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RESOLVED that the minutes of the Communities Scrutiny Committee meetings held on 27 March 2025 and 15 May 2025 be approved as a true and correct record of the proceedings.
RESOLVED that subject to the above that Communities Scrutiny Committee: • Supported the Review of Second Home / Long-term Empty Council Tax Premiums report and included recommendations for presentation to full Council on 8th July 2025. • Communication links be established with Estate Agents, Auctioneers and other related industry representatives/interested parties to inform them of the outcome of the policy decision made at full Council in due course • An update report be presented in 12 months, at a future meeting of Communities Scrutiny Committee, on the LTE and Second Home premium policy and data.
Resolved that a business case be presented to the Corporate Executive Team on the size of the enforcement team for review and a further report on the effectiveness of the parking enforcement service be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee.
RESOLVED that taking into consideration the comments above that a further report on the Waste Policy and proposed amendments be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee as soon as practically possible.
RESOLVED that the Communities Scrutiny Committee forward work programme be agreed.
Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Merfyn Parry and Jon Harland.
There were no personal or prejudicial declarations of interest raised.
The Chair, Councillor Karen Edwards, requested nominations for the appointment of a Vice-Chair of Communities Scrutiny Committee for the 2025-2026 municipal year. Councillor James Elson proposed Councillor Brian Jones, seconded by Councillor Brian Jones. No further nominations were proposed. All members present affirmed their assent to the appointment of Councillor Brian Jones. RESOLVED that Councillor Brian Jones be appointed as Vice-Chair of Communities Scrutiny Committee for the 2025-2026 municipal year.
None.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED that the minutes of the Communities Scrutiny Committee meetings held on 27 March 2025 and 15 May 2025 be approved as a true and correct record of the proceedings.
The Chair reminded members they were to resolve two sets of minutes. The minutes of the Communities Scrutiny meeting held on 27 March 2025 were submitted. Matters of accuracy – None Matters arising – Councillor Brian Jones asked if the Toilet Strategy would be presented back to committee in October 2025. He stressed the importance of the Committee receiving an update. The Corporate Director Economy and Environment confirmed it would be resented to the Committee in October. All Members approved the minutes of the Communities Scrutiny meeting held on 27 March 2025. The minutes of the Communities Scrutiny meeting held on 15 May 2025 were submitted. Matters of accuracy – None Matters arising - None RESOLVED that the minutes of the Communities Scrutiny Committee meetings held on 27 March 2025 and 15 May 2025 be approved as a true and correct record of the proceedings.
Y penderfyniad fel y'i cofnodwyd
RESOLVED that subject to the above that Communities Scrutiny Committee: • Supported the Review of Second Home / Long-term Empty Council Tax Premiums report and included recommendations for presentation to full Council on 8th July 2025. • Communication links be established with Estate Agents, Auctioneers and other related industry representatives/interested parties to inform them of the outcome of the policy decision made at full Council in due course • An update report be presented in 12 months, at a future meeting of Communities Scrutiny Committee, on the LTE and Second Home premium policy and data.
Lead Member for Finance, Councilor Delyth Jones presented the report seeking Members review and comment on the existing Council Tax premiums and recommended changes to the policy. Some background was provided on the legislative changes introduced by the Welsh Government since 2017 allowing local authorities to raise Council Tax premiums on Second Homes (SH) and Long Term Empty (LTE) properties and the Council’s previous approvals of premium increases in that regard. The aim of the policy was to reduce the number of SH and LTE properties and increase affordable housing in the county. The report updated Communities Scrutiny Members on the latest review of those premiums to understand the impact of the current policy and recommended policy changes. The outcome of the review and recommended changes were set out. In brief – • numbers of SH had remained stable – it was considered too early to assess the full impact of the recent increases to premiums and therefore no change was recommended • early indications suggested the increases in premiums on LTE properties (standard) was having the desired effect with a reduction in numbers – therefore no change was recommended at this stage and it be kept under review • LTE properties empty for over 5 years had been more of a challenge and the Council had the joint second highest proportion of such properties out of 5 North Wales Councils – therefore it was recommended to introduce an additional 25% premium increase, year on year, on those properties from April 2026 • acting on feedback to support new owners of LTE properties where the relief discount had been used prior to their ownership, 2 additional categories under the Section 13A discretionary relief policy, had been recommended: General Renovation and Major Renovation. For transparency, Councillor Gwyneth Ellis informed the committee that at the time this policy was discussed she was the Lead Member for Finance. During the discussion Members welcomed the relief for