Subject: Written questions from Councillors

Date of meeting: 11 July 2024

Report of: Corporate Director for Corporate Services

Contact Officer: Name: Anthony Soyinka

Tel: 01273 291006

Email: anthony.soyinka@brighton-hove.gov.uk

Ward(s) affected: All

For general release

The following questions have been received from Councillors and will be taken as read along with the written answer detailed below:

1. Councillor Hill

I welcome the introduction of a country wide mandatory food waste collection system by 31 March 2026, however implementing this properly within tight budget constraints will be a difficult challenge for our local authority. The previous government did not provide enough additional funds for the scheme so money will have to come from elsewhere to fund this. What is the administration doing to find ways to make up for this funding shortfall?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

This administration is not waiting until the mandatory introduction of food waste and will be announcing the rollout soon. Capital has been allocated accordingly and the vehicles have now been procured. DEFRA has developed a funding formula to assist local authorities that do not have a food waste collection service, and some transitional funding was allocated accordingly. If a shortfall is identified, we will seek a change in that formula based on the evidence.

2. Councillor Hill

Food waste collections can lead to bits of food being left in the street. Even when the bins have a locking mechanism, it is likely that they will not always be used perfectly. If food waste is left in the street, it creates a contamination problem and allows seagulls and rats to get to the food. This is particularly problematic in high student density areas. Will the administration consider hiring additional street cleaners alongside the rollout of the food waste collection system up? What else is it looking at to avoid contamination issues relating to a food waste collection system.

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

As part of planning for the introduction of the service, research has taken place with other local authorities with a food waste service in place to understand best practice and any issues experienced. This includes identifying options for suitable caddies, containers, on-street and communal containers.

In addition, we have identified food waste vehicles which are electric and have jet wash units installed, to enable efficient clean up if required, as well as to facilitate the on-going cleaning and maintenance programme of communal containers.

As part of the roll out and beyond, a communications campaign will be implemented, to include information for every household on what can and can’t be recycled.

The collection service will be rolled out in phases so that lessons can be learned as we go. We will announce details later this year.

3. Councillor Hill

What progress has been made with Southern Water to get funding from them to pay for sustainable urban drainage systems and other improvements?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Real

Thank you, Cllr Hill, for your question regarding Southern Water’s obligations to our city. The council are engaged with Southern Water and are having early discussions on what could be done to improve the sustainable drainage in the city including what funding could be provided. The Council’s leadership and senior Cabinet members and officers have met with Southern Water’s senior leadership and have sought assurance that there is substantial funding for Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems or SuDS within Brighton and Hove included in Southern Water’s Asset Management Plan 8 (AMP8) presently being considered by the water regulator Ofwat at the Draft Determination Stage.

4. Councillor Hill

Regarding the Springfield Road memorial tree, are we any closer to getting the tree planted in a suitable place and with protections around it to stop it being knocked down by cars as happened before?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Hill, for your question. Since I met with Springfield Road residents, Cllr Pickett and you in April to assess this tree pit and damage to the two former trees planted there by manoeuvring vehicles, I have pressed officers to come up with an effective solution that protects a newly planted tree. I am very pleased to report that we will be installing raised kerbs around the tree pit and a cage to protect the tree ready for next winters planting season. With these additional protective measures in place, akin with the two other recently planted and flu rushing trees further up the road, we are confident that the present location of the tree pit is suitable for the new tree to also flourish.

5. Councillor Pickett

Net Zero

The redesign of the Carbon Neutral Programme (CNP) initiated and set up in 2022 included a reduction in gas emissions, an enhancement of biodiversity and an adaption to climate change. The current plan includes only a plan to reduce gas emissions to net zero. Can the administration please explain why they have abandoned any plan to enhance biodiversity or climate adaption? Can they please explain what a net zero plan only looks like?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Service

This administration is not abandoning plans to enhance biodiversity or our work to adapt to the changing climate. We are, however, placing a much greater focus on decarbonising the city as whole and are creating a new team to take that work forward as a matter of urgency.

