February 2009

FRAMPTON-ON-SEVERN PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD IN THE VILLAGE HALL

ON WEDNESDAY 4^th FEBRUARY 2009

PRIOR TO THE MEETING PARISHIONERS WERE INVITED TO RAISE MATTERS OF CONCERN WITH CLLRS:

Frampton Tennis Club – Nigel Wills

Mr Wills showed Cllrs proposals for a small pavilion for the Tennis Club. A loan has been obtained from the Lawn Tennis Association to cover the expenditure. The design is to be traditional, rustic to suit the rural setting. Consultation has been carried out with local residents and an application would now be submitted to the District Council.

Shipton Mill Planning Application

The Clerk and two Councillors from Fretherne with Saul Parish Council were present to hear the discussions concerning the planning application for Shipton Mill. There were also 5 parishioners from Frampton present who were similarly concerned about the application. The Chairman confirmed the application was to be discussed later in the meeting.

POLICE REPORT

PCSO Debra Hughes advised there had been 5 reported crimes over the last month and two had been detected. One of the incidents concerned a property in Oatfield Road where a drugs search had taken place. PCSO Hughes encouraged any information to be given to the police, as even seemingly unimportant events would help to build up a picture to assist the police in their detection of crimes.

MINUTES OF THE MEETING

PRESENT

Cllrs Clifford, Greenfield, Howe (Chairman), K Lewis, M. Lewis, Price, Speed and Wagstaff were present plus County Cllr Booth, District Cllr Smith and Lynn Ireland (Clerk). There were 9 members of the public present.

APOLOGIES

Cllr Alexander

14/09 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

None received

15/09 PREVIOUS MINUTES

Minutes of the Meeting held on 7^th January 2009 were approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman.

16/09 COUNTY COUNCILLOR’S REPORT

County Cllr Booth reported:

	A38/Perryway Junction – there has been no progress to date as County Highways had been working to tackle the current extreme weather conditions.
	Rate Increase – the County Council rate will be increased by 2.9%.
	Lakefield School – it has been confirmed that funding for the school will not be changed this coming year.
	Road Safety in Lake Lane – the Head teacher at Lakefield School should be advised to contact Andre Bovington the Head of Road Safety at Shire Hall.

County Cllr Booth left the meeting

17/09 PLANNING

(a) decisions made by the district council

S.08/1971/FUL
Fernleigh The Green	Demolition of existing garage & erection of two storey side extension & new dormer window to side elevation. Replacement of existing upvc window frames with timber frames (revised plan 27/10/08)	Planning Permission

S.08/2164/FUL
The Pines The Green	Removal of outbuilding and construction of single storey extension (resubmission following withdrawn application S.08/0967/FUL)	Planning Permission

S.08/1588/COU
Barn at Church End	Change of use of agricultural barn to dwelling	Refusal of Planning Permission
Cllrs were dismayed to note that the application had been refused on the grounds of the ‘unacceptable risk of flooding’. The applicant had submitted a Flood Risk Assessment as part of the application. This Council has reached agreement with British Waterways and the Environment Agency that the canal would act as a flood defence in the case of an emergency and therefore the risk of flooding was minimal. Cllrs did not consider the application should have been refused and would strongly support the applicant if he wished to appeal the decision.

(b) planning application taken at the meeting

S.08/2506/FUL
Coombe Cottage School Row	Removal of existing porch. Erection of two storey extension to side of property	Support
Cllr Wagstaff had received no objections from neighbours. Cllrs considered the extension should be supported under Policy HN16 relating to plot size and design, and Policies B5 & B6 relating to conditions applying in the Conservation Area. Cllrs voted nem con in favour of the application.

S09/0101/FUL
Shipton Mill Frampton Industrial Estate	Erection of extension (vertical) – house new milling and sieving equipment
In view of the strong concerns raised by both parishioners and adjoining parishes it was agreed to hold a Planning Event to allow the plans to be viewed. Cllrs would be guided in their opinion by the general feeling of the parishioners and their understanding of the relevant planning policies. Comments would be returned in time for the DC planning meeting on 10^th March. Ward Cllrs would deliver flyers to each household in the parish inviting residents to view the plans and make comments.

