Agenda and minutes

Venue: Brunswick Room - Guildhall, Bath. View directions

Contact: Marie Todd  01225 394414

Items
No. Item

17.

WELCOME AND INTRODUCTIONS

Minutes:

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

18.

EMERGENCY EVACUATION PROCEDURE

The Chair will draw attention to the emergency evacuation procedure as set out on the Agenda.

Minutes:

The Democratic Services Officer read out the emergency evacuation procedure.

19.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE AND SUBSTITUTION

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were received from Bill Shaw who was unwell.  Members wished him a speedy recovery.

20.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

At this point in the meeting declarations of interest are received from Members in any of the agenda items under consideration at the meeting. Members are asked to indicate:

(a) The agenda item number in which they have an interest to declare.

(b) The nature of their interest.

(c) Whether their interest is a disclosable pecuniary interest or an other interest,  (as defined in Part 2, A and B of the Code of Conduct and Rules for Registration of Interests)

Any Member who needs to clarify any matters relating to the declaration of interests is recommended to seek advice from the Council’s Monitoring Officeror a member of his staff before the meeting to expedite dealing with the item during the meeting.

Minutes:

There were no declarations of interest.

21.

TO ANNOUNCE ANY URGENT BUSINESS AGREED BY THE CHAIR

The Chair will announce any items of urgent business accepted since the agenda was prepared under the Access to Information provisions.

Minutes:

(a)  Park Benches

 

The Chair informed members that, at the request of the Parks Team, some benches in Alice Park have been removed as they were in poor condition and were deteriorating.  The Chair has provisionally agreed to expenditure of approximately £1,400 to provide replacement slats for the benches to bring them back into use.

 

RESOLVED: To approve the expenditure of £1,400 to enable the benches in Alice Park to be brought back into use.

 

(b)  The Ward Councillors for Lambridge (Cllrs Rob Appleyard and Joanna Wright) are proposing to offer £1,500 from their community pot allocation to the Alice Park Trust to plant some cherry trees in the park.  There has been a long-held ambition to create an avenue of cherry trees and the Trust would also then be able to sell commemorative space within the park.  Cllr Sally Davis and Holly Dabbs both confirmed that they support this donation to the Trust.

22.

ITEMS FROM THE PUBLIC - TO RECEIVE DEPUTATIONS, STATEMENTS, PETITIONS OR QUESTIONS

Minutes:

There were no public questions or statements.

23.

MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING pdf icon PDF 138 KB

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 16 September 2021.

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 16 September 2021 were confirmed and signed as a correct record.

24.

CHAIR'S UPDATE

To receive an update from the Chair including:

 

·  Friends of Alice Park proposal

 

·  To consider Alice Park Trust becoming a member of 3SG

Minutes:

The Chair gave an update on the following issues:

 

(a)  Friends of Alice Park

 

There have been discussions in the past about forming a “Friends of Alice Park” group. 

 

Holly Dabbs stated that the way that such a group is created and run is very important.  The impetus should come from the local community rather than from any particular business within the park.  One example of a successful group locally is the “Friends of Hedgemead Park”.

 

The Chair explained that a friends group would not be involved with the overall management of the park, as the governance structure is agreed by the Charitable Trust Board.  A friends group would not have decision making powers in relation to the running of the park.

 

The Legal Officer stated that a friends group should be properly constituted and that a proposal to form such a group should be brought to the Alice Park Trust Sub-Committee for approval.

 

It was confirmed that the Parks Team in the Council already works very constructively with several friends groups.  There is a basic agreement for such groups (a memorandum of understanding) to ensure clarity.  These groups provide support with:

 

·  Running activities

·  Fundraising

·  Community representation

 

RESOLVED (unanimously):

 

(1)  To ask anyone wishing to create a friends group to bring forward a proposal for consideration by the sub-committee.

 

(2)  To agree that Holly Dabbs draft an email to send to any interested groups and forward this to the Democratic Services Officer for circulation.

 

(b)  Membership of 3SG

 

The Chair explained that 3SG is a membership network of social enterprises, charities, trusts and community groups.  The group has recently played a significant part in the community wellbeing hub in B&NES.  It can provide access to training and other opportunities.  The annual membership fee is in the region of £25.  It was felt that it would be advantageous for the Trust to become a member of the group.

 

RESOLVED (unanimously): To submit an application for the Alice Park Trust to become a member of 3SG.

25.

