MINUTES OF A MEETING OF TWYNING PARISH COUNCIL HELD ON MONDAY 18 APRIL 2016 AT TWYNING VILLAGE HALL 7.30PM Present: Cllr G Cowper (arrived during agenda item 12), Cllr R Edes, Cllr Ellis, Cllr D Hetherington,Cllr J Horsfall, Cllr S Holden (arrived part way through the meeting), Cllr D Murray (Chairman), Cllr W O Dell. 7 members of the public, Mrs S Satchell (Clerk), Mr D Taverner (RFO), Cllr M Sztymiak (GCC arrived during agenda item 18) The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting and invited comments from members of the public. Ms Ball reported that a passer-by had left dog faeces in a resident s blue recycling bin whilst it was at the roadside awaiting collection. It was agreed to monitor whether there were any further incidents. Ms Ball also reported that vehicles were parking on the Green all day and night and she believed residents were using the area as an extension to their own land. She suggested a letter should be delivered to residents around the east side of the Green asking them not to park there. The Clerk suggested discussing this after the meeting. Ms Ball also asked what steps could be taken to ensure that Tewkesbury Borough Council took enforcement action when a planning application was refused. Parish Council Meeting 84/16 Apologies for absence Apologies were received from Cllr Irwin and Cllr Spencer (Tewkesbury Borough Council (TBC)). 85/16 Declarations of interest and their nature Cllr Edes: Other interest in Village Hall as a committee member (PC representative). Cllr Murray: Other interest in matters relating to the Village Hall as his partner was Secretary. Cllr O Dell: Other interest in matters relating to the Village School as his wife was a Governor. Cllr Horsfall: Other interest in matters relating to the school (as a Governor) and in relation to TRAC (as a PC representative committee member) 86/16 To consider any requests for dispensations received There were none. 87/16 To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 21 March 2016 On the proposal of Cllr O Dell, the minutes of the meeting held on 21 March 2016 were approved by the meeting and signed as such by the Chairman. 88/16 Use of the Green 279
On the proposal of Cllr Horsfall it was resolved to agree the request to use the Green for a Charity Cricket Match 9.7.2016 89/16. Planning See schedule for planning applications and decisions. Cllr Spencer had reported to the Clerk that the development application for the Mythe (15/01293/OUT) had been withdrawn. He had also reported that the JCS session on Traveller and Retail provision had been held on 5, 6 & 7 April 2016. 90/16 Clerk s report The Clerk had circulated E-mails detailing grants for safer neighbourhoods (including anti-social behaviour) and from the Police and Crime Commissioner for road safety schemes. The Chairman said he was planning to meet with the Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator. 91/16 Plans for Parish Meeting 26 April 2016 The Clerk had put up posters. 92/16 Neighbourhood Development Plan & Service Village Forum A written report had been circulated. 93/16 Balances As at 31.03.2016 HSBC Current A/C 11,253.78 HSBC Deposit A/C 14,313.73 Handelsbanken 15,076.49 Nationwide Treasurer's A/C 22,629.19 Total 63,273.19 94/16. Cheques Parish Council Clerk s salary (March) 387.92 Clerk s expenses (March) 78.88 RFO s salary (March) 65.69 VHMC (room hire March) 16.00 GAPTC subscription 440.82 SKI Tyres (mini bus tyre 65.25 + VAT) 78.30 Newcastle University (Dr Gerrard s archaeological survey) 100.00 Grant approved September 2015 (Minute 239/15) On the proposal of Cllr Horsfall it was resolved to make the above payments. For note: NDP The cheque written at the last meeting for Groundworks ( 1,980.00) had been cancelled and replaced by two cheques for GRCC ( 222.50 + VAT) and Groundworks UK ( 1757.50) 95/16 RFO s report The RFO circulated a written report setting out expenses for the year against budget. The draft accounts indicated that the Council had finished the year with a surplus of income over expenditure. The grant towards the TRAC fence had not been included in the figures as it had 280
