July 2011

Frampton on Severn Parish Council

Gloucestershire England

MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD IN THE VILLAGE HALL

ON WEDNESDAY 6^th JULY 2011

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

Mr Darrell Maton and Mrs Melanie Elliott-Maton of Widgeon House, The Green

Mr and Mrs Maton expressed their anxiety about the Planning Application for Severnthorpe, The Green. They had already lodged their concerns with the District Council and wished Parish Council to also be aware. The application is for change of use of a double garage into an independent dwelling and their three main objections are:

The front elevation includes windows looking directly into the back of Widgeon House. The structure would be approximately 20m behind Widgeon house.
The front elevation has come forward by 1m making it extremely over bearing on Widgeon House.
The overall scale and height of the property raises the roof line by over 1m which would overshadow Widgeon House.

Cllr Clifford advised the application had only just been received by Parish Council and although he had made neighbouring householders aware of the application he had not had time to discuss this with them in any detail. However, initially a number of concerns had been raised and he considered additional time would be needed to carry out a full consultation with neighbours.

Cllr Alexander noted the concerns raised by Mr and Mrs Maton and confirmed the planning application was tabled for discussion later in the meeting.

MINUTES OF THE MEETING

PRESENT

Cllrs Alexander, Baker, Clifford, Grist, Hutchinson, Peacey and Price were present plus County Cllr Booth, District Cllr Smith and Lynn Ireland (Clerk). 2 members of the public were present.

APOLOGIES

Cllrs Greenfield and Howe.

In the absence of the Chairman, Cllr Alexander took the Chair.

87/11 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

None received.

88/11 PREVIOUS MINUTES

Minutes of the Meeting held on 1^st June 2011 were approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman.

89/11 PLANNING

(A) DECISIONS MADE BY THE DISTRICT COUNCIL

S11/0480/LBC
Greycroft The Street	Erection of two & single storey extension & repairs and refurbishment of cottage to include demolition of attached buildings to rear. Demolition of part of garden wall	Refusal of Listed Building Consent
S11/0547/HHOLD
The Shrubbs The Street	Installation of solar PV	Householder Planning Permission
S11/0750/FUL
Netherhills Transport Depot	Erection of portacabin site office & provision of associated parking for two MAN Crewcab vehicles & up to 10 motor vehicles	Planning Permission

(B) PLANNING APPLICATION TAKEN AT THE MEETING

S11/1157/FUL
Land at Severnthorpe The Green	Conversion of outbuilding to an independent dwelling and erection of extensions	Sub Group
Cllrs noted the concerns raised by Mr & Mrs Maton prior to the meeting. As the application had only recently been received there had been insufficient time to consult all the neighbouring property owners. It was therefore agreed to convene a meeting of the Planning Sub Committee to enable this application to be discussed in full with all the relevant information to hand. Clerk to action w/c 11^th July 2011.

(C) RESPONSE TO CONSULTATION ON "EXTENSION OF DEVELOPMENTS RIGHTS FOR

CHANGE OF USE"

Cllr Alexander reported that following discussion with Cllrs, the Chairman had completed the Consultation Questionnaire and this had been submitted to the Department for Communities & Local Government.

(D) OTHER PLANNING

Shipton Mill

The District Council had notified Discharge of Condition 3 from Planning Appeal Permission S09/0101/FUL. Cllr Alexander had spoken to the planning officer to confirm the details and advised Cllrs that the District Council are still waiting for Conditions 1, 2, 4 and 5 to be discharged. No action can be taken on the development until all are discharged.

Planning E-Consultation

The District Council are introducing an on-line system for planning applications. This will be tailored to the individual needs of each parish council and the aim is to make the process of receiving and commenting on planning applications smoother and easier. The new system will be fully operational by the end of the year.

Proposed Development at rear of Whittles Lane

Following the informal meeting with Mr Michael Williams, Notes of the Meeting had been circulated to Cllrs for approval and these were now unanimously agreed as a true record. Cllrs noted that Council could not give a definite yes or no answer to Mr Williams until a planning application had been received and did not want to mislead him in any way. As the proposal is at present, Parish Council would probably be unable to support due to the many planning reasons highlighted in the Notes of the Meeting. The Chairman was authorised to send Mr Williams a copy of the Notes and advise him of Council’s decision.

