To receive petitions, comments and questions from the public.
Decision:
The Committee received presentations from the following public participants and groups:
· Codicote Tennis Club
· Pirton Joycare
· Pirton Players
· Preston Parish Council
The Community Engagement Team Leader informed the Committee that Lisa Lathane of Preston Parish Council had been unable to attend the meeting, but provided a written contribution.
Minutes:
Audio recording – 46:15
Councillor Moody announced that he was declaring a registration of interest on the item due to being a member of Codicote Tennis Club, and was therefore not able to debate or vote on the grant application.
Maxine Sanders, Codicote Tennis Club, thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee in support of their grant application and gave a presentation including:
· Since submitting the application the Club has received feedback from the Low Carbon Workspace Grant, which rejected their application due to not meeting the CO2 thresholds;
· Had applied to the Codicote Parish Council and they were unable to support the application due to a lack of budget funds;
· Applied to Luton Airport Community Grant which is still in early stages;
· Limited ability to run fundraisers due to Covid;
· The component parts of the existing halogen lights are becoming obsolete;
· The LED lights proposed are more environmentally friendly, cheaper to operate and don’t require an ongoing maintenance cost.
The following Members asked questions:
· Councillor Sam North
· Councillor Faye Frost
· Councillor Claire Strong
In response to questions Maxine Sanders advised:
· The Club has £10,000 of their own money as well as £1000 from County Councillor Richard Thake’s locality budget the rest is needed from grant applications;
· The floodlights are used all year, including the final hour in the evening before closing during summer months;
The Chair thanked Codicote Tennis Club for their presentation.
Elaine Derrick and Alison Maple, Pirton Joycare, thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee in support of their grant application, and gave a presentation including:
· Joycare received charitable status and was thought to last 3-4 years. 20 years later Pirton Joycare is a valued part of Pirton village life;
· The organisation organises lunches at local pubs, monthly shopping trips and occasional outings;
· The organisation also transports people to medical appointments, to pick up prescriptions and pick up shopping;
· Joycare are hosting a Platinum Jubilee afternoon tea party on Thursday 2 June for the elderly community;
· The tea party provides an opportunity for the elderly community to get together and build new relationships following two years of Covid lockdowns.
The following Members asked questions:
· Councillor Sam North
In response to questions Elaine Derrick and Alison Maple advised:
· Joycare has an email distribution list of current members, a village magazine as well as a Facebook page.
The Chair thanked Pirton Joycare for their presentation.
Peter Johnson, Pirton Players, thanked the Chair for the opportunity to address the Committee in support of their grant application and gave a presentation including:
· Pirton Players is an amateur dramatic group;
· They put on plays and musicals; at least two a year;
· The proposal is for a lighting control desk, meaning the operator can control the lights on stage;
· The new lighting desk also provides a lot more facilities than the older one has;
· LED lights are a lot more versatile, it allows different colours to be used during a play.
The following Members asked questions:
· Councillor Claire Strong
· Councillor Faye Frost
In response to questions Peter Johnson advised:
· The board cost £1500 and the LED lights cost £1500;
· County Councillor David Barnard put in an application 2 years ago and it failed;
The Chair thanked Peter Johnson for his presentation.
The Chair informed to the Committee that Lisa Lathane was unable to attend the Committee, and read out a written statement on behalf of Preston Parish Council in respect of their grant application. Points in the statement included:
· The application is for a grant of £526.80 for a new cabinet for the defibrillator;
· The defibrillator is housed in a cabinet in the Red Lion carpark;
· The cabinet needs to be replaced as it is getting old;
· The cabinet needs to be on an electrical circuit to be kept warm at winter;
· The Parish Council will be paying for the installation of the cabinet;
· Preston has a lot of visitors from walkers and cyclists.