Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Councillor Lord True, Leader of Richmond Upon Thames Council.

In accordance with the Members’ Code of Conduct, Members are requested to declare any interests orally at the start of the meeting and again immediately before consideration of the matter. Members are reminded to specify the agenda item number to which it refers and whether the interest is of a personal or prejudicial nature.

Members are also reminded of the requirements of Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 that they should declare and not vote on specified matters if they are two months or more in arrears with their Council Tax payments.

There were no declarations of interest.

To consider and approve the Minutes of the meeting held on 23 March 2011

It was RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 23 March 2011 be received and approved and the Chairman authorised to sign them.

Representations were heard from:

·         Mr Eaton on Item 12, Stag Brewery Site Brief (Minute 250)

·         Mr Oram on Item 13, Income Generation Strategy Panel Update (Minute 251)

·         Ms Rowe on Item 16, Taxi Card Budget (Minute 254)

·         Ms Wood on Item 17, School Food Matters (Minute 255)

and their comments are detailed as part of the relevant minute.

There were none.

There were none.

The were none.

Item 9 – Response to the report of the Drug Misuse Scrutiny Task Group, of the Environment, Sustainability and Community Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

             This report sets out the initial response of the Executive to the report of the

              Drug Misuse Scrutiny Task Group attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Strategic Cabinet Member for Community Development setting out the initial response of the Executive to the report of the Drug Misuse Scrutiny Task Group, included as Appendix A. 

Cabinet received an addition to the report; a Foreword from the Chair of the parent Committee (Environment, Sustainability and Community Overview and Scrutiny Committee) previously omitted from Appendix A.

Cabinet heard that the report of the Cabinet Member recommended a timetable for a full response from Cabinet but did not seek to establish at that stage any agreement, or rejection, of the recommendations within the Task Group report.

It was RESOLVED that:

1.      The next steps outlined in paragraph 3.4 of the report be agreed.

2.      At the meeting of Cabinet scheduled for July 2011, a full response to the Task group report be received.

The attendance of the Strategic Cabinet Member for Community Development at the September 2011 meeting of the Environment, Sustainability and Community Overview and Scrutiny Committee, to present the full Executive response, be agreed.

            To inform Cabinet of the detailed results from the All in One survey, proposals for ‘village’ planning events, proposals for taking forward All in One activity, integrating with the Council’s service and community planning processes attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Strategic Cabinet Member for Community Development, setting out the detailed results of the All in One survey, proposals for ‘village’ planning events and proposals for future All in One activities.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The detailed results from the All in One survey be noted.
   
   
2. The proposals for ‘village’ planning events detailed in the report be agreed.

            The report is to update Cabinet on progress in relation to work in Twickenham and particularly the Town Centre Action Plan and emerging scenarios attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Strategic Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning providing an update on the progress of ‘Uplift’ work in Twickenham and in particular the Town Centre Action Plan and emerging scenarios.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The programme for the preparation of a Statutory Town Centre Action Plan as detailed in paragraph 3.5 of the report be agreed and authority be delegated to officers for amendments to the Local Development Scheme for agreement by the GLA.
   
   
2. Authority to finalise the presentation of potential scenarios for the Town Centre, for the purposes of Public Consultation, be delegated to the Cabinet Member for Environment and Ward Members in the Twickenham Area.

            To seek Cabinet approval of the Planning Brief for the Stag Brewery site as a supplementary planning document attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Strategic Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning seeking approval of the Planning Brief for the Stag Brewery site, set out at Appendix 2, as a Supplementary Planning Document.

Cabinet received an addendum to the report containing additional changes to the Planning Brief.  These changes reflected comments received, after the agenda had been published, at a public meeting on the 28^th April 2011 and from the GLA and English Heritage.

Cabinet heard a representation from Mr Eaton, of the Mortlake Brewery Community Group.  In particular he referred to the following:

Ø      That the regeneration of the site was a positive development and welcomed locally.

Ø      That the production of a detailed and robust document was to be congratulated.

Ø      That concerns remained regarding the content of paragraph 5.32 in particular the reference to the Boroughwide Sustainable Urban Development Study 2008 which identified the area as having potential opportunities for buildings of around six storeys and no higher than eight storeys.  This was felt to be unnecessarily high and to the detriment of the site and the riverside.  He urged Cabinet to consider this paragraph again.

