Interview with:

·  Councillor Chris Garland, Leader of the Council; and

·  Georgia Hawkes, Policy and Performance Manager.

The Chairman introduced the Leader of the Council, Councillor Chris Garland, and the Policy and Performance Manager, Georgia Hawkes, to the meeting.

Councillor Garland explained that the update to the Strategic Plan 2009-12 identified how the Council was performing against the key objectives in the Strategic Plan and provided an overview of the context in which the Council was working.  The strategic planning process had been integrated with the financial planning process this year, ensuring that the finances to deliver the Strategic Plan were identified through the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS).

A Councillor asked how threats to the delivery of the Strategic Plan due to budget pressures had been identified and mitigated.  Councillor Garland explained that the alignment of the Strategic Plan with the MTFS this year ensured that the Plan was deliverable rather than aspirational, and anticipated cuts in Government grants had been taken into account.  The Council would maintain its commitment to its three flagship projects – the Museum extension, the High Street Regeneration and Mote Park improvements.  Further to this, a Councillor asked what impact reviewing the document jointly with finance had had, and Councillor Garland advised that it had brought a sense of reality to what could be achieved and meant that some ambitions had needed to be curtailed.

A Councillor identified that the Sustainable Community Strategy, with which the Strategic Plan was linked, had an objective to support older people to lead more active and independent lives, however this was not referenced in the update.  Councillor Garland confirmed that supporting older people was a priority within the Community Services portfolio, however this was a high level document and therefore not all policy details were contained within it.  The Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) was the appropriate body to coordinate and provide services to older people.  Work was being carried out through the LSP to identify where public money in Maidstone was being spent, in relation to services for older people, to avoid duplication and ensure the money was used effectively.

With regard to traffic congestion, it was asked why the original prediction of gridlock in the town centre by 2011 had changed to 2013.  Councillor Garland stated that the predictions were based on various models used by Kent County Council (KCC), though he was unsure of the details behind the change to the prediction.  A new traffic management system had helped to ease congestion in the town centre, however new demand management techniques would need to be investigated as traffic continued to increase.  Park and Ride was an important element of this.  KCC was currently consulting on its strategy, “Growth without Gridlock”, and the Council had responded to this.  Another Councillor suggested that Operation Stack, increased housing and the possibility of the Kent International Gateway (KIG) all pointed to increased future traffic congestion, and asked whether the outcome of the KIG inquiry was being awaited before new traffic management solutions were investigated.  Councillor Garland stated that options would be considered as part of the Local Development Framework (LDF) process. However, it would not await the outcome of the KIG inquiry which had already delayed the LDF process by 2 years.

A Councillor noted that the update did not reflect the budgetary concerns over Park and Ride.  Councillor Garland stated that there were budget pressures on Park and Ride due to falling usage as a result of the recession, however resources were committed to retaining it.  A more sustainable way of providing Park and Ride was being sought and Councillor Garland suggested that further support from KCC would be useful as Park and Ride was key to tackling congestion.

With regard to the priority theme, “A place that is clean and green”, a Councillor suggested that cutting £120,000 from the street cleaning budget did not support this.  Councillor Garland stated that this related to new ways of delivering the street cleaning service in the town centre.  The Council was constantly trying to find new ways to provide the same level of service or better for less money, therefore cutting budgets did not mean cutting standards.

Concern was raised that the document appeared to focus largely on the urban area of the Borough.  Councillor Garland stated that he was conscious of this, particularly as the three flagship projects for the Borough were in the urban area, however he had asked officers to ensure rural areas were considered when developing plans and policies.  He considered transport to be a key issue for rural areas and various ideas to mitigate transport problems were being discussed with senior management team.  A Councillor stated that rural communities were feeling increasingly isolated, particularly following Southeastern’s decision to cut some rail services to London, and the focus on rural transport was therefore appreciated.  Members felt that this should be highlighted in the update.

A Councillor stated that it was unclear what actions were being taken to deliver the key objectives within the Strategic Plan.  Miss Hawkes highlighted that Appendix B to the report was an update on the actions being taken to deliver the key objectives.  New actions were currently being compiled and completion dates would be added to the actions in 2010.

With regard to Growth Point money, Councillor Garland informed the Committee that he had asked officers to assume no further Growth Point money would be received.  This had been reflected in the MTFS and ensured that the Strategic Plan objectives were not reliant on this funding.

A Councillor noted that “licensing” was missing from the list of the Borough Council’s responsibilities in the update and it was agreed that this should be included.

With regard to future strategic plans, Councillor Garland emphasised the need for it to be an evolving document due to the dynamic landscape of local government. The Council was successful in acting proactively, rather than reactively, and this was reflected in the periodic updates.  The current Strategic Plan lasted until 2012, at which point it would be rewritten, though this depended on future administrations.

The Chairman thanked Councillor Garland and Miss Hawkes for their attendance.

Resolved:  That

a)  The update include a greater emphasis on rural areas, particularly with regard to transport; and

b)  “Licensing” be added to the list of the Borough Council’s responsibilities.