Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/072

Contact: Charlotte Simms, Team Leader – Minerals and Waste Policy and Strategy (Charlotte.Simms@oxfordshire.gov.uk)

Report by Director of Economy and Place (CMDL4).

The Leader of the Council is recommended to:

a)    Approve the review of the Statement of Community Involvement 2020, subject to a further review of the Statement of Community Involvement being carried out by December 2026.

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. He explained that these items were on the Forward Plan under ‘Delegated Decisions by Deputy Leader of the Council with Responsibility for Climate Change, Environment and Future Generations’. However, when the agenda was published, a Cabinet had not been appointed by the Leader of the Council post-election. Therefore, the decision was taken to publish these items in agenda under ‘Delegated Decisions by the Leader of the Council’, since the position of the Leader exists post-election even when a Cabinet has not been appointed. Once the Cabinet was appointed and Council was notified on 20 May, the Leader delegated responsibility to chair this meeting to the Cabinet Member for Place, Environment and Climate Action as the items fell in her portfolio, as per the provisions in the Constitution.

Officers confirmed that Section 18 (1) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (as amended) requires that each Local Planning Authority produce a Statement of Community Involvement (SCI). Regulation 10A of Town and Country Planning (Local Planning) (England) Regulations 2012 (as amended) requires that Statements of Community Involvement be reviewed every five years.

Officers noted that this report was for the Council to be able to fulfil its statutory obligations and that the review was due by May 2025, given the last review was completed in May 2020.

The Chair thanked officers and agreed to the recommendations in the report.

RESOLVED to:

a)    Approve the review of the Statement of Community Involvement 2020, subject to a further review of the Statement of Community Involvement being carried out by December 2026