Todwick Parish Council Minutes
JRW/419
TODWICK PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting held in Todwick Village Hall
at 7.00 p.m. on Tuesday 26th July 2016
Present
- Councillor Ferris
- Gregory – In the Chair
- Councillor Hill
- Councillor Newbold
- Councillor White
- J R Walker – Clerk & Financial Officer
- Sandra Sykes
- Ray Sykes
- Helen Greer-Waring
16/42 APOLOGIES
Councillors Carter, and Jeffrey had sent an apology for non-attendance.
16/43 APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF 28TH JUNE 2016
There were no amendments and the minutes were signed as a correct record.
16/44 MATTERS ARISING
White had met with Bob Wright from RMBC. He was under the impression that boulders would be placed to deter any unauthorized access to the land off the A57/at the top of Goosecarr Lane. He would contact Borough Councillor Beck and enquire when the action might be taken.
White had heard nothing from Borough Councillor Beck following the survey of village streets and requests for maintenance works.
Clerk would enquire.
Gregory advised that works had been carried out on The Meadows, St. Paul’s Close and Staniforth Crescent but these were minor works only.
16/45 DECLARATION OF MEMBER’S INTERESTS
Hill had a business association with Hobson Nurseries.
16/46 URGENT ITEMS FOR LATER CONSIDERATION
Community Spirit
Informer Newsletter
Speed-watch
Funding Projects
16/47 CLERK’S REPORT
Clerk had submitted all relevant documents to the External Auditor by the due date.
16/48 FINANCIAL OFFICER’S REPORT
£ |
|
Monies received |
|
|---|---|
1. British Gas – Feed-in Tariff at Village Hall |
701.03 |
2. Russell Davies – Donation from stall receipts at Fun-day |
20.00 |
Payments made since last meeting |
|
1. Aviva – Clerk’s Pension |
15.97 |
2. Mark Archer – Additional Village Maintenance Works |
170.00 |
3. J R Walker/PC World – Printer and Inks |
235.99 |
4. RMBC – June Grounds Maintenance |
1558.69 |
5. Yorkshire Water – Allotment Bill |
5.82 |
Un-presented cheques |
|
1. Go Karts Party – Deposit for Go Karts |
100.00 |
2. RMBC – TENS Licence |
20.00 |
3. Brian White – Councillor Expenses |
9.00 |
Payments to be made |
|
1. HMRC – July Tax/NI |
336.52 |
2. J R Walker – July Salary/Expenses |
562.95 |
3. Mark Archer – Village Maintenance |
142.83 |
4. Brian White – Reimbursement for Gutter Brackets Purchase |
10.37 |
5. Oliver Hitchens – First Prize: Best Front Garden |
50.00 |
6. David Trigg – Second Prize: Best Front Garden |
30.00 |
7. Howard Day – Third Prize: Best Front Garden |
20.00 |
Bank statement balances prior to the meeting |
|
|---|---|
Business Saver Account (Cheque Feeder) |
Community Account (Cheque) |
£22,003.15 |
£1.00 |
16/49 CORRESPONDENCE
Written correspondence received.
The Kings Own Light Infantry – Appeal for Donations
Correspondence had been received via E-mail and forwarded by the Clerk to Members on their receipt. The Clerk had replied where appropriate.
Various Councillors – Meeting Minutes
Voluntary Action Rotherham – Various Email Bulletins
Rural Action Yorkshire – Various Email Bulletins
RMBC – Various Weekly Planning Lists
RMBC – Area Assembly Meeting
YLCA – Various White Rose Updates
YLCA – Workplace Pensions Training
YLCA – Policing of Remembrance Day
YLCA – Being a Good Employer Guide
Councillor White and Borough Councillor Beck – Old A57
YLCA – Training Courses
Councillor White – Local Development Plan
Don Buxton – SY Police and Crime Commissioner
YLCA – Vacancy for Chief Officer Derbyshire Association of Local Councils
YLCA – National Village, Parish and Community Hall Network
Various Councillors – Speed Awareness Campaign
SYPTE – Bus Service Changes
RMBC and Councillor Gregory – Rother Valley South Devolved Budget 2106/17
Councillors Ferris and Gregory – Mark Archer Works
YLCA – Plunkett Foundation: Community Rights Event
Sheila Pantry, Councillors Carter, Ferris, Gregory and White – Bonfire
RMBC – Consultation for Gulliver’s Project
RMBC – Pilot for Encourage Cleaner Neighbourhoods Campaign
Councillor White – Village Hall Feed-in-tariff Reading
YLCA – Allotment Training
YLCA – Accounts and Finance Training
Councillor Ferris – Allotment Seminar
YLCA – Procedures, Powers and Policies Seminar
Councillor Ferris – Bonfire Site
YLCA – Introduction to Employment Law Training Course
YLCA – My Community Roundup
YLCA – Local Council Software
YLCA – Request for Information: Installation of Defibrillator
SYPTE – School Bus Route Changes
YLCA – Production of Parish Maps
Councillor Ferris – Mark Archer’s Report
YLCA – Web Site Providers: Request for Information
Sheila Pantry – Cheques for Best Front Garden
RMBC – Pilot Enforcement Project
RMBC – Fawkes Period
RMBC – Housing Strategy
16/50 PLANNING APPLICATIONS
RB2016/0863
Alterations and single storey extensions at 20 Manor Way for Mrs. Brassington.
