Agenda and minutes

The Chairman, Councillor Richard Britton welcomed everyone to the last meeting of the Southern Wiltshire Area Board for this council.

The Area Board would not meet again until after the elections in May.

Apologies for absence were received from:

• District Commander Jason Moncrieff – Dorset and Wiltshire F&RS
• Inspector Pete Sparrow – Wiltshire Police

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the previous meeting held on Thursday 26 January 2017.

The minutes of the previous meeting held on Thursday 26 January 2017, were agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

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

Councillor Ian McLennan declared a Personal Interest in item 13 – Community Funding.

To receive Chairman’s Announcements:

·         Speed Indicator Device

The Chairman made the following announcements:

Speed Indicator Device (SID)

The SID had been noticeably absent from the area because of repeated breakdowns. The Board had found a way to fund a new SID which would be in circulation from the following week, starting in Whiteparish. Tom would issue a new rota detailing the circulation, to those involved in the programme.

Great British Spring Clean

Thanks were given to everybody who had been involved in the litter picking initiative. There had been 12 group events with around 200 people taking part. The Chairman noted that this need not be a one off event.

To note the attached information on the following current consultations:

The Board noted the attached information on the consultations detailed in the agenda pack.

·         Fire & Rescue Service

·         Healthwatch Wiltshire

·         Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)

The Board noted the written reports circulated at the meeting and attached to the agenda.

Dorset & Wiltshire Fire & Rescue (D&WFRS)

In addition to the written report circulated at the meeting, District Commander; Tom Brolan gave a verbal update, the main points were:

·         The Chairman had asked for the divisions covered by the Fire Service to be provided for the next update.

·         The combination of the D & W FRS, had been in place for a year now, there had been many changes. On 1 December 2016 a new Chief Fire Officer had been appointed. Work was still progressing.

·         Community visits continue to be carried out.

·         SALE was a service where the Fire Service could refer other organisations to go and help vulnerable people. Tom had circulated forms at the meeting which could be completed to receive a visit from the Bobby van.

·         A £54 million budget had been approved for 2017/18.

·         Since the Mobilizing systems went live last year, at no point had 999 calls been unanswered.

·         10 whole time Officers had been recruited last year, but the service was still desperate for more retained fire fighters.

a) Parish Councils and Community groups

b) Community Policing –

 local issues and priorities, local events

In attendance: PC Matt Holland

Parish Councils and Community Groups

Catherine Purves asked if there was any merit in the Parish Chairmen getting together like the clerks did, as this had proven to be very useful for the clerks? Answer: The Chairman noted that this idea had come up a few years ago, but there had been little take up. The Board would circulate the idea after the election to see if there was any appetite for it.

Community Policing

Local Issues and Priorities, local events

In addition to the monthly Local Policing priorities report which was circulated at the meeting, PC Matt Holland gave a presentation; the main points were:

·       Following a recent terrorist attack in Westminster, London, Matt noted that Police Officers appreciated public support as did all other emergency services.

·       The National threat level remained unchanged following the incident at Westminster Bridge, it remained at severe, this meant that an attack was considered highly likely.

·       He urged people to be alert in busy public areas and to notify the police if they noticed anything suspicious.

·       For further information people could keep an eye on the Police website or the Police social media sites.

·       The site: www.gov.uk/act was a useful place for Parish Councils or other groups to access many posters for print, which could be displayed on your notice boards.

·       There had been recent thefts of lead from roofs. People were urged to spread the message that everyone should think about the security of their properties.

·       There had been recent break-ins to houses in Coombe Bissett and a spate of thefts of catalytic converters.

Matt noted that the Police were having to push back as an organisation, so were not able to continue to provide cones and road signs for community events. Communities would need to alter their plans to include for these resources. Event organisers would need to apply for road closures themselves. Many documents were available to assist, such as event guides and useful contacts.

The purchase of equipment for events could also be shared by several parishes or a community area.

Tom Bray would circulate the guides to all parish clerks.

Questions:

·       Elaine Hart from Alderbury – Could people use smart water on lead and how did it work? Answer:  There were several ways of marking property, smart water could be used to mark any type of property. Once the property was recovered the Police could find out where it came from by tracing the unique genetic make-up of the smart water.  It could be difficult to prove where scrap metal had come from.

The Chairman added that the idea of cones and signs being held centrally was worth exploring, Tom would carry out a survey of Parish Councils to see what interest there was.

Proposals for the way forward.

The Chairman thanked everyone who had attended the event, which had produced some very interesting outcomes. The next step was to begin to zone in on specific projects. Out of the nine main topic headings looked at during the event, there had not been an opportunity to select priorities at that level.

Those present were then asked to take part in a voting session to rank the 9 broad headings, by choosing their top 3. The aim was to narrow down a few possible areas to concentrate on over the next few months.

