Notes from the Parish Council February Meeting
John Covill chaired the meeting with 7 Parish Councillors in attendance + 2 members of the public present. The following items were discussed:
Public Participation: General comments.
Reports:
- CCC -Cllr David Brown reported to the meeting.
- ECDC -Cllr Allen Alderson reported to the meeting.
For information: At this point the meeting was made aware of the possibility of a future application to build some affordable housing and market value housing on the Lower End field between Rogers Road and Fairview Grove.
Correspondence for Circulation/Consideration:
CCC - Village Maintenance Budget. Details of possible reduction in grant payment to the Parish for cutting verges on behalf of CCC. Also details of reduced cutting of highway verges noting that there would be visibility grass cutting only.
CCC - Cambridgeshire Library Service Review. Summary of ways to meet savings needed -consultation ongoing.
Matters Arising from Previous Minutes:
Allotments: The Clerk confirmed the number of allotments as 5 and that they were all in full use with 2 people on the waiting list. Following discussion it was suggested that perhaps the piece of parish land opposite (other side of main road) could be offered for allotment use. The Clerk was asked to contact those on the waiting list to see if they would be interested.
Repair Works to the Pound Wall: Listed Building Consent was received. ECDC confirmed to the Clerk that approval under Building Regulations was not required.
Kim Sheldrick had provided a revised quotation for the work as required by ECDC. It was agreed to accept this quotation and ask Kim to proceed with the work as soon as possible as the wall was deteriorating very quickly due to the recent bad weather. Following the meeting, the Clerk spoke with Kim and he confirmed that weather permitting the work would start week commencing 14/2/11.
Purchase of New Noticeboard: Following discussion it was agreed to confirm cost of renovating the current noticeboard before considering further the purchase of a new one.
Clerk's Report: Review of East Cambs Core Strategy: Katie Child, Principal Forward Planning Officer for ECDC, will be attending the March Parish Council meeting to talk about this review which is to take place in 2011.
Training: The Clerk is to attend training sessions for "The Power of Wellbeing" and "Management of Allotments" .
Street lighting: Faulty street lights on Cage Hill &Tothill Road have now been repaired.
Parking on verges: Letters were sent asking residents not to park on grass verges at Fairview Grove & Lower End. These were followed up by phone calls with residents agreeing not to park on verges wherever possible.
BT inspection chamber cover: Mark Lewinski had kindly repositioned the cover. The meeting thanked Mark for his help.
Repairs to Village Hall front gate & fencing: The Chairman of the Village Hall Management Committee confirmed that repair works were to be carried out during February.
Parish Councillor Reports:
Green Head Road Garages: The meeting was made aware of residents'concerns about the use of this area.
Accounts for Payment: These were agreed.
Open Question Time:
Mr Limb told meeting that he had been made aware of additional damage to the rear wall of the Pound. Kim Sheldrick was to be asked to inspect this whilst carrying out the work to the front wall.
... ..and from December & January
John Covill chaired the December meeting & Andrew Camps chaired the January meeting. Both meetings with 7 Parish Councillors in attendance + 4 members of the public present.
Public Participation:
Problems with drains on Green Head Road: The meeting was informed that the matter was still with the Health & Safety Executive and Anglian Water for investigation. It was noted that other residents of Green Head Road were also aware of the chemical odours and had concerns about the collection of waste from the premises. The question was raised at the December meeting as to whether such a business should be allowed to operate in a domestic property and whether there had been a breach of the original planning permission. This was followed up with a letter to Alan Dover, ECDC's Principal Development Control Officer asking for his advice on the possibility of a breach of the original planning permission for the premises. His reply was reported to the January meeting. This concluded that from the planning perspective there did not appear to have been a breach of the conditions of the planning permission.
Affordable Housing -Housing Needs Survey for Swaffham Prior: Catherine Shilton, Rural Housing Enabler for Cambridgeshire ACRE and Oliver Cook of ECDC attended the January meeting and gave a presentation on the benefits of carrying out an independent survey of the housing needs in Swaffham Prior. Following discussion it was agreed by the members that such a survey should be carried out for the Parish. Anyone wishing to see the presentation details please contact the Clerk.
Reports
- CCC -Cllr David Brown reported to the meeting.
- ECDC -Cllr Allen Alderson reported to the meeting.
Correspondence for Circulation/Consideration:
CCC - Filling of the Salt Bins: The Parish Council had been advised by CCC that there was not enough salt available to refill the salt bins due to the increased demand during the recent bad weather but that different solutions were to be investigated.
ECDC - "The Future of Neighbourhood Panels in East Cambridgeshire" . This was a request for a financial contribution to help safeguard the future of the NHP's. There were concerns raised about justifying such a payment and the value of the NHP's to the Parish and as such it was agreed not to contribute.
Matters Arising from Previous Minutes:
Geoffrey Woollard confirmed that he had cleared the rubbish bags from Pound and was thanked for his help.
Peter Hart referred to the concerns raised about damage caused by cars to the grassed area at the top of Fairview Grove. A letter was sent to nearby residents asking for their assistance by not using the grassed area for parking.
Planning Matters:
- Planning Application for 32 Cage Hill -extension and alterations of existing dwelling and new boundary fence. Ref: 10/00913/FUL: This application was considered at the December meeting. There were no objections or comments. A copy of the Planning Permission was received and reported at the January meeting. Planning/Conservation Area Consent - 69 High Street. This was reported at January meeting.
Repair Works to the Pound Wall: Following the submission of an application for Listed Building Consent, ECDC's Conservation Officer, Lorraine King, expressed concerns about some of the details namely, following the reduction in height of the wall there was no indication of the proposed new height on the application and the indication of "infill with concrete blocks" noting this as not an appropriate material for use in a listed structure.
Following further advice from the Structural Engineers and Kim Sheldrick Building Services, amended details were to be submitted which would hopefully answer the Conservation Officer's concerns and enable the application to be approved.
Consideration of Tenders received for Grass Cutting Services: Four contractors were invited to tender and 3 replies were received. Following consideration, it was agreed to award the 3-year contract to K H Services starting from 1/3/11.
Final Approval of Budget/Precept for 2011/12: This was agreed as £14,500. No increase on previous year.
Clerk's Report
Dog bin, Fairview Grove: This has been repositioned as requested. Faulty Street Lights: There have been several lights not working and these have been reported to CCC for repair.
Handrail at The Beeches: This has been erected.
Parish Councillor Reports:
Peter Hart said that the parking of cars was causing damage to the grass verge on the left hand side of Lower End as leaving the village towards Reach. A letter was to be sent to residents.
Peter Hart reported that the footpath from the Village Hall Car Park to Station Road was reopened.
Accounts for Payment: These were agreed.
Open Question Time:
It was reported that the BT concrete inspection chamber cover in Heath Road was displaced and needed attention.
If anyone would like further information on any of the above items, please do not hesitate to contact the Clerk.
The next Parish Council meeting will be on Thursday, 10th March 2011, starting at 7.30pm in the Village Hall.
All are welcome to attend.