In accordance with Council Procedure Rule No 9.2 to allow Members to ask questions about Council activities. The replies to any such questions will be given by the Chair of the Council or relevant Committee or the appropriate Cabinet Member. Questions must be received in writing or by email to the Monitoring Officer by 12pm (Noon) twelve clear working days before the meeting.
The following question(s) have been submitted:
Question ‘A’ - Councillor Mike Roe to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place
I would like to ask how the Council intends to deal with the ever increasing amounts of dog fouling. This is about the District in general, but in particular I’m speaking on behalf of the South of the District and the state of our Shirland and Higham.
Question ‘B’ – Councillor S Cornwell to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment & Place
On the 20 July 2021 this Council granted a planning application permitting the building of a large industrial cold store building on the Holmewood Industrial Estate.
Whilst the jobs this unit creates are welcome, when granting that application the Council failed to include an appropriate planning conditions limiting the hours of work during the construction phase of the development.
As a result building work has been taking place at all times of the day,including the early hours of the morning, continuing until 4am recently.
What, if anything can be done to prevent residents of Holmewood from having to endure further disruption due to this omission by the Council to include appropriate restrictions in the original planning consent?
Question ‘C’ – Councillor A Dale to Councillor J Birkin, Portfolio Holder for Council Services
Can the Portfolio Holder please confirm the cost of the recent refurbishment of the Council Chamber (including the new furniture and audio-visual equipment)?
Question ‘D’ - Councillor W Jones to Councillor N Barker, Leader of the Council
How does the Council intend to respond to the Government’s consultation on reforms to social housing allocations and how does it intend to respond to the new requirements should the proposals be adopted?
Question ‘E’ – Councillor C Cupit to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place
Given the concerns raised by many residents following recent changes to garden waste collections in neighbouring Chesterfield, could the Cabinet Member confirm that NEDDC will commit to not charging for garden waste or any residential waste collections?
Minutes:
The Chairman of the Council confirmed that five questions had been received.
Question A – Councillor M Roe to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place
A question had been submitted by Councillor M Roe to Councillor S Pickering, the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place on what the Council intended to do to deal with the issues of dog fouling across the District and in particular, the south of the District and Shirland and Higham. The full text of the question from Councillor M Roe, marked as Question ‘A’, was set out in the agenda for the meeting.
Councillor S Pickering thanked Councillor M Roe for their question. He explained that the Council’s Environmental Health Service Team of enforcement officers responded to all complaints received that related to dog fouling and requests for signage. He went on to explain that in 2023 in Shirland there were three complaints received in relation to dog fouling. These complaints resulted in five proactive patrols being undertaken and additional signage being erected as well as a zoning letter issued in relation to an alleged public spaces protection order.
Question B – Councillor S Cornwell to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place
A question had been submitted by Councillor S Cornwell to Councillor S Pickering, the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place on a planning application that was granted on 20 July 2021 on the Holmewood Industrial Estate and what could be done by the Council to prevent further disruption to residents by including appropriate restrictions in the original planning consent. The full text of the question from Councillor S Cornwell, marked as Question ‘B’, was set out in the agenda for the meeting.
Councillor S Pickering thanked Councillor S Cornwell for their question. He explained that the Council was unable to alter previously agreed planning decisions but he understood that Councillor S Cornwell had met with planning and environmental health in order to discuss possible ways forward and potential future options for the site.
Councillor S Cornwell asked the Portfolio Holder to make a commitment that similar issues would not happen again and to work with Officers to create best practice processes for any builds of this nature in the future.
The Portfolio Holder gave his commitment that he would be involved with and support Councillors from Holmewood and work with the Assistant Directors to shape policies and guidance going forward.
Question C – Councillor A Dale to Councillor J Birkin, Portfolio Holder for Council Services
A question had been submitted by Councillor A Dale to Councillor J Birkin, the Portfolio Holder for Council Services. As Councillor J Birkin was unavailable, the question was answered by Councillor J Barry, the Portfolio Holder for Growth and Assets. The question was on the cost of the refurbishment of the Council Chamber. The full text of the question from Councillor A Dale, marked as Question ‘C’, was set out in the agenda for the meeting.
The Portfolio Holder explained concerns that had been raised in relation to the previous chamber, now meeting rooms one and two, such as fire safety and the accessibility issues for those with mobility issues. She also outlined the broader public expectation for accessibility and transparency to view the democratic process which necessitated proper functioning equipment. A cross party working group had assessed these issues and concluded that relocation of the chamber was the best course of action.
Council heard that the new AV solution had cost £170,000 and the furniture had cost £40,000 for a total of £210,000. This had been funded through designated asset management budgets within the capital programme which were allocated for refurbishment of public buildings.
Councillor A Dale asked if the Portfolio Holder believed that residents would support this expenditure, given the current issues with increased bills and the cost of living.
Councillor J Barry responded that it was important to provide residents with access to the democratic process and that the facilities had not cost much more than Derbyshire County Council paid when they had the same system installed.
Question D – Councillor W Jones to Councillor N Barker, Leader of the Council
A question had been submitted by Councillor W Jones to Councillor N Barker, the Leader of the Council, on how the Council intended to respond to the Government’s consultation on the reforms to social housing allocations. The full text of the question from Councillor W Jones, marked as Question ‘D’, was set out in the agenda for the meeting.
The Leader explained that the consultation would remain open until the end of March and that Cabinet would be preparing a response. He reflected some initial thoughts on the reforms which included a possible impact on the number of homeless cases, loss of control over the allocations policy and a move away from the Localism Act 2011.
Councillor W Jones asked the Leader if it would be the Council’s intention to utilise RHL to manage the new proposals.
Councillor N Barker responded that the Council and RHL would put the policy together and then RHL would work through the allocations.
Question E – Councillor C Cupit to Councillor S Pickering, Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place
A question had been submitted by Councillor C Cupit to Councillor S Pickering, the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Place, on whether the Cabinet Member would commit to not charging for garden or any residential waste collections. The full text of the question from Councillor C Cupit, marked as Question ‘E’, was set out in the agenda for the meeting.
Councillor S Pickering thanked Councillor C Cupit for their question. He explained that the Council did not currently charge for residential waste collections but explained that the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) had placed a statutory requirement on the Council from April 2026 to collect food waste on a weekly basis. A financial grant of £600,000 would be offered from central government in order to fund this but current estimates suggested that would leave a shortfall of £400,000. Due to these financial difficulties, the Portfolio Holder informed the Member that it would not be prudent to comment on any course of action.
Councillor C Cupit asked the Portfolio Holder to outline the business case for the changes that had been made to the garden waste collections.
The Portfolio Holder explained that he would provide a written response to Councillor C Cupit and reiterated that every household in the District had a green bn emptied at no additional cost.