To receive the above report.

Councillor Hilton, Lead Member Finance and Ascot, introduced the item and invited the Panel to make comments on the proposed budget. The Panel was informed that they would only be considering areas that came under the Panels remit, and other O&S Panels were also being asked to comment on the budget prior to the report going to Cabinet and then Council to approve.

The Vice Chairman asked how the estimated pressure on reduced car parking income of £2.07mn was estimated and what the impact of this reduction would have on the parking service. Councillor Cannon, Lead Member Public Protection and Parking, said the estimated projection was based on the usage of car parks and analysis of existing data from the support service. The budget was balanced in anticipation of not incurring £2.07mn.

Simon Dale, interim Head of Highways, said the estimated pressure figure was determined between service leads and accountants by reviewing the impact of lockdown restrictions on each parking facility. The loss of parking control notice income and pay-and-display effected the income. If the loss of income would be replenished from within the budget, plans to maintain car parks and provide a good parking service would continue.

Adele Taylor, Director of Resources, said the budget was balanced through ongoing funding and one-off funding due to the COVID-19 pressures. There was approximately £9mn worth of savings in the medium-term financial plan and £9mn of COVID-19 growth, funded through one-off sources for the financial year 2021/22. The budget showed the assumption of income expected to be given by central government through schemes such as the Sales Fees and Charges compensation scheme.

Councillor Jones asked how temporary the loss of parking income through regeneration would be and the Panel was informed that car parks were being closed and rebuilt, which would lead to a predicted loss of £440,000 income for this financial year. Each financial year would be looked in isolation.

Councillor Rayner, Deputy Leader of the Council, Resident and Leisure Services, HR, IT, Legal, Performance Management and Windsor, informed the Panel that reduced tourism was significantly impacted by COVID-19. It was projected that there would be a loss of £60,000 from the Tourist Information Centre by the loss of ticket sales, membership fees and advertising.

Councillor Baldwin asked for reassurance that conversations regarding the possibility of residents being allowed 30 minutes free parking and private park car parks would continue and be taken into consideration during the consultation. Councillor Cannon said views from Councillors and residents would be considered.

Councillor Baldwin asked for the evidence for moving from a fixed interval pattern to a targeted street cleansing pattern. Councillor Clark said the evidence was based on officer knowledge and cleaning would take place when necessary. If the service was not delivered to the current standard, contractors could be sent out for further street cleansing.

Regarding the review of council’s rural car parks, Councillor Hunt said she and residents had concerns of the rural car park at the dead end of Hurley. The streets were narrow, there was the potential of displacement for parking on street and emergency services found it difficult to reach the area due to the river at the dead end. Councillor Cannon said residents and ward councillors were encouraged to bring forth their views in writing.

Councillor Werner asked what the criteria and evidence was used to select rural car parks, how much income would be made and how the possible influx of cars being parked on streets instead of car parks would be managed. As a result, the target income would not be reached, and residential areas would have a high volume of cars.

Councillor Cannon said the criteria was for all council car parks that were not charged by Traffic Regulation Orders. The evidence was based on officer’s local knowledge and experience, and the projection of car park usage helped assist the estimated income. He was aware of the potential displacement of cars and the impact this would have on enforcement, which was considered during calculations. The parking charges were lower than town centre pricing.

The Vice Chairman suggested for each car park to be listed under the online car parking consultation page, as there was currently no listing. The Panel was informed that the suggestion would be discussed with Simon Dale, and the proposals for car parks was part of the budget consultation.

Councillor Coppinger said there was a vacancy for the last 3 months in the Planning Support Team, which was not replaced as the team had managed without this. Councillor Jones asked if there would be a reduction in the service provided due to the lack of additional officer due to a reduced number of planning applications. Adrien Waite, Head of Planning, said the frequency of planning applications had recovered quickly after the first lockdown. He was confident the vacancy was not needed to be filled due to the efficiency changes made to adapt to working from home.

The Panel was informed that Councillor Stimson, Lead Member Climate Change, Sustainability, Parks and Countryside, was now the Lead Member on reshaping the trees function instead of Councillor Coppinger.

The Vice Chairman asked if the tree team would be able to cope with the savings, given recent planning applications had increased environmental pressures and tree queries. Councillor Stimson informed the Panel that the tree officers were both in Communities and Planning services, and the head of services were evaluating how best to function between them. Adrien Waite had a background in sustainability, which was beneficial to retain and protect trees, with plans to have greener properties.

Councillor Baldwin asked if the highway tree maintenance and inspection would be impacted by reshaping the trees function, and the Panel was informed that an update on the tree strategy was due. As trees were expensive, their maintenance was needed.

The Vice Chairman asked if the skills in other departments allowed for the reductions of staff elsewhere, and Chris Joyce, Head of Infrastructure, Sustainability and Transport, said the tree team within the planning service would focus on planning application, whilst the sustainability team would look at biodiversity, delivering additional trees and green infrastructure.

The Vice Chairman asked if there was an opportunity to sell services from the expertise of officers to neighbouring boroughs to generate income, and the Panel was informed this could be considered in future.

The Vice Chairman asked if the appendices could show the quantity of units sold in Appendix D and the revenue created, and the Panel was informed this could be considered for future budget proposals.

Councillor Baldwin asked if there could be a rise in percentage increase for the removal of illegal signage and a fall in the percentage increase for business signs, to assist in the business recovery plan. Simon Dale said he would investigate this.

Chris Joyce said the funding for major schemes within the Capital Programme was identified to ensure a pipeline of schemes with funding was available, as spending money on the early stage of development resulted in better schemes.

Councillor Baldwin asked where the identified income of £160,000 came from, and the Panel was informed this was received from Community Infrastructure Levy, grant funding and Section 106.

Councillor Brar asked why the Cookham Bridge Refurbishment & Structural Repair was nil when there was money assigned to the bridge, and the Panel was informed that the budget illustrated new amounts, not the amount that was already existing in the Capital Programme.