Report of the Chairman of Executive Board.

The Leader of the Council presented Members with his report, pages 55 to 58 of the Agenda refer.

 

Following which, Members were invited to put their questions and comments forward.

 

Resignation

 

Members noted the resignation of Councillor Stephen Evans, who represented the Chapel St Leonards Ward.  This would necessitate a by-election, scheduled to take place in mid-November.  On behalf of all Members, the Leader extended his sincere thanks and best wishes to Councillor Evans for his service to the Council and advised Members he would pass their best wishes on to him.

 

The Campus for Future Living (CFL)

 

The Leader advised that a full update on the CFL would be provided by the Portfolio Holder for Housing Communities and Better Ageing at the Council meeting to be held on 28 January 2026.  The facility was officially opened in June 2025 and was already making a significant impact by integrating health, wellbeing, research and community support services in an underserved coastal area.  The Council was proud to be working in partnership with the Lincolnshire Institute of Rural Coastal Health and Coastal Health, who launched their coastal research programme in July.  This was supported by a presentation from former Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty.  The Leader added that he anticipated further exciting developments to be shared in January as the project progressed.

 

The Leader of the East Lindsey Independent Group advised Members that she attended the opening of the CFL and enjoyed the presentation provided by Professor Whitty which was engaging and interactive.  Furthermore, she found it particularly valuable to meet academics from the Institute of Coastal and Rural Health and welcomed this investment in the local communities.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council stated that he had received very positive feedback for the CFL and highlighted that the site held great promise and he was encouraged to see such strong engagement.

 

Best Community & Neighbourhood Initiative Award at APSE

 

The Leader was pleased to report that officers had received this prestigious recognition, awarded for the innovative Energy and Retrofit Information Clinic Van which had transformed the way community advice and support was delivered across East Lindsey.  This initiative provided local energy advice and demonstrations whilst gathering valuable feedback from communities to help officers and teams respond more effectively to local needs.

 

A Member echoed the congratulations to the HEART team on their recent APSE award and considered it an excellent achievement.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council thanked Members for their positive comments regarding the HEART team which had done an outstanding job, and was pleased to see their efforts recognised with the APSE award.

 

ELIF and UKSPF Grants

 

The Leader advised that new funding was now available and strongly encouraged all ward councillors to ensure their communities and parish councils were aware of these opportunities which were making a real difference across the district.

 

ELDC Teenage Markets – Empowering Young Creatives Across East Lindsey

 

The Leader was pleased to report that the teenage markets continued to be well received.

 

Several Members stated that they were very inspired by the continued success of the Teenage Market initiative, which was clearly having a positive impact encouraging young entrepreneurs.

 

A Member was disappointed by the number of attendees when the market was officially opened and highlighted the lack of visible promotion, for example no posters in shops of flyers distributed.  It was also considered that the Council needed people on the ground engaging with traders to understand their needs and challenges.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council advised Members that he would request a review of publicity efforts to ensure future events were better promoted.

 

The Leader of the East Lindsey Independent Group advised Members that she met two brothers from Loughborough University involved in the initiative.  Further to this, more information was requested on how the Council was supporting these young people beyond the market and what follow-up assistance was available to help them develop their businesses.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council thanked Members for their support and positive comments on the teenage markets and advised that he would follow up to provide more information on how the Council supported young entrepreneurs beyond the market itself.

 

At this point in the meeting, the Leader of the District Independent/Liberal Democrat Group asked it be noted that her grandson participated in the Teenage Markets in Horncastle.  She continued that it had given him a real sense of purpose and had been a brilliant experience for him.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council stated that it was a great example of how these initiatives could have a real, tangible impact and seeing young people thrive and gain confidence was exactly what the Council hoped to achieve.

 

Horncastle Horse Fair -  9^th August 2025

 

The Leader was pleased to report that the Horncastle Horse Fair was a successful and well-attended event.

 

Art Aspirations: A summer of Creative Collaboration

 

The Leader advised that the Arts Aspirations programme was progressing well, fostering creative collaborations that were having a positive impact in the areas where they were delivered.

 

During a brief discussion, the lack of publicity for this event was further highlighted as a drawback to securing good attendance.

 

Louth Food and Drink Festival: A Feast for the Senses

 

The Leader reported that the Louth Food and Drink Festival was significantly affected by poor weather which impacted attendance and was hugely disappointing.  Further to previous comments made, he confirmed that the Council would take on board the feedback around communication and publicity and would review what had changed and how the Council could improve this going forward.

