Minutes
of the Risborough Area Business Group Monthly Meeting
Held
at
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Attendees |
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President L.Adlam
:L.Adlam Architects |
J.Vessey : Ariel |
J.Varle
:Sylvia & Jean Hairdressers |
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Chairman G.Wiles :IFC |
A.Docherty :Ercol |
S.Baker
:Sylvia & Jean Hairdressers |
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Hon Sec P.Pitcher
:P.A.M. |
D.Kent :Special Days |
N.Faux :Risborough
Police |
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H.Brown :Pickles
Delicatessen |
J.Hughes :Corporate
Comms |
M.Shuttle :David
Shuttles |
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C.Waterton :WDC |
N. Beill : Treats II |
J.Barker : Inca Studio |
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S.Barnes :Art &
Office. |
Y.Safir :Safir
Jewellers |
D.Melia
: Concorde Cleaners |
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A.Smith :J Smith &
Sons |
S.Jeffs :Fired Up |
E.North
: Cards & Gifts/Kado |
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M.Thomas :Coppins
B&B |
J.Thomas :Coppins
B&B |
N.Brooks
:FSB |
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Item |
Topic |
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1 |
Chairman’s Welcome The
Chairman opened the meeting by welcoming everyone, including our guest
Richard Grant from WDC, and several retailers who had attended an earlier
meeting on ‘Risborough Rewards’. He
passed on best wishes to Stuart Marriott (deputy head |
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2 |
Apologies for Absence
received from:
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3 |
Minutes of the meeting
held on The
Minutes were agreed as a true record. |
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4 |
Matters arising from
Minutes not already covered by the Agenda For
the benefit of several new attendees, the Chairman gave a summary of the current
issues of interest to RABG: ·
Car parking: details
of car park costs have been requested from WDC. They will look at charges as the suggestion
has been made that 2p added to each parking fee in Wycombe would more than
fund 1 hour free parking in Risborough. ·
Business to
Business fair October 18th Community Centre:
planning is going ahead and it is hoped many local retailers and businesses
will take the opportunity to promote themselves. Hypnos is subsidising the event so there is
no charge to set up a stand or table.
Information will be provided as soon as it becomes available. ·
Neighbourhood
Action Group: Graham Wiles is our representative on the NAG and will
report back to RABG as and when appropriate.
His report of the 1st
meeting is under AOB ·
PRTC: Graham has
also been invited to represent RABG at Town Council meetings, but due to
pressure of work, was unable to attend the recent meeting. If anyone is interested to help represent
RABG as a proxy, he would be pleased to hear from them! ·
CCTV: we have
been unofficially informed that an announcement on progress made is due at
the end of July CrossTalk: suitable
articles are needed on RABG or retail issues. |
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5 |
Presentation on Planning
Policy Richard Grant : Planning
Policy WDC Richard
does not get involved in planning applications, which is the responsibility
of the Development Control Department
of WDC, but is responsible for setting up and writing planning policy rules. In
2004 a new planning system was introduced: Wycombe Development
Framework The
local development framework consists of ·
Core
strategy:
sets out the vision and policies to be achieved. Wycombe submitted theirs to the Government
in April 2006 and it will be examined in 2007. ·
Local
Development Framework (LDF): revised each year. Details are contained in Development Plan
Documents (DPD) and Supplementary Planning Documents (SPD) which provide
guidance for planners and people making planning applications. The LDF contains a statement of community
involvement and provides a key opportunity to influence the planning process. SPDs contain input from the Urban Design
Team at WDC. These are published in the
Bucks Free Press for 4 - 6 weeks before adoption. Also sitting alongside the SPDs are
“village statements” which allow opportunities for further input. ·
Site
Allocations DPDs: set out specific sites for development. Will be published Jan 2007. ·
Development
Control Policies DPDs: nitty gritty rules for judging applications that give details of
amenities, building designs etc. ·
Proposals
Map:
identifying main areas of growth and development. Supplementary Planning
Documents are consultative, and new rules require the following: ·
minimum 4 weeks publicity (WDC usually allow 6
weeks) ·
feedback requested on all options ·
consensus reached through consultation ·
final document submitted ·
document assessed for soundness of plan by an
inspector ·
inspector’s recommendations must be adopted by
the authority WDC
will send out weekly bulletins to interested parties on application. The
key documents currently being worked on are: ·
South East
plan:
due early 2008 ·
WDF Core
Strategy:
submitted, due for examination in 2007 ·
WDF Site
Document ‘1’: in interim policy phase due 2009/2010 ·
WDF SCI
& Site Document ‘2’: due for adoption 2006 ·
Site
Allocations DPD: Jan 2007 Risborough 2035 Study David
Lock Associates came up with a vision of Risborough similar to the WDC master
plan. However, for any of these recommendations
to be implemented, they must get into the Core Strategy and relevant policy
documents. A steering group will be
set up to take the 2035 Study forward and ensure the sites in question get
into the Site Allocation documents.
The main issues are: ·
Park Mill
Farm:
an application is currently being considered for 570 houses. Park Mill is in the currently adopted
guidance as a potential identified development site. However it is not identified in the yet to
be adopted Core Strategy as a key site as Risborough has sufficient 'brown
field' sites available for development.
The South East Plan identifies a need for 300 houses initially in this
area, but this may change. ·
·
A4010: mixed
views on whether a bypass is needed and how far outside the town. Risborough needs visitors to sustain the
Town Centre and local businesses. The
congestion through the centre must be relieved before the new shopping
developments planned for HW and Aylesbury cause more through traffic. The 2035 recommendation is more in favour
of an improvement diversion rather than a bypass. Richard
is always pleased to receive feedback and can be emailed at Richard_Grant@wycombe.gov.uk Copies
of some of his PowerPoint slides are attached to these minutes. The
chairman thanked Richard for his presentation and opened the meeting to
questions. 1.
Concerns
with the 2035 Study: the report covered the key issues of CCTV,
parking and A4010. However, the 2035
summary (which is probably the only part most people will read) does not
mention them. It is important that WDC
does not radically change any aspects of this report, particularly the above,
as DLA had listened to and taken account of local views. 2.
How can
planning policy help retailers: if the Town Centre would benefit from
improved signage and other ideas, is WDC’s policy flexible enough to include
these? Richard suggested that a letter
be sent from RABG to Jerry Unsworth (WDC), stating the problems with the High
Street and asking for a meeting with the Urban Design Team. 3.
Appeals
process: written representation must be submitted to the inspector
who may then call a meeting for both sides to put their case. The inspector then makes and explains his
decision. If he refuses the
application, it can be referred on to the ombudsman. 4.
WDC cabinet
member is
Hugh McCarthy. All applications must
go through full council to be ratified.
Hugh will welcome comments from members. 5. Mix of Use in the High Street: the
National system is: A1:
general
retail. Council cannot control the
type of shop A2: financial
services A3:
food,
hot food, take-aways WDC controls the mix
of A1/A2/A3 use. The Allocations Document which sets out
sites for development and usage etc. is still open to suggestions. |
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6 |
Rural Business
Diversification. A Guide for
Buckinghamshire Chris Waterton (on
behalf of Cheryl Hewitt, WDC) Chris
handed out packs which have been developed by WDC to help rural businesses
diversify into other areas and activities.
The Guide covers: ·
what is diversification? ·
if I want to diversify, what do I do next? ·
case studies of local businesses that have diversified ·
local planning guidelines ·
funding available ·
help and support ·
general questions Copies
of this Guide can be obtained from WDC on 01494 421123 or downloaded from
their website |
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7 |
RACA Action Group
Reports: Economic. ·
RACA is working closely with Chinnor Railway and
will be meeting with them on 12th September ·
The railway will come into Risborough station. Work is needed on the platform which is waiting
on a report from the consultants ·
The signal box is a listed building which
needs ¼ million to return to its original condition. Funding is needed as Network SE does not
want to finance the work. ·
There will be parking issues when the train
comes into PR. RACA is waiting on
comments from WDC. ·
Members are asked to write to WDC to encourage
them to support any means to keep this project moving. Community
& Housing. Heather
Brown reported that the Youth Strategy is going well. ·
Surveys have been taken and are waiting to be
collated ·
In the autumn Youth focus groups will be set
up to find out what they want. ·
Several businesses are helping the school by
providing placements ·
Paul Jeffries is on the board of governors and
working hard on behalf of RABG Regarding
the older community, volunteers are difficult to find and local groups say
they do not need any help. Transport. Graham
Wiles gave an update: ·
Buses: Berryfield
and Monks Risborough apparently have 2 buses operating on Tuesdays &
Thursdays between ·
Rider on
Call:
service is coming to an end. It costs
£20 per mile in subsidies. The rough cost per annum for providing
a figure of 8 type bus route is £45K. ·
Chiltern
Line: the
plan is for fewer trains to stop
at Saunderton with buses laid on to bring passengers into Risborough
station. A survey is being carried out
to get passengers’ reaction. RACA is meeting with WDC, BCC and the bus
companies on these issues. ·
Cycling: cycling
paths are being mapped out and marked.
Volunteers are needed to help with signing. ·
High Street
study:
a recent survey of the High Street did not include the option of
pedestrianisation. RABG needs to get
the views of the retailers and lobby WDC. Environment. John
Hughes reported in Youssef Safir’s absence: ·
Leaflets: the Brush
Hill leaflet is being distributed. The
4 Walks and Heritage Trail leaflets are near completion. ·
Logo: a logo
has been designed ‘Fit for a Prince’ which is being used on all information ·
Information
boards:
2 are planned and will be put up. More
funding is required for additional boards, sign posting, historic plaques
etc. If
anyone is interested in joining RACA Environment group, please email John
Hughes at mr@jghughes1.force9.co.uk Meetings are monthly at |
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8 |
Any Other Business 1. Nominations
for RABG representative on Town Festival Committee: Mary Shuttle : proposed Heather Brown, seconded Derek Kent Youssef Safir : could not attend meeting Mary Shuttle was voted unanimously at the meeting as our RABG
representative. 2. The Chairman thanked Chris
Waterton for all his support to RABG, and RABG will be
writing to WDC to express our gratitude and enquire who will be WDC’s
representative on RABG in the future. 3. Neighbourhood Action Groups (NAGS) Graham Wiles reported that the 1st meeting has
taken place with 15 people representing the local community. Rules and regulations covering NAGs were
explained in outline. Objectives, as
discussed in a previous public meeting, were set for the local police on the
following issues:
4. Shoplifting: The problem
of shoplifting was raised. There is apparently
a mother & daughter team who regularly visit certain shops in the High
Street. Some retailers operate an
‘early warning system’ by phoning each other if problems occur. This system needs bringing up to date as
not all shops are included and many shops operate different opening
hours. CCTV is considered essential by
the retailers. Nigel Faux (Police)
said a 999 call should be made for any ‘crime in progress’, but no-one was
convinced the police could respond quickly enough if a car had to come from
HW. 5. Business 2 Business Fair: Reminder that the Community Centre, For
more information, contact Heather on hbpicklesdeli@aol.com
or phone 07908 472538 6. RABG Christmas Social To
be held at the Bowls Club on Thursday 14th December. The format will be the same as last year
with refreshments provided by Heather. 7. St Mary’s with St Peter’s Ilmer An
email received from Christine Williams requested all RABG members be updated
on the St Mary’s Church project to add a new extension and re-order the
interior. A series of events is being
planned to raise funds for the extensive building work needed. One event in particular is an Auction of
Promises on 30th September. Any contributions for the Auction from
members will be greatly appreciated - a few ideas:
If
you can give a Promise, please contact Christine on 01844 274773 or 07801
482656 email
christine@clinton23.fsnet.co.uk
or
write to her at |
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9 |
Date of Next Meeting The next meeting is the August RABG social: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WEDNESDAY
16th August at RISBOROUGH
AREA BUSINESS GROUP invites all members, families
and friends to a Barbeque & salad buffet in the grounds of HEARING
DOGS FOR THE DEAF CENTRE at Saunderton (They have an excellent restaurant we can use if wet) Cost £10 per person (£5 per child under 16) Please bring your own drinks or support the fund-raising Pimms and wine bar The evening is an excellent opportunity to see the charity's extensive facilities and hear about the wonderful work they are doing for deaf adults and children. Several volunteers will be present with their dogs as part of their 'Socialising training'. Parking is available in the car park via the New Visitors' Entrance off the main Wycombe-Risborough A4010 road (watch for the sign to the Centre just before the Rose & Crown if coming from Wycombe direction). Please reply with numbers by 7th August to Heather
Brown email: hbpicklesdeli@aol.com phone: 07908 472538 PLEASE SUPPORT THIS LOCAL CHARITY AND HAVE
A GREAT EVENING OUT WITH THE FAMILY & FRIENDS! |
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10 |
Date of Next Full Meeting The following full meeting is scheduled for Thursday
14th September (subject to confirmation from the
school). Agenda to include
The
meeting closed at |
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REMINDER The High
Street will be closed to traffic on 17th August with additional
stalls being set up in the market. The secretary has diaries with dates of future RABG meetings and
contact details of committee members.
Anyone wanting a diary should email pam@pamuk.demon.co.uk or ring 01844
346687. |
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Hon.Sec Pam Pitcher |
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