Agenda item

    Report by Executive Director Alistair Cunningham OBE.

Cllr Philip Whitehead, Leader of the Council presented a report to support community areas that had not benefitted from capital investment through the community campus and hub programme. The report recommended capital funding be set aside to support the develop of appropriate facility projects identified by these community areas.

The Leader invited Scrutiny to monitor the process undertaken and identify if social benefits were supported and whether the scheme delivered good value in this respect. An example of work already undertaken in Westbury was provided.

Cllr Wright, Chairman of the Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee, welcomed the suggestion of Scrutiny input and indicated this would be supported in the most appropriate way.

Cllr Ian Thorn welcomed the community funding, although noted that expectations could be raised by this report and should be managed. In response to which it was confirmed that £500,000 was available and so would support small projects only.

The Leader invited all Wiltshire councillors to speak, during the discussion it was acknowledged that larger organisations were best placed to take on management of a building, since this could be an underestimated responsibility for small community organisations which would need support. It was highlighted that the Trowbridge Wellbeing Centre remained outstanding, and that Warminster should be added to the list of areas eligible for community funding.

Resolved:

To

a) Confirm that option three is the preferred option and should be pursued by officers as a means of developing new facility development in the seven identified community areas;

b) Confirm the seven community areas where capital investment should be allocated as Amesbury, Bradford on Avon, Chippenham, Marlborough, Southern Wiltshire, Tidworth, Warminster and Trowbridge.

c) Confirm engagement should take place with the seven identified community areas to identify local opportunities suitable for facility development and to better understand local priorities.

d) Recommend a sum of money available for investment to develop community facilities in the seven community areas.

e) Recommend the CLFF model identified in this report be developed as a model to develop community facilities in the seven identified community areas.

f) Approve a mechanism be developed to engage with the seven community areas similar to that suggested in this report.

g) To prioritise projects which align to the principles of Wiltshire Council’s Service Devolution and Asset Transfer policy and which are underpinned by a collaborative approach ensuring multiple community organisations benefits from investment.

h) Delegate authority to the Director of Communities and Neighbourhood Services in consultation with the Director of Finance and Procurement to oversee and implement an engagement mechanism and to allocate funding to any appropriate facility projects identified by community areas as part of this process.

9) Invite Overview and Scrutiny to assist in assessing whether the community funding process is effective in delivering social benefits.

Reasons for decision:

To ensure that community areas that have not benefited from community facility investment have the opportunity to identify potentially develop facility projects, which could improve local provision and support local priorities.

To ensure any future provision within the proposed community areas explores the potential to deliver new community facilities, aligned to the principles of the Service Devolution and Asset Transfer policy passed by Cabinet in November 2017.

To ensure that additional investment within the proposed community areas compliments future priorities identified through the respective leisure facilities and libraries reviews.