Minutes of meeting March 2008

Held 19 March at Wesley Road Club at 8pm

Attendance: Nicola Horrell (Chair), Mark McLauchlan (minutes), Drew Thomas, Claudia Hodds, Sue Gibbs, Mary Carter, Mary Beer, Lisa Etherton, James Crompton

Apologies: Graham Hedley, Fran Markotic

NH invited the meeting to read the minutes and approve – the minutes of last month’s meeting were read – there were no amendments. She then suggested an agenda and invited additions.

Parking: There has been a spate of double parking along Gloucester Road and on Newtown too – tickets have been issued but it seems to be continuing. There will be a warden for ticketing from June/July for dangerous parking. Claudia said that it seems that the cars for sale at the side of road have gone for the time being.

Neighbourhood Tasking Group: Concerns highlighted for Newtown included looking at rerouting the school buses that currently drive down Gloucester Road. They are hoping to introduce a new bus schedule and to try and use Wingfield Road more. Apparently, the large dog which has been allowed to foul the area by its owner will soon be moving away with its family. Fly-tipping was raised as a problem, but this affects mostly College Road and Studley Green at this time.

Designated Public Place Order: Stallards Park has received one of these orders. I obtained information on what this entails, as follows:
The Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 (CJPA) gave local authorities the power to designate public areas through the introduction of a DPPO where it is an offence to drink alcohol after being required by a police officer not to do so. The police have the power to require individuals to surrender the alcohol and any opened or sealed containers, and if they fail to comply with the request they can be arrested. The powers – which replaced the old drinking byelaws - were introduced to help the police deal with the problems of anti-social drinking in the public space. DPPOs make it easier for local authorities to designate places where restrictions on public drinking will apply and can be used in areas that have experienced alcohol-related disorder or nuisance.

The police (and Community Safety Officers accredited through a community safety accreditation scheme), have powers to control the consumption of alcohol within the designated area. If they believe someone is consuming alcohol or intends to consume alcohol they can:

i. require them to stop; and
ii. confiscate alcohol from people whether the drinking vessel is unopened or not.

If someone, without a reasonable excuse, fails to comply with the officer's request they are committing an offence and further action can be taken: ­

iii. a penalty notice for disorder of £50; ­
iv. arrest and prosecution for a level 2 fine (max £500); ­
v. bail conditions can be used to stop the individual from drinking in public.

Unfortunately, the DPPO stops at Newtown and is not likely to be introduced here in the near future.

Multiple Occupancy Dwellings: Reminder to tell Graham Hoggs of WWCC Housing Department if you know of any MODs. Graham Hedley to give update when next present.

Table top sale: It was suggested that we ask the management of Wesley Road Club if it might be possible to hold a table top sale there on one Saturday during summer. Nicola Horrell said that she would ask the management.

Update from the Trowbridge Community Area Future meeting, attended by Fran Markotic on 13th March 2008:

Child Safety Scheme: This is now in force in the town centre. Several shops have stickers in their windows, denoting them safe spaces for children who feel that they are in danger. The scheme has been recently rolled out to a further 13 shops.

Police Enquiry Office in Trowbridge: This is soon to be remanned during daytime hours, 9am to 8pm Monday to Saturday from approximately mid-April.

CCTV: Still no idea when we will get one. It is considered to be a low priority for Newtown/Gloucester Road, etc. There is a lack of funds and organisation.

Police Call Centre: Those who visited were very impressed. More staff have been recruited and there are now fewer delays in response time. There are still problems with the follow through, that is, who is responsible for doing the different tasks. There were 29,000 calls in December for the 0845 number alone and 26,000 to the emergency services, 95% of which were answered within 20 seconds.

Police & Town Council are running “Blues & Twos” nights – a ‘nightclub’ for young people (12-16 years old). They arrange transport and entrance is £2 which includes a soft drink. During the last one, calls to the police about anti-social behaviour dropped significantly. Further nights are planned.

Rock-climbing: a new rock-climbing wall is to be opened at the Fire Station on the 28th March for 12-17 year olds.

Neighbourhood Policing and Tasking Groups:
Dave Cullop is reviewing these and they will be scrutinised to ascertain their value/efficacy, including the priorities that have emerged through discussion.

Useful Numbers_____________________________________________________________________

For problems with roads, signs and lighting, contact CLARENCE (Customer Lighting And Roads ENquiry Centre), a Wiltshire County Council service to allow you to easily report road, signs and lighting defects and hazards.
Email: clarence@wiltshire.gov.uk or call freephone 0800 232323 or 01225 777234 by mobile or from outside Wiltshire. They comprise a team of 20 Parish Stewards who are responsible for trimming back plant growth around signs, grass verges, unblocking street drains, potholes, road floods, etc.

Police and Police Community Support Officers___________________________________________
Telephone: 0845 408 7000
Our Police and PCSO team are:
PC 2212 Jo Bagg
PCSO 6142 Mike Caine
PCSO 6163 Maria Badder
Use this telephone number to report incidents of crime to the police team.

Upcoming Meeting Dates_for 2008_____________________________________________________
All on Thursdays at 8pm at the Wesley Road Club:
17th April
22nd May
19th June
24th July