I thought I would drop you a brief note to follow up our meeting last week with regard to the New Council for West Somerset and Taunton.

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1 Butlins

2 BUTLINS MINEHEAD From: Highfield, Julian - Minehead - GM Sent: 14 February :43 To: Cleere, Brendan <b.cleere@tauntondeane.gov.uk> Subject: New Council for West Somerset and Taunton Deane Hi Brendan, I thought I would drop you a brief note to follow up our meeting last week with regard to the New Council for West Somerset and Taunton. Been responsible for one of the larger businesses within the proposed larger council I can only believe that this will benefit our business and others. Currently with such a tiny resourced District council it s very hard to get effective and efficient relationships. Resource is over stretched and is mainly deployed in a reactive enforcement manner rather than a pro-active supportive manner. This is not the fault of the individuals just the current state I guess of been Britain s smallest council. My hope is that we will move to a more supportive and collaborative way of working and from what we discussed on Friday this appears to be the hope and desire of the New Council as well. I believe the merger should be good for businesses and individuals alike The only gap I would like some further details on is how Taunton Deane view tourism? Because it dropped off West Somerset s agenda fully. Regards Julian Highfield Director

3 Claims Consortium Group

4 From: Jeremy Hyams Sent: Monday, February 20, :47 PM GMT Standard Time To: Ian Timms Subject: Ian Peter and I enjoyed the meeting with you during which you were able to give some further details about and need for the proposed merger of West Somerset Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council. In general we all recognise the need for all organisations, whether in the public or private sectors to evolve in order to meet the different challenges that present themselves and to continually introduce improvements in order to satisfy their customers demands. Specifically, we talked about the desire to improve your website to reduce failure demand within your organisation and help drive efficiency. Subject to the plans having no adverse impact upon the Company s cost base we are in broad agreement with your proposals. I hope that some of our questions and the points discussed will help you implement them successfully. Regards, Jeremy

5 Clarke Willmott Solicitors

6 From: Roger Seaton Sent: 28 February :10 To: Ian Timms Subject: Proposed new council [CW-LEGAL.FID ] Dear Ian I apologise for this rather last minute response to your consultation paper on the proposed new district council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset. I have canvassed views from within our office and the consensus is that, as a law firm which engages at various levels with the current bodies, we would be quite comfortable with the proposed changes which we do not feel would have any material adverse effect on our business and could well promote greater efficiencies and focus. Regards Roger Roger Seaton Partner Clarke Willmott LLP t: m: e: roger.seaton@clarkewillmott.com f: w: clarkewillmott.com Birmingham Bristol Cardiff London Manchester Southampton Taunton Blackbrook Gate Blackbrook Park Avenue Taunton TA1 2PG Please note that my phone and fax numbers have changed and now start with 0345* *Calls to 0345 numbers are included in most call packages. We receive no monies from your call.

7 EDF Energy

8 From: Eccles David Sent: 07 March :17 To: Brendan Cleere Cc: Andrew Goodchild Hinkley Point C Enquiries <edfenergy@hpcenquiries.com> Subject: Response to TDBC Consultation Brendan I am sorry that we are a little late in responding but our position is as follows: EDF Energy has been asked to contribute to the consultation on the proposed amalgamation of West Somerset Council and Taunton Deanne Borough Council. From the perspective of the Hinkley Point C project, such an arrangement would not impact adversely on any of the legal agreements that relate to the Local Authorities and therefore HPC Genco does not object to the proposal. David David Eccles Head of Stakeholder Engagement, Hinkley Point C EDF Energy Mallard Court, Express Park, Bristol Road, Bridgwater TA6 4RN Tel: +44 (0) Internal Mob: +44 (0) david.eccles@edf-energy.com

9 Foot Anstey Solicitors

10 Foot Anstey Solicitors From: Duncan SYKES Date: 10 February 2017 at 16:03:38 GMT To: "'Cleere, Brendan'" Subject: Proposed new Council [FOOTANSTEY-Documents.FID ] Dear Brendan, I hope all is well with you. I wanted to drop you a quick to confirm that I am supportive of the proposed new Council amalgamating the current West Somerset Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council. This is very much based on my understanding that the current drive to improve the economy of the area and, in particular, the focus around Taunton itself, will continue apace as I see these initiatives as becoming increasingly more vital going forward. Kind regards Duncan Duncan Sykes Partner Foot Anstey LLP, Senate Court, Southernhay Gardens, Exeter, EX1 1NT

