Stowe Parish Council
Clerk to the Council Mr Roy Saunders
Minutes of Stowe Parish Council meeting held in the Village Hall onTuesday 10January 2017 at 7.30pm
The Interim Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and advised that the meeting was being recorded. The Chair then introduced the Councillors and reminded the attendees of the protocol for Parish Council meetings.
01/17 Attendance: Interim Chair Cllr Christine Considine; Cllr John Windley; Interim ClerkCllr Roy Saunders; Cllr Megan Windley. No apologies received.
Residents – 6
02/17 Members’ Interests: Members were invited to declare disclosable pecuniary interests and other interests in items on the agenda as required by the Stowe Parish Council Code of Conduct for Members and by the Localism Act 2011. None received
03/17 Approval of Minutes: The Council was asked to agree the minutes from a Meeting of Stowe Parish Council held on 8November 2016.The minutes were agreed by all present and were signed by Cllr Considine (Chair) as an accurate record of the meeting.RESOLVED
04/17 Appointment of Chair: Cllr Saunders explained that the position of Chair had been filled on an Interim basis and felt it was time to consider the post on a permanent basis, subject to re-election later in the year. Cllr John Windley proposed Cllr Considine for Chair, which was Seconded by Cllr Saunders. A vote was called by Cllr Saunders and three voted in favour and none against. RESOLVED
05/17 Cooption: Cllr Considine explained that all legal documentation had been completed by Cllr Megan Windley and welcomed her to the meeting as a Councillor.
06/17 Clerk Update: Cllr Saunders said that the Board of Resolution and completion of a Variation Mandate had now been approved and implemented and he now had access to the Parish Council bank account and was now able to pay some of the long outstanding Parish Council invoices. Cllr Saunders said that the current bank balance for the Savings and Current accounts was £34,500 with income of £835 received in the past month.
Cllr Saunders explained that there is also a list of outstanding payments amounting to £5,219.87 that needed to be considered for authorisation during this Council meeting that had been circulated before the commencement of the Council meeting. Cllr Saunders read out the list of payments and explained each one in turn, including the final entry on the schedule which related to a payment of £1489.58 to Aylesbury Vale District Council (AVDC). Cllr Saunders explained that during the transition from the former Council to the present Council, AVDC had been asked to settle all urgent invoices on behalf of Stowe Parish Council. These invoices totaled £3239.58 and so AVDC had withheld the second half yearly payment of the Council’s Precept (£1,750), leaving a balance to of £1489.58to repay to AVDC.
Cllr Saunders then asked the meeting to agree that each invoice listed on the schedule be authorised for payment. A vote was called by Cllr Saunders and four voted in favour and none against. RESOLVED
Cllr Saunders then asked the Chair to countersign all the relevant bank cheques, to facilitate payment and asked the Chair to sign the schedule of invoices, a copy of which would be retained on file, along with the minutes of the meeting. RESOLVED
Cllr Saunders said that the Council has applied for a grant for a Parish Council website and a Council laptop computer. We are awaiting a response to our request. The Council can also apply for a grant for broadband service in the Village Hall but this will be considered later.
07/17 Facilities Manager Update: Cllr John Windley said that more work had been undertaken since the last meeting including the following:
Lighting
Progressed with Francis Jackson the reinstallation of the street light at Bannerlands.
Rights of Way
Agreement reached with AVDC for them to cut away grass encroaching on footpath linking High Street and allotments.
Village Hall
Uncovered and renovated original Village Hall Fireplace, which also revealed an old copy of the Radio Times that we will try to restore.
Removed Xmasdecorations in the Village Hall.
Purchased new hand water heater for Ladies Toilet (due to fault).
Old School House
Permanent repair to roof (where chimney was removed badly) by replacing and extending roofing tiles and installing guttering to prevent watersoaking wall, as advised by Surveyor.
08/17 Village Hall and Old School House Heating: Cllr Saunders reminded the meeting that the Village Hall and the Old School House were in a poor state of repair and suffering with significant signs of mold growing on the walls and ceilings. This presented an unacceptable living environment and could impact the health of the School House tenants and their children. Cllr Saunders reminded the Council that a Chartered Surveyor had been commissioned to undertake a full survey and that the Surveyorcited inadequate heating and ventilation as the primary cause of the mold.
Cllr Saunders also reminded the Council that they authorised him, during the last meeting in December 2016 to explore the possibility of installing a heating system to both the Village Hall and adjoining cottage. Cllr Saunders said he had now completed this work and could present to the Council three quotes. The quotes reflected a requirement to have a single oil tank, feeding a single boiler that then fed heat and hot water to both buildings. The cost of supplying the oil would be met by the Council but would be partly covered by an agreed increase in the rent paid by the Old School House tenants.
Cllr Saunders explained that we had requested several quotes but only three were prepared to provide a formal quote.
Cllr Saunders confirmed with the Council that they had seen all the detail of each quote, prior to the meeting and asked the Council for a proposal. Cllr Considine invited the Councillors,if they wished, to ask any questions or to make observations. Cllr John Windley said he had met two of the Contractors and they seemed professional and competent but preferred the local supplier due to their excellent reputation, their overall offer and the cost of their quote.
