Agenda and minutes

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on  12 December 2017

The minutes of the meetings held on 12 December 2017 and 17 January 2018 were confirmed by the members present and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any apologies for absence.

There were no apologies for absence.

To receive any declarations of interest

A member with a disclosable pecuniary interest or a personal interest in a matter who attends a meeting of the authority at which the matter is considered -

(i)            must disclose the interest at the start of the meeting or when the interest becomes apparent

and, if the interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest, or a personal interest which is also prejudicial

(ii)            may not participate in any discussion or vote on the matter (and must withdraw to the public seating area) unless they have been granted a dispensation.

A member who discloses at a meeting a disclosable pecuniary interest which is not registered in the Members’ Register of Interests, or is not the subject of a pending notification, must notify the Monitoring Officer of the interest within 28 days of the disclosure.

Disclosable pecuniary interests, personal and prejudicial interests are defined in Part 2 of the Code of Conduct for Members

[If a member is in any doubt as to whether they have an interest which should be declared they should seek the advice of the Monitoring Officer before the start of the meeting]

Councillor Marshall declared an interest as she is a Trustee for Centre in the Park (Item 8).

An opportunity for members of the public to make statements and ask questions in accordance with the rules as to Public Participation.

There was no public participation.

There were no referrals to Cabinet

There were no referrals to Cabinet.

The Forward Plan was noted by members.

Decision

That the virements as detailed on Form A of the Cabinet report be approved.

Reason for decision

To seek Cabinet approval for the proposed virements:

1)         To reduce the Dwelling Rent line by £1.1m and increase the Tenant Service Charge line to accurately budget for service charge income following the de-pooling of service charges from rents;

2)         To decrease Dwelling Rents by £250k and increase Supervision and Management to allow for rent payable to the General Fund for GRF properties being used for social rent. This had previously been budgeted as a cost in Supervision and Management but should be shown as a reduction in rental income.

Corporate objectives

To standardise documentation and authorisation requirements for all virements.

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer comments

Monitoring Officer: 

No comments to add to the report.

S.151 Officer:

This is a S151 Officer report.

Advice

There were no questions or comments. 

Voting

None.

Decision

That Cabinet approve the adoption of the updated discretionary rate relief policy.

Reason for decision

To consider adjustments to the existing discretionary rate relief policy.

Corporate objectives

These reliefs will support the corporate objectives of:

• Ensuring economic growth and prosperity;

And;

• Building strong and vibrant communities

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer comments

Monitoring Officer:  

No comments to add to the report

S.151 Officer:

The recommended changes to the policy are not expected to have significant financial implications for the Council.

Advice

C Baker advised that the DRR policy hadn’t been reviewed for the last three years so it needed a tidy up to ensure it remained clear.

Councillor Marshall referred to the table on page 14 of the agenda under section ‘Charities providing a public benefit’ where it states: If the work is primarily carried out by unpaid voluntary workers for the benefit of the elderly, sick or injured, disabled or other vulnerable groups. Paid workers are only used to provide specialised care. (This excludes national or regional offices unless wholly for the benefit of Dacorum residents).

She said some work has to be carried out by paid specialists that deal with specific areas. She suggested amending the first sentence to “If the work is carried out for the benefit of the elderly, sick or injured, disabled or other vulnerable groups.”

C Baker felt Councillor Marshall’s suggestion was a sensible one and it helped to reflect the intention.

The updated DRR Policy was agreed, with the following amendment:

In the “other information” column for “Charities providing a public benefit”, the first sentence is amended to read “If the work is carried out for the benefit of the elderly, sick or injured, disabled or other vulnerable groups.”

Voting

None.

Decision

That Cabinet recommend Council resolve:

1.    To apply sections 14 to 17 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982, as amended by section 120 of the Local Government Act 2003, throughout the Borough of Dacorum, so as to require persons carrying on the practice of acupuncture; or the business of tattooing, semi-permanent skin colouring, cosmetic piercing or electrolysis to be registered with the authority; and

2.    To make byelaws under section 14(7) and 15(7) of the 1982 Act in connection with such registered persons and premises, to replace and update existing byelaws in respect of acupuncture; tattooing; and ear piercing and electrolysis.

Reason for decision

To adopt extended statutory controls for the regulation of all forms of cosmetic skin piercing, and of semi-permanent skin colouring; and

To update byelaws governing the conduct of all piercing, tattooing, acupuncture and electrolysis treatments.

Corporate objectives

Safe and Clean Environment: Maintain a clean and safe environment

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer comments

Monitoring Officer:  

The proposed byelaws will ensure that appropriate standards are imposed on those carrying out the regulated activities which will be to the benefit of those providing the services and users of the services.

S.151 Officer:

The costs associated with the implementation of this decision can be covered from within existing budgetary provision.

