Minutes – Full Council – 24 September 2025
The agenda and papers for this meeting are available here: Full Council – 24 September 2025 – agenda and papers
The minutes of this meeting are presented below.
You can also download a PDF copy of the minutes here: Minutes – Full Council – 24 September 2025
Papers received after publication of the agenda for circulation with the minutes (PDF download only):
MEETING OF COUNCIL
Minutes
Date: 24 September 2025
Time: 6.00pm – 8.19pm
Location: The Assembly Room – The Council House • North Street • CHICHESTER • West Sussex • PO19 1LQ (NOTE: the meeting was moved due to heat issues in the Council Chamber)
PRESENT: The Mayor, Councillor McHale (SMc) and Councillors Apel (CA), Butler (AB), Chant (RC), Corfield (MC), C Gershater (CG), J Gershater (JG), Kondabeka (JK), Loxton (SL), Miall (RMi), Moore (RMo), Pramas (LP), Quail (SQ), Russell (NR) and Vivian (JV).
ALSO IN ATTENDANCE: Town Clerk, Deputy Town Clerk, Property Maintenance Manager, Council Services and Support Manager. West Sussex County Councillors Hunt (JH), Joy (JJ) and Oakley (SO). One member of the public.
COUNCIL2025/1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Knight, Scicluna, and Squire.
COUNCIL2025/2. DISPENSATION REQUESTS
No dispensation requests were received since the last meeting of the Council.
COUNCIL2025/3. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
No declarations of interest were made by Members of the Council in matters on the agenda of this meeting.
COUNCIL2025/4. PUBLIC QUESTIONS
One question had been submitted by WSCC Cllr Simon Oakley regarding the use of West Sussex County Council’s (WSCC’s) Operation Watershed grant funding scheme to address flooding issues within the city.
Noting many Parish Councils across W. Sussex and within Chichester District have utilised WSCC’s Operation Watershed grant funding scheme to address flooding issues, that one of CCC’s Business Plan priorities is “Fill the gaps in the city’s infrastructure” and the forecast challenges of increased storm event intensity, has CCC investigated utilising Operation Watershed to help address surface water drainage issues within the City?
The Mayor answered the question, stating that the City Council had not considered submitting an application via Operation Watershed for funding to address specific surface water flooding in the city.
However, the Council remains open to applying for funding if a local community group or a group of concerned residents come forward with an identified and specific local flooding issue.
SO urged members to look at areas of known flooding in their wards to see if there were areas that would benefit from additional flood engineering works.
SQ asked about plans at WSCC to address flooding issues in Parchment Street. SO advised that the first stage would be to raise the issue with their local ward Councillor to determine if the problem was maintenance-based or structural.
JH requested an update on the installation of the bus shelter in Lavant Road.
The Clerk advised that the project has not progressed due to the lack of resources since WSCC changed the process and removed support for parishes in installing new bus shelters.
Task: Write to WSCC ward members advising of the flooding issues in Parchment Street. @Cllr Quail
COUNCIL2025/5. MAYOR’S ANNOUNCEMENTS
The Mayor announced that Mayor’s Sunday would be held on 28th September, with assembly at the Council House at 10.20am for robing, followed by tea and refreshments.
Additionally, a murder mystery evening is scheduled for 1st November in the Assembly Room in aid of the Mayor’s Charity.
COUNCIL2025/6. MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING
The minutes of the Council meeting held on 4th June 2025 and the Extraordinary Council meeting held on 8th August 2025 were approved and signed as a correct record.
An update on the cleaning contract was provided, advising that a new contract will be in place from November 2025 with Wettons, who will be charging £8,786 per year.
The staging system is still being assessed to ensure the chosen solution will be fit for purpose.
Chichester District Council (CDC) has verbally confirmed that they would not consider the transfer of a car park to the City Council as part of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR).
COUNCIL2025/7. UPDATE ON ACTIONS FROM PREVIOUS MEETING
Updates on actions from the previous meeting were discussed:
- Agenda item 40: Submission of City Council responses to the Local Government Devolution engagement form has been completed.
- Agenda item 41: Review of CDC list of potential Chichester community assets for transfer will be discussed under agenda item.
