The Constituency Manager provided an update on progress in relation to the following matters that were raised at the meeting held on 30 October 2013 –

·  Wirral West Committee Handbook (minute 4 refers)

Work was ongoing to develop the Wirral West Committee handbook, which would be circulated to Councillors and Community Representatives for consultation at the earliest opportunity. The Council’s four Constituency Managers were working collectively to ensure that handbooks for each Committee were consistent where necessary and that they reflected best practice.

·  Community Asset Audit/Constituency Plan (minute 7 refers)

The development of a Community Asset Audit for Wirral West would build upon the Council’s exploration of how it could use Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) to support its vision for Wirral. Workshops had been held for key stakeholders to develop a practical understanding of the ABCD approach and it was proposed that further workshop sessions would now be held in each Constituency. Funding was being sought from Public Health for activities to take forward ABCD and to engage the wider community. In response to a question from a member of the public, the Constituency Manager provided an explanation of the assets being included in the audit not necessarily being owned by the Council. It was an audit of all the assets available to the Constituency, not solely of property.

It was proposed that the Constituency Plan would bring together the Community Asset Audit and Constituency Profile work being undertaken by Public Health (see minute 18 post) and would set out –

o  The community assets already in place in Wirral West and the community’s vision for the area (the Community Asset Audit)

o  An evidence-based assessment of local needs and priorities (the Constituency Profile)

o  How the community, the Council and public service partners in Wirral West would come together to address local needs and priorities by building on community assets (the Constituency Plan)

·  Love Wirral (minute 8 refers)

The closing date for grant applications under the ‘Love Wirral’ campaign was 6 December 2013 and she indicated that 28 applications had been received for Wirral West. The next stage of the process was an assessment of the applications, followed by a two week online vote to commence on 13 January 2014. A breakdown of the applications on a ward by ward basis would be provided to Members and she confirmed that the result of the vote for Wirral West projects would be subject to endorsement and approval by the Constituency Committee to enable funding to be awarded between 10 and 21 March 2014.

All of the concerns expressed by Members had been fed back to the officers responsible for administering the grant and clarification was provided upon a number of issues. In relation to a specific concern about digital exclusion, Members were advised that the use of online voting would now be complemented by a paper voting system and, in response to concerns expressed, she confirmed that steps would be in place to ensure that voting was not duplicated.

·  Website Development (minute 6 refers)

To achieve greater participation, officers had investigated the feasibility of a dedicated website for the Constituency Committee. It had been recognised that there were a number of existing community websites, which were assets on which to build and the matter would be addressed as part of the Community Asset Audit. In the meantime, dedicated pages on the Council’s website were being developed for each of the Constituency Committees to ensure that information was easily accessible.

In response to questions from Members, the Constituency Manager proposed to investigate whether links could be provided to other community websites. She highlighted issues associated with the provision of an interactive website and indicated that the use of social media was also being investigated. A further update would be provided to the next meeting.

·  Constituency Budget 2013/2014 (minute 7 refers)

Members had been consulted upon work that had been undertaken to develop an approach to allocate the Committee’s budget, taking into consideration the wish of the Committee that it should be allocated equally between wards.

It was proposed that the criteria for the allocation of grants from the Wirral West Community Fund allocation (total £50k - £10k per ward) would be very simple – for community groups to improve the quality of life in Wirral West through projects to impact positively on local people and places. Applications would be welcomed from 20 December 2013 to 31 January 2014, prior to a large-scale event then being held in February 2014 at which the Wirral West community would be able to decide on whether or not the projects put forward should be funded. Further details would be widely communicated throughout the Constituency and measures would be put in place to ensure that applications met the necessary criteria, that the voting process at the event would be fair and transparent, and that applicants and the wider community would have a clear understanding about the process and be given every opportunity to be involved.

The criteria for the allocation of the Wirral West Public Health Fund (total £25k - £5k per ward) would be specifically aimed at improving public health and a targeted approach would be undertaken with organisations to develop applications. The approach would take into account existing programmes of activity and ensure that the specific outcomes and indicators identified in connection with the allocation were addressed and that any projects funded would have a clear focus on sustainability. The recently published annual report of the Director of Public Health entitled Social Isolation provided useful context.

The Constituency Manager reported also upon the allocation of an additional £25k to each Constituency Committee from the Public Health Outcomes Fund, previously reported to the Cabinet (minute 120 (10 December 2013) refers).

In response to questions from Members, she indicated that the limits for grant allocations were up to £1000 from the Community Fund and up to £3000 from the Public Health Fund. Applicants could apply to both funds but not for the same project. An explanatory document had been developed for applicants, which would be circulated to Members for information and published on the Council’s website.

·  Monitoring of Attendance (minute 6 refers)

A robust system of attendance monitoring would be undertaken at all future meetings of the Committee to ensure that an accurate record was maintained as to where those in attendance had travelled from. To support the process, members of the public would be requested to sign in to help ensure that attendance was as representative as possible.

Resolved – That the report be noted.