HeVERSHAM Parish Council

Minutes of the meeting held on Monday 30 November 2009 in the Athenaeum, Leasgill at 7:30pm

 

Present : Cllrs Peter Shaw (Chairman), Ailsa Hulme, Adrian Bland, Tom Grindey, Andrew Lucas, Tony Parker, District Cllr Brenda Woof, County Cllr Roger Bingham, the Clerk and one member of the public (Mrs E. Tayler).

 

817    To receive apologies for absence

Apologies with reasons given were accepted from Cllr Capstick.

 

818    To receive any declarations of interest in items on the agenda

Cllr Grindey expressed a personal and prejudicial interest in Item 10 – Correspondence – the tender from Martin Tyson for village maintenance, grass cutting and raking the bark in the playground.

 

819    To approve the minutes of the meeting held on 26 October 2009

It was resolved for the Chairman to sign the minutes of the meeting held on 26 October 2009 as a true record.

 

820    Matters raised by members of the public for consideration

Mrs Tayler voiced concern regarding the height and width of the hedges on Marsh Lane which are obstructing the highway.  County Cllr Bingham responded that this matter was the responsibility of the property owners, in some cases the Highways Agency can be contracted in order to carry out the work and then invoice the property owners.

 

Mrs Tayler also advised that Mr Kemp is intending to ask residents of the Parish to sign a petition regarding the introduction of a 20 mph speed limit through the village.  County Cllr Bingham responded it would not be possible to enforce a speed limit of 20 mph along such a short stretch of road.

 

821    Planning Applications

a) The following planning applications had been received and circulated prior to the meeting :

     SL/2009/0947  Horn Cop, Heversham, Milnthorpe
     Lanscaping works including: regrading of excavated material to remodel part of the garden;
     the installation of an automatic entrance gate; widening of the driveway; construction of a
     sun terrace; repairs to existing pathways and creation of new ones within the grounds and
     erection of summer house and patio.

Two residents of the Parish had written to SLDC Planning to voice concerns regarding the drainage with respect to this application.  The correspondence had been copied to the Parish Council and the Clerk was requested to write to SLDC in order to reinforce the concerns.

     SL/2009/0976  Dallam Barn, High Haverflatts, Milnthorpe
     Installation of two additional velux rooflights.

The Parish Council raised no objections to this application.

b) The following planning application has been granted :
     SL/2009/0910  Curlew Cottage, High Haverflatts,
Haverflatts Lane, Milnthorpe
     Installation Of Velux Rooflight

 

822    Police

Rachel Thomas, the Police Community Support Officer for Milnthorpe, has offered to attend some of the meetings of the Parish Council in order to present a report.  It was agreed the new monthly newsletter sent by e-mail provides enough information unless there are any specific issues to be addressed.

 

823    Bus Stop

Cllr Grindey enquired as to the possibility of whether a bus stop could be provided by the Bluebell for the 755 service.  County Cllr Bingham advised a bus stop would need to be sited in a lay-by for the bus to pull into and said he would make enquiries regarding the practicalities of providing a lay-by.

 

824    Reports

a) Athenaeum Financial Report

John Smith, the Athenaeum Treasurer had sent his report prior to the meeting (see separate minutes).

b) Playground Report

Cllr Lucas reported he had carried out an inspection of the playground this month and had replaced as many caps as there were left in the bag.  He had identified there were bolt covers missing on the outside of the tube on the ‘three in one’ slide and had replaced what he could, but some were impossible to replace due to the bolts being too rusted over to be able to turn them.  It was agreed to review this matter following the visit of the playground inspector which is scheduled for March 2010.  It was also reported a request has been made for safety straps to be fixed on the large swing and there is evidence the moles have returned.  Cllr Lucas retained the playground inspection book for another month.

c) Equipment Report

Cllr Grindey advised that due to the weather he had only been able to inspect two items of equipment this month.

d) Cutting the hedge between Heversham Gardens and the Village Street (Cllr Grindey)

A complaint had been received as the hedge between Heversham Gardens and the Village Street had not been cut this year.  The Chairman advised he would make enquiries regarding this matter as it was understood the hedge had been cut on an annual basis in previous years.

e) any relevant matters from District Councillor Brenda Woof

District Cllr Woof advised the commencement of the eight week consultation period for the Local Development Framework Allocations of Land document had been delayed until February or March 2010.  District Cllr Woof also advised with respect to the Planning Application for the Auction Mart that SLDC were waiting for a report from the Environment Agency regarding the issue of flooding and the development of a green field site.

f) any relevant matters from County Councillor Roger Bingham

County Cllr Bingham reported the historic milestone at Grievegate Lane, Levens has now been refurbished and also and expressed his thanks for the support given to his Civic Ceremony.


