The chair welcomed all to the meeting.  Reference was made to the code of conduct and all were asked to abide by the code for the duration of the meeting.

The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed.

Updates from the previous meeting.

Balderstone & Kirkholt Ward and Members Funds expenditure/projects
Update was given by the Townships Officer on recent projects funded by the Ward and Members Funds as follows:

Officers were not present at the forum.  Residents expressed their disappointment with their absence and requested it was raised with GMP.  The Community Safety Officer in attendance at the forum explained the current situation regarding lower than normal numbers of neighbourhood officers within Rochdale Police.

Always call 999 in an emergency.
Call 101 to report incidents, crimes and matters of concern.
You can report a crime or incident or suspicious circumstances online on GMP website.

St Thomas’ Church new vicar
The meeting was informed that there is a new vicar in post at St Thomas’ Church and the Refresh Team will be in place to support him until he is more established within the role.

Darley Road overgrown vegetation
A resident raised concerns about overgrowth weeds and vegetation on Darley Road which is encroaching the pavement/highway.

Action: Townships to raise the matter with the Council’s Environmental Management Department

Balderstone Park anti social behaviour
Residents discussed this ongoing issue.  Community Safety Officer in attendance advised that patrols are being carried out at evenings by the Youth Service.  PCSOs are also engaging with youths to try and disperse any larger gatherings who frequent the area.

Dark evenings and burglary reduction advice
Community Safety Officer in attendance advised residents to be mindful of the approaching darker evenings/nights and to be extra vigilant in securing property and vehicles and leaving lights and alarms on to deter opportunist thieves.

Any residents or organisations wishing to put forward any initiatives or ideas of improvements which would benefit the community and ward of Balderstone and Kirkholt to speak to the Councillors or Township Officer with regards to funding.

Councillor Meredith
No update.

Councillor Blundell
No update.

Councillor Massey
The Councillor attended and provided the following updates.

Queen Victoria Street
Footpaths have been resurfaced.  Hartley Lane will be next to benefit from improvement works.

Darlington Road
Traffic calming works have been approved by Township.

Queensway and Great Gates Road
Approval being sought for future works to dropped kerbs to improve accessibility around the ward.

Rochdale in Bloom
The Kirkholt community entered Rochdale in Bloom and the judging day went very well.  Ward Councillors are very proud of all the local community groups involved and their efforts as follows:

·           Strand Hub

·           Balderstone Park & Kirkholt Million

·           Rhodes Ravine

·           Q Gardens

·           Arnold Bagnall Court residents

·           Woodlands at the Willows

·           Broad Lane Community Woodland

Balderstone Park
The Township funded projects to Balderstone Park are continuing to be driven forward with a focus on restricting through routes for motorised bikes.  Ward Councillors have chaired several meetings with the Police, Youth Service and Community Safety about the park and around the ward, targeting the problem of youths causing annoyance and helping to reduce anti-social behaviour.  They have also taken part in regular walk rounds with all of the services to identify problems.

Ward Councillors continue to support the Kirkholt Million in their setup in the new building at the library, now named the ‘Million Pavilion’.  They are now pushing to get the pitches completed, a management plan put into place and a suitable tenant agreed for the sports facilities.

Ward Councillors had a successful family youth service at Balderstone Park in the summer and they are already working on the next community event to be held.

Late Councillor Farnell memorial bench and tree

This memorial bench has now been installed and will stay in situ.  A meeting will be held between Ward Councillors and the Kirkholt Millions in the future to see if its current position is working or whether a new position needs to be sought.  Residents in attendance at the meeting made a suggestion of an apple tree for the type to be used in memorial of the late Councillor.

Balderstone Library – ‘Open Plus’ Scheme
Councillor Massey updated residents on a new trial scheme coming soon to the library which will see residents able to access services like the internet at the library out of hours by way of a special ID card.

Kirkholt Million
Since the last meeting the rugby club have held a schools event and several people have made enquiries on holding children’s parties at the new library venue.  Lots of organisations now use the building for meetings.  The official opening date will be agreed soon.

Final stages of the allocation of funding by the Millions to schools is being rolled out and it is hopeful that a bike track will be installed in the park sometime in the near future.

Councillor Massey expressed thanks on behalf of the local Ward Councillors for the hard work, dedication and commitment by Colin and Linda in their voluntary roles for the Millions over the years.

Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH)
No representative was present at the forum.  Residents expressed their disappointment with their absence/update and requested it was raised with RBH.
Action: Townships to raise the matter with RBH regarding update/attendance.

Thursday 24 November 2022 at 6.30pm
St Mary’s Church, Oldham Road, Balderstone, Rochdale