Agenda item

a)      Infrastructure & Highways

b)      Supporting Economic Development

c)      Improving Our Environment

d)      Wellbeing

Mr Pearce updated the Community Board on the Infrastructure and Highways action

group, that had met twice since the last meeting. In July, the group had reviewed

funding applications to be funded in this financial year. The applications that were

discussed and the following recommendation by the action group can be viewed in

the reports circulated within the agenda.

For the September meeting, the action group reviewed applications submitted for

the coming financial year through 2022-2023. They also discussed the active travel

strategy, which the action group had agreed to raise with parish councils and

neighbouring community boards.

Cllr George Sandy presented the update for the Supporting Economic Development

Action Group. The group met in September and discussed ways to encourage the

local economy to grow. The area of focus was Burnham high street and the group

identified the parking as a barrier to shoppers. It was suggested that there was a

need for free parking for a short period of time to enable people to shop locally.

Other suggestions included an increase of available cycle racks, an expansion of local

markets, more specialised markets, loyalty cards for local residents, and more CCTV

cameras to prevent anti-social behaviour. The action group also received a

presentation from the managing director of Buckinghamshire Business First, to

consider potential solutions for the business community within the Beeches area.

Members were informed that the action group broadly supported the Net 0 Project,

to improve accessibility for businesses. The group was planning to liaise with the

Burnham Business Association to submit funding applications for relevant projects.

Cllr Dev Dhillon presented an update for the Improving Our Environment action

group. The group met in September and had a number of actions to take forward

including:

·         Investigate appropriate sites for the Jubilee Tree Plantations

·         How to reduce plastic waste

·         Consult all 5 parish councils to install water fountains, similar to the fountain in Black Park

·         Liaise with other Community Boards to gauge interest in solar panels and the possibility of getting a discount from the provider

·         Find land for community gardens

·         To look into a footpath between Taplow train station and the Burnham Parish to encourage walking

The Community Board was informed that the next action group meeting would be

on the 10th November 2021. Cllr Dhillon called for all Members, organisations and

charities to get involved in community projects.

Mr Pearce updated the Members on the Wellbeing Action Group. The group had

met twice since the last Beeches Community Board meeting and had been working

on a few ongoing projects. These include:

·         Outreach work with the Family Support Team to send staff to areas in the Beeches, particularly Burnham, to engage with young people and identify need for a possible youth outreach project.

·         Project for dementia awareness. A virtual dementia tour was to be delivered in Farnham Common with 4 sessions running throughout the day.

·         Intergenerational projects in schools. The group was planning to contact other schools to get involved to bring older and younger people together.

·         Reduce social isolation and combine it with getting more people active. It was discussed how to reactivate Movers and Shakers, as the former provider was unable to. The group planned to work with colleagues within the Community Engagement Team on how this can be provided.