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.

Apologies were received from Alan Fox – South Highfield Neighbours (SHN) and Darren Evans – City Warden.

There were no declarations of interest.

The Action Log of the Meeting held on 10 August 2017 is attached at Appendix A and Members are asked to confirm it as an accurate record. Any update on actions taken since the last meeting will be reported at the meeting.

The Action Log of the previous meeting held on 10 August 2017 was confirmed as a correct record.

Update on issues in the minutes:

·         Councillor Chaplin gave apologies to residents of St Philips Road and Stoughton Drive North for not yet being able to meet with them as previously noted.

·         Councillor Chaplin noted that the knife crime petition had been drafted and would be forwarded to the other Ward Councillors and to the main resident in the ward who was dealing with this issue.

·         Page 2 – Ward Councillor’s feedback – Planning application for 208 London Road, hobby garden - It was noted that since the last meeting the conditions for the planning permission had been breached as the boundary wall was reported to now be damaged. Planning officers had now been notified.

The Stoneygate Ward Councillors will provide an update on the issues they have been dealing with in the Stoneygate Ward.

Stoneygate Ward Councillors provided an update on the issues they had been dealing with in the ward and activities they had been involved in since the last meeting. The following was discussed.

Councillor Thalukdar:

·         Informed the meeting of the positive news that the Glenfield hospital children’s heart department would remain open.

·         Works which had taken place regarding constituents and their housing issues.

·         A fighting incident which had taken place on Seymour Street had now been dealt with.

Councillor Master:

·         Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB)/ Policing issues on Evington Road and St James Road needed to be addressed with the Police.

·         It was noted that another patch walk in the Ward would probably be appropriate.

·         The issue concerning the gates on St James Road should now be resolved – resident to forward email received from Officer about this to Ward Councillors.

·         Parking concerns in the ward including:

o   The Residents Parking Scheme

o   Ward Councillors with Highways would be looking into a number of potential developments such as Double Yellow Line (DYL) extensions, taking out bays etc.

o   A Highways scheme would include developments on St Stephens Road.

·         Section 106 fund – which were developers contributions towards Council schemes – a meeting would be organised to consider what developments in the ward the fund could be used for e.g. improvements around Cedar Park, Upper Tichbourne Street and other plots of empty land.

·         Other issues noted by Councillor Master included; litter around Evington Road shops/ takeaways and the recent Eyres Monsell by-election.

·         Stanley Road old Leicester university building – there were some issues that some properties located at the front and back had been turned into Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO’s). Communication with the Planning team was in progress and possible action would be taken.

·         Universal Credit (UC) full service would be rolled out in June 2018.

Councillor Chaplin updates (under the various heading below):

·         It was noted that Councillor Chaplin’s next advice surgery would take place on 16 December at Dashwood Road. Next year’s venues would include Dashwood Road and St Philips – Evington Road Neighbourhood Association (ERNA).

·         The various Scrutiny Commissions, of which she was a member and details of reports being presented, were mentioned.

Planning Applications;

·         11 Elmfield Avenue – demolition of building, to build a care home. Councillor Chaplin had raised points to the relevant Officers about the impact on the community and requested a site visit.

·         University of Leicester Brookfield Site – Councillor Chaplin met with university staff, The Registrar and Head of Estates all of whom expressed concerns regarding the impact on the community and other aspects of the development. It was anticipated that the applications would soon be considered at the Planning and Development Control Committee (PDC).

Questions from Councillor Chaplin at Full Council;

·         Councillor Chaplin queried fire safety in all Council homes, homelessness and investing in specialist facilities for those with complex mental health issues.

In relation to the planned capital programme, Councillor Chaplin requested;

·         Eid lights for St Stephens Road

·         The development of Cedar Park  ...  view the full minutes text for item 76.

There will be a presentation on the work/ activities being carried out in relation to the Dawn Centre and the Stoneygate Ward.

There was no officer present to report on this agenda item.

A Highways update will be delivered on highways and transport works taking place in the ward.

Robert Bateman (Special Projects Manager for Planning, Development and Transportation) discussed works taking place in the ward. The following was noted;

·         Leicester Islamic Academy – measures such as bollards were now in place.

·         Highways had been going into a number of schools to develop techniques to change parking behaviours. Schemes such as living streets, park and ride were being encouraged to children and parents.

·         Evington Valley School – pencil bollards had been installed.

·         Evington Valley Gardens opposite Pak foods – bollards had been installed.

·         Myrtle Road/ Cedar Road – a bollard had been repositioned.

Stoughton Drive North;

·         Highways had considered that refuge islands would be useful near the two way road and four crossing points. In addition, it was planned for a beacon to be placed on the crossing with the long stretch and be re-aligned.

·         Robert commented that it was a requirement to do a stage 2 consultation which was the safety order/ report, especially as there were small changes to the initial consultation.

·         Following this Councillor Master noted that it would be taken to Executive and then moved onto the next stage.

·         Councillor Master further noted that at some point all local residents would be sent letters with the ideas and potential plans. Following this, residents could respond and a public meeting take place to feedback.

·         Councillor Chaplin requested a start date prior to the next meeting. Robert informed the meeting that he would try, however it was first necessary to carry out the safety audit (stage 2 consultation).

·         Residents were thanked by Robert and Councillor Chaplin for their involvement and feedback in this process.

Bartholomew Street;

·         One resident had concerns that Bartholomew Street was over targeted by traffic enforcement officers due to one resident complaining regularly. Councillor Master felt that that the enforcement team did not operate in this way but would look into this.

·         The resident also requested figures for the number of tickets issued to permit holders on that street. It was further commented that there were difficulties finding spaces to park in residents parking permit zones on this street.

The City Warden will give an update on environment and enforcement activities in the Stoneygate Ward.

The City Warden had sent apologies for absence.

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

PCSO Sam Trantom attended the meeting and provided crime statistics for the ward some of which had reduced since last year except Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) crime which had increased.

·         It was noted that a new CCTV camera had been installed on St James Road due to calls regarding ASB.

·         Following concerns about the Police not making instant contact with victims of burglaries - PCSO Trantom explained the priority Police handling system. Councillor Chaplin requested whether this process could be explained to victims when they call up.

Crime & ASB Team;

·         Fatema Burani (Crime & ASB Officer) was present at the meeting, gave an introduction as the Officer for the East of the City and explained the work her team carried out which was to mainly investigate ASB/ crime complaints.

·         Anything that could not be dealt with by the team would be forwarded to the correct department or partner organisation such as the Police.

·         Councillor Chaplin requested the contact numbers for Fatema and her team so that these details could be forwarded to community groups.

·         A representative from one of the community groups also stated that they could make a flyer with any relevant information provided from the team that could be displayed in community group notice boards.

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

An update on the Ward Community Budget will be provided at the meeting.

Laura Burt – Ward Community and Engagement Officer gave an update on the Ward Community Budget.

Since the last meeting it was noted that the below four applications had been supported;

·         Highfield Sports - £750

·         Jamaica Community Service Group/ West Indian Senior Citizens project - £700

·         Evington Valley Primary School - £421

·         Community Learning Project - £500

The remaining balance was reported as £12,790.33.

A resident spoke of a potential project/ campaign he was anticipating which would highlight Asian and African Caribbean people in sports professions. Councillor Chaplin noted that when the resident was ready a meeting could possibly be held with the City Mayor and the Executive Member with that portfolio.