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November 2021

UPLOWMAN PARISH COUNCIL: MINUTES OF MEETING

Held on Thursday 18th November 2021 in Uplowman Village Hall, starting at 7.45pm.

Cllr R Radford (MDDC) and two members of the public present.

Minutes by Mr R Hodgson, Clerk. Action points in bold. Approved on 20 January 2022

 

  1. MEMBERS PRESENT

1.1 Present: Cllrs M Moore (Chair), N Branton, K Baugh, A McCombe, D Westerman, and D Thomas

 

  1. APOLOGIES, PROCEDURAL MATTERS AND REPORTS FROM MDDC & DCC

2.1 Apologies for absence for family reasons had been received from Cllr R Adcock.

2.2 There had been no call for an election. Cllr Branton proposed that Dean Westerman and David Thomas be coopted as councillors to replace Cllrs Norman and Milner. Cllr Baugh seconded the motion, which was agreed by all and Cllrs Westerman and Thomas duly signed their Acceptances of Office and joined the meeting.

2.3 Cllr Slade had circulated a report on DCC matters. DCC was installing 403 electric vehicle charging points by end of 2022. DCC Highways was pioneering a system to analyse and reduce the carbon content of highway maintenance. Cllr Slade’s ‘locality’ budget remained open for small grants.

2.4 Cllr Radford updated UPC on MDDC activities. The Planning dept had been strengthened with an enforcement team of 3. MDDC was starting budget preparation an dlooking to save £1m. A local support fund was available for families in need.

 

  1. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING (16th September 2021)

3.1 Draft Minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 16th September 2021 had been circulated. There were no changes requested and they were signed by the Chair as a true record of that meeting.

  1. MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES

4.1 All matters would be covered by the Agenda.

 

  1. FINANCES

5.1                                                              Current Balance: £5672.10

Income since last meeting (VAT reclaim + donation for DAA)£1618.45

5.2 The following payments were approved and cheques signed to effect the disbursements:

     R Hodgson, Clerk’sexpenses (£10.92)

     Redwoods, grass cutting (£20.00)

     Chieflowman Farms Ltd, shelves for telephone box (£156.00)

     Uplowman Parochial Church Council, support functioning churchyard     (£350.00p)

     Royal British Legion,Remembrance wreath (£30.00).

     Citizens Advice, donation, (£25.00)

     Mid Devon Mobility, donation for Ring & Ride, (£25.00)

It was noted that the cheques would not be presented until after Cllr Moore had completed the change of signatory process with the bank.

5.3 The Clerk presented a draft budget for 2022-3. This did not include any vilage projects. It was agreed that all would consider possible projects for inclusion and get them costed for the January meeting, when the budget would be finalised.

5.4 Cllr Branton proposed that Cllr McCombe as the third signatory on the UPC account. On a show of hands this was agreed unanimously. The Clerk would get the forms and would enquire about online banking arrangements.

 

  1. PLANNING APPLICATIONS

6.1 21/00796/FULL: 2 dwellings to rear of Stonebridge. MDDC had refused permission.

6.2 21/01218/House: Stonebridge, extensions. UPC no objection, MDDC had approved this.

6.3 21/01699/FULL: Hill Farm, change use of hut to holiday let. MDDC had approved this.

6.4 21/1728/FULL: Hr Chieflowman, convert barn to dwelling. UPC no objection, Awaiting decision

6.5 21/02032House&033/LBC: Uplowman Hse, refurb storage shed. UPC no objection, decision awaited

6.6 21/01431/House: 6 Crossways, extension to rear. UPC inspected without objection. Decision awaited.

6/7 Letter to MDDC on Class Q fallback applications. Cllr Moore would draft response to MDDC Planning department based on suggestions by Mr Milner. Ms Williams should be invited to the January meeting of UPC.

 

  1. VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS

7.1 Uplowman community broadband project : Work was ongoing but had not progressed significantly since the previous meeting.

7.2 Former telephone box: The shelves were installed and the book-swap much improved.

7.3 Cllr Moore commented that with so many village projects now satisfactorily completed, councillors should consider what other improvements might be desirable and fundable.

 

  1. SUSTAINABILITY AND HEALTHY LIVING

8.1 Cllr Moore said that UPC should take a lead in addressing climate change. The recent article in the Community Newsletter by Cllr Branton was an example of how each individual could demonstrate their own commitments to carbon reduction and sustainability and thereby encourage others to follow.

8.2 Charge points for electric vehicles had been discussed in the past. Cllr Moore felt that this issue should be reconsidered within UPC’s climate change agenda.

 

  1. CORRESPONDENCE

A list of correspondence received and sent had been circulated. Attention was drawn to the following items of interest that were not covered elsewhere:

9.1There was nothing that wasn’t discussed within agenda items.

 

  1. HALL AND RECREATION ASSOCIATION

10.1 There was no report due to Cllr Adcock’s absence.

 

  1. EMERGENCY PLANNING AND NEIGHBOURHOOD WATCH

11.1 Cllrs Branton & Moore had met with the Clerk and agreed to hold an open session in the new year. Cllr Moore would review the outputs of the previous parish planning exercise as a starting point.

11.2 It was proposed to provide first aid training for parishioners as a practical step in emergency response. The Clerk had identified a provider. Cllr Thomas was a first aid trainer and would enquire of his employers whether he might be able to run the session.

11.3 Cllr Moore and the Clerk would be meeting with police representatives shortly to discuss how UPC could best support them.

 

  1. STATE OF ROADS IN PARISH

12.1 Cllrs Westerman and Thomas agreed to map potholes around the parish.

12.2A gap in the leat bank near the Hall footbridge had been reported to DCC. The area had been marked and would be repaired by DCC.

12.3 Cllr Baugh said that the rails beside the leat were rotted through in places. The Clerk would inform DCC.

12.4 The Clerk said that he had met the DCC officer in charge of footpaths, who had said that it might be possible to replace Lands Mill footbridge more quickly if it was a standard size and UPC could arrange installation. Cllr McCombe would measure it.

 

13. DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The next meeting was confirmed for Thursday 20th January 2022, expected to be in the Hall

 

The meeting closed at 9.15pm

 

Public discussion:

 

An issue of water seeping from the leat at Waterside was raised. It was hoped that UPC could coordinate maintenance of the historic leat.Cllr Branton said that she would contact all th riparian owners, whose responsibiity it was to maintain the leat.

 

Closure of the road between the Crossways and Greengates was currently adding significant traffic to the Whitnage-Sampford road, which was deteriorating. Highways should be reminded that this minor road was unsuitable for heavy traffic and told that it was in need of further work.

 MINUTES OF 18 November 2021

Minutes of meetings held in 2021