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Owlerton/Southey Green Area Panel 10th July 2003
OWLERTON/SOUTHEY GREEN AREA PANEL
Meeting held 10th July, 2003 at Wadsley Bridge Working Mens Club
PRESENT: Councillors Mark Wilde (Chair), Doreen Newton, Tim Rippon and Steve Wilson.
Community Representatives and Panel Partners:-
Cyril Olsen (Shirecliffe Forum), Janet Bagshaw (Binsted and Cookson TARA), M. Bell (SPELL), Elaine Atkin (Foxhill Forum), Helen Barnard (Foxhill Forum), PS Mark Simms (South Yorkshire Police, Ecclesfield), Brian Wilson (North Sheffield Action Group), John Whiteley (Shirecliffe TARA), George Tew (Shirecliffe Forum), George Sewerin (Shirecliffe Forum), Peggy Sewerin (Shirecliffe Forum), Mr. and Mrs. Barratt (Shirecliffe Forum), Derek Brookes (Shirecliffe Forum), Owen McDowell (North Sheffield Primary Care Trust), Yvonne Hayes (North Sheffield Drug and Alcohol Project), Alan Ingram (Longley Neighbourhood Worker), Alex Prince (Sheffield First for Investment and Sheffield Chamber of Commerce), Ian Drayton (SOAR Board), Keith Donston (Shirecliffe Forum), C. Hobbs (Shirecliffe TARA), Janice Gudgeon (Shirecliffe TARA), Andy Wilmore (Sheffield Wildlife Trust), Deborah Nicholson (Southey Forum Development Worker), Jane Smith (Binsted and Cookson TARA), Les Sheldon (Shirecliffe Forum), Leslie Webster (Strategic Walks Project), Vernon Collimore (Sheffield Futures), Andy Dykes (Sheffield Futures), Jo Zizardie (Southey and Shirecliffe Sure Start) and five other members of the public.
Officers in Attendance:-
Mick Ambler (Street Force), Jane Anslow (Housing Services), Una Kelly (Housing Services), Jim Watkin (Education Directorate), Kieron Williams (Area Panel Support Officer), Claire Molyneux (Area Action Co-ordinator), Isobel Riley (Lead Manager), Janet Lawson (Three Parks Programme), Miranda Plowden (SOAR Team), Chloe Aspinwall (SOAR Team) and Andy Cain (Committee Secretariat).
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1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Councillors Joan Barton and Chris Weldon.
2. INTRODUCTION
Councillor Mark Wilde welcomed everyone to the meeting and indicated that the theme of the meeting was regeneration and investment in Owlerton/Southey Green.
3. REGENERATION OVERVIEW/NEIGHBOURHOOD STRATEGIES
Chloe Aspinwall from the Southey and Owlerton Regeneration (SOAR) Team gave a presentation which provided an overview of the regeneration activity that was taking place in the area. SOAR was set up in 1999, out of a number of separate regeneration activities, to help revitalise the Foxhill, Longley, Hillsborough/Winn Gardens, Parson Cross, Shirecliffe and Southey neighbourhoods and had been granted a total of £24 m in funding for the period 1999-2006. The SOAR Board, comprising 8 elected community representatives, 6 councillors from the Area Panel and 6 independent representatives, had overall responsibility for overseeing the regeneration activity in the area, and their decisions were informed by recommendations from 7 Theme Groups and 6 Neighbourhood Action Groups , all of whom were supported by the SOAR Team.
Chloe Aspinwall referred in more detail to the progress being made across the area which included the SOAR elections in 2002, the establishment of a Design Panel to advise on achieving quality designs for new developments, the Neighbourhood Strategies developed by each of the Neighbourhood Action Groups, Parks and Open Spaces and Hub Projects. She also indicated that unfortunately the re-development plans were not available for display at this meeting but would be available shortly.
Arising out of consideration of the presentation the following questions, comments and responses were noted.
Q Brian Wilson asked why the redevelopment plans for Shirecliffe were going to be on display for the first time at the Parson Cross Festival without any input from Shirecliffe residents.
A. Chloe Aspinwall indicated that a great deal of consultation had been undertaken and the Parson Cross Festival was recognised as being one of the largest in the area which would be attended by Shirecliffe residents. This would not be the only consultation event and there would be plenty of opportunity to comment of the plans.
Q. George Sewerin sought clarification on the role of the Design Panel and asked for confirmation that local project groups would retain absolute control of what development took place in Shirecliffe.
A. Chloe Aspinwall indicated that the Design Panel had the expertise and skills to develop potential sites but that the local community and local community groups would be involved in the final decisions.
