HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES OF THE HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD IN THE MEMORIAL HALL ON THURSDAY, 10 DECEMBER 2015 at 7.30pm
Present: Councillors Kane, Hicks, Griggs, Watkins, Henderson, Matthews, Brotherston, County Cllr Reynolds, District Cllr Jelf, Mrs R Watts (Parish Clerk) and two members of the public.
Apologies for Absence – Cllrs Casson and Wright
Chairman’s Announcements: on the 7 December the Planning Inspectorate upheld the Appeal by Gladman Developments Ltd to develop land at Sibford Road, Hook Norton: 14/00844/OUT. Villagers are naturally incensed by this decision and are urged to write to The Leader of the Council cllr.barry.wood@cherwell-dc.gov.uk and Victoria Prentis MP Victoria.prentis.mp@parliament.uk urging Cherwell DC to pursue a Legal Challenge against this decision in the High Court. CDC is already seeking advice from Legal Counsel.
Declarations of Interest: Cllr Kane declared an interest in item 10, web hosting for the village website. Cllr Matthews declared an interest in planning application OCC MW.0132/15.
Minutes of Previous Meeting held on 12 November 2015 and Matters Arising
Cllr Hicks proposed that the minutes of the meeting on 12 November 2015 be resolved as a true and accurate record of the meeting. This was seconded by Cllr Watkins and passed unanimously.
Report of the Planning Co-Ordinator on Planning Applications – Annex 1
Eight planning / TCA applications have been received since the last meeting. There were no objections.
Cherwell District Council had granted two planning / TCA applications.
The Planning Inspectorate had upheld the Appeal by Gladman Developments Ltd to build 54 dwellings on OS Parcel 6680, north of the primary school in Sibford Road.
To Invite Members of the Public to Comment on Planning Applications: there was a brief discussion about the Sibford Road development. Councillors urged villagers to write to The Leader of the Council (Barry Wood), Victoria Prentis MP and David Cameron MP. Adult members in a household should write separate letters/emails of complaint.
Reports of Working Groups
Recreation
a) There was nothing to report.
Cemetery and Allotments
a) One allotment holder is overdue with her rental payment and two reminders have now been sent. Reminders each attract a £5 surcharge.
b) Cllr Kane proposed that with effect 2016, allotment holders will be invoiced for their annual rent at the beginning of March each year, to be paid by 1 April. Failure to pay after two reminders will result in the tenancy being terminated. There will be no refund of rent to tenants vacating plots midway through the year. These proposals were seconded by Cllr Hicks and agreed unanimously.
c) Cllr Griggs met with John Blackham to discuss the layout of the cemetery. He suggested that with Parish Council consent, suitable trees could be planted around the perimeter of the cemetery in memory of loved ones. Councillors welcomed this suggestion.
d) The dry stone wall between the upper and lower cemetery needs attention. Cllr Griggs is obtaining two quotations for the repair. He has also applied to the Tesco Local Community Grants scheme indicating interest in a grant towards paying for the repairs. If the next stage is reached, a more detailed application will have to be submitted by
16 January 2016.
e) A quotation for £460 has been received from Dave Smith for repairing the dry stone wall in the churchyard where tree roots have damaged it. Cllr Hicks proposed that the quote be accepted. This was seconded by Cllr Matthews and agreed unanimously.
Environment:
a) CDC appears to be replacing damaged or lost green rubbish bins with smaller models.
Hook Norton War Memorial Hall
a) A tile is missing from the roof and there is water ingress. Cllr Matthews will replace it.
b) Cllr Kane apologised to hirers for the lack of heating in the hall week commencing 23 November. Procedures have been put in place to ensure that in future the oil does not run out.
c) Two quotations have been received for replacement windows and fire doors – and an order has been placed with the cheaper of the two (Cherwell Windows) in the sum of £19K. Work will start week commencing 1 February and should be completed within the week.
d) The weekly village market, which is normally held in the Memorial Hall, has closed.
Hook Norton Neighbourhood Plan (HNNP) sub-Committee
a) Cllr Hicks had nothing to report.
Training for Councillors: this item was deferred to the January meeting.
Heath Allotment Trustees: The Heath Allotment Trust has notified the Parish Clerk that two trustees have recently resigned and one person has re-joined the trust. With effect from the February 2016 meeting the trustees will be: Pauline Walters (Chairman), Ray Jelf (Secretary), Clive Timms, Don Ratcliffe and Derek Brotherston.
Web Hosting for the Village Website: for the past 7-8 years Cllr Kane has provided hosting for the village website free of charge. The village has no alternative arrangement in place should Cllr Kane be unable to service the site and in addition, due to traffic levels a more robust server is needed. She will come to the January meeting with proposals for upgrading the system. Councillors agreed that the Parish Council will pay for the upgrade.
Finance/Schedule of Receipts and Payments for Authorisation by the Council
The Parish Clerk presented the schedules of receipts and payments and sought approval to pay the cheques itemised on the schedules for December totalling £8,841.55 for the Parish Council (Annex 2) and £411.70 for the Memorial Hall (Annex 3). Cllr Hicks moved acceptance of the payments detailed. This was seconded by Cllr Griggs and agreed unanimously.
District Council Report: District Cllr Jelf had nothing to report.
County Council Report: County Cllr Reynolds will chase OCC regarding the lack of progress in building the new primary school extension. As yet it is not known exactly where OCC will make cuts in 2016 but its budget will still rise by 1.99%. A further increase of 2% will be ring-fenced for Adult Social Care in line with a government directive.
Correspondence: The Parish Clerk had forwarded all correspondence to Councillors during the month. There were no matters outstanding.
To Invite Questions and Comments from Members of the Public: there were no members of the public attending.
AOB:
a) The post office in Hook Norton closed on 17 November 2015. The Post Office is optimistic that it may be able to move it to another location in the village but this will take time. A Post Office van visits The Sun Inn car park from 2.00pm – 4.00pm each Friday.
b) District Cllr Jelf will ask CDC when Section 106 monies from the Developers of The Grange will be passed to organisations in the village.
The next Parish Council meeting will be held on 14 January 2016 at 7.30pm in the Memorial Hall.
There being no further business Councillor Kane thanked everyone for attending and closed the public meeting at 8.43pm.