Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors S Duckett and J Shaw-Wright, and from M Davis and F Matthews.

A copy of the Register of Interest for each Selby District Councillor is available for inspection at www.selby.gov.uk.

Board members should declare to the meeting any disclosable pecuniary interest in any item of business on this agenda which is not (in the case of Selby District Councillors) already entered in their Register of Interests.

Board members should leave the meeting and take no part in the consideration, discussion or vote on any matter in which they have a disclosable pecuniary interest.

Board members should also declare any other interests. Having made the declaration, provided the other interest is not a disclosable pecuniary interest, the member may stay in the meeting, speak and vote on that item of business.

If in doubt, Board members are advised to seek advice from the Monitoring Officer.

There were no disclosures of interest.

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the Central CEF Partnership Board held on 31 July 2019.

The Partnership Board considered the minutes of the meeting held on 31 July 2019.

RESOLVED:

To confirm as a correct record the minutes of the Partnership Board meeting held on 31 July 2019.

To receive any reports and updates from the Chair (oral report).

The Chair informed the Board that the CEF films were now complete and would be made public soon.

In addition to District and County Councillors, there will be up to 8 admitted co-opted Members on the Partnership Board. Normally the 8 would comprise up to 4 town or parish council representatives and up to 4 other community representatives co-opted by the Partnership Board, but the Partnership Board shall be free to determine a different proportion if it sees fit.

Co-opted members must be formally approved by the Partnership Board and will have voting rights in respect of any decisions or recommendations made by the Board.

The Board are asked to consider any proposals to fill the vacancy for a co-opted Member. This vacancy has arisen as Councillor Steve Shaw-Wright is now a District Councillor, and therefore automatically has a place on the Central CEF Board in this respect.

Prospective co-optees have been asked to submit a 250 word statement, setting out who they are and why they would like to be on the Central CEF Board. At the time of agenda publication, no statements have been submitted.

The Board discussed the current co-opted member vacancy and noted that the deadline for submission of written statements for consideration was 21 September 2019; none had been received.

The vacancy would continue to be advertised.

To consider the Central CEF budget.

The Board noted the budget update, which confirmed a remaining balance of £24,814.41.

RESOLVED:

To note the budget update.

To consider the funding applications received, with reference to the funding framework and the recommendations of the Central CEF Funding Sub-Committee. The Sub-Committee will report their recommendations to the Board at the meeting.

The Board noted the Funding Framework.

The application was for £4,430 for the Selby District Disability Forum.

The Board received the recommendations of the Funding Sub-Committee which had met prior to the Board to consider the application. The Funding Sub-Committee recommended to the Board that the application for funding be approved, but that half of the funding amount to be awarded initially, followed by a monitoring report submitted in 6 months’ time to the funding sub-committee detailing the work undertaken, which if acceptable, would result in the other half of the funding being released.

The Board acknowledged the view of the Sub-Committee but felt that as SDDF had received funding from both the Tadcaster and Villages and Southern CEFs, further information regarding the work of these projects should be submitted to the Board before a decision was taken on the current funding application. It was agreed that this additional information would be considered alongside the application at the next Partnership Board in January 2020.

RESOLVED:           

To ask SDDF to submit further information regarding the work undertaken on other CEF funded SDDF projects (from the Tadcaster and Villages and Southern CEFs) before a decision is taken on the SDDF’s current funding application to the Central CEF.

To receive feedback from the Forum meeting held on 18 September 2019 (oral update).

The Development Officer gave feedback to the Board from the recent forum held at Selby Community Centre on 18 September 2019. Attendance at the forum had been poor, and as a result it was resolved that the Central CEF and its Community Development Plan (CDP) needed to be refreshed and relaunched. It was proposed that a consultation exercise by way of a questionnaire be undertaken by the Development Officer, Democratic Services and Board Members.

The Development Officer confirmed that she would draft the questionnaire and send it out for comment to the Board in the next week or so. The finalised version would then be circulated to Board Members, in order for them to encourage people in their local communities to complete and return the questionnaire.

The Board also agreed that the forum on 11 December 2019 should be cancelled, and a consultation event undertaken at Selby Abbey on 22 November 2019, to coincide with the Selby Abbey 650 Illuminations on the same evening. The Development Officer and Board Members would be on hand at the event with questionnaires, in order to canvass views and opinions from local people. Details of the event and the questionnaire would be published online on the Central CEF web pages.

