Midsomer Norton Town Council will be encouraging local community groups, who may be planning commemoration events or activities this summer to mark the centenary of the beginning of World War I, to apply for grant funding of up to £500.

B&NES Council is keen to promote activities of this nature in the community and is reportedly looking at, amongst other things, planting wildflowers, including poppies, around local town and village signs in tribute. It is also encouraging the local Town Councils to get involved this August. Both Midsomer Norton and Paulton are

looking at ways to honour then Lance-Sergeant Oliver Brooks, who was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery serving in Loos, France, in 1915 with the Third Battalion of the Coldstream Guards.

The deadline for applications to the Town Council will be Friday, 9th May. Each entry will then be discussed by the Finance Working Party before going to Full Council on Tuesday, 10th June. It is hoped funds would then be available to groups from Monday, 18th June. Further details on how to apply will be released by Midsomer Norton Town Council next week.

Councillors voted at Monday night's April meeting to source a pair of six foot gates within a budget of £900 to stop further anti-social behaviour, now that the toilet block next to the Town Hall has been removed. The space, which will be covered by CCTV, is proposed to be used as an extra storage facility.

The Town Council also agreed, in principle, to source quotes for a quarterly footfall research project, with the potential impact of the redevelopment of South Road car park in mind. B&NES

Council used to provide these figures to the Chamber of Commerce, which ended in 2011. It was agreed that having such statistics would help gauge how the town is performing economically, to develop and then implement a strategy in future. The survey would focus on quieter trading times – February and August, adding the busier period of December, to see how critical the Christmas shopping period is for local businesses.

It was also agreed to look into buying between 20–24 new market stall 'umbrellas', with a weight and three 'walls', as part of the Town Council's aspiration to hold a weekly market in The Hollies, which currently hosts the monthly Farmers' and Vintage Markets. The cost could be up to £12,400, but Councillors argued that it would be a good investment, with current stalls having lasted ten years. At the moment, these are hired and paid for to be assembled. The Town Council would own the new stalls, which would in turn be hired under the management of the Community Trust. It is hoped that these could then be used on a more regular basis with local storage available, bringing a regular bustling market back to the town.

The meeting closed with a report from Community Development Manager, Alex Davis, on the achievements of the Midsomer Norton Community Trust and how the £30,000 commissioning grant for 2013–14 had been used in developing monthly and weekly events and activities in the town.