4th June 2007 Back to Index
The Annual Parish Council Meeting was held in the Village Hall on Monday Monday 4th June 2007 at 8pm.
Apologies None
Present Mrs Handley, Miss Hayes, Mrs Clemmow, Mr Ellis, Miss Sach, Mr Tebbit, Mr Blatch, Mr White, and, in the Chair, Mr Dalton. D.Cl. Mrs Heazell and C. Cl. Kindersley also present
Nomination to fill Casual Vacancy. Two nominations received – Mr John Eaton and Mrs Alison Pritchard. Voting took place and Mrs Pritchard was duly elected to fill the vacancy. Acceptance of Office signed and Mrs Pritchard took her seat.
Minutes of the meeting held on 16h April 2007 were signed after two amendments –
Item 15. 3rd line 'housing stock had been delivered'' and an additional sentence added 'By law tenants must be consulted and must vote for or against transfer of stocks.'
Appointment of Officers for the Year
Chairman Mr Dalton
Vice Chairman Mrs Handley
Treasurer The Clerk
Independent Auditor Mr Frank O'Keeffe
Appointment of Representatives
Village Hall Mr White
Recreation Ground Miss Sach, Mr Blatch
P. Church Council Mrs Pritchard
Village sign The same volunteers will mow
Mr Richard Ellis cuts the hedge
Footpaths Mr Dalton
Matters arising from the Minutes
1 Footpath 13. Poles in Ivett's Lane. No change.
2 Nixon's Hall Tablet. No further progress at present
3 Land Registration of Parish Property In order to register land belonging to the Council it is necessary to produce proof of ownership. Deeds and proof of ownership may be difficult to produce and the Chairman agreed to comply with any legal requirements to make the statutory declarations.
4 Hedge cutting, Wheeler's Way. Agreed to wait until the new owner of 3 Red Cottages had settled in before drawing their attention to the overgrown hedge. Mr White mentioned an overgrown hedge on the South side of Church Street, and Mr Tebbit mentioned the hedge along the side of the former Hoops garden. Mr Dalton agreed to write to Mr Neil, the owner of this land.
5 Wimpole Road repairs. Nothing yet to report.
6 Footpath 25. Mr Dalton hopes to enlist the support of the Ramblers Association to try to resolve the present unsatisfactory situation. It is also in the hands of the County Council Rural Group.
7 Clerk's salary review. information is due in July. It will be back-dated to April
8 Telephone Box cleaning. Agreed the Parish Council continue paying for cleaning. It was also noted that there were still three missing panels in the Gt. Eversden box.
9 Bin at Gt. Eversden Bus Shelter. Mr Blatch to investigate replacement.
10 Road at St Helen's Church. Amber Developments are proposing to transfer a portion of the land outside St Helen's Church to the P.C. for a nominal fee. This would allow for some parking space at the Church. Other neighbouring residents and Tom Banks would have access rights over this road, and the question of responsibility for maintenance and payment of charges has still to be settled. Negotiations are in progress and legal advice is being obtained.
11 Independent Audit. Following advice from the Independent Auditor it was agreed to update the lists of Parish assets and Council policies. Mr Ellis agreed that the handbells, originally purchased by his grandfather, should now belong to the Parish and be added as an asset.
For purposes of the record it was noted that the Parish Council does NOT own the Village Hall, but that the Village Hall Charity does.
12 Ivetts Lane This lane should be 12 feet wide and has a drainage problem which can cause flooding to nearby properties. Agreed the Chairman discuss this problem with Mr Matthews, the Drainage Officer to SCDC.
13 Dog and Litter Bins SCDC had issued a circular outlining various options for dealing with the problem of emptying increasing numbers of litter and dog bins. After consideration it was agreed to support Option 5 with comments and take no further action at present.
14 Bin Collection from Church Lane. It was agreed that bins should be picked up from outside Nos 8, 10 and 12 Church Lane, rather than at the Church Gate. The Chairman agreed to arrange this with the driver or SCDC.
15 Code of Conduct Awaiting the amendments to the new model.
16 Standing Orders A review will be made in conjunction with the update of parish assets etc.
17 Parish Plan Mr White reported that he was preparing a leaflet to be circulated to all residents. The Village plan should be administered by parishioners and not by the PC A Meeting will be held in the Village Hall to discuss the possible formation of a Village Plan.
18 Finance: A statement of Accounts for the year had been distributed to all members. Balance in hand: Bank £9035.31 P.O. Account. £2811.78.
Mr White proposed the adoption of these accounts seconded by Miss Sach and carried. They had been approved by the Independent Auditor. It was also agreed that for purposes of valuation the Recreation Field should be valued at £1. Carried unanimously.
The following cheques agreed and signed
CALC Affiliation Fee £203.44 LGA 72 s 143(i)
CALC Local Council Review £13.50 LGA 72
PCC Churchyard maintenance £350.00 LGA 72 s 214
SCDC Car Park Rent £50.00 LGA 137 s 133
Frank O'Keeffe Internal Auditor £50.00 LGA 72 s.iii (i)
19 Insurance A premium of £1,300 had been agreed for the recreation ground. The premium for the PC and for the Recreation Field are both now due and the PC insurance has been paid. In addition the premium for the Recreation Ground is to be paid now. Eventually the insurers will refund any surplus, when the respective sums have been finally worked out.
20 Planning
2 Leete's Lane Extension for Mr & Mrs Sutton No comment PC
44 Wimpole Road fence and hedge Mr & Mrs Albery-Kine Approve. PC 1 Finch's Field Mr & Mrs Alexander Extension Approve. PC
21 Gypsies and Travellers EERA Meeting at Robinson College. It was hoped a member of the Council would attend
22 Correspondence In circulation
23 Cl. Mrs Heazell reported that some difficulties at the District Council were being resolved, but that some newly elected Councillors were refusing to serve on committees.
24 Mrs Clemmow reported on plans proposed by the Eversden Tennis Club Committee. As this had not been received in time it could not be an agenda item. It will be discussed at the next meeting after the Recreation Ground Committee's views become known.
25 Cl Kindersley reported that there would be a public meeting of the Gamlingay Division Neighbourhood Panel for the local police, the public and members of PCs to discuss the Problems of Speeding and anti-social behaviour. This would be in the week beginning 23rd July. The date was not yet fixed, but attendance should be encouraged.
Waste recycling Plant at Waterbeach. This had been approved as a massive PFI project.
Aircraft Stacking for Luton Airport. This was causing considerable concern. It was proposed over Little Gransden and would affect an 8 mile radius.
Mrs Pritchard asked for Speeding to be an agenda item for the next meeting
Date of Next Meeting Monday 16h July 2007 at 8pm in the Village hall