Sunningwell Parish Council
MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF SUNNINGWELL PARISH COUNCIL HELD ON WEDNESDAY, 16th MAY 2007 AT SUNNINGWELL VILLAGE HALL
Present: Cllrs. E. Bennett (in
the chair), H. Lynam-Smith, D. Graham and C. Wise (part)
In Attendance: Pat Romans
(Clerk) and one member of the public
1. ELECTION OF CHAIR
Cllr. Nichol, as the retiring Chairman, opened proceedings and asked the
current Council to elect a Chair for the coming year. He then left the meeting.
Cllr. Bennett said that she would chair this
evening’s business but could not undertake the duty for the longer term. It was
agreed that members would meet informally to decide on how best to organize
matters until such time as a full Council is in operation.
2. ELECTION OF NEW COUNCIL
a) Signatures
Following
the Local Elections held on the 3rd May 2007, when the current Council was
elected unopposed, members signed a Declaration of Acceptance of Office which was
witnessed by the Clerk. Following instructions from Vale D.C. they all agreed to complete a
Register of Interests to be returned to the Clerk in time to meet the 28 day
deadline for depositing with the District Council Monitoring Officer.
b)
Adoption of Revised Code of Conduct
The
revised Code of Conduct came into force on the 3rd
May 2007
and the Clerk outlined the advice from the Standards Board that this should be
adopted in order to ensure standards across the country. One additional clause
giving members with a prejudicial interest the same rights as members of the
public to speak to a meeting on the issue before leaving to enable the Council
to take a vote was considered and it was decided that this should be included.
The Council therefore decided unanimously to adopt the Model Code of Conduct
including paragraph 12(2).
c)
Co-option to the Parish Council
It was
agreed that every effort must be made to find residents to fill the current
vacancies on the Council. Three are required immediately and a fourth person as
soon as possible to replace Cllr. Wise who had put
his name forward to enable the Council to achieve the necessary quorum for
meetings to take place. His County and District commitments mean that he will
not always be able to attend.
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Action: (i) Cllrs. to produce an ‘appeal for co-opted members’ to be
published in the next edition of the Sunningwell
Scene (ii) Clerk to post notices on the 3 notice boards
that co-options are necessary.
3.
QUESTIONS & COMMENTS FROM VISITING COUNCILLORS
Cllr.
Wise said that a meeting this evening marked the start of the next term of the
Vale District Council following the recent Local Elections and he would need to
leave the meeting shortly in order to return to these proceedings.
He was
pleased to report that the Vale D.C. had recently been able to make a grant of
£2,000 to enable the renovation of Bayworth Chapel
Hall to be completed.
4.
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies
were received from County Cllr. B. Johnston.
5.
DECLARATIONS OF PERSONAL OR PERSONAL & PREJUDICIAL
INTERESTS
No declarations
were made.
6.
MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 25th APRIL 2007
It was proposed by Cllr.
Lynam-Smith and seconded by Cllr.
Graham that the
Minutes should be accepted as a correct record of the meeting. This was agreed
unanimously and the Chairman signed accordingly.
7.
UPDATE ON ACTION POINTS/ANY OTHER MATTERS ARISING
Page 251 Protruding Hedges, Foxcombe Road
This has
been reported to OCC Highways with a request that the two sites involved are
inspected. An acknowledgement from OCC has been received.
Action: Clerk
to seek feedback from the OCC Highways Engineer and report to next meeting of
the Council
Page 252 Village Hall/Pond Surrounds
The Clerk
read a report of the recent meeting between Cllr.
Nichol and David Hodson, solicitor, which indicates
that some progress is being made on what is a very complicated series of issues
on land ownership and access rights. In general it was felt that David Hodson should continue working on behalf of the Council
rather than engaging a new solicitor who would have to start from the beginning
again. Cllr.Lynam-Smith
said that her responsibilities as a Poors Law Trustee
lead to her concerns over the access rights issue and an agreement between the
parties involved is needed on this.
Action: Cllrs. Graham and Bennett to walk the area with Cllr. Lynam-Smith in order to
familiarize themselves with the situation.
