Graham Ellis - my blog
Melksham Town Council - strategy and vision
A Melksham Town Council strategic vision was passed at full council on Tuesday - motion and strategy below, including the friendly amendments I proposed (so slightly different to the agenda pack)Motion: To fully adopt the purpose, core values of Melksham Town Council as set out at the strategy meeting on 19th May 2024. At each meeting the purpose of the council should be read, with both the purpose and relevant core value clearly stated on agenda. For full council a link to the full strategy can be provided.
Community Governance
Implementing robust corporate governance is essential for the success of our town council's strategic plan, ensuring transparency, accountability, and integrity in all decision-making processes.
By establishing clear policies and procedures, we can enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of council operations, fostering trust and confidence among residents and stakeholders. Regular audits, ethical guidelines, and a commitment to open communication will help prevent conflicts of interest and ensure that all actions are in the best interest of the community.
People remain at the heart of the council’s objectives and the town is proud to be recognised as an Age Friendly community, excited by the range of inclusivity exhibited within the town and committed to involving our young people in every aspect of civic life.
Emphasising strong leadership and governance standards will enable us to navigate challenges, manage resources judiciously, and achieve our strategic goals.
This approach will not only promote ethical conduct and public accountability but also drive sustainable development and community well-being.
Parks and Recreation
Incorporating parks and recreation into our town council's strategic plan is vital for enhancing the quality of life, promoting wellness, and fostering community spirit.
Developing and maintaining well-equipped parks, sports facilities, and green spaces will provide residents with opportunities for physical activity, relaxation, and social interaction.
Melksham is rightly proud of our recreational areas, including the impressive facilities available at King George V playing fields (The Park), where we are committed to achieving Green Flag status.
Offering a diverse range of recreational programmes and events for all ages will encourage active lifestyles and strengthen community bonds. Prioritising the conservation of natural habitats within these spaces will also support environmental sustainability and biodiversity.
We recognise the value of community play areas and the impact that they have on young children's development. We will maintain and improve a varied range of accessible and safe play opportunities for children and young people across the town.
By investing in parks and recreation together with strategic placement of street furniture to facilitate walking routes for all residents, we create inviting public spaces that enhance the town's appeal, boost the local economy through tourism and events, and contribute to the overall happiness and health of our residents.
Growth and Heritage
We are a council that actively encourages business opportunity and development, encouraging independent service-based businesses that enrich our town.
The town council believes it is essential to strike a balance between business growth and the preservation of our rich heritage. Fostering an environment that encourages entrepreneurship and attracts new businesses will generate jobs, improve our community, and enhance the overall quality of life for our residents.
At the same time, it is crucial to protect and celebrate our historical landmarks and cultural conditions that give our town its unique identity.
By integrating modern development with heritage conservation, we can create a vibrant community where progress and history coexist harmoniously, ensuring a prosperous and culturally enriched future for generations to come.
Environment
Integrating environmental sustainability into our town council's strategic plan is crucial for ensuring a resilient and thriving community. Prioritising initiatives such as biodiversity, reducing carbon emissions, enhancing energy efficiency, and promoting the use of renewable energy sources will help mitigate climate change impacts.
The town council is committed to operating in a sustainable manner, and where possible, achieving carbon neutrality in our operations. We will seize the opportunity and prioritise investment in green energy whenever looking at council or partnership development.
We will work with the community and local businesses to help everyone understand and promote the mutual responsibility to keep our town clean.
We will encourage and support our community in their biodiversity journey, especially through encouraging users of council allotments to adopt green horticultural practices.
We will be ambitious in seeking opportunities to develop our biodiversity in the town, through such schemes as tree canopies and wildlife shelters.
By embedding sustainability into our strategic vision, we can safeguard the environment, improve public health, and create a sustainable future for generations to come.
Events
Incorporating community events into our town council's strategic plan is essential for fostering social cohesion, cultural enrichment, and economic vitality. Regularly scheduled events such as festivals, markets, Christmas lights, cultural celebrations, civic events, and outdoor concerts can create vibrant public spaces that bring residents together, celebrating the diversity and heritage of our community.
We cherish and encourage the positive partnership we have with the multiple organisations who deliver outstanding public events across the town and look to develop these relationships further. As a consequence, together we provide platforms for local artists, vendors, and entrepreneurs, stimulating the local economy and showcasing the town's unique character.
