Agenda item

Members are reminded that under paragraph 11.1 of part 4 of the Constitution, questions can be asked of the Leader and Cabinet Members without notice about any matter contained in any address.  Questions shall be limited to five minutes in total for each announcement.

Councillor R Blunt welcomed Paul Sanders, the new Head of Community Services, to the Council. 

Councillor R Blunt announced that he was honoured to sign the Dying to Work charter on behalf of the Council last week.  The charter reinforced the Council’s commitment to staff who had been diagnosed with a terminal illness.  He recognised that it was only possible for the people who work for us to be able to put the customer at the heart at everything they do when they felt valued.  One way this could be done was by ensuring that, at a time when one or our employees was rocked by life-changing news, such as a terminal diagnosis, that they knew one area or their life would be constant, in terms of support and concern tor their wellbeing.  He added that work mattered to people, as in addition to providing an income, work also provided meaning, a sense of identity, structure and a feeling of being part of a team.  Whilst some employees with a terminal illness may choose not to work, for others there may actually be comfort, a sense of security and a feeling of normality in continuing to work.  The Council would aim to honour the wishes of employees and to provide support and understanding at a dif?cult time in their lives rather than generating additional stress and avoidable anxiety.  He felt that the charter would make a real difference to people’s ability to have a choice, at a time when they feel there is no choice.

Councillor R Blunt announced that on Friday 24 November the Council would open its doors to around 60 children and young people for the first time to take part in the Children's Commissioners annual event aimed at giving a voice to young people and an insight into the different jobs within the Council.  The pupils will go behind the scenes at both the Council Offices and at Hermitage Leisure Centre for a day of inventive and interactive fun designed to help them learn more about the world of work.  Students from Belvoirdale Primary School, King Edward VII College and lbstock Community College will take on a number of challenges and scenarios set by the Council's various services.  Amongst other things, the students will help to manage Hermitage Leisure Centre for the day, inspect a kitchen suspected of failing in food hygiene, create an emergency plan and respond following a local crisis, investigate a fly tip, spotting the clues and catching the culprit, decide on a planning application, and hold a planning committee to make the final decision, and take over the Council's social media accounts and write a press release about the day.

This is the first time the Council has taken part in the Takeover Challenge, which has been hugely successful on a national scale in helping children to learn new skills, get creative and gain confidence.  He felt that the Council could learn a lot from the day too, as young people should always have a voice and he had no doubt they would come up with some interesting ideas during the day.

Councillor R Blunt reminded members that the Coalville project was never just about the regeneration of buildings and infrastructure – it was also about the cultural offer and the events that brought the community closer together. Over the last few weeks, that had never been more visible than in the Remembrance day parade and service which saw 3,000 people take time out to remember and commemorate the sacrifice that so many gave for us.  He reported that the Coalville heroes had worked tirelessly with the community to bring together the Famous 50 exhibition in the market which remembered the first 50 volunteer soldiers from Coalville. There were so many members of the community and relatives of those who lost their lives who had come together to bring this story to life and there had been 1500 visitors to the exhibition so far. He urged members to take the time to visit while it is here until 2 December.

Councillor R Blunt announced that preparations were being finalised for the Christmas in Coalville event on 2 December which was bigger and better than last year.  The event had been extended into Memorial square this year with an additional large Christmas tree in Marlborough square and lots of activities with a fireworks finale at 5pm.

Councillor S Sheahan joined Councillor R Blunt in welcoming Paul Sanders to the Council and he looked forward to working with him.  He very much welcomed involving young people in any way possible and felt this was in everyone’s interest.  He felt that the Dying to Work charter was a great initiative which had been started by the GMB union.  He thanked Councillor R Blunt for implementing this. 

Councillor M B Wyatt requested an update on the old bus depot as part of the Coalville Project.  He commented that nothing had happened for several months. 

Councillor R Blunt responded that work was ongoing, the Council was in discussions with the owner and a meeting was due to take place next week.  He added that the Council was doing everything in its power to progress this matter, however he was unable to give any further details publicly due to commercial confidentiality.  .

Councillor A V Smith announced that Ashby de la Zouch was celebrating its Purple Flag Award with a whole day of celebrations this weekend.  She explained that Purple Flag was like the Green Flag for parks and the Blue Flag for beaches. It was recognition by the Association of Town Centres that Ashby had an excellent and safe nightlife, and put simply, it was a good night out.  To celebrate receiving the accreditation, bars, restaurants and venues had a variety of events and offers available to the public on Saturday 25 November - Ashby would be turning purple.  She stated that this was a fantastic achievement for Ashby and something the whole town could be very proud of.  The pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants in Ashby worked very hard alongside the district and town councils, the police, Pubwatch and the street pastors to make it such a vibrant, exciting, but also safe town for an evening out.  She hoped people would come to Ashby on Saturday, take part in the purple party and celebrate this accolade for the town.  She thanked Cat Ridgway and her team for their work in making this possible. 

Councillor A V Smith was pleased to inform Council that work on a new 52-space car park in the heart of Ashby de la Zouch had begun with the demolition of the former health centre building. The new car park on North Street will be ready for spring 2018, and work was ongoing with local businesses and organisations to minimise disruption.  The car park was part of the district council's £1.1 million pound contribution to the Ashby Neighbourhood Plan, which aimed to boost the town's culture and leisure offer and celebrate the wealth of attractions it is home to.  This development was a prime location for parking, located very close to leisure and cultural attractions in Ashby de la Zouch like the leisure centre and the theatre, as well as the shops on Market Street.  As a local business owner and someone who used Ashby as a place to shop and relax, she knew how much this new car park was needed. The additional spaces and redesign of this part of town supported a wider aspiration to support Ashby, which is a vibrant and enjoyable place to be.

Councillor M Specht endorsed Councillor A V Smith’s comments as Purple Flag champion.  He stated that it had given him great pleasure to receive the award.  He expressed special thanks to Cat Ridgway for leading the team and to Ashby Town Council.

Councillor J G Coxon stated that this was great news for Ashby de la Zouch and a great achievement by the team.  He added that this was the second award this year for Ashby Town Council, who were the only town council in Leicestershire to achieve ‘quality gold’ status, which was a good bass to launch any appeal.  He was pleased to see that work was progressing on the car park as this had been a long time coming. 

Councillor N Clarke congratulated Ashby de la Zouch on the Purple Flag award as this was an excellent achievement.  He felt it was important to recognise the contribution from traders, Pubwatch and the street pastors.  He also thanked the staff involved.  He commended the work done to progress the car park.