To note the written updates and receive any verbal updates from the following:
i. Local Traffic and Highways Working Group – no report
ii. Rural Buffer Zone/Neighbourhood Planning Task Group
iii. Cricklade Shadow Community Operations Board
iv. Wootton Bassett Shadow Community Operations Board.
Minutes:
Updates were received as follows:
i. Local Traffic & Highways Working Group
There was no update from this Group as it had not held a meeting since the previous Area Board meeting. The next meeting of the Local Traffic & Highways Working Group would be held on Thursday 11 August, and all parish and town councils were invited to send a representative.
ii. Rural Buffer Zone/Neighbourhood Planning Task Group
At the previous meeting of the Area Board the decision was taken to progress the pilot Neighbourhood Planning Project in collaboration with spatial planning officers. A further report had been produced with a series of agreed actions for progressing the project; the report was distributed in the supplementary pack at the meeting.
It was proposed that a Neighbourhood Planning Forum would be established that would replace the current Rural Buffer Zone Task Group.
Representatives for the Neighbourhood Planning Forum would be invited from town and parish councils, community led planning groups; the MOD; Chambers of Commerce and the North Wilts Economic Partnership.
Once established, it was proposed that the Neighbourhood Planning Forum would meet quarterly from September 2011.
Work to be done included an Issues Paper for consideration by Community Led Planning Groups and others, vision and scoping tasks, and a facilitated workshop to develop a working proposal. The working assumption was that one Neighbourhood Plan for the community area would be developed, but that this would be flexible to meet local need.
Decision
The Area Board noted the report from Spatial Planning Officers and endorsed the agreed actions.
The Chairman asked for a show of hands from those present in support of the proposals. Of those who participated, 15 agreed with the proposals and 4 disagreed.
iii. Cricklade Shadow Community Operations Board
The report from the Cricklade Shadow Community Operations Board was contained within the supplementary pack and noted by the Area Board.
iv. Wootton Bassett Shadow Community Operations Board
Thomas Woodhouse, Chairman of the Wootton Bassett Shadow Community Operations Board, presented the report which contained the results of the recent consultation and a series of recommendations to the Area Board for the progression of the Campus project.
A petition was presented to the Area Board from residents of Wootton Bassett opposing the closure of the Lime Kiln swimming pool. The petition stated:
“We object that Wootton Bassett and the surrounding area not having its swimming pool, an invaluable asset for the community of this area. Many different clubs and groups made use of the pool. The pool was in use every day of the week by groups.
Not forgetting those who use the pool as a healthy and enjoyable form of exercise, many of whom are disabled or elderly.
The modern school curriculum requires that primary aged children receive swimming instruction; whilst the Lime Kiln is not open, this opportunity is being denied to local children. As children cannot have lessons in school nor reach other pools for lessons there is a potential risk to their future health and safety.
We, the undersigned, request that the pool in Wootton Bassett is re-opened, even only with temporary repairs by September 2011. We wish to register our protest against the possibility of a swimming pool at the Lime Kiln not re-opening or not being available until late 2012.”
The petition contained approximately 2,500 signatures from local people and school children, requesting that the pool be re-opened on a temporary basis until the new Campus was complete.
The Chairman accepted and acknowledged the petition on behalf of the Area Board, and informed the petitioner that a response would be issued in due course.
Following presentation of the report, and receipt of the petition, a series of questions and queries arose, as follows:
· The Lime Kiln Sports Centre had been adequately insured by two separate insurance policies. The Council did not intend to re-open the pool using insurance funds, as the money could only be spent once and it would not be a prudent use of public money to expend funds on a building which potentially might then be required to be demolished shortly afterwards as part of a campus proposal.
· The Chairman explained that both Shadow Boards had been briefed to (1) adopt a ‘blank sheet of paper’ approach and to be open and receptive to all expressions of interest about the campus together with suggestions as to what might be included within a campus; while also (2) recognising that there would be no blank cheque at the end of the process and that the resulting campus proposal would have to be subject to a business case.
· Grant options, such as the National Lottery, had not been explored due to the length of time involved in the application process.
· The recommendations put to the Area Board from the Shadow Community Operations Board were derived from the results of the public consultation. All work of the SCOB so far was in the public domain and available on a dedicated page of the Wiltshire Council website.
· If the continued closure of the pool resulted in any issues regarding the curriculum then Wiltshire Council would respond as appropriate to any requests for assistance from schools. The Chairman informed the meeting that all schools in the locality had direct access into the consultations being conducted by the Wootton Bassett Shadow Board either through the representative for education and youth, George Croxford, head teacher at Wootton Bassett School or via direct representation to the Chairman of the Area Board.
· There was no fixed sum set aside for the development of the campus. Instead, the approach used for capital programmes was that individual business cases would be developed for Cabinet consideration.
· It was confirmed that Wiltshire Council owned the current Wootton Bassett library building.
· No formal decisions could be made by the Area Board until the proposals from the Shadow Community Operations Board were ready for consideration. The final decision would then rest with the Cabinet.
· The Leisure Review carried out by Wiltshire Council in 2010 had indicated a strong need and desire for a Campus in the community area. Wiltshire Council responded to this and included Wootton Bassett in the pilot phase of the Campus programme due to the fire incident at Lime Kiln.
· The decision to pursue a Campus was made at the public meeting of the Area Board on Wednesday 23 March 2011 when it was decided to establish two Shadow Community Operations Boards; one for Wootton Bassett and one for Cricklade.
· A ‘frequently asked questions’ document had been produced and was available on the Wiltshire Council website.
Decision
The Area Board agreed the following recommendations from the Wootton Bassett Shadow Community Operations Board:
1. To receive and note the report from the Wootton Bassett Shadow Community Operations Board (WB SCOB).
2. To approve the Working Proposal submitted by the WB SCOB for a split site campus and to ask officers to review the size of the existing pool in relation to local needs.
3. To endorse the further steps now proposed in the work programme for the WB SCOB to enable progress towards development of a formal detailed campus proposal.
4. To approve the holding of a specially convened Area Board meeting, when appropriate, to consider detailed proposals from the WB SCOB for campus provision in the Wootton Bassett Community Area.