Agenda, decisions and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies were received from Councillors Jason Baker, Adam Boyden, Nicola Clark, Shane Collins, Dawn Denton, Philip Ham, Susannah Hart, Mark Healey, Helen Kay, Val Keitch, Andy Kendall, Jenny Kenton, Marcus Kravis, Christine Lawrence, Matt Martin, Frances Nicholson, Connor Payne, Gill Slocombe, Jeny Snell and Rosemary Woods.

To approve the minutes from the previous meeting.

RESOLVED that the minutes of Full Council held on 26 July 2023 be confirmed as a correct record.

To receive and note any declarations of interests in respect of any matters included on the agenda for consideration at this meeting.

(The other registrable interests of Councillors of Somerset Council, arising from membership of City, Town or Parish Councils and other Local Authorities will automatically be recorded in the minutes: City, Town & Parish Twin Hatters - Somerset Councillors 2023 )

Councillorspresent atthe meetingdeclared thefollowing personalinterests in their capacity as a Councillor of a Town or Parish Council or any other Local Authority:-

The Chair to advise the Committee of any items on which members of the public have requested to speak and advise those members of the public present of the details of the Council’s public participation scheme.

For those members of the public who have submitted any questions or statements, please note, a three minute time limit applies to each speaker and you will be asked to speak before Councillors debate the issue.

We are now live webcasting most of our committee meetings and you are welcome to view and listen to the discussion. The link to each webcast will be available on the meeting webpage, please see details under ‘click here to join online meeting’.

Public Questions were received from:-

·       Alan Debenham - Budget

·       Mr JC Woods – Council Tax Discount

·       Sigurd Reimers – Climate

·       Catherine Cannon – Plant based food/Climate

·       Paul Partington – Rights of Way

·       Andrew Strong – Bus/Transport

·       David Redgewell – Bus/Transport

·       Robbie Bentley – Bus/Transport

·       Ian Beckey – Bus/Transport

·       Eva Bryczkowski – Town Centre Improvements

·       Nick Hall – Licensing Policy

·       Carolyn Griffiths – Licensing Policy

The questions and responses provided are attached to the minutes in Annexe A.

Chair’s Announcements

The Chair of the Council, Councillor Mike Best, referred to the events detailed on the Chair’s Information Sheet, circulated and published with the agenda.

Council observed a minute’s silence in memory of former Councillors Alex Glassford, Peter Humber and Derek Yeomans who had sadly passed away. Several councillors paid tribute to them at the meeting, including Councillors Lee Baker, Mike Best, David Fothergill, Bill Revans and Martin Wale.

The Chair welcomed Councillor Kevin Messenger to his first meeting of Full Council.

To note the year end position of the legacy Councils’ General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Capital Programmes.

Councillor Bill Revans proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor Liz Leyshon.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:

·       Acknowledge the year end position of the legacy Councils’ General Fund Capital Programmes and approved the carry forward requests of £99.5m and revised Capital Programme attached at Appendix 7.

·       Acknowledge the year end position of the legacy Councils’ HRA Capital Programmes and approved the carry forward requests of £90.4m and revised Capital Programme attached at Appendix 7a.

The Leader of the Council, Councillor Bill Revans, introduced the report which set out the recommendations to Council which arose from the consideration of the report at the Executive meeting held on 6 September 2023.

The purpose of the report was to acknowledge the year end position of the legacy Councils’ General Fund and Housing Revenue Account Capital Programmes.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors thanked officers for all their hard work in compiling the reports for the five former councils.

·       Concern was raised on the slippage figures within the report.

·       Councillors agreed that the table within appendix 7 for Paper A was useful and requested that the figures were further broken down by projects.

·       Councillors queried why the Yeovil Refresh Project had not been highlighted within the table, as the Firepool Project had been highlighted within the Taunton figures.

·       Councillors queried when the finalised funding from Government would be known.

Councillor Bill Revans proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor Liz Leyshon.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:

·       Acknowledge the year end position of the legacy Councils’ General Fund Capital Programmes and approved the carry forward requests of £99.5m and revised Capital Programme attached at Appendix 7.

·       Acknowledge the year end position of the legacy Councils’ HRA Capital Programmes and approved the carry forward requests of £90.4m and revised Capital Programme attached at Appendix 7a.

This report sets out a proposed appointment of a co-opted member to the Scrutiny Committee for Children and Families (see Paper A) and a Chief Executive Non-Key Decision relating to Member Dispensation (Paper B).

