Agenda and minutes

The Chairman, Councillor Bridget Wayman welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced Councillor Fleur de Rhé-Philipe, Cabinet Member for Finance, Performance and Risk and Councillor Dick Tonge, Cabinet member for Transport and Highways.

Apologies for absence were received from:

·         Councillor Richard Beattie, Board member

·         Jo Howles – NHS Wiltshire

·         Nigel Knowles, Chairman of TAPCAP and Tisbury Parish Councillor

·         Peter Edge, Chairman of WilCAP and Wilton Town Councillor

Councillors are requested to declare any personal or prejudicial interests or dispensations granted by the Standards Committee.

There were none.

To confirm as a correct record and sign the minutes of the meeting held on 25 August 2010 (copy attached).

The minutes from the previous meeting held on 25 August 2010 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

It was noted that Member of Parliament, Andrew Murrison had been in attendance at the previous meeting, but had not been included in the list of those in attendance in the minutes.

The Board will discuss any matters arising from the minutes of the previous meeting.

There were no matters arising from the previous minutes.

To receive announcements from the Chairman including:

·         Local Transport Plan Strategy Consultation

·         Delayed Gypsy and Traveller Site Consultation

·         Flooding information reminder

·         Intelligence Network

(papers attached)

The Chairman made the following announcements:

Local Transport Plan Strategy Consultation

In addition to the information attached to the agenda, the Chairman informed people that the Board had been invited to nominate two people from within the community areas to take part in one of the three stakeholder workshops. Details of these were:

• Monday 1 November 2010 in Devizes
• Tuesday 2 November 2010 in Salisbury
• Wednesday 3 November 2010 in Trowbridge

Anyone interested in attending these workshops should contact the Community Area Manager, Richard Munro.

The Chairman informed the Board that Councillors had recently attended a meeting to discuss the revised figures from the Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) document.

Delayed Gypsy and Traveller Site Consultation

Information was provided as an attachment to the agenda.

Flooding information reminder

Parishes were reminded to send back their responses to the Consultation, detailed in the attachment to the agenda. The Chairman also noted that a Flood Awareness Event was due to take place on the 19 October at City Hall Salisbury, and urged anyone interested to attend.

Intelligence Network

Information was provided as an attachment to the agenda.

To receive a short presentation on Natural England’s Living River Project.

Officer: Gerry Hamersley, Natural England Area Team Manager 

Gerry Hamersley (Natural England Area Team Manager) delivered a short presentation on Natural England’s Living River Project, which was a four year project funded by the Lottery fund, but led by Natural England.

The project had worked with thirty six communities to encouraged volunteering, and had engaged over 20,000 people during its work.

A Parish Resource Pack had been produced which consisted of twelve guidance notes. The pack urged parishes to come up with ideas of what they could do with their rivers, one suggestion was that parishes could appoint a river warden.

Questions and comments were then received, some of these were:

• When farmers allow cattle to drink from the streams and rivers, it caused a silt problem, which the Water Authority had previously advised nothing could be done about it.
• Fovant had previously designed a booklet for parishioners, which laid out their particular duty regarding wildlife and the natural surroundings. Other than providing the information to local people, it was felt that nothing else could be done about misuse of the streams and rivers, as there was no enforcement or penalties.
• Are the flows of the streams and rivers monitored, as the chalk stream I have has no flow at all at present.
• Could there be a conflict of interest with River Wardens trespassing on private land.
• Are there any grants available through the River Project to assist in small river based projects.

Some of the answers to the above were:

• Cattle causing a silt problem is the sort of thing the scheme is set out for, take a pack back to your parish and see what can be taken from it.
• Whilst it is difficult to make people change their behaviour, it could be that if we try to educate them on the issues causing problems for the community, this approach could make a difference.
• The Environment Agency monitor the flow of streams and rivers. The River Project Scheme is about getting communities to think about what happens to their waters.
• People do need to be informed about farming and land management. The project has found that there is a willingness to work towards some solutions.
• The River Project has no pot of funding available for projects.

The pack could be viewed online or was available for people to take away at the meeting.

www.livingriver.org.uk

To receive updates from partners.

Written updates from Wiltshire Fire and Rescue and NHS Wiltshire were attached to the agenda. The Board received an update from Inspector Minty, of Wiltshire Police. Details of the figures and information provided are attached at the back of these minutes.

To receive presentations from Highways, Police and Community Speed Watch on their part in addressing speeding issues, followed by a question and answer session.

Officer: David Bullock, Highway Improvement Manager

The Board received a presentation from David Bullock, Highways Improvements Manager, and the Police and Community Speed Watch on their part in addressing speeding issues.