The top three chosen were:

1. Transport

2. Environment

3. Community Safety

A DVD was then shown, depicting a montage of all the things that the Board had supported or initiated over the last year.

Tom then ran a further voting session where people could choose their top three from the nine sub-headings in the three main categories selected. The results were:

1. Fly Tipping

2. Road Improvements and Maintenance

3. Rural Crime/Cycling and Walking

The Chairman felt that it was quite clear that there were broader issues, which could be looked at by other working groups, such as the transport issues which were something that could be tackled by the CATG, adding that none of the issues raised at the JSA event would be ignored.

There were difficulties in taking these broad issues and making them into feasible projects which could be taken forward. If there were areas not identified here, which we had a realistic chance of implementing, avoiding things that we have little direct control over as an Area Board, then he urged people to let Tom know with a detailed proposal.

Questions:

·         One person had attended the JSA event twice, but was not sure that their feedback was listened to. She asked if the people who design the process could make it more flexible? Answer: The JSA was built around available statistics.

·         The statistics were not accurate all of the time, as they showed that the local community did not use libraries because they did not use Downton, however they used Salisbury library and felt strongly about libraries.

Tom concluded that there had been several examples over the last few years where the Board had taken a broad issue and made it a tangible project which had then gone on to flourish. Following on from this, the Board had been putting together a series of good ideas, and turning them into actual tool kits. With the aim of having a list of all the tool kits available.

Question:

The board had purchased a camera to target fly tipping, has it produced any results? Answer: No, not yet.

To celebrate the publication of the footpath group toolkit we have invited Nick Cowen, Wiltshire Council’s Rights of Way Warden, to help us prepare for the Summer ahead.  

As the growing season begins, Nick will talk about some of the legal and ecological issues surrounding footpath maintenance. Do’s and Don’ts; and Can’s and Can’ts.

The Chairman noted that footpaths had been very high on the agenda for the Board, with a huge amount of work having been carried out over the past years. He thanked all of the volunteers who had taken part in the work across the community area.

A Toolkit had been produced, and would be circulated by Tom following the meeting.

Nick Cowen, Senior Rights of Way Warden gave a talk on footpaths. The main points were:

·         Wiltshire had 3 Senior Wardens and a contractor for the county. Nick had 90 parishes in his patch, with 15 of those parishes in the southern Wiltshire area.

·         The Footpath Group here in the south had been used as a model, Nick hoped to roll out a similar Group in other areas across the county.

·         The Highways Authority had duties and Parishes had powers with Rights of Ways.

·         It was key for Parish Councils to have good dialogue with landowners.

·         The value of a RoW network was far spread, with the connections they make to pubs, churches, and schools. All of which were still valid today.

·         Footpaths were a benefit to walkers, and encouraged people to the area.

·         Getting to know your paths was invaluable, it could increase opportunities to meet people. One way to find out what was available nearby was to join a walking group.

·         Volunteers could get involved with the maintenance of paths.

·         The toolkit was a valuable document with all the individual links to all the practical templates. When parishes were ready to arrange an activity day, they would have all of the information available to them.

·         The RoW team had endorsed the audit template on there. It also contained case studies, with different approaches, as it was recognised that one size did not fit all.

·         There were some constraints, such as digging holes in verges for sign posts, as this was not possible for volunteers to carry this work out, due to the various utilities in the verges.

·         Nick advised that when planning the programme of works, to choose the right times of year, so not to disturb the plant life.

Questions:

Was there a map available of the RoW footpaths going through the parishes? Answer: Yes there was one online. If you are a parish keen to survey the RoW we could provide a map. For survey purposes you need a paper map to take with you.

Which website has the maps to download? Answer: Tom would circulate the link following the meeting.

Tom explained that Alderbury had set up a circular walk, another event planned on 1 April, so they had contacted him to seek assistance with funding for the purchase of some signs. Once the event had taken place, the signs could then be available to be used by other groups.

To decide on our discretionary highways maintenance schemes.

The Board considered the list of proposed schemes for 2017/18 as detailed in the agenda pack.

The Chairman drew attention to page 33 onwards, detailing statistics about the community area, noting the 14 schemes for 2017/18.

He noted that the Board was able to make suggestions of other schemes to be included, however he cautioned that if they added new schemes then one already proposed would be removed.

He urged any parish council to raise any particular stretches of roads in their area, needing work, with the local member.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Area Board noted the list of Highways schemes for 2017/18.

Final report on 2016/17.

The Chairman gave a final report on 2016/17. There had not been a new meeting of the CATG since the last Area Board, but there had been some developments on some schemes.

