No declarations of interest were received.

RESOLVED:

That the minutes of the Birkenhead Constituency Committee held on 28 November, 2013, be approved.

The Committee considered the report of the Head of Neighbourhoods and Engagement updating on progress in relation to the actions identified at its meeting on 28 November 2013 (Minute 9 refers).

Ms Dawn Tolcher, Constituency Manager introduced the report highlighting the action to be undertaken and the progress to date.

In relation the recruitment of a post graduate to undertake further analysis and provide conclusions and recommendations on the priorities to inform the Constituency Plan. Two member’s and the Constituency Manager indicated that they had met with academics from Liverpool University who would be assisting with the task of collating the public spen in Birkenhead. some data was presented at the previous committee meeting but now the work will focus on the spend on services for children under 5 to help us shape our early intervention work.

In relation to constituency profiling, Ms Tolcher indicated that a session was to be held with Members on Tuesday 3 February 2014, to update them on the Constituency Profile that public health have formulated. A Member stressed the need for the Committee to be more proactive in accessing all available funding streams.

A task and finish group was established to determine the priorities and proposals for spend in 2013/14.

The Group suggested that the priorities for the funding allocation for this financial year were improving the environment, Date Audit of current spend and need ; improving services for young people and improving communication with the community.

Lead Members for each of the four priorities introduced the priorities and highlighted the recommendations which required approval from the Committee. The following comments were made:-

Improving the Environment

A Member indicated that this priority was looking at tackling the issue of cleanliness of entries. Funding had now been identified to improve this as part of a pilot project. It was suggested that aside from BIFFA, funding could be used to fund the employment of officers to assist in regular cleansing of the “hotspots”. It was further suggested that education and promotion could be enhance to encourage the public to care for their environment.

A Member suggested that the community payback team could be asked for assistance.

Ms Tolcher, Constituency Manager indicated that as part of this project, the issue of prosecution would be looked into and a report would be presented at the next meeting indicating prosecution rates and how we can make people more aware of the processes.

In response to the Chair’s question as to how many people had been prosecuted to date. A Member stressed the difficulty of gaining evidence in order to prosecute.

Members of the public commented that the increase they felt was largely down to the “bulky item” removal service now being chargeable and suggested that the Council may wish to look at waiving the fee or charge it at a reduce rate.

It was further commented that landlords also had a big part to play in the project, ensuring that their tenants cleared their property upon leaving.

A  ...  view the full minutes text for item 16.

During the Public Question and answer session the following questions/comments were raised;

(1)  Is the Wirral Youth Zone still going ahead?

In response, It was reported that the Council had committed two million pound to the project and had identified a site near to the Fire station in Birkenhead, it hoped that a further four million could be sourced. It was envisaged that work on the project would start by the end of 2105 and operating from early 2016.

Ms Tolcher indicated that the she was currently working with a group of young people to design the logo and branding for the youth zone, and update on this would brought back to the next Committee meeting.

A Member suggested that a visit to other Youth Zones could help with the development of this project.

In response to concerns raised regarding transport issues, It was reported that officers were in discussion with Merseytravel on this to ensure there was adequate transportation links to the site.

(2)  Mrs Brace indicated that despite having a disabled bay outside of her property her vehicle had been damaged by passing traffic and she was having to park on the pavement and asked what could be done about this?

In response it was reported that the issue of parking on pavements was discussed at a recent Regeneration and Environment Policy and Performance Committee and a report would be brought back to the Committee in due course.

(1)  Could we have an update on the Neptune’s Master Plan?

In response, A Member indicated that it was hoped that information on this would be received in the next few months.

(2)  Where there plans to hold weddings in Birkenhead Town Hall?

In response, Mr Joe Blott, Strategic Director of Transformation and Resources indicated that although there is a licence to hold ceremonies in the Town Hall there were no catering facilities, however the Council was looking at incorporating the whole of the Hamilton Square area to enhance the service provision.

(3)  What are the plans for the Williamson?

In response, it was reiterated that the Council do not want to close the Williamson; plans for which were contained on the budget options listed which had been previously considered by Council. There was a draft plan and this would be discussed at a meeting to be held shortly.