Minutes of the meeting held on 28 September 2004
Present:
|
Allan Arnott |
Perkins Engines |
|
Roger Tallowin |
O & H Hampton Ltd |
|
Harmesh Lakhanpaul |
Peterborough Race Equality Council |
|
Gillian Beasley |
Peterborough City Council |
|
Councillor Franklin |
Peterborough City Council |
|
Councillor Scott |
Peterborough City Council |
|
John Bridge |
Cambridgeshire Chamber of Commerce |
|
Bishop Ian Cundy |
Peterborough Cathedral |
|
Ken McKay |
Chair Environment & Transport Partnership |
|
Stephen Gallacher |
Go East |
|
Rebecca Stephens |
Peterborough Evening Telegraph |
|
Marco Cereste |
Chair Health Partnership Board |
|
|
|
|
Advisors |
|
|
Richard Astle |
GPP Director |
|
Liz Wade |
Peterborough City Council |
Introductions
Laurie Fenton, Audit Commission, was welcomed to the GPP Board meeting as an observer. His attendance was part of the current inspection of the City Council’s best value review of Community Engagement.
1. Apologies for Absence
Apologies for absence were received from Nigel Sunman and Julian Stanley.
2. Minutes
The minutes of the meeting held on 27 July 2004 were agreed as a correct record.
3. Matters Arising
Year of the Young People – Richard Astle would be meeting with the young people’s representatives to outline how they could input into the Community Strategy and assist with the delivery of the key objectives. In particular, it was hoped to work with them to develop the City’s community cohesion work. The Culture and Tourism partnership had discussed the visions submitted by young people through the PYPIN website and a representative would be attending their next meeting to discuss the ideas in more detail.
Unity for Peterborough Conference – This conference would be held on 21 October 2004 and would highlight the importance of promoting the unity message through young people.
4. Community Cohesion Update
The GPP Board had submitted a letter to the media following the recent national and local coverage about Peterborough, highlighting that the Board members did not recognise the portrayal of Peterborough.
The Community Cohesion sub-group had been established and held the first meeting on 8th September 2004. Formal terms of reference were being drafted and the structures for the group were to be determined. However, it was likely that the strategic Community Cohesion sub-group would be supported by a group of practitioners. A Chair was required for the group and the intended aim was to launch a community cohesion strategy during November/December 2004.
The resources required for the delivery of a Community Cohesion Strategy and action plan were still to be determined. A further report would be submitted to the next Board meeting on 30 November 2004. (Richard Astle)
The City Council would be hosting a Community Cohesion event with other local authorities, Salford and Rochdale Metropolitan Boroughs, on 13 October 2004.
5. GPP Away Day – 27 July 2004
The Board received a summary of the responses prepared following the GPP away day held in the Gladstone area in July 2004. It was acknowledged that any response to the community representatives should highlight the action taken as a result of the comments made at the away event.
Action
A feedback presentation would be given to the Gladstone community within the next three weeks focussing on a small number of topics for action. These topics would be considered by a future meeting of the GPP Board. (Richard Astle)
The presentation would be supported by the following Board Members, Allan Arnott, Marco Cereste, and Gillian Beasley.
The Board would report back to each of the communities met during Board meetings and away days, with the appropriate format to be agreed in each case. (All)
6. Dates and Format of Meetings
An outline of proposed dates and format for future meetings was submitted for consideration. A proposal to enable the attendance of substitutes at Board meetings was discussed and it was agreed that this should not be pursued and the substantive members should attend. However, the Vice-Chairs of the key partnerships should attend in the absence of the Chairs.
ACTION
To endorse the following dates for future Board meetings held between 5 and 7pm:
30 November 2004
25 January 2005
29 March 2005
31 May 2005
26 July 2005
27 September 2005
29 November 2005
The Board would hold 10 meetings each year to ensure that the Community Strategy could be implemented and monitored effectively. Further dates to be agreed for February, April, June and October 2005. (Heather Darwin)
The next meeting with Community representatives to be arranged in three months time, with the issue of Community involvement to be addressed at each meeting. The Board to consider a shortlist of three alternative venues and topics for discussion (Heather Darwin).
7. Community Strategy – Chairs’ Feedback
The Chairs of the key partnerships presented the Community Strategy proposals submitted by their respective partnerships.
Economic Development Partnership
The whole partnership had been consulted about the proposals and further discussions were expected at the meeting on 4 October 2004. The partnership was placing a focus on the development of a bigger and better Peterborough through regeneration to create vibrant communities. The targets highlighted by the partnership included:
· Fuelling economic growth for 17,400 new jobs, based on increasing income levels and skills;
· Creating an Urban Regeneration Company, which would lever private and public funding into the City.
The importance of the quality and quantity of housing within the City was also submitted for inclusion in the Strategy.
The partnership believed that an emphasis should be placed on future skills and enhancing the availability of vocational courses. The targets proposed by the partnership were:
· Ensuring that all children starting education were ready to learn;
· Building an educational system fit for the 21st Century;
· Increasing high quality and accessible higher education.
Further work was still required about the development of the breakthrough targets and it was acknowledged that the improvement of skills needed to be examined and linked to the requirement for additional jobs.
Health Partnership Board
This partnership had highlighted that housing, education and the economic strategy would have a large impact upon the health of the City. The big idea proposed by the partnership related to addressing the needs of the Central ward area of the City.
Environment and Transport Partnership
The partnership had welcomed the overall concept of sustainable growth but recommended that a clear definition for sustainable development was included within the Strategy. The proposed definition is outlined below and any comments about this recommendation should be submitted to the GPP Director. Other specific areas for inclusion involved highlighting Peterborough’s Environmental City status and the direct rail link between Peterborough and Stansted.
Ken Mckay, Chairman of the Environment and Transport Partnership, would submit the additional comments from this partnership to the GPP Director.
The Chairmen of the Community Safety and Culture and Tourism Partnerships were unable to attend the meeting and submit their views.
Action
The Board supported the inclusion of the development of a University within the Community Strategy. (Keith Nelson/Richard Astle).
The operation and membership of the Health Partnership Board to be reviewed to ensure representatives from other key agencies could input into the delivery of the Community Strategy targets. (Marco Cereste/Richard Astle).
Subject to any additional comments received from Board Members, to include the definition for sustainable development included in the Brundtland report within the Community Strategy as follows:
“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. (Richard Astle).
8. Draft Community Strategy
The latest version of the Community Strategy and the proposed timetable for the final preparation of the Strategy were submitted for approval.
Action
The GPP Director to prepare a final draft of the Strategy. This draft will be circulated to all members of the GPP Board and key partnerships and any final comments are to be submitted to the GPP Director within one week of circulation. (Richard Astle/All Partnerships)
The GPP Chairs' meeting, on 26 October 2004, to agree the final version, prior to submission to the Council for formal ratification during November and December 2004. (Richard Astle/Partnership Chairs)
9. Next Meeting
The next meeting would be held on 30 November 2004.