6. Councillor Pickett

Clean air

In light of the recent BBC investigation that found that England's clean air zones (CAZs) have raised over £150m for local authorities by charging drivers a fee to enter certain areas in an effort to reduce pollution. The money raised is then reinvested into local transport plans, road repairs, and improvements including clean air school programmes and school streets pilot schemes. When will BHCC initiate its own scheme to improve the welfare and health of this city’s residents and in particular, those of children who are particularly vulnerable, as well as pay for itself in the process?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Pickett, for your question. One of the key aims in the Council Plan is to keep our city clean by improving air quality. By monitoring pollution levels, we can understand what is happening and where so we can take targeted action rather than adopt a ‘one size fits all’ approach. Our air quality monitoring is being significantly expanded so that we will have a greater amount of data on which to base future decisions. This will mean that we can plan and use the most effective means to improve air quality where it is most needed.

Opportunities to progress to widespread low emission zones, as done elsewhere over the course of the past decade, were not taken previously by BHCC. With substantial improvements in vehicle fleets bringing most cars and other vehicles to Euro5 and Euro6 emissions standards and many more registered electric vehicles in and visiting our city, it is now difficult to justify the substantive cost of installing such measures to reasonably address a dwindling proportion of older vehicles.

As Cabinet member for Transport, Parking & Public Realm, I work very closely with Council officers who are specialists in tackling air quality. The city already has a localised Ultra Low Emission Zone for buses in the city centre, which is working well through continued partnership working and investment in cleaner vehicles. Our successful bid to the Government’s zero emission bus fund for electric buses, for example, together with many other targeted initiatives will further assist this.

Other measures we are working on to cut harmful emissions include building better and safer routes for active travel; significantly increasing the number public use on-street charge points for electric vehicles including for taxi drivers, as well as decarbonising the council’s own fleet. Together these measures will create a cleaner, healthier environment for everyone and deliver one of our priorities for the city.

7. Councillor Shanks

Residents are concerned that money raised by events in parks and open spaces is not benefitting local communities. Has the administration plans to ensure some money from these can be used locally?

Reply from Cllr Robins Cabinet Member – Sports and Recreation

Income from Events is part of the Council’s overall budget and investment in the city. On certain occasions donations (e.g. London marathon have made a donation of £250K towards local community table tennis) have been made to local charities, however, the income from these events are part of targets set for officers to ensure services can be run and maintained.

8. Councillor Shanks

Please identify which community groups have lost all or some of their funding from the communities’ fund in the last budget

Reply from Cllr Pumm Cabinet Member – Communities, Equalities and Human Rights

No groups have lost funding from the Communities Fund. As an annual grant programme, all wards are made on an annual basis with no guarantee of future funding should the applicant reapply and be successful in future rounds. While the Communities Fund has come to end we have redesigned the previous Third Sector Investment Programme to introduce a new two year grant opportunity for small and medium sized groups – the Community Catalyst Fund. This is in response to feedback from these groups that small sums of two year funding would allow them stability to make further applications to other funds without pushing them to become bigger organisations and take on more burdensome large grants.

9. Councillor Shanks

How many posts were removed in the council reorganisation and budget cuts? Does the partial audit reassurance mean that we lack capacity in some areas?

Reply from Cllr Taylor Cabinet Member – Finance and City Regeneration

Approximately 186 posts were proposed to be deleted in the budget proposals for 24/25. These posts are from a range of grades and services, and approximately 110 of these posts were estimated to be vacancies. The Council has had significant financial pressures to address and this has resulted in reduced capacity in some areas which has impacted on some of our Audit outcomes. We are using our Audit process to focus activity on the areas where we need to improve our internal control and governance processes. In many areas this links to updating systems and digital processes as well as the level resources. We are also focusing on how we ensure robust governance and internal control as part of our organisation redesign.

10. Councillor Shanks

Please outline the councils strategy to plant more trees, how will you get City Parks and Highways depts to work together with community groups to plant trees in the North Laine and elsewhere?

Reply from Cllr Robins Cabinet Member – Sports and Recreation

The Council is prioritising tree planting and this year the administration has put £50k of additional funding in to planting. Working with funders and partners, we’re looking to use our available funding as match funding so that the money goes further. We are also exploring sponsorship schemes.

Our Arbs team already do a vast amount of work on tree planting already working closely with local communities and regional/national agencies.

