Agenda and minutes

Councillor Alex Ball – work commitments
Councillor Mohammed Ibrahim – unwell

Angela Bolton – Neighbourhood Development Officer

Moby Farrands – Partnership Council/Forest Fields Improvement Association
Bill Husband – NG7

None

Last meeting held on 24 September 2015 (for confirmation)

The Committee confirmed the minutes of the meeting held on 24 September 2015 and they were signed by the Chair.

Report of Corporate Director for Children and Adults

James Rhodes, Strategic Insight Manager, introduced the Corporate Director for Children and Adults’ report, informing the Committee that the Health and Wellbeing Board, which includes the Clinical Commissioning Group, the Council, Police and Voluntary Sector, is developing the next Health and Wellbeing Strategy, and highlighted the following points:

(a)  the Health and Wellbeing Board want to engage with as many citizens and interest groups as possible to help shape its next strategy;

(b)  initial consultation began in October and is continuing in November. It includes engaging with existing networks, such as Area Committees, public events and front-line workforce focus groups;

(c)  there is also an online survey and a toolkit available for groups to run their own consultation sessions;

(d)  the questions being used in the consultation are:

·  What do you think are the main issues affecting people’s health and happiness?

·  What do you think is stopping citizens from living a healthier and happier life?

·  What would you like to see in your area or community to help make people healthier and happier?

(e)  the common issues and themes emerging from the consultation so far are:

·  social isolation and loneliness is a problem;

·  the cost of living a healthy life is more expensive;

·  people don’t always know what services are available, and/or may not have the confidence/support to use them;

·  lifestyle factors, such as smoking, have an impact;

·  there is a disproportionate impact on BME communities.

The Committee and others in attendance made the following comments:

(f)  health has been selected as a priority for the area as it has a lower life expectancy compared to other parts of the city;

(g)  combatting social isolation is important as it is something that can happen easily because there are many methods of communicating without human contact;

(h)  there is a social café in the area where people can meet once a month for a cheap and nutritional meal. It is hoped that the frequency of this can increase to help people get out and socialise.

RESOLVED to note the report.

Verbal update

Inspector James Woolley, Nottinghamshire Police, provided the Committee with the following information, which is compared to the same period last year:

Berridge - Quarter 1

(a)  crime has is up by 20%;

(b)  anti-social behaviour is up by nearly 50%;

(c)  criminal damage and robbery have both decreased;

(d)  there is an increase in shop thefts but the main offenders have been caught;

(e)  the number of sexual offences reported has nearly doubled, 19 cases compared to 10, but more than half of the cases are historical offences;

Berridge - Quarter 2

(f)  crime is up by 0.5%;

(g)  there has been one fraud and forgery offence, compared to none last year;

(h)  anti-social behaviour is the same as last year, but down from Quarter 1;

(i)  there have been a couple of arrests of repeat offenders for burglary, but overall figures are low;

Sherwood - Quarter 1

(j)  crime is up by 13%;

(k)  dwelling burglary has increased;

(l)  theft from vans is an issue, but an arrest has been made so it is decreasing;

(m)  there has been a 30% reduction in auto crime, although this is still an issue, and is mainly as a result of drivers leaving belongings on display when they leave their vehicle;

(n)  shop theft is down as 3 individuals have been arrested;

(o)  violence has increased, but this is a city-wide issue

Sherwood - Quarter 2

(p)  there has been a 10% reduction in crime;

(q)  anti-social behaviour has reduced by 20%;

(r)  there has been a reduction of over 50% in dwelling burglary;

(s)  vehicle crime is down;

(t)  overall crime is down by 1%;

(u)  specific work has been undertaken with Nottingham Prison to do some preventative work to address issues;

General

(v)  each ward has 2 Beat Managers and 4 PCSOs, which is currently under review. A business case has been put forward and it is hoped that the staffing will remain the same, or possibly increase.

