Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Jez Goodman, Mark Hills, Guy Kilminster, Doug Kinsman, Lindsey Lewis, Rhiannon Hilton and Pete Turner.

To receive any declarations of interest.

There were no new or updated declarations of Interest, other than those already on file.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the previous virtual meeting held on 7 July 2023.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the virtual meeting held on 7 July 2023 be approved as a correct record. The chair went through a list of actions from the previous virtual meeting and updated members on the status of each action accordingly.

To receive an update on the Towns Fund and Accelerated Funding Projects & review their status.

The board received an update which included the progress on the following projects:

Flag lane Baths – work was ongoing in respect of costs and an update would be presented to the TIP sub group in due course.

Crewe Youth Zone – The project had received public sector funding from the Youth Investment Fund, the Council and towns fund monies as well. Due to the amount of funding the project had received legislation stated that the project would need to go forward to the competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for review to ensure that it was not being anti-competitive for the local area. An economic appraisal was due to be submitted to the CMA and the findings would be presented to the board in due course.

Mirion Street – The additional funding had been received and work was underway with planning colleagues to secure planning permission.

The Board also received notes from the most recent TIP subgroup demonstrating how all the projects would now be subject to enhanced scrutiny to ensure both delivery of the projects and their outcomes.

RESOLVED:

That the update be noted.

To receive an update on the Board member recruitment process.

The Board received an update on the recruitment process. The date for applications to be submitted for the role of Chair and the three board member positions had now closed. The Chair and Vice Chair would review the applications and provide an update on progress at the next board meeting.

RESOLVED:

That the update be noted.

To consider the oversight and scrutiny structure of the Board.

The Board received an update on the project allocation for the next steps in supporting the projects. The majority of board members had been allocated their first choice of project with the remaining board members agreeing to be allocated as per the attached document.

The Board discussed the draft Terms of Reference for the proposed role of  board sponsor, and it was agreed that the Head of Economic Development would amend the draft based on the comments made, circulate a revised draft for comment and then write out to all project leads and the project board sponsor with introductions to board members and the projects that they would be responsible for.

As part of a review of Board governance the remit and job description of the board member role was discussed. Board members were asked to consider the elements of board governance detailed in the notes of the most recent TIP Subgroup and make any further comments as soon as possible so that an update could be provided at the September board meeting.

The name of the board, its role and focus for the future was discussed and the Acting Director of Place offered to meet with the Chair and Vice Chair to discuss this.

RESOLVED:

That the update be noted.

To receive an update from the sub-group, including further details on the progress of Marketing Crewe.

The Board received an update from Paul Coleman in respect of  the marketing Crewe vehicle. There had been several meetings with stakeholders including Marketing Cheshire, Cheshire East Council  tourism, Cheshire Town Council, Manchester Metropolitan and their Institute of Place Management, who could provide support and guidance in respect of the vehicle for marketing Crewe.

Board members were encouraged to attend and promote the next meeting which was scheduled for the 13^th September to those stakeholders and colleagues who were involved in marketing to have further discussions around the marketing and promotion.

RESOLVED:

That the update be noted.

Good news stories for Crewe were highlighted which included BMX riders from the area preparing to compete in the Cycling World Championships and the ‘A Statue for Ada’ campaign which was underway. The statue would recognise the work of the activist and campaigner Ada Nield Chew and the campaign would involve an exhibition taking place at various locations across Crewe over the summer which had recently launched at the Crewe Market Hall.

To receive an update from the Director of Growth and Enterprise.

Peter Skates, the Director of Growth & Enterprise attended the meeting and gave a verbal update from Cheshire East Council.

RESOLVED:

That the update be noted

To confirm the date of the next meeting as 1 September 2023 commencing at 9.30am.

RESOLVED

That the date of the next virtual meeting take place on Friday 1 September 2023 commencing at 9.30am.