Agenda and minutes

Members of the public are welcome to attend our meetings to watch them in person at any of the venues across the County. Publicly accessible meetings held in County Hall will be webcast, which means they are available to be watched live or recorded on our website. Please see our webcasting notice here. The Committee may, in certain circumstances, resolve to hold part of the meeting in private. If this is the case, you will be required to leave the meeting.

Venue: Committee Room 'C' - The Duke of Lancaster Room, County Hall, Preston. View directions

Contact: Janet Mulligan  Tel: 01772 533361, Email:  janet.mulligan@lancashire.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

Councillor Neil Darby attended in place of Councillor John Potter and Parish Councillor Pat Hastings attended in place of Parish Councillor Eileen Murray.

 

Also in attendance:

 

Mark Wardale, Localities Officer, Lancashire County Council

Janet Mulligan, Democratic Services, Lancashire County Council

 

 

 

1.

Appointment of Chair

Minutes:

It was agreed that County Councillor Frank De Molfetta be appointed as the Chair of the Forum.

 

2.

Appointment of Deputy Chair

Minutes:

It was agreed that Councillor Neil Cartwright be appointed as the Deputy Chair of the Forum.

 

3.

Membership and Terms of Reference pdf icon PDF 57 KB

Minutes:

The Membership and Terms of Reference of the Committee were noted.

 

The Chair welcomed the new members of the Forum and replacement members attending for the first time.

 

4.

Apologies

Minutes:

Apologies for absence were presented on behalf of County Councillors Geoff Driver and George Wilkins.

 

5.

Note of the meeting held 14 April 2014 pdf icon PDF 91 KB

Minutes:

The note of the meeting held on 14 April 2014 was presented and agreed.

 

6.

Action sheet update from meeting held 14 April 2014 pdf icon PDF 78 KB

Minutes:

Members received an update on the action taken in response to issues raised at the previous meeting.

 

One member referred to the Liverpool to Manchester railway electrification project and requested information about what role Lancashire County Council was taking in discussions with Northern Rail, particularly in relation to the electrification of the Ormskirk to Preston stretch.

 

7.

2014/15 Quarter 1 Environment Directorate Performance Dashboard pdf icon PDF 1 MB

The Dashboard details the performance of the Directorate between April and June 2014 in relation to delivery of the approved Preston Commissioning Plan for 2014/15.

Minutes:

The Environment Directorate's "dashboard" performance for the first quarter of 2014/15 was presented.

 

In noting the dashboard members made the following points:

 

Preston Guild Wheel

 

·  Clarification was sought about whether a maintenance plan for the Guild Wheel was in place, and also to whom maintenance issues arising on the route could be reported. Mark Wardale undertook to provide contact details to members.

 

·  There was ongoing concern about the safety of pedestrians using the Guild Wheel owing to the lack of care from cyclists. Members were assured that efforts to get the message out to cyclists to 'share with care' continued to be made, but there were no particular cycling groups through which this could be done.

 

·  It was acknowledged that much had been done to encourage recreational cycling; information on what was being done / planned to encourage cycling as a means of transport was now requested. It was suggested that more work was required to establish safe, dedicated routes into the city and to provide suitable storage facilities. It was noted that a number of local employers actively encouraged cycling and provided facilities to cyclists and it would be important to research this to ensure a joined up approach.

 

 

Fishergate Railway Bridge – It was noted that work was currently underway to repaint the bridge and a request was made that Network Rail be asked to regularly check the bridge for graffiti.

 

8.

Developing the Three Tier Forums - feedback on the review pdf icon PDF 225 KB

A copy of the report presented to the County Council's Cabinet on 8 May 2014, together with an extract of the minutes from that meeting, are attached.

Additional documents:

Minutes:

A copy of the report about developing the three tier forums, which had been presented to the County Council's Cabinet on 8 May 2014, together with an extract of the minutes from that meeting, were presented.

 

It was noted that this Forum had previously suggested that, in future, the Forums should be a blend of the previous Lancashire Local Committees and the current Forums.

 

It was reported that a member officer working group was currently looking at the political governance structure of the county council and, as part of this, options for locality working going forward were being considered. The working group was due to make its recommendations to the county council's full council in December and a further report would be brought to this Forum in due course.

 

9.

Transport and Asset Management Plan (TAMP) pdf icon PDF 210 KB

Guide to the Transport Asset Management Plan attached. Main document attached at end of agenda for publishing purposes.

Minutes:

The County Council's Transport Asset Management Plan (TAMP) was presented. It set out the key strategic priorities of the county council as highway authority for the period 2015-2030.

 

It was emphasised that it was important for members to understand this new approach to highway maintenance, which could see repairs being carried out on a road which appeared to be in better condition than a nearby road which had already 'failed'. Preventative intervention works at the right point would reduce the cost of treatment overall and made economic sense.

 

10.

Events on the Highway - policy and procedures for highway management pdf icon PDF 613 KB

Additional documents:

Minutes:

The draft policy and procedure for events on the highway together with consultation responses and Police Guidance to Event Organisers was presented.

