Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held at the Village Hall on Monday, 9th January 2023 at 7.30pm.
- Present
- Cllr M Gillett (Chair), D Turner, H Stanford, H Glasse, S Baker, S Budd, M Mann, K Wilkinson, A Stevens
- In Attendance
- M Hicks – County Cllr, S Morley – District Cllr, T Turner (Village Hall)
ES116/22/23 – To Receive Apologies of Absence
Apologies had been received from J Blackburn, Parish Clerk.
ES117/22/23 – To Receive Declarations of Interest
Cllr Stanford declared an interest in item 8(g) on the Agenda.
ES118/22/23 – To Receive Applications for Dispensation
None had been received.
ES119/22/23 – To Approve the Minutes of the Meeting Held on 7th November 2022
It was AGREED: That the minutes of the meeting held on 7th November 2022 be approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman.
ES120/22/23 – Public Forum
No members of the public were present.
ES121/22/23 – To Receive the County Councillor’s Report – Cllr Hicks
Cllr Hicks’ report had been circulated prior to the meeting and would be published on the Village Website.
Members thanked Cllr Hicks for the £1,000 locality grant funding towards the replacement of the streetlights project.
In relation to speeding through the village, Cllr Hicks agreed to put the Parish Council in touch with Josh White for mitigation suggestions.
Cllr Hicks also suggested that Cllr Gillett emailed Tim Passmore, Police Commissioner, to see if further enforcement could be instituted.
ES122/22/23 - To Receive the District Councillor’s Report – Cllr Morley
Cllr Morley briefly went through her report, which would be published on the village website.
Members of the Parish Council thanked Cllr Morley for the locality grant funding of £2,000 towards the replacement of the streetlights project.
Cllr Wilkinson raised the issue of the new pedestrian crossing at Gateway 14, which could be dangerous. Cllr Morley stated that she would approach Highways England as it was not a District Council issue.
Tony Turner, Village Hall, stated that he would email Cllr Morley regarding the large recycling bins at the Village Hall, which kept being delivered the wrong way round.
ES123/22/23 – To Receive the Clerk’s Report and Financial Matters
a) Clerk’s Report
There was nothing to report.
b) To Receive the Clerk’s Financial Report
The Clerk reported on the Council’s current financial position and movements since the last meeting. It was reported that the balance in the accounts on 3rd January 2023 was £9,441.84.
c) To Authorise Payments and Note Receipts
The Clerk reported the following payments be authorised:
- Jennie Blackburn - Clerk's Pay (Dec) - £280.75
- Jennie Blackburn - Clerk's Office Allowance/Exp (Dec) - £26.00
- RBL - Poppy Wreath and Donation - £50.00
- D Turner - Recorder Printing Reimbursement - £190.00
- SCC - Street Light replacement (2 units) - £532.80
- ES Cricket Club - Grass Cutting Donation - £400.00
- Jennie Blackburn - Clerk's Pay (Jan) - £280.75
- Jennie Blackburn - Clerk's Office Allowance/Exp (Jan) - £28.25
- M Gillett - Dog Bin Fixings Reimbursement - £8.95
- Suffolk Cloud - Renewal of Domain Name - £16.00
- Vertas Group - Grass Cutting - Jan-Mar 2023 - £337.32
It was AGREED: That payments totaling £2,150.82 be approved.
The following receipts were also noted:
- Stowmarket Town Council - One off advert in Recorder - £30.00
- J Felton - Advert for Recorder - £30.00
- Lee Goddard - Recorder Advert - £30.00
- R J Nunn - Allotment Rent - £1,355.27
d) Final Budget 2023/24
It was AGREED: That the Final Budget for 2023/24 be agreed. Cllr Glasse asked for his opposition to the 6.56% increase of a Band D property be noted.
e) Precept for 2023/24
It was AGREED: That the Precept of £7,330 for 2023/24 be agreed. Clerk to action.
f) Donations
It was AGREED: That the following donations be made:
- Forward Africa - £100
- Homestart - £50
- Livability - £50
- Stowmarket Foodbank - £100
- Citizens Advice Bureau - £125
- Churchyard Maintenance - £350
- Village Hall - £500
ES124/22/23 – Planning Applications
Ref: DC/22/05467 - Planning Application - Retention of erection of pole barn, siting of storage containers and installation of domestic zip wire. (Retrospective application following Enforcement case ref: EN/22/00218) - Land Rear of Angel Hill Farm, Norwich Road, Stonham Aspal
During a brief discussion members felt that they objected to the application on the basis of unsightly development near a listed building (Angel Hill Farm), planning permission had not been properly sought and also that Asbestos may have been used in construction.
