City Council

COMMITTEE : GLT CABINET BRIEFING CABINET DATE : 7th DECEMBER 2010 19TH JANUARY 2011 2ND FEBRUARY 2011 SUBJECT : FUTURE OF THE COUNTRYSIDE UNIT DECISION TYPE : FOR INFORMATION WARD : ALL REPORT BY : CABINET MEMBER FOR HERITAGE AND LEISURE NO. OF APPENDICES : NONE REFERENCE NO. : SNR2010_22

1.0 PURPOSE OF REPORT

1.1 To inform members of progress to date regarding the review of the Countryside Unit, and to seek support for a series of measures to realise savings whilst ensuring that the Council’s statutory obligations are met.

2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS

2.1 That Cabinet recognises that:

a) the Council no longer directly provides public access to, and interaction with, farm animals

b) management of the Countryside unit will pass to the green team within the Regeneration Directorate, building on the existing expertise within that service with regard to ecology and nature conservation, and in particular access to sources of external funding for such work.

c) the site of the existing farm buildings at Robinswood will be disposed of in accordance with the Council’s asset management strategy and constitutional provisions.

d) it is intended that a small proportion of the receipt will be used to refurbish the existing ranger centre at Robinswood Hill (adjacent premises currently leased to the Wildlife Trust - GWT).

e) subject to agreement of a suitable lease, the GWT will move into the ranger centre in addition to their existing premises and share these facilities with the Countryside Unit.

f) large equipment and emergency cattle cover will be relocated to Netheridge Farm (the Barn Owl Centre), funded by a small proportion of the capital receipt for the farm.

SNR2010_22 1 g) detailed discussions will be entered into with Parish Council (QPC) on the future management of Quedgeley Arboretum and the 2 small areas of woodland currently managed by the Countryside Unit.

h) further review of the service will be carried out with a view to generating savings, including consideration of partnership working with other organisations, reducing the provision of onsite staff cover, and the potential for delivery of grounds maintenance type work by the streetcare partner.

i) the potential for income generation from car parking charges, as identified in the Three Year Money Plan, will be pursued by officers within the green team and parking services.

3.0 BACKGROUND

3.1 The Three Year Money Plan approved by Council in November 2010 proposes four separate savings items relevant to the Countryside Unit.

3.1.1 City Farm - £30k

3.1.2 Robinswood Hill Car Parking - £60k

3.1.3 Countryside Unit Review – £40k

3.1.4 Further Review of Countryside Unit - £60k

3.2 There are significant challenges in realising this level of savings and that a phased approach is appropriate.

3.3 Following the planned transfer of the City Farm to a charitable organisation (agreed at Cabinet in November 2010), and associated downsizing of the livestock herd, the main work stream of the unit is the management of large areas of countryside as nature reserves or country park for the benefit of public access, recreation, biodiversity and landscape.

3.4 There are four main holdings managed by the unit. Robinswood hill, at 225 acres, is a huge asset and is managed as a mixed habitat consisting of Woodland, grassland and scrub, it is designated a Local Nature Reserve. The quarry on the hill is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

3.5 Hucclecote hay meadow is a small reserve (10 acres) adjacent to the M5 in Abbeymead. It is an SSSI and is managed by grazing cattle with occasional hay cuts. It is designated for its floristic diversity and as a remnant of a once common feature of the Severn Vale.

3.6 is the large wetland to the immediate west of the city centre (150 acres). These are active flood meadows whose openness is fundamental to flood management in the city (flood flow over the island has to be unrestricted to prevent displacement into the city in times of spate). It is currently grazed by cattle and when conditions are appropriate a hay cut is taken. Significant improvements to the habitat and flood flow have been made over the past few years paid for primarily by developer contributions. It is a Local Nature Reserve.

SNR2010_22 2 3.7 Quedgeley Arboretum and associated woodlands, are small pockets of woodland within Quedgeley Parish, which Quedgeley has developed around. The arboretum is a Local Nature Reserve which requires small-scale woodland management.

