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Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Main Hall, East West Community Project, 10 Wilberforce Road, Leicester LE3 0BG

Contact: Elaine Baker, tel: 0116 229 8806 

Items
No. Item

1.

ELECTION OF CHAIR

Councillors will elect a Chair for the meeting.

Minutes:

Councillor Connelly was elected as Chair for the meeting.  However, as he was called away during the meeting, Councillor Russell took the Chair for part of the meeting, as recorded below.

2.

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 interest they had in the business on the agenda, and/or indicate if Section 106 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 applied to them.

 

No such interests were declared.

3.

WARD COMMUNITY BUDGET 2011/12

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.

 

a)      The Members Support Officer will provide an update on the 2011/12 Community Meeting budget.

 

b)      Any grant applications received before the meeting will be presented for consideration

Minutes:

With the agreement of the Meeting, this item was moved up the agenda.

 

Peter Cozens, Members Support Officer with Leicester City Council, advised that the total Ward Community Budget for 2011/12 currently was £15,000.  A decision was awaited on whether Community Cohesion funding would be available in 2011/12.

 

The following applications for funding were then considered.

 

a)     Fullhurst Community College – Hardship Fund

 

In response to questions, Lorraine Clay, Extended Services Co-Ordinator with Leicester City Council, advised that the funding requested was a one-off sum that would enable a hardship fund to be started.  The Fund subsequently would be sustained through fund-raising activities that the students would be encouraged to become involved in.

 

It was questioned whether it was appropriate for the Community Meeting to be asked to fund school uniforms, but it was agreed that not having the correct uniform could make students stand out, particularly as the College now had a strict uniform code.  It was anticipated that, once the fund was operating, a stock of second-hand uniform could be built up that could be sold to students.

 

The Meeting also questioned whether, following changes to funding for schools that had been made since the application was submitted, the College now could finance the IT element of the project from other funding it received.

 

Lorraine Clay confirmed that students receiving help from the fund would not be means tested, but other records and data held by the school would be checked to make informed appropriate decisions about how money from the fund should be allocated, (for example, using the list of those receiving free school meals). 

 

RECOMMENDED:

1)         that consideration of the IT element of this bid be deferred, so that further investigations can be made in to how this part of the project can be funded;

 

2)         that half of the bid remaining once the IT element is excluded be funded by this Meeting, this being a grant of £1,250; and

 

3)         that the College be asked to give feedback at the next Westcotes Community Meeting on the Hardship Fund, (including how funds will be allocated and monitored).

 

Action

Officer Identified

Deadline

A representative of Fullhurst College to be asked to give feedback at the next meeting on the Hardship Fund

Peter Cozens

Next meeting

 

b)     City Warden Service – Keys for Alley Gates

 

In response to concerns from the Meeting over who would hold the keys it was proposed to purchase, Barbara Whitcombe, (Leicester City Council’s City Wardens Team Manager), advised that each gate would have a different key.  However, the Police, the City Council and the Handyman service each would have a master key that opened all of the gates.  Each property with a gated access would be supplied with one key for their gate, but additional ones could be bought for £3.70 each.

 

Councillor Russell reminded the Meeting that bins left on streets when alley gates could not be opened caused many problems, as did fly tipping in open alley ways that could  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

4.

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING pdf icon PDF 621 KB

The minutes of the Westcotes Community Meeting held on 8 March 2011 are attached.  Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

Minutes:

a)     Minute 35 – Planning Applications

 

Councillor Russell reported that:-

 

·             The hostel at 10 Westcotes Drive had ceased trading and would become accommodation for nurses. 

 

Some concern was expressed that the property at 10 Westcotes Drive could be used for purposes other than that claimed, so it was agreed that this would be monitored;

 

·             The hostel at 18 Westcotes Ward would remain, as it had planning permission to operate as a hostel and, in general, no problems were reported regarding its operation; and

 

·             The hostel at 20 Westcotes Drive had been required to supply a certificate of lawful use for the Council’s planning officers.  If a certificate was not supplied, as appeared to be the case at present, formal notice would be served on the hostel to stop trading.  A report then would be made to the City Council’s Planning and Development Committee on what action would be taken.

