Agenda item
Reports of Cabinet Members
To receive verbal reports from each of the Portfolio Holders, as appropriate.
Minutes:
Leader of the Council
Councillor Munsif Dad BEM JP reported on the following:
Devolution and Local Government Reorganisation
The Council’s initial response to the Government’s proposals had been submitted in January following the report presented at the Council meeting. A further submission had been made in March by Lancashire County Council, the two unitary authorities in the Lancashire area and the 12 district councils. All of the authorities had agreed to the content of the submission, which highlighted that they would work together to identify the best way forward. A response had been received from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), expressing thanks to those councils for their submission and looking forward to the detail of the proposals. The letter indicated that MHCLG would provide formal feedback on 28th April 2025 had would begin to hold meetings with local leaders in May to discuss the initial proposals.
Accordingly, Councillor Dad would continue to meet with his Lancashire peers and with Labour councillors to develop firm proposals. There would be numerous opportunities for local councillors to comment on reorganisation and to communicate the plans to residents.
Deputy Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder forHousing and Communities
Councillor Melissa Fisher reported on the following:
Accrington Stanley FC
A meeting had taken place on Monday 24th March 2025 with representatives of Accrington Stanley Football Club (ASFC) to discuss the way forward following the outcome of the recent licensing hearing. The club had admitted that they were partly at fault for the issues that had led to the review of the premises licence. Councillors and representatives of ASFC had discussed a possible course of action for the future and the Council was looking forward to working closely with the club on this.
Councillor Aziz added that the Council had previously allocated some Community Cohesion and Resilience Funding to ASFC. This had enable the club to hold an Open Iftar event (breaking of the fast) at the Wham Stadium on 16th March 2025, which he had attended personally. The event had been a great success.
Portfolio Holder for Environmental Services
Councillor Stewart Eaves reported on the following:
Waste Collection
Waste collected over the last 6 monthly reporting period compared to the same period in the previous year showed a slight decrease in the amount of dry recycling collected (3,320 tonnes) and a slight increase in the residual waste collected (7,920 tonnes). The County Council dashboard showed that Hyndburn remained the top authority for the collection of dry recycling at 26%.
Enforcement
Waste enforcement actions continued, with the Waste Team issuing 838 Section 46 notices to residents and 25 Fixed Penalty Notices for non-compliance with the s.46 notice.
Fly Tipping
Reported fly tipping incidents had decreased by 336 incidents compared to the same period in 2023/24, with a total of 1,385 occurrences.
Food Waste
Some 40,000 cadies of the 7 litre and 23 litre variety had been ordered on 26th January 2025. A tender process was underway to procure 9 Dennis Eagle Duo vehicles to carry out one pass collections. Delivery of the vehicles would take place in March 2026 in time for the new collections commencing on 1st April 2026.
Waste Transfer
Craig Haraben, Head of Environmental Services, was continuing to discuss waste transfer issues with Lancashire County Council.
Skip Days
Suez had been providing the skips for the successful skip days. However, there had been some contamination issues noted. In addition, the company had reported difficulties in recruiting drivers who were prepared to work at weekends, as their normal contracted working hours were weekdays from 6am to 3pm. It might be necessary to look at procuring this service from a different company going forwards.
Accrington Pals Memorial
Final costings had now been received for the updating of the Pals memorial stone in Church Street Gardens, Accrington. It was likely that this would involve re-facing and re-engraving the memorial.
Portfolio Holder forCulture, Heritage and Arts
Councillor Kimberley Whitehead reported on the following:
Market Chambers
The project to redevelop Market Chambers was going well. Sale by agreement had now been secured with the freeholder and to provide vacant possession for the final third of the building. However, given the compulsory purchase order was now awaiting the inspector’s decision, it was still being progressed with a decision likely to be announced mid-May. A team was in place to develop the National Lottery Heritage Fund delivery bid towards the end of the year. The Portfolio Holder had recently met with the consultants. The project team based within the Council would provide an update in the near future and it was hoped that the Council could receive up to £4.5m to deliver the project. Numerous ideas were being piloted for the project and an information point inside the building had recently been opened to the public to help with the consultation process. The engagement space had provisionally been named the ‘Dome’, an idea deriving from young people who had identifying the building as a like home (the Latin word being ‘domus’) and also referencing the cupola on the NE corner of the roof. The information point would be open from 2pm to 6pm on Thursdays and from 10am to 2pm on Saturdays. Some social media content would also be provided. Consultation would continue in relation to further ideas emerging.
Oak Hill Park Bowling Greens
Investment was due to take place in the bowling green area at Oak Hill Park, with a new perimeter fence due to be erected. The bowling club committee were pleased with the Council’s proposed actions which would help to curb anti-social behaviour. Discussions were also taking place with other bowling clubs to ensure that these locations were reviewed and any necessary improvements were planned.
Portfolio Holder for Business & Growth
Councillor Scott Brerton reported on the following:
Hyndburn Jobs Fair
A Jobs Fair had taken place at the Town Hall, Accrington on Thursday 20th March 2025. The event had been a huge success and both employers’ and residents’ feedback had been positive. The Portfolio Holder placed on record his thanks to Salma Chaudhry, Economic Development Manager, and Scott Dawson Advertising for their efforts in organising the event. Some 2,000 people had attended and it was estimated that many job opportunities and apprenticeships would have been realised. Next year’s event was anticipated to be even bigger and better.
The Leader added that he had attended this event and had spoken to many of the young people present. He commented that it might be interesting to find out how many had obtained a job via this route. He thanked those involved in the arrangements and those who had given up their time to staff the stalls.
Business Engagement
Some good news was expected soon, which would be announced in the near future. The service was going from strength to strength.
Workshops for local businesses continued to be delivered. One key session had involved some 20 local businesses looking at ChatGPT and other AI tools. The event had been supported by Heath Groves, Chief Executive Officer of Sundown Solutions, based at Simonstone. The Council was striving to respond to what businesses wanted.
Councillor Khan made a number of comments and asked some questions on the various announcements made by Portfolio Holders, which are summarised below, together with any responses given:
- He welcomed the news of the progress at Market Chambers;
- He welcomed the figures around dry recycling;
- He thanked those involved for their commitment to upgrade the Accrington Pals memorial;
- He welcomed a strengthening of the relationship with Accrington Stanley FC and requested an opportunity for cross party working on this matter;
- He noted the contents of the letter from MHCLG about local government reorganisation, but expressed concern at the lack of a formal plan for engagement with the public.
Response: The Leader indicated that the Government would guide councils on the wider consultation process but, in the interim, reports were being provided at the Cabinet and Council meetings and individual councillors could take that information back to their ward residents. Lancashire authorities now had six months to work on drafting their proposals, although there might not ultimately be one single agreed position;
- He welcomed the jobs fair and the involvement of Scott Dawson Advertising, but expressed concern at the national picture for businesses. He considered that this had been negatively impacted by the Chancellor’s Spring Statement and changes implemented over the last six months. He cited reductions proposed across the Civil Service and companies cutting back, and asked how Hyndburn would engage with those at risk of losing their jobs.
Response: Councillor Brerton reiterated that the jobs fair had been successful and that there were jobs available locally across a wide range of businesses from micro-businesses to large companies. The Council was continuing to work with the local business community. Two large businesses were currently considering a move into the area. The Leader added that the Local Plan was close to adoption and included two key employment sites, which would help to attract new businesses to the area.