Agenda item
Infrastructure Funding - Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Project
Purpose:
The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a charge levied on development to help fund infrastructure. It is a vital mechanism for supporting the delivery of infrastructure to underpin sustainable growth across the District, while also creating opportunities for projects that enhance local communities.
The Council introduced a CIL charge in 2019; at which time a process for stakeholders to apply for CIL funding was put in place. Now, with experience of operating the process, is an appropriate time to review it for best practice.
The existing process allows stakeholders to make ‘bids’ for CIL funding once a year, during the period of March – May. Concise guidance for making bids is available on our website. Once the bid period closes, an officer panel convenes to consider the bids, applying an existing high-level scoring system.
Having now completed two strategic bid rounds under the existing process, the Council has gained valuable insights, supported by stakeholder feedback, into how the process can be further strengthened. A review by officers has identified opportunities to enhance transparency, engagement, collaboration, and ensure ongoing alignment with the Council’s strategic priorities and the Development Plan. There are opportunities to improve the effectiveness of the bid cycle, ensuring that CIL funding continues to be allocated legally, responsibly, strategically, and accountably, and in line with the CIL Regulations 2010 (as amended) support development of our area.
The purpose of this report is to seek delegated authority for the Associate Director of Planning, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing, to implement a programme of enhancements.
Recommendation:
That Cabinet resolves to:
1. Delegate authority to the Assistant Director, Planning Service in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing to implement a CIL Enhancement Programme detailed at Section 3 of this report.
Decision:
The purpose of the report was to seek delegated authority for the Associate Director of Planning, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing, to implement enhancements to the Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding bid process.
The report was introduced by Councillor Juliet Layton, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning, who explained that the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), adopted in 2019, was collected from most developments to fund strategic infrastructure.
Drawing on experience from the first two funding rounds and stakeholder feedback, the report proposed enhancements to improve transparency, strengthen alignment with the Council’s Corporate Plan and Infrastructure Development Plan, introduce a year-round bidding process with assessments between October and December, and improve monitoring and reporting. It was noted that these changes related only to the allocation process and not the charging schedule
The recommendation was proposed by Councillor Juliet Layton and seconded by Councillor Patrick Coleman.
Cabinet RESOLVED to:
1. Delegate authority to the Assistant Director, Planning Service in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing to implement a CIL Enhancement Programme detailed at Section 3 of this report.
Voting record:
6 For, 0 Against, 0 Abstentions.
Minutes:
The purpose of the report was to seek delegated authority for the Assistant Director of Planning, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Planning and Housing, to implement enhancements to the Council’s Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding bid process.
The report was introduced by Councillor Juliet Layton, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning, who explained that the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), adopted in 2019, was collected from most developments to fund strategic infrastructure to support local communities. Members were advised that 5% of receipts were used for administration, while 15% was allocated to town and parish councils without a neighbourhood plan and 25% to those with a neighbourhood development plan, with a five-year spending period for those allocations.
It was reported that the Council had operated CIL since 2019 and had completed two strategic funding rounds. A review of the process, informed by experience and stakeholder feedback, had identified opportunities to improve transparency, strategic alignment and collaboration in the allocation of funds.
The proposed changes related to the allocation process rather than the charging schedule. The current single annual bidding window would be replaced with a year-round application process, with bids assessed by officers between October and December. The revised approach would strengthen alignment with the Council’s Corporate Plan and Infrastructure Delivery Plan, improve engagement with parishes, community groups and infrastructure partners, and introduce clearer strategic criteria for assessing bids. Monitoring and reporting would also be enhanced to better demonstrate the impact of funded projects.
Members were advised that the report sought delegated authority for the Assistant Director for Planning Services, in consultation with the Cabinet Member, to implement the proposed improvements in time for the next funding round.
Members discussed the proposed enhancements to the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) allocation process. Councillor Mike Evemy noted that the programme aimed to improve the process based on experience from previous funding cycles and ensure alignment with the Council’s corporate priorities, while maintaining the distinction between CIL-funded projects and infrastructure delivered through other mechanisms such as Section 106 agreements.
The updated governance arrangements were welcomed, in particular the emphasis on community engagement. The importance of involving members and parish councils as consultees during bid assessment to ensure local input and support was noted. The Kemble to Cirencester cycle path, funded through CIL, was cited as an example of successful collaboration with strong local buy-in, contributing to sustainable transport and community benefits.
It was noted that, historically, CIL or equivalent funds had been used for village halls, but current community needs were broader, including health, wellbeing, and mental health provision, particularly for younger residents. It was emphasised that the revised governance should ensure CIL funding targeted infrastructure that delivered tangible benefits for communities.
The Director of Communities and Place, noted that consideration had been given to balancing allocations between strategic climate emergency and sustainable, healthy community projects, with the current approach focusing on weighting the scoring matrix to achieve the appropriate mix of infrastructure.
The recommendation was proposed by Councillor Juliet Layton and seconded by Councillor Patrick Coleman.
The proposal was put to the vote and agreed by Cabinet.
Voting record:
6 For, 0 Against, 0 Abstentions.
Supporting documents:
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