11. Councillor Shanks

When will the administrations plans for a federation of Schools be shared with opposition councillors?

Reply from Cllr Daniel Cabinet Member – Children, Families, Youth Services and for Ending Violence against Women and Girls

The Council has started a dialogue with Headteachers and Governing Boards about proposals for a city of federated schools as part of our overall school organisation work. We are holding a number of meetings with them to encourage engagement on this matter and develop the model. Some high-level information has been shared with these groups including a purely illustrative example of how federations based largely on geographical areas could be constructed, and we have provided contextual information to the characteristics of those federations. We are encouraging as much feedback from schools as possible on this. As with any suggested change there is a mix of views across the schools about the approach. By the end of term we have asked Headteachers and Governing Boards to indicate if they are prepared to actively engage in further conversations around working towards a city of federated schools. No decisions have been made, nor has a formal consultation begun. At this early engagement stage we are welcoming alternative options to the way in which the city’s schools tackles the challenges it faces, whilst maintaining high quality education, avoiding fragmentation and the risk of schools being left in isolation. The administration has recently shared information with opposition councillors on this subject.

12. Councillor McLeay

As the spraying of glyphosate takes place across the city, resident are finding they are not given warning of when this takes place, there is no signage to say the area has been sprayed and the only way they can tell spraying has taken place is by looking closely for an oily residue. This puts pets and children most at risk. Could there be more forewarning, or notice be given to streets when spraying might take place, and signage put in place to communicate when an area has been sprayed?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

Given the number of variables that affect the progress of treatment, it is not possible to provide an accurate idea of when a given street will be treated. It is, however, possible to give an idea of when a broad area sits within the schedule, and that information is available on the relevant webpage. All of the agencies on which local authorities rely for health and safety guidance consider glyphosate safe to use in public areas, and of course the method chosen by BHCC is more targeted that that used by most other local authorities. As such, it is not considered necessary to place signage where treatment has taken place. The controlled droplet application method is an extremely responsible and safe means of treating amenity weeds.

13. Councillor McLeay

There are streets across the city who would like to manage their own weeds without any use of glyphosate. They applied for weeding kits and on the day it arrived, were met by sprayers on their street. How can residents politely request that they manage their own street, so it can remain glyphosate free? Who should they direct these requests to?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

Residents can email communitycleanup@brighton-hove.gov.uk for support in clearing weeds in their area. Given the tight timeline as treatment started this year, it may be the case that some residents struggled to get this support in time, but now that everything is up and running this should no longer be a problem. All of the relevant information in relation to weed management is available here.

There is not a formal opt-out scheme in place, but we are looking to introduce one in the future.

14. Councillor McNair

CCTV Orchid View –

There has recently been serious vandalism in Orchid View. When will CCTV be fitted in Orchid View in order for residents to feel safe? And what is the timeline?

Reply from Cllr Williams Cabinet Member – Housing and New Homes

Thank you for your question. I am sorry to hear of the issues your residents report at Orchid View. We would welcome residents reporting incidences of anti-social behaviour to the Housing Service through our Housing Customer Services Team. We are aware that there are some ongoing complaints about misuse of the laundry which are being looked into and will form part of the upcoming laundry review and consultation.

However, at this time we are not aware of incidences of behaviour that would meet our thresholds for consideration of installation of CCTV. We are happy to receive information on any further reports or complaints of anti-social behaviour/vandalism in Orchid View and will keep all options open to us under review.

15. Councillor Meadows

Patcham Place Pavilion –

Patcham Place pavilion has been repeatedly vandalised. Fortunately, cricket was able to continue at Patcham Place this season. What is the council doing to help ensure Patcham Place Pavilion is restored to a usable state and that cricket can continue at this venue long term?

Reply from Cllr Robins Cabinet Member – Sports & Recreation

The repeated vandalism of Patcham Place Pavilion is sad to see and out attempts to secure the building have failed to keep the vandals out. We have inherited a big challenge with sports facilities across the City. It’s generally not just an issue of vandalism as in this case, but the accumulation of years of underinvestment in buildings. We do have some capital funding available to get sports facilities back up and running but need to look at new operating models going forward, to ensure this capital investment is well used and to prevent a slide back into the current state of decay. The council, with clubs and sports governing bodies, brought thriving tennis back into our parks and made progress with other sports moving to facilities managed by the users and we hope to extend this further.

