GENERAL MEETING - Bowburn & Parkhill Community Partnership - Charity Number 1112151
Tuesday 20 February 2018 from 6.00pm
Present: M Bell, J Blackburn, J Blakey, R Cowen, J Geyer, K Griffiths, M McKeon, G Parker, S Raine,
J Richardson, M Ridley, M Syer, S Walworth In attendance: Cllr S Dunn
1.Apologies: D Paget, F Salisbury
2. Declarations of interest: Declarations of interests would be made as required throughout this agenda.
3. Security: (i)PACT: ‘Walkabouts’ - Friday 16 March at 10.00am; meet at Bowburn petrol station.
Friday 13 April; at 10.00am; meet at the entrance to Hill Top View estate.
PCSO Butterfield emailed the following for Bowburn: 1 incident of burglary when a motorbike was stolen from
a workshop; 3 incidents of theft; all from business premises; 7 incidents of criminal damage; 3 of these were
tyres being slashed, but they are not believed to be related; 7 ASB reports.
4. Minutes: Minutes of the General Meeting 16 January 2018: The minutes were approved and agreed.
Matters Arising: Length of meetings - Agreed to finish the General meetings at 7.30pm, whenever possible.
5. Finances: i) Treasurer’s report: Mike presented a list of transactions to date.
The Youth Club application to the Community Fund: Still awaiting the payment for the Xmas Party.
5ii) Raffle: M Bell won the prize kindly donated by F Salisbury. Gary Parker has donated a prize for March.
5iii) Quiz: The new quiz ‘Astronomy V Astrology’ is on sale at £1 with a closing date of 12 May 2018.
6. Item for Any Other Business: Hill Top View
7. Current Masterplan:
7A Regeneration Fund:
7B. Future environment ideas:
Project Notes
Pointing
Durham Road
DCC conservation does not recommend raking out pointing which is satisfactory as it could harm the bricks and
allow water to seep in.
Grass
strimming and
weed strimming
18/04/17: DCC Operation ‘Spruce Up’ tidied verges, planted trees, reduced litter, installed new litter/dog bins
along Mary Terrace and outside the Community Centre in Bowburn.
C HIndmarch can provide incentive schemes to encourage the children to continue ‘sprucing up’.
06/09/17: Trustees discussed the possibility of funding to pay a part-time project officer to work with schools.
Gas meter
boxes in
Durham Road
After agreeing that the Partnership could contribute a reasonable sum towards improving this problem it was
agreed to contact all residents in Durham Road to gain ideas as to how to smarten up the gas boxes. 8 new
gas boxes were fitted 20 to 30 June, and all 32 painted by 17/07/2017
Let by signs Request to remove ‘Let by’ signs in Durham Rd is being followed up.
17/10/2017 Thanks to Sylvia for highlighting the problem and thanks to Cllr McKeon for aiding the removal of
the ‘Let by’ signs on Durham Road.
Seats in the
park
17/10/2017 Agreed to consult residents in Beaumont Close and Lansdowne Crescent on installing a seat below
the children’s enclosed play area.
16/01/2018 The first replies to the consultation are in favour of the seat.
20/02/2018: DCC to price a seat suitable for the park. JANET
Children’s
holiday
activities
A meeting is being arranged with Victoria Grieves (AAP) to discuss ideas for activities for children.
23/10/2017: Meeting with Jane Bellis provided examples of holiday activities throughout the AAP.
21/11/2017: Agreed - a joint meeting with the Youth Club, Community Centre and Library led by Cllr McKeon.
16/01/2018: Survey of holiday requirements for Bowburn is online.
Jane Bellis informed that an AAP grant application will be available for the summer holidays.
20/02/2018: Joint arrangements by the Youth Club, Community Centre and
Partnership for the Easter Holiday Activities will take place on 21/02/2018.
Trees on
Mary
Terrace
19/09/17: The Partnership has applied to the APP Participatory Budget for environment projects to plant trees
beside the A177 opposite Mary Terrace; provide hedgehog boxes and a weather station to the schools.
17/10/207: An application has been submitted and confirmed to go through to the PB event on 25 November.
21/11/2017: ‘Tree Week’ funding of £150 for a tree in Mary Terrace.
16/01/2018: Apply for grant to CDCF to plant trees to the south of Mary Terrace.
Camera bird
boxes
Co-op local Community Fund success – spend on Co-op products up to October
2018, will increase our fund for camera bird boxes in the schools and Youth Club.
