MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE AXMINSTER TOWN COUNCIL Held at the Guildhall on Monday, 8 th December 2014 at 7.15 p.m. Present: Town Mayor: Cllr. J.W. Walden Deputy Mayor: Cllr. D.R.H. Hull Councillors: G.S. Godbeer, P.G. Hayward, H.J.A. Jeffery, A.T. Moulding, L.A. Rowe, Mrs. S.R. Spiller, J. H. C.Stevenson, M.D. Symes B.R.Watson and B.C.H. Wheeler. The Town Clerk (Miss H. Kirkcaldie). 10 Members of the public. 2 representatives of the Press, 0 representative from the police. CLLRS. GODBEER, HAYWARD, D.R.H. HULL, MOULDING, MRS. SPILLER, WATSON AND WHEELER ALL DECLARED PERSONAL INTERESTS AS BEING MEMBERS OF THE AXMINSTER GUILDHALL MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE IN RESPECT OF ANY ITEMS RELATING TO THE GUILDHALL. CLLR. JEFFERY DECLARED A PERSONAL INTEREST AS BEING THE DESIGNATED PREMISES SUPERVISOR CLLRS. GODBEER, D.R.H. HULL, JEFFERY, MOULDING AND WALDEN ALL DECLARED PERSONAL INTERESTS AS BEING MEMBERS OF AXMINSTER COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE. CLLRS. STEVENSON AND SYMES DECLARED INTERESTS AS BEING MEMBERS OF THE AXMINSTER HOSPITAL LEAGUE OF FRIENDS IN RESPECT OF MATTERS RELATING TO AXMINSTER HOSPITAL 2014/0467 APOLOGIES: Cllr. Mrs. D.J. Hull, (unwell) Cllr. R.W. Jordan, Cllr. Mrs. S.L.N. Leat (unwell) and the Deputy Town Clerk (Mrs. P.M. Hutchings). 2014/0468 MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 10 th NOVEMBER 2014: The minutes of the meeting of the Town Council held on Monday 10 th November 2014 had been circulated to all Councillors. The following amendments were made: a) 14/0427 Cllr. Walden asked that the third sentence in this minute be corrected to read However, in addition to the cartoon, a member of Support Axminster Library, commenting in a personal capacity on social media, had suggested that all Town Councillors be sent a link to a website, which, if accessed in a particular way, appeared to link to pornographic material. b) 2014/0454 Cllr. Walden asked that this be corrected as neither he nor Cllr. Hayward 1
were members of the Youth Club Committee. c) 2014/0465 Cllr. Hayward asked that his statement of concerns regarding reports from the National Association of Local Government that there were indications that even if a parish had a Neighbourhood Plan approved by the Inspectors and adopted by the local residents, it was not mandatory for the parish to be given 25% of Community Infrastructure Levy for the parish and that this could have considerable implications for the implementation of the aspirations set out in a parish s Neighbourhood Plan. Some parishes had been reported as receiving only 1% of the levy. Cllr. Rowe, seconded by Cllr. Symes, proposed that, subject to these corrections, the minutes be approved and adopted. Agreed. 2014/0469 POLICE REPORT: a written report had been received and was noted. 2014/0470 TOWN FORUM PROPOSED CLOSURE OF INPATIENT BEDS AT AXMINSTER HOSPITAL: A local doctor reported on progress since a public meeting held earlier in the Autumn. He said that there were two separate issues. First was the proposed temporary closure of in-patient beds at Axminster Hospital and their transfer to Seaton, due to take place from the start of January. This was being proposed as a matter of urgency, with limited public consulation, on grounds of patient safety by the North Devon Healthcare Trust. Second was the proposed permanent closure of in-patient beds at Axminster Hospital by North, East and West Devon Clinical Commissioning Group in order to achieve financial savings and which was the subject of a three month consultation period. Axminster Hospital Action Group had been formed to challenge the second proposal and had now made a legal challenge regarding the first, since it had been made public. A petition had been signed by 6820 local residents and a further 300 had signed an on-line petition. The consultation period for the Clinical Commissioning Group s proposal would be concluding on 12 th December. The petition will be presented to North Devon Healthcare Trust, North East and West Devon Clinical Commissioning Group and to the Minister of Health and National Health Service England. The consultation on the temporary closure of beds had been extended by one month by the North Devon Health Care Trust and various consultation dates were being publicized. As this period included numerous bank holidays, its length was being challenges as not complying with legislation. 2
