and J B Postle (both
already established in the town centre), are interesting because
they know the trading environment and bring the financial clout and
trading experience of a group. Hughes want to expand in North
Walsham; there are better prospects for attracting regional and
local chains in the short term than national multiples.
148
• Independents form the majority of traders in North Walsham; they
include some excellent examples like the Beechwood Hotel and
Spring Floral Design; the turnover of independents can be high as
entry to the business is relatively easy. In the short to medium term
independents are seen as being an important source of business in
the town.
2.3
The prognosis, resulting from an examination of national trends and local
contextual factors is not positive. The main prospect arises from exploiting the
developer interest that is manifest in the town and directing this so as to
reinforce rather than compete with the town centre. The report therefore
recommends a process described as ‘progressive regeneration’, which if
successful would see a wider range of retailers and leisure operators
becoming candidates for the town centre at successive stages in the process
as footfall is increased and turnover and confidence boosted.
2.4
The consultants advised that the development of a centrally located
supermarket could provide the impetus for town centre regeneration. If an
appropriate site can be found, the report suggests that this type of investment
would create the step change necessary to attract more shoppers into the
town centre which in turn could lead to wider investment from non-food
retailers.
2.5
SPA advise that the most effective way to exploit the interest from foodstore
developers for the benefit of the town as a whole would be to identify
appropriate sites close to the town centre to encourage linked trips, which
would have the distinct benefit of increasing the number of shoppers with
easy access to other existing retail outlets. Very early discussions have taken
place with the relevant parties in order to identify a site and it is clear that
further detailed viability analysis of the opportunities needs to be
undertaken.
2.6
The site which was suggested in the report to have the most potential is
Paston College’s Lawns Campus. Investment here would not only bring a key
footfall generator (a supermarket) in close proximity (and well linked) to the
town centre, but it has the potential to raise the funding for the College to be
able to invest in improvement and consolidation on its Griffon site. This would
also retain and extend footfall from students at the heart of the town centre.
3.
Next Steps
3.1
There is extensive work necessary to explore the viability and overall
feasibility of the option recommended in the retail report. This will also involve
investigation into the potential role of sites in the ownership of NNDC, and of
other third parties. Opportunities on sites elsewhere in the town that might
result from this scenario will also need to be evaluated, together with the
wider implications for the town (such as car parking and pedestrian and
vehicular circulation) should such a scheme come to fruition.
3.2
It is proposed therefore that the property consultants that have been
commissioned to undertake this work, complete these investigations and that
their findings are reported back to Cabinet at the appropriate time.
149
4.
Options considered
4.1
The proposals resulting from the recommendations in the retail study present
a possible way forward to achieve the overall objectives for the future of North
Walsham town centre. Failure to investigate these further and follow up with
the appropriate action would amount to a possible missed opportunity, with
potentially dire consequences for future investment in the vitality and viability
of the town centre. The only realistic alternative at present is to develop an
alternative scenario (which would require new evidence to be sought) or to do
nothing.
5.
Conclusion
5.1
Undertaking the further investigations necessary in pursuit of the
recommendations of the retail report will be complementary to the objectives
of the Corporate Plan and AAP. The property consultants are already in place
in anticipation of this kind of work. Their findings will provide the Council with
the opportunity to make informed decisions about the future strategy for North
Walsham, and the use of NNDC’s own assets.
6.
Implications and Risks
6.1
The Retail Study raises key issues for North Walsham town centre, and the
study’s recommendations could have critical implications for its future vitality
and viability. Without further information it will be impossible to recommend a
strategy for the town, or for NNDC’s assets there. Cabinet’s decision will be of
fundamental importance to the town and to the Council and implementing the
recommendation to Cabinet will enable informed decisions to be made in the
future. The recommended approach is fully in line with the priorities and
objectives set out in the Corporate Plan 2012 – 2015 and the provisions of the
Council’s Annual Action Plan 2012 – 2013.
7.
Financial Implications and Risks
7.1
The financial implications of the recommended course of action amount to the
cost of the further investigative work, which has been given prior approval by
virtue of Cabinet’s decision at its meeting in March 2012; which resulted in the
property advisors being procured and actively working on the contract to
which this will become a part.
