Agenda and minutes

The Chairman will welcome those present to the meeting.

The Chairman, Councillor Tony Jackson, welcomed those present to the meeting and invited members of the board to introduce themselves.

Councillor Tony Jackson paid tribute to former Councillor Fleur de Rhé-Philipe and welcomed Councillor Bill Parks to the Area Board.

To receive any apologies for absence.

No apologies for absence were received.

To approve and sign as a correct record the minutes of the meetings held on 4 February 2021 and 18 May 2021.

The minutes of the meetings held on 4 February 2021 and 18 May 2021 were presented for consideration and it was;

Resolved

To approve the minutes as a correct record.

Councillor Newbury abstained from both votes on the respective sets of minutes.

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

Councillor Bill Parks declared an interest in the grant application for WCR due to being a friend of WCR and would not be taking part in the vote for this application.

Councillor Pip Ridout declared an interest in the grant application for Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife Volunteers due to being the treasurer of the organisation. Councillor Ridout declared she would not be taking part in the vote for this application.

Councillor Andrew Davis declared a connection through business to WCR as well as having been a supporter and would therefore not be taking part in the vote for this application.

Councillor Christopher Newbury declared that he did not believe this was a lawful meeting, as meetings of committees of principal authorities must now be held face to face. For that reason he would not be taking part.

Councillor Newbury left the meeting at 19:07.

To receive the following announcements through the Chair:

·       Area Board Model May 2021

The chairman gave the following updates:

·       Area Board Model May 2021

Graeme Morrison outlined the new annual Area Board model of four Area Board Business meetings, with multiple Area Board engagements at other times of the year focused on specific Area Board priorities for example, Youth or Health and Wellbeing. Additionally, the announcement informed that working groups of the Area Board such as youth networks, health and wellbeing groups and community area transport groups will continue to meet and link with the Area Board.

Councillor Jackson welcomed suggestions for themes for the priority engagement meetings. Additionally, it was noted that there is going to be an informal “Meet the Area Board” meeting in Autumn as an opportunity to engage with Parish Councils.

·       Warminster Action Group

The Chairman informed that the Warminster Action Group is planning a new community initiative for children that will take place over summer with a theme of “Look for a Book in Warminster”.

·       Congratulations

The Chairman offered congratulations to the proprietor of Yarn for the Soul as they had won the award for Best Specialist Craft Shop in the South West. Additionally, congratulations were offered to Simon James, who has received an award from the Wiltshire High Sheriff for community services. Further congratulations were offered to Warminster Town Council for being awarded the Keep Britain Tidy Green Flag Award for the third consecutive year for the Lake Pleasure Grounds.

To receive updates from any of the following partners:

Ø  Wiltshire Police

Ø  Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service

Ø  CCG Covid Update

Ø  Healthwatch

Ø  Warminster and Villages Community Partnership

Ø  Town and Parish Councils Nominated Representatives

Some written updates have been received and are included in this agenda.

Updates were received from the following partners:

·       Wiltshire Police

The Area Board received a verbal update from Sergeant Kevin Harmsworth. The update covered the following issues:

·       Sergeant Harmsworth introduced Inspector Al Lumley who is a new inspector to the Warminster Area and will be attending the Area Board going forward.

·       The Police moved into their new station in April, which included a 16-seat meeting room that could be offered out for community use.

·       Recruitment has actively taken place for independent advisory groups and the equality team has reached out across social media in the hope of achieving greater diversity in panels.

·       There has been a focus on licensed premises during the Euro 2020 football tournament. There has not been major disorder, though it was noted in mid-May there was a military incident that resulted in arrests.

·       Sergeant Harmsworth stated that he is aware of local community tension regarding the potential change of licensing terms for Prestbury Sports Bar. He invited those with concerns to raise them with the Police licensing officer.

·       There have been social media posts from the Deputy Chief Constable which have noted a 16% out and about business as usual reduction during the Covid lockdown. It is now expected that this will return to normal, comparable to the same times in 2018/2019 pre-lockdown.

·       Sergeant Harmsworth drew attention to the crime maps on the Police website, these are accurate with data however work roughly a month behind.

·       In the previous month and a half, the Police have supported Community Speed Watch 10 times and there has been online training for coordinators.

·       There have been reports of E-scooters being used illegally, whenever this has been seen they have been acted upon seized and dealt with accordingly.

·       A misuse of drugs act warrant has recently been conducted in the Cotton House Gardens area of Warminster. More of these will follow when information becomes available.

·       A burglar has been arrested in Sutton Veny and an investigation is currently on-going.

·       County Lines intensification week has recently taken place with a focus on under 18s and this will be bolstered in the future in line with a national operation.

Following the verbal update there was time for the following questions and points to be raised:

·       It was questioned whether the Police are up to strength with PCSOs, to which Sergeant Harmsworth clarified that the force is up to strength bar one member and that Warminster has two PCSOs.

·       The inclusion of villages in future reports was requested.

·       The car crash on Victoria Road was queried, to which Sergeant Harmsworth clarified that an investigation is currently on-going and will form a thread for future drug disruption activity.

·       A Community Policy Group has been set up again to cover the town and surrounding villages. An inaugural meeting is set to take place in September with the Police and Parish Council representatives welcome.

·       Councillor Ridout proposed that a themed area for the Area Board could potentially be Community Safety, which would include both the Police and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

To agree the memberships and representatives for Outside Bodies and Working Groups for 2021/2022.

