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TOWN COUNCIL MEETING
MONDAY, 11TH JULY 2011
Present:- Cllr M. Johns (Chair), Cllr P. Allen, Cllr D. Bain, Cllr M. Blake, Cllr J. Godwin. Cllr J. Hart,
Cllr N. Holder, Cllr J. Lynch, Cllr C. Stanger, Cllr D. Yates
1. Apologies for Absence
Cllr G. Barbour, Cllr N. Hastings, Cllr D. Linney, Cllr C. Lofts, Cllr A. Maycock, Cllr D. Wardle
Cllr D. Dallyn – S.N.C.
2. Declarations of Interest
None.
3. Open to the Public
No members of the public were present.
4 Town Mayor’s Items
Cllr Johns gave details of events he has recently attended:-
15/6 Official re-opening of La Strada under new management
17/6 Midsummer Music Festival – Towcester Rock School Concert
18/6 Methodist Church Summer Fete
18/6 Official opening of the 2011 Midsummer Music Festival
20/6 Armed Forces Day at SNC Offices
20/6 Presentation of certificates to legal graffiti wall artists at Vision Youth Café
22/6 Northampton University Graduate Fashion Show
28/6 St John Ambulance Thanksgiving Service and presentation at St John Ambulance HQ, Northampton
29/6 Service at Peterborough Cathedral
06/7 Sure-start official launch and the newly refurbished Towcester Youth & Community Centre
11/7 TADD (Towcester Area Door to Door) AGM and 21st Birthday celebrations at Plum Park, Paulerspury
5. Northamptonshire County Council
Libraries Review April 2012 to March 2015
Grace Kempster, Customer & Lbrary Service Manager, N.C.C.
Grace Kempster introduced herself and colleague, Barbara Leigh, to the Council and confirmed her position as Library Service Manager responsible for all 36 libraries across the county. N.C.C. is currently at the first stage of its review of the library service and has an innovative approach moving forward to 2015. Grace confirmed that Towcester Library is thriving with an average of 9,000 visitors each month. Northamptonshire has the cheapest library service in the country based on cost per visit and a quality mark has been awarded for customer service excellence. 26 Of the 36 libraries in the county have a ‘Friends Of’ group supporting them.
Looking to the future, Grace anticipates that by 2015 the libraries will be open longer with the support of volunteers supervised by a paid member of staff. Over the next 3 years, N.C.C. aims to increase the number of volunteers from 350 to 1,600 across the county and hopes each library will become a hub providing relevant community services. There are many funding challenges being faced by N.C.C. but it will continue to be responsible for the service. It will be making suggestions to other local authorities on ways they can contribute and also looking to ‘Friends Of’ groups for fundraising contributions towards their local library. The potential of securing Foundation Trust status and private sponsorship is also being explored although no decisions will be made at this stage. The position of the service will need to be reviewed in July 2012, following public consultations.
Cllr Lynch said N.C.C. should be cautious about the privatisation route; as the service is cost effective there will be no margin for profit. Cllr Allen agreed saying that the community would feel it had lost ownership of its library if this option were pursued.
Cllr Johns felt it would be difficult to secure a large sponsor; many residents of Towcester out commute and it does not have a large private employer.
Cllr Blake was concerned about the suggestion that ‘Friends Of’ Groups commit to a minimum contribution of £2,000 per annum. He felt it would be difficult to guarantee this level of support year on year. Grace advised that this is not a fixed sum; N.C.C. is looking for ‘Friends Of’ Groups to suggest a reliable figure for their library they feel is achievable. She added that all suggestions will be welcomed; in 4 years time the service could be looking at a £1.3 million loss in funding. Cllr Johns thanked Grace and Barbara for a very informative discussion.
6. Report back from:-
a) Cllr R. Bromwich, Northamptonshire County Council
Cllr Bromwich referred to the discussion on the library service and asked members of the TC to visit The Qube in Corby to see how well this venue works as a community hub for services.
Cllr Bromwich confirmed she had spent the weekend with the Police Authority carrying out its ‘Have Your Say’ survey in Towcester. The general consensus from the responses was that the police are doing well in Towcester but anti-social behaviour is still an issue in some areas and these require more attention.
Cllr Bromwich referred to the N.C.C. lighting switch off and confirmed she had received 5 emails from residents of Towcester who she will be visiting this week. Members raised concerns that the review will be carried out in August when the full implications will not have been felt. Cllr Stanger queried reports that the lamp posts will be permanently removed following the review. Cllr Bromwich said the reports are false. Cllr Holder said he had emailed N.C.C. with concerns over the number of lights switched off on the Belle Baulk estate and agreed to forward details direct to Cllr Bromwich. Cllr Yates said in some areas the stickers have been swapped between posts as they can be quite easily removed. Cllr Bromwich advised that the N.C.C. website allows you to enter your postcode to see which street lights should be on/off.
N.C.C. Prevention Consultation commenced on 7th July and will review the £44 million currently spent on specialist services delivered by organisations across the county. The Clerk agreed to circulate a copy of the review to all members.
b) Cllr M. Johns, South Northamptonshire Council
Cllr Johns confirmed that District Councillors had met briefly with partners to discuss the proposed development to the south of the town. It appears that Persimmon/Bloor intend to progress with a revised planning application in the autumn. The Clerk will be meeting with Adrian Caldwell of S.N.C. for an update on this item. Cllr John said that a meeting between SNC and prospective developer concerning the regeneration of Moat Lane had been deferred to September.
