Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Simon Fawthrop and Councillor Will Rowlands.

Apologies had also been received from Councillor Tony McPartlan (RRH PDS).

As the Committee Chairman, Councillor Fawthrop, had extended apologies, the Committee noted that the Vice-Chairman, Councillor Robert Evans was in the Chair.

The Chairman, Councillor Robert Evans, declared that he was a Member of the Board of MyTime Active.  Consequently, Councillor Evans would take no part in the discussion and vote relating to Items 7 and 15 of the Executive Agenda (Leisure Centre Major Works).  Councillor Cartwright assumed the Chair for these items.

In accordance with the Council’s Constitution, members of the public may submit one question each on matters relating to the work of the Committee. Questions must have been received in writing 10 working days before the date of the meeting - by 5pm on: Tuesday 3 October 2023.

Questions seeking clarification of the details of a report on the agenda may be accepted within two working days of the normal publication date of the agenda – by 5pm on Wednesday 11 October 2023.

One question, for oral response, had been received and this is attached at Appendix A.

The minutes of the Executive, Resources and Contracts PDS Committee meeting held on 18 September 2023 (excluding exempt information), were agreed and signed as a correct record.

Report CSD23126

The report dealt with the Committee’s business management including matters outstanding from previous meetings and the proposed work plan for the remainder of the year.

The Committee agreed that a high-level report concerning rental waivers for Churchill Court be presented to the next meeting.

In response to a question concerning whether there had been any progress made on arranging a meeting between Biggin Hill Airport Ltd (BHAL) and residents, the Portfolio Holder for Resources, Commissioning and Contracts Management explained that discussions with BHAL were ongoing and these discussions would remain confidential until they were completed.  Any agreement reached in respect of the Airport would be subject to scrutiny at this Committee.

A Member of the Committee raised the question of whether the Committee should give consideration to whether certain emails should be archived as part of the historical record for future generations if they were deemed to be in the public interest.  Whilst noting that it was an interesting question, some Members cautioned around the cost and effort of storing data unnecessarily.  However, Members of the Committee noted that elected councillors had obligations under the Data Protection Act not to store data unnecessarily and it maybe helpful to have a report to the Committee, in March 2024, setting out these data protection obligations and explaining what happened to emails when elected councillors left the Council.

RESOLVED: That

1.  A high-level report on Churchill Court rental waivers be presented to the next meeting.

2.  A report on Councillor Emails and Data Protection be added to the Work programme for March 2024.

The Committee noted the Forward Plan of Key Decisions covering the period .

September 2023 to December 2023.

A Member queried why the works at Red Hill Primary School had been delayed until February 2024 and it was agreed that a response would be provided following the meeting.

Members of the Committee are requested to bring their copy of the agenda for the Executive meeting on 18 October 2023.

The Executive, Resources and Contracts PDS Committee will be looking at the following items on the Executive Agenda:

·  Churchill Theatre & Central Library Building, High Street, Bromley BR1 3UH

·  Relocation of Central Library

·  Leisure Centre Major Works Programme

·  Our Bromley Magazine

The Committee considered the following reports on the Part 1 agenda for the meeting of the Executive on 18 October 2023:

The site known as Churchill Theatre formed part of a larger property which also comprised Central Library and a number of ground floor retail units. The building was constructed as one in the 1970s, formally opening in 1977.  The site was owned freehold by the Council, with Churchill Theatre being occupied by Trafalgar Group on a lease dated 5^th September 2017 which expired on 3^rd April 2041. Central Library was occupied and operated by the Council’s library provider Greenwich Leisure, and the retail units were held on a long leasehold interest by a private third party.

Buildings of this nature were typically intended to have a lifespan of c. 50 years and as such, the building was now in poor condition, and many elements of the building and building fabric were considered end of life and beyond economic repair. Therefore, continuing with the existing lease arrangement with Trafalgar Group for the theatre element until its natural expiry in 2041 was not considered a viable option, as the extent of the works required to ensure a sustainable future for the building would not be possible whilst the building was occupied and operational.

The report primarily related to the Churchill Theatre element of the building, due to the lease arrangements that were in place and the commercial (i.e. non-operational / non-statutory) function of this element of the building, and the need to find a solution to the challenge of an end of life building, a limited pool of resources from which the Council must prioritise its statutory and operational needs, and the wider economic and cultural benefits that come with the presence of a theatre in the town centre. 

The report set out the Council’s intention for seeking a mutual agreement between the Council and Trafalgar Group to ensure a sustainable future for the theatre at the site, whilst simultaneously removing the Council’s ongoing liabilities for repairs and maintenance at the site.

The Assistant Director for Strategic Property introduced the report and Members were advised that in respect of paragraph 3.21 which stated that ‘a ‘do nothing’ approach has therefore been discounted’, this was because the lease break clause would not be operable meaning that this option is not viable.

On behalf of the Bromley Town Ward Councillors, Councillor Ireland set out concerns including inadequate notice of the report, insufficient time for adequate scrutiny and inadequate consultation with residents.  The Ward Councillors had concerns about the delegated authority being sought and would have preferred other options, including consideration being given to the Council retaining the freehold interest in the property.  In moving forward, the Ward Councillors wanted to see certain caveats including the site being retained as a theatre of a similar size.  In response, the Head of Regeneration provided assurance that, in recognition of the wider  ...  view the full minutes text for item 44.

Report FSD23062

The report provided Members of the Executive, Resources and Contracts Policy, Development and Scrutiny Committee with the net ‘High’ (Red) risks extracted from the Corporate Services, Finance and Human Resources and Customer Services Risk Registers.

In relation to the Fire Safety Risk detailed in Appendix D of the report, the Committee noted that risks had been identified and that was key.  Mitigations had been put in place and whilst there were ongoing challenges around the office move, the risks would be further mitigated once the move had been completed.

In relation to the IT security risk, Members noted that the key vulnerability was human error.  The Committee noted that staff received regular mandatory training and measures had been put in place to keep the Council systems secure.  It was suggested that Members should also receive the training provided to staff.  A Member highlighted that IT security needed to be balanced with workability and requested that this be reviewed in respect of emails,

A Member further suggested that the Director of Corporate Services and Governance should be asked to review the Information Request Non-Compliance Risk as this had a higher rating than both the Fire Safety Risk and the IT Security Risk which seemed inconsistent.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

This item was deferred to the next meeting.

RESOLVED that the Press and public be excluded during consideration of the items of business referred to below as it is likely in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings that if members of the Press and public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information.

The following summaries

refer to matters involving exempt information

The Part 2 (exempt) minutes of the meeting held on 18 September 2023, were agreed, and signed as a correct record.

The Executive, Resources and Contracts PDS Committee will be looking at the following items on the Executive Agenda:

·  Part 2: Churchill Theatre & Central Library Building, High Street, Bromley BR1 3UH

·  Part 2: Relocation of Central Library

·  Part 2: Leisure Centre Major Works

The Committee considered the following reports on the Part 2 agenda for the meeting of the Executive on 18 October 2023:

The Committee considered the report and made recommendations to the Executive.

The Committee considered the report and agreed the recommendations.

The Committee considered the report and made recommendations to the Executive.