Agendas, reports and minutes

A meeting of the Caithness Committee will take place remotely on Monday 21 August 2023 at 10.00am.

You are invited to attend the meeting and a note of the business to be considered is attached.

Yours faithfully

Stewart Fraser

Head of Legal and Governance

Members are asked to consider whether they have an interest to declare in relation to any item on the agenda for this meeting.  Any Member making a declaration of interest should provide some information on the nature of the interest and leave the meeting at the appropriate time.  Advice may be sought from officers prior to the meeting taking place.

The Committee is asked to note that the recess powers granted by the Council at its meeting on 29 June 2023 did not require to be exercised in relation to the business of the Caithness Committee.

There are circulated for noting Minutes of the Caithness Committee held on 29 May 2023 which were approved by the Council on 29 June 2023.    

There is circulated Report No CC/13/23 by the Local Senior Officer for Highland. 

The Committee is invited to comment on and scrutinise the attached Area Performance Report.

There is circulated Report No CC/14/23 by the Executive Chief Officer Infrastructure & Environment. 

The Committee is invited to approve the Winter Service Plan for 2023/24.

There is circulated Report No CC/15/23 by the Acting Executive Chief Officer Performance and Governance and Executive Chief Officer Communities and Place.

The Committee is invited to:-

i. note the contents of the Asset Register in the format for publication (Appendix 1);

ii. note the content of the document titled “Thurso Common Good property consultation representations and responses” (Appendix 2);

iii. agree to the publication of the Common Good Asset register for Thurso;

iv. agree to the reclassification of the property included in the Register and to the creation of a Common Good Fund for Thurso;

v. note that Thurso Common Good property will continue to be maintained by Highland Council until such time as an income source is established to sustain Thurso Common Good assets; and

vi. note that the creation of a Thurso Common Good Fund, and its financial position, will be reported to the next meeting of Highland Council under the minutes of this meeting given that all Highland Councillors are custodians of Common Good Funds across Highland.

There is circulated Report No CC/16/23 by the Executive Chief Officer Communities and Place and Head of Corporate Finance.

The Committee is invited to:-

i note the position of Wick Common Good Fund at the end of the first quarter for 23/24;

ii approve the proposed property budget of £20,000 in respect of Wick Town Hall utility costs; and

iii note that a strategy for the Fund will be prepared with a report taken to a future meeting of this Committee     

There is circulated Report No CC/17/23 by the Interim Depute Chief Executive. 

The Committee is invited to:

i. consider the application presented for funding and agree whether to approve, defer or reject the application.  An approval of funding should detail the amount approved and outline any conditions of funding that Members wish to attach to the approval over and above the required technical conditions.  A deferral would allow an applicant to resubmit the current application at a future date with updated information or for the project to be approved subject to further funding becoming available.  A rejection would mean that the application will not proceed and any future application to the fund should be brought forward initially as a new expression of interest; and 

ii. agree whether the application should receive a funding award from CRF up to the value of the available area allocation.     

The Committee is asked to note that the following Ward Discretionary Budget applications were approved since 1 April 2023:

Ward 2 Thurso Football Academy - £1500 

Wards 2 & 3 Sidhchailleannart-“Legends of Caithness” - £1350 (£675 from each Ward) 

Wards 2 & 3 FEIS GHALLAIBH-Caithness Feis - £2500 (£1250 from each Ward) 

Ward 3 Pentland Parish Church - £800.00 

Ward 3 - HLH-Wick Youth Development - £1500 – payment yet to be processed