Apologies had been received from Carol Arnfield – LBB Head of Service for Early Years, School Standards and Adult Education, Mark Haynes – The Glades, Denise Kelly – Nugent Shopping Centre, Robert Sargent – Acorn Group and Caroline Tatchell – Splash Damage.

Apologies had also been received from Frances Forest – Your Bromley BID Company, Sam Parrett and Louise Wolsey – London South East Colleges, and Zoe Griffiths – Your Bromley BID Company and Neil Coates – London South East Colleges attended as their respective substitutes.

RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 3^rd November 2020 be agreed.

Matters Arising:

5a. Town Centre Renewal Update

Further information regarding the Bromley public realm scheme had been circulated to members of the partnership via email. With regards to the Memorandum of Understanding with BT Openreach, the LBB Interim Assistant Director of Culture and Regeneration confirmed that it was currently in draft form.

5b. Planning Policy Update

Further policy updates would be provided to the Partnership once the London Plan was adopted.

5c. Business Support Update

Discussions around the discretionary grants scheme had taken place between John Coupland, South East London Business Network (SELBN), LBB Head of Renewal, and LBB Town Centres and BID Development Manager. An update on business grants had been included as an agenda item for the meeting.

6. Partner Updates and Opportunities for Joint Working

Members were advised that London South East Colleges (LSEC) had been successful in their bid to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to undertake work around local youth unemployment.

Alicia Munday, LBB Interim Assistant Director of Culture and Regeneration attended the meeting to provide information regarding the current business grants.

The LBB Interim Assistant Director of Culture and Regeneration advised members that the team were administering 11 various business grants, and, through support grants, had delivered over £105m to businesses in the Borough. The grants were divided into two areas – mandatory grants, with criteria set by the government, for which the Council facilitated payments; and discretionary grants, for which the Local Authority set the criteria within a national framework.

Mandatory grants were administered directly by the Council’s Exchequer Services, whereas the discretionary grants were co-ordinated by the Business Support Team. The first discretionary grant scheme had been administered in summer 2020 and had seen £2.275m distributed (from an allocation of £2.4m) to 178 businesses. In line with government requirements, just over £120k was returned. It was noted that the aim was always to have no grant monies returned, but if the grant could not be distributed within the timescale set, this was the legal requirement.

The Local Authority had received 287 grant applications, and of the 178 grants paid out: 73% went to Limited companies; 5% to partnerships; 2% to charities; and just under 20% to sole traders. The administration of grants at this level was an entirely new concept for the Public Sector – the team had worked with partners to share ideas and best practice, and were supported by a senior officer board which included the Director of Finance, the Director for Housing, Planning and Regeneration, the Chief Auditor and Finance officers.

The most recent grants announced by the government were the Additional Restrictions Grants (ARG), which for Bromley equated to just over £6.6m. Addressing feedback received in relation to the time taken to distribute the ARG, the LBB Interim Assistant Director of Culture and Regeneration advised that the fund had been announced by the government in November 2020, for which it took a further two weeks for guidance to be received. Once the grant amount was confirmed, in direct response to the criteria used in the summer, the team had undertaken work to find out the needs of business via round table events and online surveys. Due to the overall value of the ARG, a report was required to be drafted and presented to Elected Members for consideration of the proposals. This had taken place over the Christmas period, and the Leader of the Council had taken an urgent decision in January 2021. At this point, the team could start commissioning the development of the systems needed to administer the grants. This was extremely complex, and it was noted that all risks, including fraud, sat with the Local Authority. Work was being undertaken with a team of developers, who were working on similar projects across the country and in great demand. Despite this, within two weeks of approval, two schemes had gone live. The independent bars and public house scheme went live the previous week  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

Robert Buckley, LBB Head of Renewal provided an update on Town Centre renewal across the Borough.

