To confirm as a correct record of the proceedings the unrestricted minutes of the meeting held on 13^th March 2018

Consideration of any written comments received from members of the public in relation to any of the reports on the agenda.

[Any submissions should be sent to the clerk listed on the agenda front page by 5pm the day before the meeting]

To note for information individual decisions relating to the award of grants that have been taken by the Mayor the last meeting.

The Sub-Committee considered the report which proposed to allocate Right to Buy receipt grant funding to Mulberry Housing Society to part finance the acquisition of 42 properties in Burdett Road.  The grant request would contribute 30% of the scheme costs associated with the rented element.

The Sub-Committee were reminded that on 7^th February 2018, the Mayor in Cabinet agreed to establish two housing delivery vehicles to expand the range of options open to the Council to deliver new housing supply across tenures. They also approved £9M of retained Right to Buy receipts for Mulberry Housing Society to purchase affordable housing. 

The Sub - Committee also noted the terms of the proposed grant and that Officers considered that the proposal would provide good value for money.

The Mayor enquired and the Chair of the GSSC reported that the Sub-Committee asked questions about the management of the properties on completion of the scheme and the freehold interest. The GSSC were satisfied with the responses provided in respect of these issues and endorsed the recommendations. The Mayor then invited GDSC Members to comment on the report and they indicated that they supported the proposals.

DECISION

1.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised  to award Right To Buy receipt grant funding of £2.3m to Mulberry Housing Society; in addition, allow 10% uplift to the agreed amounts to take account of potential increases in acquisition costs.

2.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to enter into a grant agreement and make decisions relating to any associated matter to give effect to the delegation referred to in resolution 1 above.

3.         To note the Equalities Impact Assessment / specific equalities considerations as set out in Paragraph 4

Tracey St Hill, (Principal RSL Partnerships Officer)presented the report  seeking the allocation of grant funding to the George Green Almshouses for the provision of additional affordable housing from right to buy receipts.

The Sub - Committee were reminded that in December 2015, the Commissioners agreed that £7.06 millions of retained Right Buy Grants Receipts could be used for the establishment of a Local Affordable Grants Programme for the provision of affordable housing. The Mayor in Cabinet had since ratified grant funding for this scheme. The application from George Green Almshouses sought grant funding to provide two properties from Poplar Harca. 

The Chair invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report and he reported that the GSSC endorsed the recommendations. The Mayor then invited GDSC Members to comment on the report and they indicated that they supported the proposals.

DECISION

1.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to award Right to Buy grant funding for the amount listed in 1.7 of the report to George Green’s Almshouses, together with a 10% uplift to take account of potential increases in build or acquisition costs.

2.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to enter into a grant agreement and make decisions relating to any associated matter to give effect to the delegation referred to in resolution 1 above.

Alison Denning (Festival & Events Officer)presented the report which provided an overview of Event Fund applications for events taking place within quarters 2 -3 (between July 1^st and December 31st 2017), and the Jo Cox / Big Lunch Great Get Together events. It covered the number of applications received, assessment process, the amount of applications funded, project descriptions and monitoring information amongst other matters.

The Mayor invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report. He indicated that the GSSC sought clarity on the geographical spread of events, the equality data, the applications declined and were satisfied with the responses received.  The GSSC endorsed the report.  The Mayor then invited GDSC Members to comment on the report. Members expressed comments about the geographical coverage of the programme, particularly in Blackwall and Cubitt Town.

DECISION

1.         That the contents of the report be noted

Abdul J Khan, (Sustainable Development Manager) presented the report, seeking the allocation of  grant funding to SME’s from S106 Funds from the Carbon Fund for energy reduction projects in the borough.

He outlined the decision making background to the programme and its benefits.

The Mayor invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report and he reported that the GSSC sought clarity on the funding priorities and the checks on projects. The Chair also indicated that Councillor Andrew Wood objected to the proposal to award grants to businesses. However, the GSSC endorsed the recommendations. The Mayor also asked about the selection process and it was noted that each application would be assessed according to the criteria to ensure that those that would deliver the greatest benefit would secure funding.

The Mayor then invited GDSC Members to comment on the report and they indicated that they supported the proposals.

DECISION

1.         That the grant funding of £220,000 be approved to deliver the SME Energy Reduction Programme

2.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to enter into grant agreements and make any associated decisions in order to distribute the funding

Owen Whalley, (Divisional Director - Planning and Building Control), presented the item. The reported proposed the award of an LBTH Historic buildings grant to Oxford House, Derbyshire Road for vital repair works to the Grade 11 listed building. The grant would contribute to match funding for a larger Heritage Lottery Fund Grant.

