Archived decisions

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL

Decision Report

1. Executive Summary

1.1. The purpose of this paper is to seek agreement to the emerging priorities for areas of activity to be undertaken by voluntary and community environmental organisations, to meet departmental and corporate aims and objectives. These priorities are:

(i) supporting and promoting sustainable development;

(ii) improving the environment and quality of life;

(iii) support for communities to develop local environmental initiatives; and

(iv) to provide information and advice to raise awareness of sustainability and climate change issues to encourage behavioural change.

1.2. This paper seeks to:

(i) set out the emerging priorities for delivery of departmental aims and objectives;

(ii) analyse and identify the extent of fit between existing areas of environmental service provision and emerging priorities;

(iii) explain the process for the distribution of grants to voluntary and community organisations; and

(iv) maximise the benefits to the County Council's activities from providing grants to voluntary and community organisations.

2. Contextual information

2.1. Hampshire County Council employs the support of voluntary and community organisations for the effective delivery of its priorities, to enable it to reach outside of its immediate resource capability. A review of the areas of activity has been undertaken to ensure that Environmental Service Providers continue to respond to Environment Department and corporate priorities. Originally environmental services were secured through Service Level Agreements with specific organisations. For the last three years the process has been changed to accord with the One Compact for Hampshire, which led to a review of the grants and their objectives in 2007. There is now a transparent process by which organisations can submit applications for grants published on the County Council web site. Applications are assessed against criteria for delivery, and a monitoring process is in place to determine the extent to which the criteria are being met.

2.2. This report sets out the emerging Environment Department and corporate priorities. It then analyses the existing grant objectives and establishes the extent to which they meet those emerging priorities, and the gaps that any future grants should fill. The analysis against the Departmental, Corporate and Local Area Agreement aims is contained in Appendix 1.

3. Emerging Departmental and Corporate priorities

3.1. The emerging Environment Department and Corporate priorities, and the proposed objectives which set out ways that the grants programme can contribute to their delivery, are:

(i) Supporting and promoting sustainable development:

(a) promoting careful use of natural resources;

(b) promoting sustainable food production;

(c) providing advice on carbon reduction and adaptation to climate change; and

(d) promoting the integrated management of land to deliver multiple benefits.

(ii) Improving the environment and quality of life:

(a) undertaking research to improve the County Council's knowledge; and

(b) providing advice and information to the public on the protection and enhancement of the built and natural environment.

(iii) Supporting communities to develop local environmental initiatives:

(a) providing advice and information to local communities on environmental opportunities;

(b) supporting and encouraging volunteer activity; and

(c) providing advice on sources of funding for community activities.

(iv) Providing information and advice to raise awareness of sustainability and climate change issues to encourage behavioural change:

(a) influencing young people through awareness raising programmes; and

(b) working with local people to identify opportunities to change behaviour.

4. Assessment of existing grant objectives against emerging priorities

4.1. The existing grants, their objectives, and the extent to which they fit with emerging Environment Department and corporate priorities are as follows:

(i) Built Heritage

(a) Existing objectives: The objectives of this grant are to undertake research and provide advice to building owners, voluntary organisations and local authorities on building conservation. It also enables provision of practical training and contributes to the restoration of the Bursledon Brickworks.

(b) Assessment: The research contributes to the County Council's knowledge of built heritage. It also provides skills training to a sector of the community. However, the objectives and what is delivered through the grant are not central to the emerging priorities.

(ii) Coastal Archaeology

(a) Existing objectives: This grant supports the provision of specialist coastal archaeological advice and information to the County Council and to a range of fora such as the Solent Forum, through the involvement of specialists. It also encourages better understanding of coastal archaeology.

(b) Assessment: Marine archaeology is a statutory duty of English Heritage. Whilst archaeology in the intertidal zone is a duty for the County Council, this forms a small part of the activity of any organisation concerned with marine and coastal archaeology. There are limited opportunities for this area of grant to contribute to the County Council's wider priorities.

