Brief Note of Meeting of Task Group Leads

Brief note of meeting of Task Group Leads.

4 August 2015

Present: Chris Balch (CB) Paul Bennett (PB) Chantelle Norton (CN) Peter Rees (PR) Tony Whitty (TW)

Apologies: Thea Platt (TP)

1. PB reported on external concerns regarding possible conflicts of interest which members of the steering group might have and the status of the Steering Group generally. Agreed that the NP website should say how the steering group was formed coupled with a brief biography of each steering group member. ACTION: Each member of the group to provide relevant details to TP who can make the appropriate entries on the website.

2. “Dropin” 18 July. It was generally agreed that this had been a successful event. The view was that rather more than those listed as attendees actually came to it and seemed to think it was well worthwhile. TP has made a start on analysing data which for the most part confirms much of what might have been expected. It was agreed that Task Group Leads would now start preparing topic papers for their groups making use of their evidence base to outline key issues and consider their objectives. The results of the Housing Needs Survey will be available shortly to help the Housing Task Group.

3. Demographic analysis: CN has created an excel template system for capturing this data with suggestions for using it. CN recommended quality control checks on NP data that is entered into the computer by hand, preferably conducted by someone that is not a stakeholder in the Totnes NP. TP (reporting via email) is intending to get students to map out where (geographically) those attending the event came from and also analyse the populationir profile of those attending against the latest census profile for Totnes. The students start on 17 August.

4, Starting to write the plan: CN offered to draw up a template for the task groups to use with some guidelines. The Frome NP may well be used as the basis. This would give some focus for the task groups but in terms of development sites the Totnes situation, with virtually no green field sites is very different from Frome and other NPs (e.g. Thame and Uppingham). With regard to allocation of different sections of the report CB suggested, and PB agreed, that both of them should together prepare a topic paper on existing national and local planning policies noting to what extent local policy objectives were being/have been achieved. With TW being away for much of the next few weeks a target date of mid-September was suggested for the production of topic papers.

5. Engagement: TP with CN is proposing to pull the pre-event material together with the data gathered at the event itself to start considering key objectives and themes to be fed back to the people of Totnes. PB said that in addition to the engagement being undertaken by TP in Bridgetown, Follaton and schools it was vital that the topic papers be distributed with notes/questions which CN is prepared to help with to all groups within the town including e.g. political parties, Rotary, leisure groups etc. The danger being that if we don’t do this and miss any group out, which subsequently protests, it could de-rail the draft plan at the examination stage. CB reminded us of our earlier intention to ask people in discrete parts of the town to say what particular problems they had relating solely to those parts. PB although supportive was worried about the resources needed. TW felt it ought to be possible citing a local book group that came out of the Transition Streets program who might become engaged in it. Mary Popham of TTT is the contact for Transition Streets. PR wondered if we could make use of what Atmos had done. It was agreed to raise this with Frances Northrop.

NB. A special task group leads meeting was fixed for next Monday 10 August at 10am The Guildhall (subject to be available).

Paul Bennett 4/8/15