The Calne Area Board meeting scheduled for Tuesday 16 June 2026 was set to cover a range of community matters, including the allocation of grant funding for local projects, updates from key partners, and discussions on highway improvements. The meeting also included a review of the local action plan and appointments to various outside bodies.

Area Board Funding Applications

The board was scheduled to consider several applications for funding across different grant streams. Under the Community Area Grant, applications included £5,000 for replacement fencing at Calne Town Football Club, £2,680.20 for the replacement of three defibrillators by Derry Hill and Studley Heartbeat, £5,000 for a new boiler at the Calne Heritage Centre, £500 for a new water boiler and frost heater at the Calne District Girl Guide Hall, £5,000 for car park resurfacing at Goatacre Village Hall, and £890 for sustainable water use at Bowood Sports Ground for Derry Hill Utd Football Club.

For the Older and Vulnerable Grants, applications included £880 for Beyond Dementia's Calne Dementia Friendly Primary Schools project and £1,340 for Calne Wordfest's Santa's Summer Job storytelling project. The remaining budgets available were £23,603 for Community Area Grants, £7,500 for Older & Vulnerable grants, and £19,042 for Young People's grants.

Key Partners Update

The meeting was scheduled to receive verbal updates from representatives of key partners, including Sergeant Jamie Ball from Wiltshire Police, Diane Gooch, Calne's Older Person's Champion and involved with the Calne Connection Festival, and representatives from Town and Parish Councils. Written updates were also to be noted from the Neighbourhood Police Team, Wiltshire Police's Violence Against Women and Girls initiative, the Wiltshire and Swindon Road Safety Partnership, the Calne Local Youth Network, Community First, Wessex Community Action, Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service. Updates were also expected from Bremhill Parish Council, Calne Town Council, Derry Hill and Studley Parish Council, and Hilmarton Parish Council.

Carers Together

A presentation titled Carers Together was scheduled, focusing on supporting unpaid carers in Wiltshire. This presentation was to be delivered by Kirsten Kerr, Operations Manager at Age UK, and Diane Gooch, Calne's Older Person and Carer Champion.

Local Highway and Footway Improvement Group (LHFIG)

The board was to consider recommendations from the latest LHFIG meeting held on 24 April. The report indicated recommendations to add issues to the Priority Schemes List, including the A4 Calstone Speed Limit Assessment (£2,225) and A342 Derry Hill Devizes Road Village Gates (£2,800). It was also recommended to add Compton Bassett's request for a socket and post for SID Deployment to the Priority Schemes List without funding, and to close issues concerning Compton Bassett Village Gates & Signs and Calne Anchor Road's Unsuitable for HGVs signs.

Action Plan Update

A discussion was scheduled to agree priorities for the Local Area Action Plan. Existing priority areas and their lead members were listed as: Community and Highway Safety (Cllr Ashley O'Neill), Air Quality and Biodiversity (Cllr Mike Sankey), High Street Regeneration (Cllr Augusta Urquhart-Nicholls), Supporting Positive Mental Health and Wellbeing in Young People (Cllr Sam Pearce-Kearney), and Addressing Health Access and Inequalities (Cllr Ian Thorn).

Appointments

The meeting was to include appointments to the Area Board's outside bodies, which included the Calne Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group, Calne Marden House, Calne Local Youth Network, Calne Health and Social Care Forum, Calne Voices and Dementia Group, Calne Parish Forum, and the Hills Liaison Group.

Community Discussion

An open forum was scheduled for community discussion, allowing for topics of interest to the local community to be raised for future focus by the Area Board.

Chairman's Update and Information Items

This section was to include updates on the Wiltshire Council Consultation Portal, Wiltshire Police crime figures for Calne Town and Calne Rural, and various Wiltshire Council information items such as governor recruitment, the Connect to Work programme, the Wiltshire Faith Communities Network, and the Wiltshire Community Lottery.

Community Spotlight

This item was intended as an opportunity to highlight something positive within the community or provide feedback from a previous grant award.

Other Business

The agenda also included the election of a Chairman and Vice-Chairman for the forthcoming year, apologies for absence, and the approval of minutes from previous meetings.