Minutes of the Meeting of the
EAST GRINSTEAD COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP
held in the Meeting Room, Chequer Mead on 1st June 2004 at 7.30 pm

Present: Don Cooper Chairman
Lee Marmara: East Grinstead Town Council
Alan Lord: as alternate for Lorraine Dell-Louth Age Concern East Grinstead
Dale Bulbrook: East Grinstead Chamber of Commerce
Roger Martell: East Grinstead Chamber of Commerce
Beverley Heasman: East Grinstead Town Council

In attendance: Teresa Gittins Action in Rural Sussex

There were no members of the public or press present.

1. Apologies:
Apologies were received from:
Kathy White, Carol Kelly, Lorraine dell Louth, Alexandra Durrant, Ryan Swallows, Karen Pickesley, Virginia Waddingham, and Andrew Bass

2. Minutes of the last Meeting:

The minutes of the meeting of the 27th April 2004 were approved, and signed

3. Matters arising from the minutes

Don Cooper reported that he had spoken to James Baldwin, the Leader of the Town Council, about the Council’s representation on the Partnership and had received a letter of explanation.

4. Chairs Report

4.1 Don Cooper welcomed the members to the fourth meeting of the Partnership this year. There was a particular welcome for Beverley Heasman, the new member from the Town Council, and to Teresa Gittins, Action in Rural Sussex.

4.2 Since the previous meeting, he and Andrew Bass had visited Barry Knights, the co-ordinator of the Uckfield Regeneration Partnership. That Partnership had some 25 members and, it became evident, was active and influential in public affairs in the town. It had not always been so. It had taken some four or five years to reach its present strength. The chair was a local, well-known entrepreneur. The co-ordinator worked on Partnership affairs for 15 hours a week. The Town Clerk, whom Don and Andrew met, was an associate member. [Some papers about the Partnership are attached to these minutes.]

4.3 Don and Andrew intended to talk to the chair of the Billingshurst Community Partnership. [That visit has been arranged for 01 July.]

4.4 The pair had also visited Teresa Gittins to talk about the ways in which she and her colleagues in Action in Rural Sussex could aid the development of the East Grinstead Partnership. There were workshops that could be arranged.

5. Review of the Partnership and its work

5.1 Now that the Partnership had been in existence for just six months, according to the chair, it was a good time to take stock, as a preparation for the Partnership’s continuing development. During the following discussion, the members spoke about the composition of the Partnership. There was a general sense, supported by the report of the Uckfield Regeneration Partnership, that there should be an increase in the membership, that the Partnership should have a wider representation and a wider range of skills. The members noted that three of the original members, a quarter of the core membership, had been unable to attend since the inaugural meeting. Teresa Gittins was drawing on her experience when she spoke about the long-term nature of a Partnership’s development. She too thought that the core membership, the base, was not broad enough.

5.2 She spoke too about the workshops that Action in Rural Sussex could run for the Partnership as a way of developing the members’ knowledge and understanding of Partnership work and of the opportunities that were available to Partnerships.

5.3 It was evident that the discussion should be regarded as just the first one, as an introduction to the review. It was agreed that the discussion should continue at the next meeting [on 13 July]. The chair undertook to contact the members who had been unable to attend. He also undertook to produce a paper for the meeting.

6. Reports from the Working Groups

6.1 Local Environment & Transport (Co-ordinator – Edward Belsey)
The group had met since the previous meeting, Roger Martell reported. Amongst other matters, the group had discussed the merits and possibilities of a link from the Worth Way (Imberhorne Lane) to the town. [The notes of the group’s recent meeting are attached to these minutes.]

6.2 Social & Community (Co-ordinator - Carol Kelly)
In the absence of Carol Kelly (who had had to give her apologies earlier in the afternoon), Alan Lord, a member of the group, spoke about the group’s interest in the construction of a new building close to the present CVS.

6.3 Local Economy (Co-ordinator - Dale Bulbrook)
In his report, Dale Bulbrook spoke about ‘the revitalisation of the town’. From that, everything else followed. He spoke about the level of shop-rents in the town. The subject of rents and the report as a whole prompted a keen debate about rents, about parking, and about economic activity, particularly retailing, in the town. The exchange gave Teresa Gittins the opportunity to explain that ‘the revitalisation of the town centre’ in the Action Plan referred to the built environment.

7. Date of Next Partnership Committee Meeting

The next meeting will be held on Tuesday, 13 July in Chequer Mead at 7.30p.m.

The meeting concluded at 9.30 pm.

Secretary’s note:
Working Groups’ Meeting Schedule –
Local Environment & Transport
Social & Community
Local Economy

Additional papers
Uckfield Regeneration Papers
Notes of the Local Environment and Transport Group meeting,