Agenda and minutes

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Councillor Wann was elected as Chair for the meeting.

There were no apologies for absence.

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.

There were no declarations of interest.  

The minutes of the previous Fosse Community Meeting, held on 2 June 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 2 June 2010 be confirmed as a correct record.

There will be a presentation on energy saving advice.  

It was reported that representatives from the Energy Team were unable to attend the meeting however had agreed to attend the next Community Meeting.

There will be an update on the development of Rally Park.

The Chair reported that it was hoped £500,000 would be obtained from external sources for the redevelopment of the park. It was stated that officers hoped to be present at the next meeting to provide a fuller report. It was requested that the designs be provided as well. 

Members agreed to accept this extra item.

Carla Lane, Physical Activity Officer, Sports Services provided a presentation about the 3x30 minutes pledge.

The Community Meeting was informed that this had been a three year campaign funded by Leicester City Council, Sports England and NHS Leicester City. Following a survey, it had been reported that only 17.9% of people in Leicester who were over 16 took part in 30 minutes physical activity three times a week.

The initiative had been launched in July 2009 and the idea was to get people to sign up to activities such as cycling and swimming or anything which got them active. Residents were informed that when people signed up they were provided with their own exercise log. Rewards such as discounts at leisure centres and t-shirts were offered to people who met the pledge. It was stated that 2,600 people in Leicester had signed up.

Details were also provided of the Active Lifestyle Scheme which encouraged people with heart conditions to go to GP’s and see if physical activity could suit them.

A resident queried where the groups were held. Carla commented that groups were run at all centres apart from New Parks and Cossington Street however groups at Cossington Street would be commencing at the end of the month. It was suggested events at Fosse Neighbourhood Centre could also be held.

The Chair thanked Carla for her presentation.

The local City Warden will provide an update on environmental issues in the area.

Jamie Stubbs, City Warden for the Fosse ward was present to provide an update on environmental issues in the area.

These included:

• Parking issues – work had been done with then Police and Vinci parking and over 60 offences had been recorded. TheDriver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) had also come to inspect vehicles that were not currently taxed.
• Dog fouling – dog owners had been caught in the area. There had also been dog control orders issued.
• Bins on streets – It was hoped in the next few weeks that all bins would be removed off the streets.
• Flytipping – there had been over 100 issues of flytipping that had been dealt with and penalties had been issued. It was stated that local businesses would also be spoken to.

Jamie stated that she was trying to create links with as many groups as possible. The Chair stated that a card containing Jamie’s contact details were available.

In addition, residents raised the following concerns:

• Rubbish being dumped on Hawthorne Street and Battenberg Road. Christopher Nutting, Area Services Manager, Waste Management stated that this would be investigated. The Chair suggested visiting the concerned properties. Jamie stated that the properties had been provided with waste collection leaflets.
• Bins set on fire on Battenberg Road. It was stated that the problem was related to one particular property. The Chair stated that the owner of the properties could be determined through the Council. PC Anton Wilson commented that he knew the landlord from concerned property on Battenberg Road and would pass on the details.

The Community Meeting were informed that Battenberg Road and Tudor Road would be targeted by City Wardens with regard to removing bins on streets. The process of taking action against residents who persistently left their bins on streets was explained. This consisted of sending them an information pack at first, then if the bin remained on the street a letter would then be sent, following this if the problem persisted then a visit to the resident would be arranged and finally if the bin still had not been removed then an illegal notice was served.

It was noted that seven litter bins had been installed in the ward on 28^th July. There had also been £1,200 funded from the Community Meeting for the revamping of Tudor Gardens which had also helped remove graffiti.

Members of the Local Policing Unit will be present to provide an update on

crime issues in the area.

PC Anton Wilson provided an update on policing issues in the area. He informed the Community Meeting that the Police were looking to move the three families out of the area who were linked with crime. Work was still being done to tackle Anti Social Behaviour on Central Road. With regards to parking problems, the operation against untaxed vehicles had resulted in 44 tax offences being recorded on the day of the operation. In total 65 tax offences had been recorded in the area. PC Anton Wilson commented that the work against untaxed vehicles was still ongoing.

PC Anton Wilson informed the Community Meeting of the crime figures for the area. The current month was the third in succession where there had been an overall reduction in crime. Other crime statistics were as follows:

• Overall crime was down 24.1%.
• Burglary offences had shown a reduction of 43.2%.
• Robbery offences had shown a reduction of 20%
• Vehicle crime had shown a reduction of 41.5%
• Violent crime had shown a reduction of 18.3%
• Anti Social Behaviour had shown a reduction of 33.7%.

PC Anton Wilson informed the Community Meeting that he would be moving to the Braunstone Area and therefore would no longer be the Police contact for the Fosse area.

Discussion took place on Rally Park. Concern was raised about people drinking in the park and glass bottles being left or being smashed. PC Anton Wilson commented that the Police had applied to the Council to have a drinking ban throughout the park however this had proved unsuccessful. It was stated that there was a car patrolling the area to monitor anti social behaviour. Concern was also raised about the lighting in Rally Park. PC Anton Wilson stated that this issue had been raised at the Rally development meeting. The Chair stated that the amount of money available for the Rally needed to be looked at. It was agreed to check on the situation with regards to application for a drinking ban across the park and the lighting issue in the area.

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 give an update on the Community

Meeting Budget.

The following application has been received and a summary of the application is attached:

·        Leicester City Council Sports Services, Steve Walsh and Muzzy Izzet. Steve Walsh and Muzzy Izzet’s summer football academy - £2,500

Appendix A1

Anita Patel, Members Support Officer presented the Community Meeting budget.

The following bids had been submitted for consideration:

1)     Leicester City Council Sports Services, Steve Walsh and Muzzy Izzet.

Steve Walsh and Muzzy Izzet’s summer football academy - £2,500

The Chair reported that the academy had taken place in the summer holiday and had been well received.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £2,500 be allocated from

the Ward Action Plan Budget subject to final approval from the

Cabinet Lead for Front Line Service Improvement and

Neighbourhoods and the Leader of the Council.

Christopher Nutting, Area Services Manager, Waste Management informed the Community Meeting of some of the work which his team carried out. He commented that he had a team of seven street operators. Residents were informed that if they saw any problems such as flytipping, then they should inform the Council. Any reports would be investigated with the Environmental Crime team and it would be attempted to trace the rubbish back to the owner.  He stated that from last year extra effort had been made with regards to cleaning in the area especially on Tudor Road.

A resident stated that two dog bins on the Rally Park that had been taken out had not been replaced. Chris stated that dog waste used to be classed as contaminated waste however it could now be placed in normal bins. Jessica Phillips, Senior City Warden informed the Community Meeting of a new initiative to combat dog fouling which would be launched on 20 September 2010.

A resident queried what the current situation was with regard to the development on Empire Road. The Chair stated that planning approval had been agreed however agreed to find out what the current situation was.

The Chair requested that an update be received from Epworth Methodist Church at the next meeting following the previous approval of funding from the Community Meeting.

The meeting closed at 4:18pm.