| BETF.416 | No declarations of interest were made in relation to any items considered at the meeting.
|
| BETF.417 | Following the last meeting, it transpired that the elected Chair, Darren Durham of Freedom Church Bury, was ineligible to take up the position by virtue of the fact that he is employed by Bury Council. Therefore the election process for the position of Chair was again carried out at the meeting.
Councillors D M Cassidy and T Tariq and Gemma Philburn of Streetwise 2000, nominated Tan Ahmed of ADAB as Chair of the Bury East Township Forum, which was seconded by Councillor T Holt.
|
| BETF.419 | The Leader of the Council, Councillor Mike Connolly and the Executive Director of Resource, Mike Owen, gave a presentation at the meeting.
Councillor Connolly explained that between April 2011 and March 2015 the Council had to find savings of £32 million. £14.4 million savings in 2011/2012 alone and then £7.9 million in 2012/2013, £4.1 million in 2013/2014 and £5.7 million in 2014/2015.
The Council receives money from Council tax (53%), National non domestic rates (41%) and Government Grants (6%). However, the Government have proposed a Council Tax freeze for 2012/2013 and Bury’s Government grant is being cut by £21 million between 2010 and 2015 which is a larger grant cut than other Councils.
During August and September the Council undertook one of the largest consultation exercises in the Borough to ask residents and visitors to prioritise the range of services that the Council deliver. Over three and a half thousand people took part in the Choices Consultation and identified four of the ten choices that mattered most:
- Supporting vulnerable people
- A strong local economy
- A decent place to live
- Maintaining opportunities for high quality education and training
The Council plan to make savings in the following areas over the next three years:
- Internal Efficiencies savings of £10.4 million
- New Proposals in priority areas of £4.1 million
- Savings from existing work which had already been agreed in earlier decisions of £3.2 million
The next step will be the Budget Proposal Consultation, where the Council will consult with residents and stakeholders on the programme of savings that reflect the priorities identified in the Council Choices Consultation. This will be followed by feedback and analysis which will be fed into the budget setting process for 2012/2013 and 2014/ 2015 and then the Council will discuss and debate the budget and finalise the savings that must be made.
Councillor Connolly explained that residents can be involved by viewing the proposals online and submitting feedback and attending public meetings or writing/emailing the Council by 13 January 2012.
Questions/comments were invited from those present at the meeting and the following issues were raised:-
- Tim Boaden, Seedfield TRA, stated that he had completed the Plan For Change survey and was thankful for the opportunity to do so. It was very important how the ten choices were prioritised and asked if the community’s needs may be more in terms of Council services being delivered in certain areas than in looking for other areas to receive funding?
Councillor Connolly stated that the Council plan to make over £10 million savings on internal efficiencies and that the Council did not have the luxury of funding all ten priorities equally.
- The Chair, Tan Ahmed, asked about the actual cost to the Council as all the information was regarding the savings.
Councillor Connolly explained that information was available on the Council’s Website on how much money is spent on services in the Borough.
- A member of the public asked why Bury was to receive a bigger grant cut than other Authorities?
Councillor Connolly stated that Bury’s grant was being cut by 9% whereas the average cut across England would be 7.4%, however this was a Government decision.
- A Member of the public expressed concerns regarding the loss of the Youth Service and Child Tax Benefit Cuts.
Councillor Connolly explained that there was a working group to review the Youth Service with Councillor Tariq as Chair. He stated that cuts had to be made and the Council had to set a balanced legal budget, which would be finalised at full Council on 22 February 2012.
|
| BETF.420 | The Township Forum received a presentation from David Wiggins, Principal Planning Officer. The presentation outlined the purpose of the Strategy within Bury and the key issues and aims for Bury East.
It was reported that The Core Strategy comprises of two main elements; firstly the Spatial Development Strategy which sets out how much development the Borough needs to accommodate to 2028; where this development will be focused and areas of the Borough where built development will be restrained and secondly, the Development Management Policies, these policies would primarily be used as the basis for determining future planning applications.
David Wiggins reported some key issues and aims pertinent to Bury East contained with the strategy, these included:
- Regeneration
- Employment
- Housing
- Retail
- Tourism and Culture
The Principal Planning Officer reported that the Consultation on the draft Publication Core Strategy would run from 18 November 2011 to 13 January 2012; copies of the Core Strategy and supporting documents would be available at the Town Hall, the Planning Office at Knowsley Place and in all public libraries.
