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 Rae Bhatia as Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and introductions were given.

An apology for absence was received from Sergeant Ian Parker of Leicestershire Police.

The Action Log of the previous meeting held 31 October 2018 is attached for information and discussion.

The Action Log of the previous meeting held 31 October 2018 was agreed as correct.

John Calvert Court site

The Community Engagement Officer, Punum Patel, had emailed Housing regarding a meeting to discuss options and would forward details to Alison Morrish.

Noise Nuisance

The Community Engagement Officer confirmed that the Noise Team had been contacted.

Fire in private house caused by fire in council house

The occupant of a private house that had been damaged as a result of a fire in the neighbouring council property expressed dissatisfaction with how the council were dealing with his claims.

Councillor Rae Bhatia stated that as this was a legal matter Councillors could not discuss such issues in a public meeting.

The Councillors will provide an update on ward related matters.

Councillor Waddington reported that:

·         Changes to the use of former Leicester City Council buildings in the area had been a success, i.e. the Home Farm Neighbourhood Centre now being owned and run by Beaumont Leys Muslims and the former Housing office in Home Farm now being owned and run by E2.  It was hoped the Beaumont Lodge Building would develop well with the Neighbourhood Association.

·         500+ children had taken part in summer activities as part of the holiday hunger programme, organised by various voluntary programmes and Christ the King Church.  Crime rates had reduced compared to previous summers.

·         The E2 foodbank (open every Friday) had fed thousands of people in need.

Councillor Waddington thanked people and teams including: The Housing Team, Beaumont Leys Library, the City Warden and Sgt Ian Parker/Leicestershire Police.

Councillor Westley reported that:

·         Patch walks had taken place throughout the ward to tackle fly tipping.

·         It was hoped community projects for elderly people and children at Barley Croft would continue.

A worker from E2 raised the point that youth workers had been working for 18 months with young people at-risk of becoming involved in or victims of knife crime.  The police had given this group a contract for peer education on the issue of knife crime.

Councillor Rae Bhatia gave an update on highways issues in the ward. Including:

·         Factory workers parking cars on Croft Road were causing traffic problems.  Residents were being consulted on the issue. Action: Councillor Rae Bhatia to explore options for parking enforcement.

·         Work had begun to dual carriage Anstey Lane around the junction with the A46.  Trees cut down in the area would be re-placed.

·         Complaints had been received about speed bumps on Ashton Green Road causing damage to vehicles and that issue was being addressed.

·         Drivers were hazardously creating two lanes on a single lane area on Glenfrith Way.  Ameeting was to be held on 28^th February to discuss this issue.

·         Concern was expressed over school run traffic issues.  It was suggested that schools need to dissuade parents from using cars if they live nearby.

·         A bike-sharing scheme was to be implemented with Beaumont Leys getting priority after the city centre.

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

PCSO Paige Martin and PCSO Aaron Wheatley gave an update on local policing issues across the ward and crime statistics were noted.  Points made during the update included:

·         Burglaries were being tackled and arrests had been made. 

·         Knife crime was an issue force-wide. Patrols had been made to hotspots across Beaumont Leys.

·         Operation Wham had been implemented in Leicester and Loughborough to tackle drug-related crime and county lines crime.

·         There had been a number of motorcycle issues and stolen/broken motorbikes had been removed from the street.

·         PC Matt Lapidge had transferred to the New Parks area.

·         There were currently 5 PCSOs for the Beaumont Leys area.  A recruitment drive for Leicestershire Police saw.  107 PCs had been recruited this year, and more PCSOs would be recruited in September.

·         Police involvement with schools continued to promote prevention of drugs and knife crime.

A resident raised the fact that the E2 Centre had been broken into and praised the police for the work they did on the case.

The Police mentioned a gang-related stabbing incident on Eskdale Road in which 5 arrests had been made.  The suspects were now on pending further investigation.  There was a brief discussion about concerns in the community and it was, suggested that more could be done to alleviate this fear and reduce gang violence, and there was a need for a long-term programme of action to make people feel safer.

Councillor Rae Bhatia asked what measures were taken to compensate for the diversion of police on match days?  PCSO Martin replied that Leicester was second-most populated with CCTV cameras after London, and this along with the recruitment drive aided police coverage.

A resident suggested producing leaflets and holding drop-in sessions to reach out to people who wanted help avoiding becoming involved with crime.

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

City Warden Charlotte Williams-Glover gave an update on issues in the ward.  Including:

·         Councillors had been met to discuss fly-tipping issues.  Posters had been created for hotspot sites.  Residents were encouraged to report any fly-tipping hotspots.

·         There had been incidents of fly-posting in the ward and one firm was being prosecuted.

·         There had been an increase in reports of dog fouling in the ward.  Stencilled warnings could be put down in spring.

·         RE:  The issue of bins on the street on Bishopdale Road, people responsible would be fined if the issue continued but the process may take up to 3 months.

Action: City Warden to distribute leaflets with contact details for bulk waste collections etc to libraries and community centres within the ward.

Action: City Warden and Councillor Westley to talk to City Cleansing about the procedure for clearing out items from a burned-out house.

Action: City Warden to investigate fly-tipping on Littlewood Close.

A local housing officer will be present to provide an update on housing related

issues in the Beaumont Leys Ward.