Additionally, community events promote civic engagement and volunteerism, enhancing the sense of belonging and pride among residents. We will invest in and support a diverse array of community events, we can strengthen community bonds, attract visitors, and enhance the overall quality of life in our town.
Transport
We recognise that local transportation is a pivotal component of our town council's strategic plan, aimed at fostering connectivity, sustainability, and accessibility for all residents.
By championing investment in a public transport network, including reliable buses and trains, and our railway station and service, we can reduce traffic congestion, lower carbon emissions, and provide efficient commuting options.
We will continue to support the stakeholder investment in EV charging infrastructure across the town and surrounding area.
Expanding and maintaining well-designed bike lanes and pedestrian pathways will promote healthy lifestyles and ensure safer travel for non-motorised users.
Furthermore, integrating smart technology for real-time transit tracking and seamless payment systems will improve user experience and encourage wider public adoption.
This comprehensive approach to local transport will not only support economic growth by facilitating the movement of goods and people but also enhance the overall quality of life by creating a more connected and environmentally responsible community.
The 64,000 dollar question is how we implement the strategy - the tactics to get there, and the text of the motion does include some significant stepping stones which will be brought back as proposals to full council in July.
Image - a personal montage representing each of the areas in the strategy, and not a Town Council committment!
Public Transport - Melksham vision and working towards it
MTUG - core Melksham Transport User Group members meet in early June with decisions to make. Our old group, from the previous "Melksham Railway Development Group" days largely fulfilled its base mission of getting the train station and train service back to a permanent, useable and used level. Some members have moved on, a number have passed on and all of us remaining get older. There is still a mission; services are about a half of what is presently appropriate, and passenger numbers are a third of what they are at comparable town - we have moved from a useless service to a useable but poor one - 3,000 to 75,000 journeys per annum, where 250,000 should be achieved, with more people than not that I talk to embarrassed to admit they don't use the service "because ...".There are a number of other public and sustainable groups in the region, some of whom are also looking at their future direction as indeed in the whole public transport sector should be considering:
* What the town and regional objectives should be
* What strategies are needed to achieve them
* Who is best placed to set and move forward
* How various individuals and organisations can work together
* What short term actions and tactics should we undertake to help us get there
* How is this to be managed, staffed, financed
Changes at the TransWilts Community Rail Partnership will influence our decisions for MTUG too, and the insight and overview given to the West Wiltshire Railway User Group last week helps inform us as to the position we should take. I want to work alongside TransWilts - an organisation which has always had interest in the same direction but in recent years has followed a separate (and still useful to the overall objectives) parallel path.
Over the weekend, I have written and circulated to involved and potentially interested parties headline lists of where we are and where we may go. I've shared it online and you can read it at http://www.passenger.chat/mirror/vision_mtug_20240527.pdf and it includes:
* A diary list until the end of 2024
* A list of projects to help promote and better public transport around
* A list of organisations involved
* The TransWilts vision as shared to West Wiltshire Rail User Group
* A personal view and vision for public transport in Melksham
* Melksham (Rail) User Group Constitution
From page 7 of the 9 - within personal comment
My scenario for RAIL is a friendly station, connecting buses, and a reliable hourly train service each way, every day, all day.
For BUS, it's buses all day, every day too, every 30 minutes on the main routes that cross in Melksham from Bath to Devizes and from Chippenham to Trowbridge, and on the Town bus routes (with the connections to the station), and services to Calne, Bradford-on-Avon and Corsham all day, every day too - though less frequent.
For all public transport, good timetable and real time information systems, and good connections to enable easy travel to and from other more distant destinations. Good facilities for those with restricted mobility and also for those travelling with cycles and other personal aids.
It's all perfectly do-able, sensible "business case", and much more environmentally friendly than alternatives. It won't be done before the next local elections in 2025 but we might well get somewhere by 2029.
