Meeting documents

Councillor Melton stated that it gives him great pleasure to present this item to elect a Chairman as his last official job to do as Leader. He proposed that Councillor Ken Mayor be re-elected for another year, thanking Councillor Mayor and Councillor Mrs Mayor for everything they have done for this Council over the past year.

It was proposed by Councillor Melton and seconded by Councillor Seaton and resolved that Councillor Mayor be re-elected Chairman of the Council for the period to the next Annual Meeting and that he be paid an allowance of £3,700 plus travelling expenses.

The Chairman made his declaration of acceptance of office and addressed the Council. Councillor Mayor thanked Councillor Mrs Cox for being an excellent Vice-Chairman and his wife for all her support. He also thanked the Chairman's Secretary, Sharon Smith for organising his events and to the Member Services Team for their support.

It was proposed by Councillor Seaton and seconded by Councillor Mrs French and resolved that Councillor Mrs Cox be re-elected Vice-Chairman of the Council for the period to the next Annual Meeting and that she be paid an allowance of £900 plus travelling expenses.

The Vice-Chairman made her declaration of acceptance of office and addressed the Council. Councillor Mrs Cox stated that it has been a privilege to represent Fenland as the Vice-Chairman this past year, during which she has met some interesting and diverse people and that it will be an honour to serve a second year as Councillor Mayor's deputy.

The minutes of the meeting of 27 February 2014 were agreed and signed subject to the following amendment:

• Councillor Booth stated that item 54/13 in the paragraph following the bullet points where Councillor Booth seconded Councillor Mrs Bucknor's motion should say 'and the George Campbell Leisure Centre too' at the end of the sentence.

Twinning Visitors

The Chairman reminded members that we will be welcoming visitors to Fenland from Nettetal as part of our twinning partnership. The visit will be taking place between 20 and 23 June 2014.

Civic Reception

The Chairman confirmed to Council that he would be holding the Chairman's Annual Civic Reception on Friday 11 July 2014 and that members would receive their invitations in due course.

MJ Shortlisting

Paul Medd, Cheif Executive stated that he is delighted to advise members that the Council has been shortlisted for three prestigious Municipal Journal (MJ) Awards. This is a fantastic achievement as judges have received a number of highly competitive entries from Councils across the country.

The Council has been shortlisted in the 'Delivering Better Outcomes' and 'Trading Standards & Environmental Health' categories for the multi-agency project 'Operation Pheasant'. The entry explains how the Council, with partners such as the Police and HM Revenues and Customs, is successfully tackling the complex issues of migrant exploitation, illegal gangmasters and poor conditions of private rented housing, particularly in Wisbech.

In addition the Council has been shortlisted in the 'Workforce Transformation' category. This entry submission describes how Councillors, Managers and Staff have continued to work together to deliver savings and make the council fit for the future.

The Councils programme of modernisation has maintained high levels of performance and customer satisfaction, and has enabled the Council to deliver approximately £6million of savings since 2010.

The overall winners will be announced on the 19 June.

The Chairman stated that the Council has received notification from Councillor Alan Melton and Councillor Chris Seaton that they wish to resign from their respective posts as Leader of the Council and Deputy Leader.

It was proposed by Councillor Melton, seconded by Councillor Seaton and resolved that Councillor Clark be elected Leader of the Council for the period until the end of the current term of the Council.

Councillor Melton thanked Councillor Clark for the way that he has conducted himself throughout this process, for his kindness, courtesy and respect.

Councillor Clark thanked the outgoing Leader for his nomination and for his offer of help in the future and made the following statement to Council:

It is a privilege to be elected as Leader of Fenland District Council. I look forward to working with you all to serve our electorate and to deal with the many challenges that we face during these unprecedented times of austerity. I believe it is important that this Council is seen to be open and transparent but we have to be careful that we do not bog ourselves down with excessive bureaucracy and share with you some of the changes that I will make:

1. All Member Workshops/Seminars - I am committed to holding a schedule of all member briefings, it is proposed that these will usually take place prior to Conservative group meetings, but can be arranged as and when there are important matters to be debated. Conservative group meetings will continue to take place on Thursdays but will be arranged in the week immediately prior to Cabinet reports being circulated, this will ensure that Cabinet and Council will have the views of all members prior to making the most sensitive and important decisions.