The consultation document could be obtained from the local surgery. Members of the public were urged to read it through and look at the options and vote giving reasons. A stakeholder group is to be formed for Wakley Area, of which Axminster forms part. Referring to the promise that the situation would be subject to independent review, Cllr. Walden asked who would undertake the review. The local doctor had asked whether the situation at Seaton would also be subject to independent review and had been informed by the Chief Executive of North Devon Healthcare Trust that the outcome would be the same as in Axminster. Cllr. Walden said that he would try to contact the Chief Executive as soon as possible. He pointed out that a senior nursing officer in the North Devon Healthcare Trust had expressed concerns regarding potential risk to patient safety rather than actual risk. The suggestion was made that the beds should be retained at both hospitals and increased to the 18 bed level which would require the two registered nurses and thereby eliminate the potential risk of patient safety to which reference had been made. Cllr. Walden said that if one took a strategic overview then this level of capacity was needed to ensure that Wonford Hospital could cope in times of pressure. Cllr. Moulding deplored the fact that these decisions were being made in the run up to the May elections and before the Local Plan had been approved and service contracts agreed. He questioned the need to rush through these changes. The review of the consultation by North Devon Healthcare Trust will be at a public committee meeting on 7 th January. A member of the public said that he was unclear as to how the deadline for the Clinical Commissioning Group s consultation would be affected by the legal challenges. The local doctor said that he had no information on this point. There was discussion regarding the success of the format for the new consultations regarding the temporary closure proposals. It was suggested that the meetings were not timed to suit working people. It was agreed that Cllr. Walden would invite the Chief Executive of North Devon Healthcare Trust to call a public meeting. The local doctor left the meeting at this point. CLLRS. WALDEN AND MOULDING DECLARED PERSONAL INTERESTS AS BEING MEMBERS OF AXMINSTER HOSPITAL ACTION GROUP 3
2014/0471 TOWN FORUM SUPPORT FOR AXMINSTER LIBRARY: A member of the public, referring to recent publicity for comments by a range of individuals both at public meetings and via social media welcomed statements that the reputation of Support Axminster Library group had not been impugned. He enquired whether the Town Council had received any further information regarding the request that Friday opening be reinstated. Cty. Cllr. Moulding responded that it was unlikely that the matter would be addressed until the financial details were published. He said that legal arrangements for the setting up of Trusts would take time and that there would be no changes until the new structure was in place. In principle Support Axminster Library and Axminster Town Council both favoured the creation of a Trust but this was conditional on the retention of the existing staff, a guarantee that any funds raised by a League of Friends would be for extras not for core services which should be funded directly by the County and that the issue of the historic under-funding of Axminster Library was addressed and compensated for in some way. Cllr. Moulding continued that he was aware that Support Axminster Library had decided not to become a pilot library with a remit to have greater community involvement in shaping the services provided at the local library. He said that this did not preclude them continuing to act to support the library but said that they would not have an exclusive veto. 2014/0472 TOWN FORUM - IMPACT OF PROPOSED HIGHWAY IMPROVEMENTS: A resident, referring to the Government proposal to upgrade the A358 between the A303 and the M5 would have considerable repercussions for Axminster, in the form of more traffic. He felt that a letter should be sent to the Member of Parliament drawing attention to likely impact of this upgrade on Axminster and seeking Government contribution towards the relief road. Cllr. Moulding replied that the local Member of Parliament was very aware of the need for the North-South Relief Road and that it was likely that it would be achieved by a package of different funding sources. 2014/0473 TOWN FORUM STREET LIGHTING PROBLEM: a resident from Wilhayes Park expressed his disgust that the street lights in that part of town had been out for over a fortnight. As a result several people had fallen and had to go to hospital. The Town Mayor agreed that the response to street lighting faults always appeared to lack any sense of urgency. He asked County Councillor Moulding whether there had been a cut back in the service. Cllr. Moulding replied that he was not aware of such a cut back. He urged people who had reported such matters but were not getting any response to contact him so that he could investigate. 2014/0474 TOWN FORUM SUBSTANDARD PAVING:- A member of the public complained about the state of the pavements in the town. The Town Mayor said 4
