Rushmoor Borough Council Policy and Project Advisory Board Meeting

The minutes of the meeting held on 26th September, 2023 were agreed as a correct record.

The Board welcomed David Lipscombe, Community Safety Manager, who was in attendance to review the final draft of the Anti-Social Behaviour Policy, before being presented to the Cabinet for approval at a future meeting.

It was noted that following the previous discussion at the September 2023 meeting, Members’ comments and amendments had been incorporated into a revised draft, which was then circulated for further comment in early November.

Following a discussions, the amendments set out below were suggested:

·         Section 5 - state explicitly what the Council can and cannot deal with

·         Section 5 – include the wording “… but not limited to…” (para 2)

The Board ENDORSED the Anti-Social Behaviour Policy, subject to the following:

·         the minor updates be made

·         a final version be circulated to the Board, for reference

The Board RECOMMENDED that:

·         the final Policy be submitted to the Cabinet at a future meeting for approval

The Chairman thanked Mr Lipscombe and the Board for their work on the development of this Policy.

The Board welcomed Alex Shiell, Service Manager – Policy, Strategy and Transformation, who was in attendance to report on proposed projects identified in the UK Shared Prosperity Fund project list. In addition Rachel Barker, Assistant Chief Executive and Lee McQuade, Service Manager – Economy and Growth, were in attendance to answer Members queries.

Prior to the meeting, the Board had requested that Officers identified projects within themes that had yet to be reviewed, these included:

·         Heritage, culture and arts activities

·         Public realm improvements

·         Practical support for place and businesses during town centre transition

·         Local and neighbourhood support

·         Sector support

·         Apprenticeships, training and skills development

The projects identified were;

·         CP3 – Support and commission organisers to deliver heritage, cultural and arts delivery (high value)

·         CP6 – Temporary town square (capital project)

·         CP7 – Developing a place brand for Farnborough (high value and interdependency with CP19)

·         CP18 – Funding for neighbourhood level interventions to increase pride in place (proposed flexibility)

·         CP19 – Post to encourage community ownership of civic quarter/leisure and cultural hub (high value and interdependency with CP7)

·         PS1 – Digital and creative industries upskilling and mentoring programme (further planning required)

·         PS3 – wrap around skills support and enhanced North Hants Employment and Skills Zone (NHESZ) website (further planning required)

Following a discussion the Board ENDORSED the following projects, CP3, CP18, CP19 and PS1, and additional information was requested on the other projects as set out below:

·         CP6 – The Board requested that a range of options be considered for this project taking account of its longevity and value for money. Consideration could be given to setting up a task and finish group for this project.

·         CP7 – In principle, support was given to this project, however, a request was made for further information on best practice, in relation to place branding, to be circulated to the Board.

·         PS3 – The project was supported in principle, but it was noted that additional funding could assist with developing this project further.

With regards to next steps, it was noted that the Progress Group would be utilised to feedback on projects as necessary. For smaller projects email and SharePoint would be used to update the Board for larger projects, that required further engagement, such as the temporary town square (CP6), meetings would be convened as necessary. The Progress Group would be updated at its January 2024 meeting.

The Board noted the Current Work Plan.

Following an enquiry regarding the Supporting Communities Strategy and when it would next be refreshed, it was noted that there was no current date for this work, but the item would be added to the Work Plan for future reference.