Report of Chief Executive, Nottingham City Homes

Paul Howard, Tenancy and Estate Manager, introduced the Chief Executive of Nottingham City Homes’ report providing updates on key issues and themes which link back to local priorities and strategic themes for Nottingham City Homes (NCH), and highlighted the following points:

(a)  the upgrade of the gates to the alleyways along Gunthorpe Drive, and planting of trees along the perimeter of the prison is ongoing;

(b)  the date for the next street inspection with young inspectors from Djanogly Northgate Academy is 24 November 2015;

(c)  there will be a meeting in December with tenants from Sherwood who are interested in developing a recognised Tenants and Residents Association, or similar group;

(d)  funding is requested to carry out a major fencing and boundary upgrade on Northwood Crescent in the Sherwood ward;

(e)  the Anti-Social Behaviour Team has won an award for their work;

(f)  there has been a slight dip in performance for repairs but this is being investigated and will be addressed;

(g)  there is currently an internal restructure taking place and part of the proposals is to move management of the area from the office in Radford to St Ann’s. 

The Committee commented that the potential to link the young inspectors work with the Ward Walk that Councillors have should be investigated.

RESOLVED to

(1)  note the update and performance information detailed in Appendices 1 and 3 of the report;

(2)  note the Area Capital Programme funding for the wards:

(3)  approve the following allocation of Area Capital Programme funding:

Report of Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations

Beth Hanna, Neighbourhood Development Officer, introduced the Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations’ report requesting approval for Area Capital Fund schemes.

The Committee was informed that the dropped crossings on Oak Street in the Sherwood ward are to ensure that there are enough accessible crossings in the general area to enable citizens, particularly those in the new care home, to access Mansfield Road safely and easily.

RESOLVED to

(1)  note that the following money is available:

  Berridge  £81,530

  Sherwood  £80,007

(2)  approve the following schemes:

Berridge Public Realm Schemes:

Sherwood Local Transport Plan Schemes:

Report of Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations

Dorothy Holmes, Locality Manager, and Beth Hanna, Neighbourhood Development Officer, introduced the Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations’ report providing ward performance updates on key issues and themes which link back to local priorities and the strategic themes in Nottingham Plan 2020, and highlighted the following points:

(a)  both wards are performing above the target of 86% for cleanliness -  Berridge scored 87%, and Sherwood scored 91%;

(b)  there have been 16 reports of graffiti in Berridge, compared to 10 in the same period the previous year, and 10 reports in Sherwood, compared to 8 in the same period the previous year;

(c)  there have been 232 reports of fly tipping in Berridge, compared to 224 in the same period the previous year, and 77 reports in Sherwood, which has decreased from 110 in the same period the previous year;

(d)  there have been many successful community events in both wards;

(e)  budget consultation events are scheduled in both wards in January 2016.

The Committee and others in attendance made the following comments:

(f)  there were concerns that flytipping has increased as citizens now need to be on the electoral register to use the bulky waste collection service, but the call centre has confirmed that this isn’t the case;

(g)  information regarding the bulky waste collection service could be added to the back of ward walk letters;

(h)  a welcome leaflet is currently being designed which will include key service information in a range of languages;

(i)  the budget events need to be given more publicity to encourage people to attend.

RESOLVED to note the information.

Report of Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations

Beth Hanna, Neighbourhood Development Officer, introduced the Corporate Director for Commercial and Operations’ report detailing the decisions taken under delegated authority to support the local community, address the diverse needs, and reduce inequalities.

The Committee was informed that the decommitted funds for Berridge will be detailed at the next meeting, and that the Christmas light costs need to come out of Sherwood allocation.

RESOLVED to note the actions taken under delegated authority:

(1)  Berridge:

(2)  Sherwood:

Verbal update

Councillor Carole-Ann Jones, Chair of the Committee, confirmed that the three priorities identified for the whole area:

(a)  health – with a focus on access to services;

(b)  jobs and training – with a focus on local shopping centres and businesses;

(c)  environmental issues – with a focus on cleansing, and  parks and open spaces.

These will be monitored and Councillors will meet in December 2015 to review progress, and will provide an update at the next committee meeting.