The Performance Scrutiny Committee is scheduled to meet to discuss the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan, the progress of the council's Vision 2030 plan, and the work programme for the coming year. Councillors will also review the minutes from previous meetings of the Performance Scrutiny Committee and the Housing Scrutiny Sub-Committee. Councillor Rebecca Longbottom, Portfolio Holder for Remarkable Place, is expected to be present to answer questions about her portfolio.

Portfolio Holder under Scrutiny - Remarkable Place

Councillor Rebecca Longbottom, Portfolio Holder for Remarkable Place, is scheduled to be questioned about the work done within her portfolio. The report pack includes a report by Councillor Longbottom, which states that the services provided by Community Services staff and associated contractors have been of a good standard. The report also mentions that the externalised/contracted services are due to terminate at the end of August 2026, and that the procurement work required to deliver new specifications and contract documents, has been completed, and that mobilisation of the two appointed contractors is officially under way. Biffa has won the waste/recycling /street cleansing contract, and Krinkels UK has won the grounds maintenance contract. The report is divided by broad subject area, then sub-divided into more detailed areas or subjects to aid clarity.

Open Spaces

The report states that Lincoln continues to retain four Green Flag awards for its parks this year: Arboretum, Boultham Park, Hartsholme Country Park and Hope Wood, along with the additional Green Heritage Award in Boultham Park. The report also mentions the Council's endeavours on rewilding, with around 20 hectares of land now managed as rewilding. The most recent Citizen Panel satisfaction survey relating to open spaces was in July 2024, and the graph shows a gradual downward trend, despite the significant investment made progressively in parks and open spaces in recent decades. The report also provides updates on specific locations:

• The Arboretum: Issues for this park, aside from the usual maintenance issues, have included seeking ways to stop unauthorised fishing in the pond.
• Boultham Park: This has been a difficult year for the park, with a new Park Advisory Group Chair elected, but alas, amidst the fresh enthusiasm he brought, it ended in great sadness as a period of illness eventually resulted in his death.
• Hartsholme Country Park / Swanholme Lakes and the Camp Site: Still the top-ranking park in terms of visitor numbers, the site continues to suffer from the pressures of high demand. Hartsholme has been identified as the next strategic target for parks' investment within the Council's strategic plan.
• Commons: This year has again seen significant work take place on the commons; all of this being reported to the Commons Advisory Panel (CAP), as is normal practice. The commons continue to benefit from additional income derived from an agreement with Lincoln City Football Club (LCFC) for car parking on match days, with this income set aside for work on the commons. Carholme Golf Club (CGC), as a Council tenant on the common, has had a difficult year of recovery from the floods of the previous year.
• Hope Wood: Now a mainstream park, boasting its own Green Flag Award, this is a flagship site for the Council's rewilding campaign.
• Allotments: The Council's allotments continue to be a much-prized asset. The occupancy rate has fluctuated between 93% and 94% for the past few years, with this figure generally seen as representing a full allocation.
• Equipped Play Areas: The Council maintains 28 equipped play areas across the city, ensuring that British Standards are maintained at all times for installation, inspections, and maintenance.
• John Dawber Gardens: The partnership with the John Dawber Garden Trust continues to work well.

The report also provides information on events and activities, education, and volunteering.

Street Scene

This section covers a wide range of services associated with street cleansing and waste management, including the provision and maintenance of street name plates, street furniture and art installations.

The report provides data on waste collections, garden waste collections, and recycling collections. The report notes that the number of residents using the garden waste service has dropped just marginally this year, but the marketing has been strong again this year, highlighting the benefits of the green bin scheme and showing that the charge offers excellent value for money, compared with paying a contractor to dispose of the waste, or the time and effort required to take the waste to a HWRC. The report also notes that the reduction in recycling is a worrying trend.

The report also discusses imminent changes, including the Environment Act 2021, which is instrumental in driving forwards several key changes in the next few years. These include:

• A public body has been set up to collect income from packaging companies and dissemination of the income to those dealing with the effects/processing of waste packaging i.e. Councils.
• To obtain funding Councils will be required to prove they are operating effectively and efficiently, which will be predicated on a consistent list of materials being collected efficiently (materials we already collect co-mingled)
• We will be required to collect food waste weekly from April 2026.
• A Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) is being established for drinks containers covering plastic bottles, and steel and aluminium drinks cans, between 150ml and 3 litre in size (the DRS only applies to glass in Wales).
• Single use vapes were banned from 1st June 2025
• Plastic film will be added to the list of materials that Councils must collect by no later than April 2027.

The report also provides an update on food waste collections, stating that the service is due to start April 2026.

The report also discusses street cleansing, graffiti, and shopping trolleys.

Public Toilets

The report states that although something of a 'Cinderella service' the Portfolio Holder remains mindful of the importance of toilet provision to the economic vibrancy of the city.

Bereavement Services

The report states that Bereavement Services has undergone some significant and important changes in 2024, and indeed up to the current date, in order to address some of the difficulties previously reported.

Food, Health, and Safety

The report states that the Food, Health & Safety Team continues to prioritise public health by taking a risk-based approach to work demands, as well as having regard to the requirements of the Food Law Code of Practice¹.

