Minutes:
The following question was received from Mr Kenward and was read by the Chairman in his absence.
With the NHS likely to be vacating Clair Hall soon and the Steering Group findings not expected to be known until September. What plans have council made to facilitate the venues return to use in line with the Court Order of the 13th of January 2020 which states, ‘nothing shall prejudice the use of Clair Hall as a vaccination centre or require it to be opened contrary to law.’ Do members regret allowing the wrecking amendments made to the motion tabled by the Lib Dems on the 29th of September 2021 which if adopted would’ve catered for this very scenario?
The following response was provided by the Leader, Cllr Jonathan Ash-Edwards:
Thank you for your question.
Since December 2020 there has been a meanwhile use in operation with the NHS using Clair Hall. Today the Council has announced it had extended a licence for the NHS to use the Clair Hall site in Haywards Heath as a Covid-19 vaccination centre.
The NHS has been vaccinating local residents against Covid-19 at the Clair Hall site since December 2020 and has delivered an incredible 194,000 jabs so far. The new licence will run until February 2024 and will allow NHS to continue delivering this important service.
I’m really pleased to see the licence extension will enable the NHS to provide additional primary care services alongside vaccinations to support the community’s health needs.
Also, I would like to highlight that the use of Clair Hall as a vaccination centre is a temporary measure and Mid Sussex District Council is continuing to explore all the options for providing modern new sustainable community facilities on the site for the benefit `of local residents. The Council has agreed an evidence-based approach to look at how this could be delivered on the Clair Hall site and this work should be unaffected by the extension of the licence.
The following question was received from Ms Wilcock:
Please advise why, although it has been announced nationally and Mid Sussex District Council have been formally notified that Clair Hall is now officially on the Theatres Trust At Risk Register, (a statutory body) there has been no mention of this material fact in any Council report or statement.
The following response was provided by the Leader, Cllr Jonathan Ash-Edwards:
Thank you for your question. This allows me to clarify some of the issues around the status of the Clair Hall. How the Theatres Trust communicate is a matter for them. The Council wasn’t informed or consulted by the Theatres Trust on their decision to list Clair Hall and it was surprised. The Council wrote to the Trust to clarify the status of the hall as a community facility, and that we were surprised to see it added to the list.
In particular, it was very disappointing to see that factually incorrect information has been put in the public domain by the Theatres Trust stating that the Council was considering selling the site. In fact in December, the Cabinet opted to keep the community facilities on the site and agreed further, evidence-based work to develop investment options to ensure sustainable provision of the community facilities on the site.
The Director of the Theatres Trust has apologised for the factually incorrect information they have put in the public domain.
The Council hopes the Theatres Trust will correct their information and engage positively with our evidence-based approach to this work.
Ms Wilcock asked a supplementary question to clarify if you are still regarding Clair Hall as a theatre or performance space and therefore any replacement facilities will have performance based facilities.
The Leader agreed to provide a written response.
The following question was received from Mr Kingsley-Young and read by the Chairman in his absence.
Having come under rightful criticism both by your electorate on social media and by other members of council, how will the steering committee ensure impartiality and transparency over the feasibility study into Clair Hall to ensure that any examination or result isn’t contaminated by the group’s bias towards demolition and redevelopment?
The following response was provided by the Leader, Cllr Jonathan Ash-Edwards:
Just before Christmas, the Cabinet agreed to undertake evidence-led work to examine all the options, in order to deliver modern, future proof community facilities on the Clair Hall site.
Last month the Cabinet established a new Member Steering Group to provide oversight and guidance as detailed options are investigated. This will be a joint group with Haywards Heath Town Council and I would like to thank the Town Council for their involvement in the work. This is the same governance structure that the Council has used for projects in Burgess Hill involving Burgess Hill Town Council.
The development of options will be advised by a number of specialists, including an external specialist advisor with experience in the arts, culture and leisure sector. Using their expertise, they will coordinate market research, engagement and analysis to develop detailed proposals for review by the Member Steering Group. I will not compromise on the goal which is as per the mandate of the public consultation where 95% of people wanted change and modernisation and improvement on site. We will work to provide a modern fit-for-purpose community entertainment provision on this site.
The following question was received from Ms Weinstein:
I am Jenny Weinstein from Mid Sussex Climate Coalition. According to a report by UK Climate Emergency https://councilclimatescorecards.uk/ which measured the plans of Local Councils on climate change, MSDC scored 20 where other District Councils such as Stroud and East Devon scored 77 and 78 respectively. We understand that a Sustainability Strategy for Mid Sussex will be considered by the Council shortly. We are aware that businesses were consulted about the economic impact of the strategy but how were residents, community groups and environmental groups consulted about the environmental and ecological aspects of development of the strategy?
The following response was provided by Councillor J Belsey:
Thank you for your question.
There has for over a year now been a variety of dialogues and conversations happening that have and will continue to inform the development of this important strategy and as we move forward, its delivery.
From 12 November to 6 December 2020 the Council in partnership with the County Council and the Local Government Association’s Local Partnership’s LLP, undertook a district wide survey to capture the views and behaviours of residents in relation to climate actions. A total of 2397 responses were received.
The public engagement sought and received views on:
• The best approaches for the Council to communicate and engage with a wide range of audiences, around the topics of climate change
• How COVID-19 has impacted on resident behaviours, particularly in relation to “climate actions” which reduce emissions
• How residents could be encouraged to make changes to their behaviour to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The results of this engagement had informed the strategy as it has developed and has been supplemented with feedback from a wide range of meetings with community stakeholder organisations and forums throughout 2021 including, but not limited to, the Mid Sussex Partnership and its subgroups, community fora hosted by Mid Sussex Voluntary Action and the Sussex Nature Partnership.
As we move towards the detail of delivery of the strategy it will be essential that we continue and grow that conversation. This is an incredibly important strategy for our District and we recognise that for it to succeed we need to work in partnership – that will include working with groups like the Mid Sussex Climate Coalition to identify and deliver the many actions that will be required to ensure we have a vibrant District that is attractive, resilient and innovative that balances social well-being, environmental protection and sustainable economic growth. I look forward to continuing that conversation with you in the weeks and months ahead.
Ms Weinstein asked a supplementary question, thanking the Cabinet Member for the positive response and noting that a new report from the International Committee on Climate Change came out yesterday warning that climate change is happening much faster and more frequently with more severe weather events than had been anticipated at this stage. She asked how urgently and how soon this partnership will be set up with the local community and environmental groups to actually implement the plan which has yet to be passed.
The Cabinet Member agreed to provide a written response.