Agenda and draft minutes

Councillors to introduce themselves.

The Chairman was pleased to announce that Alexa Davies, the Area Board’s former Community Engagement Manager, had been appointed as their new Engagement and Partnerships Lead (EPL). He welcomed the EPL to her new role and stated that the Area Board was looking forward to working with her.

To receive any apologies for absence.

There were no apologies for absence.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 12 June 2024.

On the proposal of Cllr Robert MacNaughton, seconded by the Vice-Chairman, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 12 June 2024 as a true and correct record.

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

The Vice-Chairman declared an Other Registerable Interest (ORI) in relation to grant application ABG1942 as he was a trustee of Wiltshire Music Centre. As set out in the Code of Conduct, the Vice-Chairman made a statement as a member of public and remained for discussion. He did not take part in the vote on the item.

The Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, Cllr Tom Rounds and Cllr Robert MacNaughton declared Non-Registerable Interests in relation to application ABG196. Calne Football Club rented their clubhouse from Calne Town Council, of which they were all members. It was noted that Wiltshire Council’s Code of Conduct granted a standing dispensation for members of town councils to participate in the debate about and vote on their applications.

For transparency, Cllr MacNaughton made a further declaration that he had once received a scarf from Calne Football Club. This was not a substantive personal gain and would have no influence on his decision making.

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

Cllr Tom Rounds reported that Patrick Kaberia, a tea producer from Michimikuru in Kenya, had given an engaging and interesting talk the previous evening about fairtrade. Mr Kaberia had spoken powerfully about the impact that the scheme had had in improving his village, particularly educational provision. 100 young people from his community had been able to attend university in Nairobi thanks to funding bought in through fairtrade.

The Chairman took the opportunity to highlight that there was now a photograph of Calne available for use by Wiltshire Council staff as a background image during Microsoft Teams meetings. He thanked the Area Board’s Assistant Multimedia Officer, Dom Argar, for taking the photo.

Thanks were also given to people that had decorated a pig for Calne Pig Parade. The Chairman explained that 50 of the pig sculptures would be on display at Calne Music and Arts Festival, between 4 and 13 October, to celebrate 50 years of the festival.

It was highlighted by the Chairman that Wiltshire Council had worked with local charities including Calne Wordfest, Calne Men's Shed, Calne Lions and Calne Pocket Park to create an app to swap books. He encouraged attendees to download the app and scan the QR code on one of the book swap boxes that were available at Hastings Drive, Calne Pocket Park, Tench Road, Kingston House, Derry Hill or Little Buddies in Lower Compton.

In addition, the Chairman reminded the Area Board that the government’s consultation about changes to the National Planning Policy Framework was open until 11:45pm on 24 September.

·       Wiltshire Council Consultation Portal

·       Wiltshire Police Crime Figures Calne Town and Calne Rural

·       Wiltshire Council Information Items:

Ø  FACT Family Help Project

Ø  FACT Transitional Safeguarding

Ø  Wiltshire Youth Council

Ø  Gypsies and Travellers Development Plan Consultation

The Chairman drew attention to the following updates included in the agenda pack:

·       FACT Family Help Project, pg.15-16

·       FACT Transitional Safeguarding, pg.17-18

·       Wiltshire Youth Council, pg.19-20

·       Gypsies and Travellers Development Plan Consultation - open until Friday 4 October, pg.21-22

Verbal Updates

To receive any verbal updates from representatives, including:

a.    Wiltshire Police

b.    Older People’s and Carer’s Champion

c.     Calne Parish Forum

d.    Town and Parish Councils.

Written Updates

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

e.    Community First

f.      Healthwatch Wiltshire Annual Report – online

g.    BaNES, Swindon and Wiltshire Together – Integrated Care Board

h.    Hilmarton Parish Council

i.      Calne Without Parish Council

j.      Calne Town Council

k.     S106 Working Group

l.      Wiltshire Police

m.   Wiltshire and Swindon Road Safety Partnership

Written updates were available in the agenda pack from the following partners:

·       Community First (including useful information for parent carers), pg.23-30

·       BaNES, Swindon and Wiltshire Together – Integrated Care Board, pg.31-33

·       Hilmarton Parish Council, pg.35

·       Calne Without Parish Council, pg.37

·       Calne Town Council, pg.39-40

·       S106 Working Group, pg.41-42

·       Wiltshire Neighbourhood Police Team, pg.43-51

·       Wiltshire and Swindon Road Safety Partnership, pg.53-63

The Chairman highlighted that a link to Healthwatch Wiltshire’s Annual Report could be accessed online. He also drew attention to the update from the Integrated Care Board with news about approved funding for a new primary care facility in Hindon. The proposed facility in Hindon was the first of several projects in their Primary Estate Care Plan that they were looking to secure funding for.

