Town Team Meeting: 14-04-2021

1. Chair’s Welcome
a. Self-introduction by Team members

i. Spurgeon’sCollegehasjoinedtheTownTeam
ii. Libby is Chair of the Fiends of South Norwood Library

b. Brief description of the Market’s history and progress.

2. TheTownTeam- what we are and howthingsshouldwork: Members being more active

a. Restructuring of Working Groups

1. A summary of the origins and background of WLSE25 and its funding was given. The Town Team is not currently at maximum capacity.
2. Descriptionofthe4WorkingGroups(WG)andtheirstructurewas given. The project has evolved since the WGs were established and they now need to be project-led instead of driving the projects (ground-up rather than top-down). There is money available from WLSE25, separate from Good Growth Fund (GGF) money. The Town Team members approach the Community for project proposals once the process and conditions for the micro-grants has been agreed.

3. WLSE25 Funds
a. There is a total of £18,000 available which can be spent on Community

projects. The brief and grants process will be finalised soon.

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1. Projects will be referred to Officers, via info@wlse25, who will bring them before the Town Team for approval. These projects need not be constrained by the GGF boundaries.
2. The process and conditions will be posted on the website when the Officers have confirmed with a deadline for applications, but initial proposals are:
   1. A total of £5,000 in small grants will be made available in the first round;
   2. The project must be visible to the Community e.g. power- washing sections of the pavements;
   3. The grants are open to anyone with a viable project;
   4. In the interests of accountability, the relevant WG will have a watching brief over the progress of each project
3. Thebiddingprocessshouldbeaccessible,withouttheneedtofill in complicated forms.
4. Libby volunteered to put together information on social media when the scheme is up on the website.

4. Update on Regeneration Project and Current Negotiations a. Socco Cheta Update (by proxy)

i. Contractorshavebeenappointed.Therewasagapbetweenthe contract and funds available so Socco Cheta are looking at value- engineering the project. The work should be finished by October and the building open by December 2021.

b. Community Capacity Building. (Michelle)
i. Patsy/Shuba will circulate this electronically, due to time constraints. c. Placemaking

i. UnderpassProjectUpdate(Shuba)

1. The Highway Department will clean the tiles in May, depending on the funds available. The Risk Assessment will be in place so Will & Rob will work with community members to create the art work. It will be graffiti-proofed.
2. Henry has contact with the creator of the original photographs. It was proposed to preserve a copy of the artwork in another location as the originals are in too poor a state to save.
3. The underpass needs to be cleaned and the drains cleared regularly. The Highways Department is responsible but the subway is under ‘minor maintenance’ and is dependent on Council finances.

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D. A plaque could be put up when the work is completed, to indicate it is a WLSE25 project and raise WLSE25’s profile.

ii. Place of Station Road within the GGF revised plan. Are the shops in Station Road still to be painted? Patsy/ Shuba will circulate an update via email

5. Engaging with different parts of the community post lockdown

a. Housing issues.
i. This does not fall within the remit of WLSE25.

b. Update on groups who could run The Albert Tavern as a Community Pub. Patsy will put out a call for interest from the community and an update to be circulated by email.

6. Supporting the library campaign
a. Actions that will have most impact. (Libby)

1. 4 options were put forward by the Council: Closure; Reduced Hours; Community Run; Outsourced to Social Enterprise. The proposal put forward by the Friends of SN Library was included in the Community Run option. The options are to be discussed in May.
2. The Friends will stop lobbying for the Community Run option as a hybrid model would be more viable.
3. What Social Enterprise actually means needs to be defined.
4. An open Q&A meeting is to be held, with all election candidates invited to take part.
5. ARead-inhasbeenorganizedtotakeplaceoutsidetheoldLibrary on Saturday 17th April from 11.30 – 12.30.
6. The Friends are campaigning for a library in South Norwood at whatever location. The old Library would not be big enough for other activities to take place on site. Locating the library in the new building would be supported by the Friends, if it could be opened

7. AOB
a. Spurgeon’s College

i. A description of the College’s part in the community was given.

1. It is a Higher Education College providing courses in Theology and Counselling up to Doctorate level.
2. The aim is to expand the number of courses.
3. It is pursuing a project to become the first home-grown University in Croydon and to increase its profile in the area. It is interested in making a greater investment in South Norwood.
4. The College has space, including the lawn, that they would like the community to make use of. The site is not used

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much at weekends or evenings. There would be no barrier to people or organizations from other faiths using the space.

b. Secretarial support
i. Pooja Takiar from Spurgeon’s College was volunteered by Helen

Stokely to take over Shuba’s part of the secretarial duties.

APPROVED
c. Communityannouncements

i. Stanley Arts will be running the History Treasure Hunt over the May Bank Holiday weekend.

ii. A community baker is looking for information about empty shop premises with a view to moving in. Michelle is aware.

Date of Next Meeting – 6th July 2021