Whitestone Road sign

Whitestone Parish Council

DRAFT Council Meeting held at Whitestone Parish Hall at 7.30pm on Thursday 9th February 2023 to be ratified on 9th March 2023

Attendance:- Chair – Councillor T Miles.

Councillors Cllrs T Baird, M Belt, V Bryant, L Fairley, C Galton, P Lee, S Llewelyn.
County Councillor A Connett (left at 8.15pm)
Mrs P Vaughan – Clerk to the Council
Mr P Bialyk, Ms H Packham (both left at 8.40pm)

Apologies:- Cllr A Evans, District Councillor Swain

PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Mr Bialyk and Ms Packham were in attendance regarding the Teignbridge Local Plan and most specifically development land at Attwells Farm, Nadderwater and Markhams Farm, Ide. This land borders Exeter and Mr Bialyk was able to advise the Parish Council of his shared concerns and also those of Exeter City Council. The main points of concern are; Landscape impact, highways infrastructure, traffic congestion, sustainability argument, demands on the NHS services within the area and school placements.
Mr Bialyk was able to confirm that Exeter City Council (ECC) had opposed the inclusion of development at Attwells Farm in the draft response in 2021 and submitted a copy letter regarding the issues raised, he indicated that a further opposition would be likely by ECC due to the fact that it conflicts with their own local plan policies and the commitment to developing brown field sites in Exeter, upwards and not outwards.

Declaration of Interests
Cllr Baird declared an interest in the planning application 22/02255/FUL.

  1. Cllr Miles opened the meeting and the minutes of the Council meeting held on Thursday 12th January 2023 having been circulated were taken as read and signed by the Chair.
  2. REPORTS FROM COUNTY COUNCILLOR / DISTRICT COUNCILLORS
    County Councillor Connett gave an update and advised that older children who were outside the catchment area of schools who currently had a concessionary bus pass would see an increase in fees from £600 to £800, this may cause hardship and/or an increase in traffic if parents were to drive the children instead. He also answered questions regarding the TDC local plan and the WPC concerns regarding development at Attwells Farm. He did advise that if all the development sites were opposed, house building is still required somewhere and the 5 year bank of development land is vitally important so as to keep control of planned development across Teignbridge. He also mentioned that Exminster Parish were keen to have information regarding our VAS system which Cllr Evans had been tasked to provide.

  3. PLANNING - These applications can be viewed on line by going into the public access system at Teignbridge Planning following the directions giving the application reference. The following applications having been received from Teignbridge District Council with a request for comments were examined and responses were sent which can be viewed on Teignbridge District Council Planning site.

Planning Application

11.1 23/00062/FUL Erection of covered Walkway at Treelands, Five Mile Hill.
Whitestone Parish Council have considered this application which is for the construction of a covered walkway between the main building and the atrium of Treelands, a care home situated to the west of Whitestone. It seems likely that the proposed changes are intended to improve the cohesion of the buildings and to make the property more suitable for disabled or elderly people. The application states that the proposed construction would not be visible from the highway and that no trees or hedges would be affected. Drainage would be via a sustainable soakaway. There would be no implications for highways, parking or noise. The materials to be used appear suitable although it is unclear exactly how the walkway is to be constructed and if any sidewalls or handrails are planned. The application also states that there would be no adverse implications for biodiversity or wildlife. However, no details are provided about lighting, and it is likely that the walkway would be lighted in the evenings which would have negative implications for wildlife, particularly in an area where dark skies are the norm. If glass side walls are planned, this could lead to additional light pollution.
Although the Parish Council broadly supports this application, we suggest that TDC, if minded to approve the application, should strongly recommend that great care is taken with the installation of any lighting, to ensure that light spill is minimised in order to protect wildlife, and to preserve the dark skies of the area. Further information should also be provided about the construction of walkway.

11.2 22/02255/FUL Siting of new mobile home for use as permanent rural workers’ dwelling and ancillary reconfiguration of the site layout on land opposite Rebecca Springs Nadderwater. This item was not on the published agenda but was mentioned as a response will be required before the next meeting. Cllr Baird declined to comment. This application proposed dog boarding and the siting of a new 3 bedroomed mobile home. The previous conditional approval was very clear that restricted hours of use between 10:30-3:30pm were permitted for dog walking and should not be exceeded. The new proposal appeared to breach most of the conditions on the previous permission (19/01730/MAJ). A comprehensive objection will be submitted to request refusal.

