Decisions

By nine votes to nil (with one abstention), the Planning Committee gave officers delegate authority to negotiate, secure and complete, upon terms considered appropriate, the framework agreement under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

(Councillors Henry Batchelor, John Batchelor, Bradnam, Fane, Milnes, Roberts, Topping, Heather Williams and Wright voted in favour. Councillor Rippeth abstained.)

All planning applications for Caldecote considered by the Planning Committee since May 2003. For individual reports, please click on the ‘Meetings’ tab above. For further details on all Caldecote planning applications, please visit our Planning Applications Database and select Caldecote from the drop-down list of parishes.

On the Chairman’s casting vote, Planning Committee gave officers delegated powers to approve the application subject to

-          The review and amendment of Condition a) drawing numbers to include latest plans approved by the Local Highways Authority.

-          The review and amendment of Condition c) to include the trigger ‘prior to the construction’ of the pumping station.

-          Inclusion of a Condition requiring the retention of the hedgerow along the Highfields Road.

-          Final wording of all Conditions being reviewed and agreed by officers in consultation with the Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the meeting prior to a Decision Notice being issued.

(Councillors John Batchelor, Fane, Milnes, Rippeth and Wright voted to approve the application. Councillors Henry Batchelor, Bradnam, Roberts, Topping and Heather Williams voted to refuse it. Councillor John Batchelor cast his second vote in favour of the application.)

On 3 April 2019 Cabinet made the decision to discontinue the Elite Athlete Award Scheme (EAAS), and for this funding to be allocated to existing grant schemes, as advised by Grants Advisory Committee (GAC).

The GAC met on 27 September 2019 and recommended the following to the Lead Cabinet Member for Finance:

(a)  Existing funding from the Elite Athletes Award Scheme be transferred to the Community Chest Grant, namely for 2018/19 and 2019/20 holding a value of £20,000, and a decision on the permanent allocation of this fund, be made before the end of the financial year.

(b)  6-monthly reporting by funded organisations of the Service Support Grants Programme be limited to; organisations that are funded in excess of £15,000 per year, or by request of the GAC.

To accept the recommendations of the Grants Advisory Committee (see above).

The purpose of this decision is to appoint Councillor Peter McDonald as the Council’s Business Champion.

To appoint Councillor Peter McDonald as the Council’s Business Champion.

On 27 September the Grants Advisory Committee reviewed all new applications received between 1 and 31 August 2019.

Following consideration of the applications, the Committee made the following recommendations to the Finance Portfolio Holder:

To accept the recommendations of the Grants Advisory Committee (see above).

To receive the General Fund Budget Outturn for the financial year 2018/19.

Cabinet

(a)          Acknowledged the 2018/2019 General Fund revenue outturn position and the net overspend on day to day services in the year of £0.541 million and the explanations provided for the variances compared to the approved 2018/2019 revenue budget;

(b)          Acknowledged the additional surplus primarily from Business Rates and related Grants of £6.519 million and how this has occurred;

(c)          Acknowledged the consequent increase in the General Fund Balance as at 31 March 2019 of £5.978 million to £17.446 million;

(d)          Recommended to Council that the Business Efficiency Reserve be re-designated to the Transformation Reserve and that the sum of £3 million be appropriated from unallocated General Fund Reserve to enable the service transformation and organisational change programme to be resourced, noting that the General Fund unallocated reserve would then be £14.446 million;

(e)          Recommended to Council the General Fund Revenue Carry Forwards in the sum of £1.227 million as outlined in Appendix A;

(f)           In relation to the Capital Programme:

(i)            Noted the 2018/2019 capital budget outturn of £27,190 million;

(ii)          Recommended to Council the carry forwards of £6.464 million in relation to General Fund capital projects due mainly to slippage as outlined in the report;

(iii)         Noted that a full review of the Capital Programme will be submitted to Cabinet at its November 2019 meeting to include re-phasing of the existing programme and new Capital bids for the next budget cycle.

Consideration of the outcome of public consultation, possible modifications and SPD adoption. 

Cabinet:

(a)  considered the main issues raised in the public consultation, and the comments of Scrutiny and Overview Committee;

(b)  agreed responses to the representations received and agreed consequential proposed changes to the SPD as set out in the Consultation Statement and Schedule of SPD Changes (attached as Appendices A and B to the report from the Joint Director of Planning and Economic Development);

(c)   subject to (a), adopted the amended Bourn Airfield New Village SPD; and

(d)  delegated to the Joint Director of Planning and Economic Development in liaison with the Deputy Leader, the authority to make any necessary editing changes to the SPD prior to publication including to the figures and spatial framework diagram to ensure consistency with the agreed text of the SPD.

Cabinet:

a.    appointed Councillors Peter McDonald (Liberal Democrat). Peter Topping (Conservative) and Aidan Van de Weyer (Liberal Democrat) to the A505 Royston to Granta Park Strategic Growth and Transport Study Member Steering Group and:

b.    appointed Councillors Henry Batchelor and Brian Milnes (both Liberal Democrats) as substitutes;

c.    at Councillor Peter Topping’s request, declined to appoint a Conservative substitute; and

d.    requested that officers ask Cambridgeshire County Council whether meetings of the Steering Group would be held in public.

To consider amendments to the Investment Strategy.

Cabinet recommended to Full Council:

(a)          The updated Investment Strategy attached at Appendix A to the report from the Interim Director of Finance, which includes

(i)            a range of investment indicators to comply with the Statutory Guidance on Local Government Investments and

(ii)           the governance arrangements that enable the Council to seek approval for priority investments in a timely manner in response to market conditions.

