Denton Parish Council
Minutes of the Meeting Held on Tuesday 13th October 2009
at 8pm at Denton Village Hall
Present: Liz Cargill (Chairman), Peter Hill, Adrian Hipwell, Eddie Winter, Annie Whiteman, Pauline Sandell (Clerk)
Also Present: Dr. Murray Gray (District Councillor), Peter Ramsdale (Saffron Housing Trust)
1. Apologies
Terry Hanner, Tony Tomkinson.
2. Declaration of Interest None
3. Minutes of the Last Meeting
Item 5, line 4, should read £14 million, not £40 million. The minutes were agreed and signed.
4. Affordable Housing
There had been an open consultation event that afternoon in the Village Hall. Peter Ramsdale reported that about 30-35 people had attended and overall the comments were very positive. Some people had filled out comment slips and Peter read those out. Some of the concerns were; closeness to the road, disappointment that not connected to the main sewage, would prefer to see more shared ownership, maintenance of the hedge and one overlooking window on one of the flats. The architect said that he would be able to adjust the layout to address that point. There were also concerns that people from outside the local area would be moving into the houses, but Peter reassured them that the houses are for local people. The land owner had also attended the consultation event and was pleased with the revised design. Funding is in place and the next step is to apply for planning. Peter Ramsdale said that if all goes well the houses could be finished by January 2011. Roger Gibson was concerned that if interested parties have to be on the register for two years to qualify for one of the affordable homes and were not already on the register it might be too late to go on it now. However, Peter Ramsdale thought the period was 6 months and not 2 years, but he would check up on that. It was agreed that more advertising was necessary to encourage people to register which they can do by either filling in a form, Liz Cargill has some, or by applying on line.
5. Matters Arising:
a) Playing Field; The September report was completed by Annie. Large bramble underneath climbing frame but managed to pull it out. Supports on the A frame seem a bit wobbly and need to keep an eye on them. It was felt this was due to the dry weather. Sign asking people to keep dogs on a lead needs replacing. Annie has done two signs, one for the Millennium Wood and the other for the gate at the road. The Clerk reported that SNC had confirmed that the dog bins are emptied twice a week. It was felt that this did not always happen. It was agreed that more bark needed to be put down now and Liz will ask Malcolm if he has any left. Peter Hill will complete the October report.
b) Play Area Project; Annie reported that the meeting to be held 13 days ago was poorly attended and rescheduled for next Wednesday. The best approach now is to apply for grants for the fencing and the fort, then in the Spring start work. £20-25,000 would cover the cost of the fort, fencing and a few other items. Adrian Hipwell said that Dentil had raised approximately £2900 and had agreed to offer Denton Parish Council approximately £1300 for the play area project. The Parish Council was very appreciative of this offer. Liz Cargill reported that the Parish Council is carrying about £3000 of composting money which is there to be spent. It was agreed that an application for funding should be done first and then work from there. Peter Hill described the fort which consists of a main fort with a platform of 5m x 4m inside that there will be a tower. There will be a wave slide, climbing wall, ropes to pull oneself up the mound linked by a bridge to a smaller tower and steps up to that. The Clerk was asked to do a progress report in the parish magazine.
c) Composting; Liz Cargill reported that the Government had decided not to ask community composters to pay for a licence. We may have to re-apply but do not need to pay.
d) Any Other Matters; Liz Cargill asked how soon Calor want to know what we will spend the money on. Peter said that there was no hurry and we need to find out what people's thoughts are. It was suggested that the money could be spent on a hard tennis court. Annie will find out how much it would cost.
6. District and County Council Matters
Murray reported that 33% of SNC's grant budget has been cut. Other savings will affect monitoring planning decisions, support for tree wardens and countryside management.
With regard to Five Acre Lane, this will be going back to court on 23rd December.
Liz Cargill will write to SNC regarding Grove Farm.
Tony Tomkinson had emailed the Clerk to say that the Council needs to find savings of £140 million over the next three years to cover a projected reduction in the Revenue Support Grant for Central Government and minimal increases or zero increased in Council Tax.
7. Questions from the Public
None.
8. Sponsored School Governor
The Clerk had received a letter from the Head of the School to ask Denton Parish Council if they would like to nominate someone to take on the role of sponsored school governor. The Councillors were under the impression that Clare Valori had not resigned her position as sponsored school governor. Eddie Winter and Liz Cargill agreed to speak to Clare first before further action.
9. Speed Limit
Liz Cargill had visited the Police Station at Harleston to speak to Sergeant Dave Howell regarding a speed limit for Denton. He made the following suggestions; SAM, which is a car parked on the roadside that flashes a warning to motorists about speed; community speed watch; if it is just a few people speeding we could find out who it is and inform the police. The Clerk pointed out that Highways had informed us that Denton had been recommended for a speed investigation in the 2010-2011 schedule. It was agreed to invite Sergeant Howell to the next meeting. Liz will speak to him. The people at Thanksgiving Cottage had also been in touch with Tony Tomkinson regarding speeding and they also informed the Clerk that they would be willing to help in any way they can.
10. Gypsy and Traveller Plan Document
Roger Gibson, Liz Cargill and Eddie Winter will respond to this document.
11. Planning Applications
Decision; planning application 2009/1142, New Dwelling, Norwich Road, had been approved. The proposed new position of the outside staircase had been reverted to the original plan.
12. Correspondence
Correspondence summaries had been circulated.
Parish Crime Stats – the Clerk had received further stats for August in which there was a violent crime against a person in Denton.
NCC – Information on funding for community projects for sport and physical activity; passed to Peter Hill
BCTV – The Clerk to ring them and to ask about their charges and conditions in connection with Pool Meadow.
13. Finance
a. Discuss figures for budget for 2010/11. The Clerk circulated suggested budget figures for 20010/11 showing the budget for 2009/10 and the actual figure spent. It was agreed that the 'donation' given to the church for the upkeep of the graveyard should be under a separate heading of 'burial ground upkeep' and not under donation. It was agreed to increase the amount from £150 to £200. It was agreed to keep all the current subscriptions on. The Chairman pointed out that there had been an approximate overspend of £870 over the last three years on the parish precept and the additional money had come out of the composting credits. The Clerk was asked to separate the 'housekeeping' costs paid for by the precept from the composting and grant money which would be used for projects. The precept figure will be agreed next month.
b. 2009/10 National Salary Award for Local Council Clerks. The Clerk explained that the NALC had reached an agreement on the pay scales for Clerks and her salary had increased from £8.831 per hour to £8.919 per hour, and should be backdated from April 1st 2009.
c. Pay the Clerk £88.31 for October + £6.16 for increased salary backdated from 1st April 2009
d. Pay Rosemary Gibson £11.39 for Calor competition expenses
e. Pay Norse £261.23 half yearly grounds maintenance
In addition to the above £57.50 to be paid to Mazars for external audit
Proposal: Pay c,d,e and additional item. Proposed by Adrian Hipwell, seconded by Liz Cargill, unanimously agreed.
14. Any Other Business
Peter Hill was concerned that the village hall had charged the parish council for the use of the marquee for the Calor competition. He felt that there should not be a charge as it was being used for a community project and that it was already erected for another function. Adrian Hipwell replied that there was more risk of the marquee being damaged by the wind when left up for a longer time and all other organizations have to pay a small charge.
The meeting closed at 10.20pm.