Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Wiltshire Police Chief Constable, Catherine Roper.

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 19 July 2023.

The minutes of the meeting held on 19 July 2023 were presented for consideration and it was;

Resolved:

To approve and sign as a true and correct record of the minutes of the meeting held on 19 July 2023.

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

There were no declarations of disclosable interests.

The Chairman will give an update on outcomes and actions arising from previous meetings of the Area Board.

The Chairman of the Area Board made the following announcements:

·       Congratulations to Westbury Town Council for holding a successful Chili Fest.

·       Westbury Town Council has a events programme leading up to Christmas which they look forward to running.

The Board is asked to note the following items:

·                Community First

·                Healthwatch Wiltshire

·                BSW Together (Integrated Care System)

·                Wiltshire Local Plan Review

·                Wiltshire Life Awards 2024

·                Cost of Living Update

The Chairman of the Area Board drew attention to the following information items, which were contained in the agenda pack:

·       Community First

·       Healthwatch Wiltshire

·       Update from BSW Together (Integrated Care System)

·       Wiltshire Local Plan Review

·       Wiltshire Life Awards 2024

·       Cost of Living Update

Verbal Updates:

To receive any verbal updates from representatives, including:

·       Town and Parish Councils Nominated Representatives

·       Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

Written Updates:

The Board is asked to note the following written and online updates attached to the agenda:

·       Wiltshire Police

Updates were received from the following partners:

·       Wiltshire Police

The Area Board noted a written updates attached to the agenda and supplement. In addition, Inspector Kevin Harmsworth provided a verbal update which covered the following points:

·       An overview of the Local Priorities and updates was provided, including the following areas which had been included within the agenda pack: Road Safety, Rural Crime and Community Engagement.

·       It was noted that there had been an increase in exposure incidents and that an arrest had taken place as well as an investigation and increased patrols.

·       Two Vietnamese males had recently been arrested following the discovery of a Cannabis growth in a Westbury industrial estate.

·       17 arrests had been made by the dedicated burglary unit since July.

·       There had been a spike in weapon possessions however this is purely down to business-as-usual patrol activity.

·       Reference was drawn to the Road Safety update included within the agenda supplement.

After the verbal update, there was time for the following questions and points to be made:

·       It was clarified that though Wiltshire Police were aware of Operation Snap (dashcam footage), they were not actively involved in the operation.

·       It was clarified that an excessive letter for road safety was issues when an individual was in excess of the speed limit however not enough to be placed on a road safety course or to be awarded points on their licence.

·       Gratitude was placed towards the service for the decrease in antisocial behaviour in the Westbury area over the past year.

·       Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

The Area Board noted a written updates attached to the supplement. The Area Board received a verbal update from Station Manager, Mark Hillier, which covered the following points:

·       The service had tried to reduce risk and harm in communities by targeting those who might be vulnerable and do not have smoke detectors, with Safe and Well visits able to be booked by request online.

·       Work had taken place with local businesses to protect them from fire, with visits also able to be booked online.

·       Recruitment had been ongoing with 10 staff now working in Westbury and a further 4 people set to join as on call fire fighters.

·       A campaign recently took place relating to outdoor hazards and water safety.

·       There had been a slight rise in ebikes and escooters being left on charge with batteries overheating.

·       There had been no spike in incidents or incidents of interest.

·       The service will be taking the Safe Drive Stay Alive show to a local secondary school this month.

After the verbal update, there was time for the following questions and points to be made:

·       It was clarified that if someone wanted to book a Safe and Well visit the best place to do so would be the Service website: Dorset & Wiltshire Fire Service (dwfire.org.uk)

·       Town and Parish Council Nominated Representative

The Area Board received the following verbal update from Cllr Sheila Kimmins on behalf of Westbury Town Council. The update covered the following matters:  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To receive updates from Lead Councillors for the local Area Board priorities.

·       Combatting Social Isolation and Loneliness (Cllr Gordon King)

·       Wellbeing for Young People and Positive Activities (Cllr Carole King)

·       Local Environmental Action (Cllr Matt Dean)

·       Child Poverty (Cllr Suzanne Wickham)

The Area Board received updates from Lead Councillors in relation to the following local Area Board Priorities:

Combatting Social Isolation and Loneliness (Cllr Gordon King)

·       The Health and Wellbeing Group was set to meet on 4 October 2023 to plan for the social inclusion and loneliness project set to start in the new year.

·       A successful Health and Wellbeing Day took place in the town in June, in conjunction with the Town Council and was attended by large crowds who learned a lot.

