The meeting of the Warwickshire County Council on 22 July 2025 included a debate on developer contributions to the School Lane Junction scheme, which was ultimately deferred, and a tied vote on the appointment of political assistants, which was decided by the Chair's casting vote. The council also discussed additions to the education capital programme, the Audit and Standards Committee annual report, and a motion supporting the climate emergency declaration.

• Appointment of the Leader of the Council
• Developer Funded Scheme - S278 D1736 School Lane Junction with Bowling Green Lane/Church Lane
• Appointment of Political Assistants
• Supporting Climate Emergency Declaration in Warwickshire
• Additions to the Education Capital Programme 2025/26
• Audit and Standards Committee Annual Report 2024/25
• Local Transport
• Constitutional Amendments and Appointment of Statutory Scrutiny Officer
• Member Question Time

Appointment of the Leader of the Council

Following the resignation of the previous leader, the council met to appoint a new leader. Four councillors were nominated for the position: Councillor Gerry Roodhouse, Councillor George Finch, Councillor Adrian Warwick, and Councillor Jonathan Chilvers.

After the first round of voting, Councillor Jonathan Chilvers was eliminated as the candidate with the lowest number of votes. After the second round, Councillor Warwick was eliminated. In the third round, Councillors Roodhouse and Finch received an equal number of votes. Councillor Edward Harris, in his role as chair, used his casting vote to elect Councillor Finch as the new leader of the council.

Developer Funded Scheme - S278 D1736 School Lane Junction with Bowling Green Lane/Church Lane

The council considered a proposal to add £3.904 million to the capital programme for highway improvement schemes at the School Lane Junction with Bowling Green Lane and Church Lane in Exhall. The scheme is to be fully funded by a developer as part of a Section 278 agreement¹.

Several members of the public spoke against the scheme, raising concerns about the impact of increased HGV traffic on local residents, particularly children attending nearby schools. Beryl Timms highlighted that the width of the bridge roads and pavements are below the minimum government requirement for HGVs, and that safety for pedestrians and cyclists is being sacrificed. Kath King raised concerns about the impact on vulnerable residents, including the elderly and those with disabilities. Rob Rose argued that the council was taking on delivery risk for a scheme that benefits a private developer, and that the information provided was incomplete. Damon Brown criticised the highways department for failing to respond to a traffic survey carried out by residents. Tim Jenkins claimed that councillors had previously agreed with residents that the development would be detrimental, but had since changed their position.

Several councillors echoed the concerns raised by the public speakers. Councillor Stephen Shaw confirmed that the council was going to look at the scheme in the council. Councillor George Cowcher proposed that the matter be deferred for further consideration. Councillor Feeney supported the deferment, stating that the proposed scheme was not in the best interests of residents. Councillor Keith Kondakor raised concerns about the safety of cyclists and pedestrians at the junction. Councillor Warwick sought guidance on the council's remit in making a decision, given that the scheme had already been approved at the district level. Councillor Finch, who had previously supported the scheme, said that he now supported the deferment for later consultation. Councillor Carvell argued that School Lane is unsafe for HGV traffic and that the development would pose an unacceptable risk to public safety. Councillor Brown said that he could not vote for imposing that sort of menace on anybody else. Councillor Chilvers suggested that the council would need to renegotiate with the developer if the scheme were to be deferred or refused. Councillor Morris raised concerns about the structural integrity of the bridges on School Lane.

The council voted to defer the decision, pending further consideration and advice.

Appointment of Political Assistants

The council considered a proposal to establish political assistant posts for qualifying political groups, in accordance with Section 9 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989². The proposal sought to authorise amendments to the constitution to allow for the appointment of political assistants, and to delegate authority to the Chief Executive to agree a local protocol for the roles.

Councillor Michael Bannister argued that the proposal was simple, lawful, and fair for all parties, and that it would enhance the council by enabling better policy work, more thoughtful debate, and more effective scrutiny. He stated that the total cost would be £151,000 and change, not the £200,000 or £500,000 that had been reported in the press.

