Agenda item

 

To receive any questions from members of the public addressed to Members of the Executive in accordance with Council Procedure Rule 11.  There is up to 5 minutes for each question, one supplementary question may be asked arising from the original question.

 

Questions must relate to any matter the Council has power or which affects the Borough, except no questions may be asked in relation to

 

a)    A specific planning or licensing application

b)    A specific staffing appointment or appeal, or Standards determination

 

Public question time will last up to 30 minutes; questions will be taken in the order of receipt.

 

The deadline for submission of questions is 13th July 2023 at 12 noon. Questions to be submitted to democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk

1.    Question submitted by Christine Beryl Brown, a Worthing Resident, to the Cabinet Member for Culture & Leisure

 

Could you please tell me the timeline and breakdown of the budget that has been ring fenced for the Tarring tennis courts? They were shut before Christmas and now I note one is available but no one appears to be aware of this fact. Homefield Park tennis courts are exceptionally busy and it seems a great shame that a wonderful facility at Tarring is being allowed to fall into disuse, we all know how hard it is to resurrect something that has been neglected.

 

The Cabinet Member replied that these works had been tendered and would commence before the end of the year. The budget for the work was £209,300 with a contribution from a Lawn Tennis Association grant of up to £34,000. This scheme had been confirmed in the capital programme.

           

As for the timeline, the Council was currently working towards the tennis courts being onsite in late September / early October, as this project is interwoven with the works being undertaken on the Pavilion, which included the addition of a new accessible toilet, providing and improving the facilities for disabled participants. The works on the Pavilion would also provide female changing facilities.

 

The work on the Pavilion was due to begin in late July / early August and required access across the existing tennis courts in order to complete this work. The Council didn’t wish for the new tennis courts to go in and then be damaged again by the access needed to complete the works on the Pavilion. Both projects were forecast to be completed by December this year, weather permitting.

 

 

2.    Question submitted by Ian Davey, a Worthing Resident, to the Leader

 

At this meeting in December 2022 I asked for an update on progress delivering the           Worthing BC Local Cycling & Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP). As I recall you replied that there was none. However you did speak at length about three projects

 

·         The Durrington to Goring cycle route

·         The Grove Lodge to the town centre cycle route

 

Both of which you were discussing with WSCC.

 

·         The Goring seafront route from George Avenue to Sea Lane cafe

 

Could you please provide an update on these three schemes

 

The Leader replied that the Council continued to work with WSCC colleagues regarding the Durrington to Goring cycle route and Grove Lodge to the town centre cycle route. Both of these routes were further consulted on via WSCC, supported by WBC communications, in the last couple of months to determine the appetite from the public / residents as to whether these move to the next stage of design.

 

The consultation only closed a few weeks ago and the Council was waiting for the results from WSCC. However, what I can say is whilst this Council was fully committed to improving cycling provision and conditions across our town, and we would like to see as many routes as possible improved, we understand that the Durrington to Goring cycle route could be the route to pursue at this current time.

 

As for the George V Avenue to Sea Lane route, we have now obtained the high level studies from WSCC on the work that was undertaken a few years ago and the Council are committed to taking this particular route to the next stage of design and public consultation. We are just determining the finance model to determine how quickly we can take this route forward, however with the installation of Donkey Bikes (bike hire location) at Sea Lane Cafe this demonstrates our commitment to opening up this route for cycling.

 

3.    Question submitted by Ian Davey, a Worthing Resident, to the Leader

 

The Worthing BC Local Cycling & Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP) identifies the A259 Goring Road through Goring and Marine wards as a Primary cycle route.  It currently has 40mph speed limits in sections, a narrow unsegregated cycle lane and unsurprisingly, very low levels of cycling.  There are a number of locations with a high number of crashes or collisions along this corridor. These include at the junction with Alinora Avenue, the junction with Shaftesbury Rd, the George V Avenue roundabout (at the intersection with the proposed Durrington to Goring cycle route) and outside the Goring Road shops. There are a high number of vulnerable road users in this area including children attending nearby schools and many older people. What does the leader of the council think can be done to make this road and surrounding area safer for everyone. Doing so  would help realise the Borough Council's vision of making Worthing Greener and Fairer.

 

The Leader replied that the Council recognised the importance of safe routes to encourage cycling and to support a range of users, and we had already identified that a number of east-west routes were as, if not even more, important than the north-south routes being reviewed by WSCC colleagues.

 

The Council was due to re-evaluate the LCWIP (in a Worthing sense) in the coming months to determine those key east-west routes that required attention and investment. The Council would need to do this in partnership with WSCC as the majority of routes identified in the LCWIP come under WSCC Highways maintenance and investment but I would support your view that even small interventions could make a big difference. We will be reviewing this route, along with others, to identify those routes that should be prioritised, noting a number of factors that you have indicated, such as proximity to schools, key routes, key locations etc.

