Cllr Gareth Kitchen - Green Party

1st March 2025

Along with residents' casework and in addition to council and training meetings at Ebley Mill, Cllrs Kitchen, Braun & Cohen attended the regular council meetings at North Nibley, Stinchcombe & Wotton-under-Edge.

Council meetings 

Link to meeting agenda and documents in the committee title.

Housing Committee – 4th February

• Recommend the Draft Council Plan and the accompanying Delivery Plan to ​​​​​​Strategy & Resources Committee and then adoption by Council.
  
• Resolved to adopt Leasehold Management Policy, Housing Services Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) Policy, Tenancy & Estate Management Policy and the Updated Repairs and Planned Maintenance Policy.
  

• Video recording

  Strategy and Resources – 6th February

• Noted CIL Strategic funding allocations. This year the Strategic Infrastructure allocations were for two projects in Cam: 

  • Feasibility Study for a new Cam Doctors’ Practice to receive £5,880.
  • Feasibility Study for Cam Health Hub to receive £15,000.
  • A full list of projects funded under this allocation over the past five years.
    

• Recommend the Draft Council Plan and the accompanying Delivery Plan.

• Approved social value policy and note that nearly half of council spend was with local suppliers last year due to the timing of large capital projects.  This policy requires all appropriate contracts over £75k to include social value requirements. Of the 21 contracts which were let since April 2023, £3.4 m in social value has been delivered so far

• Canal Project. Drawdown of £1m. from capital reserves, which had already been earmarked to the project, to continue with the revised programme of work.

• Annual presentation of financial reports for 2025/26 including: Council Tax support, Council Tax premiums on second and empty homes, budget for General Fund and Housing Revenue Account, and the in-year budget monitoring report and recommended to Council. 

• Regeneration & Investment Board report covered the Canal Project, Local Growth Plan and Tricorn House.

• Gloucestershire City Region Board. Meeting report covered the county’s Local Skills Improvement Plan, the Growth Hub Network and Business Support Review, the Local Growth Plan, development of a Gloucestershire Strategic Plan, Business rates funding, SGS College Berkeley Campus training centre for low carbon renewable technologies, and the county’s economic dashboard.  

• Video recording

Full Council – 13th February

• Annual Budget meeting which approved the treasury management, investment and associated strategies and policies and the updated capital strategy .
  
• Fair Pay and Senior Pay Policy Statement.  There is a ratio of 1:7.8 between lowest and highest pay bands (including apprentices) and a ratio of 1:5.5 between all the staff grades.  Apprentices are paid the National Minimum Wage rate, which is higher than the national Apprentice wage rate. 
• Updates to the SDC constitution relating to new contract and procurement rules.
• Draft Council Plan 2025-2029 adopted with its five priorities.
  • Environment, Climate and Nature
    • Making Stroud District net zero and nature friendly with communities that are well prepared for the impacts of the climate crisis.
      
  • Communities and Wellbeing
    • Work to reduce health inequalities and support our network of community hubs.
  • Local Economy
    • Building a more sustainable and inclusive local economy meeting the needs of local communities.
      
  • Housing (new priority)
    • Ensure that the quality and quantity of homes in our district is enhanced.
  • Working for our Communities (new priority)
    • Improve Council services through fuller community engagement.
      
• Budget papers for 2025/26 approved: 
  • Council Tax support – agreed to continue to provide up to a maximum of 100% support for those who are unable to pay.  
• Council Tax premiums noted for second homes (535 properties in Stroud district) and empty homes (119 properties empty for more than 12 months) and mandatory exceptions adopted.
  
• Housing Revenue Account Budget: Agreed that social, affordable and garage rents to increase by 2.7%
• General Fund Budget and medium term financial plan agreed. A 2.99% increase for services in 2025/26.  Linked to Council Plan, including:-
  • New play strategy for young people
  • New high-definition CCTV to help tackle ASB
  • Continued support for community hubs
  • Audit of public facilities and toilet provision
  • Investment in leisure services
  • Enhance the council’s flood prevention and resilience
  • Contaminated land assessment and air quality improvement
  • Replace some vehicles used for waste collection
    
  • Invest in the bulky waste service
  • Litter action plan, to include replacement of over 200 litter bins
  • Invest £14m to build more than 100 new council homes
  • Budget for purchasing additional council homes increased from £2m to £5m.
  • New Economic Development and Tourism Strategy
  • Woodchester Mansion funding bid support.
  • Press release
    
• Updates to constitution relating to contract and procurement procedure rules.
  
• Video recording
  
  

Other news 

• Draft Local Plan – the draft Plan is still in the ‘Examination in Public’ process, but the Planning Inspectors have now ‘recommended’ to SDC that the draft Plan should be withdrawn. 
• The Council contests this and is preparing a detailed technical response, which will be shared on the council’s Local Plan Examination webpage in due course. Concerns relate to the capacity of M5 J12 and J14, and transport infrastructure for a proposed settlement at Sharpness. The Council’s Local Plan adopted in 2015 is still in place and used to determine planning applications.
• Car park improvements in Berkeley (21 extra spaces to be added) and Stonehouse (EV charging installed and resurfacing)
  
• Garden waste collection service runs from February to November
  
• All 17 projects from the first round of the crowdfunding scheme Stroud Funding have reached their target!  Second round now open. Congratulations to Stinchcombe Play Area which recently reached their target. 
  
• Bar owner fined for letting smokers light up indoors
• Work starts on the the site for affordable homes on Bradley/Gloucester Street, Wotton.
• Launch of the new SDC nature recovery project, focused on district council owned land. Opportunity to contact the SDC team about other potential nature recovery sites. 
  
• Car dealer sentenced after visitor fell 6ft over un-fenced drop
  
• Stroud District Council to provide better resources for local veterans and members of the armed forces.
  
• Polling station job opportunities – for county council elections on 1 May 2025. The deadline to register to vote is 11 April.
  

Prepared by Cllr Gareth Kitchen based on councillor activity in February with updates from Cllr Linda Cohen & Cllr Catherine Braun. #sdc