Venue: the Wren Room, Countryside Centre, Hinchingbrooke Countryside Park
Contact: Melanie Sage, Democratic Services Team, Tel No. 01480 388169/e-mail Melanie.Sage@huntingdonshire.gov.uk
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ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN To elect a Chairman of the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group for the remainder of the Municipal Year. Minutes: RESOLVED
That District Councillor R West be elected as the Chairman of the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group for the remainder of the Municipal Year.
Following which Councillor R West took chairmanship of the meeting. |
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To approve as a correct record the Minutes of the meeting held on 11th March 2016. Contact: M Sage 388169 Minutes: The Minutes of the meeting held on 11 March 2016 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman. |
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MEMBERS' INTERESTS To receive from Members declarations as to disclosable pecuniary and other interests in relation to any Agenda Item. Minutes: There were no declarations of interest received from those Members that were present. |
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APPOINTMENT OF VICE-CHAIRMAN To appoint a Vice-Chairman of the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group for the remainder of the Municipal Year. Minutes: RESOLVED
That District Councillor Ms A Dickinson be appointed as the Vice-Chairman of the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group for the remainder of the Municipal Year.
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MEMBERSHIP OF THE GROUP To note the Membership of the Group for 2016/17 as follows:
(a) Cambridgeshire County Council
Councillor Peter Ashcroft
(b) Huntingdonshire District Council
Councillors R C Carter, Ms A Dickinson, T F Hayward and R J West. Minutes: The Membership of the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group for 2016/17 was noted as follows:
(a) Cambridgeshire County Council
Councillor P Ashcroft
(b) Huntingdonshire District Council
Councillors R C Carter, Ms A Dickinson, T F Hayward and R J West.
The Group welcomed County Councillor P Ashcroft as the new County Council Member to the meeting and expressed their satisfaction at finally having Cambridgeshire County Council representation at the meeting. |
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SENIOR RANGER'S REPORT PDF 233 KB To receive a report by the Senior Ranger on park activities for the period March – August 2016. Contact: J Arnold / C Moss Minutes: In receiving and noting the content of the Senior Ranger’s report on park activities for the period March – August 2016, comment was made in relation as follows:
Volunteers
Volunteers provided significant assistance to the Rangers and details of the various volunteers were provided within the report, including one who was studying ecology at university. A university student had previously used Paxton Pitts to complete their studies and it was noted amongst the Joint Group how it could raise the profile of the Park if it too was used for the same purposes.
Park Management
During the spring and summer the wide ranging role of the Rangers focussed on the visitor experience such as dealing with first aid incidents, litter collection and answering queries as well as the main practical tasks of mowing, strimming and hedge-cutting.
Over the next three to six months the Rangers would focus on larger scale works.
Unfortunately, the Park had experienced small scale vandalism, in particular to the fence around the play area and one of the new outdoor shelters.
Staff at the Park had attended an Away Day at Ferry Meadows in Peterborough which had been useful to generate new ideas for the Park. Rutland Water Nature Reserve had been considered as the venue. However, the costs had made it too prohibitive and the Great Fen had been unable to accommodate on the chosen date. It was confirmed that the Team would consider organising another Away Day in the future and had also offered reciprocal arrangements to the Staff at Ferry Meadows
Café
The Park and consequently the Café had been busy during the summer due to the weather which had resulted in an increase in café revenue in comparison to the previous financial year.
This had been assisted by the Park being the venue for the Active Lifestyles Sports Taster Day on 24 July 2016 where nearly 1000 people had attended the event.
In response to a question it was hoped that the Park would host another Active Lifestyles Sports Taster Day. However, this was dependant on the Active Lifestyles Team successfully securing the necessary funding from grants and lottery funding.
It was noted that the various improvements within the Café had been successful including the removal of some internal seating, the introduction of a simplified summer menu and contactless card payment to improve serving customers.
Friends of Hinchingbrooke Country Park
A new Committee having been formed was working effectively and currently looking to establish a bird box sponsor scheme to provide much needed nest sites to raise additional income. The Friends had recently agreed to provide a new Tern raft (similar to the very successful ones at Paxton Pits), and were considering other priorities for future funding bids.
In response to questions it was explained that the Committee consisted of approximately seven people with a membership of 120. As a registered charity the support of the Friends was vital as they were able to access grants for various projects to improve facilities ... view the full minutes text for item 6. |
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EXCLUSION OF THE PRESS AND PUBLIC To resolve –
that the press and public be excluded from the meeting because the business to be transacted contains information relating to the financial and business affairs of a particular person (including the authority holding that information). Minutes: RESOLVED:
that the press and public be excluded from the meeting because the business to be transacted contains information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information). |
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CONTRACTURAL ARRANGEMENTS AND POTENTIAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMME, HINCHINGBROOKE COUNTRY PARK To consider a report by the Head of Operations. Contact: N Sloper 388635 Minutes: The Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group gave consideration to an exempt report by the Head of Operations (a copy of which is appended in the Minute Book) regarding the contractual arrangements and potential improvement programme at Hinchingbrooke Park, detailed within the submitted report.
During discussions on the matter the Group noted the lack of engagement that Cambridgeshire County Council (CCC) had taken in Hinchingbrooke Country Park, given that there had been no County Council attendance at the meetings until the recent appointment of County Councillor Ashcroft.
In addition to the significant revenue burden that the District Council incurred for the maintenance of the Park, the Council also invested considerable Officer time and effort in ensuring the Park continued to operate as a success.
The Group acknowledged that the Park was much more than a community asset – it was a prime green space that included a significant area of biodiversity that required sensitive management and protection, as well as providing a variety of recreational and nature conservation activities.
Having been considered by the Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group, the report was to be presented to the Overview and Scrutiny Panel (Communities and Customers) prior to determination by the Cabinet.
In noting the contractual arrangements in place and their implications, the Group endorsed the recommendations as contained within the exempt report and made a number of recommendations to the Cabinet, whereupon it was
RESOLVED:
to endorse the recommendations as contained within the submitted exempt report, including the additional recommendations to the Cabinet.
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DATE OF NEXT MEETING To note that the next meeting of Hinchingbrooke Country Park Joint Group will be held on 24th March 2017 at 10am. Minutes: The Group noted that their next meeting would be held on 24 March 2017 at 10am. |