Whessoe Parish Council
Annual Parish Meeting held at Whessoe Parish Hall
Thursday 28th May, 2015 – 7 pm
Present: Councillor G. Cassidy (Chairman),
Councillor S. Robinson (Vice Chairman),
Councillor D. Cummings,
Councillor L. Foster,
Councillor S. Goldfinch,
Clerk: A. Macnab.
Borough Councillor Gerald Lee,
Borough Councillor Marjory Knowles,
Borough Councillor David Lyonette.
33 Members of the Public.
.
2380 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Sylvia Dawson and Borough Councillor Paul Cruddas.
2381 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
No declarations of interest were made.
2382 BERRYMEAD FARM PROPOSED HOUSING DEVELOPMENT
The Chairman proposed that this item be considered first to allow residents of the Parish to give their views on the development to enable the Parish Council to draw up a response to the Consortium to meet their deadline of the 1st June, 2015.
The meeting was then opened to allow residents and the following issues were raised by residents:
1. Flooding.
Residents expressed the following concerns:
· A beck runs across the site in the next field to the north of Whessoe Parish Hall.
· Properties on the eastern side of the A167 are lower than the fields on the western side of the A167 with the result that in heavy rain water flows from the fields across the A167 and into their properties.
· A drain had been installed at a property on the eastern side of the A167 in Beaumont Hill which helps to prevent flooding to the resident’s property but that still left a large number of properties on the eastern side of the A167 which flooded if there is heavy rain.
· A drainage pipe was installed to drain surplus rainwater from the fields into the beck which flows into the River Skerne. The beck cannot take the surplus water consequently the land floods and surplus water flows under the A167 into fields on the Glebe Estate, into the garage of a property on the eastern side of the A167 in Harrowgate Village and neighbouring properties which are all lower than the road and flooding occurs. Flooding has resulted in damage to crops in a farmer’s field adjoining the A167.
· The three SUD ponds close to the A167 will not be effective in drawing water away from the site and consider that flooding of the properties and agricultural land on eastern side of the A167 will be more
likely because they are lower than the A167 and the Berrymead Farm land on the western side of the A167.
2. Road Safety and Traffic Congestion
Residents expressed the following concerns:
· Two lanes on the north and south side of the A167 were confusing and there would be no room on this road for four lanes.
· If the block paving on the south side of the A167 in Beaumont Hill was going to be removed to widen the road?
· Residents living alongside the A167 in Harrowgate Village and Beaumont Hill were concerned that he proposed road layout for this road would make it more difficult for them to turn right into their properties if they are travelling north on the A167 from Darlington which will mean that that they will be crossing two lanes of oncoming traffic which they consider to be unsafe and dangerous.
· The proposed increase in the number of houses from the original 80 houses in 2013 to 370 houses in 2014 to up to 470 in 2015 will substantially increase traffic congestion on the roads in the Parish.
· Heavy traffic congestion already occurs on the A167, Whessoe Road and Burtree Lane at peak times in the early morning and in the late afternoon/early evening. The additional traffic generated from and to the Berrymead Farm would have a significant impact on the already congested A167, Burtree Lane and Whessoe Road at peak periods.
· The traffic lights at the White Horse junction of Burtree Lane and the A167 needed to be simplified to ease the flow of traffic.
· Motorists speed up and down the A167 in excess of the 50 and 30 MPH speed limits. There have been 16 road traffic collisions and 5 deaths on theA167 since 1974.
· The volume of traffic on the A167 in Harrowgate Village prevented major housing developments along the A167 in the past.
· Two roundabouts are to be built one onto North Rd in the vicinity of the Parish Hall and the second is to be located at the bottom of Cambourne Drive on Burtree Lane. Access from the proposed Berrymead Farm onto the A167 will be difficult in the morning especially from 7.30 a.m. to 9.30 a.m. due to the severe traffic congestion on this road because it is a link road between the A1 and the A66 to Teesside. Burtree Lane and Whessoe Road are similarly congested in the morning from 7.30 a.m. to 9.30 a.m. because of traffic from Harrowgate Farm and through traffic from the A1 using this road as an alternative to the A167. Similarly
· There is a shared access to numbers 1 and 3 Camborne Drive immediately adjacent to the junction of Camborne Drive and Burtree Lane. Access to and egress from these properties will be significantly affected by the proposed roundabout at this junction.
