FROM CLLR LORRAINE LINDSAY-GALE
REPORT TO PARISH COUNCILS JULY 2019
OXFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL | WWW.NUNEHAMCOURTENAY.ORG.UK
STATEMENT FROM CLLR IAN HUDSPETH, LEADER OXFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL
The decision by the new Liberal/Green coalition at South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC) to defer endorsing the emerging Local Plan has serious implications for the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) bid which would provide £218 million of vital infrastructure for the Didcot area.
The preferred options of the coalition at the council meeting on 18th July were to either revise or withdraw the emerging Local Plan although any decision was deferred. Should either of these options be taken then the probable outcome is the collapse of the HIF bid with the consequent severe impact on the Didcot area infrastructure. This would then probably mean South’s existing Local Plan would come under pressure and large-scale speculative planning applications might come forward on inappropriate sites. Neighbourhood Plans that many town and parish councils have spent time working on will continue to provide some protection, but there is a real danger that developers might seek to exploit the situation as there would be no new Local Plan for Neighbourhood Plans to align with.
Problems are not confined to SODC; if there is no HIF then the Vale Local Plan could also fail.
This could mean that within months of new administrations in South & Vale taking office, both Local Plans might fail due to the loss of £218 million for vital infrastructure in Didcot. A further consequence could then be the failure of the £215 million Growth Deal which contains £60 million for much needed affordable homes.
The only way to protect both Local Plans and deliver £433 million funding for Oxfordshire is for SODC to confirm it will not withdraw the emerging Local Plan but will satisfy its ambitions by seeking a review at an appropriate time in the future.
Culham and Clifton Hampden Primary Schools to merge
Informal consultation has been taking place into merging Culham Parochial Primary School and Clifton Hampden CE Primary School. Sadly, after all the efforts that were made to save the school some years ago, the numbers have been dwindling and have now reached the critical level of under 30.
A statutory notice will be served by mid September, and a public meeting will be held towards the end of the month. Representations can be made until mid October. So far, 18 children will transfer, who can be accommodated at Clifton Hampden, following some minor internal works to make better use of space. The County Council is arranging transport for these children.
More charging points to support electric vehicles
The electric car revolution is set to continue in Oxfordshire thanks to a successful county council bid for a slice of a £37m government fund. Oxfordshire is set to host to two major initiatives to provide more charging points for electric vehicles (EVs) across the county.
The projects have been awarded funding from Innovate UK as part of the government’s £37 million investment into British engineering to transform electric charging infrastructure, revolutionising the experience for the record levels of EV drivers on UK roads.
Park and Charge will see up to 300 chargers installed in residential ‘charging hubs’ using car parks located in residential areas where properties don’t have their own off-street parking.
Free school transport for disabled young people is retained
Young people with special education needs and disabilities will continue to be funded by Oxfordshire County Council, following a decision by Cabinet members on Tuesday, 16 July.
A cross-party group of councillors reviewed the service for students with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) aged 16 or older to find savings needed by the council in response to reduced government funding.
The council has worked with 14 SEND schools to identify the necessary £300,000 of savings for post-16 home to school transport; removing any current need to change existing SEND free transport arrangements. A separate fund has also been created to provide transport for children to go to after-school activities.
Radical changes that improve the lives of families are set to be introduced in Oxfordshire
A pioneering approach that has radically changed the way children’s social care operates in Hertfordshire is set to be adopted by Oxfordshire County Council.
The “Family Safeguarding” model has seen the number of children on child protection plans by fall 55 per cent in 30 months in Hertfordshire. Social workers have been working in small integrated teams centred around individual families in need alongside experts providing specialist mental health, drugs and alcohol, and domestic abuse services.
There has been 80 per cent rise in children in care from 2011 to 2019. There are now 780 children in care compared to 425. On current trends and without the changes we plan, children in care would rise to around 915 by 2023.
This new approach that has been pioneered in Hertfordshire will offer a way of beginning to reverse those trends.
Council seeks out more local foster carers
Oxfordshire County Council’s cabinet has agreed a £1m investment in its in-house fostering service, which will increase the number of local carers and reduce the number of children who are placed with carers outside of Oxfordshire.
By enhancing the support given and amount paid to foster carers, the county council’s in-house service will become competitive with independent foster care agencies and other providers across the country.
Like all councils in England, Oxfordshire County Council has experienced large rises in the number of children entering care over the last decade. In 2011 there were 425 children in care, now there are around 780.
In April 2019, 54 per cent of foster care placements in Oxfordshire were with independent fostering agencies (IFAs) with the majority being out of county (144 in 2019). National best practice suggests a local authority should aim to have 70 per cent of their mainstream carers in-house.