16. Councillor McNair

Garden waste collections –

Garden waste collections in Patcham & Hollingbury were severely affected in June. Why was this? When is the service expected to return to normal? As residents pay additionally for this service when can they expect to be compensated?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

We apologise for the disruption to Garden Waste services during June which were due to exceptional levels of unexpected driver absence. This is beginning to settle back into a normal pattern now. Crews have been working hard to catch up any missed collections. However, if anyone has missed a fortnightly collection, we would be happy to extend their subscription.

17. Councillor Hogan

Recycling in Hove Park –

Recycling in Hove Park has not been collected. Why is this, and when will a consistent service be established?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

I’m sorry that recycling collections in the Hove Park area have been affected due to an exceptionally high number of vehicles being off the road. The crew have been given additional staff to help catch up the work, and where there have been spare crews these have been deployed to support the collection of missed work. With regards to vehicles, we are still catching up with vehicle replacements after many years of under investment. This has been exacerbated by some difficulties recruiting HGV mechanics to maintain the fleet. However, 2 new starters are commencing work in the next 2 weeks and this will help improve the resilience of the Council’s fleet. We are also looking at further investment to replace some of the less reliable vehicles.

18. Councillor Hogan

Road resurfacing –

Residents were told Woodland Drive would not be resurfaced, now it is. This is confusing for residents and has caused significant disruption. How will residents be notified of resurfacing?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Hogan for your question. All residents in Woodland Drive were sent letters, all resurface work has been completed. Also, notices are placed on the road by our contractors in advance (5 days) of works taking place. We value the importance of road improvements including resurfacing and filling of potholes to make roads safer for cyclists, drivers and those crossing the roads and generally better for communities. Therefore, we have taken every opportunity to optimise our road resurfacing programme which has enabled the inclusion of this road – now complete, a benefit to the Woodland Drive community.

19. Councillor Lyons

Tongdean Lane parking consultation –

Residents in Tongdean Lane are keen for a parking consultation. Buses can’t get through. Could this consultation be commenced in the near future?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Lyons, for your question. We are making good progress with our parking review which provides as much needed planned strategic framework to make parking work better for communities through a planned and connected approach fairer, more equitable and accessible for residents, traders and businesses and visitors. It is noted that residents in Tongdean Lane are calling for better planned parking that has enforcement designed to stop inconsiderate parking that has resulted in some buses not being able to pass, as you report. The Tongdean Lane area is on the parking scheme priority timetable which is due to be agreed in the autumn. This area will be included as part of the review of Zone 12 (Withdean).

20. Councillor Lyons

Road Resurfacing –

We are grateful for the resurfacing of Hill Brow but why were worse roads in north Brighton ignored, such as Carden Hill?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Lyons, for your question regarding our road maintenance programme. The Council, along with most other local authorities, follow a risk-based asset management approach to the delivery of planned maintenance in the City. Details of this approach are available in the Highway Asset Management Policy and Strategy which was approved at committee in January 2023 and is the basis of allocation within this year’s road maintenance programme within the notable constraints of the regressive reduced budget allocation assigned by the former Tory government. We take a data-led approach for our planned maintenance programmes. To reduce the cost of maintaining our roads, we focus on keeping our roads in good condition for as long as possible. This includes conducting annual carriageway condition surveys and deterioration modelling which are used to allocate the budget across the road network and across different types of treatment to maximise the lifespan of each of our carriageway assets.

Our survey assessment showed that Hill Brow was starting to show the first signs of deterioration in the form of cracking. Cracking allows water into the structure which speeds up the rate of deterioration. By treating it with a microasphalt surface treatment we have sealed the surface and prevented water ingress which will slow the rate of deterioration. Carden Hill is not suitable for this type of treatment, it is high on our priority list for large scale repairs and then future resurfacing depending on budgets and priorities within the budget we have. We are working hard to increase budgets for road maintenance and pothole repairs, that unlike the former failed Tory central government, this Labour administration consider as a priority to this city.

