Matfen Parish Council

Ward 1 – Fenwick, Ingoe, Ryal. Ward 2 – Matfen

DRAFT MINUTES SUBJECT TO COUNCIL APPROVAL

Minutes of the Meeting of the Council held in Matfen Village Hall on Monday 25thMarch 2014 at 7.00pm

Present: Mr Robin Douglass, Chairman of the Council together with Mr John Telford, Mrs Ann Gregory-Smith andMr Frank Robson

In Attendance: Mrs Mandy Senior (Clerk)

0499.APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE –County Councillor Mrs V Jones.

0500.DECLARATION OF INTEREST. None

0501.MINUTES of the meeting held on 28thJanuary 2014. It was proposed by Mr John Telford, seconded by Mr Frank Robson and AGREED to accept the minutes as an accurate record.

0502.MATTERS ARISING.

a)Notice Board. Minute 0486a refers. Cllrs R B Douglass and J Telford to look at the area and find a suitable area to locate the notice board. Mrs Senior will contact Ian Bracklin to arrange installation.

It was agreed to refer to Matfen Estates re the damaged wall on the south side of Fenwick Shield to establish who is responsible for the repairs.

b)Grass cutting. Minute 0486c refers. Mike Williamson had carried out an initial clear up around the village. Cllr R B Douglass will contact him to arrange a further tidy up in April. Mrs Senior will attend to the swings in Ingoe.

c)Bus Service 74. Minute 0486e refers. Update received from Ian Coe, NCC – He is currently taking advice as to whether to proceed with consulting local communities further about possible reductions in service, including concerns about Service 74 on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sundays or award new contracts for up to 5 years on the basis of maintaining services at existing levels despite the increased costs. The current contract has been extended until September 2014. This does not mean that the 74 will remain unchanged beyond September.

d)Village Hall Committee. Minute 0486f refers. It had been agreed to defer the provision of planters until 2015.

e)Defibrillator. Minute 0486g refers. Cllr R B Douglass had spoken to Sir Hugh Blackett who is to speak to the hotel and golf course. It was agreed that the Parish Council would make a contribution.

f)Military Road. Minute 0496s refers. It was noted that the entrance to Vallum Farm had numerous signs which were restricting sight lines. Concerns were expressed over the access to this area and the dangerous junction especially as the entrance is not lit at night and the speed of the traffic on this stretch of road. NCC will be asked to investigate to see if a combined sign can be arranged.

g)NCC Issues. Minute 486i refers. Separate letters had been sent to NCC on the outstanding issues; trees overhanging the Village Hall and The Green; Ryal Village Green; Burnside Road flooding; unofficial layby in Ryal which is undermining the wall; flooding on the Great Whittington to Matfen road.

h)Parking on the pavement. A car owned by the tenant of West View is blocking the pavement on the road to Ingoe. A letter had been sent to Matfen Estates asking for the car to be removed and parked elsewhere. This had been acknowledged although the problem still exists. Mrs Senior will follow this up.

0503.COUNTY COUNCILLOR’S REPORT. Cllr Mrs V Jones was unable to attend the meeting but had sent a written report. A summary is given below.

  • Trees on Village Green. NCC has a 3 year delay on identified work. Some lesser works are taking up to seven years. This issue is to be discussed at the Area Committee and Cllr Jones has asked that extra resources are put into this. The time scale for urgent repairs is within 3 months. It was agreed to contact John Alderson, NCC to request that the trees are cut back from the Village Hall roof as a matter of urgency.

It was noted that the overhanging trees on The Green had not been cut back. John Alderson will be contacted to see if the residents of The Green had been contacted and to establish who’s responsibility it is to cut them back.

  • Broadband. This had been discussed at the West Area Committee and a full report was given. Matfen is still on the “being evaluated” map for the BT roll out. NCC have bid to Defra for money for rural broadband and Matfen is part of one of the bids. They are waiting to hear. This was the same monies as provided Rothbury’s broadband in an earlier bid. NCC loans scheme to private companies to fill the gaps until BT are able to offer in areas that are difficult to access is not on stream. People who had registered with Briskona had been notified – not all those registered with iNorthumberland. Cllr Jones has asked if they can be given details.
  • Quarry. This has now become a haven for wildlife. There is a group based in Ingoe who are trying to preserve it and would be grateful for the Parish Council’s support. Quarrying is likely to restart in approximately 18 months. It was agreed to contact Cllr Jones to ask what will happen to the wildlife when the quarry is regenerated and to contact the Ingoe residents to see if they are aware of the situation.
  • Local Transport Plan. Resurfacing of the C200 at Ryal is in the plan.

0504.FINANCE

a)Accounts for payment. It was proposed by MrJohn Telford, seconded by Mrs Ann Gregory Smithand AGREED accounts on the list attached be paid.

