Chair Cllr Angela Gabriel started the meeting by welcoming new Middleton Park councillor Paul Truswell for his first meeting. Cllr Truswell takes over from Geoff Driver, who retired at the local elections earlier this month.
The committee approved the following grants for:
- Youth sessions at Beeston Village Community Centre, Cottingley Community Centre, Holbeck Youth Club, Watsonia, Old Cockburn, New Bewerley Community School, Hunslet Carr Youth Club and ASHA.
- Programmes to engage young people at risk of or involved in engaging in crime, anti-social behaviour, under-age sex and drugs. The money, for City and Hunslet and Beeston and Holbeck wards, will engage them in positive activities.
- Middleton and Belle Isle Christmas lights and trees
- Middleton Gala
- Cottingley Neighbourhood Improvement Plans around key themes including health, environment, children & young people and community safety.
The meeting also expressed some disappointment over the way parts of Channel Four’s Secret Millionaire programme portrayed the area when it aired on Monday. Concern over the term ‘stab city’ was mentioned. An article on the new The City Online blog which defended the area was praised.
Concern was expressed by local resident Ian Pickup over horses grazing in different parts of Holbeck.
The meeting also saw Leeds council’s chief executive Tom Riordan attend. He asked for an update on how devolving street cleaning powers down to local area committees had been received. Councillors said that it was generally working well in inner south. Riordan suggested further services could be devolved in future to provide more local control over resources.
The next inner south area committee meeting is on June 20 at Belle Isle Family Centre at 6.30pm.
