Ickford Parish Council

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF ICKFORD PARISH COUNCIL

Held on 8th November2016, at 7.30pm at Ickford Village Hall Annexe

Present:CouncillorLouise Arnold(LA)Chairman

Councillor VinaParmar(VP)

Councillor Keith Green(KG)

Councillor Ruth Baker(RB)

Councillor Peter Jordain(PJ)

Councillor Barbara Kolbert(BK)

Nicola Dawson (ND)Parish Clerk

District Councillor Michael Rand(MR)

1 x resident from Ickford

Item / Previous Minute / Subject / Action
229. / Apologies & approval of absence
Apologies received by Andrew Brunet (AB) were approved.
230. / Declaration of Interest
None received
231. / Requests for Dispensations
None received
232. / Confirmation of Previous Minutes
The minutes of the last meeting held on 11th October 2016 were agreed a true record & signed off by the Chairman.
233.
a) / Finance
Drawn Cheques at meeting (for October2016)
Payee / Item / Cheque No. / Period / Amount
Ickford School / Informer costs for October 16 / 563 / Oct 16 / £33.43
N Dawson / Clerk salary for Oct 16 / 564 / Oct 16 / £327.80
Got It Covered / Zip wire repair & removal of bins / 565 / Oct 16 / £80.00
N Dawson / Expenses / 566 / Oct 16 / £54.38
R Baker / Expenses for Informer paper / 567 / Nov 16 / £50.05
£545.66
b)
c)
d) / The accounts for September2016
Income, Expenditure & Reconciliation for September2016, previously circulated to the Parish Council members, was agreed as a correct record & duly signed by the Chairman.
Setting of the precept for 2017/18
The previously circulated budget paper produced by AB was discussed & it was agreed to carry this item forward to next month to discuss in more detail with AB as the RFO. It was advised that the precept must be resolved at the December meeting in order to meet the deadline for application of January 2017.
Project List 2016
The project list has been updated this month with completed projects and new projects added last month / C/F
AB
234. / Correspondence & Communications Since Last Meeting
a)Brambles & Nettles along the footpath in the park: During the month, a suggestion was made by a local resident to clear away the brambles & nettles that run between the wall & footpath on the recreation ground & replace with shrubs donated by residents. The PC all felt this was a very good idea & it was agreed to get the area cleared – ND to action with Got It Covered. LA then agreed to put together a brief to appear on the community websites & in the Informer requesting donations of shrubs for the Spring.
b)VALP Forum:ND & LA confirmed their attendance on 14th November & agreed to brief the PC with any updates.
c)Modernising Local Government Report:The report, that covers moving towards a unitary council for Bucks / AVDC, was discussed & MR gave a brief overview of the current situation at District & County level. It was confirmed that this is still in the discussion stages – the PC agreed that they are not in a position to make any comment on this at present.
d)Email from M.Armistead:The PC discussed the concerns raised in the previously circulated email, which references potential development interest shown in a site previously deemed “unsuitable” by AVDC in the VALP. Following legal advice & advice given by District Councillor MR, it was agreed that the PC are not in a position to comment or formally give any opinion on this until a formal planning application is proposed or new information is released via the VALP. The PC cannot declare a pre-determined view on any planning application until such an application is formally made. ND to reply to email with the aforementioned comments.
e)Email from Joan Field:A request for the PC to purchase a bench on behalf of someone else in order to save the VAT was considered & the PC were advised that on legal grounds, they are unable to assist in this request as the bench is not for the PC nor will it be going onto PC land & this purchase would be deemed inappropriate by a financial audit. ND to reply to email. / ND/LA
C/F
ND/LA
ND
ND
235. / Meetings Attended on behalf of the Parish Council in the period
TfB Winter Conference 1st November 2016: This was attended by PJ on behalf of the PC – please refer to attached briefing notes & slides from the event.
236. / Planning
The following planning application was received in the month & circulated with the agenda:
  • 16/03539/APP:23 Turnfields, Ickford – single storey extension– NO objections from the PC