that this matter had been raised on numerous occasions. Following discussion it was agreed that the preference would be for ashphalt pavements rather than slabs. The Town Clerk will contact the Neighbourhood Highway Officer to discuss this matter. 2014/0475 TOWN FORUM WORKS TO WILHAYES LANE CULVERT: A resident asked for an update on the proposed works to the culvert under Wilhayes Lane. Cllr. Moulding responded that discussions were still on-going with local landowners to determine the best course for the water to follow. He said that the fact that there were historic tank traps in the area had to be taken into consideration. The scheme proposed would have to be tested by computer modelling before work would start. 2014/0476 TOWN FORUM WEBSTERS GARAGE: A member of the public was informed that no start date had been received yet for works at this site but that the panels done by Axminster Arts had been removed ready for the work to begin. The Town Mayor reiterated the fact that the District Council did not favour taking action under Section 215 powers and that otherwise there were limitations on what individual property owners could be required to do. The member of the public felt that the site owner or his agent should come to a Town Council meeting to take questions from the public. 2014/0477 TOWN FORUM SUSTRANS: Cllr. Watson informed the meeting that he was now an official Sustrans volunteer and had access to various signs. He said that he would correct the mis-signing of Route 33 at the junction of Castle Street and West Street. 2014/0478 TOWN FORUM RURAL COMMUNITY ENERGY FUND: Cllr. Hayward said that this fund had been set up to push for renewable energy products. He said that there were 20,000 grants available to undertake feasibility studies. It was agreed that he should look into the matter further and report back at the next meeting of the Parish Council. 2014/0479 TOWN FORUM MAINTENANCE OF CYCLE ROUTES: The Town Mayor said that he had received comments regarding the fact that Sustrans while providing funding for the construction of cycle routes does not have any responsibility for their subsequent maintenance which becomes a burden on the local authorities at a time when funds are being squeezed. Cllr. Moulding acknowledged that this was the situation. He reported that the section of the route through from Axminster to Kilmington would be surfaced in the Kilmington section to prevent the loss of the loose scalpings, which had proved a problem since it was constructed. Arrangements were in place with adjacent landowners regarding who would undertake the work. Cllr. Watson observed that the fact that livestock could wander across the path made it unpleasant for both pedestrians and cyclists to use because of deposits of animal 5
faeces. He said that these were cleared by volunteers. Cllr. Godbeer said that livestock would be attracted to lie on an asphalt surface because of the heat it retained. 2014/0480 MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 10 TH NOVEMBER 2014: None. 2014/0481 MATTERS OF URGENCY FUNDING FOR SERVICE PROVISION: The Town Mayor said that an opportunity had arisen to apply for a grant of 6000 from central Government to assist Parish Councils which were willing to try and take on some additional service provision for the local community, such as might be delivered by being able to have a town handyman. Cllr. Walden proposed that the Town Council should submit and application. Agreed. 2014/0482 MATTERS OF URGENCY ALLOTMENT PROVISION ON BOVIS HOMES SITE: The Town Clerk had been contacted by Bovis Homes with a request to discuss the proposed allotment provision within the site. The Town Mayor asked whether his fellow Councillors were willing for him to have some initial discussions with a representative from Bovis. It was agreed that this should be done. 2014/0483 MATTERS OF URGENCY- PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM: The Town Mayor said that the public address system in the main hall had broken down and needed to be replaced as a matter of urgency. He had had preliminary discussions with Cllr. Hayward and it was likely that the cost of replacing the present system with one more suited to the requirements of the present day would be in the region of 1800. It was agreed that Cllrs. Walden and Hayward, in consultation with the Chairman of the Guildhall Management Committee should investigate what was required and seek quotations and keep the Town Councillors informed of progress. 2014/040484 TOWN MAYOR S ANNOUNCEMENTS FORTHCOMING EVENTS: The Town Mayor drew attention to the following events: Public Consultation Sessions at Axminster Hospital regarding proposed temporary closure of in-patient bed facilities. Mondays 8 th, 15 th, 22 nd and 29 th December by appointment. Police and Crime Commissioner Surgery at the Beehive, Honiton from 12.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. Members of the public must book an appointment. 2014/0485 TOWN MAYOR S ANNOUNCEMENTS ROAD CLOSURES: the following road closures had been notified: Works to B3261 and A358 on as-yet-to-be-specified dates between 8 th September 2014 and March 15 th 2014 for resurfacing and associated works. 6
