Corporate Select Committee

Last night saw a meeting of the corporate select committee, a bit of a ‘dry’ meeting in a way, with reports on Gershon Savings and Treasury Management amongst others.

However 2 items were worth more than just a brief mention, one was the report back of the sub committee looking into Community Grants, the other was the item on the Pavilion Gardens.

The report back on Community Grants was looking at how we distribute grants, more so than who the Council gives the grants too, and after there deliberations they recommended to us, to look at 3 year or ‘fixed’ funding arrangements for a set of organisation.

These ‘organisations’ being ones that in a sense provide services for the Council, such as GALA, CAB, Samaritans, Meals on Wheels etc, hopefully meaning that the ‘funding process’ should be clearer for these groups.

Some changes are also proposed for what’s left of the community fund, basically the ‘small grants pot’ that will have a clearer application process with applicants getting more information, and the grants now been decided in 2 rounds each year by the area forums.

The next steps for this is public consultation, which will take place at a meeting hosted by the High Peak CVS on Tuesday 28th November.

The item on the Pavilions Garden’s and the food hall plans was a bit of a damp squib really. The reason been that the majority of members present took the view that as this issue will now be decided at an extra ordinary full council meeting on the 23rd November there was little point discussing it prior to that meeting.

The whole issue around the food hall plans has courted a lot of controversy in the Buxton area of the Borough, including a planned public demonstration at the end of November. But has not really had much of a mention in Glossopdale, now whether this will change in the run up to next weeks meeting, I don’t know, but I would be interested to hear anyone’s views on the issue.