not yet been paid, but could be paid out of capital. Cllr O Dell asked if some of the surplus could be allocated to the mini bus reserve. 96/15 To approve Risk Schedule for Twyning Parish Council The RFO had circulated a draft Risk Schedule. The Clerk had received a copy of the TRAC insurance certificate but questioned whether it was necessary to obtain copies of insurance documentation in relation to the Village Hall and the Sports Club as TPC held the land only as custodian trustee for the organisations concerned. The position with TRAC was different as TPC owned the buildings but leased them to TRAC (for information: there is a provision in the lease relating to the requirement to insure.) It was agreed that the Clerk should request evidence of those insurances too. On the proposal of Cllr Edes it was resolved to approve the Risk Schedule as drafted. 97/15 Report from Councillor carrying out check on accounting controls The RFO intended to meet with Cllr O Dell over the next few days to complete a final check before submitting the paperwork relating to the 2015/6 accounts to the internal auditor. 98/15 Review of Investments The RFO reported that there was no change in the position in relation to appropriate investment opportunities. 99/15 To registration of Brockeridge Common as an asset of community value The Clerk had received confirmation that the application had been received and would be processed within 8 weeks. 100/15 Borough Council matters The Clerk had received a report on 2 planning related matters which had been read out as planning items. 101/16 County Council matters Cllr Sztymiak had spoken to Richard Waters about speeding vehicles. He believed that the police had a static infra-red device, and Mr Waters was making further inquiries whether this could be used in the village. GCC were introducing a lengthsman s scheme. This would involve each County Councillor being allocated 2 workmen in their division for 3 weeks between May and November. Councillors were able to purchase extra days using Highways Local money. The Parish would need to come up with a list of jobs about 2 weeks before the allocated date. Work which could be carried out in under the scheme included minor pot hole repairs (roads and footways), cleaning and straightening signs and bollards, strimming, cutting back vegetation, tidy footways, re-bedding loose slabs and kerbs, cleaning out drainage gullies and similar jobs. Cllr Sztymiak did not have a start date yet. He confirmed that he would continue to use his Highways Local money to help with weed spraying. Mr Luckett said that there were a number of manholes and grills that had sunk and should go on the list. Information on jobs to be carried out should be fed either to the Clerk or Cllr Sztymiak. 281
102/16 TRAC report A written report had been circulated. The Clerk had asked for a quote from TBC to carry out the grass cutting on the TRAC field. She had also passed on the enquiry about the clothes recycling bin. Cllr Edes asked what the field was presently being used for. Cllr Horsfall asked if the Council would consider contributing to the cost of the Queen s birthday celebrations (printing flyers, bunting etc). The Clerk indicated that having a picnic on the Green was a lawful use and in the absence of any organised activities, additional insurance cover was not required. Cllr Ellis said that in his view it was an event and the organiser should complete a form for use of the Green. It was agreed to ask Mrs Herold to complete an application form. 103/16 To agree the arrangements between Parish Council and TRAC vis a vis repairs and replacement. The Clerk asked for clarification of the decision at the last meeting (minute 77/16) that the Council would pay 31% of the cost of maintenance of the play equipment. It was agreed that this was the Council s interpretation of the provisions of the lease, but if the annual cost of maintenance was less than the amount of any Parish Council grant, there would be no extra funding provided by the Council. If play area maintenance exceeded the amount of the grant, the Council would pay 31% of any excess. 104/15 Village Hall Management Committee report There had been no meeting. 