Agenda and minutes

Members to note any apologies.

Apologies for absence from the meeting were received from Councillors Dennis Meredith and Sheridan New - Co-optee.

Members to approve the minutes of the meeting held on 5 December 2012.

The minutes of the meeting held on 5 December 2012 were approved and signed by the Chair.

There were none.

There were none.

John Farrell, Assets Director, EMS

John Farrell, Assets Director, EMS attended the Panel to present the written answers to the core questions which had already been submitted.

The main points of the discussion were as follows:-

Mr Farrell stated that he had been a resident of Northampton for five years and on a personal level he had been very concerned to see the numbers of shops which had closed over that time.

Mr Farrell felt that since the environmental management of the town centre had been outsourced there had not been strong enough engagement with other partners. Work had been undertaken to try to improve this but there was still a need for improvement. He considered that engagement with Police Community Support Officers (PCSO’S) and (Business Improvement District) BID had to be strong to deliver improvements to the appearance of the town centre.

Mr Farrell felt that education played a vital role in the management of public perception of the town centre. The town centre had to promote the image that it was a pleasant place to visit. If the perception was negative then people would not come, and spend time in the town. The town centre experience was rarely about retail alone but included the range of services available, types and quality of places to eat and places of interest. There had been some significant changes made in the town centre cleaning regime, in particular the extension of sweeping hours until 8pm which he hoped would result in an improvement in the perception of the level of cleanliness in the town centre.

Mr Farrell commented that the traders in the town used a wide range of collection companies for their trade waste. This led to a variation in standards of service and did not necessarily accord with standards which the Borough Council would like to see in the town centre. There needed to be a strengthening of enforcement to tackle problems surrounding the collection of trade waste. There were issues arising from the litter created from the trade collections. Trade waste collections were normally in plastic bags which tore or leaked rubbish if not properly sealed. The requirement for trade waste to be containerised could be considered.

Mr Farrell supplied the Panel with a list of hotspots which covered litter from food outlets, graffiti, leafleting and those which related to more general matters including mess left from commercial waste collection. He stated that EMS had also introduced some enhanced cleaning including an enhanced litter bin washing programme and weekly jet washing of urination hotspots. EMS were also working with local wardens identifying disused shop fronts which had become untidy due to litter or fly posting or were subject to misuse and these were being addressed.

The Panel were advised EMS were now able to respond more quickly to any problems which were identified in the town centre. He expressed his concern that if resources are diverted away to deal with these problems on a regular basis then this would leave resources stretched and daily  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5a

David Farquhar, Assistant Director of Highways NCC attended the Panel to give responses to the core questions. The main points of discussion were as follows:-

In respect of communication and consultation of proposed highways changes Mr Farquhar outlined the standard procedure. If highways changes had been proposed that would affect town centre business then there would be communication through BID and the local media. There would also be letter drops to affected properties. In a more routine matter then the letter drops alone would be deemed sufficient. In certain cases when it is felt that there could be a significant impact then meetings would be held in the affected area. A forum meeting had been held in regard to the changes around the Plough Hotel.

Mr Farquhar commented that there would be significant changes to street furniture The most immediate of which would be in the Bridge Street and the Drapery areas. The Drapery would be timed to coincide with the bus interchange works. The Bridge Street area proposals had been made as a result of consultation with several partners with the aim of improving the Public Realm perception in that area and delivering a quality product to try and make the whole area more user friendly.

In the wider geographical area there were proposals to provide landscaping enhancements in the Castle Station Black Lion Hill area to coincide with the works at the station. One key aim would be to help to make this area feel more central. Enhancements would also be made to the Becketts Park/promenade area. He considered that the major issue over the next year or two would be keeping the traffic and pedestrian movements flowing whilst the developments were taking place. The main message had to be that there would be disruption. Communication would be vital to ensure that it would be kept to a minimum.

Mr Farquhar felt that communication with partners is vital, he attended Town Centre BID meetings and considered that such forums helped to build understanding between partners. Whilst he accepted that there needed to be robust consideration of matters such as protection of the public he considered that processes should be simplified where possible. He considered that it would be helpful if there could be more compromise and consensus between partners.

