Agenda and minutes

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Councillor Grant was elected as Chair for the meeting.

Apologies were received from Councillor Hunt.

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.

No declarations were made.

The minutes of the previous Knighton Community Meeting, held on 30 November 2009 are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

RESOLVED

that the minutes of the meeting of the Knighton Community Meeting, held on 30 November 2009, be confirmed as a correct record.

Satish Shah, Head of Transport Systems will be present to feedback on Highways and Transportation issues that have been previously raised at the Community Meeting.  

Martin Hayes, Team Leader, Transport Systems provided an update on how the highways and transport issues raised at previous meetings were currently being dealt with.

The following discussion took place:

20mph zones on unclassified roads

The Community Meeting was informed that a report was currently being prepared and would be going before the Leicester City Council’s Cabinet in May 2010. If it was recommended that 20mph zones be introduced on all residential streets then areas in the Knighton ward could be included in the proposed works programme. It was agreed that a further update on this be provided at a future meeting.

Speeding on Overdale Road

It was reported that officers had identified problems outside Overdale Road School which could be solved by simple remedial measures such as the reduction of the width of the road at the junctions by widening the footways and by narrowing the road at the locations covered by the yellow school keep clear markings both on Overdale Road and Eastcourt Road. This would again be achieved by widening the footway. The Community Meeting was informed that at present there was not sufficient funding to carry out these works however a scheme could possibly be included in the next Local Transport Plan which would begin in April 2011. Members agreed to lobby to get the measures introduced in Overdale Road to make it safer.

ZigZag Markings on Overdale Road

It was reported that the zig zag markings were not enforceable as they did not contain a Traffic Regulation Order. It was noted however that the Police could enforce in the area if there was obstruction. It was queried what the cost was of a Traffic Regulation Order. Mark stated that it was in the region of £2,500 to £3,000.

Parking on the Pavement on Aberdale Road

It was reported that Civil Enforcement Officers had been asked to pay attention to vehicles parking illegally and causing obstruction where there were parking restrictions in place. It was further reported that where there was obstructive parking and there was no restrictions, matters would be referred to the Police.

Signal Timings for Crossing near the Welford Road/Overdale Road Junction

It was reported that following a previous request from a resident the signal timings at the junction had been reviewed and the duration of the green man crossing period over Welford Road had been increased. It was further reported that following concern raised at the last meeting, further observations had been carried out and this had resulted in a further increase to the crossing time for pedestrians.

Parking Restrictions on Pendlebury Drive

It was reported that there were 300 requests for changes to waiting restrictions which were considered by the Director of Regeneration, Highways and Transportation. It was concluded that whilst the waiting restrictions on Pendlebury Drive were justifiable, they were not a priority  ...  view the full minutes text for item 66.

There will a presentation on the rollout of the City Warden Service across the city and how this will benefit the Knighton Ward.

Barbara Whitcombe, City Warden Manager provided a presentation on the City Warden service.

Barbara stated that the City Warden service had initially been a pilot project which had commenced in October 2008 and had covered 11 wards at first. The service would be rolled out to all wards across the city from April 2010.

Some of the issues dealt with by the City Wardens included littering, dog fouling, bins on streets and graffiti. Barbara commented that work was done on the highlighted priorities of each ward. Barbara explained some of the events, the City Wardens attended, these included promotional events and community events. The Community Meeting was informed that the City Wardens also visited primary and secondary schools to educate children about recycling.

Barbara explained further some of the issues covered by the City Wardens. These included the following:

• Dog Fouling – it was explained that the City Wardens had powers to issue fixed penalties for this offence.
• Bins on Streets – it was explained that the removal of bins on streets had first commenced in the Jarrom Street area of the city which had a high student population. Barbara informed the Community Meeting that it cost the Fire Brigade £1,900 for every bin which was set on fire. It then cost the City Council’s cleansing services £80 to clear the damaged bin with a further cost of £30 for a new bin.
• Fly Posting – it was explained that the City Council had removed 17,000 fly posters last year and 20 fixed penalties had been issued.
• Free Distribution of Printed Matter – It was explained that it was illegal to distribute printed matter unless a licence was held.
• Fly Tipping – it was explained that the City Wardens dealt with small scale fly tipping. Visits were conducted to businesses and food premises to see how they were disposing of waste.

·        Graffiti – it was explained that offensive graffiti was passed onto the

Cleansing Team to remove.

• Nuisance Vehicles – it was explained that issues such as vehicles left on bricks were dealt with.

Barbara encouraged residents to engage with their City Warden.

A resident queried whether individuals received fines or warnings for leaving their bins out on the streets. Barbara commented that at first a card was put through the resident’s letterbox notifying the individual to remove the bin then if there was still no action, a visit was arranged the following week. If there was still no cooperation after this then a legal notice was served.

A resident queried whether assistance was given to elderly residents to place their bins back at the correct location after a collection. Barbara commented that an assisted collection could be booked by the resident concerned. 

A DVD explaining further the services provided by the City Wardens was played.

Information will be provided to promote recycling and on how recycling rates could be improved.

Sarah Jaques, Community Liaison Coordinator, Biffa provided information on promoting recycling and how recycling rates could be improved.

The Community Meeting was informed that Knighton was currently one of the better performing wards in the city in terms of participation in recycling. However Sarah commented that recycling did need to be increased across the city.

