Agenda item

That the Asset Management Plan 2022-2027 be supported, in order that it can be adopted as the principal document for managing the Council’s corporate property and land resource assets.

The Corporate Manager (Capital Programme and Assets) presented the Corporate Asset Management Plan for 2022-2027 which replaced the previous Plan for 2019-2026.  The updated document reflected Welsh Government (WG) policy on carbon reduction and the Future Generations Act in addition to the Council’s own Climate Change Strategy adopted earlier in the year.

Councillor Sam Swash asked about previous farm disposals and any changes made to that policy.  The Corporate Manager advised that specific information on farm sales could be provided separately and he clarified that the policy took into account various environmental considerations, with further WG legislative changes likely.

The Asset Manager advised that to her knowledge, the sale of Council owned farms had resulted in those farms continuing to operate under new ownership.  She provided clarification on the contractual clause where planning consent for different use would invoke a percentage of the value being returned to the Council.

The Chief Executive spoke about policy changes over the years involving encouraging young tenants to take on farms and holdings, moving to a focus on succession rights and farm business tenancies, some of which had resulted in purchases.  He said that a review of the farm disposal policy could be scheduled for a future meeting.

Councillor Bernie Attridge sought information on the table of operational properties and was informed that more detail was available from the asset management system upon request.  He was also advised by the Chief Officer (Governance) that Members would be provided with a link to published details of Council freehold ownerships when this was made available.  A query on contributions towards investment in Theatr Clwyd would be addressed as part of the item later on the agenda.

Following comments by Councillor Attridge on the redevelopment of the County Hall campus, Councillor Alasdair Ibbotson said that projected levels of home working to plan for the future should be reflected in the Plan.  Officers advised that whilst timescales had not yet been confirmed, there were a range of considerations involved such as the need to identify key democratic facilities and potential savings from non-domestic rates.  During discussion on the matter, Councillor Ian Roberts spoke about Member involvement and the Chief Executive explained the development of the agile working strategy.

In response to a question from Councillor Bill Crease, the Corporate Manager provided clarification that the annual service charge for the Mynydd Isa 3-16 campus would not exceed that reported to Cabinet and Overview & Scrutiny.

Councillor Ibbotson asked about the basis on which the carbon reduction strategy was reflected in the Plan.  The Chief Executive advised that this was a high-level report setting out the strategic context for signposting to various strategies and policies.  He confirmed that the Council’s Climate Change & Carbon Reduction Programme Manager (Alex Ellis) had been consulted on the Plan and was able to respond to specific questions upon request.

Following a question by Councillor Sam Swash, the Corporate Manager and Asset Manager spoke about the different categorisation of assets shown in the table of operational properties.

The Corporate Manager acknowledged the Chairman’s point on the number of schools considered to be in a poor condition, however, the Council’s school estate compared favourably to other local authorities in Wales.  Additionally the schools’ backlog maintenance figures had significantly reduced through both Council and WG investment.  Whilst the WG funding at year end was welcomed in significantly contributing to the team’s achievements in reducing the backlog of work, the uncertainty around that funding impacted on capacity to manage the situation.

The Corporate Manager agreed to rectify the inconsistency between the wording and chart showing assets sold, under section 3 of the Plan.

The recommendation was moved by Councillor Bernie Attridge and seconded by Councillor Jason Shallcross.

RESOLVED:

That the Asset Management Plan 2022-2027 be supported, in order that it can be adopted as the principal document for managing the Council’s corporate property and land resource assets.