Agenda and minutes

Apologies were received from Mr T Markley, Lord R Liddle and Mrs C Tibble.

Members are invited to disclose any disclosable pecuniary interest they have in any item on the agenda which comprises:-

1          Details of any employment, office, trade, profession or vocation carried on for       profit or gain.

2          Details of any payment or provision of any other financial benefit (other than from the authority) made or provided within the relevant period in respect of any expenses incurred by you in carrying out duties as a member, or towards your election expenses.  (This includes any payment or financial benefit from a trade union within the meaning of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992.

3          Details of any contract which is made between you (or a body in which you have a beneficial interest) and the authority

(a)       Under which goods or services are to be provided or works are to be executed; and

            (b)       Which has not been fully discharged.

4          Details of any beneficial interest in land which is within the area of the authority. 

5          Details of any licence (alone or jointly with others) to occupy land in the area of the authority for a month or longer. 

6          Details of any tenancy where (to your knowledge)

            (a)       The landlord is the authority; and

(b)       The tenant is a body in which you have a beneficial                                        interest.

7          Details of any beneficial interest in securities of a body where

(a)       That body (to your knowledge) has a place of business or land in the         area of the authority; and

(b)       Either –

(i)      The total nominal value of the securities exceeds £25,000 or one       hundredth of the total issued share capital of that body; or

(ii)     If that share capital of that body is of more than one class, the total nominal value of the shares of any one class in which the relevant person has a beneficial interest exceeds one hundredth of the total issued share capital of that class.

In addition, you must also disclose other non-pecuniary interests set out in the Code of Conduct where these have not already been registered.

Note

A “disclosable pecuniary interest” is an interest of a councillor or their partner (which means spouse or civil partner, a person with whom they are living as husband or wife, or a person with whom they are living as if they are civil partners).

There were no declarations of interest made on this occasion.

RESOLVED that,                 the press and public be not excluded from the meeting during consideration of any items of business.

There were no petitions, statement or questions received at time of publication.

There were no petitions, statements or questions from members of public on this occasion.

To confirm the minutes of the last meeting held on 1 July 2022.

RESOLVED that,                 the minutes of the previous meeting of Allerdale Local Committee held on 6 May 2022 be agreed as an accurate and complete record.

To consider a presentation from Active Cumbria on the topic of improving lives through physical activity.

Members received a presentation from the Development Officer - Active Cumbria which provided an update on Active Cumbria’s programmes and services. The presentation highlighted the following projects and provided a detailed overview of each:-

·         Street Tag

·         Park Play

·         Active Start

·         Ramblers Wellbeing Walks

·         Active Travel / Bikeability

·         TIF / TF Awards

·         Live Longer Better in Cumbria

The Chair asked a question about promotion of Park Play activities to which the Development Officer answered that Park Play was a national scheme which Active Cumbria funded locally and so it was promoted by Park Play through certain channels but also directly with schools through Active Cumbria.

Members asked about the Street Tag initiative and it was explained that the purpose of the project was to gamify exercise through an app on a user’s phone that allows them to collect tags and compete with one another. Members heard that Street Tag was a relatively new scheme and that there were initiatives underwork to promote the scheme and engage more young people.

The Chair thanked the Development Officer - Active Cumbria for the informative presentation.

To consider a report from the Executive Director – Economy and Infrastructure.

Members considered a report from the Executive Director – Economy and Infrastructure which provided the Local Committee with the background and details of proposed changes to the Maryport and Surrounding Area Traffic Regulation Order, following statutory consultation and advertisement of the Order.

Members heard that as part of the review of the traffic restrictions in Maryport and the surrounding area, 12 changes had been proposed with the intention of  improving traffic flow and traffic management as well as addressing issues of inappropriate parking.

The Traffic Management Officer highlighted the proposals which had received objections from members of the public and discussed these concerns with the Committee.

Beginning with Proposal 4 – A594 Ellenborough Road / Ashby Street to introduce two sections of “No Waiting At Any Time” restrictions (double yellow lines) extending either side of the junction with the A594. These proposals were suggested following a number of incidents that have occurred in the vicinity, that were identified in a subsequent Engineering Safety Study. The study recommended these measures be introduced to reduce the likelihood of collisions from occurring.

Four objections were received during the initial informal consultation, all citing concerns in relation to loss of parking. As a result of this, the proposed length of restriction had been reduced significantly, along A594 Ellenborough Road in the north-westerly direction.