Published Monday, 27th May 2024
Melksham and Devizes - constituency and candidates
Yesterday evening, a General Election in the UK was called for 4th July. Major party candidates are in place and waiting, but others may declare. Here you will find:- anticpated candidates for 4th July as at 23rd May 2024
- from personal knowldge - please let me know of any others / changes
- listed in alphabetic order of political parties and with a sample link
Conservative - Michelle Donelan (link)
Green - Catherine Read (link)
Labour - Kerry Postlewhite (link)
Liberal Democrat - Brian Mathew (link)
Reform - Malcolm Cupis (link)
This is a new constituency and it includes:
The towns of Melksham and Bradford-on-Avon (formerly in Chippenham)
The town of Devizes (formerly in Devizes)
and some surrounding areas from those towns and also
The wards of Box and Colerne, and Calne South (formerly in North Wiltshire)
The map to the right is based on open access data
I will return to this page as appropriate to update the candidate list.
Full ward list:
Bowerhill; Box & Colerne; Bradford-on-Avon North; Bradford-on-Avon South; Bromham, Rowde & Roundway; Calne South; Devizes East; Devizes North; Devizes Rural West; Devizes South; Holt; Melksham East; Melksham Forest; Melksham South; Melksham Without North & Shurnhold; Melksham Without West & Rural; The Lavingtons; Urchfont & Bishops Cannings; Winsley & Westwood.
Published Thursday, 23rd May 2024
Mayor, deputy and committees for 2024/25
Top Row - Alford, Rabey (dep Mayor), Price (Mayor), S Crundell, J Westbrook, Stokes, Ellis and Forgacs
Lower Row - A Westbrook, Oatley, J Crundell, Aves, Cooke, Hubbard and Griffin.
Last night Melksham Town Council appointed Tom Price as the new mayor for 2024/25 and Saffi Rabey as his deputy. Both were voted in on a sustantial vote, including my vote, signifying my support of them in their roles - not easy roles this year in a council that's in the middle of major changes.
I join Tom in thanking Simon Crundell for all the hard work he has put in over the last two years which have not been easy either, and I look forward to working further with Simon on other council matters, especially on the environmental issues where we are remarkably aligned even though our politics differ.
Your new council
** Full Council
Mayor - Tom Price. Deputy Mayor - Saffi Rabey
Plus all 13 other elected councillors
Meets monthly
* The following two committees look after the general council operation
** Personell Commitee - formerly staffing committee
Chair - Tom Price. Deputy chair - Saffi Rabey
Plus Councillors Alford, Hubbard and J Westbrook
** Finance, Administration & Performance Committee
Chair - Andrew Griffin. Deputy Chair - Charlie Stokes
Plus Councillors Aves, Forgacs, Hubbard, Rabey and J Westbrook
* And the remaining three each have their own remit areas
** Community Development Committee
- Events, Community Groups, web site and communications
Chair - Jennie Westbrook. Deputy Chair - Saffi Rabey
Councillors Aves, Griffin, Oatley, Stokes and A Westbrook
** Asset Management & Amenities Committee
- The Town Council's estate and its maintnance and use
Chair - Pat Aves. Deputy Chair - Jack Oatley
Councillors Cooke, Ellis, Forgacs, Hubbard, Price, A Westbrook and J Westbrook
** Economic Development & Planning Committee
- The town beyond the council's estate - encouraging and supporting the future
Chair - Saffi Rabey. Deputy Chair - Andrew Griffin
Plus Councillors Alford, Aves, Cooke, Ellis, Oatley and Stokes.
Working groups are set up to perform specific tasks, and when their work is done they are dissolved - in theory. Seven working groups were dissolved last night, leaving only:
* Cemetries Working Group (renamed Task and Finish Group)
* CCTV and Community Safety (retained for oversite of our investment)
* CIL Funding Projects Working Group (jointly with Melksham Without)
* Events Working Group (perhaps becoming a subcommittee)
* Neighbourhood Plan Joint Steering Working Group (joint with Melksham Without)
Published Tuesday, 21st May 2024
Visioning Melksham - next 1, 5, 15 years
| Update 5 hour meting of 11 councillors which will give you some idea of just how much some of us had to say. Being written up and checked around - confidence and not yet signed off, so please forgive my silence. A just 1 of 11, please expect to see some of the spirit of my words in the outcome rather than gobbs of my text. |
A big "thank you" to those of you who have got back with me on visioning for Melksham Town Council, and the meeting we have today (19.5.2024) on the topic. A very curious meeting - organised by officers, with a free lunch, and on a Sunday. To my knoweldge, officers not attending, not broadcast or recorded, no agenda and not being held under the auspices of any committee or working group. The invite says we will set a vision, and one of our number has usefully circulated visions from neighbouring towns as examples. And yet this meeting is unconstitutional, called by the personell committee at a short-notice none-public meeting at which it was not on the agenda, and happening the day before we appoint a new mayor who, one might reasonably expect, would wish to set his / her own vision.