3.8 The Countryside Unit also carries out miscellaneous other work, including the removal of abandoned cars on Council owned land, participation in community clean up days, and guided educational walks.

3.9 Under the Natural Environmental and Rural Communities Act 2006 (NERC) the City Council must ‘have regard to the purpose of conservation of biological diversity in the exercise of its functions’. Any future proposals for the management of these areas should be mindful of this requirement and not result in a significant reduction in their nature conservation value.

3.10 It is a criminal offence not to manage any Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in an appropriate manner. For the quarry at Robinswood this means that the face and its geological information needs to be kept exposed, for Hucclecote Hay Meadows a regular hay cut coupled with grazing is required.

4.0 PROGRESS

4.1 Proposals to transfer the City Farm to a charitable organisation were agreed at Cabinet in November and work is ongoing to progress this.

4.2 The potential for outsourcing the remainder of the service has been investigated, and proposals from Enterprise assessed. Whilst there is scope for a variation to the streetcare partnering to include elements of the work of the Countryside unit, the conservation work, and particularly the requirement to manage grazing animals, is not a good fit for the streetcare contract.

4.3 Officers have also been in discussion with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, The National Trust, and Gloucestershire County Council with a view to exploring outsourcing, asset transfer or shared services.

4.4 Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust expressed a strong interest in maintaining and developing an enhanced presence on Robinswood Hill, and on working more closely with the City Council. However, GWT are not equipped to take on the Countryside Unit operation.

4.5 The National Trust have expressed a strong interest in acquiring a presence in the City, and showed particular interest in Robinswood Hill. However, the NT indicated that they would not be looking to move forward with any proposal within the next two years. Officers have agreed to maintain a dialogue with the NT, and indicated that the Council would be amenable to exploring opportunities when they arise.

4.6 Gloucestershire County Council have also showed an interest in partnership working or shared service with Gloucester and other districts. The County operate a small countryside unit with two full time members of staff. Further work is required to explore the potential for efficiencies that a shared service could generate.

4.7 To achieve a level of conservation activity in line with NERC requirements and SSSI standards (and to qualify for funding from agri-environment schemes) a basic herd of cattle plus a small number of goats for the quarry is required.

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4.8 Maintaining the service in house could be achieved with a senior ranger and two junior rangers, with strategic management provided by the Green Team Manager. This is currently considered to be the minimum to enable stock management, safety for staff and visitors and to still allow the Council to qualify for agri-environment grant schemes. A further review will be carried out with a view to challenging the levels of staffing in particular.

4.9 This proposal generates a saving from deletion of a single post within the Countryside Unit, with additional income from other sources. Measures to implement the proposal are currently being carried out under the relevant delegated powers. Further detail, including an outline of costs, is summarized below.

4.10 Management responsibility

Line management and strategic direction will be provided by the team leader of the City Councils Green Team. The team already supports a countryside manager managing the Severnside Project (this works on privately owned land in the area between the Sharpness Canal and the Severn and is predominantly externally funded). There is therefore a degree of synergy with the work of the 2 teams – indeed there is already a significant overlap with the Green team being responsible for many of the successful grant aid bids that the Countryside unit has received over the years. It has also been responsible for a significant amount of developer contributions negotiated to deliver the units outcomes especially on Alney Island.

4.11 Accommodation

The farmhouse, agricultural buildings and land at Robinswood Hill Farm will be surplus to requirements, and appropriately disposed of. This will leave the rangers with the requirement for an outstation facility. For some time GWT have expressed an interest in renting the old ranger centre next to their headquarters on Robinswood Hill (currently used for informal storage) from the City Council. However, difficulties have arisen due to the poor condition of the building. It is proposed therefore, that with a small percentage of the capital receipt from the sale of the farm buildings the ranger centre is brought back into productive use, and used jointly by the rangers and GWT. Although no detailed figures have been calculated it is estimated that this will be somewhere in the region of £30k. This sum will over time be recouped through rent charged to the wildlife trust. There are other advantages to this arrangement. First the Trust has expressed concern at the lack of joint working with the City Council. It is expected that with the rangers sharing office space, interaction between the 2 organizations will increase. Second the building can again become the ‘face of the hill’ and a focal point for visitors arriving at the site, and is ideally located for this purpose.

