The Chairman opened the meeting at 10am and immediately adjourned to enable additional members of the public to gain access to the Council Chamber.

(Meeting adjourned at 10am and reconvened at 10.15am)

To receive from Members any declarations of interest and of any political whip in relation to any agenda item.

It was noted that Councillors had received a significant number of emails and letters from residents in relation to specific sites under consideration to be included in the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan.

Cllr Versallion also commented that he had an interest in relation to the proposed site at Stanbridge as his son used the nearby rugby club.

To receive any announcements from the Chairman and any matters of communication.

The Chairman informed public attendees of the manner in which public speaking would be received at the meeting.  Elected Members who were also Members of the Development Management Committee were reminded of the importance of not prejudicing any discussion that they may take part in at a later date in that Committee.

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting of the Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 17 January 2013 and to note actions taken since that meeting.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the meeting of the Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee held on 17 January 2013 be confirmed and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

To receive petitions from members of the public in accordance with the Public Participation Procedure as set out in Annex 2 of Part A4 of the Constitution.

No petitions were received from members of the public in accordance with the Public Participation Procedure as set out in Part D2 of the Constitution.

To receive any questions, statements or deputations from members of the public in accordance with the Public Participation Procedure as set out in Annex 1 of part A4 of the Constitution.

The Chairman commented that more than 3000 letters and emails had been received from residents in relation to the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan.  A summary of the issues contained in these representations had been circulated to Members of the Committee.  In addition to these representations there were 34 persons who had registered to speak in accordance with the Public Participation Procedure.  All of these persons would be invited to speak under Item 9 (Minute SCOSC/13/91 refers) except two persons who had indicated a wish to speak at this point of the agenda.  

Two speakers raised several issues, which in summary included the following:-

·                    Council policy in relation to the development of a Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan, including the cumulative impact of sites on the community,  the viability of sites and the spread of sites across Central Bedfordshire.

·                    Support for the allocation of site 92, which would be privately funded and owned.  There were considered to be several schemes that could be put in place to mitigate any concerns regarding the use of this site.

To consider any decision of the Executive referred to this Committee for review  in accordance with Procedure Rule 10.10 of Part D2.  

The Panel was advised that no decisions of the Executive had been referred to the Panel under the Call-in Procedures set out in Appendix “A” to Rule No. S18 of the Overview and Scrutiny Procedure Rules.

To consider any items referred to the Committee at the request of a Member under Procedure Rule 3.1 of Part D2 of the Constitution.

No items were referred to the Committee for consideration at the request of a Member under Procedure Rule 3.1 of Part D2 of the Constitution.

To consider the findings of the Gypsy, Traveller Accommodation Assessment 2013 (GTAA) and the draft Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan in order to provide recommendations to the Executive.

Copies of the stage 3 site maps were circulated to Members of the Committee as part of the report to the Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 17 January 2013.  Members are requested to bring their copy of this paper (Appendix B to Item 10) with them to the meeting.  These papers can be viewed online on the Council’s website at:-

http://www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/modgov/ieDocSearch.aspx?bcr=1

Cllr Young introduced the Committee to a report that set out the findings of the Gypsy and Traveller Accommodation Assessment (GTAA) and introduced the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan.  Cllr Young thanked the officers that had been involved in the process to date and introduced Mr R Bennett, Local Government Association, to provide a presentation in relation to Gypsies and Travellers (attached).

Mr R Bennett drew particular attention to several matters in relation to Gypsies and Travellers which included: long-term health concerns and inequality in relation to health, education and employment; the lack of statistical evidence to support public perceptions; legal challenges and examinations in other areas of the country.

Ms J Taylor informed the Committee of several pieces of information including:-

·                    Sites 40, 79 and 112 had been removed from the list of 35 sites that had been issued in the list of sites provided to the Committee meeting on 17 January as they had not passed stage 2.  As a result those sites on the map contained in Appendix C to the report should be marked in red and not orange.

·                    The full site assessments relating to sites 66 and 106 had been omitted from the Committee report.  They had been circulated to Members at the meeting and would be made available to the public via the Council’s website.

·                    As a result of questions from residents the access to GP scores relating to sites 2, 36, 55, 76 and 114 had been reassessed and reduced by one point.  The access to GP score for site 63a had also been reassessed and reduced by two points.  A table of these amended scores had been made available to all Members prior to the meeting and would be made available to the public via the Council’s website.

·                    The Council had received over 3000 representations from the public prior to 5.30pm on 25 February which had been summarised and made available to Members of the Committee.  An update to Appendix D had been circulated to Members of the Committee.

·                    The 2006 GTAA had been refreshed and the final pitch requirement was 157 pitches for Gypsies and Travellers and 22 pitches for Travelling Showpeople up to 2031 for allocation in the Gypsy and Traveller Local Plan.

Mr N Moore provided the Committee with further detail in relation to the GTAA Update and in particular informed the Committee that there was no evidence of vacancies on current sites.  The current level of immediate need totalled 44 pitches as follows:-

·                    9 pitches for households without planning permission;

·                    15 pitches for households with temporary planning permission;

·                    14 pitches for persons on the waiting list with a ‘genuine need’; and

·                    6 pitches for households with sites coming back into use

Mr N Moore commented that based on national trends a growth rate of 2.5% applied to the current number of pitches in Central Bedfordshire was considered to be appropriate.  There was no provision within the figure for migration in or out of the area and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 91.