105/16 Mini Bus report Martyn Ryland was in attendance at the meeting and said that there were 43 bookings (some for multiple days) for the year at present, which was more than normal and that other groups had expressed interest. The bus needed an interim service, a seat repair and body work repairs. His view was that the bus was particularly uncomfortable for passengers. It was possible that more people might use the bus if it was more comfortable. He was not sure whether people would be prepared to pay more for a more comfortable seat. Other local organisations had a different basis of charge and it was hard to compare the different bus providers. To date, the vehicle had been very reliable. Mr Ryland was asked to obtain a quote to get the body work repaired. If the mini bus was to be replaced, he asked if he could be involved in the choice of vehicle. The Council gave a vote of thanks to Mr Ryland for all his hard work running the bus. The mini bus committee had obtained a sale value for the current vehicle, which was 3,250. The Clerk was investigating the question of how a replacement vehicle could be financed. She had to date not found a power besides s137, which would currently give a maximum (for the year) of 7.36 X 1395 = 10,267. It was agreed that it would be worth trying to obtain sponsorship to subsidise the running of the bus. 282
It was agreed that the mini bus committee should investigate the options (including sponsorship) and report back to the Council. 106/16 Village Environment a) Dog bag dispenser/litter bins Cllr Hetherington would let the Clerk know when she needed to order more dog poo bags. Cllr Murray agreed to pass a can of fluorescent spray to Cllr Holden. The Clerk asked attendees to report the location of bad spots for dog fouling to her so that she could report them to TBC. The Clerk had had a message asking whether it would be possible to have another bin at the top of Hill End Road. She asked Councillors to investigate the need and to report back to the next meeting. b) Ragwort on Council land The Clerk asked if the Council wished to make arrangements to control the ragwort on Council land. Cllr Sztymiak was asked whether this could be done by the lengthsman. He thought only if it was on Highways land. It was suggested that Cllr Irwin might be asked to organise a party of volunteers to pull some of the plants up. c) Brockeridge Common, Ripple lay-by The Clerk had circulated the police report which referred to an offence at Brockeridge Common being investigated. d) Creation of Parking Spaces on the Village Green The Clerk had asked for legal advice but had not received it yet. It was clear that extending the stoned area would be more complicated than installing mats/grasscrete from the legal point of view. There had also been an indication from TBC that such work would require planning consent. The difficulty using mats or grasscrete was that the surface would have to be levelled. Signs had been placed on the area and this was having the effect of reducing the number of parked vehicles. 107/16 Any other matters to be drawn to the Council s attention The Clerk read out a letter from John Pitcher written on behalf of himself and other landowners along the river, indicating that they were not in favour of a scheme to upgrade the footpath along the Avon. Cllr Holden reported that in other parishes, some gates had been changed to facilitate disabled access. Cllr O Dell said that he was still hoping to get the landowners to a meeting in order to progress the scheme. A notification had been received of a temporary closure of part of Hill End Road for the installation of an electric cable. 108/16 Meetings and courses Chartered Parishes meeting 6 July 2016 7pm GL3 Gloucestershire Hub CPRE AGM 17 th May 2016 6pm at Stanway House. 109/16 Adjournment to allow further comments from the public Mrs Lawson said that a number of people were concerned about the thefts that had been carried out in the village recently. She asked whether SmartWater was available and whether any more action could be taken. Cllr O Dell reminded the meeting that the police were prepared to visit individuals to carry out a crime prevention survey. It was 283
suggested that this should be publicised in the next Bulletin. Ms Ball asked whether it would be necessary to get s38 Commons Act 2006 consent to install further car parking spaces on the Green. Mrs Page suggested that Community Service Volunteers might be brought in to help clear the ragwort. 110/16 Date of next meeting Parish Meeting 26 April 2016 7.30pm Twyning Village Hall Annual Meeting of the Parish Council Monday 16 May 2016 7.30 pm Twyning Village Hall The meeting closed at 9.15pm Applications received 16/00382/TPO Twyning Parish Council London Plane on the Green Pruning PLANNING APPLICATIONS 16/00264/PDAD Conversion of pig and chicken housing to dwelling Barn 2 Twittocks Farm Permission granted 15/01131/FUL Hillview Hillend Alteration and conversion of garage to residential accommodation 284