Agenda, decisions and minutes

To consider any business, which by reason of special circumstances, the Chair proposes to accept, under Section 100(b)(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

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Please indicate if there are any interests which should be declared.  A declaration of an interest should indicate the nature of the interest (if not already declared on the Register of Interests) and the agenda item to which it relates.  If a disclosable pecuniary interest is declared, the member should withdraw from the room whilst the matter is discussed.

These declarations apply to all Members present, whether the Member is part of the meeting, attending to speak as a local Member on an item or simply observing the meeting from the public seating area.

Councillors Long and Middleton declared a non pecuniary interest in the Levelling up Fund Application in item 6 as Council appointed Directors of the Alive Leisure Board.  They did not vote on the recommendations for that report.

Councillor Dark declared a non pecuniary interest as a family group user of Alive venues.

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Councillors Long and Middleton declared a non pecuniary interest in the Levelling Up Fund Application in item   as Council appointed Directors of the Alive West Norfolk Board as the Company operated the Oasis and this is expected to continue.  They did not vote on the recommendations for that report.

Councillor Dark declared a non pecuniary interest as a family group user of Alive venues.

To receive any Chair’s correspondence.

The Chair drew attention to correspondence he had received from James Wild MP and Hunstanton Town Council both of whom had written in support of the Council’s Levelling Up Bid.

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The Chair drew attention to correspondence he had received from James Wild MP and Hunstanton Town Council both of whom had written in support of the Council’s Levelling Up Bid.

To note the names of any Councillors who wish to address the meeting under Standing Order 34.

Members wishing to speak pursuant to Standing Order 34 should inform the Chair of their intention to do so and on what items they wish to be heard before a decision on that item is taken.

Under standing order 34 Councillors A Kemp and M de Whalley attended for items 6, 7 and 8

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Under standing order 34 Councillors A Kemp and M de Whalley attended for items CAB28, 29 and 30

To receive any comments and recommendations from other Council bodies which meet after the dispatch of this agenda. 

The Regeneration and Development Panel on 23 June had considered the reports on the agenda.

The Panel had supported the recommendations on items 6 and 7, and recommended an amendment to item 8.  These were discussed with each item on the agenda.

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The Regeneration and Development Panel on 23 June had considered the reports on the agenda.

The Panel had supported the recommendations on items CAB 28 and 29, and recommended an amendment to item CAB30.  These were discussed with each item on the agenda.

RESOLVED:            1)         That the submission of the Oasis project under round 2 of the Levelling Up Fund as set out in the report be approved.

2)          That delegated authority be granted to the Chief Executive and S151 Officer, in consultation with the Leader, Portfolio Holder for Development & Regeneration and Portfolio Holder for Finance to agree the final application to be submitted to government by 6 July 2022.

3)            That the budget as set out in the report be approved to undertake further due diligence and development of project delivery requirements for the Oasis project in the period up to the outcome of the bid which is expected at the end of 2022.

4)            That subject to the successful outcome of the bid, a separate report be brought to Cabinet to approve the final scope of the Oasis project and to amend the capital programme for 2022-26 to incorporate the match funding and delivery requirements of the project.

Reason for Decision

To secure investment in the borough to support the ambitions to level up West Norfolk

The portfolio holder change to recommendation 2 reflects the interests declared in the meeting.

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Cabinet considered a report which provided an overview of the government’s Levelling Up Fund round 2 prospectus and requirements and opportunity for the Borough Council to submit an application, as a category 1, location by 6^th July 2022.

The report recommended to Cabinet that a replacement for the Oasis leisure centre in Hunstanton be submitted under round 2 of the Levelling Up Fund.  This project would provide a new leisure and entertainment centre on a new site which would include and expand on the existing provision to meet the needs of the growing local communities and serve to support, grow and extend the season for the extremely important tourism economy of the area.

The Chair read letters of support for the Bid from James Wild MP and Hunstanton Town Council, and made reference to the support of the Town Deal Board and the Hunstanton Advisory group.  He also referred to the unprecedented positive response to the public consultation carried out on the proposal.

Under standing order 34 Councillors Kemp and de Whalley both expressed their support for the bid.

It was noted that the Regeneration and Development Panel had endorsed the recommendations.

Cabinet debated the item, congratulations were made to both Borough Council and Norfolk County Council officers who had worked tirelessly to bring this forward.  Support for the Bid was unanimous amongst Cabinet, with comments made supporting the inclusion of indoor bowling.

The Monitoring officer had offered advice on the issue of voting on the matter, Councillor Long expressed regret that he would have to abstain in the vote as he did support the proposal.

As the Deputy Leader had been advised to abstain as an Alive Board Member, it was agreed that the portfolio holder  in recommendation 2 should be replace with the Portfolio holder for Development and Regeneration.

In summing up the Leader confirmed it was a great opportunity for Hunstanton and the Borough which had the support of all parties.

RESOLVED:            1)         That the submission of the Oasis project under round 2 of the Levelling Up Fund as set out in the report be approved.

2)          That delegated authority be granted to the Chief Executive and S151 Officer, in consultation with the Leader, Portfolio Holder for Development and Regeneration and Portfolio Holder for Finance to agree the final application to be submitted to government by 6 July 2022.

3)            That the budget as set out in the report be approved to undertake further due diligence and development of project delivery requirements for the Oasis project in the period up to the outcome of the bid which is expected at the end of 2022.

4)            That subject to the successful outcome of the bid, a separate report be brought to Cabinet to approve the final scope of the Oasis project and to amend the capital programme for 2022-26 to incorporate the match funding and delivery requirements of the project.

Reason for Decision  ...  view the full minutes text for item CAB28

RESOLVED:             1)         That the application being made by Norfolk County Council (appendix 1 to the report) be supported,  and a letter of support be provided.

