SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL South Lakeland House, Kendal, Cumbria LA9 4UQ www.southlakeland.gov.uk

You are requested to attend a meeting of the Council on Thursday, 10 December, at 6.30 p.m. in the Council Chamber, South Lakeland House, Kendal Note – There will be a presentation on the Corporate Plan 2010/2011 and the Transformation Programme at 5.00 p.m. in the Town Council Chamber. This will be followed by a hotpot supper at 5.50 p.m. For those who wish to attend, Prayers will be said in the District Council Chamber at 6.20 p.m. Membership

Councillors

James Airey Kath Atkinson Rosie Ballantyne-Smith Alan Baverstock Roger Bingham Norman Bishop-Rowe Jonathan Brook (Chairman) Jane Carson Stephen Coleman Stan Collins Brian Cooper Jackie Cooper Joss Curwen Colin Davies Julie Dawson Sheila Eccles Sylvia Emmott (Vice-Chairman) Clare Feeney-Johnson Clive Graham Brenda Gray Anne Hall Tom Harvey Colin Hodgson Frank Hodson Chris Hogg Brendan Jameson Janette Jenkinson Pru Jupe Kevin Lancaster Sonia Lawson Clive Leal Paul Little Ian McPherson Gwen Murfin Maureen Nicholson Vivienne Rees Jamie Samson Andy Shine Hilary Stephenson Jo Stephenson Ian Stewart Peter Thornton David Vatcher Graham Vincent Bill Wearing Brian Wilkinson David Williams Mark Wilson Mary Wilson Brenda Woof Peter Woof

2 December 2009

Debbie Storr, Corporate Director (Monitoring Officer)

For all enquiries, please contact:- Committee Administrator: Chris Woods (Democratic and Member Services Manager) Telephone: 01539 733333 Ext.7440 e-mail: [email protected]

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2 AGENDA Apologies : Roll Call Page Nos. PART I 1. MINUTES 7 - 10 To authorise the Chairman to sign, as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 3 November 2009 (copy attached). 2. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Any member of the public who wishes to ask a question, make representations or present a deputation or petition at this meeting should apply to do so before the commencement of the meeting. Information on how to make the application can be obtained by viewing the Council’s Website www.southlakeland.gov.uk or by contacting the Democratic and Member Services Manager on 01539 717440. (1) Questions To receive any questions which have been received from members of the public. (2) Deputations and Petitions To receive any deputations or petitions which have been received from members of the public. 3. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST To receive declarations by Members of personal and prejudicial interests in respect of items on this Agenda. If a Member requires advice on any item involving a possible declaration of interest which could affect his/her ability to speak and/or vote, he/she is advised to contact the Monitoring Officer at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. 4. LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972 – EXCLUDED ITEMS To consider whether the items, if any, in Part II of the Agenda should be considered in the presence of the press and public. 5. CHAIRMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENTS To receive announcements by the Chairman. 6. INVEST TO SAVE REQUEST FROM LAKE ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE 11 - 12 To consider a request from the Lake Administration Committee. Agenda Item 15 is an Appendix to this report which contains information which is excluded from inspection by members of the public as it contains information as described in Schedule 12A of the Act, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006. 7. CORPORATE FINANCIAL MONITORING (JULY – SEPTEMBER 2009) 13 - 28 To consider the Corporate Monitoring Report for the second quarter of the financial year 2009/10. 8. 2010/11 REVENUE BUDGET: GENERAL FUND SERVICES - PROGRESS 29 - 34 REPORT To note the progress to date on budget preparation.

3 9. CAPITAL PRIORITISATION UPDATE (PD09/002/SEV) 35 - 46 To note the progress on the 2010/11 onwards Capital Prioritisation process to date. 10. REVISED STATEMENT OF GAMBLING LICENSING POLICY 47 - 98 To make any amendments to the revised draft statement of Gambling Licensing Policy, and to approve the Policy for publication in accordance with Section 349 of the Gambling Act 2005. 11. REFERALS FROM CABINET (1) SHAPING THE FUTURE – SHARED SERVICES 99 - 110 MANAGEMENT/DELIVERY ALLIANCE To consider a proposal to progress a shared services management/ delivery alliance with another local authority. (2) CLARE HOUSE LANE FOOTBRIDGE GRANGE OVER SANDS 111 - 116 (KD09/04/CS) To amend the Capital Programme to increase the provision for Grange Railway Bridges. (3) LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN HEALTH ACT 117 - 126 To consider changes to governance arrangements. (4) PROGRESS REPORT ON THE TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME 127 - 140

To provide an update on progress made within year two of the Transformation Programme. (5) MEMBER CHAMPIONS 141 - 160 To consider the process of appointment of Member Champions for specific themes or services, and to put in place arrangements within which the appointed Champions may operate. 12. MINUTES OF MEETINGS To receive Chairmen’s comments (if any notified) in respect of the minutes of Committee meetings held between 17 August and 20 November. If Members wish to raise questions with regard to any minutes of the Regulatory or Overview and Scrutiny Committee meetings held since the Agenda was issued for the last Council meeting, then notice should be provided in line with Rule 10 of the Council Procedural Rules (page 85 of the Constitution). 13. EXECUTIVE REPORTS, DECISIONS AND CABINET QUESTION TIME 161 - 178 To receive the Executive Report from the Leader and to deal with any questions to the Leader and/or Portfolio Holders on any topic which is within the jurisdiction or influence of the Council, and is relevant to their Portfolio. Any Member who poses a question will be entitled to one supplementary question on the same topic. Members are encouraged to give Portfolio Holders 24 hours’ notice of questions. If no notice is received, then the Portfolio Holder can reserve the right to give a written answer. Where notice of questions has been given, these will be taken first. Where a Member wishes to ask more than one question, please submit questions in order of priority. If more than one Member sends in a question, these will be taken in alphabetical order of Members’ names. The question time will be limited to 30 minutes.

4 14. QUESTIONS To deal with any questions under Paragraph 10 of the Council’s Rules of Procedure, of which due notice has been given and/or the Chairman allows as a matter of urgent business. PART II Private Section (exempt reasons under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006, specified by way of paragraph number) 15. INVEST TO SAVE REQUEST FROM LAKE ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE 179 - 180 - Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). (Paragraph 3)

- Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings. (Paragraph 5) To consider an Appendix to the report at Agenda Item No.6 which contains information excluded from inspection by members of the public as it contains information as described in Schedule 12A of the Act, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006.

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6 Item 1

35 10.11.2009 Council

SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Minutes of the proceedings at a meeting of the Council held in the Council Chamber at South Lakeland House, Kendal, on Tuesday, 10 November 2009, at 6.30 p.m.

Present

Councillors

Jonathan Brook (Chairman) Sylvia Emmott (Vice-Chairman)

James Airey Kath Atkinson Rosie Ballantyne-Smith Alan Baverstock Roger Bingham Norman Bishop-Rowe Jane Carson Stephen Coleman Stan Collins Brian Cooper Joss Curwen Colin Davies Julie Dawson Sheila Eccles Clare Feeney-Johnson Brenda Gray Anne Hall Chris Hogg Brendan Jameson Janette Jenkinson Pru Jupe Kevin Lancaster Sonia Lawson Paul Little Ian McPherson Vivienne Rees Jamie Samson Andy Shine Peter Thornton David Vatcher Graham Vincent Bill Wearing David Williams Mark Wilson Mary Wilson Peter Woof

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Jackie Cooper, Clive Graham, Tom Harvey, Colin Hodgson, Frank Hodson, Clive Leal, Gwen Murfin, Maureen Nicholson, Hilary Stephenson, Jo Stephenson, Ian Stewart, Brian Wilkinson and Brenda Woof. Officers

Lawrence Conway Corporate Director (Communities) Phillipa Cook Corporate Director (Vision and Strategy) Michael Keane Assistant Director (Social Enterprise) Shelagh McGregor Assistant Director (Resources) and Section 151 Officer Peter Ridgway Chief Executive Debbie Storr Corporate Director (Monitoring Officer) David Sykes Assistant Director (Community Investment and Development) Andrea Wilson Acting Head of Human Resources Chris Woods Democratic and Member Services Manager

C/061 CHAIRMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Chairman advised Members that, prior to the Council meeting on 10 December, there would be a presentation to inform Members on the development of the Corporate Plan for 2010/11 and to provide an update on the Transformation Programme. The event would start at 5.00 p.m. and refreshments would be provided. Further information on the event would be circulated at a later date.

He also asked Councillor Anne Hall to report some breaking news to Members. She advised that there would be a press release issued advising that the Coniston

7 36 10.11.2009 Council

Institute had been shortlisted from 300 entries for funding from the BBC SOS Lottery fund. The funding award was for communities who were able to demonstrate that they were actively helping to sustain their communities.

Members were also asked to note that the Mayor of Kendal would be undertaking the Climb for Kendal fundraising event on 21 November.

C/062 MINUTES

RESOLVED – That, subject to Councillor Sylvia Emmott’s attendance at the meeting being deleted, the Chairman be authorised to sign, as a correct record, the minutes of the meeting held on 22 September 2009.

C/063 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

RESOLVED – That it be noted that there were no questions, deputations or petitions.

C/064 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

RESOLVED - That it be noted that Councillor Norman Bishop-Rowe declared an interest in Minute No. C/066.

C/065 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972 – EXCLUDED ITEMS

RESOLVED – That, if necessary, the appendices to agenda item 5, in Part II of the Agenda, be dealt with following the exclusion of the press and public.

Note – Councillor Norman Bishop-Rowe declared a personal interest in the following item of business by virtue of being Mayor of Ulverston, and the fact that the town would be affected by one of the proposed restructures.

C/066 RESTRUCTURE

Members considered a report from the Chief Executive which provided an update and details of the proposed restructure of the Council. He reminded Members of the objectives behind the restructure, which had been to build capacity, cement improvements, build on community and individual needs, and improve flexibility, response to challenge and partnership working.

Phase 1 of the restructure had been completed and the financial implications set out in full detail in the appendices which were included in Part II of the agenda. The Chief Executive noted that 45% of the budget which had been set aside for Phase I had not been committed and would be rolled-over to cover some of the costs in Phase II. A vacancy existed for the post of Assistant Director (Corporate Vision) and, following feedback from the Unions, the Council had been investigating the option of sharing this post with another authority.

Representations, from staff and Unions, which had been received on Phase 2 proposals had been considered by the Senior Management Team and had resulted in some revisions to the original proposals. Details of the restructure proposals were included in the Part II Appendix to the report.

The Chief Executive advised that the consultation on the restructure of the IT section had been concluded and representations had been made and considered.

8 37 10.11.2009 Council

However, there were no further changes to these proposals as presented. He clarified that the proposal to share management of the IT section with Eden District Council should provide savings for both authorities and that a 6 month pilot would be undertaken. If direct results, in the form of a benefit analysis, did not transpire, the situation would be re-examined.

It was also pointed out that further changes to the structures as presented might follow as a result of specific circumstances or operational requirements. Provided that these were in accordance with the Constitution, relevant Human Resources Policies and within budgets, they would be dealt with by Officers as operational issues.

Overall, the proposals showed an indicative reduction in staff numbers from 550 to 508 and an indicative reduction in full-time equivalents from 441 to 412. However, the final totals would be dependant on actual recruitment to the new structure.

Members were advised that Management Team was seeking, as far as possible, to avoid compulsory redundancies. Expressions of interest in ER/VR had been received from approximately 56 members of staff and were in the process of being considered by the Senior Management Team. It was pointed out that this would result in a one-off cost, estimated at £1.6 million, which Council would be required to set aside. The Chief Executive stressed that this was the worse case scenario, but that it was inevitable that some costs could not be second guessed. Therefore these figures represented an indication of the total estimated amount within which the one off costs could be met. This cost would, however help deliver around £1.2 million reductions on an annual basis which would help to offset the estimated £1.3m budget deficit for 2010/2011 rising to the £2.5m estimated annual shortfall from 2012/2013.

A complete implementation date of 1 April 2010 was proposed for the proposals, although it was noted that some structures could be implemented more swiftly.

In response to questions, the Chief Executive advised that the Council’s Job Evaluation Scheme had been based on a nationally accredited process. In addition, the unions had made it very clear that they wished the Council to remain committed to it. He added that the financial figures in the report were based on salaries which had been through this process. He also confirmed that the new structure would be able to deliver the challenges presented by the Corporate Plan and partnership working by ensuring that staff would have the necessary skills.

Councillor Janette Jenkinson, on behalf of herself and Councillor Colin Hodgson, expressed her appreciation to the Leader for being included in the Member group set up oversee the restructure process. She felt that the restructure represented an opportunity for the Council to be flexible and develop a needs-led approach, as well as providing new opportunities for staff.

During the debate, the Chief Executive undertook to hold a briefing meeting for Members on the proposed shared working with Eden District Council. He also stated that, following discussions with the Unions earlier that day, it was proposed to hold a Job Fair to promote interest from staff as well as promote strong and positive messages. A number of staff would be redeployed and retraining given. In addition, the Council had signed up to the New Skills Award and opportunities would be provided for skills training as required.

9 38 10.11.2009 Council

Some concern was expressed about the use of ER/VR and the Chief Executive assured Members that the current process, whereby it was at the discretion of Human Resources Committee and Council to grant such applications, was the best way forward. He reminded Council that the standard policy was that the costs involved in granting VR applications had to be recovered within a three year period.

In response to a question about the capacity of Electoral Services, the Corporate Director (Monitoring Officer) assured Members that this would be managed as a priority.

It was proposed by Councillor Brendan Jameson and seconded by Councillor Andy Shine and subsequently -

RESOLVED - That

(1) The report be received and the proposals for moving the restructure forward be approved, as detailed in the report;

(2) A sum of £1.6 million be earmarked to cover the estimated implementation costs of Phase 2 of the restructure, £271,200 of which is to be transferred from the remaining balance set aside for Phase 1 and £1.4 million from General Reserves;

(3) It be noted that Officers will take the necessary actions to finalise and complete implementation of Phase 2 of the restructure;

(4) The Human Resources Committee be authorised to utilise the monies earmarked in (2) above for the purposes of considering any ER/VR/CR applications arising from the Phase 2 of the restructure; and

(5) The areas of required growth be noted and these be incorporated into the 2010/11 budget setting process.

The meeting ended at 7.50 p.m.

10 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Council

Date of Meeting: 10th December 2009 Part I Portfolio Holder: N/A Report From: Assistant Director Social Enterprise Agenda 6 Report Author: Jim Maguire Lake Services Manager Item No: Report Title: Invest to Save request from the Lake Administration Committee

Summary To consider a recommendation from the Lake Administration Committee regarding an invest to save request. Recommendations Members are recommended to approve a supplementary revenue estimate of £60,000 this financial year and a provisional growth bid of £20,000 in the subsequent financial year. Report 1. Attached to this report is a report considered by the Lake Administration Committee at its meeting on 16 October 2009. The Committee resolved as follows - Minute LAC 021 refers.

Windermere lake title – progress and requirement for additional resources RESOLVED - That

(1) The financial and delivery issues arising from the Lake Windermere Title work be noted; and

(2) Council be requested to approve the additional resources through supplementary revenue estimates of £60,000 this year and £20,000 in the subsequent financial year.

2. Members are requested to consider a supplementary revenue estimate through the use of reserves on the basis of paragraph 5.5 of PART 4 of the constitution: ‘Supplementary revenue estimates may be allowed for income generating schemes where expenditure in the year will result in increased net income in subsequent years which will, at least, cover the amount of the supplementary revenue estimate.’ 3. Members are therefore recommended to approve a supplementary revenue estimate of £60,000 this year 2009/2010 and a provisional growth bid of £20,000 in the subsequent financial year 2010/2011.

Alternative Options See Part II appendix.

11 Key Decision This report does not relate to a Key Decision. Material Considerations Contained with the report Finance The costs and likely benefits are described in the report. The costs are one off and non recurring. Of the proposed expenditure, it is estimated that 75% (£60,000) would fall in the financial year 2009/10 and 25% (£20,000) in the financial year 2010/11. The Council’s Contingency Provision, set at £130,000 for 2009/10, has been fully allocated to Supplementary Revenue Estimates. This request will therefore have to be met from the General Fund working balance. The working balance is defined in the Medium Term Financial Plan as a buffer against unforeseen and emergency expenditure, inflationary demands, adverse cash flow and any inability to use capital resources. The Council’s budgeted working balance at 31/3/10 was £1,170,000. Approval of this request would reduce the working balance to £1,110,000 but additional income following this project will offset these costs. Risk Management As addressed in the report to the Lake Administration Committee Staffing The preferred option to is continue with the employment of the existing Locum Solicitor as she has already completed a large degree of the task and has amassed a large amount of particular information, knowledge and understanding. Links to Corporate Plan By safeguarding and in some cases raising our income beyond current levels we are contributing to a percentage of all the current corporate plan objectives by providing finance to allow these many projects to be realised. Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) Windermere Management Strategy 2005 Equalities & Diversity N/A. Community Safety N/A

Background Documents Document: Documents supplied with report. Contact: Jim Maguire

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 12

Management Team 15th October 2009 CSPG 28th October 2009 Cabinet 9th December 2009 Council 10th December 2009

Corporate Financial Monitoring July – September 2009

Report of the Accounting Manager

13 1 CORPORATE FINANCIAL MONITORING July 2009 – September 2009

1. INTRODUCTION

This is the second quarterly corporate financial monitoring report for 2009/10 and sets out an indicative corporate picture of the Council’s financial performance during the period ending September 2009.

The report summarises budget variances in excess of £10,000 with explanations provided by Budget Managers in conjunction with their Accountants. In addition, there are specific sections for salary monitoring, grants, capital expenditure and financing, investments and borrowing, reserves, Housing Revenue Account, revenue collection performance, Insurance and Risk Management and 2008/09 Outturn.

The new Assistant Director (Resources), Shelagh McGregor has been in post since 1st June, and work is ongoing to review the structure of the finance team in line with phase 2 of the re-structure. Budget preparation work is now underway to produce revised budgets for 2009/10 and initial budgets for 2010/11. The staff team in the finance department continues to work towards improving the service we provide. Major areas of note include: • Introduction of Internet banking • Re-installation and upgrade of the Integra financial systems • Member training sessions have commenced with a schedule for training for the 2009/10 year • Preparation work for the introduction of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)

2. GENERAL FUND REVENUE MONITORING

2.1 General Fund Summary Position

The current overall General Fund summary position shows that at the end of September there is a net overspending of £162k against the current profiled budget. Projections to the year-end have been included in this report at Appendix A and a £72k underspend is currently projected to the end of March 2009. An analysis of underspends against profiles by Assistant Director area is included in section 2.2. A full analysis of the variations, with commentary where available, is shown in Appendix A.

Current VARIANCES £000 Major Variances +162 Salaries (see 2.3 below) -194 TOTAL -32

Qtr 1 position +239 Net Movement (see below) -77

There are substantial savings built into the 2009/10 budgets and the achievement, or otherwise, of these, will need to be monitored closely and is subject to a separate monitoring exercise.

2.2 Major Budget Variances

Appendix A details variances of +/- £10K in value (or 10%) and covers salary costs, premises, transport, supplies and services and general income. An overspend against variance is shown as a ‘+’ and an underspend as a ‘-‘ figure.

Full details of the summary variances (actuals against profiled budget) shown in the table are provided at Appendix A.

14 2 Projected Current Current over/ SUMMARY BY SERVICE Variance variance (under) £000 % £000 REPORTED VARIANCES : Community Investment & Development +267 +26% +35 Community Services +61 +2% +59.5 Corporate Vision -10 -3% -110 Customer Focus -561 +18% -198 Resources +344 +24% +75 Social Enterprise +98 +9% +108.5 Management Team -37 -16% -

TOTAL NET VARIANCE +162 +7% -30

Qtr 1 2009/10 position +239 +45%

2.3 General Fund Salary Monitoring

Salary monitoring has been included in the variances reported at Appendix A, however more detail has been included in this section of the report. The salary budgets are net of the allowance of 2.5% for vacancy savings and allow for a pay award of 2.5%. The pay award for 2009/10 has now been agreed at 1% (1.5% for lower paid staff). The underspend to the end of September attributable to the pay award yet to be paid equates to £101k, (leaving an underspend, net of pay award, of £93k). There are currently 16 vacant posts within the authority, although some of these posts are being covered by agency staff and existing staff working extra hours.

SERVICE Budget Profile Actual Diff. £000 £000 £000 £000 Community Investment & 2,465 1,237 1,151 -86 Development Community Services 4,093 2,061 1,942 -119 Corporate Vision 581 292 278 -14 Customer Focus 2,093 1,047 1,071 +24 Resources 1,708 857 888 +31 Social Enterprise 2,054 1,024 1,039 +15 Management Team 445 223 178 -45 Total 13,439 6,741 6,547 -194 Qtr 1 position 13,506 3,429 3,223 -206

2.4 Grants Received and Paid

The full year budget for grants receivable is £2,352k (not including NNDR, Rent Rebate, Local Housing Allowance and Discretionary Housing Benefits Rent Allowance grants); grants actually received up to and including September 2009 totalled £1,915k (81% of the full year budget) and are summarised in the table below:

Source of Grant Budget Actuals to 2009/10 30.9.09 £000 £000 Other Government Grants – various 186.0 512.5 Other Government Grants – RSG 1,290.4 742.1 Disabled Facilities Grants 0 174.0 Lottery Funding 0 9.4 Concessionary Fares 875.3 438.9 LABGI Grant 37.9 TOTAL 2,351.7 1914.8

Other Government grants have been received for Shared Services, Citizens’ Pilot, Area Based Grant, Choice Based Lettings and Homelessness for which no budget provision has been made; this will be adjusted during preparation of the revised budgets.

Revenue grants paid to other organisations totalled £126.2k by the end of September 2009 against a full year budget of £222k. 15 3

Grant description Budget Actuals to 2009/10 30.6.09 £000 £000 Grants to Organisations 14.2 14.2 Contributions to Organisations 56.0 63.5 Subscriptions to Organisations 45.4 5.0 Regular Funded Organisations 106.5 43.5 TOTAL 222.4 126.2

Capital Grants paid totalled £547k against a full year budget of £1,636k (see section 3.1, Capital Expenditure & Financing).

3 General Fund Capital Programme

3.1 Capital Expenditure & Financing

Capital Expenditure (General Fund)

Table 1 below shows the latest approved capital programme (approved August 2009) and expenditure (excluding commitments) to the end of September 2009. Table 2 shows budgets, expenditure and balance of the budget to spend split out across the Assistant Director areas.

To date £1,569k has been spent leaving a total of £8,401k from the approved capital programme still to spend, after allowing for programmed slippage

The Capital Monitoring Working Group has not yet met for the current financial year, however the group will meet shortly to consider the period 6 monitoring report. Some profiling has been provided by budget managers for capital budgets, the remaining profiling details need to be followed up through the Capital Monitoring Working Group. Design fees are currently held in a separate budget, it has been agreed that these should be allocated to capital projects so that the cost of fees can be monitored alongside the project costs. A capital prioritisation exercise is well underway to ensure that the capital programme reflects corporate priorities from 2010/11 onwards. Table 1 £000 Current Programme 10,120 Less programmed slippage -150 TOTAL PROGRAMME 9,970 Spend to Date 1,569 Balance to spend 8,401 Table 2 Budget for Spent Balance of year To 30.9.09 full year budget £’000 £’000 £’000 Community Investment & 6,269.7 762.2 5,507.5 Development Community Services 2,399.8 698.7 1,701.1 Corporate Vision 700.7 21.2 679.5 Customer Focus 14.5 29.8 -15.3 Resources 256.3 30.8 225.5 Social Enterprise 479.2 26.4 452.8

Programmed slippage -150.0 -150.0 Totals 9,970.2 1,569.1 8401.1

Capital Receipts (General Fund)

The Capital Programme approved in September 2009 assumes that the Council will generate £187k of usable capital receipts from asset sales in the 2009/10 year. For the first six months of the year, capital receipts have totalled £124k. The receipt of £177k following the sale of land at Lound Road for the development of affordable housing is Section 106 earmarked money and not included as a general capital receipt. There were two Right to Buy sales in the first half of the year. 16 4

At this point, the target for the year of 187k would seem to be achievable, however this will continue to be monitored throughout the year and revised as necessary.

4 INVESTMENTS AND BORROWING

4.1 Core Investments

The Council’s fund managed by Investec Asset management had a market value of £14,460k at the 1st April 2009. The fund has risen in value to £14,587k at 30th September 2009, an increase in value of £127k. This represents a performance indicator of 0.83% compared with the 7 day LIBID rate of 0.22%

4.2 Temporary Investments

Temporary Investments in the period July to September 2009 realised interest of £15k, compared with £216k for the same period in 2008 when the bank base rate stood at 5%. The base rate dropped to 0.50% on 5th March 2009. The average interest achieved during April to June 2009 has been 0.56%. The Council’s priority is always security of investment before yield. The economic forecast does not predict any rise in base rate until the end of 2009.

4.3 Borrowing

The Treasury Management Strategy for 2009/10 anticipates borrowing £1m to fund non HRA capital expenditure. The current total loan borrowed from PWLB to fund the Decency programme stands at £20.5m, incurring an average interest rate of 4.33%. These borrowing costs are met by Government subsidy.

4.4 Prudential Indicators

Passive monitoring of the indicators shows that they are all within their limits. Most importantly, the outstanding borrowing of £21m is comfortably below the £31m operational and £47m authorised limits.

5 RESERVES

Closure of the 2008/09 accounts left the Council with total reserves of £8.0m, a reduction of £0.9m from the previous year, mainly due to increased support from reserves to the capital programme. The General Reserve stands at £3.7m and will be used to mitigate the potential risk of increased expenditure in future years and to fund one-off implementation costs of the management re-structure. The LABGI Reserve was set up at the end of 2007/08 and is being used to fund corporate initiatives, with a preference for economic regeneration, there is likely to be only limited funding distributed from Central Government to replenish this reserve.

6 PLANNED MAINTENANCE

The monitoring information in the table below relates to the Planned Maintenance budgets, excludes extra work and was provided by NPS. At the end of September, expenditure and commitments were behind the profiled budget by £15k or 4%, this is a profiling matter and does not indicate a potential underspend at the year-end.

Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3 Quarter 4 TOTAL £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 Budget Profile 151 369 151 Expenditure 45 208 45 Commitments 131 146 131 Total 175 354 175 Variance +25 -15 -25 Variance (%) 16% -4% 16%

7 HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) MONITORING

7.1 HRA Revenue Position

17 5 At the end of September 2009, the Housing Revenue Account shows an underspend of £215k which mainly relates to the difference in estimate to actual Housing Subsidy paid to the Government in negative subsidy. This change is due to the Council taking up the opportunity to reduce Tenant rents, from an average of 6.4% to 3.1%, when the scheme was offered by the Government because of the economic environment.

Actual rents collected to the end of September are slightly higher than the estimate for the year to date standing at £6m (week 25). Of course, rents and negative Housing Subsidy have an interrelationship and both estimates will be recalculated at budget revision time.

Council House Sales are now standing at two with an overall amount received of £153k; 75% of these receipts are sent to the Government under the usual Capital Receipts to Pool rule.

7.2 Council House Rent Collection

Net rents collected to the end of September 2009 (week 25) were £6.0m, slightly higher than the original estimate for the year to date.

7.3 Council Housing Capital Programme

This section analyses actual spend against the Council Housing elements of the Capital Programme for the period ended 30th September 2009. The spend figures do not include commitments as at the period end date. The projects are monitored via the Capital Monitoring Working Group, which is attended by officers who can update the group on progress and any issues as they arise.

Latest Latest Profiled Spend to Approved Budget Date programme £000 £000 (includes c/fs) £000 SLH Projects (HRA General) 56.8 2.5 0

Aids & Adaptations 294.4 147.2 56.5

Other Major repairs/Play areas 809.2 234.0 116.0

Decency Improvement Works 796.9 796.9 293.9

SLH Supervision 256.0 128.0 97.0

Sustainability 690.4 2.5 32.8

Admin & Technical Support 56.8 0 0

TOTALS 2,960.5 1311.1 596.2

8 REVENUE COLLECTION PERFORMANCE

8.1 Council Tax, Business Rates & Collection Fund

This section analyses the Council Tax and Business Rate collection statistics for the current financial year compared to the previous year.

The Collection figures at 30th September 2009 for Council Tax are almost identical to those achieved at this point in the previous financial year. The Business Rates figure is marginally down but this is still encouraging in view of the current recession.

An estimate of the surplus/deficit on collection fund at 30th September 2009 shows a very small deficit of £10k of which the Council’s share would be only £1,280.

Percentage Collected 2008/09 2009/10 at 30th September % %

Council Tax 59.56 59.47

Business Rates 60.86 60.54

18 6 8.2 Sundry Debts

This section sets out the latest position on the level of outstanding sundry debts.

Net write-offs for the period April to September 2009 amounted to £1.4k.

