Jersey Architecture Commission: Appointment of new commissioners and membership and update of Terms of Reference

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A decision made on 12 October 2020

Decision Reference: MD-PE-2020-0074
Decision Summary Title:	Jersey Architecture Commission - appointment of new commissioners and membership and update of Terms of Reference		Date of Decision Summary:	30 September 2020
Decision Summary Author:	Principal Planner		Decision Summary: Public or Exempt?	Public
Type of Report: Oral or Written?	Written		Person Giving Oral Report:	N/A
Written Report Title:	1) Jersey Architecture Commission; and 2) Jersey Architecture Commission: Terms of Reference		Date of Written Report:	24 September 2020
Written Report Author:	Principal Planner, Executive Officer JAC		Written Report: Public or Exempt?	Public
Subject: Jersey Architecture Commission - appointment of new commissioners and membership
Decision(s): The Minister for the Environment: endorsed the appointment of the following as commissioners to serve on the Jersey Architecture Commission (JAC): Lynne Sullivan and Chris Twinn as specialists in sustainability and the built environment; and Johanna Gibbons as a landscape specialist; and endorsed a three-year term of office to run from September 2020 (to Sept 2023); and endorsed the continued service on the Commission of the following commissioners: David Prichard David Gausden Antony Gibb Sara Marsh Andy Theobold Mike Waddington June Barnes David Levitt and on call for advice (viability) John Desmond appointments listed at 3.(a) to (i) to run f~~or a further three years from~~ ~~March~~ ~~2019~~until March 2022; and Uupdated the 2018 Terms of Reference.
Reason(s) for Decision: The provision of specialist knowledge, of both sustainability and landscape, within the JAC has become increasingly important reflecting the wide range of projects reviewed by the Commission; and the significance of these issues relative to the need to address the challenges of climate change. Following the retirement of Melanie Dodd from the JAC in 2019 the Commission has been operating with limited numbers. It is proposed to increase the number of commissioners, from 10 to 15, will serve to widen the skill set of the JAC; and help to manage the draw on individual’s time as the scope of work increases. The appointment of the three additional commissioners outlined above helps to realise this objective. The composition of the JAC and the continued service of commissioners was considered and endorsed by the Minister in March 2019 and its ~~formalisation seeks~~formal endorsement will to enable the continuation of the Commission’s work, based on the current membership, until March 2022. The updated Terms of Reference ~~2018 will be updated to~~ reflect the changes to the numbers of Commissioners, skill sets and the process of future reviews,
Resource Implications: The costs associated with running the JAC are met from within existing budgets; There are no legal implications arising from this decision: the JAC operate in an entirely advisory capacity.
Action required: To formally invite Lynne Sullivan, Chris Twinn and Johanna Gibbons to join the JAC as commissioners on the basis of a three-year term, commencing September 2020; To formally confirm the re-appointment of the serving 10 commissioners as set out above; Update the Terms of Reference 2018 and publish these on the Government of Jersey website.
Signature: Deputy John Young		Position: Minister for the Environment
Date Signed: XX/XX/2020		Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):

Jersey Architecture Commission: Appointment of new commissioners and membership and update of Terms of Reference

Jersey Architecture Commission

Terms of Reference

1. Purpose and Scope

1.1 To provide an external independent forum for Jersey through which the promotion of good architecture and urban design which is sensitive to context can take place.

1.2 To provide a forum through which external views on the design of new development schemes can be obtained.

1.3 To work with architects and developers practising in Jersey to offer design guidance for new schemes.

2. Status

2.1 It will be a non-statutory, informal consultee of the Planning service and an external independent voice for architecture and design in Jersey. It will act in the public interest to foster discussion and increase the debate on good architecture on the Island.

3. Commission Make up

3.1 The Commission will be made up of up to fifteen formally-appointed Commissioners. At least three Commissioners will be called to each design review.

3.2 The Commissioners are representative of the following areas:

a) Experience in the field of architecture, design and heritage.

b) Current architectural practice.

c) Urban and landscape design.

3.3 The Commission’s main link to the Government of Jersey will be via the Executive Officer to the Commission who will brief and provide advice to the Commission.

3.4 Appointments will run for between two to three years from appointment date.

4. Code of Conduct and Declarations of Interest

4.1 Professional applicants currently in private practice will need to demonstrate how they will avoid any conflicts of interest. If the Commissioners’ advice is to be respected its members must be demonstrably impartial. All conflicts of interest real or perceived must be recorded well in advance of each meeting. A conflict arises if there is any suggestion that any Commissioner, either as an individual or a member of a group or organisation, might have a financial, commercial or professional interest in a project, its client or its site.

5. Confidentiality

5.1 When schemes are reviewed before the planning application stage the promoter may request a confidential review. This may be likely when a scheme is not yet public and the developer feels that publicity may damage commercial interests. Knowing that the proposals will be treated as confidential might encourage developers to seek advice early in the process, when it will be most valuable.

5.2 When considering schemes that have already been submitted for planning approval, the Commission should make its advice publicly available as soon as it has been sent to the client or project team and Planning service where it will form part of the planning case file.

6. Chairing

6.1 The Commission will be chaired by a member of the Commission.

6.2 The Chair will be selected from the nominated Commissioners by the Commissioners.

6.3 The Chair will approve items to be included on the agenda.

6.4 The Chair will agree the final report issued to applicants.

7. Regularity of meetings/time commitment and expected outputs

7.1 It is envisaged that a formal meeting of the Commission will take place every two months to consider major or significant projects and/ or applications referred to it. Where appropriate, and with particularly significant schemes, it is recommended that schemes are presented to the Commission in the pre-application stage.

7.2 Meetings will be held in private with attendance restricted to the client body, although the Commission will request relevant officers to attend.

7.3 Meetings will be scheduled for one day in duration and will include up to four presentations, dependent on the complexity, sensitivity and scale of projects put forward for the meeting.

7.4 Additional meetings may be called if necessary and with the agreement of the Commissioners.

7.5 Members of the Commission will also be expected to act pro-actively for the design agenda for Jersey over and above the formal scheduled meetings. In order to do this, prospective members will need to bring an element of service in the public interest to their role.

8. Resource Implications

8.1 Remuneration will be on a daily basis and will be negotiated dependent on qualifications and experience.

8.2 Each member of the Commission will be remunerated for a sum to be agreed for their work as part of the Commission.

8.3 Reasonable travel expenses to attend meetings will be reimbursed.

8.4 Opportunities to increase funding via sponsorship of the work of the Architecture Commission will be investigated.

8.5 The Commission will run the Jersey Design Awards every two years, with similar remuneration to 8.1 and reflect the ethos of paragraph 7.5.

9. Review

9.1 These terms of Reference have been updated in September 2020 to reflect the agreed changes to the number of Commissioners and structure of the Government of Jersey.

9.2 These Terms of Reference will be subject to a review every four years by the Minister for Planning and Environment. The next review will be due in March 2022.

ID-JAC – TOR – March 2018 (updated September 2020)