The following partners also provided verbal updates:

Wiltshire Police

Seargent Mike Tripp gave an update on behalf of the Neighbourhood Police Team. Points included:

·       Thanks were given to Police Constable Jon Bourke for his contribution to the Neighbourhood Team over the past two years. Police Constable Bourke had now joined the Criminal Investigations Department.

·       Police Constable Nick Dorey had joined the Neighbourhood Team and was already making a valuable contribution.

·       The Neighbourhood Team had attended 100 public engagements since the last Area Board meeting, including completing a week of events in rural areas.

·       Chief Constable Catherine Roper had had an enjoyable visit to Calne Men’s Shed.

·       There had recently been three arrests in Calne connected to drug related offences.

·       Three arrests had been made in connection with damage to vehicles in Calne the previous week.

·       Owners of keyless cars were encouraged to be vigilant and purchase faraday pouches to block the signal from their fobs.

·       A business week was due to be held in September to help tackle aggression against retailers.

·       Recent reports from His Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services had found that the performance of Wiltshire Police had improved.

Cllr Ashley O’Neill arrived at 6:41pm after being delayed by inclement weather.

During the discussion, the following points were made:

·       In response to a question about why levels of recorded crime between 1 June 2024 and 31 August 2024 were higher than the corresponding period the previous year, Seargent Tripp explained that overall crime was lower than the previous year and that levels of antisocial behaviour tended to be higher during the summer.

·       The approximate location that crimes were committed were made available online. There were no specific hotspot areas that had seen increases in crime.

·       Seargent Tripp was cautiously optimistic about the increase in the reporting of crime, seeing it as a positive that more people were coming forward.

·       Isabel McCord, from Bremhill Parish Council, thanked the police for attending an engagement event in her parish and requested that they work with her parish clerk to hold a similar event in Foxham.

·       The Vice-Chairman noted that he would welcome statistics about the number of prosecutions alongside the figures for the number of recorded crimes. Seargent Tripp said he  ...  view the full minutes text for item 40.

Ros Griffiths (Strategic Engagement and Partnerships Manager) and Diane Gooch (Older People’s and Carer’s Champion) to provide an overview of the event.

Strategic Engagement and Partnerships Manager (SEPM), Ros Griffiths, gave an overview of the events planned for 14 September. She explained that around 30 different groups would be represented, with a focus on health, wellbeing and improving social isolation. There would be events for people of all ages, from walking netball to Zumba and the coach of Paralympian Suzanna Hext was also expected to attend. Calne Town Council had helped to organise free travel for on the 40A and 40C busses and would extend parking times in the nearby Church Street Car Park. As well as providing an overview of the arrangements, the SEPM gave thanks to Diane Gooch and other volunteers for organising the event.

The Chairman noted that he was looking forward to the event, but expressed regret that he would be unable to participate in the rowing and cycling as he was running a half marathon the following day.

The Chairman and Strategic Engagements and Partnerships Manager will lead a discussion with councillors on local priorities and the action plan for 2024-2025, focusing on the themes emerging from the CAJSNA data, the results of the community survey and engagement with the ICB regarding a new medical centre. Suggested priorities are:

• Young People – Cllr Sam Pearce-Kearney

• Older People – Cllr Tom Rounds

• Environment – Cllr Robert MacNaughton

• Economy – Cllr Ian Thorn

• Transport – Cllr Ashley O’Neill

A video about the CAJSNA presented by Wiltshire Council’s Director of Public Health is available online.

The Strategic Engagement and Partnerships Manager (SEPM), Ros Griffiths, gave an overview of the Community Area Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (CAJSNA) in order to help the Area Board identify their priority goals for the forthcoming year. She reminded the Area Board that they had deferred consideration of the priority goals at the previous meeting to allow more time to consider the CAJSNA data. The data showed 140 different indicators spread across 10 different topics. She reported that 149 people in the community area had taken part in the consultation and had been asked to identify the topics they considered to be their greatest priority.  The five most popular priorities selected by the public were health, the environment, the cost of living, safety and older people. 

The Area Board then watched a video about the CAJSNA by Wiltshire Council’s Director of Public Health, Professor Kate Blackburn.

During the discussion, points included:

·         The Area Board thanked the SEPM for her presentation.

·         It was noted that, although the majority of respondents to the survey tended to be from older age groups, older people were only the fifth highest priority identified.

·         It was suggested that health could be included in the title of one of the Area Board’s priority areas, given that it was the highest priority identified in the consultation and that the Area Board were keen to use their influence to support a new medical practice in Calne.

·         The importance of setting achievable goals that aligned with the resources available to the Area Board was highlighted.

·         Cllr Tom Rounds observed that Calne Town Council had a high precept and that this might have been a contributary factor to cost of living pressures, such as the high number of children eligible for free school meals in Calne.

