Fed up with the flytipping on Gypsy Lane?  I am working with another local councillor, Peter Knibbs, to arrange a public meeting for local residents to ask questions, raise concerns and hear from Mendip District Council, the Police and other authorities, about how we can work together to tackle the horrendous flytipping on Gypsy Lane and nearby. The meeting has now been booked at Frome Rugby Club on the evening of Monday 28th April. I will circulate further details over the next few weeks.

Leisure in Frome: Well it was good to see and hear from local people at Mendip District Council’s meeting in Frome. At least it was a start, I hope, and not the end. As I said at the meeting, I want Mendip to consult the public (and taxpayers) before the major decision on the future of the district’s Leisure Centres is made, to inform that decision, and to allow the community to know as much as possible about it. The response from Mendip’s Leader was not positive, but I will continue to argue for it until we get the right answer.

Mendip’s Cabinet has of course not yet decided whether to procure a new management contract or dispose of the facilities on a long-term lease to a private company, but will need to before the autumn. GVA have just been appointed by Mendip to do the marketing (‘soft market testing’) for the latter option, and no one knows what will come back, although I agree it is obvious the Cabinet want to be able to reduce/remove the Council’s subsidy for the Leisure Centres (largely swimming) across the district if they can. There are risks in disposing of the leisure centres in a long-term lease which I have asked be assessed fully. I will keep an eye on it and I hope others do too.

Also a big theme of the night was the need to improve the coordination of sports and leisure activities and facilities in Frome, which is wider than the leisure centre, and to better share facilities between clubs and between sports. Mendip abolished the Sports Development Officer’s role years ago, before my time, but Sport England have identified it as a gap that needs filling. Frome Town Council had a Sports Working Party which looked into this a couple of years ago. Cllr Siggs and Gavin Ball (College Principal) agreed to follow up a number of issues. As I said at the meeting, I am asking for our councils to work together with sports clubs to improve sports and leisure in Frome, such as through a Frome Sports Forum and a coordinator, but it needs people to make it happen. Will anyone step forward to start this up? I have asked the powers that be in Mendip what they can do.

Please see here for previous news on this, and here for the Frome Standard article. I will try and ensure that the meeting was the start of something good, and is not the only meeting Mendip are ever going to organise on this issue. If you were there, or not, what did you think? Please let me know.

Community Workshop: Please see below details of the community workshop at Frome Town Football Club, organised by Frome Town Council under the ‘Participate Frome’ banner, and details of how to get in. See here also.

“Frome Community Projects meeting

26 March 7pm – 9pm, Frome Football Club.

There is a football match being played this evening, so when you arrive do not enter through the turnstyles unless you intend to pay to watch the game! For the meeting venue, enter through the car part entrance and follow the road round to the car park outside the venue.

The aim of this meeting is

• To enable groups to work together better
• To ensure groups know what local funding is available to them and how to access it
• To report back on initiatives that have started as a result of Participate Frome and decide what’s next”

Agenda