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The decisions as the council's minutes record them. A plain-language summary follows once it has been written.
AGREED – i) That a Report on Business Improvement District now be considered at the May meeting. ii) That a Site meeting to visit the Economy Section at Redwither Tower to take place on 1 March 2023 and replace the scheduled meeting. iii) That the committee consider a future report on the economic benefits of free car parking in the city centre.
AGREED:- i) That the Committee recommend to the Executive Board that the Business Investment Team application for funding via the Shared Prosperity Fund, to deliver a discretionary match funded grant scheme , be supported. ii) That the Committee receive a further report on the areas for the areas requiring development/exploration, as identified at paragraph 4.59, together with a related action plan. iii) That an update on outreach work undertaken by the team be submitted as an information report on a quarterly basis.
AGREED– That the Town Centre Footfall report be noted and updated accordingly.
Apologies for absence were submitted on behalf of Councillor Paul Rogers and Councillor William Baldwin. Councillor Andy Williams was absent.
That the Minutes of the Meeting held on Tuesday 10th January 2023 be signed as a correct record.
Members were reminded of their responsibility, under Paragraph 11 of the Members’ Code of Conduct, to declare any interests in relation to any of the business to be transacted at this meeting. The following declarations were made: Agenda Item 5 – Support provision to pre-start and existing businesses, as well as businesses looking to relocate to the County Borough. Councillor Gary Brown – Personal and not Prejudicial – the Councillor works with social enterprises. Councillor Andy Gallanders- Personal and not Prejudicial – The Councillor: · Runs a business in the Wrexham City Centre · Was a client of the coinciding service being discussed. · Partnered in the town square who operated the Wrexham business hub during April 2021 to 2022. · The Councillor and his business was supported by Covid grants. Councillor Stella Matthews – personal not prejudicial – The Councillor has a community interest. The Councillors remained in the meeting taking part in the discussion and voting thereon.
Decision as recorded
AGREED – i) That a Report on Business Improvement District now be considered at the May meeting. ii) That a Site meeting to visit the Economy Section at Redwither Tower to take place on 1 March 2023 and replace the scheduled meeting. iii) That the committee consider a future report on the economic benefits of free car parking in the city centre.
The Chief Officer for Governance and Customer submitted a report (COGC/12/23s) asking Members to consider the revised Work Programme. The Scrutiny Facilitator presented the report and highlighted the following: · There has been a delay in work on the feasibility study into the provision of a Business Improvement District. · A site visit at Redwither Tower was proposed for March 2023 which would give Members the opportunity to meet the Economic Development Team and view their work. · Customers, Performance, Resources and Governance Scrutiny Committee had recommended that analysis be undertaken to quantify the economic benefits of providing free car parking in the city centre. A detailed discussion ensured and the following points were raised: · The Business Improvement District was changed to May 2023 because there had been a delay in obtaining sufficient information from the consultation. · A Member enquired about the Ty Pawb future delivery model. AGREED – i) That a Report on Business Improvement District now be considered at the May meeting. ii) That a Site meeting to visit the Economy Section at Redwither Tower to take place on 1 March 2023 and replace the scheduled meeting. iii) That the committee consider a future report on the economic benefits of free car parking in the city centre.
Decision as recorded
AGREED:- i) That the Committee recommend to the Executive Board that the Business Investment Team application for funding via the Shared Prosperity Fund, to deliver a discretionary match funded grant scheme , be supported. ii) That the Committee receive a further report on the areas for the areas requiring development/exploration, as identified at paragraph 4.59, together with a related action plan. iii) That an update on outreach work undertaken by the team be submitted as an information report on a quarterly basis.
(Members declarations of interest to this item are set out in Minute 38 above). The Chief Officer for Economy and Planning submitted a report (COEP/16/23) asking Members to review and consider how the Council provided support to pre-start and existing businesses (including social enterprises), as well as businesses looking to relocate to the County Borough. The Lead Member for Economy and Regeneration presented the report and highlighted the main points within it. The Business investment Manager gave a presentation to Members that focused on the Business Support Service which included information regarding their mission, Who they were, How they operated, What was their output, Communication Strategy, Future projects, and Opportunities. Three representatives from the following gave details on how the business support team had supported them and their businesses. : · Cheryl Reeves, Director of Agri-cation community interest company; · Claire Wright Business Owner at to^st (toast) café and deli at Charles street Wrexham; and · Nerys Price-Jones, Director at Platts Agrigulture Ltd. The Lead Member for Economy and Regeneration and the Chair thanked them for their attendance and input into the discussion. Members asked a number of questions which were responded to accordingly, and the following points were highlighted during the detailed debate:- · The business support mailing list will be updated via the relevant media channels to enable potential stakeholders to subscribe. · Business enquiries were received via various channels and triaged to identify what support they required. · Officers had different skill sets and weekly meetings took place where the team discussed business cases to establish what they could offer. · Comprehensive business support updates were circulated on a weekly basis, via email, to over 5000 subscribers. · The launch of the new Net Zero Carbon Forum was sector specific. · Business Support officers will be carrying out door to door visits to businesses in the city centre. · A Member enquired if the Business Support team were fully resourced. · The make - up and funding of the Business Support team was outlined. · Improvements to support Social enterprises was ongoing. · Wrexham Councils existing commercial stock had high occupancy rates. · There was a demand for smaller business units and this could be met by encouraging private operators to sub-divide larger premises. · The Advanced Management Resource Centre (AMRC) were in partnership with Sheffield University and were willing to offer their support and ideas. · The Lead Member aimed to visit businesses each month to help promote the Business investment Support service. · The conversion rates for the last four newsletter updates was 32% - 40%. · The delivery of business support to grass roots football clubs was a pilot project that has Welsh Football association involvement. Its aim was to develop clubs into social enterprises. If successful this model could be transferrable and used in other areas. AGREED:- i) That the Committee recommend to the Executive Board that the Business Investment Team application for funding via the Shared Prosperity Fund, to deliver a discretionary match funded grant scheme , be supported. ii) That the Committee receive a further report on the areas for the areas requiring development/exploration, as identified at paragraph 4.59, together with a related action plan. iii) That an update on outreach work undertaken by the team be submitted as an information report on a quarterly basis.
Decision as recorded
AGREED– That the Town Centre Footfall report be noted and updated accordingly.
Members asked a number of questions which were responded to accordingly, and the following points were highlighted during the detailed discussion: · Officers informed Members that they were reliant on their external provider for the footfall data and that was the reason why they had not yet received the footfall figures for December 2022. · The data that will be received from the smart town project will be more up to date because the data source would be internally provided. · The internal and external footfall data will have to be recalibrated because the counters from the new smart town project will be based in different locations around Wrexham County Borough. · Officers will be keeping the existing footfall data so that comparisons from previous years can be undertaken. AGREED– That the Town Centre Footfall report be noted and updated accordingly.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
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