Issue - meetings

BCP Council receives around 1,000 written highway search enquiries each year, requiring specialist officer time to interpret statutory highway records, verify adoption status, and prepare formal written responses. The Council currently absorbs all associated costs, unlike most local authorities that operate cost?recovery charging frameworks. This places financial pressure on core budgets and creates inconsistency for customers working across authority boundaries.

This report proposes the introduction of a Highway Searches Charging Policy and accompanying Schedule of Fees and Charges, enabling the Council to recover the reasonable cost of delivering these enquiries in line with the Local Authorities (England) (Charges for Property Searches) Regulations 2008. The policy also supports improved data governance, workflow efficiency, and alignment with regional and national practice.

Options considered include:

1.    Maintaining the current unfunded model—which is financially unsustainable; or

2.    Introducing a full cost?recovery charging framework—bringing BCP in line with other councils and ensuring service resilience.

The recommended option is to adopt the charging policy and fee schedule, delegate authority for minor operational amendments, and publish the updated information.

Conclusion: Implementing the charging policy ensures legal compliance, financial sustainability, improved transparency, and continued high?quality service delivery.

RESOLVED that Cabinet approved and noted the recommendations described in Section 1, specifically:

(a)           The Highway Searches Charging Policy and schedule of fees (Appendix 1);

(b)          The introduction of a full cost?recovery model for the provision of written highway search enquiries, in accordance with the Local Authorities (England) (Charges for Property Searches) Regulations 2008;  

(c)           Delegate authority to the Director of Planning and Transport, in consultation with the Director of Finance and the Portfolio Holder for Climate Response, Environment and Energy (Cllr Andy Hadley);  

(d)          Agree that the Charging Policy be reviewed annually; 

(e)           Authorise publication of the Policy, fee schedule, guidance materials and updated web content, and instruct officers to implement the required communications and operational changes to enable the charging framework to go live; and

(f)            Note that the Policy will be delivered within existing staffing resources, with no requirement for additional posts and that the income generated will support service sustainability and statutory data maintenance. 

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Climate Response, Environment and Energy

Reason

This policy aligns BCP with neighbouring authorities and most local authorities in England, who charge for this service.

The Portfolio Holder for Climate Response, Environment and Energy presented a report, a copy of which had been circulated to each Member and a copy of which appears as Appendix 'K' to these Minutes in the Minute Book.

Cabinet was advised that BCP Council receives around 1,000 written highway search enquiries each year, requiring specialist officer time to interpret statutory highway records, verify adoption status, and prepare formal written responses.

In relation to this Cabinet was informed that the Council currently absorbs all associated costs, unlike most local authorities that operate cost?recovery charging frameworks, and that this placed financial pressure on core budgets and created inconsistency for customers working across authority boundaries.

Cabinet was advised that the report proposed the introduction of a Highway Searches Charging Policy and accompanying Schedule of Fees and Charges, enabling the Council to recover the reasonable cost of delivering these enquiries in line with the Local Authorities (England) (Charges for Property Searches) Regulations 2008, and that the policy also supported improved data governance, workflow efficiency, and alignment with regional and national practice.

Further to this Cabinet was informed that the options considered included:

1.    Maintaining the current unfunded model—which is financially unsustainable; or

2.    Introducing a full cost?recovery charging framework—bringing BCP in line with other councils and ensuring service resilience.

In relation to this Cabinet was advised that the recommended option was to adopt the charging policy and fee schedule, delegate authority for minor operational amendments, and publish the updated information, which would ensure legal compliance, financial sustainability, improved transparency, and continued high?quality service delivery.

RESOLVED that Cabinet approved and noted the recommendations described in Section 1, specifically:

(a)           The Highway Searches Charging Policy and schedule of fees (Appendix 1);

(b)          The introduction of a full cost?recovery model for the provision of written highway search enquiries, in accordance with the Local Authorities (England) (Charges for Property Searches) Regulations 2008;  

(c)           Delegate authority to the Director of Planning and Transport, in consultation with the Director of Finance and the Portfolio Holder for Climate Response, Environment and Energy (Cllr Andy Hadley);  

(d)          Agree that the Charging Policy be reviewed annually; 

(e)           Authorise publication of the Policy, fee schedule, guidance materials and updated web content, and instruct officers to implement the required communications and operational changes to enable the charging framework to go live; and

(f)            Note that the Policy will be delivered within existing staffing resources, with no requirement for additional posts and that the income generated will support service sustainability and statutory data maintenance. 

Voting: Unanimous

Portfolio Holder: Climate Response, Environment and Energy

Reason

This policy aligns BCP with neighbouring authorities and most local authorities in England, who charge for this service.