Agenda and minutes

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 13 January 2022 as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 13 January 2022 were agreed as a correct record.

To receive any disclosures of interest from members in accordance with the Members Code of Conduct.

There were none.

The Chair, or their nominee, to answer any questions raised by members of the public in accordance with Standing Order 40.

Note: the deadline for questions to be considered at this meeting is 5pm on Thursday 24 February 2022.

At the time of publication of this agenda no questions were received.

There were none.

To consider any issues raised by ward councillors in accordance with Standing Order 34.2

Note: the deadline for ward issues to be notified for consideration at this meeting is 12 noon on Thursday 24 February 2022.

At the time of publication of this agenda no ward issues were received.

There were none.

To consider adoption of the updated Local Planning Enforcement Policy.

The Committee considered a report recommending adoption of the updated Local Planning Enforcement Policy.

The Planning Enforcement Officer gave a presentation on the policy (attached) and explained that updates to the policy had been made in response to a recommendation from counsel. Updates applied to section ten which outlined considerations that should be taken prior to enforcement action. The officer also provided a chart outlining the breaches since 2018, and explained new categories for breaches had been created recently.

The Committee expressed concern over the number of notices issued, and the officer explained that notices issued were not an indication of success as the authority sought to negotiate to rectify breaches before issuing notices. The Committee also sought information on whether the authority was proactive in seeking breaches, and the officers explained that at this time, the authority was reactive to breaches.

The Committee recommended that future policy updates draw out the impact of the policy on sustainability and climate change.

The Committee resolved to adopt the updated Local Planning Enforcement Policy.

To consider approval of the proposed Customer Services Charter and Spelthorne Pledge.

The Committee considered a report recommending approval of the proposed Customer Services Charter and Spelthorne Pledge.

The Deputy Group Head of Finance & Customer Relations explained that Spelthorne Borough Council currently did not have a Customer Services Charter and adoption of the charter would set out expectations when dealing with the Council.

The Committee noted the process for dealing with complaints and requested that response times be monitored. The Committee felt the Customer Services Charter and Spelthorne Pledge were suitable and noted they could be adapted in future as digital transformation progressed.

Alternative options considered and rejected by the Committee:

1) Do not adopt a Customer Charter or a Pledge.

The Committee resolved to approve the Customer Services Charter and Spelthorne Pledge.

To note the forecast outturn for 2021/22 as at 31 December 2021.

The Committee received a revenue monitoring report related to Neighbourhood Services for quarter three of the financial year from the Deputy Chief Accountant and welcomed feedback from the Committee. She explained that the largest variance in the report continued to be due to under recovery of income, but it had slightly improved since last reported.

The Committee noted that most of the under recovery continued to be through lack of custom at Spelthorne Borough Council owned car parks.

The Committee resolved to note the draft forecast outturn for 2021/22 as at 31 December 2022 and the aggregate variances by cost centre reported in Appendix A.

To consider the Forward Plan for future committee business.

The Group Head of Neighbourhood Services provided a summary of reports that would be discussed at future committee meetings. These would be allocated once the committee dates for the next year were agreed.

The Committee resolved to note the Forward Plan for future Committee business.

To consider any business deemed as urgent by the chair.

There was no urgent business to discuss.