The Cabinet of Charnwood Council made a number of decisions at its meeting on Thursday 12 December 2024, including approving modified parking fees for Loughborough following a recent public consultation, approving the preparation of a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) to support the delivery of infrastructure required for the new Local Plan and endorsing the draft General Fund and Housing Revenue Account budgets for consultation.

Local Development Scheme

The most significant item discussed at the meeting was the Charnwood Local Development Scheme. The Cabinet approved the revised programme for preparing the document, which sets out the timetable for creating planning policy for Charnwood until December 2027, and which will come into effect on 20 December 2024.

The Cabinet also approved the preparation of a CIL. This levy will be used to support the delivery of the strategic transport infrastructure that the Council believes is necessary to support planned growth in the Borough. It will also be used to support other types of infrastructure if the Council decides to expand the scope of the levy. This decision was made in response to a letter from the Planning Inspectorate, which is currently examining the Charnwood Local Plan.

The examination of the Local Plan has been ongoing for some time, with initial hearings having taken place in June 2022. The Inspectorate had paused the examination in June 2022 after the Council announced its intention to accommodate some of Leicester City Council’s unmet housing and employment needs. This decision was in part a response to the agreement made between the ten Councils in Leicester and Leicestershire to create the Leicester and Leicestershire Strategic Growth Plan.

The latest delay has been caused by Leicestershire County Council's previous approach to securing developer contributions for strategic transport infrastructure. The County Council had previously planned to secure contributions through a Transport Contributions Strategy. However, this was abandoned following a legal challenge that concluded that the strategy was unlawful. The legal challenge opined that a Community Infrastructure Levy or a Development Plan Document would be required to secure the contributions.

The preparation of a CIL has been welcomed by Leicestershire County Council, and the two authorities have agreed to work together to develop the CIL charging schedule. The Cabinet noted that whilst a CIL is being prepared, Leicestershire County Council may continue to request developer contributions for strategic transport infrastructure through Section 106 agreements, which can be used to secure site-specific mitigation for developments. Section 106 agreements are legal agreements between local authorities and developers, which are linked to planning permissions, and can be used to secure contributions for a variety of purposes, including the provision of affordable housing, open space, and infrastructure.

The LDS anticipates that the examination of the Local Plan will resume in April 2025, and that the Plan will be formally adopted in September 2025. However, the timetable is in the hands of the Inspectorate and could change, and the adoption of the Local Plan is dependent on the Planning Inspectorate being satisfied with the further viability evidence that is being submitted.

Councillor Snartt asked a series of questions about the Local Plan and the CIL. He expressed concern that the Council was still open to speculative planning applications and that the delay in adopting the Plan was creating uncertainty for local communities. He asked what process was in place to receive contributions for strategic highway infrastructure whilst a CIL was being prepared and how confident the Leader was that the Plan would be adopted by September 2025. The Leader stated that the Council is working hard to fulfil the Inspectors' requests and expects to submit the further viability evidence in the early new year. He explained that whilst a CIL is being prepared, Section 106 agreements are being used to secure contributions for infrastructure, but that these had to meet the tests set out in Regulation 122 of the Community Infrastructure Levy Regulations 2010 (as amended). These tests ensure that contributions are:

• necessary to make the development acceptable in planning terms • directly related to the development • fairly and reasonably related in scale and kind to the development

The Leader confirmed that the examination timetable is ultimately in the hands of the Planning Inspectorate, but that the Council was committed to delivering the Plan in a timely manner. He stated that the Council was working hard to achieve that and that he was in regular contact with the Planning Inspectorate on the matter. He said that he had invited officers from Leicestershire County Council to engage and assist the Borough Council in the preparation of the further viability study but they had declined to do so. He said that he was confident that the Plan would be adopted in September 2025.

In addition to approving the preparation of a CIL, the LDS also sets out the timetable for preparing three Supplementary Planning Documents and a Design Code. Supplementary planning documents provide guidance on the implementation of policies in the Local Plan.