·         It was debated whether the title of the Area Board’s existing priority of addressing climate change could be expanded to encompass wider environmental issues.

·         The SEPM noted that an Area Board was unable to have more than five priority areas.

·         The possibility of including health as an issue cutting across all of the priorities was discussed but the Area Board felt that including health within the title of an existing priority was preferable to ensure that it was given greater prominence. 

·         The Area Board’s Older Person’s and Carer’s Champion, Dianne Gooch, said that she would welcome more information about when Calne would get a Neighbourhood Collaborative.

Cllr Ashley O’Neill left the meeting at 7:50pm, so did not participate in the votes on the priority areas.

On the proposal of Cllr Rounds, seconded by the Vice-Chairman, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To adopt the following as the Area Board’s priority areas for 2024/25 and appoint the following lead member to drive forward those areas:

·         Supporting positive mental health and wellbeing in young people (Cllr Sam Pearce-Kearney)

·         Addressing climate change, the environment and natural resources (Cllr Robert MacNaughton)

·         Promoting health, wellbeing and combating social isolation in older and vulnerable people (Cllr Tom Rounds)

·         Promoting  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.

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

Remaining Budgets:

Area Board Initiative:

Community Area Grant:

Older and Vulnerable People’s Grant:

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

The Area Board noted the budgets remaining for allocation at the meeting and heard from representatives in attendance who gave a brief overview of and were questioned about their project.

Area Board Initiative

       i.        Calne Big Get Together 2024 Requesting £1,000

On the proposal of Cllr Robert MacNaughton, seconded by Cllr Tom Rounds, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To award £1,000 towards Calne Big Get Together 2024

Reason: The application met Older and Vulnerable People’s Grant Criteria 20204/25.

Community Area Grant

      ii.        Calne Town Football Club Requesting £5,000 Towards Solar Panel and Battery Installation

On the proposal of Cllr MacNaughton, seconded by the Vice-Chairman, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To award Calne Football Club £5,000 towards solar panel and battery installation.

Reason: The application met the Community Area Grant Criteria 2024/25.

Older and Vulnerable Adult’s Grant

Cllr Ashley O’Neill returned to the meeting at 8:07pm, so did not vote on the Area Board Initiative or Community Area Grant.

     iii.        Wiltshire Music Centre Requesting £1,500 Towards Celebrating Age Wiltshire’s Creative Health and Wellbeing Project

On the proposal of Cllr O’Neill, seconded by Cllr MacNaughton, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

To award Wiltshire Music Centre £1,500 towards Celebrating Age Wiltshire’s Creative Health and Wellbeing Project.

Reason: The application met the Older and Vulnerable Adult’s Grant Criteria 2024/25.

The Vice-Chairman abstained having declared an Other Registerable Interest, that he was a trustee of Wiltshire Music Centre.

Information links: Area Board Grants and Grants Criteria.

To note the minutes and consider any recommendations arising from the latest LHFIG meeting held on 26 July 2024, as set out in the attached report.

Recommendations:

·       To allocate funding to Issues already on the Priority Schemes List:

Ø  3-23-5, Calne Parking Review £5,600

Ø  3-23-11 Derry Hill Topo Surveys £2,765

·       To add the following Issues to the Priority Schemes List with funding:

Ø  3-24-05 A4 A342 Deer Warning Signs £1,960

·       To close the following Issues:

Ø  3-22-21 A4 Cherhill, Middle Lane Closure of Lay-by

Further information on the LHFIG process can be found here.

The Area Board considered the recommendations of the LHFIG meeting held on 26 July 2024.

On the proposal of Cllr Ashley O’Neill, seconded by Cllr Tom Rounds, it was resolved to make the:

Decision

• To allocate funding to Issues already on the Priority Schemes List:

·         3-23-5, Calne Parking Review £5,600

·         3-23-11 Derry Hill Topo Surveys £2,765

• To add the following Issue to the Priority Schemes List with funding:

·         3-24-05 A4 A342 Deer Warning Signs £1,960

• To close the following Issue:

·         3-22-21 A4 Cherhill, Middle Lane Closure of Lay-by

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

It was highlighted that there was normally a queue of taxis on the A4 before the closing time of Kingsbury Green Academy and it often caused traffic to back up. Cllr Robert MacNaughton noted that he would investigate the issue to see if it could be mitigated. 

Future Meeting Dates (6:30-8:30pm):

·       12 November 2024

·       18 February 2025

For information on applying for a grant or grant application deadlines for these meetings, contact the Strategic Engagement and Partnerships Manager ros.griffiths@wiltshire.gov.uk and/or Engagement and Partnerships Lead alexa.davies@wiltshire.gov.uk.

6:30-8:30pm, with networking from 6:00pm.

·         12 November 2024

·         18 February 2025

All meetings are held at Calne Hub and Library. 

Meeting details, Agendas and minutes can be viewed here.