Councillors and committees

Agenda, decisions and minutes

Venue: The Council Chamber, Civic Centre, Station Road, Addlestone KT15 2AH

Contact: Carys Walker  Partnership Committee Officer

Items
No. Item

OPEN FORUM pdf icon PDF 59 KB

Members of the public were invited to put informal questions to the Committee before the formal proceedings began.

13/19

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

    • Share this item

    To receive any apologies for absence.

     

    Minutes:

    Cllr Nigel King sent apologies for absence.

14/19

MINUTES FROM PREVIOUS MEETING pdf icon PDF 74 KB

    • Share this item

    To approve the Minutes of the previous meeting on 17 June 2019 as a correct record.

    Minutes:

    The minutes from the previous meeting were agreed.

15/19

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

    • Share this item

    All Members present are required to declare, at this point in the meeting or as soon as possible thereafter

    (i) Any disclosable pecuniary interests and / or

    (ii) Other interests arising under the Code of Conduct in respect of any item(s) of business being considered at this meeting.

    NOTES:

    · Members are reminded that they must not participate in any item where they have a disclosable pecuniary interest.

    · As well as an interest of the Member, this includes any interest, of which the Member is aware, that relates to the Member’s spouse or civil partner (or any person with whom the Member is living as a spouse or civil partner).

    · Members with a significant personal interest may participate in the discussion and vote on that matter unless that interest could be reasonably regarded as prejudicial.

     

    Minutes:

    No interests were declared.

16/19

DECISION TRACKER pdf icon PDF 74 KB

    • Share this item

    To review any outstanding decisions from the Joint Committee.

    Minutes:

    The Committee Members perused the Decision Tracker and agreed to remove the items suggested. By way of a follow up to last meeting’s enquiry about the maintenance of Thorpe Cemetery, a request was passed on from regular cemetery visitors to install a second water tap to assist relatives with the maintenance of their loved one’s graves.

17/19

PETITIONS AND PETITION RESPONSES

    • Share this item

    To receive any petitions in accordance with Standing Order 14.1. Notice must be given in writing or by email to the Community Partnership and Committee Officer at least 14 days before the meeting. Alternatively, the petition can be submitted on-line through Surrey County Council’s or Runnymede Borough Council’s e-petitions website as long as the minimum number of signatures has been reached 14 days before the meeting.

    Minutes:

    No petitions had been received.

18/19

WRITTEN MEMBER QUESTIONS

    • Share this item

    To receive any written questions from members under Standing Order 13. The deadline for members’ questions is 12 noon four working days before the meeting.

    Minutes:

    No questions had been received.

19/19

WRITTEN PUBLIC QUESTIONS

    • Share this item

    To answer any questions from residents or businesses within Runnymede borough area in accordance with Standing Order 14.2. Notice should be given in writing or by email to the Partnership Committee Officer by 12 noon four working days before the meeting.

    Minutes:

    No questions had been received.

20/19

HIGHWAYS UPDATE (EXECUTIVE FUNCTION) pdf icon PDF 119 KB

    • Share this item

    To receive an update from the Area Highway Manager (North West).

    Decision:

     

     

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) agreed:

     

          i.        That any uncommitted funding by 31st October from County Councillors’ Highways Allocations must be used by the Area Highways Manager to address pertinent issues in Runnymede.

     

     

    Reasons:

     

    1.    The Committee wanted to make a collective decision on this to ensure that all available funding is wholly and effectively used by the end of the financial year.

    Minutes:

    The Area Highways Manager presented his report, which outlined the progress of the highways maintenance programme for this financial year.

     

    Each county councillor has been allocated £7,500 to put towards improvements in their individual areas. As part of his report, the Area Highways Manager presented an update which showed what improvements had been funded so far. He reiterated that that proposals should be sent to him by the deadline of 31st October. If there were unallocated funds after this date, he would seek authority from the relevant county councillors to spend their remaining funds and would likely prioritise the clearing of any vegetation from roadsides and overhanging trees which could obscure drivers’ sightlines.

     

    Recognising the importance of funding being spent in a timely manner, the Committee resolved to make a collective decision to give the Area Highways Manager the authority to do this as soon as the deadline has passed. The Committee also requested that the Area Highways Manager reviewed the current figures to ensure that all councillors requests had been identified and addressed.

     

     

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) agreed:

     

          i.        That any uncommitted funding by 31st October from County Councillors’ Highways Allocations must be used by the Area Highways Manager to address pertinent issues in Runnymede.

     

     

    Reasons:

     

    1.    The Committee wanted to make a collective decision on this to ensure that all available funding is wholly and effectively used by the end of the financial year.

21/19

MOTION APPROVED BY RUNNYMEDE BOROUGH COUNCIL CONCERNING PART NIGHT LIGHTING PROGRAMME pdf icon PDF 144 KB

    This report results from a Motion brought to Runnymede Borough Council at their meeting of 18 July 2019 concerning the impact of Surrey County Council’s Part Night Lighting Programme. Officers from both councils have contributed to this report which presents various options for the Committee to discuss.

