Parish Council Minutes January 27 2020
Minutes of the Meeting of Stoodleigh Parish Council, held on Monday 27th January at 7.00pm in the Village Hall
Members present
Chairman Cllr L Biles Vice Chair Cllr J Widdowson Cllr S Davey
Cllr W Knowles Cllr G Parkman Cllr C Payne Cllr G Talbot
1 Apologies
unfortunately neither the County Cllr or either of the 2 District Cllrs were able to attend
2 Declarations of Interest
Cllr Knowles declared a pecuniary interest in the planning application 18/01711/FULL as Green Energy are renting some land from him.
3 The Public
There were 3 members of the public in attendance. The first subject aired was the slurry spreading opposite the village hall, temporary storage of slurry, the unsuitability of the machine employed to distribute it and the resulting state of the road.
Some attention has already been carried out to the overhanging trees towards the Old Forge end of the Church Path and further surgery is planned.
Dr Philip Bratby, CPRE gave his opinion on planning application 18/01711/FULL. He advised that this application should be considered along with the increased activity at the Willand Plant and the plastic storage unit at Nomansland. All 3 depots are inter related. His main concern was the associated heavy vehicle traffic and the pollution risk. The applicant also has a history of disregarding legislation concerning pollution.
4 Minutes of the Meetings held November 25th, December 14th and January 13th
These were approved and signed as a true record
5 Reports
County & District Councils – a report from the County Council was circulated earlier
Parish Councillors – these reports were to be covered under separate headings
6 Planning – applications and outcomes
Cllr Knowles left the meeting before the discussion on “ Gibbet Moor” commenced,
18/01711/FULL Formation of silage clamp & access Gibbet Moor – the council still has strong reservations with the latest plan. Cllr Talbot felt that it was difficult to identify the actual modifications on the last submission. Cllr Payne will draft a response.
19/01654/FULL Erection of a workshop following stable block demolition, Beacon View
19/01690/LBC Refurbishment roof Alridge Mill – granted
19/01737/HOUSE 2 storey extension Moor Farm – granted
19/01813/PNAG Prior approval forestry, Great Wood – granted
19/02000/FULL Erection of dwelling Rull Farm – the parish council’s suggestion of an acoustic barrier is incorporated on the latest plans! Decision awaited
19/02126/HOUSE Extension at Old Rectory – decision awaited. The parish council had supported this application subject to some form of permanent screening be incorporated of the proposed balcony on the eastern elevation.
20/00007/PNFG Forestry store, NGR 288754 119913
It was highlighted that the council are not asked to comment on “permitted development” planning but can only do so as members of the public. There was also some concern on the number of “forestry stores” being established as woodland is segregated into smaller plots.
Cllr Knowles was told that the concreting of the track between Ash X and Vials Corner, (mentioned in the September minutes) had been finished but apparently this is still not fully complete.
7 Highways
Cllr Davey is to contact the owners of Stoodleigh Court regarding the vegetation bordering the road and over hanging branches.
Steve Leigh has already been contacted to address the excessive mud situation on Stoodleigh Drive. Warning signs are only part of the solution. The installation of a gateway, possibly without planning will only exasperate the problem. Cllr Widdowson volunteered to initially contact the owner of the field, believed to be a Julian Budd. He also volunteered to remind David Partridge to clean the road when need be. A street cleaner does come every 3 months but only treats the roads inside the 30mph limit.
Blocking of access seems to be on the increase. The footpath at Coleford Bottom now has a gate across and the owner does not encourage use of this right of way. The field entrance between Ford X and Rull X is once more obstructed. Mr LB Williams is understood to be responsible in both instances. Cllr Widdowson & Cllr Davey were to look into this further.
The wet weather and increased use of heavy, very wide machinery using minor roads has caused some damage to the verges. Reduced speed and increased awareness might help to reduce the problem. The use of verge ploughs and hedge reinstatement were favoured.
8 The Playground
There is no record of ownership according to the Land Registry but the ground was apparently gifted to the village by Colonel Bennett sometime between 1976-78. It is probably worth applying for formal ownership. The bark for surface repair will be purchased in this financial year but spreading the material delayed until the ground is considerably drier. Hopefully to happen before the annual inspection in March.
9 Winter Alert
There seems to be adequate salt in store. Steve Leigh has contacted Cllr Knowles about conducting some formal training
10 The Website
There is to be a new domain address – middevonparish.co.uk. The EU Accessibility Guidelines are causing additional work with both the format and the need to provide additional description with pictures and diagrams.
11 Annual Parish Meeting
It was agreed to change the date from Wednesday to Tuesday 26th May to accommodate the yoga classes already booked in the hall.
12 Community Policing
The Clerk attended the first meeting in December. Meetings will be held quarterly and should give opportunity for an interchange of information by both parties.
The first was poorly attended and organisation needed improvement. Crime figures are no longer published as without correct interpretation they are meaningless. Staffing PCSOs has been cut from 4.5 officers to 1.5 servicing Mid Devon. Dealing with incidents resulting from mental health issues take up a disproportionate amount of time. Drug traffic and use has increased often involving children in the distribution chain. Primary school visits are undertaken in the summer term to try and counter this trend. Much theft is organised at a national level rather than local and valuable items rapidly transported abroad.
13 Definitive Map Review
The Washfield meeting covering the bridleway through Barehill Wood, which may be of interest to some Stoodleigh residents will either be held on the 17th March or the 21st. The date to be confirmed.
14 Climate Change
There was some interest in tree planting within the village although there is no obvious site identified as yet to accommodate a large number of trees. The Clerk was asked to find further details on the current schemes which offer free native trees for March planting.
15 Risk Assessment
There had been 2 additions to the spreadsheet. The first relating to the upkeep of the playground surface and the other to comply with the Equality and Human Rights Act 2018. This was then signed by the Chairman.
16 Defibrillator
The batteries are due for replacement in July. The Parish AGM seems the best time to quantify any wish for further training. The equipment is simple to use and there is adequate guidance on hand.
17 St Margaret’s Church
For several years it has been customary to donate £400 towards the grass maintenance. Extensive tree surgery had been carried out in 2019 resulting in a bill of £2125. The council decided for this year to donate an additional £600 towards this cost. Some councillors would have liked to be more generous but there has to be contingency for the unexpected and the precept remains at £4000 for the next year.
18 Finance
Current HSBC balance as at 12th January £7309.31
Payments were approved to M Jones £18 St Margaret’s Church £1000
The Clerk £170.44 reimbursement for personal cheques paid into the wrong account