As at 30th September 2009 Less than 30 1 to 6 months 6 to 12 1 to 2 years Over 2 years Total days months No: £ No: £ No: £ No: £ No: £ £ Commercial & 35 16.3k 41 17.6k 9 1.6k 7 2.6k 3 1.3k 39.4k Technical Finance 7 72.5k 109 8.1k 17 1.9k 33 4.9k 41 12.5k 99.9k Human Resources 3 0.3k 2 0.2k ------0.5k Legal, Democratic 14 202.4k 5 1.8k - - 1 7.5k 6 3.1k 214.8k & Members Neighbourhood 200 86.8k 112 47.2k 13 1.3k 14 4.6k 5 0.1k 140.0k Services Regeneration & 96 58.1k 65 30.3k 24 12.8k 44 23.9k 11 2.6k 127.7k Housing Revenues & 1 0.6k 10 2.1 - - 9 2.2k 84 62.7k 67.6k Benefits Strategy & ------Performance TOTALS 356 437.0k 344 107.3k 63 17.6k 108 45.7k 150 82.3k 689.9k Q1 09/10 Position 1354 872.1k 649 259.6k 86 23.5k 106 48.5k 144 87.7k 1,285.4k

9.1 Insurance Monitoring

The majority of the Council’s insurance policies will be renewed on 1st October, 2009.

The premiums quoted (based on estimated sums insured) are £355k compared to £345k last year, an increase of 3%. The increase is in line with the terms of the Long Term Agreement which allows for increases in line with building construction costs, average earnings index, salary estimates etc.

On the general insurance policies, 78 new claims have been received since the renewal on 1st October 2008 at a total estimated cost of £76k, and the estimated cost on all outstanding claims to date stands at £385k.

9.2 Risk Management

Risk management is an essential element of internal control and contributes to best value public services. Risks are identified, managed where necessary and monitored in terms of implementing mitigating controls. The Strategic Risk Register, which contains many risks of a financial nature, is updated on an annual basis. All strategic risks are reviewed in line with the Corporate Planning process to assist the achievement of Corporate Plan objectives. Strategic financial risks include; achieving efficiency savings; achieving a balanced and sustainable budget; reduced Revenue Support Grant etc. The progress made with the control of strategic risks is reported to Corporate Strategy and Performance Group.

Heads of Service, Managers and Officers identify operational risks within each Service Unit. Many operational risks, particularly those managed by Finance have a financial element. All operational risks are reviewed in line with the Service Planning process to ensure the achievement of Service Unit objectives.

10 2008/09 Audit of Accounts

The 2008/09 Statement of Accounts was audited and signed off by the Audit Commission on 29th September 2009 and is available on the Council’s web-site.

This report has been compiled by the Accounting Manager based on information received from a large number of officers throughout the Council. I would like to thank everyone for his or her contributions and assistance in the production of this report.

19 7

20 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Community Investment & Devt Budgets for AD's not yet moved to new ECI Asst Dir Comm Inv Dev 0 0 33,214 33,214 33,214 - 0 accountancy codes Reduced income due to economic GBC Building Control 128,010 -325,500 -240,676 -368,686 84,824 26% ? climate, projection being provided (E.McI) GGV Grants To Voluntary Orgs 275,570 170,770 142,228 -133,342 -28,542 -17% 0 Some grants still to be processed Overspend on contract staffing, vacant EUR Regeneration Housing -48,150 1,326,746 1,350,553 1,398,703 23,807 2% 35,000 position & admin Contributions still to be claimed - will be GRP Kendal Regeneration 250 -197,500 18,921 18,671 216,421 110% 0 chasing this up with Joanne Taylor. Recent changes to pricing structure has resulted in patial recovery of business, GLC Local Land Charges 21,040 -110,000 -135,932 -156,972 -25,932 -24% ? income currently running ahead of original budget. Difficult to predict year David end position Sykes Payment of NWDA funds upfront to help SLDT cash flow. Joanne Taylor reclaims

COMMUNITIES this back from the NWDA and an XCJ GMI Market Towns Initiative 58,680 4,855 20,058 -38,622 15,203 313% code is set up for these transactions. £10k LABGI should be allocated to the GMI income code. Second payment of £50k due to College at the end of October. However, possible overspend of about £3k may Possible result from gas bill for supplies in last GMU Museum 476,140 115,477 62,239 -413,901 -53,238 -46% overspend financial year. A meeting is arranged with June Lee, Scott Burns and the College on Friday 16th October to resolve budget issues. Minor Variances 2,446,410 27,659 29,157 -2,417,253 1,498 5% Total Community Investment & Devt 3,357,950 1,012,507 1,279,761 -2,078,189 267,254 26% 35,000

1 20/10/200921 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Community Services Budgets for AD's not yet moved to new ECS Asst Dir Community Service 0 0 22,663 22,663 22,663 - 0 accountancy codes GCM Cemeteries 190,600 53,403 37,493 -153,107 -15,910 -30% 0 Late payment of queried invoice £10k from DCLG towards Court Desk costs plus additional £10k as a bonus. As no indication funding will continue GHM Homelessness 279,450 23,312 7,553 -271,897 -15,759 -68% ? next year K Earl would like to carry the extra £10k forward. This money is ring fenced. £25k received unexpectedly from Supporting People for the Handyperson GHT Housing Standards 98,240 -200 -24,123 -122,363 -23,923 -11962% 0 Scheme so no budget. This should be spent by end of year. Salary savings by not replacing staff due to delay in selling Commercial Waste. Have been assisting Comm Serv by saving. Saving on fuel due to volatility Simon in price, but also makes year end Rowley position difficult to predict. Also GWK Kerbside Collection Recyclables 1,453,940 556,840 504,475 -949,465 -52,365 -9% -140,000 collection & disposal affected by market

COMMUNITIES downturn. Could use saving to offset over spend on Transport & Bring Sites & remainder against Comm Waste. Overspend on consultants for streetcare tender not allowed for in this budget.

GPK Parks 886,210 321,105 391,946 -494,264 70,841 22% Seasonal bedding invoice paid October GRG Recreation Grounds 249,820 25,056 37,920 -211,900 12,864 51% The reduction in tonnages of the materials collected at the bring sites has brought about a decrease of income in recycling credits from the WDA. It is GWR Waste Recycling 266,260 81,115 83,760 -182,500 2,645 3% 19,500 anticipated that the recycling rate of 45% will improve during the final 6 months of 2009/10 & this will help to claw back the overspend.

2 20/10/200922 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Difficult to predict as yet - Transport Manager to provide details. Unforeseen repairs have increased costs & Commercial Waste vehicles cost approx £15k. Ageing vehicles accrue extra costs. Increase in fuel costs has PTS Transport 0 -8,430 43,113 43,113 51,543 611% ? unforeseen, knock-on effect on price of parts & these have not come down. Focussing the Budget saving £20k will not be met. Cost will only reduce by taking vehicles off the road & this would Simon impact on services. Rowley Saving of £20k on domestic waste, but overspend of £200k on Commercial Waste. No budget set for Commercial Waste & no price increase to customers COMMUNITIES GWC Waste Collection 1,913,990 590,821 746,718 -1,167,272 155,897 26% 180,000 for collection of waste. Sale of Commercial Waste not yet completed. Any overspend on consultants for streetcare tender has not been allowed for in these budgets. Minor Variances 5,513,080 2,049,072 1,901,845 -3,611,235 -147,227 -7% Total Community Services 10,851,590 3,692,094 3,753,363 -7,098,227 61,269 2% 59,500

TOTAL COMMUNITIES 14,209,540 4,704,601 5,033,124 -9,176,416 328,523 7% 94,500

3 20/10/200923 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Corporate Vision Budgets for AD's not yet moved to new ECV Asst Dir Corporate Vision 0 0 50,446 50,446 50,446 - 0 accountancy codes Expenditure on CIEP work, yet to be GCD Community Development 240,960 3,935 24,528 -216,432 20,593 523% 0 reclaimed Grant profiled to come in monthly, full GMY Community Safety 90,102 7,054 -21,467 -111,569 -28,521 -404% 0 amount received September 2009 Vacant posts (Communications Manager/ AD Corporate Vision). Vacant EXS Strategy Performance -420 266,667 242,272 242,692 -24,395 -9% ? Projection based on savings to date, will increase depending on timing of filling

CUSTOMERS vacancies £90k underspend , vacant OR post being dealt with via restructure EXT Transformation and Change 154,397 94,430 56,363 -98,034 -38,067 -40% -110,000 timetable; £20k underspend, Member Devt project, not ready to procure new system, will be 2010/11 Minor Variances 342,400 22,058 31,187 -311,213 9,129 41% Total Corporate Vision 827,439 394,144 383,757 -443,682 -10,387 -3% -110,000

4 20/10/200924 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Customer Focus Budgets for AD's not yet moved to new ECF Asst Dir Customer Focus 0 0 31,235 31,235 31,235 - accountancy codes (see underspend on ERB code below) Latest estimate from Dave Conlin, GCY Concessionary Fares 1,814,790 816,907 160,542 -1,654,248 -656,365 -80% -198,000 September 2009, updated S. McVey 20/10/09 Increased rent allowance claims, will be GRA Rent Allowances 168,880 48,469 278,782 109,902 230,313 475% 0 offset by increased subsidy Simon £80k salary underspend due to posts McVey held vacant pending restructure. Will be used to fund additional resources required for new system implementation.

CUSTOMERS ERB Revenues and Benefits 46,217 904,880 773,187 726,970 -131,693 -15% 0 Balance of underspend due to grant being received for ring-fenced expenditure not yet incurred, e.g. Business Rates Deferral Scheme

Minor Variances 772,390 -4,968,754 -5,043,451 -5,815,841 -74,697 -2% Total Customer Focus 2,802,277 -3,198,498 -3,759,407 -6,561,684 -560,909 -18% -198,000

TOTAL CUSTOMERS 3,629,716 -2,804,354 -3,375,650 -7,005,366 -571,296 20% -308,000

Management Team Budget for AD (Resources) here, see EXC Management Team -16,000 224,846 187,845 203,845 -37,001 -16% below Total Management Team -16,000 224,846 187,845 203,845 -37,001

TOTAL MANAGEMENT TEAM -16,000 224,846 187,845 203,845 -37,001 -16% 0 MANAGEMENT TEAM

5 20/10/200925 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Resources AD (Resources) salaries budget within ERE Asst Dir Resources 0 0 28,804 28,804 28,804 - 0 Mgt Team, to be moved for revised budget Awaiting payment re claim from GEL Elections 89,620 5,270 60,821 -28,799 55,551 1054% 0 Electoral Commission Shelagh ERF Finance -102,300 282,907 330,890 433,190 47,983 17% 75,000 Procurement savings will not be met McGregor ERA Internal Audit 2,300 16,720 29,964 27,664 13,244 79% 0 Late submission of invoices £60k restructure costs to be funded from GTH Other Items 22,500 15,000 69,831 47,331 54,831 366% 0 earmarked reserve Full year commitment shown to half year GFS Unapportionable Pension Adj 411,380 169,348 309,017 -102,363 139,669 82% 0 (system issue), no overspend Minor Variances 1,889,810 917,087 920,807 -969,003 3,720 0% Total Resources 2,313,310 1,406,332 1,750,135 -563,175 343,803 24% 75,000

Social Enterprise £60K saving by LDNPA running 4 toilet blocks not achieved as these still run by SLDC with contribution of £25K from LDNPA. These planned to be responsibility of LDNPA from 01/04/10. GCN Conveniences 736,950 236,067 280,581 -456,369 44,514 19% 130,000 Toilets have been identified for Winter closure & the £80k saving will only be achieved if this is implemented from MONITORING OFFICER October. Option study by NPS - no budget. Salary saving (£11k), transport hire Michael GGK Decriminalised Parking Enf 276,200 15,315 -8,385 -284,585 -23,700 -155% -16,000 Keane (£5k) NPS control the outgoings and income from these. The income from rents and GUL Industrial Units Landlord 35,190 -26,309 -15,831 -51,021 10,478 40% 0 the service charge incomes appear to be in line with the rental expenditures. NPS maintenance budgets not spent to GMK Markets -9,190 -34,798 -58,149 -48,959 -23,351 -67% date Planned maintenance not yet carried out GPH Public Halls 461,960 183,089 164,400 -297,560 -18,689 -10% 0 on Kendal Town Hall and Coronation Hall. GPX Public Offices 10,110 249,817 191,652 181,542 -58,165 -23% NPS year end accruals not yet cleared GSY Sundry Properties 250,250 -12,024 -32,122 -282,372 -20,098 -167% -9,500 Rates revaluation re Berners Pool

6 20/10/200926 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL - Revenue Budget Monitoring to end September 2009 (Quarter 2, 2009/10) Appendix A

Variance to Variance Over / Budget to Actual Full Year date (Budget against Full Year (Under)spend Explanation of Variances date to date Variance to date -v- Budget to Budget Projected Actual) date £ £ £ £ £ % £

Poor booking figures for August and September likely to reduce anticpated income. Profiling of this budget has GTC Tourist Info Centres 518,120 166,412 200,733 -317,387 34,321 21% 4,000 Michael always reflected mid year discrepancies Keane with variances. Apart from income, budget should balance Minor Variances -2,462,060 -1,824,460 -1,733,587 728,473 90,873 -5% Total Social Enterprise -182,470 -1,046,891 -948,615 -766,145 98,276 9% 108,500

TOTAL MONITORING OFFICER 2,130,840 359,441 801,520 -1,329,320 442,079 123% 183,500 MONITORING OFFICER

TOTAL REVENUE 19,954,096 2,484,534 2,646,839 -17,307,257 162,305 7% -30,000

7 20/10/200927

28 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Cabinet Council

Date of Meeting: 09 December 2009 Part I 10 December 2009 Portfolio Holder: Councillor Brendan Jameson Councillor Andy Shine Report From: Assistant Director (Resources & s151) Agenda 8 Report Author: Helen Smith Item No: Report Title: 2010/11 Revenue Budget: General Fund Services Progress Report

Summary Initial indicative figures are now available from the 2010/11 budget process: these estimates are subject to review and checking but give an early warning of likely challenges. Some of the trends identified from this year’s budget monitoring are expected to continue. The Medium Term Financial Plan is also being updated including a review of the assumptions made and the strategy approved by Council in March 2009. A timetable of expected budget reports is attached as an Appendix. Recommendations Cabinet and Council are recommended to note the progress to date on budget preparation.

Report Background 1. The Medium Term Financial Plan (MTFP) produced in March 2009 and the Budget Strategy approved in September 2009 has formed the basis for early projections of the Council’s financial position for 2010/11 to 2012/13. Based on a set of general assumptions, it forecast that a combination of a 4.0% rise in council tax and reductions of £1,290,000 would be needed to fund a budget that provided for £450,000 of financial growth, strengthening of reserves and inflationary increases in 2010/11. Deficit projection: 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 £ £ £ Deficit projected 1,290,800 1,861,200 2,540,000 Increase on previous year 570,400 678,800

2. The projection anticipated an increase of only 0.5% in Revenue Support Grant for 2010/11, a rise that has now been provisionally confirmed by the Government. The Local Government Minister has also confirmed that she expects the average council tax increase in England to fall to a 16 year low next year while authorities protect and improve front line services. Ministers

29 have confirmed that they are prepared to cap ‘excessive increases’, including requiring rebilling, as happened with two police authorities this year. The prospects for subsequent years are not encouraging: the Chancellor’s Pre-Budget Report is not due until 9th December but is expected to substantially reduce the overall funding in both general grants and specific grants for 2011/12 onwards although firm figures are not expected until after the General Election of 2010. The Ministerial announcement made no mention of efficiency savings but it is expected that CLG will shortly be publishing details of forecast efficiencies for 2009/10. Target Efficiency Savings Actual/Projected Savings 2008/09 3% £740,000 £741,000 2009/10 3% £766,000 £804,000 2010/11 4% £1,040,000 tbc

The Management Team is aware of the broad financial issues facing the Council and is looking to link more closely the Corporate Plan, Medium Term Financial Plan and budgets in a concerted methodology that will enable the Council to plan for and achieve sustainable budgets for the future. 3. Reports to Members in 2009/10 have identified trends for slightly reduced service expenditure in the current year, offset by lower than anticipated savings. Those trends are relatively recent but have been used as a basis for checking draft budgets. 4. Finance staff are compiling and checking draft budget data from budget holders. This will be reported to Joint Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet in January. The Medium Term Financial Plan forecast is also been updated and expanded to a five-year forecast. The plan forecast and the draft budget are being checked to ensure consistency between the two approaches. 5. An updated Capital Programme appears elsewhere on this Agenda. The revenue budgets will reflect the revenue consequences of this draft Capital Programme. 6. Officers have identified budget areas where additional budget is required to meet Service Development requirements (growth bids). The bids will be assessed against the same prioritisation framework as capital bids and will be reported to Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Cabinet in January. 7. Work is progressing on the proposed savings that will produce a balanced budget over the short and medium term. This will be provided as part of the suite of reports to Overview & Scrutiny Committee & Cabinet in January 2010. 2009/10 Revised Estimates 8. The 2010/11 Revised Estimates are substantially complete but currently being reviewed. The picture emerging from the detailed draft budgets reinforces the earlier messages from those monitoring reports: • Overspendings on a couple of major service budgets • Reduced income in a number of areas • Salary underspendings beyond the budgeted allowance for turnover and vacancies • Budget reductions agreed for 2009/10 have not been fully implemented • Lower than expected income from investments due to prevailing rates

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: 1 Amended by: Helen Smith 2 30 • The Council’s £130,000 contingency provision is fully committed for 2009/10 • The one-off costs of the Council’s restructure to be met from Reserves The draft Revised Estimates do not include any allowance for the costs relating to the flooding of November. These costs are likely to fall into five elements: • Costs that might be covered by Bellwin Grant from the Government (over the threshold of £30,000, 100% of eligible expenditure can be claimed) or from the Government’s Community Recovery Fund; • Costs covered by insurance; • Long term reinstatement costs i.e. capital work not covered by insurance but also likely to be outside of the scope of Bellwin Grant which potentially will form the basis of a capital bid. • Additional pressures and loss of income for normal Council Services as an indirect consequence (say, if homelessness have to find alternative accommodation for people whose homes are uninhabitable) • Any longer term recovery measures. All these costs are being carefully monitored and will be reflected in the final budgets and capital programme for approval in February 2010. 2010/11 Draft Estimates 9. Preparation of estimates for 2010/11 at a summary level is well advanced and, although substantial work has to be done on checking the details, it is already clear that some of the underlying service trends from 2009/10 will continue into next year. In particular interest rates are predicted to recover slightly over the next twelve months but will remain below original projections made in February 2009 when the Bank of England base rate was still 1%. The recurring savings from the staff restructure have been incorporated into these draft budgets. Reserves 10. Closure of the 2008/09 Accounts enabled strong reserves to be maintained, although the Reserve of Revenue Monies for Capital Purposes closed with a lower than expected balance offset by higher expected balances on the General Reserve and the Second Homes reserve. However, some of these balances were due to slippage in expenditure during 2008/09. The balances, planned contributions and usage of reserves are being reviewed as part of the Medium Term Financial Plan update. Conclusions This report summarises a “snapshot” of the progress in the budget process. Checking of the budgets will continue so an overall position can be finalised in December and reported to Cabinet and Overview & Scrutiny Committee early in January. Alternative Options Not applicable. Key Decision This report contributes to Key Decision PD09/003/Sev which appears in the current Forward Plan. Material Considerations Finance This report focuses on financial issues.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: 1 Amended by: Helen Smith 3 31 Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Council is not aware of the Overspendings are not Early recognition of the potential budget overspending. identified and are allowed to problem by budget holders, continue unchecked. Management Team and Members. Prompt action to reduce estimated expenditure. Council is unable to balance its Financially imprudent and Management Team to provide budget. potentially unlawful. Cabinet and Council with a range of corrective measures. Damage to Use of Resources Judgement and Council’s reputation. The indicative figures are very The potential deficit is larger Diligent checking and provisional and may understate than suggested. awareness of trends. the extent of adverse trends. Staffing The focus of this report is on the progress to date with the budget process. Links to Corporate Plan The budget process is progressing with the aim of delivering the Corporate Plan priorities. Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) The preparation of the budgets link to the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan: its forecasts will need to be revised to reflect the latest circumstances. Equalities & Diversity In accordance with the Council’s Policies Community Safety In accordance with the Council’s Policies Background Documents Document: Estimate Working Papers Contact: Helen Smith Corporate Financial Monitoring

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: 1 Amended by: Helen Smith 4 32 (Draft) Financial Services Report Timetable (Extract re Budget Process November to March 2010) Item 8 - Appendix Appendix Updated: 30/11/09 Budget Process 20010/11 Audit Responsibility ADT Mtg SMT Mtg CSPG O&S Mtg Other Cabinet Mtg Council Mtg Committee Report Content SMT Draft General Fund Reveue Estimates 2009/10 & 26/11/09 & 2010/11 SMT 22/12/09? 24/12/09? N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10 Draft 5 Year Capital Proramme 2010/11 to 2014/15 SMT 26/11/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 09/12/09 Corporate Financial Monitoring Q2 2009/10 s151/SMT 13/10/09 15/10/09 28/10/09 N/A N/A 09/12/09 10/12/09 Savings Workshop TBA December SMT N/A N/A Capital Profiling Workshop TBA December SMT N/A N/A

Licsng Cttee Part of above

Part ofabove 26/01/2010 Revenue Budget Licensing Committee s151/S.Rowley 22/12/09 24/12/09 N/A N/A Plng Cttee Part of above Revenue Budget Planning Committee s151/D. Sykes 22/12/09 24/12/09 N/A N/A 28/01/2010 Lake Admin Part of above Cttee Revenue Budget Lake Admin. s151/M. Keane 22/12/09 24/12/09 N/A N/A 05/02/10 Consultees? Medium Term Financial Plan update of forecasts CMT/s151 22/12/09 24/12/09 N/A N/A 06/01/10 Fees and Charges Reports: - Car Parks M. Keane 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10 - Others TBA All AD 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10 Proposed Growth 2010/11 to 2014/15 SMT 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10 Proposed Savings 2010/11 to 2014/15 SMT 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10

Draft Revenue Support Grant Settlement / Consultation to LGA s151 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 06/01/10 s151 - by 31/1/10 Council Taxbase Setting delegated N/A N/A Summary of Overall Budgetary Position: - Revenue s151 12/01/10 14/01/10 N/A N/A 27/01/10 - HRA inc. Tenants Cttee & Consultation s151/D.Sykes 15/12/09 17/12/09 N/A N/A 05/01/10 27/01/2010 & for Decision 10/2/10 by Cabinet

- Capital s151 12/01/10 14/01/10 N/A N/A 27/01/10 - Parish Precepts s151 12/01/10 14/01/10 N/A N/A 27/01/10 Corporate Financial Monitoring Q3 2009/10 s151/SMT 21/01/10 N/A 10/02/10 23/02/10 Revenue budget & 5 Year Capital Programme (inc alternative budget & robustness of estimates) 26/01/2010? 28/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 Budget Council Tax Setting s151/A. Raven N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 10/02/10 23/02/10 MTFP s151/H. Smith 19/01/10 21/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 Capital Strategy s151/H. Smith 19/01/10 21/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 Treasury Management Strategy & Prudential Indicators s151/H. Smith 19/01/10 21/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 Asset Management Plan M. Keane 19/01/10 21/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 33 Corporate Plan Filename/SMcG/My Docs /Excel/Budgets/FS Report Timetable SMT 19/01/10 21/01/10 N/A N/A 02/02/10 10/02/10 23/02/10 1of1

34 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Cabinet Council

Date of Meeting: Cabinet 9th December 2009 Part I Council 10th December 2009 Portfolio Holder: Cllr Andy Shine Report From: Assistant Director (Resources & S151) Agenda 9 Report Author: Sue Hill, Accounting Manager Item No: Report Title: Capital Prioritisation Update

Summary The current capital programme was reviewed and approved by Council in September 2009. Bids for capital resources for 2010/11 have recently been invited and prioritised against the Corporate Plan. The report summarises the bids considered during the prioritisation exercise, the scores awarded against the criteria used for the assessment. The criteria were developed after looking at processes adopted by other Local Authorities in Cumbria and Lancashire and was approved by the Capital Prioritisation Group and Management Team for the exercise undertaken in 2008. The criteria have been updated to reflect the latest Corporate Plan for the 2009 exercise. Recommendations Cabinet / Council is recommended to note the progress on the 2010/11 onwards Capital Prioritisation process to date. Report 1. An interim review of the Capital Programme approved by Council on 26th February 2009 was undertaken during September 2009 and approved by Council. A prioritisation exercise has now been completed with an emphasis on the contribution made by capital schemes to corporate objectives. A full summary of the scoring is attached at Appendix A. 2. Appendix B details the prioritisation criteria and the scoring mechanisms used (for information). 3. Appendix C shows the full list the scored projects in order of rank and details the scores awarded, the funds required and any external funding available. 4. The vehicle and plant replacement programme is included in the programme. Funding for this is arranged via revenue contributions to a sinking fund, which is calculated to cover the cost of financing the vehicles and plant. 5. Two capital bids have been received after completion of the initial prioritisation process: • Kendal CCTV – Relocation of Monitoring Suite £12.5k 2010/11 only • Heating & Cooling System, South Lakeland House £340k 2010/11 only These will be reviewed against the criteria as part of the budget process. 6. There is funding in the current capital programme for Grange Railway Bridges, however this funding is now known to be insufficient and it is necessary to build an additional £90k into the redrafted capital programme. This is a separate item on this agenda.