8.
Sustainability
8.1
This report relates to the exploration of options to reinforce and improve the
retail role of North Walsham town centre. Supporting services and businesses
in this central and accessible location is likely to bring sustainability benefits.
9.
Equality and Diversity
9.1
No diversity and equality implications stem from this report
10.
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
10.1
No crime and disorder implications stem from this report.
150
Agenda Item No______16______
Street Naming and Numbering Fees
Summary:
This report considers the level of fees to be introduced
into the Street Naming and Numbering Service.
Conclusions:
The provision and maintenance of accurate address
data is central to many Council and external services.
The Council has invested in IT and has established
efficient practices to ensure that it meets it’s obligations
under the Mapping Services Agreement. The fees
outlined in this report will contribute towards recovering
part of the costs of providing the service.
Recommendations:
1. That the charges outlined in Table A are adopted
on the 1st of January 2013 and reviewed
thereafter on an annual basis.
2. That the charges outlined are implemented on 1
April 2013
Cabinet Member(s)
Ward(s) affected
All
Contact Officer, telephone number and email: Rachel Parkin, Property Information
Team Leader. 01263 516013. Rachel.parkin@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
1.1
The Street Naming and Numbering Service maintain the Local Land and
Property Gazetteer which is the only definitive source of property address
data in England. Under an Act dating back as far as 1847 Councils have a
duty to name streets, number properties and display street name signs. Under
national agreements all addresses are created and maintained by Local
Authorities in accordance with agreed standards (BS7666) and are uploaded
on a regular basis to a national hub. Information is shared with a wide range
of internal and external service providers and data sets are continually
updated to ensure accuracy and matching. Councils are the only body with
the authority to create and amend addresses. (other than providing post
codes the Royal Mail has no role in relation to addressing properties).
Information from the Gazetteer is used for services such as the Electoral Role,
Council Tax and Business Rates, Waste Collection, emergency services,
Ordnance Survey and the Royal Mail.
1.2
The service is subject to national performance standards agreed as part of the
Public Sector Mapping Services Agreement.
At North Norfolk this service is provided by the Street Naming and Numbering
Team with the exception of addresses in Fakenham, North Walsham, Holt,
Northrepps and Mundesley where part of the service is provided under local
151
agreement by the respective Town/Parish Council’s. Discussions are on-going
with these Councils with a view to North Norfolk District Council completing
the administrative parts of the process (application registration, consultation
and notification of decision) whilst leaving the substantive decision in relation
to new street names with Parish and Town Councils. Agreement has been
reached with all but Mundesley and North Walsham.
Services provided include:
•
•
•
•
Property name changes and the addition of names to numbered properties.
Individuals are able to make application to either name, or change the name
of a property. If a property is numbered it is possible to add a property name
in addition to the number, but not to remove the number.
Naming of streets within new developments. Developers request that new
streets within developments are given a name. Names are usually nominated
by the developer, preferably following discussion with the local Town or
Parish Council, and are subject to local consultation before approval. An
address is usually required in order to secure connection to utilities and for
properties to be allocated a post code.
Allocation of street numbers to new developments.
Changes to existing road names. This rarely happens but if there is local
agreement road names can be changed.
All requests are made via the submission of standardised application forms
and information is held within a specialist module of the Acolaid computer
software used by planning and property information services. Compliance
with BS7666 ensures that all authorities create and maintain data to a
national standard which in turn allows for data to be shared across a range of
systems.
1.3
As part of the annual budget setting process the principle of introducing
charges for these services has been agreed but it is necessary to agree the
level of charge that will be made.
2.
Suggested Fees and relationship to service costs.
2.1
There are no nationally agreed charges for these services with those
Authorities that do making charges starting at around £25 for a simple name
change to several hundreds of pounds for the naming and numbering of large
scale developments. Local Authorities are not able to make charges for those
parts of the service which they have a duty to undertake. Where a Local
Authority wishes to charge for discretionary services, Section 93 of the Local
Government Act 2003 allows charging on a “not for profit” basis, that is, the
Council can only aim to recover cost incurred. The majority of authorities
therefore make a charge based on the administrative costs of discretionary
elements of service provision, for example, the notification of third parties that
an address has been created or changed.
