Agenda item

Finance – Cllr. Philip – (C-008-2022-23) – to endorse the proposed UK Shared Prosperity Fund investment plan.

(1)        The Cabinet endorsed the proposed UK Shared Prosperity Fund investment plan for final submission to Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

(2)        The Cabinet provided further advice and guidance on delivery.

(3)        That authority was delegated to the Leader of the Council, the Chief Executive and the Section 151 officer to sign off the final investment plan following completion of consultation.

The Finance Portfolio Holder introduced the report. It was noted that the investment plan attached in Appendix 1 of the report, set out proposals for spends of the allocated £1 million Shared Prosperity Fund to Epping Forest district over the next three years. This was given to us by the Government to spend over the next three years, primarily loaded towards the third year. We had just over £100k to spend this year, which must be spent within this financial year. Our plans have to be submitted to Government by the end of July.

Unlike many other councils we had sought to define the planned projects in some detail. Given the short timescales involved in producing the plan, officers had consulted extensively on its contents as the plan was being developed. At the time of writing the report officers were continuing to discuss and negotiate with external partners on the delivery of the programme. It was recommended that authority be delegated to the leader to sign off the final submission in light of these discussions concluding.

The primary goals of the UK Shared Prosperity Fund were to build pride in place and increase life chances by making visible and tangible improvements. The central mission was mission 9, which states that ‘by 2030, pride in place, such as people’s satisfaction with their town centre and engagement in local culture and community, will have risen in every area of the UK, with the gap between the top performing and other areas closing’. The three investment priorities for the UKSPF are Community and Place, Supporting Local Business and People and Skills (the People and Skills element does not come into effect until year 3).

Councillor A Patel asked if we could add in additional schemes in years 2 and 3. He was told that the Council had to submit a three year plan by the end of July, although it may be possible to introduce other things later, we were still awaiting government guidance.

Councillor H Whitbread wondered if there was scope to look at the rural community and especially the prevention of rural crime. Councillor Philip replied that they have only got £100k for the first year but could look into this later.

Councillor Lion wondered if there was any potential for digital intervention from this funding. He was told that they could look at the people and skills part of this, maybe something like digital skills education in the third year.

Councillor Murray was supportive of this scheme and that it was important that Loughton received some funding. He then asked about the proposed playground to be put in the Oakwood Hill estate, when they had already got a toddler play area. What consultation had been undertaken on this, as the Oakwood Hill Community Centre had not been consulted, nor the Oakwood Hill Residents Association or Loughton Town Council. Councillor Philip replied that this had been an accelerated process, and it had not been possible to consult everyone. We worked with the Housing Department who were looking at regeneration of estates and this came from that consultation. As we go on, the consultations will go wider and include some of the stakeholder that Councillor Murray has mentioned.

Councillor Murray noted that they had consulted with other Town/Parish Council’s but not with the biggest one in the area. Nearby to the proposed playground, Loughton Town Council was about to go out to Tender for a new Playground and he was not aware that this had been considered. Could this now be taken into account. Councillor C Whitbread noted that as this agenda had been published for some time now, comments like this could have been made prior to this meeting as we were working to very tight time schedules for this. Councillor Philip said that if Councillor Murray believed that Oakwood Hill did not need a playground then he was happy to work with the Housing Department to see if somewhere else would benefit more from a playground. The wording in the report is ambiguous and does not necessarily denote that a play area would be put in. We were looking to demonstrate that we can spend the appropriate amount of money in each year and make sure we hit those areas that we have not invested in in previous years.

Decision:

(1)        The Cabinet endorsed the proposed UK Shared Prosperity Fund investment plan for final submission to Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

(2)        The Cabinet provided further advice and guidance on delivery.

(3)        That authority was delegated to the Leader of the Council, the Chief Executive and the Section 151 officer to sign off the final investment plan following completion of consultation.

Reasons for Proposed Decision:

In order to unlock the allocated £1 million funding over three years the council was required to produce an investment plan in consultation with local stakeholders and local MPs. The final plan requires the approval of the Leader of the Council, the Chief Executive Officer and Section 151 Officer before submission on the 29^th of July. At the time of writing this report the expected final technical guidance from central government had still not been received.

Other Options for Action:

There were numerous interventions cited by government that funding can be used to achieve. Any of those would have value but given the limited nature of funding and the need to achieve impact and legacy, Officers following detailed consultation with Stakeholders have focused on a reduced level of interventions.