To consider any questions submitted by Members.  (The deadline for questions is 4.30 pm on the Monday the week before the meeting – please contact Democratic Services by e-mailing democraticservices@swale.gov.uk or call 01795 417330).

The Mayor advised that five questions had been submitted by Members.

Question 1 – Councillor Claire Martin

Following the re-routing of waste collection residents in Watling Ward have suffered a significant decline in their service, with residents being told communal bins at some blocks of flats were not on any of the routes and many residents experiencing delays or missed collections, including on London Road, Kingsmead Estate, Nelson Street, Nelson Gardens and Mutton Lane to name a few. Could the chair of the Environment Committee explain the reasons for the decline in service and outline the actions planned to resolve this on going issue once and for all.

Response – Chair of Environment and Climate Change

The re-routing of waste collections which took place in September was focussed on 9,000 properties with wheeled bin collections rather than those properties which use communal bin stores.

A further piece of work is currently underway to resolve the communal bin store collection issues. The Council has just completed a full cross-party scrutiny of the waste contract mobilisation, and the report of the findings from that process will go to the Environment and Climate Change committee meeting on the 15th January. The report will detail a range of issues that were encountered during the mobilisation process, including issues relating to the data on communal rounds.

The September re-route has led to a vast improvement in collection rates, solving the majority of the persistent issues in many parts of the Borough. However, what often looks right on paper needs to be tested on the ground and during November the contractor acknowledged that a further 1500 day changes would be needed to correct and issue where the balance of properties across each day wasn't quite right.

Those changes were implemented this week (from 2nd Dec) and officers will be monitoring them closely over the next couple of collection cycles.

Question 2

Councillor Jayes, who submitted question two was not in attendance and a written response would be provided.

Question 3 – Councillor Hannah Perkin

What steps can the Council take to reduce pollution in and around the Ospringe Air Quality Monitoring Area (AQMA)?

Response – Chair of Environment and Climate Change

Due to its position on the A2, Ospringe suffers from a very high volume of traffic and HGV movements, and emissions at this particular point on the A2 are exacerbated by the canyon like layout where terraced housing lines the road on both side, as is the case in Teynham and at other AQMA sites across the borough.

Due to reductions in emissions from newer vehicles, we are not seeing pollution concentrations in line with those observed when the Ospringe AQMA was declared in 2011. There has been a significant improvement in air pollution locally, reflecting nationally observed trends.

These air quality improvements are predominantly due to the replacement of older HGVs with newer vehicles that meet strict emissions standards, and more recently, a greater uptake of electric vehicles.

Swale Borough Council (SBC) maintains an Air Quality Action Plan, a new version of which was adopted last year for the period 2023-2028. This plan is available on the SBC website and outlines how the Council will deliver measures to support further compliance with Air Quality Standards within the AQMAs and across the district. The link to the council's action plan can be found by searching online for 'Swale Borough Council AQAP'

Annual reports on air quality are also produced by the council and available to view on the Swale Borough Council website. The latest annual report can be found by searching online for 'Swale borough council Annual Status Report 2024'.

Supplementary question:

Are we measuring particulate matter using the equipment purchased?

Response:

I will look into this and report back.

Question 4 – Councillor Charles Gibson

It has been brought to my group’s attention that organisations currently renting space at Swale House are facing huge increases on their annual rent charges from the council. These are not for profits including Citizens Advice, SFM and SATEDA. They are facing increases of 237% at a time when they are facing cuts in funding for their core service. Could the chair of the economy and property committee point out when and where the decision to make this inflation busting hike in rents of over 200% was made, and will they commit to reviewing the proposed increase at committee to ensure the important community work provided by these organisations can continue? 

Response – Chair of Economy and Property

Swale Borough Council has a Voluntary and Community Sector Lettings Policy which applies when a VCS organisation is unable to support occupying a Council asset at the full market rent. Appendix III of this Policy lists the properties in scope, and this excludes Swale House. Regeneration and Property (as was) Committee agreed in July 2023 “to lease the first and parts of the ground floor of Swale House to generate an income and mitigate the Council’s costs in relation to provision of services and Business Rates”. I do not see a need for, or benefit in, revisiting this decision so soon after it was made.

It is on the basis of this decision that Swale House tenants were advised last year that any historic concessionary arrangements would cease from April 2024. We have offered to work with any tenant who can evidence a struggle to make their rental payments immediately, and we have highlighted the member grants scheme, which some tenants have accessed historically.

The administration hugely values the work of all our tenants, and of the wider Swale voluntary and community sector, and is proud to apply the VCS policy in many instances across the Borough. We do, however, have an obligation to collect full rent from our commercially let premises in order to protect services to the whole community.

Supplementary

At which point in the  last18 months did 200% inflation mean it was on market value then and is still on market value now?

Response:

I believe this is down to VCS policy which does not apply in this building because it is commercially let.  A more detailed response can be provided.

Question 5 – Councillor Charles Gibson

Earlier this year the council completed refurbishment works to tennis courts in Sittingbourne and Milton Regis, funded in part by grant funding from the Lawn Tennis Association as a result of a partnership with Sittingbourne Tennis Club. Sittingbourne Tennis club are in need of access to changing and toilet facilities. Could the chair of the committee provide an update on progress towards securing these facilities for the tennis club and provide a timeline of when the club could expect to have access? 

Response – Chair of Community and Leisure

Thank you for the question and recognising the great work that we did in upgrading the tennis courts at Milton Rec and at King George’s Planning Field. The upgrades to the courts have been very popular, with lots of use and there is more to come in time as part of the project, with free access and coaching sessions at both sites.

Alongside the court improvements, we have been working on a longer-term solution for changing rooms and toilets at Milton. This involves agreement with other building users at the site and some enabling works e.g. electrical work and metering to separate uses. Our officers have been in regular contact with the Club throughout and actually met with the club and LTA again this week on the matter.

We are awaiting quotes for the electrical work, but have agreed to commission some of the refurbishment work by the end of the year. We therefore hope that things will progress in the early part of next year and be ready for use by the Spring, subject to satisfactory property agreements being agreed with the club.