Issue - meetings
Review of Parish Services Scheme
Meeting: 14/11/2017 - Communities, Housing and Environment Committee (Item 68)
68 Review of Parish Services Scheme PDF 77 KB
Additional documents:
- Enc. 1 for Review of Parish Services Scheme, item 68 PDF 130 KB View as HTML (68/2) 14 KB
- Enc. 2 for Review of Parish Services Scheme, item 68 PDF 39 KB View as HTML (68/3) 61 KB
- Enc. 3 for Review of Parish Services Scheme, item 68 PDF 137 KB View as HTML (68/4) 15 KB
Minutes:
The Committee considered the report of the Director of Finance and Business Improvement which related to the Parish Services Scheme.
It was noted that a review of the Parish Services Scheme had taken place this year and a consultation had been undertaken with the parishes during July, August and September. The survey form had been sent to the Clerks and Chairs of each Parish Council.
The Committee was informed that the only change proposed by the Council to the Scheme was an additional aim, namely to recognise the financial constraints faced by the Borough Council. In view of this the Director of Finance and Business Improvement felt it was appropriate to explore ways in which expenditure on the Parish Services Scheme could be reduced whilst continuing to serve its overall objectives.
The changes proposed were as follows:-
·
Grounds maintenance would be recalculated based on a
current standard amount per hectare of open space and would be
reviewed annually in line with the Council’s overall grounds
maintenance budget.
·
The analysis of survey returns did not show that
small parishes incurred significantly higher costs per unit of
population on the services covered by the PSS. It was therefore considered that the Small Size
Allowance be removed for future years.
·
The War Memorials grant would be retained at the
same fixed amount as in 2017/18.
·
There was some disparity around the number of notice
boards in each parish. Therefore it was
considered that there was no merit in paying a regular annual
amount for notice boards if they are only renewed after a number of
years. Hence it was proposed that the
grant for notice boards be withdrawn and that a central fund of a
fixed amount from which parishes could apply for a grant as and
when notice boards needed replacement be established.
·
The Play Areas grant would in future be a fixed
amount to cover basis compliance costs (e.g. quarterly inspection)
for strategic play areas. The cost of
replacement equipment would be covered by a one-off grant for
strategic play areas across the borough.
·
The Churchyards grant would be retained at the same
fixed amount as in 2017/18.
In response to questions raised by Members, the Director of Finance and Business Improvement advised:-
·
That the survey was sent to Parish Clerks and
Chairmen.
·
That the notes of the last Parish Liaison Meeting
would be available shortly.
RESOLVED:
1. That
the outcomes of the review of the Parish Services Scheme be
noted.
2.
That consideration of Recommendations 2 and 3 of the report of
the
Director of Finance and Business Improvement be deferred
until
after the Parish Liaison Meeting in January when the
representatives would have had an opportunity to be properly
consulted.
Voting: For: 2
Against: 1 Abstentions:
5