Cranwell, Brauncewell and Byard’s Leap Parish Council

Notes of a meeting of the Parish Council held in Cranwell Village Hall on Monday 3 September 2012 commencing at 7.00 p.m.

Attendance:With Cllr R Bett in the Chair there were present,
Cllrs – Mr M Cassidy, Mrs A Tyler,Mr D Ward
and the Clerk, Mr Eddie Findlay.
Also in attendance;D/Cllrs I Cartwright and G Whittle.

2members of the public were in attendance.

The Chairman invited the member of the public to address the meeting at 7:00pm.

One member of the public who was unable to attend the public meeting regarding the proposed Manor Farm development asked what had occurred at the meeting and enquired what the stance of the Parish Council might be. The Chairman gave a précis on the main points made by various members of the public and the responses from the NKDC Housing Strategy Manager, Mr Stephen Priestley and Mr Mike Gisbourn from Westleigh (the developers). He confirmed that the response from the Parish Council was to be finalised later in the meeting (minute ref: 155.b.) ready for submission by the extended date (6 September 2012).
D/Cllr Whittle reported that the a decision would not be made until mid/late October on whether the application should be put forward to the full committee, which would be in November 2012.

The Chairman then declared the meeting open at 7:16pm.

148. / Apologies for absence and reasons given.
Cllrs Morris and Hudson were unable to attend and had given their reasons and apologies at the last meeting.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve Cllr Morris and Hudson’s reasons for absence.
Proposed by Cllr Cassidy, seconded by Cllr Ward and agreed unanimously.
Cllr Ralph was still unavailable as per the August meeting (minute ref: 129.).
Cllr Farthing’s absence was noted.
149. / To receive declaration of interest.
None received at this time.
150. / Notes of the ordinary meeting of the Parish Council held on Monday 13 August 2012 to be approved as Minutes.
The Clerk had distributed DRAFT notes with the agenda and informed the meeting of a few minor amendments to those notes.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the notes from the Ordinary Council Meeting held on Monday 13 August 2012.
Proposed by Cllr Tyler, seconded by Cllr Wardand agreed unanimously. The approved notes were signed as a true record of the meetings.
151. / Receive reports from County/District Councillors.
D/Cllr Cartwright asked that minute ref: 155.b. be moved forward to allow them to speak on the matter.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to move the item forward. Proposed by Cllr Tyler, seconded by Cllr Ward and agreed unanimously.
The original application, in 2006, was for 27 properties, with only 3 being “affordable”. They were given a 3 year period to commence planning work. They then applied for an extension, which was dismissed and dismissed again, following an appeal. They had attended the public meeting and had taken note of the feelings against the proposed development and recommended that the Parish Council convey those objections to the planning committee. The Clerk had circulated a response letter, detailing the main points against the proposed development. The letter highlighted that the 2007 housing survey on which the new planning application was based was biased and its results flawed as it stated on page 1 – the “This survey is for people who will be looking for affordable housing within the next five years”. The Chairman thanked the Clerk for the content of the letter and a few amendments were made to bullet point the main arguments at the end as a summary.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to strongly object to planning application 12/0743/FUL - Erection of 16 houses, 4 bungalows and 10 flats with associated vehicular access and open space – Manor Farm, College Road, Cranwell, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 8DL, using the letter prepared by the Clerk. Proposed by Cllr Ward, seconded by Cllr Bett and agreed unanimously.
Cllr Cartwright also informed the meeting that there had been two applications to represent the Conservatives in our division at the next elections and at a specially convened selection meeting for members of the Conservative Party, it was confirmed that Stuart Tweesdalewould be the Conservative candidate for the May 2013 elections.
Cllr Whittle reported that the flooding at Thorald Avenue and the ownership of the ditch near Manor Close was still being investigated and it was hoped to be resolved by the next meeting.
The D/Cllrs left the meeting at 7:33pm.
152. / Financial Matters
  1. Approve the report on any expenditure since the last meeting.
There were no cheques signed since the last meeting, but the Clerk informed the meeting of an error caused by the quick cashing of the Clement Keys cheque, as reported last meeting. This had been amended on last months finance sheet and the Clerk asked for the amendment to be approved.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve amended sheet for the previous month.
Proposed by CllrWard, seconded by Cllr Cassidy and agreed unanimously.
  1. Approve payment of invoices listed on the “Finance Report”.
The Clerk informed the meeting that following notification from HMRC that his tax code had been changed. This had resulted in him requiring to pay less tax for this role at present.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the listed invoices for payment.
Proposed by Cllr Bett, seconded by Cllr Ward and agreed unanimously.
  1. Consider an amendment to the cost of the notice board for the Village Hall foyer, as originally agreed at the February 2012 meeting (minute ref 24.d.2012).