The Panel then received presentations from representatives of Neighbourhood Action Groups and strategic projects as follows:-
Foxhill Forum
Elaine Atkin, Neighbourhood Strategies Action Co-ordinator, for the Foxhill Forum, indicated that the Forum, which was long established, had been responsible for developing the Neighbourhood Strategy for the Foxhill area. The Forum operated a Community Chest and had a number of Focus Groups which provided information and recommendations to assist the Forum in the development of the Neighbourhood Strategy and to target priority areas. There had been some significant successes, particularly the Wolfe Road Pilot Project, which had seen a complete transformation to an area including improvements to the Park, reductions in crime, the establishment of a strong community group, CCTV, the Healthy Living Centre and Homesteading initiative.
A Community Buildings Group had been established which undertook joint working with the Forum to maximise funding opportunities for community buildings in the area with other similar focus groups working on the redevelopment sites and the establishment of a sports centre facility. With regard to the redevelopment sites there had been no opposition to demolition in the Foxhill area and the Forum were working closely with the CABE Partnership. Priorities for the future included improvements to the street scene and involve more the residents living in the top part of the area.
Longley Neighbourhood Action Group (LOCAL)
Alan Ingram, Longley Neighbourhood Worker, indicated that LOCAL covered the Longley, Longley Park and Longley Hall Farm estates and were responsible for the Neighbourhood Strategy in that area . Two popular events had been held in respect of consultation on the Neighbourhood Strategy entitled "Lark in the Park" and "Dark in the Park" where the community had the opportunity to contribute. Priority issues established for the area included the need for better signage, the options for housing, parks and green spaces, transport links, local enterprise, promotion of lunch clubs and improved literature. A total of £109,000 in funding had been obtained for improvements to the four green spaces in the Longley area.
Parson Cross Community Development Forum
Pat Salmon of the Parson Cross Development Forum gave details on the work of the Forum whose main function was to engage with the local community to contribute to the regeneration of the area. He indicated that the Forum covered an area which had three main centres, these being the Lindsay Estate which was a very large area, Old Parson Cross which was a shrinking area due to stock clearance and New Parson Cross which was considered to be a stable area. Whilst a number of priorities had been established from the Neighbourhood Strategy he believed it was important for the Strategy to be flexible enough to allow for peoples changing opinions to be taken into account. There would be an opportunity to comment on the Strategy at the Parson Cross Festival to be held on 12th July, 2003.
Shirecliffe Forum
Les Sheldon and Keith Donston from the Shirecliffe Forum gave details of the work of the Forum which had been established for approximately 12 months. Despite some initial difficulties the Forum had prospered, particularly with the support given by the Area Panel Chair. The Forum, working with other local groups, had achieved a number of successes which included improvements to Busk Meadow Park and bringing the local community centre back into use. A successful joint working initiative had resulted in plans and work being carried forward to improve the green spaces in the area with important factors such as possible vandalism and safety being considered. The Forum wished to convey its thanks to all the people involved in the development of the green spaces and particularly to Una Kelly from Housing Services for all the work that she had undertaken in respect of the Housing Programme.
Southey and District Forum
Debbie Nicholson and Janet Bagshaw gave a presentation on the work of the Southey and District Forum and indicated that they felt that whilst good progress was being made there was a need to attract more community involvement and that they would be using examples of best practice from the other Groups to move the regeneration initiative forward. Planned events to be held in the area were a Women's Health Day on 9th September, 2003 and further consultation to establish priorities for the area. The work of the Southey and District TARA was acknowledged with the joint working making a significant impact with the street scene showing good signs of improvement with the next main priority issue being to improve the Park. The Forum wished to place on record its appreciation for the help given by the Chair of the Area Panel and the SOAR Team.
Strategic Walks Project
Lesley Webster from the Strategic Walks Project gave details of the work that she had undertaken in assessing all the paths in the area and invited members of the public to view photographs taken of parts of each walk and pass on their views and information regarding these walks. The intention was to develop a series of strategic walks and then produce literature to publicise their existence.
Arising from consideration of the presentations the following questions, comments and responses were noted.
· George Sewerin referred to the work of the Shirecliffe Forum and most particularly their involvement in the future of the Shirecliffe Dumpit Site and requested that the Forum ensured that they invited members of the public who had knowledge of or an interest in the Dumpit Site to future meetings where this was to be discussed.
Q. Owen McDowell welcomed the work being undertaken by the local community across the area and asked whether it would be possible to produce information boards throughout the area setting out plans highlighting the positive changes taking place to counter peoples perception of the area which came from the image of boarded up houses.
A. Jane Anslow acknowledged the need to promote future activity and indicated that she had discussed the matter with Miranda Plowden from the SOAR Team with a view to obtaining Housing Market Renewal Funding to address this issue.
Q. Brian Wilson sought clarification from Pat Salmon with regard to his comments about the need to adopt a flexible approach to Neighbourhood Strategies as he believed that these were valid until they were replaced.
