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Minutes of Thakeham Parish Council Meeting - Monday, 18th June 2007
Meeting opened: 7.30 p.m. Present: Mr D Berry Mr J Bearman Mr R Brown Mrs L Bunyan Ms K Dawes Mr S Kirby Ms L McDowell Mr D MacEachern Mr N Prince Mr R Walker Mr J Weight
In attendance Cllr Pat Arculus County Council Cllr David Jenkins District Council Mr J Denman Clerk to the Council Members of the public
135. Apologies for absence All members of the Parish Council were present.
136. Interests of Members No interests were declared.
137. Highway Rangers Mr Matt Starling of WSCC gave a presentation on the work of the Highway Rangers. Item to be included in next newsletter.
138. Minutes of the last meetingMinutes of the annual meeting of the Parish Council held on 21st May 2007 were approved and signed.
139. Report on Action Items 139.1 (119.1) Playing fields maintenance: TPC recorded their thanks to Sussex Mushrooms for undertaking the work although not on their lease and also expressed concern and regret over the recent fire.
139.2 (119.2) Furze Common Road issues: Clerk has requested Paul Rowley/HDC to broker discussions; awaiting feedback.
139.3 (119.3) Speed limits/new government guidance: Pat Arculus/CLC advised of TPC support.
139.4 (119.7) Dog walker difficulties top of ridge: Cllr Prince following up ownership with Beamsync.
139.5 (121.3) Bank mandate: In circulation for completion.
139.6 (121.4) Banking arrangements: Bank instructed to amalgamate accounts.
139.7 (121.6) Office broadband facility: In hand, awaiting activation.
139.8 (127) Footpaths: List of footpath maintenance requirements sent to WSCC.
140. Correspondence HDC: Summons to Council meeting 14th June. Summons to Development Control (South) Committee meeting 19th June. Summons to Standards Committee meeting 6th June. LDF: Public Examination of General Development Control Policies DPD. Invitation to Civic Service 24th June (previously passed to Chairman). WSCC: A24 Route Safety Strategy update. Invitation to consultation on the West Sussex Rural Strategy 13th June (previously passed to Chairman). Local Works: Sustainable Communities Bill - request to lobby.
141. Finance 141.1 Bank Reconciliation The bank reconciliation as at 31 March 2007 was received.
141.2 Explanation of Variances The explanation of variances for the year ended 31 March 2007 was received.
141.3 Internal Auditor's Report The Internal Auditor's report and letter of clearance for the year ended 31 March 2007 was received.
141.4 Annual Return 141.4.1 It was agreed that the Statement of Accounts contained in the Annual Return for the year ended 31 March 2007 be approved.
141.4.2 It was agreed that the Annual Governance Statement contained in the Annual Return for the year ended 31 March 2007 be approved.
141.5 Financial Performance A report on the current financial year to 31st May 2007 was received.
141.6 Payments A report on the current bank balances was tabled and the following were approved for payment: Roger Smith: May Outdoor Maintenance 290.00 HDC: June dog bin emptying 6.93 British Telecommunications plc: Calls and service charge 163.72 Heveco Mushrooms Limited - In Administration: Licence fee & service charge 1/9/06 - 23/4/07 194.01 R Goldsmith (Sales & Marketing): Annual reports 286.00 Gross salaries including PAYE / NI and Clerk's OP expenses and mileage 1273.52
£2214.18
141.7 Appeals Policy It was agreed to continue with the policy of supporting specific parochial appeals, those based outside the parish only being supported by exception if of significant benefit to the residents. It was further agreed that any appeals falling outside these criteria would in future be referred to under correspondence. The specific policy regarding the Storrington Museum will be included on a future agenda.
141.8 It was agreed that a donation of £250.00 be made to Chanctonbury Leisure Centre.
141.9 It was agreed that consideration of the appeal from Outset Youth Action be deferred until later in the year; Cllr MacEachern to get feedback from Rydon School.
142. Website Maintenance/Communications It was agreed that Cllr Bunyan be designated Website Administrator, Cllrs and clerk to input suitable items. No general responsibility for Communications to be allocated at present.
143. Parish Office The letter from HDC was discussed and it was agreed any decision would be deferred to the next meeting. Clerk to advise HDC and forward copy of the correspondence to District Cllr Jenkins.
144. Doorstep Crime Information to be posted on the website and included in the next newsletter.
145. Bus Shelters Open Spaces Committee to review and report back.
146. Joint Planning Advisory Working Group Cllr Berry reported on the meeting held on 4th June and read out the note sent by Tom Crowley/HDC following the meeting. Beamsync have withdrawn their objection to the exclusion from the Site Specific Allocations.
147. Parish Action Plan Cllr Walker advised that Mark Keenan is liaising with Beverley Turner who is still willing to coordinate the printing and her advice will be needed regarding the size, design and distribution of the document. An additional paragraph covering the Local Needs Criteria/Policy CP5 will be drafted by Cllr Dawes and circulated to all Cllrs.
148. Open Spaces Committee Meeting to be arranged.
149. FCR Footpath Inquiry Advisory Committee Cllr MacEachern reported on the first meeting. Concerns over the inquiry venue but Cllr Berry suggested the Committee should concentrate on ensuring all relevant evidence is available. County Cllr Arculus briefed the Council on the Inquiry procedure and advised that those who have used the path in the past should speak as that will carry most weight. Cllr Arculus also advised her understanding that the Inquiry dates were non-negotiable and agreed she would follow up the fire report issue.
150. Laybrook Landfill Working Party Meeting arranged for 28th June.
151. Planning Committee Minutes The minutes of the Planning Committee meeting held on 1st May were received.
152. Reports from Councillors 152.1 County Cllr Arculus advised an additional CLC meeting had been arranged for 26th June to cover Section 106 Agreements.
152.2 District Cllr Jenkins reported that HDC had approved £5M expenditure for the Billingshurst swimming pool.
152.3 Cllr Bearman reported on Village Hall matters and the Village Day.
153. Chairman's Announcements Cllr Berry thanked all who contributed to the newsletter which was a good quality document, as also was the annual report. Thanks to also be conveyed to Rod Goldsmith. The possible inclusion of photographs in future issues is a useful additional facility.
154. Any other business for noting or inclusion on a future agenda Approach to be adopted regarding quality status to be included on next agenda.
Date of next meeting: Monday, 16th July 2007 at 7.30 p.m. Meeting closed: 9.30 p.m.
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