Council to Take Charge of Green Spaces
A proposal to bring the responsibility for maintenance of parks, gardens, allotments and other public green spaces in Hastings and St Leonards “in-house”, i.e. under the direct control of the council, was greeted with universal approval at a cabinet meeting of Hastings Borough Council (HBC) on Monday evening.
For the past ten years, grounds maintenance has been delivered by corporate contractors Idverde. Their contract, under which HBC have shared their services with Rother District Council and public housing providers Optivo, is due to expire next month, but they are entitled to 12 months notice of termination, which would not take effect until after November 2023.
The proposal to take it back in-house was introduced to the cabinet by Green party leader Cllr Julia Hilton, who is lead councillor for climate change and natural environment at HBC, and it remains subject to formal approval by the full council at its meeting next Wednesday (12 October). However, the cabinet is composed of a coalition of Labour and Green party councillors, and representatives of both parties appeared equally enthusiastic in their speeches endorsing it at Monday’s meeting. Indeed Cllr Maya Evans (Labour), who was previous holder of the environment portfolio, indicated that only the constraints of the Covid pandemic had prevented the proposal being put forward a year ago. There seems no doubt, accordingly, that it will be voted through.
CREDIT: Idverde
The proposed replacement in-house service will cover HBC’s statutory and health and safety responsibilities, including grave digging, grass cutting, litter picking and bin emptying. It will also, as expressed by the council’s press release, allow it “to make greater use of community support and to work with expert organisations including Groundwork and Plumpton College, supporting future careers in ground maintenance and similar subjects”.
“This would be alongside building and developing in-house skills and local knowledge of our green spaces, leading towards us achieving our vision of Hastings as a Garden Town”, the council argues.
Community opportunities
Cllr Hilton gave an explanation in advance of the cabinet meeting: “We want to bring this service back in-house so we can have a better control on the work being done, and the level of service we receive.
“There is potential overlap with some of the work already done by the in-house street cleaning team, e.g. emptying litter bins. HBC is very lucky to own 690 hectares of green space, and there is enormous potential to manage this better for biodiversity as well as providing opportunities for community growing, more volunteer involvement in looking after our green spaces as well as training opportunities.”
She sees that these opportunities tie in with HBC’s strategic vision. “With the greater focus on tackling the huge health inequalities in the town, it is widely recognised that access to and working in roles helping look after green spaces are incredibly positive for people’s mental wellbeing. We already have working relationships with Groundwork and Plumpton College delivering learning opportunities using our green spaces, and there will be much greater potential to increase this with an in-house team rather than a contractor, when every change in the contract has to be re-negotiated. The in-house team will have a role dedicated to developing working relationships with community groups and other partners, so we can really improve access to our green spaces for all local residents. This is also a key aspiration of the Hastings as a Garden Town vision which we want to embed across the town, not just in the town centre.”
Controlling costs
It is apparent, however, that another primary reason for taking this course is to control costs. Reviews of the current contract with Idverde have shown, according to the HBC press release, that “costs have risen dramatically to levels that are unaffordable for the council”. No details of the financial arrangements with Idverde have been made public, but it is argued that, in-house, the council “will have more control over the work done by the team and will be able to be more flexible about the level of work than a fixed, outsourced contract…There will also be the opportunity to look at the current Hastings Direct Service Operation and make potential efficiencies and improve the resilience of both services to help reduce the need for agency staff.”
A report delivered to the cabinet by HBC’s Waste & Cleansing Services Manager, Cameron Morley, suggests that the proposed in-house management team contemplates a “simplified service” involving “less grass cutting” and “less attention to floral displays…. The new service prioritises sustainable planting over floral bedding, reduces the amount of high amenity mowing to encourage biodiversity and removes the general use of herbicides for weed suppression.”
Cllr Hilton confirms the intended change of direction. “We will be looking at changing some of the ways we manage our planting, for example replacing areas of bedding plants with more environmentally friendly, low maintenance perennial planting. This will also be the case with some of the more intensively planted shrub beds, which will become more naturalistic planting which requires less maintenance visits. Other than that, we’re hoping that the service will continue to operate at a high standard, maintaining our parks and open spaces for the enjoyment of all.”
Rother and Optivo
Mr Morley’s report does not explain how HBC’s withdrawal from the Idverde contract will impact its partners, Rother and Optivo. One of the rationales for that contract, when entered into in 2012, was that it “allow[s] for shared resources such as management and equipment across the partnership area”. However, according to Cllr Hilton, Optivo have already chosen to take their service in-house this year, and she says she is hoping to have discussions with them “regarding using more of their land for food growing for residents and also encouraging them to look at more nature-friendly mowing regimes”.
Rother, she says, “are considering their options…The partnership option is no longer viable”.
All Idverde staff contracted to work in Hastings would transfer to HBC in November 2023 under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings – Protection of Employment) regulations. Mr Morley confirms that “each individual will have the same rights as any HBC staff member, which includes access to the Local Government Pension Scheme, recognition of long service and access to the Staff Discount scheme”.
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