new owners of LTE. Members thanked the officers for aiding councillors when faced with such circumstances in their wards. In response to Members questions and comments the following areas were discussed in greater detail: • Members welcomed the policy and felt it would provide Members extra information if they were approached by residents with any concerns • Officers stressed that each application under the Section 13A discretionary relief policy was reviewed on a case by case basis. If Members had any issues to contact the team for guidance. • The Council tax legislation on Second Homes was clarified and confirmed that liability is based on a person’s sole or main residence. • It was stressed one of the aims of the policy was to encourage homeowners to use empty properties. Members heard there was around 1200 applications for social housing. The aspiration was to bring all vacant or empty properties into use. Under the council tax legislation there was a definition of a liable person for council tax. • Members heard there was an appeal framework if the taxpayer was unhappy with the decision. Including seeking guidance from the valuation tribunal for Wales. During the time for the appeal to be heard the taxpayer would be required to pay the extra premium. • The legislation was Welsh Government policy. • It was an important point to discuss and make residents aware of the policy and proactively work with partners to ensure information is provided to owners were possible. Discussions outside of the meeting to ensure best media coverage and communications of the policy would take place. • Communication was being made to 170 customers who potentially could be impacted to make sure they are aware of the changes. Close working with the empty property team continued to try and encourage use of properties. • Officers acknowledged that circumstances often changed during building work and may cascade into large scale work. Owners were encouraged to contact the team if they encountered any issues to ensure the correct exception was placed on the property. The team worked to clear guidance around the definition of major and minor building renovations. The guidance and definitions were supplied to the property owners at the start of any dialogue. The categories were not new to the team and officers were aware of the criteria for each area. • There was a section of the Section 13A discretionary relief policy which looked at financial hardship. • Members raised concerns that potential new home buyers would not be aware of the proposed changes to council tax premiums which may adversely affect them. They asked that communication links be established with Estate Agents, Auctioneers and other related industry representatives/interested parties to inform them of the outcome of the policy decision made at full Council in due course. • Consideration was already being given to properties that were under renovation if issues arose with trade people or if work escalated into something greater. • Proactive work by the long-term empty property team to engage and discuss properties with owners and how the authority can support owners to bring properties back to use. • Close working with other North Wales authorities took place sharing information and analysis statistics. The information that had been shared amongst authorities had aided the team to reach the outcome of the proposed recommendations. • Although data and trends for the other local authorities were considered, officers had looked at the best outcome for Denbighshire residents when looking at the policy. • The revenue the policy would generate would be seen through the council tax yield. It would feed through to the medium term financial plan. The revenues generated from the policy had to be published. • There is an exemption for members of the armed forces including family members at the home property. The details of that exemption were included in the Welsh Government legislation. • It was suggested that the text in the table of appendix 2 under the heading of ‘Eligibility Criteria’ be amended to reflect that the main residence could be for the property owner or tenant. • It was hoped the recruitment of the vacant role would be in adequate time to train and gain knowledge of the policy before it became effective in April 2026. The Chair requested a report on the impact of the policy on SH numbers in Denbighshire be presented in 12 months at a future meeting of Communities Scrutiny Committee. It was noted by officers that, should the recommended policy change be approved, only limited data would be available for the impact of the April 2026 premium charging amendment. The Chair thanked the officers for the detailed response to members concerns and comments and encouraged members to contact the team for any guidance or information they may need. RESOLVED that subject to the above that Communities Scrutiny Committee: • Supported the Review of Second Home / Long-term Empty Council Tax Premiums report and included recommendations for presentation to full Council on 8th July 2025. • Communication links be established with Estate Agents, Auctioneers and other related industry representatives/interested parties to inform them of the outcome of the policy decision made at full Council in due course • An update report be presented in 12 months, at a future meeting of Communities Scrutiny Committee, on the LTE and Second Home premium policy and data.
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Resolved that a business case be presented to the Corporate Executive Team on the size of the enforcement team for review and a further report on the effectiveness of the parking enforcement service be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee.