2. The role of Overview and Scrutiny - I recognise the important role that Overview and Scrutiny has to play in ensuring that the Council executive is fully accountable for its decisions and would like to make more use of the overview function. Overview and Scrutiny will be supported to carry out this function and undertake member-led reviews on important areas of Council business.


3. Engagement with opposition members - Like us, opposition members are accountable to their electorate, with this in mind I will be offering all opposition members the opportunity to meet with myself and the Chief Executive in the week of the full council meeting or as and when required.


4. Media Briefings - In order to ensure that the media can publicise the key facts on issues of importance to local people and I will be reintroducing leader media briefings.


5. Support for our local MP - Steve Barclay plays a very important role for Fenland's best interest within Whitehall. I am committed to work closely with Steve Barclay, both the Chief executive and I will be holding regular meetings with him, I will also be working closely with Steve Count of Cambridgeshire County Council, I will of course, keep you all updated on all relevant matters that arise from these meetings.


6. Engagement with Town and Parish Councils - All Fenland Town and Parish Councils plan an essential role in delivering some key services of local people, I am committed to improving the relationship between Fenland District Council and the Town and Parish Councils, during the next 12 months the Chief Executive, key member colleagues and I will make arrangements to meet them all in order that we can better understand any important matters they have. I will be writing to Town and Parish Councils shortly in order to commence these meetings.


7. Delete the role of Deputy Leader - At a time when the Council is facing unprecedented financial challenges, I am committed to making appropriate savings wherever I can. I am therefore proposing to delete the official role of Deputy Leader, and therefore saving the £6343 allowance that comes with this position. As this is an official position set out within the Council's constitution I recognise that this cannot become official until an appropriate constitutional amendment is agreed by Full Council at the July meeting. In the meantime I can confirm that my Cabinet colleague, Councillor Ralph Butcher, has agreed to deputise in my absence and ensure business continuity when I am unavailable. Councillor Butcher is fully supportive of undertaking this role without receiving any allowance payment for doing it.

Councillor Booth offered his congratulations to the newly elected Leader stating that he is pleased that the Cabinet will be encouraging engagement with opposition parties. He stated that Councillor Tanfield has been promoted to Cabinet but only recently elected to the Council; he asked what the rationale for this choice is. Councillor Clark stated that he has taken a different approach to cabinet and her responsibilities reflect her age and interests, he added that moving forward a younger member on Cabinet will encourage better engagement with younger people in Fenland.

Councillor Booth stated that with regards to concurrent function grants and street lights there was a commitment from the previous Leader, he asked how this situation will be progressed. Councillor Clark confirmed that he is happy to make an arrangement to meet to work towards a satisfactory outcome for all. Councillor Booth thanked Councillor Clark.

Councillor Booth informed members that he read an article which reported that public services have a tendency to hide complaints and stated that this Council do not look at complaints or analyse the issues raised in enough detail. He asked how the Leader will take this issue forward. Councillor Clark confirmed that he is happy to look into this. He stated that as a Council we have a 3C's complaints procedure and as an open and transparent Council he is keen that this system is working well too.

Councillor Farmer stated that previously complaints to the Council were copied to Ward Councillors, however this was stopped as so much information had to be removed due to data protection that the information left to circulate was of no use. He asked the Leader to look at this again to see how this process might be improved. Councillor Clark stated that this was something that he had not been aware of, but agreed to look into it.

Councillor Owen referring to complaints stated that if Councillors are going to get complaints circulated with no details due to data protection there is no point in receiving them, they are of no use like that and that is the reason they were stopped. Councillor Clark agreed to look into the issue.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor offered congratulations to the new Leader from herself and Councillor Bucknor stating that she is delighted to read that you are committed to ensuring that the Council's actions open are and transparent and that all members are kept fully informed. She added that with this in mind she would like to call for an enquiry through Overview and Scrutiny with regards to the Wisbech Court House. She stated that she has asked a number of questions from the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) via a Freedom of Information request, and is still awaiting their response, and believes that our MP is also seeking answers.  No one can have any doubt that the MOJ's decision to sell this building for £150,000 when they had the opportunity to test the market by taking it to auction is questionable. This is not a shed on an allotment, this is a major imposing building in the heart of Wisbech - yet another asset scrubbed from our history. We need full and transparent information about the decisions made by Councillors during the lead up to this decision by closed Cabinet and also further detailed information from the MOJ. Questions must be asked by this Council to the MOJ on many issues including why they did not consult with Wisbech Town Council and why they just appeared to accept one offer from one party. She added that she hoped that the Leader will support this proposal to establish a cross-party enquiry through Overview and Scrutiny. Councillor Clark confirmed that he shared Councillor Mrs Bucknor's concerns and that he has already asked for a full briefing from officers. He stated that he would not fully commit that this proposal goes to the Overview and Scrutiny, but would not rule it out either. He added that he is aware that Steve Barclay is involved and agreed that this issue needs looking at in full detail and agreed to take which ever route was needed to getting it resolved. Councillor Mrs Bucknor thanked Councillor Clark stating that she welcomed this approach moving forward adding that she hoped the Leader would strongly consider a review by Overview and Scrutiny in the future.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that Councillors have criticised Councillor Bucknor and herself for stating that 'Wisbech gets the crumbs from the table', but asked if there is anyone here who disagrees with the following statement:

