WEST AREA PANEL

14 DECEMBER 2022

MINUTES

Attendees:

Councillors: Cllr Allcock (Chair), Cllr Barnett

Residents: Muriel Briault, Patricia Weller, Lynn Morrison, Rosemary Whitehouse, Anne Tizzard, Joseph Macrae, Graham Dawes, Natalie Beckwith, Geof Gage, Grant Ritchie

Officers: Rob Keelan, Martin Reid, Janet Dowdell, Justine Harris, Hannah Barker, Richard Wheeler, Sam Warren, Francis Mitchell

Press: Sarah Booker-Lewis

1 – WELCOME AND APOLOGIES

1.1 Apologies were received from Cllr Pissaridou, Cllr Atkinson and Allison Grey.

2 – MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING

2.1 The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as correct record.

3 – ACTIONS OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING

3.1 Cllr Allcock stated the importance of actions only being labelled in the ‘Completion Date’ field if the action has been completed.

3.2 Graham Dawes suggested ‘Completion Date’ is not a helpful field and suggested an ‘Action Taken’ field to record when action had begun and a separate ‘Action Completed’ field.

WA2 – Confirmed completed.

WA4 – Incomplete Date arranged at end of meeting.

ACTION – Justine Harris to contact Patricia Weller regarding weed growth on her estate.

WA6 – Rob Keelan expressed that he has so far been unable to contact Alison Grey regarding this action.

ACTION – Robert Keelan to follow up fixing the uneven grass on Clarendon Road.

4 -ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR

4.1 Cllr Barnett expressed that those committing ASB (Anti-Social Behaviour) should be threatened with eviction, particularly those dealing drugs.

4.2 Rosemary Whitehouse shared that a resident in her area is illiterate and relies on visual icons on dustbins to properly dispose of waste but noted that these icons have been obstructed by ASB. Justine Harris stated that work is being done to make signage clearer around bins.

4.3 Rosemary Whitehouse stated that she had to contact Mind regarding how to deal with a resident committing ASB as the Police would not attend.

4.4 Patricia Weller expressed that ASB covers many different aspects and stated that the ASB needs to be looked at differently. Patricia Weller stated that residents often feel as though their complaints are not taken seriously and investigated. Patricia Weller questioned why ASB committed by younger people seems easier to deal with than ASB committed by older people.

4.5 Cllr Barnett expressed concerns regarding drug dealers recruiting children and creating a cycle of ASB.

4.6 Justine Harris stated that earlier in the year an ASB review was bought to Area Panels, and as a result a new ASB policy would be going to Housing Committee in January.

4.7 Janet Dowdell stated that the council is unable to evict tenants and informed the panel that the order for eviction is received from a Court. Janet Dowdell iterated that the council cannot approach a court without sufficient evidence and highlighted that the best way to gather evidence is for residents to report ASB.

4.8 Rosemary Whitehouse highlighted the difficulty of gathering evidence as residents, particularly those who are vulnerable, may not be willing to put themselves at risk by reporting ASB.

4.9 Muriel Briault expressed concerns for the welfare of dogs that are excessively barking on estates.

4.10 Rob Keelan stated that his team are currently dealing with extremely serious ASB cases and reassured residents that ASB is being actively dealt with.

4.11 Cllr Barnett questioned why a tenant has been allowed to keep their dogs after they hospitalised another tenant. Rob Keelan invited Cllr Barnett to share details of this incident.

ACTION – Rob Keelan to contact Cllr Barnett regarding violent dogs in the West Area.

5 – BUDGET SETTING

5.1 Martin Reid delivered the report on this item.

5.2 Anne Tizzard was informed that borrowing would be from the Public Work Loans Board (PWLB) and confirmed that the interest rates would be between 3-4%.

5.3 Patricia Weller stated that funding is available from the Housing Revenue Account for youth services in Hangleton & Knoll and requested that the HRA is taken seriously at the next budget setting and stated that young people are the cities future and highlighted that work put in now could avoid them becoming future enactors of ASB.

6 – RESIDENTS’ QUESTIONS – 3 STAR

Disposal of Bulky Items:

6.1 Muriel Briault stated that items of all sizes are dumped in Stonery Close and stated that the Bulk Removal Team tend to respond and move items within two days.

6.2 Richard Wheeler stated that other areas of the city have stores where people can leave reusable items for others and stated that he is investigating whether this could be applied to the West Area.

6.3 Joseph Macrae was informed that Estate Inspections had been reviewed and would be returning as Estate Walkabouts which will cover all areas of the city. Justine Harris stated that they would likely resume in April of 2023.

6.4 Justine Harris highlighted that alternative disposal schemes are being investigated, including amnesty days, and stated that portable CCTV units are being installed in fly-tipping hotspots.

6.5 Cllr Barnett commended the efficacy of estate inspections.

Inadequate Grounds Maintenance:

6.6 Cllr Barnett stated that Estate Inspections would influence tenants to manage their own grounds, citing bushes in her ward that had grown out of control.

6.7 Justine Harris stated that City Parks had had difficulty with recruitment which has affected grass cutting.

6.8 Cllr Allcock requested a report to the next meeting that indicated whether the contractual requirements with City Parks were met, and if not, whether the HRA was refunded as well as what would be done to improve delivery of the service within the next year.

ACTION – Justine Harris to work with Rob Walker to bring a report to the Area Panel meeting in May detailing City Parks contractual requirements and whether they were met and what could be done to improve delivery of the service.

6.9 Graham Dawes stated that the officer response did not address the second question asked, labelled ‘B’ in the ‘Action requested by residents’ section on page 25.

7 – RESIDENTS’ QUESTIONS – 2 STAR

Delays to Estate Development Budget:

7.1 Graham Dawes stated that the action requested by residents was ignored with no acknowledgement as to why. Sam Warren stated that the reason this information was not provided is due to the fact it was held by Mears.

Replacement of bin: Bellingham Crescent:

7.2 Patricia Weller stated that while she agreed that the Old Shoreham Road may not be a suitable location for a bin, it should have been moved closer to Bellingham Crescent rather than further down the road.

ACTION – Justine Harris to contact Tomas Szalma regarding placement of bin on the Old Shoreham Road and whether it could be moved closer to Bellingham Crescent.

8 – POSITIVE COMMUNITY NEWS

8.1 Patricia Weller stated Hangleton Community Centre is doing a lot to help with the cost-of-living crisis by providing a warm space and highlighted that it feels life is getting back to normal and mentioned that groups and activities are resuming, such as the Lunch Club at St. Richards.

8.2 Anne Tizzard shared that St. Richards and the Hangleton & Knoll project was hosting free computer courses on Wednesday.

8.3 Sam Warren shared that the Community Engagement team had recruited new team members and that a new officer called Anita would be assigned to the West Area.

9 – ANY OTHER BUSINESS

9.1 Muriel Briault was informed that Resident Inspector meetings were being held in Hove Town Hall as it offers better ventilation.

9.2 Martin Reid summarised the Council Housing Performance Report seen on page 79.

The meeting concluded at 15:51.