Subject:

Herne Bay Pier The future management of the Herne Bay Pier and the relationship between Canterbury City Council and the Herne Bay Pier Trust.

Director/Head of Service: Decision Issues: Decision type: Classification: CCC Ward(s): Summary:

Head of Culture and Enterprise These matters are within the authority of the Executive Non-key This report is open to the public. Heron The memorandum of understanding between the Council and the Herne Bay Pier Trust ended on 30 June 2012. This report sets out the options for the future management of the Herne Bay Pier and continuing relationship with the Pier Trust. The preferred option for the future management of the Herne Bay Pier. Preferred option to be implemented.

To resolve: Next stage in process

SUPPORTING INFORMATION 1. Introduction A memorandum of Understanding (MOU) existed between the Council and the Herne Bay Pier Trust; this was automatically extended at 31 December 2011 for a period of six months to 30 June 2012. This report seeks to lay out the options for the future management of the Pier with or without a relationship with the Pier Trust. Members will be asked to consider four options as laid out in item 7. 2. Background of the Pier Trust The Pier Trust has charitable status and is charged with seeking the widest possible membership base. It is treated as a principle consultee on pier matters. The City Council will provide officer advice and co-operation in so far as other priorities allow and nominates two Councillors who represent Herne Bay wards to sit on the Board. The remaining nine members must stand for re-election every three years by thirds. The MOU also said that the City Council will entertain proposals from the Pier Trust to purchase the freehold of the pier, or to take a long lease. The City Council is not 1

bound to accept any such proposal but will give them a fair hearing whilst taking into account its wider responsibilities. 3. Review of 2012 arrangements 2012 has been a transition year in terms of the pier with the demolition work ending in May and the pier re-opening to the public for the first time in early June. A decision was taken by the Executive in February 2012 for the Council to retain control of the Pier for 2012 and facilitate other organisations, including the Pier Trust, to deliver activity and events on the Pier using the Councils events application process. This included development work with the Pier Trust to build their capacity for the future. A small budget was provided for officer time to enable this of 6k, the Executive also agreed an additional 50k from the Pier Contingency to cover additional works for reinstatement of the pier. This arrangement has proved quite difficult in terms of the amount of time required from officers at the Council and the Pier Trust themselves who also acknowledge that putting on and delivering events and activities is not really where their aspirations or skills lie, although it was accepted that there was a need to deliver some events and activities on the pier for the 2012 season. The Pier Trusts main aim is to generate income so that their future plans can be realised. Communication has proved challenging and agreements about lines of communication have not always been followed often causing confusion and additional or duplicated work. Post Demolition Work Since the demolition the following have happened: a) The footprint of the old building has been levelled, finished with a tarmac surface including provision for drainage; b) A wooden bench top has been installed on the remaining bund wall from the building providing seating; c) Electrical power supply boxes have been installed at regular intervals around the new tarmac area; d) Lighting to the central wind-break has been re-commissioned with new wiring; e) New gates have been installed at the entrance to the pier; f) The building at the pier entrance has been painted; g) A new sign has been installed at the entrance saying Welcome to Herne Bay Pier; h) Two drinking water supplies have been made available; i) The Council has applied for and obtained a Premises Licence for the site; j) All the relevant generic risk assessments have been carried out, new safety equipment installed and minor repairs to decking and railings completed; k) Opening and closing times have been agreed and Serco are carrying this out. l) On-going repairs to the timber deck have been undertaken. The additional and unforeseen works amounted to 56k resulting in an overspend of 6k against the contingency agreed in February 2012. This figure will be funded from the Pier Reserve. Events A successful opening event was delivered on 3 June with a high turnout despite extremely adverse weather conditions; a free open air film event took place on 21 2

