Report of the Executive Director, Housing and Regeneration (attached)

The report provides information about the bid to the Government for £5m from the Urban Broadband Fund (Phase Two) Super Connected Cities Programme, and recommends that the Council agrees the £300,000 capital commitment and £25,000 start up cost if the bid is successful.

Recommendations

The Board is asked to:-

(1)   Note the bid;

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(2)   Recommend to Council £300,000 capital commitment and £25,000 start up cost if the bid is successful;

(3)   Delegate authority to the  Executive Director, City Regeneration to lead on negotiations with Government on the bid as required;

(4)   Receive a further report if the bid is successful.

The Executive Director, Housing and Regeneration, submitted a report (previously circulated, now appended) concerning a bid to Government for £5m from the Urban Broadband Fund (Phase 2) Super Connected cities programme.

Councillor Price explained that the report had been somewhat superseded as the Council had heard that its bid had been successful.

Sebastian Johnson (City Partnerships Manager) added that the Council had not yet been given details of its winning bid, so it was still not clear how much the funding would be. Further details were expected in the next few days.  The time frame for spending the funding was quite tight – everything needed to be done by March 2014.

The City Executive Board congratulated Sebastian Johnson for his hard work which had resulted in a successful bid.

Resolved to:-

(1)    Note the bid;

(2)    Recommend to Council a £300,000 capital commitment and £25,000 revenue and staff resource required as the bid has been successful;

(3)    Delegate authority to David Edwards, Executive Director Housing and Regeneration, to lead on negotiations with Government on the bid as required;

(4)    Receive a further report following the successful bid.