Minutes of the meeting held on 4 September 2012.

Resolved: that the minutes of the meeting held on 4 September 2012, be approved and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

Any interests not already registered.

There were no declarations of interest.

The actions from previous meetings were noted.

Members will develop a schedule of work over the year to reflect the terms of reference of the Committee focussing on the Council's priorities for policy development. This includes opportunities to invite  other organisations who provide services in the District to provide information to the Committee and discuss issues of importance to the Community.

The Committee noted that a report on designated zones for air quality management would be presented to the meeting on 19 March 2013.

Verbal presentations.

The Chairman introduced the following witnesses:

Mike Gibson – Southeastern Trains

Yvonne Leslie – Southern Railways

Roger Johnson – Sevenoaks Rail Travellers Association

Bob Howes – Edenbridge Rail Travellers Association

Cllr Clayton – Sevenoaks Town Council

Cllr Robson – Edenbridge Town Council

Southern Railways

Ms Leslie provided an update to the Committee which covered the following issues:

·         the timetable was changed twice a year, this year the changes in December would  coincide with the work that was being carried out at London Bridge Station which would result in some short-term disruption.  The timetable had been amended to reflect this and an additional service from Uckfield had been added in the morning.

·         the rolling stock was currently being refreshed and  refurbished.

·         A new smart card was being issued as an alternative to paper tickets.

·         The current franchise ran until July 2015.  A consultation had been undertaken concerning a “super-franchise” whereby Southern Railways would be assumed into Thameslink.

In response to a question regarding the census for the 8:04 from Uckfield, Ms Leslie reported that a new census may have already been undertaken and that she should report back to Sevenoaks District Council with further information.  This information could be passed to the Edenbridge Rail Travellers Association.

            Action: that information received from Southern Railways be passed to the Edenbridge Rail Travellers Association.

In response to a question surrounding the process for auditing the procedure for rail fare increases, Ms Leslie reported that fare increases for regulated fares had to be approved by the Department for Transport.

Southeastern Trains

Mr Gibson provided an update to the Committee which covered the following issues:

·         Average performance for the past 12 months had been 91.9%.

·         Performance during the Olympics and Paralympics was excellent with 98+% achieved on many days.

·         Southeastern and Network Rail had invested heavily in winter preparation measures.  Southeastern were hopeful that in the event of below freezing temperatures services could be maintained.  However, if there was severe, sustained and heavy snowfall Southeastern could not guarantee that services would run as normal.

·         Southeastern were keen to improve communication and earlier in the year a Twitter data feed, automated email alerts and an i-phone App had been launched.

·         This year fares would rise by an average of 4.2%

·         A number of improvements had been made to Sevenoaks and Swanley Stations as part of the National Stations Improvement Programme.

Councillor Tony Clayton from Sevenoaks Town Council reported that it would be helpful for information on local bus services to be provided at the station to assist commuters and that the Town Council was interested in providing a screen at the station which cold be used for this purpose.

Representing the Sevenoaks Rail Travellers Association, Mr Johnson highlighted that approximately 4 million train journeys a year began or ended at Sevenoaks.  The need to maintain a good rail service in order to make Sevenoaks an attractive place to live or work was also highlighted.  Mr Johnson also suggested that it would be helpful for  ...  view the full minutes text for item 22.

The Group Manager – Planning introduced the report and explained to the Committee that the application for a neighbourhood plan area for Shoreham covered the whole Parish, including Badgers Mount.  However, Full Council was shortly to determine whether a new Badgers Mount Parish Council should be established in 2015.  In the light of this proposed future change to parish boundaries, it was considered that the administrative area of Shoreham Parish Council may not be an appropriate neighbourhood plan area.  Further engagement with Shoreham Parish Council and Badgers Mount Residents Association would be necessary to determine an acceptable way forward on this issue.  The Group Manager – Planning  therefore proposed that the recommendation to the Environment Select Committee be amended and that an additional recommendation be included:

Recommendation (b) be amended to:

That Portfolio Holder approval is sought for the designation of Neighbourhood

Plan Areas for Edenbridge and Ash- cum Ridley.

Additional recommendation:

That the Portfolio Holder decision on the Shoreham Parish Council Neighbourhood Plan Area application be deferred until after Full Council make the decision on whether a new Badgers Mount Parish Council should be formed in 2015. 

In response to a question the Group Manager – Planning reported that there was nothing in statute limiting the life of a Village Design Statement.  Over time it was possible that Statements could become out of date and the relevance of the document would depend on the amount of change in an area however, responsibility for making changes to the documents would rest with the local Parish Council.

Resolved: That

a)     the Portfolio Holder be recommended to approve the adoption of Seal and Underriver Village Design Statements and Otford Parish Plan Supplementary Planning Documents;

b)     the Portfolio Holder be recommended to approve the designation of Neighbourhood Plan Areas for Edenbridge and Ash-cum Ridley; and

c)      the Portfolio Holder decision on the Shoreham Parish Council Neighbourhood Plan Area application be deferred until after Full Council make the decision on whether a new Badgers Mount Parish Council should be formed in 2015.

Members considered the annual review of parking charges which proposed options for increases in respect to car park and on street parking charges to meet the budget for 2013/14.  The Committee also gave consideration to proposals for free Christmas parking for 2012.

The Parking and Amenity Manager explained that all the car park options put before the Committee achieved the 3.5% increase in charges reflected in the 10 year budget.

Councillor Mrs Purves proposed and Councillor Mrs Dibsdall seconded the following motion:

Sevenoaks car park changes should not be raised but be kept at the current level in order to encourage people in this difficult economic climate to come into the town and use the shops and other services.

The Chairman noted that this proposal would represent a loss of approximately £60,000 and these savings would have to be found elsewhere in the budget.

The Committee held a debate on the proposed motion.  The motion was put to the vote and LOST.

It was suggested that increases should be applied to the Blighs car park with others slightly further out from the town centre remaining as they are.  People could choose between paying higher charges for the convenience of parking very close to the shops or paying less but with a longer walk to the shops.  Members were supportive of this proposal and went on to discuss the merits of increasing the 1 hour charge in the Buckhurst 1, Buckhurst 2, South Park, Suffolk way and Pembroke Road car parks by 10p to £1.00.

Councillor Grint proposed and Councillor Eyre seconded that all on-street parking charges for 30 minute short stay parking be raised from 10p to 20p

The motion was put to the vote and there voted –

13 votes in favour of the motion

2 votes against the motion

The Chairman declared the motion to be CARRIED.

The Chairman proposed the following increases:

The motion was put to the vote and CARRIED.

In considering the issue of free Christmas parking, a Councillor reported that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

Members considered a report setting out proposals for updates to the 2013/14 budget within the existing framework of the 10 year budget and 4 year savings plan.  The report presented some service changes that had been identified by managers and the changes needed to be considered before the budget for 2013/14 was finalised.

The Group Manager – Financial Services introduced the report and explained that consultation with the Select Committees was the second stage of the budget setting process.  The Committee was informed that due to the uncertainties in the budget, specifically the Government settlement and levels of Council Tax, it was possible that further reports would be presented to the Select Committees in January asking Members for their ideas of where further savings could be achieved.

In response to a question about the use of barristers for planning appeals, the Finance Manager reported that if appellants instructed a barrister, Sevenoaks District Council would normally also instruct a barrister.  

Resolved: That the views of the Committee be put forward to Cabinet at its meeting on 6 December 2012.