Stanhoe Parish Council
Minutes of Parish Council Meeting
Held on Thursday, 13th May 2021 at 6.00pm
in the village Reading Room
Clerk to the Council – , tel 01485 518570
Present:
Mr D. Lord (DL) Chairman
Miss R. Brown (RBR)
Mrs J. Lord (JL)
Mrs R. Birkin (RB)
Mr M. Wilson (MW)
Mr B. Gorton (BG)
Apologies:
Nil
In attendance:
Nil
1. To consider apologies for absence: All Councillors were present. The Chairman took the opportunity to welcome all Councillors back to the first face to face meeting since March 2020.
2. To consider approval of the minutes of the last meeting held on 11th March 2021: No queries were raised and the minutes were passed and signed by the Chairman.
3. To record declarations of interest in any item to be discussed: No declarations of interest were made.
4. Review of Parish Council Policy Documents: The Chairman advised that the review was still ongoing, but progress was being made. This item would now be removed from the agenda/meeting until the review was complete.
5. Housing Needs Survey: It was understood that all residents had received a letter inviting them to complete a Housing Needs survey. Whilst some Councillors had completed the survey, some of the questions were felt to be intrusive. Findings were expected to be available later this month.
6. Litter Bins: Further to the installation of the fence around the children’s play equipment, Councillors felt it appropriate to consider the placement of a general waste bin, emptied by the BCKLWN, as close to the play area as possible. The Clerk would contact the BCKLWN to discuss a location for the waste bin and all associated costs. The Clerk would report back at the July meeting.
7. SAM 2 Update: The SAM 2 had been working without issue. The fastest recorded speeds within the 30mph limit from mid-March 2021 to the end of April 2021 had been:
| Date | Time | Speed | Sign Position |
| 12th March | 20:50 | 55mph | Longwall Barn facing Bircham |
| 11th April | 14.05 | 65mph | The Grange facing Docking |
During March 14,438 vehicles passed the speed sign, in April the figure was 14,862 vehicles.
8. Tourism: ‘Tourism Experience’, part of Norfolk County Council, had conducted a survey into ‘tourism in your area’. The organisation planned to carry out the survey every 6 months over the coming 2-3 years. Results of the initial survey were still awaited.
9. Temporary Event Notices (TEN): The Parish Council has been approached by Northwold and Whittington Parish Council expressing concern that currently PCs were not consulted by the approving authority (normally the Borough Council) when a TEN is requested although such one off local events may have impact on the local community.
While the Council was sympathetic to the concerns raised, it did not feel it was in a position to exercise a power of veto in view of its relatively infrequent meetings. It was agreed to request mandatory notification of all TENs so that precautions to protect the community could be taken if necessary. This decision would be relayed to the Chairman of the above referenced Council.
10. Play Equipment Cleaning: The Parish Council had received a circular from a local company offering a weekly sanitisation and cleaning service for the children’s play equipment. Whilst MW agreed to obtain a quotation, BG and DL would still undertake the annual jet washing of the equipment in the coming weeks. MW took the opportunity to advise Councillors that the annual inspection of the play equipment would take place in the week commencing 17th May.
11. Mobile Homes in the Paddock, Parsons Lane: There was nothing further to report other than the mobile home(s) were still on site.
12. Annual Insurance Renewal: The quotation received from Came & Company for the renewal of the annual Parish Council insurance was £662.40, an increase of over 60% on the previous year’s premium. In preparation for the meeting, the Clerk, in conjunction with the Chairman, has researched alternative options. BHIB, as recommended by the NALC, had provided a quotation of £392.63 on a 3 year Long Term Undertaking which provided all legal cover plus the options determined by the Parish Council. Councillors agreed unanimously to accept the BHIB quotation.
13. Highways Issues: The Clerk had reported a number of issues to the Highways Department, in particular the replacement/re-erecting of the signs at the Stanhoe/CITB/Fakenham/Docking (B1454) crossroads. The Highways Department had confirmed that the work to do this had been programmed and would be undertaken shortly.
14. Planning Applications and Information: The following planning application had been received or decided upon since the last meeting:
| Application Number | Proposal | Decision |
| 21/00594/LDP | Rear extension and front porch. Provide access to side of property. Orchard House Docking Road |
Parish Council not invited to comment |
The Parish Council had also been notified of a new property address:
Pool House, The Old Rectory, Church Lane.
15. End of Year Accounts, Financial Report and approval of payments: Year End accounts as at 31st March 2021 were circulated to Councillors by the Clerk. The accounts had been inspected by the Internal Auditor and all was found to be in order. Council agreed unanimously with the End of Year Accounts. The Chairman and the Clerk were therefore able to sign the Annual Governance and Accountability Return 2020/21.
Up to date income & expenditure accounts, budget report and bank statements were also circulated to Councillors by the Clerk. No queries were raised.
Approval was sought and agreed for the following payments:
| Chq No | Payee | Reason | £ |
| 100821 | B. Gorton | Shut the Gate sign | 15.10 |
| 100822 | Gooch | Pest Control | 192.00 |
| 100823 | W. Leighton | Salary March & April 2021 | 325.68 |
| 100824 | W. Leighton | Expenses March & April 2021 | 68.33 |
| 100825 | R. Canwell | Internal Audit Fee | 35.00 |
| 100826 | HMRC | PAYE March & April 2021 | 81.40 |
16. Resident’s Concerns/Issues Raised after the Agenda was Published:
Norfolk Playing Fields Association (NPFA): The NPFA had invited the Parish Council to renew its membership at a cost of £20 for the coming year. Councillors agreed unanimously to the invitation. The Clerk would arrange for a cheque to be sent to the NPFA.
Bio-digester Traffic: MW and DL had attended a recent Zoom meeting. In addition to other areas, it had been confirmed crops would be grown in Syderstone and Docking; transporting crops from these area would be the most likely to result in traffic transiting Stanhoe. Whilst the mode of transportation had yet to be confirmed, attendees were advised that drivers were paid by the hour and not by the tonnage negating any need to speed in an effort to earn more money. The final transportation routes were also still to be confirmed. No date had been set for the next meeting.
17. Items for the Next Agenda – Meeting of 15th July 2021:
SAM 2 – Update
Children’s Play Area – Equipment Cleaning/Litter Bin
No other items were discussed and the meeting closed at 7.35pm.