The results of the questionnaire would then be analysed, and a new draft Community Development Plan brought to the Board meeting in January 2020 for comment and discussion.

RESOLVED:

To ask the Development Officer, Board Members and the Democratic Services Officer to undertake the consultation exercise for the CDP and Central CEF refresh/relaunch as discussed, with the draft CDP to be brought back for discussion by the Board at their meeting in January 2020.

To consider progress and developments related to the Central CEF Community Development Plan (to follow).

The Board agreed that as the Central CEF and its CDP were to be refreshed, further discussion on the current CDP was not required.

To discuss ideas to promote the Central CEF.

The Board welcomed Mike James, Communications Manager at Selby District Council, to the meeting.

The Board acknowledged that the audience reach and engagement with CEF related communications was generally poor, with Central CEF having particularly low engagement online. Despite the best efforts of the Council’s Communications Team.

Board Members noted that the printed press did pick up some CEF related stories and press releases, but content on social media was poorly received, despite a number of different stories and tactics having been tried. Previous suggestions to use groups such as Selby S.O.S on Facebook were not viable as the Council or the CEF could not comment as itself. It was clear that a different approach should be tried, perhaps by utilising existing networks, links and contacts.

The Board agreed that more positive human interest stories relevant to people’s lives were needed, and that more thought should to be given as to the reasons behind the publicity. The Communications Manager asked the Board to consider if the publicity was to enhance the CEF’s reputation, encouraging people to apply for grants increase attendance at meetings, or better the public’s knowledge of the CEF and its work? Members considered these points and felt that it was all of the above.

In thinking about the reasons behind publicity, some key communications objectives could be developed that would be included under the standing communications agenda item for each Board meeting. The Board could then use these objectives to identify an item for publicity each time it met; it was suggested that four objectives be developed for this purpose.

A suggestion by the Board was that recipients of grant funding could be encouraged to undertake more publicity themselves about the support they had received from the CEF; a ‘communications pack’ could be developed to issue to funding recipients, with ready-made quotes, logos and other material to use. Included in this pack could also be an award or certificate for the group that had received the funding, with the potential for these awards or certificates to be formally presented at arranged events.

The Board agreed that as the Abbey was a major draw for the town, more could be made of it and the Central CEF’s links to it; it was suggested that a future CEF forum could even be held at the Abbey. It was key that local people were encouraged to attend events in the town, such as the Picnic Brass Bands in the park over the summer, which had been a real success.

Lastly, the Board noted that when the topic of a forum was of concern and interest to local people, such as speeding when the forum was held in Barlow, the turnout did improve. This emphasised the importance of topics and themes that truly interested and concerned local people and their lives.

RESOLVED:

i.       To ask the Communications Manager to develop a ‘communications pack’ to be issued to recipients of Central CEF grant and project funding, in order for them to undertake  ...  view the full minutes text for item 27.

To consider the following completed impact reports:

-       Flaxley Road TARA, ‘Community Defibrillator and Cabinet’

-       Selby District Children’s Literature Festival

The Board received the impact reports set out in the agenda.

It was noted that the defibrillator at Flaxley Road had now been installed.

M Dyson updated the Board on the Team Up to Clean Up Riverside Project and was pleased to report that some sessions ad taken place, with bulb planting planned in the coming weeks. The Environment Agency had also confirmed that they would be cutting back the willow from the toll bridge which would improve and open up the riverside views.

RESOLVED:

i.       To note the impact reports from Flaxley Road TARA and Selby District Children’s Literature Festival.

ii.     To note the update on the Team Up to Clean Up Riverside Project.

To confirm the date and location of the next Central CEF meetings:

The Board agreed that rather than hold another forum on 11 December 2019 while the work of the CEF and the CDP was being refreshed, that this meeting should be cancelled and replaced by the consultation event to be held at the Selby Abbey 950 Illuminations from 5.30pm on Friday 22 November 2019.

Board Members were encouraged to attend by the Development Officer to assist with surveying the public and completing the questionnaires.

RESOLVED:

i.       To ask the Democratic Services Officer to cancel the forum on 11 December 2019 in favour of the Central CEF consultation event on Friday 22 November 2019, to be held in front of Selby Abbey to coincide with the Selby Abbey 950 Illuminations, from 5.30pm.

ii.     To ask Board Members to attend the Central CEF consultation event on 22 November 2019 in order to assist the Development Officer with surveying the public and distribution of questionnaires on the future work and direction of the Central CEF and its CDP.