Archived decisions

AT A MEETING of the RECREATION AND HERITAGE POLICY REVIEW COMMITTEE of the COUNTY COUNCIL held at The Castle, Winchester on Thursday 13 May, 2004

PRESENT:

Councillors : M.S. Geddes (Chairman); Mrs. S.E. Allbright; R.J. Baulk; Carol Boulton;

J.V. Bryant; Mrs. E.M. Byrom; K.G. Chapman; P.J. Chegwyn; C.R.H. Davidovitz; Dr. R.J. Ellis; E.F. Gale; Jo Kelly; P.K. Mason; P.A. Pierce; R.H. Price; A.W. Rice; K.P.J. Searle.

132 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Members were mindful that, where they believed they had a personal or personal prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should normally at the time of the debate declare their interest, and having regards to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed.

133 MINUTES

The Minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on 11 March, 2004 were confirmed by the Committee and signed by the Chairman subject to an additional minute confirming the minutes of the meeting held on 22 January, 2004.

Matter arising:

Councillor Waddington

Further to Minute 125(iii) Councillor Waddington was welcomed back and his support for Recreation and Heritage achievements was emphasised.

134 DEPUTATION IN RESPECT OF THE PROJECT APPRAISAL RELATING TO THE NATIONAL CYCLE NETWORK PROPOSALS IN RESPECT OF CHAWTON PARK WOOD

Mr. Robertson made a deputation in respect of the Chawton Park Wood National Cycle Network proposals. The Committee then considered the report of the Director of Environment and the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 6 in the Minute Book) on the matter.

RESOLVED:

That it be a RECOMMENDATION to the Executive Member that a decision on the project appraisal relating to the Chawton Park Wood National Cycle Network proposals be deferred to enable the Committee to undertake a site visit and then discuss the matter in an additional special meeting prior to submitting views to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage at a special decision day.

135 MILESTONES PROGRESS REPORT

Sarah McPartland, the business manager for the Milestones Museum, gave a presentation on the last two years of the operations of the Museum. She had been working dynamically to address the issues arising at this unique venture for the County Council and showed a video which had been filmed in April, 2004 about the Museum. She drew particular attention to the balanced budget achieved during the period up to 31 March, the cost cutting and improvements in efficiencies, the significant reduction in the yearly decline in visitor numbers, the successful marketing campaign and the 5 new gallery spaces opened in the Museum. Further points made were that 10,000 school children per annum visit the Museum and that strenuous efforts were being made to improve the secondary spend by visitors. In the ensuing discussion members praised the Museum and drew attention to particular points which were noted. It was felt that a further report should be presented to the Committee in the Autumn with full details of the audience surveys which are undertaken.

RESOLVED:

That the report be noted and that a further report on Milestones be presented to the September meeting of the Committee.

136 SOLENT EUROPEAN MARINE SITES MANAGEMENT SCHEME

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Environment (Item 8 in the Minute Book) on a management scheme which had been produced to ensure that "relevant authorities" comply with the requirements of the Habitats Regulations 1994 as they relate to Solent European Marine Sites (SEMS). These sites lie along the coastlines of the Solent and possess nature conservation designations of European importance. The County Council has extensive landholdings along the coastlines which result in the need to demonstrate the compliance of the County Council as landholder with the Regulations. In 2000 the relevant authorities (of which there are more than 30) combined to form a management group and prepared the draft management scheme which has been circulated to individual authorities for their formal comments prior to submission to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The report summarised the management scheme and the process followed in preparing it, outlined the involvement of the County Council and recommended that current management practice be maintained to ensure continued compliance with the Regulations.

In the ensuing discussion attention was drawn to possible difficulties with the need to prevent flooding of the Hayling Billy Trail as a result of which a working group had been established. Officers were requested to look into the possibility of legislation being enacted which would suitably control the activities of bait diggers.

RESOLVED:

That the following course of action be supported and submitted to the Executive Members for Recreation and Heritage and Policy and Resources for their approval:

(i) That the County Council's approval of the draft Management Scheme for the Solent European Marine Sites for submission to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs be confirmed.