Resolved to object:
- There is a history of flooding on the site which would be exacerbated if the development is permitted and adversely affect surrounding properties.
- The parking allocated is wholly inadequate for a property of the size being proposed. This would result in additional on-street parking on a tight bend in the road, with consequent threats to the safety of all road users.
RB2016/0866
Listed building consent to demolish portion of stone boundary wall at 44 Kiveton Lane for Mrs. Dawtry.
Resolved to offer no objection.
Gregory reported that he would be presenting the Parish Council’s objections to the Local Development Plan to the Inspector despite errors by the Borough Council initially excluding the Parish Council from doing so.
16/51 COMMITTEES
Recreation
Gregory reported:
He and his wife Etta had removed weeds from the sandpit.
Councillors Ferris and Jeffrey had cleared the area at the north-west corner of the recreation ground. Subsequently, Councillor Carter and her father had felled a small pine tree and this now required cutting up and disposing of.
A young children’s party would be held at the sports pavilion the following week and he hoped this might encourage others to realise that the room and facilities there were an excellent venue for such parties.
He planned to re-paint the climbing frame at the Mary Gregory Play Area during the summer.
The play camp had successfully taken place the previous week with an average of 18 children attending/day. The feedback so far received was good but the Council would consider whether to continue to support these in the future when the report on the week had been received from RMBC.
Councillor Ferris had PAT tested all the electrical equipment in the sports pavilion for which he was very grateful.
Peter Beevers had asked the Church yard clearance group to gather on 30th July and 6th August.
Allotments
Ferris reported:
The Pest Control Officer had visited on the 21st July and all was well. He would next visit during the first week of September. Three plots remained unlet but he hoped to allocate these to new plot holders soon.
Following Councillor Hill’s suggestion and in recognition of the difficult clay ground it was resolved to extend the existing car park by incorporating the area of the nearest plot (No. 1).
Gregory would help Ferris to strim the uncultivated plots prior to re-letting.
Grey Matters
Ferris reported:
All was going well.
Some 10 or 11 people had attended the previous Friday.
Another social event was to be arranged.
White would arrange another visit/concert by the school children any time this was requested.
16/52 STRATEGIC PLAN
White reported on his visit to Woodsetts with Gregory and discussions with Monica Carrol regarding that parish council’s experience in constructing a multi-use games area near their recreation ground. He had been given details of the contractor who had constructed that at Woodsetts and the funding which they had received via WREN.
He had measured the Woodsetts site and would now prepare a plan showing how a similar development might be created on the Todwick recreation ground.
16/53 MEMBER’S ACTIVITY REPORTS
Gregory reported that the village picnic held on 1st July had been enjoyed by the approximately 30 people who attended. The event would be held again the following year but not the day following the garden fete.
Gregory reported on the meeting he had with Andrew Roddis from RMBC. They had walked the village and he had shown examples of the lack of street cleansing carried out. It had previously been agreed that RMBC would sweep all roads once/year. This had been done in July 2014 but nothing then until March 2016. Andrew had been embarrassed by this disclosure and was to discuss what might now be done with his manager, Shirley Hallam. Gregory had discussed the lack of treatment in Todwick with borough Councillor Wysall at the Fun-day.
Gregory had attended the area assembly meeting on the previous Monday. Money had been allocated to fund appropriate projects and the parish council needed to submit its suggestions quickly. Other issues raised including community safety, quad bikes being driven recklessly on public roads and complaints about the police 101 and 999 services. A community justice panel was being established which aimed to train and use lay volunteers to speak to young offenders in particular in an attempt to reduce crime.
The meeting was suspended at 7.55.
OPEN SESSION
Gregory explained the criteria for addressing the Council and receiving a response.
Ray Sykes asked whether any progress had been made to solve the problem of indiscriminate and illegal parking by vehicles on Mortains near the junction with Kiveton Lane.
Gregory was to ask the police to intervene once the school holidays were over.
Ray Sykes asked whether the Council had a view on the land to be lost in the parish if HS2 went ahead as planned. He circulated a plan of the route.]