Sarah informed the Community Meeting that currently 70% of waste was currently diverted from landfill. This waste went to the Ball Mill site which contained a machine that grinded down waste. At this site recyclable objects that were placed in wheelie bins were extracted for recycling by using magnets or other methods. Sarah commented that compost placed in wheelie bins was also able to be extracted.

A DVD informing residents of how to dispose waste was played.

Sarah informed the Community Meeting that educational visits were conducted to inform children about recycling and an open day was held at the end of June where individuals could come along with families to see the Ball Mill.

A query was raised whether research had been conducted on how much energy was used to run the Ball Mill. Sarah commented that the Ball Mill did use a lot of power however it did generate electricity. The Chair stated that the energy collected by the Ball Mill was enough to run it with a small surplus. It was noted that there was no landfill sites in Leicester with the nearest one being in Birmingham. Barbara Whitcombe, City Warden Manger added that there was also a cost incurred to use landfill sites and if recycling targets were not met then fines would be incurred from the European Union.

A resident queried the composition of the 30% of waste which went to Landfill. Sarah commented that this waste consisted of items such as metal, compost, glass and heavy items.

The Community Meeting was informed that under Environmental Protection Act it was possible to find individuals for not placing items in the correct bins however Sarah commented that while other Councils were fining individuals there was no current plans to introduce fines in the city.

Concern was raised that bins were not being put back in the correct locations after the waste collection. Barbara commented that if this occurred then it was important to ring Biffa straight away so that the relevant waste collection team could be identified and informed.

It was queried whether dog excrement could be place in ordinary bins. Barbara confirmed it could. A further query was raised that free bags were provided to put the excrement in. Barbara commented that the city wardens carried these around with them.

Local police officers will explain on how the policing areas have been changed and which officers will now be working in the area.

Dave Budd, Sergeant Darren Little and PC Jim Mungovin provided a presentation on the Neighbourhood Policing Team.

Dave informed the Community Meeting that from January 2010 there had been changes to the policing boundary areas which had affected the Knighton ward.

Dave explained that the Neighbourhood Policing Team consisted of

• Partner Agencies and Groups
• Neighbourhood Action Team
• Citizen Focus Team
• Police Community Volunteers
• Local Police Officers

The Community Meeting were informed that the policing team focused on neighbourhood priorities which were priorities that members of the public had told police to concentrate on. The current priorities at present were anti social behaviour and other problems in the Baldwin Road area and problems with traffic in the area of Leicester Girls High School. Dave commented that every three months the Sergeant got together with this team and decided what priorities needed to be worked on.

Dave explained the four factors involved in tackling local priorities. These were Enforcement, Prevention, Intelligence and Consultation. The police engaged in enforcement while prevention could be the introduction of factors such as street lighting or a CCTV camera. Intelligence was who was committing the crime and with regards to consultation, Dave commented that the Police had spent a lot of money over the past year promoting the policing pledge.

Dave encouraged residents to talk to the Police officers and stated they would be available at the end of 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.

Steve Letten, Members Support Officer will give an update on the Knighton Community Meeting Budget.

The following budget applications have been received:

·        68^th Leicester Scout Group, 68^th Leicester Scout Group 2010 Programme, £1,532.29.                                                                    Appendix B1

·        Knighton Victoria Bowls Club, Disabled Access to Bowling Green at Knighton Victoria Bowls Club, £1,000                                          Appendix B2

·        Sgt Leon Gamble/ Cic David Budd, Police Neighbourhood Action Team Transport, £500                                                                            Appendix B3

Steve Letten, Member Support Officer presented the budget for the Community Meeting.

Steve reported that there had been five applications submitted for funding. He went through the applications and outlined details of the bids. The following bids were submitted:

1)     68^th Leicester Scout Group, 68^th Leicester Scout Group 2010 Programme, £1,532.29.

The application was for different activities during the 2010 programme of the Scout Group.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £1,532.29be allocated from the Ward Action Plan Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of the Council.

2)     Knighton Victoria Bowls Club, Disabled Access to Bowling Green at Knighton Victoria Bowls Club, £1,000

The application was for improvements to the clubhouse.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £1,000be allocated from the Community Cohesion Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Community Cohesion and the Leader of the Council.

3)     Sgt Leon Gamble/Cic Dave Budd, Police Neighbourhood Action Team Transport, £500

The application was for the funding of a vehicle for the Police Neighbourhood Action Team.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £500be allocated from the Community Cohesion Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Community Cohesion and the Leader of the Council.

4)     Parks Services/Sports Development/Friends of Knighton Park, Knighton Park Walk and Run for Health, £1,500

The application was to introduce permanent markers for a running/walking scheme.

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £1,500be allocated from the Ward Community Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of the Council.

5)     Stoneygate Baptist Church, New Tables, £1,680.37

RESOLVED:

that the application be supported and £1,680.37be allocated from the Ward Community Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of the Council.

The application was for new tables for the different activities that took place at the church hall.

Members also proposed the following applications with the funding remaining.

6)     That £1,950 be allocated from the Ward Action Plan Fund for local transport improvements in the area.

7)     That £1,995 be allocated from the Ward Action Plan Fund for community safety projects aligned to local policing initiatives through the local police and community support group.

RESOLVED:

that the above two proposed applications be supported and the amounts mentioned abovebe allocated from the Ward Action Plan Fund subject to final approval from the Cabinet Lead for Front Line Service Improvement and Neighbourhoods and the Leader of the Council.

There were no items of urgent business.

The meeting closed at 8:03pm.