Agenda and draft minutes

The Mayor welcomed everyone to the meeting and made a brief statement about the filming of proceedings and filming generally within the Town Hall, followed by a fire safety announcement.

Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillors Vanessa Alexander, Heather Anderson, Clare McKenna, Loraine Cox, Paul Cox, Peter Edwards, Shabir Fazal OBE, Marlene Haworth, Joyce Plummer, Kath Pratt, Ethan Rawcliffe and. Kimberley Whitehead.

There were no formal declarations of interest or declarations of dispensations submitted.

a)    Mayor

b)    Leader of the Council

c)    Chief Executive

The Mayor made the following announcements:

1)         The King’s New Year’s Honours List

Councillor Josh Allen, Mayor, remarked that although no Hyndburn residents had been mentioned in the King’s New Year’s Honours List, he was very pleased to highlight two awards to Lancashire citizens with a strong Hyndburn connection.

Firstly, Lisa O'Loughlin had received the CBE award.  Lisa was Principal and Chief Executive Officer of the East Lancashire Learning Group, which was the umbrella organisation for Accrington and Rossendale College.  The award had been granted for her services to Further Education.

Secondly, Lorraine Peake, Director of the Super Slow Way, had been awarded the MBE, for services to the community in Lancashire.  Members were reminded that this organisation provided an arts programme shaped by the local community working alongside artists, which was based in East Lancashire along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal corridor.

The Council expressed its congratulations to both recipients.

2)         International Conflict and Civil Unrest

The Mayor asked councillors to remember those ordinary people throughout the world who were suffering as a result of conflict, including those had lost their lives due to recent protests and civil unrest in Iran.

3)         Alderman Janet Storey

The Mayor mentioned the sad passing of Aldermen and former Mayor Janet Storey, in December 2025.  Councillors Dave Parkins, Melissa Fisher, Noordad Aziz and Munsif Dad all spoke of their affection and respect for Janet, who had served as a Conservative councillor for Calyton-le-Moors for eleven years and had latterly joined the Labour party.  All present conveyed their deepest condolences to her friends and family.

Councillor Dave Parkins asked and was granted permission from the Mayor to make some brief announcements, as follows:

4)         Councillor Marlene Haworth

Councillor Parkins indicated that he had recently spoken on the telephone to Councillor Haworth, who was currently in hospital.  She had talked candidly about her recent surgery and hoped to be allowed home next week.  Prior to Christmas Councillor Parkins had visited her and presented her with some flowers.  She was now in good spirits and was hoping to get back to some home cooking.

5)         Personal Thanks

Councillor Parkins thanked councillors for their concern and well-wishes regarding his own health issues.  He expressed his appreciation to those who had been able to visit him while in hospital in Blackburn.  His consultant at the Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital had referred him to a specialist in Birmingham and he had attended there recently for a scan.  He was now awaiting a letter from the specialist about the next steps and would hope to know more by next week.

Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP then made the following announcements:

6)         Food Waste Collection

Councillor Dad indicated that the Council was due to commence its weekly food waste collection service form 1^st April 2026.  The scheme would make recycling simpler and improve local recycling rates, leading to lower greenhouse gas emissions.

The Council had now taken delivery of the caddies and councillors were being asked to participate in a pilot scheme  ...  view the full minutes text for item 266.

To confirm as correct, the minutes of the meeting of the Council held on 13^th November 2025.

The Minutes of the Council meeting held on 13^th November 2025 were provided.

Regarding Minute 210 – Confirmation of Minutes, on the matter of Declarations of Interest, Councillor Melisa Fisher reminded members that she had explained that no declaration had been necessary at the meeting on 25^th September in connection with her husband’s letting of various premises, as these did not meet the definition of an HMO.  This was now recorded in the minutes of 13^th November 2025.  She asked whether Councillor Heap would offer an apology for the statement he had made in leaflets circulated in Baxenden about the matter, which she considered to be untrue.  Councillor David Heap responded that he had noted the original declaration which had been made by Councillor Fisher and he had subsequently issued a correction to his statement to confirm that Councillor Fisher’s husband owned the properties in question.

In respect of Minute 213 – Local Government Reorganisation Proposals, Councillor Zak Khan commented that he would still wish to see clarity around the answers to the questions he had asked at the meeting (last paragraph, Page 18 of the Agenda), particularly in relation to the views of Hyndburn residents during the consultation.  He asked if any further information was available.  Councillor Munsif Dad indicated that the consultation responses had not been broken down into results for individual boroughs but were Lancashire-wide.  Accordingly, no further details were available.

