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.

Cllr Shelton welcomed everyone and led the introductions.

No declarations of interest were made.

Apologies were received from Alan and Ann Sturgess, Chizor Onbwuegbute, Sue and Herbert Eppel.

Attached for information is the Action Log from the last Saffron Ward community meeting.

Page 3, Minute Item 76, Police Update

The reporting of police crime statistics – Councillors had met with the new Sergeant along with Community Safety Officers. The non-reporting of statistics was city-wide. It was reiterated that statistics were a conversation starter with the police, and residents wanted to continue to receive them to be kept informed of issues in the areas where they lived. The police took the comments on board.

Page 1, Minute Item 75, Councillors’ Report

·         The shops on St Andrews had been fully demolished.

·         A litter pick was arranged for 23/10/18, 2.00pm at Aylestone Recreation Ground (pavilion).

·         Boundary Road noise complaints – there had been no response from the company, but presumed issues had been resolved, as there were no further complaints.

·         Treatment of Japanese knotweed on Shakespeare Street was being sorted.

·         Terry Rogers had now received his British Empire Medal (BME) for services to the community.

Councillors will provide an update on ward information.

·         Proposed changes to the Saffron sports arena were discussed. Councillors had received emails and letters from users. A meeting was planned with the Council’s Arts, Culture and Leisure department to discuss the proposal. Misinformation had been circulated – the athletics part of the stadium was not affected, and the football / American football would be located inside the track. There would be a period of consultation with users which had been lacking. A correct balance was needed to ensure athletics was not affected adversely. Domestic not professional large team would use the area, so should not adversely affect parking in the area.

·         Phase 2 of the housing development still had planning permission valid for another year, but Westley had said it was not viable and nothing was currently happening to the site.

·         Two tents had moved from the stadium to the Leisure Centre. There had been no safeguarding issues raised by the Leisure Centre.

·         There was understood to be a significant Muslim population in the Saffron Lane area, who were looking for space for a Madrassa. Councillors had met with Community Safety Officers as they wanted to foster good community relations following some tension in the area.

·         Councillor Cutkelvin had been asked to become a School Governor at Marriott Primary School.

·         The level of affordable housing at the St Mary’s development had been checked, and at 70% was good.

·         A meeting had been held with Sgt. Steve Power and PC Lewis Dedmen-Ert, who was very proactive and had a good reputation in the ward.

·         Rendering along the Fairway was starting to peel off some buildings, possibly due to cold weather. A company would be coming into re-render.

·         Councillor Shelton gave occasional talks to students at DMU on the role of a Councillor.

·         The Brass of the Saff had received crowd funding supported by the local authority, and would be invited to the Christmas event.

There will be a presentation on Health Watch and the services provided.

Attendees were asked to note an update from Gillian Jillett, Healthwatch Leicester and Leicestershire (information attached). Points made during the update included:

·         The two Healthwatch in Leicester and Leicestershire were merged in 2017.

·         It was a community interest company – not for profit, and was an independent voice for the people of Leicester and Leicestershire.

·         A team of four people covered the area, with two people covering Leicester (Gillian Jillett and Gemma Baron).

·         By attending the meetings and speaking with residents, insight could be gained on how Healthwatch could improve.

·         General Practices (GPs) and care homes were visited, and suggested improvements made.

·         Seven new emergency dental units were available in Leicester and Leicestershire, and were open seven days a week, 8.00am – 8.00pm.

·         A survey was undertaken at GP surgeries about appointments. People could be asked to see nursing practitioners instead of a GP.

·         Maternity and neonatal units had also been looked at.

·         Included in the literature was information on volunteering (attached).

Councillors said Healthwatch had almost the same powers as Ofsted in terms of inspecting GP practices, care homes, etc., and was an important role. If anyone had any concerns about changes in the city, the first point of call was Healthwatch.

In response to a question on the transfer of care units at Leicester General Hospital to the Leicester Royal Infirmary, Gillian informed the meeting that at meetings of the Health Scrutiny Commission it had been stated that the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) should have consulted on the decision to move the units. The CCGs were going to hold a number of engagement events to consult on the reconfiguration of services – information and dates of events could be found on the Leicester City CCG website.

