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Parish Council Minutes February 2004

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The Monthly Meeting of the Parish Council took place in the Village Hall on Wednesday 11th February 2004 commencing at 7.30 pm.
The Chairman, Cllr Mike Smith presided; present were Cllrs K Bryan, M. Day, C. Hill, Mrs J. Nudds, C. Sleigh and M. Williams with G. Russell in attendance.

1. Apologies for Absence
Cllr Margot Metcalfe and District Cllr. J. Cotton

2. Declarations of Interest
Cllr Mark Williams declared a personal and prejudicial interest in the determination of the grass-cutting contract as an employee of one of the firms that had quoted. Cllr Sleigh declared a personal interest in the same matter as an officer of the Sports Club.

3. Minutes of the Meeting held 14th January 2004
The Minutes as circulated were approved and signed as a true record of the meeting.

4. Matters arising from the Minutes
i). The Clerk confirmed that he had written to the Primary Care Trust following clarification of the status of Richard Cannon Services and his letter had been acknowledged.
ii). Julia Kent of Franklins is drawing up a statement for completion of the contract concerning 51 Watling Lane and the matter should be concluded by mid-March.
iii) Cllr Day said that he had checked upon the insurance cover for the Village Hall and this appeared to be satisfactory. The Clerk was asked to raise again the matter of the flooding of Queen Street in heavy rain and the dangers that this flooding represented both to children, parents and staff at the Village School and to the fabric of the Hall. Cllr Williams had taken some digital photos during a recent case of flooding and these would be used in evidence if required.
iv). A list of Precepts set by other Parishes in South Oxfordshire was circulated
v). The catalogues of four suppliers of seats/benches have been received and will be circulated. The Clerk was asked to check if the Council has insurance cover for the seats around the Recreation Ground.

5. District Councillor's Report
District Cllr John Cotton had sent his apologies for absence from the meeting. He was aware that the Council would be discussing an approach from Berinsfield Parish Council to combine forces in a campaign to try and achieve Broadband connectivity with BT and he reported, through the Clerk, that in the new financial year starting in April the District Council will make funds available for a feasibility study into alternative ways in which the rural parts of the District can be connected to Broadband. It was possible that Dorchester and the surrounding area would be selected as the location for the testing of such a scheme.

6 Correspondence and Other Business
a). Sports Club & Playground;
There are still concerns about the tractor-shed roof in that the new metal sheets do not protrude far enough to protect the timbers beneath. It was agreed that Scion Estates should be invited to return for an on-site meeting. The Cricket Club plans to redecorate the inside of the Pavilion and this was approved. Another plumber has been to look at the shower and has said that the system is working properly.
It was agreed that the rabbit catchers should be asked to return - it was understood that they would do so at no extra charge - and the Clerk reported that the Newboulds of 6 Oxford Road had asked for contact details because they had a problem in their garden. It was agreed that Household Pest Services of Didcot be appointed to control the moles in the Recreation Ground and the Cemetery over the next 3-4 weeks. The cost be £240-£300 dependent upon how many visits are required,
There are concerns about the state of the Recreation Ground and the dangers presented to all users by the rabbit and mole holes, mounds and scrapes. It was decided that the School should be warned in writing of these dangers. The Parish Council agreed that it would pay for the cost of a supply of replacements pieces of turf.
Brian Rodgers has raised again the question of marking the boundary with posts rather than the hedges but it was agreed that no further action would be taken.
Vandals have recently damaged both litterbins. It was suggested that they should be re-concreted into position.
The Chairman said that the Village school children have begun their appraisal of the plans for new playground equipment.
b). Footpaths;
Peter Pritchard has offered to help the handyman with spreading the bark and was organising a working party for 18th February.
The County Footpaths Officer has been asked (twice) to go to Overy and the Clerk was asked to continue with his efforts because the boundary fence at Overy is falling towards the path.
The Chairman said that he would talk to Mr and Mrs Russell about the hedge and the overhanging bay tree on the boundary wall of 8 High Street.
Mrs Clerc's hedge on the boundary of 24 Bridge End needs to be cut back as the refuse collection lorry has again been encroaching onto the Village Green.
The Council noted that the County Council has cleared weeds from the pavement on the Overy side of Henley Road towards the bypass.
c). Cemetery;
The memorial to the late Leo Hill will now be made from York stone rather than wood as previously approved.
SODC Forestry Officer will contact Cllr Day to advise on tree maintenance and a new planting programme if required. Cllr Day has given the go-ahead for work on the hedge. The boundary near the footpath needs to be re-made and this work is included in next year's budget. Peter Keable has cleared some overgrown parts of the boundary but was prevented from doing more by the large amount of spoil left by gravediggers over recent years. Gilbert Hobbs will be asked to see if he can clear this.
Mr Colclough has not yet given his suggestions for the old cemetery buildings
d). Allotments;
It is confirmed that Caroline Brett is leaving the Village and the Council signed a greetings card to thank Mrs Brett for all that she has done on its behalf in managing the Allotments. The Council's thanks will also appear in 'Dorchester News'.
It is now important that arrangements are made for the continued smooth running of the Allotments. Several people have expressed interest in taking on Allotments for the first time and these need to be allocated as quickly as possible.
e). Parish Plan;
Cllr Williams confirmed that the questionnaire is now at the printer.
f). Car Parking;
The Clerk reported that the Catholic Church has declined the Council's request to open the field adjacent to the Church to provide extra parking spaces for major events.
g). PAGE;
The Clerk confirmed that a donation towards the campaign costs had been received from an Overy resident
h). Other letters to Chairman and Clerk
i). Details of the County Council Electoral Boundary Review would be circulated.
ii). An appeal for a donation to the Oxfordshire Community Foundation has been received. Details will be circulated.
iii). The Council noted a letter received from the Standards Board which made it clear that under the Code of Conduct a member's Declaration of Interests now has to include membership of the Freemasons.
iv). The Clerk has received a letter from Berinsfield Parish Council expressing interest in joining with other Parishes to campaign for Broadband connectivity.

