Agenda and draft minutes

A correction to the Minutes of the Previous Meeting was proposed by a Resident in respect of Windlass Drive. This has been attached to the Minutes of this meeting as an Appendix for clarity for residents.

The Police Officers in attendance introduced themselves to the residents present.

The Police noted that they are working very closely with the Council and have seen significant investment in crime prevention items including CCTV.

The Police highlighted that an Eastern European group were arrested within the last few months who were linked to a spate of burglaries in the area.

Properties that back on to parks or car parks have seen an increase of being targeted by criminals who are accessing the properties from these locations; advice was given around making sure that fences are in good order and that anti-climb paint and thorny plants are utilised to deter entry. Residents were encouraged to ensure that ladders around their property are also secured, and advised that light timers etc. are a good deterrent to burglaries as it appears that someone is still in the property. Smart bulbs and other technology, including doorbell cameras, were also highlighted.

Residents were encouraged to report anything suspicious to the Police and highlighted that registration numbers of vehicles are always beneficial.

Neighbourhood Link was also promoted to residents in the meeting.

The South Wigston Beat Priorities are speeding vehicles, with work ongoing with the Road Safety Partnership including Fatal Four events looking at mobiles, seatbelts, speeding and alcohol. speedorsafety.com was promoted as a resource. ASB is a priority too, especially around Tesco and Blaby Road Park; work has taken place with SWHS including the use of a knife arch in previous years. ASB on and around Gloucester Crescent was also noted and it was highlighted that work has taken place with the IMPACT Team to address this. Motorbike use in this area has also been reported as an issue. CCTV will be providing full coverage of Blaby Road Park in the near future. Vehicle Crime is another priority including theft of tools from vehicles and the theft of catalytic converters. The Police are able to provide anti-tamper number plate screws free of charge from Wigston Police Station.

Burglaries Dwellings – 2022 35 incidents, 2023 42 incidents. Compared to Wigston this was 141 2022 and 2023 74, Oadby 2022 89, 2023 88. In January for South Wigston there were 2 reports of burglary other than dwelling and 2 of a dwelling. In February there is one report of each on record. Shoplifting was queried and was noted that its not classed as a burglary unless they are entering and taking from a non-public area. Police were asked to provide some details around reported shoplifting in South Wigston at a future forum. The success rate in relation to burglaries was question by a resident; Officers highlighted that the investigations can take time i.e. in the gathering of CCTV and forensic evidence so success is hard to quantify. The Oadby Burglary arrests were used as an example of how success is usually a bigger picture case where a whole gang is arrested and property recovered.

Vehicle crime has seen 4 reports this year to date.

Noise complaints,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 48.

D Myers gave an overview of The Wall project that Soft Touch Arts are starting shortly in South Wigston. Soft Touch Arts have worked in New Parks for around 12 years and seen great successes that they are looking to emulate in South Wigston. Sessions will start on Monday 22 April at Blaby Road Park, focussing on 11-25 year olds engaging in art and music. Sessions will also take place at William Gunning Park and within SWHS. Outreach work will be taking place beforehand supported by other agencies such as the Police and the IMPACT Team.

Young People who attend these sessions are hoped to engage in sessions then running out of Elliot Hall to see artwork developed for the Pladis Factory Wall on Blaby Road Park. This is the section of wall near the Skate Park / MUGA on the Park.

The project has been part funded by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner and links into ASB related work in the area.

This is hoped to be a project that sees long term engagement from young people across several different youth provision opportunities in the area.

OWBC is, like most other Councils, struggling for finances.

As of last week there were 50 families in temporary accommodation that will cost the council the best part of £100,000 which has not been budgeted for. This is a statutory requirement of the Council to provide temporary accommodation. If the temperature drops below freezing for a certain number of days the Council is also obligated to provide temporary accommodation to the homeless.

If the Council cannot issue a balance budget a Section 114 notice will be issued such as in Birmingham. If this happens a Government inspector will take control of the Council which the Council is also billed for.

To avoid this the Council has made a number of decisions to provide a balanced budget.

The Government is introducing mandatory food waste collections as a separate waste collection; this was to be funded by the Government but now the Council is expected to fund this and the required vehicle. The collection of soft furnishings also now comes with an additional cost to the Council due to POPS, and as they cannot be stored in the dedicated vehicle overnight there are additional costs involved. The food waste will be collected in caddies which is similar to a scheme that previously ran in the Borough but was stopped due to costs; this will be a statutory requirement of the Council to provide the service regardless of uptake from residents.

Collected food waste will be utilised as part of biogas generation for electricity generation.

The Council is having to reduce the number of officers it employs and is hoping to do so through voluntary redundancies.

Car Parking charges will also be increasing and waste collections are likely to go to a fortnightly basis. The charge for green waste collections will also be increased. OWBC does not profit from the garden waste collections but LCC may do as the disposal agency who compost the waste.

Changes to national recycling guidance may see the current contract for the Borough where OWBC collect, LCC act as the disposal agency, and CasePak as the contractor change. This could result in additional charges in respect of fuel etc. for the Council’s wagons as they may have to travel further to unload the collected waste.