35 7. The impact of the recent flooding will need to be incorporated into future drafts of the capital programme and this may well change these initial scores. 8. Consideration of funding for the capital programme: • Prudent estimates of capital receipts have been developed. Further work needs to be undertaken to develop a more robust mechanism for forecasting capital receipts going forward. • The Revenue set aside to fund Capital will be fully utilised during 2010/11, however the proposed draft Medium Term Financial Plan suggests further yearly contributions to the fund. • The programme allows for £6m of borrowing over the 5-year period to 2013/14, which is built into the draft Medium Term Financial plan. The revenue implications of this borrowing are £600k per annum. Council will be asked to consider whether it wishes to prioritise this additional pressure on the Revenue Budget. Alternative Options The prioritisation exercise was undertaken to assess the fit of capital bids to the Corporate Plan. Alternative options are not applicable to this update. Key Decision This report relates to Key Decision PD09/002/Sev, which appears in the current Forward Plan. Material Considerations Finance Financial implications are indicated in the report. Prudential indicators will be revised to reflect the proposed Programme. Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Capital receipts from asset Resources are not available to Cautious assumptions on sales are over-estimated deliver the full Programme receipts. Regular revision and monitoring. Expenditure assumptions are Resources are not available to Accurate estimation and under-estimated deliver the full Programme monitoring of capital projects. External funding is not Resources are not available to Avoidance of over-commitment available to the extent deliver the full Programme of expenditure assumed in the Programme Programmed slippage does not Potential overspending of Close monitoring and ability to occur Programme slow down progress on schemes. Staffing Increased workload within the finance service. Links to Corporate Plan The projects within the prioritisation exercise have been scored against the corporate priorities in the current Corporate Plan. Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) The redrafting of the capital programme will be in line with the capital strategy and the Medium Term Financial Plan. Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: Sue Hill 2 36 Equalities & Diversity In accordance with the Council’s policies. Community Safety In accordance with the Council’s policies. Background Documents Document: Capital Prioritisation working Contact: Sue Hill papers Capital bid papers

Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: Sue Hill 3 37

38 CAPITAL PROGRAMME PRIORITISATION GROUP APPENDIX A SCORED BIDS: 20 OCTOBER 2009

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1011121314151617181920

Creative CAPITAL PROGRAMME: Council Council Houses Council Houses - The Tram Replacement Highgate Environmental Coronation Hall Potential Score Disabled Private Sector Site assembly Beezon Fields Rothay Park, Queen's Park One Stop Upgrade Integra Transformation Industries Hub - Disabled Access PRIORITISATION CRITERIA AND SCORECHART Housing - Aids - Other Major Asbestos, data & Footpath Lightburn Park Revs & Bens (Bowman) Car Partnerships Box Office Facilities Grants Renewal grants Fund Skatepark Ambleside Windermere Shops Finance System Programme Brewery Arts Grants & Adaptations Repairs mgt plan Kendal Heights Systems Park, Kendal Fund software Centre

1,836,000 2,986,800 968,000 1,454,000 7,965,000 150,000 80,000 12,000 82,000 10,200 12,000 350,000 150,000 all in 09/10 40,000 120,000 50,000 all in 09/10 150,000 15,000

A statutory requirement over which the Unavoidable Q1 240 240 240 REVENUE 240 Council has no choice

A health & safety or business continuity Essential issue where service delivery would fail if the Q2-6 200 200 200 200 scheme did not proceed A scheme which is specifically identified Corporate Outcome in the Corporate Plan as delivering a Q7 160 160 160 160 priority outcome A scheme which has clear links to Strong Strategic Fit corporate outcomes and will have a Q8 120 120 120 120 significant impact on service delivery

Strategic Fit Strategic A scheme which has a link to corporate Good Strategic Fit outcomes and will have a limited impact on Q9 80 80 80 80 service delivery A scheme which does not link to corporate Operational Benefits priorities but provides positive benefits to Q9 40 40 40 service delivery

Other Schemes Marginal benefit to service delivery 0

External Funding SLDC Contribution < 25% 20 20 20 20 20 > 50% Payback SLDC Contribution < 50% 10 10 10 10 10 10 < 5 years Q10/11 External Funding SLDC Contribution 75 - 90% 5 Financial 10 - 25% No External Funding SLDC Contribution 100% 0 0 00000 0 0

Permissions in Place Q14 6 6 6666 3666660 6 36 06

Confirmed Funding & Resources Q15 6 6 6666 6666660 6 06 06

Deliverability Appropriate Timescale Q16 7 7 7777 5777773 7 77 07

Total Score 894 229 179 199 279 279 0 104 219 219 59 59 259 173 0 139 140 139 0 100 109

Project in current Capital Programme? Y YYYYNNNNNNNN N Y NYNY

Amount in current Capital Programme (excludes 08/9 & earlier) 1,889,800 2,523,300 2,061,400 1,454,400 7,966,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 77,500 0 0 6,300

Difference -53,800 463,500 -1,093,400 -400 -1,000 150,000 80,000 12,000 82,000 10,200 12,000 350,000 150,000 40,000 42,500 50,000 150,000 8,700

Bid revises 09/10 Bid doesn't 09/10 only in Bid only up to & to £20k (current Bid doesn't include 09/10, current Reason for difference / comments including - - 2009/10 bid only £77.5), bid for include 09/10 includes programme, new 2010/11 2010/11 to external funding bid for 3 years 2013/14

Housing project? Y YYYYYNNNNNNNNN NN NN

39

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40 CAPITAL PROGRAMME PRIORITISATION GROUP APPENDIX A SCORED BIDS: 20 OCTOBER 2009

21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38

Kendal Canal Historic Disabled Toilet Rydal Road Car Braithwaite Fold Buxton Place Car Westmorland Infrastructure Phone CAPITAL PROGRAMME: Grange Low Mill Employment Kendal 'Quality Kendal Carbon Waterhead Potential Score New Road Kendal Museum Head - Environment 1st Floor Park, Ambleside Car Park Park Shopping Centre Repair works on payments for PRIORITISATION CRITERIA AND SCORECHART Regeneration Business Park, Land in South Gateway to the Signage Reduction (Ambleside) Common Improvements extension of Grant Support Kendal Town - bridge Improvements Improvements Car Park Housing estates - Car Parking Programme Phase 2 Lakeland Lakes' project Programme Scheme existing project Programme Hall widening Design Design Refurbishment Survey work Charges

70,000 355,000 10,000 602,600 100,000 53,000 735,000 60,000 all in 09/10 336,000 13,000 250,000 100,000 40,000 1,000,000 75,000 3,000,000 40,000

A statutory requirement over which the Unavoidable Q1 240 REVENUE 240 Council has no choice

A health & safety or business continuity Essential issue where service delivery would fail if the Q2-6 200 200 200 200 200 scheme did not proceed A scheme which is specifically identified Corporate Outcome in the Corporate Plan as delivering a Q7 160 160 160 160 160 160 priority outcome A scheme which has clear links to Already Strong Strategic Fit corporate outcomes and will have a Q8 120 120 120 120 120 Committed significant impact on service delivery

Strategic Fit Strategic A scheme which has a link to corporate Good Strategic Fit outcomes and will have a limited impact on Q9 80 80 service delivery A scheme which does not link to corporate Operational Benefits priorities but provides positive benefits to Q9 40 service delivery

Other Schemes Marginal benefit to service delivery 0

External Funding SLDC Contribution < 25% 20 20 20 20 > 50% Payback SLDC Contribution < 50% 10 10 10 10 < 5 years Q10/11 External Funding SLDC Contribution 75 - 90% 5 5 5 Financial 10 - 25% No External Funding SLDC Contribution 100% 0 0 00 0 0 0 0

Permissions in Place Q14 6 63660 66 6306 0 6 06

Confirmed Funding & Resources Q15 6 60600 66 6666 0 6 36

Deliverability Appropriate Timescale Q16 7 73777 77 7237 0 7 37

Total Score 894 229 171 219 143 187 0 199 189 264 91 129 139 200 219 0 186 139

Project in current Capital Programme? Y NN Y YYYY YNY N N Y N NN

Amount in current Capital Programme (excludes 08/9 & earlier) 125,500 0 0 302,600 100,000 32,000 735,000 28,800 325,000 0 20,000 0 0 1,000,000 0 0 0

Difference -55,500 355,000 10,000 300,000 0 21,000 0 31,200 11,000 13,000 230,000 100,000 40,000 0 75,000 3,000,000 40,000

New bid £125.5k 09/10 in 09/10 only in New bid for includes current New bid includes current New bid for revised amount reduced Reason for difference / comments programme, new funding from programme, increased 09/10, £13k from amount of bid £40k 09/10, other sources new bid £20k amount PDG external £30k 10/11 for 3 years funding Housing project? N NN N NNNN NNNN N N Y NN

41

Page 2 of 2 03/12/09

42 APPENDIX B SLDC Schemes (Q10) Deliverability

External External Payback No External Confirmed Funding Funding Permissions in Appropriate CAPITAL PROGRAMME: < 5 years Funding Funding & > 50% 10 - 25% Place Timescale PRIORITISATION CRITERIA AND SCORECHART Resources Overall Or Assessment Partner Schemes (Q11) Q14 Q15 Q16 SLDC SLDC SLDC SLDC Contribution Contribution Contribution Contribution < 25% < 50% 75 - 90% 100%

Assessed Basic Score for Maximum Add: Sum of the following Priority Category Criteria on Strategic Fit Add: One of the following Total (up to) Questions (Minimum) Score

A statutory requirement over 1 Unavoidable Q1 240 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 279 which the Council has no choice

A health & safety or business continuity issue where service 2 Essential Q2-6 200 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 239 delivery would fail if the scheme did not proceed

A scheme which is specifically 3 Corporate Outcome identified in the Corporate Plan Q7 160 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 199 as delivering a priority outcome

A scheme which has clear links to corporate outcomes and will 4 Strong Strategic Fit Q8 120 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 159 have a significant impact on service delivery A scheme which has a link to corporate outcomes and will have 5 Good Strategic Fit Q9 80 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 119 a limited impact on service delivery A scheme which does not link to corporate priorities but provides 6 Operational Benefits Q9 40 20 10 5 0 6 6 7 79 positive benefits to service delivery

Marginal benefit to service 7 Other Schemes 020105066739 delivery

Note: Weighted towards strategic fit: no overlap between priority bands

43

03/12/09

44 APPENDIX C

CAPITAL PROGRAMME PRIORITISATION GROUP SCORING OF BIDS - 20th OCTOBER 2009 09/10 - 13/14 Cumulative Strategic Total funding Funding from Points Deliverability External / Other SLDC Ranking Ref Bid Fit/Financial required SLDC general Score Score funding £000 Funding Score £000 resources £000 £000

1= 4 Council Housing - Aids & Adaptations 279 260 19 1,454 1,454 00 1= 5 Council Houses - Other Major Repairs 279 260 19 7,965 7,965 00 3 30 Carbon Reduction Programme 264 245 19 336 0 336 336 4 12 Replacement Revenues & Benefits Systems 259 240 19 350 0 350 686 5= 1 Disabled Facilities Grants 229 210 19 1,836 696 1,140 1,826 5= 21 Grange Regeneration Programme 229 210 19 70 0 70 1,896 7= 8 The Tram Footpath Kendal Heights 219 200 19 12 0 12 1,908 7= 9 Rothay Park, Ambleside 219 200 19 82 0 82 1,990 7= 23 Low Mill Business Park, Phase 2 219 200 19 10 0 10 2,000 7= 35 Westmorland Shopping Centre Car Park Refurbishment 219 200 19 1,000 0 1,000 3,000 11 34 Buxton Place Car Park Improvements Design 200 200 0 40 0 40 3,040 12= 3 Site assembly Fund 199 180 19 968 968 0 3,040 Kendal 'Quality Gateway to the Lakes' Public Realm 12= 27 199 180 19 735 610 125 3,165 Programme (£125k funded from LABGI) 14 28 Historic Environment Grant Support Programme 189 170 19 60 0 60 3,225 15 25 Employment Land in South Lakeland 187 180 7 100 0 100 3,325 16 37 Waterhead (Ambleside) Scheme 186 180 6 3,000 2,800 200 3,525 17= 2 Private Sector Renewal grants 179 160 19 2,988 0 2,988 6,513 17= - Public Conveniences + upgrade 179 160 19 1,350 0 1,350 7,863 19 13 One Stop Shops 173 170 3 150 0 150 8,013 20 22 New Road Common 171 165 6 355 5 350 8,363 21 24 Kendal Museum Improvements 143 130 13 602 300 302 8,665 22 16 Environmental Partnerships Fund 140 130 10 120 0 120 8,785 23= 15 Highgate (Bowman) Car Park, Kendal 139 120 19 40 0 40 8,825 23= 17 Coronation Hall Box Office software 139 120 19 50 23 27 8,852 23= 33 Braithwaite Fold Car Park Improvements Design 139 120 19 100 0 100 8,952 23= 38 Phone payments for Car Parking Charges 139 120 19 40 0 40 8,992 27 32 Rydal Road Car Park, Ambleside - bridge widening 129 120 9 250 0 250 9,242 28 20 Disabled Access Grants 109 90 19 15 10 5 9,247 29 7 Beezon Fields Skatepark 104 90 14 80 0 80 9,327 30 19 Creative Industries Hub - Brewery Arts Centre 100 100 0 150 0 150 9,477 31 31 Disabled Toilet 1st Floor Kendal Town Hall 91 80 11 13 0 13 9,490 32 10 Queen's Park Windermere 59 40 19 10 0 10 9,500 33 11 Lightburn Park 59 40 19 12 0 12 9,512 24,343 14,831 9,512 6 Council Houses - Asbestos, Data & Management Plan taken out, revenue 26 Kendal Canal Head - extension of existing project taken out, already committed Infrastructure Repair works on Housing estates - Survey 36 taken out, revenue work

Bids extracted before prioritisation: 14 Upgrade Integra Financial System (09/10 only) 18 Transformation (in 09/10 programme) 29 Kendal Signage project (in 09/10 programme, LABGI)

1 45

46 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Council

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Corporate Director (Monitoring Officer) Agenda 10 Report Author: Steve Wearing, Licensing Manager Item No: Report Title: Gambling Act 2005 – Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy 2010 – 2013

Summary The purpose of the report is to inform Council of the outcome of the consultation on the review of the Council’s Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy and seek Members’ views on the revised draft. Recommendations Council is requested to consider whether to make any amendments to the attached revised draft statement of Gambling Licensing Policy, and to approve the Policy for publication in accordance with Section 349 of the Gambling Act 2005. 1.0 Report 1.1 Section 349 of the Gambling Act 2005 provides that each licensing authority shall before each successive period of three years, prepare a statement of the principles that they propose to apply in exercising their functions under the Act during that period, and, publish that statement. 1.2 In January 2007, during the transitional period leading up to the implementation of the Gambling Act 2005, this Council established its first Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy in preparation for receiving applications for premises licences and permits in September of that year. 1.3 The Act provides that before determining the policy a licensing authority must consult with:- • The Chief Officer of Police for the area • One or more persons who appear to the authority to represent the interests of persons carrying on gambling businesses in the authority’s area • One or more persons who appear to the authority to represent the interests of persons who are likely to be affected by the exercise of the authority’s functions under the Gambling Act 2005 1.4 Consultation on a revised draft Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy was held from 27 July 2009 until 19 October 2009. In addition to the statutory requirements regarding consultation as outlined above, the following steps were taken to ensure the consultation has been as effective as possible:- • A press release was issued regarding the consultation process • The revised draft statement of licensing policy was made available on the Council’s website • Copies of the above document were made available at the Council’s Offices

47 1.5 Members may be aware that officers from the six councils in Cumbria worked together in drawing up the existing statements of licensing policy to ensure consistency throughout the county. This approach has been followed again in the current review process. No responses were received to this Council’s consultation process. However, a Cumbria wide consultation carried out by Carlisle City Council on behalf of all the six districts attracted 4 responses. 1.6 Attached at Appendix A is a schedule of responses received to the Cumbria wide consultation on the review of Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy. Officers from the six councils have carried out an appraisal of the responses received, and where it has been considered appropriate, amendments have been made to the draft policy. The section headed “recommendation” in the schedule of responses contains details of the proposed changes made (if any) to the respective paragraphs on the six Councils’ policies. The revised draft policy proposed for adoption for the area of South Lakeland District is attached at Appendix B. For clarity, the amendments made to the existing policy have been underlined in red in the revised draft policy attached. The document was considered by the Licensing Act Committee at its meeting held on 26 November 2009. The above Committee resolved to make no further amendments to the revised draft policy. 2.0 Conclusion 2.1 Council is requested to consider the revised draft Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy, and to approve that the new policy be published by 3rd January 2010 and effective by 31st January 2010 in accordance with the statutory timescale.

Alternative Options The options are whether to approve the revised draft policy or to make any amendments as Council may consider appropriate. Material Considerations These are contained within the report. Finance There are no financial implications. Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Failure to approve the revised The Council would be unable Revised policy to be approved Statement of Gambling to meet its statutory obligation by Council at this meeting. Licensing Policy by December to implement a revised 2009. Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy by January 2010.

Staffing There are no staffing implications. Links to Corporate Plan None. Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) Community Strategy in Health and Well-being. The Council’s Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy encourages individuals and businesses to actively promote the statutory licensing objectives Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 48 in relation to preventing gambling from being a source of crime and protecting children and vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling. Equalities & Diversity Not applicable. Community Safety See link to Community Strategy. Background Documents Four responses to the Cumbria wide consultation on the policy review.

Document: Contact: Mr Steve Wearing

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 3 49

50 APPENDIX A

Cumbria Councils

GAMBLING ACT 2005 - RESPONSES FOLLOWING CUMBRIA WIDE CONSULTATION ON REVIEW OF STATEMENT OF GAMBLING LICENSING POLICIES – NOVEMBER 2009 Doc. No. Respondent Proposed amendment Recommendation

Licensing Managers Numbering after para. 9.18 to be corrected Amend

1 British Beer & Pub Assoc a) Welcomes adoption of LACORS template a) Noted b) Comments re children u/18 using AWP’s b) Noted c) Include the fact that there is no reason why additional c) Consider additional para. at gaming machines should not be permitted as long as Part C/25 for gaming GC Code of Practice is adhered to machines d) Include application procedure for machine permits d) Include as c) above 2 Cumbria Fire & Rescue a) Outline of responsibilities of licence holder with regard a) Do not include. GC to fire safety Guidance 6.4 states there Service should be a firm commitment to avoid duplication with other regulatory regimes, this includes H&S at work and fire safety

51 APPENDIX A

Cumbria Councils 3 Racecourse Association a) Update preface a) Amend b) Para. 9.8 unclear b) Our section concurs with the LACORS version. (Cannot find reference in GC Guidance)

c) Para. 9.12 - location of racecourses have not altered c) All current racecourses since foundation and cannot be transferred have a premises licence. No change required. d) Para. 9.15 - (numbering to be amended) request d) Each application must be Councils not to impose additional conditions that considered on its own merit exceed mandatory and default conditions and we should not preclude the possibility of additional conditions. No change. e) As above. Also para. 9.21 e) Para. 9.20 - (numbering to be amended) Councils (numbering to be amended) should not impose further provisions relating to door qualifies this supervisors f) Noted f) Para. 15.9 - Betting machines on tracks will be provided by other operators. Racecourse will require them to fulfil any conditions g) Para. 15.10 – Practicalities of printing rules on g) Noted racecard h) Para. 17.3 – Spelling error h) Amend i) Para. 17.4 – wording implies tracks require operating i) Agreed, amend in brackets licence to: (tracks do not require an operating licence) 4 Chas Kendall (Turf Concern over the injustice in licence fee structure Not an issue for the policy. No (Directed at Barrow) action. Accountant)

52 Appendix B

Gambling Act 2005

Revised Draft Statement of Gambling Policy November 2009

South Lakeland District Council has completed this document. If you would like a copy of the document in another format such as large print, Braille or in a different language, please call 0845 050 4434 or email [email protected]

Any queries regarding this draft policy should be addressed to:-

Licensing Manager South Lakeland District Council South Lakeland House Lowther Street Kendal Cumbria LA9 4UQ

Tel: 01539 797585 E-mail: [email protected]

Further copies may be obtained from the above address or from the Council’s website:- www.southlakeland.gov.uk

The proposed amendments made to the existing Statement of Gambling Licensing Policy have been underlined

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Draft Statement of Licensing Policy Gambling Act 2005

Contents Page

Preface...... 4

Part A - General

1. The licensing objectives ...... 5 2. Introduction...... 6 3. Declaration ...... 7 4. Responsible Authorities...... 7 5. Interested parties...... 8 6. Exchange of information...... 9 7. Enforcement ...... 10 8. Licensing authority functions ...... 12

Part B - Premises Licences

9. General Principles ...... 14 10. Adult Gaming Centres ...... 21 11. (Licensed) Family Entertainment Centres ...... 21 12. Casinos ...... 22 13. Bingo premises...... 23 14. Betting premises...... 24 15. Tracks...... 24 16. Travelling fairs ...... 27 17. Provisional Statements...... 27 18. Reviews...... 28

2 54

Part C - Permits/Temporary and Occasional Use Notices

19. Unlicensed Family Entertainment Centre gaming machine permits ...... 30 20. (Alcohol) Licensed premises gaming machine permits...... 31 21. Prize Gaming Permits...... 32 22. Club Gaming and Club Machines Permits...... 33 23. Temporary Use Notices...... 34 24. Occasional Use Notices ...... 35

Appendices Appendix 1 List of Consultees...... 36 Appendix 2 Useful Addresses ...... 39 Appendix 3 Categories Gaming Machines ...... 43 Appendix 4 Delegation of Functions...... 45 Appendix 5 Map of District ...... 46

This Statement of Gambling Policy was approved by South Lakeland District Council on (to insert)

All references to the “Guidance” refers to the Gambling Commission's Guidance to Local Authorities published in May 2009.

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Preface

Under the Gambling Act 2005, a new regime for regulating gambling and betting was introduced throughout the United Kingdom from 1 September 2007. Apart from the National Lottery and spread betting, gambling and betting will be regulated by the Gambling Commission, whose duties include licensing the operators and individuals involved in providing gambling and betting facilities.

South Lakeland District Council, along with other local licensing authorities, has a duty under the Act to license premises where gambling is to take place and to license certain other activities (such as registering small society lotteries). This document sets out how we intend to approach this task.

Allerdale Borough Council, Barrow Borough Council, Carlisle City Council, Copeland Borough Council, Eden District Council and South Lakeland District Council have worked in partnership in preparing this statement. The Councils continue to work together to share best practice in an effort to ensure, so far as practicable, consistency of approach across Cumbria.

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Part A

1. The Licensing Objectives

1.1 In exercising most of their functions under the Gambling Act 2005 (“the Act”), licensing authorities must have regard to the licensing objectives as set out in section 1 of the Act. The licensing objectives are:

• Preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime

• Ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way

• Protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling

1.2 It should be noted that the Gambling Commission has stated: “The requirement in relation to children is explicitly to protect them from being harmed or exploited by gambling”.

1.3 This licensing authority is aware that, in making decisions about premises licences and temporary use notices it should aim to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as it thinks it:

• in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission

• in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission

• reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives and

• in accordance with the authority’s statement of licensing policy

Authorised Activities

1.4 ‘Gambling’ is defined in the Act as either gambling, betting or taking part in a lottery:

• ‘gaming’ means playing a game of chance for a prize;

• ‘betting’ means making or accepting a bet on the outcome of a race, competition, or any other event; the likelihood of anything occurring or not occurring; or whether anything is true or not true;

• a ‘lottery’ is where persons are required to pay in order to take part in an arrangement, during the course of which one or more prizes are allocated by a process which relies wholly on chance.

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1.5 Private gaming in private dwellings and on domestic occasions is exempt from licensing or registration providing that no charge is made for participating; only equal chance gaming takes place; and it does not occur in a place to which the public have access. Domestic betting between inhabitants of the same premises or between employees of the same employer is also exempt.

1.6 Non-commercial gaming and betting (where no parts of the proceeds are for private gain) may be subject to certain exemptions. Further advice should be sought from the Council’s Licensing Team where appropriate.

2. Introduction

South Lakeland District Council is situated in the County of Cumbria, which contains 6 District Councils in total . The Council area has a population of approximately 106,100 and covers 600 square miles (1551 square kilometres). The population profile is illustrated below;

Years of Age 0 to 14 15 to 64 65 and over

Total 15,400 66,200 24,500

2.1 A map of the Council’s area is included at Appendix 5.

2.2 Licensing authorities are required by the Gambling Act 2005 to publish a statement of the principles which they propose to apply when exercising their functions. This statement must be published at least every three years. The statement must also be reviewed from “time to time” and any amended parts re-consulted upon. The statement must be then re-published.

2.3 South Lakeland District Council consulted widely upon this statement before finalising and publishing. A list of those persons this authority consulted is provided at Appendix 1.

2.4 The Gambling Act requires that the following parties are consulted by Licensing Authorities:

• The Chief Officer of Police;

• One or more persons who appear to the authority to represent the interests of persons carrying on gambling businesses in the authority’s area;

• One or more persons who appear to the authority to represent the interests of persons who are likely to be affected by the exercise of the authority’s functions under the Gambling Act 2005.

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2.5 Our consultation took place between 27th July 2009 and 19th October 2009 and we followed the HM Government Code of Practice on Consultation (published July 2008) which is available at: http://www.berr.gov.uk/whatwedo/bre/consultation-guidance/page 44458.html

2.6 The full list of comments made and the consideration by the Council of those comments is available by request to the person named below.

2.7 The policy will be approved at a meeting of the Full Council on 10th December 2009. It was published on our website in draft on 27th July 2009. Copies have been placed in the public libraries of the area as well as being available in the Council Offices. Please contact the person named below for more information.

2.8 Should you have any queries regarding this policy statement please send them via e-mail or letter to the following contact:

Licensing Manager Licensing Group South Lakeland House Lowther Street, Kendal Cumbria LA9 4UQ

E-mail: [email protected]

2.9 It should be noted that this policy statement will not override the right of any person to make an application, make representations about an application, or apply for a review of a licence, as each will be considered on its own merits and according to the statutory requirements of the Gambling Act 2005.

3. Declaration

3.1 In producing the final statement, this licensing authority declares that it has had regard to the licensing objectives of the Gambling Act 2005, the Guidance to the Licensing Authorities issued by the Gambling Commission, and any responses from those consulted on the statement.

4. Responsible Authorities

4.1 The licensing authority is required by regulations to state the principles it will apply in exercising its powers under Section 157(h) of the Act to designate, in writing, a body which is competent to advise the authority about the protection of children from harm. The principles are:

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• the need for the body to be responsible for an area covering the whole of the licensing authority’s area; and

• the need for the body to be answerable to democratically elected persons, rather than any particular vested interest group.

4.2 In accordance with the suggestion in the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to local authorities, this authority has consulted with both the Cumbria Safeguarding Children Board and Cumbria County Council Children’s Services. This Authority considers that Cumbria County Council Children’s Services is best able to fulfil the role of advising the Authority about the protection of children from harm for the purposes of Section 157(b) of the Act.

4.3 The contact details of all the Responsible Authorities under the Gambling Act 2005 are available via the Council’s website at: www.southlakeland.gov.uk and are listed at Appendix 2

5. Interested Parties

5.1 Interested parties can make representations about licence applications, or apply for a review of an existing licence. These parties are defined in the Gambling Act 2005 as follows:

“For the purposes of this Part a person is an interested party in relation to an application for or in respect of a premises licence if, in the opinion of the licensing authority which issues the licence or to which the applications is made, the person:

a) lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the authorised activities,

b) has business interests that might be affected by the authorised activities, or

c) represents persons who satisfy paragraph (a) or (b)”

5.2 The licensing authority is required by regulations to state the principles it will apply in exercising its powers under the Gambling Act 2005 to determine whether a person is an interested party.

5.3 This authority will not apply a rigid rule to its decision making and each case will be decided upon its merits. It will consider the examples of considerations provided in the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities at Paragraphs 8.11 to 8.18.

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5.4 It will also consider the Gambling Commission's Guidance that "has business interests" should be given the widest possible interpretation and include partnerships, charities, faith groups and medical practices.

5.5 The Gambling Commission has recommended that the licensing authority states that interested parties may include trade associations and trade unions, and residents’ and tenants’ associations. This authority will not however generally view these bodies as interested parties unless they represent a member who can be classed as an interested person under the terms of the Gambling Act 2005 i.e. lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the activities being applied for.

5.6 Interested parties can be persons who are democratically elected such as Councillors and MP’s. No specific evidence of being asked to represent an interested person will be required as long as the Councillor/MP represents the ward likely to be affected. Likewise, Parish Councils likely to be affected, will be considered to be interested parties. Other than these however, this authority will generally require written evidence that a person/body (eg an advocate/relative) ‘represents’ someone who either lives sufficiently close to the premises to be likely to be affected by the authorised activities and/or has business interests that might be affected by the authorised activities. A letter from one of these persons, requesting the representation is likely to be sufficient.

5.7 If individuals wish to approach Councillors to ask them to represent their views then care should be taken that the Councillors are not a Member of the Licensing Committee dealing with the licence application. If there are any doubts then please contact the Council’s Licensing Department.

6. Exchange of Information

6.1 Licensing Authorities are required to include in their statements the principles to be applied by the authority in exercising the functions under sections 29 and 30 of the Act with respect to the exchange of information between it and the Gambling Commission, and the functions under section 350 of the Act with respect to the exchange of information between it and the other persons listed in Schedule 6 to the Act.

6.2 The principle that this licensing authority applies is that it will act in accordance with the provisions of the Gambling Act 2005 in its exchange of information which includes the provision that the Data Protection Act 1998 will not be contravened. The licensing authority will also have regard to any Guidance issued by the Gambling Commission on this matter, as well as any relevant regulations issued by the Secretary of State under the powers provided in the Gambling Act 2005.

6.3 Should any protocols be established as regards information exchange with other bodies then they will be made available. This authority will normally share the information it holds

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about licensed premises with the Gambling Commission, the Police and other responsible authorities.

7. Enforcement

7.1 Licensing authorities are required by regulation under the Gambling Act 2005 to state the principles to be applied by the authority in exercising the functions under Part 15 of the Act with respect to the inspection of premises; and the powers in the Act to institute criminal proceedings in respect of the offences specified.

7.2 This licensing authority’s principles are that:

It will be guided by the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities and will endeavour to be:

• Proportionate: regulators should only intervene when necessary: remedies should be appropriate to the risk posed, and costs identified and minimised;

• Accountable: regulators must be able to justify decisions, and be subject to public scrutiny;

• Consistent: rules and standards must be joined up and implemented fairly;

• Transparent: regulators should be open, and keep regulations simple and user friendly; and

• Targeted: regulation should be focused on the problem, and minimise side effects.

7.3 As per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to Licensing Authorities, this licensing authority will endeavour to avoid duplication with other regulatory regimes so far as possible.

7.4 This licensing authority has adopted and implemented a risk-based inspection programme, based on;

• The licensing objectives • Relevant codes of practice • Guidance issued by the Gambling Commission, in particular at Part 36 • The principles set out in this statement of licensing policy 7.5 The main enforcement and compliance role for this licensing authority in terms of the Gambling Act 2005 is to ensure compliance with the premises licences and other permissions which it authorises. The Gambling Commission will be the enforcement body for the operating and personal licences. It is also worth noting that concerns about

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manufacture, supply or repair of gaming machines are not dealt with by the licensing authority but should be notified to the Gambling Commission.

7.6 This licensing authority also keeps itself informed of developments as regards the work of the Better Regulation Executive in its consideration of the Regulatory functions of local authorities.

7.7 Bearing in mind the principle of transparency, this licensing authority’s enforcement protocol is available upon request to the licensing department. Our risk based inspection programme is also available upon request.

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8. Licensing Authority Functions

Local Authorities

8.1 Licensing Authorities are required under the Act to:

• Be responsible for the licensing of premises where gambling activities are to take place by issuing Premises Licences

• Issue Provisional Statements

• Regulate members’ clubs and miners’ welfare institutes who wish to undertake certain gaming activities via issuing Club Gaming Permits and/or Club Machine Permits

• Issue Club Machine Permits to Commercial Clubs

• Grant permits for the use of certain lower stake gaming machines at unlicensed Family Entertainment Centres

• Receive notifications from alcohol licensed premises (under the Licensing Act 2003) for the use of two or fewer gaming machines

• Issue Licensed Premises Gaming Machine Permits for premises licensed to sell/supply alcohol for consumption on the licensed premises, under the Licensing Act 2003, where there are more than two machines

• Register small society lotteries below prescribed thresholds

• Issue Prize Gaming Permits

• Receive and Endorse Temporary Use Notices

• Receive Occasional Use Notices

• Provide information to the Gambling Commission regarding details of licences issued (see section above on ‘information exchange)

• Maintain registers of the permits and licences that are issued under these functions

• Exercise its powers of compliance and enforcement under the Act, in partnership with the Gambling Commission and other relevant responsible authorities.

It should be noted that licensing authorities are not involved in licensing remote gambling at all, which is regulated by the Gambling Commission via operating licences.

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The Gambling Commission

8.2 The Gambling Commission regulates gambling in the public interest. It does so by keeping crime out of gambling; by ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way; and by protecting children and vulnerable people. The Commission provides independent advice to the Government about the matter in which gambling is carried out, the effects of gambling and the regulations of gambling generally.

8.3 The Commission has issued guidance under Section 25 of the Act about the manner in which licensing authorities exercise their licensing functions under the Act and, in particular, the principles to be applied.

8.4 The Commission has also issued Codes of Practice under Section 24 about the way in which facilities for gambling are provided, which may also include provisions about the advertising of gambling facilities.