At this point 7 of the visitors left the meeting

S08/2554/FUL
Sandfield Mill House Church Lane	Erection of two storey side extension, garden room and porch	Support
Cllr Howe advised there were no close neighbours and Cllrs unanimously agreed to support the application under Policy HN16.

(c) other planning matters

The New Farmhouse, The Street

Parish Council had supported the original application and had been unaware that an Appeal had been submitted. The decision of the Appeal Inspector was to dismiss the Appeal.

Industrial Heritage Conservation Area

A printed copy of the three Reports had been received.

Lake House, Lake Lane

The Chairman will attend the site meeting to be held at Lake House on Thursday 5^th February.

18/09 ACCOUNTS

(a) Invoices for Payment

Mr R. Knight	Repair to Bus Shelter on Bridge Road	£55.00
The Land Registry	Fee to register War Memorial and car park	£30.00

(b) Financial Update

Cllrs noted the contents of the Financial Update for January prepared by Cllr M Lewis.

19/09 FINANCIAL REGULATIONS

Updated Financial Regulations prepared by Cllr M Lewis had been circulated to Cllrs for comment and/or approval.

The Parish Council formally adopted the Financial Regulations.

20/09 STANDING ORDERS

The updated Standing Orders had been previously circulated to Cllrs for comment and/or approval.

The Parish Council formally adopted the Standing Orders.

21/09 EMERGENCY PLAN MITIGATION

In view of the length of the meeting, Cllrs unanimously agreed that this item be taken forward to the March meeting.

22/09 MODEL PUBLICATION SCHEME

The Model Publication Scheme had been formally adopted at the January meeting subject to final revisions (Minute 5/09 refers). Cllrs now unanimously agreed the revisions to the Model Publication Scheme.

23/09 ROAD SAFETY IN LAKE LANE

The Head teacher of Lakefield School had asked Parish Council to support the proposals for a 20mph zone on roads surrounding the school on the grounds of road safety. After a full discussion Cllrs agreed other measures should be tried first, eg requesting the police to carry out speed checks; contacting parents via the school newsletter to stress the importance of traffic speeds in the area of the school.

24/09 VILLAGE BENCHES/SEATS

Cllr Price had prepared a schedule of the maintenance required to the wooden seats/benches in the parish. Cllrs unanimously agreed that Richard Knight be asked to carry out the repairs necessary to bring the equipment to a standard fit for insurance purposes.

25/09 INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE AREA

As reported under Minute 17/09(C), Stroud District Council had provided printed copies of the three large reports making up the Industrial Heritage Conservation Area Management Proposals & Conservation Area Character Appraisal. The Chairman and Cllr Alexander had studied the documents and reported there was nothing significant to bring to the attention of Council.

26/09 DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S REPORT

District Cllr Norman Smith reported:

	The District Council had agreed a 3.5% increase in the rate.
	Young Peoples’ Survey 2008 had produced some interesting results.
	Stroud District Council is a debt free Council and is in a good financial position at present.

27/09 CORRESPONDENCE

Council was invited to send representation to the following:

14^th February	Energy Roadshow	Lister Hall, Dursley
17^th February	Town & Parish Council Forum	Ebley Mill, Stroud
21^st February	Renewable Energy Exhibition	Guildhall, Gloucester
26^th February	Local Action – Moving Forward	Shurdington Social Centre
3^rdMarch	Ground Source Heating Event	Frampton Community Centre

Gloucester Athletic Club

The annual 20-mile road race will be starting and ending in Frampton on Sunday 8^th March.

The Bledisloe Cup

CPRE have advised that the Bledisloe Cup Competition has been discontinued due to falling entries and the difficulty of finding sponsorship.

CALOR Village of the Year

GRCC advise entries are invited for the 2009 competition. After a brief discussion it was agreed this Council would not make an entry this year.

Police & Community Consultative Meetings

The Constabulary have advised that the PCCMs will no longer be taking place and other ways of consulting with communities will be sought.