2.2
Annual direct staff costs in this service are in the region of £28,000. Total
costs increase to approximately £60,000-£70,000 when central costs such as
management, IT, telephony, building and HR are included. The suggested
fees below are based on a ‘not for profit’ fee which relates the level of fee to
the work required to provide the service.
152
2.2
Table A - suggested fees
•
Activity
Fee
Single street - £125
Naming of new streets,
2-5 streets - £250,
consultation process and
5+ streets - £500
notification of decision
Change of house name on
£25
unnumbered properties.
Change of building
£25
names/address for commercial
units
Street Numbering Schemes with £80 per plot
1 – 5 plots
Schemes with 6 – 10 plots
£70 per plot
Schemes with 11 – 50 plots
£60 per plot
New Development of 50+ plots
£50 per plot
Numbering of new block of
Fees as above based on number of
flats/building
units.
Maximum fee – In all cases where fees charged in accordance with the above
schedule exceed £1,500 a maximum of £1,500 will be payable.
Worked example: A development of three streets with 30 new properties would pay
£250 for the street names and a further 30 x £60 = £1,800 for the house numbering
scheme making a total of £2,050. The maximum fee of £1,500 would be payable.
3.
Income
Set at the above levels it is anticipated that fees would generate between £10,000 £15,000 each year.
4.
Conclusion
The provision and maintenance of accurate address data is central to many Council
and external services. The Council has invested in IT and has established efficient
practices to ensure that it meets it’s statutory obligations and conditions under the
Mapping Services Agreement. The fees outlined in this report will contribute towards
recovering part of the costs of providing the service.
5.
Implications and Risks
None as a direct consequence of this report
6.
Financial Implications and Risks
Minimal financial risk but failure to introduce fees will make it increasingly difficult to
provide cost effective services.
7.
Sustainability
This report raises no sustainability issues
8.
Equality and Diversity
This report raises no Equality or diversity issues
9.
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
This report raises no Crime and Disorder issues
153
Agenda Item No_____17______
CROMER OFFICE IMPROVEMENTS
Summary:
Conclusions:
This paper brings together the business case
for office improvements which will improve
customer service and at the same time provide a
financial saving for the Council.
The three areas of work detailed, if approved,
will allow efficiencies to be realised through
better use of staff and buildings resource. In
addition, they will support the change agenda
required to deliver the Council’s Corporate Plan
and will significantly improve customer
interaction with the Council.
Recommendations:
1. To delegate authority to officers, in
conjunction with the Portfolio Members for
Resources and Customer Services, to
procure the necessary building works, along
with any professional input required in
respect
of
the
customer
services
improvement works.
2. That £31,500 is allocated from the
Restructuring and Invest to Save earmarked
reserve to fund the removal of the Annexe
and associated works
3. To authorise officers to obtain the necessary
quotes and/or tenders to ensure the safe
removal of the annexe building and the
reinstatement of the facilities currently
contained therein.
Reasons for
Recommendations:
To ensure that the works are carried out by an
appropriate contractor procured within the
framework provided by the Council’s Financial
Standing Orders
Cabinet Member(s)
Cllr Rhodri Oliver (Corporate Assets)
Cllr Tom Fitzpatrick (Customer Services)
Contact Officer, telephone number and email:
154
Nick Baker
01263 516221
nick.baker@north-norfolk.gov.uk
1.
Introduction
The Cromer office building is now over 20 years old and has had little
work carried out in terms of its layout during that time except for
occasional desk moves for individual teams.
At the present time, there is a need to ensure that every measure is
taken to maximise efficiencies and realise savings and income.
Changes to the office environment will allow such measures to be
achieved whilst at the same time improving the service and office
environment for Members, officers and customers alike.
The three areas of work identified in the report together, will enable
improved working by bringing together the newly created service teams
and creating staff efficiencies by improvements in the way we deal with
customer contacts.
2.
Redesign of the Front Office Reception
2.1
Background
Contact for Council services come in a number of ways – via the
website www.northnorfolk.org, telephone, email, face to face in the
Council offices at Cromer and Fareham, post and also the visits we
make to customers’ homes and / or work premises.
