Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Pope, Councillor MacDonald and County Councillor Adams.

Resolved:

that the Minutes of the previous meeting held on 19 September 2024 be signed as a true record.

Resolved:

that 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 Tuesday 12 November 2024.

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.

22.1.    The Chair confirmed that no questions had been received in advance of the meeting.

23.1.     Inspector Ben Richards, Ipswich East Community Policing Team, introduced PC Finch, Community Police Officer for Kesgrave & Bixley Ward, and provided an update on the policing priorities.

23.2.     Crime statistics for the Rushmere & St John’s and Kesgrave & Bixley Community Policing Team areas were available at Ipswich East | Suffolk Constabulary by clicking on the relevant area. ASB maps were presented which showed how many ASB investigations had been recorded in each Ward. This did not include ASB reported through the Local Authority, and it was noted that a lot of ASB was unreported.

23.3.     The current priorities for Ipswich East were:

·       The Identification, disruption and removal of County Lines and local drug dealing.

·       Reduction of acquisitive crime offences such as burglary, robbery, and vehicle related theft.

·       Working with partner agencies in the Identification and reduction of Anti-Social Behaviour in public spaces. This was an area that was raised often by communities as their main concern.

23.4.     Inspector Richards reported that there were a number of upcoming events including County Lines Intensification Week, ASB Awareness Week and Operation Sceptre. This was a national week which included engagement with schools around knife crime awareness and the dangers of knife crime.

23.5.     It was confirmed that a Police Surgery was held once a month for residents to attend and Councillors were encouraged to provide details of any venues that could be used for these events. A number of potential venues were suggested including Colchester Road Baptist Church, St John’s Church Café, St Augustine’s Church, and St Elizabeth Hospice Café.

23.6.     Inspector Richards referred to the Secured by Design website (https://www.securedbydesign.com) which provided recommendations for security products tested and approved by the Police (such as padlocks and lighting). Other suggestions for crime prevention included marking equipment with an ultraviolet pen which could then be registered to an online national property marking database.

23.7.     PC Finch reported that two days of engagement would be held in Kesgrave and Bixley in conjunction with East Suffolk Council as part of ASB awareness week. Councillors were encouraged to reinforce how and where residents should report any concerns.

23.8.     Inspector Richards confirmed that all upcoming events for each Ward were available on the Suffolk Constabulary website and would be advertised on social media.

23.9.     In response to a question, Inspector Richards confirmed that the number of offences reported under Kesgrave & Bixley would include incidents at Ipswich Hospital. It was noted that although incidents could be segregated to show which had occurred in a public building (such as Martlesham Police Station) the work to do this would need to be justified.

24.1.    The Chair commented that there were no updates to feedback from the previous meeting.

Bixley Ward:

25.1.     Councillor Phillips reported that parking issues continued to be considered and noted that the planning application which was refused for the 9-room HMO had been appealed. It was hoped that MAD funding would be provided to St Augustine’s Church to fund their annual carol service on the green at Broke Hall.

25.2.     Councillor Reynolds confirmed that the carol service would be held on 9 December and advised that this was the first year with no concerns raised by residents regarding the fireworks.

Rushmere Ward:

25.3.     Councillor Ross reported that SCC had undertaken a second cut on grass verges which had led to less complaints from residents.

25.4.     Councillor Cracknell reported that he had attended a Diversity Inclusion Equality Network event at The Hold in his capacity as a Northgate Governor. This had been a successful evening and included various equality and diversity groups and representation from Ipswich & Colchester Museums.

St John’s Ward:

25.5.     Councillor Elavalakan noted that some concerns had been raised regarding parking at the junction near Tesco’s on Foxhall Road and this continued to be monitored.

25.6.      Councillor Hudson advised that an area of land on Derby Road, which was unsafe and looked unsightly, would be considered further to identify how this could be rectified. A survey was taking place to identify the best way of circulating information to residents.

Bixley Division:

26.1.     County Councillor West reported that parking issues on the Australia Estate continued to be considered.

Rushmere Division

26.2.     County Councillor Martin confirmed that two potholes reported on Bristol Road had now been filled and suggested that the whole road should be considered for resurfacing due to the poor nature of the road surface. Suffolk County Councillor West advised that SCC was trialling a ‘road mender’ which would be used in addition to the traditional pothole response and would be an interim measure that could be used on areas that did not hit the criteria for resurfacing; if the trial was successful, it was possible that this would be rolled out on a more permanent basis. It was confirmed that measures would be taken in the New Year to ensure notification was given to residents about any upcoming works in their road.

26.3.     County Councillor Martin noted that road markings were being completed across Ipswich with the town centre markings much more improved. It was suggested that County Councillor West consider including the junctions on Colchester Road and Valley Road as a number of the white line markings had faded which could be dangerous. County Councillor West agreed to confirm if these roads would be included as part of the works being completed.

26.4.     It was confirmed that the foliage on Humber Doucy Lane would be trimmed. Two local transport schemes due to be completed this year included hardstanding for the recycling bins on Dumbarton Road and dropped kerbs at the end of Kingsgate Drive.

26.5.     Councillor Ross commented that he understood that the developers for Humber Doucy Lane were going to be granted a public inquiry to build houses, mostly outside of Ipswich, and noted that if the development did go ahead SCC Highways would need to seriously consider what the minimum requirement was with regards to infrastructure to allow any extra houses to be built, as this would greatly affect Humber Doucy Lane in Bixley and Rushmere.

26.6.     County Councillor Martin noted that serious consideration needed to be taken regarding what additional measures were required for all four roads that would be affected by this development (Humber Doucy Lane, Tuddenham Road, Sidegate Lane and Rushmere Road). Safety measures on Sidegate Lane and Tuddenham Road would be a necessity including junction and pedestrian improvements.

26.7.     County Councillor West agreed to discuss the points raised with the SCC Transport Team and noted that the Planning Inspector would consider all evidence before making their decision.  

27.1.    Mr Blofield, Director for Resources & Housing, reported that the North East Area Committee had an unallocated budget of £13,561.25. It was confirmed that this budget was available until 31 March 2025.

Resolved:

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

Reason: To provide clear and transparent details of the amount of funds available to the Area Committee to deliver the priorities in its Action Plan.

·        Thursday 23 January 2025, 7pm

·        Thursday 20 March 2025, 7pm

28.1.    The Chair highlighted that the dates of future meetings were listed on the Agenda, with the next meeting due to take place on Thursday 23 January 2025 at 7pm.

28.2.    The Chair noted that Ms Sherwood, Community Engagement Officer, was leaving Ipswich Borough Council and thanked her for all her support at the North East Area Committee.