Parish Councillors to raise issues verbally in the meeting
Minutes:
REQUEST FOR A PRESENTATION ON HEALTH AND WELLBEING IN THE CONTEXT OF THE EAST LANCASHIRE PLACE INITIATIVE
This was a request made by Simonstone Parish Council.
Parish Councillor, David Peat spoke on the Patient-led Assessments of the Care Environment (PLACE) Initiative and the importance of engaging communities with this. The emphasis should be on the Ribble Valley working together uniformly on this initiative.
It was agreed that Ribble Valley Borough Council would invite Jackie Moran, who is the Director of East Lancashire Place and is on Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board to attend the next meeting to give a presentation on the initiative.
LEVELLING UP IN RURAL AREAS
This issue was raised by Simonstone Parish Council.
The Chief Executive confirmed that a report on the Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) had been submitted to the Policy and Finance Committee on 20 June 2023. It was felt that the current scheme is too complicated and needs to be simplified. This scheme will cover all areas of the Ribble Valley, with the exception of Clitheroe, Longridge and Whalley and there is a pot of approximately £400,000.
There was discussion as to rural villages that are cut off from the larger urban areas potentially having put the levelling up money into transportation and whether there were alternative funds available for this purpose. The Chief Executive spoke about the Little Green Bus Charity which provides transport to people who can’t use regular public transport. It was agreed that the Little Green Bus Charity would be invited to attend a future meeting to discuss the support and services they offer. The Chief Executive also suggested that the Parish Councils could look at joining together to purchase a bus and to recruit volunteer drivers.
ROAD SAFETY WORKING GROUP UPDATE
Mr Andrew Yates of Bolton by Bowland, Gisburn Forest and Sawley Parish Council provided Committee with an update. In particular, the current focus of the working group has been on considering 20mph speed limits in village areas. The objectives are, amongst others:
• To improve the quality of life within rural communities, where pedestrian and cyclist’s movements are high.
• To slow the traffic down going through village streets.
Mr Yates advised that a list had been put together of ways to implement 20mph speed limits e.g. having buffer zones and appropriate signage. Reference was made to initiatives in the UK, such as in the Scottish Borders, where 20mph speed limits have been imposed and the positive impact this has had.
Committee was provided with a brief overview of the approximate cost of implementation. An estimated budget for a 20mph limit (per single road) with buffer would be £3/5,000. However, for an accurate budget, a scoping exercise a scoping exercise would need to be undertaken by an LCC authorised contractor.
Committee were informed that ten Parish Councils are now signed up to the working group. Mr Yates wanted to canvass if any other Parish Councils wished to become involved going forward to assist with the consultation process. The information will then be presented to County Councillor, Rupert Swarbrick.
HARP
This issue was raised at the meeting by Waddington Parish Council in the context of road safety and by Simonstone Parish Council who sought an update.
The Chief Executive advised that the Council has granted planning permission and there will be a dedicated highway officer who will liaise with United Utilities if any problems arise.
It was confirmed that there has been no further information as to whether the Secretary of State will call HARP in. If a decision is made to call it in, then it is likely that there will be a Public Enquiry and the Council will make appropriate representations.
CITIZEN’S SUMMIT FOR CLIMATE AND NATURE
Hothersall Parish Council advised that there will be a Citizen’s Summit for Climate and Nature on 1 July 2023. The aim is to bring people together from across the Ribble Valley to generate creative local responses to the global climate. It’s a free event and will be a visionary day, imaging what the Ribble Valley will look like in 2030.
PARISH COUNCIL FUNDING
This issue was raised at the meeting by Waddington Parish Council.
Sarah Bolton advised of the difficulties Waddington Parish Council had in obtaining funding. Questions were asked as to whether there could be a shared fund or more information about grants/funding that is available.
The Chief Executive advised that the Council does have a grant scheme and outlined other available schemes, e.g. the Rural Fund. He suggested that Council officers could attend a future meeting to provide the Committee with further information on this issue. A suggestion was also made for a handbook to be produced outlining the range of grants available.