COUNCIL2025/9.1. Chichester City Council
Agenda item 42: Meeting of the Devolution Working Group to review Councillor community asset proposals and compile the City Council’s preferred list will be discussed under agenda item COUNCIL2025/9.1.
COUNCIL2025/8. MINUTES FROM COMMITTEES:
The Mayor advised that the majority of the Committee recommendations, relating to changes to Terms of Reference; would be discussed under agenda item COUNCIL2025/11.
COUNCIL2025/8.1. PLANNING AND CONSERVATION COMMITTEE
The minutes of the Planning and Conservation Committee meetings held on 19 June 2025, 17 July 2025, 14 August 2025, and 11 September 2025 were noted.
The Chair of the Committee reported that they had considered 11 planning applications, one of which had since been withdrawn.
The Committee had mapped Speed Indicator Device (SID) sites and agreed on the installation of a bench at the bus station.
Recommendations were made to update the scheme of delegation to allow delegated responsibility for expenditure on Public Realm items within agreed Annual Budgets.
COUNCIL2025/8.2. COMMUNITY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
The minutes of the Community Affairs Committee meetings held on 4 June 2025 and 4 September 2025 were noted.
The Chair of the Committee advised that they had distributed several grants, including a multi-year grant awarded to Creative Beatz, funding for the Sea Cadets to support their work, and a consortium bid grant of £12,000 awarded to a partnership between Stonepillow, My Sisters House, Lifecentre, and Sanctuary.
COUNCIL2025/8.3. FINANCE COMMITTEE
The minutes of the Finance Committee meeting held on 9 July 2025 were noted.
The Chair of the Committee informed Council that much of the work had looked at LGR and its impacts on finances.
RMi advised that the Council House required significant investment in the roof due to maintenance issues in wet weather.
Decision: The Council RESOLVED to delegate authority to the Finance Committee to spend up to £150,000 from the Council House Reserve to complete the urgent roof works and manage the tender and contract award.
Decision: The Council also RESOLVED to liquidate the funds currently invested in the Local Government Property Fund and place them in the Public Sector Deposit Fund.
Decision: Additionally, the Council RESOLVED to update financial regulations to extend the authority for payment authorisation of the Clerk to £5,000.
Task: Prepare tender documents for Council House roof works ready to issue on government contracts finder website. @Deputy Town Clerk and Property Maintenance Manager
Task: Liquidate funds in Local Government Property fund. @Deputy Town Clerk
Task: Update financial regulations to extend the authority for payment authorisation of the Clerk to £5,000. @Clerk
COUNCIL2025/9. LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANISATION
The Business Case document outlining three possible options for reorganisation was noted.
The final submission to Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) must be made by 26th September 2025.
Each Council would be indicating their preferred option for the final model to be adopted.
The Government is expected to make a final decision on the preferred model by spring 2026.
Chichester City Council (CCC) will be running a parish meeting on 3rd November 2025 focused on LGR and what it means for local residents.
COUNCIL2025/9.1. COMMUNITY ASSET TRANSFER LIST
The Clerk provided an update on the submission of Expressions of Interest (EOIs) for the following sites: Florence Park, Oaklands Park, Priory Park, Jubilee Park, Bishops Palace Gardens, Roman Amphitheatre, and Brandy Hole Copse.
The Clerk advised that they were now waiting to hear back from CDC on timescales and next steps. Costs for taking on the new areas had been modelled and were included in the report.
COUNCIL2025/9.2. VOLUNTARY SECTOR SUPPORT
JK outlined her concerns about the potential impacts of LGR on core funding for local voluntary sector groups that provide essential services currently supported by CDC.
She highlighted the risks to different local support grant funding schemes across the district and the uncertainty about funding availability and distribution when the new unitary is created.
CA agree to speak to the cabinet member for communities at CDC and chase a response to an enquiry sent by JK to CDC asking for clarity.
Decision: The Council REQUESTED that the Community Affairs Committee prepare and send a letter to CDC in outlining JK’s concerns.
Task: Draft letter to CDC outlining CCC concerns for the voluntary sector for approval by Community Affairs Committee. @Clerk
COUNCIL2025/10. TO CONSIDER SUBMITTING A COMMUNITY HIGHWAYS SCHEME APPLICATION FOR A SAFE PEDESTRIAN CROSSING AT THE JUNCTION OF SHERBOURNE ROAD AND NORWICH ROAD
The council discussed the concerns regarding the inadequate pedestrian crossing at the junction of Sherbourne Road and Norwich Road.
LP provided an overview of the current situation, highlighting the response from WSCC, which stated that the work was not a priority and no date had been scheduled for the phase 2 works to upgrade the crossing.
A petition is currently open with 168 signatures collected in 7 days, and local residents have been gathering data on crossing usage. The Community Speedwatch group recorded an average of 400-500 vehicles per hour during peak school drop-off times.
A robust conversation took place discussing the merits of developing a Community Highways Scheme (CHS) application and the best way to address the immediate safety concerns.
Council requested that the Clerk arrange a meeting with the local area Highways Manager to walk the route and investigate immediate actions to mitigate current safety concerns, such as cutting back vegetation, repairing pavement surfacing, improving signage, and installing fixed SID devices.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to write a further letter to WSCC outlining concerns regarding the inadequate pedestrian crossing at the junction of Sherbourne Road and Norwich Road.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to work with the community to prepare a Community Highways Scheme application aiming for submission in July 2026.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to invite representatives of WSCC to address the November meeting of the Planning and Conservation Committee to discuss the issues in more detail.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to request that WSCC take immediate action to expedite the development and installation of accessible crossings at the junction.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to explore options for providing funding to support the scheme.
Task: Write a further letter to WSCC outlining concerns regarding the inadequate pedestrian crossing at the junction of Sherbourne Road and Norwich Road with St Pauls Road. @Mayor
Task: Begin work on preparing a Community Highways Scheme application with the community aiming for submission in July 2026. @Planning Adviser and @Communities Officer
Task: Invite representatives of WSCC to address the November meeting of the Planning and Conservation Committee to discuss the issues in more detail. @Clerk
Task: Arrange a meeting with the local area Highways Manager to walk the route and investigate immediate actions to mitigate current safety concerns. @Clerk
COUNCIL2025/11. STATUTORY POLICY REVIEWS
The council received recommendations on the current Committee Terms of Reference and Delegation Arrangements. The Clerk introduced the report and outlined the requested changes from the committees and the options to reduce the pressure on the Community Affairs Committee meeting.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to establish a Community Liaison Sub Committee to help manage community interactions more effectively.
Decision: The council AGREED to make the recommended changes to the Planning and Conservation Committee’s terms of reference and scheme of delegation.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to update the Personnel Sub Committee’s terms of reference as recommended.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to return the delegated authority to decide community awards to the full council.
Decision: The council RESOLVED to transfer delegated responsibility for city centre amenities to the Planning and Conservation Committee as proposed.
Decision: The council RESOLVED that the Community Affairs Committee membership will remain unchanged at six members.
Task: Update the Committee Terms of Reference and Scheme of Delegation. @Clerk and @Council Services and Support Manager
COUNCIL2025/12. REPORTS FROM REPRESENTATIVES ON OUTSIDE BODIES
No reports were received.
COUNCIL2025/13. WARD REPORTS FROM CHICHESTER CITY COUNCILLORS
No reports were received.
COUNCIL2025/14. REPORTS FROM CHICHESTER DISTRICT AND WEST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCILLORS REPRESENTING CHICHESTER WARDS AND DIVISIONS
Council was advised that a report had been received from West Sussex County Councillor Sharp and that it would be circulated with the minutes of the meeting.
COUNCIL2025/15. QUESTIONS
No questions were received from members of the City Council pursuant to Standing Order 11 of the City Council’s Standing Orders.
COUNCIL2025/16. ITEMS FOR NEXT AGENDA
No specific items were noted for the next agenda.
COUNCIL2025/17. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The date of the next ordinary meeting was set for Wednesday 17 December 2025.
COUNCIL2025/18. COMMON SEAL
RESOLVED that the Common Seal be affixed to any documents necessary to give effect to the resolutions passed at this meeting.
The meeting closed at 20:19.