11 GLL

12 Mrs. P. James, Chief Executive, Taunton Deane Borough Council, The Deane House, Belvedere Road, TAUNTON. TA1 1HE 17th February 2017 Dear Penny, Letter of Support - Proposed New Council Thank you for meeting both myself and Juliette Dickinson to outline the proposed new Council arrangements for Taunton Deane and West Somerset. As we discussed, GLL are familiar with working in partnership with local authorities who are managing significant change agendas. We are fully supportive of the Council proposals you described and are very keen to offer any support that we can and to work through the transition period with Taunton Deane. We recognise that the proposed implementation timetable coincides with the current leisure procurement process in Taunton Deane. I can confirm that if the outcome of the proposed new Council is known by this time, then GLL would welcome the opportunity to incorporate West Somerset into a wider geographic area. As mentioned at our meeting, I can see no reason at this stage why the proposed new Council arrangements would add additional cost to the existing leisure services. We would also welcome the opportunity to look into current service costs at West Somerset to explore with you further potential economies of scale from merging the leisure services. I believe that funding streams such as the Community Benefit fund could also provide potential scope to help address the broader leisure needs for this area, which are currently not provided for. I look forward to meeting again in the near future to develop our discussions and ideas for the proposed new Council leisure services. In the meantime, please accept this letter as GLL s formal support for the Proposed New Council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset. Yours sincerely, Peter Bundey Deputy Managing Director, GLL cc: Juliette Dickinson, Regional Director, GLL

13 Heart of the South West LEP

14 Cllr Anthony Trollope-Bellew Leader West Somerset Council West Somerset House Killick Way Williton TA4 4QA Cllr John Williams Leader Taunton Deane Borough Council The Deane House Belvedere Road Taunton TA1 1HE 17 February 2017 Dear Anthony and John Proposed new District Council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset Thank you for your letter dated the 20th January 2017 setting out: Your proposals to create a new District Council to replace Taunton Deane Borough Council and West Somerset District Council. How this will address the longstanding financial problems facing West Somerset District Council and the actions of both Councils, coming together to resolve those financial issues and provide quality services to residents. As the LEP is not a democratic representational body it does not as a matter of policy comment on such issues relating to democratic representation. I wish you well with your public consultation. I am happy for you to use this letter in the consultation. Kind regards Chris Garcia Chief Executive Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership cc. Brendan Cleere, Taunton Deane Borough Council/West Somerset Council. Mobile: chris.garcia@heartofswlep.co.uk Heart of the South West LEP CIC, is a Community Interest Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England and Wales. No , Registered Office, PO Box 805, Exeter, Devon, EX1 9UU

15 Minehead Chamber of Commerce

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18 Ministry of Cake

19 Ministry of Cake From: Chris Ormrod Sent: Tuesday, February 07, :26 AM GMT Standard Time To: Ian Timms Subject: RE: Creation of new council Morning Ian I ve read the details about the proposed merger with some interest. It s important to my business that we have a strong, well lead and business friendly council able to work with us and add real value to our future thinking. Taunton Deane was exactly that and a rare example of a public body helping a local business in several different ways. My initial reaction to the merger was to be concerned that by creating a bigger area for the council would we lose the local touch and contact. Yet having thought it through, and accepting the reality of constrained public money, I think that the proposal that I have read is the best option going forward and I am supportive of the merger. Regards Chris

20 Musgrove Park Hospital Chief Executive

21 From: Sam Barrell Sent: 01 March :37 To: Cleere, Brendan Subject: High level business case - Transformation Dear Brendan Thank you for our meeting. This is to say that Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust is entirely supportive of the proposals by Taunton Deane Borough Council and West Somerset Council as set out in your document, High Level Business Case Transformation. The approach is well-thought out and the case for transformation clearly put. Please let me know if there is any further support I can offer. Best wishes Sam Dr Samantha Barrell Chief Executive Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust Musgrove Park Hospital Taunton Somerset TA1 5DA Tel: sam.barrell@tst.nhs.uk Website:

22 Quantum Group PLC

23 From: Kate Greatrix Sent: 28 February :32 To: Cleere, Brendan Subject: Proposed new district Council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset Dear Brendon Thank you for your letter dated 18 th January 2017 informing us of the proposal to create a new district council to replace the two existing councils in the Taunton Deane Borough Council and West Somerset Council areas and for giving us the opportunity, as a business, to comment on the proposals. Quantum is a provider of affordable housing and extra care on a mission to revolutionise retirement living in the UK and we design, build and operate private care homes focused on delivering clinical excellence. As a company we have, over the last 2 years made a major investment in Taunton with the purchase of Quantock House in the centre of Taunton and our recent purchase of Lyngford House. Our investment highlights our commitment to Taunton and its economic growth with the creation of many new jobs, support of existing businesses and bringing increased spend to the High Street, whilst helping to address the demands on social care budgets, the NHS crisis and our aging demographic. We strongly support the proposed merger of the two council areas into one district council as fundamentally we believe these proposals not only secure the financial stability of the councils but also the continued sustainability and economic growth of the area, which will protect services and promote greater efficiencies to the benefit of residents and businesses. If I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me. Kind regards Kate Kate Greatrix Head of Community Engagement

24 Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group

25 Our Ref: DSaajch Your Ref: 27 February 2017 Cllr Anthony Trollope-Bellew Leader West Somerset Council Cllr John Williams Leader Taunton Deane Borough Council Wynford House Lufton Way Lufton Yeovil Somerset BA22 8HR Tel: Fax: Dear Cllr Trollope-Bellew and Cllr Williams A proposed new district council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset Thank you for the opportunity to comment on your proposals to create a new district council to replace the two existing Councils in the Taunton Deane Borough Council (TDBC) and West Somerset Council (WSC) as part of the public consultation you are running. In response to your questions posed please see below: Question 1 Do you support the proposal for creating one new council as part of a financial savings package in order to protect services? Response: Based on the rationale as outlined Somerset CCG would support the proposal. Question 2 Do you think the new district council will be able to provide effective and convenient services to you? Response: We note that services which are the responsibility of Somerset County Council would be unaffected by this proposal, such as social care, therefore, the majority of the areas where we collaborate with either the County or District Councils will be unaffected. The assumption is that any joint commissioning/funding we have currently with the District Councils mentioned, such as through the Better Care Fund will continue. Question 3 Do you have a suggestion for the name of the new council? Response: No particular view. Question 4 The councils considered a number of options for closer working and cost savings. Do you have any comments to make to the Secretary of State on these or other alternatives? Chair: Dr Ed Ford Managing Director: David Slack Working Together to Improve Health and Wellbeing

26 Response: In considering the three options, the recommended option of creating a single new council to replace WSC and TDBC, as well as transforming services appears, through the evidence provided, to be the most sustainable option for the future of the two district councils and the services they provide. As a key partner we welcome ongoing engagement with the new council on any further service delivery or wider changes proposed should they arise in the future. Question 5 Is it important to you for there to be a civic mayor for the combined area covered by the proposed new council? Response: No particular view. Question 6 Would having a Town Council for the unparished are of Taunton be important to you? Response: No particular view Question 7 What would a new single council mean for you in terms of your community and locality? Response: No particular view. Question 8 Do you think the proposal might lead to any significant impacts on you? If so, what might they be and how could those impacts be reduced? Response: See response to question 2. Additionally, the CCG understands and supports the move towards more locality working with more staff based in the community. This is very much aligned with the vision for the Somerset Sustainability and Transformation plan. Question 9 Do you have any other comments to make on the proposal for a new single council? Response: No further comments. Yours sincerely Dr Ed Ford Chair David Slack Managing Director

27 Somerset County Cricket Club

28 From: Guy Lavender Sent: 24 February :39 To: Cleere, Brendan Subject: TDBC merger with West Somerset Dear Brendan, I thought it would be helpful to give you Somerset County Cricket Club s view on the proposed merger of Taunton Deane with West Somerset. As you will be well aware, we play a key role in the economic prosperity of both Taunton and Somerset as well as being an important part of the sporting fabric of the West Country. We have also enjoyed very close relations with TDBC over many years. In sum, we are fully supportive of the proposed merger and are completely convinced by the economic and operational case for change. We have every confidence that the new arrangement will ensure the continued close liaison with the Club, as well as working in the interests of everyone across the new administrative boundaries. Regards, Guy Lavender Chief Executive Somerset County Cricket Club D/D: guylavender@somersetcountycc.co.uk

