The Overview and Scrutiny Committee will be provided with information regarding the impact of rural bus service reductions. They will also receive reports on decisions that will be made by the Cabinet in future, and the work that the committee will do in 2025.

Review of Rural Bus Services in West Suffolk

The committee will be provided with evidence regarding the impact of a reduction of rural bus services in West Suffolk.

Councillor Andrew Smith submitted a suggestion to the committee that they review rural bus services and their impact on rural communities.

The committee will be provided with a report that was compiled by the council that reviews rural transport provision models in West Suffolk, Suffolk and other rural areas. The report reviews demand responsive transport, community transport, accessibility of transport, and local transport issues in West Suffolk.

It explains that the council is part of the Suffolk Enhanced Bus Partnership and has published a Bus Service Improvement Plan. It goes on to say that the council bid for £77m from the Department for Transport, but was unsuccessful. However it did receive £1.8m, which it has used to fund 11 schemes, including an extension to the Stephensons bus services 15 and 16, the addition of evening and Sunday journeys to the Chambers bus service 753 and the continuation of the Vertas 'village link' service.

The report highlights that the Simonds bus routes between Diss and Bury St Edmunds, were changed in September 2024 when the company was sold. The new owners changed the number of the 304 service to the 70/70A service, increased it to an hourly service, and cut some stops from the route. The 337/338 service from Garboldisham has been replaced by the 73 service. The council stepped in to subsidise some trips on the 73 until Christmas 2024. It states that there is no more money to continue the subsidy beyond Christmas.

The committee will also be provided with evidence from external parties including the Traffic Commissioner for the East of England, Suffolk County Council, Mulleys, NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, the Save Our Buses Task Force, and two West Suffolk Councillors.

The Traffic Commissioner explained the process for registering, varying and cancelling bus routes, and also for taking action against operators who do not operate to the registered timetable.

Suffolk County Council explained that they are not required to provide public transport, but have the power to contract routes to fill gaps. They stated that the council's budget for bus contracts was reduced in 2019, and is currently around £1.5m, including a £600,000 annual government grant. They explain that their budget is protected by their participation in the Suffolk Enhanced Bus Partnership, but it has not increased in five years, so the council will not be able to maintain all of its contracted routes in future. They explain that most bus services in Suffolk are operated by commercial operators. They state that there are 200 commercial bus routes in Suffolk, and 40 routes subsidised by the council. They state that the reduction in the number of people using buses since 2019 has meant that many services require subsidy to remain operational.

Mulleys, a local bus operator, explained that a typical bus route in a rural area has only two journeys into town in the morning, one suitable for taking people to work and school, and one after 9.30 am, when concessionary passes can be used. They provided the committee with a timetable for one of their rural routes, which operates between Bradfield St George and Bury St Edmunds. They explained that peak am and pm school journeys may be the only financially viable journeys of the day. They said that many town bus routes are not financially viable, but they operate them to link to rural routes and because it cannot all be about profit. They argued that the council has not done enough to help bus operators, and should rethink where they spend money, citing the Apex and a building in Anglian Lane that the council purchased but left empty.

The NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board stated that they believe that reducing bus routes would have an adverse impact on those attending health appointments.

The Save Our Buses Task Force represents the parishes of Bardwell, Badwell Ash, Barningham, Coney Weston, Great Barton, Hepworth, Hopton cum Knettishall, Hunston, Market Weston, Pakenham, Stanton, Stowlangtoft and Walsham-le-Willows. They explained that the task force was created in response to news that Bardwell was to lose its bus service. The task force submitted a bid to the Bus Service Improvement Plan, which, if successful, will provide funding for two years to develop innovative solutions to ensure the sustainable and commercial viability of an appropriate bus transport service for their communities. They state that they want to establish a sustainably funded 'hub and spoke' network linking their communities to the nearest towns and points further afield, using environmentally friendly transport. The report provides an in depth analysis of the challenges they face and opportunities that better public transport could bring.

Councillor Mike Chester stated that the villages of Wickhambrook and Chevington were impacted by the changes, which were made by Stephensons. He explained that a new route, the X51, was government funded and now serves the West Suffolk Hospital, but to the exclusion of Wickhambrook and Chevington.

Councillor John Griffiths provided the committee with an email from a resident in Ixworth, which expresses concern that a bus serving Thurston Community College is dangerously overcrowded.

The parish council of Wickhambrook reported that the loss of the 10.46am Stephensons number 14 service has had a disproportionate impact on the village. They state that their residents relied on the service to access Bury St Edmunds on market days, and to access the West Suffolk Hospital. They report that the replacement service provided by Connecting Communities is too expensive and requires booking in advance. They also state that residents of surrounding villages rely on the service to access the surgery and pharmacy in Wickhambrook.

The committee will be asked to consider all of the evidence, and to report their findings to the Cabinet, possibly with recommendations.

Cabinet Decisions Plan: 1 December 2024 to 31 May 2025

The committee will receive information regarding the decisions that are scheduled to be made by the Cabinet between 1 December 2024 and 31 May 2025.

The committee will be provided with a report that summarises the key decisions that are likely to be made by the Cabinet and other bodies within the council. This includes decisions made by individual Portfolio Holders. The report explains that the committee can scrutinise any of the decisions, and that they can use the 'call-in' mechanism to require the decision maker to reconsider a decision.

The report lists 13 decisions, including:

• Writing off outstanding debts
• Setting the 2025/26 council tax base
• Revisions to the Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme
• Achieving a sustainable budget for 2025/26
• A treasury management report
• A business plan for Barley Homes, the council's house building company
• Commissioning of the new Bury St Edmunds leisure centre
• A report on planning enforcement and appeals
• Proposals for achieving a sustainable budget in the medium term
• The 2025/26 budget
• Approving the Financial Resilience - Strategy Statement for 2025/26 and the Treasury Management Code of Practice
• Approving financial resilience activities between 1 April and 31 December 2024
• Writing off further outstanding debts

The committee will be asked to peruse the decisions plan to identify any items that they would like further information on, or that they feel they should be involved in.

Scrutiny Work Programme Update (2025)

The committee will be provided with information regarding their work programme for 2025.

The committee will be provided with a report that summarises the work programme, and explains that the committee can consider any suggestions for scrutiny reviews. The report also lists the ongoing work of the Transport and Infrastructure Review Task and Finish Group.

The report sets out the schedule for the meeting to be held on 6 March 2025. The committee will receive:

• An update from the council's representative on the Suffolk County Health Scrutiny Committee regarding their meeting on 22 January 2025
• An update from the council's representatives on the Suffolk Police and Crime Panel regarding their meeting on 31 January 2025
• Information on forthcoming decisions to be considered by the Cabinet
• Suggestions for scrutiny reviews

The committee will be asked to review the information and to make suggestions for topics they would like to scrutinise during 2025.