· A request was made by the Vice Chairman of the Parish Council for the forecast. The assessed traffic modelling from the Consortium for the Berrymead Farm site suggested that circa 375 vehicles in any given period. Looking at Harrowgate Farm each residence has typically 2 cars per household so with a now proposed 470 houses. It was suggested that a figure in the region of 650-750 vehicle movement in any given period which is considerably more than the traffic modelling and will be a further serious impact on already congested roads.
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· Additional traffic will also be generated by the proposed primary school on Burtree Lane.
3. Development limits
Residents considered that the development was outside the Darlington Borough Council development limits and they were concerned that this proposed development may be outside the development limits. The Clerk was asked to find out the current development limits for the Parish.
4. Impact on schools.
Residents expressed the following concerns:
· The proposals will have a serious impact on the schools and academy in the area and it is not clear where children and young people will go for their primary and secondary education.
· The nearest secondary school is Longfield Academy of Sport which is at its full capacity and will be so for the foreseeable future.
The Clerk stated that when proposals were made in 2013 for housing developments Darlington Borough Council accepted the Parish Council’s submission that there would be a need for a new primary school to serve the sites and a primary school along Burtree Lane was to be built. There was concern Parish Council that the present development plans from the Consortium states that land is being reserved for ‘school or future development’ and are deeply concerned that the primary school may not be built on the site.
The Parish Council is insisting that a primary school be built on this site because the existing primary schools in the area do not and will not have sufficient places to accommodate the number of children from the proposed Berrymead Farm development.
5. Access to Medical Services
Residents expressed concerns that existing G.P. practices in Darlington have full patient lists and do not have the capacity to take additional patients from the proposed Berrymead Farm site which will potentially result in an additional 1,000 patients.
The Parish Council agreed to ask Darlington Clinical Commissioning Group for the impact of the proposed housing development on the existing GP practices in the area.
6. Disturbance and Anti social behaviour
A resident raised concerns that the proposed publicly accessible open space (Number 5 on the Master Plan) and the landscaping buffer (Number 2 on the Master Plan) to the north and west of his property will result in unacceptable nuisance and disturbance to the resident and his family being created by large numbers of people assembling in these two locations in the evening and at weekends.
7. Environmental Impact
Residents expressed the following concerns:
The proposed housing development will result in the loss of habitats for animals and species especially newts and bats.
Trees will have to be removed and residents have asked how many trees will be removed.
Pylons exist on the site and it is not clear what the Consortium’s intentions are in respect of the pylons.
8. Loss of the rural aspect of this part of the Parish
Residents were concerned that proposed Berrymead Farm development will take away pasture land and the rural aspect between Burtree Lane and the A167. It will take away the rural views from the properties on the eastern and western sides of the A167 which they value.
The Chairman thanked residents for their views and stated that they will be forwarded to the Consortium, the views will then be sent to each property in the Parish and residents will be kept fully in touch with developments at all stages.
The Chairman then stated that residents could stay for the remainder of the Annual Meeting or they were free to leave.
2383 CHAIRMAN’S ANNUAL REPORT
The Chairman made the following points in his annual report:
a. Energy saving car park lights have been fitted.
b. A new gas cooker has been installed in the hall kitchen.
c. The Main hall, toilets and kitchen have all been decorated.
d. A new fitted kitchen including a worktop and sink haven been installed.
e. The Parish Council is now in a position to and has hired a cleaner at £10 per hour, one hour per week.
f. The Parish Council now publishes a quarterly newsletter.
g. Hall hiring has contributed app £4500 to hall funds this financial year.
h. The Parish Council is still short of one Parish Councillor.
The Chairman thanked everybody for their continued help and support over the past year. The Parish Council thanked the Chairman for his very comprehensive report.
2384 ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN
It was proposed and seconded that Councillor George Cassidy be elected as Chairman of the Parish Council. The Parish Council RESOLVED that Councillor George Cassidy be elected as Chairman of the Parish Council for the 2015-16 year. Councillor Cassidy thanked the Parish Council for its continued support.
2385 ELECTION OF VICE CHAIRMAN
It was proposed and seconded that Councillor Simon Robinson be elected as Vice Chairman of the Parish Council. The Parish Council RESOLVED that Councillor Simon Robinson be elected as Chairman of the Parish Council for the 2015-16 year. Councillor Robinson thanked the Parish Council for its continued support.