29 Summerfield Developments (SW) Ltd

30 CW/PB 24 February 2017 Mr Brendan Cleere Director - Growth and Development Taunton Deane Borough Council & West Somerset Council The Deane House Belvedere Road Taunton TA1 1HE cwinter@summerfield.co.uk Dear Brendan Further to our conversation regarding the proposed new Council serving Taunton Deane and West Somerset, I would make the following comments as part of a response to the Public Consultation questionnaire. Question 1: Question 2: Question 3: Question 4: Question 5: Question 6: Question 7: Question 8: Question 9: I would support the proposal to create one Council to enable cost savings to be made to protect public services. If the new Council is well organised and structured then services should not be affected. No suggestion for a name. If the new Council is truly reformed with a completely new management structure and number of councillors rationalised, then significant savings must be possible. What is the purpose of the position of Mayor within a District Council, is it necessary? No I would suggest it would just be another layer of bureaucracy and cost, unless there is a demonstrable benefit to the community, then it would not be required. One would hope a new Council would not affect our community or locality. I do not expect there to be any major impact on us. As a company that is based in Taunton, but carries out business in both Taunton Deane and West Somerset, having a more efficient integrated Council across both regions would provide benefits. One area that could improve would be by having a combined Economic Development team that is looking at the wider picture across both areas. Sharing knowledge and maximising opportunities to grow the overall economy.

31 I hope the above is helpful. Creating a new Council provides a great opportunity to streamline the structure of the Council and look at new ways to run the new organisation. A real chance to move working practices and ways of working into the 21 st century. Yours sincerely SUMMERFIELD DEVELOPMENTS (SW) LTD C Winter CHIEF EXECUTIVE

32 Swallowfield

33 SWALLOWFIELD PLC From: Chris How Sent: 06 February :43 To: Ian Timms Subject: MERGER OF TAUNTON DEANE AND WEST SOMERSET COINCILS Hi ian, Thank you for sending me the information booklet outlining the rationale for the proposed merger of councils. It was very helpful. As per our telephone conversation, from a Swallowfield perspective we can certainly see and appreciate the benefits and efficiencies of such a merger. On this basis, we are supportive. Regards Chris Chris How Chief Executive Swallowfield plc Station Road, Wellington, Somerset.TA21 8NL DDI: +44 (0) M: +44 (0) chris.how@swallowfield.com

34 Taunton Economic Advisory Board

35 From: Jonny Clothier Sent: 22 February :33 To: Cleere, Brendan Subject: RE: New Council Consultation Proposed New Council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset Thank you for the recent correspondence from your Councils Leaders, concerning the proposal to create a new district council for Taunton Deane and West Somerset. As you know, we discussed the issue at the meeting of the Taunton Economic Advisory Board on Monday, 20 th February. Having carefully considered the proposal, and the positive views expressed at the Advisory Board meeting, I am convinced that this is the most appropriate way forward to ensure a sustainable and stable future for West Somerset and Taunton Deane, and I am pleased to confirm that it has my emphatic support. In addition to the financial savings and efficiencies that will arise, I believe there will be economic and community benefits from creating one larger and stronger council. We discussed the fact that the administrative boundary between the two areas is somewhat artificial and that the two areas already have very strong business, economic and community links for travel to work, leisure and tourism. One stronger and more sustainable council will have a stronger voice, promoting the economic success and prosperity of the whole area for the longer term. I wish West Somerset Council and Taunton Deane Borough Council every success in taking the proposal forward. Yours sincerely, John Clothier Chairman Taunton Economic Advisory Board.