Police SARA meeting

The meeting had been held in Frampton on 15^th January. Two Plans had been set for the next three month period – (1) speeding in Bridge Road, Frampton, and (2) speeding in St John’s Road, Slimbridge.

Neighbourhood Warden

The District Council have advised that Warden Andy Foster has left his post to take up a position with Fire & Rescue. A new Warden is to be appointed to cover our area. The Clerk was asked to enquire if a rebate in Parish Council’s contribution to the post would be forthcoming.

Road Closure

Notification of road closure for Church Lane Saul from 4 - 15 February for the installation of a duct.

Gardening Assistance Scheme 2009

The scheme will run from 1^st April 2009 to 12^th February 2010. Registration for assistance is required by 20^th February.

Gloucestershire Training Partnership

Information about various courses being held for Clerks and Cllrs.

Miscellaneous

Various papers and publications were made available for Cllrs perusal.

28/09 CHAIRMAN’S ITEMS

Severn Barrage Consultation

The full Consultation document is available on-line and the Clerk had printed off the Executive Summary. The Website address will be emailed to Cllrs to enable them to study the full document. The Chairman asked Cllrs to consider how the proposals would affect this community (1) changes to tidal regime in the estuary, (2) reduction of the flood risk, and (3) safer navigation on the river. Mr Roger Bagley would also be requested to give his comments on the proposals. This item will be placed on the Agenda for the March meeting to confirm a response to be submitted.

Road Safety Compliance Consultation

Parish Council has been asked to comment on the consultation document and the Chairman asked if any Cllr would be willing to take this forward.

Ground Source Heat Pump Working

The Chairman attended a Seminar at SDC and has spoken to the Project Engineer of the works in Oatfield Road. A Roadshow will be held on Tuesday 3^rd March in Frampton Community Centre between 2 and 8pm to advise parishioners about the scheme.

Annual Parish Meeting

The APM is to take place at 7.30pm on Wednesday 25^th March in the Village Hall. The Chairman asked Cllrs to put forward speakers for the meeting and it was agreed to invite the Church Wardens to give an update on progress of the extension to churchyard and the appeal for the church tower. The newly appointed Vicar would be invited to attend. The Head teacher at Lakefield School is unsure if she will be able to attend and it was agreed to extend the invitation to Keith Withers as Chairman of School Governors.

Severn Voice Meeting

The Chairman reported this Parish is due to host the March 2009 meeting. At the September Severn Voice meeting member councils asked that Mr Hagg and Mr Fellowes be invited to the March meeting to talk about the lack of communication between District Council and Parish Councils, particularly in the matter of Planning Applications. Cllrs now discussed this and it was felt that as only two of the Severn Voice parishes have problems with these issues it would not be appropriate for Mr Hagg and Mr Fellowes to attend a meeting to discuss this, but rather that the two councils concerned should make their own arrangements to tackle their problems.

Cllr Speed proposed that this Council did not host the next meeting. The Chairman agreed to contact the Severn Voice parishes to advise them of this decision.

29/09 ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Cllr Wagstaff reported that Stroud District Council and Mr Barron of Tomkins Barron are to meet to discuss affordable housing on the site in Lake Lane.

Cllr Greenfield reported that the Village Hall Committee have now received a quote from Leyhill for the repainting of the outside of the Village Hall and replacement of wooden windows. The quote was very competitive at approx £2000. This means that the total funding required for the work was in the region of £6000. The Village Hall Committee ask if Parish Council would be prepared to make a donation of £2000 towards the works. This will be added to the agenda for the March meeting to enable discussion.

Cllr Greenfield declared a non prejudicial interest.

Cllr Speed reported the Induction Service for the new Vicar at St Mary’s Church, The Rev Judith Hubbard-Jones, had taken place on Monday 2^nd February.

Cllr Clifford reported that the FCE Land Agent had investigated responsibility for maintenance of the track along the east side of The Green; it is recorded as Class 4 Highway 41164, so should be maintained by the County Council. The Chairman agreed to discuss this with Cllr Alexander and then to contact the County Council

There being no further business the meeting closed at 10.00pm.

Copyright © 2005 Frampton on Severn Parish Council