Agenda and minutes

To welcome those present to the meeting.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting of the Stonehenge Area Board, the first in person meeting since early 2020.

To receive any apologies for absence.

There were no apologies received from Area Board Councillors.

The following regular attendees sent apologies:

·       Cllr Richard Harris - Shrewton Parish Council

·       Cllr Paul Cranch – Fittleton Cum Haxton Parish Council

·       Cllr Dot Georgeson – Fittleton Cum Haxton Parish Council

·       Cllr Burke - Chair of Netheravon Parish Council

·       Sue Lee – Our Time Project – grant applicant

·       Caroline Palmer – Shrewton Social Club

·       Irene Kohler – Silver Salisbury and Amesbury

·       Matthew Maggs – Fire Rescue Service

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 16 December 2021.

The minutes of the last meeting were considered and it was,

Resolved:

To approve and sign the minutes of the meetings on 16 December 2021 as a true and correct record.

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

There were no declarations of interest.

To receive the following announcements through the Chairman:

·       Changes to residual waste collection days from 28 February 2022 (page 11)

·       Ask Angela Campaign relaunch (page 13)

·       Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations 2-5 June 2022 (pages 15 – 16)

·       Great British Spring Clean (pages 17 - 18)

·       Healthwatch Wiltshire update (page 19)

·       B&NES, Swindon and Wiltshire CCG update (pages 21 – 25)

·       National Highways, A303 Stonehenge update (page 27)

·       Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service (pages 29 – 34)

·       Luncheon and Friendship clubs (verbal update)

·       Area Board Update (verbal update)

The Chairman referred the meeting to the written details included with the agenda for the announcements listed.

The Chairman also made the following verbal announcements:

·       Luncheon and Friendship Clubs

The Chairman announced that some luncheon and friendship clubs in Netheravon, Durrington and Shrewton may be affected by the funding changes but pledged that he would try to help them find funding and that the Area Board would consider any grant applications they submitted.

·       Area Board updates

The meeting was reminded of the changes to Area Boards whereby there were 4 business meetings a year, there was also monthly clinics (except in the months where there was an Area Board) where parishes could drop in to discuss issues relevant to them. The Chairman highlighted that the Board wanted to hold meetings on topics parishes were interested in and that the meetings could be useful for networking. The Chairman stated that the Board was here to serve its residents.  

A free flow session which gives an opportunity for parishes and partners to update the Board and for attendees to ask questions or suggest ideas. All partners and parishes are welcome to update us, but time is limited so please keep updates brief.

To include:

·       Wiltshire Police

·       Community Speed Watch

·       Area Board priorities 

·       Partners, parishes or attendees present to update the board, give feedback, or ask questions

The Chairman invited partners, parishes and attendees to give updates or ask questions.

·       Wiltshire Police

Inspector Tina Osborn gave an update to the meeting. In addition to the report in the agenda, the Inspector highlighted that rural crime, such as tackling hare coursing, poaching and dog attacks was still a focus for the team who had increased patrols and visibility and were giving crime prevention advice to farmers. The team had also been visiting schools giving presentation on the dangers involved in county lines and how to look out for signs that people were being exploited. As the weather had improved there could be an increase in door knockers for garden work in areas with vulnerable people and these could be reported to trading standards. Speeding was still an issue and a successful session had taken place in Enford to catch speeders. There had been 1 closure order in Amesbury. The police would work in partnership with Wiltshire Council in relation to anti-social behaviour and secure closure orders were required. They were a powerful tool to combat anti-social behaviour and protect the vulnerable. Since the closure of a public house in Amesbury anti-social behaviour complaints had reduced and the police had issued an objection to a new licence being issued in particular related to the opening hours, as the police only wanted the venue open until 11.00pm, this was going to the Wiltshire Council Licensing Committee. Thanks was given to the licenced venues in town who regularly attended pub watch and worked together to reduce anti-social behaviour. Joint patrols with the Royal Military Police (RMP) were also ongoing.

·       Community Speed Watch (CSW)

John Derryman gave an update to the meeting in his voluntary role as CSW county co-ordinator. There were 115 teams across Wiltshire and Swindon with about 1,000 volunteers. Timothy Keely and Charles Smith were the team co-ordinators for the Stonehenge area. An aim was to have more efficient communication and to make better use of data, however there were limited resources. The Police and Crime Commissioner had authorised 2 more traffic police to be appointed in order to help enforcement. It was hoped that a database could be created to collate information from Speed Indicator Devices (SID’s) which would help to highlight where enforcement should be targeted. Another aim was to increase the numbers of volunteers as CSW was an important part of the overall road safety strategy.

The Chairman thanked Mr Derryman for his hard work and highlighted an issue the Durrington CSW team was having with communications. John stated they could discuss outside of the meeting in order to resolve the issues. 

