Agenda and minutes

To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 15 November 2011.

The Minutes (copies of which had been circulated) of the meeting held on 15 November 2011 were approved as a correct record.

The following interest was declared:-

Personal Interest

Councillor                                                     Interest

Maureen Rowles                                         Any items referring to Reddish Vale Farm as people known to her use the facilities at the farm.

The Chair reported that the South Reddish Community First Panel meeting and the North Reddish Community First Panel meeting would both be held on Tuesday 7 February 2012.

Sergeant Martyn Everett (Greater Manchester Police) attended the meeting to answer questions from Councillors and members of the public in relation to neighbourhood policing issues within the area represented by the Brinnington & Reddish Joint Ward Committee. The following issues were raised / comments made:-

·         There had been two incidents involving horses near Reddish Vale Road during the last week. Horses had often been seen on the edges of Mill Lane and Northumberland Road and there was some concern that a horse may stray on to a main road. Sergeant Martyn Everett would request the local community beat officer to provide ideas as to how to deal with this issue.

·         There had been numerous occasions when, despite clear parking restrictions, vehicles had parked on Mill Lane outside Vale View Primary School during weekday afternoons. This may have been caused by the school not having a turning area or dropping-off point for parents of pupils. There had been reports of altercations between local residents and the owners of these vehicles, particularly at the Harcourt Street end of Mill Lane. The school was currently developing a travel plan which Councillors hoped would provide information as to how many parents owned cars and needed to be in the area each afternoon. It was suggested that a PCSO could visit the school and request that parents be advised on this issue.

·         A mobile police station had been set up on St Paul’s Street and was staffed by a Special Police Officer and a Community Beat Officer.

·         There had been two incidents involving items being stolen from vehicles near Hollow Vale Drive. Residents were to be encouraged to report any vehicle crime to the police to improve intelligence gathering in the area.

·         Vacant properties in Brinnington had recently been targeted by thieves for copper piping and boilers. These thefts were occurring before the houses had been successfully secured by the Council. The Committee requested that these incidents be referred to Stockport Homes for consideration.

·         During the last 4 months, a number of people had been attacked on the passageway near to the closed Reddish police station on Campbell Street.

·         The frequency of robberies in the area had fallen by 18.9% during the last 12 months although it was noted that the number of these types of incidents was already quite low.

RESOLVED – (1) That Sergeant Martyn Everett be thanked for his attendance.

(2) That a representative of Greater Manchester Police be requested to visit Vale View Primary School to discuss the local parking restrictions and request that parents be advised by the school on this matter.

(3) That the Democratic Services Manager be requested to refer the concerns of the Committee in respect of the recent thefts in vacant properties in Brinnington to the Chief Executive of Stockport Homes Ltd.

Members of the public are invited to put questions to the Chair of the Joint Ward Committee on any matters within the powers and duties of the Joint Ward Committee, subject to the exclusions set out in the Code of Practice (questions must be submitted prior to the commencement of the meeting on the cards provided. These are available at the meeting and on the Council’s website at www.stockport.gov.uk/areacommittees).

No public questions were submitted.

In accordance with the Code of Practice no organisation has indicated that they wished to address the Joint Ward Committee as part of the Open Forum arrangements.

No organisation had indicated that they wished to address the Joint Ward Committee as part of the Open Forum arrangements.

No petitions were submitted.

To consider any applications for Ward Flexibility Funding or to receive feedback from organisations who have received funding.

A representative of the Democratic Services Manager reported that there were no applications to consider.

To consider a report of the Service Director (Place Management)

The report summarises the public events that took place at Reddish Vale Country Park and the number of visitors that visited the centre, volunteers, incidents, and sessions during the period from 21 September 2011 – 23 January 2012.

The Joint Ward Committee is recommended to note the report.

Officer contact: Alexandra Krause, 0161 477 5637, email

alexandra.krause@stockport.gov.uk

A representative of the Service Director (Place Management) submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) summarising the public events that took place at Reddish Vale Country Park and the number of visitors that had visited the Visitor’s Centre during the period from 21 September 2011 – 23 January 2012. The following issues were raised / comments made:-

·         There had been 7 horse related incidents in the park since December 2011.

·         It was noted that incidents involving off-road motorcycles had decreased due to a successful on-going police operation.

·         Drug paraphernalia and cannabis had been discovered at Woodhall Car Park and reported to the police late last year.  The Countryside Manager reported that the Council’s Environmental Health team would clear away and dispose of syringes but that they charge for this service. If any syringes were found within the park then it should be reported to a park ranger who would arrange for it to be removed and disposed of safely. The Committee was concerned that if a resident found a syringe on their property, there was a risk that they might try to remove it themselves to avoid being charged.

·         There had been issues with anti-social and sexual behaviour at the car park in Tiviot Dale. The car park had been resurfaced and had now been reopened. The slope next to the car park had been regraded and new trees would be planted outside the car park during this winter.

·         Councillors suggested that Sergeant Martyn Everett attend the Visitor’s Centre to discuss any current issues in more detail with staff.

·         There had been no recent significant wildlife issues. Friends groups and the Council had recently attempted to catch a duck with plastic caught around its neck without success.

·         The number of people attending events at the park had been very high, with more families and children now attending. The good weather had meant that there had been no cancellations of events. Sundays in particular had been a very popular day to visit the park.

·         8,000 fish had been released into the pond at the park. A mix of species had been chosen by the Environment Agency. The Countryside Manager confirmed that the Angling Federation had received the new licence relating to the reservoirs but had not yet signed and returned the paperwork.

·         It was noted that there had been high levels of volunteer hours at the park which was very encouraging. These figures covered a wide range of ages and included numbers from the Friends of the Vale group working in the Visitor’s Centre and volunteers in the park. School children regularly attended the park both inside the Visitor’s Centre and outdoors. It was noted that people often travelled from outside the Brinnington and Reddish area to volunteer at the park.

Frank Bramwell Legacy

·         The Countryside Manager reported that the projects relating to the Frank Bramwell Legacy had now been agreed.

·         Quotes had been received for the footpath work on the ‘Frank Bramwell memorial trail’ and this work was now going to cost approximately £30,000. The original estimate had included the replacement of all the reservoir embankment timbers, however Council engineers had stated that it would cost a minimum of £80,000 to replace them all. As the embankment was sound, only the few problem areas of the timbers would be replaced. This lower cost of £30,000 would mean that some funding from the legacy would be available for the other smaller projects. The Countryside Manager reported that the footpath contractor should be appointed within the next couple of weeks and work on the path was expected to start in March 2012. The work should take 5-6 weeks to complete, weather permitting. The trail would provide disabled access with a surface suitable for wheelchairs. The local farmer at Reddish Vale Farm had agreed that the contractor could store any equipment in his car park.

·         The Chair reported that the costs  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

No items were suggested on this occasion.

RESOLVED – That the next meeting of the Brinnington and Reddish Joint Ward Committee would take place on Thursday 8 March 2012 at 6pm.