Agenda item

To consider the report of the Leader of the Council and the Cabinet Member for Performance and Resources concerning the draft Council Plan 2017-20 and outlining the timetable for the development of the final Plan.

79.1    The Leader of the Council presented the draft Council Plan 2017–20 and outlined the timetable for development of the final plan including the identification of key projects and measures to monitor progress against the priorities and promises.

79.2    The Leader of the Council stated that the plan set out priorities for the Council and, whilst it was a balanced Plan, it was not an exhaustive list of activities and further detail would be developed as part of service planning process.

79.3    He referred Council to the timetable set out at paragraph 7.1 and stated that the Plan would deliver election pledges made last year.

79.4    He would welcome constructive comments.

79.5    Councillor Hilton stated that Council had to ensure that the Plan was as robust as possible. He called for a further priority “Working for a greener, healthier City”.

79.6    He believed that the draft Plan should be the subject of a single item meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee and he hoped that the Leader and the Managing Director would talk to the opposition groups as they also wanted the best for Gloucester.

79.7    Councillor Pullen referred to the second bullet point under ‘Working to build strong and resilient communities’ which he believed to be ironic. He believed that, given the massive cuts in the Council’s budget, it was tall order to expect Members to believe the promises in the Plan.

79.8    Councillor Wilson noted that free Wifi was not included in the achievements. He noted that deprivation in Gloucester was the highest in the County and he considered that the Plan contained very little on how it was intended to tackle the social problems it had identified.

79.9    Councillor Haigh noted the importance of balanced consultation. She expressed the following concerns:-

·         She noted that the Plan referred to alternatives to Asset Based Community Development but did not provide any details.

·         No mention of people with protected characteristics

·         More detail required for reporting software

·         No reference to the diversity of the cultural offer

·         More detail required on housing ownership

·         Page 59 required separate paragraphs for unrelated items.

79.10 Councillor Stephens echoed Councillor Hilton’s comments and believed that it was important for all Members to contribute to the Plan.

79.11  He welcomed the Plan but noted that it would be difficult to deliver and that could not be done by the Council in isolation. He noted that Council did not have a good record in delivering affordable housing through private sector development.

79.12  He noted that Parry Hall went to the County Council in an anomaly of the 1974 local government reorganisation and called for it to be retained for community use.

79.13  Councillor Watkins, Cabinet Member for Communities and Neighbourhoods welcomed the feedback on the draft Plan. She acknowledged that the Council could not deliver the Plan on its own and stated that it would continue to invest in the Voluntary and Community Sector both financially and in other ways.

79.14  She noted that Asset Based Community Development had delivered good results in Podsmead and advised that discussions were continuing with the County Council regarding Parry Hall and other buildings.

79.15  Councillor David Norman, Cabinet Member for Performance and Resources believed that the Plan demonstrated the City’s journey in recent years but there was still far to go.

79.16  He noted that local government must demonstrate efficiency and provide value for money and the Council would continue to find new ways of doing things and adopt an entrepreneurial approach.

79.17  He believed that everybody in the Council Chamber shared a passion for Gloucester and that passion must be demonstrated for every part of the City.

79.18  He believed that in future years Councillors could look back with pride on what the Council had achieved for those that live and work in our City.

79.19  Councillor James stated that ‘green and healthier’ could be addressed under other headings and there was a report on deprivation scheduled on the Cabinet Forward Plan.

79.20  He confirmed that the other parties would be consulted regarding consultation on the draft Plan and he would be grateful to receive positive comments.

79.21  RESOLVED that

(1)          The draft Council Plan 2017-20 be noted;

(2)          The timetable for the development and finalisation of the Council Plan 2017-20 be approved.