DRAFT Minutes of the meeting of the COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Committee on Thursday 5^th August 2021 held at 7:30pm in the Court Bushes Function Room, Willow Way, Hurstpierpoint.

Members Present:          Claire Majsai (Chair)                        Helen Bedford

                                                Bob Sampson (Vice Chair)             Michael Avery

                                                Tony Lank                                           

                                                Seth Jee                                              

Also Present:                     Lorna Cooksey (Assistant Clerk)

                                                One Member of the Public

CE21/22.010. Apologies for Absence: Apologies for absence were received and accepted from Cllr Duncan Ranger and Cllr Malcolm Llewellyn.

RESOLVED: That the Council ACCEPTS the apologies for absence from Cllr Duncan Ranger and Cllr Malcolm Llewellyn.

CE21/22.011. Declarations of Interest: Cllr Seth Jee declared a personal interest in the grant application for Sayers Common Village Society.

CE21/22.012. Minutes of the Previous Meeting of the Community Engagement Committee: Members received the minutes of the meeting held on 10^th June 2021, and it was:

RESOLVED: That the Council AGREES the minutes of the meeting of the Community Engagement committee held on 10^th June 2021.

CE21/22.013. Adjournment for Questions from the Public: One member of the public attended in relation to agenda point 6.3. The Chair confirmed with the committee’s agreement to move this item so it could be discussed straight away.

CE21/22.014. Parish Council Grant Applications:

Grant Budget 2021/22: £4,000

Grants awarded in 2021/22: £300

Grant Budget remaining in 2021/22: £3,700

New Grant Applications to be considered 2021/22:

The committee discussed about putting the youth club offer on a more sustainable footing for the future and the need to work in conjunction with Mid Sussex and West Sussex. The Committee fully supported the need to provide youth provision in the parish and working with the youth to determine what they need and want.

RESOLVED: The committee AGREED to award the full grant of £500 to Sussex Clubs for Young People.

Members discussed at length the grant application from the Sayers Common Village Society. There were concerns from the members that a watering plan had not be supplied as part of the application and the costs of the trees.

RESOLVED: The committee DECLINED the grant for £500 to Sayers Common Village Society, but the Chair asked for the Sayers Common Village Society to put together a five-year watering plan and to try and source the trees at a cheaper price/free tree schemes and then re-submit an application if needed.

Concerns were raised around the grant application from WhatsonHurst as it was agreed that the application did not fit the requirements of applying for a grant from the Parish Council.

RESOLVED: The committee DECLINED the grant for £500 to WhatsonHurst.

The committee discussed the Memory Moments Café and the valuable support it offers both people suffering with dementia and their family/carer. The Chair encouraged the committee to attend one of the cafes to understand the work that was carried out.

RESOLVED: The committee AGREED to award the full grant of £500 to Know Dementia.

CE21/22.014.1. Health & Wellbeing Budget

Health & Wellbeing Grants budget 2021/2022 £1,000

Health & Wellbeing Projects budget 2021/2022 £1,000

Health & Wellbeing grants remaining in 2021/22 = £0,000

Health & Wellbeing projects budget remaining 2021/2022 = £1,000

The committee noted that an email was received on the 9^th July 2021 from Downlands school confirming that from September they will be increasing the counselling provision. With specific allocation of one period per week counselling, for two terms starting in September funded by Hurstpierpoint & Sayers Common Parish Council. This counselling will provide much needed support for students who have identified emotional/mental health/anxiety needs.

New Grant Applications to be considered 21/22

CE21/22.015. Community Initiatives and projects

CE21/22.015.1 Budget Monitoring:  The committeereceived the budget monitoring report, and it was confirmed by the Chair that there was currently no overspending but budgets needed to be monitored especially on the Christmas Light project.

            CE21/22.015.2 Review of Action Plan: The committee noted that the updates that were discussed in the 10^th June 2021 Community Engagement meeting have not yet been updated on the Action Plan. The Chair explained that the document needed to be more user friendly to be a more valuable document. The Chair confirmed that a copy had been sent to the Clerk, Chair and Vice Chair and she was awaiting feedback.

RESOLVED: It was AGREED that the Chair will follow this up with the Clerk and Chairman.

CE21/22.015.3 Heritage Trail: The Chair briefed the committee on the current situation and confirmed that the final license had been received from MSDC. The Chair invited the member of the public to show the committee the final printed map and leaflet. The committee thanked the member of the public for his time and effort on the project. A discussion took place on the two quotes received for printing and why the more expensive quote was the favoured option. It was confirmed that the company use laser technology which should provide a neater and tidier product.

RESOLVED: The committee AGREED to the quote from The Sussex Sign Company, Portslade

including installation for £570.00 Inc. VAT from budget line 5610 Tourism & Attractiveness.