Approximately 51,000 transactions, i.e. circa 200 per day, take place
within the Cromer “Front offices” every year. This includes dealing
visitors for pre-booked appointments and deliveries.
The Cromer reception area was last reviewed in 1999 and since then
there have been a number of changes made and issues identified to
include:
•
The creation of a customer services team who aim to resolve
enquiries for a range of services at first point of contact
•
The closure of the dedicated cash office
•
Introduction of charging for pre-application advice in planning
•
Commitment to fully utilising space within the building
•
Health and safety concerns regarding this area
•
On-going changes around electronic communication
Now is the time to respond to these and create an environment that is
not only fit for purpose today but has the flexibility to complement and
enable changes within the organisation, as required, to meet business
needs in the future.
155
The Council has recognised the significance of the website and there is
a development programme underway to improve the transactional
capabilities of the website. However, even if we are successful in
encouraging our customers to make more use of the website, there will
always be instances where the type of enquiry and/or level of
reassurance the customer needs is better met through face-to-face
contact.
2.2
Rationale for Change
The Council’s Corporate Plan 2012-2015, commits to making “the
Council more efficient so that we can both deliver our priorities and
offer value for money for local taxpayers”.
We therefore need to create in the front office, a customer service
environment that supports specific organisational priorities and allows
us to work in the most cost effective and efficient way.
Over time, four separate, service based reception areas have evolved
around; Revenues and Benefits, Planning and Environmental Services,
Housing and Corporate Reception. The Housing team has a specific
role and it has been recognised that positive improvements have
recently been made in this area. Staff covering the other three areas
are all part of the Customer Services Team and, to a significant degree,
are multi-skilled and able to resolve most enquiries. However, because
the team is dispersed across the office and thinly spread, it makes it
difficult to retain service knowledge, fully utilise resources and provide
resilience.
In addition, the telephony team are currently located away from the
face-to-face team, making it more challenging to react to peaks in
customer demand in either area.
Officers are considering the needs of three distinct but differing
stakeholder groups, namely: Customers, Officers and Members. The
Customer
Services Team has an historical record of general
customer comments. Additionally, a survey is being undertaken to
gauge customers’ views of the reception area. Teams who have a
front office need within the Council, have
already been asked
regarding their views on future
changes and will
continue to be
involved throughout the various stages of the project. A
Member
survey is also being undertaken at the time of writing. All of these the
findings will be fed into the design brief.
Some of the customer transactions that take place at the main counters
can be of a personal nature and we have received a number of
comments from customers to say that they have felt uncomfortable and
embarrassed as their conversation can be heard by people either in the
156
queue or sitting alongside. Any redesign needs to take account of this
and provide private areas where such transactions can take place.
Also, the rooms used for some customer transactions, historically
Planning, are too small and officers have to move between the private
room and a back/front office workstation. In addition, the rooms are not
equipped with the technology needed to provide good service to some
customers. The latter issue is set to increase as more and more
Planning applications and associated documents are in electronic
format and it is necessary to consider how best to deal with both initial
applications potentially needing to be scanned and for Planning Agents
who often need access to electronic methods of display etc.
Feedback received from both Members and officers indicates that our
current provision for meeting rooms is inadequate. The lack of rooms
means that the staff canteen is frequently used and although suitable
for some meetings, it is not the most appropriate place for meetings
such as staff appraisals and supplier presentations etc.
The redesign of the reception area will enable a series of meeting
spaces to be created. These will be able to be used for customer
transactions as well as officer meetings. As the level of customers
using face-to-face access decreases over time, the area will be utilised
more by officers. This will allow for space elsewhere in the building to
be freed up.
157
Aside from the provision within Housing, there is currently no area
which allows for self-service via the website and this needs to be
addressed if we are to maximise the benefits offered by technology in
the future.
The Corporate Health and Safety team have carried out an assessment
of the reception area and the current arrangements present a
significant risk to the organisation. Although there has been some
interim action taken, the redesign will address the long term
requirements.
2.3.
