Minutes:
Notes of the meeting of the DOVER NORTH Neighbourhood Forum held on 7 October 2008 at the Betteshanger Community Centre, Circular Road, Betteshanger at 7.00pm
Present:
Parish Councillor David Hart Chairman
DDC Councillors Steve Manion,
KCC Councillor Eileen Rowbotham
Other Councillors and members of the public.
Apologies: DDC Councillor Bob Thompson.
1. Chairman’s welcome
The Chairman welcomed the members of the public, representatives of the Police and other agencies.
2. Notes of Previous meeting
The Notes had been circulated previously and were approved as a correct record.
· the planning application for the teen shelter at St. Margaret’s was on-going;
· Teen Fusion nightclub scheme to be expanded in another location;
· Chairman had been invited to join the A258 Working Group at which he could raise points from the Forum
3. Community Safety
3.1 Don Covus – Area Supervisor for KCC Community Safety Unit:
· increase from 1 warden in 2002 to 9 wardens plus a supervisor at present with Dover having a high proportion;
· provide visible uniformed presence for public contact in 3 urban and 6 rural areas;
· warden role covers public welfare and wellbeing, includes all ages and may involve individual visits;
· police training received in some areas and are linked to Dover Community Safety Unit which provides excellent access to all DDC departments;
In response to questions: Betteshanger was not covered by Wardens due to limited number; Northbourne’s PCSO had recently changed resulting in a gap in the cover.
Action: Northbourne Parish Council to be contacted by the Police to introduce new PCSO
3.2 Chief Inspector, Area Commander for Kent Police, Dover:
· introduced himself as new to the District, based in Dover and with the role of figurehead, budget-holder, and in close liaison with colleagues in the ‘front line’;
· old idea of a ‘one-stop shop’ now replaced by partnership working, with Partners And Communities Together (PACT) operating in each Council area and with local ownership;
· Police power supports Community Wardens.
In response to questions: enforcement of speed limits in villages achieved by providing Community Safety Unit with speed indicating device, followed by beat officers with speed guns and motorcycle teams targeting the area if necessary. Satnav causes HGVs to use unsuitable lanes but small villages cannot be removed from the system as this would affect response by emergency services. Specific technology for lorries was being investigated.
Action: Northbourne to be contacted regarding assessing the traffic speed problem in the village.
3.3 Christopher Allen, DDC Community Safety Manager:
· Council’s responsibilities under Crime and Disorder Act involve partnerships between KCC Highways, DDC, Kent Police and Kent Police Authority, Fire & Rescue service, Primary Care Trust and others;
· aim is to develop a safe community for locals and visitors and remove causes of crime;
· officer employed specifically to help design safe new developments, e.g. Dover Town Investment Zone, to reduce crime, disorder and anti-social behaviour;
· young people are more likely to be victims of crime than the cause of crime;
· target to reduce crime in the District by 12½ % between 2005 –2008 has been exceeded – actual reduction is 15%. Dover’s partnership is one of 17 partnerships out of a total of 66 in SE England which achieved their target.
· 91% of population of Dover district feel safe: on the scale of recorded crime Medway was 13th with 9,000 crimes, Sevenoaks was 1st with 2,000 crimes and Dover came 9th with 3109 crimes. The positive message needs to be highlighted.
· funding is available to all Town and Parish Councils towards sustainable projects to combat crime and disorder.
In response to questions: drug problem is decreasing- 5 crack houses in Dover closed in one hit. Funding for CCTV to provide security for Betteshanger Community Centre could be available upon application provided a sufficient case was made.
Action: Crime Prevention Design Adviser to contact Northbourne regarding funding for measures to stop nuisance drivers.
Action: Bill Butler to help Deal Town Football Club with Charlton Athletic scheme.
4. DDC/KCC Small Community Capital Project Grants 2008/09
Chairman reported results of scoring the various applications and recommendations to DDC and KCC for grants:
Organisation Project Amount
Elvington Village Hall Installation of security lighting £700
Great Mongeham Village Village Design Statement £500
Design Statement Group
East Kent Railway Trust Eythorne Station Re-surfacing £1,800
St. Augustine’s Church Installation of toilets facilities £ 1,650
Aylesham Neighbourhood Replacement of playroom windows £3,395
Project
Ripple Down House Trust Fence Project £5,000
Move the Miner New site/Purchase of 4 statues £576.71
Total £13,621.71
KCC Local Schemes Grant 2008/09
KCC Cllr. Eileen Rowbotham had allocated her funding under the above scheme to:
Betteshanger Community Centre, new heating system £9,328.57
(She declared a personal interest in the Small Community Grants for the reason that she was a trustee of Ripple Down House.)
Members of the Forum agreed that these amounts be recommended to the Leaders of KCC and DDC for approval.
5. Suggested topics for Future Forums
· DDC and KCC budgets.
· Re-visit previous topics e.g. Highways, Health Service.
· Progress with recycling.
· 2012 Olympics – local impact.
The meeting ended at 8.35pm