Agenda and minutes

An apology of absence was received from Councillor T L Ellis.

To confirm as a correct record the Minutes of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel meeting held on the 01 February 2022.

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel meeting held on the 02 February 2022 be confirmed and signed as a correct record.

The Chairman welcomed Members of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel to the new municipal year and in particular provided a warm welcome to the four new Members of the Panel including the Vice-Chairman.

To receive any declarations of interest from Members in accordance with the Standing Orders and the Council’s Code of Conduct and disclosures of advice or directions received from Group Leaders or Political Groups, in accordance with the Council’s Constitution.

There were no declarations of interest made at this meeting.

To receive any deputations of which notice has been lodged.

There were no deputations made at this meeting.

To receive a presentation from the Director of Planning and Regeneration providing an overview of the Planning and Development Portfolio.

The Panel received a presentation from the Director of Planning and Regeneration on an overview of the Planning and Development Portfolio along with an explanation of the role of the Scrutiny Panel. A copy of the presentation is appended to these Minutes.

The presentation highlighted the functions of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel and clarified the purpose of the standard agenda items and what the Panels role is in scrutinising those items. The Director of Planning and Regeneration went on to discuss the current priorities and advised that the Welborne Delivery and the Council’s Local Plan would feature predominantly within this municipal year’s panel priorities.

The Chairman followed up on a question that had been raised at the last meeting with regards to the housing delivery test and if empty homes were included in the figure. Officers confirmed that they were not included in the figure, but the number of vacant properties would be circulated to Members outside of the meeting for clarification.

RESOLVED that the Panel note the contents of the presentation.

To receive a presentation from the Coastal Management Partnership which will provide an update on the service, climate change and information on current projects as well as the day-to-day maintenance of the Fareham Borough Council coastal assets.

The Panel received a presentation by Jane Ryan, Business Manager, Andy Pearce, Engineering Manager and Samantha Box, Feasibility, Option Appraisal and Funding Team Leader in the Policy, Environment and Research Team from the Coastal Partners. The presentation provided an update on the service as a whole, climate change and information on current projects within the Fareham Borough. A copy of the presentation is appended to these Minutes.

Councillor S Martin, Executive Member for Planning and Development was invited by the Chairman to take part in discussions on this item.

Jane Ryan began the presentation by providing and an overview of Coastal Partners, which Fareham Borough Council joined in 2012. She explained that the partnership currently has sixty-four dedicated staff that are all passionate about protecting the coastline. Chichester District Council have also just recently joined the partnership which will build a stronger resilient workforce and increase the skills of the team.

Andy Pearce then went onto highlight the asset management and maintenance work of Coastal Partners. He explained how these projects are influenced by climate change. He explained that maintenance work is not funded by central Government so sourcing affordable, sustainable materials is an ongoing challenge for his team. Biodiversity is also a key element of the projects to ensure installations have a positive impact on the environment with every project being assessed to reduce the carbon footprint of Coastal Partners.

Finally, Samantha Box addressed the Panel to highlight the two projects currently being developed within the Fareham Borough, at Fareham Quay and Alton Grove to Cador Drive. Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) scheme options will be developed to reduce flood and erosion risk and address historic landfill issues. It is hoped that these studies will start this summer once a consultant has been procured.

Samantha also provided an overview of the Hook Lane Coastal Management Study which is currently underway. Exhibitions on the shortlisted design options are to be held on the 12^th and 13^th of July 2022 in Warsash.

Members engaged in a detailed discussion on a wide variety of the information delivered by Coastal Partners and asked questions for clarification particularly regarding the recent Standing Conference on Problems Associated with the Coastline (SCOPAC) research which shows concerning trends in sea level rise, wave height and storms along the south coast of England.

Members also asked about Coastal Partners ability to budget for long term projects considering the rising costs of materials. Andy Pearce explained that material costs had increased by around 40% within the last twelve months so forecasting budgets is a significant challenge for the Coastal Partners team.

RESOLVED that the Panel note the contents of the presentation.

To consider an update from the Head of Planning Strategy and Economic Development on prevailing planning strategy matters.

The Panel received a Planning Strategy update presentation by the Head of Planning Strategy and Economic Development. A copy of the presentation is appended to these Minutes.

Councillor S Martin, Executive Member for Planning and Development was invited by the Chairman to take part in discussions on this item.

The presentation provided Members with an overview of the topics which the Panel can expect to see within this standard agenda item throughout this municipal year. This allowed Members of the Panel to ask questions for clarification on some of the more complex items which the Panel will be asked to scrutinise over the next twelve months. In particular, the Head of Planning Strategy and Economic Development explained in detail the phases of developing the Local Plan which is entering its final phases before adoption by Council. The Housing Delivery Test was also discussed in detail along with its impact on the planning process.

RESOLVED that the Panel note the contents of the presentation.

To consider any items of business dealt with by the Executive since the last meeting of the Panel, that falls under the remit of Planning and Development Portfolio. This will include any decisions taken by individual Members during the same time period.

No comments were received.

To provide an opportunity for Members to consider the scrutiny priorities for the Planning and Development Panel.

The Panel considered the Scrutiny Priorities of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel.

The Director of Planning and Regeneration addressed the Panel to suggest that at the next scheduled meeting of the Panel, Sarah Ward, Head of Strategic Sites, be asked to attend and provide an update to the Panel on the Welborne Delivery. The Panel agreed that this would be very useful and asked for an item to be added to the agenda.

RESOLVED that: -

a)     the Panel considered the priorities of the Planning and Development Scrutiny Panel; and

b)    agreed that an item on the Welborne delivery be brought to the next scheduled meeting of the Panel.