8.5 The Gambling Commission can be contacted at:

Gambling Commission Victoria Square House Victoria Square Birmingham B2 4BP Website: www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk Email: [email protected]

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Part B Premises Licences

9. General Principles

9.1 Premises licences are subject to the requirements set-out in the Act and regulations, as well as specific mandatory and default conditions which will be detailed in regulations issued by the Secretary of State. The licensing authority is able to exclude default conditions and also attach others, where it is believed to be appropriate.

9.2 This licensing authority is aware that in making decisions about premises licences it should aim to permit the use of premises for gambling in so far as it thinks it:

• in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission;

• in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission;

• reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives; and

• in accordance with the authority’s statement of licensing policy.

9.3 This authority will not regard moral objections to gambling as a valid reason to reject applications for premises licences (except as regards any 'no casino resolution' - see section on Casinos below) and also acknowledges that unmet demand is not a criterion for a licensing authority to consider.

9.4 Definition of “premises” – In the Act, the word premises is defined as including “any place”. Section 152 therefore prevents more than one premises licence applying to any place. But a single building could be subject to more than one premises licence, provided they are for different parts of the building and the different parts of the building can be reasonably regarded as being different premises. This approach has been taken to allow large, multiple unit premises such as a pleasure park, pier, track or shopping mall to obtain discrete premises licences, where appropriate safeguards are in place. However, licensing authorities should pay particular attention if there are issues about sub-divisions of a single building or plot and should ensure that mandatory conditions relating to access between premises are observed.

9.5 The Gambling Commission states in the third edition of its Guidance to Licensing Authorities that: “In most cases the expectation is that a single building/plot will be the subject of an application for a licence, for example, 32 High Street. But, that does not mean 32 High Street cannot be the subject of separate premises licences for the basement and ground floor, if they are configured acceptably. Whether different parts of a building can properly be

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regarded as being separate premises will depend on the circumstances. The location of the premises will clearly be an important consideration and the suitability of the division is likely to be a matter for discussion between the operator and the licensing officer. However, the Commission does not consider that areas of a building that are artificially or temporarily separated, for example by ropes or moveable partitions, can properly be regarded as different premises.”

9.6 This licensing authority takes particular note of the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to Licensing Authorities which states that: “licensing authorities should take particular care in considering applications for multiple licences for a building and those related to a discrete part of a building used for other (non gambling) purposes. In particular they should be aware of the following:

• The third licensing objective seeks to protect children from being harmed by gambling. In practice that means not only preventing them from taking part in gambling, but also preventing them from being in close proximity to gambling. Therefore premises should be configured so that children are not invited to participate in, have accidental access to or closely observe gaming where they are prohibited from participating.

• Entrances to and exits from parts of a building covered by one or more premises licences should be separate and identifiable so the separation of different premises is not compromised and people do not ‘drift’ into a gambling area. In this context it should normally be possible to access the premises without going through another licensed premises or premises with a permit.

• Customers should be able to participate in the activities named on the premises licence.

The Guidance also gives a list of factors which the licensing authority should be aware of, which may include:

• Do the premises have a separate registration for business rates • Is the premises’ neighbouring premises owned by the same person or someone else? • Can each of the premises be accessed from the street or a public passageway? • Can the premises only be accessed from another gambling premises?

This authority will consider these and other relevant factors in making its decision, depending on all the circumstances of the case.

9.7 The Gambling Commission’s relevant access provisions for each premises type are reproduced below:

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7.25

Casinos

• The principal access entrance to the premises must be from a street (as defined at 7.23 of the Guidance). • No entrance to a casino must be from premises that are used wholly or mainly by children and/or young persons. • No person must be able to enter a casino directly from any other premises which holds a gambling premises licence. Adult Gaming Centre

• No customer must be able to access the premises directly from any other licensed gambling premises.

Tracks

• No customer should be able to access the premises directly from: - a casino - an adult gaming centre Bingo Premises

• No customer must be able to access the premise directly from: - a casino - an adult gaming centre - a betting premises, other than a track

Family Entertainment Centre • No customer must be able to access the premises directly from: - a casino - an adult gaming centre - a betting premises, other than a track

Part 7 of the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to Licensing Authorities contains further guidance on this issue, which this authority will also take into account in its decision-making.

9.8 Premises “ready for gambling” – The Guidance states that a licence to use premises for gambling should only be issued in relation to premises that the licensing authority are satisfied will be ready to be used for gambling in the reasonably near future, considering the scale of the building works or alterations required before the premises are brought into use.

9.9 If the construction of a premises is not yet complete, or if they need alteration, or if the applicant does not yet have a right to occupy them, then an application for a provisional statement should be made instead.

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9.10 In deciding whether a premises licence can be granted where there are outstanding construction or alteration works at a premises, this authority will determine applications on their merits, applying a two stage consideration process:-

• First, whether the premises ought to be permitted to be used for gambling • Second, whether appropriate conditions can be put in place to cater for the situation that the premises are not yet in the state in which they ought to be before gambling takes place. 9.11 Applicants should note that this authority is entitled to decide that it is appropriate to grant a licence subject to conditions, but it is not obliged to grant such a licence.

9.12 Location - This licensing authority is aware that demand issues cannot be considered with regard to the location of premises but that considerations in terms of the licensing objectives are relevant to its decision-making. As per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to Licensing Authorities, this authority will pay particular attention to the protection of children and vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling, as well as issues of crime and disorder. Should any specific policy be decided upon as regards areas where gambling premises should not be located, this statement will be updated. It should be noted tat any such policy does not preclude any application being made and each application will be decided on its merits, with the onus upon the applicant showing how potential concerns can be overcome.

9.13 Planning – The Gambling Commission Guidance to Local Authorities states:

7.59 – In determining applications the licensing authority has a duty to take into consideration all relevant matters and not to take into consideration irrelevant matters, i.e. those not related to gambling and the licensing objectives. One example of an irrelevant matter would be the likelihood of the applicant obtaining planning permission or building regulations approval for their proposal.

This authority will not take into account irrelevant matters as per the above guidance. In addition this authority notes the following excerpt from the guidance:

7.66 – When dealing with a premises licence application for finished buildings, the licensing authority should not take into account whether those buildings have or comply with the necessary planning or building consents. Those matters should be dealt with under relevant planning control and building regulation powers, and not form part of the consideration for the premises licence. Section 210 of the Act prevents licensing authorities taking into account the likelihood of the proposal by the applicant obtaining planning or building consent when considering a premises licence application. Equally the grant of a gambling premises licence does not prejudice any action that may be appropriate under law relating to planning or building.

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9.14 Duplication with other regulatory regimes - This licensing authority will seek to avoid any duplication with other statutory/regulatory systems where possible, including planning. This authority will not consider whether a licence application is likely to be awarded planning permission or building regulations approval, in its consideration of it. It will though, listen to, and consider carefully, any concerns about conditions which are not able to be met by licensees due to planning restrictions, should such a situation arise.

When dealing with a premises licence application for finished buildings, this authority will not take into account whether those buildings have to comply with the necessary planning or building consents. Fire or health and safety risks will not be taken into account, as these matters are dealt with under relevant planning control, buildings and other regulations and must not form part of the consideration for the premises licence.

Licensing Objectives

9.15 Premises licences granted must be reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives. With regard to these objectives, this licensing authority has considered the Gambling Commission’s Guidance to local authorities and some comments are made below.

9.16 Preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, being associated with crime or disorder or being used to support crime - This licensing authority is aware that the Gambling Commission will be taking a leading role in preventing gambling from being a source of crime. The Gambling Commission's Guidance does however envisage that licensing authorities should pay attention to the proposed location of gambling premises in terms of this licensing objective. Thus, if an area should have known high levels of organised crime this authority will consider carefully whether gambling premises are suitable to be located there and whether conditions may be suitable such as the provision of door supervisors. This licensing authority is aware of the distinction between disorder and nuisance and will consider factors such as whether police assistance was required and how threatening the behaviour was to those who could see it, so as to make that distinction. Issues of nuisance cannot be addressed via the Gambling Act provisions.

9.17 Ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way - This licensing authority has noted that the Gambling Commission states that it generally does not expect licensing authorities to become concerned with ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way as this will be addressed via operating and personal licences issued by the Gambling Commission. There is however, more of a role with regard to tracks which is explained in more detail in the 'tracks' section below at Paragraph 15.

9.18 Protecting children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling - This objective means preventing children from taking part in gambling (as well as restriction of advertising so that gambling products are not aimed at or are, particularly attractive to children). The licensing authority will therefore consider, whether specific measures are required at particular premises, with regard to this licensing objective.

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Appropriate measures may include supervision of entrances/ machines, segregation of areas etc.

This licensing authority is also aware of the Gambling Commission Codes of Practice as regards this licensing objective, in relation to specific premises.

9.19 As regards the term “vulnerable persons” it is noted that the Gambling Commission does not seek to offer a definition but states that “it will for regulatory purposes assume that this group includes people who gamble more than they want to; people who are gambling beyond their means; and people who may not be able to make informed or balanced decisions about gambling due to a mental impairment, learning disabilities, alcohol or drugs. This licensing authority will consider this licensing objective on a case by case basis.

Conditions

9.20 Any conditions attached to licences will be proportionate and will be:

• relevant to the need to make the proposed building suitable as a gambling facility; • directly related to the premises and the type of licence applied for; • fairly and reasonably related to the scale and type of premises; and • reasonable in all other respects. 9.21 Decisions upon individual conditions will be made on a case by case basis, although there will be a number of measures this licensing authority will consider utilising should there be a perceived need, such as the use of door supervisors, appropriate signage for adult only areas etc. There are specific comments made in this regard under some of the licence types below. This licensing authority will also expect the licence applicant to offer his/her own suggestions as to the way in which the licensing objectives can be met effectively.

9.22 This licensing authority will also consider specific measures which may be required for buildings which are subject to multiple premises licences. Such measures may include the supervision of entrances; segregation of gambling from non-gambling areas frequented by children; and the supervision of gaming machines in non-adult gambling specific premises in order to pursue the licensing objectives. These matters are in accordance with the Gambling Commission's Guidance.

9.23 This authority will also ensure that where category C (for information about the different categories of machine, please see appendix 3) or above machines are on offer in premises to which children are admitted:

• all such machines are located in an area of the premises which is separated from the remainder of the premises by a physical barrier which is effective to prevent access other than through a designated entrance;

• only adults are admitted to the area where these machines are located;

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• access to the area where the machines are located is supervised;

• the area where these machines are located is arranged so that it can be observed by the staff or the licence holder; and

• at the entrance to and inside any such areas there are prominently displayed notices indicating that access to the area is prohibited to persons under 18.

These considerations will apply to premises including buildings where multiple premises licences are applicable.

9.24 This licensing authority is aware that tracks may be subject to one or more than one premises licence, provided each licence relates to a specified area of the track. As per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance this licensing authority will consider the impact upon the objective to protect children and other vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling and the need to ensure that entrances to each type of premises are distinct and that children are excluded from gambling areas where they are not permitted to enter.

9.25 It is noted that there are conditions which the licensing authority cannot attach to premises licences which are:

• any condition on the premises licence which makes it impossible to comply with an operating licence condition;

• conditions relating to gaming machine categories, numbers, or method of operation;

• conditions which provide that membership of a club or body be required (the Gambling Act 2005 specifically removes the membership requirement for casino and bingo clubs and this provision prevents it being reinstated; and

• conditions in relation to stakes, fees, winning or prizes.

9.26 Door Supervisors – The Gambling Commission advises in its Guidance to Licensing Authorities that if a licensing authority is concerned that a premises may attract disorder or be subject to attempts at unauthorised access (for example by children and young persons) then it may require that the entrances to the premises are controlled by a door supervisor, and is entitled to impose a premises licence condition to this effect.

9.27 Where it is decided that supervision of entrances/machines is appropriate for particular cases, a consideration of whether these need to be SIA licensed or not will be necessary. It will not be automatically assumed that they need to be licensed, as the statutory requirements for different premises vary (as per Guidance, Part 33).

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9.28 It should be noted that the above paragraphs relate to door supervisors only in relation to premises licences granted under the Gambling Act 2005. Where a premises licence has also been granted under the Licensing Act 2003 in relation to the same premises, there may also be conditions on that licence which relate to door supervisors. The premises licence holder should ensure compliance with those conditions.

10. Adult Gaming Centres

10.1 This licensing authority will specifically have regard to the need to protect children and vulnerable persons from harm or being exploited by gambling and will expect the applicant to satisfy the authority that there will be sufficient measures to, for example, ensure that under 18 year olds do not have access to the premises.

10.2 This licensing authority will expect applicants to offer their own measures to meet the licensing objectives however appropriate measures/licence conditions may cover issues such as:

• Proof of age schemes

• CCTV – this should be of sufficient quality that it will be of use in evidence

• Supervision of entrances/machine areas

• Physical separation of areas

• Location of entry

• Notices/signage

• Specific opening hours

• Self-exclusion schemes – these are schemes whereby individuals who acknowledge they have a gambling problem ask to be barred from certain premises.

• Provision of information leaflets/helpline numbers for organisations such as GamCare.

10.3 This list is not mandatory, nor exhaustive, and is merely indicative of example measures which applicants can consider implementing.

11. (Licensed) Family Entertainment Centres

11.1 This licensing authority will specifically have regard to the need to protect children and vulnerable persons from harm or being exploited by gambling and will expect the applicant to satisfy the authority, for example, that there will be sufficient measures to ensure that under 18 year olds do not have access to the adult only gaming machine areas.

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11.2 This licensing authority will expect applicants to offer their own measures to meet the licensing objectives however appropriate measures/licence conditions may cover issues such as:

• Proof of age schemes

• CCTV – this should be of sufficient quality that it will be of use in evidence

• Supervision of entrances/machine areas

• Physical separation of areas

• Location of entry

• Notices/signage

• Specific opening hours

• Self-exclusion schemes– these are schemes whereby individuals who acknowledge they have a gambling problem ask to be barred from certain premises

• Provision of information leaflets/helpline numbers for organisations such as GamCare.

• Measures/training for staff on how to deal with suspected truant school children on the premises

11.3 This list is not mandatory, nor exhaustive, and is merely indicative of example measures which applicants can consider implementing.

11.4 This licensing authority will refer to the Gambling Commission’s website to see any conditions that apply to operating licences covering the way in which the area containing the category C machines should be delineated. It will normally impose conditions on granting licences which accord with the above. This licensing authority will also make itself aware of and impose any mandatory or default conditions on these premises licences.

12. Casinos

12.1 No Casinos resolution - This licensing authority has not passed a ‘no casino’ resolution under Section 166 of the Gambling Act 2005, but is aware that it has the power to do so. Should this licensing authority decide in the future to pass such a resolution, it will update this policy statement with details of that resolution. Any such decision will be made by the Full Council.

12.2 Casinos and competitive bidding - This licensing authority is aware that where a licensing authority area is enabled to grant a premises licence for a new style casino (ie the Secretary

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of State has made such regulations under Section 175 of the Gambling Act 2005) there are likely to be a number of operators who will want to run the casino. In such situations the local authority will run a ‘competition’ under Schedule 9 of the Gambling Act 2005. This licensing authority will run such a competition in line with the Gambling (Inviting Competing Applications for Large and Small Casino Premises Licences) Regulations 2008, as well as following the procedure set out in Part 17 of the Guidance.

12.3 Licence considerations/conditions – This licensing authority will attach conditions to casino premises licences according to the principles set out in the Gambling Commission’s Guidance at paragraph 9, bearing in mind the mandatory conditions listed in paragraph 17 of the Guidance, and the Licence Conditions and Codes of Practice published by the Gambling Commission.

12.4 Betting machines - This licensing authority will, as per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance, take into account the size of the premises, the number of counter positions available for person-to-person transactions, and the ability of staff to monitor the use of the machines by children and young persons (it is an offence for those under 18 to bet) or by vulnerable people, when considering the number/nature/circumstances of betting machines an operator wants to offer.

13. Bingo Premises

This licensing authority notes that the Gambling Commission’s Guidance states:

13.1 Licensing Authorities will need to satisfy themselves that bingo can be played in any bingo premises for which they issue a premises licence. This will be a relevant consideration where the operator of an existing bingo premises applies to vary their licence to exclude an area of the existing premises from its ambit and then applies for a new premises licence, or multiple licences, for that or those excluded premises.

13.2 This authority also notes the Guidance at para. 18.8 regarding the unusual circumstances in which the splitting of pre-existing premises into two adjacent premises might be permitted, and in particular that it is not permissible to locate sixteen category B3 gaming machines in one of the resulting premises, as the gaming machine entitlement for that premises would be exceeded.

13.3 Children and young people are allowed into bingo premises; however they are not permitted to participate in bingo and if category B or C machines are made available for use these must be separated from areas where children and young people are allowed.

13.4 Amusement arcades providing prize bingo will require a prize gaming permit from the Council.

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Members’ Clubs and Commercial Clubs

13.5 Bingo may be provided at clubs and institutes either in accordance with a permit or providing that the limits in Section 275 of the Act are complied with. These restrictions limit the aggregate stake or prizes within any seven days of £2,000, and require the Commission to be notified as soon as is reasonably practicable if that limit is breached. Stakes or prizes above that limit will require a bingo operators' licence and the corresponding personal and premises licences.

14. Betting Premises

14.1 Anyone wishing to operate a betting office will require a betting premises licence from the Council. Children and young persons will not be able to enter premises with a betting premises licence.

14.2 Betting premises will be able to provide a limited number of gaming machines and some betting machines.

14.3 Betting machines - This licensing authority will, as per the Gambling Commission’s Guidance, take into account the size of the premises, the number of counter positions available for person-to-person transactions, and the ability of staff to monitor the use of the machines by children and young persons (it is an offence for those under 18 to bet) or by vulnerable people, when considering the number/nature/circumstances of betting machines an operator wants to offer.

15. Tracks

15.1 Only one premises licence can be issued for any particular premises at any time unless the premises is a ‘track’. A track is a site where races or other sporting events take place.

15.2 Track operators are not required to hold an ‘operators licence’ granted by the Gambling Commission. Therefore, premises licences for tracks, issued by the Council are likely to contain requirements for premises licence holders about their responsibilities in relation to the proper conduct of betting. Indeed, track operators will have an important role to play, for example in ensuring that betting areas are properly administered and supervised.

15.3 Although there will, primarily be a betting premises licence for the track there may be a number of subsidiary licences authorising other gambling activities to take place. Unlike betting offices, a betting premises licence in respect of a track does not give an automatic entitlement to use gaming machines.

15.4 This licensing authority is aware that tracks may be subject to one or more than one premises licence, provided each licence relates to a specified area of the track. As per the

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Gambling Commission’s Guidance, this licensing authority will especially consider the impact upon the third licensing objective (ie the protection of children and vulnerable persons from being harmed or exploited by gambling) and the need to ensure that entrances to each type of premises are distinct and that children are excluded from gambling areas where they are not permitted to enter.

15.5 This authority will therefore expect the premises licence applicant to demonstrate suitable measures to ensure that children do not have access to adult only gaming facilities. It is noted that children and young persons will be permitted to enter track areas where facilities for betting are provided on days when dog-racing and/or horse racing takes place, but that they are still prevented from entering areas where gaming machines (other than category D machines) are provided.

15.6 This licensing authority will expect applicants to offer their own measures to meet the licensing objectives, however appropriate measures/licence conditions may cover issues such as:

• Proof of age schemes

• CCTV– this should be of sufficient quality that it will be of use in evidence

• Supervision of entrances/machine areas

• Physical separation of areas

• Location of entry

• Notices/signage

• Specific opening hours

• Self-exclusion schemes– these are schemes whereby individuals who acknowledge they have a gambling problem ask to be barred from certain premises.

• Provision of information leaflets/helpline numbers for organisations such as GamCare

15.7 This list is not mandatory, nor exhaustive, and is merely indicative of example measures which applicants can consider implementing.

15.8 Gaming machines - Where the applicant holds a pool betting operating licence and is going to use the entitlement to four gaming machines, machines (other than category D machines) should be located in areas from which children are excluded.

15.9 Betting machines - Licensing authorities have a power under the Gambling Act 2005 to restrict the number of betting machines, their nature and the circumstances in which they

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are made available, by attaching a licence condition to a betting premises licence.

Similar considerations apply in relation to tracks, where the potential space for such machines may be considerable, bringing with it significant problems in relation to the proliferation of such machines, the ability of track staff to supervise them if they are scattered around the track and the ability of the track operator to comply with the law and prevent children betting on the machines.

This licensing authority will, as per Part 6 of the Gambling Commission’s Guidance, take into account the size of the premises and the ability of staff to monitor the use of the machines by children and young persons (it is an offence for those under 18 to bet) or by vulnerable people, when considering the number/nature/circumstances of betting machines an operator wants to offer.

15.10 Condition on rules being displayed - A condition will normally be attached to track premises licences requiring the track operator to ensure that the rules relating to tracks which are contained in the Act are prominently displayed in or near the betting areas, or that other measures are taken to ensure that they are made available to the public. For example, the rules could be printed in the race-card or made available in leaflet form from the track office.

15.11 Applications and plans – The Act (s51) requires applicants to submit plans of the premises with their application, in order to ensure that the licensing authority has the necessary information to make an informed judgement about whether the premises are fit for gambling. The plan will also be used for the licensing authority to plan future premises inspection activity (See Guidance, para 20.28).

15.12 Plans for tracks do not need to be in a particular scale, but should be drawn to scale and should be sufficiently detailed to include the information required by regulations (see Guidance, para 20.29).

15.13 Some tracks may be situated on agricultural land where the perimeter is not defined by virtue of an outer wall or fence, such as point-to-point racetracks. In such circumstances, where an entry fee is levied, track premises licence holders may erect temporary structures to restrict access to premises (See Guidance, para 20.31)

15.14 In the rare cases where the outer perimeter cannot be defined, it is likely that the track in question will not be specifically designed for the frequent holding of sporting events or races. In such cases betting facilities may be better provided through occasional use notices where the boundary premises do not need to be defined (See Guidance, para 20.32).

15.15 This authority appreciates it is sometimes difficult to define the precise location of betting areas on tracks. The precise location of where betting facilities are provided is not required to be shown on the track plans, both by virtue of the fact that betting is permitted anywhere on the premises and because of the difficulties associated with pinpointing exact locations 26 78

for some types of track. Applicants should provide sufficient information that this authority can satisfy itself that the [plan indicates the main areas where betting might take place. For racecourses in particular, any betting areas subject to the “five times rule” (commonly known as betting rings) must be indicated on the plan (See Guidance, para 20.33).

16. Travelling Fairs

16.1 This licensing authority is responsible for deciding whether, where category D machines and/or equal chance prize gaming without a permit is to be made available for use at travelling fairs, the statutory requirement that the facilities for gambling amount to no more than an ancillary amusement at the fair is met.

16.2 The licensing authority will also consider whether the applicant falls within the statutory definition of a travelling fair:

For the purposes of this Act – (a) “fair” means a fair consisting wholly or principally of the provision of amusements, and (b) a fair held on a day in a calendar year is a “travelling fair” if provided- (i) wholly or principally by persons who travel from place to place for the purpose of providing fairs, and (ii) at a place no part of which has been used for the provision of a fair on more than 27 days in that calendar year. 16.3 It is noted that the 27-day statutory maximum for the land being used as a fair, is per calendar year, and that it applies to the piece of land on which the fairs are held, regardless of whether it is the same or different travelling fairs occupying the land. This licensing authority will work with its neighbouring authorities to ensure that land which crosses our boundaries is monitored so that the statutory limits are not exceeded.

17. Provisional Statements

17.1 Developers may wish to apply to this authority for provisional statement before entering into a contract to buy or lease property or land to judge whether a development is worth taking forward in light of the need to obtain a premises licence. There is no need for the applicant to hold an operating licence in order to apply for a provisional statement.

17.2 S204 of the Act provides for a person to make application to the licensing authority for a provisional statement in respect of premises that he or she:

• Expects to be constructed; • Expects to be altered; or • Expects to acquire a right to occupy.

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17.3 The process for considering an application for a provisional statement is the same as that for a premises licence application. The applicant is obliged to give notice of the application in the same way as applying for a premises licence. Responsible authorities and interested parties may make representations and there are rights of appeal.

17.4 In contrast to the premises licence application, the applicant does not have to hold or have applied for an operating licence from the Gambling Commission (tracks do not require an operating licence) and they do not have to have a right to occupy the premises in respect of which their provisional application is made.

17.5 The holder of a provisional statement may then apply for a premises licence once the premises are constructed, altered or acquired. The licensing authority will be constrained in the matters it can consider when determining the premises licence application, and in terms of representations about premises licence applications that follow the grant of a provisional statement, no further representations from responsible authorities or interested parties can be taken into account unless they:

• concern matters which could not have been raised by objectors at the provisional licence stage; or • reflect a change in the operator’s circumstances.

17.6 In addition the licensing authority may refuse the premises licence (or grant it on terms different to those attached to the provisional statement) only by reference to matters:

• Which could not have been raised by objectors at the provisional statement stage; • Which in the authority’s opinion reflect a change in the operator’s circumstances; or • Where the premises has not been constructed in accordance with the plan submitted with the application. This must be a substantial change to the plan and this licensing authority notes that it can discuss any concerns it has with the applicant before making a decision.

18. Reviews

18.1 Requests for a review of a premises licence can be made by interested parties or responsible authorities, however, it is for the licensing authority to decide whether the review is to be carried-out. This will be on the basis of whether the request for the review is relevant to the matters listed below:

• in accordance with any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission; • in accordance with any relevant guidance issued by the Gambling Commission; • reasonably consistent with the licensing objectives; and • in accordance with this authority’s statement of licensing policy.

18.2 The request for a review will also be subject to the consideration by the licensing authority as to whether the request is frivolous, vexatious, or whether it will certainly not cause this

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authority to wish to alter/revoke/suspend the licence, or whether it is substantially the same as previous representations or requests for review.

18.3 Once a valid application for a review has been received by the licensing authority, representations can be made by responsible authorities and interested parties during a 28 day period. This period begins 7 days after the application was received by the licensing authority, who will publish notice of the application within 7 days of receipt.

18.4 The licensing authority must carry out the review as soon as possible after the 28 day period for making representations has passed.

18.5 The purpose of the review will be to determine whether the licensing authority should take any action in relation to the licence. If action is justified, the options open to the licensing authority are:

• Add, remove or amend a licence condition imposed by the licensing authority; • Exclude a default condition imposed by the Secretary of State (e.g. opening hours) or remove or amend such an exclusion; • Suspend the premises licence for a period not exceeding three months; and • Revoke the premises licence. 18.6 In determining what action, if any, should be taken following a review, the licensing authority must have regard to the principles set out in s153 of the Act, as well as any relevant representations.

18.7 In particular, the licensing authority may also initiate a review of the premises licence on the grounds that a premises licence holder has not provided facilities for gambling at the premises. This is to prevent people from applying for licences in a speculative manner without intending to use them.

18.8 Once the review has been completed, the licensing authority must, as soon as possible, notify its decision to:

• The licence holder; • The applicant for review (if any); • The Gambling Commission; • Any person who made representations; • The chief officer of police or Chief Constable; • Her Majesty’s Commissioners for Revenues and Customs.

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Part C Permits/Temporary & Occasional Use Notice

19. Unlicensed Family Entertainment Centre Gaming Machine Permits (Statement of Principles on Permits - Schedule 10 paragraph 7)

19.1 Where a premises does not hold a premises licence but wishes to provide gaming machines, it may apply to the licensing authority for this permit. It should be noted that the applicant must show that the premises will be wholly or mainly used for making gaming machines available for use (s238 of the Act).

19.2 The Act states that a licensing authority may prepare a statement of principles that they propose to consider in determining the suitability of an applicant for a permit and in preparing this statement, and/or considering applications, it need not (but may) have regard to the licensing objectives and shall have regard to any relevant guidance issued by the Commission under section 25. The Gambling Commission’s Guidance also states “In their three year licensing policy statement, licensing authorities may include a statement of principles that they propose to apply when exercising their functions in considering applications for permits ...., licensing authorities will want to give weight to child protection issues” (para, 24.6).

19.3 Guidance also states: “... An application for a permit may be granted only if the licensing authority is satisfied that the premises will be used as an unlicensed FEC, and if the chief officer of police has been consulted on the application....Licensing authorities might wish to consider asking applications to demonstrate:

• a full understanding of the maximum stakes and prizes of the gambling that is permissible in unlicensed FECs;

• that the applicant has no relevant convictions (those that are set out in Schedule 7 of the Act; and

• that staff are trained to have a full understanding of the maximum stakes and prizes. (para. 24.7)

19.4 It should be noted that a licensing authority cannot attach conditions to this type of permit.

19.5 This licensing authority will expect the applicant to show that there are policies and procedures in place to protect children from harm. Harm in this context is not limited to harm from gambling but includes wider child protection considerations. The efficiency of such policies and procedures will each be considered on their merits, however, they may include appropriate measures/training for staff as regards suspected truant school children

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on the premises, measures/training covering how staff would deal with unsupervised very young children being on the premises, or children causing perceived problems on/around the premises.

19.6 This licensing authority will also expect, as per Gambling Commission Guidance, that applicants demonstrate a full understanding of the maximum stakes and prizes of the gambling that is permissible in unlicensed FECs; that the applicant has no relevant convictions (Sched. 7 of the Act) and that staff are trained to have a full understanding of the maximum stakes and prizes.

