Agenda
PDF 587 KBVenue: the Council Chamber - Council Offices, Trinity Road, Cirencester, GL7 1PX. View directions
Contact: Democratic Services
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Apologies To receive any apologies for absence. The quorum for Council is 9 members.
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Declarations of Interest To receive any declarations of interest from Members relating to items to be considered at the meeting. Additional documents: |
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To confirm the minutes of the meeting of Council held on 24 September 2025. Additional documents: |
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Announcements from the Chair, Leader or Chief Executive To receive any announcements from the Chair of the Council, the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive. Additional documents: |
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Unsung Heroes Awards Purpose To announce the Unsung Heroes awards for this quarter. Additional documents: |
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Public Questions To deal with questions from the public within the open forum question and answer session of fifteen minutes in total. Questions from each member of the public should be no longer than one minute each and relate to issues under the Council’s remit. At any one meeting no person may submit more than two questions and no more than two such questions may be asked on behalf of one organisation.
The Chair will ask whether any members of the public present at the meeting wish to ask a question and will decide on the order of questioners.
The response may take the form of: a) a direct oral answer; b) where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication; or c) where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner. Additional documents: |
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A Member of the Council may ask the Chair, the Leader, a Cabinet Member or the Chair of any Committee a question on any matter in relation to which the Council has powers or duties or which affects the Cotswold District. A maximum period of fifteen minutes shall be allowed at any such meeting for Member questions.
A Member may only ask a question if: a) the question has been delivered in writing or by electronic mail to the Chief Executive no later than 5.00 p.m. on the working day before the day of the meeting; or b) the question relates to an urgent matter, they have the consent of the Chair to whom the question is to be put and the content of the question is given to the Chief Executive by 9.30 a.m. on the day of the meeting.
An answer may take the form of: a) a direct oral answer; b) where the desired information is in a publication of the Council or other published work, a reference to that publication; or c) where the reply cannot conveniently be given orally, a written answer circulated later to the questioner.
The following Member questions were submitted prior to the publication of the Agenda.
Question 1: Councillor Julia Judd to Councillor Juliet Layton, Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning. CDC is currently recruiting Enforcement Officers. There seems to be an ongoing issue with recruitment and retention of staff in this department. In January 2023, Cllr Stephen Andrews put forward the motion “Armed Forces Covenant Re-Endorsement”, which I seconded and used the opportunity to talk about The Veteran’s Gateway.
The Veterans Gateway offers information, advice and support for army veterans and their families. They are the first point of contact for army veteran welfare needs including employability and ongoing opportunities. If training is needed, this can be funded by The Forces Employment Charity. I liaised with both organisations who responded enthusiastically to my suggestion that an Enforcement Officer role would be a great fit for army veterans, as it is for ex-Police, as there are many transferable skills. I liaised with Planning Services Management and shared the information and contact details of both The Veterans Gateway and The Forces Employment Charity. As CDC is in the process of recruiting an Enforcement Officer, has this line of enquiry been pursued?
Question 2: Councillor Laura Hall-Wilson to Councillor Paul Hodgkinson, Cabinet Member for Health, Culture and Visitor Experience. I am a frequent user of the pool at Cirencester Leisure Centre and along with many of my contemporaries with young families, we have become concerned at the lack of managerial oversight of some of the younger members of staff at the centre, culminating recently in a physical altercation between two members of staff at the side of the pool during the children's swimming lessons. I am sure you will agree that it is completely unacceptable.
In the lead up to this event, there have been several Sundays where lifeguards are overwhelmed by too ... view the full agenda text for item 7. Additional documents: |
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Purpose: The purpose of this report is to approve the recommendation of the Performance and Appointments Committee that the Interim Chief Executive Officer (Head of Paid Service) and Returning Officer / Electoral Registration Officer is appointed on a permanent basis from 1 January 2026.
Recommendation(s): Council is recommended by the Performance and Appointments Committee to: 1. Appoint Jane Portman to the role of permanent Chief Executive Officer with effect from 1 January 2026 on an annual salary of £140,000 with an additional one-off allowance of up to £8,000. 2. Appoint Jane Portman as the Council’s Head of Paid Service for the purposes of Section 4 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 with effect from 1 January 2026. 3. Appoint Jane Portman as the Council’s Returning Officer for the purposes of Section 35 of the Representation of the Peoples Act (1983) and Regulation 4 of the Parish & Community Meeting (Polls) Rules (1987). Additional documents: |
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Mid-Term Review of Members' Allowances Scheme Purpose: To present to Council the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel which has undertaken a mid-term review of the Council’s members’ allowances scheme.