21. Councillor Meadows

Enforcement officers –

Why did enforcement officers tell residents in Vale Avenue to take down their signs protesting the Royal Mail development? And, in the process, upset an elderly couple by telling them their sign was illegal when it wasn’t? Who sent the enforcement officers to speak to the residents at this property? Can we be reassured that this will not occur again

Reply from Cllr Pumm Cabinet Member – Communities, Equalities and Human Rights

Flyposting is an offence under section 43 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003.

Fly posting is putting up posters or stickers on properties, lamp posts, telephone boxes or other structures on the street without consent from the owner.

The Environmental Enforcement Framework sets out the council’s policy and approach to dealing with flyposting and other environmental crimes. There is nothing in this enquiry to suggest that the officers were not adhering to the policy and carrying out the role that they are tasked with. However I am sorry to hear that the residents were upset and if they have a complaint about how they were treated they can make a complaint through the council’s complaints procedure when their specific circumstances can be considered by a manager.

22. Councillor Theobald

Patcham roundabout –

Please provide an update on the progress being made on ensuring Patcham roundabout is an attractive gateway to the city.

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Theobald, for your question which I do appreciate you have on several occasions sought progress on. I am now pleased to update you that there is now general agreement with National Highways on the council facilitating a maintenance agreement with the sponsor which I trust you can agree is good news and is progress. However, planning permission is still required and investment needs to be found to carry out enabling works (salt margin and access hard standing), and the cost of traffic management. These were planned for 2020 but were cancelled due to COVID. Now we have agreement with National Highways to proceed as set out above, we are currently getting them repriced.

In the meantime, the sponsor who aims to take on the roundabout has upgraded the planting and is maintaining the display on the raised bed adjoining the roundabout. Hopefully you will have noticed the improvement.

We are also scoping more generally a programme of public artworks across the city to identify gateways and to identify sponsors for these. A positive addition to our public realm.

23. Councillor Lyons

Withdean Rd –

Part of Withdean road has a speed limit of 20mph, whilst the section between Withdean Stadium to the junction of Wayland Ave has a 30mph limit. Many households have contacted us requesting a uniform 20mph for the whole road. Could this be expedited as soon as possible? There have been a number of near accidents.

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Lyons for your question. During the consultation for 20mph limits in the city there was a generic reasonable expectation from transport operators and the Police that main routes into and out of the city would be kept at 30mph. This was to support the Police when it comes to enforcement. If a limit is imposed on a small section of a road, then that becomes almost impossible to enforce as a driver could state that they were confused about the speed limit due to the proliferation of different signs within the drivers view.

Changes to the speed limit would need to be considered as part of a future traffic management review. However, as you report residents are calling for a change and a proposed traffic management review supports this can be done safely, we may be minded to consulted formally with local residents to progress such a speed limit change.

24. Councillor Lyons

The Martlet –

We have received requests for traffic calming within The Martlet. Traffic is heavy at school dropping off/collection times. Could consultation be commenced to decide the most appropriate traffic calming measure?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Lyons, for your question regarding traffic calming measures within the Martlet. The council has introduced an assessment process called Safer Better Streets. This particular location has been looked at by officers who have recommended more enforcement at busier traffic periods at this location such as pick up and drop off times. Requests can be made via our Better Safer Streets programme for road safety assessments and requests.

25. Councillor McNair

Ukrainian refugee groups –

Is it true that Ukrainian refugee groups in the city are losing funding from the council? Will Ukrainian organisations and individuals be able to apply for funding from the Brighton & Hove Fairness Fund?

Reply from Cllr Pumm Cabinet Member – Communities, Equalities and Human Rights

No funding has been withdrawn from Ukrainian groups in the city. If there is a specific example that the Councillor can share I will ask officers to look into the matter. Like other community groups in the city if the Ukrainain groups meet the eliginility criteria for the Brighton & Hove Fairness Fund they will be able to apply. The Trust for Developing Communities has been providing cpacity building support to groups over the last few years.

26. Councillor McNair

Taxis –

Why are taxis from outside Brighton & Hove allowed to operate in the city with no checks and no adherence to this council’s rules and regulations? Local taxi drivers are at a significant disadvantage and their business is suffering. What will the council do to support our local taxi drivers?

