Agenda item

Report No:   CAB/SE/17/016

Portfolio Holder: Peter Stevens       Lead Officer: Mark Walsh

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL: (21 February 2017)

That:

(1)     the contents of Report No: CAB/SE/17/016 and the estimated financial impact of introducing Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) shown at Exempt Appendix A, be noted;

(2)     Suffolk County Council be supported in seeking the transfer of Civil Parking Enforcement to St Edmundsbury Borough Council;

(3)     an Agency Agreement be entered into with Suffolk County Council for the period 2019-2029 to undertake delegated Civil Parking Enforcement powers across the Borough;

(4)     £10,000 be contributed towards the countywide set up costs for Civil Parking Enforcement;

(5)     it be agreed that St Edmundsbury Borough Council will meet the cost of operating Civil Parking Enforcement delivered by a West Suffolk service, subject to (i) the retention of all on-street parking and neighbourhood parking receipts; (ii) a Service Level Agreement with Suffolk County Council on the processing of new requests for Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) restrictions and the maintenance of lines and signs; and (iii) assume delegated responsibility for on street pay and display tariff setting and the provision of on-street parking bays (subject to a Highway Authority pre-defined assessment);

(6)     CPE enforcement be provided in parts of Babergh and Mid Suffolk and a separate agreement with the individual District Councils to enforce their off street car parks, on a full cost recovery basis; and

(7)     delegated authority be given to the Assistant Director (Operations), in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Operations, to sign-off the final agreements relating to the introduction of Civil Parking Enforcement.

The Cabinet considered Report No: CAB/SE/17/016, which sought approval for the transfer of Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) to the Borough Council under the operation of a West Suffolk service, and the financial implications associated with that.

CPE was where local authorities took over the responsibility for ‘on street’ parking restrictions from the police.  Suffolk hosted 6 out of 25 areas in England that were not currently designated as Civil Enforcement Areas, which meant that parking violations in these areas were still enforced by the police.

Previous discussions had indicated, as recently endorsed by the Suffolk Public Sector Leaders’ Group, a collective desire for a basic level of enforcement of on-street parking restrictions in Suffolk from the police to local authorities. 

Subject to the consent of the Secretary of State for Transport, CPE could only be transferred to the County Council who may operate it directly or by delegation under an agency agreement with district and borough councils.  Suffolk County Council (SCC) had already delegated CPE powers to Ipswich Borough Council and a similar form of delegation was preferred across Suffolk with three operational teams patrolling the county.  A West Suffolk service was proposed to cover St Edmundsbury and Forest Heath.  Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils had approached the West Suffolk councils to manage some of its off street car parks on a full cost recovery basis, and this was proposed as a recommendation.

Councillor Peter Stevens, Portfolio Holder for Operations, drew relevant issues to the attention of Cabinet, including the financial implications resulting from CPE.  The set up costs for implementing the scheme across the county would be in the region of £1.13 million.  This cost would be shared with £10,000 being sought from each of the six district and borough councils (excluding Ipswich Borough Council where CPE already existed) with Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Constabulary funding the remainder.

It had been estimated that the annual operating costs for St Edmundbsury Borough Council (SEBC) (including the employment of Civil Enforcement Officers, vehicles and back office function) was  approximately £700,000.  The income from Penalty Charge Notices must be used to offset the operating costs and the estimated annual income was approximately £320,000 thereby leaving an annual operating CPE deficit of £380,000. 

CPE was unlikely to reach a cost neutral position based on the projected costs and estimated income from the issue of parking fines, therefore it was expected that on-street parking income would be the preferred mechanism to off-set the deficit and ensure the viability of the service.  Currently, on street pay and display and neighbourhood/resident parking in Bury St Edmunds was managed and enforced on a cost neutral basis by SEBC and all surplus income was returned to the SCC On-Street Parking Account.  Recognising the level of deficit in St Edmundsbury, and subject to final agreement, SCC would potentially allow all income generated on street, including Angel Hill, to be retained by SEBC. This was subject to other provisions and criteria, as detailed in paragraph 2.7 of the report.

The Cabinet also considered the overall budgetary position summarised in Exempt Appendix A; proposed measures to mitigate financial risks; a summary of the necessary Agency Agreement and Memorandum of Understanding required to be put in place with SCC and Suffolk Constabulary respectively; and delegations required to be granted to enable the final agreements to be signed off to enable CPE to become fully operational by April 2019.

Members were extremely pleased to see this coming forward. It was recognised that CPE had the benefit of a common enforcement service for both on and off-street parking for the convenience and ease of understanding for the motorist as well as providing greater control and a more efficient operation to that currently delivered by the Police. 

Recognition was given to Bury St Edmunds Town Council regarding its funding of a recently appointed Police Community Support Officer (PCSO). As part of her role, she was taking enforcement action on illegal parking in Bury St Edmunds, which would help tackle the problem until the proposed CPE service came into operation.

RECOMMENDED TO COUNCIL:

That:

(1)    the contents of Report No: CAB/SE/17/016 and the estimated financial impact of introducing Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) shown at Exempt Appendix A, be noted;

(2)    Suffolk County Council be supported in seeking the transfer of Civil Parking Enforcement to St Edmundsbury Borough Council;

(3)    an Agency Agreement be entered into with Suffolk County Council for the period 2019-2029 to undertake delegated Civil Parking Enforcement powers across the Borough;

(4)    £10,000 be contributed towards the countywide set up costs for Civil Parking Enforcement;

(5)    it be agreed that St Edmundsbury Borough Council will meet the cost of operating Civil Parking Enforcement delivered by a West Suffolk service, subject to (i) the retention of all on-street parking and neighbourhood parking receipts; (ii) a Service Level Agreement with Suffolk County Council on the processing of new requests for Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) restrictions and the maintenance of lines and signs; and (iii) assume delegated responsibility for on street pay and display tariff setting and the provision of on-street parking bays (subject to a Highway Authority pre-defined assessment);

(6)    CPE enforcement be provided in parts of Babergh and Mid Suffolk and a separate agreement with the individual District Councils to enforce their off street car parks, on a full cost recovery basis; and

(7)    delegated authority be given to the Assistant Director (Operations), in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Operations, to sign-off the final agreements relating to the introduction of Civil Parking Enforcement.