To authorise the Chair to sign the Minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 18 July 2022 as a correct record of proceedings.

The Chair was authorised to sign the Minutes of the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 18 July 2022 as a correct record of the proceedings.

The Chair to ask if any Member present is substituting for another Member and, if so, to declare his/her name as substitute Member and the name of the absent Member.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors J. Barnes,  S.J. Coleman, K.M. Harmer, Chair of Council and the Deputy Chief Executive.

To receive any disclosure by Members of personal and disclosable pecuniary interests in matters on the agenda, the nature of any interest and whether the Member regards the personal interest as prejudicial under the terms of the Code of Conduct. Members are reminded of the need to repeat their declaration immediately prior to the commencement of the item in question.

Declarations of interest were made by Councillors in the Minutes as indicated below:

Courtel            Agenda Item 5 – Personal Interest as a resident in the Bexhill Town Centre Conservation Area.

Madeley          Agenda Item 5 – Personal Interest as an officer of Bexhill Heritage.

Maynard          Agenda Item 6  – Personal Interest as Lead Member for Adult Social Care and Health, East Sussex County Council.

Members received the report of the Director – Place and Climate Change which gave details of three Technical Advice Notes (TANs) to support the Adopted Development Plan (Core Strategy 2011-2028; Development and Site Allocations Plan (DaSa); and made Neighbourhood Plans), relating to First Homes, 100% Affordable Housing, and Bexhill Town Centre Conservation Area.  TANs provided technical advice to developers and decision-makers (planning officers and the Planning Committee). They were not adopted policy documents and could not set policy.  However, they could be used to explain how existing adopted policy should be interpreted in specific scenarios.

The three TANs that had been drafted to respond to specific policy issues were: First Homes – government policy direction; 100% Affordable Housing – recent planning applications; and Windows in Bexhill Town Centre.

First Homes were a specific kind of discounted market sale housing which met the definition of ‘affordable housing’ for planning purposes.  First Homes were the Government’s preferred discounted market tenure and were now required to account for at least 25% of all affordable housing units delivered by developers through planning obligations (i.e. Section 106 agreements). The First Homes requirements applied regardless of local planning policy and it was not necessary for a local planning authority to publish guidance.  However, in order to provide clarity on how First Homes would be applied by Rother District Council and to assist understanding by developers, officers and the community, a TAN was proposed, which Members were happy to recommend to Cabinet for onward recommendation to full Council for publication.

The Government’s Affordable Homes funding was awarded by Homes England to qualified investment partners, including registered providers of social housing.  However, it did not fund affordable homes secured through developer contributions (Section 106). As a result, registered providers were seeking to develop wholly affordable housing on major housing development sites in Rother, which was a shift from the expectation that affordable housing would be secured as a percentage requirement through DaSA Policy DHG1.  The TAN advised that where proposals come forward for greater levels of affordable housing than the minimum percentages set out in Policy DHG1 (up to 100%), such proposals may be supported in principle.  Whether or not specific schemes for up to 100% affordable housing could be supported would come down to their compliance with the adopted policies of the Development Plan as a whole.

The TAN on Windows in Bexhill Town Centre provided advice on how the Council’s adopted planning policies should be applied to planning applications for alterations to, or replacement of, windows and doors within the distinctive special character of the designated Bexhill Town Centre Conservation Area following a number of recent planning applications. It explained the legislative background, summarised relevant planning policy and Historic England guidance and highlighted the Council’s declaration of a Climate Emergency.  It also provided a summary of the character and appearance of the Bexhill Town Centre Conservation Area, in addition to information on the environmental impact of uPVC windows in an appendix.  The TAN discussed  ...  view the full minutes text for item OSC22/20.

Members received the report of the Director – Place and Climate Change which recommended the establishment of a Health and Wellbeing Task and Finish Group, comprising of five non-Executive Members, to examine the role that the Council took, through its policies, strategies, and operations support to promote the health and wellbeing of its residents.

The Group would consider the impact of the emerging local plan on healthy living and identify opportunities for new or amended policies that improved the overall health and wellbeing of residents.  The Group would also examine the current physical infrastructure throughout the district, including the Council’s own leisure assets and the proposed strategy for leisure facilities, including a review of wider physical infrastructure that promoted healthy living such as those owned and operated by parish/town councils and other education or community groups.  Finally, the Group would review how the current leisure provider supported and promoted the work of the local Clinical Commissioning Group and Public Health East Sussex and examine the wider impact of public health policy and how the Council could seek to better align its policies and operations to support this work.

A series of recommendations would then be taken to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee for consideration.

RESOLVED: That:

1)         a Health and Wellbeing Task and Finish Group be established, comprising of Councillors J. Barnes, S.J. Coleman, Mrs V. Cook, C.A. Madeley, G.F. Stevens and R.B. Thomas to explore the role that the Council played in the overall health and wellbeing of residents;

2)         the Terms of Reference at Appendix A to the report and appointments to the Group be approved; and

3)         any recommendations from the Task and Finish Group be considered by the Committee following the production of a final report.

(Councillor Maynard declared a Personal Interest in this matter as Lead Member for Adult Social Care and Health for East Sussex County Council and in accordance with the Members’ Code of Conduct remained in the meeting during the consideration thereof).

Consideration was given to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee’s Work Programme and the following amendments were made:

•           Bexhill Town Centre Conservation Area TAN Task & Finish Group added to 21 November 2022;

•           Medium Term Financial Plan 2023/24 to 2027/28 moved to 21 November 2022; and

•           Annual Review of the Housing, Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy (2019-2024) moved to 23 January 2023.

RESOLVED: That the Work Programme at Appendix A, as amended, be agreed.