Project Objectives
2.3.1 The key objectives for this project are:
•
To provide a customer services environment which is more
focussed on the customers’ needs
•
The creation of one Customer Services team in one central location
to reinforce the new ways of working
•
Create efficiency by bringing together the four separate reception
areas
•
Better utilisation of staff time enabling savings to be made
•
Creation of better areas for private, sensitive and/or complex
customer and officer discussions to take place
•
Full utilisation of the current reception and associated areas to free
up space elsewhere in the building
•
Address the current health and safety issues within this area
2.3.2 Other objectives include:
•
Promote self-service take up
•
Create an environment that demonstrates a ‘one Council’ approach
•
Create an environment which is flexible enough to cope with future
organisational needs and priorities of customer service
158
2.4.
Options Appraisal
2.4.1 Do nothing
Advantages
•
No disruption for the organisation or our customers
•
No capital outlay
Disadvantages
•
No revenue saving through staff efficiencies
•
No resolution to health and safety issues, putting the Council at
significant risk
•
Remain challenging to react to changes in customer demand as the
Customer Services team (all access channels) would not be
situated together
•
Unable to bring dispersed reception areas together making it
difficult for staff to retain service knowledge, be fully utilised and
provide resilience
•
Unable to fully utilise the area, wasting valuable floor space
•
Unable to provide a comfortable and confidential environment for
some customer enquiries.
•
Unable to create appropriate meeting rooms which are equipped to
offer resources for appropriate discussions and customer resolution
•
Remains difficult to promote self-service making it more challenging
to educate and encourage customers to transact with us in this
(electronic) way
•
The environment will continue to contribute to low staff morale and
sickness levels ultimately affecting the service to for customers
•
The environment will continue to confuse the customer
2.4.2 Cost Implications
•
No capital expenditure
159
•
2.5
Likely compensation pay-outs as a result of non-compliant work
stations/areas
General Improvement
2.5.1 Essentially this would involve the removal of existing counters to be
replaced by individual desks
Advantages
•
Resolution of health and safety Issues
•
Minimal disruption for the organisation and customers
•
Some small improvements in terms of privacy
Disadvantages
•
No revenue saving as unable to reduce staff numbers
•
Remain challenging to react to changes in customer demand as the
Customer Services team (all access channels) would not be
situated together
•
Unable to bring disperse reception areas together remaining difficult
for staff to retain service knowledge, be fully utilised and provide
resilience
•
Unable to fully utilise the area to best effect
•
Unable to provide a suitable environment for some customer
enquiries continuing to make officers and customers uncomfortable
•
Unable to create additional meeting rooms which will mean that in
some cases unsuitable environments will continue to be used
•
Remains difficult to promote self serve making it more challenging
to educate and encourage customers to transact with us in this
(electronic) way
•
The environment will continue to contribute to low staff morale and
sickness levels ultimately affecting the service to or customers
•
The environment will continue to confuse the customer
160
2.5.2 Likely Cost
It is anticipated that the cost would be in the region of £20,000 and
would include the following works:
2.6
•
Removal of existing counter arrangements
•
Replacements desks/work stations
•
Re provision of services (IT, electrics etc)
Complete redesign of the Reception Area and associated space
2.6.1 Advantages
•
Improved service to the customer
•
Revenue savings resulting from a reduction in staff
•
Resolution to health and safety issues mitigating any risk to the
Council
•
Customer Services team (various access channels) will be brought
together enabling a better reaction to a change in customer demand
•
Make it easier for Customer Service Advisors to develop skills
across all areas, retain knowledge, be fully utilised and provide
resilience as disperse reception areas will be brought together
•
Improved service to the customer
•
Area will be fully utilised providing better value for money
•
A suitable environment for all customer enquiries will be provided
making it a more pleasant experience for everyone
•
Additional meeting space will be created with the potential to free up
space elsewhere in the building and provide more suitable
environments
•
Potential to generate income from office space made available
•
The environment for customers to self-service will be enhanced
making it easier to educate and encourage customers to transact
with us in this (electronic) way
161
•
Increase in staff morale resulting in enhanced level of service to or
customers
•
The layout will reduce any confusion for the customer
Disadvantages
•
Significant disruption for the organisation and customer when
works are taking place
2.6.2 Likely Cost
•
2.7
The full cost is unknown at this stage as tenders have not yet been
sought. However, there is a budget within the current capital
programme for customer service improvements which is not yet fully
allocated.
