Agenda, decisions and minutes

Venue: Conference Room, Parkside, Chart Way, Horsham

Contact: Email: committeeservices@horsham.gov.uk  Direct Line: 01403 215465

Items
No. Item

EX/39

Declarations of Members' Interests

To receive any declarations of interest from Members of the Cabinet

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

EX/40

Announcements

To receive any announcements from the Leader, Cabinet Members or the Chief Executive

Minutes:

There were no announcements by Cabinet Members.

 

Councillor Peter Burgess, the Council’s Armed Forces representative, announced that there would be a Remembrance Parade on Sunday 14 November. The format of the day has yet to be decided and a programme for the occasion would be available in about a fortnight.  He urged Members to attend the event, or one of the other Remembrance ceremonies taking place in towns and villages in the district.

EX/41

Public Questions

To receive questions from and provide answers to the public in relation to matters which in the opinion of the person presiding at the meeting are relevant to the business of the meeting

Minutes:

No questions had been received.

EX/42

Drill Hall pdf icon PDF 312 KB

To consider the report of the Director of Community Services

Additional documents:

Decision:

TO RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL

 

i)        That the Drill Hall is leased to the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion from
1 April 2022 for a period of up to 30 years.

 

ii)       To delegate authority to the Director of Place in consultation with the Head of Legal & Democratic to finalise the legal documentation and enter into a lease, subject to applicable consents, with the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion for the Drill Hall.

 

iii)      To delegate authority to the Director of Place to agree and finalise a schedule of works with the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion to improve the Drill Hall.  

 

REASON

 

The Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion (RBL) have expressed an interest in running the Drill Hall. This will have the following benefits:

 

i)        The Drill Hall will continue to be available for community activities and events. The RBL have also expressed an ambition to grow and develop the role of the Drill Hall for the community.

 

ii)       The fabric of the Drill Hall will be improved and become more energy efficient.

 

iii)      The Council will make an annual revenue saving.

 

iv)      It will provide a focal point for the Armed Forces in the District.

Minutes:

Councillor Roger Noel, Cabinet Member for Leisure & Culture, gave a brief summary of the report on the proposal from the Royal British Legion to lease the Drill Hall from the Council for 30 years at a peppercorn rent.  Cabinet had considered the future of the Drill Hall in January 2020 because of concerns regarding the building’s condition, its poor thermal performance and running costs.  

 

The strong community response had shown how important the Drill Hall was to the local community and Cabinet had agreed to ask for bids from organisations or community groups to run the building.  The Horsham Branch of the Royal British Legion put forward the only viable proposal to create a home for Horsham’s various military and service organisations.  The proposal also included making the hall available for hire to the broader community, and upgrading and improving the building, including its thermal performance.     

 

The Cabinet Member stated that the proposal would provide vital support to local veterans, military personnel and their families.  He confirmed that there had been overwhelming support for the proposal from members of his Policy Development Advisory Group.

 

The Monitoring Officer assured Members that the terms of the lease would specify what was expected in terms of ensuring continued use of the hall by community groups, and a schedule of works would be carefully considered before the terms of the lease were finalised.  

 

Members were supportive of the proposal, which secured the long-term future of the fabric of the building and its continued use as a valued resource for the local community.  The Armed Forces representative acknowledged the hard work that the RBL had put into preparing their proposal and those who had taken it through to completion. 

 

 

TO RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL

 

i)        That the Drill Hall is leased to the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion from
1 April 2022 for a period of up to 30 years.

 

ii)       To delegate authority to the Director of Place in consultation with the Head of Legal & Democratic to finalise the legal documentation and enter into a lease, subject to applicable consents, with the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion for the Drill Hall.

 

iii)      To delegate authority to the Director of Place to agree and finalise a schedule of works with the Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion to improve the Drill Hall.  

 

REASON

 

The Horsham Branch, Royal British Legion (RBL) have expressed an interest in running the Drill Hall. This will have the following benefits:

 

i)        The Drill Hall will continue to be available for community activities and events. The RBL have also expressed an ambition to grow and develop the role of the Drill Hall for the community.

 

ii)       The fabric of the Drill Hall will be improved and become more energy efficient.

 

iii)      The Council will make an annual revenue saving.

 

iv)      It will provide a focal point for the Armed Forces in the District.

EX/43

Budget for Consultancy Support for the Gatwick Planning Consent Order pdf icon PDF 141 KB

To consider the report of the Cabinet Member for Finance & Assets 

Decision:

TO RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL

 

i)        To set up an earmarked reserve of £100,000 for use on consultants for the Council’s response to the Development Consent Order;

 

ii)       To delegate to the Director of Place in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Development the uses of this budget/reserve.  

 

REASON

 

i)        A budget is needed to ensure the Council gains the advice it needs to ensure optimal outcomes for the Development Consent Order.

 

ii)       The delegation is needed because we do not yet know the full detail of the work involved and the Consultation process has a tight set legislative timeframe to work within.

Minutes:

The consultation by Gatwick Airport Ltd on the Development Consent Order (DCO) to bring the standby runway into routine use would end on 1 December.

 

Councillor Richard Landeryou, Cabinet Member for Finance & Assets, stated that it was important the Council’s response clearly set out the impact a second runway would have on residents in the district, and that the response identified any necessary mitigations should the Secretary of State be minded to approve the DCO.

 

In order to work within the legislative timescales there was a need to prepare a comprehensive consultation response quickly.  Given the complexity and scale of the consultation, a budget to pay for consultants with specialist skills and knowledge was required. 

 

The Director of Place explained that a number of consultants with different specialisms were required and, after the consultation period, work may continue on more detailed studies.  The consultation was being coordinated with other local authorities so that technical studies and analyses could be shared. She confirmed that, although work would be shared, each local authority would make their own consultation response.

 

The Cabinet Member advised that a reserve budget rather than a revenue budget was proposed as the extent of work required going forward was uncertain; the proposed budget was a reasonable expectation, based on costs being shared with the other local authorities involved.

 

 

TO RECOMMEND TO COUNCIL

 

i)        To set up an earmarked reserve of £100,000 for use on consultants for the Council’s response to the Development Consent Order;

 

ii)       To delegate to the Director of Place in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Development the uses of this budget/reserve.  

 

REASON

 

i)        A budget is needed to ensure the Council gains the advice it needs to ensure optimal outcomes for the Development Consent Order.

 

ii)       The delegation is needed because we do not yet know the full detail of the work involved and the Consultation process has a tight set legislative timeframe to work within.