Agenda and minutes

The Chairman, Councillor Malcolm Hewson, welcomed everyone to the meeting and introduced the councillors and officers present.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor John Brady, Cabinet member for Finance, Performance and Risk.

There were no declarations of interest.

Decision

      i.        The minutes of the Bradford on Avon Area Board meeting held on Wednesday 21 September 2011 were agreed a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

    ii.        The minutes of the Community Area Transport Group meeting held on Friday 7 October 2011, and the associated recommendations, were approved and signed by the Chairman.

The Chairman made the following announcements:

      i.        Jonah Wright Trust – an appeal for funding was made for Jonah Wright, who is a quadriplegic. Jonah was raising money to purchase a new ramp and set of boccia balls so that he could work towards representing Great Britain in the 2016 Paralympics. Further information could be obtained by emailing trevor.wright442@btinternet.com, or on the Facebook page ‘Jonah Wright (Team Wright)’.

    ii.        CATG priorities 2011/12 – priorities for funding in 2011/12 from the budget of £13,625 were confirmed as:

a.    Wingfield – footways at Magdalen Lane, Phase 2 - £11,500

b.    Westwood – on carriageway footway and protection bollard – £2,500.

   iii.        Olympic Torch Relay – it was noted that the Olympic Torch would be passing through Bradford on Avon on 22 May 2012, and it was hoped that as many local residents, groups and schools as possible would participate in local events. A toolkit was available from Wiltshire Council for anyone requiring information on how to set-up community events in celebration of the Olympics or the Diamond Jubilee.

   iv.        Historic Core Zone – governance arrangements are being put in place and will be agreed by Bradford on Avon Town Council.

5. 11 to 19 Strategy – a short summary of the outcome of the consultation was circulated and Sharon Davies for Children and Families, provided an overview of 7 main priorities, these being employment and training; educational attainment; housing; transport for young people; involving young people; volunteering; and improving integrated youth services.

6. Household Survey – Wiltshire Council and its partners are carrying out this survey in order to understand the needs and priorities of local people. The survey was available in hard copy at the meeting, or online at www.wiltshire.gov.uk/whatmatterstoyou . Topics covered in the survey include what it’s like to live in the area; spending priorities; community safety issues; and the natural environment

  vii.        Updates from Partners – written reports from Wiltshire Police, Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service and NHS Wiltshire were received and noted. Further updates were made as follows:

Wiltshire Police - Inspector Dave Cullop encouraged people to complete the household survey, which for the first time included sections on key partners such as the Police, Fire & Rescue and NHS. Inspector Cullop also outlined the ongoing efforts to achieve required savings of 20% within the police budget; much of which was front-loaded savings.

It was noted that crime figures for criminal damage and theft in the community area had risen over the past 12 months, and Inspector Cullop reported that his officers were currently looking into this as the exact reasons were unknown. It was suspected, however, that the rise in such crimes could potentially be linked to the new developments and growing population in Bradford on Avon town centre.

Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service – Mike Franklin presented the statistics in his report and highlighted that Bradford on Avon was one of the safest places in the county in respect of fires, with four incidents in the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

The Area Board considered one application for youth funding from the allocated youth budget of £4,707 for 2011/12.

The application was from Holt Youth Club, and the sum of £2,267 was requested for running costs in 2012/13. A presentation was made by the young people of Holt Youth Club, outlining their proposal, and the Chairman of the youth club, Alan Fox, also spoke in support of the application.

It was proposed that the balance of the youth budget be distributed through a Participatory Budgeting process culminating in an event in March 2012 at which projects would be presented as part of a competitive funding allocation process.

Decision

      i.        The Area Board awarded the sum of £2,267 to Holt Youth Club for running costs in 2012/13.

    ii.        The Area Board agreed that the balance of funding from the 2011/12 youth budget of £2,440 would be allocated through a Participatory Budgeting event in March 2012, and invited the Integrated Youth Service to help co-ordinate this.

Helen Lines and Jo Ecclestone from the Wiltshire Good Neighbour Scheme gave a presentation on this new service, which was being funded in targeted communities by Wiltshire Council, and was being delivered by Community First in partnership with Age UK Wiltshire.

The service had been set-up to respond to a recognised need that many people living in rural communities were unable to connect with the key services that helped to maintain well-being and support quality of life and to help overcome feelings of isolation.

A series of 23 locally based Good Neighbour Coordinators visited clients in their own homes and were able to talk through any issues or concerns that the clients had.

Jo Ecclestone, the Good Neighbour Coordinator for Atworth, Shaw, Whitley,Holt and Broughton Gifford, outlined her role and explained how she was able to assist people in need from within the community. Jo had dealt with 50 clients and made 70 referrals to service providers in her area. A second Good Neighbour Coordinator was currently being recruited to cover the Winsley, Limpley Stoke and Wingfield area.

