Minutes from Annual Parish Meeting 2018

Shobrooke Parish Council

Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on Tuesday 8 May 2018 at the Village Hall at 7.00pm 

Present:           Parish Councillors, Cllr P Hare-Scott, MDDC and the Clerk 

1. Apologies

Cllr M Squires, DCC

2. Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on Tuesday 9 May 2017

Agreed and signed as a true record

3. Chairman’s Report

The Parish Council has had a busy year with quite a few successes and a few ongoing challenges.

We had an extraordinary meeting in September regarding the planning application for Peddlar’s Pool looking at how it would impact on the village and its inhabitants; particularly the possible extra vehicle movements it would cause.  Permission has not yet been granted for the development, so its effect has yet to be assessed.

The bench at the War Memorial was stolen and has since been replaced thanks to the generosity of a parishioner. It has now been marked with “Smart Water” in the hope that it could be traced should this happen again.

The feasibility of providing a night time landing site for the air ambulance on the playing fields was investigated, but due to overhead power lines and lack of space, it was deemed impractical.

The Parish Council applied for grant funding for a defibrillator to be installed in the phone box.  This was granted and is in the process of being installed, again marked with “Smart Water”.  Many thanks must go to Allan for his work on refurbishing the phone box and fitting the defibrillator ready for commissioning.

At the end of the year we heard that the Parish Council had also obtained grant funding for the purchase of a salt spreader to help the snow warden, Chris Boult keep the roads and footpaths safe in cold weather.  Many thanks for this work this year.

More thanks to Fred Harper for his work on Shobrooke’s footpaths which have become so popular they even featured in an article in Devon Life magazine.

Following an annual inspection of the playing field equipment by ROSPA, some of the equipment was deemed to be unsafe, which resulted in a temporary closure for necessary repairs.  The Parish Council is very grateful to Chris Boult, his wife Mel and helpers for carrying out these repairs very promptly, which enabled the playing field to be reopened quickly.  However, it has been a salutary lesson that the Parish Council needs to implement a much better inspection process and maintenance plan.  We are hoping to apply for grant funding to replace some of the equipment which is nearing the end of its life and to upgrade some of the fencing around the field.

As always, I would like to thank all members for their input and contributions to the Parish Council and life of the village.  Thank you also to Peter Hare-Scott and Margaret Squires for their support; and lastly, to Jane for her work ensuring the smooth running of Council proceedings and help throughout the year.

4. Police Report

PCSO Nicola Payne had sent a report as follows:

During the past two months there has been one crime recorded in the Shobrooke area of Malicious Communication

The following incidents were reported to police and attended by officers:

 1 x Theft – stealing road signs

1 x Abandoned 999 call

1 x Anti-social behaviour – Shobrooke Park

1 x Domestic incident

1 x Car stuck in flood water

1 x Burned out vehicle

1 x RTC

5. Parish Council Financial Statement for year ending 31 March 2017

These were presented to the meeting and noted

6. Playpark – to consider play equipment required

Cllr C Boult reported on a meeting held with a playground equipment supplier.  This company would provide a 20-year guarantee as long as recommended procedures for maintenance were followed.  They offered annual inspections and a service contract.  A discount was available for Parish Councils and a funding guide had been supplied.  A full quote would be sent shortly.

Cllr C Boult gave a brief update following the re-inspection at the playpark and noted that everything was now low risk.  The advice from the inspector was that if a piece of equipment was noted as medium or high risk, that piece of equipment should be disabled or removed until repaired.  If any piece of equipment was deemed a danger to use they would inform the Clerk by telephone immediately.  Where older equipment did not comply with new legislation, it was recommended not to make any alterations or changes, otherwise the new legislation would apply.

7. Public Participation/Questions

There was none

The meeting closed at 7.25pm