 

Councillor Russell also reported that various work had been done to alleviate the problems with rats in the Western Road/Briton Street/Bede Island Bridge locations that had been reported at the last meeting:-

 

·             Sunken footway slabs to the left of the bridge.  Highway Management had re-levelled this paved area;

 

·             The electricity sub-station (next to the bridge).  Western Power Distribution had re-levelled some slabs and removed rubbish within the curtilage  of the sub-station;

 

·             City Highways had cleaned out several localised road gullies and replaced four missing rodding eye stoppers to these gullies;

 

·             The Western Pub had given permission for Street Lighting to erect some “DO NOT FEED THE BIRDS” and “NO FLY-TIPPING RUBBISH” signs on their perimeter walls adjacent to the bridge.  These signs had been erected.

 

Jamie Stubbs (City Warden with Leicester City Council) would be monitoring this area and would consider issuing fixed penalty notices for the dumping of food;

 

·             To prevent rats entering the storm water system from the river, Severn Trent had given permission for the two broken non return valves to the storm sewer (Bede Island side) to be replaced.  This work had  been done;

 

·              The other brick storm outlet (Western Pub side) was discussed between Severn Trent and May Gurney, (the new contractors for Severn Trent), on 21 April 2011.  At that meeting, Severn Trent decided not to fit a non return flap, due to difficulty with access and the possibility of the flap and brickwork not giving a tight seal;

 

·             Equity Shoes demolition site.  Dave Bagshaw, (the contractor representing Jamie Lewis (Developers)), had sealed off four open drains and removed a soft water well; and

 

·             A gap of 35 mm between the edge of the bridge and highway slabs on The Western pub side appeared to be a major contribution to the rat infestation of this area.  City Council Enforcement Officers needed to visit the site with officers from the Bridges Team, Highways and Pest Control and would advise when the gap had been sealed.

 

This work was welcomed, but it was noted that, since the last meeting, rats had been seen on a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

5.

BEDE PARK

In response to residents’ concerns about how Bede Park is being used, officers from the City Council’s Parks and Green Spaces service will be at the meeting to discuss these issues.

Minutes:

Councillor Russell introduced this item, explaining that Dave Flavelle, (Area Parks Manager with Leicester City Council), was present at the meeting to discuss problems that had been encountered with barbecues being used in Bede Park.

 

It was recognised that various other issues regarding how the Park was used were of concern, so a meeting had been arranged for residents of the “herbs streets” to meet various agencies and discuss these other issues.  This would be held on Friday, 1 July 2011 at the East West Community Project.

 

With regard to previous discussions about the advisability of building a ball park on Bede Park, Councillor Russell advised the Meeting that a ball park would not be built there.

 

Val Smalley was thanked for finding where the keys to the notice board at the entrance to Bede Park had been stored.  In order to ensure they did not get lost again, it was proposed that the City Warden should keep one and that the other should be held by Ian Smalley of Tin Drum Books.  Mr Smalley confirmed that he was happy to keep the notice board updated.  Any notices for display could be delivered to the shop.

 

Councillor Russell advised the meeting that the other three notice boards for the area had been manufactured and delivery was awaited.  

 

Dave Flavelle introduced himself to the Meeting, advising that he was there to discuss issues regarding, and obtain the views of the community on, barbecues on Bede Park.

 

He explained that Parks Services currently found barbecues being used all over Bede Park, especially on warm or hot days.  These tended to be the self packed, ready to cook type that could be bought from places such as supermarkets.  Barbecues of this type caused fire damage to the grass in the Park and contributed to the litter problem.  Other litter also was generated by people using the barbecues, including alcohol bottles and tins.

 

Dave Flavelle advised that Leicester City Council Byelaws for Pleasure Grounds, Public Walks and Open Spaces prohibited barbecues unless a designated area had been identified and asked the Meeting for its views on introducing a barbecue designated area on Bede Park.

 

The following concerns were expressed about this proposal:-

 

·            Having a designated area would encourage groups of people to sit and drink alcohol in that area, which could contribute to anti-social behaviour in the Park.  Misuse of alcohol in the Park already occurred and appeared to be increasing;

 

·            There could be an increase in the number of dogs brought in to the Park and there already were problems with people not clearing up waste from their dogs;

 

·            People would ignore the designated area, or not realise where the area was, and continue to have barbecues wherever they wanted in the Park;

 

·            Having a designated area for barbecues provided an opportunity for people to enjoy a barbecue without breaking any bye-laws; and

 

·            At present, the Police had no powers to control the use of barbecues in  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

SUMMER PLAY SCHEMES AND ACTIVITIES

Officers from Leicester City Council have been invited to the meeting to discuss what play schemes and activities will be available in the Ward this summer.