The Mayor invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report and he indicated the GSSC sought and obtained reassurances about the maintenance of the building and endorsed the recommendations.  The Mayor then invited GDSC Members to comment on the report and they indicated that they supported the proposals.

DECISION

1.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to issue a formal offer of grant to Oxford House in Bethnal Green to a maximum value of £95,902.00 for repair works to the roof and high level windows.

2.         That the Corporate Director Place be authorised to enter into the grant agreement and any such other agreements required to effect the grant and the use of the grant as detailed in paragraph 1 of the report.

The report was urgent due to the extension considerations for Mainstream Grants and the decisions required in relation to the extension.

David Freeman (Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) Strategy Manager presented the report, circulated in a supplementary agenda, proposing a further extension of the current MSG programme to 30^th September 2019 to allow further time for co-production with the VCS of the Community Commissioning funding programme which will succeed MSG.

The Mayor invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report and he indicated that whilst mindful that the MSG had been extended on one previous occasion, they considered it justifiable to grant this extension and endorsed the proposal.

The Sub – Committee agreed that recommendation 3 in the report (regarding the recommendations for individual projects not to be extended) be considered as part of the discussion on item 7.7,MSG Quarterly Monitoring Update 2018-19  and Rent.

DECISION

1.         That it be agreed that the current MSG programme be extended by six months to 30 September 2019 for those projects which receive grants and which are also performing satisfactorily.

2.         Agree the recommendations for the extension of individual MSG funded projects to 30^th September 2019, as detailed in Appendix 1. (109 projects)

3.         That the consideration of the recommendations for individual projects not to be extended (as set out in Appendix 2) be considered as part of the discussion on item 7.7. MSG Quarterly Monitoring Update 2018-19  and Rent.

4.         That the Corporate Director, Resources be delegated the negotiation and signing of Grant Offer extension letters setting out the detailed targets and conditions for the extension period.

5.         That it be agreed that a condition of the extension will be for projects to maintain satisfactory performance up to the end of the current three year MSG programme, which is 31 August 2018.

The report was urgent due to the extension considerations for Mainstream Grants and the decisions required in relation to the decision.

Zena Cooke, (Corporate Director, Resources) presented the report, circulated in a supplementary agenda. The report covered the red ,amber and green projects, within the Council’s agreed MSG framework.

The Sub – Committee noted the issues in respect of the Tower Hamlets Youth Sports Foundation projects which had been rated as red projects. The Council had offered support to the THYSF over a period of 15 months to address the issues around outstanding monitoring returns and premises issues. The information required remained outstanding. The proposals complied with the criteria for the releasing of payments

The Mayor invited the Chair of GSSC to comment on the report. The Chair reported that they sought more information relating to the Tevoit British Bangledeshi Association regarding safeguarding issues. They considered that such information should be included in future monitoring reports if pertinent. Furthermore, whilst mindful of the support offered by the Council to THYSF, they urged that the GDSC should not suspend the grant payments at this stage but encourage officers to continue to offer support to the organisation.  The GSSC endorsed all other recommendations in the report.

In view of the above, the Sub – Committee agreed that the consideration of the recommendation not to extend individual projects (as set out in Appendix 2 of the agenda item 7.6 MSG Extension report) be deferred for a further review of the impact on projects and if necessary be taken by the Mayor as an Individual Mayor Decision, should the timescales require this.

DECISION

1.         That the Grants Determination Sub-Committee agrees the following decisions in respect of releasing of MSG payments to the projects as set out in section 3.3, 3.5, 3.8, , 3.10 and 3.11 of the report

Teviot British Bangladeshi Association. Payment be suspended to the Teviot British Bangladeshi Association pending the satisfactory clarification of operational arrangements, submission and agreement of an action plan to manage missed targets. Payment be released conditional on receipt of all information, together with confirmation of satisfactory performance. The Corporate Director, Resources after consultation with the Executive Mayor, be given delegated authority to release payments subject to these conditions being met.

Community of Refugees from Vietnam - East London that payment be suspended until a satisfactory monitoring visit is undertaken to confirm performance.  In the event that the visit confirms satisfactory performance, payment be released.

Wadajir Somali Community Centre. In accordance with MSG procedures for amber related projects, Wadajir Somali Community Centre receive  two thirds grant payment due pending a satisfactory monitoring visit to verify that service delivery has resumed in full.  Once it is confirmed that satisfactory performance has resumed and performance is back to Green in accordance with the RAG performance rating, grant payments can be released accordingly. 

Tower Hamlets Youth Sports Foundation - That in light of significant performance and outstanding premises issues across all three THYSF projects, payments be suspended in light of THYSF  ...  view the full decision text for item 7.7