Hedgehog
boxes
Agreed to ask HM Prison Durham to make 6 hedgehog boxes for the Youth club,
Infant School and Junior School; up to a cost of £50.00 JANET
Pick up a weed and a piece of paper every day to keep your pavements clear
8 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: Members of the Partnership had a worthwhile visit to the Fire Training
Centre – a unique facility to the UK. Two open days are arranged for 1 April and 2 June.
Future community engagement ideas: Cllr McKeon is discussing a scheme to bring a ‘Jobs Fair’ of local
businesses to the Community Centre.
9.LOCAL REPORTS:
9i)Planning issues:
Katem Solutions a haulage, storage and distribution company has applied for an operating licence to base 60
cabs and 100 trailers on land at Henderson Building in Bowburn North Industrial Estate.
Members discussed the benefits of jobs and increased use of the industrial estate against the possible
problems of an increase in noise levels and air pollution when up to 60 lorries travel to the MW.
However, the problems would add a strong argument to support the construction of the Industrial Relief Road
for which a member would like to see a condition to contribute to the construction of the Relief Road.
Agreed to make such comments to the licencing committee and officers in DCC. RICHARD
The Vice Chair of the Parish informed members that Katem representatives would be at the Parish meeting on
21 February and all members had a right to attend but could only comment on the invitation of the Chair.
Intergra 61: Agreed with the Parish to support wider roads in phase one. RICHARD
Surtees Avenue: The application was passed on the casting vote of the chair of the Planning Committee.
Carlin Close: Cllr Maura McKeon continues to liaise with DCC officers and potentially the site owners to
resolve the problem of the damaged mesh fence alongside the boundary of the site. CLLR McKEON
Hill Top View: The path to the A177 will not be constructed by the site owners as they claim that they are not
responsible for land outside the site area. Investigations continue. CLLR McKEON
Excess water at the site entrance is being investigated by Northumbrian Water.
Parkhill development: Work is due to start at the end of March.
Bowburn Hall: G Parker declared an interest in this item.
A decision on the extension to the ballroom was deferred on environmental reasons.
Enquiries are to be made about a need for planning permission at Bowburn Hall to construct the existing
storage unit for a biomass boiler. RICHARD
Anaerobic Digester: Agreed to enquire if tree planting to screen the digester will start before the end of March.
9ii) Constituency Boundary changes: Representations have been made about the inclusion of Durham City
with Billingham in the proposed boundary changes.
At this meeting it was asked that we are informed of any future consultations regarding this matter. CLLRS
9iii) Ongoing: Bowburn Industrial Relief Road: Await the Durham Plan. See also Item 9(i);
Air quality on A177 – Await a result in September 2018; MW A1(M) junction 61
9iv) Community Centre: The Centre is doing well and is pleased to report that new groups are hiring the
rooms. The felling of the tree outside the grounds of the centre was the responsibility of DCC.
9v) Youth Club (Contact 0778827732): Monday 13-17 year olds work with Elemore Hall school and Coxhoe
young people’s home; some young people are completing their peer mentoring course. Tuesday Y6/7 and
Y8/9 work separately on appropriate topics through cooking and sport as well as community cohesion. On
Wednesday’s the drop-in for young mothers has been hit and miss over the winter; the NEET group continues
well, and the task group continue to plan and organise events. The Friday drama group, run by the university,
is supervised by Joanne. Gym and fitness classes have increased, but adult volunteers would be welcome to
help at the Gym where new members are always welcome.
Gym times: Mon to Fri 9.15-11.30am; Evenings Tue to Thur 6-8pm.
9vi) Primary school: The £8.2M spend on the new primary school was approved by Cabinet.
Planning could take 2/3 months, but the new architect is changing the exterior design only as the internal plans
have been accepted by both County and the Heads. CISWO has not responded to the plans for parking at the
rear of Broadmeadows or to the proposals for the new access which would then include a new roundabout on
the C12A. The appointment of the ‘new head’ is on 7 March with three governors on both boards of governors
on the panel, but the current heads will work together towards a successful transition. Funding for both schools
is carried over for the first two years of the new school. A 4G pitch on the old tennis courts was too costly and
there may be a hard-stand, but officers and councillors are open to ideas for the use of the land as a playing
area for both the public and the school. A safe walking access to the new school could be via Surtees Avenue,
Beaumont Crescent and a cleared scrub area. COUNCILLORS
vii) Shops: It is hoped to bring a new retailer to the old Co-op building.