It was AGREED: That the Parish Council Object to the application for the above reasons. Clerk to action.
ES125/22/23 - Planning Decisions
The following decisions were noted:
Ref: DC/22/04746 - Full Planning Application - Erection of 1No dwelling, with annexe and integral garage and creation of vehicular access. Land South of Fieldfare, Forward Green, Earl Stonham – Granted
Ref: DC/22/05436 - Householder Application - Proposed dropped kerb, vehicular access and driveway. Willow Wood Barn, Forward Green, Earl Stonham - Granted
ES126/22/23 - Data Statistics from the Recent Road Survey
Following the provision of a road survey in the village, the results had showed a large number of speeding vehicles.
It was AGREED: That Cllr Gillett contact Cllr Hicks to discuss a way forward.
ES127/22/23 – Update on War Memorial
It was noted that quotes had been sought and were being awaited.
ES128/22/23 – Update on Warm Space Initiative
Although this had been a good idea and a number of volunteers had offered their time, there had been almost no attendees. It was therefore decided to pause sessions for the time being.
Some grant money may need to be returned to Suffolk County Council, which Tony Turner would deal with.
ES129/22/23 – Update on Signage at Both Ends of Village
There was nothing further to report.
ES130/22/23 - Update on the Refurbishment of the Village Sign on the Green
There was nothing to report.
ES131/22/23 - Update on Street Lighting
Cllr Glasse had received quotes for the replacement of the remaining streetlights owned by the Parish Council. An itemised quote amounted to £2,606 (exc. VAT) which did not include the light at the Village Hall.
Tony Turner explained that moving forward he felt the Village Hall light could be transferred to the responsibility of the Village Hall then the cost of replacing it could be reduced to under £600 (against Suffolk County Council’s quote of £1,475).
Locality Grant Funding of £3,000 had been confirmed which would almost cover the cost of replacing all the lights.
Members discussed the gifting of streetlight 13 to the Village Hall and provide a budget figure of up to £600 for its replacement. Documentation would be necessary for the grant application.
It was AGREED: That the streetlight (unit 13) be gifted to the Village Hall. Parish Clerk to action. That all the remaining lights be replaced. Cllr Glasse to action.
E132/22/23 - Update on the Community Speedwatch Team
Following a brief discussion Cllr Gillett stated that he would investigate whether speed cameras could be sited at different locations for better effectiveness. Various residents had volunteered their driveways but any locations would need to be inspected by the Police in the first instance.
ES133/22/23 - Update on the Village Hall
Tony Turner outlined improvements that had been made to the toilets/hand dryers and also that the garden was being planted with hedging and trees.
The Pantomime would soon be taking place following its pre-Christmas cancellation due to cast sickness. He confirmed that a number of tickets were still available.
The Parish Clerk would be asked to circulate the poster via her network of neighbouring Parish Clerks.
ES134/22/23 - Update on Wooden Posts on Village Green
There was nothing to report.
ES135/22/23 - Update on Footpaths
- The School Lane footpath had been cleared and members expressed their thanks to the ‘clearer’.
- The finger post pointing to Mud Hall had fallen over. Clerk asked to liaise with Cllr Wilkinson for details and action replacement.
- The path to Blacksmith Lane - Cllr Budd reported Rob Porch may be able to bush wack the overgrown part.
- The footpath on the south side of Mud Hall was overgrown.
- Footpath 136 - Wicks Lane was discussed but no action was anticipated by any authorities.
ES136/22/23 - Matters to be Brought to the Attention of the Council
- An Allotment Tenant had approached the Parish Council in relation to part of his Allotment field being used for dog exercising on a commercial basis, which would need to be looked into by Cllr Gillett and the Clerk.
- Cllr Glasse asked if part of the Village Green could be used for overflow parking on 1st July 2023 as his daughter was getting married at Wades Cottage.
ES137/22/23 – Date of Next Meeting
Monday, 6th March 2023 at 7.30pm
The meeting finished at 9pm.
Chairman: …………………………………………… Dated: …………………………………………