Councillor Bill Revans proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor David Fothergill.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Paper A - Approve the appointment of Joanne Simons as a co-opted member on the Scrutiny Committee - Children and Families.

·       Paper B - Note the non-key decision report taken by the Chief Executive on 6 September 2023.

The Monitoring Officer, David Clark, introduced the report which set out a proposed appointment of a co-opted member to the Scrutiny Committee for Children and Families (Paper A) and a Chief Executive Non-Key Decision which approved a Member Dispensation (Paper B).

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Concern was raised on the distribution of late papers for the agenda.

·       Councillor David Fothergill thanked officers for the decision paper on the member dispensation for Councillor Christine Lawrence due to ill health.

Councillor Liz Leyshon proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor David Fothergill.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Paper A - Approve the appointment of Joanne Simons as a co-opted member on the Scrutiny Committee - Children and Families.

·       Paper B - Note the non-key decision report taken by the Chief Executive on 6 September 2023.

To agree emergency cover arrangements for two vacant Service Director roles.

Councillor Dean Ruddle proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor Sue Osborne.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Confirm the emergency temporary appointment of Niki Shaw Strategic Manager Quality, Performance, Policy and Assurance, to provide emergency cover to the proposed post of Service Director Adults Strategy, Transformation and Performance, with effect from 1 August 2023 for a temporary period until 31 March 2024 or on a permanent appointment being made, whichever was sooner.

·       Confirm the emergency temporary appointment of Paul Coles Strategic Manager Adults Services, to provide cover for the post of Service Director Adults Commissioning, for a temporary period until 31 March 2024, or on a permanent appointment being made, whichever was sooner.

The Chief Executive, Duncan Sharkey, introduced the report which asked for approval for emergency cover arrangements for two vacant Service Director roles.

Councillor Dean Ruddle proposed the recommendations which were seconded by Councillor Sue Osborne.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Confirm the emergency temporary appointment of Niki Shaw Strategic Manager Quality, Performance, Policy and Assurance, to provide emergency cover to the proposed post of Service Director Adults Strategy, Transformation and Performance, with effect from 1 August 2023 for a temporary period until 31 March 2024 or on a permanent appointment being made, whichever was sooner.

·       Confirm the emergency temporary appointment of Paul Coles Strategic Manager Adults Services, to provide cover for the post of Service Director Adults Commissioning, for a temporary period until 31 March 2024, or on a permanent appointment being made, whichever was sooner.

To approve the Statement of Licensing Policy.

Councillor Simon Carswell proposed the recommendation which was seconded by Councillor Marcus Kravis.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to approve the Statement of Licensing Policy.

The Chair of Licensing and Regulatory Committee, Councillor Simon Carswell, introduced the report which requested approval of the Statement of Licensing Policy.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors thanked officers for the work carried out on the Policy.

·       Councillors mentioned noise nuisance created by many festivals within the area and requested a member briefing on the licensing objectives.

·       The Chair of the Licensing and Regulatory Committee welcomed councillors to attend their meetings.

·       Councillors thanked the public speakers and all of the people that had submitted responses to the consultation.

Councillor Simon Carswell proposed the recommendation which was seconded by Councillor Ros Wyke.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to approve the Statement of Licensing Policy.

The meeting adjourned at 3:50 pm.

The meeting restarted at 4:15 pm.

To note the report.

The Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Liz Leyshon, introduced the report which included a summary of the key decisions taken by the Leader and Executive.

Member Questions were received from:-

·       Councillor Dave Mansell/Cllr Gwil Wren - Flooding

·       Councillor Lucy Trimnell – Heritage

·       Councillor Norman Cavill – Phosphates

·       Councillor Sue Osborne – Planning

·       Councillor David Fothergill – Adult Social Care

·       Councillor Diogo Rodrigues – Car parks/Transport

The questions and responses provided are attached to the minutes in Appendix B.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were addressed to Lead Members:-

·       Installation of contactless payments on all bus services.

·       Concern on the amount of empty electric vehicle charging bays in the Crescent Car Park.

·       Section 19 on Flooding and the importance of keeping the roads open.

·       Thanks were given to local communities and the actions taken during the recent flooding.

The Council noted the report.

To note the report.

The Lead Member for Communities, Housing and Culture, Councillor Federica Smith-Roberts, introduced her annual report.

The Council noted the report.

To note the report.

The Lead Member for Public Health, Equalities and Diversity, Councillor Adam Dance, introduced his report.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors requested an update on the take-up figures for this year’s covid vaccine.

