Minutes of the Meeting of the Parish Council held on Thursday 7th July, 2016

At 8pm in the Fairford Leys Community Centre, Hampden Sq., Fariford Leys

Present: Cllrs Cole (Chairman), Pattinson, Eastwood, David, Poland, Wilde, Baughan, Minton

K Gray (Clerk to the Council)

2 ResidentsChloe Lambert (Bucks Herald)

  1. Apologies for Absence

To receive and accept apologies for absence notified to the Chairmanor Clerk

RESOLVED: To receive and accept apologies from Cllrs Lambert (family commitment), Harper (illness) and Jarvis (family commitment).

  1. Declarations of Interest

To receive any pecuniary or non-pecuniary declarations of interest

To receive written requests for dispensations for disclosable pecuniary interests (if any)

To grant any requests for dispensation as appropriate

  • No declarations made or dispensations requested
  1. Minutes of the Previous Full Council Meeting 2nd June 2016

RESOLVED: To accept and sign the minutes of 2/6/16as a true record.

  1. Clerk’s Report

To receive a report from the Clerk on matters dealt with and taking forward.

  • Maintenance update given
  • Community Payback Team continue to be used on FL
  • Vale of Aylesbury Plan – Public Consultation
  • Main playground – proposed further plans for refurbishment and finance of project

RESOLVED: Chairman to suspend Standing Orders to allow questions from the public and any reports from councillors

Haretwell

  1. Questions from the Public & Reports
  • Resident reported fault on Defibrillator. The matter will be reported to the maintenance company.
  • Resident thanked the council for arranging the Music in the Square (MitS) event and appreciated this community event which he thought has been very successfully managed and attended by the community.
  • Chloe Lambert (BH) reported on her competition in the BH and a pupil from St Mary’s School was assisting with her reporting role. Also commented positively on the MitS event and made suggestions regarding the Vale of Aylesbury Plan and areas of attractive landscape issues/concerns to be addressed.
  • Cllr Pattinson reminded councillors that if they could not deliver the magazine then they should let her know as there are some volunteers willing to step in and help. She also thanked the maintenance team for the excellent work they are doing on FL and commented on how well maintained the opens spaces are on FL. She said that people should not take the work the team and parish council do for granted as the level of work and service provision is not always the same, or even takes place, in other parishes/communities. FL is a lovely place to live and work.
  • Resident asked if there was an update on her concerns about the level of noise from local buses travelling on FL roads and past her home. Cllr Cole is to measure the decibel units, himself, at some point and refer to Environmental Health team at AVDC as the team do not have the resources to carry out this work.
  • Cllr Wilde reported on the MVAS data for Coldharbour Way for the period May/June. An article will be prepared for the Coldharbour News. It is clear that local residents are speeding due to the times of the data collected and the highest speed recorded was 75mph. There was a total of 243,695 vehicles using the road during this period.
  • Cllr Baughan stated that the MitS was a great success, and this was agreed by all councillors. She also reported some anti-social behaviour that had taken place in the main park and this had been reported to the local police for action as appropriate.
  • Cllr Eastwood thanked everyone who volunteered on the MitS event and was grateful to all, including DJ and bands, for making the evening such a successful community event. She reported on the arrangements for the Fair in the Square event this coming Saturday and that 38 stalls were due to attend along with various attractions. The dog show was all in place. She also reported that someone was attaching dog refuse bags to play equipment on one of the parks as well as hanging them in trees and bushes.
  • Cllr Cole reported that he has been invited to an event arranged by Benjamin Homes UK to be held in the Community Centre on 8th October. The event is to display art work by young people of the local homes. The Mayor of Aylesbury and Chairman of the AVDC have been invited to attend the event. He reported that there have been no incidents at the homes for some time now and that more closer working was taking place between the managers of the home, residents and himself.
  • Cllr Cole (AVDC) gave the following report:

Domiciliary Care Home:I am pleased to say that incidents at the home on Wren’s Path have decreased significantly with just a couple of minor incidents being reported over the last month or so. Residents continue to report any issues to the Benjamin UK Complaints line and these seem to be followed up promptly.

One of the continuing issues is curtains and blinds not being closed as agreed at the mediation meetings. It has become evident that this is not helped by a large gap in the hedgerow along the riverine that seems to frame the home. As a result, Benjamin UK have asked that this gap be filled by planting a large hedge which they have offered to pay for my thanks to Keith and the maintenance team for investigating this.

Following my meeting with Benjamin UK on Tuesday 5th July to discuss ongoing issues and moving forward the staff feel that they have a good balance of children in the home which has led to this period of more settled behaviour.

The home has also expressed an interest in getting more involved with the community and have proposed to hold an art exhibition at the community centre to show off some of the artwork the children have created. They are also keen to engage with local charities, the church and community led initiatives such as “clean for the queen” as well as contributing an article for the Parish Magazine.

Whilst I am wary of this period of settled behaviour I am pleased that Benjamin UK are continuing to engage with the community and hope that it continues and that any incidents can be dealt with swiftly.

