Scottish Borders Council

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Council Chamber, Council Headquarters, Newtown St. Boswells

Contact: Louise McGeoch Tel 01835 825005  email  lmcgeoch@scotborders.gov.uk

Link: link to live meeting

Items
No. Item

1.

Convener's Remarks.

Minutes:

1.1     The Convener mentioned that:-

          (a)     arrangements had been made to fly the Armed Forces Flag at Council HQ to mark Armed forces week;

 

          (b)     Peebles High School had won the “Donald Dewar Law Society” debate.  This was a fiercely fought national competition, and the second time in 3 years that Peebles High School had won led by Mrs Hyatt, the debating teacher; and

 

          (c)     Stow Primary School had won the “Total Better Energy School Awards for Excellence in Environmental Education”.  The Scottish leg duo would now go forward for the UK virtual awards at the end of this month.  This was the second year they had won and all six of their projects received recognition.

 

                   DECISION

                   AGREED that congratulations be passed to those concerned.

 

1.2     Councillor Kevin Drum

          The Convener commented on the sad passing of Councillor Drum on 7th March which the Council had been unable to formally mark until now.  The Convener, Councillor Bell and Councillor Miers all paid tribute to Councillor Drum who had been well liked by all and had worked hard since his election in 2017.  The Council observed a minute’s silence in memory of Councillor Drum.

 

2.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 159 KB

Consider Minutes of Scottish Borders Council held on the following dates for approval and signing by the Convener:-

 

30 January 2020;

26 February 2020; and

26 March 2020.

(Copies attached.)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Minutes of the Meetings held on 30 January, 26 February and 26 March 2020 were considered. 

 

DECISION

AGREED that the Minutes be approved and signed by the Convener.

 

 

3.

Committee Minutes pdf icon PDF 31 KB

Consider Minutes of the following Committees:-

 

(a)     Tweeddale Area Partnership                              14 January 2020

(b)     Local Review Body                                            20 January 2020

(c)     Executive                                                           21 January 2020

(d)     Cheviot Area Partnership                                   29 January 2020

(e)     Sustainable Development                                  31 January 2020

(f)      Planning & Building Standards                           3 February 2020

(g)     Berwickshire Area Partnership                          6 February 2020

(h)     Police, Fire & Rescue and Safer

          Communities Board                                           7 February 2020

(i)      Audit & Scrutiny                                                 10 February 2020

(j)      Executive                                                           11 February 2020

(k)     Local Review Body                                            17 February 2020

(l)      Lauder Common Good Fund                             18 February 2020

(m)    Teviot & Liddesdale Area Partnership                18 February 2020

(n)     Selkirk Common Good Fund                             19 February 2020

(o)     Civic Government Licensing                              21 February 2020

(p)     Peebles Common Good Fund                           26 February 2020

(q)     Planning & Building Standards                           2 March 2020

(r)      Major Contracts                                                  3 March 2020

(s)     Innerleithen Common Good Fund                     4 March 2020

(t)      Pension Fund Committee                                  5 March 2020

(u)     Pension Fund Board                                           5 March 2020

(v)     Audit & Scrutiny                                                 9 March 2020

(w)    Local Review Body                                            16 March 2020

(x)     Planning & Building Standards                           18 May 2020

 

(Please see separate Supplement containing the public Committee Minutes.)

 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Minutes of the following Committees had been circulated:-

 

(a)     Tweeddale Area Partnership                                                     14 January 2020

(b)     Local Review Body                                                                    20 January 2020

(c)     Executive                                                                                   21 January 2020

(d)     Cheviot Area Partnership                                                           29 January 2020

(e)     Sustainable Development                                                          31 January 2020

(f)      Planning & Building Standards                                                   3 February 2020

(g)     Berwickshire Area Partnership                                                  6 February 2020

(h)     Police, Fire & Rescue and Safer Communities Board              7 February 2020

(i)      Audit & Scrutiny                                                                         10 February 2020

(j)      Executive                                                                                   11 February 2020

(k)     Local Review Body                                                                    17 February 2020

(l)      Lauder Common Good Fund                                                     18 February 2020

(m)    Teviot & Liddesdale Area Partnership                                       18 February 2020

(n)     Selkirk Common Good Fund                                                     19 February 2020

(o)     Civic Government Licensing                                                     21 February 2020

(p)     Peebles Common Good Fund                                                   26 February 2020

(q)     Planning & Building Standards                                                   2 March 2020

(r)      Major Contracts                                                                         3 March 2020

(s)     Innerleithen Common Good Fund                                             4 March 2020

(t)      Pension Fund Committee                                                          5 March 2020

(u)     Pension Fund Board                                                                  5 March 2020

(v)     Audit & Scrutiny                                                                         9 March 2020

(w)    Local Review Body                                                                    16 March 2020

(x)     Planning & Building Standards                                                   18 May 2020

        

DECISION

APPROVED the Minutes listed above.

