Agenda and minutes

To include, but not limited to, the following announcements:

a.    Appointment of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman

b.    Playbuilder Award

c.    Local Transport Plan Consultation.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the July meeting of the Trowbridge Area Board.  He introduced himself and the Community Area Manager, then invited the Wiltshire Councillors to introduce themselves.

The Chairman made the following announcements:

a.    The re-appointment of Chairman and Vice Chairman at the Annual Council meeting held on 18 May 2010.

b.    Playbuilder Award – the previously ring-fenced monies had been ‘de-ring-fenced’ by central government due to spending cuts.

c.    The establishment of Area Boards provided an opportunity for decisions on small-scale transport and highway improvement schemes to be taken locally.  In response to this there were plans for the Area Boards to be allocated a discretionary budget to assess and select small-scale transport schemes to be progressed in their community areas.  Further details were distributed with the agenda on page three.

d.    The transfer of part of Margaret Stancomb School to the Wiltshire Rural Music School on the basis of a full repairing lease at a nominal rent was approved by Cabinet at their meeting on 22 June.

e.    The proposed closure of the Trowbridge County Court would be considered under the item 16 to consider the view of the area board.

Apologies for absence were announced from the following:

Wiltshire Councillors Steve Oldrieve and Graham Payne

Councillor Kath Noble (Southwick Parish Council)

Jo Howes (NHS Wiltshire)

Pete Barnett (Trowbridge Community Area Futures).

a.    To approve and sign as a correct record, the minutes of the meetings held on 13 May 2010 and 18 May 2010

b.    Matters arising from previous meetings.

Decision

The minutes of the meetings held on 13 May 2010 and 18 May 2010 were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman subject to the following amendments:

Minutes of 13 May 2010:

·         Studley Green Parish Council to be amended to Studley Green TARA

·         Transforming Trowbridge ‘an Officer’ be amended to ‘an Urban Practitioner’

·         Parish Liaison Group update from Cllr Jeff Osborn to be amended to Cllr Clark.

Councillors are requested to declare any personal or prejudicial interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

Councillor Peter Fuller declared a prejudicial interest on any Trowbridge-related item (Dispensation Granted from the Dispensation Sub-Committee) as a Trowbridge Town Councillor and would view any Trowbridge related items and issues with an open mind.

Councillor Jeff Osborn declared a prejudicial interest on any Trowbridge-related item (Dispensation Granted from the Dispensation Sub-Committee) as a Trowbridge Town Councillor and would view any Trowbridge related items and issues with an open mind.

Councillor Helen Osborn declared a prejudicial interest on any Trowbridge-related item (Dispensation Granted from the Dispensation Sub-Committee) as a Trowbridge Town Councillor and would view any Trowbridge related items and issues with an open mind.

To note the written updates and receive any verbal updates from the following:

a.    Community Area Young People’s Issues Group (CAYPIG)

b.    Wiltshire Police

c.    Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

d.    Trowbridge Community Area Future (TCAF)

e.    Trowbridge Town Council

f.     Parish Council Nominated Representatives.

The following partner updates were received:

Community Area Young People’s Issues Group

A member of the organisation updated on the following:

·         the annual meeting had been postponed due to exams

·         transport issues were being considered

·         requested an update on the lights issue.  Cllr Jeff Osborn asked that this was logged as an issue.

Wiltshire Police

Inspector Dave Cullop asked that written report was noted and made the following points:

·         asked that the neighbourhood policing abstraction rate performance be noted

·         the police website had been re-launched

·         there was a decrease in the overall crime figures

·         Wiltshire Police had been awarded the President’s Award

·         a new Police Community Support Officer had been appointed

·         preparations were underway for policing during Halloween and Bonfire Night.  Those looking for advice on avoiding anti-social behaviour issues at this time were invited to contact Inspector Cullop

·         it was agreed to append the written report to the minutes.

Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

No representative was in attendance and the written report circulated with the agenda was noted.