Councillor Ben Edwards questioned the value for money of the posts, asking what they would be doing on a day-to-day basis and how much value they would deliver for the cost. Councillor Sarah Boad argued that it was hard to justify spending £150,000 on political assistance when social services and SEND services were having to make cuts. She also claimed that the proposal was inconsistent with the council's medium-term financial plan, which included the assertion that it would be necessary to set a very high bar for new permanent budget allocations. Councillor Drew sought clarification as to how the posts would be funded, given that there was no current budgetary provision. Councillor Sam Jones argued that the proposal betrayed the wants of Reform UK voters and signalled contempt for fellow councillors and their ability to contribute. Councillor Curtis asked whether portfolio holders would attend overview and scrutiny committee meetings in future. Councillor Warwick said that the Conservative group was torn, as they could see how the posts could be beneficial, but needed to understand the value to Warwickshire. Councillor Serafini said that she was worried that the political assistants would be set up with a job that they could not do. Councillor Roodhouse advised the cabinet to sit down with the corporate policy unit and talk seriously about what they wanted to do. Councillor Coucher described the proposal as a lazy one, and said that it was about spending some money so we can have a chum in our group. Councillor Scott argued that the proposal was not fair, as it did not apply to all parties, and that it was insulting to officers to suggest that they needed political assistants to do their jobs. Councillor Keith Kondakor said that the councillors could contribute 10% of their wages and hire a researcher if they wanted to do that.

Councillor Finch said that the money would come from cutting the net zero agenda and DEI³ initiatives. He said that if councillors voted against the proposal, they did not have to fill the roles. Councillor Bannister said that the political assistants would add value to the work of the council and help councillors do their jobs properly.

The council voted on the proposal, which resulted in a tie. Councillor Harris used his casting vote to approve the appointment of political assistants.

Supporting Climate Emergency Declaration in Warwickshire

Councillor Will Roberts moved a motion to reaffirm the council's commitment to the climate emergency declaration made in 2019. The motion also sought to re-establish the working group to review the impact of climate change in Warwickshire.

Councillor Warwick proposed an amendment, which was accepted by Councillor Roberts, to include references to energy security and the need to consider the cost of green initiatives, as well as to ensure that materials used in green energy products are not produced using slave labour.

Councillor Neil Wayne expressed his belief that man's activity on this planet is not the main driver of the current warming phase, and that successive waves of gullible politicians have put virtue signalling ahead of the country's interests. Councillor Ben Edwards argued that as people move to electrification, the wealthiest sections will see their bills going down, while the not-so-wealthy will see their bills going up. Councillor Kettle spoke about the impact of flooding on residents and farmers, and the unpredictability that climate change brings. Councillor Finch said that the people of North Warwickshire and Bedworth were being bankrupted and crippled by the net zero agenda. Councillor Keith Kondakor argued that man-made climate change is real, and that net zero done properly saves money. Councillor Feeney said that climate change has been decided by scientists, and that the UK is warming and extremes are increasing. Councillor Chilvers said that the speed of warming is at least 10 times faster than the warming that has ever happened before, and that it is incumbent on politicians to make sure that the least well-off do well out of the climate transition. Councillor Jones said that the UK has contributed 5% of the world's total emissions and has a responsibility to take up that role and do and play our fair part. Councillor Scott appealed to councillors to think about future generations and how we can protect them best. Councillor Cooper said that it was ridiculous to ask people to pay for green initiatives when they are struggling to make ends meet. Councillor Bridgewater said that the least well-off in the county are going to be the first and the most to be impacted by the effects of climate change. Councillor Matecki said that we have to do what is right for us, and that the council should explore constructing new WCC buildings to be carbon neutral.

Councillor Roberts moved the motion, and the council voted in favour of it.

Additions to the Education Capital Programme 2025/26

The council approved the addition of £2.960 million to the education capital programme to continue to deliver the expansion scheme at the Queen Elizabeth Academy in Atherstone. The funding will come from developer contributions and basic need funding.

Councillor Keith Kondakor raised concerns about the school sufficiency strategy and the falling birth rate. Councillor Dixon asked for reassurance that the £6.5 million allocated for St John's Primary School in Kenilworth would be sufficient to deliver the extra facilities. Councillor Grocott raised concerns about the rising costs of the Queen Elizabeth Academy project, and asked what changes to project management the new administration intended to make to ensure that costs don't also increase. Councillor Edwards asked how the council was looking at the catchment areas for schools, given that some villages cannot get their children into what is supposed to be their school. Councillor Drew asked how confident the council could be that the allocation would be sufficient in the long term.

Councillor Briggs said that the scheme represents good value for money, and that the school will manage the scheme themselves, closely monitored by our officers.

Audit and Standards Committee Annual Report 2024/25

The council received and endorsed the annual report of the Audit and Standards Committee.

Councillor Feeney thanked those who had served on the committee, and commended the new independent members. Councillor Keith Kondakor said that the audit committee gives you some confidence that actually we have the processes in place to see that money's not being wasted, to make sure that we all behave. Councillor Barker commended the work that is done by our officers and by the independent members, and particularly thanked John Bridgeman for his service.

