Agenda and draft minutes

·       Cllr. L Darr

·       Cllr. S Z Haq

·       Cllr. I K Ridley

A resident noted that only 2 councillors were present at the previous meeting. This was raised at the Lib Dems Group Meeting.

A request was made for updates on the letting of Allotments, and the Council’s mowing schedule. This will be made available for the next meeting. For the allotments the Chair has asked for an update to be made available to the residents within 7 days.

·       The following updates were provided after the meeting and are included in the Minutes as agreed;

o   Allotments

We have four allotment sites across the Borough currently containing 355 plots of various sizes.   

§  Aylestone Lane, Wigston

§  Manchester Gardens

§  Wigston Road, Oadby

§  Brabazon Road, Oadby

We operate a waiting list for all sites and are currently taking applications for Aylestone Lane and Wigston Road.

There are two ways to apply for an allotment plot:

§  Calling Customer Services on 0116 288 8961

§  Email allotments@oadby-wigston.gov.uk

Please visit our web page for more information https://www.oadby-wigston.gov.uk/pages/allotments  

o   Parks and Open Space Mowing

We cut 10 times a year between the months of March and November which is weather dependent during these months.   We are currently on cut 9 across the borough.  Booked sports pitches have extra cuts depending on bookings.

An update was also requested on the banking hub. It was noted that this would not be led on by OWBC but the Council is happy to support any group that is looking to establish one.

Parking – Police email address to be shared.

·       This was looked into after the meeting and it was noted that parking issues can be reported to the Police via their online form - https://www.leics.police.uk/contact/af/contact-us-beta/contact-us/driving-vehicles-traffic/report-illegal-parking/. M Smith will raise with local NPA Officers the possibility of Beat Team email addresses being provided to residents for reporting purposes.

Former Oadby Pool Site – Planning application has been submitted. No update available. Residents have asked what the timescale is likely to be as long as badgers remain on site. Residents note that Churchill Living has bought the site pending planning permission. Cllr. Kaufman notes that the planning application made incorporates plans to not develop the area where the badgers are residing – this would be under Churchill Living.

A resident also noted that he has raised concerns with parking at Ellis Park, and has been in contact with the planning officer regarding this. The resident believes that the new application is to go before the Planning Development Committee (PDC) but Members do not believe the application has yet been verified. Once the application has been verified the Member for the Ward, Cllr. Ridley, will ask for the application to go to PDC.

Cllr. Kaufman also noted that Bushloe House has been sold and that planning permission has been granted for the development of the site. The Council has also received the funds for this sale.

There was no Police representative present at this meeting.

B Wilson gave a presentation on the Implementation of Food Waste Collections in the Borough. Residents asked a number of questions following the presentation detailed below;

What if people put raw food straight into the bins, without bags which come at a cost? No issue with this but bags are recommended from a sanitary perspective.

When the first bags are finished, where will additional rolls be made available from? Any bag in effect can be used, as plastic is removed as part of the processing of the food waste, but recyclable bags are preferred. These are available at supermarkets etc. The Council will not provide any additional bags.

A “dos and don’ts” and ‘yes please, no thanks’ leaflet will go out with the bins to explain what type of food waste can be included.

From a cost perspective the Council is just a collection / carrier agency, not the disposal agency which is Leicestershire County Council. A query around costs was raised but it was noted that as this comes as a directive from central government the costs can’t accurately be disclosed. Residents queried the point in the service but this is something that central government is making a statutory duty. A query was also raised about how the scheme may affect Council Tax after the first year – it was confirmed that this scheme is paid for through a national budget, and not collected through local Council Tax payments. The costs will be absorbed by OWBC but any Council Tax increases will not be made to reflect this.

Residents raised concerns about where their bins are being left after collection, and that the small bins may end up in the road. The crews will be advised to return the bins to the correct location.

Concerns were raised about the size of the bins and how easily they could possibly be blown away. The bins were not chosen by OWBC, but were selected as part of the national process. Bins being returned to their collection points should mitigate this.

Demolition of existing single storey Mosque building and construction of a new purpose built Mosque: The Planning Application was validated by the Council on the 2nd September 2025. It is currently in the process of being determined and as part of the process, the Council as the local planning is carrying out a statutory public consultation. Residents are able to submit any comments they wish to make on the proposed development and these should be submitted via email to planning@oadby-wigston.gov.uk or post to Planning Department, Oadby and Wigston Borough Council, Brocks Hill Council Offices, Washbrook Lane, Oadby, LE2 5JJ. It is likely that the application will be reported to the Council’s Development Control Committee for a decision to be make. Meeting, dates, Agenda, and papers for these meetings can be found on the Council’s website.