 

4.

Committee Minute Recommendations pdf icon PDF 73 KB

Consider the recommendation made by the Audit and Scrutiny Committee            on 23 June 2020.  (Copy attached.)

 

 

 

Minutes:

There had been circulated copies of an extract from the Audit and Scrutiny Committee meeting held on 23 June 2020 seeking approval to amend the Scrutiny work programme.  No items had been removed but the priority had been changed.

 

DECISION

AGREED to the following recommendations:-

 

(a)     approval of the subjects to be included in the Scrutiny Work  Programme, as detailed in the Appendix to the Minute of the Audit and Scrutiny Committee Minute of 23 June 2020; and

 

(b)    given the response/recovery work required for Covid-19, and its impact on officer resources/time, that the order of the Scrutiny Work Programme be prioritised by the Audit & Scrutiny Committee.

 

5.

Responding to Covid-19 pdf icon PDF 219 KB

Presentation by the Chief Executive.  (Briefing Note attached.) 

Additional documents:

Minutes:

There had been circulated copies of a briefing note by the Executive Director, Finance and Regulatory, on the Council’s response to Covid-19.  Members received a presentation detailing the work carried out by each Service and the plans for service recovery.  Members paid tribute to the work carried out by staff during this difficult time.  No update had been received in respect of Social Work maintaining contact with clients and it was agreed that this would be included as part of the next Members’ briefing.  Officers answered Members’ questions on a number of subjects including the problems facing various businesses and potential redundancies.  The Executive Director, Corporate Improvement and Economy, assured Members that the Council would be working closely with South of Scotland Enterprise.  The plans to rationalise the Council estate as part of the Fit for 2024 project were also highlighted.  Mr Robertson gave a detailed presentation of the financial impact of Covid-19 on the Council’s budget.  Although significant additional funding had been provided by Government it had not been sufficient to fund the full financial impact of COVID-19 and there had also been a significant impact on the level of income which funded local services.  COSLA continued to lobby the Scottish Government for additional support.  The briefing paper detailed the funding received and the estimated budget impact which was in the region of £15m which could be broken down into £6m on Health and Social Care and £9m on other Services.  The Executive Member for Finance emphasised that there could be difficult decisions to be taken in the future if further funding was not forthcoming.  Mr Robertson answered Members’ questions and provided further detail regarding expenditure on areas such as business grants, the Food Fund and the use of reserves.  He confirmed that a report to Council in August would provide more detail of the impact on both the revenue and capital budgets.

 

DECISION

NOTED the current position.

 

MEMBER

Councillor Edgar left the meeting during consideration of the above item.

 

6.

Capital Programme - Community Engagement & Consultation pdf icon PDF 122 KB

Consider briefing note by Service Director Assets & Infrastructure.  (Copy attached.)

Minutes:

There had been circulated copies of a briefing note by the Service Director Assets and Infrastructure on the proposal to undertake a series of community and public consultations/ engagement activities to help inform the continuing design development of a variety of capital projects, with a particular focus on the Learning Estate, particularly Eyemouth, Galashiels and Peebles.  It was explained that during the COVID-19 response phase, the capital projects team had endeavoured to maintain momentum on the delivery of most of the underlying capital programme.  This has been done against a backdrop of disruption within the various consultancies as they too had required to adopt new working practices during this period.  The forms of communication for consultation including MS Teams and Citizen Space were highlighted.  The Capital Projects team would coordinate this activity with the Customer & Communities team, Education or other internal stakeholders as required.  A template, a copy of which was appended to the paper, had been drawn up to identify all pertinent consultees as part of any capital project proposal and for records to be kept as part of the Project Execution Plan.  Paper copies of Citizen Space consultations could be provided for any individuals who did not have access to online technology.  Members welcomed the proposals and asked that such consultations be advertised as widely as possible.  Mr Joyce encouraged Members to provide local intelligence about any groups which should be included.  In response to a question on Peebles High School, Mr Joyce advised that design was progressing well and that there would be a briefing for the local Members before public input was sought.  In response to a query on works at Deanfield, Mr Joyce advised that it was proposed that a new facility be constructed at Stirches.  Some improvement works would be carried out to Deanfield but it was hoped that the new facility would be open by the end of 2022.  A full consultation with all stakeholders and the general public would be undertaken.

 

DECISION

NOTED the proposals.

 

7.

Tweed Valley Tourism Business Improvement District Update pdf icon PDF 101 KB

Consider report by the Executive Director.  (Copy attached.)

