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Parish Council Meeting Minutes August 24 2022

Minutes of the Extra-ordinary meeting of Stoodleigh Parish Council held on 24 August 2022 in the Parish Hall at 7.00pm

Members present – Vice Chair  Cllr J Widdowson  Cllr S Davey  Cllr G Parkman  Cllr C Payne and Cllr G Talbot

  1. Apologies – these were received from Cllrs R Chesterton, A Moore and W Knowles
  2. Declarations of Interest – none declared
  3. The Public – there were 2 members of the public in attendance. Although not strictly a published agenda item Tim Hugill asked for council support for repairs to the road surface between Broadmead X towards Oakford. Apparently long stretches of tarmac are broken up and are likely to cause damage to the average vehicle. He asked for backing and it was agreed to include this on the next agenda.
  4. Minutes of the Meeting held July 25th – these were approved and signed, proposed Cllr S Davey and seconded Cllr G Parkman
  5. Co-option of a Parish Councillor – the application from David Wotton was unanimously approved, proposed Cllr Widdowson and seconded Cllr G Talbot
  6. The Defibrillator – the weekly check of the light is informally carried out by Phil Talbot but it was thought that this should be more formalised. Cllr Widdowson agreed to draw up a rota so that the responsibility is shared. The Clerk had established that the life of both pads and batteries varied between 2-5 years dependent on the make. She was assured that the replacement date had been recorded on the actual equipment. It was decided to physically verify this at the next council meeting, featuring as an agenda item.
  7. Footpath 10 – Cllr W Knowles had spoken to Dr Cheeseman and fully understood that an agreement to allow individuals to use the “permissive “ bridleway could continue but hunting packs were unwelcome. Discussion ensued as to current wording on the sign which was deemed ambiguous by some. The correspondence regards the rumoured installation of kissing gate access had upset one individual. Prior to considering and installation of kissing gates Dr Cheeseman, as representative for Lower Champles Wood Organisation should be advised to contact DCC. Clerk was asked to liaise.
  8. Crime Prevention – there were a number of thoughts and ideas on this topic.

It was agreed to set up a WhatsApp group as a means of sharing information pertinent to crime prevention. However, as for a list of those committed members who were prepared to respond to any concerns by an individual, it was felt that this was best organised between neighbours and not facilitated by the parish council. Cllr Davey thought that immediate response to an incident by an individual might be unwise, but any reassurance for residents would be welcomed.

The idea to install some form of security camera surveillance on roads in and out of the village was popular but there were some practical and legal issues to be overcome. Cllr Davey and the Clerk were to look into these suggestions. Steve James explained his personal experience on the subject.

Cllrs Widdowson and Talbot are to draft and then circulate advice on contact numbers and the recommended action to take in such circumstances.Clerk was asked to contact other parishes to see if they had found effective solutions, Neighbourhood Watch apparently has now been replaced by Ourwatch.org.uk.

Finance – the application to update the HSBC signatory panel has been submitted.