In the interests of transparency, Councillor Farley disclosed, in respect of the item relating to the Affordable Housing Progamme (Minute 25), that two of the schemes were within his Ward.

In the interests of transparency, Councillor Mallinson disclosed, in respect of the item relating to the Affordable Housing Progamme (Minute 25), that he was a Member of the Incommunities Board.

(Access to Information Procedure Rules – Part 3B of the Constitution)

Reports and background papers for agenda items may be inspected by contacting the person shown after each agenda item.  Certain reports and background papers may be restricted. 

Any request to remove the restriction on a report or background paper should be made to the relevant Strategic Director or Assistant Director whose name is shown on the front page of the report. 

If that request is refused, there is a right of appeal to this meeting. 

Please contact the officer shown below in advance of the meeting if you wish to appeal. 

(Asad Shah - 01274 432280)

There were no appeals submitted by the public to review decisions to restrict documents.

Any referrals that have been made to this Committee up to and including the date of publication of this agenda will be reported at the meeting.

There were no referrals to the Committee.

The Regeneration and Economy Overview and Scrutiny Committee will receive an update report (Document “J”) on Affordable Housing – REPORTTO FOLLOW.

(Julie Rhodes – 01274 431163)

Council Standing Orders – Part 3A of the Constitution: Due to the non-availability of Document “J” five clear working days before the day of the meeting, the Appropriate Officer will report the reasons for its non-availability  to the meeting.

The Strategic Director, Regeneration presented a report (Document “J”) which provided an update on the progress being made with the Council’s Affordable Housing Programme and also advised the Committee of the forthcoming procurement of contracts, associated with the delivery of the programme, which had a value in excess of £2 million.

In presenting the report the following matters were highlighted:

·         The Council had, to date, completed the development of 176 affordable rented properties.

·         The 2015/18 Programme would deliver a further 157 units across six sites, which included 18 providing temporary accommodation for homeless people.

·         Two of the six sites would provide cross-subsidy funding through a proportion of the properties being sold on the open market.

·         Four of the schemes were already on-site.

·         A key feature of the programme was that it would pay for itself; the rental income would fund the housing management role and repayment of borrowing. In addition there would be a small surplus from Year 5 onwards which would fund on-going maintenance.

·         £3 million New Homes Bonus would also be generated.

Photos of the completed developments were displayed and details of the schemes provided.  It was noted that all the homes had been built to very high standards and that one of the schemes had brought empty homes back into use.

Apologies were offered to the Committee as two of the associated contracts, in excess of £2 million, had been awarded without prior submission to Members. A Member of the Committee pointed out that this was not the first time that such matters had not been reported to Overview and Scrutiny before the event and this was a matter of concern.

The Director responded to questions from Members as follows:

·         In terms of the sites that would provide cross-subsidy funding from sales; they had been chosen on the basis of where the highest yield would be realised. These receipts would be used to subsidise development across the district.

·         On the Baildon site 33 of the 70 properties would be available for rent at an affordable rent, which would be 80% of market rent.  Efforts had been made to maximise the number of rental properties that would be available but the receipts from the sale of these properties was needed to deliver the programme.

·         Consultation had been undertaken on Government proposals to change New Homes Bonus from a six year to a four year programme.  The Authority had provided a response to the consultation exercise but no results had been published at this stage. It was anticipated that any such change would have been noted as a potential risk by the Director of Finance.

·         There had been three bidders for the housing management role contract.

·         A number of Housing Associations had been granted funding by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) to build 756 affordable properties across the district; this total included the 139 to be built by the Council.  The total figures for the district and the numbers of such properties that would be provided  ...  view the full minutes text for item 24.

City Plan is the delivery plan and framework for partnership working to achieve a decade of regeneration and economic growth in Bradford City Centre. It was endorsed by the Council’s Executive on the 10 February 2015.

The report of the Strategic Director, Regeneration (Document “K”) outlines the successes of City Plan to date, restates its objectives and outlines the Council’s draft priorities for 2017 – 2019.

Recommended –

Members are requested to note progress with the delivery of City Plan.

(Nick Ackroyd – 01274 432272)

‘City Plan’ was the delivery plan and framework for partnership working to achieve a decade of regeneration and economic growth in Bradford City Centre. It had been endorsed by the Council’s Executive on 10 February 2015.

The report of the Strategic Director, Regeneration (Document “K”) set out the progress made since the adoption of the City Plan in February 2015.  It explained that a review of the objectives and priorities was now in progress, in order to ensure that they remained valid in the light of the changes in the City Centre and other wider regional and national influences, and outlined the emerging areas for action and the proposed next steps.

Photographs to illustrate some of the successes of the plan were displayed.

In response to questions from Members, the Strategic Director, Regeneration explained that:

·         A senior officer workshop had reviewed the existing priorities and the next stage was to hold a wider discussion with other sections of the Council involved in delivery of the priorities.

