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Minutes of Steering Group Meeting
Present: Adrian Coltman (Acting Chair), Adam & Carol Bull, Theresa Williams, David Lumb, Jeremy Kitto, David Miles, Mervyn & Joan Clayton, Linzy King, Mike McGrath, Jill Darlington.
Martin Calvert. 2. Minutes of the Meeting Held 1st June 2023 Agreed as a true record.
The Trustee meeting was held on 11th July 2023. Several items were discussed that have been put on the agenda to discuss with the Group. There was also a discussion on the proposed road closures in the area but it was decided that it should be left to individuals within the community rather than for FGVW to respond on the proposal as a Group.
6. Allerton Grange Way Grassland - Proposed Tree Planting A member of the community made the Group aware of a proposal to plant 2,709 trees on the grassland on Allerton Grange Way. A company called Common Place is collecting comments for the Leeds City Council Woodland Creation Team. The Group had not been consulted and had not been made aware of this plan. The FGVW Trustees discussed the proposal at length and felt very strongly that this area was not suitable to plant these trees. The grassland has been used for many years for our annual FunDay community event and many other community events. The area is next to an existing woodland. There is no tree management plan in place. There has been no consultation with local groups or residents. The Group also felt strongly about the proposals and protecting the grassland. Joan and Linzy have been very active in the community making people aware of the proposals so that they can comment on the Common Place website. Independently Joan and Linzy have also contacted the Council and the Local Councillors to ask why residents and groups have not been consulted and trying to find out more information. They have either received a poor response or no response at all. The Group is not against planting trees and understands the benefits of doing this but feels very strongly that this designated green space is not a suitable place. It is used extensively by residents for community events and leisure activities. The Group proposed:
Comments can be made on the Common Place website until 3rd September 2023. 7. Heritage Lottery Fund Project Update Phase 2 on Gledhow Lane/Beck is due to start on 4th September. A meeting has been arranged with the contractor on 14th August and requires a Trustee to be present. The Group need to publicise the work going on in the woods. Last time a banner was put up but this was quite expensive. It was decided that notices on trees would be more effective and we could use social media. A display will also be available to show local residents what is happening and why at the Chapel Allerton Festival. The contract was cheaper than expected so there may be some funding to allow the Group to put in more ponds and wetlands area. "Paul's Pond" could be extended but there are sewage pipes nearby to be aware of. Other ideas can be put forward. It was raised that the Council may need to install Health & Safety Notices for the ponds. The Group do not have anything left to sell. Cards are needed for the Chapel Allerton Festival so Adrian will speak to Steve. Adrian is also going to build some birdboxes with wood provided by Mervyn and roofing material from Jeremy. 9. Chapel Allerton Arts Festival, 2-3 September 2023 The Group will have a stall and are looking for volunteers to help on each day. A rota will be drawn up if necessary. Donations of books are also required for selling on the stall. 10. Heritage Open Day - Bath House, 10 September 2023 Gazebos will be put up and there will be refreshments and cakes available. Adam to send out a request for volunteers to help on the day and also for baking. Set up will be from 12 noon. 11. One Day Closure of Gledhow Valley Road The Group has applied for a Climate Emergency Grant that will allow the Group to fund the partial closing of Gledhow Valley Road to traffic to hold an event. On 3rd July members of the Group pitched their proposal to a "Dragons' Den" style panel and were successful in obtaining a grant for £5,000. David M and Jill met to start planning the event that has to take place before Summer next year. Dates proposed where 20th or 23rd June, 7th or 14th July. The Group preferred the July dates. The proposal is to close Gledhow Valley Road from Allerton Grange Way to the road after the Bath House and also close off the road running through Little Switzerland. This will need to be negotiated with the Council. The Group hope to combine multiple events with the road closure and also have giant games and activities, chalk mural painting on the road and music, to encourage children to play. The proposal is to get together a separate project management group who will organise the event and report back to the Steering Group. More funding may also be needed. The Group also raised the need to be sensitive as there are currently more permanent road closures being proposed and consulted on. 12. Gledhow Beck Water Quality Monitoring A successful meeting took place where 27 people signed up as volunteers to measure the water quality in the Beck. It was run by Leeds University and included a practical demonstration. The main focus is on testing the water quality but as there was a good number of volunteers there are other roles that can be included too. David M put a list together of the various roles and shared these with the Group. David is to send out a communication to keep the momentum going and to ask what roles the volunteers would like to perform. The core roles are water testing and testing for E. coli. Funding is available for testing kits each month for 12 months. There is £1,300 of funding available so the Group gave permission for David to order the kits and start the work in September.
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