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ITEM CA15
CABINET–
17 JANUARY 2005
WASTE REDUCTION,
RE-USE AND RECYCLING: WILD WASTE SHOW & PARTNERSHIP OFFICER
Report by
Head of Sustainable Development
Introduction
- The Oxfordshire
Waste Partnership (OWP) is a partnership of all of the District Councils
and the County Council to promote the effective, efficient and sustainable
management of household and municipal waste in Oxfordshire. The OWP
has been meeting on a regular basis for a number of years and provides
a forum for partnership working on waste matters. Each authority is
represented by its Cabinet Member or equivalent.
- This report deals
with two issues which the OWP considered recently. The OWP has asked
the partner authorities to formally consider these issues and provide
a response at the OWP meeting on 26 January 2006.
Waste
Performance and Efficiency Grant
- The Government
announced in December 2004 the creation of a three year targeted grant
(the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant), to provide funding to
local authorities to introduce more recycling systems, to undertake
long term strategic planning and to promote increased and more effective
partnership working in two tier areas such as Oxfordshire. DEFRA have
issued a list of suggestions for the use of the funding – see Annex
1.
- Nationally the
grants amounted to £40 million in 2005/06 and will amount to £105 million
in 2006/07 and £110 million in 2007/08, a total of £255 million over
the three years. Oxfordshire’s share of this funding will amount to
approximately £500,000 in year one, £1.3 million in year two and £1.35
million in year three.
- At its meeting
on 20 September the Cabinet agreed that the Waste Performance and Efficiency
Grant (WPEG) award for 2006/07 and 2007/08 be ring-fenced to further
joint working and to facilitate increased recycling and composting both
from a collection and a disposal point of view. Each District Council
has agreed this too. The decision actually to spend the ring fenced
funding rests with each individual partner authority and therefore the
OWP is seeking approval for two initiatives.
Wild Waste
Show
- The Wild Waste
Show (WWS) has been developed and managed by the Northmoor Trust since
1999. Over two thirds of Oxfordshire primary schools have since participated
in the project. The WWS delivers waste reduction, reuse and recycling
educational programmes to over 10,000 children a year. The WWS Bus is
currently fully booked until March 2006.
- In the past, the
WWS has secured funding through Barclays Community Fund, Oxfordshire
County and District Councils, Npower Ltd and the Trust for Oxfordshire’s
Environment. Although future funding has been sought through possible
external funding streams (eg Government) these bids have been unsuccessful.
- On 21 June 2005
the Council adopted a motion by Councillor Anne Purse which acknowledged
the significant role played by the WWS in educating children and their
parents on waste re-use and recycling issues and its contribution to
this authority and others meeting their waste targets. The motion noted
that the funding of the WWS for future years was not secure and asked
the Cabinet "to consider, together with partners including the Northmoor
Trust and [District] Councils, ways in which future funding of the Wild
Waste Show can be put on a more secure footing."
- As the WWS delivers
a unique programme to Oxfordshire’s schools, the Oxfordshire Waste Partnership
has recommended that this project should be funded at a cost of £123,144
for the next two years. The expectation is that the County Council would
fund 50% of this cost with the remaining 50% funding shared between
the five District Councils. This formula reflects the fact that the
County Council receives 50% of the WPEG allocation for Oxfordshire with
the five District Councils receiving the other 50%. The resultant cost
breakdown is:
Oxfordshire
County Council: £61,572 per year
Cherwell
District Council: £12,314 per year
Oxford
City Council: £12,314 per year
South
Oxfordshire District Council: £12,314 per year
Vale
of White Horse District Council: £12,314 per year
West
Oxfordshire District Council: £12,314 per year
- This funding will
allow the WWS to be supported and developed until March 2008, implementing
new outreach programmes to appeal also to secondary schools, strengthen
partnership working between the OWP members and cover new activities
such as reducing litter.
Partnership
Officer
- The appointment
of a Partnership Officer is required to develop and implement the Joint
Waste Management Strategy for Oxfordshire. The need for additional capacity
has been recognised both by the OWP and also by the Audit Commission
in their recent preliminary inspection report. It was highlighted that
this lack of capacity has hindered the ability of the partnership to
deliver the shared ambitions and strategy to date.
- The OWP considered
this issue at its meeting on 12 December 2005 and has recommended that
a high level officer is recruited by April 2006 to:-
- undertake
strategic work to raise the profile of the Partnership;
- lead and
support the OWP to further joint working between partner authorities
and the revised outcomes of the revised joint waste strategy for
Oxfordshire;
- manage actions
agreed in Oxfordshire’s joint municipal waste strategy;
- co-ordinate
the work of the OWP and officer groups;
- develop
and maintain commitment and involvement of participating partners;
and
- lever in
funds from external agencies.
- The cost of employing
this officer (including oncosts) is likely to be in the region of £65,000 p.a.
(including salary and on-costs). It is probable that with the volume
of work that will be need to be done, further administrative support
will be needed, but this can be assessed as the full work programme
emerges. The full cost of this team, including salaries, overheads,
legal advice and administrative resources could be in the region of
£120,000 p.a.
- Because of the
partnership nature of this post it is proposed that each partner authority
contributes an equal amount to the employment of additional resources.
Therefore the County Council’s contribution would be approximately £11,000
p.a. for the initial officer appointment rising to £20,000 p.a. for
the full partnership team. It is anticipated that this funding would
be allocated from the WPEG money described above.
- There are a number
of significant issues yet to be resolved over the additional resources
and therefore this report recommends the delegation of these decisions
in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Sustainable Development.
Financial
Implications
- The amount of
the WPEG that the County Council received in 2005/6 was £284,328.67.
The amounts of WPEG that the Council will receive in 2006/7 and 2007/8
have been confirmed as £746,000 and £782,000 respectively.
- It is proposed
that the funding described above is allocated from the ring fenced WPEG.
It is anticipated that both the WWS and the partnership management arrangements
will continue beyond 2007/8, subject to the necessary further funding
approvals. However at this stage to ensure the County Council is not
faced with inescapable unbudgeted expenditure at that time the WWS will
only be committed to for the two years specified and the Partnership
Officer will be employed on a two year contract with an option to extend
decided by the employing authority.
Environmental
Implications
- Supporting the
Wild Waste Show and employing additional resources to support the OWP
will drive sustainable waste management and therefore have positive
environmental benefits.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- The Cabinet
is RECOMMENDED to:
- agree
the funding of the Wild Waste Show in 2006/07 and 2007/08 from
Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant;
- agree
in principle the employment of a high level officer (and potentially
support staff) to coordinate and support the work of the Oxfordshire
Waste Partnership, funded from Waste Performance and Efficiency
Grant, subject to the exact nature and arrangement of these
resources being determined following consultation with the Cabinet
Member for Sustainable Development.
CHRIS COUSINS
Head of Sustainable
Development
Background papers:
Nil
Contact Officer:
Andrew Pau, Head of Waste Management, Tel: (01865) 815867
January 2006
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