Reply from Cllr McGregor – Chair of Licensing Committee

Legislation allows for a licenced private hire vehicle (driver, vehicle & operator all licensed by the same authority) to operate legally anywhere in the country. Licensing checks are carried out by the relevant licensing authority. This has always been the case but the popularity of Apps based providers has made it much easier for out-of-town private hire vehicles to work away from their licensing authority’s area.

We do work closely with our neighbouring authorities and have joint enforcing procedures, carrying out regular joint enforcement work on both BHCC licensed vehicles and those “out of town” licensed vehicles.

We hold regular taxi forums with trade representatives to listen and address any concerns that are raised.

27. Councillor Fishleigh

Parking vouchers - digital discrimination continues in our city. When will printed parking vouchers be available in our City for visitors and residents to purchase?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Fishleigh, for your question. Having made significant progress with evaluating the various options; an announcement is expected next month about providing our customers with a wider choice in the way they pay for their parking.

28. Councillor Fishleigh

Pavements - how much is in the budget for mending pavements and how will areas be prioritised for replacement of paving slabs damaged by weeds and re-laying of slabs that have lifted?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Fishleigh, for your question. Regular Inspections are undertaken by the Council throughout the city to check the condition of pavements. Although budgets are limited, we do prioritise safety defectives as a priority above the current proactive planned intervention levels. Where safety defects are identified through routine inspections or residents, ward councillors and others making the council aware, they are treated as priority for treatment/repair.

29. Councillor Fishleigh

Trees - as there is no budget to remove tree stumps, will BHCC allow resident-funded projects to turn these into seats, flower pots and wood sculptures?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Fishleigh, for your question regarding tree stumps. The Council is open to exploring options, however the stumps must not become a hazard. Although we do not have funding to deal with all of the stumps in the City as and when we get funding we are replacing them, choice of site can often be influenced by any match funding we can access so stumps will still be being removed.

Any work carried out on the highway would need to be carried out in a safe manner so any plans would have to be discussed with officers.

If work can be carried out safely that enhances the street and it’s done in the knowledge that it could be short lived yes. We are happy to get involved in discussing any schemes proposed.

30. Councillor Fishleigh

Unadopted pavement on Marine Drive, Rottingdean - will BHCC now agree that it has responsibility for this area to the east and south of the A259 and Rottingdean High Street junction and partly in front of shops that BHCC owns - and prioritise for resurfacing please?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

The area referred to is not adopted highway and is part of the leased estate to the shops. BHCC Estates, are in contact with the Indvidual lease holders to resolve the maintenance needs to the pavements.

31. Councillor Earthey

What are the reasons for undertaking these improvements without consultation with the stakeholders of the Undercliff Safety Campaign (which include Rottingdean Parish Council, Ovingdean Residents and Preservation Society, Saltdean Residents Association, the Saltdean Community Association, the proprietors of the Ovingdean Café and Molly’s Café, the two ward councillors, and the local MP)?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Earthey,for your question. There is currently no formal plan for implementing changes to the Undercliff other than some recent refresh to signs to encourage all users to share the space. However, as you have raised this as a matter of some concern, i would be happy to meet with you and others there to discuss these concerns and potential solutions that work well for the range of stakeholders and constituencies that wish to use this shared space.

32. Councillor Earthey

What is BHCC’s current plan for improving Undercliff safety (by type of improvement and date of implementation, e,g, rumble strips, signs, barriers, etc)?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Earthey, for your further question regarding the Undercliff. There is currently no formal plan for implementing changes to the Undercliff other than some recent refresh to signs to encourage all users to share the space. However, as you have again raised this as a matter of some concern, as per my previous response, I would be happy to meet with you and others there to discuss these concerns and potential solutions that work well for the range of stakeholders and constituencies that wish to use this shared space.

33. Councillor Earthey

Please provide BHCC’s budget and costings of their said plan, so it can be seen why there is no money for the Ovingdean – Saltdean stretch, and what the options are for raising finance from alternative sources.