I have an uneasy feeling that someone's going to turn up with a vision document and look to press it through - I hope I am wrong, a I have seen this happen on a number of occasions while on the council and I have regretted being bounced / bullied into accepting something that sounds sensible but in the light of day is not the best we could have done. I am nervous about today.
That said, we are overdue - three years overdue - for a vision. It has been ludicrous that year after year we have been moving forward - some may say stumbling forward - without a clarity of direction. Each year I have asked our staff team and colleagues what our vision for the future is as we set our budget, and nothing has been forthcoming. And - believe you me - it's very hard to move ahead for Melksham when we don't know where we are going. We had a visioning day in summer 2021 with all staff present to share and inform us, but nothing came of it - another project you may feel was wasted. It's very hard to make correct tactical decisions when you have no strategy
But to repeat - a strategy is overdue and I WILL be going along today to contribute and look to moving us forward. It's in the interest of all councillors who care for Melksham, and / or wish to be re-elected next year, to help set a strategy and to be seen to be driving it forward over the next twelve months.
"So what would YOUR vision be, Graham" you may ask.
Firstly, regular reader will know that I was elected and remain concerned wit three key pillars - Openness, Equality and Environement, and they in my view are foundations. Not quite "nothing changes" but I'm proud to stand by most of what I've suggested over past years, while explaining why a few things have changed based on experience, changes, and public input because I am here to represent the public and not to promote myself, my career, or my political group.
Vision ... as at dawn, 19th May 2024
| Update 5 hour meting of 11 councillors which will give you some idea of just how much some of us had to say. Being written up and checked around - confidence and not yet signed off, so please forgive my silence. A just 1 of 11, please expect to see some of the spirit of my words in the outcome rather than gobbs of my text. |
Management Overview
1. 1. Vision of the operation of the Town Council
* A place which instills in the paid, unpaid (volunteer) and contracted team a natural desire to do their very best for the town, and provides them with the tools and support to do so.
* An organisation which welcomes, supports, informs and develops the Melksham communty of residents across all ages, backgrounds and abiities and businesses
* An organisation which leads by positive example, and is lead by residents signed up to a vision aligned with this document or its successor
2. Vision for ongoing council and other operations
* A Town which provides information and a welcome and leads by example in what it does.
* A Town which takes pragmtic environmental care of its real estate and other activities, looking to repurpose and reuse if possible and if that makes sense.
* A Town which consolidates / networks faciities into broadly combined areas for the benefit of all facilities within an area but at the same time supports some neighbourhood activities such as play areas for younger children
* A town which works "light" itself to support and motivate others with interests within the whole rather than taking on full projects itself.
3. Vision for the future
* A town that looks ahead to remaining and developing as a place that people want to live, work, run businesses, visit and spend leisure time
* A town that is accessible and navigable by all forms (powered and unpoweres, public and private) transport
* A town with a heart - physically and emotionally
* A town that fits / works with others under the super-parish, area, unitary and national frameworks and becomes a beacon for those others and for our residents and businesses
Some (developing) detail.
I am not one to impose my own thoughts totally here - I am one of 15, but this first section relating to people is so important I describe it first and have it more filled in
1. Vision in the operation of the council
* A service run by a happy, professional and stable staff team who are well rewarded and encouraged to learn and develop their careers while they are with us, and who are ambassadors for the town at all times.
* An organisation that takes care of its elected councillors and all of the other volunteers who assist and support its aims in whatever way
* An organisation designed and tuned to minimise conflicts and structured so that the whole team buys into, supports and helps objectives but with a clear, crisp and fair system of resolving any issues that might arise
* An organisation run and supported by a team who consider not only what they are doing, but why they are doing it in a wider context and are encouraged to suggest improvements not only by being provided with a mechanism for doing so, but also with a mechanism through which ideas are positively considered, recorded, credited and where appropriate implemented.
* IT systems which provide appropriate and easy to find correlated data for all - staff, councillors and public, and provide for efficient updates. Accessible services and data for all, including everything from Town events though to old reports that will help inform new work.
