Agenda and minutes

The minutes of the Executive meeting held on 28 June 2021 were submitted and approved as a correct record.

The Deputy Mayor and Executive Member for Culture and Communities and the Director of Environment and Community Services submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to provide a summary of the priorities within Middlesbrough’s Community Safety Plan 2020-22 (see Appendix 1 of the submitted report) and set out its delivery plan (see Appendix 2).

The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 placed statutory obligations on local authorities and the police to work in partnership with health authorities and other relevant agencies to prevent crime and disorder.

Legislation required the partnership to produce a plan detailing how it intended to tackle crime and disorder and develop strategies to tackle short, medium and long-term priorities.

During 2019/2020 the Community Safety Partnership held a series of multi-agency workshops and three overarching priorities had been identified - Perceptions and Feeling Safe, Tackling the Root Causes and Locality Working (including the town centre).

The objectives in respect of each priority were outlined in the submitted report.

ORDERED

That the annually revised delivery plan aiming to deliver on the priorities within the Community Safety Plan 2020-2022, as agreed by the Community Safety Partnership, be approved.

REASON

It was a statutory requirement for the Local Authority’s Community Safety Partnership to develop and produce a Community Safety Plan under the 1998 Crime and Disorder Act.

The key objectives set out in the plan were based upon assessment of crime and disorder issues across the town and reflected the views of the community and partners.

The Executive Member for Regeneration and the Director of Regeneration and Culture submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to seek approval to adopt the Green and Blue Infrastructure Strategy 2021 - 2037 (GBIS).

The GBIS would be used by the Council to help shape the future of the borough. The GBIS planned to ensure that new and existing communities lived in quality places, accessible to green and blue infrastructure. The strategy would help the Council frame its response to emerging issues, including achieving biodiversity net gain and climate change prevention/mitigation.

In preparing the GBIS, statutory consultees and other key stakeholders, including Councillors, had been consulted and invited to take part in stakeholder workshops. The outcomes of the engagement had been taken into consideration in finalising the GBIS.

The key aspects of the strategy were contained at paragraph 8 of the submitted report.

The GBIS was accompanied with an action plan, which identified a series of 15 objectives from the baseline review and key stakeholder consultation, those were detailed at paragraph 9. In addition, the action plan identified 12 priority opportunities, which were contained at paragraph 10.

The final version of the GBIS had two parts, which were attached at Appendices 1 and 2 of the submitted report.

Following its adoption, it was planned that the GBIS would be used:

·        as part of the evidence base for the Local Plan;

·        as a material consideration in the determination of any future planning applications;

·        to inform the Green Strategy; and

·        to support relevant projects.

OPTIONS

Not to adopt the Green and Blue Infrastructure Strategy 2021-2037 - That would have meant that the Council would not have had a clear strategy for delivering the land-use and spatial aspects of its Green Strategy. It would have been more challenging to deliver green and blue infrastructure, of the right quality, to support future needs.

ORDERED

That the Green and Blue Infrastructure Strategy 2021 - 2037 be adopted.

REASON

The GBIS set out the key land-use and spatial priorities and opportunities to help deliver the Council’s Green Strategy, and ensure that there was sufficient green and blue infrastructure, of the right types, to support the needs of existing and future residents. It would provide the evidence base to support the emerging Local Plan and would become a material consideration in future planning applications.

The Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel had undertaken a review of Community Cohesion and Integration. A copy of the full report was attached.

The scrutiny panel made four recommendations upon which a response was sought from the relevant service area. The Deputy Mayor and Executive Member for Culture and Communities and the Director of Environment and Community Services submitted a service response to the recommendations of the Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel. A copy of the action plan was attached.

The Chair of the Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel presented the final report to the Executive. The Deputy Mayor and Executive Member for Culture and Communities presented the service response.

ORDERED

1.      That the content of the Culture and Communities Scrutiny Panel’s Final Report, on Community Cohesion and Integration, be noted.

2.      That the Action Plan, developed in response to the scrutiny panel’s recommendations, be approved.

REASON

It was a requirement that Executive formally considered the Scrutiny Panel's report and confirmed the Service Area's response to the Panel's accompanying plan.

The Executive Member for Environment and Finance & Governance and the Director Environment and Community Services submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to provide information on the Strategic Priority TOC 04 and request capital funding to enable its delivery.

Further to the successful outcome relating to a number of buildings and key landmarks having external lighting installed during 2020/21, a Strategic Priority had been agreed to undertake a further programme of works during 2021/22. The programme included:

·        Town Hall / Municipal (North) - installation of ground lights;

·        Bell Structure in town centre - ground and spot lights;

·        Dock Clock Tower - installation of new lighting; and

·        additional schemes - to be agreed.