One objection has been received during the statutory consultation and advertisement, concerning loss of parking.

On the basis that the restrictions had been highlighted as necessary as part of an Engineering Safety Study and considering that the proposed extents have already been significantly reduced to an absolute acceptable minimum; officers recommend that the restrictions be implemented as advertised.

With regards to Proposal 5 – Ryehill Road, Flimby four objections had been received to the proposal to introduce sections of “No Waiting At Any Time” restrictions (double yellow lines) at the junctions of School Drive, Rye Hill Crescent, Lowther Street and Farmers Way.  all concerning loss of parking and two of these claiming that problems only arose around the school, and at school times.

The Traffic Management Officer explained that the proposed restrictions were minimal and are located where parking should not occur at any time of day. The restrictions located away from the school had been proposed in anticipation of “moving problems elsewhere” should restrictions only be implemented outside the school. Therefore, officers recommended to Committee that this proposal be implemented as advertised.

With regards to Proposal 11 – Church Street/Christian Street, Maryport members heard that two objections had been received in relation to the “No Waiting at Any Time” restriction (double yellow lines) to replace a section of “No Waiting Mon-Fri 8:30am – 9:30am, 2:30pm – 4:00pm” (single yellow lines) in order to prevent obstructive parking that often took place at either end of the school day. The objections stated that the proposal would have no effect and would require enforcement and objected to the loss of parking.

The Local Member for Maryport North commented on how dangerous  ...  view the full minutes text for item 38.

To consider a report from the Executive Director – Economy and Infrastructure.

Members considered a report from the Executive Director – Economy and Infrastructure which provided an update to the Local Committee on plans to create an off-street car parking order to cover the Maryport and Workington transport hubs and to install electric charging points, and to introduce a daily charge to cover maintenance costs. Members were reminded that this item was previously discussed at Local Committee in November 2021 and at an informal members briefing in March 2022. The Commercial Development Lead explained to members that the updated report addressed a variety of points raised by Members.

The Commercial Development Lead explained to members why the preferred option in the study was to install six new 7kW EVCPs at the hubs with associated upgrades to the power supply (‘the Phase One EVCP Project’).New power supplies at both sites would create future expansion potential for up to a further 162 EVCP’s in total.

The Council’s consultants PodPoint were asked to set out the ‘usage case’ for the installation of 7kW EVCPs versus EVCPs of 22kW and above. Their findings revealed that more than 90% of all electric vehicles on the road today could only draw a single-phase current from a 22kW charge-point, which equates to a maximum 7kW draw.  Even vehicles that could draw three phase current typically only draw a maximum combined charge of 11kW.  One hour of charging at 7kW will provide up to 30 miles of vehicle range, which exceeds the UK average daily commuting distance and as car parking at the Transport Hub sites was likely to be used for predominantly medium and long stay, it means that 7kW was likely to be sufficient to achieve full charge on most vehicles being charged. For these reasons the much greater relative cost of installing and maintaining 22kW EVCPs versus 7kW EVCPs was not currently justified. 

The primary purpose of the ‘transport hubs’ remained the promotion of sustainable modes of transport and facilitation of reduced reliance on private cars for commuting to work. The recommended charge of £1 per day was intended to be relatively nominal and affordable for commuting workers. It was proposed that these charges would be introduced at the two hubs and reviewed after 6-months. The Order would also allow for the charging regime of £1 per day to be introduced and enforced and for other contraventions in the car park to be enforced such as the prevention of people trading in the car park and other standard restrictions in off-street car parks. After a brief discussion members were assured that the cost of enforcement was not anticipated to be expensive, as Council parking enforcement officers were already engaged in on-street car parking patrols of streets adjacent to both sites.

The Commercial Development Lead addressed Member concerns over the initial proposal to prevent people leaving their vehicles overnight. It was explained that this had now been removed from the proposed order. The proposed charge of £1 per day would now only apply to vehicles parked during  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

To consider a report from the Assistant Director - Customer & Community Services.

Members considered a report from the Assistant Director – Customer and Community Services which provided an update to members on key activity across Allerdale as well as any recent developments with regard to key projects.

The Area Manager began by explaining that the Aspatria Community Hub project had been through the planning application process and the contract of work was currently out for tender. Members heard that since the initial feasibility study, the proposed extension had increased and there had been significant increases in material costs which had increased the overall estimated project cost. Further funding was to be requested from Local Committee to cover the shortfall. The Area Manager explained that once the tenders had been received a report would be provided to the Council’s Strategic Investment Group for approval to proceed with the works. It was anticipated that if approved, works would start in November 2022 and last for approximately 16 weeks.

