Agenda and minutes

The Chair will introduce those present and make any necessary announcements.

The Chair and any other Councillors who are present will make any declarations as required by the Councillors’ Code of Conduct.

Councillor Fonseca – Chair, welcomed everyone and led introductions.

There were no apologies for absence.

Attached for information and discussion.

The Action Log from the meeting held 15 July 2014 was circulated and confirmed as a correct record.

Attendees will give feedback from the Community Walk that will take place in the Thurncourt Ward on Monday 13October 2014. There will also be an opportunity for suggestions for the route of the next Community walk.

Anita Clarke, the Community Engagement Officer gave feedback on the Community Patch Walk which took place on 13 October 2014 and covered Stornaway Road and Cross Keys Green in the Thurncourt Ward.

Mark Govan, Highways representative took part in the walk and made note of the following:

·         The pathways in comparison to some areas in Leicester were not in a bad condition.

·         Speed humps on Nursery Road needed closer attention in order to see if they were fit for purpose.

·         There were talks about making Nursery Road ‘one way’, however, there was no confirmed information regarding this.

·         Garages on Cross Keys Green had evidence of fly tipping. This was a small amount compared to previous issues of fly tipping, which had been dealt with through Housing.

·         The expected 20mph signs had not been installed and would be looked into.

An update will be given about Youth work in the Thurncourt Ward.

Linda Holmes, Youth Operational Manager presented information on the youth service:

·         Since the City Mayor launched a pledge towards a Gold Standard Youth Service, there had been continued support to youth work through youth and community centres. The Service provided youth support for 13-19 year olds (up to 24 year olds with additional needs).

·         In regards to the Thurncourt Ward, there had been a staffing review whereby new vacancies had been advertised and it was hoped that services in the Ward would be fully staffed by December, following Police checks.

·         The Youth Service was firstly looking to establish its 3 core youth work sessions over each week and then possibly implement Saturday afternoon sessions in addition.

Elected representatives of the Young People’s Council gave an update on actions being undertaken and issues they were responding to, such as:

·         Initiate ‘Ice Breaker’ sessions in order to break barriers between the Police and young people.

·         Hold youth surgeries (similar to Councillor’s surgeries concept).

·         Work with the UK Youth Parliament to get young people involved and talk about their desires.

The City Warden will give an update on issues in the Thurncourt Ward.

Charlotte Williams-Glover, City Warden gave an update on the following:

·         Attendees were informed that an app called ‘Love Leicester’ was available for download on smart phones. The app allowed residents to send images and report problems such as fly tipping, graffiti, littering and other issues directly to the Council Service who would be able to respond.

·         It was noted that there had been 8 complaints in total since the last meeting, 5 had been dealt with and the other 3 were ongoing. The majority of complaints were regarding dog fouling. Advice was given that any of the bins including the red bins could be used to dispose dog foul.

Housing officers will give an update on housing issues in the Thurncourt Ward.

Chrissie Field, Area Manager (Housing) gave an update on developments in the Ward.

The following information was presented:

·         An upgrade of the Thurncourt Shopping Parade had been carried out. Attendees commented that the upgrade was welcomed however some of the flower baskets were not being watered regularly enough.

·         Longstone Green and Dudley Avenue parking schemes were said to be going ahead this financial year and were funded by a combination of budgets from different Council departments.

·         The Housing Design Team who were allocated the painting repairs at Elmcroft Avenue, had contracted the work out and hoped the work to be carried out from January 2015.

·         The noticeboard from outside the funeral parlour on Thurncourt Road disintegrated when being reinstated near the Co-operative store. Another noticeboard had been re-ordered and it was suggested that the new board was not erected near the cashpoint.

·         At 82 Ocean Road, the Empty Homes Team now had a Compulsory Purchase Order on the private house which meant the house could finally be taken back after several years of a frustrating process.

·         Attendees were asked to note that the Thurnby Lodge Tenants & Residents Association (TARA) were disbanded at their own request. It was possible to begin another TARA however; the association required at least 8 people and the majority needed to be Council tenants as it was funded by the Housing Revenue Account.

For the next financial year, Councillor Connelly, Executive Member for Housing had been keen for early consultations of work to be undertaken. The following suggestions were made by the Housing Department:

·         At the rear of Thurncourt Shopping Parade, remove existing wooden gates (of which many had broken) and replace with steel garage double doors to each unit.

·         The remaining walls at the front of Thurncourt Shopping Parade would be steam cleaned.

·         12-15 Thurncourt Gardens would have a door entry system installed.

·         St Austell Road would have the installation of 3 parking spaces.

·         The painting programme on Council properties would be re-implemented as soon as possible.

