Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and introductions were made.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr David Skelton who was substituted by Cllr Hannah Dyson.

Members of the Committee are invited to identify any disclosable pecuniary, other pecuniary or non-pecuniary interests relevant to the items on the agenda

There were no declarations of interest registered in respect of any items on the agenda.

To agree the minutes of the previous meetings held on 12^th October and 1^st November 2023.

The minutes of the previous meetings held on 12 October and 1 November 2023 were AGREED.

To receive the report and presentation of Karen Page, Head of Planning & Building Control.

Karen Page, Head of Planning & Building Control introduced and highlighted the key aspects of the report; including but not limited to: the backlog of planning applications and enforcement cases, the quality of service to customers and the wellness of officers.

In response to Members’ questions and comments relating to the transformation process, officers advised that the process had been streamlined in several ways which included; focused leadership and defining roles and responsibilities, use of a forecasting tool, establishing clear expectations for agents and applicants as well as implementing training for consistent approaches. Additional temporary agency support had been secured and a Fast Track team, utilising Tech Support had also been established with a focus on quick win applications. At the start of the process, the Development Management team had over 2200 applications on hand, most of which were legacy (over target) cases. This has reduced not to 629 cases with the majority of live cases being determined within statutory timeframes and without reliance on an Extension of Time. Officer caseloads have also reduced significantly.

Members sought further clarity in relation to the role of the Tech Support team and officers advise that the team triage all new reports (100% in 3 working days). A new online reporting form has been produced which includes mandatory fields to improve and control the quality and number of enquiries. There has been a focus on leadership to clear historic cases as well as a focus on serving notices without delay. Early peer review of new cases take place to determine appropriate course of action.

In response to further questions from Members regarding Planning Enforcement, officers advised that the team was carrying a case load of 1446 reports of suspected planning breaches and formal action was only being progressed in response to a limited number of cases. The backlog of enforcement cases has now reduced to 91 cases with officer caseloads at manageable levels. Over 200 formal notices were served in 2023 representing a significant uplift from the 8 notices serviced in 2022.

In response to Members’ enquiries regarding challenges faced along the way, officers responded that the restructuring had been disruptive and demotivating for staff and there had been some initial rebellion around unfamiliar processes, behavioural change, and the requirement to step up at all levels. There had also been challenges around Member confidence and support for new ways of working. The process has been up and down in terms of progress which requires constant oversight, leadership, and process adaptation. Quick wins had now been exhausted resulting in tricky legacy cases left to work with.

In responses to further comments from Members regarding wellness and improvement officers advised that self-fulfilling results were now being seen which included faster customer service and application processing, reduced delays, and costs for developers, attracting investment to the area and positioning the Council as a development enabler. Wider community benefits were also discussed, and officers explained that capacity increase enhances customer and community experiences along with tangible improvements to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

To note the Regeneration & Economic Development Scrutiny Panel Work Programme 2023/24.

NOTED the Regeneration & Economic Development Scrutiny Panel Work Programme for 2023/24.

To note the date of the next meeting as follows:

Tuesday 26 March 2024

The meeting will commence at 7:00pm and will be held in the Conference Room at the Civic Centre.

NOTED that the next meeting of the Regeneration & Economic Development Scrutiny Panel would be on Tuesday 26 March 2024 at 7:00pm in the Conference Room at the Civic Centre.

To consider passing a resolution under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972 excluding the press and public from the meeting for the items of business listed on part 2 of the agenda on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in those paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006). (Members are asked to refer to the part 2 agenda.)

AGENDA – PART 2

AGREED in accordance with Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972 to exclude the press and public from the meeting for the items of business listed on part 2 of the agenda on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in those paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Act (as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006). (Members are asked to refer to the part 2 agenda.)

To receive a presentation from Nick Denny, Director of Property.

This item will contain exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3

(Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular

person – including the authority holding that information) of Schedule 12A 3 to the Local Government Act 1972, as amended.

The committee discussed progress of the Strategic Industrial Land sites.

Following the Part 2 discussions the item was NOTED.