The Scrutiny Officer has submitted a report which presents the recommendations of the Local Economy Panel.

Scrutiny Committee Recommendations to the City Executive Board

1. We recommend that the City Council:

a) Ensures that information about appealing to the Valuation Office Agency is made available to local businesses.  In particular, this information should be communicated to all independent traders who may be affected by the major redevelopments taking place in Oxford.

b) Takes any opportunities to join with other local authorities to lobby the new Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for more council controls over business rates.

2. We recommend that the City Council works with the County Council through the Town Team to agree on a single united channel of regular communications to businesses, such as about travel disruptions, supported by a single online source of information.

3. We recommend that the City Council develops a more corporate approach to communicating with businesses, including guidance for all departments whose work has an impact or involvement with businesses. This could take the form of defining a central point of contact within the City Council, which can identify the appropriate unit to respond on specific issues, including the County Council as appropriate.

4. We recommend that the City Council works with partners through the Town Team to reinforce the coordinated overall marketing and publicity campaign for Oxford in ways that cover all major potential audiences. 

5. We recommend that the City Council develops a one stop shop function for events.  This exercise should include a review of the costs and processes associated with aspects such as permission for road closures, stall licences and permits for distributing leaflets.

6. We recommend that the City Council produces a simple analysis of the costs and benefits of pop up shops to landlords and the City Council.

7. We recommend that the City Council takes a lead in establishing and facilitating a city centre commercial property landlord forum.  This would be intended to bring together the owners of commercial properties, including the City Council, to ensure that there is a coordinated approach towards issues affecting the city centre, such as the minimisation of the time during which premises are empty.  The forum could be chaired by the Leader of the Council, linked to the work of the Town Team and constituted based on the model of the previous Pensions and Language School forums.  We also suggest that its membership should include a representative of each political group and that City Councillors should be able to observe meetings of the forum.

8. We recommend that the City Council leads on the development of a long term strategy for the city centre as a whole.  This should include a commitment to developing and supporting vibrant and distinct city quarters away from prime sites, in locations such as Gloucester Green, Jericho/Observatory Quarter, Market Street, Broad Street and a possible arts quarter around the Ashmolean Museum.

9. We recommend that dedicated officer time is allocated to the development and delivery of this city centre strategy.  This could be funded wholly or in part via a BID and by additional business rates income that the role will generate, via reduced voids in commercial properties.

10. We recommend that the City Council’s next Asset Strategy (2016-2020) builds upon the aim (not always presently achieved) of utilising City Council assets in ways that can provide wider strategic benefits to the city centre.  The Asset Strategy could provide clear guidelines on the use of City Council-owned commercial premises to ensure the diversity and vitality of the city’s wider retail offer.

The Scrutiny Officer submitted a report (previously circulated, now appended) which presented the recommendations of the Local Economy Panel which had considered how the City Council could make the city centre even more attractive to the public and to local businesses during a time of major developments which will affect the trading environment.

Cllr Simmons, Chair of Scrutiny Committee presented the report. He thanked the Board for their responses to the recommendations, noting that in some cases the wording was ambiguous. He said that it would assist the Scrutiny Committee in monitoring the implementation of their recommendations if the Board could provide clear Yes or No replies. He said that he would ask members of the Local Economy Panel to discuss the responses with the Board Member and officers to clarify the position.

The City Executive Board resolved to AGREE the following recommendations from the Scrutiny Committee report as set out in their written response:

1. a)    That the City Council ensures that information about appealing to the Valuation Office Agency is made available to local businesses.  In particular, this information should be communicated to all independent traders who may be affected by the major redevelopments taking place in Oxford.

b)           that the City Council takes any opportunities to join with other local authorities to lobby the new Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government for more council controls over business rates.

2.           that the City Council works with the County Council through the Town Team to agree on a single united channel of regular communications to businesses, such as about travel disruptions, supported by a single online source of information.

4.           that the City Council works with partners through the Town Team to reinforce the coordinated overall marketing and publicity campaign for Oxford in ways that cover all major potential audiences. 

7.           that the City Council takes a lead in establishing and facilitating a city centre commercial property landlord forum.  This would be intended to bring together the owners of commercial properties, including the City Council, to ensure that there is a coordinated approach towards issues affecting the city centre, such as the minimisation of the time during which premises are empty.  The forum could be chaired by the Leader of the Council, linked to the work of the Town Team and constituted based on the model of the previous Pensions and Language School forums.  We also suggest that its membership should include a representative of each political group and that City Councillors should be able to observe meetings of the forum.

8.           that the City Council leads on the development of a long term strategy for the city centre as a whole.  This should include a commitment to developing and supporting vibrant and distinct city quarters away from prime sites, in locations such as Gloucester Green, Jericho/Observatory Quarter, Market Street, Broad Street and a possible arts quarter around the Ashmolean Museum.