Decisions

There were none.

There were none.

There were four public questions. The questions and responses were published as a supplement to the agenda.

There were ten member questions. The questions and responses were published as a supplement to the agenda.

There were none.

These were agreed as a correct record of the meeting.

There were no apologies.

RESOLVED:

See Exempt Minute [E-23-22]

Reasons for Decisions:

See Exempt Minute [E-23-22]

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Communities, Environment and Highways Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet note the Council’s forecast revenue and capital budget positions for the year.

2.    That Cabinet note the projected position for Surrey schools following submission of their budget plans for 22/23. 

Reason for Decisions:

This report is to comply with the agreed policy of providing a monthly budget monitoring report to Cabinet for approval of any necessary actions. 

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

1.      That Cabinet agrees to fund project CF211 for the full £982,389 requested, composed of:

·        £902,389 of capital funding towards the extension and refurbishment works to be paid in staged payments, on evidence of spend.

·        £49,119 (5%) is to be held by SCC (Surrey County Council) until final evidence of income, expenditure, evaluation and building control sign-off is received.

·        £80,000 contingency is to be held by SCC, only to be released on evidence of need.

2.      That Cabinet recommends the following conditions for the applicant should be included within the funding agreement:

2.1      evidence that all planning requirements are met prior to the project start

2.2      evidence of management agreement, lease and underlease in place prior to release of funding

2.3      final evidence of all funding secured to complete the project

2.4      the applicant uses all possible measures identified to increase sustainability and reduce environmental impact during construction and operation of the facility

2.5      To develop a usage policy to be adopted by Old Woking Community Centre for the life of the facility which ensures the widest access to the community, to include;

                             I.        a booking policy to ensure capacity for community uses is maintained at a specified level

                            II.       schedule of fees maintaining affordable rates.

                          III.       To encourage the applicant to consider all reasonable measures which could be undertaken to expand the reach and use of the facility, in particular to work closely with Woking Borough Council (WBC) and the local voluntary sector.

Reasons for Decisions:

The recommendations will enable expenditure from the Your Fund Surrey to be awarded to Old Woking and District Community Centre. This application has been the subject of a rigorous assessment process by officers, as set out in the body of this report.  Officers consider the project to meet the aims and published criteria of the Fund and to satisfy the requirements to award funding.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Communities, Environment and Highways Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

1.      That Cabinet agrees to fund project CF149 for the full amount requested of £586,396, composed of:

·       £538,084 capital funding towards the rebuild of the Village Hall, comprising of three fully accessible community rooms, new kitchen, male and female toilets, and offices for the Parish Council.

·       £26,904 (5%) final payment is to be held by Surrey County Council (SCC) until final evidence of income, expenditure and evaluation is received and building control has signed-off the work.

·       £48,312 is to be held by Surrey County Council (SCC) as contingency funding, for release only upon an evidenced request.

2.      Cabinet agrees that the following conditions for the applicant should be included within the funding agreement:

2.1.  The applicant provides evidence, prior to release of any funding, to confirm £600,000 Section 106 funding from Guildford Borough Council (GBC).

2.2.  The applicant uses all measures identified to increase sustainability and reduce environmental impact during construction and operation of the facility.

2.3.  Requests that the applicant develops a usage policy to be adopted by Ripley Village Hall for the life of the facility which ensures the widest access to the community, to include a booking policy to maintain affordable rates and subsidies for the under privileged within the community.

Reasons for Decisions:

The recommendations will enable expenditure from the Your Fund Surrey to be awarded to Ripley Village Hall Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO). This application has been the subject of a rigorous assessment process by officers, as set out in the body of this report.  Officers consider the project meets the aims and published criteria of the Fund and to satisfy the requirements to award funding.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Communities, Environment and Highways Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet gives approval to amend summary table 2.7a in the 2021 PCSO’s to update the current thresholds to ensure compliance with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) GPA (General Procurement Agreement).

2.    That Cabinet agrees to change the requirement for further approvals of contract awards over the regulated threshold to only being required when the budget is exceeded by +5%, removing further approval if the recommended contract price is below the allocated budget.