With regards to the Cost of Living Reserve, members heard that the allocation of funds to Allerdale was £65,500. This would comprise of £26,400 for community support and £39,100 to food purchasing. The Area Manager explained that Allerdale Local Committee would have decision making responsibility in the distribution of funds to ensure the best use of funds to alleviate some of the challenges families are facing. Members noted that a workshop would take place after the conclusion of the Local Committee to discuss how and where this funding should be directed.

The Public Health Locality Manager provided an update on theCommunity Alcohol Partnership (CAP) and explained that following the recent award for tackling underage drinkingand promoting the health and wellbeing of local young people, the Community Development and Public Health Team attended an awards event at Netherhall school where 28 young students who completed a Level 2 Young Health Champions Course received an award and certificate.

Members heard that the Level 2 qualification was a valuable Public Health qualification designed to provide young people with the confidence and skills to become health champions and was equivalent to a GCSE. As part of the award, the students were given £250 from CAP to spend on schemes of their choice relating to reducing alcohol related harm in young people and education around National Campaigns.

The Area Manager then provided an update on the Community Catalyst Micro-Enterprise programme. There were now 12 new enterprises started in the Allerdale area and signed up to our Cumbria Small Good Stuff website where information about local care enterprises could be found.

Members asked whether the new enterprises

RESOLVED that,                 members note the contents of the report.

To consider a report from the Assistant Director - Customer & Community Services.

Members considered a report from the Assistant Director – Customer and Community Services which presented grant applications in excess of £5,000 for consideration and approval from the 2022-23 budget.

The Community Services Manager reminded members that the Aspatria Community Hub Project would see an extension to the existing Library building in Aspatria to create a community hub with a family focus.

The work had been out to tender and £489,000 had been secured from the councils central Area Planning budget. Additional funding was likely to be required due to an increase in the proposed extension size and the recent significant price increases in material costs. The project team requested that the existing carried forward, ring-fenced area planning budgets of £88,368 from General Provisions and £5,080 from 0-19 are allocated to the project and an additional amount of £25,000 be awarded from the current year 0-19 budget.

Members heard that Wigton Theatre Club would like to purchase solar panel batteries and replace their domestic lighting with LEDs to enable them to substantially reduce their energy bills.The club reports existing solar panels would be more effective utilising batteries to store electricity generated during the day to use in the evenings when most of their performances take place.

The total cost of the project was £40,000 and the group were applying to local committee for £9,000 of the General Provision funding. A further £1,000 had already been committed to the project from the Local Member’s allocations.

Keswick Youth Centre Services (KYCS), an independent rural youth charity provides a youth service to young people age 8-25 living in Keswick and the surrounding area. KYCS had been planning to deliver a permanent sustainable Youth Centre since 2010 following the demolition of Keswick Old Mill Youth Centre. They had now submitted a planning application to develop the Old Mill site which will need to be supported by a Flood Risk Assessment, Drainage Plan and Otter Survey.

The total cost of the project was £11,089 and the organisation were applying to Local Committee for £10,000 from the General Provision Fund.

Members heard that the Pause programme had been designed to address the needs of women who had experienced, or were at risk of, repeat pregnancies that result in children being looked after by the local authority.

They were looking for funding for an additional countywide peripatetic Pause Practitioner. The aim of the post was to enhance the existing service and provide additional support. The funding would be used to trial the position and attempt to establish how a peripatetic practitioner could support the team.

The total cost of the project was £66,237 and the organisation were applying to Local Committee for £11,040 from the General Provision Fund.

The Aspatria Dreamscheme is a community development organisation based in Aspatria. The Food Pantry had been running from their premises for 2 years and had been accessed by over 100 families and individuals. To enhance their service, they had recently acquired additional premises in Aspatria, Chapel’s Rest,  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41.

To receive updates from Allerdale’s Local Committee Champions

The Armed Forces Champion provided an updated on a recent event.

There were no verbal reports from members serving on Outside Bodies on this occasion.

The next meeting will be held in the Annex Building, West Cumbria House on  7 November 2022 at 10am.

The next meeting of the Allerdale Local Committee will take place on 7 November 2022 in Annex Building, West Cumbria.