Parish Council Minutes: October 2025
DRAFT MINUTES
These minutes will be agreed at the meeting on 10th November and might be subject to slight amendment
Present:
Cllr’s J Levick (Chair), G Baylis, J Cridland, F Cross, L Gould, J Mayer and V Stevens.
In attendance:
County Cllr S Lodge, District Cllrs C Adcock and M Stratton and the Clerk, Mrs J Larcombe.
72/10/25. To receive apologies for absence.
There were no apologies.
73/10/25. Declarations of Interest.
Cllr Cridland declared a personal and prejudicial interest as her son is employed by Hampton Maintenance. Cllr Mayer declared a personal and prejudicial interest regarding Spurway Barton as she does some work for the owners.
74/10/25. To agree to co-opt a councillor.
As one of the applicants was unable to attend the planned pre-meeting due to a holiday this item was deferred to the November meeting. It is hoped that both applicants will be able to attend a short meeting with councillors before the start of the Council meeting and that they will stay for the Council meeting so that they can decide whether they still want to be considered for co-option. The election will be held at the end of the meeting.
75/10/25. Public Forum.
No members of the public present.
76/10/25. To agree the minutes of the meeting held on 11th August 2025 as an accurate record of the meeting.
The minutes were agreed as an accurate record of the meeting and were duly signed by the Chair.
77/10/25 Matters arising from the minutes, not covered elsewhere on the agenda.
Cllr Cross has donated a sheet of perspex to repair the broken windowpane in the pavilion.
As councillors will be meeting with the MDDC Senior Enforcement Officer sending the letter written by Cllr Cridland has been put on hold.
78/10/25. Planning
a) To comment on any planning applications received before the meeting.
25/01265/Full Erection of two dwellings utilising the Class Q fallback position;conversion and extension of an existing barn to form a dwelling; erection of garages;demolition of redundant agricultural buildings; and creation of new access tracks with associated landscaping. Location: Land and Buildings at NGR 286852 123156 Lower Woodburn Farm, Oakford. No comment.
25/01351/CLU Certificate of lawfulness for the existing siting of 1 free standing biomass boiler and flue and 1 biomass boiler and flue within an existing building for a period in excess of 10 years. Location: Wedgewood Buildings Limited Unit 2 Highfield Farm. No comment.
b) To note any planning decisions made by MDDC.The following decisions were noted:
25/00472/Full Replacement of earth bank lagoon with concrete panelled slurry lagoon. Location: Land at NGR 289816 123301 East Tapps Farm, Oakford. Decision: conditional approval.
25/00749/Full Change of use of storage cabin to short term holiday use.Location: Play Cabin, Bampton.
25/00846/Full Erection of roof over existing farmyard manure store. Location: Land at NGR 291002 122846 Blackaller Farm, Oakford. Decision: conditional approval.
25/01083/CAT Application to reduce canopy height and length of overhanging branches of Sycamore/Ash hedge line (H1) by 1-2m; Reduce the height of one Silver Birch tree (SB1) by 4-5m and reduction of side branches, reduce the height of Silver Birch trees (SB2-5) in line with SB1 to retain aesthetic look within the conservation area. Location: Rowan House, Oakford. Decision: no objection to the work described.
c) Update on alleged planning breaches and offer of a meeting with MDDC
Enforcement Officer. No update. A meeting with Heather Nesbitt, MDDC Enforcement Officer and John Millar, MDDC Chief Area Planning Officer, has been offered to councillors. Cllr Adcock will try to arrange this for 3pm on a Friday afternoon in November. All councillors apart from Cllr Mayer said they would like to attend the meeting.
d) Any other planning matters. None.
79/10/25. Highways:
a) Any matters to note or report.
The playground sign has taken a knock, probably from a hedge trimmer. Cllr Mayer has reported this on the DCC website.
b) Update on flooding issues/blocked drains.
No flooding reported.
c) Update on improvements to the fingerpost signs.
There was a good response to the Facebook post. It was suggested that the fingerpost at Fordmoor Cross should be the next one to look at.
d) Any other highways matters.
None.
80/10/25. Footpaths
a) Update on P3 funding.