In connection with Minute 211 – Question Time: 11) War Memorials, Councillor Steven Smithson reported that he had not yet received the list of war memorials scheduled for restoration and would still like to see this.  He noted that some works had already been slipped into 2026/27 but was keen to see progress as the memorials were important.  He asked if a reply could be made available to residents.  Councillor Munsif Dad responded that the funding available for the maintenance of memorials in the current year had already been spent.

Regarding Minute 211 – Question Time: 6): Community Township Funding, Councillor Steven Smithson, thanked Councillor Clare Pritchard, Portfolio Holder for Transformation and Town Centres, for her written response.  He noted that the Budget report had identified £80k of funding and that a separate report had subsequently been provided to Cabinet about the Cabinet Action Fund.  He clarified that he was not seeking information about the Cabinet Action Fund, which the Leader of the Council had announced would distribute some £20k in grants.  He expressed the view that the controlling group was not clear about what funding was available.  Councillor Munsif Dad responded noting that that Township Fund and Cabinet Action Fund had originally been separate concepts and the initial advice received had been to establish two separate application procedures, one for each funding stream.  However, the two funding streams had ultimately been amalgamated.  A working group had been established to recommend the award of the grants, which would then be signed off by the Leader of the Council.

In respect of Minute  ...  view the full minutes text for item 267.

To deal with any questions submitted under Council Procedure Rule A2.2(vi).  The deadline for the receipt of questions has now expired.  Details of any eligible questions received will be circulated as soon as possible.  (Report attached)

Rules of Debate

·         Up to 30 minutes will be allowed for this item.

·         Questions will be put by the chair of the meeting and will receive an oral answer.

·         Questions which cannot be put within the allotted time will receive a written answer within 10 working days.

Four eligible questions had been received, which were set out in the report.  The Mayor read out the questions as submitted.

1)     Local Election Costs

To the Leader of the Council (Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP) or relevant Portfolio Holder

Submitted by Councillor Steven Smithson

“How much does it cost this Council to run the local borough elections?”

Response: Councillor Munsif Dad thanked Councillor Smithson for his question.  By way of background, he indicated that the total cost for the elections for Lancashire County Council in May 2025, based on 53 polling stations for all divisions (comprising 60417 electors, 11765 of which were postal voters) was £171,061.00.  The cost of elections was dependent on:

• the number of contested wards;
• numbers and locations of polling stations;
• the length and timing of the count and number of registered electors; and
• the proportion of the electorate registered for postal votes.

Based on the above figure and by just using a simple calculation to get an estimated cost for the scheduled 2026 elections for the 11 wards of Hyndburn, it would cost approximately £105,000.00.

Councillor Smithson thanked the Leader for his reply and asked a supplementary question as follows.  As the Government was removing electors’ right to vote in May and in view of the cost of living crisis, would the Leader consider giving any savings to the residents of Hyndburn via a reduction in the Council Tax for 2026/27.  Councillor Dad responded that councillors could suggest any financial proposals as part of the Budget-setting process.  He added that the previous Conservative Government had postponed all local elections in 2020.

2)     King George V Playing Fields

To the Leader of the Council (Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP) or relevant Portfolio Holder

Submitted by Councillor David Heap

“What process will be being undertaken for the selection of teams wanting to apply for a lease on King George's playing fields?”

Response: Councillor Stewart Eaves indicated that the Council was currently giving careful consideration to the potential lease arrangements.  He would be happy to come back to Councillor Heap with more information later in the year.

Councillor Heap asked a supplementary question as follows.  Could the Portfolio Holder confirm that only Hyndburn teams would be considered for inclusion in those arrangements.  Councillor Eaves responded that this had not yet been determined, but that he would provide the answer when known.

3)     Rationale for Seeking Postponement of Local Elections

To the Leader of the Council (Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP) or relevant Portfolio Holder

Submitted by Councillor David Heap on behalf of: Sue Saxon

“What criteria is the Council basing their decision on with regards to writing to the Government Minister asking for May’s elections in Hyndburn to be cancelled?”

Response: Councillor Dad indicated that the question about the possible postponement of local elections in 2026 had been raised at the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee, the previous Council meeting and the recent Special Cabinet meeting.  The rationale for postponement had been provided at the last Council meeting.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 268.

Report attached.

Note: A confidential profile of the applicant, which is not for publication, will be circulated to councillors at the meeting.

Members considered a report of Councillor Noordad Aziz, Chair of the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee, requesting that the Council give consideration to the Committee’s recommendations for the appointment of a co-optee.

Councillor Aziz provided a brief introduction to the report in which he reminded members that the Committee had one available seat for the co-option of a young person.  An application had been received recently which met the criteria.  The Committee believed that the applicant would bring a fresh perspective to the debate and had unanimously supported a recommendation in favour of appointing the current candidate.