20. (Alcohol) Licensed Premises Gaming Machine Permits - (Schedule 13 paragraph 4(1))

20.1 Automatic entitlement: up to 2 machines - There is provision in the Act for premises licensed to sell alcohol for consumption on the premises, to automatically have 2 gaming machines, of categories C and/or D. The operator of the premises merely needs to notify the licensing authority and pay the prescribed fee. The licensing authority can remove the automatic authorisation in respect of any particular premises if:

• provision of the machines is not reasonably consistent with the pursuit of the licensing objectives;

• gaming has taken place on the premises that breaches a condition of section 282 of the Gambling Act (ie that written notice has been provided to the licensing authority, that a fee has been provided and that any relevant code of practice issued by the Gambling Commission about the location and operation of the machine has been complied with);

• the premises are mainly used for gaming; or

• an offence under the Gambling Act has been committed on the premises.

20.2 Permit: 3 or more machines - If the operator of alcohol licensed premises wishes to have more than 2 machines, then an application must be made for a permit and the licensing authority must consider that application based upon the licensing objectives, any guidance and codes of practice issued by the Gambling Commission issued under Section 24 & 25 of the Gambling Act 2005, and “such matters as they think relevant.”

20.3 This licensing authority considers that “such matters” will be decided on a case by case basis but generally there will be regard to the need to protect children and vulnerable persons from harm or being exploited by gambling and will expect the applicant to satisfy the authority that there will be sufficient measures to ensure that under 18 year olds do not have access to the adult only gaming machines. Measures which will satisfy the authority that there will be no access may include the adult machines being in sight of the bar, or in the sight of staff who will monitor that the machines are not being used by those under 18. Notices and signage may also be a help. As regards the protection of vulnerable persons, 31 83

applicants may wish to consider the provision of information leaflets/helpline numbers for organisations such as GamCare.

20.4 This licensing authority recognises that some operators of alcohol licensed premises may apply for a premises licence for their non-alcohol licensed areas. Any such application would most likely need to be applied for, and dealt with as an Adult Gaming Centre premises licence.

20.5 The licensing authority may decide to grant the application with a smaller number of machines and/or a different category of machines than that applied for. Conditions (other than these) cannot be attached.

20.6 The holder of a permit must comply with any Code of Practice issued by the Gambling Commission about the location and operation of the machine.

21. Prize Gaming Permits - (Principles on Permits - Schedule 14 paragraph 8 (3))

21.1 The Gambling Act 2005 states that a licensing authority may “prepare a statement of principles that they propose to apply in exercising their functions under this Schedule” which “may, in particular, specify matters that the licensing authority proposes to consider in determining the suitability of the applicant for a permit”.

21.2 This licensing authority has prepared a statement of principles which is that the applicant should set out the types of gaming that he or she is intending to offer and that the applicant should demonstrate:

• That they understand the limits to stakes and prizes that are set out in Regulations; • That the gaming offered is within the law; • Clear policies that outline the steps to be taken to protect children from harm.

21.3 Prize gaming may be provided in bingo premises as a consequence of their bingo operating licence. Any type of prize gaming may be provided in adult gaming centres and licensed family entertainment centres. Unlicensed family entertainment centres may offer equal chance prize gaming under a gaming machine permit. Prize gaming without a permit may be provided by travelling fairs, providing that none of the gambling facilities at the fair amount to more than an ancillary amusement. Children and young people may participate in equal chance gaming only.

21.4 In making its decision on an application for this permit the licensing authority does not need to have regard to the licensing objectives but must have regard to any Gambling Commission guidance (Sched. 14 para. 8(3) of the Act).

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21.5 It should be noted that there are conditions in the Gambling Act 2005 by which the permit holder must comply, but that the licensing g authority cannot attach conditions. The conditions in the Act are:

• the limits on participation fees, as set out in regulations, must be complied with;

• all chances to participate in the gaming must be allocated on the premises on which the gaming is taking place and on one day; the game must be played and completed on the day the chances are allocated; and the result of the game must be made public in the premises on the day that it is played;

• the prize for which the game is played must not exceed the amount set out in regulations (if a money prize), or the prescribed value (if non-monetary prize); and

• participation in the gaming must not entitle the player to take part in any other gambling.

22. Club Gaming and Club Machines Permits

22.1 Members Clubs and Miners’ Welfare Institutes (but not Commercial Clubs) may apply for a Club Gaming Permit or a Clubs Gaming Machines Permit. The Club Gaming Permit will enable the premises to provide gaming machines (3 machines of categories B, C or D), equal chance gaming and games of chance. A Club Gaming Machine Permit will enable the premises to provide gaming machines (up to 3 machines of categories B, C or D).

22.2 Gambling Commission Guidance states: "Members clubs must have at least 25 members and be established and conducted “wholly or mainly” for purposes other than gaming, unless the gaming is permitted by separate regulations. The Secretary of State has made regulations and these cover bridge and whist, which replicates the position under the Gaming Act 1968. A members’ club must be permanent in nature, not established to make commercial profit, and controlled by its members equally. Examples include working men’s clubs, branches of Royal British Legion and clubs with political affiliations".

22.3 The Guidance also states that licensing authorities may only refuse an application on the grounds that:

• the applicant does not fulfil the requirements for a members’ or commercial club or miners’ welfare institute and therefore is not entitled to receive the type of permit for which it has applied; • the applicant’s premises are used wholly or mainly by children and/or young persons; • an offence under the Act or a breach of a permit has been committed by the applicant while providing gaming facilities; • a permit held by the applicant has been cancelled in the previous ten years; or • an objection has been lodged by the Gambling Commission or the police.

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22.4 There is also a ‘fast-track’ procedure available under the Act for premises which hold a Club Premises Certificate under the Licensing Act 2003 (Sched. 12 paragraph 10). As the Gambling Commission’s Guidance for local authorities states: "Under the fast-track procedure there is no opportunity for objections to be made by the Commission or the police, and the grounds upon which an authority can refuse a permit are reduced." and "The grounds on which an application under the process may be refused are:

a) that the club is established primarily for gaming, other than gaming prescribed under schedule 12; b) that in addition to the prescribed gaming, the applicant provides facilities for other gaming; or c) that a club gaming permit or club machine permit issued to the applicant in the last ten years has been cancelled”.

22.5 There are statutory conditions on club gaming permits that no child uses a category B or C machine on the premises and that the holder complies with any relevant provision of a code of practice about the location and operation of gaming machines.

23. Temporary Use Notices

23.1 Temporary Use Notices allow the use of premises for gambling where there is no premises licence but where a gambling operator wishes to use the premises temporarily for providing facilities for gambling. Premises that might be suitable for a Temporary Use Notice, according to the Gambling Commission, would include hotels, conference centres and sporting venues.

23.2 The licensing authority can only grant a Temporary Use Notice to a person or company holding a relevant operating licence, i.e. a non remote casino operating licence.

23.3 The Secretary of State has power to determine what form of gambling can be authorised by Temporary Use Notices, and at the time of writing this statement the relevant regulations (The Gambling Act (Temporary Use Notices) Regulations 2007) state that temporary Use Notices can only be used to permit the provision of facilities or equal chance gaming, where the gaming is intended to produce a single winner, which in practice means poker tournaments.

23.4 There are a number of statutory limits as regards Temporary Use Notices. The meaning of “premises” in Part 8 of the Act is discussed in Part 7 of the Guidance. As with "premises", the definition of "a set of premises" will be a question of fact in the particular circumstances of each notice that is given. In the Act "premises" is defined as including "any place". In considering whether a place falls within the definition of "a set of premises", licensing authorities will need to look at, amongst other things, the ownership/occupation and control of the premises.

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23.5 This licensing authority will normally object to notices where it appears that their effect would be to permit regular gambling in a place that could be described as one set of premises, as recommended in the Guidance.

24. Occasional Use Notices

24.1 The licensing authority has very little discretion as regards these notices aside from ensuring that the statutory limit of eight days in a calendar year is not exceeded. This licensing authority will though consider the definition of a ‘track’ and whether the applicant is permitted to avail him/herself of the notice.

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Appendix 1 – List of Consultees

Association of British Bookmakers, Norris House, 4 Norris Street, London

BACTA, Alders House, 133 Aldersgate Street, London Bet Fred, Birchwood, Warrington Berwin, Leighton Paisner, 154 Fleet Street, London Bingo Association, Lexham House, 75 High Street North, Dunstable British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers & Attractions Ltd, Suite 12, 37 Tanner Street, London British Beer & Pub Association, Halifax British Casino Association, 38 Grosvenor Gardens, London British Greyhound Association British Holiday and Home Assoc, Great Western Road, Gloucester British Institute of Innkeeping, Wessex House, 80 Park Street, Camberley British Transport Police, Citadel Station, Court Square, Carlisle Business in Sport & Leisure, 17a Chartfield Avenue, Putney, London

CADAS, 1 Fisher Street, Carlisle Carlisle District Pub Watch Scheme, Cumbria Constabulary, Durranhill, Carlisle Carlisle & District PCT, Wavell Drive, Rosehill, Carlisle Carlisle & Eden CDRP, Civic Centre, Carlisle Carlisle & Eden CDRP Drug Task Group, Civic Centre, Carlisle Carlisle Housing Association – Residents Association, Botchergate, Carlisle Carlisle Licensed Victuallers, Fantails Restaurant, Wetheral, Carlisle Carlisle & Rural Tenants Federation, 101 Briar Bank, Carlisle Carlisle Volunteer Bureau, 27 Spencer Street, Carlisle Casino Operators Association, Thorncombe Chief Officer of Police, Cumbria Constabulary, Busher Walk, Kendal Churches of Carlisle, Church House, West Walls, Carlisle Citizens Advice Bureau, Carlyles Court, Carlisle Cumberland Newspapers, Dalston Road, Carlisle Cumbria Association of Local Councils, Penrith Library, Penrith

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Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise Centre, Carlisle Cumbria Constabulary, Citadel Chambers, Carlisle Cumbria Constabulary, Chief Constable, Carleton Hall, Penrith Cumbria Constabulary, Legal Services, Carleton Hall, Penrith Cumbria County Council - Children’s Services Cumbria County Council - Corporate Management Cumbria County Council - Community Safety Officer Cumbria County Council - Cultural Policy Unit, Arroyo Block

Cumbria County Council - Education Services Cumbria County Council - Legal Services Cumbria County Council - Neighbourhood Development Officer Cumbria County Council - Social Services, New Oxford Street, Workington Cumbria Drugs Action Team Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, 11/13 Brunswick Street, Carlisle Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service, Headquarters, Cockermouth Cumbria Health & Safety Liaison Group, Catherine Street, Whitehaven Cumbria Safeguarding Children Board, Children’s Services, New Oxford Street, Workington Cumbria Tourist Board, Ashleigh, Holly Road, Windermere

Eurobet UK, Working, Surrey European Entertainment, The Park, Wiltshire

Gala Coral Group, Newcastle House, Nottingham Gambling Premises registered in South Lakeland Gamcare, Crosby Row, London Gamestec Leisure Limited, Leeds

Hammonds Solicitors, Rutland House, 148 Edmund Street, Birmingham Hartleys (Ulverston) Ltd, Ulverston, Cumbria Health & Safety Executive, 2 Victoria Place, Carlisle HM Revenue and Customs, Glasgow Holders of Premises Licences (Gambling Act 2005) Holders of Premises Licences (Licensing Act 2003 – where gaming machines operated)

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Honeycombe Leisure, Fulwood, Preston

Ladbrokes PLC, Rayners Lane, Middlesex Leisure Link, Wetmore Road, Burton on Trent Librarian, Brampton Library, 4 Front Street, Brampton Librarian, Carlisle Library, 11 Globe Lane, Carlisle Local

NRU Betting & Gaming, Portcullis House, 21 India Street, Glasgow NSPCC, 7 Chatsworth Square, Carlisle North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle North Cumbria PCT, South William Street, Workington

Polish Association, 24 Wentworth Drive, Carlisle Poppleston Allen, Licensing Solicitors, The Lace Market, Nottingham Prize Coin Equipment, Central Avenue, Gretna

Racecourse Association Ltd, Winkfield Road, Ascot

Scottish & Newcastle Retail, Lakeside House, Northampton South Lakeland Crime & Disorder Reduction Partnership South Lakeland District Council – District Councillors South Lakeland District Council – Parish Councils South Lakeland Equality & Diversity Partnership South Lakeland Strategic Partnership

Thwaites Inns, Star Brewery, Blackburn Tim Farron, M.P

Ukranian Association, 32 Briery Acres, Workington

William Hill Ltd, Wood Green, London

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Appendix 2 - Useful addresses

Responsible Authorities

Application forms should be sent to the Licensing Manager Notice of the application should be sent to the undermentioned responsible authorities, clearly marking the envelope ‘Licensing application’

Name and Address Telephone No. Email Address

Licensing Section 01539 [email protected] 797585/797593 Licensing Manager South Lakeland District Council South Lakeland House Lowther Street Kendal Cumbria LA9 4UQ

Environmental Services 01539 733333 [email protected] (Prevention & minimisation of pollution/harm to human health)

Environmental Health Manager Neighbourhood Services South Lakeland District Council South Lakeland House Lowther Street Kendal Cumbria LA9 4UD

Chief Officer of Police 01539 818652 Cumbria Constabulary Busher Walk Kendal Cumbria Protection of Children from 01900 325365 [email protected] Harm

Senior Management Secretary Safeguarding and Review Children’s Services New Oxford Street Workington CA14 2LW

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Local Planning Authority

Development Control Manager 01539 733333 [email protected] Strategy & Planning Dept. South Lakeland District Council South Lakeland House Lowther Street Kendal LA9 4UD

Or Lake District National Park Authority, Murley Moss 01539 724555 [email protected] Oxenholme Road Kendal Cumbria LA9 7RL

Or Yorkshire Dales National Park Yorebridge House Bainbridge Leyburn North Yorkshire Health and Safety 01228 539321 Health and Safety Executive 2 Victoria Place Carlisle CA1 1ER (Only in relation to Local Authority and other public buildings where the HSE is the enforcing authority for health and safety matters in the premises)

Her Majesty’s Commissioners of Customs and Excise

HM Customs & Excise NRU Betting and Gaming Portcullis House 21 India Street Glasgow G2 4PZ

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Fire and Rescue Authority 01539 722627 Fire Safety Group Manager Cumbria Fire and Rescue Services B Division Kendal Office Busher Walk Kendal Cumbria LA9 4RH

Or

Fire Safety Group Manager Cumbria Fire & Rescue 01229 821363 Services B Division HQ Phoenix Road Barrow-in-Furness Cumbria LA14 2NS

Gambling Commission 0121 2306666 [email protected]

Gambling Commission Victoria Square House Victoria Square Birmingham B2 4BP

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Other Useful Addresses

British Beer and Pub Association North Cumbria Magistrates Courts Service Market Towers Rickergate 1 Nine Elms Lane Carlisle London CA3 8QH SW8 5NQ Tel: 01228 518800 Tel: 0207 627 9191 Email: [email protected] Gamcare Web: www.beerandpub.com 2/3 Baden Place Crosby Row London SE1 1YW British Institute of Innkeeping Wessex House Tel: 020 7378 5200 80 Park Street Helpline: 0845 6000 133 Camberley Email: [email protected] Surrey GU15 3PT Web: gamcare.org.uk

Tel: 01276 684 449 Gamblers Anonymous Email: [email protected] PO Box 5382 Web: www.bii.org London W1A 6SA

Disability Rights Commission Helpline Local Meetings: Freepost MID01264 7.30pm Monday Stratford Upon Avon Church of Scotland Chapel Street Carlisle CV37 9BR CA1 1JA www.gamblersanonymous.org.uk/question.ht Tel: 08457 622 633 m Web: www.drc-gb.org Money Advice Trust Equity Bridge House Guild house 181 Queen Victoria Street Upper Martins Lane London EC4V 4DZ London WC2H 9EG Web: www.moneyadvicetrust.org/home.html

Tel: 0207 379 6000 Consumer Credit Counselling Service Email: [email protected] Wade House Web: www.equity.org.uk Merrion Centre Leeds LS2 8NG

Web: www.cccs.co.uk

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Appendix 3 - Categories of Gaming Machines

Category of Machine Maximum Stake Maximum Prize A Unlimited Unlimited B1 £2 £4,000 B2 £100 (in multiples of £10) £500 B3A £1 £500 B3 £1 £500 B4 £1 £250 C £1 £70 D – non-money prize (other 30p £8 than a crane grab machine) D – non-money prize £1 £50 (crane grab machine) D – (money prize) 10p £5 D – combined money and non-money prize (other than £8 (of which no more than £5 10p a coin pusher or penny falls may be a money prize) machine) D – combined money and £15 (of which no more than non-money prize (coin pusher 10p £8 may be a money prize) or penny falls machine)

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Machine Category

Premises Type A B1 B2 B3 B4 C D Large casino Maximum of 150 machines (machine/table Any combination of machines in categories B to D (except B3A machines),within ration of 5-1 up to the total limit of 150 (subject to machine/table ratio) maximum) Small casino Maximum of 80 machines (machine/table Any combination of machines in categories B to D (except B3A machines), within ration of 2-1 up to the total limit of 80 (subject to machine/table ratio) maximum) Pre-2005 Act Maximum of 20 machines categories B to D (except B3A machines), or any casinos )no number of C or D machines instead machine/table ratio) Betting premises and tracks occupied Maximum of 4 machines categories B2 to D by Pool Betting Maximum of 8 machines No limit on category C or D Bingo Premises in category B3 or B4 machines Adult gaming Maximum of 4 machines No limit on category C or D centres in category B3 or B4 machines Family entertainment No limit on category C or D centre (with machines premises licence) Family No limit on entertainment category D centre (with permit) machines Clubs or miners’ Maximum of 3 machines in categories welfare institutes B3A or B4 to D* with permits 1 or 2 machines of Qualifying alcohol category C or D automatic licensed premises upon notification Qualifying alcohol Number of category C-D licensed premises machines as specified on with gaming permit machine permit No limit on Travelling fair category D machines A B1 B2 B3 B4 C D

• It should be noted that members’ clubs and miners’ welfare institutes are entitled to site a total of three machines in categories B3A to D, but only one B3A machine can be sited as part of this entitlement. Commercial clubs are entitled to a total of three machines in categories B4 to D.

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Appendix 4 - Delegation of Functions

Full Sub-committee of Matter to be dealt with Officers Council Licensing Committee

Final approval of three year X licensing policy Policy not to permit casinos X Fee setting X (when appropriate) Where representations have Where no representations Application for premises been received and not received/representations licences withdrawn have been withdrawn Where representations have Where no representations Application for a variation to a been received and not received/representations licence withdrawn have been withdrawn Where representations have Where no representations Application for a transfer of a been received from the received from the licence Commission Commission Where representations have Where no representations Application for a provisional been received and not received/representations statement withdrawn have been withdrawn Review of a premises licence X Where no objections Application for club gaming/club Where objections have been made/objections have been machine permits made (and not withdrawn) withdrawn Cancellation of club gaming/club X machine permits Applications for other permits X (for more than 4 machines) X (up to 4 machines) Cancellation of licensed premises gaming machine X permits Consideration of temporary use X notice Decision to give a counter notice X to a temporary use notice

X - Indicates at the lowest level to which decisions can be delegated.

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Appendix 5 - Map of the District

46 98 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Council

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Portfolio Holder: Cllr Brendan Jameson Report From: Chief Executive Agenda 11(1) Report Author: Peter Ridgway Item No: Report Title: Shaping the Future – Shared Services Management/Delivery Alliance

Summary To consider a proposal to progress a shared services management /delivery alliance with another local authority. Recommendations Members are asked (1) To support, in principle, the development of a shared services management/delivery alliance with Eden District Council; (2) To agree to a detailed evaluation on the approach be brought to Full Council

Report

1.0 Background Information

1.1 The position facing all local authorities of reducing grants from central government resulting in less resources for the Authority is one of the foremost issues facing the Council. This is against a backdrop of ensuring that we improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our future service delivery.

1.2 The Executive and Corporate Management Team have had discussions on looking forward and the need to find new solutions to deliver corporate priorities as detailed in the Corporate Plan particularly relating to housing and employment.

1.3 The Council is taking positive steps to address these issues including a full restructure to ensure that its resources are in the right place to deliver needs-led services so that customer needs are the starting point for what the Council delivers. The restructure alone, however is only one step and to meet the challenges ahead the Council must explore all possible opportunities to reduce costs and improve effectiveness.

1.4 The Council has been approached by Eden District Council regarding a shared service alliance. Carlisle City Council was also approached on a similar basis.

1.5 Initial meetings have been held at Leader/Chief Executive level with Eden District Council to gauge the appetite for working together.

99 1 1.6 Both authorities expressed a willingness to work with Eden and Eden have indicated that South Lakeland District Council is the preferred partner to progress this initiative.

1.7 Further discussions followed as it was felt that a possible alliance would be mutually beneficial due to:

1) Similar geographical area and demographics.

2) Large parts of both Districts are covered by the Lake District National Park.

3) Similar corporate priorities relating to housing, employment, access to services.

4) Largely rural focus in relation to service priority.

5) Emerging shared services agenda - revenues and benefits, IT and economic development.

6) Similar culture of organisation in relation to service delivery and size and scale of operation.

7) The emerging sub-regional areas grouping South Lakeland and Eden together (i.e. economic development, housing).

1.8 In order to make progress, both Councils will need to consider the outline proposals during November/December and if the decision is taken to progress further, then a detailed timetable will be agreed by the two authorities. Eden District Council will be considering these proposals as per the timetable set out below.

1.9 Cabinet considered the report on 11 November and agreed to support the proposed way forward to Full Council.

1.10 A Members briefing on the shared services proposal is to be held on 30 November. 2.0 Shared Services Management/Delivery Alliance Approach

2.1 In order to outline the proposed approach, a paper has been developed by Eden which sets out the strategic vision for the approach along with a draft Concordat to be agreed by both Councils as a basis for future working. This is attached as Appendix 1.

2.2 The paper has not set out the detail and specific actions to be taken, but an overall strategic direction.

2.3 This approach is deliberate in that it recognises that all parties involved must be prepared to sign up to the principles of the proposal to allow the detailed work to be progressed.

2.4 If agreement is reached, then the next stage will look at the benefit and viability of the approach (the business case) which will be reported back to Council to allow a final decision to be made.

3.0 Timescale

3.1 As outlined, the proposed timescale is that both Councils consider the proposal in the following timescales:

EDC SLDC

Cabinet/Executive 3 November 2009 11 November 2009

100 2 Formalise the discussion on the project and seek recommendation to Council

Full Council 26 November 2009 10 December 2009

Endorse the project and agree benefit for the shared services management/delivery alliance to be progressed

Full Council 25 February 2010 23 February 2010

Detailed report agreeing benefits/business case for future collaboration beyond the existing IT and Revenues and benefits

3.2 This timetable will allow implementation during the 2010/2011 municipal year.

4.0 Further Information

4.1 Government Office North West (GONW)

4.1.1 As part of Eden’s ongoing liaison with GONW, the issue of a shared service alliance was discussed and they are very supportive of this approach and are happy to help support through knowledge sharing, particularly related to recent experiences in Cheshire which has some similarities.

4.3 Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA)

4.3.1 Eden have also had an initial discussion with IDeA who have indicated they are currently working with a number of authorities on this type of approach and they would be happy to help with this work.

4.3.2 If the decision is to progress this approach, then a joint approach from both Councils will be made to the IDeA to establish the cost and type of support available.

5.0 Wider Engagement

5.1 A key aspect of this work will be to agree the wider consultation.

5.2 Following consideration by the Executive, there will be briefings for staff, Members and if Full Council agree to further work, the next stage will include consultation with other key partners and stakeholders and the local community groups.

5.3 This will all feed into the report back to Council which will be targeted for the February 2010 meeting.

6.0 Implications

6.1 Legal

6.2 There are a number of legal implications to the delivery of the intended outcome.

6.3 These relate to financial, employment, asset management and the general legislation covering Local Government structures. These will be identified and addressed if this work is progressed.

6.4 Other authorities have taken this approach and so there are no major legislation barriers but there will be significant compliance issues which will need to be addressed.

101 3 Alternative Options Not to progress with the alliance. Key Decision This report does not relate to a Key Decision. Material Considerations Finance The Council needs to ensure that it meets identified budget shortfalls moving forward into the future. The approach outlined is one way in which to address this. Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Reputational The risk that the Council is All these risks will have to be seen as ‘failing’ and in need of addressed and managed as a partner. This will clearly part of the further work that need to be addressed in the needs to be undertaken by the appropriate way. two Councils Resistance There could be considerable resistance from the public, Councillors and staff and there is potential for clear challenge to the approach Legal As outlined, there will be a need for considerable legal compliance to all relevant legislation which could be both costly and delay the process. No Outcome The Council could invest considerable amount of resources in the project and it fail due to issues outside its control. This could leave it with only limited options at a later stage.

Staffing This report does not impact on any staffing issues at this moment. Links to Corporate Plan The Proposal covers all aspects for delivery of services within our corporate plan.

The Council has three corporate priorities which are to make South Lakeland • The best place to live • The best place to work • The best place to visit

Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) The Council’s Corporate Plan and Medium Term Financial Plan are the basis of the work relating to this proposal. The need to address the medium to long-term financial deficit is a key driver for the Council along with the delivery of efficient, quality services.

102 4 Equalities & Diversity The Council has to have regard to the elimination of unlawful discrimination and harassment and the promotion of equality under the Equalities Act 2006, and related statues. All appropriate legislation will be taken into account in moving forward with this proposal. Community Safety Not applicable

Background Documents Document: Contact: Peter Ridgway

103 5 Appendix 1 Eden District Council and South Lakeland District Council - Shared Services Management/Delivery Alliance Approach

Eden District Council approached South Lakeland District Council in July 2009 with a view to the development of a shared services management/delivery alliance.

The ambition for both authorities is to develop a critical mass of the two Councils to maximise resources (human and financial), expertise and knowledge and potential.

The common element of the alliance will be about shared services collaborations at all levels.

Shared Service Management/Delivery Alliance

There is a recognition that partnerships will sustain Councils in future and the development of an alliance between the two Councils will provide strength and resilience to face the budget pressure and new customer demands. It will also provide a platform for service solutions to meet financial targets and savings required.

Merger of Two Councils

It is clear that any alliance when formally agreed could lead to a merger of the two authorities and both Councils, as part of the shared alliance, must recognise that this issue will emerge in the long term as the two organisations become more closely linked.

However, that will be sometime away and may well be overtaken by a new Government proposal for the future of Local Government.

In this initial stage, the proposal is for both organisations to retain their identity and governance arrangements and seek to deal with any longer term proposal as the programme develops.

Pan-Cumbria Working

Whilst the shared services management/delivery alliance will mean that there will be a high level of concentration on sharing with South Lakeland District Council, not everything will be shared and it will not be an exclusive way forward.

Both Councils are part of a wider Cumbria agenda to improve efficiency and will still be free to be part of other collaborations and in particular, where it provides increased local service delivery. However, this will be done in full agreement with the other partner and a clear business benefit having been established. Wherever possible the critical mass of the two Councils should be maximised and be seen as the basis for future shared services arrangements for the two Councils.

Strategic Vision

The purpose of this approach is to:

1) Deliver better and/or more efficient services for customers

2) Enhanced synergies through being together, ie shared learning and expertise

3) Enhanced opportunities for staff development

4) Financial savings

104 6 Therefore, the outcomes from a shared service management/delivery alliance would be:

1) Increased efficiency and value for money by removing duplication and unnecessary overheads.

2) Cashable efficiency gains.

3) Non cashable efficiency gains by ensuring the two Councils experience and capacity is maximised.

4) Shared learning and problem solving to raise standards and increasing effectiveness/agility.

5) Shared management working ‘as one’.

6) Attracting people with the skills, abilities and approaches to be Councillors or employees.

Concordat

In order to progress a level of commitment and certainty is required. If the situation in relation to the overall direction remains undefined, then this is unhelpful both for Members and Officers on both sides. It is therefore proposed that an articulated, measurable vision is developed between the two authorities in order to provide clarity to customers, staff and partners around a shared vision.

A draft Concordat for consideration by both Councils is attached as Appendix A.

Realising Efficiencies

1) Non Cashable Savings

Each Council will realise non cashable benefits. The simple sharing of intelligence on use of resources judgements and working jointly to achieve the required level is an example. Equally there are examples where the ‘load can be shared’ with one of the Councils taking a lead on a development project etc. Both Councils have to accept that there will be an element of some employees ‘working for the other’ from time to time but this should be viewed as no different to the type of collaborations between partners that are necessary in the way we work through a whole range of partnerships.

2) Cashable Savings

When it comes to cashable benefits, dependent on the particular proposition, there will be a gross saving and cost apportionment mechanism. This will relate to the service in question and hopefully cost sharing formulae will be self evident and also relate to the historical costs of each authority.

Conclusion

The paper sets out a strategy to address the future approach that the Council will take to addressing the issues it will be facing in the future. It has not set out the detail and specific actions to be taken, but an overall strategic direction.

The paper does not assume everyone will be comfortable with this approach, particularly in some service areas and it is important to recognise this. Equally, the different political make up of the Councils may be a factor.

105 7 However, in working in partnership there will be benefits and outcomes for the community as well as the Council and the key is to recognise that there will need to be flexibility and desire on the part of both Councils to achieve this.

The paper sets out the concept and proposed approach and if both authorities support this, then the more detailed next stage will be undertaken to establish the benefit and viability of this approach.