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Earthey for once again asking a question regarding the Undercliff. As set out previously, there is currently no formal plan for implementing changes to the Undercliff other than some recent refresh to signs to encourage all users to share the space. However, as per my previous two responses, I would be happy to meet with you and others there to discuss these concerns and potential solutions that work well for the range of stakeholders and constituencies that wish to use this shared space.

34. Councillor Earthey

What is BHCC’s plan to provide better engagement with the Campaign’s stakeholders?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you, Cllr Earthey, for your question. Please again be assured that officers and I, are more than happy to meet with any stakeholders including residents, business, walkers, cyclists, those with specific accessibly requirements and others at this location to progress resolution and mitigation to these matters raised.

35. Councillor Earthey

Please provide confirmation that the Stakeholders’ views on Undercliff safety will be incorporated into the final plan.

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you Cllr Earthey for your question. Please again be assured that myself and officers are more than happy to meet with any stakeholders including residents, business, walkers, cyclists, those with specific accessibly requirements and others at this location to progress resolution and mitigation to these matters raised.

36. Councillor Hill

Can Cllr Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services clarify whether Hanover & Elm Grove ward is part of a pilot opt out scheme for glyphosate spraying? Different Labour Councillors have claimed it is either due to high footfall in the area or due to a pilot opt out scheme. Which reason is it? If the latter, is it fair that Cllr Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services’s residents get to be part of a pilot whereas other wards have not been afforded the same right to opt out at this point in time?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

There is no pilot opt-out scheme in place. Hanover & Elm Grove is part of the wider exclusion zone where glyphosate treatment is not applied.

37. Councillor Bagaeen

Veolia Household Waste Recycling Site (HWRS) Hove

I have received consistent and persistent complaints from residents in the Westdene and Hove Park Ward, and additionally south of the railway, about a ‘pungent’, ‘rancid’, and ‘not transient’ smell from green waste vehicles entering and exiting the Waste Transfer Station.

Why is the council making this problem worse in allowing increasing amounts of green waste entering the site on council vehicles?

Reply from Cllr Rowkins Cabinet Member – Net Zero & Environmental Services

Increasing recycling is a priority for BHCC which includes garden waste. Currently there are approximately 11,500 residents requesting a collection of this waste for recycling. This is a very valued service for residents who cannot always use a composter or transport their green waste to the HWRS themselves.

Once collected from households with a garden waste subscription, it is taken to the Hove HWRS site, operated for the council under contract by Veolia. This provides our green waste transfer station and operates in line with environmental regulations and planning regulations. The site is routinely inspected and monitored as part of contract management and is also subject to inspection by the Environment Agency.

It should be noted that all green waste is removed from the site daily.

The site services over 91,000 residents. There were 263,000 visits in 2023/24 demonstrating that it is a critical element of waste infrastructure in the city.

A few residents who live adjacent to the site have complained about the smells and vehicle movements. However, to address the concerns a significant amount of money has been spent at Hove HWRS which has been over and above normal spend. This includes

· Noise survey completed by external consultant

· Remedial work to the waste transfer building

· Industrial deodorisers have been installed.

· Deep cleans and pest control preventative measures.

· Removal of "scrub" at the bottom of the site

· Paid for pest control visits for the complainant to address any pest concerns should they arise from the site.

38. Councillor Bagaeen

Public path between Woodland Drive and the Three Cornered Copse

In storms in early November 2023, a fence of a house on the passage blew down in the wind blocking the public path between The Three Cornered Copse and Woodland Drive. Soon after, council officers put up a ‘Footpath Closed’ sign and blocked access. This public path was very highly used.

How is it that the council has allowed this public path to remain closed since November 2023?

Reply from Cllr Muten Cabinet Member – Transport, Parking and Public Realm

Thank you Cllr Bagaeen, for your question. There is a private wall that has partially collapsed causing a safety hazard to the public using this route. Highway Officers have been in communication with the owner for it to be removed fully or made safe. As is necessary Officers have been in regular communication with the owners. Actions are now being pursued through legal channels for the removal of the wall & to make safe the footpath. The footpath has been closed due to safety concerns and time to get the relevant legal consents. It is my understanding that ward councillors have been made aware of this and actions taken to resolve this and make it safe for pedestrians to use this path.