Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies for absence.

The first main item on the agenda is Declarations of Interest where Councillors have to say if there is anything on the agenda they have a personal interest in. For example if a meeting was due to discuss a budget application put forward by a community group and one of the Councillors was a member of that group, they would not be able to take part in the decision on that budget application.

Members are asked to declare any interests they may have in the business to be discussed

There were no declarations of interest.

The minutes of the previous Rushey Mead Community Meeting held on Thursday 9 January 2014 are attached, and Members will be asked to confirm them as a correct record.

RESOLVED:

that the minutes of the previous meeting held on Thursday 9 January 2014 be agreed as a correct record.

A member of the public queried whether any progress had been made in investigating the parking problems at Mellor Primary School and Soar Valley College.

The Chair responded that Sue Cutler, the Contract Manager from the Environmental and Enforcement Team had said at the meeting that she would need to add the work into the current work programme but this would take some time.  PCSO Claire Tothill explained that Sue Cutler had been out with them to Mellor Primary School; there were no double yellow lines or parking restrictions there and she suggested that the issues at Mellor Primary really needed to be addressed by the council.

It was noted that at the previous meeting there had been a suggestion from a resident to close the pedestrian access to the school from Clarke Street and an offer was made to approach Mellor Primary School to pass on this suggestion. The Chair asked the Democratic Support Officer to check to see if this had been actioned.

Transport officers will deliver a presentation on bus “pinch points”. A “pinch point” is anything that holds up a bus on route (such as congestion, busy junctions and inconsiderately parked vehicles) and prevents it from keeping to its timetable. Members of the community will be invited to give their views on any locations of pinch points.

Mark Korczak from Leicester City Council Transport Strategy delivered a presentation on bus ‘pinch points’; these were anything that held up buses on route, such as congestion, busy junctions or inconsiderately parked vehicles. Mark’s presentation included the following points:

·         On 1 April 2014, the Department of Transport gave Leicester City £100,000 to try to address problems created by bus ‘pinch points’.

·         The views of bus drivers had already been sought and now members of the public were also invited to submit ideas and suggestions.

·         Once officers had a list of sites across the city, they would try to prioritise in order to get the best value from the funding granted.

Members of the public suggested that Marfitt Street and Humberstone Lane might be areas for consideration for this scheme. The Chair asked members of the public to let them know if they had any further suggestions, which they would pass on to the relevant officers in Transport Strategy.

A member of the public asked if any action could be taken to extend the bus route to the end of Barkby Thorpe Road which currently was not serviced by any of the bus companies. A number of new houses had been built by the roundabout but there was no bus service there. The Chair explained that the council had no influence over the bus companies but a letter could be sent to one of the bus companies to pass on this suggestion. It subsequently transpired that the member of the public who had raised the issue had previously spoken to Councillor Clair about the matter.

Hemali Thakar from the Home Energy Office will be present to provide information on a scheme which is designed to help people save money on their gas and electricity bills.

Hemali Thakar from the Leicester City Council Home Energy Office delivered a presentation on the Leicester ‘Ready to Switch’ scheme. Hemali made the following points:

·         ‘Ready to Switch’ was a collective scheme designed to help people save money on their gas and electricity bills.

·         Collective switching used consumer buying power to force down prices for fuel. It depended on usage but the scheme was designed to save bill payers up to £200 per year.

·         The latest report from the Department of Energy Climate Change showed that the collective fuel switching programme had helped people save an average of £131.

·         With this scheme, energy suppliers went into auction and competed against each other to bid for the lowest unit price / tariff they could offer.

·         The offer was fixed for 12 months as suppliers were bound by contact and had to offer this price regardless of how many people switched.

·         Once a successful bidder had been established, the offer was communicated to everyone who had registered for the scheme; the individual could then decide whether or not to proceed. There was no obligation to switch.

·         The previous auction had been held on 17 February 2014 and the next registration process would be held between 10 April and 9 June 2014. It was anticipated that letters with details of the offer would be sent out around the 20 June 2014 to all who had registered for the scheme. People would then have a month to decide.

Further details were available on line at:

www.readytoswitch.co.uk

or by phone to the Home Energy Office on 0116 221 117

Hemali was thanked for attending the meeting.

The Community Meeting will receive an update from the City Warden.

Jethro Swift, the local City Warden provided an update on the issues he had been dealing with in the Rushey Mead Ward. Jethro circulated a newsletter which is attached to the back of these minutes.

Members of the public made then raised a number of queries:

·         A concern was raised by a resident regarding rubbish, including bottles and cans, which had been dumped by a factory at the bottom of Woodbridge Road. The resident explained that she had raised this issue at the previous meeting in January, but the rubbish was still there. Jethro responded that he had visited the area the day after the previous meeting but couldn’t locate the problem area. The location of the factory in question was clarified and Jethro confirmed that he would revisit the area.