·         It was accepted that the timescale for the review was tight. The consultation would not be as extensive as for that for the original City Plan but would include significant stakeholders who had contributed to the delivery of its objectives to date.

·         The Odeon project was moving forward. The Council was working closely with an Events Company and the process was at the business plan/finance raising stage. It was hoped that negotiations would be successfully concluded by the end of the year.  If an agreement could not be reached the Council would have to re-consider its position and consider all options.  There were deadlines in place.

·         The ‘Top of Town’ area was not as healthy as it had once been and this locality was a clear priority.

·         Cities evolved over time and the Authority had to deal with that.  It was known that the Broadway development had impacted on other areas and a lot of work had been/was being undertaken with independent businesses particularly in respect of the ‘Top of Town’.  Increasing the amount of residential use in the city centre was also a priority.  There was no ‘Plan A’ or ‘Plan B’ but rather an evolving programme of activities.

·         The Council was well aware of concerns in respect of anti-social behaviour and its effects on the City Centre.  Action had recently been taken by the Police which had resulted in a significant reduction in the numbers of street drinkers and rough sleepers.  An Alcohol Prohibition Order was also being implemented in public areas.  Work was being undertaken with the Council’s partners on this issue and it was considered that there had been a significant improvement.

·         A lot of work had been done to promote Bradford as a Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) stop and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority was supportive of the creation of a station in Bradford; work was progressing in respect of how/where this might be implemented.

·         It was accepted that there was a need to attract people from outside Bradford  ...  view the full minutes text for item 25.

The Regeneration and Economy Overview and Scrutiny Committee will receive an update report (Document “L”) on the work of the Asset Management Team – REPORT TO FOLLOW.

(Ben Middleton – 01274 439607)

Council Standing Orders – Part 3A of the Constitution: Due to the non-availability of Document “L” five clear working days before the day of the meeting, the Appropriate Officer will report the reasons for its non-availability  to the meeting.

A report was presented by the Strategic Director, Regeneration (Document “L”) which provided an update for Members in respect of the work of the Estate Management Service, further to the report considered by the Committee on 17 November 2015.

The Strategic Director, Regeneration gave the following responses to questions from Members:

·         If a property was withdrawn before a scheduled auction this would be as a result of a problem with the legal pack or that it had been identified that there was a need for the property concerned.  Properties were not sold prior to an auction by other means; the service was very conscious of the need for transparency in its work.

·         Valuation was not an exact science and a value could only be reached using the market information available at the time.  The outcome of an auction was very difficult to predict as there were a number of factors involved but it was a straightforward method of sale and it also allowed the market to determine the value of the property concerned.  Guide prices for auction did tend to be pitched low to stimulate interest but reserve limits were set (below which an item would not be sold).  If a property was sold directly, for example to a tenant, an independent valuer would always be used.

·         In respect of the Mornington Road Annexe, which was held in trust by the Council, there had been a delay in the process of disposal due to the introduction of a new decision making process and the consequent need to get independent legal advice on behalf of the Trust.  Permission would be sought for the marketing of the property and its subsequent sale and the capital receipt would be reinvested for the benefit of the Trust.  It was anticipated that the matter would go before the Council’s Regulatory and Appeals Committee shortly.

·         There had been a huge increase in the number of applications for Community Asset Transfers.  The number of instructions to Legal Services had trebled in the last twelve months.

·         At present there was no cost to the Council in terms of the proposal to provide a Public Sector Hub on the site of the Jacob’s Well building. Two companies in a joint venture partnership had a five year option agreement on the site which was subject to 50% of the new building being pre-let to public sector bodies.  In the meantime the Council bore the security and other costs associated with the vacant building.

·         £700,000 revenue p.a. had been saved by moving staff out of Jacob’s Well.

·         Improvement works had been undertaken to Jacob’s Well in 2011, at a cost of £2 million, due to the need for a complete re-wire of the building and at that stage 650 staff had worked there.  Post improvement it had accommodated 1350 people and this had facilitated the closure of 19 other properties.  This work had made financial sense at that point in time and the stated lifespan in the strategy had  ...  view the full minutes text for item 26.

The Chair of the Committee will submit (Document “M”) which presents the Committee’s Work Programme 2016-17.

Recommended –

That the Work Programme 2016-17 continues to be regularly reviewed during the year.

 (Licia Woodhead – 01274 432119)

Resolved –

That, as previously agreed, the following be added to the Committee’s Work Programme:

·         An update on the City Plan as part of the scheduled item on City Centre Regeneration to be considered at the meeting on 8 March 2016,

·         Affordable Housing Programme Update Report in October 2017,

·         Estate Management Update Report in 2017/18,

and that the Programme continue to be regularly reviewed throughout the year.

ACTION:       Overview & Scrutiny Lead