PANGBOURNE PARISH COUNCIL
A meeting of the Parish Council was held at Pangbourne Village Hall on Tuesday 11th June 2013, commencing at 7.30 pm.
Present: Mrs B. Kerr Muir (Chairman), Mr J. Higgs, Dr K. Hawkins, Ms F. Hope,
Mrs J. Power, Mr G. Beckett,
Apologies: Mrs E. White, Mr G. Child, Mrs H. Leighton-Jones, Mr D. Taylor, Mr R. Holden
Mrs. P. Bale, WBC District Councillor, sent her apologies
Action374. / ACCEPTANCE OF OFFICE
Mrs Kerr Muir and Mr Higgs signed their Acceptance of Office.
375 / DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST RELEVANT TO AGENDA ITEMS
None
376. / MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE PARISH COUNCIL HELD ON 14th MAY 2013
The minutes of the meeting held on 14th May 2013, having earlier been circulated, were agreed as a correct record and were signed by the Chairman.
377. / MATTERS ARISING ON THESE MINUTES
356. Mr D. Taylor will be replaced on the Planning Committee by Mrs J. Power.
359. Mrs Kerr Muir and Ms Hope will be attending Local Listing training. This will also be attended by Mrs Nurick and Mr Davies from Pangbourne Heritage Group.
361. Mrs White will complete the leases and licences and it is hoped that these will be brought to the next meeting for final approval.
364. Aerial spraying by the Forestry Commission for Oak Processionary Moth has now taken place.
Mrs Bale has submitted a members Bid to enable electrical connection of Christmas lights to lamp standards in the centre of the village. The local businesses will, it is hoped, contribute towards the cost of lights.
365. Only one cutting has been taken of the orange roses at the village sign bed and it appears to be growing. / BKM/FH
378. / PLANNING
i. The planning applications reviewed since the last meeting were reported to the council (See attached list). Acceptance of these responses was proposed by Mr Higgs, seconded by Ms Hope and agreed by all.
ii Recent applications:
13/01222/FULD 22 Pages Gardens
No Objection
13/01108/AGRIC Tysoe Farm
No Objection
379. / FINANCE
i Ms Hope proposed an S137 donation of £200 to Pangbourne & Whitchurch Community Responders. This was seconded by Dr. Hawkins and unanimously agreed.
ii. Accounts reconciliation for period ending 31st May 2013 was accepted. This was proposed by Dr. Hawkins, seconded by Mr Higgs and agreed by all.
iii. Accounts for Payment
Resolved - that the list of items appended to the minutes be authorised for payment, such sums, amounting to £13,421.94, to be debited to the accounts of the Parish Council, proposed by Mrs Power, seconded by Mr. Beckett and agreed by all.
iv. It was agreed that S137 donations would be discussed at the next meeting and all councillors were asked to bring forward suggestions. / ALL
380. / TO RECEIVE A REPORT FROM THE DISTRICT COUNCILLOR
Mrs Bale was unable to attend the meeting but asked that the following points be made.
Mrs Bale thanked Mrs White and Mr Child for their roles as Chairman and Vice-Chairman over the last few years, especially Mrs White for her great contribution to the village. She welcomed Mrs Kerr Muir and Mr Higgs and thanked them for taking on the responsibility.
Mr Alok Sharma MP is arranging a public meeting to discuss police issues in the Village Hall on 25th July
[Please note – this meeting has subsequently been cancelled.]
381. / TO RECEIVE A REPORT FROM THE CHAIRMAN AND AGREE ANY ACTIONS NECESSARY TO TAKE MATTERS FORWARD
River Meadow Task Group and Whitchurch Bridge
Mrs Kerr Muir attended a meeting of the River Meadow Task Group last week. Mr Geoff Weir from the Whitchurch Bridge Company also attended and brought along the site agents for Birse – the contractors for the reconstruction of the bridge. The contractor also attended the fete to display the plans. The contractor wants to amend the plans slightly to enable access to the compound for long vehicles. All contractor vehicles will be parked in the compound and equipment stored there but not supplies. The main depot for supplies will be at Gatehampton.
The path for vehicles across the meadow will be fenced with manned gates wide enough to allow Adventure Dolphin to carry their canoes to the temporary landing stage.
Mr Weir will submit an article in the next issue of Pangbourne Magazine.
Meadow Farm has erected some barbed wire which prevents access to the area from Bourne Road.
The police horses were unable to attend the area as scheduled, but this has been rearranged for later in July.
It was reported that British Transport Police have been on the trains at weekends to prevent fare dodgers.
It was further reported that the cost of CCTV at Adventure Dolphin is very
high and may not be feasible.
Questions were asked about what will happen if the weather is very bad during construction of the bridge, but this is the responsibility of the contractor and the Whitchurch Bridge Company. Details of all diversion signs that are planned are available on the Whitchurch Bridge website.
Highways Group
Mrs Kerr Muir, Mr Higgs and Mrs Bale attended a meeting with Andrew Garratt WBC. The origination and destination traffic survey carried out by the Bridge Company has indicated that more vehicles than expected will go via Caversham. Whitchurch Bridge Company is paying for sophisticated software for the traffic lights at Streatley cross roads which should help monitor the traffic flow. There will be no, or very limited, parking on the route through Goring and Streatley.