·       Army updates

Lt Col Glyn Williams, deputy garrison commander at Larkhill gave an update to the meeting. The officer highlighted that the garrison had grown with extra regiments which had moved from Tidworth and should be based there for 20-30 years. He envisaged that these would integrate as a close community. The officer wanted to bring the regiments together so that they were seen  ...  view the full minutes text for item 19.

·       Local Youth Network update

·       Engagement with schools

·       Rural Youth Project

·       Wessex Circus update on activities

·       To consider the following Youth Grant applications:

o   Buzz Action Foundation CIO, £4,500 towards Amesbury Youth Café.

o   Durrington Town Council, £5,000 towards Durrington Youth Services.

o   1^st Shrewton St Marys Scout Group, £477.50 towards Scout pioneering equipment.

o   The Element Café, £3,000 towards The Element Café.

o   Youth Adventure Trust, £2,621.93 towards supporting disadvantaged young people in Amesbury Stonehenge.

For further details regarding the grant applications please see the attached grant report (pages 87 - 91).

Local Youth Network

Cllr Verbinnen gave an update, the last meeting of the LYN had been held virtually two weeks previously and unfortunately the turnout was low. The next meeting was being held in person on 18 May at 6pm and it was hoped that more people would attend. They would discuss important issues which had been raised. The next

Engagement with Schools

Cllr Verbinnen and the Chairman would be undertaking a tour of secondary schools and Cllr Verbinnen was joining the Governors of Stonehenge School and Avon Valley School. There were projects underway to get children looking at climate change and to develop a peace garden. There had been some really good discussions led by the young people. Cllr Verbninnen had also met with some of the primary school which went well.

Rural Youth Project

An informative and engaging meeting was held on the Rural Youth Project which was put together by Community First and looked at how they can work with young people and what their needs were to make them fell included. The report was included at page 45 of the agenda. Whilst the area had good youth sporting activities there was always a need for more. There was quite a lot of deprivation in Amesbury and the surrounding areas but there had been good engagement from some deprived areas. Transport and getting to and from clubs and activities was raised as an issue across the area. Shrewton had lost its youth club which was raised as an issue and they were looking for volunteers, in fact more volunteers were needed in most areas. The military ran a youth club in Bulford with a great scheme of activities. These were for all children not just military children and it was hoped that this could be promoted to get the word out. The report was not yet finished and some areas were still to be consulted. Members felt it was good that the transport issue had been identified and a possible solution could be pop up activities that went to local areas so people could attend.

Wessex Circus update on activities

The Buzz Action foundation which was partnered with Wessex Circus updated and explained that they ran the Elements Café which was a safe space for vulnerable young people with special needs. There was also the Youth Café which was open to all 13-19 year olds. The Board was thanked for pervious grants which had been given to these activities. The cafés were gateways to positive activities for young people such as day trips and cultural events. The youth café was based outdoors at the Bowman Centre and was partnered with the youth circus. Other activities which had taken place included a week on the Isle of Purbeck, big rig arial activities at Amesbury fete, a Chamber of commerce event and a disco.  Two young people who attended the activities stated that the activities were fun and they gave you something to do.

Youth grants

Cllr Verbinnen  ...  view the full minutes text for item 20.

To consider the updates, priorities and recommendations arising from the Community Area Transport Group (CATG). To include an update on funding and the new CATG model.

Funding recommendations for consideration (figure in bold):

·       1-21-13 Great Wishford Village Gates £6,624.66 (CATG £4,968.49, Great Wishford PC £1,656.16)

·       1-21-5 Winterbourne Stoke/Berwick St James B3083 Speed Limit Assessment £2,500 (CATG £1,875, BSTJ PC £625)

·       1-20-15 Durrington 20mph speed limit implementation £11,000 (CATG £8,250, Durrington TC £2,750)

Notes from the CATG meeting attached at pages 63 – 79.

The Chairman gave an update on the CATG which was working very well, and on how projects were progressing. The notes of the meeting with all details could be seen at pages 63 – 80 of the agenda.

The following high priority schemes, whose funding and already been approved at previous meetings, were progressing well:

·       1-20-15 Durrington 20mph speed limit assessment

·       1-21-3 Amesbury, London Road bus shelter replacement

·       1-21-5 Winterbourne Stoke/Berwick St James B3083 signing improvements

·       1-21-8 Amesbury, Redworth Drive bollard installation

·       1-21-10/12 Woodford Valley C42 speed limit assessment

·       1-21-17 Netheravon A345 speed limit assessment

·       Durnford speed limit assessment

The Chairman stated that the CATG had considered a further 3 schemes for funding and recommended them to the Board for approval, brief details on the schemes were given and it was,

Resolved:

That Stonehenge Area Board:?

·       Note the discussions from the Stonehenge CATG meeting held 2 February 2022?