3.    That Cabinet agrees to utilise the flexibilities for sourcing the best route to market for below threshold Public Contracts Regulations (PCR) 2015 Light Touch Regime procurements (applicable to Health, Educational, Cultural and Social Care related service procurements).

4.    That Cabinet delegates authority to the Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director of Resources for future changes to the regulatory thresholds specified in table 2.7a to be made in accordance with the WTO GPA thresholds without submitting to Cabinet / Council.

5.    That Cabinet agrees to the removal of the requirement to register and maintain contracts over £5k and to increase this to £25k. This specifically relates to the uploading of contracts onto the procurement contracts database. Procurement is responsible for sourcing contracts over the value of £25K and therefore all contracts below this level are registered and maintained by the service. This amendment does not change any of the controls or the method/process of how we compliantly source the good/services.

Reasons for Decisions:

·         Care related services falling below the Light Touch Regime threshold have greater flexibility in procurement delivery methods whilst still ensuring value for money is secured.

·         Providing delegated authority to amend table 2.7a in line with regulatory thresholds will negate the need for Cabinet / Council approval whenever they are updated.

·         The revisions will ensure that the Procurement and Contract Standing Orders (PCSO’s) are current and in line with the latest government legislation and internal practice to enable procurement efficiency and compliance.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)

See Minute 137/22.

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet endorse the Annual Report of the Strategic Investment Board.

Reasons for Decisions:

To inform the Council about the activities of the Strategic Investment Board

The Strategic Investment Board has been established in accordance with best practice governance to ensure effective oversight and alignment with the strategic objectives and values of the Council.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

1.    That Cabinet approve the Environmentally Sustainable Procurement Policy on behalf of Surrey County Council (SCC).

2.    That Cabinet delegate authority for approving any future changes to the Policy to the Director of Procurement in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources and the Cabinet Member for Environment, to enable the policy to evolve and adapt to local and national developments.

Reasons for Decisions:

This policy aims to improve the environmental considerations built into the core delivery of goods, works and services that the Council procures. Having declared a climate emergency and published both the Climate Change Strategy and Delivery Plan, this policy supports the net zero targets of the Council and embeds environmental sustainability, such as increases to Surrey’s biodiversity and reducing waste, into procurement decisions to lead to a greener future for Surrey and its residents. This policy will prepare prospective suppliers for the environmental considerations and expectations that will be implemented into the Council’s future contracts. On average, SCC spends £890million through its procurement activities across an average of 6,300 vendors per annum; increasing environmental considerations across the Council’s procurement activity presents a significant opportunity to influence a reduction in carbon emissions across the county and within SCC’s own services.

As national policy and technology are rapidly changing, the policy must also be agile. Therefore, it is recommended that delegated authority be given to the Director of Procurement in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance and Resources and the Cabinet Member for Environment, to enable the policy to evolve as needed. Review of the policy is expected to take place on an, at least, annual basis once approved or as required following local and national policy directives.

(The decisions on this item can be called-in by the Resources and Performance Select Committee)

RESOLVED:

That the decisions taken since the last Cabinet meeting be noted.

There were none.

PETITION 3 - MAKE THAMES STREET SAFER AND PRESERVE OUR HERITAGE

1.         install a speed camera on Thames Street

2.         smooth the on/off ramps of the speed bumps (not remove them) to reduce reverberation and harm to the heritage buildings in the street

Thames Street runs through the Conservation Area and has over thirty 18th and 19th century Grade II listed buildings, many of which are homes. Even with speed bumps many vehicles go through the street well above the 20mph speed limit:

1.            The narrowness of the pavement and road make this a serious accident waiting to happen.

2.            Buses (11 plus tonnes) and occasional heavier vehicles cause substantial shuddering of the heritage buildings:

·                     this shuddering is significantly worse when their speed approaches and exceeds 20 mph

·                     a bus which gets slowed by 2 mph on a steep ramp causes similar reverberations to an average car running into a brick wall at 30 mph

·                     over 90 buses go down Thames Street each day.