In response to a request, Gillian would also check the database for mental health support groups in Leicester, for the Eyres Monsell area.

There will be a discussion on Dog Patrols and regulations.

Rosie Bryans, (Dog Warden for the whole city / pest control officer), was present to provide information on a dog warden’s role and legislation. The following points were made:

·         It was a statutory duty to pick up stray dogs. A dog out of a property without its owner was classed as a stray dog.

·         The officer also dealt with dog nuisance, dogs off leads and dog control orders for fouling. It became a police matter when a dog bit.

·         The officer would intervene if a dog was frightening residents and/or a complaint was received. Enforcement took the form of community notices, letters to owners and control orders.

·         The officer investigated complaints and if a warning letter was sent to the dog owner, the complainant would be informed of the outcome.

·         The officer liaised with city wardens on Community Protection Notice (CPN) orders to a person responsible for a dog to stop or control its behaviour. If a child was walking a dog, the CPN would be served on the owner / householder.

·         Legislation and microchipping had helped with the control of dogs.

·         An out of hours warden operated until 9.00pm.

·         Stray dogs were picked up as soon as possible as the warden was city-based, and between 2,000-3,000 were picked up each year. There was a 24-hour response for dangerous dogs.

·         There were no longer kennels at Police stations.

·         Dog laws went back to 1871, with only one amendment in 1991. 38 dogs had killed people between 1991 and 2016, of which 28 of them were illegal breeds.

·         There were four banned breeds: Pit Bull terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino and Fila Braziliero. There should be no Pit Bull terriers in the UK, but wardens were still picking them up.

·         Saffron had at one time an issue with problem dogs, particularly long-legged Staffordshire Terriers, but had no more issues than other areas in the city.

Those present at the meeting believed that all dogs should be on a lead.

The Dog Wardens would be invited to the Aylestone Residents Group.

There will be an update from the Private Rented Housing Team.

Alison Lea, Team Manager, Neighbourhoods and Environmental Services was present to discuss issues around private sector housing and housing associations. The following information was provided:

·         There was a team that dealt with concerns raised by tenants regarding disrepair in private rented houses / or housing associations.

·         A telephone assessment would be done with the tenant. Sometimes the landlord would be written to asking them to sort out issues. The tenant would be asked to contact the team if nothing was solved by the landlord.

·         For more serious problems, the team inspected problems raised by tenants. The landlord would then be given a deadline for the repair(s) to be made.

·         Improvement notices can be served, and non-compliance could result in a criminal conviction.

·         The Council could also carry out work for the tenant and invoice the landlord for the work and officer time. Prosecution of the landlord could on occasion be brought.

·         The team also dealt with Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs). A change in legislation on 1^st October 2018 required a HMO to be licensed irrespective of size and have a maximum number of tenants to prevent over-crowding.

In response to questions, the following responses were made:

·         A private tenant who had contacted their landlord with issues and was subsequently evicted was called a retaliatory eviction and was illegal. Housing Options at the Council dealt with tenants who had faced eviction. It was not an uncommon fear for tenants that a landlord would evict them if they complained.

·         In the ‘Nut’ and ‘Lake’ streets which were Article 4 areas, no more houses could be converted to HMOs.

·         It was suggested that people of the Millennial generation would have a lifetime of renting, and the fear of retaliatory eviction, intimidation, rent increases and stress would affect mental health and wellbeing.

·         It was noted there was some central government consultation on the minimum length of tenancies, as some unscrupulous landlords only wanted short-term lets so they could evict tenants and put rent up. Also some landlords were not renting to people on benefits. Councillors suggested the subject should be raised with the authority.

·         Not many private rent properties were advertised. People were advised to also contact housing associations for properties.

·         By law there had to be an annual gas safety check to ensure appliances were safe.

·         Tenants had a legal right to know who their landlord was, and the private sector housing team could find the information for tenants.

·         Landlords could end up with a criminal record and be placed on the rogue landlord database. For some offences there was a limitless fine.

There will be an update from the Saffron Ward Housing Team.

Alpa Shah, Neighbourhood Housing Officer, gave the following update:

·         Officers were working on projects for the new financial year. Suggestions could be forwarded to the Housing Team.