Payee / Detail / Cheque Issued / VAT / Net of VAT / Cheque Number
Noticeboard Company / Notice board – Fenwick / 503.99 / 84.00 / 419.99 / 100752
Mel’s Cleaning / Cleaning of public toilets / 80.00 / 80.00 / 100754
Mrs A Senior / Clerical Services / 275.55 / 275.55 / 100755
HMRC / PAYE / 69.00 / 69.00 / 100756
Matfen Village Hall / Rental / 10.00 / 10.00 / 100757
Mrs A Senior / Expenses / 105.20 / 105.20 / 100758
Mrs A Senior / Postages / 183.69 / 183.69 / 100759
Arimos Pest Control / Mole trapping – 4 visits / 228.00 / 228.00 / 100760
Income
Barclays Bank / Interest / 2.23 / 2.23 / 03.03.14

0505.CORRESPONDENCE. All correspondence received since the January meeting had been listed on the agenda and circulated to all councillors.

0506.CONSULTATION ON POST 16 TRANSPORT PROVISION 2014-15. It was noted that NCC had begun a consultation on a number of options it is considering in relation to the provision of Post 16 Transport from the start of the academic year 2014-15 onwards. The consultation is open until 9.00am on 19th May 2014 and can be found on the NCC website at

0507.DRAFT REVISED NORTHUMBERLAND TOWN AND PARISH COUNCIL CHARTER. NCC is consulting on the draft charter and will run until 9 April 2014. The aim of the charter is to identify how NCC and Town and Parish Councils can work effectively together to improve the economic, social and environmental well being of Northumberland. Matfen Parish Council felt that they are ignored by NCC and the charter bears no resemblance to their relationship with NCC. They consider it to be pointless as no feedback is given on reported issue and this becomes hugely frustrating.

0508.PLANNING APPLICATIONS.

a)All outstanding planning applications are listed on each agenda.

b)Boundaries. It was noted that The Fens was listed under Stamfordham Parish is the Hexham Courant. It was agreed to contact the Courant to ask them to rectify this. It was agreed that an accurate ordnance survey map was needed outlining the parish boundary. Mrs Senior will request from NCC.

13/02245/RENE / Land SW of High Bellridge / Proposed siting of a 24m high hub wind turbine with a tip height of 33.6m / Decision awaited
13/02858/FUL / Former Ingoe Chapel / Change of use from Chapel to dwelling which includes internal alterations and some changes to window sizes / GRANTED
13/02584/FUL / Robin Hood Inn, Military Rd, East Wallhouses / Proposed 18 bedroom accommodation / REFUSED
13/03078/FUL / Land West of Tongues Farm / Proposed installation of a kinspan KW6 domestic wind turbine mounted on a 15m tower (height to tip 17.8m) / GRANTED
14/03601/FUL / High House Farm, Matfen / Change of use of existing agricultural building to residential use. / GRANTED
13/03893/FUL / Fenwick Shield, Fenwick / Demolition of existing conservatory and construction of new garden room and construction of 2 dormer windows / WITHDRAWN
14/00869/FUL / Land S W of South Fens Farm / Constructionof ménage for private equestrian use / Decision awaited

0496.VILLAGE ISSUES

a)PARKING. Problems were again being experienced by vehicles parking on the pavement outside of School House. Vehicles parked here also obscure the access from Paddock Close. Mrs Senior will write to the residents.

b)RYAL VILLAGE GREEN. A letter had been received from Helen Lancaster, NCC to establish if complaints were still being received re the track across the green. A letter had been sent confirming that complaints were being received and for NCC to take immediate action as the track appears to have widened over the recent months.

c)NATIONAL CYCLONE BIKE RACE. A representative from the National Cyclone Bike Race had given a presentation to Stamfordham Parish Council at a recent meeting. The race is to take place on 21st and 22nd June. Mr Douglass to speak to Mr Edward Trevelyan at Stamfordham Parish Council for an update. Richard Barkes had requested that the grass on Ryal Village Green is cut prior to this weekend. Mrs Senior will contact NCC to arrange this. .

d)INGOE VILLAGE GREEN. The owner of Percy House, Ingoe had contacted the Parish Council to advise that 2 trees on Ingoe village green were overhanging his property and blocking the light. Cllrs R B Douglass and J Telford will inspect the trees to see what action needs to be taken.

e)VILLAGE HALL. Matfen Village Hall Committee had applied to NCC Community Chest for a grant to replace the tables and chairs. Mrs Gregory-Smith advised that the application is looked on more favourably if the Parish Council also contributes. After discussion, it was agreed, in principal, to contribute up to £1500, subject to the actual cost. Mrs Gregory-Smith to provide a quote for the replacement of the tables and chairs.

f)POT HOLES. Mr Telford advised that several pot holes had appeared in Matfen. He will report these to NCC for repair. NCC had promised to fill all pot holes in the County by end of June.

0497.CO-OPTION. It was noted that Keith Irving was interested in being co-opted to the Parish Council. Mrs Senior will contact him. Cllr R B Douglass to speak to Sally Lawson to see if she would be interested in being co-opted.

0498.DATE OF NEXT MEETING. The next meeting is to be held on Monday2June 2014 at 7.00pm in Matfen Village Hall. This will be the Annual Parish Meeting followed by the Annual Meeting of the Parish Council.

Signed as an accurate record______Chairman

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