ALICE PARK ANNUAL REPORT AND STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS 2020-21 pdf icon PDF 111 KB

To consider and approve the Statement of Accounts and Annual Report for the year ending 31 March 2021 for submission to the Charity Commission.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The sub-committee considered a report setting out the annual report and statement of accounts for the year ending 2020-21.  The deadline for submission to the Charity Commission is 31 January 2022.

 

RESOLVED (unanimously):

 

(1)  To agree and sign the financial statements of the Alice Park Trust for the year ending 31 March 2021 and their submission to the Charity Commission.

 

(2)  To agree and sign the Annual Report for the Alice Park Trust for the year ending 31 March 2021 and its submission to the Charity Commission.

26.

QUARTERLY BUDGET MONITORING REPORT pdf icon PDF 323 KB

To note and consider the quarterly budget and forecast report for the Alice Park Trust, including the recommendations laid out in Section 4.

Minutes:

The sub-committee considered a report setting out the 2021/22 budgets and current year financial position.  It was noted that due to the Covid-19 pandemic this has been a difficult year with reduced use of the park.  The Trust continues to request a financial contribution from those people and organisations that use the park for commercial purposes.

 

RESOLVED (unanimously):

 

(1)  To note the budget and forecast update for 2021/22.

 

(2)  To continue to focus on the 10-year plan, which aims to expand income generation within the park.

27.

SKATE PARK LOCATION pdf icon PDF 68 KB

The sub-committee is asked to approve the revised plan showing the location of the skatepark as set out in appendix 1 of the report.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The sub-committee considered a report regarding the positioning of the skatepark and leased area in Alice Park.  It was noted that the reason for the change in location of the skate park was due to the proximity of the trees following advice from the arboriculturist.

 

RESOLVED (unanimously): To approve the revised plan showing the location of the skatepark as set out in Appendix 1 of the report.

28.

UPDATE ON THE ALICE PARK PLAY AREA PROJECT (APPA)

To receive an update from members on the Alice Park Play Area Project workstreams:

 

·  Public consultation and engagement - Joanna and Holly

 

·  Finance and community giving - Rob and Bill

 

·  Equipment sourcing and overall play area plan - Sally and Rob

Minutes:

The sub-committee received the following updates regarding the Alice Park Play Area Project:

 

·  Public Consultation and Engagement – consideration has been given to the Bath Area Play Project report.  Three providers have been selected for further consideration who will be asked to present ideas and submit costs for the play equipment.

 

·  Finance and Community Giving – Two key areas of funding have been identified:

 

o  Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding.  This is a tranche of money from developer contributions and applications are considered by an advisory group who then make a recommendation to the Leader of the Council.

o  Crowd Funding.

 

Cllr Appleyard also agreed to investigate the possibility of obtaining lottery funding and the criteria for this.  It was also noted that maintenance will be an ongoing cost.

 

·  Equipment Sourcing and Overall Play Area Plan – A masterplan will need to be developed for the play area and timings for each phase of the project will need to be considered.

 

The Parks Team Leader stated that maintenance costs for the play area are currently £8k per year.  This could increase depending on the type of equipment provided.  The sub-committee agreed to consult the parks team on any proposals for the play area to ascertain the level of maintenance costs going forward.

29.

ALICE PARK COMMUNITY GARDEN PROJECT pdf icon PDF 90 KB

To consider the attached correspondence from the Alice Park Community Garden Project and Alice Park Café.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The Chair paid tribute to the work carried out by the Community Garden project which is very valuable to the local community.  However, the group does not currently have a formal agreement with the Trust.  If the community garden space is formalised, then it must operate under a fair set of criteria.

 

One issue that has arisen recently is the process for the hire of the gazebo in the park.  There is also a cost to the Trust as it maintains the areas adjacent to the community garden.  It was confirmed that the gazebo has the necessary planning permission as an application was submitted by Transition Larkhall.

 

Cllr Wright explained that the community garden has generated some income which has been put back into the garden.  There is some concern that the Trust now wishes to commodify community spirit.  The barn area generates some income, and this is a community-based activity. 

 

The Legal Advisor proposed that a discussion should take place with the Property Services Team to ascertain how the sub-committee can best support the community garden on a more formal basis.  For example, a licence or lease at a peppercorn.

 

Holly Dabbs stated that the community garden does not operate on the same basis as a business and that a face-to-face conversation with the group would be the best way forward.

 

RESOLVED (unanimously): To hold further discussions with both the Community Garden organisation and the Alice Park Café to identify the best way forward.

30.

DATE OF NEXT MEETING

To consider when the sub-committee next wishes to meet.

Minutes:

The sub-committee agreed to hold a virtual “progress report” meeting in March.