The Mayor reminded Members that the amended procedure rules on the Leader’s Statement were agreed at Annual Council in July 2020 in order to give more Members than only the Leader of the Opposition Group a chance to respond.

The Leader said that recent Government decisions had signalled a new phase in the fight against Covid-19 and its social and economic consequences, and it would inevitably signal new pressures and administrative activity for the Council.  He said that having had the intense lockdown phase from March to June, there was then a period of comparative respite through the summer, with people patriotically eating out to help out.

Referring to the future, the Leader said that we appeared to be embarking on a long six-month winter of hibernation, with the possibility of further restrictions on individual lifestyles. He said that we could not know what impact this might have on the economy but also on people’s wider health and especially mental health.

The Leader said that we had to hope that people could sustain the sense of community and responsibility that characterised the earlier stages of the pandemic, and that both the NHS and the economy could survive. He added that we had to be prepared for increasing homelessness and unemployment.

The Leader said that the Council had a role to play, both in countering the impact of the pandemic but also in offering as many positives as it could to push back on the downsides of what would be a difficult winter.

Highlighting attention to the positives over the summer months, the Leader said that the capital works of the SBC and Heritage Lottery funded scheme at Faversham Recreational Ground were complete and the park was looking excellent and well supported. Heritage features such as the Garden Lodge had been restored and a number of new assets added, such as the outdoor gym, the catering kiosk and outdoor performance space.

The Leader happily acknowledged that the project was started and championed by Councillor David Simmons, and this demonstrated the advantage of continuity from one administration to another.

He said he was also pleased to say that SBC had played a significant part in ensuring that the Faversham swimming pool could re-open. He added that whilst it was not a Swale Council function, the administration believed such a facility was a vital part of recovery and resilience, in maintaining people’s physical and mental health.

The Leader highlighted that those benefits were for Faversham and it was not unknown in Swale Council circles for someone to say “what about us and my bit of the Borough?”.  He said he could only answer that we wanted to share public realm and public recreational improvements across the whole Borough and would do, remembering we are all Councillors for the whole of Swale.

The Leader said that since the end of the first lockdown officers had continued to meet the demands of resilience in a wide variety of ways: further payments to local businesses, active travel measures, rolling out support and compliance for track and trace and until August 2020, managing the Community Hub.

The Leader said Members would be pleased that the Council’s work with rough sleepers had been praised and recognised and this had resulted in Swale receiving the largest Government grant for District Councils in Kent for Next Steps Accommodation funding.  He added that he had also requested from the Government Department for some of the evidence of how well the work has enabled people to find better lives than they had previously.

The Leader said that the Council continued to work closely and successfully with other public agencies, especially KCC and the Kent Police. He added that Cabinet Members were due to meet in the near future with senior officers of KCC first to consider the public health implications of the pandemic and secondly to hear about KCC’s plans for the various traffic management issues in Kent that might follow from the end of our transition from the EU at the end of the year.

The Leader said that the Council was also moving forward on what he described as the “big ticket” objectives of the administration which he listed as:

·       The review of the Local Plan had taken a major step forward, made more urgent by the lunacy of the Government’s revision to the standard method for calculating housing need;

·       the Economic Improvement Plan had been through the Policy Development Review Committee (PDRC);

·       Area Committees were up and running and the Cabinet would soon be referring plans to introduce Cabinet Advisory Committees from next May to PDRC;

·       Cabinet, at its next meeting, would be considering a business plan for the setting up of a Local Housing Company;

·       Plans were being put in place for town centre improvements throughout the Borough with a supplementary planning document for Sittingbourne that incorporated Bourne Place where significant steps were being taken to diversify the leisure offer to people in Swale;

·       a fuel and water project worker has been recruited as part of the 10-point climate emergency plan; and

·       planning continued for the refurbishment of Swale House.

Referring to the recruitment of the new Chief Executive, to be discussed elsewhere in the Agenda, the Leader advised that a lot of time had been spent in the last three months in the recruitment.

In conclusion, the Leader said he would like to mention especially Nigel Alexander, the Council’s friendly and resourceful Facilities Officer who had gone through a severe period of ill health and had now retired.   He said that, as in many other ways, Swale House would not be quite the same.

Finally, the Leader congratulated Sheppey United Football Club for their remarkable victory in the FA Cup over Welling Football Club.  He wished the club good luck in the next round against Eastbourne.

In response, the Leader of the opposition thanked the Leader for his statement. He endorsed the comments made about Nigel Alexander and Sheppey United Football Club.  The Leader of the opposition reflected on the previous 6 months and on the efforts of officers and staff, and on the impact on their own lives in giving up their additional time in delivering a service to the residents of Swale.  He said that the SBC staff were heroes and that Members and the public of Swale should be thankful.  Finally, he asked the Director of Regeneration to take Members’ collective thanks to the staff of SBC.

In the discussion that followed, Members raised points including:

·       gave thanks to all staff, in particular housing staff for their work on the rough sleepers initiative;

·       encouraged Members to join in the annual rough sleepers count on 25 November 2020;

·       endorsed comments on Faversham Recreation Ground and sought involvement in the ongoing activity plan which was a key element of the Heritage Lottery Funding;

·       in reference to Covid-19, was critical of the 10pm closure from Government on the hospitality industry and its impact;

·       praised the dedication of homeless team for their work on the Next Steps Housing grant application;

·       thanked Councillor Simmons, Councillor Thomas and Councillor Valentine for their work on Faversham Recreation Ground;

·       pleased that Faversham Swimming Pool remained popular;

·       wished Nigel Alexander well;

·       acknowledged the thanks to Sheppey United Football club and wished them well; and

·       thanked officers for their assistance and support in tackling anti-social behaviour.

In response, the Leader thanked Members for their comments and acknowledgement of the difficulties officers had faced throughout the pandemic.  He referred to the likely increase in rough sleepers and thanked Members for their input on this topic. The Leader said he was proud of the achievements at Faversham Recreation Ground and acknowledged the input from other Members.  He said that he thought the current restrictions around Covid-19 were a signal that the country was entering a second wave.