Issue - meetings

Following consideration of a report of the Corporate Manager for Public Health, Regulation and Housing, the Homes Policy Development Group has made the following recommendations:

a)    The procedure shown at Appendix A which is designed to ensure that the conflicting needs of stakeholders are taken into account when residents make requests regarding different maintenance arrangements/agreements relating to the upkeep of grass verges and other grassed areas on the housing estate. 

b)    An increase in the Environmental Improvement Budget to £10,000 and a review of the procedures relating to it to ensure that it can be better used to support initiatives designed to encourage greater biodiversity.

Following consideration of a report of the Corporate Manager for Public Health, Regulation and Housing, the Homes Policy Development Group had made the following recommendations:

a)    The procedure shown at Appendix A which is designed to ensure that the conflicting needs of stakeholders are taken into account when residents make requests regarding different maintenance arrangements/agreements relating to the upkeep of grass verges and other grassed areas on the housing estate. 

b)    An increase in the Environmental Improvement Budget to £10,000 and a review of the procedures relating to it to ensure that it can be better used to support initiatives designed to encourage greater biodiversity.

The Cabinet Member for Housing and Property Services outlined the contents of the report highlighting the work of the Task and Finish Group that had made recommendations to the Homes Policy Development Group.  He informed the meeting that there were many strands associated with the service delivery in relation to grounds maintenance in general and grass cutting on housing estates and that the process map attached to the report considered the variety of requests for grass-cutting and how this would be progressed.

Consideration was given to:

·         Health and safety and biodiversity issues

·         The need to explore this work as part of the Climate Action Plan

·         The work of the Neighbourhood Officers

·         A review would take place in 12 months.

RESOLVED that the recommendations of the Policy Development Group be approved.

(Proposed by Cllr R B Evans and seconded by Cllr C R Slade)

Reason for the decision: In order for a policy/procedure to be in place which provides a decision making framework for officers within the Estates team to use when considering requests made by different stakeholders.

Note:  *Report previously circulated, copy attached to minutes.

To receive a report from the Corporate Manager for Public Health, Regulation and Housing setting out a policy/procedure relating to a decision-making framework which was agreed at the meeting of the Grass Verges Task and Finish Group held on 11 November 2020.

The Group had before it a report * from the Corporate Manager for Public Health, Regulation and Housing setting out a policy / procedure relating to a decision making framework which was agreed at the meeting of the Grass Verges Task and Finish Group held on 11 November 2020.

The work of the Task and Finish Group was explained. The Chairman of the Task and Finish Group provided the following summary of the discussions that had taken place:

·         He thanked the Members and officers who had worked hard to try and ascertain what was needed.

·         Initially there had been discussions about viewing all 180 maps showing the areas of land in question. This had felt like an impossible task, he had therefore spent time with the Operations Manager for Housing trying to understand the true scale of the problem. It had transpired that issues existed in a few areas only and related to areas which were part owned by private individuals and partly rented by council tenants. Individuals from each group had had their own ideas about how grassed areas were to be dealt with. A procedure was needed to help resolve queries going forwards.

·         He had also spoken to Cllr Eginton on this issue who had a deal of knowledge in this area. 

Discussion took place regarding:

·         There were specific issues in Shobrooke which this procedure may not be helpful in resolving.

·         Site visits were very difficult during the pandemic.

·         ‘One size did not fit all’ and a review would be needed in the near future to see if the procedure was working. It was confirmed that the procedure would be reviewed in 12 months time.

RECOMMENDED to the Cabinet that the following be approved:

a)    The procedure shown at Appendix A which is designed to ensure that the conflicting needs of stakeholders are taken into account when residents make requests regarding different maintenance arrangements/agreements relating to the upkeep of grass verges and other grassed areas on the housing estate. 

b)    An increase in the Environmental Improvement Budget to £10,000 and a review of the procedures relating to it to ensure that it can be better used to support initiatives designed to encourage greater biodiversity.

(Proposed by Cllr C Eginton and seconded by Cllr R Dolley)

Reason for the decision:

In order for a policy / procedure to be in place which provides a decision making framework for officers within the Estates team to use when considering requests made by different stakeholders.

Note: (i) * Report previously circulated; copy attached to the signed minutes.

(ii) A proposal to defer a decision until there had been some further dialogue with the necessary parties involved was not supported.