Agenda item

Corporate Plan 2018 - 2019

 

Cabinet

 

RECOMMENDED  THAT COUNCIL

 

(a)  Approve the Corporate Plan, comprising the document ‘South Cambridgeshire: Your Place, Our Plan 2018 -2019’ (Appendix A) and accompanying 2018/2019 Delivery Plan (Appendix B), subject to amendment of text relating to engagement with existing and new communities (Aim B (2)) to reflect feedback from Scrutiny and Overview Committee.

 

(b)  Authorise the Chief Executive, in consultation with Portfolio Holders, to prepare detailed implementation plans and associated performance measures and ensure these are reflected in directorate service plans and quarterly Position Reports during 2018/19; and

(c)  Authorise the Chief Executive to make any minor wording changes required before publication, in consultation with the Leader of the Council.

 

 

(Note: The amendments have been incorporated in the updated Corporate Plan and Delivery Plan attached)

 

Decision:

Council

 

AGREED       

 

(1)  To approve the Corporate Plan, comprising the document ‘South Cambridgeshire: Your Place, Our Plan 2018 – 2019’ (Appendix A) and accompanying 2018 – 2019 Delivery Plan (Appendix B), incorporating feedback from Scrutiny and Overview Committee.

 

(2)  To authorise the Chief Executive, in consultation with Portfolio Holders, to prepare detailed implementation plans and associated performance measures and ensure these are reflected in directorate service plans and quarterly Position Reports during 2018 – 19.

 

(3)  To authorise the Chief Executive to make any minor wording changes required before publication, in consultation with the Leader of the Council.

Minutes:

Councillor Nick Wright, the Business and Customer Services Portfolio Holder and Deputy Leader, proposed the recommendation from the meeting of the Cabinet held on 7 February 2018, which invited Council to approve the refreshed Corporate Plan, comprising the document “South Cambridgeshire: Your Place, Our Plan 2018-19” (Appendix A) and the Delivery Plan (Appendix B).  Councillor Wright advised that the Corporate Plan was a key element of the Council’s policy framework which articulated the Council’s priorities and actions for the next year and would guide and influence the Council’s resources, plans and services.  He reminded the Council that the plan had been informed by the outcomes of the “Let’s Talk” community engagement programme.  Additionally a Member Task and Finish Group had recently completed a review on how the District Council could assist in the encouragement, development and support of rural businesses across the District.   Many of the themes raised during the community engagement exercise were broadly similar to those included in the current Corporate Plan and appeared to validate the Council’s current aims and policies.  It was therefore proposed to retain the existing priority themes, namely, Living Well, Homes for our Future, Connected Communities and Innovative and Dynamic Organisation. Councillor Wright highlighted key activities achieved over the past two years, together with plans for the next year, in respect of each of those priority themes.

 

Councillor Tony Orgee seconded the recommendation.

 

During discussion:-

 

·         Councillor Bridget Smith was pleased to note that three changes she had suggested at the Cabinet meeting had been incorporated; commented on the improved presentation and more accessible format, but indicated that she would not be voting in support of the plan.

·         Councillor Sebastian Kindersley expressed the view that the apparent limited achievements within the last year perhaps explained why the plan set out achievements over the past two years, but only looked ahead for one year; noted that the snapshot on page 122 stated that 4,600 planning applications had been received in 2017 but did not indicate how many had been approved or refused; was of the view that the Council did not make it easy for businesses to start up; referred to the significant impact of development on rural communities in the District which he suggested did not appear to align with the aspiration in the Vision for “Quality of life in a beautiful and green environment”; and was concerned that the plan did not refer to the position with either the lack of 5 year housing land supply or the Local Plan.

·         Councillor Sue Ellington commented on the simplified format of the Corporate Plan and felt that it clearly presented the range and scope of the Council’s work.  However inclusion of a reference to the achievements in the Health and Wellbeing Portfolio since May 2017, notwithstanding extremely limited resources, would be welcomed.

·         Councillor Tumi Hawkins commented on the simple presentation on pages 122 and 123.  However, supporting Councillor Kindersley’s earlier comments, she referred to the implications of the lack of 5 year housing supply and expressed concerns at the significant scale of the additional development in Caldecote (representing a 40% increase above the existing number of houses), notwithstanding the lack of associated infrastructure; sought clarification on how the Council was supporting the work of Connecting Cambridgeshire to improve broadband coverage and speeds and on what the Council’s role would be in developing a local economic development strategy, as she understood that other partners were doing this work.

·         Councillor Philippa Hart challenged the aspiration in the Vision for South Cambridgeshire to be “the best place to live, work and study”, referring the significant levels of  traffic congestion which she felt would only be exacerbated by further housing development; commented on her understanding that students from lower income backgrounds were put off from applying to study at Hills Road and Long Road Sixth Form Colleges because of the high cost of travel; and referred to a recent report suggesting that train commuters had less space than the legal minimum for transporting livestock.