7 Planning
a) Application
PO4/W0046 7 Manor Farm Road; Two extensions and a conservatory
The Council recommended that this application should be approved
b) Decisions, amendments etc
PO3/W1007 Co-Op Store, High Street
The Council noted the revisions which have been made to the plans for the shop front and floor plan
PO3/W1023; Vine Cottage, Bridge End; Extension
Planning Permission was granted 23rd January
PO3/W0379; 81 Abingdon Road,
Timber mooring on water front; Planning Permission was granted 14th January.

Council noted that there is to be a Planning Seminar at Didcot on Saturday 20th March, organised by OALC. The cost is £40 plus VAT per delegate.

8 Finance
The Clerk reported bank balances on 30th January as:
Current Account £7,248.85 and Reserve Account £9,847.32.
He said that he estimated that there is a total of £1,290 reclaimable VAT from 2002/3. The following accounts were approved for payment:
Hepher Dixon (PAGE campaign) £1,175.00
Southern Electric (Pavilion) £12.15
Dorchester Abbey PCC (Meeting room hire) £90.00
Scion Estates Limited (Final grass cutting 2003) £40.57
Scion Estates Limited (Repairs to cycle barrier) £340.75
GGD Russell (Clerk’s salary) £282.91
Geoff Willis (Handyman - 4 weeks to 6/02/04) £187.00
The Council agreed to donate £70 to the Oxfordshire Association for the Blind.
b). Draft budget for 2004/5;
A draft budget had been prepared by the Clerk showing total expenditure for the year as £27,950. The Precept has been set at £25,625 and additional income was expected to be in the region of £2,500 - a total of £28,125.
It was noted that whilst this budget took account of planned maintenance work in the Cemetery, the second phase of tree surgery on the Recreation Ground, repairs to the Pavilion guttering and an allowance of £1,000 for PAGE, there was no provision for what might described as 'improvements' to village facilities.
The draft budget was approved. It was agreed that there should be no reprint of the Village brochure unless local businesses make substantial contributions towards the cost of this year's publication. The Clerk will try to collect contributions before the end of March.

9. Grass-cutting contract 2004
(Cllr Williams left the room while this matter was being discussed)
Following a comparison of the schedule of quotes received from Scion Estates and Berinsfield Community Business, it was agreed that Scion Estates should continue to cut the grass in all the areas that they had looked after in 2003. The quote from Berinsfield Community Business for cutting the grass in the Abbey Churchyard is significantly less than the sum being paid to the present contractor and it was agreed to ask BCB to take on this contract in 2004.

10 Parish Remuneration proposal
The Clerk explained that Regulation 26 simply lists the duties for the performance of which a councillor may claim travelling and subsistence expenses. These include attendance at meetings of or on behalf of the Council; duties in connection with a tendering process; inspecting premises; and anything else approved by the Council.
It was agreed that although the Council did not wish to introduce a scheme of paying an expense allowance to members of the Council, it retained the right to pay expenses incurred under Regulation 26. It was therefore resolved that the levels of travelling and subsistence allowances set out in the Parish Remuneration Panel’s report be adopted as recommended and introduced with immediate effect. These allowances have been advertised on the Village notice board since 7th February.

11 Review of Subsidised Bus Services
The Council noted the letter from John Wood dated 4th February, which had been circulated. This set out the result of the County Council's review of subsidised bus services. It was agreed that this should be copied to residents who are known to use the bus services to give them an opportunity to comment.

12 Date of Next Meetings
It was agreed that the next Parish Council meeting would be held on 10th March 2004, the April Meeting on 14th April (Easter Sunday is 11th April this year) and the Annual Parish Meeting would be held on Wednesday, 5th May. Suggestions for inclusion in the agenda of the Annual Parish Meeting included a progress report on PAGE, preliminary results from the Parish Plan survey, if available, the report from the Environment Agency about measures to reduce the risk of future flooding (expected at the end of April), a presentation from RAF Benson and more discussion about public transport provision for the Village -not all of these to be included..

13 Any Other Business
i). Cllr Day explained the changes in the publication dates for 'Dorchester News.
ii). The lack of progress on the High Street development project was again deplored. The Clerk said that he knew Cllr John Cotton was trying to expedite a conclusion to the disagreement between developer and District Council about contaminated soil.
iii). Cllr Hill said that there was raw sewage coming from a blockage in the drainage system at 3 Wittenham Lane and asked if the Parish Council could expedite the essential and urgent repairs.
iv). Cllr Bryan said that he was still waiting for action concerning the diseased tree in The Limes which he had reported some months previously.

The Meeting closed at 9.58 pm

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