Agenda and minutes

To confirm and sign the minutes of the Environment Select Committee meeting held on 2 March 2011.

Cllr Nigel Carter declared a personal interest in relation to Item 150 – Housing PFI as a non-executive member on the Sarsen Board.

The Council welcomes contributions from members of the public.

Statements

If you would like to make a statement at this meeting on any item on this agenda, please register to do so at least 10 minutes prior to the meeting. Up to 3 speakers are permitted to speak for up to 3 minutes each on any agenda item.  Please contact the officer named above for any further clarification.

Questions

To receive any questions from members of the public or members of the Council received in accordance with the constitution. Those wishing to ask questions are required to give notice of any such questions in writing to the officer named above (acting on behalf of the Director of Resources) no later than 5pm on Tuesday 3 May 2011.  Please contact the officer named on the first page of this agenda for further advice.  Questions may be asked without notice if the Chairman decides that the matter is urgent.

Details of any questions received will be circulated to Committee members prior to the meeting and made available at the meeting and on the Council’s website.

The Committee has had a long standing interest in the progression of the Housing PFI project, receiving reports in November 2009, May 2010 and an oral update from the Project Manager in July 2010. In the last update members learnt that Cabinet had approved the agreement and it was hoped that following scrutiny from central government the project would commence to provide 350 new social rented homes over 2 phases.

An update on the status of the PFI Project is now provided and the Committee is asked to consider its content and raise any comments or queries with the Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Planning and Housing.

Cllr Howard Greenman – portfolio holder for Housing and Mike Swabey – Strategic Project Manager were in attendance to present a report on the status of the Housing PFI Project to provide 350 new social rented homes.

Clarification was provided by the portfolio holder that there had been minimal change in progression of the project since the Committees previous update although commercial agreement had been reached between the Council and Silbury Housing Ltd in respect of the housing PFI deal.

However due to additional government approval processes it was likely that further negotiations would be reopened once consideration of central government’s derogations response had taken place.

Members of the Committee noted that a new housing bonus, which it was understood would be payable to Councils allowing house builds on Council owned land, was likely to be written into the Localism Bill and questioned whether the project would be able to benefit from such a bonus.  The Strategic Project Manager confirmed that this avenue would be further investigated but also provided clarity that the majority of the land in question was privately owned and as such would not be applicable.

Clarity was also provided that following value for money (VfM) assessments the Council had been advised that maintenance and operational insurance costs were considered high for the project.  As such further discussions had taken place with Silbury and costs reduced accordingly. Contract management and monitoring costs had also been reduced internally with no effect to the project. 

The specification of the properties had been reduced from a Level 4 to Level 3 which was the minimum build requirement for social housing.  Although the initial aspirations of the Council was to provide Level 4 specification, Level 3 had been set by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and no further funding would be made available from the HCA for a higher specification.

In line with guidance received centrally projects across the County were expected to achieve in the region of 8-10% cost savings.  The HCA had asked that Councils work with bidders to assess the private funder margins to achieve further cost savings where possible.

The set up costs of the project to date equated to £2.4m and there was therefore an incentive to see the project through to fruition.  The bidding consortium led by Sarsen Housing had also invested heavily into the project.  There was also a significant government grant attached to the build.

Before entering into the contract further information on the VfM element would be considered, via delegated decision, by Corporate Directors.  The contract would also be required to pass through an internal VfM process set by Treasury.

The portfolio holder confirmed that the Committees concerns including the reduced specification of the build and costs already associated with the project would be noted.

Following motions received the Committee resolved to:

1)        Welcome the Cabinet Member’s decision to continue with the project; and

2)        Request that the officer research the difference in cost between a Level 3 and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 150.

The Committee at its previous meeting held in March 2011 received an update on the Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency Scheme. During the subsequent debate members invited the Head of the Energy Change and Opportunity (formerly Climate Change) Team to return to the next meeting of the Committee to present the latest version of the Council’s Carbon Management Plan, which is the principal means of reducing the Council’s Carbon Reduction Commitment liabilities.

A report setting out the Council’s Carbon Management Plan 2010-2014, as the first of four action plans under the Council’s recently adopted Energy, Change and Opportunity (ECO) Strategy is now attached for consideration.

The Committee at its previous meeting considered a report on the Council’s carbon reduction commitment and resolved to receive an update on the Carbon Management Plan which would outline the Council’s vision for achieving a ‘low carbon’ future.

