Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Council Offices, Cecil Street, Margate, Kent. View directions

Contact: Charles Hungwe 

Link: This meeting will be livestreamed

Media

Items
No. Item

855.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Councillor Ashbee.

856.

Declarations of Interest pdf icon PDF 113 KB

To receive any declarations of interest. Members are advised to consider the advice contained within the Declaration of Interest advice attached to this Agenda. If a Member declares an interest, they should complete the Declaration of Interest Form

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

857.

Minutes of Previous Meeting pdf icon PDF 95 KB

To approve the summary of recommendations and decisions of the Cabinet meeting held on 22 September 2022, copy attached.

Minutes:

Councillor Pugh proposed, Councillor Bob Bayford seconded and Members agreed the minutes as a correct record of the meeting held on 22 September 2022.

858.

Westgate-on-Sea Neighbourhood Plan - Regulation 16 consultation - Formal Response from Thanet District Council pdf icon PDF 95 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Cabinet considered responses to the consultation regarding the Westgate-o-Sea Neighbourhood Plan. A draft Neighbourhood Plan is being prepared for Westgate by the Neighbourhood Plan Group and Town Council. As part of its statutory role in this process, the Council was currently running a public consultation (known as Regulation 16) on the Westgate Neighbourhood Plan, which would be concluded on 27th October. Members were advised that this was the last chance for comments to be made on the draft Plan before it was examined by an independent Examiner.

 

A significant level of work had gone into preparing the draft Neighbourhood Plan over a number of years, and it was generally to be supported. However, there were some areas of concern, and these were set out in Section 2 and Annex 1 of the report. The main policy issues of concern related to some of the proposed Local Green spaces and “countryside triangle”.

 

Members were further advised that once all the comments had been received, an Examination into the draft Plan would be undertaken by an independent Examiner. The Examiner would consider all the comments made in relation to the draft Neighbourhood Plan, and make recommendations on any changes they consider were needed to meet Government guidance. Officers were in the process of appointing an Examiner, which would be done in conjunction with the Town Council.

 

Councillor Whitehead spoke under Council Procedure Rule 20.1.

 

Councillor Pugh proposed, Councillor Kup seconded and Cabinet agreed that the comments in Annex 1 to the cabinet report be approved as the Council’s formal response to the Westgate-on-Sea Neighbourhood Plan.

859.

Environmental Protection Enforcement Policy 2022/2027 pdf icon PDF 79 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Members discussed the updated Environmental Enforcement Policy. The existing enforcement policy used by the Environmental Protection Team had been updated to ensure compliance with current legislation and guidance. In particular, the updated policy reflects the use of Community Protection Warning (CPW) and Community Protection Notice (CPN) Anti-Social Behaviour powers; alongside existing statutory legislation used by Environmental Protection officers in relation to Nuisance complaints.

 

Thanet District Council had signed up to The Enforcement Concordat, confirming its commitment to the principles of good enforcement. This policy encompassed the principles of this concordat. The policy laid out how enforcement action was decided upon and provided both those raising Environmental Protection complaints, or those causing them, to understand what action was available to the local authority to resolve these issues.

 

The policy laid out how the council investigated complaints including priority of cases. The general policy related to all enforcement actions and described the basic principles of Enforcement. Guidance was provided on what was considered when making a decision on enforcement action. The policy then went on to lay out the various types of enforcement action available to the local authority. The policy included details on complaints and appeals available to those who were affected by enforcement decisions made by the local authority. Council priorities for growth, environment and communities had also been considered within the policy.

 

Councillor Albon spoke under Council Procedure Rule 20.1.

 

Councillor Jill Bayford proposed, Councillor Bob Bayford seconded and Cabinet approved Thanet District Council’s Environmental Protection Enforcement Policy 2022-2027.

860.

Tenant and Leaseholder Services Annual Report pdf icon PDF 88 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

Cabinet received an annual housing services report. Officers advised Members that in order to achieve regulatory compliance, a social landlord must provide timely and relevant information that enables tenants to scrutinise their landlord’s performance. Such provisions included the publication of an annual report. To ensure compliance, the Tenant and Leaseholder Services (TLS) provided quarterly performance reports that were scrutinised by involved tenants and leaseholders and were available to view on the council’s website.

 

The Service had now written their first annual report for the year 2021/22; this being the first full financial year the service had been managed by the council since its transition in October 2020. The report was now ready for publication. The report gave detail on the Key Performance Indicators performance for the year, which was supported with case studies and photographic evidence.

 

If approved, the TLS would ensure the report was accessible by making it available on the council’s website and through a web reader. The web page would include an equalities statement that invited interested parties to request a printed document or in another format and hard copies would be taken to community events for interested parties to take away.

 

Councillor Whitehead spoke under Council Procedure Rule 20.1.

 

Councillor Jill Bayford proposed, Councillor David Saunders seconded and Cabinet agreed to publish the Tenant and Leaseholder Services Annual Report to the Councils website.

861.

Tenant and Leaseholder Services procurement - Kitchen, Bathroom & Lifts Refurbishment pdf icon PDF 100 KB

Minutes:

Cabinet was asked to agree to the letting of a contract to refurbish the lifts in Invicta House in Margate. The value of this contract would be around £315,000 and will be to refurbish the 2 passenger lifts that service the residents in Invicta House. Invicta House was a 15 storey high rise. Recently both lifts had been plagued with breakdowns. This had caused much inconvenience to the residents, especially for those who could not leave their floor without an operational lift due to disabilities. High frequency of breakdowns also increased the risk of an entrapment, which could in turn be a bad experience for the person that became trapped in a broken down lift.

 

The lifts currently needed £70,000 worth of replacement components, but as they were coming to the end of their life cycle, the TLS felt it would make more economical sense to carry out a full refurbishment. Cabinet was also asked to agree to the letting of a new contract that would continue the council’s kitchen and bathroom refurbishment programme. The contractor that was carrying out this programme went into administration earlier this year, and this had meant the TLS needed to procure a new contract ahead of the specified time. The TLS proposed to let the contract for 5 years with an option to extend for a further 24 months. The meeting was advised that the total value for this contract was £3,375,000.

 

Councillor Whitehead spoke under Council Procedure Rule 20.1.

 

Councillor Jill Bayford proposed, Councillor Bob Bayford seconded and Cabinet agreed the following:

 

1.  The letting of the contract for the refurbishment of the two passenger lifts at Invicta House, Margate;

 

2.  The letting of the long term contract for Kitchen and Bathroom Refurbishment Contract of council owned properties, using a framework as a vehicle for procurement.