Decisions

That the statutory notices be determined thereby bringing into effect the formal commencement of the proposal to establish an Special Educational Needs Unit with a designation of ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) at Epsom Primary and Nursery School.  The proposal was approved without modification.

The Joint Committee (Guildford):

(i)    Approved a 4-week public consultation on the Air Quality Action Plan for Guildford Air Quality Management Area shown in Appendix 2.

(ii)   Noted that the results of the public consultation and any consequent amendments will be presented to the 26 October 2022 Joint Committee and if approved will be sent to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for final approval.

Reasons for Recommendations

To ensure the Council meets its statutory duties to adopt an Air Quality Action Plan to improve air quality within the AQMA in Guildford Town Centre.

Surrey County Council on behalf of Surrey Fire and Rescue Service require on-going support and maintenance services for Vision software.Proposed term is 4 years. The aim of the proposed contract is to consolidate support services across 3 existing software purchases and implementation contracts into a single support contract. Vision software is the mobilising solution for the Joint Fire Control which enables fire and rescue services to be sent to incidents in Surrey, East Sussex and West Sussex.

Following a procurement exercise, an Officer’s Decision is now required to approve the award of the contract.

It was AGREED that:

1.           A contract is awarded to SSS Public Safety Limited (previously owned by Capita Secure Information Solutions Limited) under the Crown Commercial Services, Back Office Systems framework RM6194.

A petition of 106 signatories was presented by Mandy Hunt.  The petition and response were published as a supplement to the agenda.  Mandy Hunt thanked the Cabinet Member for the response but asked that the whole road be taken into consideration and pointed out various locations along the road where there was lack of signage or where a crossing would be beneficial.

Catherine Baart, the Divisional Member, spoke in support of the petition.  She stated that the process for agreeing schemes like this and divisional member involvement had changed and the new process was not yet in place.  She understood that she could put forward one scheme a year. One aspect that she thought would help the situation immediately was for signage for the informal crossings from Felland Way and near Tyler’s Junction.  She had been told by officers that the signs will be sorted out when funding is available and asked the Cabinet Member when the funding was going to be available.

The Road Safety & Sustainable School Travel Team Manager explained that discussions with colleagues about the junction with Tyler’s Way where there had been a history of collisions indicated that there was an ambition for a scheme there to try and manage speeds and make crossing the road safer there.  Officers would take a look at the level of crossing demand at Tyler and Felland to see which would be the priority.  This cold then be included on the potential list of future schemes.

The Cabinet Member thanked the petitioner, divisional Member and officer for their contributions to the discussion.  He confirmed to the Divisional Member that it would be down to her to nominate her single scheme. The Select Committee had to have their input first on what new criteria was used for that. So it is the absolute priority for your area each year and on funding you can use your £7,500 revenue or parts of your £30,000 from £100,000 pounds, so funding is not an issue.

1.    That the lists of schemes in Annexes 1, 2 and 3 for delivery during 2022/23 that are designed to reduce road casualties, tackle speeding, and make walking, push scooting and cycling to school safer and more attractive be endorsed.

2.    That decisions on the prioritisation of schemes in future years be delegated to the Director for Highways and Transport in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Transport, Infrastructure & Economy, ensuring that Divisional Members for such schemes are informed if the overall list of schemes needs to be refined (for example if some schemes need to be paused, amended or brought forward) during 2022/23.

1.    That the project CF171 be funded for the full amount requested of £500,000, composed of:

·         £437,000 capital funding towards the extension of facilities to include an additional gymnasium (40m by 9.5m) to provide additional and bespoke facilities for children with disabilities, including a sensory room and an enhanced reception area.

·         £63,000 to be held by SCC as contingency funding, for release only upon an evidenced request.

2.    To approve the following conditions for the applicant to be included within the funding agreement:

·         updated quotes supplied for sensory room & gym equipment.

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

3.    That the applicant be requested to develop a usage policy to be adopted by Leatherhead & Dorking Gymnastics for the life of the facility which ensures the widest access to the community, to include a booking policy and schedule of fees maintaining affordable rates and subsidy for disability classes.

4.    That the applicant be encouraged to consider all reasonable measures which could be undertaken to extend the reach of and use of the facility to more voluntary sector disability organisations and underrepresented groups within the local community.

1.      That the project CF142 be funded for the full £300,000 requested, composed of:

·         £300,000 of capital funding towards the extension build to be paid in staged payments, on evidence of spend.

·         Including £15,000 (5%) to be held by SCC until final evidence of income, expenditure and evaluation is received. 

2.      That the following conditions for the applicant to be included within the funding agreement be approved:

·         final evidence of all funding secured to complete the project

·         final evidence of income & expenditure and evaluation

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

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

3.      That a usage policy to be developed and adopted by WR Sports Club for the life of the facility which ensures the widest access to the community, to include a booking policy and schedule of fees maintaining affordable rates was agreed.

4.      That the applicant be encouraged to consider all reasonable measures which could be undertaken to expand the reach and use of the facility. In particular to work closely with Spelthorne Borough Council and the local voluntary sector.

On 26 May 2022 the government announced, as part of a number of measures to provide help with global inflationary challenges and the significantly rising cost of living, that the £421m Household Support Fund (HSF) would be extended from 01 October 2022 to 31 March 2023. As has been done for previous schemes, the fund will be made available to County Councils and Unitary Authorities in England to support those most in need. Local authorities (LAs) have discretion on exactly how this funding is used within the scope of the grant determination and guidance. Surrey County Council’s allocation of the funding is £5,290,829.72, based on the population of each authority weighted by a function of the English Index of Multiple Deprivation.

The expectation is that The Fund should be used to support households in the most need; particularly those who may not be eligible for the other support government has recently made available but who are nevertheless in need. Energy bills may be of particular concern to low income households during the period of The Fund and LAs should prioritise supporting households with the cost of energy. Authorities should also consider providing support to disabled people in their area. Disabled people in particular may be facing acute challenges due to the disproportionate impact that rising costs bring for the additional services they need in order to manage their conditions, remain independent and avoid becoming socially isolated. Authorities have the ability to deliver the scheme through a variety of routes including providing vouchers to households, making direct provision of food or goods, or issuing grants to third parties (with the exception of grants for advice provision). Every area must operate at least part of their scheme on an application basis.

Payment of the grant allocation is on an arrears basis and is subject to the submission of two Management Information (MI) returns to DWP outlining the authority’s grant spend and the volume of awards for period 1 October – 31 December 2022 (due January ‘23 ) and for the period 1 October – 31 March 2023 (due April ‘23).

Decision made:

It was AGREED that:

The following allocations would be made, to be funded by Surrey County Council’s allocation of the Household Support Grant:

It should be noted that the issue of food vouchers during the May half term and the payments set out above to food banks and the VCF sector were made under delegations contained in the scheme of delegation, to ensure funds could be distributed as quickly as possible to ensure they reached vulnerable households.