Grant of Conditional Planning Permission>
11.3 21/02901/HOU Replacement garage/outbuilding to include ancillary first floor accommodation at
Alphin Springs.

  1. MATTERS FOR DISCUSSION

12.1 Cllr Miles reported attending a meeting at Teign Valley Community Hall where members from 16
parishes and town councils had attended and discussed various issues and difficulties being
regularly experienced in respect of planning and enforcement with Teignbridge planning
department. A collaborative response letter will be sent in combination with a letter from each
Parish highlighting any particular examples of planning issues and enforcement. It was agreed
that we could list examples including; Lower Hare Farm; Devon View and The Hen House and
several examples of enforcement reports that were still awaiting action.

12.2 Local Plan Consultation Review and Response Working Group – Public Involvement. The Clerk
distributed copies of reports on the Attwells Farm development proposal and also the Markham
Farm and Ide Village (Review previous response in 2021), Tedburn St Mary Parish Council are
also concerned with a proposal for 40 new houses in their patch which will also have an effect
on Whitestone, regarding additional traffic and school placements, as TSM have no spare
capacity and children would have to travel further to Cheriton or Exeter. The Public are being
encouraged to respond to the Local Plan Review but it must be done through the online form
only by the 13th March as all responses are sent to the Secretary of State for final review.

12.3 DCC4293/2022 – Lower Hare Farm Landfill – no updates or actions. Still no EA permit has been
applied for so no work can be undertaken.

12.4 Enforcement – no updates were available at this time on reported issues.

12.5 Authorisation of additional signatory for cheque payments. The Clerk supplied information to Cllr
Miles from Nat West Bank stating closure of their branch in St Thomas and it was agreed that
steps should be taken for the Council to transfer their accounts to online banking and add the
name of Cllr Baird for the necessary cheque signing.

12.6 CCTV for carpark and play area
It was reported that representatives from the Parish Hall Committee would be willing to meet to
discuss CCTV for the car park and play area. Cllr Baird will continue to obtain quotations
regarding this.

12.7 Telephone Boxes
The distribution of produce at the telephone boxes seems to be working well although it was felt
that there was a need for some signage to encourage that this should be a “Food Exchange”.
Discussion took place regarding the box situated at Nadderwater and enquiries will be made
regarding the possibility of its value for sale.

12.8 Vehicle Activated Speed Signs – nothing to report at this time.

12.9 Climate Action – Awareness + Activities – nothing to report at this time.

  1. MATTERS RAISED BY THE CHAIRMAN
    Cllr Miles requested authorisation from the Council to prepare a response with the Parish
    Council’s strong opposition to the Teignbridge proposed Submission of development at Attwells
    Farm in the Local Plan and the potential impact on the Whitestone area and this was agreed.

  2. FINANCE
    Income

14.1 2 School Houses rental to 1st February £825.00 - £150.00 Insurance and £79.20 (which includes £13.20 VAT) = £595.80.

14.2 1 School Houses rental to 2nd March £925.00 - £88.80 (includes £14.80 VAT) = £836.20

The following expenditure was proposed and seconded for payment. All in favour and the cheques were signed by Councillors Miles and Belt.

Expenditure

14.3 Mr L Blades Lengthsman works £344.31

14.4 Whitestone Parish Hall £1,287.51 Insurance Premium for Parish Hall

  1. CORRESPONDENCE
    A report was submitted regarding severe flooding and the intervention of Devon Highways to clear debris under the bridge in Nadderwater, near to Three Corners and it was agreed that a letter would be sent to the owner of the land to deal with the remaining debris in the stream. As a riparian owner, there is a legal responsibility to avoid flooding downstream.
  2. REPORTS

16.1 Cllr Belt reported that the road sign at Heath Cross has still not been replaced.

16.2 Cllr Bryant raised an issue regarding a complaint she had received concerning Three Corners
and after discussion was advised to bring the matter to the attention of Teignbridge
Enforcement.

16.3 Cllr Fairley reported that the playground area has been checked and that Allen Keys had been
given to Mr Blades and grass mats had been laid where mud patches had opened up.

16.4 It was reported that road signage had been put up at Chants Cottage and also a Facebook advertisement for Nest + Nurture Glamping Business, apparently licensed by Wanderlust,
although no planning permission has been given by TDC. Enquiries will be made with TDC
planning.

The meeting closed at 9.55pm

The next meeting will take place on Thursday 9th March 2023