MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PARISH COUNCIL MEETING held on Monday APRIL 28th at 7.30pm. in the Methodist Room

Present:-

Mrs. G. Woods, Mrs. B. Manley, Mr. R. Cheney, Mr. N. Drury, Mr. C. Righton and Mr. A. Jervis. Cllr. C. Saint, Cllr. P. Seccombe and 7 members of the public.

Apologies for Absence:-

Mrs. B. Foster.

ELECTIONS:-

Chairman:-

Mr. Cheney proposed Mr. N. Drury, seconded Mrs. B. Manley, all in favour.

Mr. Drury then took the Chair and called for nominations for Vice Chair.

Mr. Drury proposed Mrs. B. Manley, seconded Mr. R. Cheney, all in favour.

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC:-

Flooding Upper Brailes:-

Mr. Kay asked if anything further had been done to alleviate the flooding in Upper Brailes. Mr. Cheney said that the Council had asked the Charity if it would be possible to run a drain across the allotments and was still awaiting a reply. The Clerk reported that a meeting had been held with the County in December 2007 when a number of proposed actions could be taken and said she would follow these up again.
Cllr. Seccombe spoke and said people were still claiming their £250 from the fund so that it had delayed the distribution but hopefully this would now be done in May.

Bins:-

A resident said that he felt the presentation on the new waste disposal plan was very good and informative, however he had come to realise that as more items are to be recycled it did mean having boxes or bins inside the house to separate these items as it would not be practical to have to go outside to the larger bin each time you wanted to dispose of them.

Gullies:-

Mr. Hyland spoke and said that he had sent his copy of the gullies in the village to Mr. Savage, asking for its return, as the County did not seem to have all the gullies marked on their maps.
Mr. Hyland had spoken with Mr. M. Cole and had suggested that a cattle grid further back into the field with the water being directed to the ditch would stop much of the water than ran down the road and collecting at the bridge. Mr. Hyland felt that possibly the Parish Council could find some money and members of the Flood Committee might help so that VAT could be collected. The Clerk advised that this would not be possible.

Brailes Show:-

Mr. Nerding said he was asking the Council if they would pay for the hiring and erection of the Marquee and Tents so that the VAT could be saved. Again this would not be possible as only “public funds” could be VAT free. The Council did not have money in its budget to help with the financing of the Brailes Show. If such money was needed then it would have to be asked for in December when the Precept was considered.

MATTERS ARISING:-

Dragons Teeth:-

The quote given last month was good for 6 months and the Clerk said that perhaps this could be discussed in detail next month when everyone had had time to look at the Accounts.

Speeding Signs:-

Mr. Maples had written and he said that the view of the DfT is that the guidance mentioned is just that - a guidance. It is up to the local highways authority to decide, on balance and in the context of their Local Transport Plan and traffic priorities whether the benefits of putting up speed limit advice signs outweigh the problem of street clutter.
Councillors felt that this was more or less final.

Sutton Lane:-

A feasibility study is to be done which means that any alterations would be paid for by the County.
The headwall on the brook is to be fenced.

Skateboard Ramp:-

The Clerk reported that she had sent off for a Community Grant and Cllr. Seccombe said that he gave the application his full support. Both he and Cllr. Saint were on the Grant Committee. The Clerk also said she would fill in the Form for Awards for All but felt that any other grant money would have to be sought by the Village Hall.

Neighbourhood Watch:-

The Clerk spoke of the report that was given by Mr. Packer at the Parish Meeting and wondered if the re-launch was to be pursued in the light of so few people coming forward. Mr. Packer said he would put something in the Feldon News.

Awards for All and Web Site:-

Mr. Cheney said he had ordered a Toshiba lap top which would arrive in a few days. He said that the Office computer needed to go on to Broadband. After discussion it was agreed that the money would be used to subsidise the Computer Course in the Village Hall for the whole of this year. It was agreed to discuss the subject of the “blog” next month.

Lighting:-

A resident had written to ask for a timer to be put on the new light in Friars Lane. Mr. Cheney proposed, 2nd Mrs. Manley all in favour.

Lighting:-NEW ITEMS

None this month.

MAINTENANCE:-

Water Upper Brailes:-

Although this had been attended to and seemed to be resolved unfortunately the water was back in evidence in Upper Brailes. The clerk spoke of correspondence from someone acting for the person who had the accident and said she had answered some of the questions asked but had pointed out that she was not a witness.

Loose kerbstones:-

Mr. Righton said that there were 2 loose stones outside the George near the archway.

REPORTS OF OTHER MEETINGS/COMMITTEES:-

None this month

CORRESPONDENCE:-

Best Kept Village Competition:-

The Clerk said she had information and that the whole competition had changed so that there was a choice of categories. Mrs. Woods said the entry to the Best Kept Churchyard had also changed and said that we should not enter. This was agreed.

Lighting:-

Mrs. Goren had written regarding the lighting in Winderton Road/Saltway Lane. Councillors felt no further action should be taken and the Clerk will write and thank Mrs. Goren for her letter.

PLANNING:-

FINANCE:-

Cheques:-

No. 100929 Methodist Chapel Rent £ 500.00

No. 100930 Mr E Tansley Audit £ 50.00

No. 100931 Computer Fees £ 240.00

No. 100932 Light Friars Lane £ 1,457.00

No. 100933 Energy Saving bulbs £ 854.60

Meeting closed at 9pm. Next meeting May 27th.