(iii) Environmental Advice to Land Managers

(a) Existing objectives: Through direct access to farmers and land managers, this grant enables the promotion of landscape conservation and sustainable farming practices. It also encourages networking with other environmental organisations and the collection of research data for the County Council's own records.

(b) Assessment: Supporting and influencing the farming and land management community will be an important part of the delivery of the County Council's rural affairs and sustainability agendas. This grant could also address the delivery of advice on carbon reduction and climate change adaptation to farmers and land managers.

(iv) Historic Parks and Gardens

(a) Existing objectives: This grant enables the County Council to establish and maintain a Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. In doing so it encourages local volunteers to train and develop research skills, and to work with local communities and schools to instil an appreciation of this important aspect of heritage. It also provides the opportunity to encourage land owners to undertake conservation management.

(b) Assessment: This grant responds to the priorities for the environment and for community support and engagement. Through networking with other organisations it would be possible to enhance the sustainable land management and climate change aspects of delivery.

(v) Schools Landscapes

Supporting Hampshire County Council's Schools Landscape Programme

(a) Existing objectives: The Schools Landscape Programme seeks to maximise the extent to which pupil and wider community involvement with school grounds can provide a foundation for broad environmental outreach. The grant enables a specialist environmental education organisation to support practical and educational work.

(b) Assessment: This grant fits well with the emerging priorities. It engenders a sense of ownership and responsibility and a focus for community activity that contributes to taking forward the County Council's sustainability agenda, as well as the priorities for behavioural change and the environment.

Supporting advice at a national level

(a) Existing objectives: This grant seeks to provide a voice for the County Council at a national level to influence policy in relation to the environmental and educational opportunities of school grounds.

(b) Assessment: Over time, the message that the grant sought to deliver has been heard and responded to, both at a national and local level. These aspects are addressed sufficiently through the work of the County Council without the need to employ external support.

4.2. The analysis set out above indicates that there is a need for a more detailed review of the grant objectives for each of the areas of service. This is particularly in relation to the sustainability and behavioural change agenda which need to be better represented in the objectives. It is intended that, following this Executive Member decision, the process and timetable will be:

(i) November 2009 - draft revised grant agreements;

(ii) November 2009 - publish the grant details, without financial details, on the County Council web site for information;

(iii) January - March 2010 (subject to the County Council budgetary decision timetable) - add the level of funding to each grant and invite applications for the grants; and

(iv) March 2010 - Executive Member decision on the allocation of grants to particular organisations.

5. Finance

5.1. In the 2009-10 financial year grants totalling £89,000 were paid to voluntary and community organisations to deliver the environmental services set out in paragraph 4.1 (i) to (v).

5.2. The level of financial support for grants in 2010-11 will be determined during the Winter of 2009-10.

6. Performance

6.1. Grant programmes are monitored for their performance against specific criteria on a regular basis.

7. Recommendations

7.1. That the priorities for the provision of Environmental Services delivered through grants from the Environment Department are:

(i) supporting and promoting sustainable development;

(ii) improving the environment and quality of life;

(iii) supporting communities to develop local environmental initiatives; and

(iv) providing information and advice to raise awareness of sustainability and climate change issues to encourage behavioural change.

7.2 That the objectives for provision of Environmental Services grants are amended in accordance with paragraphs 3.1 (i) to (iv) of the report.

2188Rpt/1040/DC

CORPORATE OR LEGAL INFORMATION:

Links to the Corporate Strategy

IMPACT ASSESSMENTS:

1. Equalities Impact Assessment:

1.1. No adverse impact has been identified in terms of race, creed or gender.

2. Impact on Crime and Disorder:

2.1. No adverse impact.

3. Climate Change:

a) How does what is being proposed impact on our carbon footprint / energy consumption?

No impact.

b) How does what is being proposed consider the need to adapt to climate change, and be resilient to its longer term impacts?

Many of the activities undertaken by the Environmental Service Providers respond to the issue of climate change, through providing advice to land managers and the public on ways to adapt to a changing climate. It is intended that this will be enhanced through the review process.