Agenda and minutes

To receive a presentation from representatives of the North Norfolk Youth Council Steering Group on the work that they are doing to establish the new Youth Council for the District.

Two members of the North Norfolk Youth Council steering group spoke to members about the work that had been undertaken over several months in preparation for a launch day for the new youth council on 29^th January. They shared a promotional video and spoke about the three broad themes that they wanted to focus on in their first year – education, climate and environment and mental health. They asked members to encourage young people in their local communities to attend the launch event and said that they were looking forward to working with members on key issues and decisions that affected young people in the District.

To receive apologies for absence, if any.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 16 November 2022.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 November were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To determine any other items of business which the Chairman decides should be considered as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B (4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

Members are asked at this stage to declare any interests that they may have in any of the following items on the agenda.  The Code of Conduct for Members requires that declarations include the nature of the interest and whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest (see attached guidance and flowchart)

Cllr L Shires declared a non-pecuniary interest in Agenda Item 11 – North Walsham Market Place Improvement Scheme. She said that she was County Council for North Walsham East and the County Council was overseeing the highways part of the project.

To receive the Chairman’s communications, if any.

The Chairman spoke about civic events that she had attended since the last meeting of Full Council.

26^th November – Chairman’s Charity Quiz Night, £226 was raised for the Chairman’s charities.

4^th December – Civic celebration and community carol concert, Cromer Parish Church.

7^th December – Christmas Carol Service, St Mary’s Parish Church, Stalham

12 – 16 December – Festive Fundraising week, £713,26 raised for the Chairman’s charities

The Chairman reminded members that there was a collection at the end of the meeting if they wished to donate money towards her charities.

To receive any announcements from the Leader.

The Leader began saying that some bin collections were still being missed, however, they remained below 200 a week, despite the additional challenges faced by the very cold weather. He said he had made direct representations to Serco this week regarding 19 properties which continued to experience repeated misses in their collections. He said that the situation was moving in the right direction but was still not at the standard that was expected. Serco had issued a statement apologising for the impact on residents and setting out their plans on how the issues would be addressed. The Leader read out the statement in full.

The Leader then spoke about the recent announcement by HSBC, that branches in Fakenham and Cromer would be closing. Discussions were ongoing with the operators of the emerging bank hub model and the Leader was intending to visit one of these in the new year. He said that he had concerns about the low figure (40%) of HSBC clients at these branches who were using online banking services but it must be accepted that this was the course of direction for high street banking. He added that options were being explored for Holt, Wells and Stalham hosting bank hubs, as there was an absence of facilities in those towns.

The Leader then referred to several locally-based businesses entering administration, including Joules and M&Co and said it was hoped that a buyer would be found for the latter so that they could continue to contribute to trade in Fakenham and Cromer town centres.

He said that inflation continued to impact on local government finances. The Autumn statement had not provided the level of assistance required to maintain all of the current services. He added it was likely that some authorities would struggle with ongoing financial pressure. So far there had been £340m of lost value in the Levelling Up Fund and this highlighted the challenges of delivering capital projects in current financial climate.

The Leader said that he was pleased to confirm that the Council had agreed to provide £10,000 of funding to the Norfolk Community Law Service, to support the provision of legal advice and debt support to local residents.

He then referred to the loss of Blue Flag status at three of the District’s beaches and said that an urgent meeting had been requested with the Environment Agency to try and understand the reasons for the change in status. He said that it was not a result of anything that the District Council had done.

The Leader concluded by reminding members to visit the two local Christmas shows at Thursford and Cromer Pier. He wished everyone a restful festive season.

To consider any questions or statements received from members of the public.

None received.

To receive reports from Cabinet Members on their portfolios.

Members are reminded that they may ask questions of the Cabinet Member on their reports and portfolio areas but should note that it is not a debate.