The Strategic Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning thanked the speaker for his comments and assured him that paragraph 5.32 would be revisited under any delegated powers awarded by the Cabinet and the height of buildings in particular, discussed again with officers. 

She also referred to the addendum and clarified some of the changes made to the Brief as a result of the public meeting.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The Planning Brief, including the amendments tabled as an addendum to the report at the meeting, be adopted as a supplementary planning document.
   
   
2. Authority be delegated to the Head of Policy and Design in consultation with the Leader and the Strategic Cabinet Member for Environment and Planning to finalise detailed editing of the text prior to publication and that this finalisation include further consideration of Paragraph 5.32.

              To advise Members of the initiatives developed with PwC to increase the  

              Council’s annual income and to seek agreement to a programme of income

              generation projects which will contribute towards meeting the Council’s

              savings target attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Performance describing the initiatives developed with PwC to increase the Council’s annual income and to seek agreement to a programme of income generation projects to contribute towards future savings targets.

Cabinet heard a representation from Mr Oram; in particular he referred to the following:

Ø      That the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea had recently resolved that under the Town and Country Planning Act (Control of Advertisements) 2007 an application be made to the Secretary of State to classify certain areas of the Borough in such a way that the display of advertisements should not be undertaken in those particular areas without the express consent of the Local Authority.  This, he maintained, would be applied to advertising boards placed outside of houses To Let or For Sale by Estate Agents.  He urged Cabinet to consider pursuing the same route in Richmond Borough and subsequently charging for consent in designated areas or where signs were not removed in a timely fashion as a means of income generation and improvement of the street scene in certain areas.

The Cabinet member for Performance acknowledged the speaker’s idea and confirmed that he would ask officers to investigate the legality and appropriateness of this course of action for LBRuT.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The development and implementation of a programme of income generation projects be agreed.
   
   
2. A consistent approach to the setting of Fees and Charges as outlined in the report be agreed.

               This report summarises the content of the Final Business Case (FBC) to be

               submitted to Partnerships for Schools (PfS) and the Department for

               Education (DfE) for approval to proceed with contract award of the Design

               & Build Contract and the delivery of the new school attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Finance & Resources summarising the progress on the Hampton Academy project and the content of the Final Business Case, and requesting approval to enter in to the Final Business Case, Design and proceed with the Build Contract and Development Agreement.

The report referred to various aspects of the process, timescales, and procurement and particularly specified that no further funds would be allocated by LBRuT over and above that allocated by the Government. 

It was RESOLVED that:

1.      The final business case for Hampton Academy as summarised in the report be approved.

2.      The contract award to JB Leadbitter & Co Ltd for the Design & Build of Hampton Academy and the signing of the associated Development Agreement with Learning Schools Trust, to include the agreement contained within the Development Agreement to grant a lease to the Learning Schools Trust of 125 years at a Peppercorn rent, be approved.

3.      That authority be delegated to the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources to approve any amendments to the terms of the Design and Build Contract and Development Agreement prior to the contract award.

              This report summarises the content of the Final Business Case (FBC) to be

              submitted to Partnerships for Schools (PfS) and the Department for

              Education (DfE) for approval to proceed with contract award of the Design &

              Build Contract and the delivery of the new school attached. 

Cabinet received a report of the Deputy Leader & Cabinet Member for Finance & Resources summarising the progress on the Twickenham Academy project and the content of the Final Business Case, and requesting approval to enter the Final Business Case, Design and Build Contract and Development Agreement.

The report referred to various aspects of the process, timescales, and procurement and particularly specified that no further funds would be allocated by LBRuT over and above that allocated by the Government. 

It was RESOLVED that:

1.      The final business case for Twickenham Academy as summarised in the report be approved.

2.      The contract award to JB Leadbitter & Co Ltd for the Design & Build of Twickenham Academy and the signing of the associated Development Agreement with Learning Schools Trust, to include the agreement contained within the Development Agreement to grant a lease to the Learning Schools Trust of 125 years at a Peppercorn rent, be approved.