Recommendation(s): That Council considers the recommendations of the Independent Remuneration Panel, which are that: 1. The special responsibility allowance (SRA) for Leader is increased from 3.0x the basic allowance to 3.5x the basic allowance. 2. The SRA for Deputy Leader is increased from 2.0x basic to 2.5x basic. 3. The SRA for Cabinet Member is increased from 1.5x basic to 2.0x basic. 4. The SRA for Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee is increased from 1.0x basic to 1.5x basic. 5. The SRA for Chair of Audit and Governance Committee is increased from 0.5x basic to 1.0x basic. 6. Any agreed increases to SRAs are backdated to 1 April 2025 (being the mid-point of the 4-year Scheme). 7. The existing allowance for Co-opted Members of £1,000 per annum is included in the Scheme. 8. That additional clarification is provided on expenses claims in the Scheme, specifically that: a. The list of approved duties for which expenses can be claimed is included in the Scheme. b. VAT receipts are requested for mileage claims. c. Mileage claims should normally be calculated from the Councillor’s home address. d. Claims should be made within 3 months of the expenditure being incurred. e. Mileage rates are aligned with HMRC rates to prevent the creation of taxable benefits. 9. Officers engage with town and parish councils in the New Year on the option of establishing a tiered allowances scheme to guide town and parish councils in the payment of allowances to elected town and parish councillors, to enable the Independent Remuneration Panel (as the Parish Remuneration Panel) to assess whether such guidance would be useful. 10.Note that the Parish Remuneration Panel has recommended to Cirencester Town Council that Cirencester Town Councillors (including the Chair) receive an allowance set at 20% of the basic allowance paid to Cotswold District Councillors. Additional documents: |
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Council Tax Support Scheme 2026/2027 Purpose To consider the revised Council Tax Support Scheme for the financial year 2026/27.
Recommendation(s): Cabinet recommends that Full Council resolves to: 1. Agree the increase to income bands as detailed within paragraphs 3.2, 3.3 and Annex A of this report from 1 April 2026. 2. Agree that any balance remaining in the earmarked reserve ‘Hardship Fund’ be made available in 2026/27 financial year for reasons detailed in paragraphs 3.6 and 3.7 of this report. Additional documents: |
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Community Governance Review Purpose: The purpose of the report is to request that Council approve and adopt the Terms of Reference for a Community Governance Review along with draft proposals.
Recommendation: That Council resolves to: 1. Approve and adopt the terms of reference and draft proposals for consultation for the Community Governance Review. Additional documents: |
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Programme of Meetings for 2026/2027 Purpose: To set a programme of Council and Committee meetings for 2026/27.
Recommendation(s): That Council resolves to: 1. Agree the programme of meetings from June 2026 to May 2027 as set out in Annex A and Annex B. 2. Delegate authority to the Director of Governance and Development (Monitoring Officer), in consultation with Group Leaders, to make changes to the programme of meetings in the event that there is any future decision of Council to change the committee structure or committee remits that impacts the programme of meetings. 3. Delegate authority to the Head of Democratic and Electoral Services to set the meeting dates for the Performance and Appointments Committee, member training and briefing sessions, any working groups established by the Council and any meetings of the Licensing Sub-Committee (Licensing Act 2003 Matters) and the Standards Hearings Sub-Committee (if required). 4. Agree that, subject to any alternative proposals Council considers and agrees, meeting start times will be rolled forwards from 2025/26. Additional documents: |
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Purpose: To note the two proposals for local government reorganisation in Gloucestershire that have been developed collaboratively with all seven Gloucestershire councils for consideration by the Overview & Scrutiny Committee on 17 November 2025, Council on 26 November 2025 and Cabinet on 26 November 2025. The options are: a) creating a single unitary authority for the whole county and b) creating two unitary authorities, based on an East / West division of existing district and city councils. The proposal for East Gloucestershire Council comprises Tewksbury Borough Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Cotswold District Council and the associated proportion of Gloucestershire County Council. The proposal for West Gloucestershire Council comprises Gloucester City Council, Forest of Dean District Council and Stroud District Council and the associated proportion of Gloucestershire County Council. Following engagement with the Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Council, Cabinet will decide which, if any proposal should be formally submitted to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government in response to his invitation dated 5 February 2025.
Recommendation: 1. That the Overview & Scrutiny Committee and Council consider the following two proposals for local government reorganisation in Gloucestershire and make any recommendations they wish to Cabinet for their decision. 2. That Cabinet considers which, if any, of the proposals it wishes to submit to Government regarding the future of local government in Gloucestershire 3. That Cabinet resolves to treat the decision as urgent under Part D6, paragraph 4.14 of the Constitution, and therefore disapplies the call-in procedure, on the grounds that any delay likely to be caused by the call-in process would prejudice the Council’s and the public’s interests. Additional documents: |
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Next meeting The next meeting of Council will be held on 21 January 2026 at 2.00 pm. Additional documents: |