Agenda and minutes

Councillor Geoff Saul was proposed by Councillor Robin Bennett, seconded by Councillor Felix Bloomfield and elected Chair nem con.

Councillor Felix Bloomfield was nominated by Councillor Jane Murphy, seconded by Councillor Robin Bennett and elected Deputy Chair nem con.

There were no apologies for absence.

Please see guidance note

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 28 April 2022 and consider any matters arising.

The minutes of the meeting held on 28 April 2022 were approved and signed as an accurate record.

Members of the public who wish to speak at this meeting can attend the meeting in person or ‘virtually’ through an online connection. 

To facilitate ‘hybrid’ meetings we are asking that requests to speak are submitted by no later than 9am four working days before the meeting i.e., 9am on Thursday 16 June 2022.  Requests to speak should be sent to chris.reynolds@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 2 working days before the meeting. Written submissions should be no longer than 1 A4 sheet.

The Chair agreed to the following requests to speak:

Ian Hill, Watlington Parish Council stated that he had been involved in the Charlotte Coxe Trust since 2013.  The Parish Council had experience of being Trustees of Watlington Town Hall through a charity and would envisage managing the Trust in a similar way.  They already had a shadow committee in place consisting of three councillors and three members of Friends of Watlington Library which was ready to meet when the need arises.

Ian Hill responded to questions from Members as follows:

·       He described his involvement so far as prompting council officers to move things along as well as engaging solicitors to prepare the necessary documentation for the transfer of the property in order to be ready for that.

·       He saw it as similar to their management of the Town Hall in that they were proposing to create a charity to manage a building and generate enough income to sustain it.

·       If it was decided to transfer the property he would envisage it taking place within a year or so and they would formulate medium and long term plans in that period.

Gill Bindoff, Chair of the Watlington Neighbourhood Plan Advisory Board, stated that the survey of the cottage revealed that it was in a very poor state.  The County Council’s responsibility for the property was a legacy issue.  The Parish Council acted as custodian for other buildings and green spaces and there were local people with the skills necessary to take on the project. She asked that they not be excluded from discussions at the Committee meeting.

Ian Hill added that if the decision was to maintain the Trust under the County Council, he would like to see more local representation on the Trust Committee and not just councillors.

To consider whether Watlington Parish Council should take over as manager or whether OCC should continue managing it via the Committee.

The Committee is RECOMMENDED to

(a)  Agree that the preferred options for the future management of the Trust are permanently managing the Trust through the Committee or transferring the trusteeship to an external body (or group of people) and

(b)  Consider whether Watlington Parish Council would be an appropriate body to transfer the trusteeship to, after considering the written representations from Watlington Parish Council annexed to this report and raising questions with representatives of Watlington Parish Council at the meeting.

Members considered a report outlining options for the future management of the Trust.  Members welcomed the enthusiasm of the local group.  They expressed the opinion that more work needed to be done and they did not have the answers to all the questions yet.  A site visit was also suggested.

Councillor Robin Bennett proposed that the Committee accept recommendation a) but not make a decision on recommendation b) at this stage.  This was seconded by Councillor Freddie van Mierlo.

The Committee agreed recommendation a) and agreed to organise a site visit.

RESOLVED: to agree that the preferred options for the future management of the Trust are permanently managing the Trust through the Committee or transferring the trusteeship to an external body (or group of people).

The Committee is RECOMMENDED that the public be excluded for the duration of items 7 and 8 in the Agenda by passing a resolution in relation in the following terms:

"that the public be excluded since it is likely that if they were present during the discussions there would be a disclosure of "exempt" information as described in Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972 and specified below the item in the Agenda".

THE MINUTES AND REPORT TO THE ITEMS NAMED HAVE NOT BEEN MADE PUBLIC AND SHOULD BE REGARDED AS ‘CONFIDENTIAL’ BY MEMBERS AND OFFICERS ENTITLED TO RECEIVE THEM.

RESOLVED that the public be excluded since it is likely that if they were present during the discussions there would be a disclosure of "exempt" information as described in Part I of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act, 1972 and specified below the item in the Agenda.

To approve the exempt minutes of the meeting held on 28 April 2022 and to receive information arising from them.

The information in this case is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed categories:

3. Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information) and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

5. Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings.

The minutes containing exempt information under the above paragraphs are attached.

The exempt minutes of the meeting held on 28 April 2022 were approved as an accurate record.

To consider the rent payable for the proposed lease between the Council and the Trust for Watlington Library.

Report by the Director of Law & Governance

The information in this case is exempt in that it falls within the following prescribed category:

3. Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information) and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

5. Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings

The report containing exempt information under the above paragraphs is attached.

The Committee is RECOMMENDED to

Propose to the Council that the lease terms which the Council put forward for Watlington Library should be amended, increasing the rent being charged to the Council to the sum recommended by the Trust’s surveyor in his report at annex 3.

The Committee was asked to consider a report proposing that the lease terms which the Council put forward for Watlington Library should be amended, increasing the rent being charged to the Council to the sum recommended by the Trust’s surveyor in his report at annex 3.

The public was excluded for the discussion on this item because discussion of the matters in public was likely to lead to the disclosure to members of the public present of information in the following prescribed category:

3. Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information) and since it is considered that, in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

5. Information in respect of which a claim to legal professional privilege could be maintained in legal proceedings.

RESOLVED: that the lease terms which the Council put forward for Watlington Library be amended, increasing the rent being charged to the Council to the sum recommended by the Trust’s surveyor in his report at annex 3.