July; a small sports event took place during August, these were organised by the Pier Trust. A number of events/activities also took place on the Pier as part of the Herne Bay Festival. Concessions In addition to these activities the Pier Trust was keen to see some concessions on the pier for 2012 prior to their bigger plans for a beach hut market next year for which a planning application is to be submitted. An advert was placed in local papers to gather expressions of interest and two concessions were awarded towards the end of June, one for catering and one for roller skating, they were valid until the end of the 2012 season. Of the other four full expressions of interest received specifically for the pier, two were for catering (only one catering concession was deemed viable for this year) and two were for fancy goods and could possibly be relevant for the beach hut market or a one off market event in the future. We have also had interest from other potential operators who would be interested in the beach hut market concept. The letting of the concessions was delayed as we were keen to involve the Pier Trust in the process to ensure that any concessions reflected their aspirations for the pier. Unfortunately a month was lost to this process and the applications then had to be further considered by the Councils concessions group. Again this process has required an enormous amount of officer time to deliver a small, low key offer on the pier for this year and confusion and disappointment was suffered by some of the applicants. A small amount of income was generated from the two concessions for the remainder of the 2012 season. This income did little more than contribute towards the Councils costs in setting them up i.e. advertising, additional power supplies, water connections, additional keys for bollards and gates. 4. Governance of the Pier Trust The governance of the Pier Trust is not relevant for the issue dealt with in this report. Having two Councillors on the Board only gives the Council two votes. It cannot (and should not) give the council control. Those two members have to have the interests of the Pier Trust uppermost in their minds, even where that may conflict with the wishes of the Council. The benefit of them being on the Pier Trust is that they can speak truth unto it but that is counseling. It is not instructing the Pier Trust what to do. This means that the Council must concern itself with its approach to the Pier Trust, irrespective of the fact it has some representation on the Board. The logic of this report is that the Pier Trust is not an organisation that is yet ready to enter into a formal relationship with the Council. The Council has had to invest resources into supporting the running of trust events, which is not what the trust itself is geared up to do. The logic is that there is not another MOU for the time being. The Council will say to the Pier Trust they will be consulted on major matters concerning the pier, and if they come to us in the future with researched and costed plans which are not resource intensive for the Council we will listen to them. It is to our mutual benefit to put some distance between us for the time being whilst keeping lines of communication open through our membership of the trust board.

From the Council point of view the point of having Councillor Trustees is so that the Company can have the benefit of realistic authoritative advice on the Councils approach to pier issues without breaking confidences. It is a role intended to influence rather than control. That way we hope to harness the enthusiasm of others. How well that has worked in the Pier Trust to date is the subject of debate, but having too strong a council voice may not encourage some to become involved who could have a contribution. The Council is not in a position to instruct its representatives not to stand, but is in a position to offer them advice about whether or not to do so.

5. Relevant Council Policy/Strategies/Budgetary Documents Corporate Plan Herne Bay Area Action Plan Culture & Enterprise Policy Suite Local Economy and Tourism Strategy 6. Consultation planned or undertaken In the spirit of the lapsed Memorandum of Understanding with the Pier Trust the Council has, and is continuing to treat the Pier Trust as the principle consultee relating to pier matters. Regular meetings will be scheduled with the Pier Trust where the short, medium and long term objectives for the pier will continue to be discussed. 7. Options available with reasons for suitability Officers have identified four potential options for the future management of the pier and the relationship with the Pier Trust. i. ii. Close the Pier. The Council to retain full control of the pier and maintain it including opening and closing, daily inspections and cleaning, but not directly deliver any activities or events. The Council would take decisions about what happens on the pier based on its interests, and would treat the Pier Trust as it would any other potential operator and would expect the same standards of Health & Safety, competence, and business planning as it would from anyone else. Income could be generated through the letting of concessions and/or the letting of the pier platform tarmac area to a leisure operator. A proposal for a visitor attraction has been put forward that could generate income which could be used to offset the cost of the timber deck replacement programme and therefore enable keeping the pier open to the public in the longer term. The Pier Trust could pursue its plans for a Beach Hut Market on the pier neck, if a planning application were successful, and be granted a lease/licence to do this subject to meeting the criteria of the councils new Engaging Communities Policy. This could operate alongside any proposal/s for a visitor attraction/leisure operation, which would be on the tarmac area. These activities would require planning permission if business cases were approved. This could provide a stepping stone for the Pier Trust to enable 4