Cllr Toby Sturgis - Cabinet member, Ariane Crampton – Head of Climate Change and Catherine Dixon – Senior Climate Change Officer were in attendance to present the update and answer questions arising.

Ensuing discussion included the extent to which contractors were signed up to the reduction of carbon emissions.  Clarity was provided that new contracts, at tendering stage, would include specifications to address carbon emissions.  The Defra framework was being used and was being embedded in the procurement process.  Details would be provided to the Chairman and Vice Chairman by the Head of Climate Change following the meeting.

It was also noted that carbon emissions from schools, including academies, were not controllable by the Council.  It was hoped that the league tables published would include a separate category to highlight those schools that were doing well in reducing carbon emissions and that this would, in turn, provide encouragement for other schools.

The Committee also noted that in relation to waste management there were currently two separate landfill sites operating within close proximity to each other in Compton Bassett near Calne.  Although acknowledgement was given that these were private companies discussion took place as to whether there was a potential for the Council to promote collaborative working between the two parties to reduce carbon emissions.

The issue of ‘green champions’ within the workplace was further explored with confirmation provided that publicity to encourage the Council to lead by example had been circulated.

Further clarity was again provided in relation to the Tradable Allowance Scheme discussed at a previous meeting of the Committee.  Members were reminded that a new levy had been implemented by the coalition government to replace the Tradable Allowance Scheme.

The Council remained committed to its plans to reduce emissions by 20% by 2013 and 50% by 2020.  Although the criteria set by central government currently excluded transport sustainability remained a high priority within the Core Strategy.

A large proportion of the expected reductions would arise through efficient use of Council buildings all of which would be addressed through the Campus and Operational Development Programme.

In relation to aspirations set by the Council, the Cabinet Member confirmed that sign up to the declaration of carbon reduction had only commenced following Unitary in 2009. With this in mind the Council was progressing well.

Members felt the Plan should also include milestones and adequate risk rating.

The Head of Climate Change confirmed that the comments provided would be taken on board and clarified that an electronic document was published on-line which members could assess to monitor progress.  Based on information available the Council was progressing well in achieving a 50% reduction by 2020.  The energy management system was not currently included within the document as well as other areas yet to be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 151.

The Committee considered a report on Flood Risk Management in September 2009, where the proposed Flood Management Strategy was outlined together with the progress made against the Pitt report recommendations.

The Committee is now asked to consider the work of the Flood Working Groups and the progress made against Flood Risk Management in Wiltshire. Members are also asked to approve the draft Preliminary Flood Risk Assessment, which the Environment Agency has recommended should be considered by scrutiny before formal approval.

Following a longstanding interest by the Committee an update on progress against the Flood Risk Management in Wiltshire was provided.  The Committee was asked to consider the update and comment as appropriate.

Cllr Dick Tonge, Cabinet Member and Peter Binley Head of Service Highway Asset Management and Commissioning were in attendance to present the report and answer questions arising.

The Cabinet Member confirmed that flooding issues had been significant in the north of the County a few years ago but that due to collaborative working and cooperation between all relevant parties these had been minimised.  The budget for 2011/12 had remained consistent with the previous year to help address further issues and flood awareness events held had been well attended and highlighted the work that residents were able to undertake themselves.

Defra had undertaken surface water modelling to ascertain the drainage of surface water which identified that approximately 20k properties within Wiltshire were of potential risk of flooding although there was a remote change in many instances.  This was, in some cases, due to properties being built on flood plains. 

Further work was to be undertaken to source information held by the former District Councils to ensure those records were also taken into consideration.

The Committee asked for the definition of a flood risk area under the current regulations.  Clarification was provided that under European legislation member states were asked to carry out an assessment where a threshold of 30,000 people affected within a set grid pattern of 9 square kilometres was set.  Based on this criteria Wiltshire was not considered a flood risk area and, as such, was not required to produce a flood risk management plan as part of the regulations.  However, surface water plans had been carried out in the main towns (including Chippenham and Salisbury) to reduce the potential of future flooding damage.

Issues that were addressed by both Wessex Water and the Council included the adoption of roads on new estates where often inadequate or incorrect drainage existed.  The Council also continued regular highways drain clearance with a cleansing cycle to target areas that required more frequent cleansing and, following CCTV surveys undertaken, invoices had been sent where relevant to those responsible for damaged drainage.

It was noted that Councillors could also address flooding concerns through the Operational Flood Working Group where there was expertise at a more local level.

