The Policy and Project Advisory Board were scheduled to meet to discuss the Community Governance Review, a consultation on permitting schemes for automated passenger services, and the board's work plan.

Community Governance Review

The board was scheduled to discuss the results of the first consultation for the Community Governance Review (CGR). The CGR was launched to seek resident views on whether to introduce parish councils or neighbourhood committees in the area. The aim of these councils and committees would be to ensure local communities can have their views heard and influence what happens in their local area.

The consultation, which ran from 21 July to 12 September, was promoted through social media, email newsletters, a special edition of Arena, and in-person events throughout the borough. According to the report pack for the meeting, the Council Delivery Plan commits the council to achieving the best outcome for Rushmoor residents and businesses from Local Government Reorganisation¹ (LGR), to engage with residents and businesses, and to ensure their needs are met.

The report pack stated that, as of 29 August 2025, the survey had 286 responses, which was considered sufficient interest on the principle of neighbourhood governance. It was expected that the council would be recommended to proceed with a second consultation on specific options to establish neighbourhood governance in the borough. These options were expected to be informed by the full consultation responses.

The board was invited to have a cross-party discussion on the consultation results and the report to the council, to inform the council debate on this item. The outcomes of the discussion were expected to be reported to the council by Councillor Abe Allen, Chairman of the Policy and Project Advisory Board.

Automated Passenger Services

The board was scheduled to discuss the council's response to a government consultation on driverless passenger vehicles. Rachael Howes, Licensing Officer, was expected to attend the meeting to provide a presentation and guide the discussion.

The government passed the Automated Vehicles Act 2024, which sets the framework for self-driving vehicles to be used commercially by the late 2020s. The Department for Transport (DfT) is carrying out a consultation which seeks views on the proposed automated passenger services SI to support the deployment of commercial self-driving pilots.

Part 5 of the AV Act 2024 introduces APS permitting, designed to provide a new, flexible scheme to issue permits for automated passenger services and provide businesses with the regulatory confidence to invest in testing and deploying these innovative services.

The consultation document stated that views were not being sought on the provisions of the act itself, as that had already been approved by Parliament. It was a consultation on the initial regulations to be made under the scheme alongside views on practicalities of running the scheme.

The APS Permitting Scheme:

• Provides a clear legal route for deploying automated passenger services without a human driver.
• Ensures commercial certainty for operators entering the GB market.
• Will apply from spring 2026 for pilots and from 2027 onwards for wider deployment.
• Taxi, PHV² and PSV³ legislation is disapplied for APS permit holders (but these licensing routes remain for conventional vehicles).

The Secretary of State for Transport grants permits for bus-like services anywhere in Great Britain, and taxi/PHV-like services in England. The scheme will initially be administered by the DVSA⁴.

For taxi/PHV-like services, consent is required from each local licensing authority (263 in England, including TfL⁵ for London). Authorities have six weeks to respond. If no response is received, consent is deemed to be granted.

Applicants will need to provide:

• Service scope (area, vehicles, operating hours).
• Operational capability (depots, incident response, maintenance, insurance, financial stability).
• Engagement evidence (with consenting authorities, traffic authorities, emergency services).
• Safeguarding policy (DBS⁶ checks for staff, including remote operators).
• Accessibility plan.
• Fare information (transparent, published).

If an APS service resembles a taxi or PHV, the local licensing authority's consent is required before the Secretary of State (via DVSA) can grant a permit. In England, this means each district/borough council (or TfL in London) where the service operates must give consent. Authorities have six weeks to respond once formally asked for consent. If they do not respond in time, consent is automatically granted.

When deciding whether to give consent, local authorities are expected to consider local policy issues such as:

• Local taxi/PHV licensing standards and policies.
• Local transport integration (e.g. access to stations, ticketing schemes, congestion management).
• Passenger safety and safeguarding expectations.

Authorities are encouraged to engage in early informal discussions with APS applicants, giving them the chance to flag concerns about service areas, operating hours, traffic management and local accessibility expectations.

Authorities remain bound by the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). When granting or refusing consent, they must consider accessibility for older and disabled passengers, and safeguarding standards for vulnerable users.

The board was also scheduled to consider what information taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) licensing authorities are likely to consider most relevant when determining whether to grant approval or authorisation, and what information they would expect to see published by permit holders on the safeguarding of passengers.

Work Plan

The board was scheduled to discuss the Policy and Project Advisory Board Work Plan.