Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence and notification of any substitute Members in accordance with the Constitution.

Apologies were received from Councillor Parnall with Councillor Absalom substituting.

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the previous meeting.

RESOVED that the minutes (both public and exempt) of the meeting on 8 December 2022 be approved and signed.

To receive any Declarations of Interest (including the existence and nature of any Party Whip).

There were none.

To receive a briefing from Executive Members of the People Portfolio areas of work: Housing & Support, Leisure & Culture and Community Partnerships and to consider any issues that arise.

The Community Partnerships presentation will follow as an addendum.

Several advance questions on this item had been submitted prior to the meeting. The advance questions and their responses can be viewed here:

Document Advance Questions and Answers OS 19 January 2023 | Reigate and Banstead Borough Council (moderngov.co.uk)

The Executive Member for Housing & Support invited Members to ask questions on the portfolio briefing provided in the agenda pack. In response, the following clarifications were provided:

Housing & Support

·         Temporary accommodation: the authority had between 120 and 126 self-contained, temporary accommodation properties. Some are owned by the authority whilst others are owned by Raven and Accent. Members were advised that the two properties under offer to provide emergency and temporary accommodation were different from that previously purchased and would take less time to make available for use. Whereas the previous property had been a House of Multiple Occupation which had required work to make it suitable for living, these were family homes which only needed minor works. The number of houses on which offers had been accepted had increased from two to four since the agenda had been published.

·         Housing Register: there were a lot of reasons why those who apply may not be accepted onto the Housing Register. Where there was no eligibility but there was a threat of homelessness, tailored information was provided on the housing options available.

·         Homelessness Funding: one of the problems faced was that funding was year-on-year, meaning a lack of certainty for the Council. However, it was reported that the Homeless Prevention Grant had been confirmed for the next two financial years giving some security for workstreams. Additionally, it was noted that homelessness remained an area that still attracted funding, which had increased during Covid and was expected to continue. The Financial Sustainability Programme picked-up the risks associated with the funding and had monitoring in place. The homelessness funding available through the revenue budget and grants was sufficient to cover the extra Bed & Breakfast provision and staff costs resulting from the Homelessness Reduction Act. However, this was predicated on levels of homelessness not increasing. The risk of any potential increase was monitored and reported quarterly.

·         Asylum seekers: it was reported that there was a significant concentration of asylum seekers, both temporary and long term, with some awaiting their asylum decisions within the borough. This was putting pressure on the local infrastructure. This included GP space and capacity, public health prevention, mental health support and school places. Housing was working very closely with partners including those in health, public health, and children’s services. Concerns are continually raised with accommodation providers and the Home Office. Some success had been achieved with a recent meeting having been held with the Home Office where the pressures on the ground were explained and that some accommodation was not fit for purpose. Transport for asylum seekers was acknowledged as a significant challenge. The location of accommodation was far from ideal and caused challenges in terms of accessing services. It was explained that the authority had no formal  ...  view the full minutes text for item 56.

To consider the updated elements of the Budget 2023/24 and Capital Programme 2023 to 2027 proposals before Executive on 26 January 2023.

Further information about this agenda item, including other supporting documents, is available here.

Overview

The Executive Member for Finance and Governance was invited to introduce the update on the Budget and Capital Programme for 2023/24. It was noted that this provided an overview of the final consolidation of the budget proposals, including the Government’s settlement, which overall had been positive for the authority.

Further detail was provided by the Chief Finance Officer. It was confirmed that the Government settlement had been positive, which was different from the experience in previous years. The positive measures included the allocation of a new grant to achieve the Government’s aim of all authorities having an extra 5% in core spending power. This minimum funding guarantee and the ability to increase Council Tax by a further 1% had achieved a positive overall impact on the 2023/24 budget. This made it possible to avoid drawing on reserves as much as had been anticipated when the budget was previously reviewed by the Committee in November 2022. A supplementary table would be provided for Members with the minutes of the meeting to illustrate the movements in the budget between November 2022 and January 2023.

