Agenda and minutes

To receive any apologies for absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Andy Butler, Reverend David Edwards, Jasbir Dhesi, Mark Hills, Frank Jordan, Kim Cooper, Martin Wood, Joel Tagg.

To receive any declarations of interest.

There were no declarations of interest.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the previous virtual meeting held on 7 May 2021 and to consider and note the actions from the virtual meeting.

RESOLVED

That the minutes of the virtual meeting held on 7 May 2021 be approved as a correct record. The Chair went through the list of actions from the previous virtual meeting and updated members on the status of each action accordingly.

To receive an update on Education matters for the board.

Jacky Forster, Director of Education and 14-19 Skills and Claire Williamson, Head of Service: Education Participation and Pupil Support gave a presentation on the work carried out by the service. Highlighted within the presentation was information on proposals to enhance the education offer in Crewe, formation of a stakeholder alliance to celebrate and generate excellence, emphasis on improving outcomes in Crewe by joint collaboration with the ‘Learning Alliance’ and the opportunities for this work to link in with that of Crewe Town Board.

Members of the Board asked questions and put forward comments in relation to:

·         Agreement that the positive aspects weren’t celebrated enough;

·         Whether the school boundaries impacted on school admissions;

·         Consideration to be given on how to raise standards and performance in schools which isn’t then undermined by other policies which require them to compete against each other.

·         Further consideration to be given to the development of a Crewe based strategy and to how communications and the Crewe brand could be used to better understand stakeholders roles.

·         Whether consideration had been given to setting up a Skills forum for Crewe

On behalf of the Board, the Chair thanked Jacky and Claire for their presentation.

RESOLVED

That the presentation be noted.

To receive an update on the progress on the Towns Fund.

The Chair provided a verbal update in respect of the Towns Fund. Whilst the Government announcement hadn’t been made it was agreed that that work should continue on plans for Stage 2 requirements of the projects. It was agreed that the Sub-Group needed to reconvene and that further discussions be held with Hatch, pending any announcement from Government.

RESOLVED

(1)  That the update be noted

(2)   That the Sub-Group reconvene outside of the virtual meeting.

To receive a report on the Communication & Engagement Sub-Group on Terms of Reference

Carol Young, Policy & Partnerships Officer provided a verbal update on the work undertaken by the Communication and Engagement Sub-Group which included continued promotion of the ongoing work in Crewe, preparation for the funding announcement from Government and increased social media presence following collaborative working with the college.

A request was made to formalise the terms of reference for the group which were supported by the Communications and Engagement strategy and the social media protocol documents.

The Chair informed the Board that following on from its previous meeting information on a proposal to work with two local performance poets to showcase the talents of Crewe had been circulated to Board members. It was noted that this item would be referred to the Communications & Engagement sub group and that further discussions would be had on timescales for suggestions.

RESOLVED

(1)  That the update be noted .

(2)  That the Terms of Reference for the Communication and Engagement Sub-Group be circulated to Board members for comment.

(3)  That the matter be referred to the Communications and Engagement Sub-Group for further discussion.

To receive a sub-groups update.

The Chair provided an update in respect of the Sub-Groups which included:

·         The Youth Sub-Group - It was agreed that this Sub-Group needed to reconvene before the next Crewe Board Meeting;

·         Transport Green and Blue - Infrastructure Forum – An inaugural meeting had been scheduled for 11 June 2021;

·         Sports Provision and Open Spaces Forum – The Chair thanked Councillor Jill Rhodes for arranging a meeting with Councillor Warren, Chair of the Environment and Communities Committee;

·         Town Centre Focus Group – Initial discussions had been held with respect to establishing a Town Centre Focus Group but that this needed to be progressed.

·         Skills Forum – It was agreed that further discussions were needed by the Skills Forum, after the presentation on ‘Item 4- Education Update’ had identified potential opportunities to further progress this.

RESOLVED

(1)  That the update be noted.

(2)   That the Youth Sub-Group convene before the next Crewe Town Board meeting scheduled for 2 July 2021.

(3)  That each of the Sub-Groups continues to progress its work and hold further discussions where the need/opportunity had been identified by the Board.

Peter Skates, Director of Growth and Enterprise provided a verbal update on the following:

·         Crewe Market Hall – It had seen continued success since its reopening in May. Over 100,000 active engagements on social media had been recorded, demonstrating its popularity. Invites to the official opening on the 26^th June would be distributed soon.

·         Future High Streets Fund – An offer letter for £14.148m had been received from the Government and work was ongoing with Legal to ensure all documentation was sign off by the end of June.

·         Railway station – A review had commenced on planning basis around the railway station. Consideration was being given to moving it from an Area Action Plan to a Strategic Planning document. A briefing paper would be brought to the Board for information prior to the revised approach which would be considered at committee later in the year.

·         Bus station garages – The demolishment work had been delayed due to consideration being given to nesting birds. The work was now scheduled to be carried out in September. A supplier had been chosen for the work relating to the hoarding around the site; discussions were planned to be held with the supplier to determine a start date.

RESOLVED

That the update be noted, and that a briefing paper on the revised strategic planning document be brought to the Board prior to it being discussed at committee.

To discuss COVID-19 in terms of approach and information sharing.

There was no further update in respect of this matter.

Re-selection of Chair and Vice Chairmen

The Chair informed the Board that its terms of reference required the roles of Chair and Vice Chair to be elected after 12 months of the Board’s inception. The Board needed to consider when and how it would be selected and elected.

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Discussions were held in respect of convening an AGM. It was agreed that this should be scheduled following the government announcement.

Crewe Alleyways Regeneration Project

Dr Kieran Mullan MP gave an update on the volunteer-led project. Various activities were planned which complimented the work being done by Cheshire East Council  and Crewe Town Council.

Cleaner Crewe Project

Councillor Jill Rhodes suggested that it would be helpful if the Board received an update on the strategy and work that Cheshire East Council and Crewe Town Council had undertaken in respect of this project.

ADHD Society

Lindsey Lewis, Crewe Town Council Regeneration Manager, informed the Board that Cheshire East Council and Crewe Town Council had recently been approached by the ADHD Society with ideas on how to promote understanding around people who were neuro diverse. The deadline had passed for anything to happen this year but discussion at the next Board meeting, specifically around funding and support would be a start to the planning for the ensuing year.

HousingSituation

Following a verbal update by Councillor Nick Mannion, the Board agreed that a presentation on the housing situation within Crewe covering planning regulations, housing provision and conditions would be useful.

Cheshire Community Fund

Sally Hepton updated the Board on the wider awareness of the Fund which had a renewed focus on Crewe. Work had been undertaken with Cheshire Community Fund to engage more businesses in Crewe and raise awareness of the key themes across the town with the aid of South Cheshire Chamber.

RESOLVED

1)    That clarification be sought prior to the next board meeting on the process and re-selection of the Chair and Vice Chair;

2)    That the annual general meeting and ADHD society items be listed for discussion on the next agenda;

3)    That the Cleaner Crewe project, Cheshire Community Fund and an update on the housing situation in Crewe to be considered as agenda items at future board meetings.

To confirm the date of the next meeting as 2 July 2021 commencing at 9.30am.

That the date of the next virtual meeting take place on Friday 2 July 2021 commencing at 9.30am.