The report indicated that the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee could appoint up to four co-optees to the Committee.  Three co-optees had been appointed, Christine Heys, Tim O’Kane and Richard Downie and one vacancy remained.

The Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee had felt that a young person would provide greater balance to discussion and be more representative of the community and therefore, a recommendation to reserve the remaining co-optee position for an 18–25 year old was approved by Full Council on 16^th January 2025.

An application for the vacant co-optee position had been received from a member of the public and this had been considered by the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 11^th November 2025.  The Committee felt that the applicant would bring new experiences, skills and an extra dynamic to the Committee.  They had, therefore, determined that the applicant would be a valued asset to the Committee.  The application had been submitted from Mr. Wesley Davitt.  Details supporting his application had been circulated to Members separately.

The Mayor and Councillors Zak Khan, Stephen Button and Noordad Aziz all spoke in favour of the applicant and more generally about positive engagement with young people and the cross-party approach to overview and scrutiny, which looked at how to improve services.

A correction to the report was noted in that references to the ‘Communities and Wellbeing Overview and Scrutiny Committee’, which had been included in error, should in fact have stated the ‘Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee’.

Resolved                                    -    That Council approves the appointment of Wesley Davitt as a co-optee on the Resources Overview and Scrutiny Committee until the end of the 2025-26 municipal year in line with the vacant co-optee position having been reserved for a young person between 18-25 years of age.

Report attached.

Members considered a report of Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP, Leader of the Council, presenting the Main Modifications to the Council’s Publication Draft Local Plan which the appointed independent Inspector had identified as necessary in order for the Plan to be found sound and legally compliant.  The report also sought Council approval for the Main Modifications and accompanying documents to be published for public consultation, together with approval of the proposed consultation arrangements.

Councillor Dad provided a brief introduction to the report including a summary of the chronology so far and the main purpose of the Local Plan, which would help to define the location of developments to provide jobs and homes for the future.  He also outlined the Main Modifications proposed and the timetable for consultations.

The report indicated that preparation of a new Local Plan had commenced in 2017.  The Local Plan (Strategic Policies and Site Allocations) had set out the strategic vision, objectives, and spatial strategy for the Borough, including the strategic planning policies that would guide future development.  It established a framework to ensure that development accorded with the principles of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).  Covering the period 2021 to 2040, the Plan identified the main locations for growth, including site allocations to meet development requirements of 194 dwellings per annum (3,686 dwellings in total) and 70 hectares of employment land.

Once adopted, the new Plan would replace the saved elements of the 1996 Local Plan, and the 2012 Core Strategy.  The two key documents representing the full Development Plan for Hyndburn would then be the new Local Plan (the subject of the current report), and the existing Development Management DPD 2018, which contained local (non-strategic) policies.  The Accrington Area Action Plan would also remain in force as part of the development plan for Hyndburn.

The Plan had been subject to several stages of public consultation between 2018 and 2024.  Following approval by Council, it had been submitted to the Secretary of State for examination in March 2025.  An independent Inspector had been appointed to examine the Plan, and Public Hearing Sessions had been held between 16^th and 25^th September 2025.

Following the Hearing Sessions, officers had prepared a Schedule of Actions and submitted additional evidence to address matters of soundness raised by the Inspector.  On 27^th November 2025, the Inspector had issued a post-hearings letter setting out the next steps and identifying any remaining concerns, a copy of which was provided at Appendix 1 to the report.  The principal matters arising from that letter were as summarised below:

• The Inspector had confirmed that the Council had met the statutory Duty to Cooperate, demonstrating effective and constructive engagement with relevant bodies on strategic planning matters.

• The Inspector was satisfied that there was no need to pause the examination pending the outcome of National Highways’ funding bid for improvements to M65 Junction 8, which were required to support growth in the Huncoat area, including the Huncoat Garden Village strategic housing site.

• The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 270.

Report attached.

Councillors considered a report of Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP, Leader of the Council, informing members of the recent annual review of the members allowances scheme and the recommendations of the Council’s Independent Remuneration Panel.

Councillor Dad provided a brief introduction to the report which recommended the deletion of special responsibility allowances for group whips and group secretaries from 1^st April 2026 and the freezing of all other allowances for 2026/27.  These proposals had been considered and recommended for approval at a recent meeting of the Leader’s Policy Development Board.

The report indicated that the statutory role of the independent remuneration panel was to advise the Council in respect of the allowances and expenses paid to councillors.  By law, the Council was unable to amend its members allowances scheme without having regard to the recommendations of its remuneration panel and this would have to be done at a meeting of the Council as a whole, although the panel’s recommendations were not binding on the Council.  The Council was therefore able to take decisions about members allowances that differed from the recommendations of the remuneration panel.