4.12 Equipment storage

The Unit requires equipment including tractors, hay bailers and flails. With the disposal of Robinswood Farm it is proposed that this can best be provided at Netheridge Farm. This is currently on a long lease to the barn owl centre, who have coincidentally informed the Council that they have a surplus of accommodation and officers are confident that the need for storage of large plant can be accommodated on this site. There will also be a need for emergency housing for the remaining livestock, which can also be provided at Netheridge, subject to appropriate lease

SNR2010_22 4 agreements. Capital investment in the region of £15k will be required to facilitate provision of these requirements.

4.13 Quedgeley Woodlands

The areas of woodland at Quedgeley are by their nature very different from the rest of the holdings managed by the unit. They are small in scale, do not require large plant or stock to manage them, and are a little more distant from the rest the holding. Officers of the Council have in the past received informal requests from the Parish Council to take these over, potentially with support from Quedgeley Area Conservation Association. Although no formal discussions have taken place, recent informal conversations with Parish suggest there is still a desire to take them on. The intention therefore is to pass the management of these areas on to the Parish Council, subject to negotiation of a suitable lease at peppercorn rent.

4.14 Other funding streams

4.15 Significant income streams will be provided by agri-environment grant schemes. The existing stewardship agreements have, or are coming to an end. These will be replaced with the new scheme and, it is expected that the majority of the holding will achieve ‘Higher Level Stewardship’, subject to carrying out specific management regimes and capital works. Taken with the universal ‘Single Farm Payment’ (paid for undertaking agricultural activities) this should provide annual revenue income in the region of £23k, almost double the current level.

4.16 The unit already carries out limited contract grazing where organizations pay to have their land grazed for conservation purposes. It is expected that this will increase especially with the Environment Agency’s desire to have its upstream flood attenuation scheme for Horsbere managed by the City Council. Anticipated income from committed proposals is in the region of £3k per annum.

4.17 The car park at Robinswood is currently free. The County Council have recently introduced car parking charges at Crickley Hill Country Park, and it is commonplace to find car park charges at similar facilities nationally.

4.18 Approximately 85000 car park visits are made each year to Robinswood Hill, and an estimated 10 – 15 commuters take advantage of free parking at Alney Island each day. The Three Year Money Plan figure of £60k annual income is an estimate as there is alternative on street parking in the vicinity of Robinswood Hill. This can be controlled to some extent with parking restrictions which discussions with the County Council have indicated are deliverable.

4.19 The redevelopment of Westgate Park is also likely to provide opportunity for generating revenue from car parking charges to users and commuters.

4.20 Investigation of parking charges is at an early stage, and further detail has not yet been prepared.

4.21 There are also a number of smaller income streams identified that include charging for guided walks, sale of logs, possible income from renewables and small scale consultancy that could realise c£5k per annum.

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4.22 Although there is an existing friends group for Robinswood Hill, they have not tended to get involved in fund raising or running events. Developing this group, which can be assisted by the Countryside Unit and Neighbourhood Management Team, will allow better access to external funding streams.

4.23 There are currently no Friends groups for Alney Island or Hucclecote Hay Meadows, and it is proposed that efforts are also made to establish these if possible.

5.0 FUTURE WORK

5.1 The following work will be completed.

5.2 The post of Countryside Unit manager will be deleted, and management of the unit transferred to the Green Team Leader within the regeneration directorate.

5.3 Robinswood Hill Farm will be disposed of and the unit will focus on improving public access and nature conservation.

5.4 Necessary arrangements will be negotiated for housing of equipment and emergency shelter for animals.

5.5 Negotiations with the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust will continue with a view to letting the old ranger centre on a shared basis, following a basic refurbishment.