3.            The speed bump ramps are too steep and do not comply with TfL's recommendations for buses.

The existing 7.5 tonnes vehicle weight limit already recognises the impact which heavy vehicles have along Thames Street. The buses are exempt, which we fully support, as they serve a vital service to the community.

The speed camera will ensure tight adherence to the speed limit making it a safer place for residents and pedestrians and this, along with the smoothing of the speed bumps, will preserve the heritage of the buildings.

Submitted by: Patrick Leaney

Signatures: 100+

Cabinet Member Response:

Many thanks for raising your concerns over speeding and road safety on Thames Street Lower Sunbury. I very much sympathise with the concerns being raised. Excess speeds increase the risk of road collisions and make the consequences worse. Higher speeds also make places less pleasant to live in by increasing noise and air pollution and making walking and cycling less attractive.

To tackle this Surrey County Council works closely with Surrey Police to create local speed management plans for each District or Borough. This means that whenever there are concerns over speeding, we will measure the speeds using a speed detection radar box which is a black box mounted on street furniture without anyone really knowing what it is or what it is for. This will collect data for at least a week. This data is combined with data on the collisions resulting in personal injury recorded by the police to ascertain the extent and nature of the speeding and road safety problem at each site.

Each site is then discussed with the police to determine which sites need the most attention, and then depending on the nature of the problem and the physical characteristics of the site the most appropriate intervention is agreed.

Interventions could include permanent speed cameras (including average speed cameras) at the worst sites where traffic calming is infeasible, traffic calming, police enforcement (either by hand-held laser or camera van), vehicle activated signs or community speed watch. Where the level of speeding is not that great then the location is unlikely to be prioritised for intervention. Therefore, this site will be added to the list of sites requiring a speed survey, and then the data will be discussed with the police.

This stretch of Thames Street between French Street and Halliford Road, approximately 1km long, already has a total of 13 raised table traffic calming features, and these have been in situ for over 20 years. This is one of the most traffic calmed stretches of road in Surrey. The County Council’s policy on speed cameras (agreed by Cabinet in September 2021) states that speed cameras will only be considered at locations where traffic calming is infeasible. This is because traffic calming (if feasible) will always provide a more cost-effective long-term solution compared to speed cameras because speed cameras will require ongoing maintenance and processing of offences and court time to prosecute motorists enduringly. In comparison traffic calming will largely solve the problem without the need to issue penalties to motorists ad-infinitum. Therefore, we do not have any plans to introduce permanent speed cameras on this stretch. Instead, if the speed surveys highlight a particular problem, perhaps at certain times of the day, then this will be raised with the police in case they are able to provide this stretch with additional targeted attention.

From initial inspection of the raised road tables there does not appear to be any aspect that is non-compliant with national guidance. For example, the steepness of the ramps (with an approximate 1 in 20 gradient) complies with national guidance for bus routes. Reducing the steepness of the ramps could be problematical and costly because it could result in increased speeds and may also require the repositioning of the adjacent drainage gullies at the bottom of some of the ramps. Therefore, we do not have any plans to change the design of the raised road tables.

Nonetheless I sympathise with the concerns over the noise and vibration and note that this has been highlighted as being associated with buses (with a weight restriction deterring other larger vehicles). Therefore, officers have raised this concern with the bus companies to ask them to remind drivers of the need to respect the 20mph speed limit and to take extra care in travelling over the raised road tables. It is expected that the bus companies will have records on the speeds of their vehicles and so will be able to monitor and provide suitable advice to their drivers accordingly.

