Agenda and minutes

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Councillor Manish Sood took the Chair and welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Wann.

The first main item on theagenda 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.

Councillors are asked to declare any interest they may have in the business on the agenda, and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applies to them.

Members were asked to declare any interests that they may have had in the business to be discussed and/or indicate that Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applied to them.

No declarations of interest were received.

The minutes of the previous Fosse Community Meeting, held on 8 December 2010, have been circulated and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record. 

RESOLVED:

that the minutes of the meeting of the Fosse Community Meeting, held on 8 December 2010 be confirmed as a correct record.

There will be an opportunity to find out about the Health Through Warmth initiative and advice will be provided on how to keep warm and safe during the cold winter period.

Lucy Birch from the Home Energy Office was present to provide information on the Health through Warmth initiative.

Lucy explained that the Health through Warmth initiative helped provided a grant for vulnerable people to keep warm in their homes during the winter months. The grant could also help with the installation with new boilers and heating improvements such as cavity wall insulations and radiators. The Community Meeting was informed that the energy provider Npower had donated money for the grant. It was noted that the grant could provide up to 50% of the funds needed for heating improvements. It was stated that if the person needed heating improvements was not able to raise funds then funding would tried to be raised for them.

Concern was raised that the funding process may be too complex for older people and that for old boilers there would not always be parts available. Lucy explained that clients applying for funding were spoken to and they were asked if they had any savings because when funding from benevolent funds was applied for, there was a criteria which needed to be adhered to.

There will be an opportunity to participate in the Drug and Alcohol Action Team Consultation.

Sue Holden, Alcohol Strategy Manager provided a presentation on the Alcohol Harm Reduction Consultation for Leicester City.

Sue explained that the strategy had been running for three years and had been introduced when the Government had recognised the effects of alcohol harm and introduced a policy on this. Residents were informed that the policy was to reduce the harm with alcohol and understand what harms were associated with it.

Sue explained the picture for Leicester with regards to alcohol. It was noted that 75-80% of the Leicester population were classed as low risk or non drinkers and there was a higher rate of non drinkers than compared with the national average. It was noted however that there proportionately higher levels of binge drinking. With regards to the health impact, Leicester had significantly worse rates than the national average for alcohol specific mortality and chronic liver disease in men. It was estimated that the health costs in Leicestershire on this subject was £16million.

The Community Meeting was informed of the results of the Leicester lifestyle survey 2010 for adults aged 16 or over. It was noted that 27% drank above the daily recommended maximum units on a typical day when they were drinking alcohol and 25% drank within the recommended guidelines. Other results of the survey included that 53% of adults in Leicester drank alcohol.

Information was also provided on a ward by ward basis. It was noted that Fosse ranked quite low with regards to alcohol prevalence above the recommended maximum unit on a weekly and daily basis. Discussion also took place on community impact of alcohol for Leicester. It was stated that some people had a view that some aspects of Leicester had problems with rowdy behaviour associated with alcohol.

Sue explained some of the targets for the city. These included reducing hospital admission rates and reducing alcohol related violence. The Community Meeting was informed of the strategic objectives which were focused on.  These included:

• Prevention
• Community Safety
• Treatment
• Children and Young People

Progress on the strategic objectives was provided. This included:

Prevention

·        A normative campaign had been piloted where it had been stated that it was normal not to drink.

·        There had been a targeted social marketing campaign and work had been done with people who drank too much.

·        There was also a rolling programme with regard to units of alcohol as the Government were concentrating on promoting alcohol intake by units.

·        There had been test purchase operations carried out in the city.

·        There had been funding provided for support to parents at risk.

Community Safety

·        It was noted that there was an issue with street drinking in the area on Conduit Street and the Train Station.

·        All agencies were working together for improved co-ordination of the night time economy.

·        There had been the introduction of the Alcohol Arrest Referral Scheme and the Fixed Penalty Diversion Scheme where people causing drink related problems were given a fixed penalty and were required to attend an information session  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78.

There will be an opportunity to find out more information about the services and activities offered by Fosse Library.

Jean Burbridge, Senior Community Librarian was present to provide information on services and activities offered by the libraries service.

