RESOLVED: That

1. Capital expenditure of £5.85 million for the decarbonisation project, comprising Salix grant funding of £3.13 million and a Council contribution of £2.72 million be approved;

2. £300,000 to complete 4th floor refit works, funded by the South East Local Enterprise Partnership be approved;

3. Further reports be received as the project progresses; and

4. The Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement be delegated authority to select and appoint contractors for applicable services as necessary.

(See Record of Decision)

The Cabinet Member for Climate Transition and Nature Recovery introduced the report which updated Members on progress of the successful bid for a £3.1 million grant from the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme to help upgrade the energy efficiency of our operational buildings including: air source heat pumps to replace gas boilers; new insulation and glazing and; solar panel installation. There was also a separate, successful bid for £300,000 to South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) to refit the fourth floor of Maidstone House.

The report set out updated costs, following consultation with multi-disciplinary property and construction consultancy, Calford Seaden. The increased project cost estimate, based on the more technical advice, was £5.32 million with an advised 10% contingency, attributed to changes in material specification and costs. External funding would cover more than 50% of the total project costs with the rest covered by the agreed Capital Programme from February 2024.

Concerns were raised about the additional costs and the Cabinet Member reassured Members that these were covered by the Capital budget for next year. He advised that the grant needed to be spent by March 2025, but that the project did not have to be completed by this time.

The Biodiversity and Climate Change Manager also advised that, although the initial project stages of the timetable were delayed, they still expected for the rest of the dates to fit with the deadlines stated. He also explained that the total embedded carbon costs of and the manufacturing and the disposal of the solar panels would be sought as part of the contract when they agreed a contractor and could be reported back to the Committee.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to CABINET: That

1. Capital expenditure of £5.85 million for the decarbonisation project, comprising Salix grant funding of £3.13 million and a Council contribution of £2.72 million be approved;
   
   
2. £300,000 to complete 4^th floor refit works, funded by the South East Local Enterprise Partnership be approved;
   
   
3. Further reports be received as the project progresses; and
   
   
4. The Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement be delegated authority to select and appoint contractors for applicable services as necessary.