Further information could be obtained from Jo on 07541 353430, or gncarea01@communityfirst.org.uk, or by calling the Good Neighbours team on 01380 732828.

Updates were received as follows:

Lorry Watch Bradford on Avon

A report on the Bradford on Avon Lorry Watch Scheme from Thomas Hutchinson, Senior Trading Standards Officer, was received and noted. The coordinator of the Lorry Watch Scheme was applauded for having achieved in excess of 40 volunteers to assist with observations.

Since the Scheme had been in place a total of 283 reports had been received, and Wiltshire Council would be following up every report with a letter, warning or even prosecution where possible.

Of the 283 reports that had been made, approximately 20% of these were foreign-registered vehicles and Trading Standards were currently investigating the most appropriate way of dealing with these reports, although powers are very limited in dealing with non-EU vehicles and drivers.

Although the process of counting the vehicles was considered a ‘waste of time’ by one Holt Parish Councillor, it was agreed by others that this action would provide much needed evidence to be able to take matters forward through the legal system.

Some concern was raised that the outcomes of the Lorry Watch Scheme could potentially have an adverse affect on the Staverton Bridge, which was also a very old and single-track bridge, and it was asked that this matter be considered.

The Chairman requested that appropriate officers from Highways be invited to the next meeting of the Area Board in order to address the issues of concern.

Action: Wiltshire Council Highways Officers to be invited to the January meeting of the Area Board.

HGV monitoring 

An update report concerning Bath and North East Somerset Council’s proposal to investigate an experimental weight  restriction on Cleveland Bridge in Bath was distributed at the meeting.

Wiltshire Council was concerned as to the legality of placing such a restriction on a National Primary Route. However, attempts by both Wiltshire Council and Dr Andrew Murrison MP to obtain information from Bath and North East Somerset Council on this matter had been refused on the basis that it was legally privileged.

It was noted that Dr Murrison intended to take this matter further, potentially by referring the matter to the Information Commissioner, and the Chairman agreed to also support this action by doing likewise.

Action: The Chairman of the Area Board to write a letter to the Information Commissioner on behalf of the Area Board, to dispute Bath and North East Somerset Council’s refusal to release the required information.

The Area Board was asked to consider and endorse the submission of a joint bid between Bath & North East Somerset Council and Wiltshire Council to Communities and Local Government for funding to support a pilot Neighbourhood Planning project for Limpley Stoke and Freshford.

The Chairman thanked Limpley Stoke for its ‘pioneering’ work ahead of the launch of the Localism Act and suggested that other parishes would be watching the process with interest.   

Decision

The Area Board strongly endorsed the joint bid for funding to support a pilot Neighbourhood Planning project for Limpley Stoke and Freshford, and requested that the Area Board be kept informed of progress.

The Area Board considered two applications to the Community Area Grant Scheme, as follows:

      i.        West Wiltshire Young Musicians Project

The sum of £995 was requested for re-designing the website.

Decision

The Area Board awarded the sum of £995 to the West Wiltshire Young Musicians Project.

Reason: the application met the Community Area Grant Criteria 2011/12 and demonstrated a link to the Bradford on Avon Community Plan.

    ii.        Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon

The sum of £1,000 was requested for a walking, cycling and bus map of Bradford on Avon.

Decision

The Area Board awarded the sum of £1,000 to Climate Friendly Bradford on Avon.

Reason: the application met the Community Area Grant Criteria 2011/12 and demonstrated a link to the Bradford on Avon Community Plan.

   iii.        Community Area Grant Budget 2011/12

The Area Board considered options for the allocation of the balance of the Community Area Grant budget for 2011/12 which stood at in excess of £40,000 and would be lost if not spent before 31 March 2012.

Decision

The Area Board agreed that the balance of Community Area Grant funding for 2011/12 should be used as follows:

a.    The sum of £25,000 to be transferred to the Community Area Transport Group budget for small-scale local highways improvements, with a presentation to be made at the January Area Board.

b.    The remainder to be reserved for Community Area Grant applications.

The Chairman announced that Community Area Grant applications were still welcomed in the normal way, and it was agreed that applications relating to the Olympics and Diamond Jubilee would be considered alongside Community Area Grant applications following the normal process.

Future meeting dates of the Area Board were advised as follows:

·         Wednesday 11 January 2012 – St Margaret’s Hall, Bradford on Avon.

·         Wednesday 14 March 2012 – St Laurence School, Bradford on Avon.

The Chairman thanked everyone for their attendance and closed the meeting.