Agenda item - GRANTS AND COMMUNITY UPDATE

To advise the Committee on the current expenditure and balances of the Committee Grant budgets.

To bring to the Members’ attention recent requests received for Committee grant funding, made by community groups and local organisation, including:

· Barley Town House

To advise the Committee of the activities and schemes with which the Community Engagement officer has been involved in.

To bring to the Committee’s attention some important community-based activities that will take place during the next few months.

RESOLVED:

(1) That grant funding of £500 be awarded to Barley Town House to assist with costs for essential repair and renovation works to the south facing windows, frames, doors, and timber at the building as outlined in 8.1.1.

(2) That the Committee allocate £1,500 from the 2021/22 base budget for the Free After 3pm Parking Initiative as outlined in 8.3.1.

(3) That the Committee allocate £500 from the 2021/22 base budget for the annual maintenance of the planters on Royston High Street as outlined in 8.3.2.

(4) That the Committee agrees that any unspent funds from the 2021/22 financial year be allocated to Community & Environmental Initiatives for the 2022/23 period.

(5) That the Committee endorse the actions taken by the Community Engagement Officer to promote greater community capacity and well-being for Royston

REASONS FOR DECISIONS:

(1) To ensure the Committee is kept informed of the work of the Community Engagement Officer.

(2) This report is intended to inform Members of the financial resources available to the Committee. It draws attention to the current budgetary situation by assisting in the effective financial management of the Area Committee’s budget. This ensures that all actions are performed in line with the Authority’s Financial Regulations, the Council’s Constitution, and the guidance of the existing Grants policy as agreed by Cabinet in January 2020.

(3) The awarding of financial assistance to voluntary organisations and the use of discretionary spending allows the Committee to further the aims of the Council Plan.

(4) The Committee is asked on an annual basis to provide financial support from its base budget for the Free After 3pm Parking Initiative.

(5) The Committee is requested to provide financial support from its base budget for the maintenance of the planters on Royston High Street.

Audio recording – 45 minutes 15 seconds

Grant Application

The Community Engagement Officer advised that the details of the remaining grant funds were included in the report and that there would be £1130 to carry forward if tonight’s application was approved.

The Community Engagement Officer confirmed that the base budget was £6000 for the civic year 2021/22, but was unsure whether this would be the same for the civic year 2022/23.

Councillor Ruth Brown proposed and Councillor Gerald Morris seconded and, following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED: That grant funding of £500 be awarded to Barley Town House to assist with costs for essential repair and renovation works to the south facing windows, frames, doors, and timber at the building as outlined in 8.1.1.

Free After 3pm Parking in Royston

The Chair led a discussion on Free After 3pm Parking in Royston scheme and the following Members took part in the debate:

· Councillor Ruth Brown

· Councillor Tony Hunter

· Councillor Adam Compton

· County Councillor Fiona Hill

The following points were raised in the debate:

· There was no evidence that the scheme encourages people into the town and increases footfall. Royston First were looking into this at the moment.

· When the scheme started, there was an estimated figure provided of how many people were entering and exiting car parks, as no data was available for this, and the funds have been granted for the scheme ever since. There was a clear visible increase in cars in the car parks after 3pm.

· The amount given by NHDC should be explored to see whether this is an appropriate amount and the percentage of NHDCs contribution. If it is deemed excessive then monies could be recovered and put back into the grant funds.

· It has always been difficult to find exact figures to support the scheme, due to the nature of different charges at Royston car parks.

· The expansion of the RingGo app across car parks should help to provide data to support the scheme, but this was not used across all parking in town.

· NHDC are looking at whether this scheme increases footfall and any decision on this should be based on firm evidence of benefit.

· It is not necessarily understood by car park users that the Council provide funds for this scheme.

Councillor Tony Hunter, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Adam Compton seconded and, following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED: That the Committee allocate £1,500 from the 2021/22 base budget for the Free After 3pm Parking Initiative as outlined in 8.3.1.

Royston High Street Planters

The Chair led a discussion on Royston High Street planters and the following Members took part in the debate:

· Councillor Gerald Morris

· Councillor Tony Hunter

· Councillor Sarah Dingley

· County Councillor Ruth Brown

· Councillor Fiona Hill

· Councillor Adam Compton

The following points were raised in the debate:

· Retailers in the town had already had a difficult time and were just starting to recover and the planters are taking up vital parking spaces in the town centre and often these planters are empty or dilapidated.

· Parking would still be available for deliveries and disabled users and the money granted would help to improve the look of the planters.

· New black planters were planned, with funds approved by Royston Town Council, and additional funding provided from the Herts County Council Locality Budget.

· Several residents had raised concerns that the planters had prevented people from going for a quick trip into town.

· While there was not always an issue with the parking on the High Street, it was exacerbated on market days.

· Cars circling for spaces in the town centre had reduced with the move to disabled and delivery vehicle parking only.

· The 20 minute short stay parking would not achieve much in terms of town centre recovery. These are generally quick trips and prevent people from extending their stay in the town centre.

· The original consultation on the planters with businesses in the town centre had recorded only 7 objections, and some of these were removed with some small changes to the scheme.

· Similar market towns had demonstrated that if you take away short term parking and introduce a ‘pay-on-exit’ scheme you increase time and money spent in the town.

· The cost of these planters seems high, but this is to cover maintenance of planters and contents which represents the highest cost, as well as the initial installation.

Councillor Tony Hunter, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Ruth Brown seconded and, following a vote, it was:

RESOLVED: That the Committee allocate £500 from the 2021/22 base budget for the annual maintenance of the planters on Royston High Street as outlined in 8.3.2.

Grants and Community Update

Councillor Tony Hunter proposed and Councillor Sarah Dingley seconded and, following a vote, it was: