Items
| No. |
Item |
110. |
Apologies for Absence and Temporary Appointments
To receive any apologies for absence and
temporary appointments. The quorum for the Committee is four
members.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Apologies were noted from Councillors Michele
Mead, Stuart McCarroll, Liz Leffman and Alex Wilson..
Councillor Liam Walker substituted for
Councillor Mead.
Councillor Michael Brooker substituted for
Councillor McCarroll.
Councillor David Jackson substituted for
Councillor Leffman.
Councillor Alistair Wray arrived at 17:51.
|
111. |
Declarations of Interest
To receive any declarations from Members of
the Committee on any items to be considered at the meeting.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no declarations of interest.
|
112. |
Minutes of Previous Meeting  PDF 64 KB
To approve the minutes of the Committee
meeting held 4 March 2026.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Committee considered the minutes of the
meeting held on 4 March 2026.
The approval of the minutes was proposed by
Councillor Steve Cosier and seconded by Councillor Paul Marsh. This
proposal was put to the vote and agreed by the Committee.
RESOLVED: To approve the minutes of the
meeting held on 4 March 2026.
|
113. |
Chair's announcements
To receive any announcements from the Chair of
the Overview and Scrutiny Committee.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Andrew Beaney, Chair of the Overview and
Scrutiny Committee, proposed that agenda item 8, Community Safety
Partnership, be considered by the Committee prior to agenda item 7,
Woodford Way Update. This was agreed by the Committee.
|
114. |
Participation of the Public
To receive any submissions from members of the
public, in accordance with the Council’s
Public Participation Rules.
The deadline for submissions is 2.00pm, two
clear working days before the meeting.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There was no participation of the public.
|
115. |
Report back on recommendations
For the Committee to note the
Executive’s response to any recommendations arising from the
previous Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no recommendations to be reported
back to the Committee.
|
116. |
Woodford Way Update PDF 90 KB
Purpose
This report will provide an update on the
Woodford Way project and, engagement with Registered Providers.
Recommendation
That the Overview & Scrutiny Committee
resolves:
1.
To note the update on the Woodford Way project.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Councillor Geoff Saul, Executive Member for
Housing and Social Care, introduced the Woodford Way report and
made the following points:
- The site, which was currently a car
park, had long been allocated for housing in the Local Plan.
- The development proposed would
deliver housing for local people, particularly secure and
affordable homes.
- There were currently 2,300
households on the Council’s housing waiting list. There was a
particular demand for one and two bed homes.
- The site was owned by the Council.
The site could therefore deliver 100% homes for social rent
housing, without the need to have factored in developer
profit.
- The scheme was expected to be
supported through a combination of national funding and partnership
investment.
- The work to refine the design of the
site was ongoing. The current iteration of the designs had
incorporated 55 homes, with a mix of flats and maisonettes, and
included under-croft parking. Parking provision was for 84 spaces
to be provided on site with separate underground parking for
residents.
- As part of the project, the Council
had reviewed the wider parking provision across Witney. At present
there were over 1,600 free public parking spaces. Analysis had
shown that Marriotts Walk had remained
underused, with 230 spaces typically having been available on
average. Work had been undertaken to explore other options for
parking for residents and workers.
- Pre-application discussions were
intended to take place imminently and a planning application was to
be submitted for the development in the summer. Public engagement
would take place in summer 2026.
- The plans were still being refined
to strike the balance between the need for parking, housing and
those of the wider town. Genuinely affordable housing was a key
consideration.
In the discussion that followed the following
questions were raised and comments made:
- The Committee queried if Thames
Valley Police (TVP) had been consulted on the safety of the
underground parking aspect of the plan. Officers confirmed that TVP
would be a consultee.
- The Committee suggested that
officers would need to ensure that vans could access the parking
provision.
- The Committee considered the
methodology of the parking survey that had taken place. It was
noted that Witney Chamber of Commerce (WCC) had requested ANPR data
and the report showed CCTV data. Members sought clarity on the
difference. Officers advised that they were considering the WCC
request. At present CCTV cameras were not available in all
locations and this would be needed to ensure consistent data.
Parking provision was being considered in the round, and it was
noted that it was beneficial that Witney’s car parks were all
central.
- The Committee suggested that a trial
period that simulated the impact of the changes to parking proposed
should take place. It was noted that, as the Council owned the
parking site, there was no reason that this trial should be
delayed. The trial would allow residents time to get used to the
potential changes.
- Members recognised that it was
important and beneficial that the site was in the Council’s
ownership. ...
view the full minutes text for item 116.
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117. |
Community Safety Partnership PDF 360 KB
Purpose
To note the activities of the West Oxfordshire
Community Safety Partnership during 2025/2026 and the latest
insights around crime and the fear of crime in West Oxfordshire and
the county as a whole.
Recommendation
That the Overview and Scrutiny Committee
resolves to:
1. Note the
report
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Councillor Geoff Saul, Executive Member for
Housing and Social Care, introduced the report on the Community
Safety Partnership (CSP) and made the following points:
- The CSP was a statutory requirement
of the Council that had resulted from the Crime and Disorder Act
1988.
- The requirement placed
responsibility on principle authorities to formulate and implement
a strategy and plan that reduced crime and disorder (including
antisocial behaviour), combated the misuse of drugs, reduced
reoffending, and prevented involvement in and instances of serious
violence.
- The CSP comprised the Council,
Police, Fire and Rescue, health partners and probation
services.
- A rolling plan had been running from
2024-27 and actions were refreshed annually to address
priorities.
- Priorities in the rolling plan were:
serious violence; drugs and alcohol; domestic abuse and violence
against women and girls; rural acquisitive crime; antisocial
behaviour; fraud; modern slavery; counter terrorism.
- Within the eight priorities
particular attention was to be paid to domestic abuse and violence
against women and girls as well as antisocial behaviour.
- The previous focus on rural
acquisitive crime had helped to reduce this crime by approximately
20%. This was therefore considered to be less of a priority in the
upcoming plan.
- The report presented a list of the
activities that had been undertaken by the CSP.
- Councillor Saul highlighted the
theatre-based violence against women and girls project which was in
collaboration with the Council’s Youth Development
Officer.
- Section 8.1 of the report showed the
county wide projects that were being supported.
- The Police Funding Settlement had
shown the Home Office grant was reduced by £9m. This would
lead to a likely reduction of 40% to CSP funding which would mean a
need to review the programme.
In the discussion that followed the following
questions were raised and comments made:
- The recorded decline in most serious
crime, other than hate crime, was not matched by the public
perception. The Committee queried what the Council’s role was
to address such an incorrect public perception. It was noted that
the CSP was required to be vigilant and ensure that clear messaging
was being disseminated. If well briefed with accurate information,
councillors also had a role to play to communicate with their
constituents. The Executive Member noted that there was a public
dialogue with TVP, who had attended parish meetings. In general,
the district was considered a safe place to live.
- Surges in vehicular crime had been
noted in specific areas of the district which had contradicted the
reported fall in rural acquisitive crime. The Committee queried if
there was further granular detail to the figures provided for this
crime as well as fly-tipping and machine theft. In the discussion
it was suggested that public reporting of this crime was not always
happening and this may impact figures presented from TVP. The
importance of reporting crime to ensure action and recognition by
the TVP was reiterated. Officers reminded the Committee that rural
acquisitive crime had remained on the CSP priority list despite it
being less of a focus to other ...
view the full minutes text for item 117.
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118. |
Updates from Task and Finish Groups
For the Chairs of Task and Finish Groups to
provide any verbal or written progress updates..
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no reports from the Task and Finish
Groups.
|
119. |
Executive Work Programme PDF 155 KB
Purpose:
To give the Committee the opportunity to
comment on the Executive Work Programme.
Recommendation:
That the Committee agrees which items on the
Executive Work Programme should be subject to pre-decision scrutiny
and the priority order of those items.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
There were no comments on the Executive Work
Programme.
|
120. |
Committee Work Programme PDF 116 KB
Purpose:
For the Committee to review and note its work
programme.
Recommendation:
That the Committee notes and comments on the
work programme.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Chair proposed that the Local Plan item on
the Committee Work Programme be taken to a separate meeting on 2
June 2026 ahead of consideration by the Executive the following
week. This was agreed by the Committee.
The Chair thanked Members and wished those
retiring well.
Councillor Nick Leverton thanked the Chair and
stated that he felt the Chair had been the most effective manager
of a Committee he had seen in his time.
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