Announcements from the Leader
To receive any announcements from the Leader.
Minutes:
The Leader congratulated the Mayor on his appointment and, on behalf of the Council and residents, thanked the retiring Mayor, Cllr Mary Madams for her fantastic Mayoral year, which she achieved in spite of the difficulties caused by the COVID19 lockdown which had resulted in her Mayoral year being very much curtailed.
The Leader made the following announcements:
He sent his deepest condolences to all those who had lost a friend or loved one to coronavirus. He commented on how the difficult situation had brought out the best in people with thousands of volunteers in Spelthorne stepping forward to give their time to support others offering to deliver food, collect prescriptions, check on vulnerable neighbours and provide other vital support. It had been truly heart-warming to see such kindness.
He paid tribute to Spelthorne Council’s own staff for their dedication and professionalism in working tirelessly to support residents, safeguard the most vulnerable people in the Borough and maintain public services during the three months since the pandemic began.
He reminded members of the Council’s financial situation in 2014-15 when it faced the possibility of having to sell its own Town Hall for building and move to an industrial estate. Cllr Watts, the then Leader, initiated the “Towards a Sustainable Future” scheme to save £140,000 with more significant proposed cuts to Government funding on the horizon.
The Council seized the opportunity when contacted by BP about its sale and leaseback plan to raise capital for further exploration, to make prudent investments. These and the loans which supported them enjoyed cross party support and unanimous Cabinet approval.
The Leader set out the benefits of the Council’s investment strategy which had enabled it to increase its service provision to residents whilst other Boroughs and Surrey County Council faced deep cuts. The Council Tax increase this year was the lowest in Surrey, without the need for sales of assets or drawing on reserves. The Council had embarked on an ambitious, and ground breaking, scheme to build homes for those who need our help, providing: emergency family accommodation, a single homeless hostel, affordable homes and a whole development dedicated to Key Workers. Our net investment income, having paid all costs including interest, sinking fund contributions and capital repayments equated to over 50% of the income towards the Council’s Revenue account, to pay for services to residents.
These financial resources enabled the Council to move very quickly when COVID19 struck, without relying on Government handouts. Staff morale was very high and we received many plaudits for our efforts, including from the Local Government Association and thanks from grateful residents.
The Leader confirmed that our property investments were continuing to support the services the Council provides to residents. He said that total collections from the March Quarter were in excess of 90% with another 8% on agreed staged payments. This was well above the industry average of about 74% and was backed by a £20 million plus sinking fund to buffer any delayed receipts. This meant the ... view the full minutes text for item 105
Announcements from the Leader
To receive any announcements from the Leader.
Minutes:
The Leader congratulated the Mayor on her appointment and looked forward to working with her to ensure another very successful year ahead. He also congratulated the Deputy Mayor on his appointment.
The Leader thanked Mayor Pinkerton for her outstanding work this last year and in particular for raising not far short of £50,000 for her nominated Mayoral charities. He was delighted to announce that Mrs. Pinkerton had kindly agreed to be appointed Spelthorne Borough Council’s Education Ambassador.
He congratulated all Members, both re-elected and newly elected. It was an honour to serve our Borough and he was sure we would all strive to serve with diligence. The Leader also commiserated with those former Members who were unfortunately unsuccessful in their re-election bids.
Next, he thanked Members for again showing faith in him and his leadership by his re-election as Leader of the Council and pledged his continued best efforts to meet the needs, expectations and aspirations of the residents of our Borough.
The Leader announced that he had decided in the short term, to have a consolidated Cabinet of just 6:
The Cabinet portfolios were as follows:
Cllr Tony Harman - Deputy Leader and Finance portfolio
Cllr Maureen Attewell - Community Wellbeing and Housing portfolios
Cllr Richard Barratt - Environment and Compliance portfolio
Cllr John Boughtflower - Corporate Management portfolio
Cllr Olivia Rybinski - Economic Development, Customer Service, Estates and Transport portfolio
The Planning portfolio was currently vacant but matters would be dealt with jointly by himself and the Chair of Planning.
The Leader then made the following announcements:
We have recently had public consultations on two of our planned housing developments, Ashford Hospital car park and Phase Two of Ceaser Court in Sunbury. Together these two projects would enable us to deliver over 140 much needed homes for our Borough, many of which would be Key Worker or Affordable homes. At the Ceaser’s Court site in Sunbury we have been negotiating for over 18 months with NHS Clinical Commissioning Group to provide a much needed new GP Surgery. These negotiations were ongoing.
The Council was recently successful in its bid for £60,000 from Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government to support efforts to support those currently, or at risk of, rough sleeping in Spelthorne. This grant would be used to fund a dedicated outreach and navigator service for the next twelve months, which would focus on working with our partners in the community to support getting rough sleepers off the streets for good.
Confirmation had now been received from Surrey County Council that there would be ongoing funding from 2020 for Family Support across Surrey and in particular for our high performing team who were assessed as “excellent” against all criteria in a recent quality assurance review.
Finally, he reminded Councillors that the closing date for responses to Surrey County Council’s consultation on their ‘Making Surrey Safer plan’ was Sunday 26th May. This proposed changes to the way Surrey Fire and Rescue Service operate in the county. Under ... view the full minutes text for item 145