·         Councillor Nigel Cathcart welcomed some aspects of the Corporate Plan but commented on the apparent lack of a specific reference to conservation.  He was concerned that the uniqueness and individuality of South Cambridgeshire’s rural communities should be maintained and protected and spoke in favour of the development and implementation of conservation area appraisals. Councillor Cathcart also repeated earlier concerns expressed about the lack of a 5 year housing supply.

·         Councillor Peter Topping spoke in support of adoption of the Corporate Plan.  In so doing, he paid tribute to the Councillors of all political groups who had worked hard to make South Cambridgeshire a better place to live, highlighting the contribution made by the Planning and Licensing Committees and the Health and Wellbeing and Rural Businesses Member Task and Finish Groups.

·         Councillor Des O’Brien expressed the view that some villages had been adversely affected by previous decisions and that others would be affected in the future. He highlighted the impact of development proposals for Bourn, Caldecote, Caxton and Knapwell and emphasised the need to address infrastructure issues.

·         Councillor Robert Turner, the Planning Portfolio Holder, noted that some villages had welcomed the development of affordable housing for local residents, but acknowledged some villages, including Cottenham and Swavesey, were affected by development. He commented on the current position with the Local Plan and indicated that officers were doing all in their power to keep it on track and that the plan would be adopted as soon as it was possible to do so. The issue with speculative applications would not have arisen if it had been possible to adopt the Local Plan three years earlier.

·         Councillor Deborah Roberts was concerned that the Corporate Plan did not acknowledge the problems caused by the lack of a 5 year housing supply and  Local Plan and did not reflect the significant impact of speculative planning applications on villages in the District.  She also challenged the Council’s influence on economic development in the District, believing that the growth was down to local businesses themselves.

·         Councillor Tony Orgee, the seconder of the motion, noted that the Corporate Plan referred to achievements of the Council in each of the last two years.  He observed that some achievements, including the development of the first neighbourhood plan, were too recent to have been included in the Corporate Plan.  Additionally he commented on the position with the Local Plan. He was disappointed that some of the negative views expressed had not been raised at the Scrutiny and Overview Committee when there appeared to have been general support for the plan, particularly for the new format.  The diagrammatic presentation of key facts and figures on pages 122 and 123 had been particularly welcomed.

 

Councillor Wright responded to Members’ questions and in particular:-

 

·         Provided further background on the work of the Council in supporting the initiative to improve access to superfast broadband, noting in particular, the significant work of local councillors in feeding back information to Connecting Cambridgeshire.

·         Clarified that the economic development strategy would need to be reviewed when the new Local Plan was adopted.

·         Acknowledged the importance of conservation to the District, which he believed was implicit in the Corporate Plan and advised that conservation area appraisals were already being undertaken.

 

Upon being put to the vote, votes were cast as follows:

 

For (29):

 

Councillors David Bard,  Ruth Betson,  Brian Burling, Tom Bygott, Grenville Chamberlain, Graham Cone, Pippa Corney, Christopher Cross, Kevin Cuffley, Simon Edwards, Sue Ellington, Andrew Fraser, Roger Hall, Lynda Harford, Mark Howell, Caroline Hunt, Ray Manning, David McCraith, Charles Nightingale, Tony Orgee, Alex Riley,  Tim Scott, Ben Shelton, Peter Topping, Richard Turner, Robert Turner, Bunty Waters, Tim Wotherspoon and Nick Wright

 

 

Against (8):

 

Councillors Henry Batchelor, Philippa Hart, Peter Johnson, Sebastian Kindersley, Deborah Roberts, Bridget Smith, Edd Stonham, Aidan Van de Weyer.

 

Abstain (7):

 

Councillors Anna Bradnam, Nigel Cathcart, Tumi Hawkins, Janet Lockwood, Des O’Brien, Hazel Smith, Ingrid Tregoing,

 

 

The Council

 

RESOLVED: 

 

(1)  To approve the Corporate Plan, comprising the document ‘South Cambridgeshire: Your Place, Our Plan 2018 – 2019’ (Appendix A) and accompanying 2018 – 2019 Delivery Plan (Appendix B), incorporating feedback from Scrutiny and Overview Committee.

 

(2)  To authorise the Chief Executive, in consultation with Portfolio Holders, to prepare detailed implementation plans and associated performance measures and ensure these are reflected in directorate service plans and quarterly Position Reports during 2018 – 19.

 

(3)  To authorise the Chief Executive to make any minor wording changes required before publication, in consultation with the Leader of the Council.

Supporting documents: