Minutes of the Risborough Area Business Group
Held at
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Attendees |
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President :L.Adlam
:L.Adlam Architects |
J.Hughes :Corporate
Comms |
C.Williams
:Business Link |
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Acting Chairman
M.Pitcher :P.A.M. |
M.Shuttle :David
Shuttle |
A.Brown
:Softech2000 |
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Hon Sec P.Pitcher
:P.A.M. |
A.Smith :J Smith &
Sons |
A-M.Canavan
:Bucks Free Press |
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H.Brown :Pickles
Delicatessen |
M.Thomas :Coppins
B&B |
B.Clark :J.F.Clark
& Sons |
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B.Bendyshe-Brown :B3CS |
J.Thomas :Coppins
B&B |
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Item |
Topic |
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1 |
Message from the President Lance Adlam The President informed the meeting of
the resignation of the Chairman Graham Wiles due to pressure of work and
other commitments. At Lance’s request,
Mike Pitcher has agreed to be Acting Chairman until the AGM. A letter has been sent to Graham thanking
him for his contribution to RABG over the past fifteen months. |
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2 |
Chairman’s Welcome Mike
Pitcher, as Acting Chairman, welcomed everyone to the meeting, including our
guests Roger Fagg and Brian Hill. He then
outlined the roles each committee member would be taking responsibility for:
Each committee member will report back
to meetings as appropriate. |
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3 |
Apologies for Absence
received from:
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4 |
Minutes of the meeting
held on 16h January 2007 (previously circulated) John Hughes thanked the Secretary for
amending the minutes as requested, and Andrew Brown (Softech2000) mentioned
he had been omitted from the list of Attendees. With these amendments, the minutes
were then agreed as a true record. There
were no matters arising that would not be handled later in the meeting.. |
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5 |
Presentation: Roger Fagg: Chairman
of the Chinnor & Princes Risborough Railway Association Roger took over as
Chairman after the sad death of Richard Floyd from cancer, and has been
involved with the railway for over 6 ½ years.
The 1869 Act of
Parliament set up the ‘narrow gauge’ line between Princes
Risborough and Watlington and a passenger service started on The Chinnor and
Princes Risborough Railway was started in 1994, initially between Chinnor and
Wainhill. The Association has 1000+
members of whom approx 120 active members, all voluntary, save the
Association over £1M per year through their efforts! The railway runs
trains from March to October, including Santa Specials and Thomas the Tank
Engine Days, between Chinnor and Thame Junction. The winter months are used for maintenance
work. The current objective
is to extend the line into Risborough with two new sidings which will have to
be built to National standards. The
design has been drawn up and is waiting to go to Network Rail for
approval. Safety and Planning issues
still need to be addressed. Roger then
outlined his ‘wish list’ for the future: · restoration
of the Watlington platform as a 1920/30s branch line with a ticket office,
waiting room, red telephone box and phone.
The phone box will be dedicated to the memory of Richard Floyd. · small
relics museum to house all the memorabilia that have been donated to the
Association · education
centre with hands-on exhibits for children and proper office space · sidings
sheds for keeping stock and carrying out restoration work · dining
trains with a restaurant at Risborough station · restoration
of the signaling box as a heritage centre The Association is
currently meeting with WDC, Network Rail and other local groups to raise
funds. They hope to have completed the
planning and property deals by the end of 2007. During the discussion
that followed, it was suggested that funding from Tourism SE could also include
some help for the railway. Perhaps the
railway could suggest projects suitable for people on Community Service For further
information go to www.cprra.co.uk or
ring 01296 433795 for membership details The
chairman thanked Roger for his most interesting presentation. |
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6 |
Community Watch
Schemes: Pam Pitcher:
Neighbourhood Action Group (NAG) Ringmaster Pam
receives emails from the Amersham Ringmaster scheme. Those relevant to Risborough are forwarded
to RABG members. The police request
that all crimes and incidents of anti-social behaviour should be reported as soon
as possible as this enables them to build up a truer picture of what is
happening in the town. To
report an emergency: dial 999 for cases where a crime is in progress
or if anyone is in immediate danger.
Do NOT intervene if violence is involved Non-emergencies: dial 0845 8505 505 for incidents of
theft, criminal damage and anti-social behaviour. Or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 Brian Hill:
Neighbourhood Watch The
objective is to reduce crime and promote community spirit. The scheme is supported by Central
Government who supply leaflets and booklets.