The three Supplementary Planning Documents to be prepared are as follows: • Housing SPD - Will provide revised guidance on meeting housing needs – specifically relating to affordability, mix, tenure and specialised residential accommodation (including purpose-built student accommodation). • Biodiversity SPD - Relates to the implementation of the Council's approach to securing biodiversity net gain¹ from new development. • Planning Obligations SPD - Will provide guidance on the prioritisation of planning obligations where there are viability issues as part of the determination of planning applications.

The Design Code, which is being produced in partnership with Loughborough University, is expected to be adopted in the Spring of 2026.

Car Parking Charges

The Cabinet approved modified parking fees for its car parks in Loughborough. The modifications, which came into effect in February 2025, followed a public consultation that took place in September and October 2024. Almost 1,000 responses were received to the consultation.

The modifications included: • A new concessionary evening fee of £1 for one hour and £2 for over one hour. • A reduction in the Sunday parking fee to 50% of the standard 24-hour rate. • A reduction in the proposed evening parking fee for leisure users.

The Cabinet had previously been criticised for the proposed increase in parking charges, with some businesses and residents claiming that the increase would harm the local economy and discourage people from visiting the town centre. The Leader reassured Councillor Rattray, the Chair of the Scrutiny Commission, that the Council would review the impact of the parking charges on the leisure centre if required.

Draft General Fund and HRA Budgets

The Cabinet endorsed the draft General Fund and Housing Revenue Account (HRA) budgets for 2025/26 for public consultation.

General Fund

The draft General Fund budget assumes a £295,000 use of the Working Balance. This would leave the reserve at £6.3m at the end of March 2026, well above the £3.0m minimum level required.

The Cabinet acknowledged that the budget had been prepared in advance of receiving the detailed financial settlement from the government. The Provisional Financial Settlement, which is published annually by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities, details the amount of funding local authorities will receive for the coming financial year.

The draft budget also assumes that the Council will receive £400,000 in income from the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) levy. This is a new levy being introduced by the Government to make producers of packaging responsible for the costs of recycling their products.

The draft budget includes a number of savings proposals, totaling £1,087,000. Material savings include: • Town Hall show income (offset by additional artist fees) £300,000 • Trade waste income £126,000 • Garden Waste income (revised charges and run-rate) £165,000 • Increased car park income – Loughborough car parks £91,000

These savings are not expected to impact service delivery. In addition to these savings, the Council is also developing a portfolio of options for change, which could generate an additional £330,000 in savings in 2025/26. These options for change include a further review of the Council’s car parking policies, and a number of service reviews. The draft budget also includes a number of cost pressures, totaling £1,298,000. These pressures include the cost of pay awards, an increase in the Employers' National Insurance rate, a reduction in commercial property rental income, the costs associated with delivering the Community Infrastructure Levy and the costs associated with implementing food waste collections.

HRA

The draft HRA budget includes £15m for investment in housing stock. This includes an amount to cover the costs of replacing properties lost through the Right to Buy scheme, and the redevelopment of St Michael’s Court in Thurmaston. The budget also assumes an operating deficit of £1.184m, which will be financed through the HRA Financing Fund. This fund is used to finance the capital programme, with £4.3m being transferred in 2025/26 to cover the depreciation charge. This fund will also need to borrow £5.156m to cover the costs of the capital programme.

The draft HRA budget assumes that dwelling rents will increase by 2.7%. This is in line with the CPI +1% calculation allowed under rent rules set by central government.

Internal Audit Plan Progress

The Cabinet received a referral from the Audit Committee in respect of outstanding recommendations relating to responsive repairs for both routine and emergency repairs. The Audit Committee had expressed concerns that these recommendations were taking a long time to be implemented. The original due date for the recommendations went back as far as March 2023. The Director of Housing and Wellbeing assured the Cabinet that the outstanding actions would be completed by February 2025.

Extension of Security Contract for the DWP lease at Southfields

The Cabinet approved the delegation of authority to the Director of Commercial and Economic Development to sign a 12-month extension to the security contract for the Council offices in Loughborough. This contract is necessary to comply with the lease agreement that the Council has with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The contract is fully recharged to the DWP, so the decision has no financial implications for the Council.