Trowbridge Community Area Future

Doug Ross asked that the written report was noted and made the following points:

·         BA14 Culture event would take place on 10 July 2010 from 10am to 6pm at the Civic Hall

·         The AGM had taken place on 21 June, details of which were contained in the report circulated with the agenda

·         He echoed the police inspector’s comments that much was achieved through partnership working in the community.

Trowbridge Town Council

The written report was noted.

Parish Councils

No reports were given.

To note the appointments to outside bodies which were made by the Area Board last year, and to note that these appointments will continue for 2010/11.

Community Area Young Peoples Issues Group (CAYPIG)

Councillor Tom James MBE

Parish Council Liaison Group

Councillors Ernie Clark and Francis Morland

Trowbridge Community Area Future

Councillor Jeff Osborn

BA14 Culture

Vacant

Health & Social Care

Vacant

Community Safety

Vacant

Economy & Transport

Councillor Jeff Osborn

Environment

Councillor Helen Osborn

Arc Theatre

Councillor Stephen Oldrieve

Trowbridge Sports Centre Management Body

Councillor Tom James MBE

Transforming Trowbridge

Councillor Jeff Osborn

Wiltshire Councillors appointed as representatives to outside bodes will report on any recent news.

The following appointments were made to outside bodies:

Community Area Young Peoples Issues Group (CAYPIG)

Councillor Tom James MBE

Parish Council Liaison Group

Councillors Ernie Clark and Francis Morland

Trowbridge Community Area Future

Councillor Jeff Osborn

BA14 Culture

Vacant

Health & Social Care

Vacant

Community Safety

Vacant

Economy & Transport

Councillor Jeff Osborn

Environment

Councillor Helen Osborn

Arc Theatre

Councillor Stephen Oldrieve

Trowbridge Sports Centre Management Body

Councillor Tom James MBE

Transforming Trowbridge

Councillor Jeff Osborn

Arc Theatre

The written update tabled at the meeting contained the following:

The area board was aware that Cllr Oldrieve had previously raised concerns about the future stability of the Arc Theatre in Trowbridge.

After the resignation of the previous Arc Manager in the New Year, a new manager was engaged by Wiltshire College on a short-term management contract.  At the time, the Advisory Board raised concerns about the short-term nature of the contract and received assurances as to the College’s long term commitment to the Arc.

The manager contract was to finish at the end of July and the current holder indicated that he did not wish to consider an extension.  In addition, both the marketing manager and the assistant manager had terminated their employment at the Arc.  The loss of the three critical management posts was a cause for concern.

Wiltshire Council, as a funder, was aware of the situation and was in discussion with Wiltshire College to determine how these changes were to be managed and the autumn program delivered.

In addition, Councillor Oldrieve understood a business plan was being submitted to the College Board as to the way forward for the Arc.

It was his hope that this business plan would be shared with the Arc Advisory Board prior to any decisions being made.  He also believed the BA14 Group were being kept informed of these developments.

Martin Litherland, Waste Contracts and Development Manager, will give a short presentation to launch of the waste collection consultation.

Martin Litherland, Head of Waste Collection, gave a short presentation to launch the waste collection consultation.  He included the following points:

·         the new council had inherited four different waste collection schemes across the county

·         landfill tax was set to increase from £40 per tonne in 2009 to£80 per tonne in 2014, increasing by £8 per year

·         the proposed new service would provide each household in Wiltshirewith a 2 weekly collection of household waste, black box recycling, plastic bottles and cardboard, and a non-charged‘opt-in’ garden waste collection

·         leaflets were available at the meeting that provided additional information and alsodescribed the ways in which people could engage in the consultation.

