The Fells and Solway Community Panel meeting on 9 December 2024 was scheduled to include reports on a number of issues relating to the panel area, including a report on how the Community Panel's funds were being invested in local community groups, and an update on the work the council is doing in the panel area.

Investing in our Neighbourhoods Report

The Fells and Solway Community Panel had a budget of £65,259 to invest in local community projects in the financial year 2024/25. £60,727 of this budget was recurrent funding provided by Cumberland Council, and £4,532 was underspend carried forward from the previous financial year.

The report sets out the current position of this budget, and provides details of 8 grant applications to the fund.

The Panel also had access to £38,439 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF)¹.

The report explains that the funds can be used to support projects that meet one or more of the panel's priorities, which are:

• Community infrastructure
• Community safety and rural crime
• Highways, transport and environment

The panel were also scheduled to discuss these priorities, and to consider whether they still reflect the needs of the community.

It also explains that the Panel had agreed that investments of less than £1,500 can be agreed outside of Panel meetings by the Chair, local Councillor for the area, and the Senior Manager for Community Services. One such investment was scheduled to be noted at this meeting:

• Richmond Hill School (CCGA/2192-24) in Aspatria were awarded £370 for road safety pavement signage.

The following grant applications, which all exceed £1,500, were scheduled to be considered by the Panel:

• The Windmill Trust (CCGA/2207-24) - a charity that supports children at risk of long-term mental health issues, were applying for £2,610 for therapist training. It was recommended that the Panel award them £2,100, with £1,500 coming from the Panel's budget for Wigton and £500 from their budget for Aspatria.
• Beaumont Parish Hall (CCGA/2208-24) - were applying for £5,000 towards their hall rebuilding project. It was recommended that the Panel award them the full amount, with £2,500 coming from the Panel's budget for Dalston and Burgh.
• Anthorn Community Association (CCGA2209-24) - were applying for £5,000 towards the refurbishment of their play area. It was recommended that they be awarded £1,000 from the Panel's budget for Solway Coast.
• The Happy Mums Foundation CIC (CCGA/2210-24) - a social enterprise that runs peer-support groups for mothers managing their mental health, were applying for £4,712 to continue their community engagement and inclusion project in Wigton. It was recommended that they be awarded £350 to fund leaflets and posters from the Panel's budget for Wigton.
• Cummersdale School (CCGA/2212-24) - were applying for £1,856 towards the cost of resurfacing the car park that they share with their village. It was recommended that they be awarded the full amount from the Panel's budget for Dalston and Burgh.
• Holme Low Parish Council (CCGA/2213-24) - were applying for £3,000 for the final stage of their project to renovate a building at Causewayhead Cemetery. It was recommended that they be awarded £1,000 from the Panel's budget for Solway Coast.
• Aspatria Town Council (CCGA/2214-24) - were applying for £3,000 towards the cost of installing an outdoor gym at St Mungo's Park. It was recommended that they be awarded £1,500 from the Panel's budget for Aspatria.

The report also included an update on the Borderlands² capital project, the Winter Holiday Activities and Food (HAF)³ programme, and the progress made on the Neighbourhood Investment Plan since the last meeting.

The HAF programme is funded by the Department for Education, and this winter was scheduled to run from Friday 20 December 2024 to Tuesday 7 January 2025. The following organisations were scheduled to deliver the programme in the Fells and Solway panel area:

• Aspatria Dreamscheme were scheduled to receive £2,870 to deliver 120 face-to-face spaces and 60 remote spaces.
• North Lakes Foodbank were scheduled to receive £2,578 to deliver 125 remote spaces in Wigton.
• Wigton Youth Station were scheduled to receive £900 to deliver 30 face-to-face spaces.

Since the previous meeting, the Community Development Officer had been supporting the Wigton Area Emergency Response Group (WAERG) in finalising their emergency plan and registering with Resilience Direct⁴.

The Cumberland Design Team were also working on producing a map of community facilities and assets for the Fells and Solway panel area, and the panel's town team were continuing to meet regularly to discuss the Wigton Borderlands project.

A network event themed around the panel's priority of Highways, Transport and the Environment was also held in Kirkbampton on 14 November 2024.

Community Panel Update

The Community Panel Update was scheduled to provide the panel with an update on the work Cumberland Council has been doing in the panel area.

This included a section on the 'Make Your Mark 2024' campaign, in which young people were asked to vote for which issues they felt were the most important. The results showed that in the North West, the three most popular issues were:

1. Health and Wellbeing
2. Jobs, economy and benefits
3. Crime and Safety

The report pack for the meeting included the full report for the 'Make Your Mark 2024' campaign.

The Panel were also asked to consider whether they want to adopt a Public Participation Scheme for their meetings.

A Public Participation Scheme sets out the framework for allowing members of the public to contribute to meetings.

The panel decided at their meeting on 26 September not to adopt the scheme, and this item was scheduled to allow them to confirm that decision.

The panel were also scheduled to be asked to note the work of the partnership groups that the Community Development Team leads on. These partnerships are:

• Thriving Communities - This group brings together council officers with community leaders, voluntary groups and other statutory bodies to improve the resilience of local communities.
• West Cumbria Food and Finance Group - This is a partnership group that looks at ways to improve financial and food security for families in West Cumbria. It includes a Rural Task and Finish Group, that looks at ways to overcome the challenges faced by residents in rural communities.
• West Cumbria Children and Young People’s Partnership - this group brings together organisations that work with children and young people to improve local services for them.

The report includes the minutes of the last two meetings of the Panel.

It also asks the Panel to agree to extend the appointments of the Panel's three co-opted members⁵ until March 2026. The three co-opted members were originally appointed in June 2024 for a 9-month pilot period.

Highways and Transport Strategic Board Update

The minutes of the meeting of the Highways and Transport Strategic Board held on 24 October 2024 were included in the report pack, and the panel were scheduled to receive an overview of them.

The minutes show that the Board discussed a petition submitted by a member of the public regarding the volume of HGV traffic and speeding vehicles on the A6071 through Brampton. The petitioner also raised concerns about the condition of the road surface.

The Board were advised that resurfacing works were planned for a section of the road during the week commencing 20 October 2024, and that the resurfacing of the whole of the A6071 through Brampton was provisionally scheduled to be completed in the 2026/27 financial year.

The petitioner asked that the Board consider introducing a weight restriction through the town, preventing HGVs from using the A6071 as a shortcut. The Board were advised that

It is difficult to restrict the number of large vehicles travelling through Brampton as most are likely to be accessing a location within the town and the A6071 was part of a designated timber transport route

The petitioner also asked for a permanent speed sign to be installed that shows motorists their actual speed, and a 20mph speed limit to be introduced through the town. The Board agreed to investigate the speeding issues raised by the petitioner by carrying out a traffic survey.

Another member of the public had submitted a question regarding a request for a pedestrian crossing on Kingstown Road at the junction with Windsor Way in Carlisle. The Board were advised that funding had been identified for the scheme and it was recommended that it be progressed, subject to the outcome of further consultation.

The Board also considered a number of other reports relating to the highways network, including the Council's Capital Programme, bus services, road lighting, road safety, bridge maintenance, and verge maintenance.