The purchase order number for the 2025-26 grant has been received and the invoice has been submitted. The Clerk has complained to Richard Walton, DCC Public Rights of Way and Country Parks Manager, that the Parish Council has not received a purchase order number for 2024-25 and he has apologised again. He has advised that a purchase order was not deliberately withheld from Oakford because a complaint had been made and a PO number will be provided.
b) Any other footpath matters.
Mr Cridland has secured the rail on the bridge even though this is in Stoodleigh parish. He has also been clearing around the 100 steps on Footpath 7. Stuart Howell, DCC Public Rights of Way Warden, and Mr Cridland have tried to include the owners of the field with the yurt in a meeting about the footpaths in the field but there has been no response.
81/10/25. Reports:
a) District Cllr Report.
A written report was circulated by email prior to the meeting and it included an update on the Local Government Review. Active Mid Devon is teaming up with Libraries Unlimited to support the community’s health and wellbeing with a free drop-in event at Tiverton Library. On Friday 7 November, from 10am until 4pm, a team from Active Mid Devon will be based in The Pod at Tiverton Library offering free health checks. Information will be posted on the Facebook page.
The District Councillors were asked for an update on the progress of the building of the Zed pod housing in Bampton. It was reported that the framework has gone up but none of the houses has been completed.
b) County Cllr Report.
A written report from Cllr Lodge had been circulated by email. The DfE are at the pre-assessment stage of plans for a new school or buildings for Tiverton High School. They do not factor in the flood risk on the school site. Cabinet favours the 9.1.1 option for a unitary authority believing that the larger you are the better services you can supply. The difference in public health funding from central government across Devon was noted. In Torbay it is £82 per head, in Plymouth it is £64 per head and across the rest of Devon £37 per head.
There is concern that Bampton Library is at risk of closing. DCC is carrying out a twelve week consultation to gather the views of Devon residents on how libraries should adapt and evolve to meet changing needs and financial pressures.
82/10/25. Community Area:
a) Any points to note from inspections of community area.
Cllr Levick will send his report to the Clerk. The field is looking good and the grass will have its last cut of the year this month.
Cllr Levick contacted Customer Service at MDDC on 2nd October to report concerns about the safety of the dead tree on their land by the bin and post box in Oakford. They will be sending an arborist to inspect the tree.
b) To receive quotes for the refurbishment of the pavilion interior.
Cllr Levick is still trying to get a second quote. The bark at the entrance to the field is holding up so far and will continue to be monitored.
c) To receive any update on the possibilities of creating a footpath from the Village Hall car park to the Community Area.
No update.
d) Any matters to note.
None.
83/10/25. Finance
a) To approve any invoices or expense claims presented for payment.
It was resolved to approve the following payment: Mrs J Larcombe - £159.22 Clerk’s salary for September (Payment reference: 2526/20).Payments since the last meeting: Hampton Maintenance - £180.00 grass cutting (Payment ref: 2526/18), NALC - £42.00 planning training Cllr Cross (Payment ref: 2526/19).
A service charge of £6.00 was taken from the current account at the end of September. A service charge of £6.00 will be taken from the account at the end of October.
An internal transfer will be made from the Instant Access Account to the Current Account to return the balance to £500.00
b) To note any receipts since the last meeting and the bank balance.
Since the last meeting bank interest of £68.15 has been received.
The Current Account balance is £500.00 and the Instant Access Account balance is £12,658.64.
c) To receive a report on budget v actual for Quarter 2 (01.04.25 – 30.09.25).
The report was noted. The Clerk reminded councillors that the budget for 2026-27
will soon need to be discussed.
d) Bank reconciliation 31.08.25.
The bank reconciliation was checked against the bank statement by Cllr Stevens and signed.
84/10/25. Correspondence.
The following correspondence was noted:
DALC Newsletters
MDDC press releases
MDDC – Report from State of the District Debate 17th September 5.30pm
MDDC - Latest Side Waste Data
Know Your Business – Free Devon Business Resource for Your Residents.
Better Housing Better Health (NEF) – we help families in fuel poverty
Cllr Lodge, Cllr Adcock and Cllr Stratton are holding a walk in surgery in Bampton Town Council’s office at 2 Newton Square, Bampton on Saturday 8th November from 2pm to 4pm. No appointment is necessary.
85/10/25. To confirm the date of the next meeting.
The next meeting will be held on Monday 10th November 2025 at 7.30pm. Councillors will meet at 7pm to meet the co-option candidates.
The meeting closed at 8.40pm.