The meeting discussed the following issues:

·         increased numbers of waste receptacles per household would be requiredfor doorstep collection of plastic bottles and cardboard

·         no absolute declarations had been made by the government on any move to weekly refuse collections

·         landfill diversion targets needed to be met, otherwise disposal costs would escalate

·         disagreement was not expected in the west of the county

·         current targets for recycling were 40%, that would rise to 45% by 2015 and 50% by 2019/20

·         50,000 tonnes of residual waste was dealt with outside Wiltshire

·         plastic bottle and cardboard collections were to be implemented next year subject to this consultation

·         heavy green waste contributed towards weight-based recycling targets, and composting diverts it from landfill where it would produce methane, 20 times more polluting that carbon dioxide

·         current county-wide recycling rates were:

o      east 44%

o      west 43%

o      south 35%

o      north 28%

·         the Leader had met with Eric Pickles on 18 June where it was stated that the handling of waste was the decision of the local authority

·         the audience was urged to complete the consultation questionnaire even if current arrangements were satisfactory as this would inform the process as a whole.

The Chairman thanked Mr Litherland for his presentation.

Library services are changing.  This item considers the issues and includes the following:

a.    Update on the Transformation of County Hall and the Library presented by Mark Stone (Transformation Programme Director)

b.    Update on the Trowbridge library consultation from Peter Waterman (Community Librarian)

c.    Library Services Review presented by Niki Lewis (Service Director for Communities, Libraries, Heritage & Arts) and Chris Moore (Reading and Learning Services Manager).

a.    Mark Stone (Transformation Programme Director) gave an update on the Transformation of County Hall and the Library.  The following points were made:

·         the council was reducing its office buildings from 95 to four

·         Bourne Hill, Salisbury, was the first completed hub with occupancy by October 2010

·         the refurbishment of County Hall including the relocated library was to save £4.5 million per year

·         architects had been instructed an exterior outlines would soon be available for consultation

·         600 staff were to be relocated to George Ward School from January 2011 while the refurbishment took place

·         County Hall staff had completed a travel survey for this move

·         Mr Stone would attend the September area board meeting to present the exterior designs for County Hall.

b.    Peter Waterman (Community Librarian) gave an update on the Trowbridge library consultation.  The following points were made:

·         1300 completed consultation questionnaires had been received

·         99.1% of respondents listed a wide  selection of books as important

·         the ten most significant needs were parking, quiet study areas, staff, refreshments, disabled facilities, good location, toilets, opening hours, computers and free internet access

·         a detailed plan would be worked on over the next three years

·         there was clear endorsement for the new library by the people of Trowbridge.

c.       Niki Lewis (Service Director for Communities, Libraries, Heritage and Arts) gave a presentation on the Library Services Review.  The following points were made:

·         £500, 000 was to be saved over the next two years while maintaining the current level of service delivery

·         the meeting was invited to complete the postcard questionnaires to feed into the consultation

Cllr Tom James made the following points:

·         a few individuals were operating businesses from the libraries

·         noise was an issue

·         electronic books could not replace traditional reading matter.

Mrs Lewis made the following additional points:

·         the review was to be customer-focussed to improve front-end services while reducing the back office

·         stock delivery was to become more efficient across the county

·         the book fund would be customer driven

·         co-location of library and other services provided more for the customer and reduced costs

·         the specification for the new book store was to be written when the review was complete.

Trowbridge Community Area Future expressed a desire for improved parking, bus-stops and good signage.

The Wiltshire Councillors will consider the process by which the youth funding allocated to the area board shall be distributed.

The Wiltshire Councillors considered the process by which the youth funding allocation to the area board was distributed.  The following points were made:

·         The youth parliament were keen to create links with the Community Area Young People’s Issues Group (CAYPIG)

·         the funding was small.

Decision

The Wiltshire Councillors agreed that the area board’s youth funding was jointly allocated to the Trowbridge CAYPIG and Trowbridge Youth Parliament to help them address their key priorities.  The youth proposal would be brought to a future meeting for consideration.

Adam Nardell, Vision Director for Trowbridge, will give an update, and respond to any questions.

