Agenda

- guidance note below

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 17 March 2026 (CA3) and to receive information arising from them.

Any county councillor may, by giving notice to the Proper Officer by 9 am three working days before the meeting, ask a question on an item on the agenda.

The number of questions which may be asked by any councillor at any one meeting is limited to two (or one question with notice and a supplementary question at the meeting) and the time for questions will be limited to 30 minutes in total. As with questions at Council, any questions which remain unanswered at the end of this item will receive a written response.

Members of the public who wish to speak on an item on the agenda at this meeting, or present a petition, can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection.

Requests to present a petition must be submitted no later than 9am ten working days before the meeting.

Requests to speak must be submitted no later than 9am three working days before the meeting.

Requests should be submitted to committeesdemocraticservices@oxfordshire.gov.uk

If you are speaking ‘virtually’, you may submit a written statement of your presentation to ensure that if the technology fails, then your views can still be taken into account. A written copy of your statement can be provided no later than 9am on the day of the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

There are no reports from Scrutiny Committees to be considered at this meeting.

Cabinet Member: Resources and Deputy Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/070

Key decision

Contact: Rob MacDougall, Chief Fire Officer and Director of Community Safety

Rob.macdougall@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Chief Fire Officer and Director of Community Safety

Annex 1 to this report contains information previously designated as exempt from publication but is no longer exempt.

Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the contents of this report and confirm its:

i)      support for the fire and rescue service to continue engagement with its employees with respect to the main proposal comprised of implementing 12-hour day shifts for full-time firefighters at five currently on-call fire stations.

ii)     support for the Fire and Rescue Service to continue engagement with its employees with respect to the proposal to remove the On Call fire engine from Rewley Road Fire Station.

iii)   agreement to revisit at a later date the north of Oxford fire station proposal once further details are known.

iv)   withdraw the proposal to remove the second fire engine at Thame Fire Station whilst the Fire and Rescue Service continue discussions with colleagues around fire and rescue cover in this area.

v)    agreement to withdraw any station closures from the proposals to provide an opportunity for the service to explore further local and centralised firefighter recruitment.

vi)   Recognition of the financial implications of recommendations iv and v (as set out in Annex 2) and agreement to consider the need for further investment for the Fire and Rescue Service in line with Options 5 - 7 as part of the budget planning for 2027/28.

vii)  approval of any other actions required to enable continued engagement and consideration of the revised policy approach.

Cabinet Member: Transport Management

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/007

Key decision

Contact: Hannah Battye, Head of Place shaping

Hannah.battye@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Environment and Highways

Cabinet will be asked to consider officer recommendations for uses of the income generated by the temporary congestion charge

Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)    approve “part 1” of the congestion charge investment plan, as detailed at Annex 1 and outlined in paragraph 23

b)    approve “part 2” of the congestion charge investment plan, as detailed at Annex 1 and outlined in paragraph 23

c)    confirm that allocations to specific projects or schemes in line with the areas of spend identified in Part 2 of the investment plan (including the reserve) can be made under the delegation authorised by resolution (e) of the 10 September 2025 cabinet decision:

·       delegate approval for future surplus investment to the Director for Environment and Highways, in consultation with the Executive Director of Resources and Section 151 Officer, Cabinet Member for Transport Management and Cabinet Member for Finance, Property and Transformation.

Cabinet Member: Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/097

Non-key decision

Contact: Kim Sawyer, Programme Director Devolution

Kim.sawyer@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report of the Chief Executive

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

1.    Note progress on devolution discussions across the Thames Valley between December 2025 and March 2026.

2.    Note the evolving national policy context and the emerging position on governance and the supplementary expression of interest (EOI) submitted on 20 March 2026.

3.    Agree the proposed next steps to continue constructive engagement with partner authorities and Government, while maintaining the Council’s commitment to securing a Mayoral Strategic Authority (MSA) for the Thames Valley.