The Lead Member for Environment and Transport introduced the report (previously circulated). He explained the report provided members with the parking enforcement policies and procedures. He confirmed the Head of Planning, Public Protection and Countryside Services (HPPPCS) along with the Traffic and Transportation Manager were in attendance today to provided further information and guidance. The HPPPCS provided further details on the contents of the papers, he explained the report was made up of two sections. The first part provided details of the rules and the organisations methods for implementing rules across the county. The second section provided details of the authority’s enforcement processes across the county. The importance of finding a balance on having the right level of regulations to ensure safety of roads and traffic flow but to also ensure we understood the effect of them on businesses. It was also stressed that it was important that the team targeted the right places details had been included in the papers. In addition, the Traffic and Transportation Manager highlighted the essential need for parking restrictions in village, towns and cities. It was often found that there was a higher demand for parking than what was physically available. Parking restrictions aided the turnover of spaces for residents and visitors to use. The report provided details on the Traffic Regulation Order, which was a legal document that was required when introducing a new parking restriction or when amendments or deletions of existing regulations were required. There was a statutory process that was required for that Order which started with communication and engagement with the local members for support before being presented to other stakeholders. The proposed change was then communicated to the public via social media and local libraries and letters issued to potential affected properties. Following the consultation, it would result in a Lead Member Delegated decision to proceed with the restriction or withdraw. Details of the enforcement of parking restrictions demonstrated how important it was to have a good level of enforcement to ensure the restrictions were effective. Members heard there was a small team of enforcement officers to cover the county to ensure restrictions were adhered to and issue penalty charge notices when required. The Wales Penalty Process and Partnership which carried out the back-office processes. Several authorities were included in that partnership, although Denbighshire County Council was the host authority. The Chair thanked the Lead Member and officers for the introduction. She stated that the current team was made up of 5 employees with the report stating the recruitment for the Senior Civil Enforcement Officer post would be later this calendar year. The Chair asked for further reasoning as to why the recruitment was delayed. In response the HPPPCS confirmed since the report was published that vacancy had progressed. He confirmed the position had been presented to the Corporate Executive Team for review. The vacancy was approved and was progressing to the advertising stage. The Chair raised concern that 6 enforcement officers was not enough to cover the whole of the county. The report stated enforcement took place over 7 days which was not correct as no enforcement took place on a Sunday other than the summer season. During the debate members and officers discussed the following areas in greater depth: · Members thought a business plan on the level of income generated from car parking and enforcement would be beneficial to assess if additional enforcement officers would be viable to increase the amount of income generated. The service was a self-funding service with the income generated put back into the service to cover all costs. Officers acknowledged the lack of information on income within the papers. Aa piece of work was planned to review the income generated against the number in the team to see if it was viable to expand further. The Traffic & Transportation Manager offered to circulate information on income generated by parking and how it was re-invested into car parks to committee members. · There was no data on the number of cars that entered the car parks. This information could assist the enforcement officers were best to conduct out investigations. Officers confirmed they were reviewing and looking at different technology and sensors to support officers obtaining further information. · Officers confirmed that the emergency services took place when reviewing potential additional restrictions. The proposal was usually put forward by the authority to third parties. There hasn’t been any instances were officers had been approached directly by the emergency services to introduce a restriction. There was still the intention of Welsh Government to introduce prohibition of pavement parking. There hasn’t been much progression with this of late. · Work on concessionary parking for some carparks especially for voluntary groups was ongoing. Discussions with other services including social services had taken place to look at options. Considerations had been made to look at a number of free evening parking in each car park. Officers were trying to resolve and support voluntary groups and social groups with parking. · Members stressed the need for enforcement officers. The team was very small for the geographic area of the whole county. There was a need for extra enforcement officers especially in the South of the county. · All Denbighshire carparks had three options to pay for parking. It was felt provided adequate options for people to pay for parking. · Signage and information on fees were made visible for users of the car park · Members were reminded that a report on car park charges was due to be presented to Performance Scrutiny in the Autumn. · Committee Members wanted to share their condolences to the family of Mr Stuart Thomas who had sadly passed away. · It was stressed the importance of providing a service to residents outweighed the need to generate an income. · Members asked that if any updates or proposals on parking restrictions being made that an update to the Member Area Group be provided to allow members of surrounding wards be aware. · It was emphasized that communication between the authority and contractors was essential to make sure work was completed to a high standard and sympathetic to the area. The Corporate Director - Economy and Environment thanked everyone for a good debate and challenge. He suggested it would be beneficial once the senior vacancy was filled that officers presented a business case for size of the enforcement team to the Corporate Executive Team for review. Resolved that a business case be presented to the Corporate Executive Team on the size of the enforcement team for review and a further report on the effectiveness of the parking enforcement service be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee.
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RESOLVED that taking into consideration the comments above that a further report on the Waste Policy and proposed amendments be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee as soon as practically possible.