VALP (Vale of Aylesbury Local Plan):As many of you are aware last week AVDC agreed to put the proposed local plan out to public consultation. The consultation will run from Thursday 7th July for eight weeks ending on Monday 5th September.

During its development I have been a stand in member of the VALP scrutiny committee twice and on both occasions I have questioned officers on the proposed developments to the South of Fairford Leys. I have raised concerns with regards to a lack of traffic modelling, noise and pollution studies as well as the increased risk of flooding due to surface water run-off. I again questioned officers on these points at Council on the 28th June and expressed my disappointment that this information was still very vague or non-existent.

I have also asked about the impact of HS2 on any developments especially at the roundabout of the A418 where the proposed by-pass will terminate and where development runs close to the proposed works by HS2 LTD. I have questioned officers on the need to take greenbelt areas around Wendover for development as well.

I would urge you all to reply to the consultation and raise any concerns you have; I am also more than happy to raise specific concerns on your behalf as one of your district members.

Riverine Corridor: On the 14th June the Environment and Living Scrutiny committee met and discussed the current situation of adoption of the riverine corridor this is an item I had requested be added to the working program.

Following my introduction to the article officers were questioned on the delays, the issues of ongoing maintenance and the flood risk that a lack of maintenance presents.

We were advised that there had been a number of unseen delays the most recent was because all the roads in Fairford Leys had not been adopted by BCC. This has now been completed and AVDC are pushing the Earnest Cook Trust to release the land to them.

AVDC have made it very clear that they are very keen to pass the land to the Parish Council. There is also a sum of money that has been put aside believed to be around £850,000 for the ongoing maintenance of the land and discussion took place around how much of this would be passed on to CPC (I recommended all of it).

Since the meeting I have been copied in to a number of emails again pushing for the transfer of Phase 1 (I have forwarded these to the Clerk to keep him in the loop) and I will continue to press officers to get this finally adopted and passed across to CPC.

HS2:As you may have seen there has been a lot of criticism with regards to the way the House of Lords have treated petitioners and used Locus Standi. As of the 22nd June 223 petitions had been decided on and only 18 had made it through just 8%. *

There has also been talk that HS2 will need to be put back and the National Audit Office has again questioned the viability of the scheme. With a change of leadership action groups are cautions but hopeful that maybe a fresh pair of eyes and ears may make a difference, I wait with my fingers crossed.

RESOLVED: Chairman to reconvene meeting under Standing Orders

  1. Decisions by the Resources & Personnel Committee, Leisure Committee & Youth Services Committees

Council is asked to receive and approve the minutes & decisions of the above Standing Committees. Minutes of the committees have been copied to all councillors.

  1. Finances and Orders for Payment

To agree and authorise the following orders and retrospective orders forpayment:

  • George Browns LtdMaintenance£6.00

£2,376.00

£269.36

  • Smoking Rocket LtdWebsite Hosting£150.00
  • Window FlowersFloral Displays£2,179.20
  • Natasha EvansFirst Aid Training£170.00
  • PlantscapeMaintenance£168.00
  • Briants of RisboroughMaintenance£58.56
  • FFM Engineering ServicesMusic in the Square£360.00
  • M BassMusic in the Square£480.00
  • Kieran AccousticsMusic in the Square£250.00
  • Dan BlasorMusic in the Square £800.00
  • David WilliamsMusic in the Square£200.00
  • Gone So FarMusic in the Square£100.00
  • Callow SaintsMusic in the Square£200.00
  • KM CommercialsMaintenance£50.40
  • Cllr S PattinsonExpenses£58.00
  • Helpful HiringsMaintenance£46.68
  • Jones & CocksMaintenance£133.29
  • Cllr A ColeReimbursement£36.00
  • Butler FuelsMaintenance£448.10
  • Trade Uk (B&Q)Maintenance£24.00
  • Hartwell LandscapingMaintenance£161.63
  • Fresh Design & PrintColdharbour News£1,653.18

£210.00

RESOLVED: To receive, accept and agree the monthly financial report from the

Finance Officer.

  1. Ernest Cook Trust Covenants

To receive a report from the Working Group and consider any proposals to the administration of the Covenants.

Discussion took place on the proposals from the Covenant Working Group and the proposals as detailed in the report were agreed by council.

RESOLVED: The clerk to contact the Ernest Cook Trust representative and discuss the proposals made with a view to make changes in the FL Development Guidelines. Once agreement was made then communication will take place with residents via website, guidelines and articles in Coldharbour News magazine.