OPTIONS

As it was an agreed Strategic Priority, no other decision was recommended.

ORDERED

That the requested £200,000 funding be approved to allow the Strategic Priority to be actioned.

REASON

To ensure that the agreed Strategic Priority was delivered within the stated timeline.

The Executive Member for Environment and Finance & Governance and the Director of Finance submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to advise of the publication of the new CIPFA Financial Management Code (FM Code), present an initial self-assessment and provide the results of the CIPFA Financial Resilience Index 2021 and a comparison and analysis with other local authorities.

In response to recent concerns (even before COVID-19) around the financial resilience of local authorities, CIPFA had introduced a new FM Code as part of a package of measures that it was putting in place. Those measures had been driven by the exceptional financial circumstances faced by local authorities, having revealed concerns about fundamental weaknesses in financial management. In particular, there had been a small number of high-profile failures across local government, which threatened stakeholders confidence in the sector as a whole.

The CIPFA Financial Management Code (FM Code) was designed to support good practice in financial management and to assist local authorities in demonstrating their financial sustainability.

As a first step towards ensuring that the Council met the FM Code in 2021/22, the Chief Finance Officer had produced a draft Initial Self-Assessment against the FM Code, which was attached at Appendix 1 of the submitted report. The Self-Assessment would be continually reviewed and refined on an ongoing basis, to ensure standards were maintained and any actions were implemented.

The completion of the Initial Self-Assessment had identified a range of further actions required, which were summarised at paragraph 24 of the submitted report and detailed in Appendix 1.

The CIPFA's Financial Resilience Index was a comparative analytical tool designed to provide local authorities with a clear understanding on their position in terms of financial risk and their ability to respond to financial pressures. An analysis of the various indicators had been made by comparing Middlesbrough Council’s results for each indicator against its CIPFA Statistical Nearest Neighbours (a group of local authorities with similar characteristics to Middlesbrough Council) and the North East Neighbours. Key points of the analysis were detailed at paragraph 33 of the submitted report and the full analysis was contained Appendix 2.

ORDERED

1.      That the content of the report be noted.

2.      That the key points of the CIPFA Financial Management Code (FM Code) and the initial self-assessment of compliance with the Code, the associated actions arising to ensure full compliance and the next steps, be noted.

3.      That the results of the analysis of the CIPFA Financial Resilience Index 2021 be noted.

REASON

To contribute to ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of the Council.

The Executive Member for Environment and Finance & Governance and the Director of Finance submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration. The purpose of the report was to consider the proposal to dispose of the Council’s freehold interest in land at St David’s Way.

The subject parcel of land currently formed part of a much larger, and now defunct, secondary school site, held in two equal halves by the Council and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Middlesbrough.

Shown edged on the plan attached at Appendix A of the submitted report, the subject parcel of land held by the Council measured @ 7.51 Acres [3.04 Hectares] - the adjoining parcel held by the RC Diocese measured @ 7.32 Acres [2.96 Hectares] and was attached at Appendix B of the report.

The land held in Council ownership comprised former playing fields that previously served the now cleared school, and which as well as being overgrown through lack of use, currently sat vacant, not being held by the Council for any identified operational purpose. Irregular in shape, the site comprised an open and vacant area of land, generally flat, and with established boundary tree and hedgerow cover.

It was proposed that access to the subject parcel of land would be taken via the existing highways arrangement at St David’s Way, with that roadway being brought up to adoptable standard through the planning process.

An Asset Disposal Business Case confirming the status of the subject land as surplus to operational Council requirements was attached as Appendix D to Part B of the report.

ORDERED

1.      That the information contained in Part A of the report be noted.

2.      That the decision be taken once all the financial or exempt information contained in Part B of the report had been considered.

REASON

In order to meet the Council’s requirements to generate capital receipts, increase annually recurring revenue streams and to bring the subject parcel of land into a far more beneficial use in the future.

In order to support the delivery of housing numbers on sites identified by the Council for residential development purposes within the Local Plan Framework.

The disposal of the subject parcel of land as proposed supported delivery of the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan.

To consider passing a Resolution Pursuant to Section 100A(4) Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1972 excluding the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the following item on the grounds that if present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information falling within paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act and the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

The resolution to exclude the press and the public was agreed.

The Executive Member for Environment and Finance & Governance and the Director of Finance submitted a report for the Executive’s consideration.

ORDERED

That the recommendations of the report be approved.

REASONS

The decision was supported by the following reason:

For reasons outlined in the report.