    Additional documents:

    Decision:

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) noted:

     

           i.        The resolution of Runnymede Full Council and wishes to recommend it is reconsidered following LED technology being implemented at Environment and Sustainability Committee.

     

    Reasons:

     

    1.    The Committee felt that as the LED technology would have such an impact on future running costs that it would be reasonable to readdress the issue once this change over had been completed.

    Minutes:

    This report resulted from a motion that was brought to the Runnymede Full Council meeting on 18 July. As this has implications for both the Borough and County Council, It was decided that this should be considered by the Joint Committee.

     

    The report lays out the background to the County Council’s decision to introduce the Part Night Lighting scheme. This included the budgetary and environmental reasons why the programme was implemented and the research and resident feedback that informed this decision. The report goes on to look at the specific locations affected in the borough including the individual streets and number of lights affected and concerns that have been raised by the introduction of this scheme.

     

    In discussing the report, the Committee noted that there was already an established  process for getting lights switched back on for safety reasons, on a street-by-street basis.. The County Council would absorb the cost in these cases provided the measures were endorsed by the local police. It was also noted that certain areas such as footpaths already remain lit throughout the night to facilitate safe travel for residents in hours of darkness.

     

    Committee members did not believe that there was strong enough evidence to show a causal link between the lights being switched off and the crime rate in the borough and some members reported that they had received feedback that switching off the lights had actually been welcomed by some residents who had found the bright lights invasive.

     

    In addition, it was noted that the County Council would soon embark on a three year programme to replace the existing lights with LED (Light Emitting Diode) technology which would vastly reduce energy costs as well as being more environmentally friendly. The Committee expressed that they would like Runnymede to be considered as one of the early adopters in this scheme.

     

    In view of this anticipated change and in light of there being very little evidence to suggest that they was any urgent need to turn Runnymede’s lights back on, the Committee suggested that this issue should be reconsidered after the LED technology has been implemented.

     

     

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) noted:

     

           i.        The resolution of Runnymede Full Council and wishes to recommend it is reconsidered following LED technology being implemented at Environment and Sustainability Committee.

22/19

TASK GROUPS AND EXTERNAL BODIES pdf icon PDF 109 KB

    • Share this item

    This report was deferred at the last meeting in June and has been revised in view of the current focus on future partnership working.

    Additional documents:

    Decision:

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) agreed:

     

          i.        To appoint the Divisional Member for Addlestone to represent the Committee on the Community Safety Partnership.

     

         ii.        To dispense with the establishment of the Committee’s task groups

     

        iii.        To suspend representation to the Early Help Board until their review has been completed.

     

     

    Reasons:

     

    1.    The Committee agreed with the Divisional Member’s proposal that he should be the Joint Committee's representative on the Community Safety Partnership as he already serves on this partnership in another capacity.

     

    2.    The Committee agreed that as parking and resident engagement are topics that are being reviewed by the Committee that task groups are not required at this time.

     

    3.    The Committee agreed that as the Early Help board are not currently meeting, a Committee representative is not required at this time.

    Minutes:

    The Partnership Committee Officer presented this report which was deferred from the June meeting.

     

    It is customary for the Joint Committee to appoint representatives to their task groups and external bodies at the beginning of the municipal year. However, in line with the County’s “Community Vision for 2030” and the Borough Council’s own partnership working initiatives, the Committee have been examining how to broaden its own scope for partnership working. In view of this it was agreed not to set up task groups this year but to re-visit them if appropriate in the future.

     

    It was acknowledged that as the Early Help Advisory Board had now ceased to meet and therefore there was no value in having an appointed representative at this time.

     

    The Committee did however value the work of the Community Safety Partnership and wished to maintain its connection to it. It was however decided that the Divisional Member for Addlestone would be best placed to provide this link as he already attends these meetings in another capacity.

     

     

    The Joint Committee (Runnymede) is asked to agree:

     

          i.        To appoint the Divisional Member for Addlestone to represent the Committee on the Community Safety Partnership.

     

         ii.        To dispense with the establishment of the Committee’s task groups

     

        iii.        To suspend representation to the Early Help Board until their review has been completed.

23/19

FORWARD PROGRAMME 2019/20 pdf icon PDF 68 KB

    • Share this item

    To review the forward programme 2019/20, indicating any further preferences for inclusion.

    Minutes:

    The Partnership Committee Officer advised that the scheduled “Local Transport Strategy review would need to be brought to a later meeting as there had been delays in finalising this.

     

    The Committee therefore agreed that the next meeting should include:

     

    ·         Runnymede’s parking review

    ·         Highways Update

    ·         Decision Tracker

    ·         Forward Plan

     

24/19

DATE OF NEXT MEETING

    • Share this item

    To be held on 25 November 2019 at 7pm (Meeting to start with Informal Open Forum)

     

    Venue to be confirmed.

    Minutes:

    The next meeting is on Monday 25 November. The Open Forum will commence at 7pm. The venue is to be confirmed.