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Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Magpie Youth Centre, Sturdee Road

Contact: Heather Kent 

Items
No. Item

28.

ELECTION OF CHAIR

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Minutes:

Councillor Palmer was appointed as Chair for the meeting.

29.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Minutes:

Apologies were received from Jean Dutfield, Julian Pirie and Jean Moxon.

30.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

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.

 

Minutes:

Councillors were asked to declare any interests they may have in the business on the agenda and/or declare if Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applied to them. No such declarations were made.

31.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The minutes of the previous Eyres Monsell Community Meeting, held on 15 September 2010 have previously been circulated and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

 

Minutes:

The minutes of the Eyres Monsell Community Meeting held on 15 September 2010 were agreed as a correct record.

 

In response to the minutes, an update on the recycling pilot was given. It was reported that the pilot was ongoing, but was proving very successful. The pilot would be evaluated and a decision made on whether to roll it out across the city.

32.

COUNCILLORS' COMMUNITY REPORT

The Ward Councillors will give an update on issues they have been involved in within the ward and discuss the potential impact of the Government’s spending cuts.

Minutes:

COUNCIL BUDGET

 

Councillor Palmer explained the current budget situation that faced the Council, stating that it would be a very difficult time. He explained that the government wanted to tackle the public sector deficit as quickly as possible over the next four years. There had been in-year cuts and would be further cuts over the next few years. An estimated £18million would be cut in the next financial year, amounting to £300 per citizen. The Council would be going through a process to work out its budget and tough decisions would have to be made which would affect all parts of the Council.

 

He explained that in the city, amongst other things, transport schemes had been affected and free swimming for under-16s had been stopped by government (although this had been continued by the Council over the last summer holidays.) He also stated that Leicester would be more affected than other areas, as it was not able to collect as much from Council tax due to the high number of low banded houses.

 

Residents asked whether sufficient efforts were made to collect Council Tax owing. Councillor Palmer replied that extra resources had been put into this and it had vastly improved. However, Council Tax was only a small proportion of the Council’s income.

 

ELECTED MAYOR

Councillor Palmer reported that the Council was proposing to have an elected mayor. A final decision would be made on 22 December, and, if agreed, the first mayor would be elected on 5 May 2011. The mayor would be directly elected by residents, giving every elector a say, which would give the mayor a clear mandate, rather than the current leader who was appointed by councillors. A mayor would be elected for a four year term and would have greater powers than a leader. Although the government’s Localism Bill sought to hold referendums in large cities, Leicester was still required to follow current legislation and make a decision before the end of the year.  It was noted that the Localism Bill also proposed significant changes to planning rules.

 

In response to residents’ questions and concerns, Councillor Palmer stated that having an elected mayor would not increase costs, as the post replaced the leader, who currently received an allowance. A referendum would cost the Council. The mayor would choose his or her own Cabinet. It was not possible at this stage to confirm what the mayor’s increased powers would be and whether they would take on the Chief Executive’s role.

 

In response to concerns about the level of consultation, Councillor Palmer stated that there had been a much higher response rate than most other authorities. Councillors had proposed an elected mayor to increase democracy in the city. Concerns about potential celebrity candidates should not be used as a reason for not doing it.

 

Councillor Palmer offered to give a further update when more details were known, such as precise powers, role, costs and how it would affect the community. He also offered to have an update  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.

33.

HEALTH THROUGH WARMTH PROJECT

Lucy Birch from the Health Through Warmth Project will give advice about getting through the winter as safe and well as possible.

Minutes:

Lucy Birch form the Health Through Warmth Project explained the project to residents. She stated that the project was set up by N Power and implemented through the City Council. Its aim was to improve warmth and quality of life for vulnerable residents through insulation, grants for boiler repair and replacement, and radiator or storage heater replacement. It was for private households where one or more people were vulnerable to cold or damp. It was not means tested. A contribution was given towards work and for those who could not afford the rest, the team would apply to other sources to try to make up the shortfall.

 

She gave tips for staying warm, including eating regular hot meals and drinks, keeping moving, dressing in layers and wearing a hat or headscarf.

34.

POLICE UPDATE

The Neighbourhood Policing Team will give an update on their work and the current priorities for the ward.

Minutes:

Neighbourhood Sergeant, Andy Parsons, gave an update on current policing priorities, which were antisocial behaviour on Howden Road and Southfields Library. He said that the number of reported incidents on Howden Road had reduced significantly and he anticipated that this would cease to be a priority in the new year. The team was working with the Freemen team to address issues with Southfields Library and some offenders had been identified.

 

He explained that the police were working with the council to approach antisocial behaviour and offenders were given an opportunity to change their behaviour with warning letters, asbos and injunctions.

 

He reported that crime figures had reduced by 10% for the last quarter. He advised residents to be aware of home security at this time of year as burglaries increased.

 

He stated that work was to be done to tackle parking outside schools and promote road safety. In response to residents’ questions, he stated that some off licences had been tackled regarding underage alcohol sales, although there was no trend in Eyres Monsell that indicated that this was a problem. He agreed to look at parking issues outside St John Boscoe Hall.

35.

LOCAL ACTIVITIES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

Rachel Fletcher, Senior Youth Support Worker, will report news and information about activities for young people in the area.

