BRIDGTOWN PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting.
Commencing 7.30pm, Wednesday 14th September 2016.
At Bethel Church, Union Street, Bridgtown.
Present:
Cllrs. Eddie Smith, Alison Smith, Maureen Freeman, Patrick Frondigoun, Kevin Whittaker, Adrian Askew and Matthew Freeman.
In Attendance:
Mrs J. Arm – Parish Clerk.
Mrs Colleen Worrell
Cllr. Matthew Freeman was welcomed to the Council. It was noted that he had signed his Declaration of Acceptance of Office prior to the meeting commencing.
1. Apologies received in writing.
None. All members were present.
2. Declaration of Interests on Agenda Items and Consideration of Dispensations where appropriate.
Cllrs. Eddie Smith, Alison Smith and Adrian Askew declared an interest in Item 10.1. They did not participate nor vote on this agenda item.
No further declarations of interest were made.
3. To Approve the Minutes of the Meeting held on 13th July 2016.
It was proposed, seconded and agreed to approve the minutes.
RESOLVED: To approve the minutes.
4. Matters Arising from the Minutes.
Item 9.1 The District Council had been asked to consider nominating the parks in Bridgtown to the Centenary Fields Programme.
No further matters arose, not already covered on the agenda.
5. Chairman’s Report:
Cllr. Eddie Smith reported:
It was noted that the company who had quoted for the WW1 Centenary Memorial seat, had advised they were finishing trading. It was agreed the Clerk would make further enquiries to see if the same bench could be purchased from elsewhere.
RESOLVED: To research if the preferred WW1 Bench was available from other suppliers.
Following the purchase of a thank you gift to the retiring caretaker of Bridgtown Primary School, it was noted the gift had been gratefully received.
There were no further matters of report, not already covered on this Agenda.
6. Recreational Areas.
It was noted that the Union Street play area and gardens were looking untidy. The area had been reported but the District Council had advised that they were not due for further work this year. It was thought the trailing bramble was a trip hazard.
6.1 Memorial Garden.
It was noted that the area had been cleaned and tidied. It was agreed to ask the Parish Maintenance contractor to re-paint the benches.
RESOLVED: To paint the Memorial Garden benches.
6.2 War Memorial.
It was agreed that the planters were again in need of attention. The Parish Maintenance Contractor would be asked to clean them.
RESOLVED: To clean the planters.
Three quotes had been sought for the cleaning of the War Memorial. Two had been received and it was agreed to accept the quote £590 + VAT from Midland Masonry.
RESOLVED: To accept a quote from Midland Masonry.
It was agreed that the vegetation behind the War Memorial on land part of Bridgtown Primary School needed to be cut back as it was causing discolouration on the memorial. It was agreed that Cllr. Eddie Smith would request a meeting with the school to discuss this issue.
RESOLVED: To request a meeting with the school to discuss cutting back the vegetation.
It was agreed that when the vegetation was cut back the Council would install trellis to support the poppy wreaths at Remembrance Day.
RESOLVED: To install Trellis to support Remembrance Day wreaths.
7. Planning:
7.1 Applications for Consideration.
It was noted that Councillors would be considering planning applications and observations would be submitted to Cllr. Eddie Smith for comment to the District Council via the Clerk where appropriate.
7.2 Applications Approved/Rejected by Cannock Chase District Council.
Applications approved, rejected or withdrawn would be noted.
8. Correspondence.
8.1 Incoming.
The incoming post was noted with the following comments.
A complaint from a resident regarding graffiti on Western Power premises in North Street, had been reported to them and since cleaned.
Concerns had been raised regarding dog fouling on Kingswood, Lakeside Boulevard. It was noted that a prosecution could only be made if the enforcement officers could observe the perpetrators. It was agreed to request further lamppost and footpath marking advising dog owns to clean up after their pets.
RESOLVED: To request lamppost and footpath “No Dog Fouling” notices.