PETITION 2 - NEW PARKING CHARGES SURROUNDING THE GREAT PARK

We the undersigned petition Surrey County Council to Aim for the council to re-evaluate or dissolve the new charges put in place in the following locations. Englefield Green, - Bagshot Road, TW20 0RS - A30 Crossroads, junction with St Judes Road and Bakenham Lane, TW20 0BP Windsor Great Park, - Blays Lane, from crossing point at the back of Ilex Close to Wick Road, TW20 0PB - Wick Road, parking bay by cul-de-sac, TW20 0HJ. - Wick Road entire length, from A30 to Wick Lane, TW20 0HJ - Wick Lane entire length, from Wick Road to Bishopsgate Road, TW20 OHT - Bishopsgate Road, TW20 0XU - Crimp Hill, TW20 0YB Virginia Water, - A30 London Road junction with A329 Blacknest Road, GU25 4NY - A30 London Road entrance to ACS International School, TW20 0AQ These are a series of places where parking has previously been free and accessible for all. These charges are now being put in place to discourage the selected few from parking on grass verges, but its stopping families, locals and other members outside of the community from visiting.

Wishing for the council to discuss, re-evaluate and potentially revoke the extremely steep parking charges that have now been put in place around the local area. These charges are for spaces that have previously been free and accessible for all. After asking online, it seems that no one is happy about the new charges being implemented and have been asked to raise these concerns with local represent ivies. I understand not everyone has the time or energy to email their local representative individually, so this petition is a quick and easy way for people to express and back their views and disagreement with the new charges put in place. With enough signatures it should express the upset to the committee when they meet to discuss these kinds of issues, with hope that the appropriate action be taken to evaluate the situation.

As well as the charge, there are also a variety of other issues raised from charging for these spaces. From the sign postage put up in the new spaces, not only are visitors being charged for the spaces, the council is now requesting cars be parked parallel, not at the head on angle it currently is. This is limiting the amount of people that can drive to explore the local area and the Great parks.  Mothers and fathers are already expressing concern on how this stops them from taking their children to activities like scouts or football, and mothers are questionings how they will be able to afford to take their children to the Great park in summer like they have for years.  These are just a few of many reasons as to why the council should revoke or re-evaluate the parking charges they are trying to put in place.

Submitted by: Mia Cockayne

Signatures: 328

Cabinet Member Response:

Thank you for contacting us about the new parking management scheme recently introduced along the A30 in Virginia Water and some of the peripheral roads around Windsor Great Park and Englefield Green.

Since the Covid pandemic, Windsor Great Park and Virginia Water have experienced significantly higher visitor numbers and it has been necessary to introduce parking restrictions to help maintain access and road safety in the area. Roads such as the A30, Bishopsgate Road, Blacknest Road, Christchurch Road, Crimp Hill, Ridgemead Road, Wick Road, Wick Lane, and Woodside Way have all experienced frequent obstructive parking caused by high visitor numbers, particularly in fine weather. Visitor vehicles overflow from the Crown Estate car parks within the park or choose to avoid paying to use them and park on the surrounding highway.

As a result, we have subsequently developed and implemented a series of restrictions to manage parking on the highway network around the park. This includes the introduction of parking charges into the parking areas along the A30/Blays Lane and Bishops Gate Road. In addition, we altered the layout of the parking bays from echelon to parallel in two of these locations to help traffic and pedestrians pass and negotiate these areas more safely. Double yellow lines have been introduced elsewhere to prevent parking in unsuitable areas, including replacing the poorly understood clearway on the A30.

The purpose of parking charges in transportation terms, is that they discourage visitors from driving around the local highway network looking for free parking, which adds to congestion and pollution. By having charges that are slightly higher (or at the same level) on the highway, visitors are encouraged to go straight to a car park which is generally more convenient.

Our original proposals were to implement parking charges between 9am and 6.30pm every day, however, as a consequence of the consultation process, the restrictions were reduced to 11am-5pm. This was to allow free parking for local residents (for dog walking, exercising etc) in the morning and evenings which seemed to be most popular.

We will monitor and review the effectiveness of the new restrictions over the coming months, particularly the impact on local businesses, however the initial feedback is that parking and traffic management in the area is much better controlled following the introduction of the restrictions with cars and other road users being able to pass more easily and with less congestion in the area.

