Agenda and draft minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor MacDonald, Councillor Ross and County Councillor West.

Resolved:

that the Minutes of the meeting held on 14 November 2024 be signed as a true record.

Resolved:

that the Order of Business be confirmed as printed on the Agenda.

Councillor Reynolds, whose employer had close links with Coplestonians Football Club, declared an interest in Agenda Item 7.

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 21 January 2025.  

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.

33.1.     There were no questions submitted in advance of the meeting.

33.2.     Local resident: Following some recent works on the highway, a hole has appeared by the green telecommunications box on Kingsgate Drive opposite Lancing Avenue.
County Councillor Martin offered to follow up this matter.

34.1.     The Chair introduced Sergeant Rocky Hussain of the Ipswich East Community Partnership Team to provide an update on policing priorities.

34.2.     Crime statistics for the Ipswich East area had shown no particular trends or spikes.

34.3.     Local resident: There had been incidents of attempted break-ins of vehicles in the area.
Councillor Long added that this had been reported on Facebook as being on Sidegate Avenue and Leopold Road on 20 January; there had also been 6 vehicle crimes reported in Rushmere during November 2024. Councillor Long commented that residents could sign up to Police Connect in Suffolk for regular email updates from the Police on incidents and actions taken in local communities (see website at: Suffolk Connected | Suffolk Constabulary).

34.4.     Sergeant Hussain commented that it was important that vehicle owners locked their vehicles and did not leave valuables on show as most vehicle crime was opportunistic with offenders trying the handles of parked vehicles; one offender had been arrested, so hopefully there should be less incidents going forward.

34.5.     The Community Policing Teams, which were a separate resource to the Response Teams, took a more proactive approach through the use of Preventative Action Logs whereby if an issue was raised, it was researched against the crime database/local intelligence to understand the scale of the problem and, if necessary, investigated further with preventative action taken. The main role of the Community Policing Teams was crime prevention.

34.6.     The current policing priorities for the Ipswich East area were: the identification, disruption and removal of County Lines and local drug dealing; reduction of acquisitive crime such as burglary, robbery and vehicle crime; and the identification and reduction of anti-social behaviour in public spaces with partner agencies.

34.7.     Community activities included police surgeries at Rushmere Library and St Elizabeth Hospice café; the Community Policing Teams were keen to carry out community walkabouts with ward Councillors and partners.

34.8.     Digital advancements included the Domestic Abuse Video Response which allowed victims to speak with a police officer remotely via video link; the Enhanced Video Response which also provided a video link option to report non-urgent crime; and the ability to submit digital footage from CCTV and Ring Door cameras to be securely stored on the Digital Asset Management System as evidence.

34.9.     Local resident: Neglecting to lock doors on vehicles could potentially invalidate car insurance and some companies would not pay out claims as they expected people to take all precautions to avoid theft from/of vehicles.
Sergeant Hussain commented that Operation Gladioli earlier in the year had involved police officers checking whether parked vehicles had been locked; where vehicles were not secure, crime prevention leaflets were issued.

34.10.  Councillor Reynolds asked whether the Police were investing in AI to help prevent crime.
Sergeant Hussain commented that Suffolk Police were investing in technology to make the back office processes more efficient to free up more officers to be out on the beat and help prevent crime by providing a physical presence.

34.11.  Councillor Reynolds  ...  view the full minutes text for item 34.

35.1.     Mr David Webb from Coplestonians Football Club reported that in addition to the £5,000 funding from the North East Area Committee and £1,000 from SCC Councillors, £880 had been obtained from the Waitrose/John Lewis charitable arm, £500 from Barclays Community Fund and a donation of £1,000 had been received. The funding had enabled two 20ft metal containers to be repainted in the Club’s burgundy colours and fitted out as follows: one container had a door added into a kitchen area, which occupied three-quarters of the unit, with the rest used as a racked storage area; the other container was insulated, with stud walls added to provide half of the container as changing rooms and the other half as a half-time seating area.

35.2.     As the containers were sited on school grounds, the works could only be done when schoolchildren were not on site, which was mostly during the school holidays. The next steps were to install electricity points and ceiling lights. A building supplier had loaned a generator which would enable hot food to be prepared; consideration was being given as to whether to install a sink or to continue using hot water from the urn.

