Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Adamou.

There were no items of urgent business.

There were no declarations of interest.

There were no deputations or petitions.

An explanation of the role and powers of the Committee from the Area Liaison Officer.

The Chief Executive introduced the terms of reference for the Area Committees, and advised that the Committee would have direct route into the Overview and Scrutiny Committee via the Chair. Amongst its responsibilities, the Committee would have some budgetary responsibility, for example in respect of Making the Difference and pothole repair funding. A review would be undertaken after a year to assess how the Area Committees were functioning and whether further powers could be delegated to them.

The Chair to summarise the issues raised during discussion of the Veolia Contract, and the Committee will comment on the next steps of working with the new contract.

The Committee suggested that a list of the points raised by local residents during the Area Forum in respect of the Veolia contract be provided to Veolia for attention.

The Committee discussed the issue of fortnightly collections, including specific local areas where this would be more difficult to implement due to households with large numbers of residents, and also the issue of guidance for separating out food waste. Cllr Canver reported that the fortnightly collection scheme would be piloted in Muswell Hill, and that issues could therefore be identified and addressed as the scheme was rolled out more widely. It was suggested that community volunteers should be used as a valuable local resource, in response to which Cllr Canver confirmed that the scheme would be revisited and developed further, as community volunteers were highly valued. A campaign to increase recycling rates would be launched as the scheme was introduced, to address the issues of separation and contamination. Issues of how items such as nappies and cat litter would be dealt with as part of a fortnightly collection scheme were being looked into.

It was suggested that as further plans developed, these could be brought to the Area Committee for public discussion in order to benefit from as wide as possible a range of knowledge and experience, and Cllr Canver advised that an approach to fly-tipping was being drafted with the aim of becoming a local action plan, and this would be brought to the Area Forum and Committee for discussion. Pilot work was taking place to understand the root causes of fly-tipping and how these could be addressed. The Committee was also advised of a new contract for free collection of all recyclables, including furniture and mattresses, which would be launched in September.

Presentation by Claire Kowalska, Community Safety Manager, followed by a discussion about priorities for the area over the year to enable a plan to be drafted.

Claire Kowalska, Community Safety and Engagement Manager, advised the Committee of the process for developing area plans. Information was being gathered on each area, particularly in respect of the five Rethinking Haringey outcomes, and existing data would be collated and information sought from relevant professionals to provide a narrative to the data. The Area Chairs had been asked for their initial thoughts on area priorities for discussion with the Committee and it was felt that 3 to 6 priorities for each area would be manageable and achievable. At the September meeting, there would be a discussion based on the area profile as it stood, with evidence set out for everyone to consider and discuss, and following on from this the Plan would be worked up and brought back to the meeting in January 2012.

The Committee suggested that the Green Lanes Strategy Group should be consulted to feed into the area plan for St Ann’s and Harringay, as this was a unique resource for this area. Members emphasised that the process must not be a top-down approach, and that the local community had to be engaged fully to make it a collaborative process.

To summarise the issues raised during discussion on how funding for pothole repairs has been allocated and what it can be used for.

It was clarified that the pot hole repair money discussed in the forum was additional, ring-fenced funding to identify and repair potholes which would usually not meet the threshold for the statutory repair duty, giving an opportunity to address issues before they became worse. It was suggested that information from cyclists regarding potholes in the area could be collated via Harringay Online, and passed on. 

The Committee asked whether it would be possible to have an item on a future agenda relating to flooding, as this was a priority for the local area. It was suggested that an item on the Flood Plan be included on the next agenda.

Discussion regarding the Making the Difference funding process and next steps.

The Committee was advised that the deadline for the Making the Difference funding applications was 23 August 2011. Applications would be considered at the next meeting of the Area Committee on 20 September, however it was noted that one of the applications was for funding for the Green Lanes Food Festival, taking place on the 18 September. It was suggested that a special meeting of the Committee be held after all the applications had been received but before the date of the Food Festival to consider the application against all the other applications received. The remaining applications would be considered at the Area Committee meeting on 20 September.

AGREED

i)                    That a special meeting be convened to consider all the applications for Making the Difference Funding before the next scheduled meeting, specifically to consider whether funding should be allocated for the Green Lanes Food Festival.

ii)                  That funding be released on a fast-track basis for the Green Lanes Food Festival if the application were successful.

Tuesday, 20 September 2011

Thursday, 26 January 2012

Thursday, 19 April 2012

The Committee raised the issue of start times for future meetings, and the Chair confirmed that this was under consideration. It was agreed that the venues would alternate between St Ann’s and Harringay, and that the next meeting would be held in Harringay ward. St John the Baptist Church hall, Wightman Road, and South Harringay Infant School were suggested as possible venues.  

Cllr Schmitz advised that a Certificate of Lawfulness had been applied for in respect of the proposed 24-hour pharmacy at The Laurels, which had been rejected by the Council’s Planning Committee. Cllr Schmitz was looking into how this could be opposed.

The meeting closed at 21:20hrs.