Cannock Chase Council had written about the financial situation. As previously reported to Councillors the early closure of Rugeley Power Station and the unsuccessful application for transitional funding support, meant that the District Council would need to make some substantial budgetary savings. They were considering cutting the part grant funding of the precept and cease funding for Christmas illuminations. The lights could be donated to the Parish Council along with the responsible for insurance, storing, installation and maintenance costs. The Council expressed sadness at the extra burden this would put on the precept request but fully understood the situation facing the District Council. It was agreed that if asked the Council did not want the old Christmas illuminations. It was agreed that the local businesses would be asked if they could consider illuminating their premises at the festive season.
RESOLVED: To request local business to put up Christmas illuminations.
The District Council had notified the Council that no Community Infrastructure Levy payments had been received for this parish
8.2 Outgoing.
The outgoing post was noted.
9. Accounts.
9.1 Accounts for Consideration.
The following accounts were presented to the Council for consideration.
HMRC - Tax and NI contributions / £58.40Janine Arm – 2 months Clerk pay / £233.90
Staffordshire Pension Fund 'SCC Superannuation fund ' / £40.98
Staffordshire Pension Fund 'SCC Superannuation fund / £40.98
Janine Arm - Office expenses / £66.00
J Burton Gardening Services - Memorial Area Maintenance / £160.00
Bethel Methodist Church - hall hire / £20.00
EDWARD SMITH - Expenses for gift to retiring caretaker / £58.88
TOTAL Expenditure / £679.14
Authorisation of the accounts presented for payment totalling £679.14 was agreed.
RESOLVED: To authorise the payments.
9.2 Consideration of the Current Financial situation of the Council.
The accounts of the current financial year were presented for consideration. The accounts were accepted as a true reflection of the current financial situation.
RESOLVED: To accept the accounts.
9.3 Audit Matters.
The Council noted that to date the audit had not been concluded as the paperwork was still with the auditors.
10. Highway Issues – matters arising for attention.
Parking problems in the area were again causing concerns. It was agreed to request that the traffic officers visit the area. In particular, to pay attention to the school. It was agreed to request that the school send out a letter to parents asking them to observe the parking restrictions when visiting.
RESOLVED: To write and request the Traffic Enforcement Officers visit the area.
RESOLVED: To request the school advise parents of the parking restrictions outside the school.
Further to concerns of the overgrown traffic island on Walsall Road, Bridgtown, the Clerk had made various enquiries regarding ‘sponsoring’ an island with a view to having some control on the type of planting as currently the island was planted with shrubs which blocked the view on traffic approaching the island. The Council was still awaiting information from Cannock Chase District Council regarding sponsorship of an island. It was agreed to defer this item to the next meeting when further information should be known.
RESOLVED: To consider maintenance of the traffic island on Walsall Road.
It was agreed to report the broken paving slabs on North Street and also on Union Street. It was also agreed that Union Street was in need of resurfacing. The Clerk would request if any footpaths in Bridgtown were on the Structural Maintenance Programme for footpath resurfacing.
RESOLVED: To report broken paving slabs and request a copy of the footpath maintenance programme.
Concerns had been raised by a resident regarding the excessive dust, speeding and heavy traffic of HGV’s on Lakeside Boulevard. Having liaised with the resident, the construction company had agreed that they would be damping down the area to reduce the dusk. The resident had also been advised that weight restrictions could not be implemented on the road until the development had been completed.
All Highway issues noted should be reported to the Clerk and she would pass on to the relevant body.
11. Items for Information or Future Agendas.
Cllr. Askew reported that he had received complaints regarding the very tall pine tree on ground at the back of the business park and between North Street and New Street. The tree was now blocking windows of some of the flats.
It was agreed to report the issue to the District Council Environment Team.
RESOLVED: To report the overgrown tree and request that it be reduced in height.
Cllr. Maureen Freeman agreed to visit a local resident on Walsall Road who was having problems with noise pollution.
It was noted that Bridgtown knitting & scarecrow festival was due to be held early October, that may need sponsoring. The Council agreed in principle to a budget of up to £150.
RESOLVED: To budget £150 grant.
12. Date of Next Meeting:
7th November 2016.
Cllr. Smith thanked all those present for their attendance and declared the meeting closed.
Mrs Janine Arm
Clerk to the Council - 23 School Road, Norton Canes, Cannock, Staffordshire. WS11 9SQ Tel. 01543 450181 E-mail.
392
CHAIRMAN ………………………………………………