GREATWORTH PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES
of a meeting held in the Methodist Church Room
on Monday 4 January 2016 at 8.00pm
PRESENT: Cllrs Peart, Gibbs, Masser, Stageman, Bingham
IN ATTENDANCE: S Loake (Clerk)
Mr N Ward was present for item 4
1 Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs Ward, Tinkler and Cross
2 Declarations of interest - there were none.
3 Open Forum – there were no members of the public present.
4 HS2: The Chairman moved this item from item 7 (a) on the agenda for the benefit of Mr Ward, who gave a short presentation of his work as the Parish Councils agent. Mr Ward has attended meetings on behalf of the Parish Council to try to obtain a coherent approach to the alignment of footbaths and bridleways – in many cases, it is not possible to move from one footpath to another, and there is a possibility of this deteriorating during the construction of HS2. He reported that no other area affected by HS2 has taken this approach. H4e feels that he has finally managed to get all relevant parties “singing from the same song-sheet”, but the final outcome will be dependant on the agreement of HS2 with the landowners whose property is crossed by the rights of way. Mr Ward is to ask Andrea Leadsome MP to write to the Clerk of the Select Committee. The Chairman thanked Mr Ward for is efforts on behalf of the village, and the meeting agreed that Mr Ward should continue with his efforts on behalf of the Council and of the village.
5 Minutes: It was proposed by Cllr Bingham, 2nd Cllr Masser and agreed that the minutes of the meeting held on 2 November 2015 were an accurate record of the meeting, and they were signed by the Chairman.
6 Matters arising not covered elsewhere in this agenda
- a) Parcel of land adjacent to playing field: The Clerk reported that the granting of a right of way was not considered acceptable by the Housing Association. The Clerk is top discuss with the solicitor the inclusion of a covenant to prevent any future expansion of the proposed development.
- b) Potholes in Brackley Road – the Clerk reported that these had been reported on Street Doctor, and urged Councillors to report them as well.
- c) Upgrade to website: This is in progress, and will be compliant with the Transparency Legislation by the end of the financial year.
- d) Overhanging hedge in Dump Road: Cllr Ward had obtained a satisfactory outcome.
7 Report from Halse – neither of the Councillors representing the Halse ward were present
8 Reports from working parties
- a) HS2 – there was nothing further to add following Mr Ward’s presentation. The Clerk had delivered a new batch of paperwork to the Church room so that it is available for public inspection.
- b) Planning- four applications had been received
1) Land adjacent to Floyd’s Farm – reduction from 4 bedroom dwelling to 3 bedroom. No objection
2) Cockley Hall Farm – no objection
3_ Halse Copse Farm Cottages – no objection
4) Radstone Fields, 115 new dwellings. This was for information only.
- c) Playgrounds The Clerk has received a quotation of £1500 plus VAT for the repairs to the skate ramp. It was proposed by Cllr Bingham, 2nd Cllr Stageman, and agreed that the repairs be carried out as soon as possible. Cllr Bingham confirm that he had arranged with Mr Griffiths for the erection of the new signage.
8 Financial matters
- a) The clerk presented a finance report for the period to 31 December, which included a correction to the error disclosed to the previous meeting. A copy of the report is attached to the file copy of these minutes.
- b) Payments listed by the clerk were approved.
- c) There have been no receipts during the period.
- d) The Clerk presented a draft budget for the 2016/17 year, and agreed to refine this in advance of the next meeting.
9 Correspondence: The Clerk presented a list of correspondence, a copy of which is attached to the file copy of these minutes.
10 Councillor questions
- a) In response to a question from Cllr Bingham, it was agreed to hold the Annual Parish Meeting on Monday 18 April. The Clerk will make arrangements for this to be at the village school.
b)Cllr Bingham suggested that there should be a debate as to how play/sports equipment for the older children and teenagers could be improved.
- c) Cllr Bingham asked if the Parish Council would make a donation to the charity for which he is cycling from Lands End to John o Groats. The Clerk will consult the electoral register and calculate the amount of gift funding which is permissible.
- d) It was noted that the dog waste bin on the dump road is often full, and it appears that at least one resident is using it as a receptacle for dog waste cleared form their own garden.
e)Cllr Stageman raised the question of un-operative drains on Brackley Road, and was advised to report this on street doctor
- f) Following a question from Cllr Stageman, it was agreed that, because of the bank holiday, the meeting for May would be held on Tuesday 2 May
There being no further business, the Chairman closed the meeting art 9.19pm
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