BURTON JOYCE PARISH COUNCIL
Community Engagement Committee
Draft Minutes of Meeting held at the Parish Office, Library Building,
Meadow Lane, Burton Joyce
On Tuesday 10th November 2015 at 7.30pm
Present: Cllrs C Blandamer, P Blandamer, Fife, Greenfield, Hazard & Johnson (Chair)
In Attendance: John Flynn, Chris Helmore, John Harrison
1. Apologies: Cllr Cluff and the Parish Clerk
2. Declaration of Interests: None received
3. Minutes of meeting held on 8th September 2015:
The minutes of the meeting held on the 8th September 2015 were approved as a true record and signed by the Chair.
4. Burton Joyce Primary School
Cllr Hazard provided a verbal update on liaison with the Primary School. It was noted that the classroom refurbishment for years 3 and 4 had been completed and the work on the year 1 classroom had now commenced. Cllr Johnson advised that the Executive Head had extended an invitation to any councillor to visit the School and see progress made. It was suggested that the Christmas concert would be a good opportunity for a visit.
5. Old School Building
It was noted that in accordance with the Parish Council’s resolution, the Parish Clerk had now written to the surveyors acting for the Trustees of the Old School Building and a response was awaited. Members discussed, in general terms, potential opportunities for short term use of the site, community involvement, consultation and communication and it was agreed that these would be addressed by a new working group. Contact information for an RCAN representative who could advise on funding and grants for community hall projects was noted.
6. First Responders
Following a presentation to full Council, It was noted that the cost of providing training and first aid equipment (including a defibrillator) was £1500. It was understood that the Village Plan committee was already co-ordinating fundraising efforts to purchase a defibrillator. Representatives of the Village Society advised that they also had funds available which may be put towards this purpose. It was agreed that the Parish Council would continue to publicise the First Responder Scheme and call for volunteers to come forward.
7. Supporting Local Communities Fund
The deadline for Supporting Local Communities grant funding was noted and it was recommended to apply to the Nottinghamshire County Council for funding towards new village signs and planters for the village centre. It was agreed to query whether grant funding could be used to remove the tree stumps in the village centre.
8. CPRE Valerie Gillespie Award
Following a brief discussion, it was agreed that there were no suitable candidates for the award this year.
9. Highways & Transport Issues
It was noted that fallen leaves had not been cleared by Gedling Borough Council and it was agreed that the Parish Clerk be asked to contact GBC to ascertain their cleaning schedule. The volume of farm traffic going through the village on the A612 was discussed and it was agreed to monitor this situation. It was agreed that Cllr Colin Blandamer would co-ordinate work to clear the overgrowth on the pavement opposite Vicarage Drive. Cllr Johnson agreed to arrange a new date for the parking survey. John Flynn advised the meeting of issues relating to inequity of train fares from Burton Joyce and a potential distortion of passenger usage data as a result of inconsistency of being able to purchase a ticket on the train. It was agreed that the Parish Clerk would be asked to write to East Midlands Trains with these queries.
10. Christmas Fair
Cllr Johnson confirmed that all arrangements were in hand. Grateful thanks were extended to John Harrison for gaining new advertisers this year. It was noted that the Parish Clerk was still chasing a response from the Co-Op with regard to their usual donation towards the Christmas lights and Christmas Fair. It was suggested that if the donation was not forthcoming this year public donations in the form of ‘bucket’ collections may have to be made on the day. It was noted that Severn Trent Water’s Estate Manager had offered the assistance of some of his staff to help erect the marquee on the Friday and the loan of a wagon to transport Santa to the Fair. It was acknowledged that the full programme was yet to be finalised and volunteers to help dismantle and clear up after the event were still required. Concerns were noted about the severe pruning of the tree in the Co-Op car park.
11. Village Society Update
Cllr Fife advised that an update on the gravel extraction plans was still awaited.
12. Community Theatre
It was noted that a sufficient number of tickets had been sold to ensure that the event to be held on the 14th November would break even. It was confirmed that the next event would be the Kimbersmen on Friday 12th February.
13. Village Litter Pick
Cllr Johnson advised that the litter pick had taken place and deemed to be successful. It was noted however, that the volume of wet, fallen leaves had made the process difficult and impacted on the result. Cllr Hazard had supported the Burton Joyce Junior School team of litter pickers and their suggestion of a ‘slicker, quicker, litter picker’ slogan was noted. It was agreed that the Parish Council should send a letter of thanks to the school children for their help.
14. Information Update
Members noted the increased volume of dog mess on and around Main Street and it was agreed that a reminder for dog owners to make sure they cleared up after their dogs would be out in the Parish magazine.
The meeting closed at 8.30pm
Date of Next Meeting: Tuesday 19th January 2016.