Cllr Saunders asked the Council to confirm they agreed the Council should proceed with the installation of a new heating system in the Village Hall and Old School House. A vote was called by Cllr Saunders and four voted in favour and none against. RESOLVED
Cllr Considine then proposed that the Council accept the middle-priced quote. This was seconded by Cllr John Windley. A vote was called and four voted in favour and none against. RESOLVED
Cllr Considine asked to state for the record that the Council were advised by our external auditor and later restated by Patrick Fealey, former Chair of Stowe Parish Council, that the Council must establish a project to make good use of the Parish Council funds and that the current Council felt this was the best use of Council funds. Cllr Saunders said that whilst this initiative was commenced by our former Council colleagues, the current Council feel this is important to maintain the integrity of our buildings, the welfare of our tenants and the comfort of the users of the village hall.
09/17 Village Hall Charges: The previous charges for parishioners was £2 per hour and £4 per hour for non- parishioners. The following charges are now proposed:
*For non-commercial events: £4 per hour for Parishioners £8 per hour for Non-Parishioners
*For commercial events: £8 per hour for Parishioners £16 per hour for Non-Parishioners
*Deposits for Weddings and Parties will be required - £50 for Parishioners and £100 per hour for Non-Parishioners (Refundable in full, subject to the condition of the Hall)
*Block bookings over 6 months must be paid by Standing Order
*Cancellations will be reimbursed subject to one week's notice
* New users are required to pay in advance
Cllr Saunders said it was proposed to remove the Electricity Coin Meter, making power and the proposed heating integral to the new charges. He said the charges were very favorable, compared to the charges imposed by other adjacent Parishes, some of which charge more than three times the proposed new charges.
Cllr Saunders asked the Council for a proposer for the new charges. Cllr Considine proposed the new charges and said they should be reviewed again in 12 months’ time. This was seconded by Cllr John Windley. A vote was called and four voted in favour and none against. RESOLVED
Cllr Saunders asked for a proposal for the date of implementation of the new charges. Cllr Considine said she preferred to implement this on 1stMarch, due to the limited communications within the Parish. This was proposed by Cllr John Windley and seconded by Cllr Considine. A vote was called and four voted in favour, none against. RESOLVED
10/17 AVDC Grants: Cllr Saunders said that the Council had submitted a Grant for a Council PC and a Council Web site. Despite several reminders he has received no update or replies to his emails. It was also considered appropriate to apply for a further grant for Village Hall Broadband service. This was agreed by all present. A vote was called and four voted in favour, none against. RESOLVED
11/17 Working Parties: Cllr Considine explained that there was little to report on the working parties. However, Ian Watkins is a specialist in accessibility and has offered to conduct a free audit report on the Village Hall and its approaches to enable us to comply with legislation and allow all visitors to the Hall who have disabilitiesto access and utilise the Council facilities. Cllr Considine also said we would eventually work towards accessibility for the entire Parish.
12/17 Broadband: Cllr Considine thanked Chris Hawkins for forwarding a BT Open Reachupdate on the status of broadband in the immediate area. Cllr Considine said it was the Council’s intention to establish faster broadband speeds for the Parish and was awaiting confirmation from interested parties as to when they wished to progress this on the Council’s behalf.
13/17 Correspondence: Cllr Saunders said that a parishioner had written to the Council regarding rubbish strewn along the roadside between Stowe Crossroads and Dadford. Cllr John Windley had addressed the issue and the rubbish was cleared later that same day.
Cllr Saunders read out a statement sent on behalf of Neil Blake, Leader of AVDC regarding the proposed changes to the five district and county authorities and the establishment of new unitary authorities. A copy is on the AVDC website. Anyone wishing to receive a copy should email Cllr Saunders.
14/17 Date of next meeting. Tuesday 14th February 2017 at 7.30pm
Open Forum for Parishioners: A Parishioner,clarified that the Church pays a lump sum of £200 p.a. for their use of the Village Hall.
Cllr Considine asked a Parishionerif he knew who owned/ managed the Village Graveyard. He said it was owned by the Church and maintained by the Council. It was suggested the Council meet with Church Warden Chris Close-Smith and Revd Sue Sampson.
Two Parishioners thanked the Council for all the work they had done in the past few months and for helping them with their difficulties in the cottage.
A Parishioner asked how the Council would establish who would use what fuel in heating both premises. Cllr Saunders explained that it was more cost effective to have a single system, rather than having two independent systems and we would use the increased rent paid by the tenants to support the cost of replenishing fuel. It was also asked what other heating the Council had considered. It was explained that the Council had explored air source and ground source heat pumps and alsosolar power but none of these were viable options for our buildings and requirements.
Cllr Considine reminded the attendees of the bus service to destinations north of the Parish that is available to all parishioners and that can be booked when required. Notices are on the boards.
Close of Meeting: 20.45 hrs
Chair’s Signature ...... Date......
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