Advice

Councillor Marshall introduced the item and gave some background information on the introduction of these regulations. 

Councillor Griffiths queried if dental surgeries that carried out cosmetic procedures fell under different regulations. Councillor Marshall advised that the regulations excluded medical practices. Councillor Griffiths said she supported the regulations but would be interested to know how dental surgeries were regulated for the cosmetic procedures.

Councillor Elliot asked how many premises there were in Dacorum. Councillor Marshall advised that the figures as of last year were: 40 premises regulated – 18 for acupuncture, 13 for ear piercing, 9 for electrolysis and 13 for tattooing.

Councillor Elliot asked if we had the resources to enforce these regulations. M Brookes said the resources were limited but yes we did.

Councillor Birnie queried if the national standards included the level of charges and fines. Councillor Williams advised that we set our own fees but we can’t make profit from them.

Voting

None.

Decision

That Cabinet approve the Meeting Timetable for 2018/19.

Reason for decision

That Cabinet recommends Council approve the Meeting Timetable for 2018/19 as set out in Annex A to this report.

Corporate objectives

The various meetings of the Council, Cabinet and Committees support the achievement of the Council’s Corporate Objectives.

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer comments

Monitoring Officer:

No comments to add to the report.

Deputy S.151 Officer:

There are no direct financial implications arising from the content of this report.

Advice

Councillor G Sutton said he would like to explore the possibility of returning to a three week cycle of Development Management Committee meetings. He felt it was easier to cancel a meeting if it wasn’t needed than it is to add an extra one in. He also felt it would help to reduce the number of items being deferred due to the 10.30 pm cut off.

Councillor Williams said this suggestion had come up before but queried if it had been raised with officers in that service. He suggested deferring this item until the meeting of 13 February to allow time to investigate the idea with the relevant service area. He agreed it was easier to cancel a meeting than to add another one in.

The Cabinet agreed to defer the item until the next meeting. 

Voting

None.

Decision

That Cabinet approve the following grant funding payments for affordable housing developments in the Borough:

1. £3,270,169 to Hightown Housing Associationfor a development known as Viking House, Swallowdale Lane, Hemel Hempstead. 

2. £2,264,854 to Hightown Housing Associationfor a development known as 66 Books, Wood Lane End, Hemel Hempstead.

 3. £1,335,000 to Thrive Homes for 5 No Garage Sites in Hemel Hempstead known as Futherground, Great Heart, Leys Road, Micklefield Road and Middleknights.

4. £720,000 to Thrive Homesfor a development known as Spencer’s Park, Hemel Hempstead.

5. £2,950,000 to Thrive Homesfor a development known as Hempstead House, Hemel Hempstead.

6. In addition, this recommendation authorises a +/- 5% adjustment to the stated cost figures as a contingency sum should the Housing Association revise their cost data as these are based on current estimates which could adjust as the project develops.

7. That Cabinet recommends to Councilsupplementary Capital budgets funded by “one for one” receipts for the Affordable Housing Development fund as follows:

2017/18           £3,375,000

2018/19           £4,870,000

2019/20           £1,629,000

2020/21           £625,000

2021/22           £42,000

Reason for decision

To seek approval for the payment of “one for one” grant funding to Housing Associations (Registered Providers) delivering affordable housing schemes in the Borough.

Corporate objectives

Delivering Affordable Housing.

Monitoring Officer/S.151 Officer comments

Deputy Monitoring Officer:  

Under the scheme introduced in 2012 investment in new affordable housing can be made by the Council itself or through grant funding registered providers. 

This decision proposes the funding of several developments by Hightown Housing Association and Thrive Homes.

Officers should ensure that each grant going forward is covered by the grant agreement (referred to in para 7 below) to ensure that the Council’s position is protected and enable it to meet audit requirements.

Deputy S.151 Officer:

These grant payments can be met from 1-4-1 receipts. 

Advice

M Gaynor and E Brooks provided some background information on the item.

Councillor Williams felt that the 3 year window wasn’t very long. E Brooks advised that the 3 years was for us to spend the money. He said the risk would be passed on to the Housing Association if they didn’t spend the money in time.

M Gaynor said they could give the money back to the Government if it wasn’t being spent.

Councillor Birnie asked how much money had been given back so far. E Brooks advised none.

Councillor Birnie asked if one scheme failed, could they give the money to another. E Brooks advised they could, however that wasn’t high on the agenda.

D Barrett said there were a number of agreements currently running, with a possibility of one not being delivered on time. He said it would be down to the Housing Association to pay the fines if there’s a delay on the scheme. M Gaynor said the agreement in place protects the council.

Councillor Douris asked if there were robust monitoring arrangements in place. E Brooks advised they had a spreadsheet set up to monitor when RSL’s sign up and  ...  view the full minutes text for item CA/18/18