2)            That in principle support to provide a land value contribution to the scheme be given, subject to a further report to cabinet once details of the scheme and land required is confirmed, if the application by Norfolk County Council is successful.

Reason for Decision

To secure investment to deliver transformation improvements at the Southgates and the Gyratory which are key gateways into King’s Lynn and to support delivery of priorities set out in the King’s Lynn Town Investment Plan

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Cabinet considered a report presented by Vince Muspratt, Director for Growth and Economic Development, which provided an overview of Norfolk County Council’s proposed application under the Transport strand of round 2 of the Levelling Up Fund. The report set out the proposed scheme to be submitted by 6 July 2022 and sought Borough Council support for the application. 

Norfolk County Council’s proposed submission proposed to include the Gyratory and Southgates schemes which had been under development as part of the King’s Lynn Town Investment Plan and Heritage Action Zone programme. Details of the rationale and approach for the application are set out in appendix 1. If the application is successful, the scheme would provide highways, public transport cycling, walking and public realm infrastructure to support the wider redevelopment and regeneration of the 2 key gateways to the town centre.

Under standing order 34 Councillor Kemp spoke in support of the Bid, but urged feasibility studies to be carried out, and encouraged the inclusion of the Ferry into any bid.

Councillor de Whalley supported the bid, and stressed the importance of the active travel component.

Cabinet debated the report, and members expressed their delight at its inclusion in the County Councils plans which included a strong element of walking and cycling. They thanked the Officers and Members at the County Council who had worked on this bid. 

In response to a question Mr Muspratt also confirmed that the plan was for a street level proposal supported by traffic lights, not a flyover. He confirmed there was still a lot of work to be carried out on this project.

Cabinet acknowledged that it was not appropriate to include the Ferry into this bid. 

It was noted that the Regeneration and Development Panel had endorsed the recommendations.

In summing up the Chair drew attention to the high level of funding coming into the Borough from the Government in recent times. He welcomed the bid and thanked all those involved.

RESOLVED: 1)         That the application being made by Norfolk County Council (appendix 1 to the report) be supported,  and a letter of support be provided.

2)            That in principle support to provide a land value contribution to the scheme be given, subject to a further report to cabinet once details of the scheme and land required is confirmed, if the application by Norfolk County Council is successful.

Reason for Decision

To secure investment to deliver transformation improvements at the Southgates and the Gyratory which are key gateways into King’s Lynn and to support delivery of priorities set out in the King’s Lynn Town Investment Plan

RESOLVED:  1)         That the draft Business Case as set out in appendix 1 to the report be endorsed.

2)         That delegated authority be granted to the Chief Executive, the Deputy Leader and the Portfolio Holder for Development and Regeneration to approve the final Business Case in their capacity as representatives of the Council on the Town Deal Board.

3)            That delegated authority be granted to the Section 151 Officer to approve the final Business Case and sign the Business Case Summary Document for submission to government in the Council’s capacity as Accountable Body for the Town Deal.  

Reason for Decision

To approve the Business Case as the Accountable Body for the Towns Fund to ensure the funding is secured to deliver the Guildhall & Creative Hub project; to deliver the investment priorities in the Town Investment Plan for King’s Lynn and support the long term economic prosperity of the town.

Cabinet did not accept the additional recommendation from the Panel at this stage as the information would be provided further down the line, once the business case had been submitted, as the timeframes for submission were exceedingly tight.

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Cabinet was reminded that King’s Lynn was awarded by Government a £25m ‘Town Deal’ in June 2021, subject to the completion of business cases for the projects approved under the Heads of Terms offer.

The objective of the Towns Fund programme was to drive the sustainable economic regeneration of towns to support long term economic and productivity growth. A Town Deal was a three-way agreement in principle between Government, the lead local authority and the Town Deal Board.

The report summarised the business case for the St George’s Guildhall and Creative Hub project for approval by the Cabinet in the Council’s capacity as the “Accountable Body” to MHCLG and as part of the Council’s role on the Town Deal Board.

Under standing order 34 Councillor Kemp spoke in support of the proposal as an important educational facility.  She made reference to the loss of some storage facilities for some organisations, to which it was confirmed that it was all part of the review of the use of complex.

Councillor de Whalley spoke in support of the business case and encouraged the community to unite behind the bid.

Cabinet debated the report and noted that the results for of the Heritage Lottery Bid were still expected, but all were encouraged to support the project which also had the support of the National Trust.  Thanks were made for the work previously carried out by Councillor Nockolds on the Guildhall.

In summing up the Chair drew attention to the investment being made across the board for the area, and commented on the history of the Guildhall building  and the potential for the project.  He drew attention to the recommendations from the Regeneration and Development Panel who had recommended an additional piece at the end of recommendation 1 as follows:

“…subject to the inclusion of statements that demonstrate greater clarity of operations, finances and the outputs and outcomes of the Creative Hub.”

Cabinet debated the recommendation and agreed that the information requested would be forthcoming further down the line of the project, but at this stage the deadlines were too tight to be able to include the additional information requested.  Cabinet agreed that it would not adopt the additional wording from the Panel.

Cabinet agreed it did not wish to go into exempt session to debate the exempt financial information.

On being put to the vote the recommendations set out in the report were agreed.

RESOLVED: 1)         That the draft Business Case as set out in appendix 1 to the report be endorsed.

2)         That delegated authority be granted to the Chief Executive, the Deputy Leader and the Portfolio Holder for Development and Regeneration to approve the final Business Case in their capacity as representatives of the Council on the Town Deal Board.

3)            That delegated authority be granted to the Section 151 Officer to approve the final Business Case and sign the Business Case Summary Document for submission to government in  ...  view the full minutes text for item CAB30