Agenda item

Councillors and members of the public may register their intention to make a statement if they notify the subject matter of their statement before the deadline.  Statements are limited to 3 minutes each.  The speaker may then be asked by Cabinet members to answer factual questions arising out of their statement.

The Chair welcomed Councillor Robin Moss (Chair, Economic and Community Development PDS Panel) to the meeting and asked him to introduce his Panel’s recommendations relating to disability access to Keynsham Leisure Centre.

Councillor Moss in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 2 and on the Council's website] explained that the Panel had been petitioned by residents about the issue.  The Panel regretted that opportunities to resolve the issue had been missed in the past.  He emphasised to Cabinet the shared responsibility to ensure disability access.

The Chair thanked Councillor Moss for his statement and promised to respond to the Panel’s recommendations.

Jonathan Rich (Peasedown St John Parish Councillor) made a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 3 and on the Council's website] relating to the Junction of A367 and Bath Road in Peasedown St John.  He presented a petition of 1422 signatures asking for additional s.106 money to be allocated to the proposed budget so that urgent safety improvements could be made at the junction.

The Chair thanked Jonathan for his statement and assured him that the petition would inform the debate leading up to Budget council.

Lesley Mansell (Chair, Radstock TC) made a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 4 and on the Council's website] supporting the petition presented by Jonathan Rich and reminded Cabinet that the recent Resources Panel had also recommended to Cabinet that road safety measures at the junction should be looked at.

The Chair thanked Lesley for her statement and confirmed that the issue would be addressed in the lead up to Budget council.

Gerald Chown in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 5 and on the Council's website] asked for a 20mph speed limit for the whole of Widcombe Hill.

The Chair thanked Gerald for his statement and promised to respond to the petition as soon as possible.

Fiona Bell (Chair, The Volunteer Centre, Bath) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 6 and on the Council's website] appealed to Cabinet to allocate additional funding support of £10K to enable the Volunteer Centre to continue to operate while it secures other funding sources.

The Chair thanked Fiona for her statement and promised to give urgent attention to her request.

[Later in the meeting, Councillor Crossley indicated that the Cabinet would give consideration to provision of funds of £10K from the current year’s budget to support the Volunteer Centre until it could secure other funding.  This would avoid making any change to the proposed budget for the coming year.]

Bleddyn Phillips (Trustee, Keynsham Dial-a-Ride) in a statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 7 and on the Council's website] relating to Item 19 on the Agenda (Funding for Community Transport) asked that Cabinet review the distribution of funds to correct a perceived inequity between the Keynsham and Norton Radstock Dial-a-Rides.  He welcomed the Council’s recognition of the part that community transport can play in the well-being agenda.

The Chair thanked Bleddyn for his statement and promised a detailed response as soon as possible.

Councillor Martin Veale in an ad hoc statement [a copy of which is attached to the Minutes as Appendix 8 and on the Council's website] supported Fiona Bell’s appeal to Cabinet to allocate additional funding support of £10K to enable it to continue while it secures other funding sources.