No member may ask more than one question plus a supplementary question, unless the time taken by members’ questions does not exceed 30 minutes in total, in which case, second questions will be taken in the order that they are received (Constitution, Chapter 2, part 2, section 12.2)

Cabinet members (listed alphabetically):

Cllr T Adams (Leader / Executive Support)

Cllr A Brown –  Planning & Enforcement

Cllr A Fitch-Tillett – Coast

Cllr W Fredericks – Housing & Benefits

Cllr V Gay – Leisure, Culture & Wellbeing

Cllr R Kershaw – Sustainable Growth

Cllr N Lloyd – Environment & Climate Change

Cllr E Seward - Finance, Assets & Legal

Cllr L Shires – Organisational Resources

The Chairman asked if Cabinet members wanted to provide an oral update to their written reports.

Cllr R Kershaw informed members that the Government had advised that the Levelling Up Fund announcement was delayed until the end of January 2023.

Cllr L Shires said that she wanted to highlight the excellent work that Customer Services had been undertaking since September 2022, particularly their efforts to reduce the wait time for telephone callers. She said that 5 new members of staff had been recruited and all but two of them were taking calls already. The average wait time had begun to improve and was now at an average of 4 minutes. All new staff members would be fully trained by mid-January. In addition, a member of the digital scanning team had been seconded into Customer Services for a short time to help through the winter period. In anticipation of voter ID letters going out to residents, an additional option had been added to the telephone ‘menu’ which would direct calls to the Elections Team.  This was a new proactive, interdepartmental approach to dealing with key issues that arose and needed additional support. Early in September the voicemail service had to be turned off due to an overwhelming number of calls and the service was now being staggered over peak hours and all customers were called back before the end of the day. The Council was exploring the use of a chat function and liaising with Breckland and Great Yarmouth Councils to see how they utilised this. The intention was to trial a chatbot to help people find the service that they needed. 

Cllr Shires said that the Council was getting ready to launch the customer service satisfaction survey so the team could better understand how what they did well and how they could improve. She added that in the last 6 weeks there had been an increase in signposting by the team to other services, including cost of living support and referrals to the food and energy banks. She thanked the Customer Services Team for their support in this. She then read out a case study which highlighted ongoing support and contact from a vulnerable customer. They had been referred to the Help Hub team which had helped them with accessing additional financial support.

The Chairman then invited members to ask questions:

Cllr P Heinrich asked Cllr E Seward about the newly released Local Government financial settlement figures and whether he had any further information to share with members. Cllr Seward replied that they were provisional figures and a consultation period would now follow. However, the direction of travel for NNDC for the next financial year looked clear. In terms of funding from central Government, there would be considerably less in cash terms than the current year. This would add considerable pressure on the Council’s production of a balanced budget.

Cllr G Mancini-Boyle asked Cllr N Lloyd to explain the percentage of the 57% reduction of the Council’s carbon footprint from  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100.

To approve any changes to appointments to committees, sub-committees, working parties and outside bodies as advised by the Group Leaders.

The Leader, Cllr T Adams wishes to make the following changes:

Cllr J Toye to replace Cllr A Yiasimi on Development Committee

Cllr H Blathwayt to be appointed as a substitute on Development Committee

Cllr W Fredericks to replace Cllr T Adams as a substitute on the Norfolk County Community Safety Partnership Scrutiny Panel

RESOLVED  to make the following changes:

Cllr J Toye to replace Cllr A Yiasimi on Development Committee

Cllr H Blathwayt to be appointed as a substitute on Development Committee

Cllr W Fredericks to replace Cllr T Adams as a substitute on the Norfolk County Community Safety Partnership Scrutiny Panel

The following recommendations were made to Full Council at the Cabinet meeting held on 5^th December:

1.    Agenda item 7: Fees and Charges 2023 - 2024

1.    Fees & Charges 2023 – 2024

The Chief Executive introduced Tina Stankley, the new Director of Resources. He then said that following the announcement earlier that day regarding the provisional Local Government financial settlement, it was suggested that this item be deferred to allow for further consideration and revisions by Cabinet, ahead of the Budget preparation process.