'It is illogical for the wealthiest areas of the county to keep being the ones getting the most funding. There does appear to be a big discrepancy'.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that we did not say this, it was written by our MP this week following the announcement by the LEP as to where the millions of pounds of funding was going to go within Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. No larger scale investment funding is coming to this area yet again but Cambridge has now secured a £1 billion city deal and there will be:

• Improvements to the A14 to which we're contributing;


• A new railway station at Cambridge Science Park;


• A guided bus between Huntingdon and Cambridge;


• Redevelopment of Alconbury for new businesses;


• The agri-tech centre at Soham;


• And the local enterprise Partnership appears to also favour Soham for a new rail station ahead of Wisbech.

She asked who is the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) representative now and what are they doing about these appalling funding decisions. Councillor Clark confirmed that he would be working with Steve Barclay on these issues, he stated that Soham's bid for a new rail station was successful and this Council was not, you have heard the previous Leader say that the rail station for Wisbech is on the agenda and I can confirm that at Cambridgeshire County Council we are pushing forward with the plan as it makes Wisbech commutable to Cambridge. He confirmed that the bridge is going ahead and that the Council is committed to that bridge. He informed members that he will be on the LEP board and will attend meetings. Councillor Melton confirmed that 2 representatives from district Councils are elected to the board, but there was a concern about the lack of democratic input so recently a Leaders Board was set up.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that 2 years ago she raised the issue of thousands of pounds being given for travel expenses to people representing this Council - who were not necessarily even Councillors - who provided no information on the results of meetings they attended for this Council. Through an Overview and Scrutiny sub group of three members, we made recommendations to Cabinet, the 73 bodies have now been reduced and it has been agreed that a brief report by attendees will be provided to this Council. It was also agreed that representatives on these outside bodies, representing this Council, should be Councillors. This should have been a simple straight forward correction of poor practice but it has taken 2 years. She asked are Council representatives on these outside bodies just going to be picked by Cabinet and have those people who are not Councillors been advised of these changes. Councillor Clark confirmed that this is now being led by Councillor Cornwell and stated that we are getting very close to agreeing the details, and letters are being prepared.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that she had asked about the Chapel in Mount Pleasant Road and Councillor Murphy advised that they were looking at it, she added that she and Councillor Bucknor look at the chapel regularly as it is in their ward and asked Councillor Murphy what is being looked at. She also asked that local Councillors are involved in this now and not further along the road as we do not want what happened to the Court House to happen to this potential asset in our ward. Councillor Murphy stated that we are still looking at the issues with regards to the chapel, he agreed to update Councillor Mrs Bucknor and to consult with her when he has any more information.

Councillor Archer congratulated the new Leader on his appointment stating that he has a very difficult job ahead of him and offered to support him when he can. Councillor Clark thanked Councillor Archer stating that he appreciates the offer of help from an opposition member.

Councillor Mrs French stated that pictures have been circulated of the signage at the Hudson and asked what has happened with regards to the George Campbell and the Manor Leisure Centres. Councillor Tanfield agreed to investigate and update members.

Councillor Mrs French stated that she had asked about war memorials with regards to the 100th anniversary of the start of the first world war and asked for an update. Councillor Clark agreed to investigate and feedback to Councillor Mrs French.