Minutes:

There had been circulated copies of a report by the Executive Director, Corporate Improvement and Economy, providing an update on the Tweed Valley Tourism Business Improvement District (BID), outlining the support provided by the Council for the BID and recommending appropriate governance support.  The report explained that the Tweed Valley BID Steering Group had developed an exciting vision for the future of tourism in the Tweed Valley.  The BID business plan had a clear objective of growing a stronger, more sustainable tourism industry in the Tweed Valley.  The BID levy would provide an estimated income of £350,000 over 5 years to deliver a range of tourism development and marketing activity, potentially supplemented by other external funding opportunities.  The Steering Group had engaged with a wide range of businesses during the consultation process and understood the ambitions of local businesses to develop and grow tourism in the area.  With the formal agreement of the Scottish Government and Scottish Borders Council, the Tweed Valley Tourism BID Steering Group progressed to a formal ballot on 14 November 2019.  The outcome of the ballot was successful with the BID due to become operational in April 2020.  However, due to the COVID19 pandemic and with the current business restrictions and challenges for the local tourism and hospitality sector, the Tweed Valley BID company agreed to suspend the collection of BID levies for one year until April 2021.  The group had developed an initial COVID19 recovery response plan focusing on supporting businesses with digital advice and guidance as well as further development of their marketing activities to increase the profile of the Tweed Valley as a safe outdoor destination for visitors. It was important that governance processes and procedures were established to ensure appropriate transparency of funding and resources.  In order to monitor the Council’s financial input and contribution to the project, the Council agreed that an Elected Member representative be nominated on to the Tweed Valley Tourism BID Board and it was recommended that this should be a Tweeddale Ward member.  Councillor Haslam, seconded by Councillor Chapman, moved that Councillor Bell be appointed as the Council’s representative and this was unanimously approved.

 

DECISION

AGREED to:-

 

(a)     note the successful Tweed Valley Tourism BID ballot on 14 November 2019;

 

(b)    note the positive steps, Tweed Valley Tourism BID Company was progressing in terms of their initial COVID19 recovery response to support local tourism and hospitality businesses; and

 

(c)     appoint Councillor Bell to represent the Council on the Tweed Valley Tourism BID Board. 

8.

Scottish Community Development Centre on Area Partnerships and Community Fund pdf icon PDF 159 KB

Consider report by Service Director Customer and Communities.  (Copy attached.)

Additional documents:

Minutes:

With reference to paragraph 7 of the Minute of 26 June 2019, there had been circulated copies of a report by the Service Director, Customer and Communities, presenting the findings of the review which was commissioned by Scottish Borders Council of the Area Partnerships and the Community Fund.  At its meeting on 26 June 2019, the Council decided the scope, approach and timeline for the Area Partnership review consultation, including the future allocation and governance of the Community Fund.  The consultation was to be undertaken by an external organisation in order to ensure impartiality and this was carried out by the Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) and they employed a range of methods in order to ensure that as many people as possible, who wished to do so, were able to participate.  A total of 199 individuals responded to the consultation.  Of these, 121 responded to the survey, 59 took part in a focus group, nine participated in one-to-one stakeholder interviews and ten Elected Members attended a seminar.  Due to the low number of respondents the results were to be read as indicative rather than statistically significant.  Responses to the consultation were mixed but the overriding message was that people wanted to be involved in shaping the Area Partnerships to ensure that they were fully inclusive, met the needs of all stakeholders and achieved meaningful involvement and community engagement.  It was now proposed thatthe findings of the review were shared with stakeholders and that a further report be brought to Council in August 2020 outlining the next steps in evolving the Area Partnerships and Community Fund.  The SCDC report was appended to the report.  Since this report was received, the Council had been responding to the current Covid-19 pandemic, and there had been a great deal of further learning and experience of working with our communities through the Community Assistance Hubs.  This learning would also be considered in evolving the Area Partnerships, the Community Fund and the wider Community Planning Partnership arrangements.  Members agreed that recent events had encouraged community involvement and it was hoped that this could be sustained going forward.  The need to share good practice between areas was highlighted.

 

DECISION

AGREED:-

 

(a)     to note the results, findings and subsequent recommendations of the report produced by the Scottish Community Development Centre, as contained in Appendix 1 to the report;

 

(b)    that the report was shared with stakeholders; and

 

(c)     that a further report be brought to Council in August 2020 outlining the next steps in evolving the Area Partnerships and Community Fund arrangements.

 

9.

Standing Orders - Proposed Amendments pdf icon PDF 116 KB

Consider report by Chief Executive.  (Copy attached.)

 

Note:  To consider this item, Members will require to suspend Standing Orders.

