Cabinet received an update on the performance of Butterwood Homes, agreed to allocate additional resources to tackle fly-tipping, agreed to the renewal of the Shared Building Control Service with Rushmoor Borough Council, noted the challenging Medium Term Financial Strategy and approved the release of funds to enable an upgrade to the audio-visual equipment in the council chamber.

Butterwood Homes

Cabinet noted the minutes of a meeting of the Butterwood Homes Scrutiny Panel that took place on 9 October 2024 and received an update on the organisation's performance. The Cabinet will pass on the Scrutiny Panel's comments to the Directors of Butterwood Homes.

Butterwood Homes is a company wholly owned by Hart District Council. It manages 41 flats on the Edenbrook estate in Fleet.

Fly-tipping

Cabinet agreed to spend £90,000 to fund two additional members of staff to work on fly-tipping in Hart over a two year period. It will also review whether Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council should continue to be contracted to collect fly-tipped waste.

The decision was made because, despite recent successes in prosecuting offenders, fly-tipping in Hart remains high:

Notwithstanding all this excellent work, the incidence of fly-tipping continues at an unacceptably high level.

This decision reflects the findings of a task-and-finish group set up to consider the issue. The group found that two dedicated officers would be able to be more effective than the single officer that Hart currently employs:

Two dedicated Officers working on both the education and the enforcement aspects would be able to have a significant positive impact on reducing the incidence of fly-tipping in the area

The group was impressed by the success that Test Valley Borough Council has had in combatting fly-tipping using a similarly resourced team.

Shared Building Control Service

Cabinet agreed to extend the existing Shared Building Control Service with Rushmoor Borough Council for a further five years until March 2030. The Chief Executive has the authority to sign the legally binding agreement between the two councils.

The decision was made because:

A review of the service in 2020 found that the Partnership had been highly successful, delivering excellent customer service since its inception, winning back a good portion of market share and providing a solid efficient service for the benefit of residents and businesses in both districts.

Medium Term Financial Strategy

Cabinet noted the latest Medium Term Financial Strategy. The strategy indicates that the council is facing a budget shortfall in each of the next three years, particularly in 2026/27. This is because the council is assuming that government funding will be cut, inflation will remain high and waste collection costs will rise.

The report notes that the council will need to consider a variety of options, including raising council tax and cutting spending. It also noted that £1m of the forecast underspend in 2024/25 would be allocated to the Local Plan reserve and that up to £63k would be spent on consultancy and software costs.

Audio Visual Upgrade

Cabinet agreed to spend up to £15,000 to upgrade the audio-visual equipment in the Council Chamber.

The existing equipment is 3.5 years old and is no longer supported by the manufacturer. This has resulted in several near misses:

In other instances, the system’s functionality has only been restored just before meetings, often through trial and error.

The new system will use Windows 11, which is the latest version of Microsoft Windows. It will also include a three-year support contract and will be compatible with the government's proposals for remote meetings and voting.

The new system will be installed early in the new year.