35.3.     Mr Webb thanked the Committee and SCC Councillors for the funding and for permitting the changes to the original project; the Club was now more professional in its operations and its relationship with Copleston High School had been enhanced. A bid had been submitted to the Football Association for a bore hole pump and sprinklers for the pitches. The Club provided great benefit to all of its players in terms of exercise and good mental health, and younger children’s progression through the Club helped with their transition onto Copleston High School.

35.4.     Councillor Phillips asked whether the Club’s facilities were used daily.
Mr Webb reported that the facilities were mostly used on Saturday mornings, when there could be up to 500 people present across all the teams, parents/supporters, helpers and coaches, and on Sundays for the girls football teams. The kitchen was able to provide tea/coffees which meant that the Club was able to generate some income from selling refreshments.

35.5.     Councillor Long asked about the loan of a generator.
Mr Webb commented that one of the suppliers had a charitable arm and was looking to offer help, and as the Club was registered as a charity, permission had been granted from their Head Office to loan a generator to the Club.
Councillor Long commented that he might be able to supply a generator from his employer when they write off assets after depreciation.

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

Bixley Ward:

37.1.     Councillor Phillips commented that the Carols on the Green service that was funded from the MAD budget had to be held indoors at St Augustine’s Church due to the poor weather. Councillor Phillips reported on behalf of County Councillor West that a TRO was being considered for Humber Doucy Lane for a 20mph speed limit as the option to part close off the road was not supported.

37.2.     Councillor Pope reported that residents had highlighted the length of time taken for the traffic lights to change for pedestrians at the junction of Bixley Road and Foxhall Road and he had referred the issue to County Councillor West. After investigation, it had been possible to reduce the waiting time, which would help to encourage Active Travel modes of transport.

Rushmere Ward:

37.3.     Councillor Long commented that he had seen the new road mender being used for potholes; however, many roads were now in such a poor state that they needed completely resurfacing. More Government funding had been provided for pothole repairs in Suffolk.

37.4.     Councillor Cracknell reported that the Council’s Parks Team had acquired a machine for tackling weeds for use on Council owned land, such as the area outside Dundee House.

St John’s Ward:

37.5.     Councillor Elavalakan commented that he had reported a speeding issue on Dover Road to County Councillor Adams.

37.6.     Councillor Hudson reported that a new noticeboard had been installed at Britannia School as there were no other noticeboards in the ward following the closure of the Cauldwell Hall Road Co-op store. Councillor Hudson added that the information on the cost of living leaflets previously produced had become out of date and suggested that new leaflets could perhaps be produced using MAD funding again.

Rushmere Division:

38.1.     County Councillor Martin reported that his local transport locality funding had been used to add a hardstanding area in front of the recycling area on Dumbarton Road as the ground had become very muddy, and to install a dropped kerb on Kingsgate Drive near the junction with Colchester Road; other improvements to be done were in relation to signage to highlight: the speed limit on Tuddenham Road, the location of the shops on Brunswick Road from Sidegate Lane and Woodbridge Road, and the location of Ransomes Sports Ground from Sidegate Avenue.

38.2.     County Councillor Martin commented that the large housing development proposed for Humber Doucy Lane had been refused due to the lack of suitable access and added that he would be speaking at the inquiry.   

St John’s Division:

38.3.     County Councillor Adams reported that her locality budgets had been used to beautify the area of benches at the end of Derby Road, and to support projects for: Chapter 82 story telling in schools, Dora Brown de-cluttering of properties in St John’s, Ipswich.Love volunteer training website content and Holocaust Memorial Day costs.

39.1.     Mr Fisk, Assistant Director for Housing, reported that the North East Area Committee currently had an unallocated budget of £13,561.25 available to spend on the priorities in its Area Action Plan.

39.2.     County Councillor Martin asked what the submission deadline was for funding applications for the next meeting.
Ms Hanman, Community Engagement Officer, reported that all documentation in support of an application would need to be submitted by 17 February 2025.

39.3.     Councillor Phillips commented that it was likely that there would be a surplus of funding and asked whether there would be grants available going forward.
The Chair commented that there would be some form of grant pot set up for community bids.
Councillor Pope questioned whether it would be possible for the surplus funding to be ringfenced to the North East Ipswich area.

·        Thursday 20 March 2025, 7pm

The Chair reported that the next meeting would take place on Thursday 20 March 2025 at 7pm.