Agenda

The Cabinet is asked to note any apologies for absence received from Members.

To confirm and sign the minutes of the last meeting of the Cabinet held on Friday 19 April 2024. 

Councillors are invited to declare any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests, Other Registerable Interests of Non-Registerable Interests, and the nature of it, in relation to any item on the agenda.

The Cabinet is asked to note any announcements made by the Leader of the Council.

The Cabinet is asked to note any announcements made by Members of the Cabinet.

There are no matters referred to the Cabinet by the Council on this occasion.

This report is to update Cabinet on progress with the Freeport East Programme, and to recommend the approval of the Freeport East Ltd annual business plan for 24/25 and the Retained Business Rates Strategy.

The Council is one of the Founding Members of Freeport East Ltd, the company established to deliver the Freeport, including the collection and spending of Retained Business Rates.

The Portfolio Holder for Economic Growth, Regeneration & Tourism was appointed as a company director for Freeport East Ltd. The annual business plan has been approved by the company directors at the last board meeting (March 2024), along with the Retained Business Rates Strategy, but still requires Founding Member approval as set out in the Members Agreement. If approved by the Founding Members it will become the Business Plan for the Company.

The report also outlines the proposal for appointing an Alternate Director of the Company in accordance with the Articles of Association.

To update Cabinet on the Levelling Up Fund and Capital Regeneration Projects following the June 2023 report and to request Officers to investigate the opportunity to bring forward that delivery of the demolition of Milton Road car park in Dovercourt.

The Council is committed to town centre regeneration and has been allocated funding by Government to support a long-term plan for Clacton Town Centre and a pilot high street accelerator project in Harwich and Dovercourt.

This report updates Cabinet on progress and welcomes funding associated with these two schemes and delegates approvals on spending.

To present to Cabinet the following housing policies for approval and adoption:-

? Reasonable Adjustments Policy;

? Vulnerability Policy; and an

? Unacceptable Customer Behaviour Policy.

To present to Cabinet an Annual Complaints Performance and Service Improvement report for scrutiny and challenge, which includes a self-assessment carried out against the Housing Ombudsman’s Complaint Handling Code for 2023/24 prior to publication and submission.

•    To update Cabinet on progress with Spendells House being retained and reconfigured for the provision of temporary housing accommodation.

•    To seek continued support for the project in the light of the options available and the ongoing need for the accommodation.

•    To seek additional funding for additional work to address matters that were not within the specification and were brought to light in the course of the project.

•    To inform Members of a breach of the Council’s Financial Procedure Rules and legal decision making requirements with regard to variation of a contract without sufficient approvals in place and the actions taken in response.

To recommend an additional Family Solutions Officer Post (Harwich) for a fixed term period of 12 months based on a review of the value for money / benefits such as the post would deliver on behalf of the Council and District.

To seek approval to allocate £28,000 of funding to the Mental Health Hub run by Citizen’s Advice Tendring.

To seek approval to continue to part-fund a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO)* in the Harwich & Dovercourt area for the period 1^st April 2024 until 31^st March 2025 (12 months), Harwich Town Council and Tendring District Council will each fund 50% of the role.

*This is an extension of the existing arrangements, and a post holder is currently in this role if formally agreed, the Council will be invoiced for their contribution.

Following consultation, this report seeks the agreement of Cabinet to endorse the variation of the Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) in Clacton town centre and its peripheral areas.  The implementation of the PSPO will include an extension of the area covered and the inclusion of three new conditions.

To enable the Cabinet to consider the recommendations submitted to it by the Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny Committee following that Committee’s consideration of the report from its Scrutiny of School Age Education Provision Task and Finish Group at its meeting held on 23 April 2024.

To enable the Cabinet to consider the recommendations submitted to it by the Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny Committee following that Committee’s consideration of the final report from its Scrutiny of Mainstream and Community Transport Provision Task and Finish Group at its meeting held on 23 April 2024.

To enable the Cabinet to consider the recommendations submitted to it by the Community Leadership Overview & Scrutiny Committee following that Committee’s scrutiny of improving access to NHS Dentistry for residents in Tendring at its meeting held on 23 April 2024.

There are no items submitted by the Council’s Management Team on this occasion.