90/11 FINANCE

(A) Invoices for Payment

K.T. Gooch	Purchase of office photocopier	£420.00
Mrs L Ireland	Clerk’s salary for June	£189.90
Mrs L Ireland	Clerk’s expenses for June	£107.98
T.W. Hawkins & Sons	Grass Cutting a/c (invoice 004306)	£380.28

(B) Invoices paid between meetings

GAPTC	Training Course for Clerk	£35.00
BT	Parish Office telephone account	£63.50

At this point in the meeting it was noted that the BT phone line had now been removed from the Parish Office. The line is now shared with the Community Association on the number 01452 740199. The CA had been asked if they would agree to cost sharing and a response is awaited.

(C) Income Received

HM Revenue & Customs

VAT refund 01/04/10 to 30/05/11

£356.53

(D) Other Finance Matters

PlayRangers

PlayRangers were again hoping to present PlayRanger Days in Frampton during the summer. The cost would be £450 per day and Cllr Howe was hoping that Parish Council would agree to pay for one session. Cllr Alexander advised that this equated to 25% of Parish Council budget under this heading; however fund raising was in hand to cover the cost of other sessions.

Proposal Cllr Price proposed covering the cost of one PlayRanger Day at a cost of £450

Seconded Cllr Grist

Vote Unanimous

HMRC

The Clerk had received confirmation of New Employer Registration and Reference Numbers. The new system of PAYE is confusing and the Clerk would welcome training if this was available.

91/11 REVISED AUDIT REGULATIONS

Prior to the meeting Cllr Howe had circulated a Resolution relating to Revised Audit Regulations. Cllrs unanimously agreed the Resolution as follows:

"This Council confirms that it has:

	An up to date register of assets.
	Regular maintenance arrangements for physical assets.
	Annual review of risk and the adequacy of insurance cover.
	Annual review of contracts.
	Clear statements of management responsibility for each service.
	Regular scrutiny of performance against targets.
	Arrangements to detect and deter fraud and/or corruption.
	Regular bank reconciliation, independently reviewed."

92/11 HIGHWAYS

(A) Ditch at Oatfield

The landowners had been contacted with a request to clear the ditch running north on the east side of Whitminster Lane from Oatfield towards Stroudwater. Mrs Teesdale is unclear of the location and the Chairman is to make enquiries with residents before contacting her again. Cllr Clifford advised that Frampton Court Estate was responsible for the ditch from Sandfield Bridge running north downhill and agreed that this would be cleared as soon as practicable. However he advised there are two culverts which may also need attention. Part of the ditch would appear to be the responsibility of riparian garden owners. It was agreed that Cllr Clifford would contact the Chairman and talk further with Mrs Teesdale.

(B) White Lining

Cllr Alexander advised that the County Council had repainted the white lines at the Lake Lane roundabout, the area adjacent to Russell House and the junction of Vicarage Lane and The Street. Cllr Price advised that the three car parks on the housing estate had also been white lined to set out specific parking areas.

(C) Pot Holes

Cllr Alexander advised that he would be preparing a list of pot holes throughout the village which he would pass to Mr Chris Riley at Gloucestershire Highways.

(D) Lorry Depot

An email had been received from a resident in Oatfield complaining about a new lorry depot adjacent to the Marina and Walk Farm on Church Lane/Whitminster Lane. There were concerns as to the legality of the depot and the increase in noise, traffic movements and anti-social hours of work. Cllr Alexander had visited the site – Alpha Hire – and been advised that all the necessary permissions had been granted. He had been assured that the drivers were instructed to exit the site via Whitminster Lane and not through Frampton. After discussion it was agreed that Cllr Alexander would arrange a meeting between Alpha Hire, Parish Council and the resident.

(E) Temporary Road Closure

The County Council had advised that Footpath EFS13 will be temporarily closed for 8 weeks from 9^th September to allow Severn Trent to install a new sewer pipeline from the Perryway to School Lane in Whitminster.

93/11 COUNTY COUNCILLOR’S REPORT

Basil Booth reported:

Severn Management Plan Version 2

A meeting is to be held with Mark Harper MP for the Forest of Dean on the other side of the River who also have some serious concerns about the Plan. It would appear that 3000 acres of agricultural land would be under threat if the Plan goes ahead as outlined. Arlingham Parish Council is concerned about the Habitats Directive. It is planned to involve all three local MPs in future discussions with Severn Trent.

