Agenda and draft minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

The minutes were approved as a correct record.

Alan Coar, Head of Operational Assets, will give a presentation on improvements to Chorley Bus Station. 

The Chair, Councillor Kim Snape, welcome Alan Coar, Head of Operational Assets, to the meeting. 

Alan gave a short presentation which set out the improvements made to Chorley Bus Station, since the Council purchased it in November 2023.  The full presentation can be found here. 

In response to queries Alan confirmed the following

·                Additional CCTV at the entrance to the bus station was being considered

·                It was hoped that a police presence would be in place in the future and the Police were contactable via the town centre radio system

·                There was provision for stoma bag and incontinence bag users in the bus station toilets (was this just at the toilets in the market Alan?)

·                The toilets were open (you said you would confirm Alan)

·                The provision of tourist information leaflets would be considered

·                LCC facilitated conversations with the bus companies who used the bus station

·                A litter bin had been removed for painting, but would be reinstalled shortly

·                The CCTV cameras by the bike storage were in operation

·                It was possible for the Dial a Ride bus to use a space at the bus station - County Councillor Julia Berry would share some information with Alan regarding this

·                It was possible that the officer on duty at the market could be trained to assist with tourist information and leaflets, in addition to their current duties

·                A consultation would be undertaken to show the benefits of the improvements made, as part of the UKSPF funding.  The results of this would be shared with the group. 

Members of the Group congratulated Alan and the team for the positive improvements made and for the useful presentation.  

Martin Sample, Housing Team Leader (Private Sector) and Sarah Simons, (Home Energy Support Advisor) will give a presentation on a Home Energy Support Scheme. 

This scheme which aims to identify areas where occupiers may be able to reduce their energy bills and increase the efficiency and comfort of their home.  Some information is enclosed with the agenda. 

The Chair, Councillor Kim Snape, welcomed Martin Sample, Housing Team Leader (Private Sector) and Sarah Simons, (Home Energy Support Advisor) to the meeting. 

Martin and Sarah gave a short presentation on the Home Energy Support scheme which aims to identify areas where occupiers may be able to reduce their energy bills and increase the efficiency and comfort of their home.  The full presentation can be found here.

In response to queries officers confirmed the following

·                Town and Parish Councils would share information about the scheme to assist the council reaching as many residents who could benefit as possible

·                The information used to target properties was publicly available and had no names associated with it

·                The impact of drying washing, damp and mould were acknowledged

·                Registered Social Landlords had a responsibility to maintain their properties at a certain energy efficiency

It was clarified that an energy rating to A was the most energy efficient and G was least efficient. 

Members of the Group thanked Martin and Sarah for the useful presentation and positive work in reducing energy usage.  

Speed of Vehicles going throught the Village - this is a problem in Bretherton and the Parish Council wonders if other villages have a similar problem and would be interested to learn what action they have taken?

Crime Rate in Bretherton - recently there have been a series of thefts, particularly vehicles and bikes and the Parish Council wonders if other villages have had a similar problem and if so what action have they taken?

Parish Councillor Barbara Farbon introduced the item and noted that the Parish Council had been in touch with Lancashire Couty Council and Lancashire Constabulary regarding the issues. 

Speed of vehicles going through the Village - this is a problem in Bretherton and the Parish Council wonders if other villages have a similar problem and would be interested to learn what action they have taken?

It was suggested that Parish get in touch with County Councillor Alan Whittaker to enlist his support and to report all instances.  Alan Platt (Parish Council Clerk) advised that cameras had been installed along the A581 using a pot of funding from ?

A discussion regarding SPiDs noted that metal SPiDs were more difficult to vandalise and that solar panel versions were available.  The SPiDs which lit up on approach and said ‘Slow down’ seemed to be the most effective. 

Crime rate in Bretherton - recently there have been a series of thefts, particularly vehicles and bikes and the Parish Council wonders if other villages have had a similar problem and if so, what action have they taken?

It was suggested that Parish report all instances to build up the pattern of crimes. 

The Chair highlighted that Lancashire Constabulary had been invited to attend a future meeting to discuss antisocial behaviour.  It was suggested they be invited to update on speeding and crime rates in addition. 

In order to allow members of the Liaison and members of the public to raise issues of local concern, a period of 20 minutes has been set aside.

A member of the public may speak for no more than 3 minutes.  Members of the public are not required to give notice of the issue they intend to raise, although it is expected in the case of service issues that the appropriate mechanisms for resolving the issue have been explored. 

Where a question is raised which cannot be answered at the meeting, a record will be kept by officers supporting the meeting and it will be responded to via the appropriate mechanism.

County Councillor Julia Berry raised a query regarding accidents caused by farm vehicles on the highway.  This would be included in the update requested from Lancashire Constabulary. 

A schedule setting out deadlines for items to be requested on the agenda for the Chorley Liaison and dates for future meetings is enclosed. 

Lancashire Constabulary and the County Councillor Cabinet Member for Education and Skills had been invited to future meetings.

Additional items for the work program included community sports provision.

The council were hosting a training session for all Town and Parish Councils on the Code of Conduct on Monday, 29 July at 6pm in the Lancastrian.