·         A resident reported that there was a problem with cars being parked on a footpath and on the pavement on Nicklaus Road. The resident was advised that the Police could take action if the vehicle was causing an obstruction and it was suggested that she call the Police with the precise location if there was a future problem.

·         A concern was raised relating to rubbish and litter by the fencing on Lockerbie Walk (close to the library and clinic). The meeting heard that people were frightened to walk around that area, and Councillors suggested that problems may be alleviated if there was more lighting there.

·         The Chair informed attendees that there was a new garden waste collection scheme, which cost £30 per year but there was a reduced price of £20 if people signed up before the end of April 2014.

Jethro was thanked for the City Warden update.

The Community Meeting will receive an update from a member of the local policing team.

Police Inspector McBryde-Wilding provided an update on policing issues in the Rushey Mead Ward. The following points were raised:

·         A Problem Solving Plan was still in place on Lockerbie Walk; there was an issue with drugs and youths gathering together there.  To tackle this there had been regular patrols by the police and problems had reduced dramatically; however the situation was still be monitored.

·         There had been a slight increase in burglaries. Volunteers had been out and about in the area, delivering leaflets giving advice on crime prevention.  Burglaries tended to be by gaining access through the rear of the properties and residents were reminded that even where a property might be secure at the front, it might be relatively straightforward to gain access to the back garden.

·         There had been incidences of cars being broken into; it was possibly the work of one person and the affected vehicles tended to be those where valuables were visible.

·         The Chair reported that there was a vehicle off the road, near to the roundabout close to the Leicester Outdoor Pursuits Centre.  the vehicle had been there for some time and A comment was made that the Police were aware as the vehicle had police tape round it. Jethro Swift, the City Warden suggested that the council liaise with the Police to try to get the vehicle moved.

Inspector McBryde-Wilding was thanked for attending the meeting.

Councillors are reminded that they will need to declare any interest they may have in budget applications, and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applies to them.

The meeting will receive an update on the Rushey Mead Community Meeting budget.

An evaluation of a previous funding application for a children’s Christmas party at the Church of our Lady of Good Counsel is attached.

The following applications met the fast track criteria and have been approved for payment:

Application 2897: to pay for rent for 2 day Soul to Soul Meditation events at the Rushey Mead Recreation Centre.

Submitted by Sushila Parmar and Jagruti Chauhan, group organisers for Soul to Soul Meditation.

Amount requested:£510

Amount paid: £255

Application 2898: rental at the Rushey Mead Recreation Centre for Soul to Soul Meditation sessions.

Submitted by Sushila Parmar and Jagruti Chauhan, group organisers for Soul to Soul Meditation

Amount requested: £248

Amount paid: £124

Application 2900: Provision and planting of tree in Jacklin Drive

Submitted by the Trees and Woodlands Service

Amount requested: £430

Amount agreed: £430

The following funding applications will be considered at the meeting:

Application 2988: Dance Workout

Submitted by: Lucy Bailey

Amount requested: £1152

Funding requested to provide free public dance session at the Rushey Mead Recreation Centre on Saturday mornings.

Application 2901: Rushey Mead Library – Leicester Young Readers’ Programme

Submitted by: Mary Pringle, Senior Community Librarian

Amount requested: £1,000

The library in junction with Herrick Primary School aim to hold a young readers’ programme and funding is requested to fund the book gifting part of the project, which will  allow 100 year 3 and 4 children to choose and keep 2  books each from a selection of excellent titles. 

The Chair presented the community meeting budget and explained that the following applications had been fast tracked for payment.

The following applications met the fast track criteria and have been approved for payment:

Application 2897: to pay for rent for 2 day Soul to Soul Meditation events at the Rushey Mead Recreation Centre.

Amount paid: £255

Application 2898: rental at the Rushey Mead Recreation Centre for Soul to Soul Meditation sessions.

Amount paid: £124

Application 2900: Provision and planting of tree in Jacklin Drive

Amount agreed: £430

Application 2988: Dance Workout – Lucy Bailey

Amount agreed: £500

The Chair explained that after these funding applications had been agreed, a balance of 58p remained in the budget.

Attendees then received a presentation from Mary Pringle, Senior Community Librarian on the following application. A request was made for funding to be granted from the 2014/15 community meeting budget.

Application 2901: Rushey Mead Library – Leicester Young Readers’ Programme

Submitted by: Mary Pringle, Senior Community Librarian

Amount requested: £1,000

Mary explained that this project enabled children from Herrick Primary School to choose and keep good quality books. The children would visit the library on three occasions, one class at a time. The library usually opened up especially for them. In the past. Children from Wyvern Primary School had previously been involved in the project and very good feedback had been received both from the children and the teachers.

it was agreed to support the funding application in principle subject to the appropriate funding being available in the 2014/15 community meeting budget.

The meeting closed at 7.40 pm.