RSVP to Kathryn Hawkes, Partnerships Officer, by Friday 30 October 2009. 

Please note that the South Cambridgeshire Traffic Management Area Joint Committee scheduled for 2pm, Monday 12 October, has been cancelled. 

To see attached flier for the Cam-mind Football Tournament to be held at Cambridge City Football Club on Sunday 11 October, commencing 1:30pm. 

The Community Transport plan is available for consultation until 5pm on 18 December 2009 and we would welcome your views. Please click on the attached link to find the draft plan and consultation document.

http://www.scambs.gov.uk/CommunityandLiving/LocalStrategicPartnership/communitytransport.htm

Kathryn Hawkes
Partnerships Officer

Tel: 01954 713290
Email: kathryn.hawkes@scambs.gov.uk  

DATE FOR YOUR DIARIES!

BRIEFING ON REGIONAL AND PARTNERSHIP WORKING

Don't know your EERA from your EEDA? All this talk of the LSP leaving you lost? Well, come along and get the answers at a briefing session on MONDAY 23 NOVEMBER between 10am-3pm (exact times to be agreed). We're lining up a list of high-profile speakers to talk about the work of their organisations, and how this work is relevant to this Council and to the communities you represent as Councillors. Already, the following speakers have confirmed:

• Cecilia Tredget, Director, Improvement East
• Mike Barnes, Board Lead for Cambs and Peterborough, Government Office for the East of England
• Rachel Bosworth, Deputy Chief Executive, East of England Development Agency
• Stephen Moir, Corporate Director: People, Policy and Law, Cambridgeshire County Council.

Watch this space, as well as your pigeonholes and the Members' Lounge, for further details about the day.

Many thanks

Richard

The Rural Services Network is a group of over 250 service providers and local authorities working to establish best practice across the spectrum of rural service provision. The network has representation across the complete range of rural services.  For general comments or enquiries, email: editor@ruralcity.co.uk 

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To view the list of planning applications submitted in the past seven days, please visit the Council’s on-line Planning Application Search.  Once the page has loaded, select the relevant parish from the drop-down list, set the date period to ‘7 days’ and click the Search button or click the Advanced button, select a ward from the drop-down list, then set the date period to ‘7 days’ and click the Search button.

The system will provide a range of information on current and decided applications since 1948, including a brief description of the development, reference number, decision and the date of decision.  More recent applications show the name and telephone number of the council officer who is dealing with the application.

Search results are presented in a collection of pages, the number of which depends on the number of results your search produces.  Each page displays 30 results and there are navigation tools to allow you to browse these results.

In accordance with the Access to Information Procedure Rules in Part 4 of the Council’s Constitution, any executive decision shall be published normally within five days of being made.  That record will bear the date on which it is published and will specify that the decision will come into force, and may then be implemented, on the expiry of 5 working days after the publication of the decision, unless called in for review by the Chairman of the Scrutiny and Overview Committee or by any five other councillors.

A list of decisions currently within the call-in period is available on the Council’s website.

Unless otherwise specified, the Democratic Services Manager must be notified of any call in by Wednesday 14 October 2009 at 5 pm. All decisions not called in by this date may be implemented on Thursday 15 October 2009.

Any member considering calling in a decision is requested to contact the Democratic Services Section to determine whether any relevant amendments have been incorporated.

The call in procedure is set out in full in Part 4 of the Council’s Constitution, ‘Scrutiny and Overview Committee Procedure Rules’. 

The New Communities Portfolio Holder AGREED the following documents for public consultation: 

• Draft Affordable Housing Supplementary Planning Document
• Draft District Design Guide: High Quality and Sustainable Development in South Cambridgeshire Supplementary Planning Document
• Draft Landscape in New Developments Supplementary Planning Document

authority being given to the Corporate Manager (Planning and Sustainable Communities)  to make minor amendments, as required.

Decision taken 1 October 2009 and published 2 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 9 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 12 October 2009 if not called-in. 

The Portfolio Holder AGREED the Rural Settlement list for 2010/11 as follows:

Decision taken and published on 6 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 13 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 14 October 2009 if not called-in.

The Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder APPROVED the drawing of £3,900 from Precautionary Items to meet the associated costs of the Balsham by-election held on 4 June 2009.  

Decision taken and published on 6 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 13 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 14 October 2009 if not called-in.

The New Communities Portfolio Holder AGREED, for public consultation, the draft Statement of Community Involvement, authority being given to the Corporate Manager (Planning and Sustainable Communities) to make minor amendment, where necessary.

Decision taken 1 October 2009 and published 2 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 9 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 12 October 2009 if not called-in. 

The Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder AGREED to the implementation of a 1% increase to conclude the 2009 pay negotiations, and to backdate the award to 1^st April 2009.

Decision taken and published on 6 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 13 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 14 October 2009 if not called-in.

The Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder AGREED, subject to agreement from the unions:

1. the proposed amendments to the relocation policy and procedure;

2. an uplift in the total amount to £7,000.

Decision taken and published on 6 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 13 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 14 October 2009 if not called-in.

The Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder APPROVED the introduction of a ‘refresher’ search at a fee of £45.

Decision taken and published on 6 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 13 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 14 October 2009 if not called-in. 

The New Communities Portfolio Holder agreed that South Cambridgeshire District Council should respond to St. Ednondsbury Borough Council’s Core Strategy Draft Submission Document in the following terms:

1.    Object to Policy CS6

East of England Plan Policy H3 Provision for Gypsies and Travellers requires the provision of a minimum of 20 additional pitches in St Edmundsbury between 2006 and 2011.  The supporting text to Policy CS6 only refers to making provision for up to 20 pitches by 2011.  The wording up to 20 pitches restricts provision to no more than 20 pitches.  This is not consistent with Policy H3, which requires local authorities to provide at least 1,247 net additional residential pitches by 2011 to provide for the existing backlog.  The text at paragraph 4.77 should therefore be amended to be consistent with the requirements in Policy H3. 