(b)          The consequent changes to the Scheme of Delegation to enable the Head of Commercial Development & Investment to progress investment opportunities, including due diligence checks, and to authorise the Section 151 Officer to submit non-binding offers in line with market practice.

To consider the adoption of a Corporate Asset Plan for non-Housing Revenue Account Assets..

Cabinet approved and adopted the Corporate Asset Plan 2020-2024 attached as Appendix A attached to the report from the Interim Director of Finance.

To receive the HRA Outturn for the financial year 2018/19.

Cabinet

(a)          Acknowledged the 2018/2019 revenue outturn position and the net underspend in the year of £2.042 million, and the explanations provided for the variances compared to the approved 2018/2019 revenue budget;

(b)          Acknowledged the consequent increase in the Housing Revenue Account balance as at 31 March 2019 of £1.051million to £11.148 million;

(c)          Recommended to Council the Housing Revenue Account Revenue Budget Carry Forwards in the sum of £0.739 million, identified at Appendix A;

(d)          In relation to the Capital Programme:

(i)            Noted the 2018/2019 capital budget outturn of £15,625 million;

(ii)          Recommended to Council the carry forwards of £1.124 million in relation to HRA capital projects due mainly to slippage.

(iii)         Noted that a full review of the Capital Programme will be submitted to Cabinet at its November 2019 meeting to include re-phasing of the existing programme and new Capital bids for the next budget cycle.

Council AGREED the following motion:

Onshore wind is the cheapest new source of energy in the UK today - and the UK is the windiest country in Europe. New government policy is now needed to realise these benefits. Onshore wind can play a key role in an ambitious industrial strategy delivering clean, cheap and smart energy. Furthermore, onshore wind energy is vital to our aim of achieving 2050 net zero greenhouse gas emissions. Government statistics show that 79% of people now support onshore wind - fifteen times the proportion opposed. This Council resolves to make representations to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government to request that the National Planning Policy Framework is amended so that applications for small-scale onshore wind developments in England of no more than five megawatts are treated in the same way as any other application for renewable and low carbon energy.

The following motion was LOST:

This Council notes with some concern the five year land supply and housing trajectory calculations as they apply to South Cambridgeshire District Council that have been approved by one member of the administration, outside of any council meeting, or meeting to which councillors could have been invited to be briefed.

In particular, the Council notes that the five year land supply is now calculated to be 5.3, down from six, according to the Council’s own report published on 6 November.

The Council considers the proposed consultation on this issue – which is to send comments by email to the Director of Planning for the Council - to be insufficient in terms of challenge and discussion by elected members, given how important this issue is to all of our villages and towns and their residents, who are rightly concerned with the impact of speculative development.

Therefore, this Council calls on the Lead Members for Housing and Planning to offer to, and attend with, members of this Council, a meeting and full briefing on the issue, to be arranged during the month of October. The purpose of the meeting would be to provide transparency on how the calculations have been arrived at, and to enable discussion, testing and challenge of matters such as the confidence rating attached to specific parts of the overall assessment.

The following motion was LOST:

With an external company now being involved in duties normally performed by officers of the Council’s planning department, the Council requests Cabinet  to ensure true transparency by making it clear to applicants, agents, residents, parish councils and local members when a Terraquest employee/contractor is involved in an application and the extent of their involvement in the application.

The following motion was LOST:

That this Council requests Cabinet to publish a table on its website each month including the following:

·         The number of planning applications received during the previous month.

·         The total number of live applications remaining at the end of the previous month

·         The average validation time that month

·         The average determination time that month

·         The average time for a decision notice that month

·         The date of submission of the oldest live planning application held by the Council.

These figures should set out a breakdown of minor, major applications, pre-applications, decision notices, discharge of conditions, reserved matters.

Council

(1)  NOTED and ENDORSED the following changes in Committee membership and substitute appointments:

(a)  Scrutiny and Overview Committee:

(i)    Councillor Gavin Clayton replaced by Councillor Nigel Cathcart

as a member of the committee; and

(b)  Cambridge Fringes Joint Development Control Committee:

(i)    Councillor Sarah Cheung Johnson replaced by Councillor Dr. Claire Daunton as a substitute for this Committee.

(c)  Audit and Corporate Governance Committee:

(i)    Councillor Mark Howell replaced by Councillor Peter Topping as a member of the Committee.

(d)  Planning Committee:

(i)    Councillor Bill  Handley replaced by Councillor Anna Bradnam as a member of the Committee; and

(ii)   Councillor Anna Bradnam replaced by Dr. Claire Daunton as a substitute member of the Committee.

(e)  Licensing Committee:

(i)    Councillor Bill Handley replaced by Councillor Alex Malyon as a member of the Committee; and

(ii)   Councillor Alex Malyon replaced by Councillor Bill Handley as a substitute member of the Committee.

(2)  NOTED that three Committees had been set up by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority and the Leader had appointed the following members:

(a)  Skills Committee – Councillor Eileen Wilson, with Councillor Neil Gough as substitute; and

(b)  Transport and Infrastructure Committee – Councillor Dr. Aidan Van de Weyer, with Councillor Neil Gough as substitute; and

(c)  Housing and Communities Committee – Councillor Bridget Smith, with Councillor Hazel Smith as substitute.

Council

AGREED