Agenda and minutes

The Chairman, Councillor Graham Payne, welcomed everyone to the meeting of the Trowbridge Area Board.

To receive any apologies for the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Nick Blakemore, Mike Franklin, Wiltshire Fire and Rescue and Inspector Lisette Harvey, Wiltshire Police.

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 11 July 2013.

The minutes of the meeting held on 11 July 2013 were presented for consideration. It was,

Resolved:

That subject to a correction of the date 2 September to 16 September under Minute 57(iii) - Partner Updates (TCAF), to APPROVE the minutes as a true and correct record and be signed by the Chairman.

To receive any declarations of disclosable interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

Councillors Graham Payne, Jeff Osborn, John Knight and Helen Osborn all declared general, non-pecuniary interests in Trowbridge Town Council issues due to being members of the Town Council.

To include the following:

      i.        Core Strategy Consultation

2. Update on Joint Strategic Needs Assessment Community Profiles

   iii.        Trowbridge Transport Strategy

i)             Core Strategy Consultation

The written update was noted.

ii)            Update on Joint Strategic Needs Assessment Community Profiles

The written update was noted.

iii)           Pest Control Update

A display was available at the start of the meeting. A written update was provided and is attached to these minutes.

iv)          South West Fair Trade Day

It was announced the South West Fair Trade Day would be held on 21 September 2013 in the Atrium(Ridgeway Space) of County Hall, Trowbridge.

To note any written reports and other updates from the following:

      i.        Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC)

    ii.        Wiltshire Police

   iii.        Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

   iv.        Trowbridge Community Area Future (TCAF)

    v.        Town and Parish Councils

   vi.        Youth Advisory Group (YAG).

Updates from partners were received as follows:

      i.        Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC)

The written report was presented, and the OPCC thanked all members of the public who had contributed to the consultation on the first Police and Crime Plan in October 2012 and April 2013, and drew attention to the areas of concern raised in the report.

    ii.        Wiltshire Police

Sgt Jim Suter presented a written report, drawing attention to an overall drop in crime of 5%, a drop in violent crime of 13.6% and a drop in vehicle crime of 32.7% for the Trowbridge area. Residents were urged to be careful in removing Satnavs when not in use, and noted there had been an increase in swelling burglaries which was the subject of an open investigation.

In response to queries, it was stated that there were no known current plans to reduce spending on Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs).

   iii.        Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

Simon Routh-Jones, Chief Fire Officer, Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service, presented the written update. It was noted that there had been an increase in fires over the hot, dry summer creating more combustible conditions and during the school holidays which usually led to a small increase in deliberate fires, but that Trowbridge’s figures were in line with the rest of the county.

Residents were also asked to take particular care as winter approached to clean chimney’s regularly, take care with candles, service heating systems and to be cautious on the roads.

   iv.        Trowbridge Community Area Future (TCAF)

The written update was noted, with amendments to the dates as attached to these minutes.

    v.        Town and Parish Councils

The written update from Trowbridge Town Council was noted. There were no other updates received.

   vi.        Youth Advisory Group (YAG)

No update was received.

Wiltshire Councillors appointed as representatives to Outside Bodies will report on any recent news, to include:

      i.        Transforming Trowbridge

    ii.        Collaborative Schools

   iii.        Trowbridge Shadow Community Operations Board.

i)             Transforming Trowbridge

It was stated the minutes of the latest meeting were not yet complete but that issues regarding the Trowbridge Masterplan and Campus proposals had been discussed, and the minutes would be circulated to Members upon completion.

ii)            Collaborative Schools

It was stated the group had not met over the summer, and their next meeting would be 4 October 2013.

iii)           Shadow Community Operations Board (SCOB)

As the SCOB had an agenda item on the Campus consultation later in the meeting, no update was made under this item.

a.    Community Area Grants

To consider the following applications:

                      i.        Wiltshire Youth Marching Band - to purchase new band instruments - £500 requested

                    ii.        Gloucester Road Allotment Association - to create a paved pathway - £2,850 requested

The Area Board considered the following applications to the Community Area Grant Scheme 2013/14:

       i.        Wiltshire Youth Marching Band

The sum of £500 was requested to purchase musical instruments for its members.

Decision

The Area Board awarded the sum of £500 to the Wiltshire Youth Marching Band.

Reason: The application met the Community Area Grant Criteria 2013/14.

      ii.        Gloucester Road Allotment Association

The sum of £2850 was requested to build a paved pathway to increase access for Disabled people.

