Agenda item

The following updates from partners were received:

      i.        Parish and Town Councils

Written update reports were received and noted from Castle Combe, Christian Malford, Grittleton, Kington Langley and Kington St Michael Parish Councils. Further verbal updates were received as follows:

Grittleton Parish Council

The parish was currently focussing on road safety improvements, particularly speeding; however it was not possible to have speed detector strips installed due to a lack of lamp posts to connect them to. Parvis Khansari, Service Director, undertook to look into this issue. There was also an outstanding issue with the pavement at Fosseway, and Adrian Hampton, Head of Local Highways and Street Scene, reported that this work was in the programme and due to be done shortly.

Castle Combe Parish Council

Inconsiderate parking on double yellow lines continued to be an issue, and it was hoped that Wiltshire Council’s lack of resource to deal with this issue would be resolved very soon. Victoria Welsh, Community Area Manager, would pursue this issue with the Parking Team. The Parish Council also commented on the allocation of grit bins in the community area, being only five. Councillor Tonge announced that parish and town councils could purchase their own grit bins, and Wiltshire Council could supply one tonne of salt provided that there was somewhere to store it. This was explained in paragraphs 2.10 and 2.11 of the report being considered unter Item 9 on the agenda.

2. Wiltshire Police

The written update was noted. Inspector Kate Pain explained that reductions in violent crime were one of the main priorities for Wiltshire Police and she was pleased to report that there had been an 18% decline in violent crime in Chippenham Community Area. The hard work and dedication of the Night Time Economy Group had contributed to this success and the Group was congratulated.

3. Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

The written update was noted.

4. NHS Wiltshire

The written updates were noted.

5. Chippenham and Villages Community Area Partnership (ChAP)

John Clark reported on behalf of ChAP that Julia Stacey was now in the position of Partnership Coordinator. It was also noted that the Chippenham and Villages Area Guides at Chippenham train station had been going well, and the common slip on the river was due to be cleaned.

6. Chippenham Vision Board

The written update was circulated and noted. Tim Martienssen, Vision Director, added the following verbal updates:

·         Core Strategy and Vision consultation events were being planned over the next couple of months.

·         A Vision event was also being planned for the New Year and would involve local people.

·         A useful meeting had been held with Ashtenne; the owners of the Langley Park site in Chippenham. It was hoped that a satisfactory solution for the site could be found soon.

·         A traffic modelling assessment of the Chippenham High Street indicated that it would be possible to close the High Street on Friday mornings to allow for the market to take place; however there were further considerations to assess before a decision would be made.

7. Community Area Young Peoples’ Issues Group

The written report was noted. It was also noted that a series of Blus and Zus discos would be taking place as follows:

·         26 November, 7-9pm, Grittleton Village Hall

·         17 December, 7-9pm, Chippenham BridgeCentre

·         28 January, 7-9pm, Yatton Keynell Village Hall

·         25 February, 7-9pm, Chippenham  Neeld Hall

·         25 March, 7-9pm, Buckley Barracks TBC                            

8. Children’s Parliament

The written report was noted. Judy Edwards offered thanks to the councillors who had attended the meeting on 2 November to listen to the children’s views and priorities. Judy also reported that the children were due to visit Wiltshire College for animation workshops, with a view to producing a road safety DVD, which could be brought to the next Area Board meeting. Another current priority for the Children’s Parliament was reusing and recycling.