 

Minutes:

With reference to paragraph 2 of the Minute of 26 March 2020, there had been circulated copies of a report by the Chief Executive proposing amendments to the Council’s Standing Orders to take further account of remote meetings.  Members were advised that In order to allow one of these amendments, Standing Orders required to be suspended, as changes had already been made in March 2020, therefore within 6 months.  This suspension was unanimously agreed.  The report explained that at its meeting on 26 March 2020, Scottish Borders Council recognised the need to take steps to reduce risks for its Members, staff and citizens arising from the Coronavirus (Covid-19), and to ensure the Council was still able to exercise its essential functions, some additions were made to Standing Orders.  These additions to Standing Orders were made very early in lockdown and did not take into account the availability of software which gave remote access for all to participate in formal committee meetings, which could also be live streamed and were thus available to public and press. With the experience gained in the operation of remote committees, further amendments were proposed to Standing Orders to match the actual operation of committees.  It was proposed that Standing Orders were further amended to allow all Members and officers to access meetings remotely.  Any references in Standing Orders to “place” and “venues” were to be omitted when a meeting was being held remotely in terms of Section 43 of the Local Government in Scotland Act 2003.  An alternative indication was to be put in place to voting by a show of hands when a meeting was being held remotely.  When a secret ballot was being held, Members would email the Clerk(s) their preference in confidence.  At its meeting held on 30 August 2018, Council agreed to amend the deadline for the submission of Open Questions for Council from the second to the fourth working day prior to the Council meeting for a trial period of 3 months.   It was now proposed that Standing Orders were changed on a permanent basis to reflect that timing.  The Convener had the authority to accept questions submitted beyond this timescale.    

 

DECISION

AGREED:-

 

(a)     to approve an amendment to Standing Order No. 49(a)(iii), “As a result of the Coronavirus outbreak, where an essential decision of Council or one of its committees is required in respect of a matter which cannot legally be delegated, the following procedure shall be adopted until 30 September 2020:

·                The Chair or Convener of the meeting (whom failing their Deputy) shall direct that the meeting will take place in accordance with Section 43 of the 2003 Act.

·                Elected Members who are to join the meeting will do so  using video or audio functionality;

·                The meeting will otherwise be called in the usual manner, with the agenda and papers published on the Council website;

·                The meeting will be available to view via a livestream

·                A minute of the meeting will be taken and published on the Council  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

Appointment of Members

Consider:-

 

(a)        Appointment of Councillor Thornton-Nicol as Dementia Champion; and

 

(b)        Appointment of Councillor Tatler to replace Councillor Edgar as the substitute Member on Scotland Excel Joint Committee. 

 

Minutes:

10.1  Councillor Weatherston, seconded by Councillor Bell, moved that Councillor Thornton-Nicol be appointed to the new role of Dementia Champion and this was unanimously agreed.

 

10.2  Councillor Haslam, seconded by Councillor Aitchison, moved that Councillor Tatler be appointed to replace Councillor Edgar as the substitute member of Scotland Excel and this was unanimously approved.

 

         DECISION

         AGREED that:-

 

          (a)     Councillor Thornton-Nicol be appointed to the new role of Dementia Champion; and

 

          (b)     Councillor Tatler be appointed to replace Councillor Edgar as the substitute member of Scotland Excel.

 

11.

Calendar of Meetings 2020-2021 pdf icon PDF 141 KB

Consider draft Calendar of Meetings for the period August 2020 to July 2021.  (Copy attached.)

 

Minutes:

There had been circulated copies of the proposed calendar of meetings for the period August 2020 to July 2021.  It was noted that additional meetings could be added if there were urgent items of business to consider. 

 

DECISION

AGREED to approve the calendar of meetings for the period August 2020 to July 2021, as contained in Appendix 1 to this Minute.

 

12.

Private Business

Before proceeding with the private business, the following motion should be approved:-

 

“That under Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the relevant paragraphs of Part 1 of Schedule 7A to the aforementioned Act.”

Minutes:

DECISION

AGREED under Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 to exclude the public from the meeting during consideration of the business detailed in Appendix II to this Minute on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 1, 6, 8 and 9 of Part I of Schedule 7A to the Act.

 

      SUMMARY OF PRIVATE BUSINESS

 

13.

Minutes

Consider private Sections of Minutes of Scottish Borders Council held on 30 January and 26 February 2020.  (Copies attached.)

Minutes:

The private sections of the Council Minutes of 30 January and 26 February 2020 were approved. 

14.

Committee Minutes

Consider private Sections of the Minutes of the following Committees:-

 

(a)     Executive                                                           11 February 2020

(b)     Civic Government Licensing                              21 February 2020

(c)     Peebles Common Good Fund                           26 February 2020

(d)     Major Contracts Governance                            3 March 2020

(c)     Pension Fund Committee & Board                    10 March 2020

 

(Please see separate Supplement containing private Committee Minutes.)

Minutes:

The private sections of the Committee Minutes as detailed in paragraph3 of this Minute were approved.

 

 

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