UNAPPROVED MINUTES
Minutes of a Parish Council Meeting held on Monday, 25th January 2010 at All Saints’ Community Hall at 7.15pm.
Present: Cllrs. D. Mowatt (Chairman), V. Barrett, F. Benfield, I. Bloomfield, A. Brett,
R. Gatward, J. Hales, D. Hardingham, M. Linnette, J. Robson, M. Sherwen, C. Stead,
M. Townsend and R. Wakerley.
In attendance: The Clerk, C. Cllr. van de Ven
528/09 Apologies for absence: Cllr. Purbrook
529/09 Declarations of Interest: None
530/09 Minutes of the meeting held on 14th December 2009:
It was proposed by Cllr. Gatward and seconded by Cllr. Robson that the minutes of 14th December 2009 be signed as a true record.
531/09 Minutes of the Extraordinary meeting held on 11th January 2010
It was proposed by Cllr. Barrett and seconded by Cllr. Townsend that the minutes of the Extraordinary meeting held on 11th January 2010 be signed as a true record.
532/09 Matters arising:
Cllr. Linnette reported that a section of the guttering on the front of the Old Post Office had come away from its fixings and this was causing water to fall on to the pavement. This water was freezing and turning to ice making the pavement dangerous. The Clerk was asked to write to SCDC with regard to this matter.
Item 478/09 (Proposed Yellow Lines on Station Road) Cllr. Townsend enquired if there had been any more development with regard to the proposed yellow lines on Station Road. The Clerk had heard from Mr Richard Preston who was going to send a revised map showing the alterations as requested by the Council. When the Council have accepted this map then the due process can begin. As the map had not as yet been received the Committee agreed that this matter can be dealt with at Planning.
Item 479/09 (d) (Correspondence) Cllr. Gatward asked where the matter of the request from Melbourn Football Club for a set of keys for the Pavilion was now. The Clerk had had a set of keys cut and it was decided that these should be given to the Club Secretary and to no one else. If for some reason the Secretary was unavailable to unlock the door, the Clerk must be advised who would be unlocking the door in his place. If the keys were lost then the club would be charged for a replacement lock. The Club is to check that its insurance would cover them having a set of keys.
533/09 To receive the Minutes of the Planning Committee held on 4th and 18th January 2010:
4th: No comments
18th: No comments
534/09 Secondary Business Current Account to be used for Parish Plan funds:
It was proposed by Cllr. Brett THAT THREE COUNCILLOR’S SIGN THE APPLICATION FORM FOR A SECONDARY BUSINESS CURRENT ACCOUNT AS REQUESTED BY HSBC. Seconded by Cllr. Sherwen and CARRIED.
Cllrs. Gatward, Sherwen and Townsend then signed the form.
535/09 Financial Report as at 31st December: Noted
536/09 Cheques to be signed:
The Clerk recommended the transfer of £8,000 from the Business No Notice Account to the Current Account.
The Clerk recommended the transfer of £152 from the No Notice Account to the Magazine Account.
With the addition of the narrative and figures under Item 23818 (these figures had been included in the cheque total), it was proposed by Cllr. Gatward that the cheques be approved and signed, seconded by Cllr. Hardingham and Carried.
Cheque list for January 10 – Click here
537/09 Minutes of the Finance and General Purpose Meeting and to consider the precept for 2010/2011:
It was proposed by Cllr. Wakerley THAT THE PARISH COUNCIL PRECEPT BE SET AT £152,340 AND ON TOP OF THIS AMOUNT A FURTHER AMOUNT OF £30,266 IS TO BE USED OUT OF RESERVES. Seconded by Cllr. Hardingham and CARRIED.
(a) To consider allowing Councillors other than Chairmen and Vice-chairmen to serve on the Committee: The meeting felt that at the present time only Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen should serve on this committee.
538/09 Correspondence:
(a) Letter from Mr Ray Pritchard – Extra trees for the Millennium Wood. The Clerk is to write to Mr Pritchard thanking him for his letter and explaining that the 50 trees in Jubilee Wood reflect the anniversary and so are not to be increased in number. There are however other areas in the village where fruit trees would be welcome such as the grassed area off Elm Way and Grinnel Hill.