Decision

The Area Board awarded the sum of £2850 to the Gloucester Road Allotment Association.

Reason: The application met the Community Area Grant Criteria 2013/14.

Councillor John Thomson will talk about his responsibilities as Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport.

Councillor John Thomson, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Highways and Broadband was in attendance and discussed his responsibilities and issues including the continued investment in Highways and increased community engagement with local officer teams on Highways related issues.

The Yerbury Street Parking Group, a local residents group, detailed troubles with parking related issues in their area, and Councillor Thomson advised a working group be formed with residents, officers and the local member to investigate the concerns and potential solutions as raised by the residents at the meeting.

Questions were then asked of the Cabinet Member, and it was stated that a review of Parking would be undertaken in 2014, covering issues such as congestion, pollution, revenue from car parks being used to subsidize bus routes, charging strategy and other issues. Charges in Church Street, Trowbridge, were specifically highlighted. The Highways contract with Balfour Beatty was discussed, along with specific issues relating to tree cutting and maintenance raised.

The strategy for the maintenance of area of open green space was discussed, and it was stated the report had not progressed enough to come to the Area Board or Cabinet, but that the Cabinet Member would update the Board as to when it would become available.

At the end of discussion, it was,

Resolved:

To thank the Cabinet Member for their attendance.

To receive a report from the Shadow Community Operations Board (COB) on the outcomes of the Community Campus Consultation.

A report from the Shadow Community Operations Board (SCOB) was presented on the completion of the second phase of consultation on the proposals for the Trowbridge Campus which ran from 01 June to 26 July 2013, with 1134 received. Details on the responses were provided as shown in the agenda pack, and the Board was asked to approve the work carried out by the SCOB and the next step of presenting proposals to the Wiltshire Council Cabinet.

The Board thanked the SCOB for their work carrying out the consultations and preparing proposals, and in particular Rachel Goff (Wiltshire Council: Campus Delivery Manager). It was queried that the proportion of 18-24 year olds consulted was only 6.10% of responses received, but the hard work of the SCOB to reach out to that age group was noted. There were also comments about the need in future for a Primary Care Centre, and confusion that had arisen from the name ‘campus’ as not referring to a single site.

It was,

Resolved:

To accept the content of the consultations as thorough and reflecting the views of the Community, and to approve the SCOB to proceed to the next step of providing information to the Campus Delivery and Operational Models Team.

To receive an update from Michael Hudson (Wiltshire Council: Service Director, Finance) and Lance Allan (Trowbridge Town Council, Town Clerk) on the subject of Neighbourhood Budgets.

Michael Hudson (Wiltshire Council: Service Director, Finance) and Lance Allan (Trowbridge Town Council: Town Clerk) delivered a presentation on the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) “Our Place” scheme on Neighbourhood Budgets. The focus of the scheme was to increase democratic engagement by giving communities direct influence on services and spending, targeted most effectively at specific local areas and issues.

It was stated that twelve pilot neighbourhoods, encompassing parishes, local authorities and voluntary and community had been testing the scheme, with the intent from the DCLG to roll out the scheme in another 100 areas with £4.3 million in grants and advice to support the scheme.

It was announced the Trowbridge Town Council, with the support of Wiltshire Council, would put together a bid to be among the second phase areas of the scheme when details on how to apply were received from the DCLG. In response to queries it was stated that the partnership or involvement in the scheme from Parish Councils in the Trowbridge Community Area would not be known until further details were received from the DCLG regarding the bid process.

Following questions, it was,

Resolved

To note the update.

To receive a written update from Stephen Hawkins (Wiltshire Council: Team Leader - Enforcement) on continued developments at the Peter Black site in Trowbridge.

The written report from Stephen Hawkins (Team Leader, Enforcement, Wiltshire Council) was presented, along with an additional note as attached to these minutes.

Resolved:

To note the report and request further updates as necessary.

Any other items of business which the Chairman agrees to consider as a matter of urgency.

The meeting is asked to note the future meeting dates below and the Forward Plan.

It was noted that it had been a year to the day since the opening of the new Trowbridge Library contained at County Hall, and with the agreement of the Board it was decided that the Chairman should write to the Head Librarian and their staff congratulating them and thanking them for all their excellent work in setting up and running the library.

The Future Work Programme was noted.

The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 14 November 2013, and would begin at 18:15 instead of 19:00 for presentations from successful grant recipients.