New Coop: Agreed to ask if the owners of the new Co-op if their expectations have been reached in relocating
to the new site. JANET
Pick up a weed and a piece of paper every day to keep your pavements clear
10. Correspondence: Over the counter medicines: NHS England has launched a public consultation, ending
14 March, in relation to reducing prescribing of over-the-counter medicines for minor health concerns.
Council tax discounts for severely mentally impaired people: Residents’ council tax bills can be reduced if
anyone living in a home is classed as severely mentally impaired from a Council Tax legislation perspective.
This includes illnesses such as Alzheimer’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s and severe learning difficulties.
All email correspondence has been sent out to members.
11. Reports and matters arising:
11i) East Durham Rural Corridor AAP: 16 January Key Messages Bowburn Community Centre with C Varty in
the chair. S Sahani, Principal Private Secretary to Ron Hogg updated Police Funding in 2018/19 particularly
the decision to increase the precept by 7.09% to protect services at the current level. Jane Bellis gave a
reminder that the Board had agreed to keep the existing AAP priorities for 2018/19 which will form the basis on
the allocation of the Area Budget and other associated funding. Board members were asked to send a
representative from each section to the Joint Priorities Task Group. It was agreed to hold an ‘It’s Up 2 U PB
Event’ in 2018 with £33,000 (subject to confirmation of £100,000 Area Budget). Inspector Sarah Honeyman
gave a verbal update on local policing information on neighbourhood issues previously raised by residents.
The next Board meeting will be held on Thursday 15 March 2018 from 5.00 pm – 7.00 pm at Cassop
Community Centre, Front Street, Cassop, DH6 4RF.
11ii) County Councillors: Cllr McKeon – Improvement of street lighting and road surfaces on the ‘Cape’ site;
the Clean and Green team are tackling dog poo issues; investigating regeneration of premises on Romaine
Square; looking for a solution to the problem of empty properties.
Cllr Dunn – The Council Tax will rise by 4.99%; Cabinet agreed to move their headquarters and create a new
history centre; propose that the Parish Council decide on local areas for grit bins.
Cllr Blakey – Had a walkabout with PCSO Butterfield in Tursdale; taking action on potholes and the road
leading to Cornforth Moor House Farm in Parkhill; investigating problems of damp in Durham Road; placing
dumpy bags of grit in areas which do not meet the criteria for a grit bin.
All the councillors are meeting with Cllr Carl Marshall to discuss issues of highways for Bowburn e.g. Relief
Road and a left-hand turn out of the Motorway Services.
Report environmental offences on 03000 261000 or to DCC or to your local County Councillors
Jan Blakey (03000 268685), Stuart Dunn (03000 264342) and Maura McKeon (03000 268789).
11iii) Report of Cassop-cum-Quarrington Parish Council Meeting, 17 January 2018:
Following the report from DCC of the revised Council Tax base, the Parish agreed to accept the
recommendation of the Finance and Forward Planning Committee that there should be no increase in the
Parish Council Tax charge for 2018/19. (£37.43 for Band “D” dwelling). There would also be no increase in
charges such as garage rents/burial fees for the coming year, because the precept has increased with the
increase in houses. The Parish sent a letter of objection to DCC re Integra 61 application for reserved matters;
this included queries about the width of the carriageway within the development which was felt to be
inadequate if it was ultimately to be used as a relief road. There were 9 people helping with the litter pick who
collected 27 bags of litter. The ‘Big Clean Up’ in Bowburn will be 7 April.
Next Meeting: 21 February; Litterpick: 3 March (in conjunction with Chloe Brown and Bowburn Infants’ School)
Neighbourhood Plan (NP): The three topics have been prepared, namely: Design of new development; Quality
of the environment; Rural setting of settlements.
Coal column: The cost of the Coal Column has been revised and the Parish have yet to take a decision to
commission Groundwork NE to project manage the work.
11iv) Quarry Liaison: There is to be a meeting in April; contact with Tarmac is progressing.
12. Group Noticeboard:
(i)Banner: No report
(ii) BVC Interchange: Issue 86 is being prepared.
The next Quiz Night will be held on Friday 9 March in Crowtrees Club at 7.30pm.
(iii) Credit Union Bank: The bank is open on Fridays from 11 am to 12 noon in the Community Centre.
Both Bowburn schools also save through the Credit Union.
(iv) History: The Resources Room is open every Wednesday 1pm till 3pm.
(v) Fun Day: The Fun Day will take place next year with the funding already in place.
13. AOB: Discussed in 9(i)
14. Trustees Meeting: 6 March 2018 at 6.00pm in Bowburn Community Centre
Next General Meeting: 20 March 2018 at 6.00pm in Bowburn Community Centre.
Pick up a weed and a piece of paper every day to keep your pavements clear