237. / Open Forum for Parishioners (under adjournment)
1x resident present at the meeting– no specific items raised.
Project Updates
238. / Village Maintenance & Landscaping
a) / 223) / Village “tidy up” initiative
  • The PC discussed the previous suggestion of running a project involving volunteers to clear up untidy / unkempt common areas around the village including verges & hedges. The clerk advised that the PC are not able to tend to any area currently covered by Bucks CC as this would be in breach of contract between the PC & Bucks CC. However, if an individual wishes to tend to any public area outside of their own property, they are at liberty to do so, but the PC has no liability for this action.
  • It was agreed to advise residents in the next Informer that the PC would like to apply for “Best Kept Village” next year & encourages everyone to get involved with the project. RB offered to write an article to this effect in the next issue.
/ RB
b) / 210b) / Village Maintenance
  • A budget of £200 was approved for ND to spend in the clearing of the brambles & hedges in the park in connection with item 234a) on the agenda.
/ ND
239. / Highways & Byways
a) / 225a) / Defibrillator (AED):
  • ND reported that the training session was reasonably well attended in the village hall & advised that several people who were unable to attend would be interested in a re-run of the training in the New Year.
  • It was agreed to hold another session (using the DVD & training pack) & to offer to villagers & school staff. ND to ask the Headteacher of Ickford School if we could hold the session in the school hall & to set a date for February. LA & ND agreed to facilitate the training session.
/ ND
ND/LA
b) / 225b) / Surface Water Drains:
  • LA updated on progress made with the current outstanding issues with the surface water drains around the village. Progress is slow from TfB but we are “on the list” to be assessed. It was agreed for LA to escalate the issue & report back next month.
/ LA
c) / 225c) / Footpaths:
  • ND confirmed that all landowners who are responsible for footpaths or public rights of way have now been written to – with the exception of 3 where addresses are unknown. RB agreed to assist in locating the contact details for these residents.
  • Court Farm stile: The PC discussed the proposal previously circulated by PJ to offer to replace the stile at the Orchard end of this footpath with a gate from the Ramblers Association. The PC approved this idea & agreed to spend the £250 proposed.
  • RB & ND offered to visit Dave Gill to discuss this idea to gain approval & offer to pay for the stile in return for the clearing of the footpath. If approval is gained, PJ to action the purchase & installation of the new gate.
  • Footpath Committee “walk around” – PJ advised that this has taken place & a list is being drawn up which details the current state of each footpath & lists any maintenance required. PJ to circulate list to the PC.
/ RB
RB/ND
PJ
PJ
d) / 225e) / MVAS: C/F from last month
  • It was agreed to C/F to next month to report on the re-positioning of the MVAS
/ C/F
240. / Communication & Publicity
a) / Ickford Informer:
  • It was agreed that with immediate effect, the Parish Council news page will not appear on the front page of the Informer as this implies it is a PC publication – all agreed it is not. This item is now closed for further discussion.
/ CLOSE
241. / Village Organisations & "Institutions"
a) / 227a) / Sports PavilionRecreation Ground:
  • LA reported that the Pavilion Committee are meeting this week to discuss the current status – feedback requested for next months’ meeting.
  • Concern raised over the storage container currently outside the Pavilion- its contents is believed to belong to the football club & therefore needs to be removed. The tug-o-war ropes are also stored in here & they need to be relocated – it was suggested that there may be room in the storage container outside the village hall – ND to contact Maureen Parker to discuss.
  • Following detailed discussion amongst the PC & residents, it was agreed by the PC to go ahead & produce plans to refurbish the current Pavilion with partition walls so as to ensure it could be reverted back to changing rooms at a future date, should a football or sports team return. LA to continue with proposal & quotes. C/F following Pavilion Committee meeting feedback.
  • ND confirmed that the 3 picnic benches have been ordered at a reduced cost of £976.85 +VAT – this includes a 30% discount. Installation due end of November – it was agreed to install them outside the front of the Pavilion, on the grass area. ND to action.
  • Croquet Lawn proposal: BK presented the proposal made by a local resident for a croquet lawn to go onto the recreation ground – the cost would be c£10k plus ongoing maintenance costs. The PC discussed this & voted against proceeding any further with this proposal at the present time due to other priority projects already allocated.
/ LA
ND
C/F
LA
ND
b) / 227b) / Village Community Groups Communication/ Party in the Park:
  • The PC discussed the proposal put forward for the Celebrate funding & agreed to proceed with the planning of the event.
  • ND & LA are to look for further funding ideas as unfortunately the application missed the deadline by 1 hour. VP to provide contact at the Lottery Fund to chase up application.
  • It was agreed that an event committee would need to be formed, with a nominated project manager to run the event – this committee should be made up of people from all areas of the community – C/F to next month for further discussion.
/ LA
VP
LA/ND
c) / Remembrance Sunday Wreath: The new wreath has been delivered & ND asked for a PC representative to attend the service at the Church on Sunday 13th November to present the wreath on behalf of the PC. BK volunteered to do this. / BK
242. / Next Meeting agreed 13th December2016, 7.30pm in the Annexe at Ickford Village Hall

The meeting closed at 9.40pm

All supporting documentation referred to in the minutes above can be found on the Parish Council section of the website in the files held by the Parish Clerk.

Signed:Date:

PREPARED BY: CLERK TO THE COUNCIL

Nicola Dawson, 4 Bridge Road, Ickford, Bucks, HP18 9HX

Phone: 01844 338130

Email: age 1 of 5