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 Khote as Chair led on introductions.

There were no apologies for absence.

There were no declarations of interest.

The Action Log of the North Evington Community Meeting held on 6 March 2019 is attached for information and discussion.

The action log from the last meeting was noted.

The Councillors will provide an update on ward related matters.

Councillors raised their concerns that there was no City Warden appointed to the North Evington Ward. It was an area of concern as issues with fly tipping and other environmental issues had been raised previously.

Continuing issues on Sparrow Park were still causing problems to the residents of the area and Councillors were aware of the on going situation. 

Councillors suggested they would be in contact with the Lead Director as it was paramount that the ward had a designated City Warden. ACTION: Ward Councillors

Councillors were strongly opposing to the Merlyn Vaz Centre being moved out of the area. It was a crucial that the walk-in centre stayed in the ward as it served the people.

It was noted that a Diabetes Village had been introduced at the Merlyn Vaz walk-in Centre. This was a 6 months pilot project every Thursday between 10am and 6pm and was free to use for residents.

It was noted that the one-way system on Asfordby Street and neighbouring streets in the area would go live on 19 August 2019.

Parking on east park road and Nottingham street was still causing an issue with the flow of traffic on East Park Road. Councillors were aware of the situation and were working with the Highways Team to help re configure the flow of traffic around that area.

Councillors noted that there was an issue with shortage of housing in the ward. It was a popular area for people to live in and it was difficult to allocate people with properties within the ward.

Councillors suggested that a door knock to bring surgeries to the residents was a way to directly meet with residents and Councillors would be organising one for the near future. ACTION: Ward Councillors

Officers from the Local Policing Unit will be at the meeting to provide an update on police issues in the North Evington Ward.

Pc Lorgat, Pc Barber and PCSO Brown were in attendance at the meeting.

Residents reported anti-social behaviour (ASB) on Sandpiper Close on the Charnwood Estate and the area behind Charny Pub and the Merlyn Vaz Centre car park. It was noted that the police had not had any reports of this but would suggest this area to be added to the patrols that take place.

Residents were encouraged to be responsible for closing the gates to the entrances of the stairwell to the flats. The Neighbourhood Housing Team Leader that was in attendance at the meeting stated that the gates were added to the entrances to prevent people other than residents from entering the blocks of flats or courtyard areas.

Residents were encouraged to report all incidents to the police. The police stated there were not many reports of any incidents on the estate. Residents were reminded that all reports can be made anonymously and reporting incidents to the police would lead to action being taken.

It was noted that the police work closely with the Housing Team and this could help bring the reported ASB on the estate down if it were Council tenants that were causing the issues.

The police also suggested that if residents could keep a log of times and dates of incidents which could then be passed on to the local officers, this could also be done online and would help the police to tackle the issues on the estate.

ASB on the ball court on Overton Road had been reported and work was on going to resolve the problems there.

Councillors suggested providing the meeting with statistics of crimes from one meeting to the other, this would help Councillors and residents get a better idea of the issues on the ward. ACTION: Police

An  Officer from the Highways Team will provide an update on highways matters in the ward.

Mark Govan from the Highways Team was in attendance at the meeting and provided an update on Highways matters.

It was reported that there were two main projects that were underway on the ward currently. Firstly, the Green Lane Road corridor which was in its early stages, to improve the flow of traffic and secondly, the introduction of the new road layouts around the Asfordby Street area which would go live on 19 August 2019.

Residents welcomed the new changes and the proposals but were concerned with the Harewood Street junction leading onto Uppingham Road. There had been three accidents in recent months and residents were concerned this would lead to something worse.

Mark Govan informed residents that Uppingham Road was an A road and the options available were very limited. Speed cameras were not a feasible solution but a Vehicle Activated Sign (VAS) could be an option.

Councillors suggested that maybe a speed cushion at the end of Harewood Street leading onto Uppingham Road could be a solution for slowing cars down pulling out onto the main road.

An Officer from the Housing Team will be present to provide an update on housing matters in the North Evington Ward.

Marlene Blake the Neighbourhood Housing Team Leader was in attendance and updated the meeting with Housing matters.

It was noted that cameras had been installed on Redwood Walk to monitor the issue with ASB. The addition of cameras had helped bring down the number of reported incidents on the Redwood walk part of the estate, but reports had increased on the Larch Street end. Officers were working on addressing the nuisance behaviour which had led to two evictions being carried out.

Previously concerns had been raised on sub-letting of council property, Officers had recovered 3 properties from fraudulent tenants.

It was noted that the grass is cut 3 to 4 times a year and that the shrubs are cut annually. This was contracted to an external agency and the contract was being adhered to. It was noted that the Probation Service could be carrying out some of this work.

It was noted that the housing block opposite the Marlyn Vaz Walk-In Centre was due to be painted. A bid was also proposed for general improvements on the estates on the ward.

Residents were informed that although there was no City Warden allocated to the ward, Housing Officers pick up fly tipping that is left on housing land and areas. It was noted that the green land on the Charnwood Estate was part of Parks Services, but Housing Officers did remove fly tipping that could be removed on their vehicles.

A resident from Lilly Road was concerned that a public footbath that passed her home was not safe as people used it for loitering and had caused safety concerns when opening windows. ACTION: Neighbourhood Housing Team Leader to liaise with the correct department.

Residents were informed that to close of any public footpath the Council required a Public Space Protection. This could only be required if incidents are reported to the police, both the Neighbourhood Housing Team Leader and the police present urged residents to ensure all incidents are reported to the police.

Residents were also reminded that the Housing Hub at St Matthews and at St Barnabas Library were available to be utilised.

The City Warden will provide an update on any issues in the North Evington Ward.

No Officer from the City Warden Team was available to attend the meeting.

Councillors were aware that there were no allocated City Wardens on the ward and shared their concerns.

Councillors suggested that a multi-language leaflet to be distributed to inform residents of the bulky waste and other similar services provided by the Council. ACTION: City Wardens Team

Residents reported rubbish being dumped in Willow Brook, this was causing blockages in the waterflow in the brook.  ACTION: City Warden Team

Councillors suggested using the Love Leicester App was a useful tool to get matters addressed.

A representative from the Community Advice and Law Service will provide information about the EU Settlement Scheme.

Glenda Terry from the Community Advice and Law Service was in attendance and provided information on the EU Settlement Scheme.

All leaflets distributed are attached for information.

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

An update will be given on the Ward Community Budget.

The Ward Community Engagement Officer reported that from the opening Ward Community Budget of £18,000. 7 applications had been supported and the closing balance to date was £14,900.

Councillors were pleased to be supporting local projects and invited all successful applicants to feedback about their project to ward meetings.

Residents shared their concerns with the number of off-licences opening in the ward. It was suggested that this was resulting in an increase in anti-social behaviour in the ward. Councillors confirmed that before an off-licence opened it would go through the licensing process. At this point residents had the opportunity to object to applications.

Any licensed premises that did not comply to the licensing objectives could be bought up for review of their licence.

Residents were encouraged to report any incidents to the police.

There being no more items of business the meeting closed at 8:20pm.