In addition to the work around grants that the LBB Interim Assistant Director of Culture and Regeneration had already described, the team was also working on a Digital Infrastructure Work Plan. This had been mentioned at the last meeting of the Bromley Economic Partnership, and the importance to both businesses and residents in the Borough had been highlighted. A report regarding this would be presented to the meeting of the Renewal, Recreation and Housing Policy Development and Scrutiny Committee on 2^nd February 2021. A copy of the report can be viewed via the following link: https://cds.bromley.gov.uk/documents/s50085860/Digital%20Infrastructure%20Report.pdf

The Digital Infrastructure Work Plan had two main streams. The first of these was working on the Memorandum of Understanding with BT Openreach, regarding the roll out of full fibreoptic broadband, which it was anticipated would reach 85% of the Borough by 2023, and result in vastly improved connectivity for all. The second stream related to the Council launching its own ‘toolkit’, which was the provision of small pieces of kit to be installed on Council-owned assets to aid good wireless connection.

Other areas of work being undertaken included connecting Council-owned sites, such as libraries and schools, and looking at funding sources. A bid had been submitted to Connected London for funding of up to £1m to provide them with improved broadband. Discussions were also taking place with the Planning department to ensure that when applications came through for digital infrastructure proposals, they took on board the benefits to communities.

With regards to Bromley Town Centre, they were mid-way through the High Street Improvement Scheme, with the third of the seven stages underway. A planning application (Reference: 21/00337/FULL1) had been submitted for a number of interventions on the High Street, including a covered seating area, sculpture and performance area. The designs had been well received by Ward Councillors, local groups and key stakeholders. The overall aim of the scheme was to make the town centre an attractive destination that residents were encouraged to come in to, interact with the new features, and support local businesses.

Members were advised that the Your Bromley Business Improvement District (BID) had launched their business plan in advance of the BID ballot which would take place on 25^th February 2021. This had been a difficult task with the backdrop of the pandemic, but they had put forward some very good proposals, and it was hoped these would be supported by businesses and that they would vote to renew the BID for a further five years.

Lee Thomas, Fairlight Group noted that he had been pleased to see a number of planters installed on Orpington High Street, to separate pedestrians from the traffic. In contrast, the plastic red and white barriers in Bromley High Street had been dislodged, and it did not give the best impression of the town. The LBB Town Centres and BID Development Manager advised that the planters in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13a

Ben Johnson, LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy provided an update in relation to Planning Policy.

The LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy highlighted that a further government consultation was underway regarding permitted development rights. It included a new use class which grouped several former categories, such as shops, offices and restaurants, into one. There was also another consultation taking place regarding the intention to bring forward a permitted development right from August 2021, to allow any use within that class to be changed to residential use. The Local Authority would provide a response to the consultation, which would end on Thursday. Whilst it was appreciated that the government wanted to introduce some flexibility to help achieve their ambitious housing targets, there were some concerns regarding the impact they would have in allowing wholescale changes to commercial areas. A report regarding these issues would be presented to the Council’s Development Control Committee, a link to which was provided following the meeting: https://cds.bromley.gov.uk/documents/s50085754/CONSULTATION%20ON%20PLANNING%20APPLICATIONS.pdf

With regards to the Draft London Plan, the LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy advised members that since the last meeting, there had been further ‘toing-and-froing‘ between the Secretary of State and the Mayor of London, and the document had still not been adopted. However, it was further along the adoption process, and the Secretary of State had advised that he intended to confirm he was happy with the document by the 1^st February. Therefore, the London Plan was likely to be fully adopted by the end of February / beginning of March 2021 and would then be used to assess planning applications in the Borough. It contained a number of new planning policies relating to housing, and it was noted that the housing target had been increased by around 130 units per annum. The LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy said he would be happy to provide further updates on specific policies within the London Plan if required.

  (ACTION: LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy)

An update regarding this would also be provided to the Council’s Development Control Committee on 28^th January 2021, and a link to the report was provided following the meeting: https://cds.bromley.gov.uk/documents/s50085730/LONDON%20PLAN%20UPDATE.pdf

In response to a question from the Chairman, the LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy advised that following the adoption of the London Plan, there was no absolute requirement to review the Local Plan. However, there would be certain policies that “pulled in different directions” and legislation stated that the most recently adopted document took priority – although it was noted that this would not instantly invalidate the Local Plan.

In response to a further question from the Chairman, the LBB Head of Planning Policy and Strategy said that the SPDs for Orpington and Bromley town centres were progressing well. Work was underway to inform urban design elements of the documents. It was intended that the draft SPD would be brought to various Council Committees for scrutiny during the Spring, and would include guidance  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13b

On this occasion, please could partners notify the clerk by emailing joanne.partridge@bromley.gov.uk if you wish to speak about something relevant to the group or a joint working opportunity.