Questions and comments were invited from Members of the Township Forum and the following issues were raised:
- Tan Ahmed, Chair of Bury East Township Forum asked why 2028?
David Wiggins replied that this would be the end of the period for future planning to accommodate the growth and development across the Borough.
- Councillor Ahmed asked about vacant properties currently standing in the Borough with over 4,000 people on the waiting list for housing.
David Wiggins stated that vacant properties were not a planning issue as they were owned by individual landlords. The core strategy was for additional new housing.
|
| BETF.421 | The Bury East Township Forum considered a presentation by Helen Sigsworth, Patient Experience Manager, NHS Bury, on the proposed changes to planned cardiology and stroke rehabilitation services within Bury and Rochdale.
Helen explained that the heart and stroke consultation that was taking place would end on 14 January 2012 and asked that people get involved in the consultation by completing a questionnaire, emailing, telephoning or visiting the website. It was explained that all of the views would be collated and analysed and a full consultation report with recommendations would be made available.
The proposals for planned cardiology would include:
- Improved local provision for the prevention and early detection of heart disease
Relocate complicated and high risk planned procedures from Rochdale Infirmary to Fairfield General Hospital where access to anaesthetics and critical care would be available
- Maintain outpatient services on all sites
- Improve the early diagnosis of heart disease via the development of less invasive diagnostic techniques
- Continue to develop cardiac rehabilitation services
The proposals for planned stroke services would include:
Option A
Stroke rehabilitation will be delivered in a specialist stroke unit that deals with the medical treatment needed immediately after a stroke. For the majority of Rochdale residents, this will be at Fairfield General Hospital. For those patients that are ready to go home, they will receive rehabilitation care from a community (local) team.
Option B
This is exactly the same as option A, but with the addition of a ‘step-down’ facility in the Borough for Rochdale patients. This offers care for a short period in a residential environment and would mean potentially cutting services elsewhere.
Questions and comments were invited from Members of the Township Forum and the following issues were raised:
- Lesley Wildeman, Topping Fold TRA, stated that quite an extensive Healthy Futures Consultation had already previously taken place.
Helen stated that further consultations were a legal duty to the public.
- Tan Ahmed, the Chair of the Township Forum asked how finances were managed in the running of services and the cost implications.
Helen replied that the Healthy Futures Team would be looking at issues such as transport and parking and also bid for funding. All of these elements would be fed into the consultation process to try and support the pilot.
- Councillor Byrne commented that he did not feel Option B, in the current economic climate which would require significant funding would be possible.
Helen replied that she would feed back all of the comments made from the Township Forum.
|
| BETF.422 | The Chair, Tan Ahmed, invited questions, comments and representations from members of the public present at the meeting. Questions were asked and comments made on the issues detailed below.
- A member of the public stated that she was disappointed that a representative from Highways was not present at the meeting as she had ongoing issues regarding the speed limit on Willow Street where she lived. Although she had complained over a number of years, still nothing had been done to rectify the problem.
The Township co-ordinator, David Thomas replied that he would put the request to Highways to attend the next Township Forum meeting in February.
- A local resident raised concerns about the state of the grounds at St. Paul’s which was being converted to flats as it was thought the Council would be tending to them.
Councillor Holt agreed this matter needed addressing and this issue had been passed on to Leisure Services. Although not all of St. Paul’s had been converted to flats at this time, really it was up to the owner to sort out the grounds
- James Hill - Pimhole Residents’ Association, raised concerns over parking issues on Heywood Street, as on a regular occurrence, there was double parking. It was very dangerous as Mothers with prams had to walk in the road to avoid the parked vehicles and other cars had to swing out to avoid them. He requested that a Police representative could attend the next meeting in order to raise these issues with the relevant authority.
The Chair, Tan Ahmed, replied that this was a concern and as there were a number of streets that had been made residents’ only parking he was unsure why this was not also. He was aware that
PCSO’s walked around this area to try and rectify these problems.
- Tim Boaden, Seedfield TRA, raised concerns regarding Walmersley Road at the junction on Peel Way, as there were a number of takeaways in that area and there was often congestion with people parking on double yellow lines to enter the takeaways and also vans delivering goods. He stated there was a lot of unused land behind the advertising boards and requested that the Council invest in the unoccupied land for parking for visiting vehicles.
Councillor Cassidy replied that she had been working with the Police, PCSO’s and Parking Enforcement Officers for a long time over this issue. It was not the same people every time parking on the double yellow lines and vans had to make their deliveries. Councillor Cassidy did not feel that a car park at the very busy junction on Peel way would be able to provide a suitable entrance.
