Agenda and minutes

The Chair will introduce those present and make any necessary announcements.

The Chair and any other Councillors who are present will make any declarations as required by the Councillors’ Code of Conduct.

Councillor Cassidy as Chair led on introductions and welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Members were asked to declare any interest they might have in the agenda  items to be discussed. No declarations of interest were made.

Apologies were received from the Leicestershire Police representative.

The Action Log of the Fosse Ward Community Meeting held on 6 December 2022 is attached, and Members will be asked to confirm them as a correct record.

The Action Log of the previous meeting held on 6 December 2022 was confirmed as a correct record.

Councillors will provide an update on recent activities in the Ward.

The Chair invited a recipient of the Ward Community Budget to speak on their usage of the budget. It was noted:

·       The budget had been used towards a weekend trip for 15 children to the Woodgate camp in October 2022, where it helped them to make friends, new memories and overcome fears.

·       Future plans included a family fun day for the 40^th Anniversary of the PGL in the community and welcomed ideas and participations from members of the public.

·       A Woodgate camp picture board was present at the meeting.

It was noted that PGL was a facility that helped schools and groups to provide activities for children between ages 6-14.

The Chair thanked the representative for the update

The Ward Councillors provided feedback about the latest activities and priorities in the ward, which noted the following:

·       The Woodgate Food Bank had been moved into an annexe at the Neighbourhood Centre, which helped to feed over 130 families weekly.

·       It was noted that it was unlikely for residents around Tudor Road to install a residential parking scheme due to lack of interest during consultation periods. Another scheme had been considered for the Woodgate area and would be going to consultation to assess demand.

·       Ward Community Budget had been spent on a blue plaque commemoration suffragette Alice Hawkins, which had been installed outside 18 Mantle Road. Further discussions, speeches and exhibitions had been conducted in collaboration with the suffragette’s grandson.

·       Members of the public had been reminded about the new government guideline for Voter ID when voting in the upcoming election and the forms of ID accepted.

A member of the Traffic Operations Team will provide an update on Highways related matters in the Ward.

Rupert Bedder, Highways Network Asset Manager, was present to provide an update on Highways related issues in the Ward. The following points were raised:

·       Work had been underway for a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) on Medina Road.

·       Fosse Mead Primary School road markings had since been changed following determination that older markings were unlawful.

·       School Sting operations were active on Tudor Road in a combined team with Leicestershire Police and Traffic Wardens, which involved same day fines and next day reports.

·       The Traffic Regulations team had contacted ward councillors regarding a designated pick up and drop off area for Fosse Mead Primary School.

·       A residential parking scheme around Tudor Road would not be progressed and Highways were looking at local measures to alleviate traffic issues in the area.

·       26 residents had provided feedback on a Woodgate Residential Parking Scheme. Members of the public could access the ongoing consultations on the Leicester City Council Website.

·       Work had recently started on the FiveWays junction. Stephensons Drive was noted to be closed between 19^th and 26^th March 2023 to resurface the area and make the road one-way. The work would be carried out from Easter to October 2023.

·       Work had been underway on Buckminster Road and the road closure at the top of the street had been removed.

·       A 20 mile per hour road scheme was being considered for Horestead Avenue to FiveWays junction.

A member of the public raised concern about the number of residents in favour being a minority during parking schemes in comparison to the population that had not responded or responded against.

A member of the public raised concern about the confusing signage at FiveWays junction. ACTION: The Highways Officer agreed to take back and review concerns.

A member of the public enquired about if the yellow box on Central Road Church Street would be removed. It was noted that actions were still being discussed and would be fed back to the public through ward councillors when an action had been decided.

Officers from Leicestershire Police will be at the meeting to provide an update on police issues in the Ward.

The apologies of the representative for the Leicestershire Police was noted and a written update had been provided and relayed by the Ward Community Engagement Officer.

Members of the public raised concern about the number of instances involving illegal substances occuring in the ward.

The Chair thanked officers for the report.

The City Warden will give an update on issues in the Ward.

City Warden, Kelly James, was present to provide an update on warden related issues in the ward. The following was noted:

·       The Bins on Streets project continued in the ward to reduce the number of bins left on the streets. Latest issues involved local businesses leaving out bins on the streets and the City Warden was working to reduce bin sizes for commercial properties to allow for easier containment. Planning had gotten involved for a business on Blackbird Road due to lack of Council jurisdiction on private alleyways.

·       Dog fouling complaints had been received around Warrick Street. Members of the public were encouraged to report any dog fouling instances to the warden.

·       Fly tipping was noted to be an ongoing issue in certain areas of the ward and the warden had distributed letters and leaflets to educate members of the public about correct disposal of waste. If evidence was found at a tip zone, legal action would be taken.

·       The City Warden noted a mid-March spring clean up event in the ward and recommended members of the public report areas of concern to arrange to be cleaned up.

·       Following discussion with a member of the public, it was noted that the City Warden would take greater care to provide information on Fly-tipping, as the word may be obscure for some residing in the ward.

A member of the public raised concern about commercial bins outside Lidl on Fosse Road North. The City Warden noted the concern and agreed to take back and investigate.

A member of the public raised concern about rubbish on Dunton Street. The City Warden noted the concern and agreed to take back and investigate.

Councillors are reminded that under the Council’s Code of Conduct they should declare any interest they may have in budget applications

The Ward Community Engagement Officer provided an update on the Fosse Ward Community Budget. It was noted that six applications were currently awaiting decision, which would be reallocated to the next municipal year’s budget.

A member of the public requested a representative of the River and Canal Trust attend the next meeting due to concerns about the state of the river.

ACTION: The Ward Community Engagement Officer to invite a representative from the River and Canal Trust, as well as David Beale, Programme Manager, Planning, Development and Control, to attend the next meeting with an update on the surround areas and river.

There being no other business, the meeting closed at 7pm.