Minutes:

The Chair reminded the Meeting that a display of summer play schemes and activities had been held during the Information Fair part of the Meeting.

 

Leaflets giving details of the full range of schemes being provided were available at the Meeting and also could be obtained from various locations around the City.

7.

THE MANOR HOUSE NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Representatives from the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre have been invited to attend the meeting to give an update on activities and events at the Centre.

Minutes:

The Chair reminded the Meeting that the Manor House Neighbourhood Centre had been closed for a while, but in response to a campaign by local people it had been reopened for a trial period.  Since then, it had been running very successfully as a pilot joint venture between Leicester City Council and the community.

 

Arthur Manger, Secretary of the Centre, introduced himself to the Meeting and explained that:-

 

·            A small programme of courses had been established, but activities at, and support for, the Centre were increasing;

 

·            A successful lunch club was operating and had about 20 regular members;

 

·            The Centre had met most of the targets set by the Council, in particular that requiring 2,000 people to come through the Centre’s doors each month;

 

·            An Arts Festival would be held at the Centre on Saturday, 25 June 2011.  Thanks were extended to the Meeting for the funding that had been provided to the Kaleidoscope Arts Group for this from the Community Meting budget;

 

·            A Polish night, (which included a barbecue and non-alcoholic bar), was being held at the Centre on Saturday, 9 July 2011.  It was hoped that this would give the Polish community a focal point, as well as promoting the Centre to that community.  Although this was a Polish event, everyone was welcome to attend;

 

·            A partnership had been formed with Leicester College, through which the College had provided a grant to enable the Centre to run courses of the type offered by the College;

 

·            It was proposed to develop an allotment at the back of the Centre premises, which would be used for some courses to be run at the Centre;

 

·            The former arts and crafts centre would be developed as a youth area, which it was hoped would help reduce anti-social behaviour;

 

·            A longer-term aim was to convert a room at the Centre in to a Community Lounge; and

 

·            It was hoped that literature about the Centre could be circulated more widely in the community in the future.

 

The City Council now used the Centre as an example of how the community needed to be involved in the running of Neighbourhood Centres for them to work properly.  In view of its success since its relaunch, it currently was not under threat of closure.

 

The Meeting expressed its thanks to the managing committee at Manor House for the work it was doing and the way that the Centre had been bought back in to the community.

8.

CITY WARDEN SERVICE pdf icon PDF 746 KB

The City Warden will be present at the meeting to give an update on issues in the area.

Minutes:

Barbara Whitcombe, (City Warden Team Manager at Leicester City Council), explained that it was intended to give a review to each Meeting of the work that the City Warden had been doing in the Ward over the preceding three months. 

 

It was noted that the City Wardens were working with the City Mayor on a number of the priorities for action identified under the 100 Days Programme, (for example, clearing up areas and work to stop businesses leaving rubbish in the streets).

 

The City Warden’s Westcotes 6 Month Action Plan (June – November) was tabled at the meeting and is attached at the end of these minutes for information.  Anyone who had any comments, or items for inclusion, was welcome to send these to the City Warden.

 

The following points were noted during discussion:-

 

·            The City Warden was undertaking regular patrols on Saxon Road and surrounding streets to monitor fly tipping;

 

·            Income from fines (Fixed Penalty Notices) could only be used on environmental education and work relating to the prevention of environmental crimes.  At the City Council, it was used to pay for things such as leaflets and other information circulated by the City Warden service, and the purchase of items such as “stubbies” in which cigarette ends could be placed;

 

·            No feedback had been received on whether fines had been imposed in relation to fires that had been lit on waste ground in the Ward.  The Ward Councillors undertook to investigate this;

 

·            The Bins on Street campaign had stopped while legal issues were resolved.  Now this had been done, the campaign was restarting;

 

·            The Council had let a contract under which weeds were sprayed twice per year.  Each year, the work started from a different point and this year Westcotes Ward was one of the last to be done.  However, spraying was due to start within the next week.  The weeds would die back over the following two weeks and any remaining after that would be hooked out;

