Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Mrs A Hall with the substitution of Mr Hulbert for Mrs Hall authorised in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 4.1.

To receive verbally from members any disclosures which they are required to make in accordance with the Council's code of conduct or in pursuance of Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992.  This is in addition to the need for such disclosure to be also given when the relevant matter is reached on the agenda.

No interests were declared at this stage.

The Scrutiny Commission will receive a presentation regarding Emergency Planning.

Members received a presentation on the Local Resilience Forum, the role of the Emergency Planning Officer and the Emergency Plan. The role of Members in relation to emergency planning was also outlined: including identifying risks, being aware of the Emergency Planning Framework, presenting the public face of the authority and supporting communities following an emergency.

Following the presentation, discussion ensued during which the following points were raised:

• Parish councils did not have a statutory responsibility with regard to emergency planning. Advice and guidance about reporting mechanisms for parish councils was requested.
• The emergency plans were exercised regularly with both senior officers and also in multi-agency exercises.
• There were communications plans in place and communication during an emergency would be managed by the borough council.
• Specific plans were in place for high risk areas, for example calor gas. The County Council had its own specific plans and companies with high risk products also had their own emergency plans.

The Scrutiny Commission will receive a presentation regarding Barwell SUE and will then have the opportunity to discuss any matters arising from that presentation.

Members will also be recommended to agree the Terms of Reference and membership for the Barwell and Earl Shilton Scrutiny Group. A report is attached which was considered by the Commission in 2008 when this group was originally set up. The report contains the Terms of Reference for that group, and is intended to assist the Commission in re-drafting Terms of Reference for a newly constituted group.

Members received a presentation from all developers for the land west of Barwell, being informed that Ainscough Strategic Land, Barwood Development Securities and Taylor Wimpey had formed a consortium of three developers who were fully committed to the development and could deliver 95% of the Area Action Plan.

It was stated that the Area Action Plan, which went to Council in April 2011 and had been consulted upon, had developed plans for Barwell and Earl Shilton, and that the policy was to encourage sustainable growth to benefit existing and new development in order to enhance the settlement. Joint planning was encouraged and as such comprehensive applications would come forward.

The following benefits of the arrangements were highlighted:

• Delivery of affordable housing either on-site or via commuted sums;
• Delivery of 105 acres of open space;
• Recognition of natural features to maximise ecological benefits including green infrastructure links and wetlands;
• A community hub including a new primary school and community facility (to be informed by consultation and audit exercises);
• Extension of public transport and connections for walking and cycling;
• Creation of new jobs (an estimated 220 in construction, the employment zone and spending power and 800 anticipated once developed).

It was reported that a Barwell Centre fund would be established through Section 106 contributions, which would bring benefits to the existing village centre, including improving the external appearance of businesses, new car parking provision and new spending power, and that the Primary Care Trust was aspiring to improving healthcare facilities in the locality. Other improvements reported included landscaping, lighting and environmental improvements.

The masterplan was outlined and the importance of ensuring close links to the current community, sticking to the AAP as much as possible and challenging the plans to check they were robust was highlighted.

The developers outlined the next steps, stating that there would be a public exhibition at the George Ward Centre on 13 & 14 January, and that Members had been invited to a preview on 12 January. A range of consultants would be available at the exhibition, for example specialists in ecology and drainage. The intention to establish a working group to help secure improvements to the centre was also stated by the developers.

In concluding the presentation it was stated that;

• the development would be high quality and sensitively designed and aimed to achieve new benchmarks for development;
• A third of the space would be new public open space accessible to all;
• Detailed consideration would be given to how to use the Barwell Centre Fund to provide tangible support to the village;
• 1000 new jobs would be created, many of which could be for local people.

Following the presentation Members had the opportunity to ask questions of the developers. The following points were made in response to Members’ questions:

• A traffic assessment process had been commenced to identify the problem areas and create solutions including improvements to transport routes.
• Highways modelling was ongoing, funded by the development, and would be used in conjunction with  ...  view the full minutes text for item 312.