Meeting documents

Cabinet
Tuesday, 17 January 2006

CA170106-15

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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

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

    3. Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

    6. Wild Waste Show

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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."

  9. 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:

    10. 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

  10. 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.

    11. Partnership Officer

  11. 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.

  12. 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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

    4. Financial Implications

  4. 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.

  5. 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.

    6. Environmental Implications

  6. Supporting the Wild Waste Show and employing additional resources to support the OWP will drive sustainable waste management and therefore have positive environmental benefits.

    7. RECOMMENDATIONS

  7. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

          1. agree the funding of the Wild Waste Show in 2006/07 and 2007/08 from Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant;

          2. 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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