MINUTES OF KINGTON
HELD IN THE COMMITTEE ROOM OF THE VILLAGE
HALL ON
MONDAY 1 SEPTEMEBER 2008
PRESENT: Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson
(Chairman), Cllr. Mrs. Betty Bird, Cllr. Mrs. Val Giles, Cllr.
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE: Cllr. J Foster (Sick).
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131.08 |
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Cllr. Peter Hart and the Clerk, Mrs. Sue Hart
declared a Personal Interest in the planning application at New Build, |
ACTION
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132.08 |
RESIDENTS’ FORUM Mr. David Sealy said
that rubbish has been fly-tipped in Mr. Ramon Weston said
that the Days Lane damaged signs have been replaced but the Byway 34 sign has
not been put back up because it is apparently the responsibility of a
different department. The Clerk was asked to follow this up with Wiltshire
County Council Rights of Way Department. |
Clerk Clerk |
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133.08 |
MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON
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134.08 |
MATTERS ARISING FROM MINUTES
The Chairman asked for
the actions from the previous meeting to be reviewed as follows:
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District Cllr. S
Meadows Cllr. C Timbrell |
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135.08 |
PLANNING
(a) Planning Issues: 08/01437/FUL Glenhaven, Plough Lane: Demolition of existing
dwelling and erection of 2 detached dwellings, access, parking, turning and
garaging. This application, having received 5 letters of objection, will
be on the agenda for the Development Control Committee on 3 Sept 2008. The Clerk said that she has raised with NWDC an
issue with the NWDC Planning Applications web page where the count of the
number of people objecting to any application does not include the Parish
Council it if has objected within its status as a consultee. She was informed
that this is a problem with the system which may be difficult to resolve. 08/01652/TCA New Build, Cllr. Peter Hart contested the fact that felling
the tree was an inevitable conclusion. He had circulated to councillors an
e-mail link to a Cornell University Report stating that trees with canker can
be treated and need not be felled. He also pointed out that canker can be
caused by mechanical damage. Following debate about the Parish Council’s
response to the Planning Department’s conclusion, the Chairman, Cllr. Dr.
Maurice Dixson, PROPOSED that the
Parish Council should accept the Planning Officer’s conclusion that he is
unable to put a Tree Preservation Order on the tree. Cllrs. Don Styles,
Dennis Gill, Chris Timbrell, Graham Trickey and Dr. Maurice Dixson supported
this proposal. Cllr. Peter Hart PROPOSED that NWDC should be asked to investigate treating the
tree and should place a Tree Preservation Order on it until an independent
tree surgeon had assessed the problem. Cllrs. Mrs. Betty Bird, Mrs. Val Giles
and Peter Hart supported this proposal. The Chairman’s proposal was therefore carried. (b)
Planning Applications decided by North
Wiltshire District Council:
(c)
Planning Application Recommendations
decided under powers delegated to the Parish Clerk:
(d) Planning
Applications for consideration:
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136.08 |
CHAIRMAN’S BUSINESS Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson said all points would be
covered by agenda items. |
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137.08 |
CLERK’S REPORT The Clerk said that all her activities were
covered under Matters Arising or by items on the agenda. She pointed out that
in the time available she was not always able to cover all the actions placed
upon her from the Minutes within the current month. |
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138.08 |
COMMONS EROSION PROJECT Cllr.
Peter Hart said that the work was now finished and that the final result was
looking good. The project had been completed on time despite the weather. He
said that the contractor chosen had been very hands-on and done a very good
job. The Parish Council has now received the Area 3 Grant payment from North
Wiltshire District Council so the contractors can now be paid. A
Vote of Thanks was proposed by
Cllr. Timbrell, seconded by Cllr. Dennis Gill, for all the work that Cllr.
Hart had done on the project. |
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139.08 |
DAYS LANE 30 MPH SPEED LIMIT – EXTENSION DOWN TOWARDS BYWAY 34 Following a villager’s suggestion that the Days
Lane 30 mph speed limit be extended from its current point near the Newlands
Green junction down to just past the Byway 34 entrance, councillors discussed
whether this was a proposal that should be investigated further. Cllr. Hart said that it had taken some years to
implement a 40 mph speed limit by the Greathouse and input had included a
village consultation plus proof of previous accidents. The over-riding
argument in favour of the Days Lane change was the safety issue caused by the
fact that many walkers walk down Days Lane to and from Byway 34, as do horse-riders
and parents with pushchairs. On
a proposal from Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson, seconded by Cllr. Mrs. Betty Bird, IT
WAS RESOLVED that extending the
30 mph speed limit be investigated further. Cllr.
