Agenda item

URGENT ITEM: Neighbourhood Action Planning Review draft report

Minutes:

The Committee reviewed the minutes of the previous meeting and the recommendations made. The Committee agreed with the Chairman’s suggestion that a short report with a Chairman’s Summary and recommendations would be an appropriate report structure for a short report. In addition there should be an evidence pack containing the minutes of the meetings, the Planning for Real methodology and the Park Wood Neighbourhood Action Plan 2010-2015.

The Committee considered, in turn, the wording and impact of each of the recommendations made at the previous meeting. The Committee had looked specifically at Park Wood when considering Neighbourhood Action Planning but it was evaluating the pilot project at Park Wood on the basis of it being rolled out to other areas in the borough. The recommendations made were specific to Park Wood but Members felt that their findings should be considered by the Council on a wider basis in some cases. It was agreed that specific names should be removed from the recommendations and specific examples or points of reference such as ‘Heather House’ should be placed into a wider context.

The Committee discussed the regeneration of Park Wood and the recommendations made around this issue. This topic had been discussed in detail at the previous meeting as Golding Homes had informed Members that the Planning for Real process had provided a starting point for its engagement with residents. It was felt that the inclusion of recommendations made as a result of the discussion on regeneration in Park Wood was important as it would have an effect on the rest of the borough as residents from Park Wood were moved to other areas.

Members felt that their recommendations should include the importance of the involvement of children in the Planning for Real Process. The success of the involvement of children from Bellwood school in the making of the model of the area which was the starting point for the pilot project had resonated with Members at the previous meeting.

It was felt that the finances involved with Neighbourhood Action Planning remained a grey area. Maidstone Borough Council had secured funding of £50,000 for the pilot project in Park Wood. Its future role could be one of facilitator, assisting residents groups in accessing funding available from other sources. Regardless of the Council’s role it was agreed that funding would be a primary consideration when the next Neighbourhood Action Planning project was considered and a recommendation was worded by the Committee to ensure that Council addressed this.

It was resolved that:

a) The Neighbourhood Action Planning short report should be structured around the following recommendations:

That the Community Halls Audit report is taken to the Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee to address the possibility of communities running facilities similar to Heather House in Park Wood;

That assistance be given by the Community Development Team to Park Wood residents in the production of their residents’ newsletter;

§ That the financial implications of extending Planning for Real across other wards of the borough be undertaken before decisions are finalised;

§ That case studies be used to convey the successes achieved in Park Wood when delivering Neighbourhood Action Planning in other areas of the borough. Established residents’ groups in Park Wood should be encouraged to share their experiences with others;

§ That the involvement of children in the creation of the 3D model which forms part of the Planning for Real methodology should be the starting point for any future Neighbourhood Action Planning;

That the priorities arising from the Planning for Real process take into account residents’ needs and the priorities of the partners involved;

§ That Golding Homes and residents from Park Wood are invited to Regeneration and Economic Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee to address the issues that arose regarding the regeneration of Park Wood; and

That clarification is required for residents on how they can access new properties in Park Wood.

b) The Chairman should provide the Scrutiny Officer with an introductory summary to the report;

c) The report be circulated to the Committee via email for approval; and

d) Following the Committee’s approval of the report, the report is submitted to the appropriate Cabinet Member and external bodies.