Item 8 - Appendix 2
West Dunbartonshire Council · 22 May 2024
Back to Infrastructure, Regeneration & Economic Development Committee — 22 May 2024 and its agenda
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Appendix 2: Regulatory & Regeneration Delivery Plan 2024/25 - Economic Development 1. Introduction Regulatory & Regeneration comprises a wide range of services covering legal, trading standards, licensing, records management, planning, building standards, environmental health, democratic and registration services, economic development and procurement. It is one of seven strategic areas responsible for delivering the Council’s Strategic Plan. Key actions to help achieve that are set out in this Delivery Plan, together with actions to address any performance issues and service priorities identified in the planning process. The progress of this Plan will be monitored and managed by the management team and reported to Corporate Services Committee and Infrastructure, Regeneration & Economic Development Committee (economic development elements only) twice yearly, at mid- year and year-end. 2. Performance Review The management team completed a detailed review of 2023/24 performance, focusing on the following: • 2023/24 Delivery Plan year end progress; • Local Government Benchmarking Framework comparative data; • National Planning Improvement Framework; • Citizens’ Panel feedback; • Telephone Survey feedback; • Complaints; and • Continuous Improvement. This review highlighted our key achievements and challenges in 2023/24. These are summarised below. ITEM 8 - APPENDIX 2
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Key Achievements in 2023/24 Listed below are some of the major achievements in each service area that were particularly challenging or unusual. All services achieve many other fantastic outcomes for the Council and its residents throughout the year which are not recorded here but are often as important. Cross Service • Implemented the Short-Term Let Licence regime with over 90 applications processed within a short time frame, working with other Council services including Environmental Health and Building Standards to ensure that the accommodation was of a suitable standard. • Expansion of the Queens Quay District Heating Network continued, with the connection to 46 Clydebank Housing Association flats. • Infrastructure, Regeneration and Economic Development Committee approved the Masterplan for the redevelopment of the Artizan Centre as part of the Levelling Up Fund programme. • Infrastructure funding package over £44m and Final Business Case approved for the former Exxon site by the Council and City Region Cabinet and planning permission secured. Economic Development and Regeneration • Stage 1 bid to Glasgow City Region Investment Zone submitted, with the Council now supporting a Stage 2 bid for the Scottish Marine Technology Park to be part of an Advanced Manufacturing Investment Zone. • Provided support to 200 new business start-ups and developed and implemented a range of business interventions through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to provide growth support to local businesses. • Developed a new Economic Development Strategy Action Plan for 2022 to 2027, providing a clear strategic approach to economic development and resource allocation to improve economic performance. • Delivered improvements in Alexandria Town Centre and launched a Community Grant scheme for community groups and organisations in West Dunbartonshire using Place Based Investment Programme funding. • Reinvigorated the Climate Change Action Plan delivery group. • Upgrading of Building Management Systems across the majority of the Council estate completed. • Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy was approved by Committee in February 2024 for wider consultation.
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Key Challenges in 23/24 Economic Development and Regeneration • Delivering private sector homes at Queens Quay continued to be a challenge in 2023/24 but we meet with our commercial partner regularly to monitor and encourage development interest. • Businesses continued to face many economic challenges in 2023/24, including rising inflation and energy costs. The business interventions developed through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the on-going advice and support available through Business Gateway will continue to provide assistance to help them recover and grow in the year ahead. • Delivery of the Levelling Up Fund programme of works in Dumbarton town centre against tight funding timescales was challenging given the multi-disciplinary support and buy-in from a number of different stakeholders required to develop and deliver projects of this nature. • With temporary resource challenges, it was challenging to adequately resource all projects and to meet some of the tight deadlines associated with external funding. • Despite carbon emissions for 2022/23 showing a reduction from 2021/22, it is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve the targets as outlined in our Climate Change Strategy. In order to ensure Net Zero targets are met for 2045, additional resources and finance will require to be considered if we are to meet future targets. • The Cost of Living crisis has seen a significant uplift in the number of residents requiring Energy Efficiency support. This has proved challenging to facilitate within our existing resources. 3. Strategic Assessment The Regulatory & Regeneration management team completed a detailed strategic assessment to determine the major influences on service delivery and priorities in 2024/25 and beyond. This covered a review of local and national political priorities, new legislation and technology, Council policies, and our continued recovery from the pandemic, cost of living crisis and the financial challenges facing the Council. The key issues are outlined below. Key Factors Financial Challenges The entire public sector is continuing to face significant financial challenges due to a range of factors including inflationary cost increases, pay awards not being fully funded by the Scottish Government and insufficient overall funding to support the delivery of