then to focus on their own development and ambitions for the pier whilst potentially generating some income from the Beach Hut Market. Initial conversations with the Pier Trust have found them generally supportive of this option but they have expressed concerns about the potential loss of the pier deck for events and activities. This would appear to be the most appropriate option at this time given the resources of both the Council and the Pier Trust in managing these activities. iii. Hand over complete management of the pier to the Pier Trust (CCC would retain ownership). There would be no officer involvement in supporting the work of the Pier Trust and they would wholly as an independent body. The Pier Trust would need to meet the criteria of the Engaging Communities Policy which is outlined below. Decisions would be required on responsibility for repairs and maintenance and renewal of the timber deck, including budget responsibility for this. Option ii with an understanding that we would move to Option iii once the Pier Trust is able to demonstrate its competence and ability to take over complete management of the pier and the accompanying financial implications. Engaging Communities policy This new policy says that in the future the council could commission external partners to provide services or run facilities on its behalf. The policy develops a common framework of understanding in how we will work with charitable trusts, voluntary sector organisations, potential private sector organisations, etc who wish to run services we currently manage ourselves. This framework ensures the council has the means to assess potential providers against set criteria and then to have an assurance that they are fit and proper providers of our services. The option of working with community organisations in partnership to deliver services will depend on them having the capacity and competence to do so and where they can add value to running services or managing facilities at less or no additional cost to the council. The council will need to have assurance of continuity of service for an agreed period and a formal contract or Service Level Agreement (SLA). These criteria include: evidence that the organisation has the current financial resources to be able to run the relevant council service; that they have the competence and experience which means they are capable of providing the service; that there is evidence that they will meet the needs of service users; that they will deliver good value for money for service users and the council; they are clear about the outcomes they expect to achieve in providing the service

iv.

8. Reasons for supporting option recommended, with risk assessment Risks with management options 5

i. ii.

Closing the Pier would carry a high reputational risk to the Council. This option could allow the Pier Trust to direct its energy to the long term redevelopment of the Pier without the distraction of day to day operation. This would give the Pier Trust time to finalise their main business plan; restructure and implement their organisational changes; submit a planning application for the Beach Hut Market concept and finalise the business plan for this activity. A legal agreement would be required between the Pier Trust and the Council to facilitate the operation of commercial activity in the future as the Pier Trust currently has no legal interest in the pier. This could take the form of a licence agreement. The Pier Trust would need to demonstrate their competence as an organisation under the new Engaging Communities Policy (criteria set out above) for the pier to be put under their management. Officers would recommend a short term lease of no more than five years if this option were to be adopted. If the Pier Trust at some point did not wish to continue with their lease or failed as an organisation, the Council would need to have considered its options for taking back control of the pier or accept that it may close. See options ii and iii above. This option provide the Pier Trust with time to develop as an organisation with the incentive to take over the full management of the pier at the appropriate time. Officers recommend that the Executive support option iv for the reasons stated above.

iii.

iv.

9. Implications (a) Financial Implications the potential to generate income from a visitor attractions/leisure operation could be used to offset the costs of the timber walkway replacement programme. It is likely that the Pier Trust would seek a loan from the Council to finance their Beach Hut Market proposal. (b) Legal Implications legal agreements would need to be put in place with the Pier Trust if they were to take over management of the Pier or run permanent operations on it. (c) Staffing the current arrangements have required a significant amount of officer time managing the relationship between the Council and the Pier Trust. Options ii and iv will still require continued officer input, but with both of these options the amount of time designated by officers to support the Pier Trust will reduce significantly and the expectations of the Pier Trust will need to be managed in this respect. (d) Planning/Building Regulations will need to be sought for any project involving permanent structures or signage. Other implications None 6

10. Conclusions The Executive is asked to resolve the preferred option for the future management of the Herne Bay Pier and the continued relationship with the Pier Trust. Contact Officer: Dawn Hudd Telephone: 01227 862 054

List of background papers for the report a. Lapsed Memorandum of Understanding with the Herne Bay Pier Trust. b. Information provided by a prospective leisure operator which cannot be disclosed as it is likely to prejudice any future planning application and/or negotiations with the council.