Agenda and minutes

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Partnership Panel held on 14 June 2018

RESOLVED:   That the Minutes of the meeting held on 14 June 2018 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

The Chairman referred to Minute Number PPP18/10 (Update on Action Identified in the Last Minutes) regarding the ‘service directory’ for parish councils which had been circulated in advance of the last meeting.    It was reported that the only comment received so far was a request to publish the ‘service directory’ onto a parish council website.  This request was agreed as the information was available on the Borough Council’s website, although the potential for contact details to change at short notice was noted.

As there had been no further comments received it was agreed that the ‘service directory’ reflected accurately the information required by Parish Councils.

In his role as Leader of the Borough Council, the Chairman opened the discussion by reminding Members of the key milestones achieved so far in the preparation of the Local Plan. 

It was explained that that every council in the country had a statutory obligation to identify sufficient land for future house building and this had to be set out in a Local Plan.   The number of houses that had to be planned for was decided by an approach set down by central Government and not by the local council.    In Tonbridge and Malling the housing need had been identified as 13,920 homes for the period of the Local Plan up to 2013.  This represented a figure of 696 dwellings per year and meant that, over and above sites already approved, sufficient new land to build an additional 6,800 homes had to be identified. 

Following the Call for Sites exercise and evidence-based assessment the draft Local Plan now included 31 sites, refined to achieve an estimated potential yield of 6,834 new dwellings. This had significantly reduced in size to reflect Local Plan evidence and changes arising from consultations. 

The Leader reiterated the very severe consequences if the Borough Council failed in its duty to adopt a Local Plan.  Without a Plan in place the Borough Council’s ability to manage development would be weakened.   In addition, the failure to submit a Local Plan within the transitional period set out by the Government in the new draft National Planning Policy Framework (published on 24 July 2018) would result in significant risks associated with having to address a substantially higher housing provision.  It would also cause significant further delays, which would place the Borough Council in a more vulnerable position in terms of land supply in responding to planning applications and facing planning appeals.

In summary, the Leader indicated that generally it was accepted that more homes were required for future generations.  However, these should be in the right place and supported by adequate infrastructure.  This was what the Local Plan sought to do and it was the responsibility of the Borough Council to consider the strategic overview given the difficult task set by Government.   It was noted that the Local Plan was unlikely to resolve community infrastructure problems completely, although it was hoped that the situation could be improved by maximising investment from developers, as identified in the Local Plan.

The Director of Planning, Housing and Environmental Health and the Planning Policy Manager then provided an update on the preparation of the Local Plan.  A revised draft document with a refined development strategy, policies and proposals had been considered recently by the Planning and Transportation Advisory Board on 5 June and 24 July and at an Extraordinary Cabinet on 3 September 2018.  The latter had recommended to Council that the draft Local Plan be approved for submission to the Secretary of State and a further period of statutory consultation.

Reference was made to the revised National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and it  ...  view the full minutes text for item PPP 18/17

Members were reminded that the current Waste Services Contract for refuse, recycling and street cleansing was due to expire at the end of February 2019 and was being retendered on a partnership basis with Tunbridge Wells Borough Council and in liaison with Kent County Council.

Following consideration by the Street Scene and Environment Services Advisory Board and the Extraordinary Cabinet on 4 September 2018 the new South West Kent Waste Partnership contract had been awarded.  Although this would commence on 1 March 2019 the existing service would continue while arrangements were made to launch the new service.   The name of the successful contractor would be announced on 25 September 2018. 

The new contract enabled a much improved service to be delivered to residents and included:

-        Weekly food waste collection;

-        Fortnightly collection of residual waste;

-        Alternative fortnightly collection of plastics, cartons, cans and glass (mixed dry recyclate) in a wheeled bin with a separate container for paper and card; and

-        A separate fortnightly collection of garden waste (as an ‘opt in’ charged service)

It was reported that the proposals maintained the current frequency of high speed roads cleansing, which was the highest in Kent, retained the Saturday bulky waste collection service and would contribute to the Borough Council’s Saving and Transformation Strategy.

Particular reference was made to the proposed introduction of ‘opt-in’ charges for the collection of garden waste.  Members were advised that the Street Scene and Environment Services Advisory Board and the Cabinet had recommended to Council a standard charge of £40 per year, with further detail related to any introductory offers to be considered by the Advisory Board at a future date.    It was explained that these ‘opt-in’ charges would support the enhanced recycling service, particularly the introduction of kerbside collection for plastics and glass.

Residents would be fully informed of all details and an independent PR consultant had been engaged to develop a Marketing and Communication Strategy.  The Borough Council recognised that effective communication and messaging was vital in promoting the new service. 

The Cabinet Member for Street Scene and Environment Services (Councillor David Lettington) welcomed the proposals, which delivered a much improved service, and would encourage increased recycling of plastics and glass.  However, it was reiterated that a significant amount of work remained to ensure the smooth introduction of the new service.

The Panel participated in significant discussion on a number of issues including the future of ‘bring sites’; the size and number of containers; home composting; opportunities for additional services to be added such as the collection of textiles, batteries and other small electrical equipment; availability of additional bins for garden waste; collection of light bulbs and recycling rates within Tonbridge and Malling.  

In response Members were advised that all options regarding the contract and service were subject to further review and discussion with the preferred contractor, the Street Scene and Environment Services Advisory Board and the Cabinet.  However, it was likely that the Borough Council would retain a number of ‘bring  ...  view the full minutes text for item PPP 18/18

Representatives of Kent Police to be present to address crime prevention issues, including those raised by the Panel.

Kent Police had submitted apologies, due to operational pressures and Members noted the report of Inspector Kerry Rothwell, which set out details of a number of recent initiatives and operations. Further detail was set out in the update report attached to the agenda.

Members noted the report of the Kent County Council Community Liaison Officer (Anne Charman) which set out details of a number of County initiatives and consultations. Further detail was set out in the Kent County Council Services update report attached to the agenda.

All Kent County Council consultations could be viewed online at:

http://consultations.kent.gov.uk/consult.ti

The Chairman, in his role as Leader of the Council, advised that key points of relevance to Tonbridge and Malling had been covered elsewhere on the agenda as the Local Plan and the Waste Services Contract represented significant challenges for the Borough Council at the current time.

However, Members were reminded that the Heritage Open Days were running from Thursday 6 – Sunday 16 September and enabled free entry into 27 historical properties in the Borough.