3.      That authority be delegated to the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources to approve any amendments to the terms of the Design and Build Contract and Development Agreement prior to the contract award.

         To seek Cabinet approval for reviewing all current contractual arrangements for

         services in receipt of the  Supporting People Programme Grant within the

         London Borough of Richmond upon Thames attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Adult Services, Health and Housing seeking approval for a review of all current contractual arrangements of services in receipt of part of the Supporting People Grant within the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

It was RESOLVED that:

a review of all Supporting People Services, in order to deliver the rationalisations and savings outlined in the report, be approved and undertaken.

            The London Taxicard Scheme is a non statutory scheme that provides

            subsidised door-to-door transport for people who have serious mobility

            impairment and difficulty in using public transport attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Adult Services, Health and Housing which provided an overview of the projected London Taxicard Budget overspend for 2011/12 and sought approval of the recommendations to bring the spend within budget.  Recommendations originated from London Councils and the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.

Cabinet heard a representation from Ms Rowe, of Richmond Aid.  In particular she referred to the following:

Ø      That the recommended rejection of the cessation of ‘double swiping’ suggested by London Councils was welcomed.

Ø      That further investigation was necessary to establish the amount of users affected by recommendation 2.4 which suggested that trips be reduced to 52 per year for those who were assessed as able to use public transport.  Ms Rowe argued that there were people who would need to use Taxicard in order to reach public transport and begin their journey proper.

It was RESOLVED that:

1.      The increased level of growth in Taxicard in Richmond, over the last two years, and across London in the first few months of 2010/2011 and the projected overspend in Richmond be noted

2.      Recommendations from London Councils as listed in 3.8.1 and 3.8.2 of the report suggested to help bring London Borough of Richmond upon Thames spending into line with the budget for 2011/2012 be accepted.

3.      In view of the responses in the consultation exercise and concerns voiced on the possible negative impact of the cessation of double swiping the London Councils recommendation in 3.8.3 to end double swiping be rejected and in addition in April 2012 the impact of the other changes be reviewed.

4.      The current number of trips per Taxicard member,104, be maintained unless on assessment a member is judged to be able to use a Freedom Pass for Public Transport as per 3.9 (ii) of the report when the number be reduced, to 52.

                 To agree the award of the school meals contract attached. 

Cabinet received a report of the Director of Education, Children’s and Cultural Services seeking approval to award the school meals contract from 21 July 2011 to ISS Facility Services – Education.

Cabinet heard a representation from Ms Wood, of School Food Matters, in particular she referred to the following:

Ø      Officers, schools and other stakeholders were congratulated for working together over a lengthy period to achieve the improvements to the School Meals contract detailed within the report.

Ø      That School children in the Borough would now enjoy fresh ingredients cooked on site.

Ø      That these improvements had been won whilst also achieving better value for money.

Cabinet Lead Member for Schools thanked the speaker for her encouraging comments and reiterated the congratulations offered to those involved.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The award of the school meals contract to ISS Facility Services – Education be agreed.

                    To report the outcome of the tender process for street lighting

                    maintenance services; to recommend the appointment of the new

                    contractor; and to approve the use of the £125K savings for 2011-12 for

                    the further replacement of street lighting columns attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Traffic describing the outcome of the tender process for street lighting services; recommending the appointment of a new contractor and seeking approval of the use of the £125,000 savings for the further replacement of street lighting columns.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. Subject to the satisfactory statutory process and completion of formal contracts the award of the Street Lighting Services Maintenance Contract for the period 1 August 2011 to 31 July 2016 to Cartledge be approved
   
   
2. The use of savings identified in the confidential report of £125,000 for 2011/12 to expedite the replacement of the concrete lighting column programme as a matter of public health and safety be agreed.

                  This report provides details on a Capital Ambition funded ICT project that

                  will deliver improved connections with neighbouring boroughs and greater

                  disaster recovery resilience for the Council attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Performance providing details of a Capital Ambition funded ICT project intended to deliver improved connections with neighbouring boroughs, provide greater disaster recovery resilience for the Council and seeking approval to formally participate in it.  In addition the report explained how such participation would relate to LBRuT’s future strategic ICT objectives.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The strategic objectives as set out in paragraph 4.5 of the report be agreed.
   