·       Confirm the high priority schemes? as listed above

·       Approve the following funding recommendations:

o   1-21-13 Great Wishford Village Gates, £4,968.49

o   1-21-5 Winterbourne Stoke/Berwick St James B3083 Speed Limit Assessment CATG, £1,875

o   1-20-15 Durrington 20mph speed limit implementation, £8,250

·       HWB Meeting update

·       Isolation and loneliness / Mental Health

·       Paths4All

·       To consider the following HWB grant applications:

o   Our Time Project, £500, towards movement and inspire film for elders Stonehenge.

o   The Stonehenge Chamber of Trade, £300, towards the Stonehenge Chamber of Trade Easter Bunny

For further details regarding the grant applications please see the attached report (pages 87 - 91).

Cllr Dr Monica Devendran as Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Group (HWBG) gave an update to the meeting. Highlights included:

·       A new Friday morning café drop-in supported by Stonehenge Area Board taking place on Friday 29 April 10am – 12pm at Evergreen Court

·       An activities directory would be for Autumn 22).

·       The Stockport Avenue Community Garden was running drop-in sessions where all were welcome:

o   Tuesday’s 2-4pm ?

o   Thursdays 10:30-4pm ?

o   Saturdays 10:30-5pm

Digital Inclusion

A new introduction to IT course would be running at Amesbury library on Monday 9 May ?.

Paths 4 All

It was explained that Paths 4 All was an initiative to get more people walking and that funding was available for projects to help with this from Stonehenge Area Board?. Areas covered so far by the initiative were Netheravon, Woodford Valley and Tilshead?, and areas where the initiative was setting up were Durnford, Amesbury and South Newton?.

Health and Wellbeing Grants

Cllr Monica Devendran introduced the Health and Wellbeing grants which had all been recommended by the HWBG for approval by the Board. Representatives of organisations applying for grants spoke in support of their applications. After consideration it was,

Resolved:

·       To grant Our Time Project, £500, towards movement and inspire film for elders Stonehenge.

·       To grant The Stonehenge Chamber of Trade, £300, towards the Stonehenge Chamber of Trade Easter Bunny.

·       Greener Durrington

·       Amesbury Town Council update

·       Better Planet Schools & 7 March feedback

Greener Durrington

The Chairman advised that in Durrington certain sections of grass would only be cut once a year in order to encourage wildflowers and biodiversity. This would continue for 3 years at which point the success of the project would be evaluated and it would be decided whether to extend the idea to other areas.

Better Planet Schools

Two schools in the area had signed on with the Better Planet Schools project which was an excellent programme education young people on how to help the environment by simple actions such as turning the lights off or turning the thermostat down. Schools saved an average of 10% on their heating bills when they undertook simple measures such as these and the children  took the ideas home to their parents. More session would be run and it was hoped more schools would sign up to take part.

Amesbury Town Council (ATC) update ?

ATC were keen to develop a path for butterflies from Salisbury Plain to Porton. The Kingsgate Development would have a county park which would include areas for exercise and wildflowers. ATC now had a Climate Committee which would meet to look in depth at Climate issues.

To determine the following applications for Community Area Grant funding:

·       Shrewton Sports and Social Club, £5,000, towards the replacement of the felt roof.

·       Woodford Village Hall, £2.496.50, towards Woodford Village Hall staging.

·       Durrington CE Controlled Junior School, £3,500, towards Durrington Junior School outdoor area.

·       Stapleford Parish Council, £1,857 towards Stapleford playground surfacing.

·       Woodford Parish Council, £1,000.00 towards Middle Woodford Play Area replacement boundary fencing.

·       Figgle Fest, £944.00 towards Figgle Fest Safety Cable Covers.

Cllr Ian Blair-Pilling, as lead Member for grants introduced the Community Area Grant applications, explaining that all applications had been scrutinised and met the grant criteria. Representatives of the organisations applying for grants spoke in support of their applications. After consideration it was,

Resolved:

·       To grant Shrewton Sports and Social Club, £5,000, towards the replacement of the felt roof.

·       To grant Woodford Village Hall, £2.496.50, towards Woodford Village Hall staging.

·       To grant Durrington CE Controlled Junior School, £3,500, towards Durrington Junior School outdoor area.

·       To grant Stapleford Parish Council, £1,857 towards Stapleford playground surfacing.

·       To grant Woodford Parish Council, £1,000.00 towards Middle Woodford Play Area replacement boundary fencing.

·       To grant Figgle Fest, £944.00 towards Figgle Fest Safety Cable Covers.

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

There were no urgent items.

The next meeting of the Amesbury Area Board will be held on 9 June 2022.

It was noted that the next meeting of the Amesbury Area Board would be held on 9 June 2022, location to be confirmed.

The Chairman thanked everyone for attending and requested feedback. Attendees felt that the face to face meeting worked, however people did request that hybrid technology be utilised so that attendees could come in person or online. Several parishes including Figheldean, Netheravon and Woodford offered the use of their hall for one of the Area Board meetings.