Agenda item

To receive updates from our key partners.  Some reports have been received and are included in the agenda pack.

·         Local Youth Network

·         Wiltshire Police

·         Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service

·         BA13+ Community Area Partnership

·         Healthwatch Wiltshire

·         Town and Parish Councils

The Area Board received the following partner and community updates:

·                Local Youth Network   Amy Schuring, Community Youth Officer, reported that the Local Youth Network (LYN) had been conducting a needs assessment to find out what young people needed in their area.  Some of the key points that had come out of the survey included a youth club, trips out, archery, skydiving and paintball.  The LYN was currently trying to find premises for a youth club to run initially one evening a week .and negotiations were taking place with the school to ascertain if these meetings together with the LYN management meetings be held on school premises.

It was noted that the Youth Grant Application form was now available on line and was open for applications for funding to be assessed at the next LYN management group meeting on Tuesday 14 July; the deadline for applications was Friday 3 July.

It was reported that a bid for a grant to help a ladies’ football team would be submitted shortly.

·                Wiltshire Police  Inspector Chris Chammings, was introduced and welcomed to the meeting.  He explained that he had now taken command of the Warminster/Westbury sector and would be running this alongside his current role of Trowbridge Sector Inspector.  He stated that in his view policing centred around ‘visibility and accessibility’, as he considered this to be the cornerstone of policing.

He circulated a report for the Westbury area, which indicated that comparing the 12 month period to May 2014 with the similar period to May 2015, there had been an increase of 29 reported incidents in victim based crime (4.4% increase), and an increase of 8 reported incidents in non domestic burglary (17.0% increase).  There was a slight increase of 6 in violence against the person (3.9% increase) but a decrease of 28 in vehicle crime (27.2% decrease).  Inspector Chammings explained that, with regard to criminal damage and arson, the bulk of the incidents resulted in minor damage and it was often very difficult to find the culprit.

He did not have any information on the statistics for other areas of Wiltshire for comparison purposes and would look into the possibility of providing a benchmarking report for a future meeting.

The Area Board was informed about the introduction of the new STOP programme.  This would be a pilot scheme and Inspector Chammings would report further at a future meeting.

·                Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service   An update report was received and noted.

It was reported that the new Dorset and Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service Authority officially came into being on 1 April 2015 and would replace the two existing Authorities on 1 April 2016.  The new Chief Fire Officer had recently been appointed, being Darran Gunter, the current Dorset Chief Officer, and he would officially take up his position on 1 April 2016. 

The Area Board was informed that there was not likely to be any closure of stations but shift patterns could be reviewed.  A new service workforce model was to be published shortly. 

It was reported that nationally there had been a 50% reduction in reported fires.

·                BA13+ Community Area Partnership  The written report circulated with the agenda was noted.

·                Healthwatch Wiltshire  The written report circulated with the agenda was noted.

·                Westbury Town Council  It was noted that there had been some adverse publicity about vacant allotment plots in Westbury but the meeting was informed that Wiltshire Council was  in the process letting them.

Westbury Town Council was awaiting advice from Wiltshire Council concerning the transfer of certain car parks to the Town Council.