Local Transport

Councillor Richard Dixon moved a motion on local transport, noting the government's confirmation of a £2.3 billion investment in local transport through the Local Transport Grant (LTG), of which £66 million will be allocated to Warwickshire over four years. The motion sought to confirm the council's goal to support the delivery of the Warwickshire Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP), the Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP), and the Warwickshire Rail Strategy 2019-2034, and requested that the Portfolio Holder for Transport and Planning bring forward updated plans by December 2025 setting out how the LTG funding will be used.

Councillor Jan Matecki proposed an amendment, which was accepted by Councillor Dixon, to include a reference to the local transport plan and to remove specific references to projects such as K2L and the Elephant and Bear Line.

Councillor Keith Kondakor said that it was really important that we get our local transport plans into use, and that we should be supporting multimodal transport. Councillor Chilvers thanked Councillor Matecki for including the line about the local transport plan. Councillor Finch said that he had major concerns about cycle lanes, but that the pros outweighed the cons for the amendment. Councillor Bode said that the amendment strengthened the motion, and that it was all about seeing how the best we can actually do to increase the use of active travel.

The council voted unanimously in favour of the motion, as amended.

Constitutional Amendments and Appointment of Statutory Scrutiny Officer

The council approved amendments to the constitution and the appointment of the Democratic Services Team Manager as Statutory Scrutiny Officer.

Councillor Warwick said that Deb was an excellent choice for the role.

Member Question Time

During member question time, councillors raised a number of issues with the cabinet. These included:

• The future of the office block in Barrack Street, Warwick, which has been empty for five years. Councillor John Holland asked Councillor Shaw if he would consider working with a stakeholder group on the future of the building. Councillor Shaw agreed to meet with the stakeholders after the OSC.
• The Barford quarry planning application. Councillor Jan Matecki asked Councillor Finch to commit to a timeframe for the consultation period and to release the Regulation 25 response to the local residents association.
• The West Midlands Gigafactory at Coventry Airport. Councillor Ben Edwards asked Councillor Finch if he would continue to support the scheme. Councillor Finch said that he would look into the matter further and invited Councillor Edwards to a meeting to discuss it.
• The support provided by Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service. Councillor Keith Kondakor asked Councillor Bridgewater if he would thank Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service for their support, and ensure that Warwickshire was not risking their support by continuously asking for excessive levels of mutual support. Councillor Bridgewater said that he would send a personal thank you letter to Leicestershire and would come back with the numbers of how many times we use Leicestershire and vice versa. Councillor Crump asked Councillor Bridgewater to sense-check Councillor Kondakor's comments regarding excessive usage of other fire services.
• The A46 Stonely Junction project. Councillor Richard Dixon asked Councillor Finch to update members on the A46 Stonely Junction project, also known as the Bridge to Nowhere. Councillor Finch said that the redesign of the works to complete is progressing well and is on track for securing national highways approval at the beginning of September.
• The road connecting the existing Lower Farm development to the new secondary school. Councillor Keith Kondakor asked Councillor Shaw what the County Council would do about the fact that the joint venture is now not going to provide this road for use this year. Councillor Shaw said that temporary mitigations will be put in place to access the school for the short period until the road can open, and that a safe pedestrian access route would be drafted. Councillor Kondakor asked if the property developer would provide a minibus round the two or three miles walking route until a safe route is provided. Councillor Shaw said that he would look into that and get back to Councillor Kondakor.
• The council's plan to fix the roads. Councillor George Cowcher asked Councillor Finch what his plan was to improve the performance of the highways service. Councillor Finch said that the council was currently out to tender for the replacement to the highways maintenance contract, and that they were exploring options including bringing the repair of potholes in-house.
• The DOGE visit. Councillor Serafini asked Councillor Bannister what personal data of residents would be accessed by DOGE, where this information would be stored, and how residents could elect not to have any data about themselves shared. Councillor Bannister said that the council had not got that far yet, and that he would provide the information in due course. Councillor Stevens asked whether the scope and terms of reference for the DOGE visit would be shared at full council with members, and whether members would have advanced visibility of the DOGE team's composition and experience.
• The closure of Bilton School. Councillor Feeney asked Councillor Briggs what action the County Council has taken in respect to the matter. Councillor Briggs said that he had convened a meeting with the Academy CEO and the Director of Education, and that they had agreed that the school had made a mistake and needed to make an apology. Councillor Finch had insisted that they do a school assembly on British heritage and British culture. Councillor Feeney asked what support was being given to the school, given that the decision to shut the school was because of threats made towards the staff and the head. Councillor Briggs said that he would provide a written answer on that.

Councillor Jones and Councillor Chilvers were unable to ask their questions due to a lack of time.