Agenda and draft minutes

The Chairman advised the Committee that they intended to take Item 13: UK Shared Prosperity Fund Extension 2025/2026 after Item 10: Events Programme 2025-26.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Harper.

Councillor Gooch was present as Substitute Member for Councillor Harper.

There were no urgent items.

Councillor Milham was present as Visiting Member for Item 15 – Houses in Multiple Occupations Planning Supplementary Document (HMO SPD).

There were no disclosures by Members or Officers.

There were no disclosures of lobbying.

RESOLVED: That all items on the agenda be taken in public as proposed.

RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the meeting held on 3 February 2025 be approved as a correct record and signed.

RESOLVED: That the Forward Plan relating to the Committee’s Terms of Reference, be noted.

The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities thanked the officer for the report and highlighted the upcoming events and sources of funding in the appendices. The Culture, Arts & Events Officer expanded on the partnerships with One Maidstone, the Hazlitt Theatre, Kent Arts and Wellbeing and the events they supported.

Several Members of the Committee expressed support for the events celebrating VE day and, in answer to queries, the Culture, Arts & Events Officer confirmed that, although the details had not yet been finalised, there was funding set aside for celebration of VJ day.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities introduced the report and advised that the UK Shared Prosperity Funding (UKSPF) had been extended for a fourth year with just over £390,000 granted to encourage pride in place and increase footfall by providing a safer and more vibrant town centre.

The Director of Strategy, Insight & Governance thanked the officer and Councillors involved and advised that updates were given regularly with local stakeholders who had helped develop the local investment plan for these projects.

The Culture, Arts & Events Officer expanded on the upcoming works to Granada House to develop a creative maker space, including studios and an exhibition space, where they hoped to have a lead artist, run workshops and foster a creative community. This was expected to open in mid to late June dependant on the works programme.

The Committee were happy to agree the recommendation.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That the projects proposed for year 4 of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, as set out in 3.2 of the report, be approved.

The Head of Finance introduced the report setting out the financial and performance position for the services reporting into the Committee as at 31 December 2024 (Quarter 3). It was noted that:

·  There was a general overspend of £49,000, which was an improvement on the projected overspend of £490,000, achieved through review of vacant recruitment posts;

·  For this Committee, there was an £800,000 overspend compared to about £1.4m previously. The three key areas were: the vacant units at Lockmeadow Complex, which were now filled; reduced volume of planning applications, which had been given extra budget in 2025/26 to reduce the risk going forward; and a general underspend on Planning Policy; and

·  In terms of Capital, there was a projected spend of £4.6m, which was an underspend of £5.2m. There was slippage in two areas: infrastructure delivery, as there were no schemes coming forward and in street lighting and greening, which was due to delay of the Town Centre Strategy- expected to resolve within the next year.

Concerns were raised around progression of the local plan, particularly in regard to devolution. The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management reassured that this would continue in line with National Guidance and in accordance with any further information from Central Government relating to devolution.

RESOLVED: That

1.  The Revenue position as at the end of Quarter 3 for 2024/25, including the actions being taken or proposed to improve the position, where significant variances have been identified, be noted; and

2.  The Capital position at the end of Quarter 3 for 2024/25 be noted.

The Information & Analytics Manager introduced the report and highlighted that there were 21 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) proposed under this Committee, split by corporate priority areas and identified with the relevant portfolio area, frequency of update and status as a target or for context or information only. Of the proposed KPIs, 6 were new and 15 were previously reported.

The Committee were invited to make suggestion or comments on the KPIs. It was raised that it may be sensible to have both the ‘Engagement events with businesses’ and ‘Number of Businesses/Start Ups receiving information, advice and guidance’ at a quarterly frequency. The Information & Analytics Manager agreed to feedback this request.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That the draft Performance Indicators at Appendix A to the report be agreed.

The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities introduced the report and stated that this was a first step in supporting events at Brenchley Gardens and, by extension, attendance at the Museum.

The Cabinet Member for Environmental Services and Enforcement expanded on the ambition to revitalise the existing building, currently used for storage, and to provide a mobile refreshments option to promote use and popularity of the park, which would discourage anti-social behaviour.

In response to queries, the Leisure Contracts Manager clarified details of the tender process. The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities also confirmed that consideration of sustainability and disposal of litter were high priority.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That

1.  A procurement exercise for a refreshments provider in Brenchley Gardens be commenced in line with the procurement plan included as Appendix 1 to the report;

2.  Delegated authority for awarding the contract to the preferred bidder be given to the Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement and in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities; and

3.  Delegated authority for completing and entering into contractual documents with the preferred bidder be given to the Head of Mid-Kent Legal Services in consultation with the Director of Finance, Resources and Business Improvement.

The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management introduced the report and advised that this was expected to go to consultation on 31 March 2025 for a month. The Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) intended to address quality and quantity of Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs), particularly in the High Street, Fant and Oakwood and Penenden Heath Wards, where they were most significant number. The Cabinet Member clarified that the SPD would apply to HMOs of seven rooms and above and a number of other approaches were being investigated for parking and refuse collection for smaller ones.