Minutes:

Nav Chauhan, Manager at the Magpie Centre, welcomed residents to the centre and gave an overview of the last 12 months. He reported that the centre had been relaunched after the refurbishment, which had involved a lot of the young people.

 

He gave a brief list of the facilities and sessions on offer, such as clubs, advice sessions, weekend clubs, and projects. He also explained the graffiti project that had been done on the outside of the building, which the community were positive about.

 

He reported that the motorbike project had run out of money, but it was hoped that more money could be obtained for a further 30 weeks.

 

Residents suggested that the centre should advertise in Monsell Mail. They welcomed the news that more girls were using the centre now. They raised concern about drinkers near the freerunning park and Nav agreed to raise this with the police.

36.

BUDGET APPLICATION

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 following applications for funding have been received and Councillors are asked to consider whether to support them.

 

Application 1

Antisocial Behaviour DVD Project - £500

Welford Road Neighbourhood Policing Team

Leicestershire Constabulary wish to educate youths between the ages of 10 to 18 about antisocial behaviour and the consequences of causing it or being involved in it. We wish to produce a DVD using local kids in local areas to promote a culture of respect and educate the children. We would lime to use the opportunity in the DVD to ask Local Authority Officials to give an input about community and Police partnership working. This is to promote public awareness of our roles.

 

The DVD would be an educational package and have discussion points available to discuss local issues during the showing of it. The DVD will be used City wide and for a number of years. We want to make the DVD so that young people can relate to it.

 

Should the DVD prove successful in the City area, we would offer the DVD package to other areas/Counties for a sum. The money would then be paid back into the community.

 

Police will publicly promote this using media facilities available. It will also be promoted through schools in the area. This is how the committee will know that it is successful.

 

Application 2

Special Olympics Leicester Multi Sports Club - £1,800

To establish a club for people with Learning Difficulties (aimed at 16 plus)

We are a group people who volunteered at the Special Olympics in Leicester in 2009  and went on to form a committee to ensure that the legacy of the games was not lost  for people who had learning difficulties and in particularly for those who were 16  plus.  We carried out some research, spoke to sports development staff in LCC in both Adults and C&YP,  It became clear that the city seemed to cater for children who had learning difficulties in relation to sports provision but there were far less opportunities for those who had left school.  We wanted to offer not only athletes a range of sports but support to parents/carers who are encouraged to attend. Feedback from the parents/carers we spoke to confirmed that they were pleased that their loved ones “had somewhere to go and something to do once they left school/college” as opportunities were few and far between, this meant some carers who had athletes who travel independently get a few hours breaks from their caring role.

 

 

The group of athletes ranges from 17 – 60, they come from different ethnic backgrounds as do our volunteers, the club offers a wonderful opportunity for people from all walks of life/different communities/ages/cultures to come together in sport.   As people who have learning difficulties are often difficult to reach -  ...  view the full agenda text for item 36.

Minutes:

Two applications were considered and agreed as follows:

 

Application 1 – Antisocial behaviour DVD project, Welford Road Neighbourhood Policing Team.

AGREED:

                        That the Community Meeting supports the funding of £500.

 

Application 2 – Special Olympics Leicester Multi Sports Club - £1800, to establish a club for people with learning difficulties.

It was noted that this was an application to more than one community meeting to spread the funding across wards. It was felt that it was important to continue the momentum of the Special Olympics.

AGREED:

                        That the Community Meeting supports the funding of £1800

37.

DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The next meeting will be on Wednesday 9 March at 6pm at Eyres Monsell Community Centre.

Minutes:

Councillor Palmer asked residents whether they preferred day time or evening meetings. The majority expressed a preference for day time meetings. He stated that the time of the next meeting, on 9 March would be looked at to see if the time could be changed from 6pm.

38.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Minutes:

Councillor Palmer reminded residents of the upcoming Christmas event at the Community Centre.

 

He also gave an update on the situation with the Invincible site, stating that planning permission had been given, so development was free to commence. Residents would be supported throughout the process.

 

He stated that the community centre was undergoing a refurbishment and would include a new entrance, toilets, IT suite, meeting rooms and library suite. The Housing office would be based there and the police would also have a presence there. Residents stated that they needed a new tenants’ association base, but Councillor Palmer said that the existing unit was unused as people did not want to be involved. He agreed that, if people wanted it, he would consider it. Work was being done by the council on how best to involve tenants, as it appeared that tenants’ associations were not the best way. He suggested that this could be discussed at a future meeting.

 

Councillor Palmer informed residents that the Aylestone Boys Football Pavilion had been opened by Steve Walsh and Muzzy Issett. This was one of the 11 sites that were being created across the city. It was suggested that a future meeting could be held there.

 

Councillor Palmer announced the publication of the Accessible Leicester Guide which gave information of accessible businesses and facilities in the city.

 

A resident asked why pavements outside all bungalows were gritted apart from Rye Close. Councillor Palmer agreed to find out why it hadn’t been gritted as it should have been.

 

A resident asked whether estate inspections would continue. It was reported that these would be reintroduced in the new year on a six month rota. Details would be published in the Monsell Mail.

39.

CLOSE OF MEETING

Minutes:

The meeting closed at 11.48pm.