Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Kreidewolf, County Councillor Bridgeman and County Councillor Richards.

Resolved:

that the Minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2023 be signed as a true record.

The Chair reported that Agenda Item 7 (report CAC/23/10) had been withdrawn on the advice of the Monitoring Officer.

Resolved:

that, subject to Agenda Item 7 being withdrawn, the Order of Business be confirmed as printed on the Agenda.

There were no declarations of interest.

Residents are encouraged to ask questions at Area Committee meetings. Questions will be answered by an appropriate Officer or Councillor.

To ask a question, residents simply need to email areacommitteequestions@ipswich.gov.uk including their name and address, a contact telephone number, their question, and which Area Committee they wish the question to be asked at. We ask that questions be submitted by 10am two working days before the day of the meeting in order that relevant information can be brought to the committee; for this meeting the deadline is 10am on Monday 30 October 2023. 

Questions may be asked by residents without prior notice having been given, with the permission of the Chair, however it may not be possible for an answer to be given at the meeting. Priority will however be given to those residents who have submitted questions in advance.

All questions must either be:

·       relevant to the area committee they are to be asked at, or;

·       relevant to Ipswich as a whole and be asked by a resident of the area covered by the committee it is to be asked at.

Please note that questions or representations must not contain:

·       references to identifiable individuals (whether by name or other information) unless the consent of that individual has been obtained and included with the notification;

·       potentially defamatory or provocative or abusive comments;

·       discriminatory remarks.

Please note that responses will not be provided where the question requires the disclosure of confidential or exempt information.

If for any reason a question which has been submitted in advance is not able to be asked at a meeting, the Council will, within 14 days of the meeting date, reply to the resident asking the question explaining why and if possible providing a written answer.

34.1.     The Chair reported that 3 questions had been received in advance of the meeting.

34.2.     Question 1: As Ipswich is built on land that is roughly in the shape of a bowl with a river running through the middle resulting in surplus water accumulating in the central area, I was wondering following the recent flooding in Debenham and Framlingham if more should be done to adapt to climate change in the short and long term?
For example, in the short term could the Ipswich Borough Council Central Area Committee Chair ask the Chairs of the surrounding areas to encourage their residents to empty their water butts when intense rain is forecast? By doing so it would minimise water butts overflowing and adding to the water heading to the central area.
In the long term, a value of £100 million was recently accepted by the UK Treasury as the cost of flooding in Aldeburgh High Street and I was wondering if the cost of flooding in the central area of Ipswich should be established to justify a business case for long term adaptation measures.

34.3.     The following response was provided by the Director for Operations and Place:

Ownership of surface water drainage features was fragmented across a range of both public and private stakeholders, including private individuals and businesses, local authorities, highway authorities and water companies. Responsibility for flood risk in Ipswich was divided between several different ‘Flood Risk Authorities’, including the Environment Agency, Suffolk County Council (SCC), Anglian Water and Ipswich Borough Council, who all worked together in a multi-agency approach, for example, through the Suffolk Flood Risk Management Partnership and Suffolk Flood Risk Management Strategy, the details of both could be found online.

In an urban area such as Central Ipswich, the challenges were different to those in coastal areas or in rural areas, as was seen on 20th October when farmers and landowners suffered flooding of their land leading to significant flooding downstream. In Ipswich, the relevant authorities all worked hard all year round to manage the surface water network; this included maintaining standards of highway and gully maintenance, which often went unnoticed but was key to ensuring that the surface water in the town could be managed.

In terms of protecting the town from river flooding, the Environment Agency’s new tidal flood defence barrier for Ipswich was completed in 2019. Costing almost £70 million, the new flood defences, which included the tidal barrier, new and refurbished flood walls and a series of flood gates on the banks of the River Orwell, helped to keep the town safe from tidal surges during storms.

In terms of flood risk and new development in Ipswich, Planning Policy set the policies for new development coming forward. There were a range of policies within the Ipswich Local Plan related to climate change and flood risk. There were policies which set out water efficiency standards for new development and that sought to ensure that development was located within areas that were of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 34.

35.1.     The Chair introduced PC Gary Austin, Link Officer, from the Ipswich Central Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) who provided the following policing update.

