Agenda item

A report was submitted with recommendations arising from ‘The Mobile Homes (Requirement for Manager of Site to be Fit and Proper Person) (England) Regulations 2020’ (‘the Regulations’)

The Regulations required Local Authorities to be satisfied that owners of mobile home sites met fit and proper person standards to manage their sites. Non-commercial family occupied sites were exempt. All other mobile home site licence holders in Tandridge (29 in total) were required to apply to the Council between the 1^st July and 1^st October 2021 for a fit and proper person assessment. Such assessments included consideration of the applicant’s legal interest in the site, their conduct (e.g. any criminal record) and the site’s financial and management arrangements. Applications may be approved; approved with conditions; or refused. Applicants will have a right of appeal.

Subject to a fee policy being agreed and published, the Council was empowered to charge a fee for processing applications in order to recover associated costs. A proposed Mobile Home Site (Fit and Proper Person) Fee Policy for Tandridge accompanied the report. This included a recommended application fee of £386, based on the recovery of relevant costs as detailed within Appendix B to the report. The policy stated that, in order to limit the financial burden of this new requirement on site owners and operators, an annual fee (as permitted by the Regulations to cover the cost of monitoring the scheme and maintaining the register of site owners and operators) would not be applied.

Paragraph 12.1 of the proposed policy stated that:

“The policy for Fit and Proper Person Fees will be reviewed 2 years from

implementation, and thereafter, annually. The review will assess and incorporate any changes that need to be made. This will include a full review of the fee levels, to take into account the effect of inflation and any surpluses or deficits incurred on the predicted level of expenditure in the first two years.”

Councillor Lockwood proposed:

·           that Recommendation C of the report be amended as follows:

“authority be delegated to the Executive Head of Communities, in consultation with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Committee, to make any minor amendments to the policy that may be necessary when reviewed annually.”

·           an additional resolution to require the Committee to review the policy and associated fees annually.

            R E S O L V E D – that

A.     subject to the first sentence of paragraph 12.1 being amended as follows:

The policy for Fit and Proper Person Fees will be reviewed 2 years from implementation, and thereafter, annually

the Mobile Home Site (Fit and Proper Person) Fee Policy and application fees as set out in Option A of the report be adopted (i.e. an application fee of £386 be charged to the owners of all commercially operated residential sites);

B.     the fee be effective from 1st July 2021; 

C.     authority be delegated to the Executive Head of Communities, in consultation with the Chair and Vice Chair of the Committee, to make any minor amendments to the policy; and

D.     the Committee reviews the policy and associated fees annually.