To receive announcements from:
(a) The Mayor
(b) Leader of the Council
(c) Members of the Cabinet
(d) Chair of Committees
(e) Head of Paid Service
Minutes:
The Mayor
47.1 The Mayor thanked Members for attending the recent Remembrance Sunday commemorations.
Leader of the Council
47.2 Councillor Cook announced that Councillor Morgan would be standing down from his role of Cabinet Member for Culture and Leisure and that Councillor Lewis would take up the position. He thanked Councillor Morgan for all his hard work over recent years and, in particular, all the events he had been involved with organizing and promoting.
47.3 Councillor Cook announced that Gloucester’s bid to the ‘Levelling Up’ fund had been successful and that a £20m award had been made to support ongoing projects including the Forge, the Fleece and the University of Gloucestershire developing the former Debenhams building.
Members of the Cabinet
47.4 The Cabinet Member for Culture reminded Members that the lantern procession (as part of the Bright Nights festival) would take place on Sunday 26 September beginning at Blackfriars. He also informed Members that £270k worth of grants to the City had been awarded by both the Government and various organisations. Teams had been able to put on some very successful events and that more were sure to follow.
47.5 Noting that this would be his final meeting as Cabinet Member, Councillor Morgan paid tribute to his predecessor, the late Councillor Noakes, who had laid significant groundwork for all the good work over the last few years. He thanked his Cabinet colleagues and Members more widely for their support.
47.6 He also thanked all the officers who had given invaluable advice and insight and welcomed Councillor Lewis to the role. In closing, Councillor Morgan paid tribute to his wife for her support, patience and understanding during his time as Cabinet Member.
47.7 The Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing Strategy, Councillor Gravells, reiterated the Council continuing to support the aim of to rehouse Afghan refugees. Three families had moved in thus far while two families were almost at the stage where they were ready to move into properties.
47.8 Further, Councillor Gravells informed Members that a further three properties had been offered. He also announced that the Council had been awarded £145k as an exceptional winter ‘top up’ which was additional funding to be used to hep some of the most vulnerable people in Gloucester. With cold weather approaching, Councillor Gravells reminded Members that if they were to encounter someone sleeping rough, to inform Street Link – details of which would be circulated.
47.9 The Cabinet Member for Communities and Neighbourhoods, Councillor Hudson, informed Members that a recent bid to the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) had been successful. The award was worth £500k for the City with a further £500k being made available for the County as a whole. These funds would be used to support measures surrounding Gloucester Park and targeted towards women and girls’ safety. The next step would be to ascertain from women and girls what they would like to see being done to ensure their safety. Councillor Hudson thanked the OPCC for their consideration and for the award.
Head of Paid Service
47.10 The Head of Paid Service informed Members that this would be the Head of Place’s final Council meeting as he was to take up a Directorship in his home authority. He paid tribute to his achievements while at Gloucester City including the ongoing regeneration of the City and the recently successful levelling up bid.