Jean explained that over the past ten years libraries had started offering more services than just books and were seen as in the heart of the community. Residents were informed that any library was free to join and then people were able to borrow books and use the computers located at the libraries which were free to use however there was a charge to use the printers. Computers were also available to be booked in advance. The library service was also available to be accessed via a home computer where people were able to search the catalogue. Residents were informed that libraries were able to lend books and cds and DVDs for which there was a small charge. People were also able to reserve books from other libraries and there was no charge for this service.

Jean informed the Community Meeting that library staff were able to introduce people to the basics of computers if they wished to learn and some libraries offered UK online courses as well. Advice could also be offered by some staff to people interested in tracing their family history and there was a day for this service coming up during adult learning week.

Residents were informed that the library had a subscription to other online resources such as an encyclopaedia and these services could be accessed by anyone via their library card. Additional services included a baby and toddler group on Monday afternoons which encouraged parents to introduce books to their children.  Jean mentioned that research had shown that children introduced to books from an early age had an advanced learning style to those not introduced to books. It was also noted that work was being done with local schools.

Jean stated that partnership working included work being done with local colleges such as Leicester College and work being done with the Health service on a project entitled ‘Information through Prescription’ which would allow people to get information from books or the internet to guide them on their diagnosis.

Jean encouraged residents to inform other people about the services that the library offered.

Lee Johnston from the Leicestershire Probation Service will be present to talk about the Community Payback scheme.

Lee Johnstone, Leicestershire Probation Service was present to talk about the Community Payback scheme. Lee explained that members of the community were given an opportunity to suggest what work could be done by people who had been given community service by the courts in Leicestershire and Rutland. Residents were informed that in the past year if every offender had been paid the minimum wage for carrying out work then the cost of this would have been over £1m.

Lee informed the Community Meeting of some of the activities that were carried out by people doing community service. These included:

• Street cleaning.
• Work to overcome anti social behaviour.
• Painting and decorating.
• Workshops to make wooden furniture which goes on sale.

Residents were informed that organisations that could be helped included:

• Non profit organisations
• Charities
• Schools
• Community centres
• Local businesses.

Lee explained that the work done could help reconnect offenders to the community they belong to. He encouraged residents to submit suggestions of work which could be done.

A resident stated that work had been done at the Woodgate Resource Centre where meals had been cooked for senior citizens at Christmas time. Lee added that an assessment was completed for each person before they were assigned a job.

The City Warden for the Fosse ward will be present to provide an update and there will be an opportunity to find out more information about the One Clean Leicester initiative.

Barbara Whitcombe, Team Manager, City Wardens was present to talk about the One Clean Leicester initiative.

Barbara informed residents that there would be a litter picking event at Mandella Park on Sunday and invited residents to come along.

Barbara informed the Community Meeting there was a mobile phone application available to report environmental problems and other ways to report problems included via email, phone, text and computer. It was noted that with the phone application, a GPS connection was needed to report the location of the problem.

The Community Meeting was informed that when a problem was reported, a confirmation email was sent to the individual reporting the problem. The photo submitted would then be checked and placed on the website and a further email would be sent confirming this. Individuals were able to view their report on the website and monitor it’s status. Once the problem had been resolved, an email would be sent notifying the individual of this. Residents were informed that they needed to search for City of Leicester on the Council’s website to report a problem. It was stated that problems via ward could be seen so residents were able to see problems in their area.

Barbara explained some of the issues that could be reported, these included, abandoned and nuisance vehicles, bins on streets, dog fouling and fly posting. It was noted that to remove environmental problems on private land, permission from the landowner needed to be sought.

It was queried how people, who were not comfortable with technology, report problems. Barbara commented that people could still contact their local City Warden or their ward Councillors via the phone. It was noted that reporting via the technological methods stated would hopefully appeal to younger people. A resident queried whether they were able to take photos of individuals causing problems. Barbara stated that this was ok only as long as residents did not challenge offenders.

In response to a query regarding parking issues, Barbara explained that the power to enforce action against people causing parking problems had gone to the Council from the Police. With regards to untaxed vehicles, Barbara explained that these could be reported to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). Residents were informed that there had been a joint operation conducted in the area with regards to untaxed vehicles between the Police and other agencies.