The City Mayor had pledged the following for Thurncourt Ward this financial year:

·         £50,000 for layby parking/ verge hardening – Kinross Avenue

·         £50,000 for layby parking/ verge hardening – Wendy Close

·         £50,000 for grass grid parking/ verge hardening – Ocean Road

·         £40,000 for a residential parking layby – Herthull Road

·         A £15,000 pledge was also suggested for a ward priority zebra crossing installation on Dudley Avenue.

The City Mayor had also agreed a small amount of funding for a small gazebo and table/ chairs to enable officers to hold ‘pop-up’ sessions in the Ward.

Local Police Officers will be at the meeting to provide an update on Police issues in Thurncourt Ward.

Sergeant Stuart Wood gave the following advice and statistics within the Thurncourt Ward:

·         It was noted that crime figures were significantly low. In the past 3 months, there had been 5 drug offences, 4 burglaries and several instances of random ‘damage’.

·         Leaflets were distributed and attendees advised to contact Crimestoppers to report any suspicious activity, crime or offences. The caller could remain anonymous and Crimestoppers would pass the information onto the Police for them to follow up.

·         Further leaflets were distributed on ways to help secure your home from burglary in the day and night. If residents knew of any older people who required this information, it was recommended that the resident contact the Police directly who could go out and provide further information to the older persons.

·         In regards to the school pupil incident reported at a previous Thurncourt Community Meeting, no perpetrators were identified which resulted in the case remaining unsolved.

Highways officers will give an update on Highways issues in the Ward.

There were no Highways Officers present to give an update. However, the ‘Feedback from Community Walk’ item at the beginning of this meeting, gave an indication to some of the Highways issues in the Thurncourt Ward.

Successful applicants for Thurncourt Ward funding will give feedback or a presentation on what was achieved with the funding received.

Recipients of previously supported bids gave a presentation of their achievements as a result of receiving support from the Thurncourt Ward fund.

Some of the testimonials presented were as follows:

·         Teresa Aldred referred to a bid which was supported for a Memorial Day Trip. 2 coaches of 100 people including a Brownies group attended the National Memorial Arboretum for the day. There were many interesting aspects to the day which resulted in fantastic feedback.

·         Allan Gratrix spoke on behalf of the Thurnby Lodge (Youth Forum) which received £3,000 from the Thurncourt Ward funding and organised a Fun Day. It was noted that the Fun Day went well, however applicants did not receive the funding until 2 months after the event which meant that money had to be borrowed in order for the event to be carried out.

·         Some attendees expressed concern that they wished to be included in the consideration of which budget applications were supported and rejected (as had happened in some previous meetings).

Councillors are reminded that under the Council’s Code of Conduct they should declare any interest they may have in budget applications

The meeting will receive an update on the Ward Community Budget.

Any applications received before the meeting will be submitted for consideration.

Anita Clarke, the Community Engagement Officer provided an update on the Community Meeting Budget.

All applications below were considered at the meeting:

·         1126: New Bowling Mat

Applicant: Hamilton Bowls Group

Amount Requested: £950

Result: Funding of £750 SUPPORTED

·         1187: Community Cinema

Applicant: LCC – Community Services

Amount Requested: £250

Result: Funding of £200 SUPPORTED

·         1191: Bringing Lapland to the Heart of our Community

Applicant: Thurnby Lodge Community Forum

Amount Requested: £1750

Result: Funding of £1500 SUPPORTED

·         1192: 55^th Community Group – Help towards cost of Suspended Ceiling and Insulation

Applicant: The 55^th Community Group (F.E.C.A.)

Amount Requested: £500

Result: Funding of £450 SUPPORTED

·         1202: Thurnby Kickstart Academy

Applicant: Gareth Smith and Colin Massey

Amount Requested: £600

Result: Funding of £600 SUPPORTED

·         3205: The Boyzee – Willowbrook Activity Centre

Applicant: Graham Cornish

Amount Requested: £4,000

Result: Funding of £1,027.14 SUPPORTED

It was noted that no further ward funding would be available in the Thurncourt Ward until the new financial year commencing April 2015.

To note that future Thurncourt Community Meetings will be held as follows:

Tuesday 27^th January 2015 at 6pm – venue to be confirmed (please note time of meeting)

Monday 30^th March 2015 at 6.30pm – venue to be confirmed

The dates of the future Thurncourt Community Meetings for the municipal year 2014/15 were confirmed:

Tuesday 27^th January 2015 at 6pm – venue to be confirmed (please note time of meeting)

Monday 30^th March 2015 at 6.30pm – venue to be confirmed

The meeting closed at 7.52pm