 

·            The new downloadable application for smart phones for reporting complaints and problems was being promoted widely, but they still could be reported in the usual ways, such as text, e-mail or via the City Wardens or Ward Councillors.  All of these methods would be included on the Council’s Facebook page;

 

·            It could be difficult to difficult to have rubbish cleared from in front of properties, as the name of the property owner was needed in order for a reported problem to be logged and this name was not always known;

 

·            When a rented property had tenants in, household rubbish was collected under normal household waste collection processes.  However, when such a property was empty, rubbish from that property was classed as business waste;

 

·            Additional rubbish collections had been made at the end of the university summer terms, which had proved very successful.  Alley ways also had been cleared where possible;

 

·            It was not permitted for cars to be repaired on the road, except in an emergency, as this took  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.

9.

POLICE ISSUES IN THE WESTCOTES WARD

Officers from Leicestershire Constabulary will be present to discuss policing issues in the Westcotes Ward.

Minutes:

Sergeant Simon Barnes, (Leicestershire Constabulary), advised the Meeting that in the Ward in the last three months there had been:-

 

·            26 burglaries to dwellings, which was a reduction of 20 on this time last year;

·            8 burglaries other than dwellings, compared to 20 over this period last year;

·            21 robberies and thefts from persons, compared to 29 over this period last year;

·            34 thefts from and of motor vehicles, compared to 36 over this period last year; and

·            11 arrests for anti-social behaviour, compared to 14 over this period last year.

 

The Meeting welcomed these improvements.

 

The following points then were noted during discussion:-

 

·            Begging had not been legalised.  Recent incidences of children begging in the streets were being dealt with by the Police and other agencies;

 

·            Consideration was being given to installing more CCTV cameras by the canal.  The towpath was not owned by the City Council, but all agencies were being encouraged to work together to improve lighting there and cut back trees, so that the cameras in that area could work more efficiently;

 

·            The Police did not own any CCTV cameras, but were given access to those owned by the City Council, De Montfort University and local businesses as needed.  For example, 25 reports of incidents in the area around Tarragon Road had been received in the last year, with 14 reports applying to Bede Park on its own.  It was not always possible to be sure that these had been made as a result of cameras, but having cameras meant that it was possible to check information received.  Arrests had been made through this system of working;

 

·            The CCTV camera in Bede Park was owned by De Montfort University.  Trees in Bede Park obscured the camera’s view of the path, but it was hoped they could be trimmed back.  De Montfort University had provided a map of the trees’ locations and details of which ones needed trimming.  A tree surgeon would be used, to ensure that the work was done properly;

 

·            The cameras in use in the Ward had no audio interface and did not automatically scan round an area, although controllers could direct the cameras to particular points when needed.  Scanning cameras were not very useful, as it could be very difficult to get a good quality image from them;

 

·            The camera operators from De Montfort University would be invited to the meeting with residents about Bede Park on 1 July 2011, (see minute 44 above), to explain how the cameras worked;

 

·            The Police had classed Westcotes as a priority area for responses to calls reporting incidents at night, due to the extent of the night time economy and the amount of alcohol consumption in the Ward.  However, this did not guarantee any particular response when reports were made; and

 

·            The Police still operated an anti-social behaviour car, in which a Police Community Support Officer could attend reports of such behaviour.

 

The Meeting thanked the Police for the work they had done to make the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

10.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Minutes:

a)     Cycle Racks on Narborough Road

 

Councillor Connelly reported that cycle racks had been installed on Narborough Road, in order to help prevent thefts of cycles and stop cars parking on the pavements.

 

b)     Planning Issues

 

Councillor Connelly advised the Meeting that an item on planning applications had not been included on the agenda for this meeting, as he had become a member of the City Council’s Planning and Development Control Committee.  He therefore needed to get legal advice on whether discussions about planning applications at Westcotes Community Meetings would be construed as him having a pre-determined view of these applications. 

 

If it was possible to have items on planning applications in the future, it was likely that Councillor Connelly would not participate in the discussion on them.

11.

CLOSE OF MEETING

Minutes:

The Chair thanked all present for attending and closed the Meeting at 8.57 pm