Heversham Parish Council
UNCONFIRMED Minutes of the Annual
Parish Assembly, held on
Present: Mr T Parker (in the Chair), Councillor B Woof, Councillor R Bingham, Police Sergeant Barry Bell, Mr Roger Read, Mr Robin Sisson, Mrs A Hulme, the Clerk and 40 members of the public.
1. Apologies for Absence –
Mr John Cushnie.
2.
Minutes of Annual Parish meeting 2005. Minute number 8 was
corrected, under the heading “There have been many complaints
about roads” to read: “Capita propose to restrict the speed coming out of
Milnthorpe to the Blue Bell, to 50 mph.”
3.
Matters Arising.
§
Heversham Head has now been sold to Mr Robin
Sisson. The Chairman thanked him for
keeping the ownership of the land local and asked for reassurance that it would
remain accessible to the public. Mr
Sisson confirmed that this was the case.
§
The owners of the land where the Cockpit is
situated do not wish to sell it to the village but are will to allow people to
visit the site.
4. Police Report –Sergeant Barry Bell.
After
thanking the Chairman for the invitation to attend, Sergeant Bell explained a
little about the amalgamation of the Police forces, which should be completed
by 2007. The number of police officers
will regrettably be reduced. The
Sergeant reassured those present that the police would continue to give the
best possible service with the constables available. He added that it is a very safe place to
live. There was some concern expressed
that the area might be considered a target for crime, with so few police. Sergeant Bell explained that there would be
some supporting PCSO’s appointed and added that parishioners could help by
continuing the ‘Neighbourhood Watch’ scheme.
Coverage of this was thought to be patchy, so it was suggested that the
co-ordinator Andrea Bell should be consulted.
The Sergeant also suggested that the public should report criminal
activity, not only to help apprehend the offenders, but also because the number
of reported crimes, enables the police to focus resources where they are most
needed. The Milnthorpe Police Station
can be contacted on 015395 65876, 24 hours a day; however, it is only a base
and isn’t occupied all the time. Kendal
was the nearest manned police station on 01539 722611.
5. Chairman’s
Report - Mr Tony Parker.
A copy of the full report is held with the
Minutes, these were the main points covered: -
Heversham Parish Council minutes
and current Agenda of the meetings can be found on the village websit
heversham.org, as well as on the two notice boards.
The “Field of dreams”. The Council has written to Mr Cleeve of ELS
to ask that he arranges treatment of the injurious weeds multiplying there, and
that they intend to keep Defra informed of developments.
The closure of the Post Office
was a blow to the community, though it seems to have been accepted without
complaint, by the community. Good wishes were expressed for the happiness of
Tony and Helen Rimmer in their new home in Kirkby Lonsdale.
The Flooding of Prince’s Way has
been reported and some improvements have taken place, thanks the Cllr.
Bingham’s persistence.
The ‘Squeeze Stones’ by the old
Grammar School are causing an obstruction to the footpath and this has been
reported to Capita.
The Leasgill Quarry Fund. Grants totalling
£3,700 have been agreed.
Thanks were then extended to fellow
Councillors for their regular attendance to meetings throughout the year;
County Councillor Roger Bingham and District Councillor Brenda Woof for their
valuable contributions and guidance; the Clerk for her efficient control, and
the parishioners, who always ensure that the Annual meeting probably has the
best attendance in South Lakes.
6. SLD C
Councillors Report – Mrs Brenda Woof.
Cllr.
Woof was pleased to report that a solution had been found for the flooding at
Stockbeck and this scheme has been awarded 100% grant funding, so no cost to
the Council Taxpayer.
Council
Tax has increased by 4.9% on a Band D property for 2006/07.
Recycling
is proving successful, thanks to the public for their willingness to
participate. Attention is now being shown towards the recycling of plastic and
cardboard.
The
Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 is part of the government’s
cleaner, safer and greener agenda. This
will be a very important part of future Government Assessments of Local
Authorities.
The
public raised issues on planning, social housing, the possible location of the
much-needed Crematorium. By Libby’s site near Milnthorpe, was raised as a
possible location for the Crematorium. It was suggested that it might be
possible to put two affordable houses in ‘Quarry Wood’.
7.
Mr Bingham thanked the
Parishioners for re-electing him.
He advised that the 50 mph.
speed limit has now been implemented between Milnthorpe and the Blue Bell.
He has done some work towards
getting the ‘Cockpit’ listed as an ancient Monument but it could well take
years.