Resolved:

1)        That the Committee noted the progress made in improving flood risk management in Wiltshire and the effective work of the Operational Flood Working Group chaired by Cllrs Seed and Hewitt; and

2)        That the Committee approves the draft Preliminary Flood Risk Assessment provided.

The Organisation and Resources Select Committee at its meeting held in November 2010 considered a report on the challenges faced by the Council in driving a more focused and professional approach into the Council’s procurement and commissioning activities and outlined options on how best to scrutinise this area of work in the future.

Following on from the decision taken by the Select Committee, the Liaison Board considered a report which provided details of the proposed approach to future scrutiny of procurement and commissioning.

Restructuring has since taken place since the preparation of the report within the Resources directorate in response to budget restrictions and this has reduced the amount of dedicated resource available to Scrutiny. 

With this in mind the Liaison Board resolved that future scrutiny of procurement and commissioning would be dealt with by way of one dedicated Procurement and Commissioning Task Group which would report directly to the Organisation and Resources Select Committee, replacing the Major Contract Task Groups. The focus of work would move away from individual contract reviews to focus on the overall procurement and commissioning programme, as detailed in the Business Plan. Task Group membership will consist of one representative from each of the four select committees in addition to Cllr Tony Deane and Cllr Nigel Carter, who have led on a number of scrutiny activities into procurement and commissioning.

To ensure consistency and to retain the knowledge gained by the individual Major Contract Task Groups, it is anticipated that each Select Committee will appoint a member who sat on their respective Major Contracts Task Group.

Recommendation

To agree to the disbandment of the Environment Select Committee’s Major Contracts Task Group;

To approve the new Task Group arrangements for scrutinising procurement and commissioning; and

To nominate a member to join the new ‘Procurement and Commissioning Scrutiny Task Group’.

Overview and Scrutiny had been reviewing the way in which scrutiny of procurement and commissioning should be undertaken following the release of the Business Plan.  The Liaison Board, recognising the authority’s new approach to procurement and commissioning, resolved that future scrutiny would be dealt with by way of a dedicated Task Group that would report directly to the Organisation and Resources Select Committee and replace the existing Major Contract Task Groups.

To ensure consistency and to retain the knowledge gained by the individual Major Contracts Task Groups the Committee was asked to appoint a member from its Major Contracts Task Group.

Cllr Peter Doyle was duly nominated and voted in as the Committees representative.

Resolved:

1)        To agree to the disbandment of the Environment Select Committee’s Major Contracts Task Group;

2)        To approve the new Task Group arrangements to scrutinising procurement and commissioning with a watching brief for the decommissioning of the Council’s facilities; and

3)        That Cllr Peter Doyle be appointed the Committees representative on the new Procurement and Commissioning Task Group.

This item is included within the agenda to allow the Committee to receive updates from scrutiny representatives on Project Boards where updates are available. At the last meeting of the Committee members requested the scrutiny officer to find out what progress had been made towards delivery of the Gypsy and Travellers Strategy. This was in response to Cllr Green, scrutiny representative on the Board, who highlighting that there appeared to have not been a project meeting for a number of months. In response reassurance has been given from the project leads that a meeting will take place at the end of May with the reason for the delay down to the former project manager leaving the organisation at the start of the year.

The Committee was asked to note the update provided with the agenda and to that, in relation to the Gypsy & Traveller Project Board, that Cllr Jose Green, the Committees representative, had been invited to attend the next meeting in May with the new Project Managers now in place.

Cllr Ian McLennan also confirmed that the emphasis of the Housing Project Board over the next year would allow for tenants of affordable housing to highlight the areas of required change for them.

The Overview and Scrutiny Liaison Board at its meeting held on 10 February 2011 considered the draft Business Plan in order to determine how best to scrutinise the Plan relevant to each Committee prior to consideration by Council on 22 February where it was formally adopted.

The scrutiny officer in consultation with the chairman and vice-chairman has now been through the Business Plan and themes relevant to the Environment Services Select Committee identified.

The Committee is now asked to consider the report attached which includes details of the identified themes.

The Forward Work Programmed was noted with the following additions:

Draft Wiltshire Core Strategy would be added to the Committee’s Programme with a note that some area boards had received presentations.

Delegation of Services to include public conveniences would be added to the Programme for consideration of delegation of ownership to town and parish councils.

Carbon Reduction Plan would be added to the Programme for consideration in July 2011

Climate Change Adaptation Plan, Low Carbon Transition Plan and Renewable Energy Plan would also be added to the Programme for future consideration.

5 July 2011.