Agenda and decisions

No items

The following items are for the primary purpose of providing members of the public with all relevant information on the respective matters, other than those elements, which in accordance with the relevant sections of the Local Government Act 1972, remain confidential and require that any arising decision is taken in Part 2 of the agenda.

Salford City Council - Record of Decision

I Councillor Tracy Kelly, Deputy City Mayor, in exercise of the powers contained within the City Council Constitution do hereby:

1.    Approve the Council entering into a grant funding agreement with Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) in relation to the Brownfield Housing Fund for Greengate Site 3.

2.    Approve the Council entering into a grant funding agreement with Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) in relation to the Brownfield Housing Fund for Greengate Site 4.

3.    Provide delegated authority to the Strategic Director Place, City Solicitor and Chief Finance Officer to negotiate and finalise the detailed financial, commercial and contractual arrangements in respect of the proposed grant from GMCA to the Council.

4.    Authorise the Strategic Director Place to enter into and complete all necessary agreements or documents to give effect to the above recommendations. 

5.    Approve the delivery option, as set out in the report, as the most appropriate delivery mechanism for the remaining Greengate development sites. 

The Reasons are Salford City Council has received a total grant allocation from Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), as part of the GM Brownfield Housing Fund (BHF) to support the unlocking of stalled, brownfield sites across five sites in Salford for housing. The above approvals will allow the council to deliver the proposed housing at the sites in Greengate concerned and in accordance with the BHF timescales.

Options considered and rejected were: Not to seek funding from the GM BHF and not progress the housing proposals

Assessment of Risk: Medium

In the event that the project is not progressed satisfactorily in line with the agreed milestone dates or delivered by the completion date, or other conditions of the Grant Agreement are not met, the Council could be deemed to be in breach and be liable to GMCA.

This includes that if the GMCA determine that the project is not sufficiently progressed to be able to draw down the funding for site acquisition by March 2023, they may withdraw the funding. 

The source of funding is: GM Brownfield Housing Fund (BHF)

In August 2020, GMCA were awarded an initial allocation of £81.1m of Brownfield Land grant from MHCLG – part of the Government’s five-year £400m Fund to bring forward more homes by unlocking brownfield land.

Legal Advice obtained: Lauren Armstrong, Solicitor, Legal Services

As detailed in accompanying report

Financial Advice obtained: Natalie Birchall, Finance Officer

As detailed in accompanying report

Procurement Advice obtained: Deborah Derbyshire, Category Manager

The proposals relate to a property transaction which is not a works contract, therefore there are no procurement implications.

HR Advice obtained: n/a

Climate Change Advice obtained: Sarah Heslop, Group Leader, Development Team

The proposals relate to the appointment of a developer partner to deliver housing-led development on stalled sites within the Greengate area of the City Centre, in line with the Greengate Regeneration Strategy 2018.  The successful Developer’s approach to sustainable design and development principles will be tested at the planning application stage.

The following  ...  view the full decision text for item 6a

Salford City Council - Record of Decision

I Councillor Tracy Kelly, Deputy City Mayor, in exercise of the powers contained within the City Council Constitution do hereby:

1.            Approve the Council entering into a grant funding agreement with Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) for the receipt of a maximum sum of £5,312,000 in relation to the Brownfield Housing Fund for five development sites across three wards: Ordsall, Pendlebury and Clifton and Weaste and Seedley.

2.            Give delegated authority to the Strategic Director Place, City Solicitor and Chief Finance Officer to negotiate and finalise the detailed financial, commercial and contractual arrangements in respect of the proposed grant from GMCA to the Council.

3.            Authorise the Strategic Director Place to enter into and complete all necessary agreements or documents to give effect to the above recommendations. 

The Reasons are Salford City Council has received a total grant allocation from Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), as part of the GM Brownfield Housing Fund (BHF) to support the unlocking of stalled, brownfield sites across five sites in Salford for housing. The above approvals will allow the council to deliver the proposed housing at the sites concerned and in accordance with the BHF timescales.

Options considered and rejected were: Not to seek funding from the GM BHF and not progress the housing proposals

Assessment of Risk: Medium

In the event that the project is not progressed satisfactorily in line with the agreed milestone dates or delivered by the completion date, or other conditions of the Grant Agreement are not met, the Council could be deemed to be in breach and be liable to GMCA.  The key commercial risks identified at this stage are overage provision and delivery of developments being delayed.

The source of funding is: GM Brownfield Housing Fund (BHF)

In August 2020, GMCA were awarded an initial allocation of £81.1m of Brownfield Land grant from MHCLG – part of the Government’s five-year £400m Fund to bring forward more homes by unlocking brownfield land.

Legal Advice obtained: Lauren Armstrong, Solicitor, Legal Services

Legal Services has been provided with two grant funding agreements issued by GMCA’s legal advisors. These are pro-forma grant agreements which flow down GMCA conditions and any MHCLG requirements in connection with the Brownfield Housing fund. GMCA’s position is that, other than terms listed in a separate “gaps list”, the terms are non-negotiable. SCC is also required to register a restriction on title with Land Registry in favour of GMCA over the two funded sites and undertake full investigation of title and searches. Colleagues in the property legal team will be able to assist with these requirements.

Legal has reviewed the proposed terms, and whilst the terms contain some risk to SCC (as highlighted in paragraphs 2.3-2.5), from a legal perspective the terms could be accepted (subject to satisfactory agreement of the Schedules which will set out the project specific conditions and commercial principles). If the funding is not spent within the grant period, it is not spent on  ...  view the full decision text for item 6b