A resident noted that a vast number of supporting comments for the application are from individuals living outside of the Borough. Residents noted that they feel the statutory notifications placed on lampposts around the immediate area are not sufficient, and that door to door notifications should have taken place.

The Chair noted that further discussions regarding this item will not be taking place at this Forum.

Unitary Authority: The North, South, City plan has been submitted to Central Government by the Districts and Boroughs. County and City are both going down different routes and have submitted their own plans to Central Government. County Council has now indicated that it would not support the expansion of the City boundary – this was carried by one vote. The full plans from the County Council are not yet available as they are continuing with public consultation via their website. The final decision on which plan progresses will be made by Central Government, likely in early next year. Local consultation shows that the vast majority of residents are against an expanded City border, and are in favour of more equal local government funding. A query was asked who would lead the new unitary authorities – there would be elections in 2 years’ time to elect new Members to a Council that would shadow the existing Council for a year before taking over. The Chair has asked for Comms to share the County Council consultation via our own channels. In addition to completing consultations residents can also email their County Councillors and MP to share their views.

Greening of Urban Areas: Tom Lester spoke about an opportunity to green urban areas along the Parade, which would restore pride in the area, reduce nuisance and anti-social parking. The first suggestion is to install rain gardens in this location. The UK suffered 4 heatwaves over the summer of 2025, and our weather is shifting to extremes. Our infrastructure is not built to mitigate against these, with seating areas exposed to the elements. This is also seen as a first step to reclaiming areas for pedestrians from those that would misuse them, such as problem parking. Rain and biodiversity gardens would prevent this, and work in tandem with any enforcement planned. Blurring the line between where cars can drive and pedestrians walk are likely to result in more accidents. Businesses along the Parade are closing down, including a butchers which has been a fixture for many decades. Tom has explored tentatively with an urban designer who has undertaken similar work in London; they are positive about this approach and are willing to explore funding. Severn Trent water may have community funding that could start to support this project. Specifically the ask is that the Council endorses the principle of this work, nominate a Council  Member or Officer to engage with Tom on the scheme, and support the seeking of funding for the works.

Residents supported these proposals being discussed at Full Council and then an update provided to the Forum after this has taken place.

The Chair has proposed that Tom is put in contact with the Council’s Environment Officers, Town Centre Manager, and the Environmental Committee. The County Council should also be included as the Highways Authority.

Residents suggested Section 106 monies may be able to support this approach.

Residents asked if the scheme were to go ahead, who would be responsible for maintaining it? This would need to be discussed as part of exploring the workstream.

Residents’ only parking was proposed again but it was noted that all residents would need to agree to this for the permit scheme to progress. The County Council was invited to attend this meeting to discuss parking issues again but there was no response.

Funding Request for the Oadby 50 Plus Group: Tracey Weskamp attended on behalf of the Oadby 50 Plus Group. Over 100 people are on the books of the group with an average of 53 attendees per week. The group has not received any funding for some time and funding applications have not born fruit. Previously the group has had funding from the Oadby Village Hall fund. The funding is being requested to support a Christmas party for vulnerable members of the group who feel isolated. The group meets at Oadby Youth Club every Wednesday, 11am – 1pm. Residents noted that there is a Senior Citizen’s Forum that runs in the Borough who also have a Christmas party. It was proposed that £500 be made available to the Oadby 50 Plus Group – Residents voted on this and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 65.

None raised.

None raised.

Thursday, 12 February 2026 – 6:30pm – Brocks Hill Council Offices

Thursday, 12 February 2026 – 6:30pm – Brocks Hill Council Offices

1.     Update to be provided in the Minutes of this meeting regarding the letting of Allotments, and the Council’s schedule of mowing by M Smith.

2.     Contact details to be provided in the Minutes of this meeting for residents to report problem parking to local Police by M Smith.

3.     Cllr Ridley to ask for the planning application for Ellis Park to be brought to the Council’s Planning Development Committee once verified.

4.     Chair to ask the Council’s Comms Team to publicise the County Council’s Devolution Consultation via our own social media channels.

5.     M Smith to provide T Lester’s contact information, and an overview of the Rain Garden Proposal, to relevant officers within the Council, and LCC Highways, to progress.

6.     M Smith to submit the Funding Request for the Oadby 50 Plus Group to the Council’s PFD Committee meeting in December for consideration.

7.     M Smith to put T Weskamp in contact with the relevant Council officer to support advertising of the Oadby 50 Plus Group.

8.     M Smith to share concerns regarding speeding vehicles on the Oadby Industrial Estate with local Police.

9.     M Smith to invite the Lead Member for LCC Highways to the next meeting, alongside one of the local Police Sergeants, to discuss anti-social parking in the Borough.

10.M Smith to request an update on the replacement of play apparatus at Iliffe Park for the next meeting of this Forum.