Hook Norton Parish Council

HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF HOOK NORTON PARISH COUNCIL HELD AT THE NORMAN MATTHEWS COMMUNITY HALL ON WEDNESDAY 15th NOVEMBER 2006 AT 7.30pm
Present: Councillors: Timms [Chairman], Brotherston, Clay, Hayward, Jelf, Leader, Millar, Riley, Swainbank and Young, together with District Cllr Gasson, Mr Porter [Parish Clerk], two members of the public, Sgt David Hibbert and PC Phil Morris the recently appointed Rural Beat Officer.

1. Apologies For Absence

were received from Cllr Walsham, who is on holiday, and from Cllr Brotherston who was a little late in arriving.

2.Chairman’s Announcements

Cllr Timms expressed disappointment that he had been the only member of the Parish Council who had attended the Remembrance Ceremony.

3. Minutes of previous meeting, 12th October 2006, and matters arising

It was proposed by Cllr Swainbank, and seconded by Cllr Hayward, that the minutes of the previous meeting be passed as a true and accurate record and this was approved by seven votes with one abstention. There were no matters arising not covered elsewhere on the agenda.

4. Declarations of Interest

There were no declarations on this occasion.

5. Report by Planning Co-ordinator on planning applications received

In the absence of Cllr Walsham the Chairman referred those present to the schedule accompanying the minutes and invited comment. Cllr Millar wondered if a planning application had been submitted in respect of Doolittle Cottage as he understands that a 17th century wall has been removed inside the building and the inglenook altered. As there is no record of this the clerk will ask CDC if they have received an application.
(i)Affordable Housing [Exception sites] The Chairman reported that, together with Cllrs Walsham and Jelf and the clerk, he had attended a meeting at Bodicote House on 1 November to discuss this issue with Mike Buxton, who has taken over responsibility at CDC, together with two of his colleagues and James Alcock, the Rural Housing Enabler. It had been a fairly open discussion although Mr Buxton invited comment when admitting that one of the reasons for rejecting the site off The Bourne was the potential disturbance from the SSC and the Chairman reminded Mr Buxton that this had not prevented CDC granting their recent application, despite opposition from local residents. It emerged that another reason for rejecting the site off The Bourne is that access is controlled by two different housing associations who are not willing to co-operate. Following the discussion it emerged that another potential site has been identified and preliminary discussions have taken place with the owners. Cllr Millar asked if the PC could be told of the location of this site but the Chairman felt that this would not be appropriate until it is known whether the owners would be prepared to sell.

6. To invite members of the public to comment on planning applications

There were no comments on this occasion.

7. Report of Working Groups

(a)Recreation Group – Cllr Young informed the PC that this would be his last meeting as he has recently moved away from the village. On this basis he proposed that Cllr Leader replace him on the working group and this was agreed. Cllr Young had completed a final review of the area and stated that he was happy to be handing over in such good order. With regard to the wall in Watery Lane he has obtained an estimate for repair of £200 from Peter Hibberd and this was approved. The Chairman took the opportunity to formally thank Cllr Young for all his efforts while a member of the PC and wished him well for the future. The Chairman then referred to some recent disturbances in the area and while it is to be hoped that these will die away with the onset of winter and dark nights the Police have been asked to keep an eye on the area. District Cllr Gasson informed the meeting that he has spoken with one of the residents of Osney Close, who has been disturbed by events in the area, and feels that part of the problem is a street light just behind her garden where groups tend to congregate. There was discussion about whether this could be replaced by low level lighting and the Chairman asked the Recreation working group to look into this possibility and report back.
(b)Environment & Open Spaces – Cllr Riley reported that work on the cemetery wall is almost complete and it is anticipated that Tite Lane will be re-opened before the end of the month. The new allotments have been allocated and we are now in a position to let the paddock. There was discussion on the rent to charge and it was proposed by Cllr Hayward, and seconded by Cllr Riley, that we should advertise the paddock as being available for five years, the tenant to put up fencing and a gate, and invite bids, which are to be in before the next meeting of the PC on 14th December. The clerk will place a notice in the Newsletter and also in the shop and Post Office and on the village noticeboards. Cllr Riley then referred to a letter from Richard Helyer about a large conifer on The Green at Southrop, next to Beanacre Cottage, which he considers to be a danger and wants the PC to remove. Cllr Riley informed the PC that David Randall had looked at it early in the year and had removed dead branches and pronounced it to be in sound condition and good for several more years. Following receipt of Mr Helyer’s letter Mr Randall was asked to have a further look and basically expressed the same opinion. The Chairman commented that this PC does not normally countenance the removal of healthy trees and, although this one is very close to Beanacre Cottage and not an attractive specimen, he could not see that the PC could justify expending public money as requested. However, as a compromise, if the residents in the near proximity wish to apply for planning permission to have it taken down, and are prepared to do so at their expense, the PC would not oppose the application. This proposal was seconded by Cllr Riley and approved unanimously. Cllr Riley also reported that residents of The Green have recently cleared paths, which had become overgrown and this has exposed a tree root but, as the only people likely to use the paths are the residents themselves, this was not felt to be a hazard. Cllr Clay proposed a vote of thanks to Cllr Riley without whose enthusiasm and motivation the cemetery wall project would not have been completed and, in seconding this, the Chairman also referred to his work in creating a number of new allotments, which has substantially reduced the waiting list.