* Purchase and service contracts to be placed with and to encourage local businesses and residents where practical and not significantly less competitive than suppliers from further afield, and for bills to be paid within 28 days of presentation.
* Community Organisation Support - in helping with specialist services and in appropriate funding grants - either for one off capital / seeding projects or regular with an annual monitoring cycle. Grants may be financial, meeting room or other.
* A council that partners with other organisations - governmental and otherwise at all appropriate levels and pulls it fair weight and applies fair influence on them and the overall outcomes in that partnership work.
3. In the future quality of life in Melksham
* Developing and maintaining a neighbourhood plan and other local visions. Commenting and encouraging public comment on planning applications and informal opportunities to comment as to how they fit with the neighbourhood plan, the local plan, the NPPF and other local including community aspects of those which effect Melksham Town, including those located close to but outside the parish
* Aiding and informing new, changing an established businesses
* Welcoming newcomer to Melksham and assisting those who have been in Melksham for a while to access and feel welcomed by the councils and other services
2. In the running of specific services
* Parks and outdoor
A Common facilities for all ... to include BMX park, Happy to Chat bench. Neighbourhood play areas for close residents. Quiet space. T en
* Allotments
* Graveyards
* Public buildings and domain
* Halls for Hire
* Public Domain
* Events
* Community Support
* Community Facilities
* Economic Development
* Assets - to be used for the community and businesses
* Co-operative
* Budget and project Schedules
To agree and set a prudent budget and levy a reasonable precent on an annual basis, with use of the Public Works Loan Board for capital not in excess of three times the annual precept in any years with a limit of 5 times the annual precept outstanding at any time
Written / posted at 06:00 on 19th May 2024 and to be subject to revision with tracked changes over coming days.
Published Sunday, 19th May 2024
BBC on small museums
"Nearly everybody knows of Stonehenge, the Tower of London and the Natural History Museum. Each year, Visit England's annual statistics reveal the millions who flock to explore the nation's best-known attractions. But what of the 20 or so at the other end of the list who see fewer than 300 visitors a year?" - see full article at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-68779540An interesting article, highlighting the importance of quality over quantity of visitors, of the surprise of many at the depth and interest of what they find, and the dedication of the volunteer team that keeps them running to a schedule of opening for people coming from far, far away.
Melksham has a long and rich history, with artefacts spread around in storage and a very few on display in our town or in some cases in Devizes and Chippenham. There have been at least three periods when a timed regular opening in various locations has been available, but not currently the case. Wiltshire has a museum support service, which (however) costs money to formally join ... and that brings to the fore the cost of storing, keeping secure, catalogued and preserved all the artefacts and selecting which are to be displayed, kept for potential future examination and display, and let go over future years, and how that process is to be maintained into the medium and log term.
Melksham has or has had a number of benign trusts - the Almshouses, the Rachel Fowler Centre, the Friends Garden over the years, and there are a number of other groups where people quietly dip into their own pockets to keep things going. But there is a strong case here, and people active in looking, at setting something up for the future - not just for "us" but sustainable for when "we" are not in town. A logical option here is to share the local support with (an)other local setup - and logic suggests in co-operation with a service provider in the town such as at the Campus, Blue Pool, Assembly Hall, Town Hall, TIC where there can be people (volunteers or other staff) around to receive guests, space (and don't underestimate how much might be needed) an a natural flow of passing traffic and nearby facilities.
Published Saturday, 18th May 2024
Melksham Town Council - what should we be doing?
I undertand that we (town councillors) have a meeting this Sunday - 19th May - "to highlight the vision of the Council and future projects that need delivering. This will then result in the shape of the council going forward" - that text taken from the public record of the (confidential session) personnel committee held on 30th April which was circulated to all councillors last Thursday and added to the council web site. No agenda has been published for the meeting on Sunday, and it does not appear on the Town Council's diary.A Vision for the town [council] is in my opionion long overdue, and I value input on where you (the public) see action is needed, and what is important. But with the short notice of this meeting, I am dropping back to my survey results of last year where I asked what was IMPORTANT to you, and where you felt ACTION WAS NEEDED. Survey (here) and full report on conculsion of the survey (here) . It is my view that what is important will not have changed very much, whereas we (as a Town Council and community) have moved forward on some of the actions, so that list will have changed as things get ticked off.
