Here is a summary of the upcoming Gosport Council Policy and Organisation Board meeting. The board is scheduled to discuss a proposal for Havant Borough Council to join the Building Control Partnership, to review the final version of the Hampshire County Council's Local Nature Recovery Strategy, and to approve the allocation of Section 106 funding for improvements to a play area. There will also be a presentation from the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Building Control Partnership

The board is scheduled to discuss a proposal for Havant Borough Council (HBC) to become the fourth member of the Building Control Partnership (BCP). The existing BCP constituent authorities are Gosport Borough Council (GBC), Fareham Borough Council (FBC) and Portsmouth City Council (PCC).

According to the BCP PO Board report, negotiations have taken place following a formal request from HBC to join the BCP. The report states that the proposal was positively reviewed by the BCP Member Panel on 27 February 2025, and that a letter of comfort was sent to HBC by Councillor Joanne Burton, Chairman of the Panel, on 21 March 2025.

The report lists a number of benefits to Gosport, Fareham and Portsmouth, including:

• A larger staff base of Registered Building Inspectors
• Gaining four existing HBC Building Inspectors
• Providing a more consistent service to joint clients who operate across all four council areas
• Creating a larger organisational profile which will be more attractive to new customers and when recruiting staff
• Sharing management costs and support service charges

The report also notes that Havant Borough Council made a cabinet decision on 15 September 2025 to formally request becoming the fourth member of the BCP.

The recommendations to the board are that they approve HBC joining the BCP, recommend to the council that GBC enters into an agreement with Havant, Portsmouth and Fareham, and that they delegate authority to the Building Control Partnership Manager to enter into such agreements as necessary.

Local Nature Recovery Strategy

The board is scheduled to discuss the final version of Hampshire County Council's (HCC) Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) for Hampshire, prior to its submission to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for approval.

The LNRS report - Oct 2025 notes that the consultation version of the LNRS was presented to the board on 2 July 2025, and that the council resolved to support the document as one of the 'supporting authorities'.

The LNRS is described in the report as an important part of the Environment Act 2021, designed to reverse the decline in the county's habitats and species. It is intended to plan and deliver the National Nature Recovery Network, and comprises:

• A map of the most valuable areas for wildlife
• Opportunities to improve nature in the future
• Local priorities for nature recovery

The report notes that the LNRS covers the borough's existing protected habitats, proposes new biodiversity 'opportunity areas', and environmental enhancements such as a riparian buffer around the River Alver.

The report also notes that the administrative boundary of the LNRS only extends to the mean low water mark, so it does not cover marine habitats, but that the Marine Management Organisation will explore how spatial planning for marine nature recovery might develop in the future.

The recommendations to the board are that they welcome the changes to the LNRS since the public consultation in May-June 2025, support the submission of the final version of the document to the Secretary of State for approval, and that, following confirmation from the Secretary of State, the LNRS be published on the council's website.

Approval to allocate Section 106 funding

The board is scheduled to discuss a report seeking approval to commit Section 106 funding to enable one project to be included in the approved capital programme and delivered during the 25/26 financial year.

According to the Section 106 PO report Oct 25 final, Section 106 funding is collected from developers to mitigate the impact of new development across the borough, and must be allocated according to the specific conditions under which it is collected.

The report recommends allocating £12,232 to make improvements to the surface and equipment in Sovereign Avenue Play Area in Priddys Hard.

The report notes that the use of Section 106 funding for the proposed project has a number of benefits, including meeting the time constraints of the Section 106 funding, enhancing the play and public spaces offering across the borough, and maximising the utilisation of S106 funds.

The recommendation to the board is that they approve the allocation of received specified Section 106 funding as described in the report.

CAB presentation

The agenda for the meeting includes a presentation from the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB). The agenda does not include any further information about the presentation.