East of England Plan Policy H3 also requires appropriate provision of pitches to continue beyond 2011, in order to accommodate household growth.  This is addressed through the requirement for a 3% compound annual growth rate following regional pitch distribution.  This creates an additional requirement for 17 pitches for the period 2011 to 2021.  The supporting text to Policy CS6 makes no provision for pitches beyond 2011, and should therefore be amended to be consistent with the requirements in Policy H3. 

Policy H3 requires local authorities to work together to establish a network of Transit pitches, requiring 160 pitches across the region by 2011; the location and size of sites should be defined following local studies.  Suffolk is required to provide 20 additional pitches; provision should include the Ipswich / Felixstowe area.  The supporting text to Policy CS6 makes no reference to Transit sites other than these will be identified through Area Action Plans and the Rural Site Allocations DPD.  This does not conform to Policy H3, which requires local studies to determine the location and size of sites.  The supporting text should therefore be amended to recognise this and demonstrate how the distribution of these sites will be addressed and delivered.

Policy H4 Provision for Travelling Showpeople requires 184 net additional plots for Travelling Showpeople by 2011, together with a compound increase of 1.5% between 2011 and 2021.  Suffolk is required to provide 9 additional plots to 2011 in Suffolk Coastal and elsewhere, and 4 plots between 2011 and 2021.  The Core Strategy makes no reference to the level of need that should provided for, or how this need will be addressed across the county, and should be amended accordingly.

In the same way that the district’s housing requirement is addressed in Policy CS1, provision for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople should be addressed within policy and not in the supporting text.  Whilst it is recognised that the actual provision for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople will be addressed through the Area Action Plans and Rural Site Allocations DPD, there should be an overarching policy in the Core Strategy setting out the numbers to be provided during the plan period.

As drafted, the Core Strategy is not legally compliant, as it does not conform to the Regional Spatial Strategy. 

The Core Strategy is not justified – it does not provide the most appropriate strategy when considered against all reasonable alternatives.  It should make adequate provision for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation to ensure their needs, as identified through the Regional Spatial Strategy, can be met.

2.    Support Vision for Haverhill

Support for the Vision for the regeneration of Haverhill and the aim for making it a more attractive centre and reducing the need for out-commuting.  In particular, support the development of sustainable transport solutions to mitigate the difficulties of accessing the strategic road network along the A1307.  This should address the existing capacity and safety issues along the A1307 between Haverhill and Cambridge.

3.    Support Policy CS1 – St Edmundsbury Spatial Strategy

Support for the development strategy focussing development on the more sustainable, larger service centres where there is greater scope to provide a range of facilities and services to meet local needs, reduce the need to travel, and where possible maximise opportunities for travel by non-car modes.  However, this needs to be balanced with opportunities for maximising the reuse of suitable brownfield land and known infrastructure issues. In particular, the Core Strategy will need to be able to demonstrate the deliverability of housing at Bury St Edmunds in the longer term, which may be constrained due to capacity constraints relating to the A14.

4.    Support Policy CS8 – Strategic Transport Improvements

Support the intention to work with partners to secure the necessary infrastructure improvements, particularly to address the safety issues along the A1307 between Haverhill and Cambridge, and would urge partnership working with Cambridgeshire County Council, South Cambridgeshire District Council, and local Parish Councils. 

Decision taken 1 October 2009 and published 2 October 2009.  Call-in expires at 5 pm on 9 October 2009 and decision can be implemented from 12 October 2009 if not called-in. 

Decisions

·                      Cambridge City Fringes Joint Committee 29 September 2009

·                      Election of Chairman

·                      Appointment of Vice-Chairman

·                      Joint Plan-Making Arrangements

·                      Planning and New Communities Portfolio Holders’ Joint meeting 1 October 2009:

·                      Affordable Housing Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)

·                      Landscape Guidance for Development Sites Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)

·                      Local Development Framework (LDF) Statement of Community Involvement

·                      St Edmundsbury Borough Council Local Development Framework: Core Strategy Draft Submission Document, Development Management Preferred Options, and Site Allocations Issues and Options

·                      South Cambridgeshire Design Manual / Guide: Streetscape Design in New Developments Supplementary Planning Document (SPD)

·                      Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder’s meeting 6 October 2009:

·                      Agreement of List of Rural Settlements for Business Rates Purposes 2010/11

·                      Balsham By-election 4 June 2009: Precautionary Items

·                      Pay Award 2009/10

·                      Relocation Assistance Policy

·                      Review of Fees and Charges: Land Charges

·                      Scrutiny and Overview Committee 1 October 2009

Issues

·                      NI179 (formerly Annual Efficiency Statement) 2009/10 Forecast

Meetings

·                      Finance and Staffing Portfolio Holder’s meetings.  This list replaces any previously published dates.  Note, all meetings will start at 6pm and be held at South Cambridgeshire Hall.

·         Wednesday 18 November 2009

·         Wednesday 16 December 2009

·         Wednesday 20 January 2010

·         Wednesday 17 February 2010

·         Wednesday 17 March 2010

·         Wednesday 14 April 2010.

Leaver

Denise Lewis, Head of Strategic Housing Services, Acting Corporate Manager, Community and Customer Services and Project Manager, Housing Futures, will be leaving on 31 October 2009.