It was emphasised that each year’s settlement stood on its own. This meant that it was entirely feasible that the settlement in subsequent years would not be as positive.

Council Tax and Business Rates

Members asked for further clarity to be provided on the changes to Council Tax and non-domestic rates. The Chief Financial Officer explained that it was possible for 2023/24 to increase the Council’s share of Council Tax by 2.99%, generating an extra £150,000. Having previously taken a cautious view, the authority’s Council Tax base was also buoyant, meaning there were an increasing number of properties on which Council Tax could be levied.

The Collection Fund was used to account separately for Council Tax income on behalf of all precepting authorities. Having taken a prudent view in November 2022, it was now possible for the Council to include in its budget its share of the Collection Fund surplus. The same situation also applied to Business Rates. A strong collection performance had resulted in a significant surplus.

Overall, this meant that the authority would benefit from more Council Tax and Business Rates income than had been anticipated in November 2022.

Government Funding Risk Reserve

The Chief Financial Officer explained to Members why it was necessary to maintain a Government Funding Risks Reserve and how it was used. An example being Housing Benefit Subsidy risks where there was a likelihood that insufficient funding would be provided by the Government to cover all costs of benefits paid. This gap in funding had a range of technical causes including the type and mix of households that were eligible to claim Housing Benefits were not aligned with the regulations that determine the level of funding (subsidy) for those benefits from Government. This funding was claimed retrospectively, after the authority had incurred the costs. The authority acted as an agent for the Government when administering the housing benefits scheme with its  ...  view the full minutes text for item 57.

To consider the draft Calendar of Meetings for the 2023/24 Municipal Year at Annex 1 and make any observations to the Executive.

The Committee received the Calendar of Meetings for 2023/24 and cover report. This would go to the Executive for recommendation for approval by Council at its meeting on 9 February 2023.

Members asked that the meetings scheduled in the School Easter Holidays in 2023 be moved so that they could take place in termtime. This was to achieve fairness for those Members with school age children.

RESOLVED to note the Calendar of Meetings for 2023/24 for approval by Council at its meeting on 9 February 2023 subject to the further suggested changes.

To consider and agree any changes to the schedule for Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s Forward Work Programme 2022/23 and note the Action Tracker.

The Committee received the Overview & Scrutiny Forward Work Programme.

It was noted that the Leisure and Culture Strategy may come forward to the Committee’s meeting on 16 March 2023. Should this happen, the Leader’s presentation would be moved to the beginning of the new municipal year in order to make sufficient space on the agenda.

RESOLVED to note the Overview & Scrutiny Forward Work Programme (with the suggested changes) and the Action Tracker.

To consider any items arising from the Executive which might be subject to the ‘call-in’ procedure in accordance with the provisions of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules set out in the Constitution.

It was reported that there were no items arising from the Executive that might be subject to the Call-In procedure in accordance with the provisions of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rule.

To consider any item(s) which, in the opinion of the Chairman, should be considered as a matter of urgency - Local Government Act 1972, Section 100B(4)(b).

(NOTE: Under the Committee and Sub-Committee Procedure Rules set out in the Constitution, items of urgent business must be submitted in writing but may be supplemented by an oral report.)

The Chair had given notice of an item of urgent business. This concerned consideration by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities consultation on the national planning policy framework. This was dealt with as urgent business given the deadline for contributions to the consultation was 2 March 2023. The Head of Planning had briefed the Chair that a draft response to the consultation on behalf of the authority was being prepared. It was intended to circulate this to Committee Members after the meeting. The Chair sought the authority of the Committee on behalf of himself and the Vice-Chair to establish a task group to review the draft. The Chair noted the existence of the Development Management Action Group chaired by the Executive Member for Planning Policy and Place Delivery. It was acknowledged that this would be considered in the set-up of a task group to consider the planning consultation.

RESOLVED that the Committee gave the Chair and Vice Chair the authority to establish a task group to review the authority’s response to the consultation on the national planning policy framework.