Agenda and minutes

The meeting was chaired by Councillor Fonseca.

 

Councillor Fonseca thanked those present for their attendance, and gave an overview of some of the work he had undertaken within the ward since he was elected to represent Thurncourt in May 2011. 

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Wann.

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.

 

Councillor Fonseca declared a personal interest in respect of the Ward Community Budget as he was a member of the Thurnby Lodge Community Association.

The minutes of the meeting held on 24 October 2011 have been circulated and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the meeting held on 24 October 2011 be confirmed as a correct record.

 

A representative from Leicestershire Fire and Rescue service has been invited to the meeting to present an overview of the service’s work with the Princes’ Trust.  Guidance also will be provided on how local young people can become involved with the Trust.

This item was deferred to the next meeting.

Officers from Leicestershire Constabulary will provide an update on Police issues in Thurncourt Ward.

Inspector Danny Graham gave an update on policing issues in the Thurncourt Ward.  He explained that he and his team had undertaken a significant amount of work within the Thurncourt Ward during recent months. 

 

Within the last period, it was explained that 54 crimes had taken place within Thurncourt and this compared favourably with the other wards within Spinney Hills LPU. 

 

In terms of individual crime date, it was reported that there had been 11 assaults reported, 10 burglaries, 3 non –residential burglaries, 2 drug-related incidents, 9 thefts, 11 cases of domestic violence, 1 case of anti-social behaviour, 10 vulnerable person incidents and 1 street robbery.  In respect of the latter, it was pointed out that such cases were rare in Thurncourt.  Inspector Graham also stated that the vulnerable person incidents in particular required a significant amount of policing resource.  He also informed the meeting that the burglary figure was high in light of multiple incidents on Peters Drive.  Inspector Graham again pointed out that this was an infrequent occurrence, and sympathised with the concerns raised by the local community affected.  He explained that an application had been submitted to the Community Meeting to seek funds for a burglary target hardening initiative, and that this was to be considered at a later stage of the meeting. 

 

Inspector Graham reported that there had been an anti-social behaviour problem on Thurncourt Road in the autumn, and as a result, an operation was initiated, which led to the problem being resolved.  Similarly, work was undertaken to respond to a series of complaints in relation to a number of fires being lit in the Sunbury Green area.  The meeting was informed that the police, the Housing Office and City Wardens had worked together to successfully tackle this matter.

 

In terms of speeding traffic, Inspector Graham informed residents that a joint-operation with Stoneygate ward commenced in December which led to a significant number of fixed penalty notices being issued to offenders.  It was also confirmed that local PSCOs were now fully trained in respect of speeding operations.

 

It was reported that there had been several attempted burglaries on St Swithan’s Road, and as a result, two known offenders had been arrested and consequently charged.

 

In light of the proposed march by the English Defence League (EDL) on Saturday 4 February 2012, Inspector Graham stated that the Police and the City Council had released a joint statement announcing that both the EDL and United Against Fascism (UAF) had been permitted to hold marches on this date and that carefully planned routes had been devised, which would ensure that the two groups would be kept apart to minimise the possibility of any level of public disorder.  It was felt that the marches would be easier to police than the static demonstrations which took place in the City in 2010.  Inspector Graham confirmed that as a result of the marches, appropriate alterations would be made on the day in respect of bus routes and general traffic flow.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

Officers from the City Council’s Care and Repair service have been invited to the meeting to explain what the service can offer.

Yakub Gangat, Care and Repair was present to provide information on the work of the service. The Community Meeting were informed that the service was a charitable agency which offered support and guidance to its customers. The service also aimed to protect against rogue traders by having an approved list of 50 contractors who carried out work for the service. It was noted that the service was funded by the Council and from the ‘Supporting People’ organisation. Yakub explained that Care and Repair also gave advice to people about the benefits they were entitled to.

A short video presentation was shown to residents which provided further details of the services officered and how they positively affected customers.

Chrissie Field, Area Manager for Humberstone and Rowlatts Hill, will be at the meeting to discuss housing issues.

In the absence of officers from the Housing Office, Francis Connolly provided an update in respect of following the Capital Receipt Initiatives which had been agreed for the Thurncourt Ward.

 

·         St Austell Road refurbishments – these works were close to completion.  The fencing, decking, dog walk and pagoda planting had been finished, and the installation of the seating was the only outstanding element of this work.