The Lead Member Environment and Transport introduced the report (previously circulated) he stated since the implementation of the new waste model the authority was able to more easily source and separate the recyclable materials from residents at the curb side. The system allowed the authority to sell material to the market generating revenue for the Council. It was stressed this was a significant development of the system as the previous service Denbighshire County Council had been paying for recycling to be separated. The Corporate Director - Economy and Environment continued by stating the two main specific reasons for the report. The first reason was around the income generated from recycling. It was projected the annual income from selling recyclable materials to be around £1.2m. in the year 2024/25 financial year an income of £800k was achieved. It was stressed that income had been for 10months of the year as the new service had started in June 2024. The report acknowledged and documented the issues that the service experienced with the roll out of the new service. The difficult start would have impacted the revenue generated it was hoped this would improve in future financial years. It was noted there were some variables noted in the projections for income including the market price for materials. The second reason for the report was the issues around end of lane collections. Members were reminded the service moved a number of properties to end of lane collections for several individual reasons. Some concerns arose from the change, in response the service committed to reviewing the policy. A draft copy of the amended wording policy had been included in the papers (appendix4). The service had committed to informing Ward Members of any proposed changes. It was stressed the concerns around end of lane collection involved a very small number of properties across the county. The Chair asked for further clarity on the number of properties the end of lane collection effected, in response the officers confirmed it was 36 properties. No issues had been reported on the properties added to the end of lane collection. The Chair thanked the officers for the clarity and opened the debate for Members. During the discussion the following areas were debated in greater detail: · The report had formed part of the forward work programme for the committee and had been produced as per committee request. The task and finish group was reviewing the success of the system and the income generated. · Members were pleased to hear engagement with Local Members would take place. · There was a proposed change of wording proposed in the end of lane policy. The policy set out some of the reasons the service may have in relation to end of lane collections. It clarified the powers the service had to enforce an end of lane collection. The policy was not to stop end of lane collection it enabled the service to introduce end of lane collection if necessary to do so. · The assisted collection service was available to all residents including those that were on an end of lane collection. The service would review and resolve any issues residents disclosed with regards to waste collection. · Prior to the introduction of the new service rollout, officers along with WRAP Cymru undertook a procurement to select the off takers for the recyclable materials. There were multiple bidders for most materials, the most cost-effective solution had been selected. The majority offered a variable rate for materials except for glass which was a fixed term offer for 12 months. · Officers were currently working at interim arrangements until September when several of the streams would be reprocured in partnership with Conwy County Borough Council to maximise the revenue generated and received. · The policy was to enable the service to complete what was necessary to complete collections. The implementation of the policy would be crucial. Officers explained that the authority had the power to advice and inform residents where to present recyclable materials ready for collection under Section 46 of the Environment Protection Act. Communication with the residents to discuss opinions and assess any additional needs would take place. · It was stressed it would not be the intention of the authority to ask residents in a housing estate to leave bins at the entrance. The policy was for areas where it was physically difficult for officers to reach the property. · Officers stressed rural properties were not being targeted by the policy. Assessments were made to review if it was possible to safely reach the property in the waste vehicle. A technical assessment took place to look at a variety of aspects. Each case would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. · Members raised concerns on the policy wording to include adopted roads. It was felt it was a big change that allowed officers the ability to make changes that they currently had no power over. · Material collected from fly tipping was not included in the revenue generated from recycling materials. That waste was incinerated as per the residual waste. · Officers stated they felt it was legally sound to include the proposed wording but would clarify with legal officers. · It was stressed that the service needed a policy that allowed officers to do what was required to collect waste. If it was not included in the policy officers would have to look at alternative arrangements to complete collections. · Members stressed the importance of making the policy fair for all residents. Officers proposed to review the proposed wording and include some softer language. It was important to get the wording correct. There was a general understanding that waste was collected from adopted roads. The Chair proposed the following recommendations to the Committee: • that the Service sought alternative ways to provide a mutually acceptable service to residents who were no longer able to benefit from door collections e.g. by use of smaller vehicles and • that no changes were made to the revised Waste Policy, regarding collection from properties located on or adjacent to formally adopted highways, without explicit consultation with the affected residents and local ward member(s). The Committee agreed to the proposal and requested a report on the Waste Policy - comprising the existing policy, proposed changes including the rationale and impact of inclusion of adopted roads under section 8 - Collection from Private and un-adopted roads and End of Lane Collections. RESOLVED that taking into consideration the comments above that a further report on the Waste Policy and proposed amendments be presented to Communities Scrutiny Committee as soon as practically possible.
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RESOLVED that the Communities Scrutiny Committee forward work programme be agreed.
The Scrutiny Co-ordinator guided members through the Communities Scrutiny Committee Forward Work Programme (previously circulated). The next meeting of Communities Scrutiny Committee was to be held on 4 September 2025. Two requests were made during the meeting to include update reports on long term empty Council tax premium and carpark enforcement be included on the forward work programme. The next Scrutiny Chairs and Vice-Chairs Group meeting was to take place on 30 June 2025. Members were encouraged to complete the scrutiny proposal form for any subject area they wished to scrutinise. RESOLVED that the Communities Scrutiny Committee forward work programme be agreed.
None.
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