 

A Member queried whether the Shop Front Grant Scheme would be reinstated in Louth, highlighting that investment was needed due to many tired-looking shopfronts,

 

It was further emphasised that Louth was the largest market town in the district, yet it often seemed to receive the least support with the Friday and Saturday markets struggling and queried when more investment would be made.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council informed Members that he had worked closely with Louth over the years, both as a Councillor and Portfolio Holder, and recalled when Louth had a town manager.  The Leader encouraged Louth residents, community groups, and ward councillors to engage proactively and highlighted that funding was available for initiatives like the Shop Front Grant scheme.

 

The Leader continued that if Louth Town Council was willing to develop a proposal, the Council could explore involving Heritage Lincolnshire and was happy to facilitate discussions with relevant officer teams to ensure Louth benefited fully from the opportunities available.

 

The Leader provided Members with an update on Local Government Reorganisation as follows:

 

‘Boston, East Lindsey and South Holland Councils are well into drafting our LGR proposal and the submission deadline remains 28th November 2025. 

 

It is expected there will be 5 other proposals submitted to government from this area, one from North Lincolnshire Council, North East Lincolnshire Council, City of Lincoln Council, Lincolnshire County Council bid, and a joint bid from North Kesteven and South Kesteven Councils.

 

We firmly believe that our proposed geography and vision is the most compelling from Greater Lincolnshire and delivers on all the government's criteria.

 

In relation to our proposal, a Greater Lincolnshire for All, in recent weeks we have undertaken significant engagement with MPs, Strategic partners, town and parish councils and their representative bodies and the wider community.

 

We have three public engagement sessions remaining in Boston, Louth and Skegness, and we look forward to discussing the Greater Lincolnshire for all bid with all those attending. 

Along with the senior officer, group leaders continue to be updated on our LGR proposals, and we continue to share correspondence from government with all councillors when we receive it.  The final monthly member discussion sessions ahead of submission is tomorrow night via teams, and the focus is adults and children services.  Thereafter, we have sessions planned for all councillors and these are in your Diaries for 3rd November, one daytime and one evening and

an opportunity for you to share input into the draft proposal.  We will share the draft around a week before, so you have the opportunity to read and digest. 

 

After our proposal has been submitted, we expect government to undertake a statutory consultation early 2026 with the final proposal known in mid-2026.  At present, we believe the shadow Councils will be formed from April 2027 and the new Councils will go live in 2028’.

 

Following which, the Leader added that there had been a lot of speculation around the timeline for the LGR process and while there may be time pressures due to current government capacity, the Council was preparing for all possible outcomes.  If the proposal proceeded as planned, the Council had a strong and credible submission.  If there was a delay, the Council would respond accordingly and adapt its approach.  If the process was halted altogether, the South and East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership was in a strong position as demonstrated by its recent collaborative work.

 

A Member acknowledged the ongoing councillor briefings for LGR, however considered given the scale of the change being the most significant in local government in 50 years, queried whether an extraordinary Full Council meeting would be appropriate to allow all Members to formally scrutinise, comment on, and potentially vote on the proposals.

 

In response, the Leader of the Council advised Members that the decision-making process was an executive function.  However, he was very open to engaging as widely as possible and bringing councillors together to discuss the proposals, even if it did not constitute a formal decision-making forum.  Members were advised that the following evening’s session for Members was part of that engagement process and whilst he appreciated that availability could be a challenge, highlighted that attendance at previous councillor sessions has been lower than hoped.  The Leader strongly encouraged Members to attend and participate as it was a valuable opportunity to contribute.

 

The Leader continued and provided Members with an update on the recent Peer Review as follows:

 

‘Last week we were pleased to welcome the peer team from the LGA back to our Council.  Since their first visit in November 2024, we have been working to deliver the action plan we agreed and we're grateful to Overview Committee for their ongoing oversight and support in this.  I'd also like to thank those Members who engaged in the visit itself. 

 

The Peers in their follow up visit were impressed with the progress made.  They described us as ‘a very good Council’ reinforcing this point from their first visit.  Clearly, as with any peer review, there are areas that they have identified for us to focus on and we now await the follow up report that we will share with all Councillors.   We did share a recording of the feedback session with all Councillors, so hopefully you've been able to review this’.

 

No comments or questions were received.