   
2. The participation in the LoGo Cloud project and the associated costs as set out in paragraph 5.6 of the report be approved.

            This report requests the approval for additional Programme and Project Management resource to support the Property Programme Management Office (PMO), including delivery of the recently approved Uplift Strategy programme attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources seeking approval for additional Programme and Project Management resource to support the Property Programme Management Office (PMO), including the Uplift Strategy Programme.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. In accordance with the Code of Practice for the Engagement of Consultants and Contracts Standing Orders (13.1 and 13.2) the appointment of a Programme Manager via the OGC Buying Solutions Framework on a 12 month contract to manage and develop the council’s Property Programme Management Office be approved
   
   
2. The appointment of additional Programme and Project Management resource (on a consultancy and fixed term basis via the OGC Buying Solutions Framework) to meet the current and future requirements of the PMO be agreed and that such subsequent specific approvals be delegated to the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources

         For the Cabinet to monitor the action taken by the Director of Finance and

         Corporate Services in writing off debts under delegated authority attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources reporting, for the purposes of monitoring, the decisions taken by the Director of Finance under delegated authority to write off debts under delegated authority.  In addition the report sought approval to write off one uncollectable Council Tax debt which fell outside of the Director’s delegated authority.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The actions taken by the Director of Finance and Corporate Services in writing off debts under delegated authority as shown in paragraphs 3.31 and 3.5.1 of the report be noted.
   
   
2. The write off of the uncollectable Council Tax debt as shown in paragraph 3.5.3 of the report be approved.

                  This report is concerned with a finding of maladministration the Local

                  Government Act 1974 and requires members to consider the report and

                  decide what action the Council needs to take in light of the LGO’s findings

                  and recommendations attached.

Cabinet received a report of the Cabinet Member for Adult Services, Health and Housing the purpose of which was to report the findings of the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) in a report published on 10 February 2011 into a complaint that the Council had not dealt with an application from a homeless person correctly.

The LGO report found that there had been maladministration on behalf of the council and in accordance with Section 31 of the Local Government Act 1974 the report was presented for consideration.  Furthermore it sought to establish actions required in light of the findings and recommendations of the LGO.

The report also satisfied the statutory requirement of the Monitoring Officer to report such a finding to the Executive under Section 5A Local Government &Housing Act 1989.

It was RESOLVED that:

1. The findings of the Ombudsman and actions taken by the Council to address the concerns raised be noted.
   
   
2. The Health, Housing and Adult Services Overview & Scrutiny Committee request of March 22nd 2011 that officers strengthen the processes for quality assurance within Housing Operations, and improve the complaints monitoring system to ensure that complaints cannot go unanswered be agreed.
   
   
3. The report be adopted as the Council’s formal response to the LGO findings as required under Section 5A of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and Section 31 of Local Government Act 1974 and that the LGO be notified of the actions the Council has taken.

To decide having regard to the particular nature of the business to be transacted, whether or not to exclude the Press and Public during consideration of the following items on the grounds that they were likely to disclose exempt information by virtue of Paragraph 3 of schedule 12 A (as amended) to the Local Government Act 1972.

It was RESOLVED that:

having regard to the particular nature of the business to be transacted during consideration of the following items, on the grounds that they were likely to disclose exempt information by virtue of Paragraph 3 as defined in Access to Information Procedure Rule 10.4 and Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded.

                   The report outlines the Council’s principal responsibilities and liabilities in

                   delivering the construction project, and requests approval to enter into

                   the FBC attached.

Cabinet received a further report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Finance on this item.  The confidential report set out information relating to the financial details of the contract awarded.

.

It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.

             The report outlines the Council’s principal responsibilities and liabilities in delivering the construction project, and requests approval to enter into the FBC attached.

Cabinet received a further report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Finance on this item.  The confidential report set out information relating to the

financial details of the contract awarded.

.

It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.

            The background to the tender details are provided in the Council report

            entitled Approval to appoint Street Lighting Services Maintenance Contractor

            attached.

Cabinet received a further report of the Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for Finance on this item.  The confidential report set out information relating to the

financial details of the contract awarded.

.

It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.