The following appointments to outside bodies and working groups for the forthcoming year were made:

·       Warminster & Villages Community Area Partnership – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Warminster and Westbury CCTV Committee – Councillor Andrew Davis

·       Warminster Community Task Group – Councillors Christopher Newbury and Pip Ridout

·       Warminster Community Area Transport Group (CATG) – Councillors Andrew Davis and Bill Parks

·       Warminster Local Youth Network (LYN) – Councillor Tony Jackson

·       Warminster Health and Wellbeing Board (HWB) – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Warminster Regeneration Working Group – Councillors Tony Jackson and Pip Ridout

The following appointments of Area Board Lead Councillors for the forthcoming year were made:

·       Highways and Transport, including Community Area Transport Group (CATG) – Councillors Bill Parks and Andrew Davis

·       Children and Young People, including Local Youth Network – Councillor Tony Jackson

·       Health and Wellbeing, including the Health and Wellbeing Group – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Economy and Employment – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Environment – Councillor Tony Jackson

·       Older People – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Arts, Culture and Leisure – Councillor Christopher Newbury

·       Community Safety – Councillor Pip Ridout

·       Housing and Development – Councillor Christopher Newbury

To agree and adopt the Delegated Powers to the Community Engagement Manager proposals.

Graeme Morrison, Community Engagement Manager, referred to the document attached to the agenda regarding Community Engagement Manager Delegated Decisions which included the following proposal:

In order to expedite the work of the Area Board and to deal with urgent matters that may arise between meetings, the Community Engagement Manager, following consultation with the Chairman (or in their absence, the Vice-Chairman) of the Area Board, may authorise expenditure to support community projects (including youth, health and wellbeing and community area transport) from the delegated budget of up to £5,000 per application between meetings of the Area Board. The Community Engagement Manager should seek the views of all Area Board members to obtain a majority in support, prior to the expenditure being agreed.

Decisions taken between meetings will be reported in the funding report to the next meeting of the Area Board explaining why the matter was considered urgent or necessary to expedite the work of the Board. Where a significant number of urgent matters arise between meetings, a special meeting may be called, following consultation with the Chairman to determine such matters.

The importance of consulting urgent matters with all Area Board members before reaching a decision was stressed.

Resolved

The Area Board agreed to move and voted to accept the proposal.

To discuss the findings, recommendations and next steps. The report sets out the full set of actions the board can agree up to five as priorities for Warminster.

Graeme Morrison, Community Engagement Manager, provided an overview of the Community Area Status Report to the Area Board. It was referenced that the Local Area Status Report was presented to the Area Board at the previous meeting and a copy had been attached to the agenda. Warminster Area Board are set to hold a separate meeting outside of the formal Area Board meeting in order to discuss which four themes should be chosen from the Local Area Status Report to form community priorities. It was hoped that in the future organisations and individuals will take responsibility for the achieving the chosen priorities.

Following the outlined plan for priority setting, the following points were raised:

·       It was noted that there was a correction to be made regarding the list of villages within the Local Area Status Report.

·       The importance of engaging with and involving Parish Councils was stressed.

To consider the notes and actions log of the previous meeting of the Community Area Transport Group held on 24 February 2021.

Councillor Tony Jackson introduced the minutes and recommendations from the CATG meeting held on 24 February 2021. It was also noted that the next meeting was proposed to take place 21 July 2021.

Resolved:

To note the minutes from the CATG meeting which took place 24 February 2021.

To consider applications for funding for Community Area Grants.

·       Codford Village Hall - £795 towards Codford Village Hall Playing Field Safety Fencing.

·       Bishopstrow and Boreham Parochial Chuch Council - £3,866 towards St Johns Hall Refurbishment.

·       Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife Volunteers - £2,000 towards Upgrading of informal footpaths on Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife site.

To consider applications for funding for Area Board Initiatives.

·       Friends of WCR – £4,250 towards Computers network update and replacement.

To consider applications for funding for Health and Wellbeing Grants.

·       Crockerton Village Committee - £1,364 towards Crockerton Village Committee Defibriliators.

The Area Board considered the following as detailed in the reports attached to the agenda.

a)    Community Area Grants

1)    Codford Village Hall - £795 towards Codford Village Hall Playing Field Safety Fencing.

Decision

Codford Village Hall was awarded £795 towards Codford Village Hall Playing Field Safety Fencing.

2)    Bishopstrow and Boreham Parochial Chuch Council - £3,866 towards St Johns Hall Refurbishment.

Decision

Bishopstrow and Boreham Parochial Church Council was awarded £3,886 towards St Johns Hall Refurbishment.

3)    Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife Volunteers - £2,000 towards Upgrading of informal footpaths on Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife site.

Decision

Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife Volunteers was awarded £2,000 towards Upgrading of informal footpaths on Grovelands Countryside and Wildlife site.

4)    Crockerton Village Committee - £1,364 towards Crockerton Village Committee Defibrillators.

Decision

Crockerton Village Committee was awarded £1,364 towards Crockerton Village Committee Defibrillators.

b)  Area Board Initiatives

1)    Friends of WCR – £4,250 towards Computers network update and replacement.

Decision

Friends of WCR was awarded £4,250 towards Computers network update and replacement.

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

There were no urgent items.

The next meetings of the Warminster Area Board will be held on Thursday 16 September 2021, 7:00pm.

The date of the next meeting is Thursday 16 September at 7.00pm.