Councillor Walmsley reported that the traffic wardens were abused for trying to enforce the no parking areas. There was a problem in that the delivery vans were unable to get round the back of the properties. Other things that could be considered were railings on the pavement or maybe a camera.
The Chair, Tan Ahmed, stated, that as there were a number of issues regarding inappropriate parking in the Bury East area that a request should be made for a Police Officer to be present at the next meeting of the Township Forum in February.
- Harry Reid reported to the Township Forum that the BESA Olympic Festival which had been organised during the October half term at Broad Oak High school, in association with Bury Sport and Physical Activity Service, had been a great success. Harry, who is the Vice Chair of BESA, helped Andrea Pilling of the Sports Development Team organise the event. He had approached the Police for a similar event but was unsure of who to contact. David Thomas, the Township Co-ordinator, explained it would be the Community Foundation.
Councillor Holt informed the Forum that Harry Reid and Andrea Pilling of the Sports Development Team had worked very hard and all credit to them for a very successful day.
- A local resident reported that although she had been issued with a brown bin it had never been collected. There was an issue in the Pimhole area as there were not enough brown bins for the green areas.
Councillor Connolly, Leader of the Council, agreed that the brown bin usage needed to still be addressed especially regarding food waste. He informed the Forum that the re-cycling in the Borough had improved greatly and increased from 27.8% to 43%.
- A resident asked about yogurt pots and other non re-cycle products.
Councillor Connolly explained that these issues were taken very seriously as to re-cycle was good for the environment and saves money but unfortunately it was out of the Council’s control at this time.
- The Chair, Tan Ahmed, stated that he would like someone from Job Centre Plus to attend the Bury East Township Forum to discuss the unemployment figures in the Borough and what training opportunities were available.
|
| BETF.423 | David Thomas, the Township Co-ordinator, gave a presentation on how residents could have their say in the community. He explained that the meeting in February would be a round table discussion. The purpose of the discussion would be to collate feedback to identify four or five key realistic and achievable priorities to incorporate within the draft Bury East area plan.
|
| BETF.424 | It was reported that the next meeting of the Bury East Township Forum would take place on Thursday 9 February at 7.00 pm at Freedom Church, Bright Street, Bury.
|
| BETF.425 | No declarations of interest were made in relation to any items considered at the meeting.
|
| BETF.426 | Following the last meeting, it transpired that the elected Chair, Darren Durham of Freedom Church Bury, was ineligible to take up the position by virtue of the fact that he is employed by Bury Council. Therefore the election process for the position of Chair was again carried out at the meeting.
Councillors D M Cassidy and T Tariq and Gemma Philburn of Streetwise 2000, nominated Tan Ahmed of ADAB as Chair of the Bury East Township Forum, which was seconded by Councillor T Holt.
|
| BETF.428 | The Leader of the Council, Councillor Mike Connolly and the Executive Director of Resource, Mike Owen, gave a presentation at the meeting.
Councillor Connolly explained that between April 2011 and March 2015 the Council had to find savings of £32 million. £14.4 million savings in 2011/2012 alone and then £7.9 million in 2012/2013, £4.1 million in 2013/2014 and £5.7 million in 2014/2015.
The Council receives money from Council tax (53%), National non domestic rates (41%) and Government Grants (6%). However, the Government have proposed a Council Tax freeze for 2012/2013 and Bury’s Government grant is being cut by £21 million between 2010 and 2015 which is a larger grant cut than other Councils.
During August and September the Council undertook one of the largest consultation exercises in the Borough to ask residents and visitors to prioritise the range of services that the Council deliver. Over three and a half thousand people took part in the Choices Consultation and identified four of the ten choices that mattered most:
- Supporting vulnerable people
- A strong local economy
- A decent place to live
- Maintaining opportunities for high quality education and training
The Council plan to make savings in the following areas over the next three years:
- Internal Efficiencies savings of £10.4 million
- New Proposals in priority areas of £4.1 million
- Savings from existing work which had already been agreed in earlier decisions of £3.2 million
The next step will be the Budget Proposal Consultation, where the Council will consult with residents and stakeholders on the programme of savings that reflect the priorities identified in the Council Choices Consultation. This will be followed by feedback and analysis which will be fed into the budget setting process for 2012/2013 and 2014/ 2015 and then the Council will discuss and debate the budget and finalise the savings that must be made.
Councillor Connolly explained that residents can be involved by viewing the proposals online and submitting feedback and attending public meetings or writing/emailing the Council by 13 January 2012.