(ii) That the current level of investment in the management of the County Council's sites and facilities be sustained to ensure continued compliance with the Habitats Regulations.


(iii) That it be noted that further work may be required, jointly with other authorities, to investigate the effects on the Solent European Marine Sites of access to the coast

137 CONSULTATION : "UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF THE RURAL URBAN FRINGE"

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Environment and Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 9 in the Minute Book) on the consultation document produced by the Countryside Agency and Groundwork which aimed to raise the profile of the rural urban fringe and communicate its potential. The document had shown how this "valuable, yet frequently overlooked" resource can make a significant contribution to sustainable development, providing benefits for social inclusion, economic prosperity and environmental quality. It had noted that the potential of the fringe far outweighs the challenges and the costs and that the new planning framework and existing tools and techniques can help to unlock that potential. The report had presented 10 key functions for the rural urban fringe such as providing a bridge to the country, a gateway to the town, a classroom and a productive landscape.

The report stated that the consultation should be welcomed but pointed out that establishing a national vision for the rural urban fringe is only the start of the process and that there are considerable obstacles to actually delivering integrated sustainable planning and action. The Committee for rural Hampshire had accordingly established a steering group (on which the County Council is represented by a member and an officer) to prioritise and encourage action by partners and to take the debate forward.

During the ensuing discussion members stressed that the prevention of encroachment on the urban fringe should have top priority and the importance of overcoming one particular problem in such areas, fly tipping, was stressed.

RESOLVED:

That the following response and action be supported and submitted to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage for his approval:-

(i) That the Countryside Agency and Groundwork be informed that the County Council welcomes and supports the broad vision presented in the consultation document "Unlocking the Potential of the Rural Urban Fringe".


(ii) That the detailed comments as set out in Appendix 2 of the report be endorsed as the basis for the County Council's response to the consultation.


(iii) That the County Council continues to engage in the debate on rural urban fringe issues and potential and support joint working through the Committee for Rural Hampshire and the internal officer network.

138 COUNTRYSIDE ACCESS PLANS : THE COUNTY COUNCIL'S RESPONSE TO THE DUTY TO PRODUCE A RIGHTS OF WAY IMPROVEMENT PLAN

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 10 in the Minute Book) on work undertaken over the past 18 months on "Exemplar" pilot rights of way improvement plans, the County Council having been chosen by the Countryside Agency to be one of six demonstration projects nationally. Differing techniques have been used to find out the issues which people consider to have a bearing on their ability to access or enjoy the countryside and a broad approach had been taken in respect of the content and scope of these plans by considering "access to the countryside" in a wide sense and the initial research had also included the views of farmers and landowners.

The Forests of Bere and the Forest of Eversley had been chosen for the first plans in the County and a grant from the Countryside Agency had been used to fully fund two research studies namely a full use and demand survey for the Forest of Eversley and an equestrian use and demand survey, concentrating on the Forest of Bere and then testing the issues Hampshire wide. The Hampshire Countryside Access Forum had been involved in the work.

In the ensuing discussion the report was praised and support was expressed for work being undertaken on the project in-house rather than by consultants.

RESOLVED:

(i) That progress made to date on the production of countryside access plans for the Forest of Bere and the Forest of Eversley be welcomed.


(ii) That the conclusions reached upon the processes followed and how it is proposed to use the lessons learnt as these plans are developed for the remainder of the County be supported.


(iii) That (i) and (ii) above be commended to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage.

139 PARTNERSHIP FUNDING AND SUPPORT IN RECREATION AND HERITAGE - CONSULTATION PROPOSALS

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 11 in the Minute Book) on the consultation proposals in respect of partnership funding and support in the Recreation and Heritage services.

The Recreation and Heritage services of the County Council currently provide support to a wide range of organisations and individuals in Hampshire through grants and other indirect means. The total value of this support is approximately £2.3m which in 2003/04 helped 180 organisations and 70 individuals; this often levers in further significant financial support. The current pattern of partnership funding and support originates from the different strands of activity within the Recreation and Heritage Department and has developed over time. Each has its own processes for receiving, assessing and approving grant applications and subsequently administering, monitoring and evaluating grant awards.