Victoria Place, Axminster on yet to be specified dates between 1 st October 2014 and 31 st March 2015 Weycroft Mill to Greghams Farm, A358 from Weycroft Bridge to Greghams Farm speed limits to allow surface dressing 15 th and 16 th December 2014 Castle Hill 23.45 16 th December to 05.30 17 th December 2014 to allow relining of road traffic markings 2014/0486 TOWN MAYOR S ENGAGEMENTS: Since the last meeting of the Town Council the Town Mayor had undertaken the following engagements: Attended the observation of the two minute silence at the War Memorial on Armistice Day. Attended the opening of the new conservatory for residents at Magnolia House residential care home. Held meetings with the various prospective parliamentary candidates for the constituency. Attended the Ceremony and signed the new Town Twinning Charter following the destruction of the original by fire damage earlier in the year. Switched on the Christmas Lights on the Minster Green on Festive Friday. Opened the St. Mary s Catholic Church Christmas Bazaar. 2014/0487 MINUTES OF THE PLANNING COMMITTEE: Dated 10 th November 2014. Cllr. Watson, Chairman of the Committee, presented the minutes of the above meeting, and proposed, seconded by Cllr. Mrs. Spiller, that they be approved and adopted. Agreed 2014/0488 MINUTES OF THE BUILDINGS AND FINANCE COMMITTEE: Dated 7 th November 2014. The Town Clerk regretted that these were not available as a result of staff shortages. 2014/0489 MINUTES OF THE EMPLOYMENT COMMITTEE: Dated 1 st December 2014 The Town Mayor, Chairman of the Committee, presented the minutes of the above meeting and proposed, seconded by Cllr. Mrs. Spiller, that they be approved and adopted. Agreed. 2014/0490 MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES OF THE PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING DATED 10 th NOVEMBER 2014: None. 7
2014/0491 MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES OF THE EMPLOYMENT COMMITTEE MEETING DATED 1 ST DECEMBER 2014: None. 2014/0492 FINANCIAL MATTERS - PAYMENTS TO BE APPROVED: The schedule of payments covering November had been circulated to all Councillors. CLLR. HAYWARD DECLARED A PRECUNIARY INTEREST IN CHEQUE 5476 AS BEING THE RECIPIENT AND LEFT THE CHAMBER. CLLR. JEFFERY DECLARED A PRECUNIARY INTEREST IN CHEQUE 5487 AS BEING THE RECIPIENT AND LEFT THE CHAMBER. Cllr. Godbeer, seconded by Cllr. Moulding, proposed that these payments be approved. Agreed. CLLRS. HAYWARD AND JEFFERY RETURNED TO THE CHAMBER 2014/0493 FINANCIAL MATTERS: MATTERS APPROVED FOR EXPENDITURE BY TOWN MAYOR OR COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN: Cllr. Jeffery said that he had authorised the purchase of 15 barriers and 15 cones for use at community events, such as Festive Friday, and in emergencies. The total cost had been 703, with 366 being covered from the Risk and Emergency Planning Budget and the balance from the Community Benefit Fund. It was agreed, proposed by Cllr. Watson, that these be made available for use by surrounding parishes if requests were received. Cllr. Jeffery proposed that a letter of thanks be sent to Colyton Carnival Committee from whom such items had been borrowed in the past when needed. Agreed. 2014/0494 FINANCIAL MATTERS - REQUESTS FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE;. None. 2014/0495 MATTERS RELATING TO AXMINSTER HOSPITAL: Referring to the consultation document on the proposed temporary closure of the in-patient beds at Axminster Hospital, Cllr. Walden urged as many people as possible to respond, as individuals, to the consultation. He said that he would compose a response on behalf of the Town Council. He said that he felt that there would be a need for both supported care at home but also for in-patient care and that the latter was more expensive in many ways and not as cost effective. Cllr. Watson wondered whether any consideration had been given to the added pressure inappropriate home-based care would be likely to put on paramedics and what this would cost. 2014/0496 SUPPORT AXMINSTER LIBRARY CAMPAIGN: Cllr. Rowe said that the 8