RESOLVED

To defer the Fees and Charges 2023 – 2024, pending further consideration by Cabinet

Two members abstained.

2.    Treasury Management Half Year Report

Cllr E Seward, introduced this item. He referred members to the figures on short-term borrowing and highlighted the increase in interest rates from 0.36% to 2.65% and which was starting to have an impact on short-term borrowing costs. 

RESOLVED

To approve the Treasury Management Half Yearly Update

Two members abstained.

3.    North Walsham Market Place Improvement Scheme

Cllr N Housden said that he wished to raise the following point of order:

To propose a notice without motion under section 15.1 s (page 26 of the Constitution):

To ‘require that a report be made to a future meeting where the person responsible has declined or failed to arrange for a report’. He said that the report as currently presented did not contain sufficient detail for members to reach a decision. Moreover, despite repeated requests from the Overview & Scrutiny Committee for additional information, this had not been forthcoming, and he believed that members could not reach a qualifiable or accurately informed decision regarding the recommendations before them. He therefore proposed that the item be deferred to the next meeting of Full Council.

Cllr C Cushing seconded the proposal.

The Chairman invited the Portfolio Holder for Sustainable Growth, Cllr Kershaw, to respond. Cllr Kershaw said that the proposals had been considered by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee and the Cabinet Working Party for Projects also regularly reviewed the project. The Chairman of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee attended these meetings and no questions were raised. Additional information had been sent to all Members by the Corporate Business Manager in the last two days. He said that costs were rising at 40% and the project needed to be completed by March 2023 and it would be unwise to delay it further. He said that it was an excellent project and could potentially be de-railed if it was delayed further.

The Scrutiny Officer then read out the following statement from Cllr N Dixon, Chairman of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, who was not able to attend the meeting:

‘In respect of the N Walsham Market Place Improvement Scheme I have to say the following as Chairman of OSC:

In the nearing 4 years I have Chaired OSC this is the least comfortable recommendation it’s made to Full Council. The merit of the overall Scheme or the need to deliver it wasn’t challenged. Around an hour was spent on this item; firstly, to understand the reasons why information requested in Oct and during the Dec Cabinet meeting hadn’t been supplied in timely or adequate manner. Secondly, this was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 102.

To consider any further recommendations to Full Council made by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee at their meeting on 14 December that have not already been considered as part of the Cabinet recommendations (Agenda item 11).

It was confirmed that there were no further recommendations from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Appointment of Independent Persons

Summary

The Localism Act 2011 requires the appointment by the Authority of at least one Independent Person to provide a view on Code of Conduct complaints and if required, to be consulted and to sit on the disciplinary Panel when dealing with Statutory Officers disciplinary or dismissalprocesses.

Following the Council’s current Independent Person reaching the end of their term of office, a recruitment exercise has been undertaken to replace them. It is proposed that, in line with best practice, two Independent Persons are appointed.

Options considered

The Council could continue with just one Independent Person but this is not considered to be good practice.

Conclusion

Following a recruitment exercise, it is anticipated that the Council will be able to appoint two Independent Persons. Interviews took palce on 13^th December (after the Full Council agenda was published) so an oral update will be provided at the meeting.

          Recommendation:

To appoint two Independent Persons (names to be confirmed by the Chairman of the Recruitment Panel) for a term of four years.

Contact: Emma Denny, Democratic Services Manager

Email: emma.denny@north-norfolk.gov.uk

The Chairman of the Standards Committee, Cllr H Blathwayt, introduced this item. He explained that a panel of members and the Monitoring Officer had recently undertaken interviews for two Independent Persons (IPs), to replace the current Independent Person, Alex Oram, who had come to the end of their term of office. He thanked Mr Oram for his excellent support over the years and explained to members, that due to nature the role, which required providing advice on Code of Conduct matters, it was felt that it would be a good opportunity to appoint two IPs to ensure resilience and avoid any potential conflict of interests. He concluded by saying that he was very pleased to inform members that the appointment panel was recommending that Charles Monteith and Hannah Brown were appointed as the Council’s Independent Persons.