Questions were then taken from the floor, these included:

• Currently there was no signage on the easterly direction on  Baverstock lane, could this be rectified, as local people felt that current conditions were extremely dangerous and the safety of those that lived there needed consideration. Answer: This had already been logged as an issue and signage looked at by the Highways department who had decided that no additional signage was needed. The Chairman said that she would ask Highways to look at the situation again.
• Wilton and Dinton share a speed camera device on a fortnightly basis. If more areas become involved in the scheme, the current amount of cameras owned by Wiltshire Council would be in more demand, resulting in the allocation time to villages becoming less frequent. Will more cameras be purchased as more villages become involved in the scheme. Answer: Cameras were about £6,000 each as they had to be Home Office approved equipment. The programme had been running for a year, so the council were in the process of reviewing the Community Speed Watch (CSW) operation and the groups involved. It was hoped that in working with those communities any changes needed could be established.

• Fovant had had a busy year on highways issues. The speed limit review was proposing changing a 40mph to 60mph. It had since been decided to keep the speed limit to 40mph. The Fovant Road Safety Group had requested CSW and Speed Indicator Devices (SIDS), but had been turned down for both and did not know why. A submission had been produced detailing the problems faced by the people of Fovant and the desired solutions and sent to the Chairman of the Board for consideration.

Answer: The Chairman had not seen the submission, but agreed to give the matter some consideration, now that the papers were available.

• If CSW did not involve any prosecution then why did the council purchase the most expensive type of speed camera device rather than a cheaper alternative. Answer: Wiltshire Police had specified the type of camera they wished the council to purchase (a similar type to their own) to enable them to provide support to the CSW teams.

·         Was a 20mph speed limit enforceable.  Answer: The guidance available from the Association of Chief Police Officers on the matter of enforcement of a 20mph speed limit, was that it was not currently enforceable. There is no alternative education course to offer someone who has been stopped exceeding that speed"

The Chairman stated that the Board supported villages that were keen to implement CSW in their area.

Councillor Deane noted that the recent review of speed limits had caused some contention in the area.

Councillor Tonge Cabinet member for Highways and Transport, gave an update on the situation of the Speed Limit Review. He stated that all comments received from parishes  ...  view the full minutes text for item 9.

To receive information on the outcome of the consultation process.

Cllr Dick Tonge, Cabinet member for Highways and Transport.

The Board received information from Councillor Dick Tonge, Cabinet member for Highways and Transport, on the outcome of the consultation process.

The review had been carried out because prior to the formation of a unitary Council, the four districts had run their car parking in four different ways. As there were many issues to consider, the council had to look at the whole scheme to find a more rational approach.

The consultation on Mouchel’s report was open from 12 July to 3 September 2010, during that time 600 responses had been received. Some of the findings were:

Residents’ parking:

• Significant support for more pragmatic approach to residential parking in new housing developments
• Overwhelming support for policy and process on residents’ parking zones
• Large majority support for policy on overspill parking in residential areas

Other policies and issues:

• Overwhelming majority supported the council’s approach to parking enforcement
• Small majority saw the kerb space hierarchy as reasonable
• Large majority stated that council should continue to offer season tickets

South West Wiltshire Responses

• 313 Total respondents (with South West Wilts Postcode)
• Over 50% of the responses received across the whole of Wiltshire were from Mere.
• Mere – parking issues in Castle Street, Castle Hill Lane, Church Street and Salisbury Street; residents were using public car parks due to limited options for on street parking.
• Mere – Salisbury Car park was used for access to the doctors surgery and should not be chargeable to patients.
• Tisbury – residents of Sutton Mandeville had no bus service so had to use their cars to access Tisbury for essential shopping.
• Tisbury – Very few people in Tisbury had a parking problem and to introduce charges, especially in the High Street or Nadder Close would solve a problem which did not exist.
• Vast majority of comments were directed towards the effect parking charges would have on the fragile local economy and trade in both towns.

The Chairman asked what percentage of people responded in support of no charges to car parking on the smaller towns and villages. The answer was that 74% had responded in support.

Comments from the floor included:

• After sitting at the computer for over an hour and a half and only reached question ten out of a possible thirty five, the consultation process was considered to be too difficult for people to complete.
• A Parish Councillor asked what weight his response on behalf of the parish had been given. There was concern that those who had completed the consultation online on behalf of a parish or a group would only be counted as one person’s comments.
• The council should publish information on how responses are interpreted.
• There was a need to refine the process of consultation to allow more people to take part.

Councillor Tonge added that the consultation had to be detailed enough to provide all the factual information required and that someone had been appointed to look at the consistency of consultations.

A report would be produced and submitted to Cabinet on  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

Board members will decide on the allocation of extra grit bins to parishes.

Officer: Richard Munro, Community Area Manager

The Chairman informed everyone that fifty seven requests for an additional grit bin had been received for the South West Wiltshire community areas, but that the Board had only been given eleven bins to allocate.

The Board had decided to hold a separate meeting with relevant officers to discuss the allocation of the bins further. A proposal would be produced and brought back to the Board at a later date.

