Agenda, decisions and minutes

There were none.

The minutes of the meeting held on the 14^th November 2018 were agreed and signed by the Leader.

There were no items to be heard in private.

There were none.

Councillor Eldred declared a disclosable pecuniary interest in Item 10 – ’78 Derngate’ as a Trustee of 78 Derngate.

There were none.

(Copy herewith)

Cabinet noted the contents of the report.

Councillor Hallam submitted a report, as the relevant Cabinet Member, and elaborated thereon. He explained that the Environmental Services contract was going extremely well and the performance measures reflected that.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report be noted.  

(Copy herewith)

Cabinet noted the contents of the report.

Councillor King, as the relevant Cabinet Member, submitted her report and explained that some of the recommendations from the Overview and Scrutiny Committee were achievable but noted that not all were due to budget constraints.

Councillor Larratt explained that one of the recommendations (at 2.15 of the report) was ‘signs to the entrance of Northampton be erected to read “Don’t drive through, stop and visit”. He considered this to be an excellent idea but noted that it was unlikely that permission would be granted by Highways England.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report be noted.

(Copy herewith)

Cabinet noted the contents of the report.

Councillor Hallam as the relevant Cabinet Member submitted his report and explained that they were currently very pleased with Idverde who were responsible for the maintenance in cemeteries.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the report be noted.

At this juncture of the meeting, having declared a disclosable pecuniary interest, Councillor Eldred left the room.

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1.    Cabinet approved the award of up to £200K as a Capital Grant to 78 Derngate as match funding and included in the Capital Budget for 2019-20.

2.    Cabinet delegated to the Head of Service Customer and Communities in conjunction with the Cabinet Member for Community Engagement and Safety, Councillor King and Chief Finance Officer, the assessment matched funds and award of the grant.    

Councillor Nunn elaborated on a report which sought Cabinets approval to award a capital grant to 78 Derngate to provide match funding toward a capital project to improve the Trust’s financial sustainability and improve the visitor experience. It was further explained that some of the funds would go towards improving accessibility and provided the Council with a very exciting opportunity to improve the facility for visitors.

Councillor Larratt commented that Tripadvisor noted that the 78 Derngate was the most visited tourist attraction in Northampton and welcomed the promotion and restoration further noting the proposed improvements to accessibility.

RESOLVED:

1.    That the award of up to £200K as a Capital Grant to 78 Derngate as match funding and included in the Capital Budget for 2019-20 be approved.

2.    That it be delegated to the Head of Service Customer and Communities in conjunction with the Cabinet Member for Community Engagement and Safety, Councillor King and Chief Finance Officer, the assessment matched funds and award of the grant.    

Councillor Eldred re-entered the room.

(Copy herewith)

Cabinet reviewed the contents of the performance report (at Appendix 1).

Councillor Larratt elaborated on the report he submitted and explained that there had been some issues due to the change in contractors in the provision of Environmental Services. It was noted that the payment of invoices would continue to be monitored.

The Leader noted the reduction in footfall could be attributed to the closing of the Marks and Spencer’s store in the Town Centre, although the number of people who had attended the Christmas lights switch on had been twenty-two thousand.

RESOLVED:

That the contents of the performance report be noted.