 

 

4.    Question submitted by Jamie Home, a Worthing Resident, to the Cabinet Member for Housing & Citizen Services

 

At this meeting (18th July 2023) you will be debating the motion from Councilor Heather Mercer -  Article 4 direction - Houses in Multiple Occupation.

 

 

If you were to go ahead and approve the recommendations within the motion on Article 4 Direction, it is recognised that the work should be prioritised and completed within 6 months.

During this 6 month period, whilst this detailed work is carried out and before Article 4 Direction is determined and officially introduced, can it be guaranteed that any decisions that need to be made will be considered and aligned with the intent of article 4?

 

 

The Cabinet Member advised that the question pre-empted the debate of a motion later on the agenda.

           

5.    A question had been submitted in advance of the meeting by Jean Fraser. As Jean was not present, the Mayor advised that a written response to the question would be provided.

 

6.    Question submitted by Val Turner, a Worthing Resident, to the Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing

Does this Council support safe spaces for women?

 

 

The Cabinet Member replied that Officers from the Safer Communities team had worked closely with Sussex Police, the Office of the Police Crime Commissioner and local businesses to identify and promote Safe Spaces for women and other vulnerable residents.

 

These can be located on the Safe Spaces app. In addition, data regarding violence against women and girls is analysed on a monthly basis at the Joint Action Group to ensure we are capturing locations and patterns of behaviour that may impact on women’s safety.

 

7.    Question from Sally Barker, a Worthing Resident, to the Cabinet Member for Housing & Citizen Services

 

During this meeting you will be considering and debating the motion received from Councilor Heather Mercer on article 4 direction- houses in multiple occupation. This motion acknowledges the persistent and growing pressure for more housing in Worthing, which has seen many older and larger properties redesigned into houses of multiple occupation. It recognises that in many parts of East and Central Worthing the Edwardian and Victorian era large houses are looked on favourably by private developers as being ripe for conversion to HMOs.

 

The latest stats demonstrate the worrying impact of this- they show that in Worthing the vast majority of licensed HMOs are concentrated in the wards of Central, Heene and Selden- these 3 wards alone have 71% of all licensed HMOs with just 29% in all of the other 9 wards combined. That means a current concentration of HMOs in these three wards equating to 1 HMO per 292 people, compared to 1 per 2,144 people for the rest of Worthing. Considered another way, 71% of all people living in licensed HMOs are concentrated into just 13% of the area covered by Worthing and we also know that within these wards there are localised pockets of even higher concentration.

 

The motion goes on to state that, HMOs of all sizes can have a detrimental impact on existing residential character and community cohesion and such high concentrations within neighbourhoods can result in imbalanced and unsustainable communities, creating a series of harmful impacts- all of which you will already be aware of and will be considering later in this meeting.

It is my hope that having done this you will agree to the recommendations of the motion which include:

 

- to determine acceptable density of proximity issues

- to draw upon best practice across England  from authorities who have introduced an Article 4 Direction in a preemptive manner to protect communities so that development can be managed rather than responded to

- and to consider introducing an evidence-led article 4 direction, to continue to provide HMO accommodation to meet Worthing’s housing needs, whilst also enabling you to manage the supply of HMOs to avoid high concentrations in a particular area.

 

However, were this not to be the case, in the absence of an article 4 direction what do you intend to do to avoid the continued trend towards converting large properties in the already overrepresented wards of Selden, Heene and Central into HMOs?

 

The Cabinet Member replied that she represented Heene Ward which has a number of HMOs and care homes. The Council had been looking at the statistics around HMOs. There was a differentiation to be made between licensed and unlicensed. This is where there was some confusion and a lot of work is being undertaken around this and Article 4. There was a distinction to be made between HMOs for 5 people or less and HMOs for 6 people or more. HMOs for 5 people or less are subject to permitted development, where property can just be converted into HMOs. Article 4 would prevent this from happening. However, there was another side to the story in relation to the lack of affordability of private rental properties and a number of single residents whose benefits don’t cover them for anything other than shared accommodation, who desperately needed HMOs. The concentrations of licensed HMOs in Selden Ward was 0.8%, in Central Ward was 1% and in Heene Ward was 0.9%. Some of the areas where they had to implement more stringent measures, had been up to 50% concentration. The Council was actively looking at this issue and no doubt each area would have its own story to tell.

 

8.    Question from Clifford Fuller, a Worthing Resident, to the Cabinet Member for Housing & Citizen Services

 

What action will be taken to stop traffic coming from Chapel Road into Montague Place and Bath Place?

 

The Cabinet Member for Regeneration replied that there were ongoing discussions with residents and traders regarding a gated entry and she would update Mr Fuller following the meeting.