7. Minutes of Meetings
Resources/Planning Committee 13th June 2011
Town Council 13th June 2011
Town Hall Committee 20th June 2011
Recreation/Leisure Committee 20th June 2011
Cemetery Committee 4th July 2011
Resources/Planning Committee 4th July 2011
Cllr Holder referred to Page No. 11/07/068 and advised he did not attend the meeting with representatives of N.C.C. to discuss its Traffic Order Review. The minute page was corrected accordingly.
Proposal
Cllr Stanger proposed that the Minutes of Meetings from June/July 2011 be signed by the Chair as a true record;
seconded by Cllr Allen; all in favour
8. Matters Arising from the Minutes
Page No. 11/07/079 – 11/07/080
The Clerk reported that the RP Committee had proposed to fund the shortfall of £2,900 to keep the school crossing patrol on Islington Road for a further year. N.C.C. has accepted a one-year contract. The charge for the remainder of this financial year from September 2011 to March 2012 is £2,900. After deducting Cllr Bromwich’s contribution of £1,000 the TC will fund the remaining £1,900 and can then precept for the remainder due for the period from April to July 2012. Cllr Hart said that parents will be expected to carry out some fundraising to contribute towards the cost. Cllr Johns said the long term solution would be to look at engineering measures. I.e. a pelican crossing; the Clerk will make enquiries on this with N.C.C.
Page No. 11/06/075
Cllr Hart referred to the Community Centre bookings, in particular the reference to hiring out the centre for parties. The Clerk confirmed that all have been children’s parties to date but requests to hire the venue for parties will be given very careful consideration as is the case with the Town Hall.
Page No. 11/06/070
The Clerk confirmed that she has now been able to contact David Allen at SNC and will try to arrange a meeting with him to discuss issues relating to use of the Market Square.
9. Report back from the Chair of the:-
Resources/Planning Committee
The Clerk confirmed that there had been no meeting.
Town Hall Committee
The Clerk confirmed that the problem with dry rot is severe and it has been necessary to close the toilets on the 1st floor above Bartrams. Tenants have been issued with keys to allow them use of the TC toilet facilities. The Clerk met with Surveyor, Paul Brown, and John Hutchings 10 days ago and a further meeting will be held later this week to look at the what options are available. As the toilet structure has tested positive for asbestos, it will need to be removed by a specialist contractor. It may be possible to install new toilet facilities into the vacant office on the 2nd floor as this is directly above the TC toilets. The TC will need Listed Building Consent and permission from SNC prior to the commencement of any works. The Clerk will keep members of the committee up to date on this matter. An asbestos survey of the whole building will be carried out on 14th July.
Recreation/Leisure Committee
Cllr Blake confirmed the TC has agreed to carry out an ecological survey of the open space at Belle Baulk to assess its suitability to become a pocket park. The Clerk has written to SNC notifying it of the TC willingness to take on responsibility for additional open spaces in the town. The outstanding invoice for the supply and installation of the new play equipment on Belle Baulk has been settled.
Cemetery Committee
Cllr Wardle had given her apologies for the meeting. The Clerk confirmed the committee had proposed to reduce the notice given to allotment holders not tending their plots from 3 months to 6 weeks and plots must, from now, be cultivated to 80%. A survey of the whole site will be carried out in the coming weeks to address a number of issues that have been raised.
10. Report back from Local Bodies
Cllr Holder confirmed the recent opening of the legal graffiti wall. Vision Youth Café will be holding a cake sale fundraiser on 30th July. A family fun day, organised in conjunction with the Rotary Club, will be held on the Recreation Ground on 29th August. Mr Len Holder has been elected new President of the Lions Club.
Cllr Stanger confirmed the Town Mayor’s Charity Golf Match will take place at Cherwell Edge Golf Club on 27th September. Any teams interested in participating should contact Cllr Stanger direct. This year, they plan to introduce the Ron Fagan Memorial Trophy and he asked if the TC would be prepared to fund the purchase of the trophy. The Clerk asked Cllr Stanger to bring details of the cost to the next meeting for consideration. He also asked who the Royal British Legion Club will need to contact for permission to reinstate the march from St Lawrence Church to Brackley Road Cemetery on Remembrance Sunday. Cllr Stanger was advised to contact the Police and church in the first instance. Cllr Stanger said that neither he nor Cllr Lofts was able to attend the Nicholas Hawksmoor Pocket Park meeting earlier today. He will contact the Head Teacher, Mr Edwards, for a report on the meeting.
Cllr Lynch advised that the TC representatives on the Towcester Partnership, Cllr Hart & Cllr Lofts, had come to the end of their term of office. He asked for a proposal to allow then to continue for a further term.
Proposal
Cllr Allen proposed that Cllr Hart and Cllr Lofts be nominated as representatives of the TC on the Towcester Partnership for a further term;
seconded by Cllr Godwin; all in favour.
Cllr Lynch referred to this year’s Midsummer Music Festival. The organisers were happy with the number of people attending but there was little movement between venues. The ticket sales and receipts from sponsors have plummeted year after year. There is either a lack of interest in continuing with the event or the organisers are not generating sufficient publicity. Cllr Lynch confirmed it is a small committee and new members would be welcomed to input into this group. Meetings are held one a month, in the Plough Inn. Cllr Hart asked if the committee had considered bringing forward next year’s festival to coincide with the Golden Jubilee. Cllr Lynch said he would take this up with the committee at its next meeting.
Cllr Hart confirmed the Sponne & Bickerstaffe Charity had today taken residents of Moorfield for afternoon tea in Bicester
Cllr Blake confirmed that Towcester Produce Show would take place on Bank Holiday Monday 29th August in the Town Hall.
11. Correspondence
Correspondence from St Lawrence Church confirms its annual Flower Festival will take place on 5th, 6th and 7th August. It was agreed the Clerk will ask Rona Cambray to create the TC entry.
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