106 8 Appendix A Draft Concordat between Eden and South Lakeland District Councils

Purpose

1) This Concordat establishes an agreed framework for future work between Eden District Council (EDC) and South Lakeland District Council (SLDC) in developing a strategic shared services alliance between both Councils.

2) The strategic shared service proposal will establish joint management and a shared approach to working arrangements to deliver key services that will improve the quality of people’s lives in the two authorities and deliver great value for money.

3) This vision will be realised by delivery of the agreed set of general aims for the strategic alliance, to:

• Increased efficiency and value for money by removing duplication and unnecessary overheads

• Produce realistic cashable efficiency gains for each Council to determine their use of

• Non cashable efficiency gains by ensuring the two Councils experience and capacity is maximised

• Share learning and problem solving to raise standards, share expertise and increase effectiveness/agility

• Share management working ‘as one’

• Attract people with the skills, abilities and approaches to be Councillors or employees

• Increase the levels of customer satisfaction through the improvement of services

• Preserve and enhance the special and distinctive characteristics within each local authority area

• Increase influence locally, regionally and nationally in order to secure a ‘better deal’ for all our communities.

4) Further work will take place in accordance with the principles of this Concordat to establish clear objectives and actions with measurable outcomes for each general aim where it is agreed shared services should be explored and developed.

5) The terms of this Concordat may be varied at any time upon the agreement of both Councils.

107 Underlying Principles and Values

6) The general principles upon which this Concordat is based are the maintenance of excellent working relations between members and officers for the mutual benefit of both Councils, underpinned by effective and open communication. All work undertaken in accordance with this Concordat will be based on mutual trust between both Councils and will be approached from a positive standpoint with an emphasis on problem solving to overcome barriers, rather than letting any barriers become obstacles to progress. The following behaviours will guide the development of the strategy:

• Good will and good faith - a clear commitment to deliver shared objectives by joint working and to improve the quality of life for communities.

• Respect - by each Council for each Council.

• Sovereignty - recognising that each Council is ultimately responsible for their own decisions and cannot be obliged by others to act in ways they judge to be inappropriate.

• Compromise and trade off - so far as possible, win-win solutions will be sought but each Council needs to recognise that they may have to give in some areas in order to gain in others.

• Inclusion and communication - to ensure that each Council is confident that they have opportunities to influence developments as they need to, that their voice will be heard and attended to even where their views do not prevail and that they know what they need to know about developments that affect them.

• Working strategically and acting locally - having strategic goals but recognising local delivery may vary to achieve these.

7) This Concordat is not intended to constitute a legally enforceable contract or to create any rights or obligations which are legally enforceable. The Councils intend that suitable contractual arrangements will be put in place for each agreed area of joint working, with a presumption towards minimum bureaucracy consistent with meeting legal requirements.

8) Accountability for services delivered through joint working will remain with the Council with whom statutory responsibility rests. Day to day managerial responsibility for services delivered through joint working should rest with the partners providing the service as determined by respective business cases.

Member Liaison

9) The respective Council Leaders will meet monthly to review progress and liaise with other Members in each Council.

10) The Leaders will exercise a monitoring, deliberative and advisory role for the two Councils. When appropriate, the Leaders may ask for particular proposals on shared services to be examined by the Shared Services Board. The Leaders will have no executive decision making power.

11) The Leaders will:

• Consider proposals for joint working from the Shared Services Board.

• Make recommendations to each Council in respect of any proposals under consideration Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 10 108 based on a consensus.

• Establish and monitor appropriate performance indicators for services provided under joint arrangements.

• Report to each authority on a quarterly basis on the activities, including the monitoring of performance indicators, with a formal review of all activities produced on an annual basis.

• Recommend to each Council any amendments to established joint working arrangements following monitoring of the same.

12) Each Council will ensure effective arrangements for the scrutiny of recommendations.

Shared Services Board

13) The Shared Services Board chaired by the Chief Executives alternately, will be established with appropriate management representation from each Council. It will have a reporting line to each Council in the context of respective governance arrangements and delegated authorities.

14) The Board will work to the following term of reference:

• To consider proposals for joint working and develop the detailed model and business plan for achieving savings and improving service performance.

• To make recommendations for a programme of service reviews and transformation.

• To make recommendations to each Council in respect of any proposals under consideration based on a consensus of the Board.

• To establish and monitor appropriate performance indicators for services provided under joint arrangements.

• To report to each authority as required and a minimum of quarterly, including the monitoring of performance indicators, with a formal review of all activities produced on an annual basis.

• To recommend to each Council any amendments to established joint working arrangements following monitoring of the same.

15) The Board will also call for such further support from both within the Councils and externally, as they may require.

16) Is recognised by both Councils that the strategic alliance will realise case savings and efficiency gains. It will be necessary for each proposed area of joint working to be considered separately to ensure that an equitable share of savings is made in each case.

17) The Councils agree to share equally the costs associated with the investigation and implementation of the agreed areas of joint working. Further, both Councils will seek to use the innovative nature of the strategic alliance to seek external funding to support its development.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 11 109 Termination of this Concordat

18) It will be open at any time to either Council to give not less than three months notice to the other Council to terminate this Concordat and the strategic alliance established. Such termination will be without prejudice to any rights and liabilities on the part of both Councils in respect of previously approved areas of joint working, as approved by the respective Councils.

19) For the avoidance of doubt, both Councils agree that any termination of this Concordat will be handled in a fair manner and with the overriding intention to minimise any disruption to both Councils arising from this. Both Councils would agree an exit strategy with the expectation that the Chief Executives would manage this process.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 12 110 Council

SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Portfolio Holder: Cllr Peter Thornton Report From: (Corporate Director) Monitoring Officer Agenda 11(2) Report Author: Matthew Neal, Principal Solicitor Item No: Report Title: Clare House Lane Footbridge Grange over Sands

Summary This report sets out a request for the Capital Programme to be amended to increase the provision for KMR01 Grange Railway Bridges by £88,265. Recommendation To consider the recommendation from Cabinet with regard to the Capital Programme relating to the provision for KMR01 Grange Railway Bridges. The recommendation to Cabinet is that the Capital Programme be amended to increase the provision for KMR01 Grange Railway Bridges by £88,265 so as to bring it up to £235,565.

Report 1. The attached report is to be considered by Cabinet at its meeting on 9 December 2009. It sets out the current position as regards the proposed restoration of Clare House Lane bridge and the financial considerations that apply to this. 2. The recommendation is that Council be requested to amend the Capital Programme by £88,265 to enable the project to proceed as detailed within the report. Alternative Options See the annexed Cabinet report Key Decision This matter relates to Key Decision KD09/04/CS and is contained in the Forward Plan for 1 November 2009 to 28 February 2010. Material Considerations Finance See annexed Cabinet report.

Risk Management See annexed Cabinet report. Staffing N/A Links to Corporate Plan See annexed Cabinet report.

111 Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) The work involved in this matter is relevant to the Grange Regeneration Strategy. Equalities & Diversity N/A Community Safety A return of the bridge will facilitate access to the promenade.

Background Documents Document: Project initiation document Contacts: Matthew Neal, Principal Solicitor (tel 01539-717426) Legal file

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 112 Appendix

Cabinet

SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Date of Cabinet 9 December 2009 Part I Meeting: Portfolio Holder Cllr Peter Thornton Agenda 10 Report From: Debbie Storr (Corporate Director) Item No: Monitoring Officer Report Author: Matthew Neal, Principal Solicitor Report Title: Clare House Lane Footbridge Grange over Sands

Summary This report provides an update regarding the practicalities and revised costings in relation to the planned restoration of Clare House Lane Bridge, Grange over Sands. This is a community project, which will provide enhanced access to the promenade. Recommendation

(1) That Cabinet note the current position as regards the negotiations with the current owner of the bridge.

(2) That NPS (NW) Ltd be instructed to continue to monitor the condition of the ramp and pillars and implement any necessary works of further demolition.

(3) That it be recommended to full Council that the Capital Programme be amended to increase the provision for KMR01 Grange Railway Bridges by £88,265 so as to bring it up to £235,565.

(4) That authority be given for the procurement of specialist contractors with detailed knowledge of the standard engineering, technical, health and safety and other requirements of Network Rail to prepare the detailed engineering drawings and design work for the bridge, liaison with Network Rail and build acceptance.

Report 1. In February 2009 the current Capital Programme was amended to increase the provision for KMR01 Grange Railway Bridges by £24,000 to enable the restoration of Clare House Lane footbridge to proceed. The Capital Programme therefore has £147,300 allocated under this budget heading. 2. The Current roles and responsibilities in the project are as follows; (i) BAE have commissioned drawings for the restored bridge and carried out cleaning work on the metal work. They have confirmed that they would supply all refurbished metal work for the restoration project and carry out a ‘trial erection.’ No works in terms of fabricating the bridge can take place until detailed engineering drawings supported by engineering calculations are approved by Network Rail.

113 (ii) Balfour Beatty has contributed to cost appraisals, programmes, and negotiating track possessions associated with any future on-site civil work. Amendment of standing orders has previously been approved by Cabinet enabling the appointment of Balfour Beatty for this purpose due to the fact that Balfour Beatty are operating on a non-profit basis in this project. (iii) NPS are CDM Co-ordinators and clerk of works for the scheme and currently advise on structural safety and approval of the works. (iv) Network Rail are advising on track possessions and safety aspects when working adjacent to the railway. Network Rail have the legal right to control the erection of any structure which is proposed to cross any of its railways and require a rigorous project plan before granting any consents. 3. Subsequent to a Public Inquiry into a Definitive Map Modification Order held in January 2009 the Planning Inspector has confirmed an order making the bridge part of the definitive footpath. Cumbria County Council are therefore the relevant authority with responsibility to protect and assert the public’s right of way along that route. 4. The Council is in negotiations with the current owner of the bridge but the final terms of return have yet to be agreed. The owner also owns the span and all associated ramps and supporting piers. The span and certain elements of structure are currently located in BAE premises, Barrow in Furness. The rest of the bridge has been left in situ and is protected by scaffolding. There are doubts as to the structural integrity of the scaffolding. Works of re- building cannot proceed unless the bridge is in SLDC ownership. However the agreement between the Council and the current owner would permit the Council to carry out any further necessary works of demolition on the remnants of the bridge. 5. BAE have had difficulties since February 2009 in obtaining approval for the renewed bridge crossing from Network Rail. To obtain consent from Network Rail is a specialist task requiring detailed knowledge of the standard engineering, technical, health and safety and other requirements of Network Rail. 6. A survey has been commissioned by chartered surveyors and it appears that the ramp and store room are in a poor state and some further civil engineering works will be required to bring it all into a state that will allow the bridge to be placed onto it. Some further interim demolition works of the brick pillars may be required to make the site safe in the interim. There are also on going costs from temporary safety fencing that has been erected that is vandalised on a regular basis. 7. It will be necessary for the Town Council to submit a request for an amendment to the planning consent. Conservation Area approval will also be required for the removal of the plinths and for any substantial re-building of the store, which is in a very poor condition. 8. The best practical way forward would be for specialist consultants experienced in dealing with the project management of rail bridge construction to be appointed. This would ensure that contractual responsibility for seeking approval from Network Rail and ensuring the structural stability of the bridge would rest with such consultant. It would be BAE’s responsibility to manufacture the steel to precise tolerances as required by the specialist consultants. It would be Balfour Beatty’s role to construct the bridge on site. NPS’ role would be to take on the overall project management role and ensuring co–ordination between the various other parties involved in the project. 9. An indication of potential costs for the appointment of such contractor has been obtained and these are set out in the attached Part II annex. 10. The current budget is not adequate for the amount of work that is required. Key to the scheme progressing is an accurate estimate of the construction costs associated with the bridge reinstatement, and all fees associated with the works with a statement of all assumptions. The overall cost of providing a refurbished bridge is currently estimated at £235,565 and any Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 114 refinement of this from on going discussions with the parties involved with this project will be reported at the Cabinet meeting. Indicative estimates of the costs of a brand new bridge are also being sought. 11. If the project is to proceed it is apparent that the bridge is not likely to be back in operation until late summer 2010.

Alternative Options 1. To start this project again as a design and build project with contractors being asked to tender for the construction of a bridge to a design dictated by the District Council. This would have certain benefits in terms of the simplicity of the arrangements however there would be a completely different set of criteria for a new bridge rather than a refurbished bridge, including more rigorous requirements as to necessary clearances from the permanent way. 2. To close the project and use the Council’s resources towards the restoration of the Berners Bridge crossing as part of the Berners Vision project. Consideration will have to be given as to whether the timescales for the Berners Vision project would be acceptable. In such circumstances negotiation would have to take place with Cumbria County Council in its capacity as highways authority with a view to seeking the necessary diversion orders. In such circumstances there would be a need to clear the site and remove the remnants of the bridge. Key Decision This matter relates to Key Decision KD09/04/CS and is contained in the Forward Plan for 1 November 2009 to 28 February 2010. Material Considerations Finance The updated estimated cost of the capital works is £235,565. A total of £147,300, is currently included in the 2009/10 Capital Programme. Cabinet are being asked to consider recommending to Council that the additional balance of £88,265 now identified is approved outside of the updating of the Capital Programme underway as part of the budget process to enable the scheme to be progressed. This will enable the project to progress without any further significant delays.

BAE have also quoted maintenance costs of £1,100 per year based on today’s prices. These can be absorbed within existing revenue budgets. Further financial information is provided in the Part II appendix.

Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Failure to negotiate appropriate Delays in restoring the bridge Pro-active project management terms with any of the parties of this issues and clear involved in this matter deadlines. Bridge is restored but is not fit Bridge is not usable or has Supervision by NPS. for purpose limited life span Appropriate contractual arrangements. Failure to ensure adequate Delays in restoring the bridge Adequate resourcing in house internal project management. of the project management.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 3 115 Staffing N/A Links to Corporate Plan This links with Corporate Plan Priority 3.1 The public realm in South Lakeland is upgraded protecting and enhancing its special character.

It also links with Corporate Plan Priority 3.2 The tourism industry is sustainable and meets the needs to both local people and visitors

Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) The work involved in this matter is relevant to the Grange Regeneration Strategy. Equalities & Diversity N/A Community Safety A return of the bridge will facilitate access to the promenade.

Background Documents Document: Project initiation document Contacts: Matthew Neal, Principal Solicitor (tel 01539-717426) Legal file

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 4 116 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Cabinet/ Council

Date of Meeting: Cabinet - 9 December 2009 Part I Council – 10 December 2009 Portfolio Holder: Not Applicable Report From: Corporate Director [Monitoring Officer] Agenda 11(3) Report Author: Debbie Storr Item No: Report Title: Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 : Leadership Models

Summary The Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 requires the Council to choose a new form of Executive Arrangements under its Constitution. The legislation requires a decision to be made by 31 December 2010. The Council may choose either a Leader and Cabinet model, with a stronger role for the Leader, or decide to change its governance arrangements to include an Elected Mayor. Recommendations Having regard to the requirements of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 with respect to executive arrangements, it be recommended to Council that: (1) it indicates that it is minded to continue to operate the leader and cabinet executive subject to the new requirements imposed by the 2007 Act and pending the outcomes of a partner and public engagement and consultation exercise; (2) officers be authorised to carry out appropriate consultation on executive arrangement, indicating the Council’s preferred model, as stated in (1) above, but also including reference to the alternative option provided for in the 2007 Act and including the proposed timetable for consultation and implementation as set out in Appendix 2 to this report; (3) the results of the public consultation be reported to a future meeting of the Council, to be held before December 2010, for a final decision to be taken on what form of executive arrangements to be adopted; and (4) it agrees that further consideration should be given to whole Council elections. Report 1. The Local Government Act 2000 required principal local authorities to adopt “executive arrangements” in one of three forms, namely – • Mayor and Cabinet Executive • Leader and Cabinet Executive • Mayor and Council Manager

117 2. Within the Leader and Cabinet Executive model there was a considerable degree of local choice as to the relative strengths of Council and of the Leader, ranging from a “weak Leader” pattern in which Council appointed both the Leader and the members of the Cabinet, and in which no delegations were allowed to an individual Cabinet member so that the Cabinet became the sole member-level executive decision-maker, through to a “strong leader” pattern where the Council elected the Leader and then the Leader appointed the Cabinet, and the Leader determined the degree of delegation of powers to individual Cabinet members 3. After public consultation the Council decided in 2001 to adopt the leader and cabinet executive model. The 2000 Act allowed the executive members to be appointed by the Leader or the District Council. Our Constitution currently provides for the executive members to be appointed by the Leader. 4. The 2007 Act amends the 2000 Act by narrowing the choices available to the District Council for Executive arrangements which are now limited to – • a mayor and cabinet executive, or • a leader and cabinet executive and it is also particularly important to note that under the 2007 Act the executive members may only be appointed by the Leader of the Council. The previous discretion is removed. The Government says that these changes are necessary to secure strong, visible leadership for local authorities. The New Leader and Cabinet Executive [England] Model 5. The new Leader and Cabinet Executive [England] Model is very similar to the old “Strong Leader” model of a Leader and Cabinet Executive, but is different in three key respects, which cannot be achieved under the old legislation. So, in the new model as in an old-style Leader and Cabinet Executive, the Council elects the Leader and the Leader is then responsible for – • determining the size of the Cabinet • appointing the members of the Cabinet • allocating portfolios or areas of responsibility to the various Cabinet Members • allocating decision-making powers to the Cabinet and to individual Cabinet Members, and • removing and replacing Cabinet Members. In the new model, the Leader must be elected for a 4-year term of office [or up until the Leader’s ordinary term of office as a Councillor expires where the Council holds elections by thirds or halves, and the Leader is elected at a time when he/she has less than 4 years still to run]. This was possible under the old model, but it was normal for the Leader to be elected for a 1-year term of office which is how the District Council currently operates. 6. However, the three key differences which are required in the new Leader and Cabinet Executive [England] model but cannot be achieved under the old model are as follows:- • The Leader’s term of office is extended beyond the 4th day after the local elections to run up to the day of the first annual meeting after the Leader’s normal day of retirement as a Councillor. • During his/her term of office, the Leader will automatically cease to be Leader upon the death or disqualification, but may only be removed from office by a resolution of Council. Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 118 • There is a requirement for the Leader to nominate a Deputy Leader, and provision that the Deputy Leader, or in his/her absence the remaining Cabinet Members, may act if the Leader is unable to act or the post of Leader is vacant. Whilst an old-style Leader may appoint a Deputy, currently the only powers which can be exercised by a Deputy Leader are the “portfolio responsibilities” of the Leader, as opposed to the statutory functions which are conferred by statute solely on the Leader, such as appointing or removing other Cabinet Members or objecting to senior officer appointment or dismissals. Directly Elected Mayor and Cabinet 7. The alternative form of executive arrangement is for the Council to hold elections for a Directly Elected Mayor who would again hold office for a term of four years. In this instance, as the Mayor would have been directly elected, there would be no option for the Council to remove him/her during the period of office. The Mayor would appoint his/her own Cabinet consisting of between 2 and 9 councillors and allocate all executive functions. Differences between the Two Models 8. The main differences between the 2 models are as follows – • There is a different means of election for each. • Unlike the Leader the Mayor cannot be removed from office by the Council or the controlling group. • Under the Leader and Cabinet model the executive recommends the budget and strategic policies to the Council, which may approve, amend or overturn them by a simple majority. Under the Mayor and Cabinet model the Executive submits the budget and strategic policies to the Council which can only amend or overturn them by a two thirds majority. Consultation 9. The Council is required to take reasonable steps to consult upon its proposed new arrangements, but is not required to hold a referendum [since its current arrangements were not approved by a referendum] unless it chooses to do so as part of the consultation process or it receives a valid petition for the election of a Major for a review of the Council’s governance arrangements. The required steps are as follows:- • The Council must draw up proposals for the changes. • The proposals must include a timetable for implementation of the proposals and details of any transitional arrangements. • The proposals may provide for the change in governance arrangements to be subject to a referendum. • The Council may before drawing up the proposals take reasonable steps to consult local government elections and other interested persons within South Lakeland. • The Council may consider the extent to which the proposals would be likely to assist in securing continuous improvement in the Council’s exercise of its functions. • The drawn up proposals must be published. • The Council must make a formal resolution to make the change by no later than 31 December 2010.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 3 119 10. Consideration has to be given to the advantages and disadvantages of the two types of leadership model now available to the District Council under the 2007 Act. Appendix 1 attached to this report sets out the differences between the existing leadership model operated by the Council and the two types of model proposed by the legislation. The Joint Audit and Standards Committee considered the matter at its meeting on 9 July 2009. The general consensus was in favour of the strong leader model, which would lend itself to all out elections. It was felt that the leader model provided more flexibility and that all out elections would be clearer for the electorate and to enable it to see policy changes being effected. However, the need for informed debate in relation to the proposed executive arrangement was raised. The majority of members supported the move to single member wards, although concerns were raised during discussion with regard to disparity in the size of wards. The Joint Meeting resolved (amongst other things) that an early report on the strong leadership model and all out elections be brought before the Council, following which the appropriate consultation to take place before a final decision is made before the end of December 2010. 11. The view is that the Leader and Cabinet Executive is better suited to the circumstances of the District. It ensures the Leader has strength and support of the Full Council, and the opportunity to choose the best members to undertake Executive roles. It places leadership in the hands of a Leader supported by a team – in the Cabinet. Elections 12. Part 2 of the 2007 Act permits Councils to change their electoral arrangements, which in this Council’s case, would be from election by thirds to whole Council elections and also to single Member Wards. After appropriate consultation the Council would need to pass a resolution during the ‘permitted resolution period’ for these changes which for Districts is December 2010. It would be appropriate to consider looking at this possibility at the same time as considering the new form of executive arrangements given the new style Leader or Directly Elected Mayor will be appointed/re-elected for a fixed term period of office. It would also be appropriate for any new election timetable to take effect from May 2011 with the new governance arrangements taking effect no later than the third day after those elections. Whether this would be possible or not is an issue which would have to be explored. Views of Overview and Scrutiny 13. This report has been considered by the Overview and Scrutiny Committees. It was pointed out to Members that should the Council determine to move to whole Council elections it would also be permitted to consider the issue of amending Parish Council election dates so that they are in line with District Council elections. This could produce a reduction in costs for both the District and Parish Councils. However, the issue of whole Council elections would require further investigation and would be dependant on resources available. 14. The general preference amongst Members was to the Strong Leader and Cabinet proposals, rather than an elected Mayor. Timetable 15. Attached as Appendix 2 to this report is a proposed timetable indicating the action required for implementation of the change in governance arrangements taking into account a possible move to whole Council elections, should Council be so minded. Alternative Options As detailed in the report Key Decision This report does not relate to a Key Decision.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 4 120 Material Considerations Finance There may be financial implications (both costs and savings) arising from this work, but as yet they have not been quantified. Risk Management (list in the table below the risks associated with the report proposal/content) Risk Consequence Controls required That the Council fails to adopt Challenge to Council Proper review and a new strong leadership constitution management of the changes constitution needed to the constitution

Staffing Resource will be required to implement the changes to the Constitution which will be met from within existing resources. Links to Corporate Plan N/A Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) N/A Equalities & Diversity N/A Community Safety N/A

Background Documents Document: Local Government & Public Contact: D. Storr x 7429 Involvement in Health Act 2007

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 5 121

122 APPENDIX 1

OPTIONS AVAILABLE UNDER THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN HEALTH ACT Current Leader and Cabinet Model New “Strong Leader” and Cabinet Elected Mayor and Cabinet Model Model Appointment and Leader appointed by Full Council on an Leader appointed by Full Council for a 4 Elected directly by the electorate for a term of office annual basis year term (or until the expiry of the 4 year term Leader’s term of office as a Councillor) Removal Until he/ she resigns from office; or is Councils can chose to adopt Cannot be removed during his/her suspended from being a Councillor’ or is procedures which would allow the term of office no longer a Councillor; or Council removal of the Leader from office during resolves to remove him/ her from office the 4 year period by, for example, a or, on expiry of the fixed term of one decision of the Council year, save that the Council may remove him/ her at an earlier date but only in the event of a change in political control of the Council Executive functions The Leader delegates executive All executive functions would be vested All executive functions would be functions in the Leader who can then delegate vested in the Mayor who can then delegate Appointment of Council appoints Leader who then Council appoints Leader who then Mayor appoints his/ her Cabinet Cabinet appoints Cabinet Members and allocates appoints his/ her Cabinet Members and Members and allocates responsibility responsibility allocates responsibility Deputy Leader can appoint Deputy Leader but Legal requirement to have a Deputy his/ her responsibilities are limited to the Leader who is also able to execute the portfolio responsibilities of the Leader statutory functions bestowed on the Leader by statute

123

124 APPENDIX 2 DRAFT TIMETABLE – WHOLE COUNCIL ELECTIONS and NEW GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS

When Action for Whole Council elections Action for New governance How/ Who arrangements November/ Consult O & S Committees on requirements and Consult O & S Committees on DS – report to O & S Committees December 2009 make recommendations to Council requirements and make recommendations to Council December 2009 Draft report to Cabinet Draft Report to Cabinet CMW/ MN/DS December 2009 Draft report for Council for Council decision Draft report for Council for Council MN/CMW – joint report to be whether to proceed with proposals for whole decision to proceed with drafted council elections consultation on options – including timetable and consultation process mid May to mid Carry out consultation with such persons as Carry out consultation – consult MN/ CMW – web site, notices in July 2010 thought appropriate before passing resolution to electors and interested parties offices, libraries, etc. council proceed about process before drawing up newspaper, press releases, proposals (12 weeks) political parties, Citizens Panel, LSP, Parish Councils, CC July/ August 2010 Analysis of responses reviewed Analysis of responses reviewed MN/CMW/DS August 2010 Draft a report detailing responses received to whole Draw up proposals and timetable CMW/ MN – based on consultation council elections for Council to consider and for implementation, including responses detailing suggestions on publication transitional arrangements if necessary

125 When Action for Whole Council elections Action for New governance How/ Who arrangements September 2010 Council resolution + Council decides how Report to Council on options CMW/ DS – draft report explanatory document will be publicized consultation for adoption and Special meeting appropriate changes to constitution before Council can also (by order) make provision that 31 Dec 2010 or in changes the years in which the ordinary elections any 4th year of parish councillors for any parish situated in the onwards council’s area are held (so that a person voting for a parish councillor will be able to vote, at the same time, for a district councillor) ASAP after Produce explanatory document Ensure copies of proposals are MN/ CMW resolution meeting available at principal office Make it available for public inspection Publish notice in newspaper Must state – Council become subject of the scheme for whole council elections under section 34 Details of the new electoral scheme as it applies to the Council When elections will first take place in accordance with the scheme How explanatory document is available Address of principal office ASAP after Give notice to electoral commission that resolution Implement change in governance MN resolution meeting has been passed arrangements in accordance with time table May 2011 First whole council elections held 4th day after Sitting councillors retire and councillors elected elections in 2011 come into office

126 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

SMT/Community O&S/Cabinet/Council

Date of Meeting: SMT- 19th November 2009 Part I Community O&S – 3rd December 2009 Cabinet – 9th December 2009 Council – 10th December 2009 Portfolio Holder: Cllr Andy Shine Cllr Hilary Stephenson Report From: Director of Corporate Vision Agenda 11(4) Report Author: Claire Gould, Programme Manager, Item Transformation No: Report Title: Progress Report on the Transformation Programme

Summary This report provides an update on progress made within year two of the Transformation Programme Recommendations To note the progress made across the Programme in year 2 Report 1. SMT and Cabinet last received a Transformation update based on the year 1 achievements and changes to be taken forward for year two as part of the end of year review in May and June 2009. Since then year two of the programme has been re-scoped to take on board the recommendations from the review. This report highlights the changes made in the first and second quarter of the year based on those recommendations and gives an update on progress within the projects. 2. During April 2009 a review of the transformation programme was undertaken. This review came at the end of phase 1 of the programme and looked at the programme’s progress and approach so far. The report concluded that some changes were required to ensure that the maximum potential and hence the benefits relating to the programme, were successfully delivered. 3. The following is a summary of the recommendations: 3.1 Update the Transformation and change strategy 2007-20011 to reflect new corporate plan priorities 3.2 Projects in the programme be reviewed to ensure they are transformational in nature 3.3 Improve the visibility and understanding of the programme, its activities and its benefits to all stakeholders 3.4 Make more of the successes with regular progress reports available to stakeholders 3.5 Increase support and leadership from management team and cabinet 3.6 Clarity the role and membership of the Programme board 3.7 Support the wider culture change the programme is designed to deliver & encourage and develop to ensure the full potential of the programme is achieved 3.8 Clarity needed when a project is closed and activities continue as ‘business as usual’

127 3.9 Continued development of the benefits realisation plan 3.10 Improve consistency in the way covalent is used to allow effective monitoring