Questions/comments were invited from those present at the meeting and the following issues were raised:-
- Tim Boaden, Seedfield TRA, stated that he had completed the Plan For Change survey and was thankful for the opportunity to do so. It was very important how the ten choices were prioritised and asked if the community’s needs may be more in terms of Council services being delivered in certain areas than in looking for other areas to receive funding?
Councillor Connolly stated that the Council plan to make over £10 million savings on internal efficiencies and that the Council did not have the luxury of funding all ten priorities equally.
- The Chair, Tan Ahmed, asked about the actual cost to the Council as all the information was regarding the savings.
Councillor Connolly explained that information was available on the Council’s Website on how much money is spent on services in the Borough.
- A member of the public asked why Bury was to receive a bigger grant cut than other Authorities?
Councillor Connolly stated that Bury’s grant was being cut by 9% whereas the average cut across England would be 7.4%, however this was a Government decision.
- A Member of the public expressed concerns regarding the loss of the Youth Service and Child Tax Benefit Cuts.
Councillor Connolly explained that there was a working group to review the Youth Service with Councillor Tariq as Chair. He stated that cuts had to be made and the Council had to set a balanced legal budget, which would be finalised at full Council on 22 February 2012.
|
| BETF.429 | The Township Forum received a presentation from David Wiggins, Principal Planning Officer. The presentation outlined the purpose of the Strategy within Bury and the key issues and aims for Bury East.
It was reported that The Core Strategy comprises of two main elements; firstly the Spatial Development Strategy which sets out how much development the Borough needs to accommodate to 2028; where this development will be focused and areas of the Borough where built development will be restrained and secondly, the Development Management Policies, these policies would primarily be used as the basis for determining future planning applications.
David Wiggins reported some key issues and aims pertinent to Bury East contained with the strategy, these included:
- Regeneration
- Employment
- Housing
- Retail
- Tourism and Culture
The Principal Planning Officer reported that the Consultation on the draft Publication Core Strategy would run from 18 November 2011 to 13 January 2012; copies of the Core Strategy and supporting documents would be available at the Town Hall, the Planning Office at Knowsley Place and in all public libraries.
Questions and comments were invited from Members of the Township Forum and the following issues were raised:
- Tan Ahmed, Chair of Bury East Township Forum asked why 2028?
David Wiggins replied that this would be the end of the period for future planning to accommodate the growth and development across the Borough.
- Councillor Ahmed asked about vacant properties currently standing in the Borough with over 4,000 people on the waiting list for housing.
David Wiggins stated that vacant properties were not a planning issue as they were owned by individual landlords. The core strategy was for additional new housing.
|
| BETF.430 | The Bury East Township Forum considered a presentation by Helen Sigsworth, Patient Experience Manager, NHS Bury, on the proposed changes to planned cardiology and stroke rehabilitation services within Bury and Rochdale.
Helen explained that the heart and stroke consultation that was taking place would end on 14 January 2012 and asked that people get involved in the consultation by completing a questionnaire, emailing, telephoning or visiting the website. It was explained that all of the views would be collated and analysed and a full consultation report with recommendations would be made available.
The proposals for planned cardiology would include:
- Improved local provision for the prevention and early detection of heart disease
Relocate complicated and high risk planned procedures from Rochdale Infirmary to Fairfield General Hospital where access to anaesthetics and critical care would be available
- Maintain outpatient services on all sites
- Improve the early diagnosis of heart disease via the development of less invasive diagnostic techniques
- Continue to develop cardiac rehabilitation services
The proposals for planned stroke services would include:
Option A
Stroke rehabilitation will be delivered in a specialist stroke unit that deals with the medical treatment needed immediately after a stroke. For the majority of Rochdale residents, this will be at Fairfield General Hospital. For those patients that are ready to go home, they will receive rehabilitation care from a community (local) team.
Option B
This is exactly the same as option A, but with the addition of a ‘step-down’ facility in the Borough for Rochdale patients. This offers care for a short period in a residential environment and would mean potentially cutting services elsewhere.
Questions and comments were invited from Members of the Township Forum and the following issues were raised:
- Lesley Wildeman, Topping Fold TRA, stated that quite an extensive Healthy Futures Consultation had already previously taken place.
Helen stated that further consultations were a legal duty to the public.
- Tan Ahmed, the Chair of the Township Forum asked how finances were managed in the running of services and the cost implications.