 

It was reported that this matter had been considered by the county council's Scrutiny Committee and members of that committee had been reassured by the proposals.

 

It was noted that none of the consultation responses had been attributed to parish councils and it was suggested that all parish councils be provided with a copy of the document.

 

11.

Planning Application Case Study - as requested at the last meeting of the Preston Three Tier Forum pdf icon PDF 65 KB

Minutes:

The case study now presented to the Forum was intended to illustrate why some planning matters had to be considered and discussed in private, without members of the press and public present.

 

It was noted that much development work was ongoing in North and North West Preston and members requested as much information as it was possible to provide before a decision was reached.

 

12.

School Performance and Pupil Premium - oral report

Minutes:

Jonathan Hewitt, Head of School Improvement, Lancashire County Council attended to present this item. He had provided a brief paper setting out 2012/13 school performance data for Preston schools, a copy of which is attached to this note.

 

He explained that data for 2013/14 was not yet available but was expected by November. Early indications were that attainment in Preston was better than the national average, but slightly below the Lancashire average. He undertook to provide the statistics to the Forum when available.

 

There was a lengthy discussion about the data that was collected and what could be taken from it given the many and complex factors that related to and influenced pupils' performance. These factors included special educational needs (SEN), home environment, input from parents, contradictory evidence relating to class size, use of technology etc. The Forum was assured that much work was ongoing to establish effective links with families and to help parents where necessary. Progress was a key measure.

 

Members thanked Jonathan for a very informative presentation.

 

13.

Items Raised by Members of the Forum pdf icon PDF 24 KB

a)  Preston Bus Station - update on Dashboard

b)  Cycle Casualty Figures - briefing note attached

c)  Preston Station Cycle Link - update on Dashboard

d)  The decline of the retail sector and a strategy to reinvigorate it – a presentation will be provided at the meeting

e)  An update on the Lancashire Growth Bid – briefing note attached

f)  Collaborative agreements between the City Council and the County Council – response included as part of item 8 (developing the Three Tier Forums)

g)  Preston Tramway – briefing note attached

Additional documents:

Minutes:

a)  Preston Bus Station – an update was provided on the Dashboard.

b)  Cycle Casualty Figures – a briefing note was included with the agenda.

c)  Preston Station Cycle Link - an update was provided on the Dashboard.

d)  The decline of the retail sector and a strategy to reinvigorate it – a presentation was provided by John Crellin, Preston City Centre Planning Manager – see below.

e)  An update on the Lancashire Growth Bid – a briefing note was included with the agenda.

f)  Collaborative agreements between the City Council and the County Council – a response was included as part of item 8 (developing the Three Tier Forums).

g)  Preston Tramway – a briefing note was included with the agenda, however, it was felt that this did not address the original question and it was agreed therefore that a further response be provided.

 

Reinvigorating the Retail Sector in Preston

 

John Crellin, Preston City Centre Planning Manager, delivered a PowerPoint presentation which summarised:

·  the current context in which retailers where operating,

·  initiatives to support existing retail

·  initiatives to grow the city centre economy and

·  the City Centre Plan.

 

A copy of his presentation is attached to this note.

 

Members raised a number of comments and questions about specific schemes in the Preston area particularly those aimed at drawing more people into the city centre; a successful city centre would comprise a blend of retail, leisure and restaurant facilities. There were national chains who did not yet have a presence in Preston and it was hoped to attract them, but there was also a desire to see more independent traders.

 

In response to concern about the availability of adequate parking, the Forum was assured that a recent parking audit, jointly conducted by the City and County Councils, had concluded that there was currently an over-supply of parking. There was, however, some concern about quality and safety of car parking, for example, adequate lighting. These concerns were starting to be addressed.

 

It was suggested that it was important to consider the provision of public transport and cycle routes into the city and also suitable cycle parking. The Forum was informed that discussions were underway about the provision of cycle parks and work was already underway to improve the train station approach. Investment proposals for the bus station would soon be coming forward.

 

14.

Themes for Future Meetings

To be submitted to theChair and Mark Wardale, Localities Officer, Environment Directorate: Strategy and Policy, Mobile 07919 227424  mark.wardale@lancashire.gov.uk

 

Minutes:

Members of the Forum were invited to submit any suggested items for the next Preston 3 Tier Forum to Mark Wardale mark.wardale@lancashire.gov.uk. Any suggestions would need to be cleared with the Chair.

 

15.

Urgent Business

An item of urgent business may only be considered under this heading where, by reason of special circumstances to be recorded in the minutes, the Chair of the meeting is of the opinion that the item should be considered at the meeting as a matter of urgency.

Minutes:

There was no urgent business.

 

16.

Date of Next Forum

The next scheduled meeting will be held at 6:00pm on 2 December 2014 in Cabinet Room C – The Duke of Lancaster Room, County Hall, Preston.

Minutes:

It was noted that the next meeting of the Forum would be held at 6.00pm on Tuesday 2 December 2014 in the Duke of Lancaster Room, County Hall, Preston.