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front line and back office services. The Council are currently faced with an estimated cumulative funding gap in 2025/26 of £9.8m rising to £40.4m by 2028/29. We will continue to monitor the overall financial position of the Council and updates on estimated future budget gaps will be reported to Elected Members throughout 2024/25. These challenges require further action to balance our budget and protect services for residents. Within Regulatory & Regeneration, this means that available funding will be reduced over time and we will need to reconfigure how we work, what we do, where we work, and potentially reduce the number of people employed. In this context, we will aim to continue to provide a sustainable, quality service to internal clients and the public. Budget Sensitivity Analysis In reviewing the service budget projections, consideration has been given to the sensitivity of these budgets, in particular for higher risk/ higher value budgets which may have a significant impact on budgetary control and future budget projections. The analysis has considered sensitivity around demand, costs and charges, and income levels. In Regulatory and Regeneration there were no budgets identified as being more susceptible to fluctuations. However, on a more Council-wide basis, the Council’s cost of borrowing is susceptible to fluctuations in the bank interest rate due to the level of the Council’s short-term borrowing. Economic Development Action Plan An Economic Development Strategy Action Plan for 2022/27 was approved by Infrastructure, Regeneration and Economic Development Committee in November 2023. It sets out the vision and priorities for delivering economic growth and improved well- being in West Dunbartonshire’s communities and is aligned to the Strategic Plan 2022/27, the Glasgow City Region Economic Strategy and the Scottish Government’s National Strategy for Economic Transformation. The action plan to deliver the strategy has been developed for implementation in 2024/25. It focuses on delivering key regeneration sites, developing the Queens Quay site, identifying and developing commercial opportunities, supporting business recovery, and supporting town centre revitalisation (details below). The action plan will be implemented throughout 2024/25 and progress monitored and reported to Infrastructure, Regeneration and Economic Development Committee. Action: Implement, monitor and report the progress of the 2024/25 Economic Development action plan
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Deliver Key Regeneration Sites A number of key regeneration projects, which span multiple years, will continue to be taken forward in 2024/25. These include: • Infrastructure delivery on the Exxon site; • Alexandria Masterplan which will transform the town centre and surrounding areas; • Clydebank Town Centre Development Framework which will inform interventions delivered funded through the Long-Term Plan for Towns over the next 7-10 years; • Securing planning approval for the Scottish Marine Technology Park (SMTP) at the Carless site, and pursuing funding opportunities including Vacant and Derelict Land fund and Investment Zone; and • A range of projects funded through the £20m Levelling Up fund, including the redevelopment of Glencairn House, the regeneration of the Artizan Shopping centre, and connecting Dumbarton Central to the Town Centre, all of which will have a significant impact on Dumbarton and the town centre vibrancy. Actions: Deliver key regeneration sites across West Dunbartonshire; Ensure regeneration sites are progressed to enable high quality development to be achieved on the ground and; Monitor the development of the key regeneration sites to ensure they comply with the approved consent Queens Quay Infrastructure works for this 80 acre residential waterfront development were completed in 2020/21. In the year ahead, the focus on securing housing developments across the site in partnership with site owner Clydeside Regeneration Ltd. will continue. This continues to be a challenge, particularly in relation to flatted private homes which the market is finding commercially challenging. Discussions will continue with a range of public and private sector parties. Action: Promote the next phase of Queens Quay Housing Deliver Key Commercial Opportunities Identifying commercial opportunities in conjunction with the private sector will continue to be a priority. Discussions with developers who may wish to enter a partnership with the Council to achieve joint benefits from a commercial, housing and low carbon
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perspective will be progressed. The Regeneration Capital Fund with £12.77m has been allocated across a number of projects. The Fund’s key operating principles and allocations to specific projects agreed by Committee will be progressed. Opportunities include: • Exxon – as infrastructure works progress, the Council will consider how to promote and deliver the best uses for the site and, working with the City Region and Scottish Enterprise, will encourage developer interest in the site to meet the growth targets set out in the City Deal business case. • NHS Golden Jubilee – we will seek to deliver the extension of the District Heating network to the hospital and explore opportunities presented by the expansion of the hospital for development and regeneration of Queen Quay and Clydebank, generally. • Scottish Marine Technology Park – we will continue to work with the Malin Group in their ambition to deliver the Scottish Marine Technology Park at the former Carless site near Old Kilpatrick, and assist them in attracting business and funding to the site. A project board has been established to provide support and direction as the Malin Group progress the development through the planning and infrastructure implementation stages. Action: Explore commercial