DRAFT Minutes of the meeting of the COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Committee on Thursday 10^th March 2022 held at 7:30pm in the Village Centre, Conference room.

Members Present:          Claire Majsai (Chair)                        Helen Bedford

                                                Bob Sampson (Vice Chair)             Michael Avery

                                                Duncan Ranger                                 Seth Jee              

Also Present:                     Lorna Cooksey (Assistant Clerk)

CE21/22.035. Apologies for Absence: Apologies for absence were received and accepted from Cllr Llewellyn and Cllr Lank.

RESOLVED: The committee ACCEPTS the apologises for absence from Cllr Llewellyn and Cllr Lank.

CE21/22.036. Declarations of Interest: Cllr Jee declared an interest in the Sayers Common Village Society. Cllr Sampson declared an interest in the Hurst Festival as a trustee.  

CE21/22.037. Minutes of the Previous Meeting of the Community Engagement Committee: Members received the minutes of the meeting held on 13^th January 2022.

RESOLVED: The committee AGREED the minutes of 13^th January 2022 meeting.

CE21/22.038. Adjournment for Questions from the Public: There being no members of the public present the committee was not required to adjourn in accordance with standing orders.

CE21/22.039. Parish Council Grant Applications:

Grant Budget 2021/22: £4,000

Grants awarded in 2021/22: £2,143.88

Grant Budget remaining in 2021/22: £1,856.12

New Grant Applications to be considered 2021/22:

The committee discussed the Knit and Natter grant application and the benefits for everyone that attends. It was agreed that the committee would like the grant to pay for one year’s rent at the Village Centre.  It was also agreed that the grant would take into account the price increase which takes effect from the 1^st April 2022.

The committee discussed the Hurst Festival Music Club grant application, and a discussion took place on the supporting documents and where funds are spent. The committee agreed it was a great service for the youth in the parish and very well attended. The committee agreed that a grant from the Parish Council should only go towards the rent for one year at Court Bushes Community Hub. The committee agreed to grant this amount taking into account the price increase in April 2022.

The committee unanimously agreed to award the full grant to St Catherine’s Hospice and the Monday group.

Resolved: (1) The committee AGREED to award a grant of £224.40 to the Knit and Natter group. (2) The committee AGREED to award the full grant of £500 to the St Catherine’s Hospice. (3) The committee AGREED to award a grant of £420.60 to Hurst Festival Music Club towards the room hire at Court Bushes. (4) The committee AGREED to award the full grant of £500 to The Monday Group.

Cllr Jee updated the committee on the plating of trees in Sayers Common. Cllr Jee explained that the Sayers Common Village Society had spoken with a professional contractor regarding a plan to water potential new trees for the next five years. It was confirmed by Cllr Jee that the condition that the Community Engagement committee had imposed regarding needing to see a five-year long term watering plan for the trees was not possible. The expert advised that if you can see the trees through the first year they should survive. The Chair and Vice Chair confirmed that the Sayers Common Village Society could apply for another grant for planting trees but advised to add the professional advice in as a supporting document so the committee could then discuss further.  

CE21/22.039.1 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 Chair confirmed to the committee that the Downlands grant had been paid.

CE21/22.040. Community Initiatives and projects

CE21/22.040.1 Budget Monitoring: The committee received the budget monitoring reports. The Assistant Clerk was asked to confirm the budgets left for code 5610 Tourism & Attractiveness and 5240 Grants. The Assistant Clerk explained that both these budget lines show the EMRs that were used for the purchase of new Christmas Lights in Sayers Common and the Covid Grant for the Melting Pot Café. Although the reports show the committee had overspent this is not the case. Budget code 5610 (Tourism & Attractiveness) has remaining £479 and code 5240 (grants) has £1,857 remaining for 2021/22.

              CE21/22.040.2 Review of Action Plan: The committee discussed in detail each objective and planned action and agreed for the Assistant Clerk to update the action plan accordingly. The committee asked for the Clerk to contact Cllr Joy Dennis regarding the 100 bus (objective 11) and whether the review has been agreed and if our request was included.

                The chair asked the committee if they felt there were any gaps in our objectives. Cllr Jee raised the question of whether the Parish Council should have provision for working with any Ukraine refugees. The committee discussed this in length, and it was agreed that we would follow the example set by MSDC. It was felt that the Parish Councils role would be to share information and signpost people to the correct organisations and help pull groups together.

Resolved: (1) The Committee AGREED that the items discussed would be included in a revised version of the action plan to be represented at the next meeting of this committee. (2) The committee AGREED that the Clerk would contact Cllr Joy Dennis regarding the 100 bus for a update.

CE21/22.040.3 Youth Offer: The Chair confirmed that a partnership for funding for youth activities was not possible which was a disappointing outcome to the meetings. It was confirmed that these meetings will continue to avoid any last-minute panic by Sussex Clubs for Young People for funding and to keep a strong relationship between all parties involved. The Chair also confirmed that the only way to support this group would be through the precept but unfortunately a rise in the precept would not be feasible for such a small amount of youths that attend each week.