8. Hook Norton War Memorial Hall

Cllr Jelf expressed his apologies to the meeting for the delay in starting the kitchen extension, caused by certain problems the contractor has been experiencing. With the Christmas season fast approaching he suggested that it would now make sense to defer the project until after the pantomime and this was agreed. Cllr Young questioned whether the hall was generating enough income to pay its way and the clerk stated that it was too early to give a specific answer as a significant amount of the yearly income is yet to flow through. However bookings are unquestionably up and with costs more rigorously controlled there has not been a need for any transfer from the PC account thus far and the MH has also absorbed the cost of the insurance premium of £1066.

9 . Report of Finance Working Group

Cllr Clay referred to the draft budget for 2007/8 and reported that the cash flow for this year suggests that there will be a reserve of a little over £9000 at the year end having paid for the rebuilding of the cemetery wall, the tree works earlier in the year and the increased cost of the kitchen extension at the MH. An increase in the precept to £42K will be necessary to meet the loan repayments due next year but this will only equate to an increase of £5.50 p.a. on a band E property. As such he asked councillors to consider whether it would be prudent to increase the precept to £45K, equivalent to a rise of £9.50 on a band D property, in order to re-build reserves to be able to deal with any emergency which may arise in future. Councillors were asked to consider this with a view to deciding upon the precept for 2007/8 at the December meeting.

10. Schedule of Receipts and Payments for authorisation by the Council

Mr Porter presented the schedules of receipts and payments and informed the meeting that the amount to Mr Bickley, for grasscutting, has reduced to £936.07 since the schedule was prepared. Accordingly he sought approval to pay cheques totalling £13,342.70 for the PC and £127.34 for the Memorial Hall. He also reported that, following an exchange of letters with Thames Water regarding the bill for six years’ water supply at the cemetery, this has been reduced from £465.75 + VAT to £183.13 + VAT. It was proposed by Cllr Millar, seconded by Cllr Young, that the payments be made as per the schedules and this was approved unanimously.

11. Norman Matthews Community Hall

In the absence of Cllr Walsham there was nothing new to report.

12. Report on District Council Matters

District Cllr Gasson informed the meeting that the supplemental consultation document to the Local Development Framework has now been issued but there is nothing new identified in Hook Norton. A draft Consultation Appraisal is due in December. Cllr Gasson also informed the meeting that he will not be standing for re-election in May 2007 and, having reached this decision, he will be standing down from the Executive Committee of CDC with effect from 1st December. On the reported changes at CDC Cllr Gasson informed the meeting that the new Chief Executive has decided to dispense with the senior officer structure and three new executives in charge of merged departments will be appointed with the posts having been advertised already.

13. Report on County Council Matters

Cllr Jelf had little to report on this occasion but he was able to say that the lower end of Queen Street will be closed for the morning of 27 November to allow for some patching work. He is also to meet with the engineer responsible for filling in potholes in the immediate area and he invited his fellow councillors to provide him with a list of areas in need of attention.

14. Correspondence

(i) OALC/NALC – summary of recent white paper with particular reference to PCs;
(ii) Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals – response to clerk’s letter expressing concern about diminution of services at the Horton, Banbury;
(iii) OPFA – Annual Report;
(i)CDC – Standards Committee – next meeting 23 November 2006;
(v) OCC Newsletter – October – historic photographs, including many of Hook Norton, available online.

15. Questions and Comments from Members of the Public

PC Morris, who was on duty, introduced himself during the course of the evening as the newly appointed beat officer covering north Cherwell, including Hook Norton. Sgt Hibbert confirmed that the village is now looked after by Banbury police station rather than Chipping Norton, the change haven taken place on 1 October. He stated that this has not affected response times and reported that Hook Norton is the only large village in the area that has shown a downturn in crimes reported in the past year. Mr Luxton introduced himself and referred to an application he had submitted to the PC relating to his property Beanacre Cottage, which had been discussed at the October meeting. Mr Luxton explained that their plans include installing a wood pellet burner in the workshop buildings to provide heating for the house. This would necessitate digging a trench across The Green. He understands the reasons why the PC had refused his request but their present power supply also runs underneath The Green and he has been told by an electrician that it must be up-dated as it stands. It is his understanding that he is entitled to replace wiring etc. which will also necessitate the digging of a trench and, while this is being done, he wondered if the PC would re-consider its stance to allow them to run a pipe for the burner. The Chairman explained the reasons for the original decision and added that the standing orders of the PC preclude us from reconsidering an issue on which a decision has been given for a minimum of six moths. However, if Mr Luxton has the right to carry out essential maintenance, we cannot prevent this. The clerk asked Mr Luxton if he can provide him with a copy of legal advice on this point. Cllr Hayward then expressed the view that, if Mr Luxton does have the right to carry out such maintenance, which will necessitate the digging of a trench anyway, then an application to put a conduit for the burner at the same time would be a different request which could then be re-considered. It was left that Mr Luxton will supply the clerk with the required information.

16. Date and Time of Next Meeting

Thursday 14th December 2006 in the Norman Matthews Community Hall at 7.30pm.

There being no further business the Chairman everyone for attending and declared the public meeting closed at 9.04pm.