Wellbeing for Young People and Positive Activities (Cllr Carole King)

·       The two local youth clubs have returned to running activities following the conclusion of the summer holidays, including the one in the Hub and the other ran in the Parish Church Hall.

·       A successful event took place on at the Hub on August 29 and 30 with a range of activities that took place, with young people interested in learning to play chess. It would be nice to have such event again, possibly during next spring half term.

·       The recent Local Youth Network meeting was postponed so the arranged speakers would be coming to a future meeting to discuss their experience with dealing with the lives of very young vulnerable people.

Local Environmental Action (Cllr Matt Dean)

·       It was hoped that the success of the Pollinator Corridor project could be built upon with a significant amount of seed available, with discussions having taken place with the Town Council who wanted to follow the lead of the parishes and villages with new locations to be identified.

·       It is hoped that a spring environmental conference/show can be ran for the public free of charge (subject to sponsorship) with potential themes of low carbon homes and cutting energy consumption.

·       Cllr Wickham noted that the Pollinator Corridor project was a success with some villages having some fantastic displays and flowers over 3 to 4 months. Additionally, if the previous seeds were well looked after they could germinate.

Child Poverty (Cllr Suzanne Wickham)

·       Contact had been made with various people to discuss the most effective way to help people, most notably an Officer from Wiltshire Council.

·       A meeting had taken place with the Wiltshire Council Officer from the Prevention and Wellbeing Team to discuss different ways of how people could be supported to use foodbanks with an acknowledgement that people often struggle to prepare what they receive from foodbanks.

To receive an update from the Wiltshire Commissioner, Philip Wilkinson.

The Area Board received an update from Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Philip Wilkinson. The update covered the following matters:

·       An overview of the role of the PCC was provided, with it noted that his job was to hold the Chief Constable and Police force to account for the delivery of an effective policing service.

·       When the PCC arrived in his post, radical reform was needed and this was highlighted when Wiltshire Police was placed into special measures “engage” in summer 2022.

·       The PCC listened to residents of Swindon and Wiltshire to produce a police and crime plan.

·       The Police operational model had been improved with more officers now on the frontline to improve outreach as well as that two mobile Police stations had been funded.

·       It was highlighted that an area for improvement was the response times to 101 calls in the call centre, however the Chief Constable had put radical reforms in place with increased staffing, new technology and better shift systems.

·       The service now has 162 more officers employed when compared to 2 years ago and a fast-track recruitment process had been developed.

·       It was highlighted that for high harm violence crimes, Wiltshire had previously been one of the lowest performing forces with a 2% success rate, however this had now risen to 11% with the Chief Constable focused on driving performance.

·       Regarding drugs and County Lines, collaborative work had taken place with all five Police forces across the Southwest, with all five of the forces now within the top ten performing forces nationally for County line disruption.

·       The rural crime team had now been expanded to be double the size, with an aim of targeting organised crime groups in the county.

·       It was outlined that in 2021 Wiltshire Police had issued 192 speeding tickets, compared to this year where over 5,000 tickets had already been issued.

After the verbal update, there was time for the following questions and points to be made:

·       The PCC was thanked for his work as well as reference to how the Chief Constable’s open letters had been enjoyed.

·       It was questioned whether after recent policy changes requiring police officers to attend shoplifting incidents, whether there was capacity for dealing with shoplifting. The PCC stated that in places such as Swindon there were WhatsApp groups and CCTV suites for shopping centres and the police would take intelligence from such sources to better target resources, with the new model seeking to place more officers out to identified incidents.

·       Comments were received in relation to the potential funding of a bespoke police station in Salisbury as well as how there was a concern that though rural communities were doing a good job at drawing attention to crime in their areas, there still seemed to be a large proportion of crime in urban settings.

To receive a presentation from Scottish & Southern Electricity about registration for their priority service.

The Area Board received a presentation from Melanie Grace on Scottish & Southern Electricity’s Priority Service. The presentation covered the following matters:

·       It was outlined that the Priority Service Register was available for everyone regardless of who they pay their bills to and was for people who might need extra support during power cuts with the register assisting SSE to know who might need support.

·       The area covered by SSE in the southwest was outlined.

·       The eligibility criteria for the register were outlined and included within the agenda pack.

·       The service aimed to provide emergency power supplies, be proactive in contacting those registered, provide tailored safety advice to individual needs and offer a password protected service.

·       Information was provided relating to Home Emergency plans, with it noted that they hold key details, checklists, and contact information in one safe place.

