Agenda and draft minutes

To confirm the minutes of the meetings held on 11^th February 2025 and 25^th  March 2025.

The minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 11^th February and Tuesday 25^th March 2025 were confirmed and signed.

To disclose any pecuniary, other registrable or non-registrable interests as set out in the adopted Code of Conduct.  In making their decision councillors are asked to state the agenda item, the nature of the interest and any action they propose to take as part of their declaration.

If required, further advice should be sought from the Monitoring Officer in advance of the meeting.

No declarations of disclosable pecuniary interests were made at the meeting.

(a) To receive a short presentation by the Youth Council.  

(b) To receive any announcements from the Chair of Council.

The Council received and welcomed a short presentation from members of Dorset Youth Voice and the Youth Council.

The Chair reported the recent death of David Mannings, former Dorset County Council councillor. The Chair invited Cllr G Taylor to say a few words in tribute.

A period of 30 minutes is allocated to receive and respond to questions and statements on the business of the Council in the following order:

(a) Questions and statements from Town and Parish Councils;

(b) Questions and statements from those living or working in the Dorset Council area;

A person or organisation can submit either 1 question or 1 statement at each meeting. 

You are welcome to attend the meeting in person or via MS Teams to read out your question and to receive the response.  If you submit a statement for Full Council this will be circulated to all members of the council in advance of the meeting as a supplement to the agenda and appended to the minutes of the meeting for the formal record, but it will not be read out at the meeting.  The first 8 questions and the first 8 statements received by Democratic Services will be accepted on a first come first served basis in accordance with the deadline below:  

The full text of the question or statement must be received by 8.30am on 7^th April 2025. All submissions must be emailed to susan.dallison@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk 

When submitting your question or statement please note that:

·       You can submit 1 question or 1 statement for each meeting;

·       A question may include a pre-amble to set the context, each question, including the pre-amble can consist of up to 450 words and you will be given up to 3 minutes to read out your question;

·       Sub-divided questions will not be accepted;

·       When submitting a question please indicate who the question is for, i.e. the name of the Cabinet member;

·       You will need to include your full name, address and contact details;

·       All questions and statements will be published with the minutes of the meeting as a matter of public record.

Before submitting your question or statement please read the Council’s Procedure Rules, paragraphs 9.1 – 9.12 to ensure that your question/statement is compliant or contact Democratic Services ahead of the deadline for submissions.

Part 2 Rules of Procedure - Council and Committee Procedure Rules.pdf        

There were 5 questions from the public and a copy of the questions and responses are set out at Appendix 1 to these minutes.

A period of 15 minutes is allocated to receive and respond to petitions in accordance with the council’s petitions scheme.

A period of 15 minutes is allocated to receive and respond to deputations in accordance with the council’s constitution.

The petitions scheme and procedures relating to deputations can be viewed at:

Council Procedure Rules

There were no petitions and deputations received.

To receive any announcements and reports from the Leader of Council and members of the Cabinet.

The Leader of the Council provided a response to a question which had been raised at the previous Full Council meeting regarding the disposal of tyres. He confirmed that the Council did not send any tyres out of the county. Instead, truck tyres were processed through a company called TRS, which was ISO certified and operated in accordance with best practice standards. The company was also a signatory to a responsible recycling scheme. According to information available on their website, all tyres were recycled, reused, or disposed of sustainably. The resulting granules were used in a variety of industrial applications, including playground surfacing for schools. The Leader reiterated the Council’s commitment to sustainable, British-based tyre recycling.

The Leader also reported on the ongoing Town Council tour, the first round was nearly complete and had been positively received. He concluded by thanking members for submitting several questions, noting that it provided valuable opportunities for both the Cabinet and the Leader to communicate their work and priorities to the wider Council.

Cllr B Wilson, Cabinet member for Corporate Development and Transformation, expressed pride in supporting equality, diversity, and inclusion both within the Council and across Dorset. He emphasised the importance of continuing to foster an inclusive culture, with inclusion remaining at the heart of the Council’s values. He acknowledged that while progress had been made, there was still work to be done to become more inclusive. He reaffirmed the Council’s commitment to investing the necessary time and effort to create an environment where everyone feels welcomed and included.

To receive questions submitted by councillors.  The deadline for receipt of questions is 8.30am on 7^th April 2025.

There were 14 questions from councillors and a copy of these are set out in Appendix 2 to these minutes.

In response to a supplementary question from Councillor L O’Leary, which highlighted the need for more thorough budget consideration, the Cabinet Member for Place Services acknowledged the importance of reflection in the decision-making process. He advised that the points raised would have been taken on board, noting that it was sometimes necessary for councillors to reconsider their positions.

Responding to a supplementary question from Cllr S Jespersen on behalf of Cllr R Bryan, the Cabinet member for Place Services confirmed that he would welcome its consideration at Scrutiny and provided assurance that a consistent approach was being maintained. 

In response to a supplementary question from Councillor L Beddow, the Cabinet member for Place Services clarified that members of the public had access to multiple payment options for parking charges, including card, contactless and cash payments, in addition to mobile parking applications.

Responding to a supplementary question from Cllr S Gibson, the Cabinet member for Place Services supported the idea of effectively working with litter picking groups across Dorset.

In response to a supplementary question from Cllr P Dickenson, the Cabinet member for Place Services advised that there had been changes to services which had previously been funded by central government, however, Cllr J Andrews assured members that duties were being carried out following guidelines. 

Responding to a supplementary question from Cllr C Monks, the Cabinet member for Property & Assets and Economic Growth welcomed the suggestion for members to collaborate across the chamber to support local businesses and indicated that the Cabinet member for Finance and Capital Strategy would respond at a later date.

Further to a supplementary question from Councillor C Monks, the Leader advised that the Council was actively working with local river groups, alongside its own officers, to explore matters relating to chartered waters.

To consider a report by the Head of Human Resources.

Cllr N Ireland introduced the report and proposed that Dr Catherine Howe be appointed as Chief Executive Officer and Head of Paid Service as well as Returning Officer and Electoral Registration Officer for Dorset Council. The motion was seconded by Cllr A Parry.

Decision: That, subject to completion of the usual pre-employment checks: -

1. To appoint Dr Catherine Howe as Chief Executive Officer and Head of Paid Service.
2. To appoint Dr Catherine Howe, as Returning Officer and Electoral Registration Officer for Dorset Council

To consider a report by the Councillor Development and Support Officer.

Cllr R Hughes introduced the report and proposed that Mr Mark Roberts and Mr Lee Hardy be appointed as co-opted members of the Harbours Advisory Committee. The motion was seconded by Cllr J Andrews.

Decision:

a)    that Mr Mark Roberts and Mr Lee Hardy was appointed as Co-Opted members of the Harbours Advisory Committee.

b)    That Mr Lee Hardy was appointed as Co-Opted members of the Harbours Advisory Committee.

To consider any items of business which the Chairman has had prior notification and considers to be urgent pursuant to section 100B (4) b) of the Local Government Act 1972. The reason for the urgency shall be recorded in the minutes.

There were no urgent items to report.

To move the exclusion of the press and the public for the following item in view of the likely disclosure of exempt information within the meaning of paragraph 3 of schedule 12 A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

The public and the press will be asked to leave the meeting whilst the item of business is considered.

There was no exempt business.