Councillor Mrs French stated that the Peas Hill Play Area has been updated with new play equipment and local people are pleased with the results, however there are no litter bins. Councillor Murphy confirmed that Roddons are responsible for this site and agreed to contact them and feedback to Councillor Mrs French.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that following the lively debate at the last Council meeting it was unanimously agreed by us all that the original names should be displayed on the outside of all the leisure centre buildings. She stated that despite writing on several occasions for updates regarding what was happening with the Hudson signage she was given little information. She said she was totally unaware that the new sign had even been installed but a very angry resident took a picture of the new signage and wrote to her with his concerns. She stated that the signage was removed without consultation and replaced without any consultation and that the result was that she was telephoned and emailed by many people who could not believe what had been done, and residents assumed that at least she had been consulted and had agreed to this. She added that when she wrote to an officer about the resident's concerns he then advised her at length of all the options that could have been done to consult, and asked if the new Cabinet member responsible could comment on this.

Councillor Booth stated that there had been an introduction of a newsletter for environmental services and that villages appear to be just a bolt-on to these, he asked if more commitment can be made to what is being done with the villages. Councillor Murphy agreed.

Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that she was advised when she requested a litter bin that there were no more due to budgets and asked what the situation is now. Councillor Murphy confirmed that the new budget is available from this month and stated that there may now be some available, he also informed Councillor Mrs Bucknor that there are some second hand ones available too.

Councillor Booth stated that Neighbourhood Planning provides support to Parish Councils with regards to neighbourhood plans but the cost is prohibitive. Councillor Sutton agreed to have a look within the financial constraints, but confirmed that he cannot commit regarding finance, he agreed to discuss this further with the portfolio holder. Councillor Mrs French stated that March Town Council are paying for this themselves as they received some grant funding, she confirmed that FDC have not committed any funding. Councillor Booth stated that funding grants were only available until April and suggested that other councils might not be lucky enough to get any help.

Members considered the Membership of Committees and Panels report presented by Councillor Clark.

Members asked questions, made comments and received responses as follows:

• Councillor Mrs Bucknor stated that she has been a member of the Licensing Committee for 3 years, and has undertaken all the training that requires her to serve on the panels for hearings but has been asked to serve just 5 times. Councillor Clark agreed to investigate;


• Councillor Booth questioned the numbers in the report stating the report says that there are 33 conservative members and asked for confirmation that Councillor Farmer is a member of the conservative group as that effects the overall numbers. Councillor Farmer stated that his understanding of the situation is that if he is independent he is not entitled to sit on a committee unless he joins another Independent group and that as an unaligned member he is entitled to nothing. Councillor Clark stated that there is a misunderstanding on this item and suggested that Councillor Farmer gets together to discuss this with opposition members.

The adoption of the schedule of appointments and political allocations set out in the report were proposed by Councillor Melton, seconded by Councillor Owen and agreed by members.

Members considered the Community Governance Review Report presented by Councillor Clark.

Members asked questions, made comments and received responses as follows:

• Councillor Farmer asked for reassurance that the Community Governance Review was not going to create small and unviable parish wards. Councillor Clark confirmed that this report states that the draft proposals will be subject to a second period of public consultation if it is agreed today;


• Councillor Booth stated that when members were looking at the proposals previously, we recognised the issues that have come out of the review.

It was proposed by Councillor Seaton, seconded by Councillor Mrs Mayor and agreed for Council to approve the initial CGR proposals for public consultations which are:

• The parish boundary between Chatteris and Manea to be amended to follow the new 2015 district ward boundary;


• The new parish wards in Chatteris be amended to reflect the new district ward boundaries across the town;


• The new parish wards in Whittlesey be amended to reflect the new district boundaries across the town;


• For the number of parish Councillors to represent Whittlesey (14), Chatteris (12) and Manea (9) to remain the same as at present.

Members considered the Fenland Local Plan (Formerly known as Fenland Core Strategy) - Version for Adoption, presented by Councillor Murphy who stated the following:

It gives me great pleasure in bringing this item to Council today following Cabinet approval on 24 April.

I am delighted to confirm that our Core Strategy (or Fenland Local Plan as it is proposed to be known) has been given the stamp of approval by a government appointed inspector. This is no mean feat as:

• half the country have not even got to the inspection stage with their plan, and of those that have, half have failed the inspection process;


• if we look at the Cambridgeshire Districts we are the first to get our plan approved by an inspector since the government shake-up of the planning system in 2012.