Cllr Alexander said that as a result of the Severn Voice meeting a small group had discussed the Plan and were now arranging a meeting with the Minister and other interested parties to discuss this further. Mr Roger Godwin, Chairman of Longney & Epney Parish Council, had prepared a report which was circulated to Cllrs for information.

Schools Admissions

The new Code has been published but County Cllrs are yet to be advised of the changes as they relate to local schools. However it was understood that Lakefield School would have no problems over admission numbers this year, although this may not be the case in 2012.

Boundary Review

The Boundary Review at present out for consultation should be in place by 2013.

Highways

Top dressing work is due to be carried out on the A38 on 17/18 August and delays to traffic were expected.

Javelin Park

Open Days were being held at the site on 16/17/18/19 July to enable the two contractors to put forward their plans for the site.

94/11 DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S REPORT

District Cllr Smith advised that the next meeting of the Council was to take place on the 7^th June and until then there was nothing specific for him to report.

95/11 CORRESPONDENCE

Notice board

Council had been notified that the lock on the notice board in Vicarage Lane was faulty. Cllr Peacey agreed to collect the key and check the problem and if possible carry out a repair.

Stroud Canal Team

The District Council Canal Team had been awarded £56,900 as national runners-up in the Peoples’ Millions Award and thanked all who voted for them.

Stroud Valleys Project

Nadine Smykatz-Kloss apologised that she was unable to attend a meeting to give a summing up of the achievements of the Frampton Aggregates & Biodiversity Project which finished in March. However she hoped SVP would be able to work with Parish Council in the future.

Stroud Parish Forum

Cllr Alexander would be attending the Forum meeting on 7^th July and would advise Cllrs if there was anything specific to this parish.

School Admissions

Neil Carmichael MP had responded to the letter sent to him following the Severn Voice meeting, to say that he had written to the County Council to ascertain their views on the matter and would lobby the Department of Education on behalf of Severn Voice. The Severn Voice administrator had been asked to circulate the correspondence to all the Severn Voice parishes for their information.

Neighbourhood Warden

Following the monthly report from Warden Peter Gleed, which showed an extremely limited coverage to this parish during May, Cllr Howe had asked the District Council to assure us that this parish was receiving value for money from the service. A response had highlighted the need for Wardens to support targeted local concerns and issues which were mainly in the urban areas. The present staffing problems were being addressed and it was hoped to be back to full strength shortly. Warden Gleed liaises regularly with PCSO Lifton and PC Akers.

Miscellaneous

Various papers and publications were made available for Cllrs’ perusal.

96/11 ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Cllr Peacey asked if it would be possible to enter a local resident for the Olympic Torch progress when it reaches the A38. All Cllrs agreed this would be an excellent idea and asked Cllr Peacey to take this forward.

Cllr Grist reported:

Lakefield School had identified the tree which needed cutting back and agreed that Parish Council could carry out the work. Cllr Price confirmed that Messrs Baker had now completed the work.
The brambles are encroaching on neighbouring gardens from the School playing field. Cllrs considered this was a problem between the School and the neighbours.
Litter on the School playing field was now a real concern. It was agreed that Cllr Price should ask Graham Vick if he would be prepared to spend some time each week clearing the litter from the field as part of his litter picking duties for the Parish Council.

Cllr Clifford advised that Tony Price was now registered as the Snow Warden for this parish and was in possession of the snow plough. However the registered Snow Plough Operator was Roger Godwin from Longney who owned the correct tractor. This was a complicated process set by the County Council and Tony and Roger would liaise if and when necessary.

Cllr Price reported:

Car parking in and around the Top Shop was still causing the shop keeper/post mistress concern over lost revenue. Cllr Clifford said he had spoken informally to Merretts and offered them use of the yard at Manor Farm for parking their vehicles in certain situations. The meeting agreed a Sub Group should take this forward – Cllrs Alexander, Clifford and Price.
Fencing at Bacca Box was underway and would be completed shortly.

Cllr Hutchinson said that the Stroud Canal Team was meeting on Wednesday next to celebrate their Peoples’ Millions Award.

There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.56pm

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