Dr. Maurice Dixson supported by Cllr. Chris Timbrell agreed to take
responsibility for this project. |
Cllr. Dr. M Dixson / Cllr. C
Timbrell |
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140.08 |
WILTSHIRE UNITARY AUTHORITY- DELEGATION TO TOWN & PARISH COUNCILS Cllr.
Mrs. Val Giles was thanked for the comprehensive report on Road Maintenance
Matters that she had prepared, assisted by Dr. Peter Giles, and circulated to
councillors before the meeting.
Councillors
then reviewed the Consultation document issued by Richard Munro on 25 June
2008 and considered the areas he had suggested might be appropriate for
delegation to the Parish. The Clerk was asked to produce a summary list for
submission to Mr. Munro, to which 6 additional functions were also added. |
Clerk |
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141.08 |
SPRING BULBS (Cllr. Val Giles) Cllr. Mrs. Val Giles had prepared and circulated
to councillors before the meeting a suggested approach to the spring bulb
planting programme. Cllr. Giles proposed that the Parish Council
should: (a)
authorise
expenditure of up to £100 for the purchase of bulbs, (b)
agree that planting
should concentrate on Lower Common in front of Great House and the areas
close to The Plough crossroads, (c)
agree that bulbs
should be allocated to volunteers on a ‘one for one’ basis where one bag
would be planted in the location chosen by the Parish Council and the other
on a public area location of their own choice (as long as it was not within
their own property). On
a proposal from Cllr. Dennis Gill, seconded by Cllr. Don Styles, IT WAS
RESOLVED that Cllr. Giles be
given a budget of £100 for bulb planting and that her approach should be implemented. An
article should also be placed in the Village Magazine informing villagers of
the planting programme. Cllr. Giles also asked for more volunteers. |
Clerk / Cllr. Mrs. V Giles Cllr. Mrs. V Giles |
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142.08 |
FINANCE
(a)
Cheques issued,
payments received and transfers made since 11 August 2008 meeting:
Payments Received:
Transfers Made:
Direct Debits Paid:
The invoices for the above cheques had been
inspected and approved by the signatories. On a proposal from Cllr. Chris
Timbrell, seconded by Cllr. (b)
Bank
accounts: The clerk reported that the last manual reconciliation had
been successfully carried out on 1
September 2008 but that end-of-month statements had not been received in
time for the meeting. Bank Accounts as at 31 August 2008 will be submitted to the October
Parish Council Meeting. (c)
Precept – 6
month review: The Clerk handed out
the 6-month status of the precept for councillors to review. It was noted
that the parish finances were tracking well within budget as a result of cost
savings on the Commons Cuts project and contractor pricing for the Commons
Erosion Project. The Village Hall part of the Public Works Loan Board
footpath loan had also been paid off early and the Parish Council would
therefore be submitting an additional one-time payment to the PWLB within
this financial year. (d)
6-monthly
Internal Audit: This was carried out by
Councillor Val Giles, resulting in four queries which had been resolved by
the Clerk. These were: ·
Whether the Insurance schedule matched the
Asset Register, ·
When the Financial
Regulations had last been formally approved by the Parish Council, ·
Whether the Clerk’s
salary was being reviewed annually, ·
How Section 137 Payments
were recorded by the Parish Council. (e)
Grants,
Donations and other Financial Actions: 1.
