Stanhoe Parish Council

Minutes of Parish Council Meeting

Held on Thursday, 14th March 2013 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. M. Roche (MR)
Mrs. P. Roche (PR)
Mr. J. Seedhouse (JS) 

Two members of the public were also present.

1. To consider accepting apologies for absence

All present.

2. To consider approval of the Minutes of the previous meeting held on 8th November 2012

Re: Item 9, JS asked for reassurance that the traffic problems associated with Cross Lane were still being discussed with the County Council. The clerk said this was the case but there was still very little hope of any action. JS also pointed out a typographical error in Item 12 (iii) which showed the precept figure of £5,000 in stead of £5,500. This error was amended and Minutes were then 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

One member of the public was present and raised the matter of accountability of the MEHM Trust to the parish council and if the Trust’s AGM should be open to members of the public. The chairman stated that the parish council had no special right to information of any kind from the Trust as the two organizations were entirely separate. He invited MR (chairman of the MEHM Trust) to comment. MR stated that the Trust was a registered charity and complied with the rules laid down by the Charity Commission. The Trust’s AGM was not an open public meeting and, from experience, he had found that village residents showed a minimal interest in the Trust but in future he would endeavour to keep local people better informed. A regular update in each publication of “Saints Alive” could be possible. The member of public thanked MR for his input.

5. SNAP

TA had attended the last meeting on 7th March but no Minutes were yet available. As usual, most of the discussion centred on Hunstanton and Heacham area with ongoing problems of some anti-social behaviour. Some youths had been arrested and had been given curfew restrictions. Crime statistics for the whole area covered by SNAP were:3 house burglaries, 9 shed and outhouse burglaries, 3 thefts from locked cars, 14 assaults (mostly domestic) and 5 arrests in connection with illegal drugs. Clarification has been given on the parking rules associated with double yellow lines. In general, these mean –no parking at any time’, however this is overridden by any notice displayed in the area of double yellow lines which may limit the restriction to certain times or dates. It was also clarified that any cars with a –For Sale’ notice which had been left parked on verges should be reported to the Highways Dept. on 0300 1235000 and not the police. Highways would contact the registered owner and ask for the car to be removed. If the owner did not comply, Highways would remove the car.

6. Speed Watch statistics

TA reported the Stanhoe statistics for previous six months. 8 speed watch sessions had taken place, 34 vehicles were reported for speeding, of which, 29 had received letters from the police. Three vehicles could not be traced and one was a leasehold vehicle for which the driver could not be identified. SAM speed monitors are in place for two weeks every six weeks approximately.

7. Wind Farms update

No further developments since the end of the appeal hearing when the objections were not upheld. TA stressed that the parish council should be vigilant once construction starts to ensure that everything is done according to the conditions of the planning permission. No information is yet available regarding the community fund due to the villages affected by the turbines.

8. Reading Room refurbishment

Following on from comments in Item 4 of the Minutes, MR was asked to report on any progress made towards the refurbishment of the Reading Room by the MEHM Trust. Despite great efforts by the Trustees, an application for Lottery funding had been rejected. Bank loans had been considered but these were not really a viable option. Trustees were still working towards a complete refurbishment, including an efficient heating system. JS queried the use of funds donated by the now defunct Social Club. MR assured him that these funds were in the Trust’s bank account but were insufficient in themselves to finance all that needed to be done.

9. Condition of the shed adjacent to the Reading Room

The shed was originally purchased by a grant given to the then existing village youth club but now belongs to the village in general. It is in need of repairs which MR said the MEHM Trust could probably undertake but perhaps with help from the parish council. MR would put this matter on the Agenda for the next MEHM Trust meeting.

10. Refurbishment of village sign and notice boards

This work was all in hand and would proceed as soon as weather improved.

11. Dogs on the playing field

There continued to be dog fouling on the playing field with some dog owners not picking up dog mess. Another notice would be put in “Saints Alive” and TA would make a comment in his annual report to the village at the annual parish meeting in April. It should be noted by local residents that attempts are being made to create a cricket pitch on the playing field in order to hold matches with local clubs, therefore, dog fouling would be a health risk to players.

12. Annual Parish Meeting

This is arranged for the evening of 11th April 2013. PR will organise wine and glasses although neither she nor MR will be able to attend. JS suggested that a selection of bread and cheese would the easiest type of catering to offer. PA would organize the food and JS offered to help. The clerk apologised since she too would be unable to attend due to conflicting holiday dates.

13. Update on ongoing matters

a) Cross Lane traffic – no developments (see also Item 4)

b) Geese on the village pond – no reported problems

c) Weed problems – DB is greatly concerned about the problem of ragwort in particular. According to DEFRA, ragwort is not a notifiable weed but DB would like to know the opinion of the CPRE. Clerk agreed to write to CPRE for their viewpoint. The patch of ground, between the rear of the village hall and the playing field, where snowdrops are growing needs to be cleared of weeds. Clerk would organize this.

14. Financial update and approval of payments

The clerk circulated an up to date income and expenditure statement with copy bank statements. No questions were raised. Approval was given for payment of clerk’s salary.

15. To receive items for the next Agenda – meeting of 9th May 2013

  • Consideration of change to meeting times
  • Possible rabbit proof fencing of children’s play area
  • Village Cross
  • Cars parked outside Baker’s Cottage on Docking Road
  • Councillors’ visit to the CITB

No other matters were raised and the meeting closed at 8.40pm.