PETITION 1 - HOLY TRINITY SCHOOL (WEST END) ROAD SAFETY

“We the undersigned petition Surrey County Council to Increase the safety of the children that attend Holy trinity school in West end by reducing the danger caused by traffic along Benner Lane. This can be achieved by the following: Reducing the speed limit along Benner Lane from 30mph to 20mph. Installation of a pedestrian zebra crossing at the entrance to the school to allow safe crossing of the road. Installation of speed calming bumps along Benner Lane to slow traffic. Repurposing of the unrestricted bay parking outside the school into a school drop off zone.

Justification:

School drop-off and pick-up at holy trinity school is having a major impact on the usage and safety of the surrounding roads.  A large number of vehicles use Benner Lane during drop off and pick up times. These are both parents and other traffic including large HGVs.  We would like speed safety measures installed in the immediate vicinity of the school to decrease the risk to the children and other pedestrians.  These should include measures to slow traffic down and allow the children to safely cross the busy road.

There are also two large unrestricted parking bays outside the school. These could have restrictions added to them in order to a facilitate a school led, safe and legal drop off zone.  I have created this petition this evening following attendance of a working group involving Mrs Ambrose (head teacher), local councillors and concerned parents.”

Submitted by: Daniel Shevill

Signatures: 120+

Cabinet Member Response:

Many thanks to the petitioners for raising their concerns over road safety near Holy Trinity School. School road safety is a frequently expressed concern across the county. At school drop off and pick up times the roads in the immediate vicinity of schools are especially busy. This often causes slower vehicle speeds and congestion, worsens air quality, and can lead to frustration from motorists and residents. This has been exacerbated at this site after the School Crossing Patrol left their role. Although there is budget available to pay for a replacement, despite the best efforts of the County Council and School it has not been possible to find a replacement.

The County Council has a policy which describes the process we use for investigating and responding to concerns about school road safety. Our aim is to reduce the risk of collisions and to make the road feel safer, to encourage more people to consider walking or cycling to and from school. The policy can be viewed via this link:  Road safety outside schools - Surrey County Council (surreycc.gov.uk)

This site has already been assessed by officers using the process set out in the Road Safety Outside Schools policy. This included a site visit involving highways and police road safety specialists alongside the Headteacher on 7 June 2022.

The resulting recommendations for highway improvements are summarised thus:

•               Implement a zebra crossing on a raised table at the existing informal crossing point.

•               Implement a lower 20 mph speed limit (which will probably require supporting traffic calming to be successful, depending on speed surveys).

•               Implement double yellow lines on the western side of Benner Lane between the existing School Keep Clear zig zags as far as across the junction with Great Barn Crescent. It is proposed that this will be implemented as part of the cyclical annual parking review for the Surrey Heath area.

•               Implement parking controls that would facilitate the use of the laybys outside the school as a drop off/pick up facility. At present is it not clear what the best way of achieving this might be. It is proposed that this will be implemented as part of the cyclical annual parking review for the Surrey Heath area.

Earlier this year the County Council confirmed a new £3million budget over the next three years for use in implementing highway schemes near schools to support more walking and cycling.

Unfortunately, this budget is already committed towards delivering schemes near schools that have been assessed over several previous years. However, the potential recommendations are being considered for future funding from the Countywide programme of Integrated Transport Schemes. There are several factors that will be taken into account as part of this consideration including the number of personal injury accidents, improving health, the environment and delivering good value for money. Schemes will also need to have the support and be nominated by the Local Divisional Member whose decision will be informed by the level of local support. In this case the local Divisional Member Cllr Rebecca Jennings-Evans has nominated this as a priority scheme to be assessed and considered for inclusion in the 2023/24 Countywide Integrated Transport programme. This programme is still being determined and the schemes that will be progressed for funding will be confirmed by the Cabinet Member later this year.

In addition to the highway improvements described above there were also recommendations made at the site visit for consideration by the school themselves:

•               Create a school travel plan using the national online portal Modeshift STARS. This is an action plan that the school will implement to support more walking and cycling for school journeys. The County Council’s Safer Travel Team can provide advice and training on creating a school travel plan. More information can be found here: About our road safety and sustainable travel options for schools - Surrey County Council (surreycc.gov.uk)

•               Implement a walking bus from Tringham Hall

•               In the meantime, continue advertising for a replacement School Crossing patrol

Three petitions were considered and responses given:

1.      That the transfer of the remaining Local and Joint Committee Executive Functions delegated by the Leader with effect from 11 October 2022 be agreed.