Please note that any updates should be no longer than two minutes.

Members of the Partnership had undertaken a range of activities since the last meeting.

Zoe Griffiths – Your Bromley BID Company, advised that the ballot for their second 5-year term would commence from Friday, closing on the 25^th February 2021. A majority of the votes was required, of which they were hopeful. However the key concern was that turnout would be lower than expected due to lockdown, which had also impacted on their engagement with businesses. If successful, it would attract a further £2.8m to support Bromley businesses over the next five years.

Zoe Carr – Beckenham Together BID Company and Penge SE20 BID Company, informed Members that the team had been undertaking work in relation to the business grant schemes, as well as the draft Economic Development plan. They were currently trying to establish which businesses had, and had not, claimed the grants they were entitled to, and feeding back on the criteria. It was highlighted that a number of business owners were too proud to claim, and had instead taken out loans, which was concerning. The ‘Street Ranger’ in Penge was going round the town centre, trying to talk with the businesses that were still open – those that were closed were being contacted by telephone and email. Ms Carr had been approached by a number of businesses that also had mobile elements, such as pizza vans or bakery deliveries, and were finding that they were “stuck between” hospitality and business rates which was something that needed to be looked into further. The team were planning for events in the summer months, and further ahead to the Christmas period.

Steve Lipscombe – Ronin Marketing, noted that as a marketing and design company, their experience during the pandemic was that they had needed to think of different ideas for marketing. From a creative point of view, it was difficult to work remotely, and the team was missing the benefits of being in a room all together. Overall, the business was doing reasonably well, and customers were “holding up”.

Sharon Baldwin – Orpington 1^st BID Company, said that their main focus currently was agility and sustainability. They had been required to respond in an agile manner to deliver different types of services, and provide support to businesses in different ways. The team was excited about the opportunity to transform Orpington into an innovative, creative and sustainable town centre. There was a huge amount of development about to take place, and they would consider the needs of all stakeholders, and look at social, economic and environmental sustainability. They were working with businesses to use this quieter period to look at their environments, ensuring that when the town centre reopened, it was somewhere that people wanted to visit.

Russell Clarke – Sundridge Investments, said that little had been happening since the meeting in November 2020. It was felt that there was a deeper feeling of discomfort regarding the economy during the current period of lockdown. There was money out there,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

Members of the Partnership considered the forward rolling work programme for the Bromley Economic Partnership for 2020/21. Members were asked to send any suggestions for agenda items to the clerk.

Members of the partnership are requested to notify the clerk of any items to be discussed at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

The Chairman invited Councillor Yvonne Bear, Small Business Champion to provide members with an update regarding the draft Economic Development Plan.

Councillor Year informed members that work had been undertaken over the last couple of months to build an economic profile of the Borough. This was the first time that such a range of information had been gathered into one place – it had been an extremely interesting exercise, and allowed them to look for pockets of expertise that could be developed.

This piece of work was nearing completion, and consideration was being given to the key areas to address in order to make the most of the economic opportunities, and help businesses to recover following the pandemic. Four workstreams had been identified:

-  Place – formulating strategies around identifying space for commercial development;

-  Employability – skills development to ensure businesses had access to a readily available skilled workforce;

-  Infrastructure and Transport – including digital infrastructure and the enhancement of transport links; and

-  Business Support – utilising the Innovation Grant and establishment of business support hubs.

Comments on the document were being sought internally, after which a copy would be circulated to members of the Partnership for informal comment prior to public consultation.    (ACTION: LBB Culture and Regeneration / Clerk)

Christopher Evans noted that today’s conversations had reflected the challenges of planning ahead in the current climate, and queried what modelling the Local Authority had undertaken to look at the different scenarios that could potentially be faced. It was suggested that it may be useful for a discussion regarding to take place at the next meeting of the Partnership. 

 (ACTION: Clerk)

The Chairman responded that the plan would be as flexible as possible, as the future was unknown, and they would be required to be “quick on their feet”.

RESOLVED that the issues raised be noted.

4.00pm, Tuesday 20^th April 2021

4.00pm, Tuesday 20^th April 2021