Agenda and minutes

The Chair advised the meeting that a request had been received from a student to film the proceedings of the Community Meeting.  All present were asked if they agreed to this.  No objections were raised, so the meeting was filmed.

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.

The minutes of the previous Braunstone Park and Rowley Fields Community Meeting, held on 14 December 2011, are attached and Members are asked to confirm them as a correct record.

The minutes of the meeting held on 14 December 2011 were approved as a correct record.

An officer from the Council’s Property Services will be present to provide an update on the current situation with regard to Braunstone Hall.

The Chair introduced Sir Peter Soulsby, the City Mayor, to the Meeting. 

Sir Peter explained that he had had early discussions with the Ward Members about issues in the Ward, so was aware of local issues of concern.  He had been very impressed by the Action Plan for the Ward and considered that it could become a model for other Wards.

Sir Peter advised the meeting that he was aware of concern about finding a suitable use for Braunstone Hall.  He shared this concern, as it was recognised that the Hall was important to the history of Leicester, as well as the area, and he made the following points:-

·           Although there were issues with the building, it was structurally sound and most of the problems were superficial.  However, care needed to be taken to ensure that the building did not deteriorate further;

·           Better use could be made of the stable block;

·           Two parties initially had expressed an interest in the Hall, but it was felt that there now was only one party with a serious interest in the property.  They were interested in using the Hall for the leisure and hospitality industry;

·           The interested party had a proven track record of using sensitive buildings well, but the cost of any scheme could be a problem.  It could be too expensive for the new user to meet the full costs of making the building usable, so the Council was negotiating the level of help it could give.  There was confidence that agreement could be reached;

·           Negotiations also were underway on how public access to the grounds could be maintained;

·           It was hoped that all negotiations could be concluded by the summer; and

·           The Council originally had considered funding development of the Hall by selling some land at the corner of Oswin Road, but it was felt that it would be a shame to do this, as the land had ecological value.  This sale also would complicate the issues involved in bringing the Hall back in to use and the land had no relationship to the site of the Hall.  Funding for this development should be clear and straightforward.

The following points were then made in discussion:-

·           The possibility of selling land at the corner of Hinckley Road and Winstanley Drive had not been considered.  It was part of the school site, so did not link naturally with Braunstone Hall.  A strategic objective in the Ward was to develop land for housing whenever possible and the land on this corner was the second prime site in the Ward;

·           The development being considered was very exciting and would give the Hall a sustainable future.  Detailed plans had not been seen by the Council yet, but any development would need to be done in a way that was satisfactory for the building and the community;

·           The Council was aware that public opinion was that the worst option for the Hall would be for the developer to do something that shut local people out, so  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

A representative from Leicestershire Fire and Rescue will be in attendance to present an overview of the work with the Princes’ Trust and will provide guidance on how local young people can become involved with the trust

It was noted that, as no-one from the Prince’s Trust was able to be at this meeting, this item had been deferred to the next meeting.

Information will be provided on the Choice Advice Service which offers support, advice and information to parents and carers when they are applying for a school place for their child.

As no-one from the Choice Advice Service was able to come to this meeting, consideration of this item was deferred.

The Councillors will provide an update on the Braunstone Park and Rowley Fields Ward Action Plan.

NOTED:

1)    that it was proposed to bring an annual report on the Ward Action Plan to the next meeting;

2)    that each Ward Councillor had their own responsibilities under the Ward Action Plan, details of which are attached at the end of these minutes for information.

The Ward Councillors will provide an update on current issues in the area.

The Chair presented the following update on current issues in the Ward:-

·           The development on the Bendbow Rise School site was moving in to Phase 2;

·           Plans had been drawn up for development on Winforde Crescent;

·           There was less anti-social behaviour in Braunstone than any other part of the City.  This was largely due to confidence and pride in the area, generated by good policing and partnership working, which made people less tolerant of anti-social behaviour;

·           Managers at the Youth House had invested in the Street Vibe youth team, which would take over the running of the Youth House.  This was not a Council-funded team;

·           B-Inspired had recently sponsored a meeting of all heads of primary schools to discuss attainment;

·           Braunstone had one of the lowest levels of educational attainment in the City, so a Steering Group had been established through which to share experience and best practice.  This included representatives of secondary schools, which was encouraging the primary and secondary sectors to work together for mutual benefit; and

·           Health inequalities in the area were high.  It therefore was proposed to establish a working group to consider the issues involved.  Data was now available at Ward level, so the group could focus on issues of particular concern to the Ward.  Key partners already were working together as a long-term project to address health issues and it was hoped that B-Inspired could sponsor a one-day event to drive this forward.