(b) NHS Cambridgeshire – Proposal to improve Hearing Services in Cambridgeshire. Noted
(c) NHS Cambridgeshire – Launch of public consultation The Future of Musculoskeletal Services. Noted
(d) Letter from Andrew Lansley CBE MP – Thanking the Council with regard to its reply to letter concerning Broadband speeds. Noted
(e) CCC – Position Statement – Children’s Centre, Development in Cambridge City and South Cambridgeshire. Noted
(f) Barr Ellison LLP – introduction to the company. Noted
(g) Circus Tyanna – Request to use the Old Recreation Ground.
The Clerk is to write and enquire when the circus wishes to use the site. She is also to point out that there is a very well attended Village Fete normally held at the end of June and that this may be a good time for the circus to be in the village.
(h) CCC – Consultation on Cambridgeshire’s Third Local Transport Plan.
C. Cllr van de Ven encouraged individual Councillors to look at the web-site and fill in the data.
[Cllr. Gatward declared a personal interest in Item 538/09 (i)]
(i) Royston and District Community Transport – Grant Application
An amount of £400 has been set in the precept as a donation to this group. The Clerk will write informing the group of the amount of donation it will receive. This will be paid when the Council receives the first half of the precept.
(j) Letter from Andrew Lansley CBE MP plus copy of letter to Andrew from Ruth Rogers, Chairman of the Police Authority – Police site in Melbourn.
The Clerk is to write to Andrew informing him that the Council will keep him informed of its plans and that it wishes him well.
(k) Poster from Jane – advertising the new Melbourn Village Market to be held on Saturday 27th Feb 2010 10.00am to 12.30pm at Melbourn Village College Community Centre. Noted
(l) Letter from H. Harris and Sons – Requesting permission to use the Old Recreation Ground for the Fun Fair from 6th June till 13th June 2010.
It was proposed by Cllr Hardingham THAT THE FUN FAIR BE ALLOWED TO USE THE OLD RECREATION GROUND FROM 6TH JUNE TO 13TH JUNE 2010. Seconded by Cllr. Gatward and CARRIED.
(m) E-mail from CALC – Garden Party at Buckingham Palace.
It was suggested that Cllr. Gatward’s name be put forward to receive an invitation.
The Clerk will inform CALC of this decision.
(n) E-mail from Emma Windred – Requesting additional dog bins.
The Clerk is to thank Emma for her e-mail and to inform her that the Council are looking into placing a dog bin by The Allotments down The Moor as requested. She is also to inform Emma that, as the field area behind PA Consulting is private property, the Council cannot erect a bin there.
(o) Copy of letter to Traffic Manager’s Service from Meldreth Parish Council- Cambridge Advisory Freight Map (for Melbourn Parish Council’s information). Noted.
(p) E-mail from Robert Hay – Erection of fence.
Cllrs. Hales and Linnette will look into this matter and report back to the Clerk. The Clerk will then contact Mr Hay with their suggestions.
(q) Letter and accounts from Meldreth Self Help Group- requesting a donation.
An amount of £400 had been set in the precept as a donation to this group.
The Clerk will write informing the group of the amount of donation it will receive. This will be paid when the Council receives the first half of the precept.
(r) No further correspondence was received.
539/09 Discipline and Transparency:
Cllr. Mowatt gathered that there was a measure of conflict between himself and one member of the council. He felt that conflict could be a good thing if handled correctly. He gave out two copies of A4 sheets. One was entitled ‘Together we stand, divided we fall’. Cllr. Mowatt thought that at the end of the day the Parish Council had acted wisely with regards to the 20 miles per hour trial scheme. The other sheet of A4 was entitled ‘20 mph limit trial is scrapped’.
Cllr. Stead was worried that there had been no mention in the press with regards to the 101 people who had voted against the scheme. He understood that some residents felt pushed into the scheme and would have preferred to make up their own minds.
[Cllr. Stead left the meeting at this point the time being 9.05pm]
Cllr. Mowatt informed the meeting that he had passed on to the Clerk a letter he had penned. This letter was to Cllr. Deborah Roberts asking for clarification of her comments on the proposed 20mph scheme for Melbourn which had been reported in the Press.
The Clerk was asked to post this letter.
540/09. Staffing Procedures:
It was agreed that a sub-committee be set up to deal with staffing procedures and Cllr. Bloomfield was asked to set up this committee. Cllrs Hales, Hardingham and Robson agreed to serve on the committee. Cllr. Purbrook is also to be asked if he is willing to serve on the committee.