Helen Greer-Waring advised that so far as the Local Development Plan was concerned RMBC had to adhere to the core strategy by law. The Plan incorrectly stated that there would be no employment land created but this was incorrect. Describing the land in question as being in Dinnington ignored the fact that the land was in fact within Todwick parish. Objectors would be getting together to discuss the various points on which objections had been made.
Helen Greer-Waring complained that a buddleia bush at the junction of Millhills and Kiveton Lane was obscuring visibility and having a detrimental effect on road safety.
Gregory would look at this.
Open Session closed and the meeting was reconvened at 8.02 p.m.
16/53 MEMBER’S ACTIVITY REPORTS cont.
White had participated in an “It’s a knockout” competition on the 2 July to raise funds for the Bluebell Wood Hospice and he thanked all those who had sponsored him in this event. Over £30,000 had been raised in total.
White had replaced the broken gutter brackets at the sports pavilion.
White had taken and submitted the Feed-in Tariff reading for the village hall. A cheque for £701.03 had now been received.
Newbold handed a £20 note to the clerk given to him by Russell Davies as a donation towards the fun-day taken out of his profits on the day.
Ferris reported that the windows in the main hall of the village hall were to be replaced with double-glazed UPVC. They would be “bottom opening” and much easier to open/close and lock than at present.
16/54 VILLAGE MAINTENANCE
Mark Archer had submitted a report:
He had undertaken the usual litter picks:
- Goosecarr Lane – four rounds
- Kiveton Lane – four rounds
- The Pastures – four rounds
- Recreation Ground – four rounds
- Church View – four rounds
He was also keeping the war memorial clean and regularly raking away the dead leaves etc. from the turf and surrounding paving.
Ferris had received compliments on the way the flower bed at the memorial and the memorial itself were now being maintained.
16/55 TRAFFIC AND TRANSPORTATION MATTERS
Gregory had previously met with Andrew Lee and Stuart Savage from RMBC plus Mr. Sykes, Mr. Wragg, Mr. Barrowclough and Mr. and Mrs. Parker. The promised response to the 20 mph speed limit request and parking restrictions at Mortains had not been received.
Clerk would seek an early response from RMBC.
16/56 NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH
Gregory had attended the AGM and shared the police crime statistics.
16/57 COUNCIL VACANCIES
There had been two expressions of interest in joining the council but no applications had been received.
Members would continue to seek applications from those interested in giving their time for the benefit of the village/parishioners.
16/58 FUN DAY
Gregory informed that £204 is to be donated to the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. Councillor Carter would give a full report at the September meeting.
16/59 BONFIRE
White advised that:
The fireworks display had been booked.
Councillor Carter had organized for the pallets to be used for the bonfire.
He now had virtually all the documentation required by RMBC and, once the TENS license had been received, would send these off with the events application.
He and Carter would next be looking at potential caterers for the event.
Councillors Ferris and Jeffrey had helped in clearing the area at the north-west corner of the recreation ground and Councillor Carter’s father had pulled out a small conifer.
Clerk would ask a friend if he would be prepared to remove the conifer timber.
Hill advised that great care be taken when excavating in this area and certainly to plough because of the existence of much concrete and other debris. Also there was a disused septic tank buried.
Hill reminded Members that the blackthorn hedge adjacent to the children’s play area at the recreation ground was now some 3 to 4 metres wide and needed thinning out and some re-planting undertaken.
Gregory asked whether there was any proposal for a Guy Fawkes competition.
White had discussed this and the village school headmistress had said that the children would almost certainly want to participate in making some Guys.
16/60 URGENT ITEMS
Community Spirit
Gregory had been in discussion with a parishioner who had said that there was no community spirit in the village.
Members agreed that such things as the lack of a public house within the hub of the village and the closing of the post office did not help.
White commented that he believed that the Parish Council did all it could. This had included holding the fun-day, assisting with the village picnic, the Church fête, clearance of the Church yard and now the bonfire and fireworks display. The council had also been responsible for massive improvements at the village hall and the building of a new sports pavilion. The War Memorial also enabled communal gatherings. It was regrettable that more parishioners didn’t involve themselves more in generating community spirit.
Informer Newsletter
Gregory would prepare this but would need help with the delivery.
Speed-watch
Gregory advised that the police would be checking the speed of traffic passing through the village and volunteers were being sought to assist. He asked members to advise him of dates and times when they might be available.
Funding Projects
Following Member’s suggestions Gregory would submit suggestions to the Area Assembly:
- Installation of CCTV at the sports pavilion
- Replacement of the climbing frame at the Mary Gregory Children’s Play Area
- Funding to purchase gazebos for use at the fun-day
- Picnic benches for siting at the Mary Gregory children’s play area and at the recreation ground.
The Meeting Closed at 9.00 p.m.
No Council Meeting would be held in August and the next meeting would be in Todwick Village Hall at 7.00 p.m. on Tuesday 27th September 2016.