·       Concern was raised on the withdrawal of some vaccine programmes.

·       Councillors requested a further breakdown of the results from the school’s wellbeing survey.

·       The Chair of the Scrutiny Committee for Childrens and Families advised that the survey results would be discussed at one of their meetings.

The Council noted the report.

To note the report.

Councillor Tessa Munt proposed the recommendations, which were seconded by Councillor Leigh Redman.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Continue to focus on corporate parenting responsibility as the new structures and arrangements were established, especially around housing, education, apprenticeships and social value in the procurement systems.

·       Support and promote a whole council approach to create practical and specific offers to Care Leavers through the Local Offer and the Care Leaver Covenant.

·       Extend its thanks to the Somerset Care Council’s young people for all the hard work that they have undertaken.

·       Extend its thanks to the retiring Independent Chair of Corporate Parenting Board, Jill Johnson for her commitment and tenacity during her tenure from 2016- 2022.

The Chair of the Corporate Parenting Board, Jane Lock, introduced the annual report.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors thanked the Chair, Vice Chair and all the members of the Board for their hard work.

·       Councillors gave special thanks to the retiring Independent Chair of Corporate Parenting Board.

Councillor Leigh Redman proposed the recommendation which was seconded by Councillor Tessa Munt.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Recommend a continued focus on corporate parenting responsibility as our new structures and arrangements were established, especially around housing, education, apprenticeships and social value in our procurement systems.

·       Support and promote a whole council approach to create practical and specific offers to Care Leavers through our Local Offer and the Care Leaver Covenant.

·       Extend its thanks to the Somerset Care Council’s young people for all the hard work that they had undertaken.

·       Extend its thanks to the retiring Independent Chair of Corporate Parenting Board, Jill Johnson for her commitment and tenacity during her tenure from 2016- 2022.

To note the report.

The Chair of the Somerset Armed Forces Covenant Partnership, Councillor Henry Hobhouse, introduced the annual report.

The Council noted the report.

To consider the recommendations in the report.

Councillor Theo Butt Philip proposed the recommendations, which were seconded by Councillor Faye Purbrick.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Approve the costs of the redundancies, as set out in Appendix One (Pest Control).

·       Approve the costs of the redundancy, as set out in Appendix Two (Highways and Transport).

·       Delegate authority to the relevant Service Director to agree the final date of dismissal and the final redundancy package, noting that the payment would not exceed contractual redundancy pay or the payment required under statute to the Local Government Pension Scheme.

·       Agree the case for exempt information for the Redundancy Appendices 1-5 to be treated in confidence, as the case for the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing that information.

·       Agree to exclude the press and public from the meeting where there was any discussion at the meeting regarding Appendices 1-5 (to be treated as exempt information).

The Lead Member for Transformation and Human Resources, Councillor Theo Butt Philip, introduced the report which detailed two proposed dismissals on account of redundancy in relation to changes within their services.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors thanked the officers for their work during their years of service for the councils.

·       Councillors highlighted that only one of the redundancies was related to the Local Government Reform.

Councillor Theo Butt Philip proposed the recommendations, which were seconded by Councillor Faye Purbrick.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to:-

·       Approve the costs of the redundancies, as set out in Appendix One (Pest Control).

·       Approve the costs of the redundancy, as set out in Appendix Two (Highways and Transport).

·       Delegate authority to the relevant Service Director to agree the final date of dismissal and the final redundancy package, noting that the payment would not exceed contractual redundancy pay or the payment required under statute to the Local Government Pension Scheme.

To consider the recommendations in the confidential report.

Councillor Bill Revans proposed the recommendations, which were seconded by Councillor Theo Butt Philip.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to approve the recommendations within the confidential report.

Exclusion of the Press and Public:

Having been duly proposed and seconded the Council RESOLVED to exclude the press and public from the meeting under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, on the basis that if they were present during the business to be transacted there would be a likelihood of disclosure of exempt information.

Reason: Information which was likely to reveal the identity of an individual and information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information).

The Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Liz Leyshon, introduced the report of the Special Members Panel.

The Council discussed the report and the following points were raised:-

·       Councillors were advised of the membership of the Panel.

·       Clarification was given on the process followed by the Panel.

·       Councillors were glad that the decision had come to Full Council.

Councillor Liz Leyshon proposed the recommendations, which were seconded by Councillor Theo Butt Philip.

Having been duly proposed and seconded, the Council RESOLVED to approve the recommendations within the confidential report.