The Council is also required by central government to reduce its carbon footprint which the Council must also fund.

The Council is trying to pre-empt the decisions a Government Inspector would do should a section 114 notice be issued and trying to provide a balanced budget through the least impactful options.

A resident questioned if the recycling collections could be made fortnightly but black bin collections remain weekly as this has taken place in other areas. The Council’s approach has not been finalised as yet with the change to take place in September 2024. The Council has to account for the additional houses built in the Borough and the requirement of bigger bins for some houses in the Borough; there is a concern  ...  view the full minutes text for item 50.

Council Tax for the Borough will be decided during a meeting taking place tomorrow. The County Council precept will be raised by 2.99% and then 2% for Social Care; this is an increase of £71.80 per year just from LCC. The OWBC increase will be £7.38 per year, Police £13.00 and LFRS £6.60. The 2.99% increase by OWBC is the most the Council is allowed to increase it by.

The Chair noted that Jennos Coffee House at Brocks Hill will be expanding which is in the interest of the Council as the Council takes a cut of the profits from the café as well as rent etc. Jennos is a very well used facility.

The Council is also hiring out the Council Chamber to external groups to raise additional funds.

Within the Council’s Local Plan a public consultation will be coming out shortly to look at land to accommodate an additional 240 houses per year. 52 of these houses are from Leicester City Council’s allocation as they are unable to meet the required numbers. OWBC is currently achieving the 240 houses per year but the consultation is intended to safeguard green spaces in the Borough.

The Chair suggested that Planning attend the next meeting of this Forum to further explain the Local Plan to residents.

Agreed at the Council’s PFD Committee meeting on Tues, 6 February;

Oadby & Wigston Swimming Club - £400.00

Barrier Flowers - £400.00

The Borough was selected as a ‘Safer Streets’ eligible area by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner in line with Home Office guidance. This enabled the OPCC to submit a bid, developed with input from the Oadby & Wigston Community Safety Partnership, for Home Office funding to address crime and disorder, with a specific focus on Burglary, in the area. The OPCC highlighted an area of Oadby in the Brocks Hill Ward where a large percentage of this initiative will be focused.

The Safer Streets funding has also enabled a significant enhancement to the redeployable CCTV systems utilised by the Community Safety Partnership, with 15 extra units having been ordered, and works to take place to allow identified street light columns to host the units. Additionally two ANPR equipped speed indicator display units have also been ordered for deployment around the Borough to both combat speeding vehicles in hotspot areas and to detect vehicles linked to crime traveling through the area.

M Smith provided an overview of how the ANPR units will collect evidence over a greater period of time than the Road Safety Vans. This will inform any longer term solutions required in hotspot areas. M Smith asked that residents continue to report concerns of speeding vehicles to inform deployment of the ANPR units.

Spion Kop (Station Road / Blaby Road) Closure – Due to the electrification works Spion Kop will need to be removed and replaced resulting in a 7.5km detour whilst works take place. Work is expected to start in June 2025 for a five month period. This is fortunate as a period of the works will take place during the school summer holidays. A footbridge will be provided at the location for pedestrians and cyclists. The official detour will take traffic out to the Pork Pie Roundabout and back in again. The railway track cannot be lowered due to the height of the water table, and the cables cannot be run under the bridge and still provide clearance to trains. Residents were concerned that some traffic will ignore the detour and opt to travel along Countesthorpe Road damaging the road surface and causing more traffic to pass a residential area; lorry detours will likely be dedicated and enforced by the traffic authorities.

D-Day 80^th Anniversary – 6 June a beacon will be lit at Brocks Hill at 9:15 to coincide with national events of remembrance.

Vibrations from the Fosse Way Prison Build – The building work is taking place in Blaby District but is affecting Oadby & Wigston residents, including seeing nearby cracking. OWBC Officers are monitoring this.

Teenage Wheeze / Air Pollution – Monitoring stations have been installed along Blaby Road to monitor air quality in the area. Work is also taking place with the schools and the Health Service in regards to this.

Pigeon Factory – Renovations have finished and tenants have started to move into the building. The building has proved attractive to people who regularly commute to Birmingham due to its proximity to South Wigston Railway Station. The building was previously compulsory purchased by the Council as the owner could not be identified.

Boundary Commission – A resident raised a query as to whether the Ward boundaries will be changed, and could this see Oadby & Wigston disappear into a bigger authority? The Chair highlighted that this is highly unlikely to happen and would be subject to consultation with residents by the Boundary Commission.

Waste Bin on Windlass Drive – This is part of the bids that went through the Council’s PFD Committee and was approved.

Alpha House – The roof blew off of the building recently and is in a terrible state. Planning has been approved for the building to be converted to flats and works are currently taking place at the location.

Bushloe House Council Offices – A £50,000 deposit has been paid by the interested buyer; the sale is subject to planning permission due to its Grade 2 listing. The older part of the building is to be retained with the newer sections demolished. The trees on the site are covered by a TPO so will be retained. Any new building has to increase biodiversity by 10%. The building was built in 1854.

None raised.

Wednesday, 28 May 2024 – 19:00 – Fairfield Primary School (TBC)