By law, the Council had to have a scheme for the payment of members’ allowances.  The scheme:

• had to provide for payment of a basic allowance.  The basic allowance had to be paid to every councillor and every councillor had to be paid the same amount;
• might provide for the payment of special responsibility allowances which were paid to councillors who had special roles and responsibilities;
• might provide for payment of a childcare and dependent carer’s allowance.

The Council’s members allowances scheme permitted basic and special responsibility allowances to be increased on 1^st April each year in line with the NJC local government pay award provided such “inflation only” increases had been sanctioned by the Council’s independent remuneration panel within the last 4 years.  An inflationary increase could be made to the allowances scheme for 2026/27 as such increases had been sanctioned by the remuneration panel in 2024.  However, the members allowances scheme had recently been reviewed by the Leader’s Policy Development Board which had recommended that allowances should not be increased in respect of the 2026/27 municipal year and should instead be frozen at the current level.

The Leader’s Policy Development Board had also recommended that the special responsibility allowances payable to each political group whip and secretary should be removed with effect from 1^st Apil 2026.  In making this recommendation the Board was mindful that no other local authority in Lancashire paid such special responsibility allowances and that these particular allowances had been considered to be anomalous by the LGA Peer Review Team when they had returned for their review visit in the Autumn 2025.  Each such allowance was currently £784.00.

To assist members, a copy of the revised members allowances scheme was included in the report at Appendix 1.

Councillor Khan indicated that Conservative Group supported the freezing of allowances and added that members generally did not become a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 271.

To receive the Minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 19^th November (Special Meeting) and 3^rd December 2025 (attached).

Rules of Debate

The Leader of the Council will move the Minutes, the Deputy Leader of the Council will second the Minutes.

·         Non-executive Members will be invited to make comment or ask questions on the Minutes (5 Minutes).

·         Cabinet Members will be invited to make comments and respond to any points raised (5 Minutes).

·         The Leader of the Council will be given up to 15 Minutes to respond and to answer any questions raised.

The minutes of the Cabinet meetings held on 19^th November (Special Meeting) and 3^rd December 2025 were submitted.

The following matters were raised:

In connection with Minute 225 (19^th November 2025 at Page 7, Paragraph 2) – Accrington Neighbourhoods Board, Councillor Zak Khan clarified that his point about independence had related to the appointment of the original Chair of the Board, who he did not believe met the definition of independent.

With regard to Minute 227 (19^th November 2025 at Page 20 Bullet 1) – Revenue Budget Monitoring 2025/26, Councillor Zak Khan noted that the Council had no control over the contractual issues relating to the Waste Disposal Site / Transfer Station.

In respect of Minute 228 (19^th November 2025 at Page 21, Paragraph 3) – Capital Programme Monitoring 2025/26-2027/28, Councillor Zak Khan reminded members that he had asked about the anticipated £0.428m underspend, he recalled that the Leader had previously indicated that there was a list of potential schemes being drawn up.  Councillor Khan expressed his hope that any surplus money would be spent in Hyndburn before Local Government Reorganisation.

In connection with Minute 243 (3^rd December 2025 at Page 19) – Sale of Land at Albert Street/Hartley Street, Oswaldtwistle, Councillor Steven Smithson expressed disappointment that the land had been put up for sale.  This was not the option he would have preferred and would lead to a loss of green space.  He enquired if the proceeds from the sale of the land could be invested into an alternative green space.

Councillor Munsif Dad summed up the debate, responding as follows:

• Members were aware that a new Chair of the Neighbourhood Board had been appointed;
• In respect of underspends, the Council had only recently received the Government’s. Provisional Financial Settlement.  Accordingly, the Cabinet was now in a position to look at some possible new initiatives.  Further information should be available at the February or March Cabinet meeting;
• It was pleasing to be able to announce that the waste transfer issue was approaching a solution;
• The comments of both ward councillors had been taken into account when making a decision about the land at Albert Street/Hartley Street.  Its previous use as a green space had attracted anti-social behaviour.  The sale of the land was considered to be the most effective way forward.  The proceeds would be spent Hyndburn as appropriate.

Resolved                                    -    That the Minutes be received and noted.

To receive the Minutes of committees, as set out below:

Rules of Debate

·         The Leader of the Council will introduce the Minutes as a whole.

·         Any Member may raise any issue from the Minutes; the Chair of the relevant Committee may respond (5 Minutes).

·         The Leader of the Council will close the debate (5 Minutes).

The Minutes of the following meetings were submitted:

Resolved                                    -    That the Minutes be received and noted.

The Mayor thanked all for their attendance tonight and reported that the next meeting of the Council would be the Budget Meeting and would be held on Thursday 26^th February 2026 at 7:00pm.