Councillor Tonge added that there was an option for interested parishes to take delivery of a one tonne bag of salt free of charge, providing they could meet the criteria for storing it.

Richard Munro, Community Area Manager would email parishes with the details of the offer and the criteria for storage.

To receive information from the Community Area Transport Group (CATG) regarding priorities for funding local projects (report attached).

Officer: Richard Munro, Community Area Manager

The Chairman informed people that the Board had £17,000 to spend on local transport based projects. The Community Area Transport Group (CATG) had looked at the submissions and a list had been complied of possible projects. At the next meeting of the CATG in November, they would whittle down the number of projects on the list and set about costing them. An update would be brought back to the Board at a later date.

Councillor Jeans asked about an awaited response to an earlier query regarding weight restrictions, as it had been a year since his original question.

Councillor Tonge informed the Board that an officer report was being prepared and would be available in approximately six weeks time.

To receive a presentation on the Parish Steward Scheme.

Officer: Graeme Hay, Head of Service – Local Highways and Streetscene (South)

This item was postponed until a future Board meeting as the officer was unable to attend.

The DVD could be viewed online at:

http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/parkingtransportandstreets/roadshighwayspavements/roadmaintenance/parishstewardsscheme.htm

The Board Members will consider applications for funding as follows:

·         Hindon Allotment and Conservation Society

·         Wilton Community Centre

(Papers attached)

Officer: Richard Munro, Community Area Manager

The Board considered two applications for funding under the Community Grants Scheme. After discussion the Board members voted on each application in turn.

Decision

Hindon Allotment and Conservation Society were awarded £1,000 towards their project to purchase sheds for some of the plots currently without one.

Reason

The application met the Community Area Grant Criteria for 2010/11 and would improve the facilities of the allotments, which were widely used by the local community.

There was a request from the floor for the application from Wilton Community Centre to be withdrawn as the applicant was not present to speak on behalf of the application.

Decision

The application from Wilton Community Centre was deferred.

Reason

The Wiltshire Councillor for Wilton, Cllr Beattie, was not present and it was felt that he should be given full opportunity to contribute to the discussion in public forum at the next meeting.

The Board will receive updates from:

·        WilCAP (Wilton Community Area Partnership)

·        SW7CAP (Mere Community Area Partnership)

·        TAPCAP (Tisbury Community Area Partnership)

Community Area Partnership Chairmen

The Board received updates from Community Area Partnerships as follows:

SW7CAP – No update available.

TAPCAP – Apologies from Nigel Knowles, Chairman had been given.

WilCAP – Apologies from Peter Edge, Chairman had been given.

Councillor Green queried the issue of the loss of the village pub in Fovant and asked if the CAP could assist in finding a new tenant.

Answer: A Fovant Parish Councillor replied that there was the possibility of a second location in the village becoming a pub but that it was too early to know the outcome at present.

Councillor Deane asked what weight Community Area Plans held as the Board was waiting on clarification from county hall, he asked that the Cabinet representative took the query back to Cabinet for an answer.

Councillor de Rhé Philipe informed the Board that the council was awaiting the new Localism Bill which would affect the Community Area Plans.

To receive an update on the progress of issues to date.

Officer: Richard Munro, Community Area Manager

Richard Munro, Community Area Manager gave an update on the status of issues, he informed the Board that there were twenty one issues in progress at present, with the majority of those being highways related.

Richard went on to explain the terminology used on the issues system as there had recently been some confusion with when an issue was considered to be closed.

Some issues could never be resolved, so could never strictly be closed. However when an issue had been passed onto the relevant officer for resolution it is shown as ‘closed’. The tracking system on the website lists details on the reason why an issue was closed, this could read ‘transferred’ or ‘resolved’.

Councillor Deane informed the Board that an issue at Fern Hollow regarding a delay had been logged as an issue on the online system, which had produced a good result.

Issues could be tracked online at:

https://forms.wiltshire.gov.uk/area_board/report_issue.php?area_board=South%20West%20Wiltshire

The Chairman will invite any remaining questions from Partners, Town/Parish Council Representatives or the floor.

A Wilton Town Councillor asked Councillor de Rhé Philipe to provide a figure for the cost of the refurbishments planned for County Hall in Trowbridge and what was the cost of transferring staff to the school site would be.

Answer: The Council was carrying out the refurbishments to save money by providing ‘hotdesk’ working for all of the council sites. It was hoped that the council would save about £24 million a year simply by working in a more modern way.

When the council became a unitary authority it inherited ninety five buildings. The aim would be to reduce that number to just four or five.

Councillor de Rhé Philipe said that she would look into the possibility of putting some figures into the Council’s magazine as requested.

A copy of the Forward Plan is attached for information.

The next meeting of the South West Wiltshire Area Board will be held at 7.00pm on Wednesday 8 December 2010, at Dinton Village Hall.