5.6 Further work will be carried out with regard to the possible introduction of car parking charges at Robinswood Hill and Alney Island. Findings and further recommendations will be reported to Members as appropriate.

5.7 Further review of the service will be undertaken with a view to identifying additional savings.

5.8 Contact will be maintained with the National Trust and County Council with a view to future collaboration.

6.0 CONCLUSIONS

6.1 This report identifies proposals that will produce significant savings from the Countryside Unit budget.

6.2 Whilst there are risks identified in section 9 that could impact upon the Council’s ability to generate all of the targeted savings, the proposals outlined in this report are considered to be the best course of action at this time.

6.3 Further review of the service should be carried out following implementation of these proposals to explore the potential for further savings.

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7.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

7.1 The Three Year Money Plan contains the following four items relevant to this report;

7.2 City Farm £30k

Work is in progress to deliver this saving through transfer of the City Farm to a charitable organisation.

7.3 Countryside Unit Review £40k

The following savings are proposed against this target

Deletion of Countryside Unit Manager post £39k Additional income from agri environment grants £12k Additional miscellaneous income £5k Contract Grazing £3k Income from GWT lease £1k ____ Total £60k

7.4 Car Parking £60k

Further work is required to progress this item as referred to in the report above and at section 9.

7.5 Further review of Countryside Unit £60k

The review of the unit within this report is predicted to generate £20k towards this target. Irrespective of the income realised from introducing car parking charges, there is further work required to realise the remaining £40k. Further details are found at section 9.

8.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

8.1 As identified within this report, the City Council has legal obligations concerning management of specific areas with regard to conservation. The proposals within this report allow for these to be met.

8.2 Consideration will need to be given to the terms of any leases relating to the ranger centre and to the proposed storage facility at Netheridge.

9.0 RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

9.1 Significant risks exist with regard to the achievement of financial savings as detailed below;

9.2 Capital receipt from sale of Robinswood Hill Farm.

Initial estimates of land value will be subject to market conditions at the time of disposal, and values will be further influenced by such planning conditions as may be placed on any redevelopment. The corporate property team have the expertise

SNR2010_22 7 to ensure that the value is maximised, and will liaise closely with the Director of Resources with regard to timings.

9.3 Capital Investment in Ranger centre and Netheridge

The figures within this report are initial estimates, and further work will be required if the proposal is taken forward.

9.4 Car Parking Receipts

Initial predictions for achievable car parking income are based on current recorded visitor numbers of approximately 85,000 vehicle visits per year. The level of any charge, and the duration of parking that this permits, will influence the usage of the car park and therefore income.

9.5 Letting of ranger centre

Income from letting of the Ranger centre to the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust will be subject to negotiation.

9.6 Further Review of Countryside Unit

This report identifies the need for further work to identify additional savings to achieve the targets within the three year money plan.

Whilst review of staffing levels may generate savings, the additional targeted sum of £40k compares with a projected salary budget of £83k. Achieving a full saving is therefore only likely to be achievable should transfer of the assets managed by the unit be realised.

10.0 PREDICTIVE IMPACT ASSESSMENTS (EQUALITIES) AND COMMUNITY COHESION Identify all risks for customers and staff, in the areas of gender, disability, age, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation and community cohesion.

10.1 No significant risks are identified. The service provided will remain unchanged following adoption of the proposals within this report.

11.0 OTHER CORPORATE IMPLICATIONS

1. Community Safety

There are no community safely implications resulting from this report

2. Environmental

The current level of nature conservation management will be maintained by these proposals and therefore there are no negative Environmental issues resulting from this report

3. Staffing

The proposals within this report include a redundancy situation within the Countryside Unit that is subject to the Council’s Human Resources policies and procedures.

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4. Trade Union (TU to complete)

Nothing to add to the content of this report.

Published Papers : City Farm and Countryside Unit Review, Report to Cabinet, 25th November 2010

Person to Contact : David Sutton Tel: 396355 E-mail: [email protected]

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