Parish
Council meeting
Monday October 15 2007
Belmont Community Centre
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BELMONT
RURAL PARISH COUNCIL
Parish
Council meeting |
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Present: Apologies:
Mrs. W. Butler In attendance;
Mrs. E. Kelso (Clerk) 129/07 Declarations of Interest As District Councillors, Councillor Phil Edwards and Councillor Glenda Powell declared a personal interest in all matters relating to planning applications and noted that comments expressed are preliminary views taking account of information currently available to BRPC whilst reserving final views for decision taking by District Council Planning Committee where all relevant and final facts can be available prior to making a decision. Councillor Powell also declared an interest in the application by Northolme Community Centre Association for a licence (Minute no. 133/07), as a member of the management committee of NCCA. Councillor Myatt declared an interest in an item reported under Minute No. 134/07 as a member of Belmont Community Centre Management Committee. 130/07 Minutes of the previous meeting The Minutes of the meeting held on 10th September had been previously circulated. It was agreed that the Chairman be authorised to sign the Minutes as a true record of proceedings at that meeting. (a) Litter bins It was reported that the land where the remaining litter bin is to be located has been adopted by Herefordshire Council, and permission for the bin has now been given so the project can now go ahead. (b) Bench in Coppin Rise It was noted that the donor of the bench has been working away and it has therefore not be possible to seek his views on any potential relocation of the bench, once a new site has been identified. (c) Clerks Pension Arrangements No further progress (d) Letter from Mr. & Mrs. Hubbard Although this item was discussed at some length at the last meeting at which Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard were in attendance, Mr. Hubbard has requested further response. The Clerk was instructed to advise Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard that the matters raised were discussed in detail at the previous meeting but Mr. and Mrs. Hubbard are welcome to attend future meetings to raise any further matters of concern. (e) Parish Talk Grant Application The Clerk reported that the application has had to be resubmitted as a typed application was not considered acceptable as it was not submitted on the appropriate form. 132/07 Report from West Mercia Police & Parish Watch Sgt. Chris Payne outlined some of the incidents since the last meeting, including: ·
Anti social behaviour in Wheatridge Rod He also reported that observation of alcohol purchases at local stores failed to identify any instances of alcohol being sold to underage drinkers or adults purchasing alcohol for consumption by underage drinkers. With Halloween approaching the police would approach local shops with the aim of reducing or restricting sales of eggs to youngsters to avoid the egg throwing problems of last year. Councillor Newman also asked that sales of “silly string” be similarly restricted as there have already been instances of the material being used to deface property. Reporting under Parish Watch, Councillor Edwards noted: ·
furniture had been left outside a house in Westholme Road leading to flytipping
in Wheatridge Road following a dispute between a landlord and tenants,
Finally, Fran White, in attendance at the meeting, reported that an outside security light and the roof of the Northolme Centre had been damaged recently. The Chairman adjourned the meeting for a period of public participation during which the following items were raised by members of the public present: (a) Country Park A question was raised regarding the current position with regard to the Country Park. The Chairman explained that BRPC is one of three Parish Councils being consulted on proposals relating to the Belmont-Haywood Country Park and in particular on the planning application recently submitted by developers for housing located off Mulberry Close which is linked to the acquisition of land for the Country Park. (b) Abbey View Park A member of the public expressed concern that if proposals to refurbish play areas and provide requested additional facilities adjacent to Northolme Community Centre went ahead, it would make the area more attractive to children and risk those children trespassing on adjacent private land which leads to the river bank, thus putting those children at risk. It was also suggested that children from outside the Parish might try to cross the river as a short cut home. Instances of children crossing the river at that point were reported. It was
noted that any instances of trespass and/or anti social behaviour should
be reported to the police. It was further noted that the application to
the Big Lottery Fund for a grant to provide facilities, which is being
opposed by a small group of residents, did include funding for new fencing
to prevent access to the private land/river bank. Other than routine items of correspondence or items raised elsewhere, the following items of correspondence were noted: 1. Letter from Herefordshire Council regarding a review of polling stations. No changes are proposed to the location or number of polling stations within Belmont Rural. 2. A reminder that there are places available on the next HALC training evening on Thursday 25th October at Brockington on the subject of the New Code of Conduct. Any Member interested in attending should notify the Clerk as soon as possible. Councillor Powell indicated she wished to attend and the Clerk was instructed to reserve a place on the course. 3. There will be an exhibition in High Town on Saturday 20th October from 10am – 3pm on the Local development Framework – Core Strategy, should members wish to visit. A questionnaire regarding the LDF is in circulation for comments and return to the Clerk. 4. Some months ago the Website ran a competition for a logo for the Parish Council but there was no response at the time. An approach from a graphics designer offering his services “for a small cash incentive” has now been received. Members agreed that the Clerk investigate the possible cost of this further. 5. Members
noted an application by the Northolme Community Centre Association for
a licence for the building. (a) Payments Authority was given to make the following payments: South
Wye Community Association Room Hire for Sept. meeting £26.25 Total payment to SWCA £1,526.25 E.