In response to the Visiting Member’s queries, the Principal Planning Officer advised that the HMO figures cited had come from two sources with different dates, and the SPD would be amended to clarify this before consultation.

In response to concerns around provision of parking, the Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management highlighted that the SPD provide more context as a subordinate to the Local Plan. It would treat each room in a HMO as a one bed flat, allowing more controls from a Planning perspective but still with a degree of flexibility.

The Cabinet Member for Environmental Services and Enforcement added that the SPD would be the most effective method and that the wording had been carefully considered.

In response to requests for more specific wording around provision of parking, the Principal Planning Officer advised that this needed to be kept in line with Kent County Council existing legislation and that gathering enough evidence to introduce thresholds would be difficult and time-consuming.

After further discussion, it was agreed to take the recommendations as per the papers.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That

1. The Draft Housing in Multiple Occupancy Supplementary Planning Document and the Consultation Statement (set out in Appendix 1 and 2 of the report) be approved for consultation between 31 March 2025 and 27 April 2025; and
   
   
2. The Head of Spatial Planning and Economic Development be given delegated authority to undertake minor textual, factual and editorial changes to finalise the HMO SPD prior to commencement of the public consultation.

The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management introduced the report and advised that the Council were assisting Headcorn Parish Council with it procedurally.

The Strategic Planning Manager expanded that the Council were ready to issue a decision statement stating that, subject to modifications suggested by the examiner being put in place, the Neighbourhood Plan would be able to proceed to referendum. This was agreed by the Committee.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That

1. The Maidstone Borough Council Decision Statement on the Headcorn Neighbourhood Plan (Appendix 2 to the report), be agreed and issued to inform interested parties that the Headcorn Neighbourhood Plan can proceed to a local referendum in accordance with the modifications set out in the Examiner’s report (Appendix 1 to the report); and
   
   
2. Delegated authority be granted to the Head of Spatial Planning and Economic Development to agree with Headcorn Parish Council amendments to the supporting text (i.e. non-policy text) of the Headcorn Neighbourhood Plan, so long as these amendments are consequential to the Examiner’s recommendations or constitute other minor non-material changes, factual updates, or corrections.

The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management introduced the report and advised that this was the second consultation on this issue, the first having been in 2020. It was stated that the new, proposed consultation was more expensive with additional lanes proposed and was no longer in keeping with the Local Plan or the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF). Following feedback from local communities, it was intended to add to the responses covering impact on residents, particularly in Sandling, and on the nitrogen deposition issue in the Special Area of Conservation.

The Principal Planning Officer expanded on the proposed improvement scheme details and its timeline, which was to align with completion of the Lower Thames Crossing in 2032, outlining concerns included in the response: impact on the Kent Downs National Landscape; loss of cycleways and bus stops; and impact on Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs). The response referenced the Green Infrastructure Strategy, Integrated Transport Strategy and other evidence to support this.

The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities outlined the consultations so far and upcoming and stated that the response would be added to reflect the resident responses. An additional update was also sought emphasising the impacts on the Special Area of Conservation.

Some Members of the Committee raised queries around why the consultation had changed so much since 2020. The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management advised that justification for the changes was related to the Lower Thames Crossing. An update was sought to refer back to the 2020 proposed scheme, which was considered to be more acceptable.

The Committee requested that the first recommendation be changed to mention the above changes to the response.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET: That

1. The response to the Kent County Council A229 Blue Bell Hill Improvement Scheme Consultation, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be submitted to Kent County Council subject to consideration of the Committee’s comments, particularly regarding the previous consultation from 2020, impact on residents in Sandling and impact on the Special Area of Conservation; and
   
   
2. The Head of Spatial Planning and Economic Development be given delegated authority to undertake minor textual, factual and editorial changes to finalise the response prior to submission.

The Cabinet Member for Planning Policy and Management introduced the report and advised that the response to the Transport for the South East (TfSE) consultation needed to be submitted by 7 March 2025.

The Principal Planning Officer outlined the overall vision and interventions set out in the report and stated that it was an update of the existing strategy from 2020. The updated version was set to be published later in 2025, with the date to be confirmed. The Officer highlighted the areas of concern included in the response, including that environmental and biodiversity needed to be given greater consideration regarding ecological fragmentation and pollution.

The Cabinet Member for Healthier Stronger Communities added that they were satisfied that the response made adequate reference to the existing Industrial Strategy and that, despite the tight timescales, everything possible had been done to involved the Committee in reviewing the response.

RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to the CABINET MEMBER: That

1. The response to the Transport for the South East’s Consultation on its’ Draft Transport Strategy, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be submitted to Transport for the South East; and
   
   
2. The Head of Spatial Planning and Economic Development be given delegated authority to undertake minor textual, factual and editorial changes to finalise the response prior to submission.

6.30 p.m. to 8.44 p.m.