group had rejected the idea of the library becoming one of the pilots for a new community model library as it did not want the introduction of self-service machines or service managers in place of professionally trained librarians. Cllr. Hayward said that in East Devon, Colyton and Ottery St. Mary had applied for this pilot scheme. 2014/0497 REPORT ON MEETING WITH HIGHWAY AGENCY REPRESENTATIVES REGARDING HUNTERS LODGE JUNCTION: The Town Mayor said that the main outcome of the meeting, which had been chaired by the local Member of Parliament, had been that despite having been willing to introduce a traffic-light based solution to the problems at this junction and having done further traffic surveys at the busiest time of the year, the engineers reported back that such a solution would not be acceptable on safety grounds. He said that as they were the experts and had personal responsibility in such matters it would be foolish not to accept these findings. The fact that the junction is a staggered junction made a traffic light solution even more difficult to implement. Cllr. Walden continued that lack of land made a roundabout solution difficult in the context of the accident record at this junction. It was therefore likely that the main changes would be though the introduction of vehicle activated signage to traffic on the A35 of the likelihood of vehicles emerging from the two side roads. The 40 m.p.h. limit would be moved further west and discussions held with Devon County Council regarding the widening of the junctions at Lyme Road and Crewkerne Road to make it easier for vehicles to turn left and to reduce the problem caused by the bus stop by the Hunters Lodge Inn, possibly by moving it further south Any changes would be subject to audit following implementation and would be changed if the pre-existing lay-out was seen to perform better in terms of accident statistics. He said that the local Member of Parliament had said that it would not be appropriate to call a further public meeting until the revised plans had been completed, which was likely to be in February. Several Councillors observed that one of the most effective means of encouraging people to reduce their speeds was the presence of speed cameras and it was suggested that this location be added to the list of local Police Speed Watch Areas. 2014/0498 NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING UPDATE: Cllr. Moulding reported on the meeting with the Neighbourhood Planning Consultant. He said that the target for the grant spend target had been reached and the Town Clerk would be submitting the report shortly. 9
The members of the press and one member of the public left at this point. Cllr. Moulding proceeded to report on the meeting of the Steering Group which had taken place on 27 th November. He confirmed that most of the themed groups had started their discussions, though some were further on than others. It had been agreed that a website would be essential and a quote had been received from a local company. Cllr. Hayward suggested that rather than have a separate website for the Neighbourhood Plan it would make better sense to upgrade the Town Council website and run the Neighbourhood Plan website as a subset of the main website. The Town Clerk will approach the company which had supplied the quote and ask them to quote on the basis suggested by Cllr. Hayward. Comparative quotes will be sought from other firms in the area. 2014/0499 UPDATE ON PARISHES TOGETHER FUNDING: Cllr. Moulding reported on a meeting he had had with the parishes in his ward. Cllr. Watson, seconded by Cllr. Moulding, proposed that Axminster Town Council in conjunction with All Saints Parish Council would act together and put their funds towards the provision of a permissive path between Weycroft and Millwey Rise so that there was no need to walk beside the busy A35 on the stretch where there was no pavement. Agreed. Cllr. Moulding will look into the costings and legal aspects and report back. 2014/0500 CHANGES TO PROCEDURES FOR PUBLIC SPEAKING AT DISTRICT COUNCIL DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETINGS: Cllr. Hayward expressed his feeling that the proposed limitations on public speaking were anti-democratic. Cllr. Moulding said that they had been introduced to avoid repetition of the same points by numerous speakers. Cllr. Hayward pointed out that members of the Committee were repetitive. After further discussion it was agreed that the situation be monitored so that appropriate comment could be made once the trial was reviewed. 2014/0501 REQUEST THAT AXMINSTER FUNFAIR BE RELOCATED: A letter had been received from some residents of Coombefield Lane requesting that the funfair, which takes place each September in Carnival Week in the Coombefield Lane Car Park, which is owned by East Devon District Council. They said that they and their properties suffered as a result of anti-social behaviour caused by people attending the Fun Fair. Several Councillors pointed out that the fair was nothing to do with either the Town Council or the Carnival Committee but a private arrangement between the Funfair 10