During discussion on this, some members of the community felt that anti-social behaviour was still being experienced in the Ward.  Many elderly people lived in the areas where this was happening who felt they could not leave their homes.  In reply, the Chair advised that the Council had funded research in to issues for the elderly and was in the process of appointing a volunteer co-ordinator.  This person would encourage community organisations, such as befriending services.  Details of any problems identified could be passed to the Ward Councillors for investigation.

In addition, it was noted that work was on-going on reducing the number of rogue traders in the City.  It was hoped that Leicester could become the first City nationally to be a “no go” area for rogue traders.

Problems in getting appointments at the Merridale Medical Centre in Fullhurst Avenue were discussed.  The meeting was reminded that similar concerns previously had been successfully discussed with doctors from the Centre at a Community Meeting and it was suggested that this approach could be tried again.

The Chair advised that Mums Supporting Mums was creating a Braunstone-based on-line community radio service.  Further details of this were available from the Ward Members.

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.

There will be an update on the Community Meeting budget.

NOTED:

1)    that the grant application from Leicester Housing Association for a remote camera would not be supported, as it was felt that this was an inappropriate type of camera, in view of problems experienced with previous ones;

2)    that, before the grant applications for Young Stars Dodgeball (from Vicky Hudson) and a celebration of African and Caribbean roots and culture (from Ajani Women and Girls Centre) could be considered, further information was needed on how these projects would benefit the residents of the Ward; and

3)    that, although a grant had been approved to Angels and Monsters for new play equipment, the request for a grant for repairs was still being discussed, (minute 36, 14 December 2011 referred).

a)     Discussion with City Mayor

The meeting was invited to raise questions and comments about issues that were not specific to the Ward with Sir Peter Soulsby, the City Mayor.  As a result, the following matters were discussed:-

·           The Council had to take action over its offices at New Walk Centre, as the buildings were crumbling.  Capital funding for this had been set aside for this purpose;

·           Three options for new Council offices at New Walk were being considered:

o   buy somewhere else;

o   use various buildings across the City centre; or

o   rebuild the offices / redevelop the site, (probably with a partner, due to the costs involved).

The third option currently was the favoured one, as the site was a good one, but no decision on this had been taken yet;

·           New Walk Centre occupied an important corner site, so the opportunity could be taken to provide something architecturally pleasing and reflective of the rest of New Walk;

·           Approximately 1,600 Council staff currently were based at New Walk Centre, which was a small proportion of the total number of staff employed by the Council;

·           One possibility was to relocate Council staff to various smaller buildings around the City Centre during the redevelopment of the New Walk Centre site and then possibly dispose of the other buildings as functioning offices when no longer needed for Council staff.  However, as the existing offices were not used as intensively as they previously had been, the current site could be redeveloped by demolishing and rebuilding one block at a time.  Full consideration had not yet been given to how this could work;

·           The Council had intended to use the former Post Office building in Bishop Street as a Customer Service Centre.  However, although a Customer Service Centre did not need to be in the same place as the Council’s other offices, this building and location were not suitable for this use and it would be expensive to convert.  It therefore would be preferable to find an alternative use for the building;

·           Members of the community felt that Christmas shopping in the City Centre had not been good.  They had found that some shops closed early, no-one was in the streets and it appeared that the shops in The Lanes area had not been encouraged to participate.  The City Mayor recognised these problems.  He noted that many people only shopped in the Highcross centre, so there was a need to encourage them to use the shops outside the centre.  The City Centre Manager had established the LE1 group to find ways of encouraging improvements, (such as improving sign posting, keeping pavements clean and establishing a retail circuit);

·           The Lanes would not be gated.  A gateway in to the area was needed to encourage people to shop there and welcome them in, not keep them out.  In this way, visitors would be welcomed and would know that they were entering a special area;

·           Using accommodation over shops would be one way of encouraging people  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

The Chair thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting at 7.10 pm.