Cabinet Member: Public Health and Inequalities

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/256

Key decision

Contact: Paul Wilding, Programme Manager (Cost of Living)

Paul.wilding@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Public Affairs, Policy and Partnerships

To agree an expenditure programme following the government’s announcement of allocations from the new Crisis & Resilience Fund for the three year period from 1 April 2026.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

a)    agree the proposed structure of the cost of living support programme for 2026-29.

b)    delegate authority to the Director of Public Affairs, Policy & Partnerships in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Public Health and Inequalities to agree new areas of expenditure, and allocate funding from the Crisis and Resilience Fund during 2026-29.

Cabinet Member: Public Health and Inequalities

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/045

Non-key decision

Contact: Carol Stow, Engagement and Consultation Manager

Carol.stow@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Public Affairs, Policy and Partnerships

Following the motion approved at Council in December 2025, a community cohesion action plan is being developed in partnership with councillors, stakeholders, and communities to strengthen cohesion across Oxfordshire. This report will provide an update on the development of the action plan and the work in train.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

Note the progress being made by Oxfordshire County Council to provide strengthen community cohesion across the county in response to the motion approved at Full Council on 9 December 2025.

Cabinet Member: Finance, Property and Transformation

Forward Plan Ref: 2026/008

Non-key decision

Contact: James Cater, National Management Trainee

James.cater@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Property and Assets

Update to the Community Asset Transfer policy, as well as introducing a Community Leasing policy. These policies define how, where appropriate, the Council can devolve assets to local VCS groups at less than best consideration in recognition of the social value generated by those groups

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

a)    Approve the Community Asset Transfer (Annex 1) and Community Leasing (Annex 2) Policies.

Cabinet Member: Place, Environment and Climate Action

Transport Management

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/241

Key decision

Contact: Michael Deadman, Transport Development Control Lead Officer

Michael.deadman@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Director of Economy and Place

The Parking Standards for New Developments was adopted in October 2022; it is now due to be updated. Following internal and external engagement on the draft updated document, formal adoption by Cabinet of the finalised updated document is sought.

Approval from Cabinet is also sought to proceed to a statutory consultation, which is necessary to enable changes to LTCP policy to provide suitable support for the Parking Standards.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

adopt the proposed updates to the ‘Parking Standards for New Developments’ document as set out in Annex 1.

Cabinet Member: Resources and Deputy Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/173

Non-key decision

Contact: Prisca Munzemba, Project Support Assistant

Prisca.mundemba@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Report by Deputy Chief Executive (Section 151 Officer)

To approve the Our People & Culture Strategy which ensures we develop high-performing, innovative, highly engaged and agile teams. Employing the best people and reflecting the communities we serve.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to

a)    Note the refreshed Our People and Culture Strategy 2026–2028 and its four priority areas for attracting, supporting, developing and equipping colleagues to deliver high‑quality services for Oxfordshire.

b)    Note that the full Strategy is provided as an accessible PDF, which sets out the detailed approach, supporting actions, and measures of success.

Cabinet Member: Leader

Forward Plan Ref: 2025/165

Non-key decision

Contact: Colm Ó Caomhánaigh, Democratic Services Manager

Colm Ó Caomhánaigh@oxfordshire.gov.uk    

To report on a quarterly basis any executive decisions taken under the specific powers and functions delegated under the terms of Part 7.1 (Scheme of Delegation to Officers) of the Council’s Constitution – Paragraph 6.3(c)(i). It is not for Scrutiny call-in.

There has ben no use of delegated powers during the period January to March 2026.

Cabinet Member: All

Contact Officer: Chris Reynolds, Senior Democratic Services Officer, chris.reynolds@oxfordshire.gov.uk

The Cabinet Procedure Rules provide that the business of each meeting at the Cabinet is to include “updating of the Forward Plan and proposals for business to be conducted at the following meeting”.   Items from the Forward Plan for the immediately forthcoming meetings of the Cabinet appear in the Schedule at CA.  This includes any updated information relating to the business for those meetings that has already been identified for inclusion in the next Forward Plan update.

The Schedule is for noting, but Cabinet Members may also wish to take this opportunity to identify any further changes they would wish to be incorporated in the next Forward Plan update.

The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to note the items currently identified for forthcoming meetings.

Local Area SEND Partnership

Attainment

Education Other Than At School

Fostering

Business Management and Monitoring Report (Public Health focus)

Parking permits

Social Value