541/09 Report from County Cllr. Susan van de Ven:
C. Cllr. van de Ven gave her report:
- Flint Cross Accident Remedial Scheme – have checked on start date and have been told March 2010.
- Little Lane and Meeting Lane, missing ‘Except for Access’ signs; parking in Orchard Road obstructing clear and safe entrance into Chapel Lane. I have met Cllr Linnette on site to understand residents’ concerns, and David Lines from Highways is coming out to meet on site January 27th. I will be asking Highways to restore missing signs to their original location, or at least somewhere where they will be noticed by relevant drivers. Looking for Highways to suggest a solution to Chapel Lane access.
- First Capital Connect came out to Meldreth Station and have agreed to put in a bid to ‘Access for All’ DfT funding scheme for a wheelchair/buggy ramp to the southbound platform, to accommodate pedestrian traffic from Melbourn. No guarantees but important to keep the request live.
- I’ve notified Melbourn Village College that free cycle racks are available from the County Council and MVC are looking to take steps to acquiring these. MVC would have to arrange collection and installation.
- Melbourn Village College will hold the first of a series of monthly village markets to support PTFA, local charities and businesses, on 27 February, 10-12:30, in the community centre next to McSplash.
- A10 Frog End Speed Limit Review: request for speed limit reduction. I have written to Richard Preston. Response: The proposed reduction in speed limit on the A10 will be formally advertised as soon as staff resource is available and you will be kept informed of progress.
- Proposed 20 mph speed limit trial at the Area Joint Traffic Management Committee, January 18th: I circulated my position statement to the Parish Council prior to this meeting. I circulated it also to the members of the AJC; I asked that the Parish Council’s letter following its Extraordinary Meeting on January 11th also be circulated to the AJC. The AJC agreed unanimously that without obvious strong support from Melbourn (representatives and residents), the scheme should not be implemented. The item was discussed and various observations were made. I have received some messages from members of the public both for and against the scheme saying that they appreciated the way the matter had been carefully considered and that they understood that the decision-making process had been difficult.
[As the time was approaching 10.00pm it was proposed by Cllr. Townsend and seconded by Cllr. Gatward that the meeting continue until 10.15pm]
542/09 Cemetery and Churchyard Inspection Record:
Cllr. Bloomfield had as yet to carry out the inspection.
543/09 New Road Cemetery:
Cllr. Sherwen reported that a meeting had been rearranged with Quentin Carroll and Corinne Duhlig and would now take place in a week’s time. This meeting is being held to discuss the return of the Anglo Saxon remains.
544/09 Further Developments to Village Car Park:
Cllr. Purbrook is looking into the possibility of money being available from SCDC to fund a Landscape Architect for the site. Cllr. Brett reported that issues arising are being dealt with and the leasing of the car park is now in the hands of SCDC legal department.
545/09 Update on BMX Trails:
It was reported that the jumps in the little wood off Royston Road had now been flattened.
Bradley Surveyors had surveyed the land of the proposed BMX Trails and sent copies of the OS map to the Council. The Clerk is to give a copy of the OS Map to Mr Larcombe so that he may register the land.
[As the time was approaching 10.15pm it was proposed by Cllr. Townsend and seconded by Cllr. Sherwen that the meeting continue until 10.30pm]
546/09 ASB High Street Panel:
It was reported that meetings are being held regularly and the panel is working hard.
547/09 Village Plan:
There is a meeting to be held on Wednesday 27th January and the ‘Love it, Hate it’ questionnaire will be looked at, at this meeting. Letters have been sent out to local businesses asking for sponsorship and a meeting is to be arranged with professional marketers. The questionnaire which will be circulated to all residents is to be drafted and Cllr. Mowatt felt that this will give the community a road map going forward.
548/09 Neighbourhood Panel:
There was a meeting held last week at Bassingbourn Village College. It seems that every village seems to have the same sort of problems. It was felt that the winter weather was responsible for the drop in anti-social behaviour.
Representatives of small villages are actively being encouraged by the partnership of the Police, CCC and SCDC, to attend the meeting.
549/09 Committees:
(a) Urgent reports from Committee Chairmen: There were no urgent reports from Committee Chairman.
550/09 Future Meetings.
(a) 1st Feb – Planning
(b) 8th Feb – Highways and Rural Footpaths + Conservation
(c) 15th Feb – Planning
(d) 22nd Feb – Parish Council
551/09 Urgent Matters: There were no urgent matters.