A. Pat Salmon acknowledged that whilst there had been a great deal of hard work undertaken to develop Neighbourhood Strategies he believed that consultation should continue to make sure opinions originally expressed were still valid. He cited the fact that the Strategy for his area could be influenced by matters such as the redevelopment of the Chaucer School site and the closure of the Sheffield College.
Q. Mary Steele referred to an individual resident and expressed general concern regarding the lack of support for vulnerable people living in properties to be demolished in Shirecliffe.
A. Isobel Riley indicated that there were Teams working in the area with the specific aim of addressing the problems that people faced when having to move house. Claire Molyneux referred to the Supporting Vulnerable Tenants Project which had been funded through NRF which was specifically designed to help people in this situation. She requested Mary Steele to provide details of the individual resident in order that she could be referred to the Project Team.
Q. Yvonne Hayes asked whether the issue with regard to the Ecclesfield and District Tenants Association had been resolved and whether improvement work could be considered to the Wooden Park.
A. Pat Salmon indicated that the Parson Cross Community Development Forum was not an exclusive organisation and that the Ecclesfield and District Tenants Association were welcome to become more involved with the Forum. Maureen Beer indicated that there had been some problems with the Tenants Association but a new Committee had recently been formed and one of the issues that they were considering were improvements to the Wooden Park with initial enquiries being made to obtain funding for the improvements.
· Councillor Doreen Newton welcomed the work being undertaken throughout the area by local community volunteers and highlighted the fact that the Neighbourhoods Strategies had been short listed for a national award.
Q. A Shirecliffe resident expressed concern regarding a resident who had been moved to a house on Crumpsall Road which was not in a habitable condition. She also asked whether progress had been made with regard to providing facilities for the redeveloped estates.
A. Isobel Riley indicated that the programme was aimed to be a widespread regeneration initiative and that the report to Cabinet stated that Neighbourhood Strategies remained flexible but were required to reflect changes in priority and consultation. Una Kelly indicated that the issue with regard to the provision of community buildings was still high on the priority agenda. The situation with regard to the property on Crumpsall Road was known to officers and members and work had already been undertaken on this property to remedy the faults and ensure that other properties were in a suitable condition to move into.
Councillor Mark Wilde thanked everyone for the work that was being undertaken across the Panel area and indicated that the Panel would continue to support regeneration activity wherever possible.
4. PUBLIC QUESTIONS AND PETITIONS
The following questions and responses were noted.
Q. Yvonne Hayes referred to the success of the "Where's The Money Gone Days" but expressed disappointment that there had been no local Councillors present at any of those events.
A. Councillor Mark Wilde acknowledged the importance of these events but indicated that unfortunately due to the pressure on Councillors time it was not possible to attend every event or meeting.
Q. Pat Salmon referred to the Nathaniel Lichfield report regarding regeneration in the area which had been funded through the Area Panel and Housing Market Renewal Funding and asked what progress was being made.
A. Claire Molyneux indicated that members had considered the report at a briefing meeting and had found a number of inaccuracies. They had also expressed concern that the consultation appeared to have been inadequate and had requested parts of the report to be re-drafted. It was hoped that a revised report would be received shortly which would be referred back to the Area Panel, the Neighbourhood Strategies Steering Group and SOAR Board for future consideration.
5. MINUTES
The minutes of the meeting held 8th May, 2003 were approved as a correct record subject to the addition of Lisa Casey, Community Safety Officer, to the list of officers in attendance. Arising from consideration of the minutes the Panel noted the information from George Sewerin that he had received correspondence from the Cabinet Member responsible for Street Scene, Councillor Harry Harpham, indicating that discussions were taking place to identify a new location for the Shirecliffe Dumpit Site and that funding was trying to be obtained via the Pathfinder Initiative, with a bid expected in April, 2004
John Whiteley expressed some concern regarding the work being undertaken by Onyx to make improvements to the Dumpit Site which seemed excessive when it was considered that the Site was to be relocated. Councillor Mark Wilde indicated that he would obtain more information regarding this issue and write to John Whiteley.
6. PARSON CROSS FESTIVAL
Councillor Steve Wilson highlighted that the Parson Cross Festival was to take place on Saturday, 12th July, 2003. Pat Salmon commented that although there had been concerns that the Pupil Referral Unit had been opened in part of the former Chaucer School site the children placed at the Unit had been involved in organising the Parson Cross Festival which was to be welcomed.
The Panel noted this information.
7. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The Panel noted that the next public meeting would be held on Thursday, 11th September, 2003 at 6.00 p.m. at a venue to be decided and noted the request made by Pat Salmon that the Panel give consideration to holding the meeting at the Ecclesfield Elderly Person's Support Unit.
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