Stanhoe Parish Council
Minutes of Parish Council Meeting
Held on Thursday, 8th March 2012 at 7.00pm
in the village Reading Room
Clerk to the Council – , tel 01485 518409
Present:
Mr. T. Austin (TA)
Mrs. P. Austin (PA)
Mr. D. Bridge (DB)
Mrs. R. Brown (RB)
Mr. J. Seedhouse (JS)
Absent:
Mr M Roche (MR)
Mrs P Roche (PR)
Also present was the Borough Council Member for Docking Ward, Andrew Morrison.
1. To consider accepting apologies for absence
Apologies had been received and were accepted from Mr. and Mrs. Roche who were attending a meeting in London.
2. To consider approval of the Minutes of the last meeting
The Minutes of the meeting held on 12th January 2012 were passed and signed by the Chairman.
3. To record declarations of interest from members in any item to be discussed
No declarations made.
4. To adjourn meeting to allow public participation
No members of the public present.
6. Scrap Site at crossroads of Fakenham & Bircham Roads
This item was discussed before Item 5 as Councillor Morrison had attended specifically to receive information on this matter. At the previous meeting, the clerk had reported that the Borough Planning Enforcement Officer had undertaken to look into the legality of this site and any planning conditions associated with it.
The clerk has recently received correspondence from the Enforcement Officer stating that, although no planning permission had been given originally, the site had been used as a scrap yard for at least 70 years and was now considered to be legal. Accordingly, no action could be taken against the owners as the site currently did not pose any threat or danger and was not unduly untidy in terms of scrap sites.
Parish councillors were disappointed at this outcome, however, Councillor Morrison undertook to investigate further possibilities with the Borough Planning Department and to discuss the matter with Docking Parish Council within whose boundaries the scrap site lay. He would also speak with the Stanhoe resident who had raised the matter with the parish council.
5. SNAP
T.A. had attended the meeting on 2nd February 2012 and confirmed that discussion mainly still concerned the Hunstanton area. There were currently 3 priority issues:
1) Anti-social behaviour which had reduced in Hunstanton town but had increased in Dersingham.
2) An unspecified environmental issue in Park Road.
3) Parking concerns over Tesco lorries in Hunstanton and both lorries and cars in Heacham. The police confirmed that they would issue parking tickets in all cases where parking restrictions had been broken.
7. Wind Farms Appeal Hearing
This had taken place in King’s Lynn over most of February. T. A. had attended to speak against the proposed development at Jack’s Lane. A decision by the Appeal committee would be announced by 20th April.
Councillor Morrison left the meeting at this point. The chairman thanked him for his attendance and for his offer of assistance in dealing with the scrap site problem.
8. Diamond Jubilee Event
J.S., chairman of the working party, gave an update on developments to date and items to be discussed at the next Jubilee meeting on 4th April.
The clerk had requested the opening of a new current account at Barclays to be called “Stanhoe Jubilee Account”. Confirmation of the account was still awaited.
Tickets and advertising flyers for the event had been designed and printed. Questions for the Treasure Hunt had been devised. A young oak tree had been purchased and planted in a suitable place near the village hall and a commemorative plaque fixed to an ancient stone said to have been part of the church of St. Peter which had once stood in the village. Snowdrops would also be planted within 1–2 weeks.
The design and cost of supplying mugs had been undertaken by the PCC members of the working party but there seemed to have been no developments to date. J.S. intended to purchase some commemorative mugs from the National Association of Local councils as a failsafe in case the others were not ready in time. The PCC would be asked to be responsible for the cost.
A union flag was offered by T.A. for use in unveiling the plaque at the tree ceremony. The W.I. had agreed to lend some bunting and had offered to serve refreshments during the afternoon for those taking part in the Treasure Hunt.
The W.I. had also given a donation of £100 (from the W.I. Fund and from individual members) towards the Jubilee fund. An anonymous donation which had been promised would be followed up by the clerk. T.A. thanked J.S. for all his work in planning this event.
9. Updates on ongoing matters
a) Cross Lane Traffic: No further developments on possible restrictions. It was very unlikely that any action would be taken by the County Council Highways Department. In a connected matter, T.A. reported that a speed awareness monitor was in operation in the village for a 2 week period. The monitor flashed to drivers the speed at which they were travelling which in the vast majority of cases was in excess of the limit in place.
b) Bottle Bank: The clerk reported that the environmental waste manager at the Borough Council confirmed that a noise reduction lining was on order for the bin. If this failed to materialize, he had promised that the bin would be lined with an expanding foam product.
c) Blacksmith’s Workshop: Through contact with various individuals, the clerk had discovered that this was almost certainly owned by the Ralli family. It was agreed that someone who knew Mrs. Ralli senior should make contact with her try to establish what could be done to prevent the workshop from falling into complete disrepair. As the workshop stood at a road junction, it was thought that the County’s Highways Department would be concerned at the prospect of a building collapse.
d) Review of polling districts and stations: Councillors had objected to any change in existing arrangements and were awaiting a decision by the Borough Council.
e) Overgrown hedges: This was now being dealt with by the council’s highways department.
f) Geese on the pond: To date, this was not causing any problems.
10. Annual Parish Meeting
This was scheduled for 26th April at 7.30pm. T.A. had asked the police if there could be a presentation on local policing. It was thought that a member of the force could attend. Invitations to all village residents would be circulated with “Saints Alive”
11. Maintenance of Village Churchyard
T.A. had received a request from the PCC for a donation towards the upkeep of the churchyard which was available to all residents of the village regardless of faith. A sum of £200 had been suggested by the PCC. It was agreed that this sum could not be guaranteed every year but payment of £200 for this year was proposed by D.B., seconded by P.A. and unanimously agreed.
12. Planning Decisions
Permission had been granted to the owners of Longwall Barn for the conversion of an open patio to an enclosed sun room. Decisions on a further two applications for village properties were still awaited.
D.B. commented that the development of an onion store and drying facility at the grain store on Station Road had not proved to be any form of nuisance as had been feared by residents. He suggested that a letter be sent to the farmer thanking him for his handling of this issue.
13. Financial Update and Approval of Payments
A statement of recent income and expenditure was circulated together with copies of bank statements. Cheques were signed for the payment of the clerk’s salary and the donation to the PCC (mentioned above). A possible subscription to the WNVCA was postponed pending further investigation as to benefits. It was agreed that all possible donations and subscriptions would be discussed in future at the meeting in May each year when the year end accounts were presented. Following decisions reached, payments could then be made as and when each item arose.
14. To receive items for the next Agenda
The following items were suggested for the next meeting due to be held on 10th May 2012.
- Broadband provision in Stanhoe
- Area of rough ground on the playing field which had been fenced off by the owners
- Usual updates on ongoing matters
- Village inspection by parish councillors
- Dog waste bin
- Wind Farms
No other matters were discussed and the meeting closed at 9.05pm.