 

·         The fencing off either side of the access path to the property fronts on 88 Compass Road was now complete. 

 

·         The installation of the palisaded fencing on Whiston Close was now complete. 

 

·         The two open paled gates on Rockingham Close were now complete.

 

·         Two ‘recycled plastic vandal-proof benches’ (Willowbrook View) – these had been ordered and further guidance was awaited from the Police and TARA members in respect of exact locations to be placed.

 

·         Knee rail fencing for Kirmington Gardens – the order for this work had been placed, but was currently on hold as repair work to the green was required before it could be carried out. 

 

·         The knee rail fencing on Sunbury Green had been installed.

 

·          Knee rail fencing – Roborough Green – officers had been asked to put this work on hold due to a late objection following consultation.  Officers were to clarify at the next meeting whether this work would still be completed. 

 

Councillor Fonseca welcomed the update, and was pleased that seven out of the eight Capital works had progressed satisfactorily. 

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

Nicole Powell and Charlotte Williams-Glover were present to provide an update on issues in Thurncourt Ward.  They explained how they had been installed as the wardens for Thurncourt for the past month and also covered the Humberstone and Hamilton and Evington wards. 

 

Nicole explained that she had regularly visited the Thurnby Lodge Community Centre to meet residents, and to date, had carried out approximately 20 ward patrols.  Additional meetings had taken place between themselves and Cllr Fonseca, the TARA and the Police beat team. 

 

The City Wardens were currently dealing with twelve customer service requests for the Thurncourt ward.  The issues that they had been dealing with most recently included:

 

·         Problems with dog fouling on Willowbrook Walk and Longstone Gardens.  In an attempt to curtail this problem, warning letters and stickers had been placed on lamp-posts.  Nicole asked residents to inform her of exact times and locations of such cases so that offenders could be issued with fixed penalty notices.

·         Issues in connection with skips on St Austell’s Road had now been rectified.

·         An on-going investigation was taking place with regards to nuisance parking on Wendy’s Close.

·         Incidents of burnt rubbish outside the flats on St Austell’s Road had now been resolved, as had problems with fly tipping on Uppingham Road.

 

Nicole stated that it was intended to hold monthly City Warden surgeries within the ward to allow residents to discuss issues that they required assistance with.

 

Additional reports of dog fouling on Thurncourt Road were raised. The City Wardens explained that information around the time and exact location of such offenses would allow action against offenders to be pursued. 

 

The City Wardens agreed to investigate reports of deposited asbestos outside the Willowbrook Youth and Activity Centre. 

 

Residents raised concerns around the amount of time that the City Wardens would be based within Thurncourt.  In response, Nicole stated that herself and Charlotte had visited the ward each day since they commence their work in Thurncourt, though it was acknowledged that information was required in relation to when they would be working in the ward and how they could be contacted. 

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 Ward Community budget for 2011/12; and

 

b)     The following grant applications are submitted for consideration:-

 

Project:           Burglary Target Hardening Project

 

Amount:           see summary below

 

Applicant:        Inspector Bill Knopp (Spinney Hill Local Policing Unit) and Nazira Vania (Leicester City Council Community Safety Team)

 

Summary:

 

There has been an increase in burglaries in the Spinney Hill Local Policing Unit area (which includes Thurncourt Ward) so, as a crime prevention measure, it is proposed to provide timer switches and window alarms in hotspot areas.

 

The alarms are attached to accessible windows and the alarm goes off if the window is hit or broken.  It is anticipated that the average property would require 4 window alarms and 1 timer switch, equating to £12 per property.

 

Initially the aim is to target 100 properties in the area at an estimated cost of £1,200. The window alarms cost £2.50 each and the timer switches cost £2.00 each.  

 

£500 for this project has been agreed by the Ward members under the Council’s fast-track procedures, so a further £700 is requested at this meeting.

 

 

Project:           Cinema Club

 

Amount:           £2,276.60

 

Applicant:        Thurnby Lodge Tenants and Residents Association

 

Summary:

 

This proposal is for funding for a Cinema Club.  The success of the Club will be assessed through feedback from users.

 

Residents will be asked what kind of films they want to see and how often.

