HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL HELD IN THE MEMORIAL HALL ON THURSDAY 12 APRIL 2018 at 7.45pm
Present: Councillors: Watkins, Hicks, Duggan, Matthews (left 8.27pm), Porter, Wilson, Henderson, Mrs Watts (Parish Clerk), County Cllr Reynolds and three members of the public
Apologies for Absence – Cllr Brotherston and District Cllr Brown
Vice-Chairman’s Announcements:
Cllr Watkins said that she would be standing for election as Chairman of the PC next month.
A notice advertising vacancies on the Parish Council had been posted.
Councillors and the Parish Clerk have been given new email addresses to ensure that the Parish Council complies with new General Data Protection Regulations. Cllr Matthews is unfortunately not able to access his new account. This is being looked into.
Councillors are asked to respond to emails in a timely fashion.
Declarations of Interest: Cllrs Hicks declared an interest in planning application 18/00425/F.
Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 8 March 2018 and Matters Arising
Cllr Hicks proposed that the minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on 8 March 2018 be resolved as a true and accurate record of the meeting. This was seconded by Cllr Duggan and passed unanimously.
Local Airspace Development Consultation Notice; Cllr Watkins had received confirmation that there would be no holding pattern for aircraft over Hook Norton and therefore the Parish Council had no objection to the proposals.
Report of the Planning Co-Ordinator on Planning Applications – (Annex 1)
Six planning/TCA applications had been received since the last meeting. There were no objections.
Cherwell District Council (CDC) had granted eight applications, including 18/00213/F at The Nook, Netting Street, which the Parish Council had objected to.
18/00074/F, Gilden Farm, Burycroft Rd has been withdrawn by the applicant.
To Invite Members of the Public to Comment on Planning Applications: there were no matters arising.
Reports of Working Groups
Recreation
• Work to install new play equipment in the play area is scheduled to start on 24 April.
• Tarmac in the play area has been professionally cleaned in readiness for artwork to be painted on it (hopscotch, snakes & ladders etc.).
Cemetery and Allotments
• Invoices were sent to allotment holders at the end of February for rental due for the coming year, the deadline for payment being 1 April. Three rents are outstanding. Reminders have been sent which incur a £10 administration charge.
• Cllr Duggan reported that it would cost £180 plus VAT to remove an Ash tree and a smaller tree to allow the re-building of the stone wall beside the steps in the cemetery. He proposed that this quotation be accepted. This was seconded by Cllr Hicks and agreed unanimously.
• The damaged cemetery wall has been taken down. Work to rebuild it will commence work once the Ash tree(s) have been felled and the stumps ground out.
• A bench has been moved from a shady area in the cemetery next to the new hedge. Councillors thanked Melvyn Riley for doing this.
• Cllr Matthews has removed the old concrete rubbish bin and the Councillors thanked him for doing this.
Environment
• The bottle banks outside the primary school have been moved to the Sports and Social Club (SSC) car park.
• Cllr Matthews will provide a quotation for addressing the muddy area by the bottle banks in the SSC car park.
• Recycling signage outside the Primary School needs to be removed as the facility has been moved. The Parish Clerk will contact CDC.
• The used battery bin outside the primary School needs to be removed or re-sited. The Parish Clerk will contact CDC.
• The rubbish bins outside the school are to be moved to the SSC site, next to the bottle banks.
• A dog bin has been purchased for SSC grounds.
• Acreman Arboriculture has completed urgent work on trees in Ironstone Hollow.
• Inconsiderate parking in Sibford Road: a lengthy discussion took place about inconsiderate parking by drivers in Sibford Road near the Primary School. Councillors discussed the erosion of the verge due to parking and would look at having kerbs installed, plus a method of stopping cars then driving over the kerb (e.g. posts or trees). The Parish Clerk will arrange for OCC Highways to meet Cllr Porter on site to discuss possible ways of combatting this nuisance.
Hook Norton War Memorial Hall
• A broken fence panel behind the oil tank has been replaced.
• The remote heating control system has been causing some unexplained problems.
• A User Group Meeting was held in the hall on 9 April 2018 – (Annex 2)
• The garden needs a complete overhaul to make it more useable. It was agreed that measures would be taken to encourage volunteers to work on the garden over the next few months to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of WW1. The event would also be marked by a village event in the Memorial Hall on 10 November.
• Although the Terms and Conditions of Hire state that no naked flames may be used in the hall, red candle wax has been spilt on to one of the new chairs and damaged it. The Parish Clerk has written to all hirers to remind them that the use of naked flames is not permitted in the hall, as this negates the building and contents insurance.
Updating Website: as Cllr Brotherston was not at the meeting, this item was adjourned to the next meeting.
Finance/Schedule of Receipts and Payments for Authorisation by the Council:
The Parish Clerk presented the schedules of receipts and payments for April 2018 totalling £2,957.71 for the Parish Council (Annex 3) and £1,012.63 for the Memorial Hall (Annex 4). Cllr Duggan moved acceptance of the payments detailed. This was seconded by Cllr Hicks and agreed unanimously. Difficulties with the new payroll system mean that the Parish Clerk cannot access payment figures to HMRC.
Report on District Council Matters. District Cllr Hugo Brown’s report had been read out at the Annual Parish Meeting.
Report on County Council Matters. County Cllr George Reynolds’ report had been read out at the Annual Parish Meeting. He added that although £1M had been allocated for road works, little seemed to being done at the moment about the state of the roads in Oxfordshire.
Correspondence:
The Parish Clerk had forwarded all correspondence to Councillors during the month.
The Sports and Social Club Committee had asked who they could approach to have gates installed at the access to the club grounds, as there have been some individuals joy-riding across the pitches at night and this is churning the ground up. The Parish Clerk had contacted CDC who confirmed that the site does not fall within their ownership, rather, having checked with the Land Registry, the site is registered under two separate Titles, one being Oxfordshire County Council.
To Invite Questions and Comments from Members of the Public:
The village used to have a team of Environmental Champions looking after areas of the village. Geoff East asked if the team still existed and if so, whether it would be possible to have a group meeting to encourage others to sign up to the scheme. Cllr Porter will contact other Environmental Champions and arrange a meeting as soon as possible.
As an Environmental Champion, Mr East asked for permission to cut back a fallen branch in Ironstone Hollow. Cllr Watkins proposed that permission should be granted. This was seconded by Cllr Duggan and agreed unanimously.
AOB:
Two vehicles were stolen from The Bourne overnight on 10/11 April. Cllr Watkins asked that Neighbourhood Watch Schemes be put on the agenda next month.
The dog bin in Chapel Street was recently moved by BT and it is now difficult for residents to reach.
The Annual Parish Council Meeting will be held on 10 May 2018 at 7.30pm in the Memorial Hall.
There being no further business Councillor Watkins thanked everyone for attending and closed the public meeting at 8.57pm.
