Stroud District Council will meet on 19 December 2024 and the meeting will include a discussion about the UK100 Charter for Collaboration, a potential investment in commercial units at Brimscombe Port and a review of the Ubico Shareholder Agreement. We do not know for certain whether these items will actually be discussed, or whether any decisions will be made.

Brimscombe Port commercial units

The council are considering buying the commercial units at Brimscombe Port. These units would be part of the redevelopment of Brimscombe Port, which is being carried out by St. Modwen Homes under a development agreement with the council. The council believe that these units would help to create a walkable, vibrant neighbourhood of mixed employment and living spaces, in line with their canal strategy.

The report suggests that the council would purchase a long leasehold interest in the units from St. Modwen Homes once they have been constructed. They would then manage the units themselves, letting them out on commercial leases. The units would provide 263 square metres of space, and it is estimated that they will cost £630,000. £170,000 of this would be drawn from the council's capital reserve, and the rest would be borrowed.

The council's existing investments in Brimscombe Port include the Ship Inn pub and the Brimscombe Port Mill, both of which are let out by the council and provide a revenue income. They have also invested £2.6 million in capital funding for the redevelopment of the port.

UK100 Charter for Collaboration: Local leaders powering up the national clean energy mission

The council is considering signing up to a new UK100 charter¹ that focuses on the role of local authorities in the delivery of the government’s clean energy strategy. The strategy is set out in the government’s “clean energy superpower” mission, which was introduced as part of the Great British Energy Bill.

The UK100 charter makes a number of recommendations for how local authorities can work with national government to meet the UK's Net Zero targets. These recommendations include implementing local area energy plans across the country, making sure that planning decisions support the government’s Net Zero goals and encouraging local communities to get involved in the transition to clean energy.

If the council agrees to sign the charter, it would pledge to support the implementation of the government's clean energy strategy in Stroud. It would also commit to developing local area energy plans for Stroud, and to making sure that councillors on the planning committee understand the new clean energy strategy and the renewable energy infrastructure that is needed to deliver it.

Ubico Shareholder Agreement Review

Ubico² has carried out a review of its shareholder agreement and proposed a number of changes to it. The report pack contains an appendix summarising the proposed changes. Another appendix contains a copy of the proposed revised shareholder agreement, but it has been marked as exempt from publication on the grounds of commercial confidentiality.

Gloucester City Council has recently become a shareholder in Ubico. One of the proposed changes is to update the shareholder agreement to reflect this. The other proposed changes aim to clarify and update certain clauses in the agreement to ensure that it remains “modern”. The Chief Executive will agree the revised shareholder agreement on behalf of the council.

Appointment of an Independent Person and Parish / Town Council Representatives

The council is being asked to appoint Melvin Kenyon as a new Independent Person. Independent Persons act as advisors to the council on standards issues. The council is also being asked to appoint two new Parish and Town Council Representatives: Steve Tilley and Emma Trinder. Parish and Town Council Representatives sit on the council’s standards committee when the committee is dealing with allegations of misconduct against a parish or town councillor. All of the appointees will serve for an initial term of two years, after which they may be re-appointed for a further two years.

Review of Polling Districts, Polling Places and Polling Stations 2024

The council is being asked to approve changes to the polling districts and polling places in the parishes of Hamfallow and Randwick and Westrip. These changes are needed to reflect recent changes to Gloucestershire’s County Council boundaries that were recommended by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. The County Council boundary changes have led to the creation of new parish wards in Hamfallow and changes to the parish ward boundaries in Randwick and Westrip. The council is recommending that the polling districts are also changed to reflect these new parish wards and ward boundaries so that they are ‘coterminous’. The proposed changes to the polling district boundaries are shown in Appendix C to the report pack.

The council is also proposing that the polling place for Hamfallow (South Ward) be changed from Berkeley Town Hall to Canon Park Pavilion. This is because feedback from recent elections suggested that Berkeley Town Hall was too small to accommodate the voters from both Berkeley and Hamfallow (South Ward).

Appointment to the Independent Remuneration Panel

The council is being asked to appoint four members to its Independent Remuneration Panel. The panel is responsible for reviewing the allowances that are paid to councillors and making recommendations to the council about them. The council is required by law to have an Independent Remuneration Panel, and to have regard to its recommendations when deciding on councillor allowances. The four proposed appointees are Graham Russell, John Podmore, Wendy Stephenson and Keira Stobie. Mr. Russell is already a member of the panel, and he will continue to serve as chair. The other three appointees are new to the panel. If they are appointed, the panel will start its next review of councillor allowances in late 2025. Its recommendations will then be presented to the council in 2026.