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).
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Action |
Officer Identified |
Deadline |
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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 not be locked, and that a previous operation to install alley gates had led to a reduction in burglaries. Sergeant Simon Barnes, (Leicestershire Constabulary), confirmed that the number of burglaries in terraced houses currently was increasing.
In response to questions, it was noted that bolts could not be used on the alley gates in question, as some houses used the front room as a bedroom, so these houses could not be accessed from the front. Residents therefore needed to have access to the side or rear of the property.
If gates still needed to be installed at any properties, residents should get in touch with the Ward Councillors, or City Council officers.
RECOMMENDED:
that a grant of £1,080 be approved to the City Warden service for the purchase of alley gate keys.
Councillor Connelly left the meeting during consideration of application b) above and Councillor Russell took the Chair for the remainder of the meeting.