There will be an explanation on the strategy and criteria for alleygating for the city and the fosse area.

Tom Smith, Supervisor, Handyperson Service was present to provide information security and alleygates in the area. Tom explained that some of the work that could be provided included installing grab rails or alleygating. It was noted that some alleygates had been installed in the Clarendon Park area and that an agreement amongst residents was needed to install alleygates. Tom explained that keys for the gates were given to as many people as possible in the area and that the main problem for alleygating was the funding. He informed residents that funding for 16 gates was left and some gates would be installed in the Newfoundpool and Tudor Road areas.

Tom explained that it was aimed to set up a system where all residents in the area of an alleygate would have a key for it. A record of who had keys was kept however some residents did not hand their keys in when they left the property. It was also aimed to have a key for the Police, Fire Service and Post Office. It was noted that previously help had been received from the Probation service to help install alleygates. Residents were informed that there were 97 gates in the city pending to be completed.

Tom commented that work was also done to assist in burglary reduction where victims of burglary were provided with locks and in some cases cameras to prevent against distraction burglaries.

It was stated that some alleygates had been left open. Tom stated that there was currently no maintenance budget however this was trying to be obtained.

There will be an update by the Police on crime issues in the area.

There will be an update on traffic issues in the area.

Robert Bateman, Team Leader, Highways & Drainage Design was present to provide an update on traffic issues and informed residents that road safety improvements had been carried out on Stephenson Drive and there had been publicity on the works with the local MP and a local Councillor attending.

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.

Anita Patel, Members Support Officer will be present to provide an update on the budget. Please find summaries of applications received for consideration below. Full application forms can be accessed by contacting Democratic Support on 0116 2298814 or by visiting the Council’s website at www.cabinet.leicester.gov.uk.

·        Epworth Development – Community Outreach, John Ogleby -£4,762

Appendix A

·        Music Development Programme, Woodgate Residents Association - £4,000                                                                                    Appendix B

·        Bristol Avenue Street Party, Diane Parker - £500                  Appendix C

James Schadla-Hall, Members Support Officer presented the Community Meeting budget. The following applications had been submitted for consideration:

1)     Purchase of Kitchen Equipment and Hand Dryers, St Andrews Methodist Church Luncheon Club - £886

A representative from the Church explained that the application was for the purchasing of replacement and additional cooking equipment along with hand dryers for the toilets.

It was agreed that due to limited funding being available and other bids being funded that £700 be allocated.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £700 be allocated from the

Community Cohesion Fund subject to approval from Councillor

Wann and final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Community

Cohesion and the Leader of the Council.

2)     Music Development Programme, Woodgate Residents Association - £4,000

A representative from the Woodgate Residents Association explained the application and stated that there were currently 85 children were involved in the programme and were given the opportunity to learn various musical instruments.

It was agreed that due to limited funding being available and other bids being that £1,000 be allocated. 

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £1,000 be allocated from

the Ward Action Plan Fund subject to approval from Councillor

Wann and final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line

Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of

the Council.

3)     Bristol Avenue Street Party, Diane Parker - £500

A representative on behalf of the applicant explained the application and informed the Community Meeting that a Committee had been established to organise the event and the event wished to provide the children with a souvenir of the event.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £500 be allocated from the

Community Cohesion Fund subject to approval from Councillor

Wann and final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Community

Cohesion and the Leader of the Council.

4)     Epworth Development – Community Cohesion, Epworth Methodist Church – Community Development Steering Group – John Ogleby - £4,762

It was noted that the application was to assist the Church in improving it’s Community Outreach Programme. Some residents raised concern that the groups listed in the application as meeting at the Church did not do so and that the Community Meeting had already provided a considerable amount of funds to the church.

It was agreed that due to limited funding being available and other bids being funded that £500 be allocated. The Community Meeting was informed that this money would be put towards a plate warmer.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £500 be allocated from

the Ward Action Plan Fund subject to approval from Councillor

Wann and final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line

Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of

the Council.

Residents thanked Councillor Manish Sood for all his work and attendance at the Community Meetings.

The meeting closed at 5:29pm.