It is anticipated that the available funding within the
budget will be sufficient to cover the associated costs for the
redesign.
Recommended Option
The first two options do not allow the organisation to make best use of
its staff and offices and the outstanding issues will not be addressed.
The option that best meets the organisations objectives, highlighted in
this business case, is to redesign the whole reception area, change the
look and feel of the environment and create one coherent team.
2.8
Benefits and Realisation
In view of the stated organisational objectives a redesign of the Cromer
reception will significantly assist the organisation in achieving an
increase in customer satisfaction by ensuring that our customers
experience is consistent and professional. It will also allow the
organisation to work in a more cost effective and efficient way.
2.9
Immediate cashable savings
Significant benefit realisation will be through a reduction in staff,
through more efficient and effective working methods. Due to the
flexibility created through a number of temporary contracts, this will be
achieved within three months of any refurbishment. It is anticipated that
this cashable saving will be in the region of £33,000 per year.
162
2.10
Future cashable and efficiency savings
Further benefits will be realised over time and will mainly be related to
the Customer Services team working more efficiently and effectively,
better use by the whole organisation of the reception area, along with a
reduction in the number of customer contacts. The latter point will arise
partly as a result of the improved website, the project for which
overlaps with the proposed customer services change. These further
benefits will lead to service quality improvements as well as cashable
savings.
2.11
Planned Improvements
•
Three separate reception areas being brought together – With
the meet and greet facility and the service areas being in close
proximity, customers are far more likely to obtain resolution at the
first point of contact and a lot of Customer Services time will be
saved by the reduction in double handling. This will in turn increase
capacity and further reduce waiting times for customers. This will
also ensure that staff numbers are kept to a minimum providing the
potential for staff savings in the future.
Staff will find it easier to retain service knowledge, be fully utilised
and provide resilience and Team Leaders will be spending less time
conducting refresher training and amending rotas etc.
•
Create appropriate areas for private, sensitive and complex
customer transactions and officer discussions to take place –
This will provide a more comfortable experience for both customers
and officers and will help ensure more effective resolution of the
issues and improve the level of service. The areas will be fully
equipped with the necessary technology to enable a more efficient
and effective way of working.
•
Utilisation of the reception area including the redundant cash
office to create additional meeting rooms and office space This will create space elsewhere in the building ultimately allowing
the newly created service teams to come together and the potential
to generate income from the space that will become available
elsewhere in the building. This includes the move of Electoral
Services, part of the wider office moves project, from the Annex into
the main office, allowing the removal of the Annexe and subsequent
savings.
163
2.12
•
Creation of new work stations for staff - This will address the
current Health and Safety issues and will also provide a better
working environment for the staff, which should both improve staff
morale and lead to better customer service.
•
Creation of a generic self-serve area - This will assist in the
education of our customers and encourage them to contact us
through the website (the most cost effective access channel)
supporting the desired channel shift and providing the capacity for
further staff savings.
•
Ensuring that the solution is a flexible one - This will provide the
organisation with the ability to change the way we deal with front
office contact as demand changes e.g. the likely need to scan of a
wider range of documents.