The Vice Chairman of Laverstock & Ford Parish Council gave the following update relating to Speeding on The Portway, Old Sarum:

At the last Area Board meeting a CATG recommendation for a speed review for The Portway at Old Sarum was not supported and the issue was sent back to the CATG. The aim of the speed review was fundamental to gaining evidence with a view to moving the 40mph terminal sign to allow traffic sufficient time to reduce speed before entering the semi-urban area at the east end of Old Sarum. 

Following the Area Board meeting, the views of residents immediately affected by this decision were sort by the Parish Council. As a result, both residents and Parish Council agreed the following:

·         Despite moving the 40/60mph sign still being the preferred option (which would necessitate conducting the speed review), all agreed not to waste further time (and indeed effort) pursuing this option in view of the Area Board’s previous decision.

·        The Council agreed therefore, that to overcome the impasse and get some action, to support the alternative option of requesting the Highways Engineer to design a traffic calming scheme which Wiltshire Councillors believe will reduce the problem of speeding.

·         It was also agreed that the £1,000 committed by the Council, at the Sep 2016 CATG, to the process of moving the sign could be reassigned to a traffic calming scheme.

·         The Council however wishes it to be recorded that:

ü  It still believed a speed review on The Portway was justified as there was no evidence of any previous review being carried out on this road.

ü  it supported the alternative option of a traffic calming scheme as it considered some action to resolve the significant underlying problem of speeding at the east end of the Portway was essential.

Councillor Ian McLennan added that the issue was deferred last time, when he had asked for independent highways advice. Now that had been received, he recommended that the Board allocated £1,500 from the CATG budget in addition to £1,000 from the parish council towards this scheme.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Area Board allocated £1,500 from the CATG budget for 2016/17, to be added to the parish council contribution of £1,000, for the Portway Scheme.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Ara Board confirmed the allocation of the remaining CATG budget for 2016/17 of £5,700 to the traffic calming scheme in Ford.

The Board will consider the following funding requests as detailed in the attached reports:

a)    Health & Wellbeing

b)    Community Youth Grants

Officer: Tom Bray, Community Engagement Manager

The Board considered 3 Health & Wellbeing funding bids and 2 Community Youth Grants for 2016/17.

Health & Wellbeing Funding

Age UK Wiltshire – Sue Wight explained that the project aim was to create opportunities for older people to associate with young people, while exploring and extending practical, social and digital skills, sometimes referred to as gateway services. This was a project run in conjunction with the Area Board.

Tom had met with the Head teacher at Trafalgar School, to talk about intergeneration work. Age UK had then been contacted to take care of the safeguarding issues for the older people involved, and the school for the young.

Question:

Was this a pilot scheme? Answer: Yes, the aim was to run it for a term from the school to gain knowledge before we could commit to a year or two long project. Tom hoped that it could then be used as a tool kit for other projects. The initial project would be focusing largely on Downton, as it would mean we would not need to bus in the people to be involved. The Head teacher was keen, and we had all of the ingredients here to make this successful. There were also Wiltshire online volunteers in the area.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Area Board awarded £1,955 to the Intergeneration project with Age Uk.

Dancing for Wellbeing CIC

Cllr McLennan declared a personal interest as the applicant was his daughter. He did not take part in the discussion or vote on the motion.

No one was in attendance to speak on the application, the Board recommended that the application be deferred until someone could attend a future meeting to support the application and answer any questions.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Area Board deferred the application from the Dancing for Wellbeing CIC until a future meeting.

Hazel Hill Trust

No one was in attendance to speak on the application.

Cllr Devine noted that he was disappointed that the applicant had not been in touch with him or the parish council to discuss the proposals. He felt that what they were proposing could be done with the reserves held by the applicant. This was also the third time the applicant had approached the Board for funding. He moved the motion of refusal. This was not seconded.

The Chairman then proposed deferral until the applicant could attend a future meeting to support the application and answer any questions.

Decision

The Southern Wiltshire Area Board deferred the application from the Hazel Hill Trust until a future meeting.

Community Youth Grants

No one was in attendance from Winterslow Scout Group, so the Board recommended that the application be deferred to a future meeting.

Decision

The application from Winterslow Scout Group for Youth funding was deferred.

Landford Badminton

A taster session was held which welcomed 22 participants. The club had formed a committee, and had affiliated themselves with badminton England. The Club was still looking for a level 2 coach to help. The trial day would  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The Chairman noted that this was the last meeting before the Unitary elections in May. He gave thanks to the Members, to Tracy Carter the Associate Director for the Board and Lisa Moore, for their continued support over the last four years.

Cllr Johnson would not be standing for re-election, the Chairman thanked him for his guidance and help over the last 8 years and wished him a happy retirement.

The Chairman then thanked Tom Bray, Community Area Manager, who had done a brilliant job for the Board.

The Chairman thanked all for coming and closed the meeting.