Agenda and minutes

To receive apologies for absence, if any.

Apologies were received from Cllr K Bayes, Cllr C Cushing, Cllr C Heinink, Cllr L Paterson, Cllr C Ringer and Cllr E Vardy

To confirm the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 22 November 2023.

The minutes of the meeting of Full Council held on 22 November were approved as a correct record subject to the following amendment: Page 4, reference should be to Cllr K Toye not Cllr J Toye.

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)

None received.

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.

None.

To receive the Chairman’s communications, if any.

The Chairman and Vice-Chairman spoke about recent civic events they had attended:

25 November – Cromer Pier Christmas Show

07 December – At Home Reception, Mayor of Kings Lynn

12 December – Thursford Christmas Spectacular

13 December – Civic Carol Service, Mayor of Great Yarmouth and High Sheriff of Norfolk

17 December – Memorial Screening of Seaside Special film

20 December – Festive Carols in the NNDC Foyer

The Chairman thanked the Corporate PA team for all their support in arranging the carol service and the raffle for the chairman’s charity. She reminded members that there would be a collection for her charity at the end of the meeting and encouraged them all to donate generously.

The Leader began by congratulating Cllr A Fletcher on his recent election as member for Briston Ward and he welcomed him to the Council. He thanked the Elections team for their hard work in supporting the process. He then thanked the Council’s Property and Coastal teams for their quick response to the storm on 24^th November.

The Leader then updated members on growing interest in Fakenham and the new leisure and sports facilities for the town. There was also interest more widely in the town from businesses which was very encouraging.

Regarding the recent announcement for the Local Government settlement, the Leader said that the sector as a whole felt it was not enough. The Council would respond to the consultation in due course. He concluded by wishing everyone a merry Christmas.

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

None received.

To receive any changes to appointments to Committees, sub-committees, Working Parties and Outside Bodies as notified by the Group Leaders.

The Leader informed members that Cllr M Batey would replace Cllr W Fredericks on the Norfolk Community Safety Partnership sub panel.

The Chairman invited Mr I Holden, Chair of the Independent Remuneration Panel to introduce this item. Mr Holden explained that purpose of the report was to recommend to Full Council the allowances and expenses to be paid to Members to take effect from 01 May 2024.  In accordance with the requirements of the Local Authorities (Members’ Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003, the Council had set up an Independent Remuneration Panel at the meeting of Full Council held on 20 September 2023. Mr Holden thanked his fellow panel members, Ms S Cox and Mr D Blake for their input and support. He said that the previous panel had met in 2020, following a boundary review which had reduced the number of councillors from 48 to 40 and consequently, this was the first opportunity to review the impact of the changes on members and their workload.

Mr Holden said that the panel had met with two of the Group Leaders to obtain their views on various aspects of council-related work. In addition, a questionnaire had been sent out to all members to assess the impact of the ward boundary changes, travel and committee commitments as well as the cost of living crisis. The Panel had looked at a considerable amount of comparative data to ensure that their recommendations were in-line with neighbouring authorities.

In conclusion, Mr Holden reminded members that the next review of members’ allowances was likely to be in 2027/28 and that if members did not approve an increase now, it would be 12 years between increases, causing NNDC to lag behind neighbouring authorities.

The Chairman invited members to speak:

The Leader, Cllr T Adams, thanked the Panel for engaging with members throughout the process and for sharing the comparative data with the Group Leaders. He said that he was of the view that a national scale of members’ allowances should be introduced to ensure a consistent approach across local authorities and to take the decision away from members. He said that he felt the Panel had come to the correct conclusion, following a thorough process.

Cllr N Dixon, Deputy Leader of the Conservative Group, thanked the Independent Remuneration Panel for their hard work. Group members would vote according to their views on the proposals.

It was proposed by Cllr T Adams, seconded by Cllr J Toye and

RESOLVED

That Members consider the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel, adopt a scheme of allowances and amend the Constitution accordingly. 

Specifically, it is recommended that:

a)    the Basic Allowance should increase to £6,491 pa (to include £180 Broadband Allowance);

b)    the Scheme should remain index linked to officers’ pay awards

c)    the Special Responsibility Allowance (SRA) for the Leader of the Council should remain calculated by way of a multiplier of x2 the basic allowance;

d)    A new SRA for the Deputy Leader should be introduced, calculated by way of a multiplier of x1.6 the basic allowance

e)    the SRA for Cabinet Members with Portfolio should remain calculated by way of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 99.

The Leader, Cllr T Adams, introduced this item. He said he welcomed this initiative and the work that would be carried out by officers at the Council. There was a lot of work to do before the site could be developed and the report set out how this would be carried out. NNDC had met with Fakenham Town Council and residents were very excited about the project and the benefits it would bring to the town.

Cllr L Vickers spoke on behalf of Cllr C Cushing, member for Lancaster North, who was unable to attend Full Council due to family illness. She said that he was fully supportive of the proposals and had been pushing for swimming facilities in Fakenham since the closure of the previous swimming pool in 2014. New swimming facilities would bring immeasurable benefits for the town and it was ideally located for the new urban extension and a 3G pitch supported youngster in the area. She concluded by thanking all members and officers for their help in drafting the bid and Jerome Mayhew MP for his hard work and support. Cllr Vickers said that she would second the proposal.