The report also provides examples of complex cases for 01/04/2024 – 31/03/2025.

Local Air Quality Management

The report states that during 2024/25, the Council had one AQMA² in place due to historic exceedances of the annual mean objective for nitrogen dioxide, a pollutant closely associated with road traffic (as well as other combustion sources).

However, since declaration of the AQMA, there has been significant improvements in nitrogen dioxide levels, with no exceedances of the national objectives being identified within the city since 2018. Therefore, in accordance with Defra's guidance, and following consultation with key stakeholders, the remaining AQMA was revoked in April 2025.

Licensing

The report provides data on the number of licences issued and the number of licences that were active at the end of quarter 4 of the financial year 2024-2025.

Recreation and Leisure Services

The report provides an overview of leisure centres and community centres. Members will be aware of the difficult circumstances surrounding both Yarborough Leisure Centre and Birchwood Leisure Centre over the last 5 months. The previous contractor, Active Nation, who operated both centres on our behalf, ceased trading at the start of April meaning both leisure centres were shut with immediate effect. Fortunately, the council managed to enter into a partnership very quickly with the Lincoln City Foundation to operate the outdoor facilities on a limited basis for a number of the bigger clubs who were using our facilities and that continued until we managed to reopen the centres, meaning that those clubs managed to finish leagues competitions and training. Over the last 5 months the council has worked hard to undertake an enormous amount of work in the centres to ensure that when they opened and our communities returned, they returned to transformed leisure centres that are welcoming, clean, and safe with fantastic equipment and high standards. The council undertook an emergency procurement process to find a replacement operator; Greenwich Leisure Limited won that process and have taken over the running of the two centres with a phased reopening over the summer holidays.

The report also provides an overview of community centres, including Bud Robinson Community Centre, Grandstand Community Centre, Moorland Community Centre and Sudbrooke Drive Community Centre.

The report also provides an overview of recreation grounds, including football pitches and the West Common cricket pitch and pavilion.

The report also discusses leisure strategies, including the Playing Pitch & Outdoor Sport Strategy (PPOSS).

The report also provides an update on Sobraon Barracks cricket pitch and pavilion and Chaucer Drive Bowls Green.

Vision 2030 - Remarkable Place Progress Report

The Committee will receive an update on the Let's enhance our remarkable place strategic priority in Vision 2030³.

The report focuses on progress made on the Let's enhance our remarkable place strategic priority, and covers those projects delivered/being progressed as part of the delivery plan. The report does not cover the performance of the individual front line services that contribute to this theme, as this is already reported quarterly to this Committee. The focus in this report is on the projects that are on-going and not reported in any separate framework.

Projects completed over the least 12 months have included:

• Continued consolidation of the new events programme for the city
• Hope Wood
• Completion of preparations for the new Refuse Collection, Street Cleansing and Grounds Maintenance services
• Harlequin
• Leisure Centres
• Lincoln Crematorium
• Air Quality

Projects to be progressed/ delivered over the next 18 months are:

• Food Waste Service
• Heritage Assets
• Leisure Strategy Work
• Hartsholme Country Park
• Greyfriars
• Local Landscapes, Hidden Histories (formerly called Lincoln's Green Museum)
• Enhancement to Sincil Bank

Central Lincolnshire Joint Strategic Planning Committee/Local Plan Annual Report 2024/25

The committee will receive an annual report detailing work undertaken by the Central Lincolnshire Joint Strategic Planning Committee (CLJSPC) over the period April 1st, 2024, through to 31st March 2025.

The Local Plan (adopted in April 2023) sets out the planning policies for Central Lincolnshire (including the City) and this involves allocating parcels of land for development as well as identifying land which should be protected from development. The Plan includes a set of 84 policies which guide decision makers i.e. Planning Committee on future planning applications for the City.

The following progress occurred in 2024/25:

• The AGM meeting took place on 31 July 2024, with Cllr Young (West Lindsey District Council) being voted in as Chair for the year. At the meeting the following items were considered:
  • Local Plans Team Annual Report for 2023/24;
  • Local Plans Team Annual Budget Report; and
  • Central Lincolnshire Local Plans Team Budget Review 2025-2030.
• The Committee's meeting due on 14th October was not needed and so was cancelled.
• The next meeting took place on 20 January 2025. At this meeting the Committee considered items on:
  • Central Lincolnshire Authority Wide Design Code: Update and Next Steps;
  • Update on Revised National Planning Policy Framework; and
  • Central Lincolnshire Local Development Scheme Update.
• The meeting due to take place on 17 March 2025 was cancelled as it was not needed.

Since the meeting in January 2025 progress has been made on the Design Code work, with a second round of consultation having taken place in March and April 2025. A further update on the Design Code is to be brought to the Committee at its meeting on 15 July 2025.

The Local Plans Team has been working at introducing a new consultation and mapping system in the year and this is proving successful to date. The team has also been focusing on monitoring the Local Plan and starting to refresh our evidence base.

The report also sets out the budget position for the CLJSPC.

The report asks members for their views on whether they still feel the need to receive this report and scrutinise this area of activity going forward.

Work Programme - 2025/26

The committee will be asked to comment on the proposed work programme for 2025/26. The work programme includes the list of portfolio holders under scrutiny.