2.      That the approval of changes to library opening hours are delegated to the Cabinet Member for Communities and Community Safety, or to officers where appropriate, with effect from 11 October 2022 be agreed.

3.      That the executive functions previously delegated by the Leader to Local and Joint Committees relating to Community Safety and Youth Provision are incorporated within the general service delegations to officers, and advisory functions are removed, due to service, commissioning and policy changes, to bring the constitution into line with current practice, with effect from 11 October 2022 be agreed.

4.      That the Director of Law and Governance, in consultation with the Leader of the Council, make the relevant changes to the Council’s Constitution including to the Executive and Officer Scheme of delegation as set out within this report. 

5.      It was noted that a report will be put to full Council on 11 October 2022 recommending transferring the non-executive functions of Public Rights of Way (PROW), the ceasing of the Local Committees, and serving notice of Council’s intention to withdraw from the Joint Committees.

6.      That the Director of Law and Governance be requested to work in conjunction with Democratic Services officers from Guildford, Runnymede, Woking, and Spelthorne Borough Councils regarding the notice and in updating their respective constitutions.

That a non-exclusive open access agreement, in consultation with the Cabinet Member and Director, being signed between Surrey County Council and Freshwave Ltd, allowing Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to install and operate small cell radio transmitter units (4G, 5G and/or future mobile technology frequencies) to an agreed list of SCC street furniture assets (e.g. lighting columns, illuminated signs, CCTV columns, traffic light columns) be approved.

That the use of the agreement for installation of small cell radio transmitter units (4G, 5G and/or future mobile technology frequencies) on bus shelters and/or other infrastructure for the Districts and Boroughs who have expressed an interest in being part of the agreement be agreed.

That the Service Manager for School Admissions go out to statutory consultation on the proposed changes to admission arrangements for community and voluntary controlled schools for September 2024 including:-

·         Southfield Park Primary School – extension of catchment area; change to the tie-breaker within catchment, and removal of ‘nearest school’

·         Stamford Green Primary School – introduction of catchment area and removal of ‘nearest school’

·         Beauclerc Infant School - reduction of Reception PAN from 40 to 30

·         Farncombe Infant School - reduction of Reception PAN from 50 to 30

·         St Ann’s Heath Junior School – reduction of Year 3 PAN from 90 to 60 and removal of Meadowcroft Infant School as a feeder school at Year 3

That the Service Manager for School Admissions go out to statutory consultation on the proposed changes to admission arrangements for community and voluntary controlled schools for September 2024 including:-

·         Southfield Park Primary School – extension of catchment area; change to the tie-breaker within catchment, and removal of ‘nearest school’

·         Stamford Green Primary School – introduction of catchment area and removal of ‘nearest school’

·         Beauclerc Infant School - reduction of Reception PAN from 40 to 30

·         Farncombe Infant School - reduction of Reception PAN from 50 to 30

·         St Ann’s Heath Junior School – reduction of Year 3 PAN from 90 to 60 and removal of Meadowcroft Infant School as a feeder school at Year 3

The SCC BT Unicorn services contract, which provides critical Wide Area Network (WAN) and Wi-Fi services to Council sites, expires in August 2024. Cabinet approved the use of the South East Grid (SEG) Network Services Framework as the route to market for the procurement of the replacement WAN and Wi-Fi services, and approved capital investment to provide gigabit capable connectivity to all Council sites.

Following a technical and commercial review of the proposal, IT & Digital would like to award the contract to MLL Telecom Limited though the South East Grid (SEG) Network Services Framework.

It was AGREED that:

1.    A contract is awarded to MLL Telecom Limited under the South East Grid (SEG) Network Services Framework to provide WAN, Wi-Fi and Infrastructure services.