WBC has applied for temporary parking restrictions for the whole of Pangbourne but will only use these if, or when, necessary. Mrs Kerr Muir will speak to the Working Men’s Club about use of their car park in the evening and over night. Mrs Hughes will notify all evening regular users of the Village Hall to let them know that there may be extra cars parking overnight in the car park in front of the Village Hall.
Work on he double yellow lines at Formosa Place is due to be carried out by 28th June.
The next meeting of the Neighbourhood Action Group is on 17th June at Purley.
Two Parish Councillors attended the session run by the Forestry Commission held on 4th June. This seminar told interested parties how to identify the Oak Processionary Moths.
Mrs Kerr Muir thanked Mr Derek Dutson for once again supplying the beautiful hanging baskets at the front of the Village Hall. / BKM
382. / TO ANSWER QUESTIONS FROM COUNCILLORS
A question was asked about the Viking ship on the Pangbourne logo. It is believed that an old Viking boat was found at one time in the Thames at or near Pangbourne.
383. / TO APPROVE ANNUAL ACCOUNTS FRO 2012/2013 PRIOR TO SUBMISSION TO EXTERNAL AUDITOR
It was reported that the annual accounts for 2012/2013 had been closely scrutinised line by line by the Finance and Compliance committee and had been found to be sound.
Resolved - that the Annual Accounts for 2012/2013 be approved prior to submission to the External Auditor. This was proposed by Dr Hawkins and seconded by Mr Higgs and unanimously agreed.
384. / TO REVIEW ANY QUOTES RECEIVED FOR SHED AT BACK OF HALL AND AGREE ANY ACTIONS NECESSARY TO TAKE THE MATTER FORWARD
Mr Holden has supplied a quote for a custom built shed. It was decided that off the shelf secure sheds should also be looked at. Mr Higgs agreed to look into this matter. / JH
385. / TO DISCUSS COMMUNICATIONS PLAN AND AGREE ANY ACTIONS NECESSARY TO TAKE THE MATTER FORWARD
Some work has been carried out on the website, but documents are still difficult to find and more work is required. Feeds from Twitter and Face book have been activated. It was agreed that, as this was work in progress and some on a trial basis, all councillors should make sure they follow these activities, so that any concerns can be dealt with.
It was agreed that the Flicker feed would be dropped at this time.
Mr Taylor has suggested that the website is an ideal opportunity to carry out a simple questionnaire with residents in Pangbourne about village life; This should also be an opportunity to engage with younger residents. In the past, responses to questionnaires have come mostly from the older section of the village. It is hoped that this can be done in the autumn. It is also hoped to perhaps have a photo competition for all residents. / ALL
386. / TO DISCUSS AIMS& OBJECTIVES TRACKING MECHANISM AND AGREE ANY ACTIONS NECESSARY TO TAKE THE MATTER FORWARD.
It was agreed that with a few minor amendments the Aims & Objectives document can go on the website. It will be necessary to actually track and review these objectives and each committee should be delegated its own areas. It will also be necessary to incorporate the Village Plan Refresh Action Plan and ensure all of these actions are covered. Mrs Kerr Muir and Mr Taylor will contact the committee chairmen to discuss this. / BKM/DT
387. / REPORTS FROM COMMITTEES AND WORKING PARTIES
Grounds – minutes of the last meeting have been circulated. The possibility of an adult gym should be discussed at the next Grounds Committee meeting
Village Hall – minutes of the last meeting have been circulated. Mrs White asked that Mr Dutson be thanked for the beautiful hanging baskets he has provided.
Finance & Compliance – the possibility of extra admin support was discussed and this will be costed. The clerk will attend a Cemetery Management course. All councillors were reminded that any press enquiries should be dealt with by the chairman and clerk only.
388. / CORRESPONDENCE
1. Scottish & Southern Energy – notification of connection to new houses at Thames Avenue
2. Invitation to Resolve Community Mediation Skills – 10th Sept to 9th Oct.
3. Pangbourne Action for the Homeless Newsletter – May 2013
4. WBC – Pedestrian Crossing Improvements & Traffic Calming & Transport Consultation
5. WBC Yearbook 2013/12014
6. District Parish Conference Event – 8th Oct. 2013
7. Work Mentoring Network
8. North Wessex Downs AONB – June 2013
9. Yattendon Road Closure 3rd/4th June 09.30 – 16.00
10. Spend Intervention Programme – Seminar 3rd July
11. Armed Forces Day – Fly a Flag – 29th June
12. CCB – Action for All E-Bulletin
13. Oak Processionary Moth Pangbourne Survey – 4th June
14. Village Sign Bed info.
15. Community Infrastructure levy Draft Charging Schedule
16. Pangbourne NAG – 17th June at 4.00pm at Purley
17. Ashampstead Road, Bradfield – road closure 14th June
18. Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre Newsletter
389. / ITEMS FOR INFORMATION ONLY
The clerk will be on holiday from 28th June until 12th July inclusive. During this time Mr Higgs will be responsible for the cemetery.
Mrs Kerr Muir will be on holiday from 21st June to 28th June inclusive.
390. / CLOSURE
There being no further business the Chairman closed the meeting at 9.36pm
The date of the next meeting is 16th July 2013 at 7.30pm.
______Chairman ______Date
4
File: PPC 11th June 2013.doc