You will recall the complex process and various steps involved to get to this important stage:

• Starting in March 2011 with Cabinet agreeing a new approach to plan making in Fenland;


• In June 2011 a draft of the plan was issued for consultation in July - September 2011;


• Following publication of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) in March 2012 Cabinet agreed in June 2012 to a slightly modified plan;


• The consultation period was held in July - September 2012;


• The 'proposed submission' version was consulted upon in February - March 2013;


• Following consideration by members a 'proposed submission addendum' was consulted on during June - August 2013;


• Comments received on both these versions were forwarded to the inspector along with a 'submission' version of the plan in September 2013;


• The inspector examined the plan, including a public hearing between 9-13 December 2013;


• The Council received the Inspectors report on 9 April 2014.

I am delighted to say that not only has the inspector approved our plan, she has also not required the Council to make any changes to the plan other than those we agreed with her as part of the inspection process.

This is a huge vote of confidence in favour of all those who helped in the preparation of the plan, including the residents and businesses who fed in their views. Without their help we would not be where we are today.

As colleagues are well aware this plan:

• Sets the framework for the growth of our district for the next 20 years;


• Provides opportunities for businesses to grow and prosper, bringing more jobs to Fenland;


• Brings much needed new homes, including affordable homes;


• Ensures we get all the necessary infrastructure to compliment growth;

So, overall this is fantastic news for Fenland.

This is a plan prepared by Fenland, for Fenland and approved by Government. Therefore I commend the plan to Council and recommend that it is adopted.

Finally I would like to pay tribute to Alan Melton's original vision for this plan, and offer my thanks to Gary Garford, Richard Kay and their team along with many other staff across the Council involved, for their commitment and dedication shown in delivering this important local plan that will truly shape the district of Fenland for years to come.

Members asked questions, made comments and received responses as follows:

• Councillor Booth stated that he recognises the work that has gone into this and understands the rationale behind the name change, but asked how we will make this clear to residents. He added that the first page includes the details of the Leader, and without disrespecting Councillor Melton and clearly needing to recognise the amount of work that he has contributed, the new Leader's details will need to be included in this part of the document. He stated that he still objects to LP3 and LP12 and has talked at length with regards to these points.


• Councillor Yeulett stated that he seconds this proposal, adding that the amount of flexibility we will have in this local plan is very important as it will be imperative that we are able to review aspects of the plan in the long term.


• Councillor Booth stated that part of the delivery of the infrastructure will include the use of Community infrastructure Levy's (CILs), this was discussed a number of years ago but there is still no policy in place, he asked what the situation is currently. Councillor Yeulett stated that he had a meeting with regards to this the day before, and that it will fall as his responsibility moving forward. Councillor Murphy stated that he had asked about CIL recently at a seminar and was told that of all the councils in the country only 22 had applied. He added that CIL is not the 'be all and end all' and not a big deal, we have until March 2015;


• Councillor Booth asked if we have not applied by March 2015 will we have lost the opportunity. Councillor Murphy confirmed that currently the regulations change in respect of the current Section 106 arrangements on that date, however it does not preclude adoption of CIL post that date. There are in fact many more Councils that will not have taken it up by then as they are yet to adopt a Core Strategy. The Government is aware of this situation and may in due course review the CIL implimentation date;


• Councillor Humphrey stated that on page 85, List of Policies, LP12 does not appear, but LP11 appears twice. Officers confirmed this would be amended;

It was proposed by Councillor Archer, seconded by Councillor Yeulett and agreed to:

• Rename the Fenland Core Strategy as the Fenland Local Plan;


• Note at Appendix A, the conclusions of the independent Inspector and accept all the recommendations she makes;


• Adopt the Local Plan (Appendix B), which incorporates (a) all the 'main modifications' (listed at Appendix C) as recommended by the inspector and (b) all the 'additional (minor) modifications' as listed as Appendix D;


• Adopt the Policies Map as set out at Appendix E (available on the website and as a hard copy at the meeting only);


• Revoke a wide range of current planning policy as set out at section 7.1 of the Local Plan.

Members considered the Rate Relief Policy - Amendment Report presented by Councillor Seaton.

Councillor Booth stated that there had previously been some errors in the figures included in this report and asked for assurance that they had been corrected. Councillor Seaton confirmed that they had all been corrected.

It was proposed by Councillor Booth, seconded by Councillor Archer and agreed to accept the recomendation of Cabinet at its meeting of 24 April 2014 that:

• That the Council's Rate Relief Policy - Amendment is approved.