Agenda and minutes

To authorise the Chairman to sign, as a correct record, the Executive Decisions made by Cabinet on 1 November 2022 (Document to Follow).

The Leader and Promoting South Lakeland and Innovation Portfolio Holder informed Members that due to the timing of the previous Cabinet meeting held on 1 November, the minutes had been sent separately from the main agenda pack.

No Member having raised concern when asked by the Chairman, it was

RESOLVED – That the Chairman be authorised to sign, as a correct record, the Executive Decisions made by Cabinet on 1 November 2022.

To receive the Delegated Executive Decisions made by Portfolio Holders or Officers on 24 October 2022.

No Member having raised concern when asked by the Chairman, it was

RESOLVED – That the Chairman be authorised to sign, as a correct record, the Delegated Executive Decisions made on 24 October 2022.

To receive declarations by Members of interests in respect of items on this Agenda and to consider any dispensations.

Members are reminded that, in accordance with the revised Code of Conduct, they are required to declare any disclosable pecuniary interests or other registrable interests which have not already been declared in the Council’s Register of Interests.  (It is a criminal offence not to declare a disclosable pecuniary interest either in the Register or at the meeting.)

Members may, however, also decide, in the interests of clarity and transparency, to declare at this point in the meeting, any such disclosable pecuniary interests which they have already declared in the Register, as well as any other registrable or other interests.

If a Member requires advice on any item involving a possible declaration of interest which could affect his/her ability to speak and/or vote, he/she is advised to contact the Monitoring Officer at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

No declarations of interest were raised under this item.

To consider whether the items, if any, in Part II of the Agenda should be considered in the presence of the press and public.

There were no excluded items on the agenda.

Any member of the public who wishes to ask a question, make representations or present a deputation or petition at this meeting should apply to do so by no later than 0:01am (one minute past midnight) two working days before the meeting.  Information on how to make the application can be obtained by viewing the Council’s Website www.southlakeland.gov.uk or by contacting the Committee Services Team on 01539 733333.

(1)        Questions and Representations

            To receive any questions or representations which have been received from members of the public.

(2)        Deputations and Petitions

            To receive any deputations or petitions which have been received from members of the public.

No questions, representations, deputations or petitions had been received in respect of this meeting.

To note the contents of the latest Forward Plan.

No Members having raised concern when asked by the Chairman, it was

RESOLVED – That the contents of the Forward Plan published on 8 November 2022, be noted.

To consider the submission of the investment plan addendum for the Rural England Prosperity Fund.

Summary

The Economy, Culture and Leisure Portfolio Holder presented a report on the Rural England Prosperity Fund. He informed Members that by agreeing to the submission of the investment plan addendum, the Council could unlock £1.1 million of investment aimed at supporting rural businesses and communities within South Lakeland and Westmorland and Furness.

The proposals, if successful would be rolled out over the next two financial years and would act as a ‘top-up’ to the Council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) allocation of £3.8 million. Eligible Local Authorities qualified for an allocation based on factors developed in line with the scheme’s objectives, which included the size of their rural populations. The report and background documents set out interventions relating to the two investment priorities (Supporting Rural Communities and Supporting Rural Communities), as well as defined outputs and outcomes against which success must be measured.

In response to a query relating to the impact of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and the distribution of the funding, the Operational Lead for Place and Environment informed Members that the rural top up applied to Eden and South Lakeland Districts only and that this would not change as a result of LGR. He added that funding would not be available until the next financial year and that the two District Council’s had aligned priorities as set out in the report with LGR in mind.

Concern was expressed over the limits of the fund, particularly regarding the restriction to only capital projects. It was felt that this may prevent smaller organisations or charities who needed a revenue boost from accessing the funds. The Economy, Culture and Leisure Portfolio Holder responded, noting that he shared the concern but the rules of the fund had been clearly defined.

Following a question on the role of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund’s role, the Operational Lead for Place and Environment noted that the agreed themes would help to develop a core of projects, which would then be scored by the Local Partnership Group.

In response to a query over consultation on the core projects to assess the benefit and use of projects to rural areas, the Operational Lead for Place and Environment informed Members that officers could share the membership of the Local Partnership Group who gave a view on the projects. He added that once the specific applications had been received, there would be a strict scoring process for each project.

Members raised a question regarding using the fund to support rural bus services, the Operational Lead for Place and Environment confirmed that this would not be classified as capital funding but added that there may be some applicable areas in the main UK Shared Prosperity fund.