It was proposed by Cllr H Blathwayt, seconded by Cllr J Rest and

RESOLVED

To appoint Charles Monteith and Hannah Brown as Independent Persons for a term of 4 years.

Summary:

Over the summer, the Electoral Services team has visited the designated polling stations across the district to assess their continued suitability ahead of the forthcoming 2023 Local Elections.

There is a need to run an interim review under The Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013 and the Representation of the People Act 1982. This review is to act on the findings from these assessments and is only looking to make changes where existing arrangements are deemed to be unsuitable for a variety of reasons such as poor accessibility or condition of hire, comfort of staff or ongoing unavailability.

The proposed changes would be implemented from the District and Parish elections being held on Thursday 4^th May 2023 if it is agreed that consultation on the proposed changes can proceed.

            Recommendation:

That Full Council agrees the commencement of an Interim Polling Place review including consultation with the parishes/polling districts who are proposed for a change to their current arrangements, in line with the proposed timetable.

Contact Officer, telephone number and email:

Rob Henry; x6327; robert.henry@north-norfolk.gov.uk

The Chief Executive introduced this item. He explained that polling stations across the District were reviewed periodically to assess their suitability ahead of the 2023 Local elections. The review would only seek to make changes where existing arrangements were deemed to be unsuitable due to issues such as poor accessibility, comfort of staff or condition of hire. Any proposed changes would be implemented from 4^th May 2023, when the District and Parish elections were being held.

The Chief Executive said that there were a small number of changes proposed, which he set out. He said that there was only one proposed withdrawal of a polling station – at Thornage, as it was currently sited in the vestry of Thornage Parish church, which was very small and cold. It was therefore proposed that it was moved to the polling station at Briningham Village Hall. He added that the proposed change to Thursford had been withdrawn as the parish council felt that the current venue at the Methodist Chapel remained suitable.

The Chairman invited members to speak:

Cllr P Fisher said that Holkham was supportive of the proposed change of venue. He asked whether the Election Team conferred with Parish Councils as the clerk had indicated that they had not been contacted about the proposed change. The Chief Executive said that the report was seeking support to commence the consultation process and that residents and parish councils would be consulted.

Cllr A Fitch-Tillett said that she was pleased to hear there would be a consultation regarding the changes proposed for Overstrand as she felt that it was unlikely the proposals would be supported.

Cllr N Housden asked about Wicken Green and whether there would still be a Portacabin used at the next election. The Chief Executive said that he would provide a written answer as he did not have that information to hand. He added that a portacabin had been used previously as there was no electricity supply at the community centre building. Cllr T FitzPatrick commented that it was a tent in 2021 rather than a portacabin.

Cllr A Brown said that he noted the proposals for Thornage with concern. The new ID requirements would already impose restrictive new measures and now residents would also have to travel to Briningham to vote. He added that although there was parking at Briningham Village Hall, it was sited on a sharp bend and could be difficult to access and exit. He said that as far as he was aware, the Chairmen of both parish councils were not aware of the proposals. Cllr Brown concluded by saying that he understood the outcome of the consultation would come back to a later meeting of Full Council for approval and he was concerned that there would not be sufficient capacity at the next scheduled meeting on 22 February to give it full consideration as it was the budget setting meeting. The Democratic Services Manager said that options were being explored for the scheduling of an  ...  view the full minutes text for item 105.

Contact Officer, telephone number and email:

Alison Argent, Tel: 01263 516058, Email: alison.argent@north-norfolk.gov.uk

The Democratic Services Manager introduced this item. She explained that the calendar of meetings was produced annually and presented to Full Council for approval, following extensive consultation with officers and members.

