RECOMMENDED:
- The Council endorses the Vision Manifesto
(appendix 1) and the Business Plan (appendix 2) for the Centre for
submission to the Towns Fund and NHLF.
- That following consideration of the
options for securing funding for the Guildhall and Creative Hub set
out in section 4, the council agrees to amend the capital programme
as set out in section 7.3 in the report, to underwrite the match
funding required in order to secure the Towns Fund
allocation.
- In the event the NLHF Stage 1 or 2
applications are not successful, a further report be brought back
to Cabinet and relevant Panels to confirm the final project scope
and extent of funding required as detailed in section 7.3 of the
report
- That following a consideration of the
options for a governance and operating model that a new separate
entity is formed. That on consideration of options (appendix 3),
that this entity is a newly formed for purpose Charitable
Incorporated Organisation (CIO).
- That the process of forming a new
Independent CIO with a wholly owned trading subsidiary is commenced
and matters relating to this including:
·
Finalising the constitution and Governing Document the way
the CIO will run
·
Selecting the Chair
and two initial trustees before an application to the Charities
Commission is made as detailed in section 5 of the
report.
·
Choosing a
name
are delegated to the Monitoring Officer and
Chief Executive in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for
Business, Culture and Heritage and the newly formed task
group.
- The financial implications of the
decisions as set out in section 7 of this report are endorsed and
reflected in the Council’s Financial Plan from 2025
onwards
- Delegate authority to the Assistant
Director for Property & Projects in consultation with the
Portfolio Holder for Commercial Property to negotiate and conclude
the leases with existing tenants.
Reason for Decision
To provide the match funding evidence for
the ‘Guildhall and Creative Hub’ to secure the
£4.8m Towns Fund allocation.
A
timely decision about how a future enterprise will be governed and
the model under which it will operate is an important part of
planning the ‘Guildhall and Creative Hub’
project and the associated funding submissions. The
decision will demonstrate to funding bodies that the council is
giving careful consideration and certainty at this stage to the
future sustainability of the investment being sought and the key
documents that will define the relationship between the council and
the entity that will run the Guildhall and Creative Hub.
The project directly supports
and will deliver against the Council’s commitment and
ambitions for culture as set out in the Council’s Cultural
Prospectus and Town Investment Plan (2021).