4. The recommendations have resulted in the following actions that have been delivered up to October 2009: 4.1 The Transformation & Change Strategy will be renamed the Change Strategy and it will encompass all elements of change required to successfully deliver the corporate plan. It will look inward and focus on the organisational change required to facilitate the delivery of the corporate plan outcomes. It will show relationship between the 2 elements of change, transformational and service improvement. An additional element will be required in terms of cultural activities to support the delivery of the change strategy, this may include specific culture projects; using champions, leadership and management style, values and empowered staff. The draft strategy will be brought to SMT/Cabinet by the end of the calendar year for discussion. The Structure shown at Appendix 1 of this report demonstrates how the programme fits into the overall organisation environment. 4.2 A new structure (as shown in Appendix 2) has been developed after reviewing the projects and was agreed that those Transformational in nature stay within the programme and those relating to process Improvement (Finance, HR & Governance) be removed. It is important that the transformation programme is recognised as being one of the strands to facilitate transformational change and that it supports and works alongside the other strands that are being implemented within SLDC. 4.3 To develop wider support for the programme the Board membership has been extended to include the Director of Corporate Vision (as Chair & Senior Responsible Owner), two Assistant Directors and the Chair of Community O&S. 4.4 Progress reports using the Covalent Performance Management system will now be reported using Scorecards, making it easier to monitor progress within the programme. Each report will monitor the project outputs, the high level risks associated with that project and the benefits the projects would achieve. Reporting has also been widened (using the same reporting template) to include O&S and CSPG. Appendix 3 demonstrates the new layout and progress at end of quarter two. 5. The overall Programme status is green and on track with approximately 14% complete for year two. The accumulative total complete for the programme to date is 48% complete given year one completed 34% to year-end. There are some risks that vacant post waiting to be filled as part of phase 2 of the restructure will delay some work by about 10% but the Board is confident that this time will be made up towards the end of year 2. If the situation changes this will be reported through the usual channels. 5.1 Those projects performing well within the programme are: 5.1.1 A Member Working Group has been established to make a positive contribution to the Access to Services work, which is all about improving customer access. Improvements to South Lakeland House reception area are nearing completion, while work to enhance and redesign the website is now in the early stages. The Contact Centre is being developed further to increase the range of services offered and to improve quality of customer information, while SLDC is currently working closely with partners to implement one-stop shops and local links across the region. 5.1.2 The Street Care project has also recommenced now the project manager has more capacity to support this work. A report will be presented to Management Team on the scope and delivery aspects of this project. 5.1.3 Within the Information Management project the 'Timely Information to Citizen's' work is on target to be delivered for 30th November. The project is based on securing a £45,000 Date: 03/12/2009 Version No:v.2 Amended by: Claire Gould 2 128 grant from CLG to increase local transparency and better enable South Lakeland residents to hold the district council to account. The work being undertaken by SLDC is creating a great deal of interest from central government, with the work - notably to develop a mapping and geo-tagging solution as both a corporate resource (to improve service delivery) and improve the consistency of information provided to South Lakeland residents. 5.2 Those projects that are not progressing are: 5.2.1 Organisational Reengineering – due to the vacant post which is being addressed through the restructure but will commence early in the New Year as a priority. 5.2.2 Mobile working although progressing in Planning & Environmental Health requires a project officer to lead the development of strategy to role out mobile working across the organisation. This will also be looked at as part of the phase two restructure. 6. Finally communicating the programme with Members and Staff will continue through the Council newsletter, intranet updates and posters around the buildings but will also include a series of presentations by staff including the presentation to Full Council in December. Staff will report on achievements at a project level based on those most affecting the lives of our communities. Alternative Options Not Applicable Material Considerations Finance The budget for year 2 of the Transformation Programme is provided within the existing Corporate Vision budget as follows: Revenue = £446,856, this includes £62,200 from reserves Capital = £419,300

Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required Capacity of staff to deliver the Unable to deliver within Programme Board to report to Programme timescales MT/Cabinet any resource issues required to alleviate the situation. Prioritisation exercise to be carried out by Project Managers to put together a timetabled sequence of delivery. Organisational Restructure Staff time is given to the restructure causing the delivery of the programme to be delayed Vacant posts unable to be filled due to the freeze on recruitment delaying some projects

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No:v.2 Amended by: Claire Gould 3 129

Staffing The Programme is heavily reliant on the engagement of staff for successful delivery. There are a number of areas where capacity issues have been raised due to the restructure but the Programme Board has considered these. It is not anticipated that this will have a significant effect on the overall delivery of the Programme. Links to Corporate Plan The Transformation programme is integrated within the Corporate Plan and contributes directly to the delivery of the following outcomes: • People’s essential needs addressed through effective public services (1.1) • People in South Lakeland feel more in control of their own lives (1.2) • People in South Lakeland feel safe (1.3) • Older people in South Lakeland are active, independent and healthy for longer (1.4) • Physical and mental health and well being is improved for people in South Lakeland (1.5) • Housing needs in South Lakeland are addressed (1.6) • Rural communities have improved access to the services and facilities they need (1.8) • Specific issues of deprivation are understood and addressed (1.9) • The Council demonstrates value for money as a provide, commissioner and enabler of services (1.11) • Distinctive key service centres focus and drive economic activity (2.3) • The public realm in South Lakeland is upgraded protecting and enhancing its special character (3.1)

Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) Report relates to the delivery of the Transformation & Change Strategy Equalities & Diversity Individual projects within the programme are been Impact Assessed Community Safety Not Applicable Background Documents Document: Appendix 1 Progress summary Contact: Claire Gould, Ext 7103 Transformation Programme

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No:v.2 Amended by: Claire Gould 4 130 Appendix 1

Programme Structure within the Organisation

Corporate plan 2009-2012

Transformation Service planning agenda

Transformation Staff Improvement Culture change Service delivery programme Restructuring projects

Transformation Programme 1st Project Managers Meeting September131 09

132 Appendix 2

Transformation Programme Structure & Reporting times

O&S & Full Council

6 monthly

CABINET CSPG Quarterly Quarterly

MANAGEMENT TEAM Quarterly

TRANSFORMATION PROGRAMME BOARD

Chair, Corporate Director - Vision OLDER PEOPLE AD’s Vision & Focus PROGRAMME BOARD Programme Manager (Via LSP) Central Services Portfolio Holder Programme Manager, Policy, Performance & Resources Portfolio Holder C Gould External Assurance, Programme Office Support Every 6 weeks

COMMUNITY INFORMATION LOCALITY ACCESS TO ACCESS MOBILE INTELLIGENCE MANAGEMENT WORKING SERVICES CHANNELS WORKING J Dyer P Mountford J Dyer A Ostle A Ostle PROJECT TBA

STREET SCENE PERFORMANCE OR ORGANISATIONAL ACHIEVING SHARED PROJECT MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION RE ENGINEERNG EQUALITY SERVICE N Pearson PROJECT BC/DC TBA PROJECT TBA 133 J Dyer D Sykes S Blyth

134 Appendix 3

Transformation Programme - Monitoring Report to MT & Cabinet

Author: Layla Newby Report Type: Scorecard Report Generated on: 02 November 2009

Icon Panic Icon Name

02e - TI 000 - Transformation Programme Projects - MT & Cabinet

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

A - Transformation Programme - Overall Performance Achievement Claire Gould

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget Programme Review completed and agreed by end June 09. Set of recommendations approved at MT & Board for implementation (see separate action plan for progress). All project managers up to date with year 2 of the programme, projects realigned in the structure, PIDS updated and approved at the July Board meeting. 02e TI 000 Year 2 - Covalent updated to reflect yr 2, new reporting and TRANSFORMATION 31 Mar 2012 monitoring being tested using score cards for each

PROGRAMME project. Board to discuss reports at Oct meeting. Benefit mapping complete and Covalent testing and trialing actions on Covalent. Programme Board membership reviewed and training in place for 21.10.09. Programme plan updated to reflect actions in year 2 which can be viewed in the Programme Office & at the meeting in October.

1 135 Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Access Channel Development Andrew Ostle

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI ACD 000 Access PID refreshed from Access to Services Project 21 July 31 Mar 2011 Channel Development 2009. Previous PID and evidence archived on Covalent.

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Access to Services Andrew Ostle

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget PID revised and updated 20 July 2009. Previous PID and TI AS 000 Access to 30 Sep 2010 evidecne archived on covalent. See docs for new Services approved PID (word doc)

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Achieving Equality Framework for Local Government Simon Blyth

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI AE 000 Achieving Equality Framework for 31 Mar 2011

Local Government

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

2 136 Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Community Intelligence John Dyer

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI CI 000 Community 31 Dec 2010 Intelligence

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Information Management Paul Mountford

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI IM 000 Information Information Management PID updateed 20th July 2009. 31 Mar 2012 Management Filed in documents folder.

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Locality Working John Dyer

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI LW 000 Locality 31 Mar 2011 Working

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

3 137 Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Mobile Working

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI MW 000 Mobile 31 Mar 2011 Working

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

OR Implementation BC DC David (AD - CI&D) Sykes

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI OI 000 OR 31 Mar 2011 Moved from Yr 1 as continuing as part of T & I Implementation BC DC

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Performance Management Gillian Llewellyn

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI WP PM 000 PIB refreshed to ensure performance management Performance 30 Apr 2010 £34,509.00 embedded corporately; consultation with MT mid Oct Management

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

4 138 Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Shared Service

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget TI SS 000 Shared 31 Mar 2012 Service

Pani Icon c Name Ownership Owned By Icon

Street Care

Covalent Budgetary Status Icon Action Code & Title Progress Bar Due Date Notes & History Latest Note Action Icon Project Budget

TI SC 000 Street Care 31 Mar 2010

5 139

140 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Cabinet/ Council

Date of Meeting: 9 December 2009 Part I 10 December 2009 Portfolio Holder: Not applicable Report From: Corporate Director (Monitoring Officer) Agenda 11(5) Report Author: Chris Woods (Democratic and Member Item Services Manager) No: Report Title: Member Champions

Summary To consider the process of appointment of Member Champions for specific themes or services, and to put in place arrangements within which the appointed Champions may operate. Recommendations Cabinet is asked to consider this report and makes any recommendations as appropriate to Council. Council is recommended to - 1. Confirm its support for the concept of Member Champions, with a minimum term of two years, and give consideration to whether Member Champion roles shall be undertaken by Executive Members or be open to all Members; 2. Confirm the appropriate appointing body for Member Champions shall be Full Council and that the appointment of Member Champions be reviewed at the Annual Council meeting; 3. Indicate any particular client groups/ themes which Members would like to see championed, taking into account their relevance to the Council’s corporate aims; 4. Approve the job descriptions for Member Champion roles (as attached at Appendix 4) and the protocol (attached as Appendix 3) to this report and agree that they be adopted as a framework within which Member Champions shall operate, and included in the Council’s Constitution; and 5. Agree to an amendment to the Members Allowances Scheme to permit travel and subsistence claims to be made to Member Champions in carrying out their roles. Report Background 1. Although there is no legal obligation to appoint Member Champions, the “wellbeing” powers of the Local Government Act 2000 require local authorities to do anything conducive to the social, environmental and economic wellbeing of the area or its inhabitants. An example of a national initiative to encourage local authorities to consider appointing Member Champions to specialise in important areas of work and drive issues forward is the Government’s National Service Framework for Older People. In addition, the Government

141 has given its backing to particular Champion roles such as Heritage/ Historic Buildings/ Historic Environment, Older Persons, E-Government, Regulatory and Equalities. 2. The primary reasons for creating Member Champions are – • Support and focus for an aspect of the Council’s services, priorities or aims; • To emphasise and promote social inclusion (e.g. disability, equalities or homelessness are common interests that are championed); • To provide a focus for liaison with community interests; • To engage non-Executive Councillors in specific and general aspects of community leadership; • To be a catalyst for improvement and engagement; • To contribute towards efficiency and effectiveness; and • To ensure the championed interest is kept in focus by the Council, Executive Members and the scrutiny function. Range of Interests 3. A number of local authorities have also recognised the value of having named Elected Members acting as Champions or ambassadors for services, themes or communities of place or interest. Attached as Appendix 1 to this report is a list which shows examples of interests that are being championed by elected Members, particularly in the North West region. This list is not prescriptive and is for illustrative purposes only. It is up to Council to decide which interests it would wish to see championed. Included in this appendix, are the interests already Championed by the authority and those suggested by Overview and Scrutiny. Executive or non-Executive Member Champions 4. There is no prescription as to whether the Champion role should be carried out by an Executive or non-Executive Member and this is a decision that Council will need to determine. Set out in Appendix 2 are some advantages and disadvantages of having Executive Champions which Members may wish to take into account when considering this issue. Appointment Process 5. In addition, a formal appointment process should be considered to enable the process to be seen to be clear and transparent and give public recognition to the role. It is suggested that, unless it is decided that Champion roles should be restricted to Executive Members only, Council should be recognised as the appointing body. If it is considered that Champions Executive Members are more appropriate to these appointments, it is suggested that either the Leader or the Cabinet be given authority to make such appointments. Role of Member Champions 6. The role of Member Champions is to work in partnership with Executive and Scrutiny Members and liaise with external organisations, including partner bodies. They do not have authority to commit the Council, unless they are Executive Members. In such cases, the extent of that power to commit is in accordance with the Council’s Executive arrangements. In addition, the appointment of Member Champions works within the Council’s governance arrangements. 7. It is important in making these Member appointments that robust arrangements are in place to ensure that such roles are recognised, given credibility and that there is some capacity to support Member Champions.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: 2 142 Protocol for Working Arrangements 8. An agreed Protocol for the working arrangements of Member Champions will ensure that these Member roles complement established other roles and that there are effective arrangements for liaison and co-operative working. Attached as Appendix 3 to this report is a proposed Protocol which has been guidance published by North West Employers. 9. The protocol sets out a recommended framework within which Member Champions might work effectively. This will ensure that Champions, other Members, Officers and community interests understand the role, its parameters and where the Champion fits into the Council’s structure and leadership arrangements. Job Descriptions 10. Many Councils have adopted formal job descriptions for their Member Champions. Attached as Appendix 4 to this report are model job descriptions for Member Champions, both Executive and non-Executive Members. Members will need to consider these job descriptions and amend them as appropriate. Comments from Overview and Scrutiny 11. This report has been considered by the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The Committee Members felt that the Member Champion role would give the opportunity for more Members to become involved in important issues and that it would enhance succession planning. It was generally felt that the term of appointment should be for one year. 12. In addition, there was some discussion about the range of interests which could be adopted by Member Champions, the provision of Rural Housing and Emergency Planning being two suggestions put forward. The Committee was supportive of the recommendations to Council but wished to recommend that the appointments to Member Champion roles should, in the future, be to non-Executive Members. Alternative Options Not to adopt a Protocol and process for the appointment of Member Champions. However, a formal process of appointment will ensure that appointments are made in a transparent and equitable manner, while the adoption of a Protocol will set down clear guidelines on the role as detailed in the report. The risks associated with less transparent and informal ways of appointing Champions are – • Confusion over status and authority • No public record of the appointment lines and accountability • Officers, Members, community and partners not being aware that the appointment has been made and, as a consequence, there is non-engagement • Challenge to the authority of Champions • No clear focus for the role • Disengagement of the appointee • Generally ineffective working Material Considerations Finance There are no financial implications arising from the proposals in this report at this time. However, paying an allowance to Member Champions is permitted within the Members’ Allowances regulations, on the basis that the Council is satisfied the responsibilities of such posts are equivalent to or greater than those of other approved categories of Member roles. The Council may Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: 3 143 consider at some future time, when evidence will have been accrued, to ask the Independent Remuneration Panel to consider the role of the Member Champion as a special responsibility for allowance purposes. In that event, the Council will need to consider the financial impact of approving such a recommendation, within the overall context of its budget for Member Allowances. Some additional Member Development requirements will be required to support Members in carrying out the role of Champions. However, these can be accommodated within the existing Member Development Budget. Risk Management Risk Consequence Controls required The risks associated with less Appointed Champions, Have a clear and formal transparent and informal ways Officers, fellow Members and process for appointments. of appointing Champions are – partners unclear about the role The adoption of a protocol and how they can work Confusion over status and governing internal and external together. This can lead to authority working arrangements will generally ineffective working. lessen the risk of inefficiency No public record of the Negative feedback on the and maximise the opportunity appointment lines and Council’s overall performance for Champions to make an accountability on promotion of social effective contribution. Officers, Members, community inclusion and community This will also provide evidence and partners not being aware engagement of positive steps being taken that the appointment has been with the promotion of social made and, as a consequence, inclusion and community there is non-engagement engagement Challenge to the authority of Champions No clear focus for the role Disengagement of the appointee

Staffing In supporting the role of Member Champions, some Officer time will be required to assist them in carrying out these roles. If Member Champion roles are carried out by Executive Members the impact will be minimal as their roles as Portfolio Holders requires a certain amount of Officer time. Sustainability This report does not have any registered significant environmental effects. Links to Corporate Plan The role of Member Champion would support the Council in achieving its Corporate Plan objectives. Links to Other Strategic Plan(s) Similarly, the Member Champion role can assist in achieving the aspirations of other Strategic Plans. Equalities & Diversity In many authorities, Member Champions work effectively to promote social inclusion and equalities. Specific Champion roles might include the following interest – equalities, disabled people, children, social inclusion, homelessness, domestic violence.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: 4 144 Community Safety Not applicable.

Background Documents Document: North West Member Champions – Contact: Chris Woods Guidance and Advice

Date: 03/12/2009 Version Number: Amended by: 5 145

146 Appendix 1

EXAMPLES OF THE WIDE RANGE OF CURRENT CHAMPION APPOINTMENTS ADDITIONAL SUGGESTED CHAMPION INTERESTS THAT ARE BEING APPOINTMENTS CHAMPIONED BY ELECTED MEMBERS, PARTICULARLY IN THE NORTH WEST

• Alcohol Abuse and Harm Reduction • Environment – Councillor Stephen • Provision of Rural Housing • Art Coleman • Emergency Planning • Asset Management • Ethical Governance - Councillor • Benefits Brenda Gray • Bio Diversity • Rurality - Councillor Peter Thornton • Carers • Children and Young People • Climate Change • Communication • Disability Awareness • Diversity/ Equalities/ Race Equality • Domestic Violence • E-Government • Energy/ Sustainable Energy/ Climate Change • Fairtrade • Faith • Footpaths/ Local History Project • Freedom of Information • Governance and Constitution • Health and Wellbeing/ Healthy Lifestyles • Homelessness • Human Rights

147 EXAMPLES OF THE WIDE RANGE OF CURRENT CHAMPION APPOINTMENTS ADDITIONAL SUGGESTED CHAMPION INTERESTS THAT ARE BEING APPOINTMENTS CHAMPIONED BY ELECTED MEMBERS, PARTICULARLY IN THE NORTH WEST

• Information Management • Improvement • Jobs and Industry • Libraries • Local Area Agreements • Local Strategic Partnership • Members’ Services/ Development • Older People • Performance Management • Play • Procurement • Recycling and Waste Management • Regulatory • Risk Management • Safer Communities • Scrutiny • Sport • Transportation/ Car Parking, Access and Transport • Vulnerable People • Youth

148 APPENDIX 2 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF EXECUTIVE AND NON-EXECUTIVE CHAMPIONS

ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES Executive Champions Portfolio Holders have direct and regular access to An Executive Member is less likely to have the lead professional Officers who can give advice and capacity to undertake the full range of championing carry out instructions on matters relating to the activities that the role might demand. portfolio/ interest being championed. The Champion role is subsumed into Executive There is no ambiguity about levels of responsibility and responsibilities with potentially no clear distinction or public accountability for what is done relating to the focus. interest. The interest being championed may form only a small The Champion role is more likely to be aligned with part of an overall Portfolio of responsibilities and there Councillors who have influence in terms of political is, therefore, the risk that the interest could be management and leadership of the authority. marginalised. The individual Executive Champion has the power to The scope of a Champion’s interests may not commit the Council to certain actions as set out in the correspond closely to the scope of one Executive delegation scheme. Portfolio and may impact on may Portfolios – with The Executive Champion has the authority to speak on resulting confusion over lead responsibility for the behalf of the Council on matters relating to the overall interest. Portfolio/ interest. Where the interest relates to a community of interest There is a clear and public focus for Members of the e.g. disabled people, the result could be community who are relating to the interest. marginalisation of groups for which the Council is actually seeking inclusion, again through other demands of office. It can reinforce the perception of the non-Executive Councillors being disenfranchised since the introduction of Executive arrangements. An alternative voice to challenge and influence decision makers is lost. The Executive Member may find a conflict of interest arises between the requirements of their Porfolios and that of their Championship role.

149 Non-Executive Champions An opportunity to engage a wider group of Councillors No personal power to deliver change. in service review, development and improvement in a Potential for confusion among Officers and the public focussed way – including opposition Councillors. about role and status. A chance for a Councillor to look objectively at the Potential for overlap with the non-Executive role of interest being championed and how Council, Scrutiny Overview and Scrutiny. and Executive policies and practice impact on that Potential for minority group Members to misuse the interest. role as a mechanism to promote opposition to the Greater capacity to develop the functions of a Member majority party plans and policies. Champion role. A basis for providing succession planning for leadership positions within the Council. A greater opportunity for regular and close engagement with communities of interest. Closer links with the community leadership and empowerment roles of all Councillors. Ensuring specific interests do not get overlooked or diluted in the complexity of operating in an Executive role.

150 APPENDIX 3 MEMBER CHAMPIONS A Model Protocol

Member Champions have evolved in this Council as a result of –

• National initiatives in connection with the development of services or as a result of new legislation

• Initiatives taken by this Council in wishing to focus on Member activity on certain aspects of the Council’s business and functions.

THE APPOINTMENT AND ROLE OF A MEMBER CHAMPION

1. A Champion is a Councillor appointed by the Council to provide a focus on a specific area of the Council’s business or where a Community (i.e. a place, culture, religion, faith or interest) needs to ensure it is given due regard in relation to the activities of the Council and of its partners in local governance.

2. A Member Champion can be an Executive Member (i.e. Leader or Cabinet Member) or a non-Executive Member.

3. The Council will identify interests to be championed and will appoint named Councillors to champion a specific interest. Although the Council will be entitled to make changes at its annual meeting, a Champion is expected to serve for a minimum period of two years to ensure some stability in the role.

4. Within the context of the interest being championed, and as part of their overall and individual community leadership responsibilities, a Champion will –

• Exert influence on those within the Council who make Executive decisions and on other Members of the Council in the context of full Council, regulatory and Overview and Scrutiny functions.

• Exert influence on relevant external partners and bodies in their decision making and planning.

• Act as a catalyst for change and improvement.

• Work with others within the Council to maintain efficient, effective and relevant services and policies.

5. By appointing a Member as a Champion, the Council is empowering that Member to act in that capacity. It follows, therefore, that the Council should put in place such arrangements as it thinks appropriate to support the Champion in that capacity.

THE PARAMETERS OF THE CHAMPION ROLE

6. The above role is set in the context of the specific interest or theme. The following parameters apply to the role –

o All Champions must act reasonably in the role.

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o All Champions must recognise and work effectively within the political management and working arrangements agreed by the Council.

7. A Champion who is not an Executive Member –

• Is effectively given authority by the Council to take all reasonable actions judged by the Member as being necessary to perform the role of Champion.

• Cannot commit the Council in any way that is contrary to established policy and practice, but may confirm a Council position as stated in published policy.

• Cannot make decisions that bind the Council.

• Is a recognised media contact on matters relating to the interest being championed, but is expected to keep the relevant Chairman and/ or the relevant Executive Member informed of such contact.

• Is entitled to have access to information held by the Council relating to the interest being championed and access to a reasonable amount of Officer time to discuss that information.

• Agrees a programme of activity, with SMART targets that can be generally endorsed and will set out clearly the areas of activity, which the Champion can be expected to be involved in and for which practical/ administrative support can be given.

• The work programme should reflect the Council’s overall priorities, but the Champion may include such aspects as seem to him/ her to be relevant for immediate attention, as long as overall priorities are not directly prejudiced by those aspects.

8. A Champion who is an Executive Member will already have structured support within the Council and certain legal responsibilities and functions to perform. Clearly, such Members will have decision making powers, may commit the Council as long as the overall policy framework is complied with and may act as media spokesperson.

9. In other aspects, Executive Champions have the same responsibilities as those shown above.

SUPPORT FOR CHAMPIONS IN THEIR ROLE

10. Taking all the above into account, the Council will –

• Take steps to promote understanding within the Council of the role of a Member Champion and describe how it relates to other Member level functions.

• Promote similar understanding among its working partners, external bodies and the local community.

152 • Require that a lead Officer be designated to support or mentor each appointed (non-Executive) Champion – such an Officer need not be professional lead for the interest since this support will be for the functionality of the role not necessarily the professional input.

• Ensure that the professional lead Officer(s) relating to each championed interest are aware of the Champion roles that affect them and the rights of Champions to access/ discuss information about the service.

• Require administrative support to be sourced for Members who are Champions.

• Require each Champion to report annually to the Council about their programme of activity and how they have contributed to the achievement of the Council’s overall priorities and to report to the Executive/ relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committee as and when, upon any issues arising.

• Invite the Member Champion to act as its representative on some or all of the relevant external bodies where Council representation is required or sought.

• Put in place appropriate skills development programmes for Champions within the Council’s Member Support Strategy.

• Keep under review the relevance of the role of Member Champions in the context of the Council’s Scheme of Member Allowances and to make a request to the Independent Remuneration Panel to consider this at such time in the future, should it be felt to be appropriate.

INTERNAL WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

11. The Champion will –

• Liaise regularly with (other) Executive Members whose portfolios are relevant to the role (for some generic interests this will be all or many of them).

• Monitor the Leader’s Forward Plan and seek information from the relevant Officers and Executive Members about forthcoming business and exert influence on behalf of the interest.

• Monitor Overview and Scrutiny Work Plans and activity and seek information and offer views on relevant review subjects and exert influence on behalf of the interest.

• Seek to influence senior management by offering to attend senior Officer groups and by delivering presentations, asking questions or raising issues for consideration.

• Serve where appropriate on corporate working groups relating to their area of responsibility.

• Take advice from the appointed lead functional Officer and the relevant lead professional Officer(s).

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• Seek to place appropriate items on relevant Council meeting agendas.

• Keep other Councillors up to date with activities within the interest.

• Generally work only to the programme of activity they have agreed with their lead Officer.

• Generally promote the interest.

12. Executive Members will –

• Acknowledge the right of Champions to be consulted on matters relating to their interest.

• Ensure there is appropriate engagement or consultation with Champions in the formulation of policy and other Executive matters and that any views are contained in the information provided to decision makers.

• Consider inviting the relevant Champion to represent the Council at any relevant conference/ seminar on the subject matter of the interest on the basis that the Champion will report back to the Executive Member.

• Take full account of any views offered by Champions prior to any Executive decision making on matters within the interest, and demonstrate this in the record of the decision.

• Co-operate with Champions in the formulation and delivery of their action plan that they have agreed with their lead Officer, where this will not prejudice Executive priorities.

13. Overview and Scrutiny Members will –

• Acknowledge the right of Champions to be consulted and to participate in discussion on matters relating to their interest.

• Ensure there is appropriate engagement or consultation with Champions in the formulation of policy and in service review activity.

• Ensure Champions are specifically invited to be contributors to any reviews that have a direct bearing on the interest (recognising the right of a Champion to attend as an observer at any such session).

• Ensure that opportunity is provided for Champions to contribute to, or comment on, the work programme of the relevant Overview and Scrutiny body.

14. Officers will -

• Acknowledge the right of Champions to be consulted and to participate in discussions on matters relating to their interest.

• Ensure there is appropriate engagement or consultation with relevant Champions where the issue clearly relates to the interest.

154 • Co-operate fully with Champions in enabling them to perform their functions and to discuss directly with Champions and Executive Members where proposed actions might prejudice Council or other priorities.

• Explain fully and openly to Champions any issues of capacity relating to the role of supporting the Champion function.

• Work with Champions in the formulation of a programme of activity that is consistent with what the Council wishes to achieve and recognises the right of the Champion to focus on other aspects, by agreement.

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

15. In the event that there is disagreement between the Champion and either an Officer or a Councillor (e.g. over priorities for action or access to information) the Monitoring Officer, in consultation with the Leader, shall determine the matter. The decision of the Monitoring Officer shall be final.

16. If the disagreement is between the Champion and either the Chief Executive or the Monitoring Officer, then the Officer who is not party to the disagreement shall determine the matter.

17. If the disagreement is between the Champion and the Leader, the Chief Executive, in consultation with a Panel of Members appointed for the purpose, shall determine the matter.

EXTERNAL WORKING ARRANGEMENTS

18. The Champion will –

• Need to acknowledge that there is no statutory authority for the Member Champion role.

• Need to recognise that the Council does have some legal powers with regard to the scrutiny of external bodies and other working relationships with outside bodies arising from legal provisions.

• Monitor and work closely with partner bodies in the field of the interest being championed.

• Communicate on behalf of the interest group and the Council to outside bodies.

• May be the Council’s representative on certain relevant external bodies.

• Identify the most relevant community bodies whose work is associated with the interest and foster good working relationships with those groups.

• Take steps to promote within the wider community the specific issues on which the Champion is to focus and to provide opportunities for local engagement – involving Executive and Overview and Scrutiny Lead Members as appropriate.

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156 APPENDIX 4

MODEL ROLE DESCRIPTION – EXECUTIVE CHAMPION

The principal purpose of the Executive Champion role is to –

1. Act as the Member-level lead and spokesperson for the interest being championed. 2. Promote and take a particular interest in the needs and wishes of any client groups relevant to the interest. 3. Keep up to date with all relevant matters connected with the interest. 4. Contribute to the continuous improvement of services and functions relating to the interests and be a catalyst for change. 5. Ensure good practice within the authority and related to the interest is shared, and that examples of such practice elsewhere are brought to the attention of Members and Officers. 6. Play a key role in supporting national and local initiatives relevant to the interest 7. Keep the interest in mind in the execution of Executive responsibilities.