Cllr Cassidy informed the meeting that the person who had been instructed to provide the notice board had suffered an injury and was slowly fulfilling his orders.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to defer the decision until the next meeting to allow Cllr Cassidy time to contact the cabinet maker and see if he still wished to complete the order and if the proposed alterations were possible.
Proposed by Cllr Ward, seconded by Cllr Cassidy and agreed unanimously.
  1. Consider the purchase of bike racks for around the playing field area.
The bike racks were deemed “desirable” following a building inspection. It would offer a secure place for bicycles, it might encourage more people to use bicycles if a secure rack was available and it would act as a deterrent to parking on the grass. The Clerk however pointed out that no budget had been set aside for it and as the Sills and Betteridge costs for handling the Land Registry application had cost considerably more than anticipated, the Clerk urged that the matter be postponed until finances could be budgeted for.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the purchase of 3 U bike racks, using money set aside in the last budget for play equipment for older children, up to a value of £250.00.
Proposed by Cllr Tyler, seconded by Cllr Bett and agreed unanimously.
153. / Receive reports from the Clerk in relation to Council matters.
The Manor Farm public meeting had been better than expected and it was hoped that NKDC would take heed for the thoughts and feelings of residents over this proposed development.
The Romper Room had returned their Hiring Agreement for the new term, as had the Rainbows on a Thursday evening. The Clerk had received an email from Brownies confirming they would not be requiring the Old School as they were moving to the Village Hall as they need more space.
Email sent to PC Martin Green ref “visit timetable” which appears to miss off this Parish. No response as yet.
The A15 would be closed near Leasingham, from the Holdingham roundabout and Old Lincoln Road, between 7:00pm and 7:00am, from 3 September to 21 September 2012 for reconstruction of the worn out carriageway. The notification had been in the notice boards for a month.
Notification had been received from LCC Highways that the request dated 11 March 2012 for new grit bins had been considered and the following had met the criteria set out in their policy. New grit bins would be placed on site, in a suitable location, before the coming winter season at Thorold Avenue (top end), Old School Lane (near Village Hall) and Old A17 Byards Leap (south side opposite Colin Wood Motors).
154. / Receive reports from Councillor’s relating to responsibilities and outstanding tasks.
No resolutions may be passed under this item but requests for matters to be placed on the next agenda can be made.
Cllr Bett reported that the funding request for play equipment had been turned down by the National Lottery but he would investigate the Armed Forces Covenant grant rules.
Cllr Tyler requested the Clerk provide electronic copies of approved minutes for the website.
Cllr Cassidy informed the meeting that the cutting back of the trees in front of the A17 safety camera near Byards Leap had still not been carried out and he would be pursuing it before he went away on holiday.
Cllr Ward had spoken to WO Steve Johnson regarding placing a notice board on the grass on Delhi Square. Cllr Bett informed him that the land was not Parish Council land but was now the responsibility of a residents association. His table top sale at the Bank Holiday fund day had resulted in a further £26.00 for the Cranwell Sports Pavilion Fund and £75.00 had been donated to the fund by the Bowls Club.
155. / Planning Matters.
  1. 12/0703/HOUS –Proposed two storey side and single storey ground floor extension with loft conversion and rear dormers and balcony to first floor – 121 College Road, Cranwell, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 8DN
The application had been APPROVED.
  1. 12/0743/FUL - Erection of 16 houses, 4 bungalows and 10 flats with associated vehicular access and open space – Manor Farm, College Road, Cranwell, Sleaford, Lincolnshire, NG34 8DL.
See minute ref: 151.
156. / General correspondence.
The Clerk had written to the Social Club asking that the current smoking shed be adjusted to comply with the legal requirements along with receiving a coat of paint and having the roof repaired. He had requested a date when the work would be completed by.
The Clerk had also written to the Village Hall Management Committee regarding the fixing of car park signs to their garage in the car park.
157. / To confirm the date of next meeting of the Council.
The next ordinary meeting was confirmed as Monday 1 October 2012.
158. / To resolve to go into closed session in accordance with the Public Bodies (Admissions to Meetings) Act 1960 to discuss the following matters
  1. Consider the terms and conditions laid down in the Groundsman/grass cutting and hedge trimming contracts. (in pack up).
Action: The Council RESOLVED to go into closed session.
Proposed by Cllr Tyler, seconded by Cllr Ward and agreed unanimously.
This part of the meeting closed 8:15pm.
The meeting continued in the absence of press and public at 8:16 pm.
(Not for publication by virtue of section 100(a) para 4 of the Local Government Act 1972, the items being of a confidential nature.)
Confidential Minutes
  1. Consider the terms and conditions laid down in the Groundsman/grass cutting and hedge trimming contracts.
The Council briefly discussed the contents of the contracts and it was felt that over time some of the matters had been forgotten.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to defer a decision regarding the possible setting up of a contract working group until more members of the Council were in attendance.
Proposed by Cllr Ward, seconded by Cllr Cassidy and agreed unanimously.

The Chairman closed the meeting at8:30 pm.

Date: 1 October 20121-2012Signed: