Issue - meetings

Purpose: to ask Cabinet to approve a project that will accelerate housing growth across the Science Vale area of South and Vale and ask that both Councils establish budgets to allow the project to proceed

Cabinet considered the report of the Strategic Director that sought approval for a project that will accelerate housing growth across the Science Vale area of South and Vale and asked that both councils established budgets to allow the project to proceed.  Both councils had been successful in securing a total of £2.06 million in grant funding from the Large Sites Capacity Fund. 

Mrs C Collett addressed Cabinet.  In response to Mrs Collett’s question, Mrs Ducker confirmed that she had noted the request for district and parish councillors to be given an opportunity to provide information on infrastructure and community needs across Science Vale.

Mrs E Hards addressed Cabinet.  In reply to the questions, Mrs Ducker stated that the grant funding could be used to speed up the processing of section 106 agreements, the resourcing of financial appraisals, providing training for developer technical and legal teams and providing extra staff to put deals together within weeks.  The split of the funding would be reviewed as expenditure progressed.  Responses to the remaining questions would be provided outside the meeting.

Mr D Turner addressed Cabinet.  In response, Mrs Ducker advised that overall housing numbers would not increase and that whilst Culham formed part of the promotion of Science Vale UK, it was not part of the enterprise zone.  Therefore it did not fall within the scope of this project. In terms of the employment of officers to deliver the projects, contracts would be subject to review and extension depending on success in the role.

Cabinet agreed the recommendations to deliver a 30 per cent increase in the rate of housing delivery across the Science Vale area, which would also provide the councils with an opportunity to understand the barriers to housing development and put in place actions to overcome such barriers to speed up housing delivery.  In so doing it would help to meet housing need for those working in the knowledge economy in Science Vale and for those on the housing waiting list that need affordable housing.

RESOLVED: to

a)     recommend to Council the approval of a revenue budget, in 2013/14, of £525,000, funded from a £1.025 million capacity fund grant;

b)      recommend to Council the approval of a revenue budget, in 2014/15, of £500,000 funded from the second tranche of capacity fund grant;

Subject to Council approving the budget, that Cabinet:

c)      approves the project to accelerate housing growth in the Science Vale Growth Area, funded by the DCLG capacity fund;

d)     authorises the strategic director, in consultation with the Head of Legal and Democratic Services, if necessary as an exception to contracts procedure rules, to use the fund to commission and pay for works necessary to deliver the core objectives of the project as set out in the offer letter attached as an appendix to the report of the strategic director to Cabinet on 5 December 2013;

e)     approves South Oxfordshire District Council as the accounting body for the administration of the capacity fund and as the accountable  ...  view the full minutes text for item 17