RESOLVED

To adopt the programme of meetings for 2023-2024

None Received.

None received.

None Received.

None received.

Please note that there is a total time limit of 30 minutes for this item – as set out in the Constitution, Chapter 2, paragraph 14.11

The following motion has been proposed by Cllr C Cushing, seconded by Cllr N Dixon:

Use of Flying Rings on Beaches 

This Council is extremely concerned over the harmful impact of flying rings made of plastic, and other materials, have on our marine wildlife and the environment. They present a severe risk to seal pups when they are inadvertently left or lost on beaches as they can become trapped around their necks and in time cause strangulation as they grow if they are not caught, and the ring removed. There have been several instances of this on North Norfolk beaches in recent years. 

Being mostly made of plastic they are a source of waste and harmful to our environment.

This Council has signed up to the “Safer Seals” campaign which is supported by Friends of Horsey Seals which highlights what beach visitors can do to safeguard seals.

We therefore propose the following:

Council RESOLVES to:

1.    Prohibit the use of flying rings on the district’s beaches and adjoining NNDC car parks for which the council is responsible, and proactively discourage their use on the privately owned beaches where they can do harm to wildlife and the environment.

2.    The Council’s website is updated to make the public and retailers aware of this policy and the issue.

3.    Ask the NNDC Environmental team as to how this can be best enforced and monitored.

The Chairman invited the proposer of the motion, Cllr C Cushing, to introduce it. He began by saying that it was a non-partisan issue and he hoped all members would support it. He said that many members would have seen images of plastic rings caught around seals’ necks, causing deep wounds and extensive suffering. He said that North Norfolk was fortunate to have a number of seal populations and the Council was already signed up to the ‘Safer Seals’ campaign, promoted by the Friends of Horsey Seals, which highlighted how beach visitors could safeguard seals.

Cllr Cushing went onto say that in November 2022, Kings Lynn & West Norfolk Borough Council had passed a motion to ban flying rings from their beaches, adding that if NNDC followed suit, then the majority of Norfolk’s coastline would be protected. He said that he was aware that the legislation ‘lagged behind’ what was being proposed but the main aim was to protect the seals and if notices were erected along the coast, educating the public, then it would have a large impact on reducing the use of flying rings. He said that he would welcome any attempts by the Council to ensure that the legal enforcement regime was strengthened.

The seconder of the motion, Cllr E Vardy, reserved his right to speak.

The Chairman informed members that an amendment had been submitted by the Leader, Cllr T Adams. She invited Cllr Adams to introduce it. He began by confirming that he had shared it with the Group Leaders in advance of the meeting. He acknowledged that himself and Cllr Cushing both wanted to achieve a ban on the use of flying rings on beaches in the District, but it must be acknowledged that there was no legal framework to enforce it at the present time. He explained that he had been doing work on this for some time. It was a big issue and it affected the public’s perception of the District’s beaches. Unfortunately, the current enforcement framework was aimed at protecting people not animals and it was just not possible to prohibit or ban the use of flying rings. He said that Kings Lynn & West Norfolk BC had good intentions when they passed their motion but it was just an advisory ban and could not be enforced.  He said that he was therefore putting forward the following amendment:

Full Council RESOLVES to:

·         Note the good work already undertaken by our Leisure and Localities Team in conjunction with the Friends of Horsey Seals to raise awareness of these issues and discourage the use of these items on our beaches, and ask for this awareness campaign to continue if possible, and if desired by our partners at Friends of Horsey Seals and RSPCA East Winch, until such time that a ban is possible.

·         The Leader meets and discusses the issues with North Norfolk's MPs in conjunction with the Friends of Horsey Seals and the RSPCA, if they wish to join us, to press for the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 109.

To pass the following resolution – if necessary:

a.    That under Section 100A(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the meeting for the following item(s) of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in paragraph(s) 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A (as amended) to the Act.”

 b.   That the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure for the following reasons:

Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). The appended report contains commercially confidential information.