WDC provides free storage facilities and help towards printing. Local groups appoint a co-ordinator and deputy
(both police vetted), who hold phone numbers & welcome new
neighbours. Risborough Association was
formed in 1995 and includes Longwick, Kimbles, Bledlow Ridge, Loosley Row - some 130+ schemes covering 3000+
people. Representatives are available
for advice and giving help every Wednesday The
work of Neighbourhood Watch and NAG is beginning to have an effect on
anti-social behaviour in Risborough.
It is very important that all incidents are reported immediately to
the police. For
further information, log on to www.tvpcommunitymessaging.org
or ring 0845 8505 505 The
secretary has Incident Report forms and cards with police contact numbers
available on request. Mary Shuttle: Early
Warning Scheme Mary
is the controller of this system in which local businesses in the High Street
are organised into lists. Warnings of
criminal activity are passed on as quickly as possible by telephone to the
next in the chain. The instigator of
the call also informs the police who respond if possible. The system does work, and criminals have
been caught. However, the lists need
updating due to changes of businesses on the High Street. Although CCTV is scheduled for Risborough,
it will still be necessary to report all incidents to the police. In
the following discussion, the Wycombe Shop Watch was mentioned. The Risborough NAG might be able to get
some details. Heather
Brown was asked to include a joining form in the planned RABG letter for
distribution to local shops and businesses, to encourage more sign up to the
scheme. Progress with the Early
Warning System to be reported on at the next RABG meeting in March. |
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7 |
RACA Action Group
Reports: Economic The
chairman read a report from Tony Maisey, chairman of the Economic Group: ·
A ‘railway’ dinner is being organised to raise
funds for the railway project ·
PRTC is investigating whether Section 106
money from the development of the Aston & Full site might be used to keep
amenities in the Molins Sports field available to the local community ·
The Park Mill Farm appeal enquiry is scheduled
for 13 - 17th March, in Wycombe Council Chambers. As many people
as possible from local groups should attend to register their
opposition. These protests can pay off
as shown by the reduction in the number of houses in the Transport. ·
Result of the High Street Study was promised
for next week! There has been no
communication from Jacobs Babtie since the meeting at IFC several months ago
although feedback was promised. ·
Cycle route leaflets have been produced ·
Survey is going out to 3,000+ people in
Neighbourhood Watch to assess demand for a ‘round robin’ community bus as
provided in Wendover. The problem with
such a scheme is finding drivers. Community
& Housing. ·
Group concerned with older people is looking
for a professional person to help The
meeting with local youth went well and several ideas for outings, one day
events etc were suggested. Environment ·
Notice boards have been completed with maps
showing places of local interest etc. ·
Brush Hill viewpoint is now wheelchair enabled. ·
Leaflets on local walks have had to be redone
to comply with national colour coding schemes. ·
Dr McFarlane is working on a Heritage leaflet
and WCD is bringing out a mini Risborough guide. ·
Tony Long needs volunteers to test ride his
eight cycling track leaflets. An
open day on Brush Hill is being organised on Risborough
Rewards A
request has been made to WDC for funding to help with the registration of
shoppers who don’t have internet access.
Currently Sylvia & Jean Hairdressers are handing out forms and
issuing cards. WDC
is funding the cost of RR advertising on the back of the |
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8 |
Any Other Business ·
Anne-Marie Canavan of the Bucks Free Press was complimented on her article on the
200th Risborough Rewards shopper. ·
John Hughes reported that RACA has received the matched funding grant from SEEDA and is
looking for cash to match it. Heather Brown has been appointed as the new
RACA project co-ordinator ·
Christine Williams said that BusinessLink
needs more suppliers for matching services in Design & Print, IT and
Marketing. BusinessLink offers a free
grant research facility for specific requests. ·
St Mary’s Church is getting tenders for the
church extension with a view to starting the building project in May. An Auction of Promises will be held on 17th
March to raise money. Entry is ticket
only, available from Corbetts Bookshop and the Information Centre. ·
Bill Bendyshe-Brown reported that CCTV will be
installed in Risborough in June, operational in July. WDC has organised a meeting on 8th
March to agree Community Service projects and needs suggestions for suitable
work. ·
Marks and Spencer will be opening in
Risborough during April. A meeting has
been arranged for local groups including RABG to meet them on Tuesday 27th
February. A review of parking is
needed urgently before they open. With
the expected additional visitors, retailers in the High Street should make an
effort to attract customers and increase their own footfall. ·
Ann Smith complimented the school on not
overheating the library for once! RABG diaries with details of the committee and
dates for meetings in 2007 were distributed. |
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9 |
Date of Next Meeting The next meeting is The
meeting closed at |
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Hon.Sec Pam Pitcher |
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