35.2.     Speed enforcement: PC Austin commented that enforcement was requested across Central Ipswich, but it was difficult for the Police to be effective if only attending on site infrequently. Residents could raise this issue with Inspector Nicola Turner as a new Community Policing Team model was being introduced from 4 December 2023 which would focus on addressing more local issues.

35.3.     Operation Silverton (addressing street prostitution around Barrack Corner) was ongoing; the number of street workers was currently low, and more emphasis was being placed on targeting their clientele.

35.4.     Operation Hull (tackling ASB and drug related crime in the town centre): more patrols were being undertaken by the Kestrel Team which had led to a number of arrests recently.

35.5.     Local priorities included: Great White Horse Hotel - a multi-agency approach had been taken to address ASB issues; Maple Park - patrols were continuing in the area and Education Welfare Officers were working with children not in education; work was continuing with the Ipswich Roma community to address ASB at the London Road flats; Cattle Market Bus Station – a multi-agency approach had been successful in reducing the level of ASB and Design Out Crime options were being considered; Wingfield Street/NCP car park – a multi-agency approach had been taken with patrols from the Police and Parking Services, and SCC had removed some of the trees from Rosemary Lane to increase natural surveillance; Waterfront/University of Suffolk/Suffolk New College – ASB in this area had reduced to a manageable level.

35.6.     From 4 December 2023, a new system of working would see Police resources realigned and the SNTs would be replaced with Community Policing Teams, with 6 officers on shift but ringfenced to each area and a dedicated Beat Officer for each ward.

35.7.     Councillor I Lockington asked whether the ASB issues at the Great White Horse Hotel were being caused by people congregating outside or people who were staying at the hotel. PC Austin commented that it was a multi-faceted problem involving both.

35.8.     Councillor Gibbs asked whether any intelligence had been received in relation to All Saints Road relating to drug activity and prostitution in brothels. PC Austin was aware of drug activity but had not heard of issues with prostitution at this location.

35.9.     Councillor Jones welcomed the partnership work being done to address ASB by young children in the Maple Park/Ainslie Road area, and added that businesses on Bramford Road had been reassured by the Police response to alcohol related ASB.

This Agenda Item was withdrawn.

The Chair commented that there were no actions to update on from the previous meeting.

38.1.     Councillor T Lockington highlighted that whilst SCC were the responsible authority for flood management, Ipswich Borough Council was responsible for clearing detritus to prevent drains from becoming blocked; the recent flood on Westerfield Road had been caused by just one drain becoming blocked.

38.2.     Councillor I Lockington commented that one drain had been reported to SCC as it was full of litter; it was important that there were sufficient bins available and that drains be kept free of detritus/rubbish. Flooding had also been reported on Valley Road and by the new housing in Westerfield Village.

38.3.     Councillor J Cook commented that there had been a couple of successful prosecutions relating to littering and dumping offences; the Council issued Penalty Charge Notices in the first instance, but if the fines were not paid, offenders would be taken to court.

38.4.     Councillor Jones highlighted a recent homelessness case where a family had been evicted from private accommodation as the landlord had decided to sell the property. Local authorities did not have a duty to help, but the Council’s Private Sector Housing Team did arrange temporary accommodation. More landlords were opting to sell their properties rather than rent them out which was creating a burden on local authorities.

38.5.     Councillor Riley reported that the Spring Road Allotment composting toilet, which had been funded by the Central Area Committee, had been installed and operational since September 2023.

39.1.     Mr Robin Payne, Assistant Director for Operations, reported that the Central Area Committee currently had £2,552 available to spend on its priorities.

39.2.     With regard to the Making a Difference funding, Christ Church had advised that there had been a surplus of £90.42 from the £405 of funding awarded for their Holiday at Home scheme, which would be returned to the Alexandra ward budget.

Resolved:

that the financial statement in Appendix 1 to the report be noted.

Reason: To provide details of the amount of funds available to the Area Committee to support priorities in Central Ipswich.

·                Wednesday 3 January 2024, 7pm

·                Wednesday 21 February 2024, 7pm

40.1.     The Chair reported that the dates of future meetings were listed on the Agenda, with the next meeting scheduled for Wednesday 3 January 2024 at 7pm in All Saints Church Hall, Blenheim Road.