A. Kelso Inland
Revenue Cash (b) Receipts The second instalment of this years precept, £12,500, was received on 18th September. (c) Balances Current
account: £500.00 (a) Applications received since last meeting Ref:
DCCW2007/2934/F Ref:
DCCW2007/3002/F (b) Observations passed to Herefordshire Council since last meeting None since the last meeting (c) Permission granted/refused since the last meeting Ref:
DCCW/2007/2509 Councillor Edwards summarised the results of the Parish Plan Revisit on 4th August, as attached to these Minutes. After a brief discussion it was proposed by Councillor Newman and seconded by Councillor Cook that the results of the Parish Plan Revisit be adopted and that the findings be passed to Roderick Robinson so that they can be incorporated into the Parish Plan and published for the public. The resolution was agreed. 137/07 Belmont Community Centre Open Day The Chairman gave a brief report on the Belmont Centre Open Day when a number of members of the public had visited the Parish Council table. With hindsight it was felt that perhaps a better location might have been outside the Centre where the majority of attractions were located. Although members of the public had been encouraged to leave comments and observations for consideration by the Parish Council, only two comments had been left which would be circulated to Members for information. Formal licence to cultivate has now been received by the Clerk and the proposed planting discussed with Herefordshire Council officers. It was agreed that a specification would be put together to enable contractors to quote for the work. Two quotations would be requested: one with ongoing maintenance and one without. The working party. Consisting of Councillor Edwards, Councillor Cook and Councillor Loft were authorised at the last meeting to accept a quotation up to the agreed figure of £400 for the work. Emma Jones, from the Road Safety Unit in Herefordshire Council was in attendance at the meeting to answer Members questions about Speed Indicator Devices. Members heard that Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) are battery operated and require a permanent socket to be installed at each chosen location at a cost of £256.58 per socket. Up to 4 units are available for hire and each hire period is for 5 days. The location for each unit must be identified and agreed and a risk assessment carried out for each location selected. Multiple sites can be identified although it was not clear whether a unit can be moved after each 5 day period or whether multiple units can be installed at the same time in different locations. Whilst on hire, hirers (Parish Councils) must insure the unit against the risk of theft and/or damage. A charge of £100 is levied to deliver and install each unit,bringing the total cost per unit to £356.58. After a brief discussion it was unanimously agreed to proceed with a request for an SID to be located at three separate sites at a cost of approximately £356.58 per site per unit. 140/07 External Communications A copy of the current Communications policy had been previously circulated to Members. It was agreed that the current policy remains appropriate and no amendments are required. Members attention was drawn to the requirement that any/all requests for information from Parishioners must be passed to the Clerk to ensure that the appropriate regulations under the Freedom of Information Act and Data Protection legislation are met. Finally Members considered a proposed change to the style adopted for Parish Council correspondence to incorporate a green letterhead as produced to the meeting. It was agreed that the new letterhead and style be adopted. Members noted that although training for Clerks and Councillors is available from HALC, not all Members are able to attend. It was also noted that training which is specific to this Parish Council might be beneficial. It was agreed that training sessions take place as and when required, to: ·
Provide an opportunity for Members to receive guidance on specific matters
from those Members who have attended external training on behalf of BRPC
to feedback this information to other Members After a brief discussion on suitable dates/times and venues, the general consensus was that an early evening time was preferred by most Members. Finally the Clerk noted that any training session would be a closed session and not a substitute for a formal Parish Council meeting. Agenda items could not be discussed nor any decisions taken as these sessions would not qualify s “meetings” in accordance with the Local Government Act. A report on expenditure against budget for financial year 2007-8 to date had been previously circulated. Members noted that expenditure is generally in line with budget although invoices are still awaited for several items including the May 2007 election costs. There being no questions raised by Members, it was agreed that the budget report for the financial year to date be received. (a) Councillor Brown noted that many residents seemed unaware where Abbey View Park is and suggested that this might be a question worth asking if/when public consultation on the use of the area is drafted. (b) It was reported that the main sewer in sinking in Yarlington Mill. The Clerk was instructed to check the current position with Herefordshire Council as prior notification of this has been given. (c) Councillor Edwards gave a brief report of his activities as District Councillor, including: ·
Liaising with Herefordshire Council regarding problems with sewer adoption
in Abbotsmead Road (d) Members noted that public complaints regarding the bottle recycling facility at Tesco, referred to the Ombudsman, have been resolved in favour of Herefordshire Council. Re-siting the cardboard recycling facility next to the bottle bank has helped reduce noise disturbance considerably. During a final period of public participation a query was raised regarding forms of the electoral register. The next meeting will be held on Monday 3rd December at 7pm at Belmont Community Centre.
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