With the formation of the Recreation and Heritage Department it was felt appropriate to re-assess these arrangements in terms of their contribution to corporate, departmental and service objectives and in the light of the findings of the corporate best value review of support for the voluntary and community sector. A small officer team was formed last year to carry out a review of Recreation and Heritage partnership support. The team had now completed a mapping and analysis exercise to establish the range and value of the partnership funding and support provided by Recreation and Heritage, current policies and policy objectives for all partnership funding schemes and the different application, award, administration, monitoring and evaluation processes in place.

On 24^th February, 2004 the Committee together with the Executive Member discussed the outcome of this review and the next stage of the process is to agree a set of key proposals as the basis of a wider consultation with partners, other stakeholders and members of the public. One of the main conclusions of the review was that the partnership funding and support arrangements in the Recreation and Heritage services should be brought in line with the principles of the "Hampshire Compact" (the framework for the relationship between the County Council and the voluntary and community sector).

RESOLVED:

That the consultation document on partnership funding and support in the Recreation and Heritage services and the consultation programme and timetable be supported and submitted to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage for his consideration.

140 CONCESSIONARY CHARGING POLICY FOR RECREATION AND HERITAGE SERVICES

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 12 in the Minute Book) on a concessionary charging policy for Recreation and Heritage services.

In December, 2002 the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage approved an overall policy framework for setting charges for Recreation and Heritage services which entailed approval by the Executive Member of charges for statutory services and all other charges being set by service managers within specific guidelines. Whilst discussing this overall policy framework members of the Committee expressed a desire to look at achieving greater consistency in policies on concessions and discounts across the Recreation and Heritage services and requested that specific recommendations be prepared for approval by the Executive Member.

The report outlined relevant policy considerations and reviewed current practice in the Recreation and Heritage services and made specific recommendations for changes in the policy on concessions designed to achieve greater consistency and to help achieve increased use of and wider access to the Recreation and Heritage services. The recommendations contained in the report contributed directly to the aims of the corporate strategy involving maximising life opportunities and improving services and also supported the aims of the cultural strategy on access, inclusion and participation.

The report stressed that if a departmental policy on concessions and discounts is to be successfully implemented it must be seen to be in the best interests of the users, based on sound principles that can be easily understood and applied by frontline staff, not costly to apply and should not have a perverse impact by forcing an increase in the standard charges for other groups of users.

In the ensuing discussions Members felt that such a charging policy should be extended to other County Council services and requested that officers look into the matter.

RESOLVED:

That the recommendations for implementing a consistent policy on concessions and discounts across the Recreation and Heritage services as summarised in paragraph 9.2 of the report be supported and submitted to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage for his consideration.

141 GOSPORT DISCOVERY CENTRE - CHILDREN'S LIBRARY

The Committee considered the report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 13 in the Minute Book) on the children's library at Gosport Discovery Centre. During the public forum held in February as part of the public consultation process for the Discovery Centre concerns had been expressed about the proposed location of the children's library on the first floor of the Centre and the County Council had been asked to reconsider the issue. In March a postal survey of Gosport residents was conducted and a majority of the respondents expressed support for the location of the children's library on the ground floor.

RESOLVED:

That the location of the children's library on the ground floor of Gosport Discovery Centre and of other services as shown in the public survey be supported and submitted to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage for his consideration.

142 EXCLUSION OF THE PRESS AND PUBLIC

RESOLVED:

That by virtue of Paragraph 1 of Part I of Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 the press and public be excluded from the remainder of the meeting.

143 WORKFORCE PLAN 2004/05

The Committee considered the confidential report of the Director of Recreation and Heritage (Item 15 in the Minute Book) on the Workforce Plan 2004/05.

RESOLVED:

That the Recreation and Heritage Workforce Plan for 2004/05 be supported and submitted to the Executive Member for Recreation and Heritage for his consideration.

4aM100504