Items
No. |
Item |
41. |
Minutes PDF 220 KB
To sign as a correct record the
minutes of the meeting held on 30 January 2024 (copy
enclosed).
Minutes:
Consideration was given to the minutes of the
meeting held on 30 January 2024
AGREED:
That the minutes be signed as a correct
record.
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42. |
Declaration of Interests.
Where a Councillor has a Disclosable Pecuniary
Interest the Councillor must declare the interest to the meeting
and leave the room without participating in any discussion or
making a statement on the item, except where a Councillor is
permitted to remain as a result of a grant of dispensation.
Minutes:
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43. |
Actions PDF 58 KB
To view actions arising from
the meeting held on 30 January 2024.
Minutes:
The Chairman of the Spalding Town Forum
discussed the actions from the previous Forum meeting and updated
on each further development.
- Action AN20 – To
assemble a young adult’s group to present their views on the
Town Centre.
- The Chairman announced that a cohort
of students from the Spalding Grammar School would provide a
presentation on their views and ideas to the Spalding Town
Forum.
- Action AN21 – To contact
the Portfolio Holder for Communities and Operational Housing
regarding film showings and comfortable seating at the South
Holland Centre(SHC).
- The Chairman confirmed that he would
contact the aforementioned Portfolio Holder and would in addition
present the views from the Grammar School students’
presentation, regarding film showings at the SHC.
- Action AN22 – To provide a
CCTV updated data report to the Forum.
- The Chairman conceded that a
comprehensive report had been provided to the forum at the previous
meeting. The Chairman would add this as an agenda item when the
next data report update was due.
- Action AN23 – To inform the
Forum of the proposed opening/closing times of the Sheep Markets
toilets.
- The Waste Services Department
responded that they currently did not have definitive
opening/closing times but would expect the times to be in line with
other facilities in the Town Centre -
08.00-16.00 hrs.
- Action AN24 – to look at
different funding options for renewing Christmas Lights and
Decorations, and report back to the Spalding Town Forum.
- The Chairman confirmed that along
with the Vice-Chairman of the Spalding Town Forum, Councillor
Whitbourn, they would be scrutinising various funding options,
enabling provisions for the Christmas lights and decorations for
2024.
- The Chairman invited the Portfolio
Holder for Strategic Housing, Leisure Centre Delivery and Spalding
Town Improvement to provide a verbal update.
- The Portfolio Holder confirmed that
conversations were taking place between the
Council’s Economic Development
Department and Communities Department, regarding extending and
enhancing the Christmas offering in Spalding, particularly The
Crescent area of the Town.
- Due to an infrastructure electrical
issue, the lights were unable to be erected in The Crescent for
Christmas 2023.
- Officers were working to resolve
these issues, to enable lights and decorations to be visible for
Christmas 2024.
- Funding opportunities could be
available through the Business Improvement District Board.
- The Portfolio Holder added that an
update would be provided at the next meeting.
- The Chairman noted that The Crescent
was a lovely area of the town providing a collection of bespoke
shops.
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44. |
Spalding Special Expenses Quarter 3 report 2023-24 PDF 256 KB
To consider the Spalding
Special Expenses and Quarter 3 forecast outturn 2023-24 (report of
the Deputy Chief Executive (Corporate Development) (S151)
enclosed)
Minutes:
Consideration was given to the report of the
Deputy Chief Executive (Corporate Development and S151) which
considered the Spalding Special Expenses and Quarter 3 forecast
outturn 2023-24.
The Strategic Finance Manager stated that the
Quarter 3 report detailed forecast spend against the Quarter 3
2023-24 budget.
- A budget of £241,375.00 had
been approved this time last year by Council.
- Up to September 2023, the forecast
outturn was expected to be broadly in line with budget.
- At Quarter 3 with three months
additional transactions and analysis of trends, the Strategic
Finance Manager had a much clearer picture of the spend for the
current year and was forecasting an underspend of
£16,000.00
- Reduced premises costs were the
largest driver for the variance at £6,000.00.
- Maintenance costs were expected to
be less than budget, with lower demand for maintenance due to
reduced usage of certain sites.
- Forecast savings on supplies and
services was the second largest driver of the variance at
£5,500.00. The majority of this underspend related to the
previous year’s King’s Coronation Event, which had a
budget of £10,000.00.
- Table 3 in the report broke down the
budget and forecast by cost centre, each area had some level of
underspend but the most notable was a £4,900.00 underspend
for the Monkhouse Ward due to reduced premises costs, together with
savings on utilities.
- The Halley Stewart Playing Field
site produced a saving of £3,300.00 due to a reduction in
premises costs with a new lease anticipated.
- Christmas decorations revealed a
saving of £3,000.00 for electricity costs, mainly due to the
economic climate at the time of budget setting.
- Section 4 of the Quarter 3 report
detailed the reserve position, with an opening balance of
£103,000.00, any underspend realised at the end of year 2023
would be transferred into the Spalding Special Reserves,
essentially a ‘rainy-day’ pot for one-off
expenses.
Councillor Taylor clarified that the Sir
Halley Stewart Playing Field lease was for Spalding United Football
Club, not Spalding Town Football Club as listed in the report.
The Chairman announced that he was pleased
with the said underspends which filtered down to Spalding Special
Reserves, for one off events.
AGREED:
That the Spalding Special Expenses and Quarter
3 Forecast 2023-24 be noted.
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45. |
Spalding Grammar School Presentation
Students from Spalding Grammar
School to provide a presentation on Spalding Town Centre and future
events.
Minutes:
The Deputy Head of Spalding Grammar School
Sixth Form, Head of Law Politics & Criminology, introduced the
Spalding Grammar school students who had compiled a presentation to
voice their opinions on Spalding Town Centre and events.