opportunities in our town centres and wider regeneration sites Supporting Business Recovery In April 2022 the UK government launched the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, a central pillar of the UK government’s Levelling Up agenda, providing funding for local investment across the UK by March 2025. A Local Investment Plan has been developed and approved by the UK Government as part of a wider Glasgow City Region Investment Plan through the Fund. The business support proposals within the Investment Plan will be available until March 2025 to support business recovery and include a Business Recovery & Growth fund, Early Stage Growth grants, Towards Net Zero Grant, Enhancing Tourism Events & Attractions Fund, Business Gateway Expert Help and Shopfront & Small Business Improvement Grants. Action: Develop and implement business support interventions through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund Supporting Town Centre Revitalisation Assisting town centres to recover from the pandemic and cost of living crisis will continue to be a focus in 2024/25, with support for high street businesses a key priority and in response to community needs. We will continue to develop projects to make our town
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centres attractive places and take advantage of the external funding, including UK Government’s levelling up programme and Place-Based Investment Programme funds provided by Scottish Government. • Clydebank has been awarded £20 million funding from the UK Government as part of the Long-Term Plan for Towns. This funding will support delivery of the projects which originate from approved Clydebank Development Framework and reflect the priorities of the local community. The Framework provides a vision for how the town will be transformed, from reducing retail dominance to a vibrant mixed use and inhabited town centre that meets the needs of the whole community. It includes, among other interventions, development of the former Playdrome site, a transport hub at Clydebank Station, improved connections between the town centre and Queens Quay, and related community-led activity. We will look for ways to secure additional funding and attracting commercial and other development interest. A Clydebank Town Board, chaired by Liz Connolly Principal of West College Scotland will be established to oversee the Fund and Plans. • In Dumbarton, the focus for the next year and beyond will be the Levelling Up Fund programme of works including the refurbishment and reuse of Glencairn House as a library and museum and the revitalisation of the Artizan Centre. Another levelling up project, Connecting Dumbarton, was completed in early 2024. • In Alexandria the next phase of the 2021 Masterplan will be implemented, with an emphasis on place based funded projects. This will include improved walking and cycling routes, town centre building improvements and projects that directly respond to local community and business priorities. Action: Support town centre revitalisation Climate Change Action Plan The Council developed a Climate Change Strategy in response to the climate emergency and to provide a route map towards meeting Scotland’s national net zero carbon target by 2045. This Strategy informs annual action plans, with actions devolved to relevant service areas. Progress against the 2024/25 action plan will be monitored and reported to senior management and Council on a regular basis. Action: Co-ordinate, monitor and report the progress of the Council’s Climate Change Action Plan for 2024/25
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Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) During 2023/24, the Council commenced works on a Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy (LHEES) which will set out the long-term plan for heat decarbonisation and improved energy efficiency of buildings throughout the Council area. The consultative draft Strategy was approved in February 2024. Scotland’s statutory greenhouse gas emissions reduction and fuel poverty targets will be the drivers of this area-based approach. When the final strategy is approved, it will set out the changes needed to each sector of buildings stock, identify strategic heat decarbonisation zones and prioritise delivery areas. A Delivery Plan will accompany the LHEES, developed in partnership with key stakeholders. Action: Develop Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Delivery Plan Continuous Improvement Continuous improvement is central to all that we do. The actions set out in this section, as well as those at an operational level not included in this Delivery Plan, demonstrate our commitment to continuous improvement and take account of the wider Best Value focus on vision and leadership; governance and accountability; effective use of resources; partnerships and collaborative working; working with communities; sustainability; and fairness and equality. Action Plan The challenges identified in Section 2 and the key factors identified in Section 3 have informed Regulatory & Regeneration priorities for 2024/25. Appendix 1 sets out the action plan to address them. It also includes: • performance indicators that will enable progress to be monitored and reported to stakeholders; • strategic workforce actions to address workforce issues identified in the planning process; and • strategic and/or service risks. In relation to the latter, strategic risks represent the potential for the Council to take advantage of opportunities or fail to meet stated strategic objectives and those that require strategic leadership. Service risks relate to service delivery and represent the potential for impact on individual services, or the experience of those who work within the services, i.e. employees, partners, contractors and volunteers, or service users and clients in receipt of the services provided. In identifying the relevant risks for 2024/25 and actions to mitigate them, we aim to improve or maintain the current position (i.e. the current risk score) set out in the appendix.
