Whitestone Parish Council
Minutes of Whitestone Parish Council held at Whitestone Parish Hall on Thursday 14th September 2017 at 7.30pm.
Attendance: Vice Chairman − Councillor A Reed
Councillors Ms T Baird, Mrs M Belt, Mrs B Bramhall, D Munro, Mrs B Netherway, R Phillips, A Rose.
County Councillor A Connett (left at 7.50pm)
Mrs P Vaughan, Clerk to the Council
>Mrs S Greenfield
Apologies Councillor L Hickman, Mrs L Fairley
Cllr Reed opened the meeting in the absence of Cllr Hickman who is on holiday.
58. Minutes of the Council Meetings held on Thursday 13th July and 10th August 2017 having been circulated were taken as read and signed by Cllr Reed.
59. REPORTS FROM COUNTY COUNCILLOR
County Councillor Connett thanked the Council for the opportunity to speak early as he would not be staying for the whole meeting. He noted that websites for Devon County Council, Teignbridge District Council and Exeter City Council had been offline for a while but were now back and running. He brought to the attention of the meeting that Devon County Council allocated him some funds to enable him to give Community Grants to deserving causes and requested that any organisation wishing to take advantage of this should apply to him for an application form.
60. PLANNING
The following applications/plans were examined and discussion took place with the following observations:-
Planning Applications
60.1 17/02018/CLDE Certificate of Lawfulness for existing use of land for siting of caravan for human habitation with associated wooden building and residential access at Yonder Ridge, Rowhorne Road. No objections.
60.2 17/02161/LBC Raising of the chimney stack and chimney pots to the easterly sitting room at Deerslake, Halsfordwood Lane, Nadderwater. No objections.
60.3 17/00378/MAJ Additional building to provide additional accommodation and facilities for residential care home at Treelands, Five Mile Hill. No objections.
Granting of Conditional Planning Permission
60.4 17/01329/FUL Provision of 50 metres x 20 metres manege at Valley View, Heath Cross.
60.5 17/01201/FUL Reinstatement of field access on lane to Springdale Farm, Longdown.
60.6 17/01361/FUL Cattle winter housing and grain store at Hazel Bank, Tedburn St Mary.
60.7 17/01258/FUL Alterations to entrance and provision of retaining wall at Top Steps Farm, Halsfordwood Lane.
60.8 17/01811/FUL Increase in height to approved workshop extension (approved as part of 16/00872/FUL) at Derek Lane and Company, Tedburn Road.
61. MATTERS FOR DISCUSSION.
61.1 Completion of Annual Audit
The Clerk reported on the successful conclusion of the Annual Audit by the Audit Commission for 2016/17 and the audit report from Grant Thornton. Copies of the report can be obtained on application to the Parish Council Clerk and notices to this effect have been posted on notice boards within the Parish and on the Whitestone website. The account for £240 is submitted for approval in the expenditure section. A vote of thanks was given to the Clerk for the work entailed in this process.
61.2 Road Signs
The broken and missing road signs within the Parish were reported to Devon Highways and a response has been received stating that these have been placed on record for repair and replacement.
61.3 School Houses
A repair organised by the Letting Agents for recharge of UVHC expansion vessel was carried out at No 1 and the account paid by them. Cleaning of the gutters and facias on both houses has been completed as agreed at the July meeting and the account for £94 is submitted for approval in the expenditure section. Cllr Reed informed the meeting that the existing tenant would be moving out of No 2 at the end of September but that the Letting Agents have already secured a new tenant for the property. The property will be inspected prior to the new tenant moving in and any necessary works completed.
62.4 Crossway Park
Cllr Bramhall reported the springs on the gates are not working satisfactorily, that drain pipes have been left on the compost heap and that the football nets are loose. Following discussion it was agreed that these matters would be dealt with.
62. MATTERS RAISED BY THE CHAIRMAN
Cllr Reed had nothing to report.
63. FINANCE
Income
63.1 1 School Houses rent for August/September £675.00 − £64.80 includes £10.80 VAT = £610.20.
63.2 2 School Houses rent for August/September £800.00 − £76.80 includes £12.80 VAT = £723.20
Expenditure
The following expenditure was proposed and seconded for payment. All in favour and the cheques were signed by Councillors Belt and Munro.
63.3 Whitestone Parish Hall Management Committee (September) £108.00 Cheque 355
63.4 Clerk’s expenses £74.34 Cheque 356
63.5 Grant Thornton £240.00 includes £40 VAT Cheque 357
63.6 Mr P Cook £94.00 Cheque 359
63.7 C R Kibbey £60.00 includes £10.00 VAT (Paid through Carter Geering)
64. CORRESPONDENCE
64.1 Devon Association of Local Councils invitation to the AGM, Conference and Exhibition to be held on Tuesday 10th October at Exeter Racecourse at a cost of £25 per person. Cllr Belt and Cllr Rose indicated interest in attending and the Clerk will liaise with Cllr Hickman as Council Chairman on his return from holiday before making any bookings.
64.2 A letter has been received from James Bryant as Tower Captain at the Whitestone Parish Church thanking the Council for the grant of £414 which has enabled the purchase of new bell muffles and the Clerk showed the meeting a copy of an article which will be going into the magazine giving details of what “muffles” are.
64.3 Cllr Hickman had reported the faults/damage at the BT Kiosks at Nadderwater and by the bus stop and a response has been received that they will get these repaired as soon as possible.
65. REPORTS
65.1 Cllr Phillips requested that landowners now cut back their hedges within the Parish.
65.2 Cllr Munro had received a request from a parishioner that a one-way system be implemented going down Hill Lane and up Pound Lane. The meeting was opened to allow Mrs Greenfield to speak as she said that this issue was one which had come up in the Parish Plan as a specific question and the response was that parishioners were in the main not in favour of this going forward.
65.3 Cllr Belt reported attending a meeting of the Parish Hall Management Committee earlier in the day.
65.4 Cllr Belt wished to bring to the attention of parishioners the fact that events sometimes clashed with the Parish Council meetings, as had happened tonight with the Concert in the Tithe Barn at Glebe House, and she hoped that as Parish Council meetings were published for the year this could be avoided in the future as she and some of the other Councillors would have liked to attend tonight’s concert but had to give priority to the Council meeting.
65.5 Cllr Baird reported on the recent Neighbourhood Watch meeting which went well and said that the next meeting would be at 8pm on 29th January with all welcome to attend. She said that she had signs for Neighbourhood Watch and Farm Watch available but had mislaid the names of those who had requested them. A meeting of the Parish Pals had also been well attended.
65.6 Cllr Rose asked if it would be possible for have a notice board erected at Heath Cross and was informed that this had been looked into in the past.
66. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Mrs Greenfield gave the following report on behalf of the Parish Plan Steering Committee:- “The Parish Plan Steering Group Committee have been completing the appendices to the final plan document ready for the printers. All the other documents are ready to go. If the Parish Council feel able to support all that we have done and wish to have their support for the Action Plan outcomes included within the main plan document we would need this within the next few days”.
Cllr Reed then asked for the opinion of the meeting and Councillors were all in agreement that the Parish Council fully supported the Action Plan outcomes which had been distributed to Councillors after the August Council meeting.
The meeting closed at 8.45pm.