Numbers are rankings, and number of votes (out of 70 answers)
Where you felt attention was needed at April 2023 1 29 - Cafe in Park *** 2 27 - Town Toilets * 3 25 - Parking - around schools 4 24 - Speeding and Ratruns 5 23 - CCTV ** 6 22 - Assembly Hall * 7 22 - Bank(s) 8 21 - Parking - in Town * 9 20 - Litter * 10 20 - Better cycle routes 11 18 - Trains * 12 18 - Buses * 13 18 - Museum for Melksham 14 18 - Melksham House <- now "Blue Pool"? * 15 17 - Walking routes and paths 16 17 - Lighting in Park ** 17 16 - Councillors who listen and inform * 18 16 - Affordable Housing 19 16 - Councillors with skill and time * 20 16 - Environment including climate * 21 15 - Canal 22 13 - Nature reserve 23 13 - Employment 24 13 - Play Areas 25 12 - Street Cleaning 26 12 - Carnival * 27 11 - Council Staff who are available * 28 9 - Riverside Site * 29 9 - Neighbourhood Plan * 30 9 - Sensory Garden | The top 30 MOST IMPORTANT things to residents as at April 2023 1 39 - Christmas Lights 2 36 - Cafe in Park 3 36 - Councillors who listen and inform 4 36 - Flowers and Floral 5 35 - Town Toilets 6 34 - Trains 7 34 - Affordable Housing 8 33 - Assembly Hall 9 33 - Parking - in Town 10 33 - Walking routes and paths 11 32 - Litter 12 32 - Street Cleaning 13 31 - Parking - around schools 14 31 - Councillors with skill and time 15 30 - Canal 16 29 - Buses 17 29 - Environment including climate 18 29 - Nature reserve 19 27 - CCTV 20 27 - Better cycle routes 21 27 - Council Staff who are available 22 27 - Riverside Walk 23 25 - Museum for Melksham 24 23 - Melksham House 25 23 - Employment 26 23 - Carnival 27 22 - Riverside Site 28 22 - Neighbourhood Plan 29 21 - Bank(s) 30 21 - Play Areas |
*** - (near) completion progress made in year to April 2024
** - considereable progress made
* - some progress made
Published Tuesday, 14th May 2024
Melksham Station - re-opening anniversary
13th May - the anniversary of the re-opening of Melksham Station in 1985 with a very limited service. In recent years, that has risen from 2 trains each way per day to 9, and passenger journeys up from 3,000 to 75,000 per annum. But that service is still so sparse that many potential passengers don't use it - either they drive or they get lifts - either to other stations or all the way to their destination!A big "Thank you" to GWR, TransWilts, Wiltshire Council, and many others for all the help over the years.
Most stations have "USER Group"s. Melksham didn't until recent years - we had the "Melksham Railway DEVELOPMENT Group" as we didn't have enough users ... but that has changed in recent years and you'll now hear of the "Melksham Transport Users Group". That makes sense - our rail service remains thin, with buses rather than trains providing the most sensible way into Bath, and the only public transport to places like Devizes, Corsham and Lacock.
1985 was a long time ago, and old hands like Gordon Dodge, John Money and Peter Blackburn are no longer with us. Others - so many names - are no longer as active, and the core members are looking forward to the future. Last December, many of us joined together to celebrate 10 years of the improved service, and now we're looking ahead to the next 10 years.
A date in my diary - Wednesday 22nd May 2024, 19:00 for 19:30 at the Bethesda Church Hall just across the square from Trowbridge Station - where at the West Wiltshire Rail Users Group, new chair of TransWilts - Paddy Bradley - will look forward to the Community Rail Partnership's vision and plans for the future. Guests welcome (WWRUG ask guests for £2 to help towards their costs). And the meeting is timed to allow you to catch the last train back to Melksham at around twenty past nine.
The Melksham [Transport/Rail] [Users/Development] Group remaining active members will be meeting soon after 22nd May and looking to consider the future path, working with those other groups and partnering as appropriate. Public transport is about linking places and so it's appropriate for us to work for Melksham but also with the other nearby towns and villages and we'll be so better guided in that in 10 days.