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4. Resources Finance The Finance team are currently creating the detailed service budgets to accurately reflect all savings, management adjustments and other budget adjustments agreed by Council on 6 March 2024. Once this is complete the service plans will be updated with each Service’s Gross Expenditure, Gross Income and Net Revenue Expenditure Budgets. Employees Employee Numbers The headcount and full time equivalent (FTE) staff in each service area (as of 31st March 2024) are as follows: Absence The 2023/24 quarterly absence figures for Regulatory & Regeneration are shown below together with the Council average for the same periods for comparison. Absence was significantly lower the Council average throughout 2023/24: Absence in 2023/24 Quarter 1 Quarter 2 Quarter 3 Quarter 4 Annual FTE days lost per FTE employee Regulatory and Regeneration Headcount FTE Democratic and Registration Services 21 18.36 Economic Development 16 15.03 Legal Services 21 20.26 Planning, Building Control 36 34.30 Regulatory Management 3 2.80 Procurement 10 9.86 TOTAL 107 100.61
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Regulatory & Regeneration 0.86 1.72 1.53 2.52 5.94 COUNCIL WIDE TOTAL 3.64 3.36 4.67 5.01 13.74 Appendix 1: Action Plan Please Note: PI targets for 2024/25 are indicative until 2023/24 year-end data becomes available. Our Environment Our resources are used in an environmentally sustainable way Performance Indicator 2024/25 Owner Target Tonnage of carbon dioxide emissions from Council operations and assets 19,342 Rachel Moir Action Due Date Owner Co-ordinate, monitor and report the progress of the Council’s Climate Change Action Plan for 2024/25 31-Mar-2025 Rachel Moir Develop Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Delivery Plan 31-Mar-2025 Rachel Moir
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Risk Description Current Assessment Target Assessment Owner Inability to reduce carbon footprint in line with targets The risk that the Council will be unable to achieve net zero emissions by 2045, both in relation to mitigating carbon emissions and adapting to the impacts of climate change. Net zero refers to achieving an overall balance between emissions produced and emissions taken out of the atmosphere. This target has been developed in a way that mirrors the emission reduction trajectory set by the Scottish Government in light of the Climate Emergency. Gillian McNamara Our neighbourhoods are sustainable and attractive Action Due Date Owner Promote the next phase of Queens Quay Housing 31-Mar-2025 Pamela Clifford; Gillian McNamara Our Economy Our area has the infrastructure for sustainable and inclusive growth where businesses can flourish Performance Indicator 2024/25 Owner Target Number of businesses given advice and assistance to start up through Business Gateway 180 Gillian Scholes
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Performance Indicator 2024/25 Owner Target No of business gateway start-ups per 10,000 population 19.78 Gillian Scholes Proportion of properties receiving superfast broadband 100% Gillian Scholes Action Due Date Owner Implement, monitor and report the progress of the 2024/25 Economic Development action plan 31-Mar-2025 Gillian McNamara Deliver key regeneration sites across West Dunbartonshire 31-Mar-2025 Gillian McNamara Explore commercial opportunities in our town centres and wider regeneration sites 31-Mar-2025 Magda Swider Develop and implement business support interventions through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund 31-Mar-2025 Gillian Scholes Support town centre revitalisation 31-Mar-2025 Magda Swider Risk Description Current Assessment Target Assessment Owner Failure to deliver Queens Quay Masterplan Following completion of Council investment there is a risk the housing plot sales do not materialise in the next 3-7 years, with implications for the return on investment and the business case for the District Heating Network. Pamela Clifford; Gillian McNamara Inability to meet demands of Council to progress regeneration projects within desired timescales The number and complexity of regeneration projects is putting considerable strain on the resources available which can be exacerbated by delays out with the control of the service and when pinch points on different projects occur at roughly the same time. Pamela Clifford; Alan Douglas; Gillian McNamara
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