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Page 252 Bayworth
Garage Site
The Clerk
read feedback from the Vale Housing Association which states that there are no
immediate plans to develop this site for housing.
Action: Clerk
to contact the VHA and request a site meeting with Cllr.
Graham to discuss what clearance work needs to be carried out..
8.
REVIEW OF SUB-COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
It was
agreed that discussion of this item be postponed until a full Council is in
operation. Major business concerning planning and finance will necessarily be
handled by the current members.
9.
APPOINTMENT OF NEW CLERK
An
interview was held recently when Mr. Mike Rothery was
appointed as Clerk to the Council and he will commence duties on the 1st July 2007.
10. FINANCE
Accounts for Payment
It was
unanimously agreed to accept the following accounts for payment –
Cheque
No.
|
Payee
|
Purpose
|
Amount
|
VAT
|
095
|
Mr. B. Cross
|
Litter Warden’s Duties
|
£110.34p
|
|
096
|
Bayworth Baptist Chapel
|
Hire of Hall
|
£15.00p
|
|
097
|
VHMC
|
Hire of Hall
|
£28.00p
|
|
098
|
Zurich Insurance
|
PC Insurance
|
£404.94p
|
|
11.
PLANNING
a)
Application dealt with between meetings
SUN/1603 7, Brumcombe Lane, Bayworth
To erect
side and rear two storey extension to existing two storey house
Parish
Council response: the Parish Council do not object but request the following issue be
given consideration – the immediate neighbours, Mr.
& Mrs Davey, are
concerned that the proposed development will be very close to their boundary
with No. 7 and will dominate their property/garden and adversely affect their
outlook.
b)
Other Planning Issues
Restenneth – the Vale D.C. Enforcement
Officer has reported that the extension as built and used at this property does
not breach planning controls.
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Charlottes –Cllr. Lynam-Smith said that she had spoken to Mr. Roger Hood, Vale D.C. regarding the work being carried
out at this site following concerns raised by
residents that existing buildings have not been demolished prior to building
commencing. Roger Hood has promised to have the situation investigated and
monitored to ensure that the conditions attached to the permission are met.
12.
CORRESPONDENCE
The
following correspondence has been received since the last meeting
12.1 Vale D.C.
Additional Parish Cleansing Grant (Clerk)
12.2 Village Hierarchy Review (Clerk)
12.3 OCC Minerals & Waste Sites
Proposals – consultation (Cllr. Graham)
12.4 OALC AGM – 11th
June 2007
12.5 OCC Newsletter – April 2007
12.6 CAB Acknowledgement of donation
12.7 Society of Local Council Clerks – membership
invitation
12.8 Littlethorpe Advertising
12.9 Kompan “
12.10
Clerks & Councils Direct – magazine
12.11 Thames Valley Police - Stakeholder Forum 5th June (Cllr.
Lynam-Smith)
12.12 Npower
- Radley Lakes (Cllrs.
Lynam Smith’s & Bennett’s opposition to
Npower’s use of Radley Lakes noted)
12.13 Sunningwell School of Art - exhibition 25th May
12.14 OGBN -
Newsletter + year’s free subscription (Cllr.
Lynam-Smith)
12.15 Sunningwell & Bayworth
Luncheon Club – acknowledgement of donation
12.16 Society of Local Council Clerks –
regional conference 27th June
13.
ANY OTHER BUSINESS
(i) Cllr. Graham reported back on his review of the Core
Strategy Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report/Consultation noted at the last
meeting. He said that the focus of the Report is ‘living within environmental
limits’ and he found that a lot of the material available on the website
related to the Local Plan and was therefore of interest to the Parish Council.
He will download particularly relevant sections and send copies to other
members for reference.
(ii) Cllr. Lynam-Smith said that young foxes are currently posing a
danger to cats and she felt that residents should be warned to take extra care
for their pet’s safety. It was agreed that a piece in the Sunningwell
Scene would be the best way of conveying this message.
There being
no further business Cllr. Bennett closed the meeting at
9.20pm.
Signed……………………………………….Date…………………………………
Chairman
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