Mr Farquhar considered that Northampton possessed some attractive architecture which was not promoted to its full advantage. He also considered that historically, there were some misconceptions that did not enhance the Town’s reputation e.g. that there was inadequate parking. He felt that in order to compete effectively then Northampton did have to enhance its’ shopping offer but it also needed to send positive messages about what it had to offer.

Mr Farquhar commented that he believed that communications between partners had improved greatly over the past two to three years but that more should be done to make the town centre BID Company a focus and use that to ensure a consistent positive message. He stated that he personally  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5b

The Scrutiny Panel to consider the written response to its core questions from the Northampton Federation of Residents Associations.(Copy Attached)

The Panel considered the written response to the core questions which had already been submitted by Mr Tony Mallard, Chair of Northamptonshire Federation of Residents’ Associations (NFRA).

AGREED: The evidence from the Northamptonshire Federation of Residents’ Associations be used to inform the Panel’s evidence base.

The Scrutiny Panel to consider a written response to its core questions from the Chair, Hackney Carriage Association, Northampton

The Panel were informed that there had been no response to the core questions from the Northampton Hackney Carriage Association.

A Member raised concern over the lack of public toilet facilities for taxi drivers around the taxi rank area in Mercers Row. He stated that a number of drivers used the toilet facilities at All Saints Bistro and considered that public toilet provision needed to be examined .He felt that adequate public toilet provision was a basic requirement for people visiting the town .

To receive a briefing note and additional information from ACTM

At the scoping meeting the Panel agreed that the Association of Town Centre Managers (ACTM) be asked to provide a response to the core questions. The ACTM were unable to respond specifically to the questions and instead provided background material. The Panel received a briefing note and two supporting documents:-

·         100 ways to help the High Street- A Toolkit for Town Centres

·         Getting it Right- A Good Practice Guide to Successful Town Centre Management Initiatives

AGREED: The briefing note and supporting documents be used to inform the evidence base of the Review.

The Scrutiny Panel to consider the written response to its core questions from Northants Police.

The Panel considered the written response to the core questions which had been received from the Police.

AGREED:-     The evidence from Northamptonshire Police be used to inform the Panel’s evidence base.

The Panel to report back on its visit to the Grosvenor Centre, Northampton.

The Panel received a report on the visit made to the Grosvenor Centre, Northampton by Councillor Tony Ansell, Simon Dougall, Corporate Asset Manager and Tracy Tiff Scrutiny Officer. They met with Russell Hall, the Grosvenor Centre Manager.

The main points of discussion were as follows:-

Overall the impression was positive. Councillor Ansell felt that the manager seemed to be very professional and that efforts were being made to introduce events and attractions to encourage people into the Grosvenor Centre.

There were some areas that were looking dated such as the first floor entrance to the bus station and there were some empty shop units on the first floor. The entrance on the ground floor opens to a series of temporary pitches such as those used by gold purchasing and media promoters but the area was clean and bright. It was noted that the frontage to the Grosvenor Centre was not cleaned by EMS.

The car park area is owned and maintained by the Council and there had been works to waterproofing, resurfacing and lighting works carried out in the last 18 months. At the time of the visit there were some lights out of order, a boarded up window and outdated maintenance sign. Some of the lifts were operated by the Borough Council and some by the Grosvenor Centre.

The Centre Manager stated that he felt that there was a negative public perception concerning the young people who hung around the statue of the Cobblers Last on the Abington Street entrance, however there did not appear to be any evidence that they were actually causing a nuisance.

AGREED:- That a potential recommendation of the final report be that a deep clean be carried out in the car park at the Grosvenor Centre, in the area around the lifts, and the advertising boards in situ in the lifts be better utilised.

The Panel considered a briefing note detailing comments on the core questions from the Northampton Community Forums.

AGREED: The evidence from Northampton Community Forums be used to inform the Panel’s evidence base.