ROWLANDS CASTLE PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Meeting of the Leisure and Open Spaces Committee held on
Monday 15 October 2007 at 7.45 pm in the Small Parish Hall
These Minutes are subject to confirmation by this Committee at its next meeting
PRESENT
Cllr G Worthington Cllr Mrs Byrom
Cllr D Harvey Cllr A Craggs
Mr S Meeke Rowlands Castle Cricket Club
Mr A Forbes Castle United Football Club
Mr K Goldring Rowlands Castle Football Club
Mrs J Drinkwater Rowlands Castle Tennis Club
Minutes taken by Tony Daniells, Clerk to the Council
1. APOLOGIES
Apologies were received from Mr R Armstrong.
2. TO CONFIRM THE MINUTES OF THE LEISURE & OPEN SPACES COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 18 JUNE 2007
The Minutes of the Leisure & Open Spaces Committee meeting held on 18 June 2007 were confirmed as an accurate and true record of the meeting and duly signed by the Chairman of the Committee, Cllr Mrs Byrom.
3. TO DISCUSS MATTERS ARISING FROM THESE MINUTES
a. P2 4.a The cost of a hoop had been obtained. Grant funding could be applied for from EHDC. Councillors discussed the siting of the hoop and the amount of space needed.
Action: Clerk to obtain requirement for space needed and the cost of
installation.
Cllr D Harvey to visit Downs Park and review their newly completed
installation
b. P2 4.b Clerk had written to West Sussex County Council (WSCC) on the subject of a permitted path but no reply had been received.
Action: Clerk to again follow up with WSCC
c. P2 4.c. The cost of a replacement water heater was known. The Committee recommended a proposal to Full Council for approval.
Action: Clerk to bring to the attention of the next Full Council.
d. P2 4.f A Rights of Way Officer had now been appointed and issues with footpaths and signage were being addressed.
e. P3 6.f In response to a question, Mr Forbes confirmed that membership of Castle United Football Club had risen to 160
f. P4 7.f The Clerk was looking for a waste bin to place at the Store that would match the existing bins on The Green. Cllr Mrs M Harvey suggested contacting EHDC as they may have bins available.
Action: Clerk to contact Streetcare(Contracts) to discuss requirements
g. P4 7.d Secure tops for the Victoria bins on The Green were not manufactured. The supplier could supply bins tops as a special order at a cost of between £70 - £100 per bin. The Committee considered this too expensive to pursue.
h. P4 8.a An Officer from HCC had visited the footpath at the rear of The Drift but could not ascertain ownership. The Clerk suggested writing to Redhill Farm to ask if they owned the land.
Action: Clerk to write to Redhill Farm
i. P4 8.b Rights of Way concerns were now being addressed by HCC
j. P5.9 Lockers had been installed in the Referees changing room in the Pavilion to allow the Pavilion to remain unlocked during games. This would allow members of the public to use the toilet facilities if needed. The need for a public toilet in the village was discussed and it was agreed to bring this before the next Full Council to consider a site for such a facility
Action: Clerk to include as an agenda item at the next Full Council
k. The report on the Rowlands Castle Recreation Ground and other Open Spaces was a later agenda item at this meeting.
l. P5.11 The disposal of green waste from the cutting of the cricket square proved to be unresolved. The Clerk was asked to look at options. The schedule of grass cutting was also discussed, with the Cricket Club offering to cut the outfield if they had suitable equipment.
4. TO RECEIVE THE GROUNDSMAN’S REPORT
The Groundsman’s report was read to the Committee by the Clerk. In summary, his report commented that:
1. the pitches and grass were in good condition
2. there was still a need for hot water in the Pavilion for cleaning
3. there were no conflicts with pitch bookings and fixtures
4. there was a need to move the cricket scoreboard to the lockable storage
5. TO RECEIVE THE REPORTS FROM THE SPORTS ORGANISATIONS (JUNIOR AND ADULT FOOTBALL; TENNIS AND CRICKET)
Rowlands Castle United Football Club
a. Mr Goldring reported a good start to the season. His first team manager had returned to the club to look after team affairs which allowed him to look after the administration. The first team were mid table and had 16 players in the squad.
b. The second team were in second place in their league. A feed of players from the junior club was happening and this was seen as good news. Overall, the club were pleased with the way things were going.
Castle United Football Club
c. Mr Forbes reported that the club ran 8 teams and had 159 players. Under 7 coaching sessions had been well attended. All teams enjoyed Saturday training sessions and these would soon move to Warblington to ease wear on the pitches.
d. Dog owners were still allowing their dogs to foul the pitches and asked the Committee to consider the need for another dog bin.
e. The lock on the storage container was broken and he asked if this could be repaired.
f. The Hampshire Cup game against a Bournemouth team was successfully held at the Recreation Ground. He thanked the Parish Council for the use of the Pavilion.
Rowlands Castle Tennis Club
g. Mrs Drinkwater reported that the club had 344 members. The summer programme of tournaments and events had been successful. She also reported on the programmes for junior players.
h. Club evenings had now changed from a Friday to Thursday and the club had seen a rise in attendance.
i. In response to a question from the Committee, all clubs represented at the meeting discussed participation from within the village and considered that they were always open to new members.
Rowlands Castle Cricket Club
j. Mr Meeke reported that membership numbers were low with some players preferring to play league cricket at Havant rather than village cricket.
k. Councillors suggested ways to attract new members. The village did not have enough young people who wanted to play cricket and Mr Meeks considered that the Cricket Club did not have the talent within to develop youngsters.
l. Some games had been lost this year due to both wet and dry weather. There were also some blank weekends and the Club would look to address this next year.
m. Mr Meeke thanked the Parish Council for the new tables and chairs in the pavilion.
6. To receive a report on the future of the Recreation Ground and other Green Spaces prepared by Cllr Craggs
The report on the future of the Recreation Ground was received by the Committee. During the discussion that followed, Members of the Committee considered that
a. The report was an overall policy for discussion and something to work from
b. The Recreation Ground was an asset that should be used more to encourage health benefits
c. Councillors should read the document and meet at a later date to discuss its content, and for linkage to the Parish Hall Working Party recommendations.
d. The Parish Hall Working Party report had still to be discussed by this Council and needed to be done in time to get input into the 2008/09 budget.
7. To consider and recommend Hire Fees to be charged to the football, cricket and tennis club users for the year 2007/08
The Tennis Club had a lease agreement and the fees charged to them would be decided at a later date, based upon a valuation of the tennis courts
It was AGREED that the fees to Rowlands Castle Football Club and Castle United Football Club would rise by 10%.
It was AGREED that fees to Rowlands Castle Cricket Club would rise by 5%. The setting of fees on a per match basis would be looked at for the next year for the cricket club, if this was in their interest.
8. TO CONSIDER THOSE OPEN SPACES WITHIN ROWLANDS CASTLE PARISH WHICH COMMITTEE MEMBERS BELIEVE TO BE IN NEED OF ADDITIONAL ATTENTION
The triangle of land opposite the Castle Inn was untidy with litter. The land was owned by Stansted Park, and whilst EHDC Streetcare team had litter picked on one occasion, it was not their land and not on their schedule of street cleaning.
9. To consider those footpaths in Rowlands Castle Parish which Committee Members believe to be below the required standard for a Public Footpath.
No footpaths were considered to fall below the standard at present.
10 DATE OF NEXT MEETING
To be held on Monday 18 February 2008 at 7:30pm in the Small Parish Hall. Date to be confirmed.
The meeting closed at 10:00 pm.
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