Helen replied that the Healthy Futures Team would be looking at issues such as transport and parking and also bid for funding. All of these elements would be fed into the consultation process to try and support the pilot.
- Councillor Byrne commented that he did not feel Option B, in the current economic climate which would require significant funding would be possible.
Helen replied that she would feed back all of the comments made from the Township Forum.
|
| BETF.431 | The Chair, Tan Ahmed, invited questions, comments and representations from members of the public present at the meeting. Questions were asked and comments made on the issues detailed below.
- A member of the public stated that she was disappointed that a representative from Highways was not present at the meeting as she had ongoing issues regarding the speed limit on Willow Street where she lived. Although she had complained over a number of years, still nothing had been done to rectify the problem.
The Township co-ordinator, David Thomas replied that he would put the request to Highways to attend the next Township Forum meeting in February.
- A local resident raised concerns about the state of the grounds at St. Paul’s which was being converted to flats as it was thought the Council would be tending to them.
Councillor Holt agreed this matter needed addressing and this issue had been passed on to Leisure Services. Although not all of St. Paul’s had been converted to flats at this time, really it was up to the owner to sort out the grounds
- James Hill - Pimhole Residents’ Association, raised concerns over parking issues on Heywood Street, as on a regular occurrence, there was double parking. It was very dangerous as Mothers with prams had to walk in the road to avoid the parked vehicles and other cars had to swing out to avoid them. He requested that a Police representative could attend the next meeting in order to raise these issues with the relevant authority.
The Chair, Tan Ahmed, replied that this was a concern and as there were a number of streets that had been made residents’ only parking he was unsure why this was not also. He was aware that
PCSO’s walked around this area to try and rectify these problems.
- Tim Boaden, Seedfield TRA, raised concerns regarding Walmersley Road at the junction on Peel Way, as there were a number of takeaways in that area and there was often congestion with people parking on double yellow lines to enter the takeaways and also vans delivering goods. He stated there was a lot of unused land behind the advertising boards and requested that the Council invest in the unoccupied land for parking for visiting vehicles.
Councillor Cassidy replied that she had been working with the Police, PCSO’s and Parking Enforcement Officers for a long time over this issue. It was not the same people every time parking on the double yellow lines and vans had to make their deliveries. Councillor Cassidy did not feel that a car park at the very busy junction on Peel way would be able to provide a suitable entrance.
Councillor Walmsley reported that the traffic wardens were abused for trying to enforce the no parking areas. There was a problem in that the delivery vans were unable to get round the back of the properties. Other things that could be considered were railings on the pavement or maybe a camera.
The Chair, Tan Ahmed, stated, that as there were a number of issues regarding inappropriate parking in the Bury East area that a request should be made for a Police Officer to be present at the next meeting of the Township Forum in February.
- Harry Reid reported to the Township Forum that the BESA Olympic Festival which had been organised during the October half term at Broad Oak High school, in association with Bury Sport and Physical Activity Service, had been a great success. Harry, who is the Vice Chair of BESA, helped Andrea Pilling of the Sports Development Team organise the event. He had approached the Police for a similar event but was unsure of who to contact. David Thomas, the Township Co-ordinator, explained it would be the Community Foundation.
Councillor Holt informed the Forum that Harry Reid and Andrea Pilling of the Sports Development Team had worked very hard and all credit to them for a very successful day.
- A local resident reported that although she had been issued with a brown bin it had never been collected. There was an issue in the Pimhole area as there were not enough brown bins for the green areas.
Councillor Connolly, Leader of the Council, agreed that the brown bin usage needed to still be addressed especially regarding food waste. He informed the Forum that the re-cycling in the Borough had improved greatly and increased from 27.8% to 43%.
- A resident asked about yogurt pots and other non re-cycle products.
Councillor Connolly explained that these issues were taken very seriously as to re-cycle was good for the environment and saves money but unfortunately it was out of the Council’s control at this time.
- The Chair, Tan Ahmed, stated that he would like someone from Job Centre Plus to attend the Bury East Township Forum to discuss the unemployment figures in the Borough and what training opportunities were available.
|
| BETF.432 | David Thomas, the Township Co-ordinator, gave a presentation on how residents could have their say in the community. He explained that the meeting in February would be a round table discussion. The purpose of the discussion would be to collate feedback to identify four or five key realistic and achievable priorities to incorporate within the draft Bury East area plan.
|
| BETF.433 | It was reported that the next meeting of the Bury East Township Forum would take place on Thursday 9 February at 7.00 pm at Freedom Church, Bright Street, Bury.
|