Published Monday, 13th May 2024
Melksham Vision - on a walk into Town
What is going on in Melksham? I wrote myself a list of projects, considerations and potentials - looking with a visitors's view, starting at the Railway Station and walking from there through to the Market Place and Campus. Here they are - just on that walk - in Alphabetic Order.
A3102 improvement plan
Access to north of Melksham
Assembly Hall
Avon Canteen
Avon House
Avon Place
Avon War Memorial
Avonside
Bath Road High Pavement (Forest)
Bath Road High Pavement (South)
Blue Pool - Cinema, Museum, Open Space, Improved Parking
Bus to / from station
Campus
Canal at Bridge
Customer Service Point at Station
George Inn block
Housing, business and parkland
Improved train service
Information Panels
Labour Club
Level walkway when bypass open
Market Place events
Melksham House / SEMH school
More tourists for Melksham
National Westminster and HSBC Bank buildings
Old Llyods Bank buiding
Outside Cafe at Campus
Pedestrianiase High Street
Queen Marys Garden
Real Time Information in Bus Stops
Redecorated Subway
Reverse direction of traffic in back of Market Place
Road Crossing at Avonside
Shop Frontages
The Bell High Pavement
The Unicorn
Town Hall Opening Hours and services
Town Centre Master Plan
Union Street traffic
Walk to church up Place Road and gate opening
Wishing Well in Market Place
Some other major projects of town interest off that path.
Conigre Mead Nature Reserve
East of Melksham Community Hall
Hazelwood Road Pay Area
KGV Park
Tourist Information Centre
I started going through my blog and looking from links to share where I had writen about these topics; you will find most of them if you use the search on this blog, so I haven't cluttered the post up with links. If you want to know more, please just ask me.
Published Friday, 10th May 2024
News from and a taste of Melksham Town Council
At last night's Town Council meeting (29th April 2024), we took 12 votes, and I voted to support 11 of the items we voted on. I was not, however, in support of all the motions on as specified on the original agenda and some were modified so I could support the vote though not the original proposal. Let me go through some of the issues that came up.Grant funding for the Melksham Carnival is commonly agreed, but the information supplied to the meeting was unclear and it made sense for us to pay, with immediate effect (warning - that probably means in the next payment cycle) a sum that we are very clear that we have promised now, and sort out the data so that we can make a proper decision at the next finance meeting.
Grant funding for AgeUK is also very confused, and rather that voting to move funds around in a way unclear, we have asked for the situation to be clarified for a subsequent meeting. I would very much like to get on with things, but it would have been foolish of me to support a motion that I only had fuzzy data on, and I am revived that the motion was modified to asking that our staff advise us clearly.
The deputy mayor, Tom Price, proposed changes to the terms of reference to the staffing committee, a group of 5 councillors of whom he is one, but his suggestions were not in the agenda pack and he read out his suggestions of some significant changes. I have misgivings when a vote is brought to council without the opportunity for councillors to read, research, think. I have felt tricked in the past by such motions which have had significant repercussions and ask "why have we not been given proper time?". There will be emergencies, but this was not one; I think the proposals could easily have been described when Tom put the motion into the agenda.
Not withstanding my concerns, I supported the first of Tom's amendments and we passed the first one of these. Councillors for this committee are now to be selected every year rather than being in place on the committee, which usually works in confidential sessions, for the full four years. It should (IMHO) never have been four years in the first place - set in May 2021, or rather present prior to that meeting by party / groups, and they locked themselves into the roles. A good change - I am not looking for a clean sweep, but there are a number of us including new councillors who have a significant experience in staffing matters, including motivating staff and running an effective organisation, and there should be a democratic opportunity to tune our management team (which is what staffing has become) during our term.
Tom went on to propose changes to 3.5 and 3.7 in the terms of reference (I think I have those right) and the council voted through one of the changes. I abstained from that vote; I did not understand how this first change interacted with others (I am probably dumber than most councillors) and was concerned at what the result will / would be. As the conversation moved on to Tom's next change, other councillors expressed similar concerns to mine that we were creating a set of rules that contradicted each other, and setting needlessly different systems up for our next clerk and his or her deputy. I'm glad others followed by lead, and rather than continue with a series of votes with all us amateur councillors pressing to get our amassments and views in, it has very sensibly been referred to lour locum clerk, a lady with many years in the business, to suggest and updates well ahead of the next meeting. It makes double sense because the lady is a locum - a temporary clerk - and that means she can make the suggestions without any question of them being tuned to suit her ongoing employment - i.e. there is no danger of a conflict of interest.
