Agenda and minutes

Agenda and minutes

Venue: Trinity Methodist Church, Harborough Road, Oadby, Leicester, LE2 4LA

Contact: Veronika Quintyne - Email: veronika.quintyne@oadby-wigston.gov.uk 

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

Minutes:

No apologies were received.

2.

Local Policing Issues

Minutes:

There was no police representative at the meeting.

3.

Minutes of the Previous Meeting held on 28 February 2018 pdf icon PDF 87 KB

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting were passed as a true record.

3a

Matters Arising pdf icon PDF 40 KB

Minutes:

No issues were raised from the matters arising sheet attached at point 2a.

4.

Terms of Reference for the Residents' Forums

Minutes:

A hard copy of the Residents’ Forums Terms of Reference was circulated for information at this meeting. The Chair confirmed, suggestions for amendment, received by residents were incorporated into the final drafted document. The document was endorsed by the Council.

5.

Oadby Library Service

Minutes:

The Assistant Director from the County Council provided a verbal presentation relating to the change in library service for Oadby Library and responded to residents’ questions.

 

The Assistant Director noted the £13 million of savings the County Council is required to make by 2020 which was the catalyst behind the proposed self- service model with limited staffing for libraries and changes to museums. The County Council Cabinet has endorsed the forthcoming changes:

 

·      Residents were given the opportunity to ask questions.

·      Oadby library will continue to be funded by the County Council.

·      Work has begun to put a system in place to allow residents` access the library.

·      A card with a pin number will allow self-serve access.

·      The Library will not be accessible twenty-four hours a day.

·      Likely opening Library times will be from 8am till early evening.  Opening times have not yet been set.

·      The Library will be closed one day a week. It will not be staffed on that day.

·      Syston Library was used as the model for the proposed library changes.

·      CCTV monitoring will be introduced as well as a phone service. This will allow people to report any issues and promote safety and wellbeing. The CCTV will monitor the public space in the library. The exception to this will be staff workspace. Two Security Officers will monitor the CCTVs. If any Library User, using an unstaffed Library, has an illness and knows they might experience a health issue, it is up to them to know how this should be managed. First Aid trained, Library staff, on duty, would be expected to call Emergency Services as required.

·      Groups will still be able to book the Library space for meetings. Library staff will handle bookings.

·      Residents will go through an induction process on how to access the library and on how to take out and return books.

·      An activated voice recording will play to advertise the Library is closing. If the Library shuts down with anyone left inside, an alarm will be activated and a Security Officer will return to let them out.

·      Library usage patterns will be monitored.

·      Library staffing times will be displayed and advertised.

·      On the question raised as to how Oadby & Wigston Council`s Customer Service will be accessed, the Assistant Director stated this would be worked out with the Council and County Council. The Assistant Director made a distinction between County Council and Borough Council decision-making and added, technically there was nothing at this time to say how Customer Service will operate.

·      Concern was expressed by residents as to how local people will be able to access Customer Services. It was emphasised that getting to Bell Street from Oadby was difficult.

·      The Chair confirmed that the Borough Council was working out how residents would obtain access to Customer Services outside of Library hours.

·      The Assistant Director noted that the Library would be closed for the next two weeks to have adaptations to the Library`s access, egress and lending services completed.

·      Concern was expressed that  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

6.

The Oadby Old Swimming Pool Site (Briefing Update)

Minutes:

A hard copy of the briefing update concerning this site was circulated for information to residents at the meeting.

7.

Oadby Traders' Update

Minutes:

No representative of Oadby Traders was present at this meeting to provide an update.

 

8.

Pride of the Borough

Minutes:

The PoTB (Pride of the Borough) representative, Simon Lucas provided the following update.

 

·      East Midlands in Bloom takes place on Wednesday 11th July 2018.The Borough has won the Golden Award for the past seven years

·      A request was made to the County Councillors in acknowledging cuts to services   on the maintenance of highways and verges, to consider returning services to in-house control. This it was said was happening in other districts.

·      Pride of the Borough was asking for improvement in the cutting of verges and green space to improve the look of the Borough.

·      The PoTB membership card is £5. Proceeds from purchasing the card supports projects, purchase of equipment, provides discounts on good s and services by local businesses. A thousand people now own a card.

·      A plea was made by the PoTB representative for people not to drop litter. This would help to create a gold standard town.

9.

Chair's Updates

Minutes:

A hard copy of the Update, inclusive of the current budget was circulated at the meeting.

 

All the updates were either approved or in the process of completion via Council Finance.

10.

Items Raised by Residents

Minutes:

Oadby Stakeholders & Oadby Remembers 1914-1918 Project.

 

Oadby Stakeholders and Oadby Remembers applied for £397.36p to create an art installation.

 

A hard copy of a slide presentation and photographs were circulated at the meeting. The art installation will consist of decorated soldier cut-outs, similar to the famous 50 produced by Coalville Town. The cut-outs will represent the scale of the sacrifice made by soldiers from Oadby who perished in World War One.

 

The cut-outs will be decorated and displayed across the Town. They will then be brought together for Remembrance Sunday 2018. The community and some schools are involved in this project.

 

It was suggested the cut-outs be placed in buildings, such as local shops. It was suggested the art installation include Commonwealth boards, which reflect the nature of change in the Town’s community over the past 100 years.

 

Eighty-one biographies will be displayed in St Peter’s Church, Oadby and 81 cut-outs decorated by members of the community.

 

One resident proposed the project. Thirty residents voted in its favour. There were no votes against the project.

 

Request for a Grit Bin for the Blackthorn Manor Estate

 

£500 was requested for the purchase and installation of a Grit Bin in line with County Council criteria. The Grit Bin service will cover Whitebeam Road and the roads connecting to it. This Includes: Dogwood court, Hawthorn Grove, Eglantine Close, Wych Elm Road and Holly Court.

 

The County Council will be required to sanction the installation of the Grit Bin. The bin must meet all aspects of the County Council’s criteria for placement on the Highway.. A site visit will be required to be made by the County Council to confirm whether the suggested site for placing the grit bin is ok. The County Council tops up Grit Bins annually.

 

The residents supported an in principle decision for funding the grit bin.

On a show of hands 27 people voted in favour of the proposal.

 

Action:

 

It was agreed that a funding proposal for the Grit Bin will be presented at the next resident’s forum meeting.

 

Proposal to Build 300 Homes in Oadby

 

This was raised as an issue of concern by some residents who felt they had not been adequately consulted. The land for building was identified as owned by the Co-op. Two residents wished to know what consultation the Council had carried out with Oadby residents in the area.

 

It was noted that the proposal would have gone through proper planning processes. It had been placed on the Council’s website and residents contacted. The resident asking the question stated she worked long hours and was not in the habit of accessing the Council’s website.

 

Action:

 

It was agreed to have an update provided on the proposal to build 300 homes in Oadby on the next Residents Forum agenda for discussion.

 

Churchill Close and County Council Proposal to Insert Double Yellow Lines

 

A resident raised the point that people were parking on an area outside his home where a sign stated it was  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.

11.

Suggestions for Future Agenda Items

Minutes:

·           Planning and the proposal to build 300 new homes in Oadby.

·           Churchill Close and placement of double yellow lines.

·           Library car park

·           Wheelie Bins and recycling.

12.

Date of the Next Meeting

Minutes:

Wednesday 5 September 2018 at the Barnabas Centre, Hamble Road, Oadby at 6.30 pm.

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