Minutes 6th January 2021
Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on Wednesday 6th January 2021
at 7.30pm via a Zoom virtual meeting
Present: Cllr S Luxton (Chairman), Cllr R Tillett, Cllr W Honan, Cllr A Birmingham (Vice-Chairman), Cllr E Hollingsworth, Cllr W Gallois and Cllr N Vickers
In Attendance: Carole Oliphant (Clerk), DCC Cllr Sara Randall Johnson and EDDC Cllr Fabian King
47/20 Apologies:
Cllr R Bloxham gave apologies and the Parish Council wished him well in his recovery
48/20 Declarations of interest
None at this stage of the meeting
49/20 Minutes of the meetings held on Wednesday 4th November 2020
Were agreed as a true record and virtually SIGNED by the Chairman
50/20 Public Question Time
No members of the public were present but the following questions had been raised:
• A request had been made by a Member of the public that the Parish Council write to the School and request that the hedge was trimmed before the nesting season
Meeting Management. The Chairman agreed to discuss item 16 on the agenda as next order of business:
• 20/02072/FULL | Erection of 2 dwellings with access and associated works following demolition of agricultural buildings | Land and Buildings at NGR 292640 99877 (Lodge Farm) Brampford Speke Devon – A resident had expressed objections to the application. The Chairman explained that the planning application was with MDDC and as such would fall under Thorverton Parish Council and therefore advised the resident to raise their concerns direct to them. Brampford Speke Parish Council was not a consultee with regard to the planning application and would not be submitting a comment.
51/20 Ongoing Topics
Communications – Cllrs R Tillett and N Vickers had created a village email list which represented around 80 households in the village. They explained that only specific information would be sent to residents and all correspondence sent would be logged.
52/20 DCC Update
Cllr S Randall-Johnson updated Members on the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic and that cases in the region were relatively low and that Chemists would hopefully be allowed to assist with the vaccine rollout.
She stated that DCC were making laptops available to vulnerable children to assist with home schooling during the current lockdown.
53/20 EDDC Update
Cllr F King informed Members that his regular update would be circulated in early February.
He informed Members that EDDC were currently agreeing the budget and advised that it would be a balanced budget for 2021-2022 and that the recent Government settlements due to Covid were yet to be received.
He stated that he had received some complaints about footpath signs being damaged during recent hedge trimming exercises and the Chairman stated that he would liaise with Cllr King to try and resolve the issues.
54/20 Financial items:
Council had before it and NOTED the account summary detailing payments and receipts to 31st December 2020
Council NOTED that the following expenses were authorised and paid since the last meeting on 4th November 2020.
• Expenses approved for payment:
2 x Payments to Carole Oliphant (November & December Salary)
2 x Payments to HMRC (November & December Salary)
1 x Payment to Defib Pad for Defibrillator pads—£70.20
Members NOTED that the payments were authorised by email by the Chairman, Cllr A Birmingham and Cllr R Tillett in line with the Financial Regulations.
55/20 Budget 2021-2022
The Parish Council discussed the budget and RESOLVED to keep the precept demand at £7350 unchanged from 2020-2021.
The Clerk was asked to liaise with the Footpath warden to investigate if any monies could be allocated from DCC P3 funding to clear Station Hill footpath twice a year and provide ‘no cycling’ signs on the footpath.
(Proposed by Cllr R Tillett and seconded by Cllr S Luxton)
56/20 Timings of Meetings for 2021-2022 Municipal year
The Parish Council RESOLVED to hold meetings bi monthly for the municipal year 2021-2022 and to hold extraordinary meetings in addition, if required. The complete schedule of meetings would be agreed at the next meeting.
(Proposed by the Chairman)
57/20 Interim Devon Carbon Plan
The Clerk advised that the details of the consultation had been sent out via the village email list.
The Parish Council AGREED that due to the generic nature of the consultation that a Parish Council response would not be submitted but people would be encouraged to respond as individuals.
58/20 Lead Footpath Councillor
Cllr W Gallois agreed to be the Lead Footpath Councillor and would investigate the lost paths highlighted by the Rambler Association so that a definitive map could be produced in 2026.
He would also act as liaison with the Footpath Warden for any issues with footpaths within the Parish.
59/20 Adoption of GDPR Policy
The Parish Council RESOLVED to adopt the GDPR Policy. Cllr N Vickers was thanked for the work that she had done to create the policy and ensure the Parish Council was compliant to the regulations.
(Proposed by the Chairman)
60/20 Community Grant
The Parish Council had before it an application for a Community Grant from Mid Devon Mobility.
The Parish Council RESOLVED to award a Community Grant of £100 to Mid Devon Mobility.
(Proposed by the Chairman)
61/20 Brampford Speke, Upton Pyne and Cowley Community Land Trust
Cllr R Tillett agreed to act as the Parish Council representative.
62/20 Speke Up
Cllr R Tillett agreed to submit the Parish Council’s update each month.
63/20 Next Meeting
Meeting finished at 8.52pm. Next meeting 3rd March 2021.