Council Tax has gone up by
4.9%. Police, pay awards, pensions and
inflation all contributed to increasing costs, as has the Freedom From Information Act and Disability Discrimination Act.
After the Elections,
reorganisation of the Counties and the unification of the Police Force, re-emerged.
Roads.
Councillor Bingham expressed
pleasure at being placed head of Culture for the County. Libraries have improved tremendously and
received the highest mark in the most recent assessments. Service has been enhanced with Sunday opening
of the main branches, festivals and library links in village shops. There is a review of the Band E libraries,
including Milnthorpe but the intention is to improve services and
accessibility. The hope is to give
tourism a boost with regeneration through culture.
Cllr. Bingham is also involved
with the Cumbria Deaf Association, Fair Trade, CALC
and is a school Governor.
Police Reduction. This is
regrettable but lucky local crime is so low.
The
Athenaeum is being well-used weekdays with the additional custom from the
Toddler Group and Tai Chi classes. It
needs using more at weekends however, perhaps for private functions. The Committee members have been fund raising
with the intention of improving the servery; Ailsa thanked them for all their
hard work. There is currently a raffle
running with some excellent donated prizes.
There will be a barbecue in June at the Athenaeum for the villagers. The
Leasgill Quarry Fund has granted some money for redecoration. This will hopefully encourage bookings. Hire charges went up by 10% last year and
this has enabled accounts to break even but there is nothing spare to cover
emergencies. To raise rental still
further would probably loose custom and therefore the Parish Council has been
approached for help.
9.
Playground Report. The
Leasgill Quarry has granted £1000 towards the next phase, which will be to
provide a roundabout and see-saw. If
anyone is willing to join the Playground Committee or to help raise funds, will
they please contact the Chairman, on 62316.
10. Gateway – Mr Rodger Read.
The
Planning Application for Gateway has been formally submitted. SL2006/0321. Barry
Jackson is dealing with it. The ultimate decision on Gateway is likely to be
made by a Government Inspector at a Public Enquiry.
Mr Read
invited comments to take back with him. These covered funding concerns and the
burden that may be placed on surrounding roads.
It was stated that Regeneration Cumbria would fund the new road
structure out of their 52 million allocation, but that
there is a time limit on this spending.
11. Athenaeum Maintenance.
Tony
Parker said that as Ailsa and Robin had previously explained, the Athenaeum
account held nothing for emergency repairs. He then asked the Assembly if as
representatives of the community, they would be willing to agree to the Parish
Council requesting a sum to be put onto the precept this year, to be held as a
contingency fund, specifically for large unexpected expenses associated with
the Athenaeum. An amount of £3,500 was suggested; this increase would not necessarily
be needed annually.
Mrs
Ailsa Hulme explained her feelings about the Athenaeum and the important role
it has played in village life throughout her lifetime. It seemed to her to be an amenity worth
fighting for. She continued that the heating system and roof are both possible
expensive future problems. The £3,500 rise would mean an average charge of £10
per household. At this point the
Treasurer of the Athenaeum, Mr John Smith, aided the Assembly by giving a more
accurate idea of how the increase would affect house owners. He estimated that Council Tax would rise
between £2. 11 per £1,100 for a Band A ranging to £6.32 per
£1,100 for a Band H. i.e. Just 2.23% onto the Council Tax.
Roger
Whittaker proposed that the Assembly agreed to the £3,500 being added onto the
2006/07 Precept, to be held specifically for the Athenaeum’s unexpected
expenses.
John
Owen seconded.
The
majority of parishioners were shown to support the proposal, three were
against. The Council will therefore consider
their views at the appropriate time.
12.
13. Potential Traffic Restrictions.
The
Chairman stated the concerns that had been expressed about traffic speeding
through the village, particularly buses.
He said that as a result the Council had asked for 20 mph restrictions
to be put in place. Funding has not, as yet, allowed this to be
implemented. Did the village wish the
Council to continue pressing for this? A
parishioner said that at busy times the volume of traffic made it impossible to
speed and at other times 30 mph seemed reasonable. The results, when asked for a vote, were 11
for, 12 against, so the Clerk will write to Capita to cancel the request.
The
Council had also requested that
Barriers
for
Flashing Lights outside the School. Consultation should be made with local
residents before going ahead.
Car Parking for the Village was requested. The Chairman explained that the only possible
land was by the playground and owned by
14.
The meeting closed at