Scope
The area included in the scope has an impact to a certain degree on
the whole organisation but it specifically includes the front office
requirements of the following services: Environmental Health, Planning,
Housing, Revenues and Benefits. Identified constraints to the project
include:
•
•
•
•
2.13
The existing structure of the building
The area identified within the scope
Staff resource
Available budget
Resource Requirements
Staffing resource for this project will largely be found in existing staff
resource with the exception of some temporary project management
support. There will be specific staff resource implications for:
•
•
•
•
Finance – throughout the project but specifically with tendering and
procurement
Property Services – throughout the project providing project
assurance, developing the specification, evaluating tenders and
liaising with the contractors and/or suppliers
IT – liaising with contractors and/or suppliers and providing the
necessary infrastructure
Customer Services – throughout the project but specifically with
contribution to the specification and internal and external
communications
164
•
2.14
Environmental Services, Planning and Revenues and Benefits staff implications for contribution to the specification
Project Organisation, Programme and Timetable
A project team has been established as follows and will report to the
Customer Service Improvement Programme Board:
Project Sponsor
Project Manager
IT
Client Users
Asset Management
Finance
Additional client
users
Nick Baker
Trevor Nelson
Terry Rayner
Estelle Packham(Customer Services)
Duncan Ellis (Head of Assets and Leisure)
To be advised
Steve Hems (Environmental Services)
Lisa Grice (Housing)
Lorraine Gray (Planning)
Liz Codling (Revenues and Benefits)
Tony Turner (Property Services)
Zoe Bloomfield (Customer Services)
Ben Rowe (Customer Services)
The proposed implementation timetable is outlined below:
Task
Scope Project
Outline Project Proposal
Identify Project Board
Obtain Project Management Resource
Prepare Business Case
Complete specification for Design
phase
Agree Business Case with CLT
Cabinet approval of Business Case
Identify
Interior
Design
Service
providers
Evaluate potential provider submissions
Appoint Interior Design Service provider
Complete and Agree Interior Design
Complete Tender for Build Phase
Identify potential suppliers for Build
phase
Issue tender documents for Build phase
Tenders returned
Tenders evaluation
Detailed Implementation Plan
Build phase (timing to be determined)
165
Programmed Date
March 2012
April 2012
April 2012
August 2012
August - September 2012
September – October 2012
1 October 2012
3 December 2012
November/December 2012
December/January 2012/13
January 2013
February 2013
February 2013
February 2013
March 2013
April 2013
April/May 2013
May/June 2013
July/August 2013
2.15
Risks
At present the Council is at financial, legal and reputational risk
because of significant health and safety issues relating to a majority of
the work stations within the main reception area at Cromer. A detailed
analysis of the risks associated with the reception refurbishment will be
included within the implementation plan but in summary they include:
3
•
Reputational Risk due to disruption to staff and customers
•
Failure to deliver an effective solution within the budget constraints
•
Staff resource issues
•
Implementation delays
•
Failure to realise benefits
Removal of the Annexe Building
3.1 Background
The annexe building was initially assembled and rented during
2005/2006 to accommodate Victory Housing Trust. After Victory’s
move to North Walsham in 2009, the Annexe was purchased and used
predominantly for disaster recovery and training, with Electoral
Services moving into the unit during 2010. The showers were
constructed in 2010 to support the Council’s health agenda.
As part of the office move proposals the Electoral Services function will
be moving back into the main building and therefore the majority of the
space previously required within the annexe will no longer be needed.
The annexe itself is in a poor state of repair with the front section
(entrance, auditor office, kitchen and toilets) being considered life
expired. The rear section has an estimated remaining life of 10 years,
although maintenance and repair costs could increase significantly.
3.2
Costs
There are a number of revenue costs associated with the annexe, the
most substantial of which relates to non-domestic rates (NNDR)
charges of nearly £10,200 per annum. There are also general costs
associated with repairs and maintenance and servicing of alarms, air
conditioning and sewer pumps which total nearly £3,700. Furthermore
there are cleaning and electricity costs which are estimated at £7,500,
which means the total annual revenue cost for the building is around
£21,400.
166
Year 0
2012/13
£
Costs:
Revenue:
Removal of existing structure
Relocation of showers
Re-instatement of car parking
Year 1
2013/14
£
Year 2
2014/15
£
Year 3
2015/16
£
Year 4
2016/17
£
Year 5
2017/18
£
Total
14,000
7,500
10,000
31,500
0
0
0
0
0
31,500
0
0
0
(10,191)
(3,700)
(7,500)
(10,191)
(3,700)
(7,500)
(10,191)
(3,700)
(7,500)
(10,191)
(3,700)
(7,500)
(10,191)
(3,700)
(7,500)
0
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(106,955)
31,500
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(21,391)
(75,455)
Income/savings
NNDR saving
R&M/alarm/servicing savings
Electricity/cleansing savings
Total Revenue
Costs/(Savings)
3.3
Proposals
It is proposed that the annexe be demolished, the services capped and
the car park re-instated. The cost of these works is estimated to be in
the region of £31,500, but this would in turn lead to anticipated ongoing annual revenue savings of £21,400 as highlighted above. The
total saving over the next 5 years is forecast to be just over £75,000 as
can be seen from the table above.