Cllr J Punchard echoed Cllr Vickers sentiments and said that the new facilities were much needed in the western part of the District.

Cllr T FitzPatrick said that he was pleased to support the proposals. Currently, the only way that residents could currently learn to swim in the Fakenham areas was to pay for lessons in small private pools. He said that over the years lots of work had been done to try and progress with a new swimming pool and he welcomed the boost in funding. He said that the new facilities would provide a real benefit for the whole area, swimming was a vital skill for young people, especially in a coastal area.

It was proposed by Cllr T Adams, seconded by Cllr L Vickers and

RESOLVED that

1.    Full Council welcomed the Government funding of £9.856million awarded towards the cost of the Fakenham Leisure and Sports Hub project.  The Council further recognised that confirmation of the Government funding would allow plans for the new facility to be taken forward in the coming months.

2.    Council approved the establishment of a Capital Budget of £11million for the Fakenham Leisure and Sports Hub project within the Capital Programme.

3.    Council approved the funding of this project made up of £9.856million of Levelling Up Fund (central government) monies, £0.408million Section 106 monies, £0.575million from the Football Foundation and the value of the land contributed by Fakenham Town Council.  Any shortfall in this funding would need to be funded by the Council, for which borrowing will be taken.

4.    Council approved the project management and governance arrangements for the project as outlined in Section 3 of the report.

5.    A traditional procurement process would disadvantage the Council due to the timescales involved and supports an exemption under the Contract Procedure rules to appoint the consultants, FMG Consulting,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 100.

Cllr T Adams introduced this item. He thanked officers for their support in working out a complex schedule.

Cllr Shires thanked members appointed to Development Committee for their dedication in attending an increasing number of meetings.

It was proposed by Cllr T Adams, seconded by Cllr L Shires and

RESOLVED

To adopt the Programme of Meetings for 2024-25.

Cllr J Punchard voted against.

To receive reports from Cabinet Members on their portfolios:

Cllr T Adams - Executive Support & Legal Services

Cllr H Blathwayt – Coast

Cllr A Brown – Planning & Enforcement

Cllr W Fredericks – Housing and People Services

Cllr P Heinrich – Sustainable Growth

Cllr C Ringer – IT, Environmental & Waste Services

Cllr L Shires – Finance, Estates & Assets

Cllr A Varley – Climate Change & Net Zero

Cllr L Withington – Community, Leisure & Outreach

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)

The Chairman invited members to ask questions.

Cllr N Dixon asked Cllr A Brown, Portfolio Holder for Planning and Enforcement about the introduction of the requirement for ‘Biodiversity Net Gain’ in 2024. He said that he welcomed the announcement but asked whether there was an agreed methodology to accurately determine baseline biodiversity levels so that the 10% gain could be confidently measured and when members would be trained on this so that they could understand this during planning application assessment and in monitoring delivery. Cllr Brown replied that details regarding how baseline biodiversity levels would be calculated was prescribed by Government and was yet to be announced. He said once the Council knew what the proposals were, it would provide a response. In reply to the question regarding briefing and training members, he said that in-house training would be provided by senior planning officers at the Council.

Cllr T FitzPatrick asked Cllr P Heinrich, Portfolio Holder for Sustainable Growth, about the details of grants allocated from the Rural Prosperity Fund and he asked whether it was possible to have additional detail on how it was spent. Cllr Heinrich confirmed that funding had been allocated across the district and he could provide a further breakdown if required, although it would not include company / business names.

Cllr J Toye asked Cllr Brown how the proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework could affect housing delivery in the district. Cllr Brown replied that the Government had published an update on 19^th December and the Council needed time to properly assess the implications. He added that he would like to reassure members that the new guidance would not impact on the Council’s draft Local Plan or delay its implementation. Cllr Brown said that an Ofsted style league table was being established to set out the time taken to reach planning decisions. In response to a further question from Cllr Toye as to whether NNDC remained a Plan-led authority, Cllr Brown confirmed that it did.

Cllr G Mancini-Boyle asked Cllr W Fredericks, Portfolio Holder for Housing about the temporary accommodation situation in the district. He wanted to know the current position and the Council’s strategy for addressing the issue. Cllr Fredericks replied that there were currently 65 households in temporary accommodation, mainly bed and breakfast (B&Bs) and the majority of these were not suitable for families. The Council owned 23 homes and this had helped but it was very challenging not being able to anticipate the cost of housing people. Previously it had been between £600k to £700k a year but it was closer to £1.2m next year.

Cllr M Taylor asked Cllr P Heinrich to set out the actions that he had taken to relieve the stress caused to Stalham business owners by the closure of the high street. He acknowledged that it was a Norfolk County Council led project but said that local authorities should work together to ensure that businesses in the town were thriving. Cllr Heinrich replied  ...  view the full minutes text for item 102.

