January 2020 Minutes
Langtoft Parish Council
Minutes of the Meeting of the Parish Council held on Tuesday 7th January 2020,
at Langtoft Village Hall
Present: Cllrs Andy Halfhide (Chairman), Andy Hallam (Vice Chairman), Alastair Fraser, Debbie Hallam, Yvonne McCulloch, Lewis Trickey, Steve Valentine.
In Attendance: Julian Tatam (Parish Clerk), County Councillor Barry Dobson, District Councillor Rosemary Trollope-Bellew and one member of the public.
78 /19-20 Open Forum
Questions were asked about:
Parking on Grass Verges. Parking on verges continues to be an issue. C Cllr Dobson confirmed that action cannot be taken unless a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) is in place. These are not easy to obtain.
Parking outside the Village Shop. A TRO to limit parking to 30 minutes has been applied for but will take some time to process. It is not clear who is responsible for enforcing the current parking regulations.
The opportunity was taken to receive the report from C Cllr Dobson.
He updated the meeting on current highways issues. In the subsequent discussion he was asked to prioritise gritting of West End, Stowe Road and King Street (as this is potentially achievable in the near future) in addition to the recently agreed LCC gritting of the route to the school. A TRO to introduce a weight limit on West End /Stowe Road is also being pursued.
The open forum closed at 7.30pm and C Cllr Dobson left for another meeting.
79/ 19-20 Chairman’s welcome and remarks
80 /19-20 Apologies for absence
Valid apologies were received from Cllrs Branch and Brogan.
81 /19-20 Declarations of Interest
None
82 /19-20 To approve the minutes of previous meetings
The approval of the minutes of the meeting held on 26th November 2019 was proposed by Cllr Valentine, seconded by Cllr A Hallam; all in favour.
83 /19-20 Report from County and District Councillors and Police
D Cllr Cooke sent his apologies. D Cllr Trollope-Bellew had not arrived at this time.
PCSO R Everitt submitted a written report: Other than a theft from a skip, Langtoft has been relatively quiet over the past two months. Priorities for the Neighbourhood Policing Team are targeting groups of youths and adults causing a nuisance, drugs and drug dealing, break ins and theft.
84 /19-20 Clerks Report
The Clerk’s report on actions since the last meeting had already been provided to the Councillors, including a log of communications.
A villager has complained that items had been removed from a memorial tablet in the cemetery. Her daughter then claimed on Life in Langtoft that they had been removed by the Parish Council. This is incorrect as no members of staff of the Parish Council have removed any items, other than very old wreathes, in accordance with our regulations. The complainant was invited to discuss the topic at this meeting but did not appear.
85 /19-20 Other Matters
Correspondence on Highways
There was a discussion on the lack of progress on a number of highways issues, despite assurances that LPC had received. The Council agreed to formally express its dissatisfaction on highways issues. The Chairman and Clerk were instructed to draft a letter for approval by the Council.
Report on meeting regarding The Pavilion
Four Councillors had attended a stakeholder’s meeting organised by D Cllr Trollope-Bellew, to discuss a potential replacement multi-function facility at the playing fields. A Community Management Group is being formed to will develop the ideas. The Chairman and Cllr D Hallam were appointed to be LPC’s representative on this group with Cllr Fraser as a substitute.
Local Electricity Bill
LPC had been asked to join the campaign to support the Local Electricity Bill which was going through parliament before the recent election. If passed it would empower local communities to sell local generated clean energy to local customers. Given that this might provide opportunities without committing the Council, a proposal to lend LPC’s support to the bill was proposed by Cllr Valentine, seconded by Cllr Trickey; all in favour.
Planning application S19/2161 rear extension to 15 Hyde Gardens.
Details of the application had been previously been circulated for comment. It was agreed that LPC recommend that the proposed flat roof be replaced by a pitched roof using a similar design of tiles so that it blends in with the neighbouring houses.
Crossroads Christmas Tree
To avoid the need for trees to be purchased in future years, consideration should be given to growing future supplies at Penfield Nature Reserve.
86/19-20 Working Groups
Reports were presented for the groups; of note are:
Finance and General Purposes:
The accounts are up to date and currently running well within budget. The budget for 2020/21 was discussed and a proposal that the precept be held at the same level of £24,500 was proposed by Cllr A Hallam, seconded by Cllr Valentine; all in favour.
Events:
The group had not met but will be considering a ‘Meet the Council’ event for later in the year, possibly incorporated with an open day at Penfield N.R.
Amenities and Highways:
No meeting held. The Chairman undertook to obtain some quotations for the materials required to refurbish the slide at East End Park.
Penfield Nature Reserve:
No meeting held. Legal negotiations are nearing a conclusion. The Clerk undertook to obtain a weekly update to expedite the transfer.
87 /19-20 Finance
Year to date accounts.
The accounts to 31 December had been circulated to all Councillors.
The actual balances at that date totalled £30,204, with £20,192 of this sitting in the deposit account.
2020 21 Budget.
The budget was discussed and a proposal that it be accepted was proposed by the Chairman and seconded by Cllr A Hallam; all in favour.
88 /19-20 Date of future meetings
Next Full Council meeting: 18 February 2020 at the Langtoft Village Hall at 7.00pm
There being no further business the meeting closed at 9.30pm.