·         The Team would be submitting an application for ward funding. It was suggested the money could be used along the Fairway to smarten up fences.

·         Not all council houses were on Council estates, and could be in terraced house areas, etc.

The City Warden will be present to talk about any environmental works within Saffron Ward.

Noel Cazley, City Warden, provided the following information:

·         Abatement Notices had been issued for messy gardens – notices could include council as well as private properties. Officers needed a warrant to go onto private property.

·         If waste accumulated in alleyways, a Section 78 (alleyway letter) would be sent to all who, where stated on deeds, had access to the alleyway – even if it was known the waste came from one property.

·         The City Warden requested funding from the ward budget to pay Waste Management, rather than having to give them a cost code.

·         Alleyway gates were effective as keeping alleyways clear, for example, New Park Street – gates were erected free of charge and there had been no further issues. Residents had been told they had to keep the area clear.

·         The cost of waste removal varied, for example, costs escalated if it was asbestos removal. The land owner would be contacted, and if a tenant was in the property notice would be served on them also to reclaim costs.

·         Work in St Andrews for Bins on Streets – there were now hardly any bins causing an obstruction, and fly tipping had dramatically improved.

·         If a household of three people received a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) that was not paid, it would go to court and all three people would get an FPN at £80, which then increased to £480 following non-payment, and each person would be chased by the Debt Team.

·         When students left a property in July their waste became commercial waste. Some landlords renovating properties had been using the recycling centres to dispose of the commercial waste, and had been issued £300 FPNs.

·         Vans carrying waste were being photographed and asked to show their waste carriers permit. For non-compliance there was a fine. Some landlords were using unregistered ‘Man & Van’ to dispose of waste. Now the licensed HMOs were noted, and a Section 34 would be served to find out where renovation waste had gone.

·         To Let signs in the ‘Nut’ streets and St Andrews were now enforced through Planning.

·         People using the Love Leicester App should always stand a decent distance from the item and wait until the picture is uploaded so an accurate GPS location was given.

The Local Police Team will be present to talk about Policing matters in Saffron Ward.

PCSO Jackie Moore was present to update the meeting with the following.

·         The area around Freeman was reported as quiet. Burglaries had taken place mainly around Oadby and Knighton.

·         On Aylestone Fields ‘Tick Tock’ park there had been two burnt-out motor vehicles which had smashed through fences. These had been recovered with difficulty, and another vehicle had since gone through the fence again. The officer asked if something could be erected to prevent vehicles being able to enter the park. Councillors would look into the issue, for example, metal fencing, soil bumps, boulders.

·         There would be a knife crime talk at the Kingfisher Centre on 1^st November 2018, to be presented by PC Lewis Dedmen-Urt. Councillors would be invited.

·         Parents were present at schools with knives, not so much in the Saffron area, but in Eyres Monsell it was an issue.

Residents reported that on the mud dumps, all bushes had been cut back, and was a better route for the children.

It was also noted that on Grampian Close, boys on bikes were playing ‘Chicken’ with cars.

Highways had been out to Cheviot Road to look at extending the pavement round, drop the kerb and cut shrubbery.

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

An update will be given on the Ward Community budget.

The following applications for Ward Funding had been approved:

·         Joint application with Eyres Monsell and Western – Nigerian Community Association local community trip to the seaside – supported £1,000

·         Joint application with Eyres Monsell and Fosse – Leicester Ivorian Association, Ivory Coast National Day celebration – supported £100

·         Joint application with Aylestone – Pork Pie and Aylestone Libraries, Mischief Makers launch day event – supported £50

·         Live for Life community group, Fun Day Saffron / Eyres Monsell – supported £350

·         Joint application with Castle – Leicestershire MS Therapy Centre, Road Sign for Awareness – to be announced.

Balance £14,229.50

Councillors would talk to Housing and the City Warden to discuss potential bids.

The applicant from Leicester Banks Petanque Sports Group was present and gave feedback and thanks for the funding received earlier in the year.

Those present were asked to note the Christmas Event would be held on 7 December.

The Christmas Pantomime (date to be confirmed) was coming up.

Christmas Event – 7 December

There being no other items of business, the meeting closed at 8.00pm.