Agenda item

1.     General feedback on the meeting of Thursday 29 February.

2.    Ratify the Terms of Reference.

3.    Ratify the frequency of meetings.

The general feeling in the room was that the Highways working group meeting had been very positive, and it was good to see so many senior highways officers present to deal with the issues raised.

There were some notable absentees, and it was hoped that they could be invited to future meetings to continue to and build on the developing good work.

The Chair thanked Karen Scott (clerk) Holford/Kilve PCs for her comprehensive and excellent set of minutes.

The Terms of Reference (TOR) had been circulated in the Agenda pack and required ratification. Some of the points raised included:-

• Parish Representation – Cllr Sue Goss was concerned about representatives being responsible for a geographical area which may be larger than their own specific parish. Did the working group only have 6 total parish reps because more had been present at the inaugural meeting?

Cllr Simon Stretton responded that he felt the numbers would ebb and flow depending on topical issues. It was good that the first meeting was well attended, but the numbers may decline as some highway issues are addressed. Equally if other parishes had items to bring forward, then this could bring more people to the table. It was important that the lines of communication remained open.

• Frequency of Meetings – the TOR stated that the meetings would be held quarterly but it looked as though the next meeting was scheduled for earlier than that date? What was the policy going to be on this?

A lot of action points had come out of the inaugural meeting, which would need to be followed up and reported back. It was felt that waiting until the middle of June was too long. (Also after the AGM which may mean a change in Chair and direction for the LCN). The next subgroup meeting had therefore been scheduled for the end of April to build on the initial momentum and ensure that the actions are captured and reported back in a timely way. Once the groundwork has been established the relationships are built, the meetings can fall back into a regular pattern of quarterly.

• Was there any update on the actions that had come out of the meeting?

Not at present, but this would be happening over the coming weeks and would be fed back. Approaches were being made to invite suggested attendees to future meetings. (Including HPC and Development Control). It was also important that the Highways subgroup did not duplicate work that was happening elsewhere, such as the Hinkley Transport Forum. The action points on the Somerset Council side were being progressed and the LCN action points would be signed off by the end of the evening.

The Dowsborough LCN agreed to adopt the TOR and the frequency of meetings. (Suggested as quarterly, but with the option to meet more frequently if there were pressing issues to discuss).

The first order of business for the next working group meeting would be to elect a Chair. (This did not necessarily have to be the chair or vice-chair of the LCN). The working group would be taking place on Thursday 25 April, hosted by Spaxton Parish Council at their village hall.