The Electoral Services team is moving back into the main office as part
of the office moves. It is recommended that the IT training room be
relocated to meeting room 2 and, as part of the Council’s disaster
recovery plans, an emergency room has already been established in
Fakenham in conjunction with Kings Lynn and West Norfolk Borough
Council.
The existing showers in the Annexe are well used by members of staff
who cycle to work and/or exercise at lunchtimes and this supports the
Council’s Staff Welfare and Health and Wellbeing agenda. The
showers could be relocated within the main office adjacent to the toilets
in part of the area currently occupied by Building Control. This location
is recommended as it would make the plumbing straightforward as the
services are already all in place for the toilets, the cost has been
estimated by the Property Manager to be £7,500 and this is included
within the £31,500 mentioned above.
167
3.4
Summary
It is therefore recommended that the Annexe is disposed of to realise
the £75,000 estimated 5 years saving. The reinstatement of the car
park will provide additional car parking capacity which will help with any
future tenants that the Council may be able to attract to use the main
office building. The relocation of the showers will also support the
Council’s health and staff welfare agenda. The IT training room is
being relocated to meeting room 2, with the Disaster Recovery suite
already relocated to Fakenham.
4 Office Moves
It is planned to undertake significant internal office moves over the
coming months. Primarily, this is to respond to the changes to service
groupings following the Senior Management restructure and the need
to relocate staff in these new teams together to enable efficient and
effective working.
In addition, even with staff moving into the main office from the
Annexe, we know that enough space for around 30 desks could be
made available for rent to other public sector organisations. At this
stage, officers are approaching potential users, although none have
been confirmed at this stage. Clearly, if this could be achieved,
subsequent income would offset the overhead costs of the building.
We also intend to use the moves as an opportunity to rationalise office
furniture and other resources such as printers which will provide
further, albeit relatively small, savings.
We recognise that any office move can cause disruption and clearly,
we would wish to minimise this as far as possible and maintain service
levels for customers. Managers have had initial discussions with the
Properties team who are overseeing the process and further detailed
consultation will take place as the teams move together.
Due to the need for the Corporate IT Team to provide additional
support for the Revenues and Benefits Shared Service project, most of
the required office moves have been put back for some weeks, as IT
infrastructure support is also needed for these moves. It is anticipated
that the majority of the office moves will therefore take place early in
2013.
In terms of cost, there will inevitably be some expenditure required to
facilitate the office moves although this will be minor. There will also be
some potential costs involved if the Property Services team are
168
required to complete office moves and cannot respond to maintenance
issues. It is anticipated however, that these can be kept within existing
budgets.
5
Financial Implications and Risk
5.1
The costs of the Front Office Reception refurbishment are unknown at
this stage as tenders have not been sought and clearly, it would be
unwise to specify a price before seeking tenders. However, significant
Capital Reserve exists within the Customer Service Improvement
budget and it is anticipated that the cost will fall well within this amount.
5.2
The £31,500 to remove the Annexe represents quite clearly, an “Invest
to Save” project and will be funded from the Restructuring and "Invest
to Save" earmarked reserve.
The risks associated with procurement of works and their delivery on
time will be managed by the appointment of appropriate professional
support.
5.3
The reputational risks around changes to the customer services area
will be managed by ensuring that alternative front office provision is
maintained throughout the period of any works.
The risk identified around cost overruns against budget will be
managed by letting appropriate contracts for work and ensuring that
best value is achieved throughout the procurement process.
6
Sustainability
6.1
There are no major sustainability issues arising directly from the report.
However, the removal of the Annexe will significantly improve energy
consumption levels at the Cromer office site.
6.2
Furthermore, the refurbishment of the reception area and the office
moves will enable improved use of printers and other IT equipment.
7
Equality and Diversity
The refurbishment of the Front Reception area will provide better
access to services to all sections of the community.
8
Section 17 Crime and Disorder considerations
There are no anticipated impacts on Crime and Disorder arising from
this report.
169
9
Conclusion
The three areas of work detailed above, if approved, will allow
efficiencies to be realised through better staff and buildings resource
use. In addition, they will support the change agenda required to
deliver the Council’s Corporate Plan and will significantly improve
customer interaction with the Council.
170