Neighbourhood Housing Officer Alison Morrish gave an update on housing issues in the ward which included the following:

·         16 projects undertaken including knee-rail fencing, shrubbery removals, bin areas and painting projects, had been undertaken.  One was not yet completed due to cost issues.  £2000 was left in the budget for future projects.

·         Between November and January there had been 41 voids.  Currently in Beaumont Leys there were 43 voids and 135 properties had been let in the past year.

·         There had been 93 ASB cases dealt with in 2018.

·         There had been three evictions from November to January.  Two due to rent arrears and one due to an ASBO.

·         The Housing team had been working with the police to tackle motorbikes/quadbikes being used in an antisocial way on estates in the ward.

·         Tenancy visits were no longer carried out due to a lack of resources.  Housing repairs were dealt with by the Repairs team, not the Housing team.

Concerns were expressed concern over the amount of empty properties, long delays with voids, and unacceptable time taken on repairs and maintenance. 

Concerns also expressed concern about evictions due to the introduction of Universal Credit.  Councillors were advised that eviction proceedings were taken as a last resort and other solutions such as discretionary housing payments were looked into first.   

An officer will be present to provide information on the Adult Skills and Learning Service.

Anna Parr and Salado Ahmed of Leicester Adult Skills and Learning Service gave a presentation on courses and programmes that they offered.  Including:

·         Courses in work improvement and career development that were free to all.

·         Level 1 and 2 qualifications, free to people on various benefits or earning less than £15736.50 p/a.

·         Courses in English, Maths and English as a Second Language (ESOL).

·         A wide range of community arts and leisure courses at £1.80 per hour.

·         Universal Credit and digital support sessions across the city including the Central Library and Jobcentre Plus buildings.

·         LASALS had implemented a research project in Beaumont Leys, running focus groups and people were encouraged to take part in these focus groups which could be arranged at a convenient date/time.

Councillor Waddington suggested that specific groups could be engaged with practical courses in textiles/sewing combined with ESOL tuition.  Salado Ahmed responded that this was the kind of project that the scheme was looking into.

Councillor Rae Bhatia commented local employers would be engaged in the hope of opening paths to better employment.

An Officer will be present at the meeting to give a presentation on Crowd Fund Leicester.

Graduate Project Officer Kirsty Wootton gave a presentation on Crowdfund Leicester. 

·         To create or fund projects access the website www.spacehive.com/movement/crowdfundleicester.

·         Crowdfund Leicester were working with local organisations such as DDT Consultancy and De Montfort University.

·         Spacehive were linking them with backers.

·         Under the City Mayor’s Community Engagement Fund, up to £10,000 could be given for each project, or up to 50% of the total funding.

·         The City Mayor’s Land Offer aimed at making better use of land across the city and could see groups and organisations making use of areas of land.

·         Under the above schemes a number of projects had been backed and/or could be pledged to via the website including:

o   Improving accessibility at Gorse Hill City Farm

o   The ‘Stop Fighting and Unite’ project- working with young people to avoid them becoming involved in violent crime.

o   The ‘Find a Voice’ project creating daytime activities for homeless people in order to help them gain confidence.

o   A drama workshop to help children look after their health.

o   The ‘Crafty Carers’ scheme to help carers meet similar people and do activities with them.

o   The Urban Equestrian Centre which organises horse riding for inner-city children.

o   Play-busses in the summer holidays.

A resident referred to a project to create sports facilities in the Home Farm area that had not met the funding target and enquired as to the situation,

Councillor Waddington confirmed that she had agreed with the proposal when asked by the City Mayor and Councillor Rae Bhatia indicated he had offered to personally contribute towards the project before it fell through.

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

An update will be given on the Ward Community Meeting budget.

The community engagement officer gave an update on the ward community budget and informed those present that 7 applications had been supported since the last meeting as follows:

·         Heathley Park Residents Association- Heathley Park Residents Annual gathering/party. £500

·         Christ the King Church- Foodbus at Christ the King. £500

·         Barleycroft Community Centre- Socharo dance. £475

·         African Network Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland- Community Networking & Awards to Local Young People. £475

·         Barleycroft Community Centre- Yoga for All. £245

·         Stocking Farm and Beaumont Leys PCC- Reality Youth Bus at Stocking Farm. £500

·         Soft Touch Arts- Upstart Programme. £997

It was noted that the community budget 8/19 had been spent in full and any further applications would be considered in the new financial year.

Councillor Waddington expressed some reservations about three proposals recommended for approval which officers had proposed be rejected, including concern over continuation of the summer holiday scheme if funding was only approved in June.

It was noted that a majority decision by Ward members to support the three applications had been made, which had now been sent to the Executive Member for approval.

Councillors Rae Bhatia and Westley stated that due to the up-coming election a decision on the summer holiday scheme could not be made, but there was commitment to support the scheme should Members be re-elected.

Councillor Rae Bhatia confirmed emails regarding the private house that had been damaged as a result of a fire in the neighbouring council property had been forwarded to Councillor Waddington.

An invitation was extended to those present to join a volunteer day led by De Montfort University, with volunteers from Beaumont Leys Library to do a litter-pick on 1 March 2019.

There being no other business, the meeting closed at 7:53PM