Adam Nardell, Vision Director for Trowbridge, gave an update on the progress of the Transforming Trowbridge programme.    The following points were made:

·         the new 44,000 sq ft Sainsbury store had opened on the former bottling plant

·         the Bowyers’ site - a dialogue had been facilitated between a residential developer and the owners of the site. There was scope for the involvement of the Homes and Communities Agency

·         Castle Place had been acquired by Legal and General Investment Fund who were working up plans to refurbish the centre.

Mr Nardell updated the meeting regarding a letter received from the Parish Council Liaison Group at the previous area board meeting concerning the railway station.  There was a delay in the response due to a change of staff and Mr Nardell said he would continue to push for a reply from the new Operations Manager.

A meeting with Leisure Services was scheduled for 5 July to discuss the leisure service provision in the community area.

Allan Creedy, Head of Sustainable Transport, will give an update on traffic issues in Trowbridge, and respond to any questions.

Allan Creedy, Head of Sustainable Transport, gave an update on the historic and current nature of traffic issues in Trowbridge.  He included the following points:

·         the last ten years had been a very stable period

·         the new coalition government aim at implemented sweeping changes which were likely to happen very quickly

·         £1million had been clawed back from the in-year budget

·         consequently infrastructure planning was on hold until the extent of the cuts were better known

·         currently the following areas were being considered:

o   parking review

o   Bythesea Road and the impact of the new retail centre

o   Yarnbrook

o   Hilperton Gap

o   Hill Street area – there was on-going work based on the original concept design to take the through traffic out of the centre.  However, there was no current programme with a budget for roll-out.

·         All in-year projects were now at risk other than those already contractually agreed.  The cabinet member would be announcing any changes shortly.

Decision

A written answer on the current situation of the Hill Street area to be sent to Councillor Helen Osborn.

The Council has set aside £5,000 for each Area Board to introduce schemes to reduce their carbon footprint, reduce light pollution of the night sky and reduce energy costs in their areas this year.  Town and parish councils and other interested parties are asked if they wish to take part in the scheme.

Trowbridge Community Area Future (TCAF) agreed to mastermind the project.

Decision

TCAF to report proposals to a future area board meeting.

Ken Oliver, Canals Officer, will present the outcomes of the recent meeting between boaters, Wiltshire Council and British Waterways.

Ken Oliver, Canals Officer, presented the outcomes of the recent meeting between boaters, Wiltshire Council and British Waterways.  The following points were made:

·         the meeting had been well attended

·         a consensus was reached on the preferred recommendation of enforcement by British Waterways

·         the Kennet and Avon Partnership were to meet on 28 July to discuss including neighbouring authorities

·         British Waterways wished to set up an advisory panel.

Inspector Alan Webb, Wiltshire Police, will give a presentation on the work of its Protective Services Department, including vulnerable person teams, child protection, major and organised crime as well as Specialist Operations such as public order and critical incidents.  Questions will be invited following the presentation.

A list of the departments covered is set out in the attached papers.

Note – questions may be submitted in advance – please email to julia.densham@wiltshire.gov.uk by Friday 25 June 2010.

Wiltshire Police were unable to attend.  This item was subsequently withdrawn from the agenda.

Councillor John Brady will talk about his responsibilities for economic development, planning and housing, and respond to any questions.

Note – questions may be submitted in advance – please email to julia.densham@wiltshire.gov.uk by Friday 25 June 2010.

Councillor John Brady spoke about his responsibilities for economic development, planning and housing.  The Department of Neighbourhood Planning had been tasked with finding savings.

The new core strategy would be announced in the autumn.  This process had been delayed by the need to create new guidance subsequent to the scrapping the Regional Spatial Strategy.

In the West Wilts area, a PFI contract for the building of new homes had been secured. 242 homes would be built in the first stage when the project was signed off by the new government audit committee.

A written question was received from Mr Keith Hopkins and the response was appended to these minutes.

While Wiltshire Council had a statutory responsibility for building 600 houses, the government abolished targets.  The S106 agreement stipulated that 40% of the new build was for affordable housing.

