Parish Council Minutes: July 2018
Minutes of the Meeting of Oakford Parish Council, held July 9th at 7.30pm in the Village Hall
Members present
Chairman Cllr J Phillips Cllr I Fairchild Cllr P Jobson Cllr D Mason Cllr T Rich Cllr R Stevens
Apologies
these were received from Cllrs Baylis and Mayer
Declarations of Interest
none were made
Members of the Public
there were 5 members present. Mr Cartwright asked if the Chairman had spoken to Mr Rowe regards his proposals for planning and if there was anything additional to report. Apparently the situation is unchanged.
Minutes of the 8th and 12th May – these were signed and approved as a correct record
Reports
County and District Council.
The County Council reported on a series of topics. DCC is phasing out single use plastic. There is to be additional effort to recoup unpaid fines as the total sum outstanding for the past year is quite incredible, some fines relate to repeat offenders and some are incurred by foreign vehicles. A consultation is underway to see whether the current fleet of mobile library vehicles should be scrapped and what are the alternatives if these are not replaced by newer vehicles. Simon Edwards the Exe Valley Bus driver received a Volunteer of the Year award for his services.
Work to the A361 should be completed for the summer but further repairs are needed at a later date. The Highways are looking at alteration to the whole approach and instruction for repairing pot holes. The 20mph speed limits are also under review. The gritting lorries have been out to resolve the melting tarmac problem in the exceptional hot weather.
A meeting with PC Soper has been arranged with regard to limited resources and the subsequent effect on rural policing. Holding a possible surgery in Bampton is one idea.
District Cllr Stanley announced that the first hearing of the Local Plan will be held on the 20th & 21st September if anyone was interested to attend. The Council budget is due to be signed off that evening and he was pleased to report that the accounts were under budget, quite an achievement.
The Three Rivers Development plan has been awarded The National Project of the Year for design etc. There were around 600 alleged empty homes identified last year and 140+ have now been brought back into use. Further reduction in unoccupied dwellings is hoped to continue. Gas cables are causing a problem at the Premier Inn site.
There is now a “Litter Picking” team operating in Mid Devon and if particular stretches of road are particularly in need of attention these can be reported and added to the operation schedule. Contact can be made direct to Ray Stanley.
Parish Councillors
Highways were the main topic and the lack of attention to hedges and roadside verges. Hedges can only be cut after the 1st September and road side verges are only trimmed on bends for safety reasons. Cllr Rich was especially concerned about the road surface from the village hall to the police house. Cllr Mason had been verbal abused by another motorist because of excess vegetation narrowing the road. Cllr Stevens praised the quality of the work carried out along the main road. Cllr Mason would like the 30mph sign moved nearer the main road to see if this might be more effective in slowing traffic down.
The Telephone Kiosk
the equipment is still in situ, the Clerk to chase BT again.
The Chairman proposed replacing the kiosk with a red Victorian model, slightly repositioning the bench and purchasing a new high quality notice board to go behind. He estimated the total cost might be £10,000 which caused reaction from the others. However he went on to explain that there was a possibility of funding from the Batsworthy Fund and Cllr Colthorpe thought that her budget might be able to contribute £1000. A unanimous vote was taken in favour of the idea in principle with the condition that the precept money held should be out with this suggestion. Cllr Fairchild said that Fagin’s and Toby’s Reclamation Yard had such kiosks in stock. Cllr Jobson thought that perhaps The Wooden Workshop might sponsor the notice board.
The Playing Field
The new Summer House met with everyone’s approval and the Chairman planned to hold an official opening later in the month. Cllr Mason was worried about the children using fairy liquid and damaging the grass and could they be reminded to put the hosepipe away after use. The Chairman would action.
The Red Lion Hotel
The owner reported that despite several viewings no firm offer had been made to purchase as a public house. The license trade is undergoing change in general. The isolated location and the fact that trading ceased in 2017 has not helped encourage serious interest from potential clients. With the capital investment involved he felt that there was no alternative but to apply for change of use and to try and run the business as a B&B establishment.
The Chairman had also apparently tried to promote the sale with no success and it was also unlikely to go ahead as a community project.
Highways
£200 will cover the cost of 4 road signs stating “no entry for 7.5t vehicles except for access.” The Chairman offered to provide the mounting poles and was advised by Cllr Colthorpe that these should only be sited on private land. The members voted in favour of the purchase and the signing of a blank cheque to cover the purchase. The final figure has yet to be determined.
The Website
Unfortunately Cllr Mayer was absent an unable to give an update. The Code of Conduct is still to be uploaded. A hyper link across might make this process simpler.
The 2019 Election
The last Parish Council Election was held in 2003 and Cllr Baylis thought in view of the time scale this could not be deemed democratic. However if there is a lack of candidates there seems little point in incurring the time and expense of holding an election in the parish. Apparently other parishes are finding it difficult to attract councillors and District or even County Councillors may be asked to serve in the future. The Clerk confirmed that there were sufficient existing funds to cover an election but should the council wish to increase the 2018/9 Precept by £1000 to specially cover such expense it would result in an increase of £5.80 on the council tax. As Cllr Baylis was absent from the discussion the topic will be carried forward until the September Meeting.
Finance
Current Nat West Account as at 5/7/18 £7530.04
Credits received - £4250 precept £55.28 Wayleave £50 PPP3 fund £200 Locality budget
Payments were approved to Community First Insurance £40.65 additional premium to take account of the summer house. B Howe £90.70 internal audit J Phillips £6.83 P Noble £40 as a donation towards the display plants both tended and provided.
AOB
Cllr Rich asked when the dam is due to be removed from Apple Tree Cottage? As the property is for sale she felt the matter would be better addressed with the current owners. Removal may not be the only solution to prevention of future flooding. The grille possibly needs wider spaces. The wall which had replaced the previous post and rail fence, had included openings which were possibly not wide enough to cope with excessive volumes of water. The matter has already been discussed with Steve Densham but District Cllr Stanley would enquire further. Cllr Phillips was also to research further.
Cllrs Fairchild and Mason also complained about dogs self exercising and fouling the neighbourhood. It was suggested that the problem was better approached on a personal level.
Planning, applications and outcomes
18/00371/FULL Erection of a garage, Sunnyside – withdrawn
18/00631/FULL Erection of an agricultural building West Tapps – permission granted with conditions
18/00781/FULL Variation of planning permission, East Loosemoor
18/00822/FULL Repositioning of a garage, Four Seasons Bungalow
18/00853/House Extension at Woodburn Water
18/00973/CAT Application to fell 1 Wych Elm, Longworth Holme Place