CE21/22.040.4 High Street Update: Cllr Bedford confirmed that the three projects being worked on were progressing. The Welcome back fund from MSDC was being used to purchase tote bags to be given out free by the traders on the Highstreet and as a gift at the Annual Parish Meeting. Cllr Sampson has designed the bags and they are currently with the printer. The heart of Hurst map is being designed by a local artist and she is currently drawing all the buildings which will feature on the map. My Complete print have received a PO for the work and the project is progressing well. The committee discussed the High Street consultation meeting, and it was agreed that this was a poor quality and disappointing meeting. It was felt that there was a lack of research on our High Street and our actual area. It was felt that the only positive point was the councillors and trader’s comments would all be combined in the same document for future use.

CE21/22.040. 5 Jubilee in Hurstpierpoint: Cllr Bedford confirmed the proposed idea for the ‘big picnic’ on South Avenue on the 5^th June 2022. The event would be free to everyone and would need to be promoted alongside the Sayers Common jubilee plans. All local groups will be invited to attend, and Cllr Sampson was asked if he could find out if the Hurst Players would like to perform on the day. Cllr Sampson raised that MSDC had extended the jubilee grant scheme, and this should be investigated. Cllr Bedford explained that this caused issues as no one involved was a specific group with a bank account. It was suggested that the Parish Council could apply in conjunction with another group. Cllr Bedford confirmed that she would keep everyone updated on plans for this event.

CE21/22.040. 6 St Lawrence Fair: The committee discussed our presence at the St Lawrence Fair, and it was agreed that this was a perfect opportunity to be visible to the parishioners. A stand with display boards have previously worked well and it was agreed this could be done again. The councillors also discussed that having a game on our stand would encourage families to come over and talk to the councillors.

Resolved: (1) The committee AGREED to attend the St Lawrence fair (2) The committee AGREED to ask at the next full council meeting for volunteers to set up and run the stall so a rota could be produced. (3) The committee AGREED to ask at the next full council meeting for volunteers to design and create the display boards for the day. (4) The committee AGREED to ask at the next full council meeting whether it was appropriate to have a game at our stall.

CE21/22.040.7 Annual Parish Meeting: The committee were briefed on the plans for the Annual Parish Meeting and were encouraged to help advertise the event to the parish.  

Resolved: (1) The committee AGREED that the £326.80 + VAT for AV equipment will be paid from the Tourism & Attractiveness budget code 5610 (2022/2023) (2) The committee AGREED to purchase two classic banners at £98 per banner from My Complete Print, from budget code 5610 Tourism & Attractiveness (2021/2022), totalling £196.00. (3) The committee AGREED to use the two proposed designs for the banners.

CE21/22.040. 8 Midwife Clinic: The Chair confirmed that although the midwife clinic had progressed since the last update it was now on hold. The Parish Office is waiting for an NHS manager to confirm they are happy to go ahead with using the space at the Village Centre. A discussion took place on how the committee could hold the £1,000 from budget code 5650 (Health & Wellbeing projects) 2021/2022 into the new financial year to have the funds secure for the midwife clinic. It was suggested an accrual may be the best option and the committee unanimously agreed that they would agree to this in principle. The Chair and Assistant Clerk were asked to discuss this with the Clerk and Chairman.

Resolved: The committee AGREED that an accrual will be made on budget code 5650 (Health & Wellbeing projects) for £1,000 into the new financial year if approved by the Clerk and Chairman.

CE21/22.040.9 Food Bank Update: The Assistant Clerk was asked to invite the food bank to the Annual Parish Meeting in May and to ask them to send the Parish Office regular adverts or updates that can be used on our Facebook page and website.  

CE21/22.041 Publicity: The Committee noted the following:

CE21/22.041.1 Communication: The Chair briefed the committee on progress with communication. Cllr Jee asked if there was a date for the replacement noticeboard for Sayers Common. The Assistant Clerk confirmed that this had been organised this week and the keys were with Cllr Sampson.

CE21/22.041.2 Website: The committee noted thatthe Parish Office have added a new ‘streetlight’ page under the services and information tab on the website. This page details all the streetlights in the parish which are owned and managed by the Parish Council including a detailed table and map for each road.The new small meeting room has also been added to the Village Centre page including photos, prices and the calendar. Over the next few months, the website will be updated by the Assistant Clerk to show the new price structure for the buildings, cemetery which take effect on the 1^st April 2022. The website continues to be used well and we are regularly receiving booking enquiries for the building through the website contact form. The Parish Office received an email from Birchington Parish Council commenting on how impressed they were with our website.

CE21/22.041.3 Social Media: The committee agreed that the Parish Office should be re-posting certain information posts on Facebook to ensure that the information is visible and not missed. IT was agreed that using Facebook ads could be very valuable for such events as the Annual Parish Meeting.

                CE21/22.042 Information Items, Correspondence Received and Requests: No items noted.

Meeting Closed: 9:15pm