Housing decisions were to come to the area board as soon as possible.  The preferred site options were favourable therefore there was no need to re-consult.

Councillor Brady also responded to the written question from Councillor Peter Fuller that expressed the need for early advice on the areas to be included in the Draft Plan.  Councillor Brady was happy to talk about the Wiltshire Core Strategy for Trowbridge before it was agreed at a future area board meeting.

The Chairman will take any other items of urgent business.

The meeting is asked to note the future meeting dates below and is reminded to complete the evaluation forms in the packs.

7.00pm Thursday 9 September 2010, The Atrium, Wiltshire Council, Bradley Road, Trowbridge, BA14 0RD

7.00pm Thursday 18 November 2010 – Venue to be confirmed

The Forward Plan is attached for information.

The Chairman tabled a letter he had received concerning the proposed closure of Trowbridge County Court.  The meeting agreed the local court was a very important facility for vulnerable people in this area.

Decision

A letter to be written to the County Court opposing this plan.

The Chairman took a straw vote of the meeting regarding the continued use of the Atrium room at Wiltshire Council, Bradley Road for future meetings.

Decision

Trowbridge Area Board meetings would continue to be held at the Wiltshire Council offices at Bradley Road until further notice.

The meeting was requested to complete the Waste Survey, Evaluation forms and TCAF questionnaire.

The Wiltshire Councillors will consider one application to the Community Area Grants Scheme 2010/11, as follows:

a.    Trowbridge Amateur Swimming Club - request £1,486 to fund swimming gala and social events to celebrate the 20^th meeting between the swimming club and S V Poseidon Leer swimming club under the umbrella of twinning arrangements with the German town of Leer.

Total requested = £1486

Allocation of Grant Funding to date:

·         Southwick Playing Field – request £5,000 for the construction of a tarmac path around the playing field

·         Newtown School – request £2,300 to upgrade changing facilities and provide temporary cover over the outdoor swimming pool

·         Newtown Area Residents Association – request £930 to provide security lighting at Bond Street Buildings to increase community safety.

·         North Bradley Peace Memorial Hall – £993 for energy saving and security equipment

·         Friends of Trowbridge in Bloom – £5000 for a participatory programme of events

·         Hilperton Village Hall – £3253 to upgrade toilets to include fitting of disabled toilet.

To date, £17476in Community Area Grants and £20,022 to Trowbridge Community Area Future have been awarded from the Area Board budget of £77,592.  £1,050 has been returned to the Area Board from an under spend in the grant to West Ashton Village Hall, plus a £257 community grants under spend (2009/10) has now been added.  This leaves a remainder of £41,401 for allocation.

Councillors were asked to consider one application to the Community Area Grants Scheme 2010/11, as follows:

Stuart Cuthbert addressed the meeting on behalf of the application.

Decision

Trowbridge Amateur Swimming Club was awarded £1,486 to fund a swimming gala and social events to celebrate the 20^th meeting between the swimming club and S V Poseidon Leer swimming club under the umbrella of twinning arrangements with the German town of Leer.

Reason

The application met the Community Area grant Criteria for 2010/11 and demonstrated links to the Local Agreement for Wiltshire ambition to ‘Building Resilient Communities’.

The Wiltshire Councillors will consider one Expression of Interest to the Performance Reward Grant Scheme, as follows:

a.    Wiltshire Alternative Sports Hub Development.

Councillors were asked to consider one expressions of interest to the Performance Reward Grant Scheme 2010/11.  This bid was deferred from the previous meeting pending further information.

Decision

The Trowbridge Area Board supported the bid from Wiltshire Alternative Sports Hub Development and recommended that it to go forward for consideration by the Performance Reward Grant Panel.

The Chairman thanked those for attending.  The next meeting would be held in the Atrium, Wiltshire Council, Bradley Road, Trowbridge on 9 September 2010.