Crediton Heart Project (00:00:05)
To receive a presentation from the Crediton Heart Project trustees.
Minutes:
Trustees from the Crediton Heart Project had been invited to attend the meeting to provide more information about the work of the Crediton Heart Project. This included a presentation with the following key messages:
· Concerns regarding the number of community buildings that had been closed, whether or not Crediton would become a dormitory town and most jobs being in Exeter.
· Activities within the town such as the Crediton Festival, Mumcycles, the Flag Project and the Boniface Heritage Trail.
· The desire for Crediton to be an economic success, a place with cultural talent and a developing community that fulfilled the vision both of the Crediton town plan and Mid Devon District Council.
· The project aimed to create Crediton as a place of destination, acting as the ‘social glue’ connecting people, encouraging new projects, support businesses and sourcing funding.
· They had a plan for a community website promoting venues, groups, events activities and businesses. However, the project needed flexible spaces for performance, cinema, leisure and learning rooms for meetings, activities, services and small businesses.
· Progress so far included a skilled, active Trustee group, a community consultation resulting in over 600 responses, a professional feasibility study and a commissioned website.
· Next steps included seeking funding for the website to go live later this year, engaging partners for the project, finding a site, commissioning an architect and also seeking funding for a building which would act as the ‘hub’.
Discussion followed with regard to how MDDC could engage with the project:
· Old Heathcoat School was available as a possible venue and an invitation was extended to the project group to liaise with a tourism group from Tiverton planning to visit similar sized towns in the Netherlands.
· Crediton had many different clubs but needed a central hub.
· Developers had obligations with regard to S106 and might be interested in engaging with the project. This need not necessarily be in relation to a specific housing site but could be located elsewhere. There could also be opportunities in relation to the Greater Exeter Strategic Partnership (GESP).
· The Project team were were encouraged to contact the Economic Development team and local district councillors as sources of expertise in terms of connecting people.
· MDDC had recently launched the ‘Visit Mid Devon’ website and this could act as a valuable resource for promoting events in the Crediton area. The Economic Development team would be able to provide clarity on how it could link up with other stakeholders and interested parties.
· Investigations could be undertaken to ascertain the extent of certain underused sites (notwithstanding land ownership issues).
· Changes to Business Rates recently announced in the Budget could help new businesses and costs associated with venues. The Project team were encouraged to contact the Group Manager for Revenues and Benefits for further advice.