36 West Somerset Railway

37 Ian Timms 28th February 2017 Assistant Director-Business Development Taunton Deane Borough Council The Deane House, Belvedere Road, Taunton, Somerset TA1 1HE Dear Ian Consultation on the creation of a new Local Authority for West Somerset and Taunton Deane Thank you for the opportunity to contribute to the consultation process with regard to the above. Following the discussion with Paul Conibeare our General Manager, I am responding on behalf of West Somerset Railway PLC. The West Somerset Railway PLC and its railway stakeholder organisations represent a key heritage and tourist and leisure business in the local area. Turning over around 3 million a year, the WSR generates a further 10 million per annum in related business through our visitors and passengers on the railway. Over the past three years we have also worked very hard to establish effective partnership arrangements with both of the current local authorities and therefore have a keen interest in the organisation and functions that the new authority will be establishing subject to Government approval around dissolution and creation. The first point to make therefore is that we would want to be able to sustain the partnership arrangements that already exist not just through Partnership Development Group but in terms of both Member and Officer engagement with the strategic and economic development activities on the railway including Southern Gateway, Williton and Minehead. We would be very keen therefore to see the identification of a specific Member (there may be more than one) and designated officer in the new authority to continue this valuable work. One of the areas we have struggled with is to understand how to maximise the opportunities arising from the various funds and financial streams that exist across the two current local authorities and to make them work for the railway. Our current conversations may help with moving this forward, but we believe that the new authority needs to have a clearer vision for economic development and how it will work with local businesses to support the creation of growth and employment in a more proactive way.the issue of transport in both West Somerset and Taunton Deane is going to become more important and publicly visible over the next few years as housing development, population growth and major projects such as Hinkley C start to have an impact on the existing infrastructure. Whilst I understand that statutory transport responsibilities lie

38 with the County Council, the larger single organisation should be much more influential in driving the transport agenda for our local area. We are very keen therefore to become engaged in the discussions about transport planning and in particular any real plans or strategies that are currently under discussion. Both yourself and Roger Habgood have indicated that work is underway and given our aspirations to get to Taunton from Bishops Lydeard, we think that the new organisation would benefit from engagement with the WSR at an early stage. I understand you have a working group in place and this letter constitutes a formal request that we be invited to join that group. On a related theme, Taunton Deane has already indicated that it wishes to obtain our input into the provision of the Core Strategy and Infrastructure Development Plan. However that will be taken forward within the new organisation, we are very keen to get involved. Housing development and population growth is putting substantial strain on local transport infrastructure and if we look further ahead with the closure of Norton Camp (possibly 2025), there is an urgent need to establish (related to the previous paragraph), a mechanism whereby the PLC can engage with the Council in planning for the impact of these changes. Capital projects and their funding take a long time to put in place and therefore it is not unreasonable to suggest that, subject to the new authority being authorised, we should not begin to look at the longer term position in That said, we still want to move forward with the existing proposals to re-establish regular services from Taunton to Bishop Lydeard through the current mechanisms we have in place. We would hope that the new authority would embrace that objective as enthusiastically as Taunton Deane has thus far. In terms of economic development, we are already involved in work in Minehead around the Economic Plan. However, as we discussed, there is potentially a lot more that could be done. Our current Business Plan of which you have a copy, indicates that we will be looking at scoping a project in autumn 2017 to examine options for development of parts of Minehead Station. This could and should be linked with any plans for the immediate seafront and surrounding areas. The same applies to Williton where we are in the early stages of creating proposals for the establishment of a strategic engineering centre and maintaining/improving the authenticity of the classic Brunel country passing station. Direct involvement of the local authority in the schemes as a developmental partner is highly desirable building on the work which Karen Mills has led on behalf of West Somerset to date. We are slightly concerned about the plans for the redevelopment of Taunton station and the fact that we have not yet been consulted on these proposals. Our initial plans to run into Taunton as part of a pilot scheme are predicated on what already exists. If GWR and Network Rail are going to alter the layout as well as replace the infrastructure, this has potential implications for the WSR. We would welcome the opportunity both through Taunton Deane as it currently exists and the new authority to be engaged in these conversations. In conclusion, we feel that this is potentially a very exciting time for the railway and continued effective relationships with local authority colleagues are absolutely vital to sustaining and growing our business. We understand that organisational change can be very challenging for individuals and disruptive to business continuity. Nonetheless, we hope that, if the new authority is approved, we can look forward to continuing with our partnership work and we hope that this response is helpful to you in forming a view about priorities for the new Council in due course. Yours sincerely Steve Steve Williams PLC Planning Director