The students wished to share their views on
transport links, social issues, and the South Holland Centre, along
with lack of diversity in terms of shops, events, and social
media.
- Transport links –
improved transport links would enhance the appeal of the town to
the locals, along with tourists, which in turn would help
businesses, food establishments, tourism, and recreation.
- Efficient transport systems
contributed to environmental sustainability along with economic
growth, providing links for easier access to businesses and
employment opportunities.
- The students noted that the Boston
to Spalding bus route, B3 and B9 Brylane was only available on
weekdays at limited times, making it difficult for the working
person, along with students, who would travel if bus services and
timetables were improved.
- West Pinchbeck only provided a
school bus during term time, with no access to Spalding Town Centre
at the weekends.
- Social Issues –
Incorporating - homelessness, unemployment, and addiction, and how
this linked to the circle bench in Hall Place.
- The circle bench radiated a negative
sigma with numerous families avoiding that particular area. These
issues could be addressed through additional community
policing.
- To create a more appealing area and
encourage footfall, the addition of a new seating area with flower
planters, additional bins to alleviate littering, improved lighting
and replanting trees would create a cleaner more attractive
environment.
- Spalding was currently facing a
large increase in homelessness and addiction, borne out in recent
statistics showing 28 homeless individuals per officer. These
numbers were high, putting Spalding in the top 20% of deprived
areas.
- South Holland Centre –
the students agreed this was a great place for youngsters to
socialise, however many of the films were scheduled either during
school hours or on weekday nights.
- A recent showing of the film
Priscilla was only screened at 2pm on Friday, thus not enabling
students to view the film. The Bob Marley film appealed to a
younger audience but again was not screened at the weekend.
- Lack of shop diversity
– The diversity of shops within SpaldingTown Centre was
limited, driving young adults to shop elsewhere.
- The limited choices meant young
adults visited competitors to purchase goods such as clothing and
footwear outside of Spalding Town Centre, for example, Queensgate
Shopping Centre in Peterborough and Springfields. This was inconvenient and frustrating
for young people.
- Spalding residents were not always
getting value for money, as without competition, prices could
become inflated.
- The students advocated more shops
and less empty shops , and improved brands, to entice younger
shoppers into Spalding town centre.
- Promotion of local businesses, with
complimentary advertisement, such as an Instagram page that locals
could view alongside national engagement was suggested.
- It was suggested that additional
sponsorship for local events, such as the Pumpkin Festival and
Spalding Flower Parade, would increase
...
view the full minutes text for item 45.
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46. |
Any other business
To discuss any other
business that the Chairman deems significant.
Minutes:
The following items were raised:
Graffiti
- The Portfolio Holder for Strategic
Housing, Leisure Centre Delivery and Spalding Town Improvement
provided the Forum with an update on the issue of graffiti in the
district.
- The District Council Community
Warden Officer had been very proactive engaging with businesses, to
encourage the removal of graffiti from business properties.
- The perpetrators committing the offensive graffiti had to be held
accountable for the ongoing damage.
- This week, officers from
Lincolnshire County Council were repairing and removing graffiti
from various areas around Spalding, including Pinchbeck Road,
Wygate Park and areas within the Monkhouse ward.
- Anglian Water had responded swiftly
by removing graffiti on property that they owned.
- The Portfolio Holder responded to
Councillor Sheard, who at the previous Forum meeting was concerned
about a broken, vandalised telephone box, which contained glass,
graffiti, and was an unpleasant site. BT had been contacted,
however, to date no confirmed date for when the telephone box would
be removed had been received.
The Chairman asked the Portfolio Holder how
residents could report graffiti?
- The Portfolio Holder explained that
offensive graffiti should be reported through the SHDC website,
thus enabling the Community Wardens to gather evidence to apprehend
the culprits.
- Cllr Sheard asked whether CCTV
evidence of the individuals responsible
for the graffiti was available and had the cameras been viewed to
permit the authorities to pursue an arrest.
- The Portfolio Holder was
unaware whether the owners of the
camera had contacted the police and if any criminal activity had
been captured.
- Prosecuting any lawbreaking culprits
had been proven to reduce crime.
The River
Welland
Councillor James Le Sage updated the Forum on
an issue he had raised at a previous meeting with his suggestion on
the potential of the “opening
up” of the Welland River.
- Councillor J Le Sage informed the
Forum that the river could potentially be opened up for punting,
kayaking, and small water craft. This would be a huge draw for
tourists, beneficial for local businesses and increase Spalding
Town Centre footfall, coupled with providing outdoor activities
that would appeal to all age demographics.
- Councillor J Le Sage would shortly
be attending meetings with interested parties/relevant authorities
to formulate a way forward.
Councillor Le Sage would keep the forum
updated and asked the Chairman of the Forum to add this as an
agenda item for the next meeting.
Johnson Hospital
League of Friends
Christine Lawton, representative for the
Johnson Hospital League of Friends informed the Forum that SHDC
Councillors had recently provided donations to purchase 23
televisions for the patients at the hospital. The hospital had also
recently updated the café area providing outside seating for
patients, and she thanked the Forum for their continued
support.
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47. |
Date and Time of Next Meeting
The next meeting of the
Spalding Town Forum to be confirmed.
Minutes:
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48. |
Spalding Town Forum Summer Event
The Chairman of the Forum to
provide a progress update on the Spalding Town Forum Summer Event
2024.
Minutes:
The Chairman informed the group
that an update was not available at present, however the Forum
would be advised in more detail of the upcoming Ayscough-Fest event
at the next Spalding Town Forum meeting.
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