County Cllr Bingham was requested to make enquiries regarding the provision of grit box(es) in Leasgill.

 

825    Financial Report

It was resolved for payments to be approved and cheques to be signed for the following :

Martin Tyson - Village M
aintenance, Grass Cutting and Bark Raking (Paid in October)

£1035.00      Cheque number : 100103

Clerks’ Salary and Expenses (August – November)

£  820.93      Cheque number : 100104

 

826    Correspondence received since the last meeting

SLDC – Kent Estuary LAP Meeting to be held on 9 December 2009 (circulated by e-mail)
The Chairman advised both he and the Clerk were intending to attend the above meeting to be held at
Dallam School on Wednesday 9 December.

 

 

 

Martin Tyson – tender for village maintenance, grass cutting and raking the bark in the
playground

Due to declaring a personal and prejudicial interest Cllr Grindey left the room whilst this matter was being discussed

It was reported comments had been made regarding the grass not being cut frequently or short enough.  It was considered the mower may be the source of the problem with respect to the length of the grass.  It was resolved to make the purchase of a new mower a priority and to accept Mr Tyson’s tender.

Lancashire Economic Partnership – ‘Headland to Headspace’ – a prospectus for the Morecambe
   Bay and Duddon Programme
The Cumbria Rider – Your public transport guide for
Cumbria : 1 November 2009 until
   
27 March 2010

 

827    Items for Information

Cllr Parker handed a letter to the Chairman and the Clerk which gave his formal resignation from Heversham Parish Council.  The Chairman thanked Cllr Parker on behalf of the Parish for his eleven years service which included two years as Chairman.  The Clerk was asked to commence the statutory process in order to fill the casual vacancy.

 

The Clerk reported she has received letters of thanks and invoices for funds awarded by the Leasgill Quarry Trust from the following : Milnthorpe Corinthians Football Club, Christmas on the Green Committee, Milnthorpe Junior Football Club and Milnthorpe Cricket Club.

 

Comments have been received regarding the condition of the area around the Cockpit.  The Chairman advised advertisements have been placed in the Westmorland Gazette and the Parish Magazine for a memorial seat.

 

The Clerk had received a comment regarding the web-site being out of date and Cllr Lucas responded that he would address this issue.

 

828    Items for consideration for a future agenda

To give consideration to the purchase of a new mower.

 

Cllr Lucas voiced concerns regarding the amount of litter, including bottles and cans, which he has noticed in the hedges on the roads near his house.  It was suggested a ‘Village Clean’ should be organized for the Spring.  District Cllr Woof advised SLDC would provide bags and litter pickers and would collect the rubbish after the event by arrangement.

 

Cllr Lucas also voiced concerns regarding large vehicles which are scraping soil off the bank wall whilst driving along Haverflatts Lane.  It was agreed some consideration should be given to this matter.

 

829    Annual Parish Meeting

The Chairman introduced a discussion regarding preliminary arrangements for the Annual Parish Meeting to be held in March.  Suggestions were made for speakers to be invited for the following topics : Affordable Housing, Community Land Trusts and the Hincaster Trailway Group.

 

830    Date of Next Meeting

It was noted that the date of the next meeting is Monday 18 January 2010.


Items for the agenda to reach the Clerk before Friday 8 January and copies of reports to reach the Clerk before Monday 11 January.

 

The meeting closed at 09.20pm.

 

 

Signed : .…………………………………………………..………………………………   (Chairman)

Date : 18 January 2010

A copy of the signed minutes will be available for inspection following the meeting on 18 January 2010.