  1. Hs2

To receive an update, if available, and agree any further actions necessary

The latest Buicks County Council report/update on Hs2 was circulated to all parish councillors, which included:

  • Tunnel evident – Tim Smart, Hs2’s Head of Engineering and Operations gave a presentation to the House of Lords Hs2 Select Committee on 27thJune, on tunnelling.
  • On 30th June, Martin Kingston QC, acting for Bucks County Council and other authorities, made a procedural plea to the House of Lords to allow the Chilterns extended tunnel evidence to be heard and an Additional Provision to be allowed.
  • National Audit Office have published their findings on the Hs2 proposal – they have stated it is a large, complex and ambitions programme which is facing cost and time pressures. They also state that phase one of Hs2 is likely to cost £27.4 billion which exceeds available funding by £204 million. The estimated cost of phase 2 which will link West Midlands with Leeds and Manchester is also over budget, according to the National Audit Office.
  • To be kept up to date with lasted information on Hs2 matter please contact Andrea Polden on who will add names to her mailing list.
  • Marcus Rogers (Parish Council Agent/Representative) gave the following report to council:

HS2 Update

Coldharbour Parish Council continues to fight for mitigation in respect of HS2.

Coldharbour Parish Council

Impacts from construction traffic

Like ATC, Coldharbour Parish is very concerned about traffic impacts across the village. In particular, they fear that the spine road, if not used by construction traffic, will be used by rat-running drivers avoiding queues on Oxford Road or Bicester Road. St Marys School is located on / adjacent to the spine road and there are understandable concerns about pupil safety at the village school, especially as many families walk or cycle to or from this important local facility. The Council believes that as a minimum the Promoter should place restrictions on construction traffic to avoid peak time operations and should do all it can to manage and minimise rat-running through the estate.

Visual and noise mitigation

Whilst it appears that HS2 Ltd has given an assurance that the playing fields will not be affected by either the construction or operation of the railway, and that the existing western edge of the village will also be protected, ensuring that the wooded path will remain as a local amenity, the promoter has offered little in the way of visual and noise mitigation for those who live on the north western edge of the estate. At this point the line of route will be clearly visible to residents as it emerges from the 'embankments' and heads towards the Thame Valley viaduct, a feature which appears to benefit from very little, if any, visual or noise mitigation. This must be remedied. The Council is also keen to ensure that the same level of protection is afforded to Coldharbour and its permanent residents, as is proposed for Hartwell House Hotel with its temporary residents.

Communication with Councils

Since their Select Committee appearances (ATC and CPC - Tuesday 17 November, SMPC and SMAG - Wednesday 18 November), the Councils have received no further correspondence from HS2 Ltd to discuss these outstanding issues and concerns, despite the Select Committee's expectations that these should happen.

Aylesbury Town Council:

Impacts from construction traffic

The Council is concerned that HS2's initial transport assessment is based on very flawed assumptions. The numbers of vehicles have also fluctuated wildly in each iteration, with the latest suggesting that rather than focus traffic movements on roads from the west (A41, A418, A4010, A413) the 'pain' will now be spread across all radial routes into and out of Aylesbury including the A41 link to the M25, the A418 to Milton Keynes and the A413 to Buckingham. These impacts MUST be managed to ensure Aylesbury is not gridlocked for seven years. It is well known that impacts on just one radial (i.e. flooding on Lower Road) can bring the whole town to a juddering halt. HS2 Ltd must also work to minimise and manage rat-running across the town caused by increased congestion across the day (not just at peak times).

Marcus will be writing to the Select Committee Chairman on behalf of the individual Councils, expressing their disappointment at the lack of engagement in the last two months. Marcus stated that the Councils would welcome David (Lidington's) support on this matter, should he wish to express his concerns about the standard of engagement and communication by the Promoter.

  1. Planning Applications
  • To receive, comment and to either object, support or oppose the following planning

Applications.

  • To consider late applications presented by the Clerk.
  • To consider Ernest Cook Trust Permission on all planning applications

All applications are sent to councillors electronically and cllrs should look at the AVDC website for details of all applications prior to decision at parish council meeting.

  • 16/02175/APP10 Sandhill Way, FL

Conservatory to side extension

RESOLVED: No Objection

  • 16/02003/APP9 Swallow Lane, FL

Single storey rear extension

RESOLVED: No Objection

ERNEST COOK TRUST COVENANTS

Permission is sought from the following residents regarding their properties:

  • 10 Sandhill Way, FL

Conservatory to side extension

RESOLVED: ECT Permission Granted

Conservatory must be of the design as stated in the development guidelines

and all materials must adhere to the relevant guidelines

RESOLVED:

Under the Public Bodies (Admissions to Meetings) Act 1960 S2.

Members of the Press and Public are asked to leave the meeting for the next item on the agenda on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information.

  1. Music in the Square Event 2016

To review the event and agree any decisions for 2017, if deemed appropriate at this time.

Councillors considered the event to be extremely successful and enjoyed by all those residents and visitors who attended.

RESOLVED: That there should be a Music in the Square 2017 event and this should take place on 9th September, 2017 in order to spread the various events out across the year which will assist to make the arrangements of these events more manageable. The budget for this event is expected to be of the same amount from the precept in 2017.

RESOLVED: That the Leisure Committee and Clerk of the Council continue to make the necessary arrangements for this event and that the Clerk of the Council contact Dan Blasor to ask if he is available to host/arrange the bands as per previous agreement.

There being no further business of the Council, the Chairman closed the meeting at 9.15pm

Signed: ______Date: ______

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