Agenda item - GRANTS & COMMUNITY UPDATE

REPORT OF THE POLICY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MANAGER

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

To bring to the Committee’s attention details of recent requests received for Area Committee Grant Funding, made by community groups and local organisations, which conform to the Authority’s Grants Policy approved by Cabinet on June 14th 2016.

RESOLVED:

(1) That the release of £1,500 in support of the Free after 3pm Parking initiative scheme for the town be agreed by the Committee and;

(2) That the actions taken by the Community Engagement Officer to promote greater community capacity and well-being for Royston and District be endorsed.

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 June 2016; and

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

Audio Recording – 49 Minutes 35 Seconds

The Committee received a Grants and Community Update from the Community Engagement Officer and the following information was provided:

· £34 could be added to the total funds as there was an underspend on the banner purchased for Royston Councillor Surgeries, making the total funds available to the Committee £2,938;

· If Members were minded to provide funding of £1,500 requested under recommendation 2.1 for the Free after 3pm Scheme, this would leave £1,438 for the remaining meeting of the Committee in the 2019/20 financial year;

· Reed Cricket Club had applied for grant funding of £1k in order to purchase replacement netting.

· An update on Pathway at end of Green Drift as explained at Paragraph 8.2.1 on page 17 of the report;

· An update regarding issues at Coombes Community Association was provided, as further detailed at Paragraph 8.2.2 on page 17;

· The Community Engagement Officer continued to sit on the Royston Town Centre working party and the work focused on tacking waste issues within the town;

· The Community Engagement Officer was working with colleagues at Hertfordshire County Council and its contractors to install two new bus shelters in the town;

· The Community Engagement Officer was liaising with Royston Town Council Councillors in order to install additional bicycle racks into the town which would be installed in the Market Hill car park area, owned by the Royston Town Council; and

· The projects in process as detailed at Paragraph 8.2.11 on page 18 within the report.

The following Members raised questions:

· Councillor Ruth Brown;

· Councillor Carol Stanier; and

· Councillor Tony Hunter.

In response to Members’ questions, the Community Engagement Officer advised:

· There was currently only one grant application in the pipeline and this was Reed Cricket Club;

· There would be a carry-over of approximately £400 in the grant fund;

· The deadline for grant applications was the end of January; and

· Funding was already in place for the bus shelters, as explained in Paragraph 8.2.4 of the report. Installing green roof bus shelters would delay the process because the contractor and price had already been agreed.