Donations –
6 monthly Review: a. Request for Donation to Kington Langley Playing
Fields Association Committee for Play Area Resurfacing Project Mr. Brian Boyce,
Chairman of the Playing Fields Association, updated the Parish Council on the
urgent need to resurface the Children’s Play Area as a result of the forest
bark becoming worn out, weed-ridden and a potential Health and Safety issue. An
application for Area 3 Committee funding support would by considered by NWDC
on 22 September and Parish Council support would greatly assist this
application. On a proposal from
Cllr. Peter Hart, seconded by Cllr. Dennis Gill, IT WAS RESOLVED that £1,500.00 would be donated to
the project with a further £500 donated out of the 2009/10 precept. b. Request for Donation to Kington Cllr. Mrs. Betty Bird
updated the Parish Council on the status of the Almshouses extension project
and said that Kington St. Michael United Charities would have to take out a
£20,000 bank loan to pay for the work. On a proposal from
Cllr. Peter Hart, seconded by Cllr. Dennis Gill, IT WAS RESOLVED that £500.00 would be donated to the
project. 2. Replacement 4’ Gate for School to Playing
Fields Footpath A resolution on the replacement gate should be carried forward to next
month to enable Cllr. Timbrell to investigate the possibility and cost of
Vastern supplying the replacement. 3. Resolution to change Financial Regulations to
enable Clerk to view Bank Statements The Clerk had submitted to Councillors a proposed update to the Financial
Regulations to enable the Clerk to become a signatory. This is a banking
requirement in order to enable her to access the Bank Accounts online and to
transfer money between Parish accounts. On a proposal from
Cllr. Mrs. Betty Bird, seconded by Cllr. Mrs. Val Giles, IT WAS RESOLVED that the Financial Regulations be
updated to add a new paragraph specifying: “The Clerk has signatory authorisation to the Parish Council’s Bank
Accounts only insofar as s/he is required to be a signatory in order to
regularly monitor the Parish Accounts online and to transfer money between
the Parish Council’s Current and Deposit Accounts in order to maximise the
payment of interest. This authorisation is not extended to the signing of
cheques.” 4. Resolution to raise
the price of the Commons Cuts contract to include further areas: Cllr. Peter Hart said that in order to increase the area to be covered
by the Commons Cuts contract and to take account of the extra work required
to strim round the new Middle Commons Bollards, he proposed increasing the
payment to the contractor. On a proposal from
Cllr. Peter Hart, seconded by Cllr. 5. Following discussions between Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson and Mr. Nick
Elkins, the Groundscape contractor had revised his specification for
resurfacing the On a proposal from
Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson, seconded by Cllr. Chris Timbrell, IT WAS
RESOLVED that Groundscape be asked
to carry out the work. 6. Extra Bollard at the
edge of Middle Common Cllr. Dr. Maurice Dixson proposed that following the installation of
the bollards along Middle Common, an extra bollard be erected on the corner
of On a proposal from
Cllr. Betty Bird, seconded by Cllr. Chris Timbrell, IT WAS RESOLVED that the extra bollard be purchased
and Groundscape asked if they would carry out the installation at the same
time as the |
Clerk Clerk Clerk Clerk Clerk Clerk Clerk Clerk |
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143.08 |
CORRESPONDENCE
None
received. |
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144.08 |
ANY OTHER BUSINESS
(a)
Cllr. Peter Hart
asked whether anyone heard of a Planning “Design Panel” being set up in the
transition to Unitary which would involve putting in place standards and
agreed formats for the plans of certain areas (e.g., villages). (b)
Cllr. Mrs. Betty
Bird said that the verge under the trees and outside the wall around the bends
on the left hand side of Plough Hill was beginning to encroach on the road
resulting in traffic now moving out further when driving down the hill. The
Clerk was asked to follow this up with the Highways Department. (c)
The Clerk said she
had received an e-mail from North Wiltshire District Council indicating that
interactive speed reduction signs might be available for villages on a
temporary basis. The Clerk was asked to follow this up, with the suggested
best site being where the ‘policeman’ had been positioned on the corner of
Upper Common by Parkers Lane at this year’s Scarecrow Weekend. (d)
District Cllr. Ms.
Sherry Meadows said an extra ‘Meet and
Greet’ workshop updating Councils on the new Unitary Authority would be run
at 6:30 pm on 2nd October at the Neeld Hall in Chippenham. (e)
District Cllr.
Meadows also advised councillors that there was a current enforcement issue
at Newlands Green where new residents have installed a satellite dish without
obtaining permission. The meeting closed at 10:20. The next Parish Council Meeting is at 7:45
pm on Monday 13 October 2008. |
All Cllrs. Clerk Clerk All Cllrs. |