CE21/22.015.4 Christmas Lights: The Chair updated the committee on the new costings received from Merlin Lighting and their sub-contractors KIWA. The increased cost is due to the day rate which results in a minimum of fifteen columns being tested rather than just nine and the additional loading test that is needed. The committee all agreed that they would like to go ahead with the Christmas lights in Sayers Common. A councillor challenged the need for the structural tests, but the Assistant Clerk confirmed that this is a requirement for SSE. The committee asked for the Chair to discuss with the Finance & Governance committee about the budget and accessing more funds if needed. A councillor put forward that if there was a shortfall of £1,000, he would personally pay for this himself. The Chair thanked him but said the offer would need to be referred to the Clerk. The Committee raised that if there was an issue with funds that the Parish Council should discuss with Merlin Lighting about paying for the motifs over 3 years. The Chair informed the committee that the deadline to submit the application to SSE was the 1^st September, but they would allow for late submissions, but SSE couldn’t confirm that it would be processed in time for the festive season. The Chair asked the committee to decide which other six columns should be tested as part of the day rate from KIWA. The Sayers Common Councillors both agreed that it would be more beneficial to test the columns at the southern end going towards the pub.

RESOLVED: (1)The committee AGREED to go ahead with the Christmas Lights in Sayers Common totalling £8,885 + VAT using Merlin Lighting and their sub-contractors KIWA. (2) The committee AGREED to carry out the structural tests and loading survey on 15 lamp posts including the 9 lamp posts originally chosen and 6 more at the southern end toward the pub. Once the surveys have been sent to the Parish Office, 9 lamp posts can be confirmed. (3) The committee AGREED for the Chair to discuss the budget with the Finance & Governance committee and to request that the EMR of £3,000 be moved so it is available to spend. (4) The committee AGREED that spreading the costs of the Christmas motifs over three years should be looked into if the budget was an issue.

CE21/22.015.5 Youth Club Provision in Hurstpierpoint: The Chair informed the committee that the update that was added to the minutes did not happen as Cllr Joy Dennis did not attend the last Council meeting. The committee discussed in length about the youth offer increasing, especially in Sayers Common and that work needs to be actioned to find out exactly what the youth in the parish would like.  

CE21/22.015.6 High Street Update: Cllr Bedford confirmed that there was no further update since the Full Council meeting on 22^nd July 2021. The Chair confirmed that the High Street update will be included on every agenda to ensure that topics are not missed. Cllr Bedford agreed that current projects like the Safe Place scheme and improving litter worked well with helping to engage with the traders.

CE21/22.015.7 Safe Place Project: The committee noted that the Safe Place project was unfortunately postponed due to the pandemic in 2020. The Assistant Clerk has now made contact again with a volunteer from the Burgess Hill Dementia Action Alliance who has agreed to once again help the Parish Council set up and carry out training for traders. The Assistant Clerk is planning for the training to take place in October, but work needs to be carried out by the Parish Office and Councillors to help encourage traders to become involved again. Cllr Ranger and Cllr Bedford plan to visit the High Street traders in September to discuss the project. A leaflet advertising the project is being produced and will be given to all traders and advertised on Facebook and the website. The Hurst Life article in September will also detail what the ‘Safe Place’ project is and how traders can become involved. There are no costs to anyone becoming involved and the cost to the Parish Council is the room hire for training and printing of information packs.

CE21/22.015.8 Recycling/Litter meeting: The Chair explained that she had attended a meeting on the 9^th July as a follow up from the Annual Parish Meeting. The Parish Council, Hurst Re-think and the volunteer waste prevention advisor attended. It was agreed at the meeting that the goal was to achieve less litter in the village and reduce the amount of waste. A proposal for ‘Keep Hurst Tidy’ campaign was discussed at the meeting and ideas around this will continue to grow at further meetings. The Chair asked for the committee’s agreement to continue working on the project and to feed back any updates to this committee. A Councillor commented about a project in Lancing and how they had received help from West Sussex and local companies who had sponsored their idea as something the Parish Council should also consider.

RESOLVED: The committee AGREED to fully support the Chairs work and the goals set at the meeting on the 9^th July 2021.

CE21/22.016. Publicity: The Committee noted the following:

CE21/22.016.1 Communication: The Hurst Life pages continue to develop, and the Parish Office is receiving positive feedback from the parish. The information combined with images has meant the pages are easier and more inviting to read. Please let the Assistant Clerk know of any stories or relevant information you feel should be included in an article.

CE21/22.016.2 Website: The Assistant Clerk has added two new pages to the website: Road Closures and the Heritage Trail. The road closure page allows for any residents to search for a postcode or area and can then view information about upcoming road closures. The Heritage Trail page is a holding page until the trail is officially launch by the Hurstpierpoint Society.

CE21/22.016.3 Social Media: The Facebook page continues to grow and is regularly used by the Parish Office. The page currently has 474 likes and 587 followers. All posts are regularly being shared on Hurst Hub, Hurst Rethink and Hurst Covid-19 Neighbours Support Group.

CE21/22.017. Information Items Correspondence Received and Requests: No items were noted.

Meeting Closed at: 21:12pm