owner and the District Council. After discussion, it was agreed that the Town Clerk should respond to the letter pointing these facts out, enquiring what other locations the residents had in mind and suggesting that they contact the Carnival Committee. CLLRS. D.R.H. HULL, JEFFERY AND SYMES EACH DECLARED A PERSONAL INTEREST AS BEING MEMBERS OF THE CARNIVAL COMMITTEE. 2014/0502 THE ROLE OF SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP: a local resident, who had an interest in social entrepreneurship had approached the Town Mayor with some suggestions. It was agreed that Cllr. Hayward should contact the resident concerned and report back at the next meeting of the Town Council. Cllr. Walden reported that the Axminster New Youth Club was now up and running and that discussions were taking place with other potential hirers from both the community and commercial sectors. 2014/00503 UPDATE ON PIPPINS (FORMERLY AXE VALLEY YOUNG PEOPLE S CENTRE): CLLR. ROWE DECLARED A PERSONAL INTEREST AS BEING ON THE COMMITTEE OF THE AXMINSTER NEW YOUTH CLUB. Cllr.Walden said that the new Youth Club was gaining members. Referring to the need for a Committee of the Town Council to have responsibility for the building, Cllr. Mrs. Spiller proposed that this be a sub-committee of the Amenities Committee. Agreed. Cllr. Moulding said that there would be administrative duties associated with the building and that this aspect would need to be covered somehow. Cllr. Mrs. Spiller said that the Town Council s existing staff were fully stretched and could not take on this responsibility, although they would include necessary budgetary arrangements. Cllr. Hayward asked that the Town Clerk contact the contractor who worked for the County Council and seek clarification regarding some points mentioned in the condition report. 2014/0504 MEETING WITH DISTRICT COUNCIL ON 2 ND DECEMBER: Cllr. Hayward said that this had been an excellent meeting. In the first session, County Councillor Hart had given a frank statement on those areas of the County Council budget which were most likely to face severe cut backs, namely highways and public transport. There had been a session on the forthcoming elections for Parish and District Councils and there would be a meeting for those interested in becoming Councillors on 12 th February at the Senior Citizens Centre in Axminster. 11
Cllr. Hayward said that the second half of the evening had consisted of reports from those who had established successful community projects, including the Seaton s Voice, East Budleigh Community Shop and the Cranbrook Community Fund. 2014/0505 FUNDING PROBLEMS OF NORTH, EAST AND WEST DEVON CLINICAL COMMISSIONING GROUP: This matter had been covered under item 2014/0494 2014/0506 REPORTS FROM DISTRICT COUNCILLORS: Cllr. Jeffery said that he had completed his Chapter 8 Training. Cllr. Moulding said that the next recycling contract was under consideration and that surveys had show reasonable levels of satisfaction with the services provided by the District Council. Cllr. D.R.H. Hull welcomed the fact that it was now likely that the new District Council offices would be at Honiton rather than Clyst Honiton as this was more central to the district. 2014/0507 COUNTY COUNCILLOR S REPORT: Cllr. Moulding said that there were no matters he wished to raise at this point. 2014/0508 CORRESPONDENCE: The following items were NOTED unless specific comments are appended. a) Letters Received - i) D.A.L.C. various ii) Chideock Parish Council re traffic on A35 b) Meetings. i) Drop-in Sessions re Temporary Closure of In-patient beds at Axminster Hospital 8 th,15 th, 22 nd 29 th December 2-4 p.m. at hospital. c) Reports Received - the following reports are available for consultation in the office or online: i) The Project. Cllr. D.R.H. Hull proposes that under the provisions of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings ) Act 1960, (as amended by the Local Government Act 1972 the public, (including the press) be excluded from the meeting as publicity would be prejudicial to the public interest by reason of the confidential nature of the business to be transacted. Cllr. Mrs. Spiller seconded the proposal. Carried. 2014/0509 TO CONSIDER QUOTES FOR NEW SIGNAGE ON THE GUILDHALL FACADE: Cllr. Walden said that he had investigated various sources for the production of a copy of the Town Crest and new lettering for the façade of the Guildhall. Only one of the firms approached had been able to do both on metal. He proposed that the quote for the coat of arms in the sum of 350 and for the raised lettering in the sum of 435 be accepted to enable the work to be done while the scaffolding was still in place. Cllr. Jeffery seconded the proposal. Agreed. Signed. Date.. 12
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