Lighting in the Park (yay, we have done it!?) has raised serious concerns with the residents nearby who's homes are now "floodlit". After tossing the subject around, we decided to invite the contractor who installed them to come along and give us professional advice. I would also like to hear from the two councillors who dealt with our lighting to the Forest Community Centre; I know they interacted with close neighbours at the time, and their help may also guide us towards a sensible outcome. I do hope that all residents near the park will be invited to the meeting - and by "invited" I do not just mean that they can attend if they find it deep on the agenda.
The minutes / notes of various groups came to council for us to "receive" including the Communications Working Group from the start of March. Their notes from their late march meeting are on the council web site, but not from their late April one which - news to me - was cancelled. On enquiring on the date of the next meeting - for all councillors may sit in on any working group, there was a degree of confusion; as I understand it, 7th May has been proposed but won't be happening and I should keep my eyes peeled to the council diary as it will be added to that when set. As a working group, that may be at just a couple of days notice. I find this ironic for a group that's about communications.
The Church Street toilet block - owned by Wiltshire Council and currently out of use - is divided into two sections, a store and a toilet area. Melksham Pet Larder would like to take over and refurnish the store area and explained to the council about their work, the need for it and premises, their enthusiasm, and the volume of their work. Public toilets are a popular request too, and - I am delighted - the council has asked our officers to report back on the risks and costs of us doing this. It seems to make sense, but it would be a seven year commitment and not to be jumped into lightly. Significantly, the Pet Larder has been gently growing for a considerable time, was well represented and spoken for last night, and I am already getting feedback this morning.
I am very conscious that the [role of] Clerk and Head of Operations have already / also been tasked with taking forward the probably much larger scheme of the Blue Pool, also on offer from Wiltshire Council, and I look forward to progress on both projects. I am also aware that there are not significant funds in the coffers or budget for "shovels in the ground" on either of these two projects, whereas there are funds for the East of Melksham Community Hall which is another project in the works.
And so at the end of the meeting, we went into confidential session concerning The Neighbourhood Plan. The consultation last winter has been analysed and threw up some challenges, and some other things have become clearer in the intervening months too. David Pafford, chair of the Neighbourhood Plan, spoke the Town Council's Economic Development and Planning Committee last week. It's a joint plan for the Melksham area with Melksham Without, our surrounding parish, and his briefing was welcome there, with all councillors invited. I can't go into any of the content, but I think I can tell you that it was on the agenda for "one of our plan reps to update us", with no report attached to the agenda pack. There are two reps - Pat Aves and myself, and I had not been alerted to the item in the agenda pack; I had only found it as I prepared for the meeting over the weekend. In the event, Pat was not present when I got to that agenda item; for sure, I had notes and I'm pretty well informed so was able to start talking to it.
Of course, having picked up Tom (and Jon) earlier in the evening, they in turn picked me up on not having a written and circulated report. Ah well - it'll come back to full council on 21st May when we have a special extra meeting to look at joint projects with Melksham Without. Joint projects include Shurnold Fields, Real Time Passenger Information in bus shelters, the loos in the Market Place, finance for the East of Melksham Community Hall, other joint CIL funding, and the Joint Melksham Neighbourhood Plan.
Councillor Simon Crundell said this would be his last at mayor, and that he's looking forward to taking a step back. Melksham Town Council is in the midst of structural change that's ongoing and in many ways, two years is too short a time. I would love to see Simon carrying on for another year, and believe that continuity would be the very best for the town. However, two years is also too long a time for the pressures imposed by this voluntary job in addition to full time work, and I understand and respect his decision and thank him for all the hard work and time he has put in over the past 24 months. Melksham Town Council had major issues when Simon took over, and it still has - however, a course has been plotted and embarked upon to and I look forward to working with Simon's succesors in both the mayor and deputy mayor roles to help us conclude those issues in the future interests of Melksham though its residents, its town council staff, its volunteers, its businesses, and its councillors. Thank you, Simon.
Conclusions? None - just an update on various projects and a flavour for council activity as I see it. Inputs welcome!
Published Tuesday, 30th April 2024