Minutes:
(1) The Chairman announced that it was with much regret that he had to inform Members of the sad death of Frank Marven, Conservative Member for Tollgate, on Friday 30 November 2012.
(2) Mr Marven was elected to KCC in 1985 and served until 1993. He was also a long standing Gravesend and Gravesham Councillor where he served for 37 years. Mr Marven was Mayor of Gravesham from 1982 to 1983 and he was vice president of the Gravesend Scouts Association, having been a lifelong member of the Scouts which he joined at the age of 11.
(3) The Chairman had been advised that the funeral service for Mr Marven would take place on Monday, 17 December 2012 at Medway Crematorium for family members only. All who knew Mr Marven were welcome to attend a Remembrance Service at 11am in St George’s Church, Church Street, Gravesend, followed by a reception at 12.30pm in the Council Chamber at the Civic Centre, Civic Centre, Windmill Street, Gravesend, DA12 1AU. The family had requested no flowers but tributes could be made via donations to the Ellenor Lions Hospice. The donations should be sent via Lewis Solomon, Funeral Directors in Gravesend.
(4) Mr Sweetland, Mrs Dean and Mr Christie gave tributes to Mr Marven.
(5) At the end of the tributes, all Members stood in silence in memory of Mr Marven.
(6) After the silence, it was moved by the Chairman, seconded by the Vice Chairman and:
(7) RESOLVED unanimously that this Council desires to record the sense of loss it feels on the sad passing of Mr Marven and extends to his family and friends our heartfelt sympathy to them in their sad bereavement.
(b) Achievements for KCC Legal Services
(8) The Chairman stated that he was pleased to announce that the work of KCC’s legal services team had been recognised with two major awards during the last couple of months.
(9) In October, Geoff Wild picked up the Legal Industry Pioneers Award at the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards on behalf of Legal Services. These were highly prestigious awards researched by the Financial Times and which covered the entire legal profession in the UK and across Europe.
(10) In November, Geoff also picked up the General Counsel of the Year Award at the British Legal Awards 2012.
(11) Neither of these awards had previously been won by an organisation in the public sector.
(12) In winning these awards, Kent County Council had been recognised ahead of major law firms and multinational companies, transforming the perception of public sector lawyers and the work of the Council. The Chairman stated that it was tremendous that the FT and the panel of judges recognised the real innovation and talent that existed and thrived in the public sector. This was a great achievement for KCC Legal Services and for Geoff personally, something which he, the Chairman, thought should be applauded.
(c) Olympics 2012 DVD
(13) The Chairman had agreed to show a short DVD telling the story of the year 2012 in Kent in relation to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
(14) He stated that this DVD would remind the Council of the enormous commitment and energy shown by so many people in Kent, and the impact that the Games had in Kent. He stated that there were of course key projects and programmes being put in place to drive the Games’ legacy in terms of volunteering, sport, tourism, schools, the arts and other sectors but above all, one of the most significant outcomes in Kent had been the forging of new and stronger partnerships created as a consequence of the Games. This would be the real lasting legacy of 2012.
(d) Honorary Alderman
(15) The Chairman announced that he would adjourn the meeting sometime between 12.30pm and 12.45pm to enable the additional meeting for the Honorary Alderman to take place immediately before the lunch interval.
(e) Chairman’s lunch
(16) The Chairman announced that he had extended an invitation to all staff to join him for a festive reception in the Atrium at Invicta House at 1pm. He hoped that all Members would assist him in wishing staff a Merry Christmas, and thank them for all their efforts on our behalf in 2012.