Due to the Cabinet meeting on 6^th December being cancelled, there were no recommendations to Full Council.

Due to the cancellation of the December meeting of Cabinet, there were no recommendations to Full Council.

To consider any recommendations made by Overview & Scrutiny Committee to Full Council.

The Chairman if the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, Cllr N Dixon, said that there were no recommendations to this meeting of Full Council.

To respond to any questions from Members.

Please note the following section of the Constitution:

Questions by members:

12.1     Members of the Council may ask questions of the Leader and Cabinet during Portfolio Holder reports on the agenda of ordinary meetings of the Council on any matter of Council business or on issues which affect the Council's area.

12.2     Members of the Council may ask questions of the Chairman of a Committee at Ordinary Meetings of the Council on any matter of Council Business or on issues which affect the Council’s area.

None received.

None Received.

None received.

Please note that as set out in Chapter 2, section 14.11 of the Constitution the time limit for debating all motions is limited to 30 minutes.

The following notice of motion has been proposed by Cllr H Blathwayt, seconded by Cllr A Varley:

Motion: Clean Water – Clean up Your Act

North Norfolk District Council is concerned about the water quality and pollution of our beaches and waterways. This Council cares about ensuring the highest levels of water quality and seeks to hold Anglian Water and the Environment Agency (EA) to account.

We therefore propose the following:

That the Leader

1)    writes to the Chief Executive of Anglia Water requesting:

a)    Confirmation of when all combined sewage outflows (CSO) in North Norfolk will have working monitoring equipment in place

b)    The reporting of CSO discharges on a quarterly basis to the Council

c)    A detailed investment allocation plan for North Norfolk

2)    writes to the Environment Agency (EA) requesting:

a)    Greater transparency on their water quality readings

b)    A guarantee that regular E. Coli testing will be undertaken & increased.

c)    A guarantee that reactive DNA testing be undertaken

d)    Information relating to collaborative works with agriculture partners

3)    That the Council undertakes discussions with Anglian Water and the Environment Agency to ensure that there is a review of the actions taken following the 19^th March incident in Mundesley.

4)    That the Leader writes to the Secretary of State for the Environment requesting that funding to the EA is increased.

Proposed: Cllr. Harry Blathwayt

Seconded: Cllr. Adam Varley

The following Notice of Motion had been proposed by Cllr H Blathwayt and seconded by Cllr A Varley: Motion:

‘North Norfolk District Council is concerned about the water quality and pollution of our beaches and waterways. This Council cares about ensuring the highest levels of water quality and seeks to hold Anglian Water and the Environment Agency (EA) to account.

We therefore recommend the following

That the Leader

1)    writes to the Chief Executive of Anglia Water requesting:

a)    Confirmation of when all combined sewage outflows (CSO) in North Norfolk will have working monitoring equipment in place

b)    The reporting of CSO discharges on a quarterly basis to the Council

c)    A detailed investment allocation plan for North Norfolk

2)    writes to the Environment Agency (EA) requesting:

a)    Greater transparency on their water quality readings

b)    A guarantee that regular E. Coli testing will be undertaken & increased.

c)    A guarantee that reactive DNA testing be undertaken

d)    Information relating to collaborative works with agriculture partners

That the Council undertakes discussions with Anglian Water and the Environment Agency to ensure that there is a review of the actions taken following the 19^th March incident in Mundesley

That the Leader writes to the Secretary of State for the Environment requesting that funding to the EA is increased.’

The Chairman invited Cllr Blathwayt to introduce the motion. He began by saying that he welcomed the following amendment proposed by Cllr N Dixon, seconded by Cllr V Holliday

‘The Leader of the Council to write to the relevant Secretary of State to request a Minister for the Coast to be appointed, who will help tackle the environmental challenges of water pollution for our coastal communities’.

Cllr Blathwayt said that the amendment supported the ongoing drive for a Ministry for the Coast and added that since the original motion had been submitted there had been a meeting of the LGA Coastal Special Interest Group (SIG) Water Quality working group. This was a country-wide group and all of the members of this SIG supported the aims of the motion. He thanked Sally-Ann Hind MP for her efforts and lobbying for a Ministry for the Coast and local MPs for their support.

Cllr Blathwayt said that the motion was important for the District’s tourism sector and the shellfish industry. Good water quality was imperative and he hoped all members would support the motion. The seconder of the motion. Cllr Varley, reserved his right to speak.

The Chairman opened the debate:

Cllr A Fitch-Tillett said that she wished to propose a further amendment that Norfolk County Council should also be included as the body responsible for surface water drainage. She said that a written request should be made to NCC that they should liaise with Anglian Water on working together to address the issues presented by surface water drainage mixing with sewage following storm events. Cllr Blathwayt and Cllr Varley confirmed that they would accept the amendment.

Cllr N Housden said that Anglian Water had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 107.

To pass the following resolution – if necessary:

“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) _ of Part 1 of Schedule 12A (as amended) to the Act.”