Agenda and minutes

The drop in surgery gives you the opportunity to talk to your councillors, street environment officer, safer neighbourhood team, neighbourhood management officer and visiting speakers in an informal setting.

1.1    Residents had the opportunity to speak to Councillors Potter, Funnell and Boyce, Claire Taylor, Angus Young and PCSO’s Simon Hall & Mark Jackson.

1.2    Representatives from the following groups were present with information about their service’s and application’s for ward committee funding:

·         Older Citizens Advocacy York

·         York St John University Students Union

·         York and District Citizens Advice Bureau

·         Bell Farm Adventure Playground

·         Sustrans

·         Friends of St Nicholas Fields

·         Glen Allotments Association

·         Safe and Sound Homes

·         York Group of the National Osteoporosis Society

·         York Older People’s Assembly

·         Friends of York Walls

·         Active York

·         City of York Council Arts and Events

·         68 Centre Youth Centre

1.3    Information was available about the Local Development Framework.      

Welcome and Minutes

2.1  Cllr Barbara Boyce welcomed residents to the meeting.

2.2  The minutes of the last meeting on 12^th July 2011 were agreed and signed.

Your local police team will give an update on issues in your ward and answer any questions you have.

PCSO Simon Hall gave an update on Crime and Community Safety issues in the ward.  The following points were noted:

3.1  There has been an increase in lead thefts over the last few months.  This

has been particularly prevalent in the Bell Farm and Muncaster areas of

the ward.  A number of people have been arrested in connection with

these crimes. 

3.2  There has also been an increase in shed burglaries in the ward.

Residents can buy discounted shed bars from Safer York Partnership;

visit www.saferyork.org or phone (01904) 669069 for more information.

3.3  A spate of criminal damage to cars recently occurred over one evening in

the Heworth and Tang Hall area of the ward causing £1000’s of damage.

A number of people have been caught in connection with this.

3.4 There were 78 crimes in the ward during August. 

The following questions were noted:

a)    How many of the crimes were doorstep crimes and how many were hate crimes?

Response was given that none of these crimes were hate crimes.  21 crimes were thefts with 6 being thefts of pedal bikes, 6 home burglary thefts and 7 shed and garage thefts.

Your chance to join the planning panel.

4.1  Cllr Barbara Boyce explained the a planning panel is a valuable voluntary

group of local people who comment on planning applications for the ward  

giving their views and local knowledge.  

4.2 A member of the Heworth Planning panel, Rosemary Suttill gave an

update on the group’s activity over the past year.

4.3 A list of current members who would like to be re-selected for another 

year was read out as follows:

·         Dennis Shaw

·         Brian Nye

·         Maria Cikalo

·         Gareth Foster

·         Rosemary Suttill

4.4 Two new members were proposed:

·         Fiona Walker

·         Trevor Potter

4.5  No objections were raised and all were formally selected. 

The suggested schemes for 2012-13 will be discussed.  If you made one of the suggestions on the ballot list, come along to tell people more about it.

Residents were given the opportunity to discuss the local improvement schemes and grant applications put forward for the 2012-13 ward committee budget.  The following point were noted:

5.1  There is no guarantee how much the budget will be for the 2012-13 financial year.

5.2  The following declarations of interest were made:

·         Cllr Ruth Potter sits on the committee of Bell Farm Adventure Playground who have applied for a grant.

·         Cllr Tina Funnell is the Chair of St Nicholas Fields Committee who have applied for a grant.

·         Cllr Barbara Boyce is a member of the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority who have also applied for a grant.

5.3  Representatives gave more information about the following schemes:

·         HE-12-03 – Sustrans – application for £4410 for maintenance of the Foss Islands Derwent Valley Railway path which runs through this ward

·         HE-12-04 – Friends of St Nicholas Fields – application for £3866 to improve the paths and create a wheelchair friendly path in the reserve

·         HE-12-05 – St John’s University Student Union – application for £1398 to run their freecycle project in the ward

·         HE-12-06 – Glen Allotments Association – application for £499 to replace a wood picnic bench and make improvements to the gate

·         HE-12-09 – York Rotters – application for £450 to run free courses to residents on ‘How to Compost’ and Grown your own in a small space’.  Applications have been made to a number of wards in the City.

·         HE-12-10 – a provision of bat boxes in the ward

·         HE-12-15 – Street Sports York – application for £2000 to continue running sessions around the ward which are very popular with young people

·         HE-12-17 – Safe and Sound Homes – application for £4000 to support the Nightstop project providing short term emergency accommodation to young people at risk of homelessness.

·         HE-12-18 – York Osteoporosis Society – application for £174 for a public meeting to celebrate 25 years of the society.

·         HE-12-19 – York St John’s University Student Union – application for £500 for publicity and refreshments for their weekly coffee afternoons at St Wulstan’s Church

·         HE-12-20 – York Young People’s Trust – application for £1500 towards the refurbishment of the City Centre Youth Cafe

·         HE-12-21 – York Older People’s Assembly – application for £450 to hold an information fair in the ward

·         HE-12-22 – Friends of York Walls – application for £300 to hold a 2012 walls festival in partnership with other community and ‘friends’ groups

·         HE-12-23 – York and District Citizens Advice Bureau – application for £4960 to continue the fortnightly outreach session in the ward

·         HE-12-25 – Bell Farm Adventure Playground – application for £2000 for their summer playscheme

·         HE-12-27 – St John’s University Student Union – application for £1166 to fund a part time community co-ordinator to look at ways for students and the community to work together

5.4  Residents were encouraged to state their preferences on the schemes by filling the ballot form and returning it to the Neighbourhood Management Unit.

Your chance to ask questions about local issues and concerns not covered by the agenda.

6.1  The following questions and comments were noted:

a)    The one way system on Dales Lane is being abused, this has been highlighted to the council a number of times but nothing has been done.  Delivery drivers park here to unload which causes obstructions. 

b)    Parking in Starkey Crescent is causing obstructions to emergency vehicles. 

c)    A ‘Give Way’ sign was requested some time ago for the junction of Victoria Way and Geldof Road but nothing has been done.

Response was given that these issues will be looked into and the ward team would invite an Officer from Highways to attend a future ward committee meeting.