After the presentation there was time for the following questions and points to be made:

·       It was stated that the best way to get people onto the priority list was to spread the word and pass on information as often the most vulnerable people don’t use the internet. Therefore, leaflets and phone calls are used to make contact.

·       It was clarified that the register had been in place since 2015.

To receive a presentation from Simon Thomas (FACT Lead) on the FACT Pilot.

The Area Board received a presentation from Simon Thomas (FACT Partnership Lead) and Claire Stephens (Pilot Area Co-ordinator) about the FACT Pilot. The presentation covered the following points:

·       An overview was provided regarding what Family Help was, with it noted that it aimed to prevent needs from arising in Wiltshire and when they couldn’t be prevented to ensure that families and children got the best possible help from the right services as early as possible.

·       A pilot had been live in Warminster and Westbury since Easter 2023, with the idea to test and develop some concepts whilst working in partnership with local groups and communities.

·       Highlights of the pilot included but were not limited to:

o   The local case consultation was well received.

o   The Pilot team were working with 17 families, 10 of which achieved positive progress and reduced needs/risks.

o   The summer picnic on the pitch engaged with 11 families and 234 children.

o   Drop ins had been advertised in schools and early year settings.

o   New ways of working such as restorative approaches in schools had been tested.

o   Multi-agency workshops had taken place to develop approaches to respond to local priorities.

·       The next steps for the pilot were outlined.

·       It was noted that if anyone wanted to get involved with the pilot or knew of individuals or organisations who might be interested, they should get in touch with the FACT team using the contact details provided in the minutes.

·       A wider update of the FACT team was provided.

Following the presentation there was time for the following questions and points to be raised but not limited to:

·       It was clarified that Kingdown and The Minster schools had been involved in restorative practice, but all schools had been worked with and there was an open invite for more to get involved with discussions set to take place with Matravers.

·       It was agreed that the slides would be attached to the minutes for reference of contact details.

To note the remaining budgets and to consider any applications for funding, as detailed in the attached report and summarised below:

Remaining Budgets:

Community Area Grants:

Young People Grants:

Further information on the Area Board Grant system can be found here.

The Chairman informed the Area Board of the opening balances for grant funding.The Area Board considered the following applications for funding:

Community Area Grants:

Leigh Park Community Centre - £2,000 towards replacement tables.

Decision

Westbury Area Board agreed to defer deciding on the application until a future meeting to enable a representative from Leigh Park Community Centre to attend and answer questions regarding the application.

Moved – Cllr Suzanne Wickham

Seconded – Cllr Carole King

Bratton Community Brass Bands - £3,827 towards Bratton Brass Roots.

Decision

Bratton Community Brass Bands was awarded £3,827 towards Bratton Brass Roots subject to successful funding from other sources.

Moved – Cllr Carole King

Seconded – Cllr Suzanne Wickam

Reason – The application met the Community Area Grants Criteria 2023/24.

Youth Grants:

4 Youth Southwest - £5,000 towards Detached Youth Work and Counselling support for Westbury.

Decision

4 Youth Southwest was awarded £5,000 towards Detached Youth Work and Counselling support for Westbury.

Moved – Cllr Suzanne Wickham

Seconded – Cllr Carole King

Reason – The application met the Community Area Grants Criteria 2023/24.

Westbury Youth Club - £3,298.50 towards Westbury youth club core costs.

Decision

Westbury Youth Club was awarded £3,298.50 towards Westbury youth club core costs.

Moved – Cllr Carole King

Seconded – Cllr Suzanne Wickham

Reason – The application met the Community Area Grants Criteria 2023/24.

Leigh Park Community Centre - £5,000 towards Skills for personal development and employment 2023.

Decision

Leigh Park Community Centre had contacted the SEPM earlier in the day in to ask to defer the application to a future meeting as they were unable to attend the meeting.

To note the minutes and consider any recommendations arising from the last LHFIG meeting held on 20 July 2023, as set out in the attached report.

Further information on the LHFIG process can be found here.

The Chairman introduced the minutes and recommendations from the LHFIG

meeting held on 20 July 2023.

After which, it was;

Resolved:

The minutes of the Local Highways and Footway Improvement Group

meeting held on 20 July 2023 were agreed as a correct record as well as approving the spending recommendations within.

Future Meeting Dates (7-9pm):

·       30 November 2023

·       15 February 2024

For information on applying for a grant or grant application deadlines for these meetings, contact the Area Board Delivery Officer: Karlene.Jammeh@wiltshire.gov.uk

The date of the next meeting was 30 November 2023.