The primary functional responsibilities are –

1. Engage with relevant local and national bodies and communities of place and interest, convening and attending meetings as necessary. 2. Work with other Portfolio Holders and lead officers of services associated with the interest and to take account of their advice in promoting the interest. 3. Ensure all Members of the Council are aware if the needs and issues relating to the interest and are enabled to contribute to discussions about these. 4. Liaise with relevant Overview and Scrutiny Committees within the Council, and relevant partner bodies, on matters relating to the interest. 5. Issue media statements as required to inform the public and to raise their awareness. 6. Pursue such personal development and training opportunities to enable effective performance in the role of Executive Champion, and raise personal awareness of issues relevant to the interest being championed. 7. Present an annual report to the Council on the work achieved during the previous reporting period and priorities identified for the future.

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MODEL ROLE DESCRIPTION – NON-EXECUTIVE CHAMPION

The principal purpose of the non-Executive Champion role is to –

1. Promote the interest within the Council, having regard to the Council’s overall corporate and service priorities. 2. Take a particular interest in the needs and wishes of any client group relevant to the interest being championed. 3. Ensure that decision makers within the Council and externally are aware of issues and opportunities related to the interest. 4. Contribute to the continuous improvement of services and functions related to the interest and be a catalyst for change. 5. Ensure good practice within the authority relating to the interest is shared and that examples of good practice elsewhere are brought to the attention of Members and Officers. 6. Keep up to date with all relevant matters connected with the interest.

The primary functional responsibilities are as follows –

1. Engage with relevant local and national bodies and communities of place, culture and interest, to promote the interest, attending meetings as necessary. 2. Monitor the work programmes of the Executive and Overview and Scrutiny Committees in order to work proactively with Lead Members to advise, identify, challenge and exert influence. 3. Ensure all Members of the Council, in particular Executive Members, Overview and Scrutiny Chairs, and the Council’s Officers are made aware of the needs, issues and support available relating to the interest. 4. Seek appropriate opportunities to promote the interest further with Members and Officers through seminars, other awareness raising events and personal attendance at meetings. 5. Liaise with relevant partner bodies, on matters relating to the interest, and seek opportunities for direct participation in issues being considered, when appropriate. 6. Work with a nominated lead Officer in prioritising actions as a Member Champion, creating a work plan that achieves a balance between helping to achieve corporate priorities and delivering other priorities identified by the Member Champion. 7. Undertake personal development and training to ensure effective performance in the role of a non-Executive Champion. 8. Present an annual report to the Council on the work achieved during the previous reporting period and priorities identified for the future. 9. Report to the relevant Portfolio Holder in accordance with an agreed timetable.

158 Item No.13(1)

EXECUTIVE REPORT TO COUNCIL

Period September to December 2009

This report represents a report on the work programme of the Executive for the information of all Council Members. Any questions arising from this report may be addressed during Cabinet Question Time, or directly with the relevant Portfolio Holder.

Executive Decisions

The Executive Decisions made since the previous Council meeting on *** have been published and made available to Members, giving reasons for the decisions and alternative options considered where appropriate.

Reports from Leader and Portfolio Holders

Attached to this report is a summary of meetings attended by the Leader and Portfolio Holders during this period together with details of current issues.

Councillor Brendan Jameson Leader December 2009

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Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Councillor Hilary Stephenson Agenda 13(2) Central Services Portfolio Holder Item No: Report Title: Executive Report

Client Issues The following matters have arisen with my Portfolio: The topics I have chosen to include in this report are, Planned Improvements for the IT Service, Emergency Response to problems caused by extreme weather conditions, an up date on progress in the Access to Services Transformation Project. I also include a review of work in the Member Support Steering Group, as well as the North West Employers organisation Member Development Celebration Event and the Awards, which South Lakeland District Council has achieved.

Improving the Information Technology Service at SLDC This report summarises the early findings of John Brook, the shared IT Services Manager with Eden on the ‘root and branch’ review of IT at SLDC. It outlines the first actions required to enhance efficiency, and prepare SLDC to meet future demands. It is based on several recent and comprehensive sources of information and serves as an illustration of the benefits to the organisation as a whole from the Transformation Programme and from Shared Services. The sources of his information are as follows:

• The report to Scrutiny by the Information Services Task and Finish Group, March 2009 • The Internal Audit report on the IT Service produced by Furness Audit in March 2009 • The consultant’s report on IT produced by Nineveh Consulting in September 2009 • The report by Management Team on corporate issues with IT • Additional information in the draft ICT Strategy produced in May 2009 • Informal comments made by the Portfolio Holder, Assistant Directors and other staff during the recently appointed Shared IT Services Manager in his first two weeks at SLDC Most urgent priorities The top priority as always is to continue improving customer satisfaction with, and confidence in, the IT Service. All other initial actions flow from this. 1. Investigate the core network infrastructure for performance and resilience, and implement any necessary changes. We will make use of proven external specialists to enable us to do this work quickly 2. Improve response time of systems – e.g. logon can take 5 minutes for some people 3. Change the management and operation of the service desk. Ensure that IT staff are out there, visibly fixing things and talking to people, rather than fixing remotely; and that requests don’t get overlooked 4. Improve communications between the IT team and staff 5. Improve communications within the IT team

161 Initial actions 1. Improve communications within the team by setting up: a. Regular one-to-ones between the IT Services Manager and all team members (weekly for senior staff; monthly for everyone else) b. Regular team meetings (monthly) c. Appraisals (every six months) 2. Implement a new way of dealing with service requests - a new approach has been agreed, and we will implement this early in the New Year. 3. Gather data on the current time the systems are responding, by measuring response time across a range of systems with members of staff from across the Council. This will enable us to prioritise the necessary infrastructure projects to improve system responsiveness. An early candidate will be moving users from the old Citrix farm to the new farm 4. Implement a simple system of Change Control. This will be particularly important because of some of the changes we will be making to the way we deal with Service Desk requests 5. Provide a simple Service Level Agreement that staff can understand 6. Agree and monitor a small set of sensible Performance Indicators 7. Produce an updated IT Services Strategy, and a set of related policy documents 8. Produce a skills matrix to identify necessary areas for personal development and training within the IT team 9. Introduce a very simple bi-annual survey of a random selection of staff. It will be a very short questionnaire, having just 3 questions. The first question will be ‘How satisfied are you with the IT Service you receive?’ The score will be on a scale of 1 to 7. This question and scoring will enable us to benchmark ourselves against the SOCITM national indicator 10. Implement a simple appraisal system, which will include the identification of personal development and training needs for IT staff 11. Introduce a Business Development Group that will ensure the alignment of IT priorities with Business priorities 12. Emphasise Service rather than Technology a. The IT section should be called IT Services b. The manager should be called the IT Services Manager c. We should produce an IT Services strategy d. The Help Desk should be re-launched as the Service Desk 13. Provide IT staff with customer service refresher training Looking further ahead There are definite plans to improve aspects of the infrastructure as well as bring any outstanding projects to completion. The second main area of work will be looking at areas where SLDC and Eden can usefully share. We also need to review a range of strategies, policies and procedures. For example, we need to review the backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity strategies, especially in the light of virtualisation and the potential for shared working with Eden. Members of the IT team are enthusiastic and looking forward to the challenges, which the restructure has brought about. I have every confidence in the ability of the team to deliver an increasingly efficient and improved service.

Emergency Response to Extreme Weather Conditions

All members will have received regular up dates throughout the recent emergency period, and will be aware therefore that the response from each of the relevant service areas has been professionally handled and very well received in the main. In addition, the Contact Centre has been open for an extra 40 hours in the period from 6pm Wed 18th to 8pm Monday 23rd. This is in addition to the normal opening hours of 8am to 6pm Mon - Fri.

The call handling team has worked an extra 140 hours to cover the extra opening times. Additional support has also been provided from other departments, service heads, senior management team Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 162 and the Chief Executive, many of whom worked throughout the nights alongside colleagues both at South Lakeland House, working out on the District and elsewhere in the County. Emergency ‘Drop in Centres’ were also established at Ambleside and Ulverston. The work continues to support all those who have been affected by the weather, and the Emergency Planning Officer would like to be informed about any flood related problems that we can supply him with so that we can continue improving our response for the future.

Access to Services

The Access to Services project is gathering momentum, and Members of the Access to Services Working Group have been shown round the now completed Atrium which is now fully DDA compliant, far more comfortable and client friendly for customers to use, and which now houses an additional conference room. Informal conversations with both members of the public and staff demonstrate that the space is being used more efficiently and that the split level counter, which enables people on each side of it to sit down whilst dealing with requests etc, makes them feel more at ease and more confident.

The completion of the Atrium is an important milestone in the progress of the transformation of services to providing a properly understood, needs led service, which places our customers at its heart. After all the hard work which has been on going in the Transformation Programme for the last two years, we are beginning to benefit from several projects gathering momentum as they come to fruition.

The One Stop Shop in Ulverston is making steady progress with confirmation from the partners that the plans are now a more suitable reflection of what is required, based as they now are on information and comment from everyone involved. This phase of the work included detailed discussion with individual partners as well as meetings with everyone and as a consequence of this thoroughness there was unanimous agreement to accept the plans as they now are. There was a strong feeling that the meeting had been extremely positive and partners are keen to move forward.

Member Development

The Member Support Steering Group has welcomed Councillor Brian Cooper who has joined us in his capacity of Shadow Portfolio Holder and we are looking forward to working together over the coming months. There has been a steady increase in the number of members who are embracing the use of the ‘electronic office’ that is shown in developing confidence in individual skills as well as in the equipment and support available to us. I think it as essential to congratulate everyone who continues to be involved in the on going benefits to the organization as a whole that this initiative contributes, and to remember also that many of us do not find the transition from traditional ways of working particularly easy. That has not stopped the development inside the organization and more members and officers are using electronic documents at meetings, which brings increased savings in time and use of materials by the organization as a whole. A long awaited and much appreciated development is the imminence of the Implementation of Internet only Network in Town Hall. The installation and configuration of the wireless technology within the Town Hall that will provide wireless access to the Internet will be implemented during December/January. This will mean that Members and visitors alike will be able to access the Internet using their own equipment whilst in attendance at Meetings within the Town Hall. Once complete, this will provide Members with the ability to access their

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 3 163 SLDC Emails, the SLDC Intranet and Published Agenda via a web browser login. Members will be able to access these facilities also, from a computer anywhere in the world where they have access to an Internet connection. Once the installation and configuration has been completed, comprehensive training as part of a small group or one to one will be provided. Members will be able to use their own laptops for these training sessions. I recently attended the North West Employers Organisation Elected Member Celebration Event, along with Councillor Stephen Coleman and Member Support Officers, Chris Woods and Gill Rowell, where I had the privilege of receiving our Level One Charter Review Award on behalf of the council. This is a significant and necessary step forward for South Lakeland District Council, demonstrating as it does a wholehearted commitment from the large majority of members to providing a properly informed and intelligent challenge to the authority we serve. The preparation of evidence for the Review Award has enabled us to consolidate our understanding of our current achievements, and put in place plans for the next level, which is coincidentally particularly relevant at this time when customer focus and LAPs are high on the agenda, as the Level Two Charter Award focuses on how our work is of benefit in the wider community. I also received the certificate for the BTEC Level 3 Award for Local Government Elected Member Champions which I have been working towards during the last year and which I am very pleased to have completed. It is a well constructed course and a useful process to have participated in as it clarifies many aspects about how authorities function, how the decision making process functions as well as defining the Member Champion’s role and network. Although finding the time to complete the work - the suggested time to complete three modules is thirty hours; I guess it took me twice that time, I think as a consequence of it I am now able to play a more meaningful part in the work of the authority and I would recommend it to anyone who on occasions wishes that they had more confidence in their understanding. Meetings/Training attended September 25th Independent Remuneration Panel 28th Meeting with Windermere Town Centres Manager about the community plan Portfolio Holders Briefing 30th One Stop Shop and Local Links briefing Finance Training October 1st Windermere Community Plan and Rural Housing Trust - meeting with the Mayor and the Empty Homes Officer Informal meeting with the churches Together Youth Worker – Improving provision of facilities for young people in Windermere 5th One Stop Shop Penrith 8th Informal meeting of Windermere Town Council – Hydro Hotel 9th Informal Cabinet 12th Regional Development Committee, Manchester !4th Cabinet Informal meeting – Equalities and Diversity and the role of the Elected Members 15th Access to Services Working Group Portfolio Holders Briefing PDP Review Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 4 164 16th Additional Human Resources Committee 19th Kendal One-Stop Shop Partners Meeting 20th Windermere Lake Strategy Working Group ‘Achieving’ Equality Peer Review 21st Transformation Project Board Training 23rd Member Support Steering Group 26th Portfolio Holders Briefing Finance Training 28th Corporate Strategy and Performance Group November 2nd Member Champion Workshop, Preston 3rd Policy and Finance Committee, Windermere Town Council 4th Informal meeting with Shadow Portfolio Holder 13th Charter Award Celebration Event, Manchester 23rd Licensing Committee 25th Informal meeting of the Cumbria Equality Standard Working Group County Hall Kendal 26th Preliminary meeting with Rural Housing Officer to plan for the creation of a working group to take this initiative forward in Windermere

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 5 165

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Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Councillor Peter Thornton Agenda 13(3) Communities and Well Being Portfolio Item Holder No: Report Title: Executive Report

Client Issues The following matters have arisen with my Portfolio:- • Public Halls The Coronation Hall and Kendal Town Hall now have occupancy targets recorded on Covalent. Staff are actively working to meet these targets. • Play equipment Our playground engineer has made valuable savings (against budget) on a recent project and we have been able to purchase and install an extra scramble net at Lightburn Park in Ulverston. • Playbuilder Funding Playbuilder funding has now been received for projects at:- Arnside,Staveley, Burton-in Kendal, Coniston and Dent and either Beezon Field if there is to be match funding from SLDC or Summerlands and Kirkbarrow if there is insufficient funding for Beezon Field to go ahead. • 2012 agenda I was privileged to attend a 2012 conference at which the keynote speaker was Jonathan Edwards. Jonathan hopped that we would not skip the legacy planning and jump straight to the games themselves. He was an inspiring speaker and finished the conference on a high note. It was evident that South Lakeland is leading on the 2012 planning process and that there is still a great deal of work to be done if the whole of Cumbria is to benefit from the opportunities that are on offer. Meetings/Training attended • Meetings with officers to discuss various aspects of the portfolio • Various Cabinet meetings, informal and formal • Met with members of the board of LIFE (Troutbeck Pool) to discuss their forthcoming bid for a Sport England grant. • Leadership Academy final module – highly recommended if you get the chance to go. • LSP Community Empowerment conference • Meeting with South Lakes Housing to discuss consultation process ref Croftands Multi Use Games Area.

167 • Various meetings on the subject of Local Area Partnerships • Standards Board • Various meetings in connection with our peer review of our progress towards level 3 of the Equalities and Diversity Framework. • Meeting of the Older Persons Project Board • 2012 Conference Looking Forward In the coming weeks, work will include:- • The South Lakeland Arts Strategy, with associated Action Plan, spans the years 2005 – 2010 and will therefore need to be renewed during the coming year. Current thoughts are to prepare a three year strategy and plan taking us to 2013. I have asked our Arts and Events Officer to organise a Cultural Forum event in order to review our delivery of the current strategy and to look forward to its renewal. The past four years have shown some real successes. Some have been spectacular, gaining national recognition, whilst others have taken place more quietly but nonetheless have resulted in life changing experiences for those involved.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 168 SOUTH LAKELAND DISTRICT COUNCIL

Council

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Councillor Graham Vincent Agenda 13(4) Economic Prosperity & Transport Item Portfolio Holder No: Report Title: Executive Report

Client Issues The following matters have arisen with my Portfolio:- Ambleside Waterhead Following three public meetings to determine the ambitions of local residents and businesses for the future of Waterhead, three schemes were produced. These schemes were prepared in zones so that there could be a measure of mix and match within the schemes. In October the schemes were presented for public consultation, the results analised by an independent company, and a final scheme has been constructed. The mix and match approach has shown great flexibility of ideas, and the final scheme, to be presented to the public in December, will reflect that. The next move will be to secure funding for working up the detail from the preferred scheme. Rydal Road Car Park South Lakeland has supported a private sector development to bring safer pedestrian travel when accessing or leaving the car park. The development also takes responsibility for a small section of our grounds maintenance. This will result in a much more attractive route to the town centre. Ulverston North Lonsdale Road Depot Site Following the publication of the design brief, Cabinet has approved that the site be put out to market test. There has been residents’ objections on the grounds of Highways issues, parking issues, and on the fear of increased flooding risk. Cabinet gave assurance that no development would be allowed unless those issues had been addressed to the satisfaction of the relevant agency. Cabinet understands the importance of this site to the future well being of Ulverston’s high tech. Companies County Square County Square was selected for the finals of the North West Tourism Awards which took place at the Tower Ballroom in Blackpool. The might of Liverpool won the award, but it was a major achievement for Ulverston to be in the final four. Kendal New Road Common The results from the public consultation approved the Council’s approach for this land, and gave sufficient information for work to begin on the project design. This will be funded from the NWDA support for Kendal Futures. Tenders for the design works have been received, and the successful team will be announced early in December.

169 Kirkland Improvements As the main entrance to Kendal, Kirkland has long been understood to be in need of enhancement, making it easier and more attractive to access by foot, especially as the new ‘K’ Village comes on stream. The scheme for Kirkland includes Highways improvements, lighting improvement, wider footways, and public seating. This incorporates more attractive surfaces, and customised lighting and seating. Work starts in the first week of January. Kendal Signage Most of the concrete bases for the signs are now in place. Kirkland’s will be installed as the enhancement works go ahead. Signs will be installed throughout December. Kendal Food Festival This first festival has been an enormous success, highlighting local food producers from farms to restaurants. At least one local food business has seen opportunities to expand in a new direction. I anticipate being able to inform Council on the future of this event in my next report. Meetings/Training attended September 2nd Culture Lead Regeneration 3rd Cumbria Vision Board Manchester Kendal Futures Board 8th Grange TIC 9th New Road Management Committee Furness Enterprise - Barrow 10th Enviro Link - Warrington 15th H.R. Committee 28th Management TIC’s & New Road 30th Budget training N.W.Tourism Awards-Blackpool October 2nd Environmental Park site. 3rd Public consultation b- Ambleside 5th LDNP- Bowness Bay 7th Cumbria Tourism – Staveley 8th Cumbria Vision – Windermere 13th Windermere Air Show – Windermere 14th Cabinet- Ulverston & Kendal 16th H.R.Committee 19th One Stop Shops 20th Kendal Tourism Group 21st Local Committee 22nd Cumbria Renewables Panel Kendal Futures Board Kendal 23rd 1st business Lunch 26th Budget Training 28th CSPG 30th LDF steering group November 3rd CREA –Annual meeting 4th Community O/S ‘call in’ LAP - Kendal 5th Lighting the Future-Lancaster 9th FSB - Windermere Cabinet 10th Council 11th Cabinet PAG

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 2 170 Regional/National/Other Issues Bowness Bay As the biggest landowner in Bowness Bay, we are significantly involved in the discussions around what is feasible. A public consultation exercise has been completed on the options, and we await the analysis of that work. The schemes put forward do offer significant opportunities for SLDC to improve our assets here. TIC’s Council’s involvement in the provision of Tourist Information is being finalised. An Overview and Scrutiny report will be taken into account when the final decision on how this service will be provided is made on 9 December. Lighting the Future This was a NWDA financed event, organised by Enviro Link, but initiated by Furness Enterprise. The purpose was to bring together Councils , highways agencies, Low energy lighting companies, and R&D organisations. There is huge amount of work going on, the market is vast. For South Lakeland the intention is to bring our three very successful LED companies together to see if they can share technologies to enter the low energy highways and public lighting market. The three companies are in discussion. I hope there will be much more to report in the future. Cumbria Vision – Delivery Board. The Programme Manager for this Board has been appointed and will start in January. Projects to be submitted for funding are currently being ranked. Added value in terms of GVA, growth potential and rural benefit are the main criteria. Business Lunches Following on from the very successful Business2Business event last year we are running three Business Lunches, designed to keep our profile higher in the business community. The first was held in Kendal with 50 attendees and the feed back was very positive. The next will be held in Ulverston and will have a Retail & Tourism theme but all will be welcome. We will be extending the time allowed for any questions, as this was found to be too short in our initial event. Looking Forward In the coming weeks, work will include:- Budget requirements and prioritisation will occupy time. The Corporate Plan refresh is about to start. Work associated with TIC provision is expected to dominate for a while. New Road Common. Moving this forward will require early moves on the de-registration process as we do not know how long this is likely to take. A short public exhibition showing how the area will look will be planned for the new year. Canal Head – Kendal. Work on this project to bring it to a clearer statement of what will be delivered will continue. This will be South Lakelands biggest regeneration project and it needs to be right for the town.

Date: 03/12/2009 Version No: Amended by: 3 171

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Council

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Councillor B Jameson Agenda 13(5) Leader of the Council/ Promoting Item South Lakeland Portfolio No: Report Title: Executive Report

Client Issues – I have attended the following meetings which are in addition to regular meetings of informal Cabinet, individual meetings with Portfolio Holders, the Chief Executive and the Management Team of the Council and with Officers when required. From Council 22 September 2009 21 September – 2 October Annual holiday 6 October Cumbria Tourism Board meeting 9 October Cumbria Improvement & Efficiency Programme at Penrith – Achievements and Next Steps 12 October Licensing Sub Committee meeting 14 October Cabinet Restructure Project Board 20 October Cumbria Strategic Partnership Executive Board meeting at Carlisle 23 October CSP ‘Calling Cumbria’ meeting for Stakeholders at Penrith 28 October Lancaster City Council – Morecambe Bay Partnership Working Local Development Framework Steering Group 2 November Restructure Project Board 3 November Meeting with Acting Chief Executive and Leader of CCC along with SLDC Chief Executive 4 November Overview and Scrutiny meeting on Call in for TIC’s Kendal Local Area Partnership meeting at Friends Meeting House 5 November South Lakeland Local Strategic Partnership Executive meeting Cabinet meeting

173 10 November Meeting with Cumbria Police Authority Chairman and Chief Executive along with SLDC Chief Executive 10 November Council 11 November Cabinet 12 November 2012 Conference 27 November - Planning meeting 13 November Joint Districts Leaders and Chief Executives Cumbria Vision Strategy meeting 18 November Meeting with NWDA and Tour of Britain Working Group 23 November Restructure Project Board Licensing Committee 27 November Cumbria 2012 Conference at Kendal College Cumbria Sports Awards at Low Wood Hotel 30 November Cabinet / Corporate Management Team Away Day 1 / 2 December Leadership Academy at York 4 December Kendal Museum Advisory Board 7 December Cabinet / Corporate Management Team meeting on refreshing the Corporate Plan 8 December Cumbria 2012 Working Group 9 December Cabinet

Regional/National/Other Issues The recent flood disaster and the ongoing recovery programme will be a priority for this Authority for some time. Sadly, for those worst affected, it will take months before they can try to get their lives back to something approaching normality, and in the tragedy of the policeman swept away in West Cumbria, the lives of his wife and children will never return to normal. In the aftermath of the floods, Government representative Lord McKenzie visited South Lakeland to see first hand the damage caused. We visited Burneside, Ambleside, Backbarrow, and Ulverston, meeting local people, who related harrowing accounts of their experiences as the waters rose, ruining their homes, businesses, and personal belongings. Although clearly shocked, Lord McKenzie promised to relay the urgency of needing funds to accelerate the recovery programme, and return in the New Year to see how much progress has been made. I must take this opportunity to personally thank all South Lakeland staff who made a tremendous effort to help all those affected by the flooding. Individuals gave their time manning the Customer Contact Centre throughout the night, and all weekend, while Environmental teams toured the worst affected areas offering advice on safety and contamination. Teams from Ecclerigg, Ulverston and Kendal also worked throughout the night and weekend delivering sandbags and helping in the clean up operation. Despite

174 their commitment they do not always get the thanks they deserve and I would like to make sure they get that recognition now.

There has been a great deal of hyperbole about the shared service discussions with Eden District Council. There is widespread acceptance that the likelihood of reduced grant monies from Central Government will require all local authorities to seek further efficiencies in their service delivery and administrative costs, and the dialogue with Eden is part of that exercise. It is worth pointing out, these discussions are taking place with the approval of the IDeA and Government Office North West, and are but one example of a theme recurring around the country. Members will see that I, together with Debbie Storr and Stephen Ottewell, attended a second meeting with the Leader and Chief Executive of Lancaster City Council. Also present at the October meeting were representatives from Lancashire and Cumbria County Councils, Barrow Borough Council, and the North West Development Agency. Although the talks were more of an exploratory nature, it was agreed there was sufficient common interest, to arrange another meeting in the New Year. Progress is being maintained in introducing Local Area Partnerships. As yet, there is still uncertainty into their format, and it is likely that several different models will emerge to suit individual communities.

Local Issues

Kendal College have recently announced the successful response to their funding request from the North West Development Agency. They applied for over £1,000,000 to purchase and develop a Digital and Creative campus on the site of the former builders merchants, off Wildman Street. This is another huge success for the college in their ambitious plans to create a top class educational, cultural, and creative arts establishment linking with their plans for Kendal Museum.

The Cumbria 2012 Conference took place on 27 November at Kendal College, and despite the flooding issues facing the County, there was an excellent attendance. We were fortunate to have a number of inspiring speakers, including James Berresford, the Chief Executive of Visit England, our own Julie Tait from Kendal Arts International, and triple jump world record holder and former Olympic champion Jonathan Edwards.

We have a verbal agreement with the North West Development Agency, and the Tour of Britain organisers for Kendal to host a start to one of the stages for the 2011 cycle race. We hope to sign the contract early next year, when representatives from both bodies visit Kendal to look at possible sites for the start, and discuss the route the race will take, as it makes its way south to the finish in Blackpool. This will provide a huge opportunity for South Lakeland to promote itself nationally and internationally, as well as being a boost to the local economy. The race entourage numbers around 400; in addition to several thousand race followers, and all these people will need food and accommodation.

Looking Forward

Phase two of the re-structuring is continuing, and negotiations between staff, management and unions are taking place regularly. It is planned to have the new

175 structure in place in the New Year, although we must all accept that we can never stand still, and appreciate that continuous improvement needs to become part of the ‘day job.’ Claire Gould and her team should be commended for the success achieved with their Older People’s Programme. Working with Cumbria Primary Care Trust, Age Concern, Cumbria County Council, they have examined ways to make access to services for older people much simpler, and have offered such innovative solutions, that they have attracted interest from other local authorities throughout the country, and funding from agencies such as Cumbria Improvement and Investment Partnership.

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Council

Date of Meeting: 10 December 2009 Part I Report From: Councillor Andy Shine Agenda 13(6) Policy, Performance and Resources Item Portfolio Holder No: Report Title: Executive Report

Client Issues The following matter has arisen with my Portfolio:- Floods – Resource Implications The Council has already incurred some cost and will incur further costs as a result of the recent floods. It is the responsibility of this administration to recover as many of these costs as possible. This is to ensure that no unnecessary burden falls onto the taxpayers of South Lakeland. There are a number of paths that we need to follow to recover these costs. • Costs covered by the Bellwin Scheme – the Government has announced that it will pay this emergency grant at the rate of 100% on qualifying expenditure above the threshold of 0.2% of total Budget (29.4k). The usual rate is 85%. • Costs covered by the Council’s Insurance. We also need to take into account the following: - • Long term reinstatement costs that fall outside the scope of both Bellwin and Insurance and may form the basis of a future Capital Bid. • Extra Budget pressures as a result of increased demand for or loss of income from existing Council Services (e.g. increased Homelessness or loss of Car Park income). • Longer-term recovery costs not yet identified. I will update members verbally with a rough estimates of the financial situation at the Council Meeting. Meetings/Training attended 16/09/09 Cabinet 17/09/09 Lancaster Canal Restoration Partnership 17/09/09 COVALENT training 18/09/09 Community O&S 22/09/09 Council 24/09/09 Joint Audit & Accounts Committee 30/09/09 Restructure Project Board 12/10/09 Transformation Project Board 14/10/09 Cabinet

177 Meetings/Training attended 16/10/09 Lake Admin 19/10/09 1 Stop Shop 20/10/09 Capital Programme Prioritisation 20/10/09 Safer Stronger Communities Fund Thematic Partnership 21/10/09 Grants Advisory Panel 21/10/09 Police Authority Interview 26/10/09 LA Finance training 28/10/09 CSPG 30/10/09 CDRP 02/11/09 Restructure Project Board 04/11/09 Call-in 04/11/09 LAP Meeting 05/11/09 LSP Exec 05/11/09 Cabinet 10/11/09 Council 10/11/09 PAG 16/11/09 Transformation Project Board 17/11/09 JCP 23/11/09 Restructure Project Board

Regional/National/Other Issues South Lakeland Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) The South Lakeland CDRP budget has been secured for 2009/10. Future budget allocations are the subject of a joint scrutiny between the County and Districts. Cllr Mark Wilson is a member of the Scrutiny Panel. Looking Forward In the coming weeks, work will include: - Corporate Plan Hopefully many Members will attend the all-day Corporate Plan refresh meeting on 7 December in the Assembly Room at Kendal Town Hall. Transformation Programme The Transformation Project progresses hand-in-hand with Phase 2 of the Council’s restructure programme.

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