Decision

RESOLVED – That

(1)        the evidence base report and draft interventions list at Appendix 5 to the report be noted;

(2)        authority be delegated to the Director of Customer and Commercial Services in consultation with the Economy, Culture and Leisure Portfolio Holder to finalise the Rural England Prosperity Fund investment plan  ...  view the full minutes text for item CEX/62

To consider the annual review of the Council’s operation of RIPA.

Summary

The Customer and Locality Services Portfolio Holder presented the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) 2000 - Annual Review 2021/22, which detailed the review of the operation of the Council’s surveillance policies and practices.

The report indicate that between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022, there had been no applications for authorisation for Directed Surveillance or use of Covert Human Intelligence Source, nor had there been any live authorisations or applications for authorisation at the date on which the report had been submitted. There had also been no non-RIPA authorisation requests.

The Review had taken into account the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). In addition as part of the review, relevant officers had confirmed that the Council’s CCTV Policy had been adhered to throughout the period.

The report further outlined that an E-Learning package had been obtained and rolled out by the Monitoring Officer during 2021 and that the Council’s procedures were available on the Intranet, with the Legal, Governance and Democracy Senior Specialist (Monitoring Officer) also being available to provide advice to officers on compliance with RIPA.

Following a query from Members regarding applicable legislation regarding personal CCTV use on private property, the Legal, Governance and Democracy Senior Specialist (Monitoring Officer) undertook to provide a written response to a question but noted that this was outside the remit of the RIPA Annual Review.

In response to a question regarding the frequency of RIPA authorisations, the Legal, Governance and Democracy Senior Specialist (Monitoring Officer) reminded members that although the review was done on an annual basis, any specific requests would need to be authorised on a case-by-case basis.

Decision

RESOLVED – That the review of the operation of the Council’s policies and procedures as regards the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 for the year 2021/22 be noted.

Reason for Decision

The decision cuts across all four Council Plan Priorities:-

·         Working across boundaries:

·         Delivering a balance community;

·         A fairer South Lakeland; and

·         Addressing the climate emergency.

Alternative Options

The review has been undertaken to comply with legislation and the report is presented for information and note. An alternative option is not presented.

To monitor progress against the measures of success as detailed within the Council Plan.

Summary

The Leader and Promoting South Lakeland and Innovation Portfolio Holder presented the Council Plan Performance Monitoring report for Quarter 2 of 2022/23.

The Council retained the vision of “South Lakeland as the best place to live, work and explore”, and highlighted that there were areas where the Council needed to do more and the plan identified four priority area where activity needed to be focussed to achieve the vision. Targets listed in the report were grouped under these four priorities:

·         Working Across Boundaries – Delivering Sustainable Regional Growth

·         Delivering A Balanced Community – A South Lakeland For All Ages

·         Delivering a Fairer South Lakeland – A South Lakeland for Everyone

·         Addressing the Climate Emergency – A Carbon Neutral South Lakeland

The report summarised the performance of a number of targets that had shown excellent performance. However, in line with national trends and the influence of Covid-19 the number of homeless households living in temporary accommodation had increased. The Council monitored the state of South Lakeland’s economy, trends, strengths and weaknesses to help prioritise activities and interventions, adapting and implementing policies to positively affect the economy.

The most recent review during Quarter 2 of 2022/23 showed that 42% of risks had been positioned above appetite, an increase from the Quarter 1 Report which was due to the identification of a new risk relating to ‘Alignment of current and new priorities relating to staff values and behaviours’.

The Leader and Promoting South Lakeland and Innovation Portfolio Holder informed Members that the report had been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee at its meeting on 4 November 2022, but that no substantive recommendations had been passed on to Cabinet.

Members requested further information on the Economic Development and Culture Targets, which referred to the development on Land at Lightburn Road, Ulverston. The Chief Executive undertook to provide a written response from the appropriate officer on this matter.

Decision

RESOLVED – That

(1)        the Summary of Performance as detailed in the report be noted;

(2)        the detailed risks information contained in Appendix 1 to the report be noted; and

(3)        the detailed performance statistics in Appendix 2 to the report be noted.

Reasons for Decision

Performance Monitoring underpins service delivery and provides good value for money. Performance Monitoring supports the delivery of all four Council Plan Priorities.

Alternative Options

No alternative options – the purpose of the report is to receive a performance update. The Council must note successes, monitor progress and take action where appropriate.