2386 MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE PARISH COUNCIL ON THE 26TH MARCH, 2015 AND THE EXTRAORDINARY MEETING OF THE PARISH COUNCIL ON THE 21ST MAY, 2015
The minutes of the Parish Council meeting on the 26th March, 2015 and the Extraordinary Meeting of the Parish Council on the 21st May, 2015 were presented.
The Parish Council RESOLVED that the minutes of both meetings be approved as true records of the proceedings.
2387 MATTERS ARISING
No matters were arising from the last meetings apart from those which are on the agenda of the meeting.
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2388 STATEMENT OF ACCOUNTS FOR THE 2014-15 FINANCIAL YEAR
The Clerk presented a report which gave the Statement of Accounts for the 2014-15 financial year. The Clerk stated that the Parish Council operates two accounts – The Treasurer’s Account (Current Account) and the Petty Cash Account. The Parish Council’s bank is Lloyds Bank.
The Statement of Account for the 2014-15 financial year was as follows:
INCOME
Item / Estimate / 2014-15 Year end amountBalance from 2013-14 / 4,724.69 / 4,700.28
Parish Precept and Grant / 4,400.00 / 8,800.00
* see Note 1
DBC Elections / 0 / 0
PCC Elections / 0 / 0
Euro MP Elections / 120.00 / 120.00
Hall Hire Planning Meeting / 0 / 36.00
Hall Hire - Other Meetings - Foster Carers Support Group / 0 / 48.00
Hall Hire Embroidery / 280.00 / 290.00
Hall Hire Other Classes / 1,410.00 / 4,852.00
Hall Hire Durham Police PACT / 36.00 / 24.00
Hall Hire Parties / 350.00 / 352.00
Hall Hire Sleep Overs / 140.00 / 0
VAT refund / 202.48 / 356.15
Rebate from Econoprint for printing leaflets / 0 / 1.50
Rebate of overpayment of gas bill of £59.75 / 0 / 59.75
Sale of 49 hall chairs / 0 / 209.70
Total / 11,663.17 / 19,849.38
EXPENDITURE
Item / Estimate / 2014-15 Year end amount
Northumbrian Water / 113.95 / 59.90
DBC Rates / 153.31 / 149.42
NPower Gas / 862.54 / 765.86
NPower Electricity / 422.52 / 379.17
Aviva Insurance / 758.48 / 742.17
Audit – Internal. / 40.00 / 35.00
Audit – External / 120.00 / 0
Fire Extinguisher Service / 24.09 / 20.81
Boiler/Gas Safety Inspection / 82.69 / 55.00
Electrical PAT Testing – Annual / 25.20 / 24.00
Chairman’s purchases for Parish Hall / 70.00 / 961.62
Clerk’s Pay / 875.00 / 1156.25
EXPENDITURE
Item / Estimate / 2014-15 Year end amount
Website Charge / 20.83 / 18.00
Stationery / 12.00 / 0
Postage / 10.00 / 0
Printing of Leaflets / 0 / 20.00
Pressure Jetting Paths / 84.00 / 80.00
New Parish Hall Sign / 0 / £30.00
New Gas Cooker / 300.00 / 259.99
Installation of new gas cooker / 0.00 / 55.00
Electrical work on 2 lights in car park / 324.00 / 228.00
Electrical work on back light and clip to gas pipe / 0 / 42.00
Decorators charge for redecorating the hall / 0 / 180.00
Paint for redecorating the hall / 0 / 176.67
Wood and screws for hanging curtains in Parish Hall / 0 / 13.31
Wood Plinth / 0 / 18.00
Joinery Work - Fitting new cabinets and new work surface in the hall kitchen / 0 / 460.00
Additional cabinets for the hall kitchen / 0 / 403.05
Ceramic tiles and trim for the hall kitchen / 0 / 42.97
Toilet paper for Parish Hall toilets / 0 / 37.14
Rock salt for the paths surrounding the Parish Hall and car park / 0 / 2.00
Cover for the Meeting Room Table / 0 / 32.47
Annual subscription to TVVHN / 10.00 / 10.00
Annual subscription to Cleveland Local Councils Association / 0 / 140.92
Cleaner's pay for the Parish Hall £10 per hour / 0 / 166.00
Newsletter. Printing. £107.25 x 2 print runs / 0 / 107.25
Reimbursement of overpayment for hall booking / 0 / 20.00
Total / 4,308.61 / 6,891.97
* Note 1 The Parish Precept and Grant for both 2014-15 and 2015-16 were paid in the 2014-15 financial year.