 

Funding has been requested for the purchase of a screen, projector, sound system, dvd player, all cabling and electrical equipment.

 

 

Project:           Sunbury United Football Club

 

Amount:           Footballs      approx £30

                          New Strip     approx £370

 

Applicant:        Mr C Massey

 

Summary:

 

Funding is requested for new footballs and new strip for use by the football team and some young people from the area.

 

 

Project:           The Tuesday Club Outing

 

Amount:           £500

 

Applicant:        Mrs B Ayres

 

Summary:

 

It is proposed to organise a bus outing in February or March for members of the Tuesday bingo club and other members of Thurnby Lodge Youth and Community Centre groups.

 

 

Project:           Outing for the Friday Chit-Chat Club

 

Amount:           Cost of Coach:       £400

                          Assistance with entrance fees:   £100

                          TOTAL: £500

 

Applicant:        Chit-Chat Club

 

Summary:

 

This request is for funding to take members of the Club and groups using the Community Centre on a coach trip in the spring.

 

 

Project:           Redecoration of the Ocean Road Community Centre Main Hall

 

Amount:           £500 for paint and brushes

 

Applicant:        Thurnby Lodge Tenants and Residents Association

 

Summary:

 

Funding is requested for the redecoration of the Community Centre hall.

 

 

Project:           Thurnby Lodge Community Carnival 2012

 

Amount:           £3,000

 

Applicant:        Thurnby Lodge Community Forum

 

Summary:

 

The Thurnby Lodge Community Carnival will take place on Saturday 7 July 2012.  It will be held on Willowbrook Park in partnership with the City Parks service.

 

It is estimated that the number attending  ...  view the full agenda text for item 37.

Francis Connolly, Members’ Support Officer, gave an update on funding applications that had been received.

 

It was explained that eight applications had been submitted prior to the agenda despatch.  It was made clear that both Councillor Fonseca and Wann had made decisions in principle prior to the meeting, and these were confirmed as follows

 

1.            Burglary Target Hardening Project – request for £700 from Spinney Hill local Policing Unit and the City Council Community Safety Team.

 

     It was pointed out that a sum of £500 had been fast-tracked by         Councillors prior to the meeting, to allow crime prevention measures to    be fitted to the properties deemed as a priority in the ward.

 

            AGREED: that the remainder of the application be supported.

 

2.          Thurnby Lodge TARA – request for £2,276.60 for a Cinema Club

 

It was confirmed that Councillors were not supportive of the application in it’s current form, but encouraged the applicant to consider alternatives to the proposed delivery of the project, and to look at purchasing equipment of a lower value to that proposed.  It was also requested that further information be obtained in relation to the licensing requirements.

 

AGREED:  that the application be refused in its current form.

 

3.            Sunbury United Football Club – request for £400 for footballs and a new strip

 

AGREED:  that the application be supported.

 

4.            The Tuesday Club Outing – request for £500 for a bus outing in February or March for members of the Tuesday bingo club

 

In terms of this application, and for application (5) and (6), the applicants had confirmed that the outings would not be confined to particular groups or individuals, and that efforts would be made to attract different people to partake in the outings.

 

AGREED:  that the application be supported

 

5.            Outing for the Friday Chit Chat Club – request for £500 to take members of the club and groups using the Community Centre on a coach trip in the spring. 

 

AGREED:  that the application be supported.

 

6.            The Wednesday Club – request for £400 to support the cost of an outing to the seaside, including lunch. 

 

It was pointed out that this particular application was partly funded by         the Wednesday club.

 

AGREED:      that the application be supported. 

 

7.            Redecoration of the Ocean Road Community Centre Main Hall – request for £500 for paint and brushes.

 

It was explained that this work would be carried out by local volunteers, subject to permission granted from Community Services. 

 

AGREED:  that the application be supported.

 

8.            Thurnby Lodge Community Carnival 2012 – request for £3,000 from the Community Carnival 2012

 

It was confirmed that the carnival would be held on Saturday 7 July 2012 at Willowbrook Park, and it was estimated that the number of attendees would eclipse 3,000.  It was also reported that local youth groups would take a lead role in the proposed activities.

 

It was confirmed that both Councillors were supportive of this application in full, but that payment be put on hold until possible further bids  ...  view the full minutes text for item 37.

The meeting closed at 8:10pm.